Day: April 20, 2014

Jeswan Kaur| April 20, 2014
Free Malaysia Today

Karpal Singh’s no-nonsense approach to BN’s machievallian ways of staying in power scared the wits out of those standing in his way for a just nation

COMMENT

If there was one voice that dared rattle the ruling government of Barisan Nasional, it was that of DAP’s Karpal Singh. His no-nonsense reaction to the BN leadership’s machievallian ways of staying in power scared the wits out of the ruling government. And it also made BN dislike Karpal, because he had the guts to pull the rug from beneath the federal government’s feet.

For over four decades as a politician, Karpal did just that – raising the red flag and cautioning the BN government of the latter’s nefarious ways of administering the country. The nation’s leaders, instead of taking cognisance of Karpal’s wise counsel, did the contrary – they punished him for speaking the truth.

The October 1987 Operasi Lalang saw Karpal along with many other opposition politicians detained, purportedly for inciting “racial tension”. He remained in prison until January 1989 and was declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International.

Karpal was detained under the now defunct Internal Security Act. If BN leaders thought the political hardships thrown at Karpal would scare him, they were in for a rude surprise.

Karpal refused to cower under pressure. His fight for a Malaysia that was fair and just was endless with the indefatigable Karpal determined to battle corrupt powers until the end. Continue reading “One voice that dared rattle the establishment”

By Zalinah Noordin and Michael Murty
The Rakyat Post
20.4.2014

GEORGE TOWN, April 20:

The streets of Penang today were filled with tens of thousands of people from all walks of life who came out to celebrate the life of the late Karpal Singh.

The day started as early as 6am at Karpal’s residence today with many gathering outside his bungalow in Jalan Utama even before the gates were opened at 7.30am.

Things started to pick up from there as Karpal’s hearse left his home, accompanied by his eldest son, Jagdeep Singh Deo. Continue reading “A grand send-off for the Tiger of Jelutong”

by Himanshu Bhattand Sangeetha Amarthalingam And Azril Annuar

FZ.COM
Apr 20, 2014

GEORGE TOWN (April 20): It was the sort of send-off never before seen by Malaysians in living memory.The dramatic outpouring of of adulation as the cortege of the late Karpal Singh passed through the streets of his hometown of Penang will surely reverberate in the annals of our history.

It was indeed a sumptuous tribute to a most iconic and colourful hero of our times.

Karpal, 74, who passed away in an accident in the pre-dawn hours of April 17, was neither a minister nor an official dignitary, and did not hold any position in the government.

He was an opposition parliamentarian and an advocate noted for his courageous and bold stands for various segments of society.

At the same time he was reviled by the powers that be for his indignant and untiring efforts to weed out malpractices and misgovernment.

Karpal, had in his long and eventful career in law and politics been famously incarcerated without trial under the draconian Internal Security Act.

In fact, prior to his death he was on the verge of appealing a sedition-related sentence of RM4,000 fine which would have stripped him of his status as an MP for Bukit Gelugor.

However, as it had so happened, the immense tributes and public grief from all segments of society at the epilogue of his life have appeared as vindication of his unwavering commitment to stick by his principles, no matter the challenges heaped against him. Continue reading “Awe, hysteria and vindication at Karpal’s funeral”

The following are my tweets today on Karpal Singh’s political tsunami of a funeral:

1. Today 20/4/14 countless Msians, physically or in spirit, will accompany the Tiger of Jelutong on his last journey. pic.twitter.com/DRoqIyTOMj

2. Even before arrival of Karpal’s cortege at Dewan Sri Penang for public lying-in-state, large crowds have gathered to pay their last respects

3. Vibrant air of expectancy with cortege arrival at Dewan Sri Pinang – mark of a great man who has left behind great imprints in sands of time

4. Sombre entry of Karpal’s cortege into Dewan Sri Pinang with heart-rending “Oh when the saints go marching in” and “auld Lang Syne”.

5. Old and young, men and women, of all races, religions, regions filed past in swift unceasing flow in love n last respect 4Karpal – 1MALAYSIA! Continue reading “Tweets on Karpal’s political tsunami of a funeral”

Lim Guan Eng
Malaysiakini
Apr 20, 2014

EULOGY We mourn the untimely and unexpected passing of DAP national chairperson and Member of Parliament for Bukit Gelugor, Saudara Karpal Singh.

