Tung Shin should put people before gov’t

Malaysiakini Your Say | Jul 15, 11

‘Tung Shin missed the point: as a social entity with a mission, who should Tung Shin entertain first – the police or those who need help?’

Doctors: We’ll produce more evidence if challenged

Cala: Honorary secretary of Tung Shin Hospital board Chong Teck Hong has turned Tung Shin into a state apparatus.

From Chong’s perspective, the assumption is that the hospital is both a private property as well as a common-pool resource. The property is privately-owned by a certain entity or corporation. It is also common-pool resource, similar to commercial shopping centres like Subang Parade, since it cannot reject anybody from entering.

But Chong may have missed the point: What if the persons who wished to take refuge from the hospital were suffering from injuries inflicted upon them by police, say from water cannons and canisters?

As a social entity with a mission, who would you entertain first? Is Tung Shin now saying they would encourage police to do their job first? Or aren’t they supposed to attend to those who need help?

In effect, what Chong really says is from now on Tung Shin is part of the regime, similar to any state apparatus – the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, police, army, and judiciary.

140V: Article 18, Part II of the Fourth Geneva Convention (Aug 12, 1949) states clearly that: “Civilian hospitals organised to give care to the wounded and sick, the infirm and maternity cases, may in no circumstances be the object of attack but shall at all times be respected and protected by the Parties to the conflict.”

Ally Meme: Anyone asking around in the hospital would have found out the truth. This is certainly a case of an arrogant Liow Tiong Lai as health minister who thought the hospital management and staff would not dare to say anything contrary to his statement.

My hats off to these doctors for upholding an international convention. Hospitals are sanctuary for all.

Multi Racial: Liow is getting annoying. What more evidence does he need? Photos and videos of the incident are all over the place. Is he blind or in denial? Now he blames the hospital management for not informing him?

Swipenter: Liow, twisting and turning at this juncture won’t change the fact that you were lying with a straight face when you defended the lie that the police did not violate the sanctity of Tung Shin Hospital.

You now to shift the onus to the management of Tung Shin Hospital for not mentioning that the police fired tear gas and sprayed chemical laced water into the hospital ground?

Are you suggesting that you didn’t read the news coming out from cyberspace but yet you twitted to defend yourself? Have you no decency to apologise to the hospital, her staff and patients and the Malaysian public? Or you are waiting for investigation (whatever that means) to be completed?

Why don’t you challenge the doctors to show proof to make it easier for yourself so that you can apologise?

Fair_Election: It’s pretty simple, all you need to do is say is: “I’m sorry, I’ve made a mistake.” Would you rather live a lie than say that you were wrong? What so wrong about admitting a mistake? The reason Umno/BN is where it is today is because they have been arrogant and too proud to admit their mistakes. The rakyat would be kinder to you if you were more modest.

One Hand Covers The Sky: How can the health minister say that “the hospital authority did not tell him about the eyewitnesses in the incident” as if he was not aware of the Bersih rally last Saturday, where thousands of people clogged up Puduraya, which is in the vicinity of Tung Shin Hospital? Is he that busy and ignorant, or just pretending as if nothing happened at the hospital.

Liow, you are either out of touch with the reality of the things happening around you or you are not interested in knowing and caring about the rakyat who elected you as their representative in the government.

Better resign now, or either your Liow clansmen will disown you and you’ll be known as Liow the Liar.

Henry Hock: I happened to be in Tung Shin yesterday. Being a busybody, I asked several nurses and guards whether the tear gas really came in. All gave same quick replied, “No”. And like a robot, they all gave the same reason: “I was on leave”.

I asked a guard. I can see his eyes repeatedly ‘bouncing’ from side to side and he hesitantly said, “Tak ada lah”. His colleagues shook their heads and said “Kami on leave”. That guard then said, “Ya, ya, ya, saya cuti kerja”.

But I retorted, “Kalau you cuti, mana you tahu itu (gas and water) tak masuk?” He just smiled.

I don’t know whether they have all have been sternly instructed to say the same thing. But I salute to the brave doctors who are not afraid to say what they saw.

Joshua: I am sure many people are proud of the doctors for their boldness in coming forward. We plead for people in high places to be transparent, but I doubt it will happen.

Watch out, doctors, some of those very people in high office may at this moment be concocting plans on how to harm you.

Rocky: Liow Tiong Lai should resign because he had refuted evidence, but he blames the board of Tung Shin Hospital. Tung Shin’s chairman of the board should tell us the truth.

If he can’t defend himself, then he and those in attendance with the minister should resign, while the PM Najib Abdul Razak, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and IGP Ismail Omar should apologise.

Even prisoners of war have rights, why not our own rakyat? Police and ministers, please respect houses of worship and hospitals.

Suhakam to probe ‘police brutality’ during rally

SusahKes: Sure, go right ahead, Suhakam, do all the ‘inquiry’ you want. But then after you have compiled a massive report, you will hand it over to the same government that rubber stamped NFA (no further action) on VK Lingam’s file.

And while you’re ‘studying’ the terms and reference of such an inquiry, most Malaysians have already made up their mind. So please do spare a thought when you are sit around to discuss the matter, whilst enjoying the ‘karipap’ and ‘teh tarik’ funded by taxpayers.

Rayfire: Will it be for real this time? Since before such attempts fizzled out after the government voiced concern. Will Suhakam remain impartial and report the truth, for once? I do hope so, otherwise the Bersih generation will go against you.

Chipmunk: Suhakam, face the truth. You guys are toothless. Unless you are able to convince the rakyat you’ll take concrete and firm action, please do not waste the taxpayers’ money just to show the world that Umno/BN is a just and caring government. Maybe you should consider giving the IGP (police chief) tuition in maths, since he can’t differentiate between 6,000 and 50,000.

David Dass: This is a healthy development. And we should welcome it. Suhakam was established for a purpose. Let them do what they were set up to do. The police must know that they are subject to law and their behavior is subject to public scrutiny.

If among them are those who have misbehaved, let them be brought to book. We should use every legal avenue available to us to bring about positive change in the country.

Fellow Malaysian: So the ground work in the investigation has been established and the many accounts of PDRM’s over-zealous and excessive use of force have been documented. This looks simple enough.

The more important thing is to obtain a an appropriate commission of inquiry from the government to start proceedings and hear the case.

Suhakam, from the looks of your past record and credentials, the rakyat are dismayed and far from being satisfied with it. It is time you stand up and be counted. Debunk the label of being called a ‘toothless tiger’.

Your moment has come to set the record straight. The rakyat will not blame you for trying hard to defend them.