Karpal is an eight-term MP, for Bukit Gelugor and Jelutong, as well as a three- term state assemblyman in Penang, first elected in 1978.

For 40 years, Karpal dedicated his life to the legal profession, fighting for justice, upholding our constitutional rights to freedom and human rights. His landmark cases are textbook references for lawyers.

A devoted father and husband to his wife Gurmit Kaur, both of them brought up five children who are all successful practising lawyers, except for the youngest who is an accountant. The eldest, Jagdeep is at present a Penang state executive councillor, while the second eldest Gobind is the Member of Parliament for Puchong.

With his life suddenly cut short at 74 years, following the tragic accident on the highway on April 17, Penang has lost an upstanding and outstanding leader and lawyer. The rakyat lost a fearless “tiger” with an indomitable spirit who stood up for the poor, weak, defenceless and dispossessed.

Karpal’s fighting spirit stands out

But it his fighting spirit that stands out. You can detain Karpal physically, but you can never detain his spirit. Continue reading “Mourn, but fete Karpal’s achievements, too”

BY SHAZWAN MUSTAFA KAMAL
The Malaysian Insider
APRIL 20, 2014

GEORGE TOWN, April 20 — The streets of Penang’s historical city centre roared with the voices of thousands calling out the name of their state’s beloved son — Karpal Singh.

Elbows jostled with shoulders as admirers of the late lawyer and lawmaker surged through a sea of bodies for a final glimpse of their hero as his casket was loaded onto a hearse for the state funeral procession around the streets of George Town, where Karpal had studied, set up his legal practice, fought epic courtroom battles and debated the law.

Emotions ran high as the huge crowd, which had gathered in front of Dewan Sri Pinang as early as 7am, shouted in unison “Karpal Singh! Karpal Singh! Karpal Singh!”

Banners and posters bearing the deceased Bukit Gelugor MP’s familiar face were placed all over the entrance of the building; tents were erected to allow visitors a place to rest and to shelter from the sweltering heat.

Inside the town hall, family members recited last prayer rites for Karpal. Outside the chanting tumult swelled to a roar. Continue reading “In funeral procession, thousands chant ‘Karpal Singh! Karpal Singh! Karpal Singh’ (VIDEO)”

Paul Farrell in Perth
Guardian
19 April 2014

Fifteen-hour days are par for the course for the unsung heroes on the frontline of the aerial search for the missing plane

On the frontline of the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, one brief second can make all the difference.

“You might have a second or a second and a half between seeing something and it disappearing from your view,” said Jim Maclean, one of the searchers who has been with the Perth state emergency service (SES) for 32 years.

“So you’ve got to look at it, identify it and decide whether it warrants being called in before it disappears out the side of your view. It’s quite intense, you’ve got to be really concentrating all the time,” he said.

But the group of people doing perhaps the most important job in the search are taking on the task without payment. The SES air search observers are ordinary Australians and they are all volunteers. There are now more than 200 involved in the search from across the country, who have put in more than 2,000 hours of flight time searching for the missing plane. Continue reading “SES volunteers the eagle eyes of the MH370 search”

– Sakmongkol AK47
The Malaysian Insider
April 19, 2014

Are the tears of a grieving non-Muslim widow any different from the tears of a grieving Muslim widow? Are the tears and feeling of absolute loss by non-Muslim sons and daughters any different than those of the same who are Muslims?

They are undeniably the same.

It does not matter if some people took the opportunity from the death of Mr Karpal Singh, lawyer and MP for Bukit Gelugor to make fun and revel in derisive jubilation. It only reflects their upbringing. In the immortal words of Michael Caine in the war movie The Eagles Have Landed- they remind me of something I occasionally pick up on my shoe in the gutter, very unpleasant on a hot day. Continue reading “My tribute to Karpal Singh”

The Guardian/Reuters
19 April 2014

Indian Ocean hunt by US navy deep-sea vehicle narrows to an area with a radius of just 10km

The underwater search for the flight recorders from the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 could be completed in five to seven days, Australian officials said on Saturday.

A US navy deep-sea autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV), Bluefin-21, is scouring a remote stretch of the Indian Ocean floor for signs of the plane, which disappeared from radars on 8 March with 239 people on board and is believed to have crashed in the area.

The underwater search has been narrowed to a circular area with a radius of 10km (6.2 miles) around the location from which one of four pings believed to have come from the recorders was detected on 8 April, officials said.

The huge international search-and-rescue effort for any physical evidence of the plane’s wreckage, now in its seventh week, had so far proved fruitless. Continue reading “MH370 flight recorders search to be completed within seven days”

— Omar Kutty
The Malay Mail Online
April 17, 2014

APRIL 17 — Dear Gobind and family,

It was with great sadness to hear about the tragic circumstances surrounding the death of a father, a husband and a teacher, Sir Karpal Singh. I cannot begin to understand the shock and disbelief that you must be feeling.

I know how difficult this must be for you and family. You are in my thoughts and prayers. This is a hard note to write, but I want you to know that I am thinking of you even though I don’t know what to say.

He was a legal lion, a man with principles. He fought and struggle for democracy and human rights. I would like to honour him as a Malaysian hero, as a man who sacrificed his freedom, his time and was willing to pay the price to protect and defend the well-being of others irrespective of race or religion. Continue reading “Tribute to a Malaysian hero”

― Zairee Othman
The Malay Mail Online
April 19, 2014

APRIL 19 ― I feel compelled to share my stories in light of the recent withdrawal of speaking invitation from MASCA to Tony Pua, a Member of Parliament from DAP. Although this came not as a total surprise, I have been constantly disappointed with the endless attempts by government officials who try to control Malaysian student-movements, overseas or locally.

I was asked by a good friend of mine to give my take on this issue in my capacity as a project manager of a previous conference in Melbourne in 2010, which also involved politicians.

In 2010, we held our first ever public debate and conference in Australia called Malaysian Aspiration Program (MAP). The conference was fully organised by students and we had the privilege to host 4 speakers as our guest panellists ― i.e. a Malaysian university professor, the then President of Australia-Malaysia Business Council (AMBC), President of IDEAS (Tunku Zain al-‘Abidin), and YB Tony Pua. Continue reading “Melbourne’s MAP 2010: A response to the withdrawal of speaking invite to YB Tony Pua in Melbourne”

Abdar Rahman Koya
The Malaysian Insider
April 19, 2014

The Malay adage “Harimau mati tinggalkan belang, manusia mati tinggalkan nama” (A tiger leaves behind its stripes, a man leaves behind his deeds) can’t be more apt in describing the passing away of the Tiger of Jelutong.

Karpal Singh was both a tiger whose stripes patterned the Malaysian political landscape for so long, and a man whose name dominated contemporary Malaysian legal history. The courts and the Parliament will have a hard time shedding away his stripes for a long time.

In court, Karpal’s presence is a signal that a case is to be treated as important, deserving the widest coverage. He can choose to represent a food stall owner, or a former deputy prime minister, and both cases would be keenly observed by the legal fraternity. For when Karpal is the lawyer, it is not how a case would end, it is how it was argued in court.

Karpal proved that a good lawyer is not someone who never loses a case, but someone who takes the most difficult one and stands not a chance to either acquit or get a huge sum rewarded to his client. Continue reading “Karpal’s dead body still no walkover”

By Opalyn Mok
The Malaysian Insider
April 19, 2014

GEORGE TOWN, April 19 — The house at Number 144A Jalan Utama has seen a ceaseless stream of visitors since morning.

They came from all walks of life, mostly in groups, sometimes alone to offer their condolences to the family of the late Karpal Singh.

And to pay homage to the man they had greatly respected in life for his dedication to serving his fellow men, fighting their battles in Parliament and in court, unwavering in his steadfast belief in the rule of law.

The small group that managed to squeeze in after lunch had travelled all the way from Malacca.

On the faces of the late Teoh Beng Hock’s family was the sombre look that signalled the grief of a loved one snatched from life all too soon.

But their faces also wore the knowledge that even death does not halt the pursuit of justice. Continue reading “In Karpal, slain Beng Hock’s kin saw a beacon of hope”