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Sabah: Mahathir’s failed attempt at social engineering

By Erna Mahyuni | The Malaysian Insider

MARCH 6 — To paint the Sabah situation as “virtuous Sabah natives” against “invading foreign terrorists” is far too simplistic.

The reality is as complex as Sabah’s political landscape, enmeshed in history and complicated by the notion of statehood.

Farish Noor explains the complicated history of the various people of North Borneo and the Philippines in his column where he says:

“In the midst of the chest-thumping, saber-rattling jingoism and hyper-nationalism we see rising in both Philippines and Malaysia today, we ought to take a step back and look at ourselves honestly in the face.”

Historically the people of Sabah are a complex mix. With the formation of countries and borders, people who are connected by history and blood are now separated by that thing we call “citizenship.”

Sabah artist Yee I-Lan sums up that divide in one of the pictures from her “Sulu stories” series.

Of the subjects in the photo, Yee says: “One carries Malaysian identity, the other Filipino. They come from the same sea and place and knowledge.”

But while we must acknowledge history, we have to address present realities. Continue reading “Sabah: Mahathir’s failed attempt at social engineering”

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Doubts emerge over assault on invaders

M Jegathesan, AFP/Malaysiakini
Mar 5, 2013

The military today launched a fierce assault including jet fighters on up to 300 Filipino intruders after a deadly three-week standoff, but the militants’ supporters said they had escaped and were alive and well.

Earlier federal police chief had also raised doubts about the success of the air and ground attack, saying “mopping up” operations had yet to find any bodies and suggesting at least some of the militants might have slipped away.

Premier Najib Abdul Razak said as the raid was under way that he had no choice but to unleash the military to end Malaysia’s biggest security crisis in years after the interlopers refused to surrender and 27 people were killed.

A day after the Philippines called for restraint, Malaysia launched a dawn assault on the estimated 100-300 gunmen on Borneo island, who invaded to claim Malaysian territory on behalf of a former Philippine sultanate.

Fighter jets bombed the standoff village of Tanduo in Sabah state on the northern tip of Borneo island, followed by a ground assault by troops. The area is set amid vast oil-palm plantations.

“The longer this invasion lasts, it is clear to the authorities that the invaders do not intend to leave Sabah,” Najib said in a statement.

But Abraham Idjirani, spokesman for the sultan Jamalul Kiram III, told AFP the attack had occurred “away from where” their men were, saying he spoke with the leader of the armed group about eight hours after the assault was launched. Continue reading “Doubts emerge over assault on invaders”

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Cabinet tomorrow should give mandate to Najib to summon emergency Parliament to defend national sovereignty and protect security of Sabahans and security forces personnel

DAP and Pakatan Rakyat fully support all necessary measures in the Sabah Sulu crisis to defend the honour and sovereignty of the nation and to protect the security and safety of the people of Sabah and the security forces personnel.

The Sabah Sulu crisis is no partisan issue but affects the national sovereignty and security of the people of Sabah and the security forces personnel stationed in the state, and for this reason, all Malaysians, political parties and coalitions must rise above their differences to take a common position to advance the national cause and the people’s fundamental rights to peace, safety and livelihood.

It is for this reason that immediately after the Lahad Datu shootout last Friday, where two police commandoes were killed, the DAP leadership called on all Malaysians to rally as one people to face the Sabah Sulu crisis. Continue reading “Cabinet tomorrow should give mandate to Najib to summon emergency Parliament to defend national sovereignty and protect security of Sabahans and security forces personnel”

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Fighter jets bomb Kg Tanduo, villagers flee area

Live Reports
Malaysiakini
8:22AM Mar 5, 2013

The operation to remove the foreign intruders from Kg Tanduo, where more than 100 gunmen have holed up for three weeks began at 7am today.

——————————————————————————–

LIVE REPORTS

10.17am: Quoting a report from ANC News Channel, InterAksyon.com reports that bombs were being dropped about a kilometer away from where Azzimudie Kiram and his men were located.

Leader Azzimudie says his group could not yet determine if the bombs were meant to target them or their followers, but they remained safe and secure and were ready to fight back.

Meanwhile in Manila, a group of protesters have arrived at the Malaysia embassy to condemn the attack.

10.15am: Azzimudie Kiram, leader of the intruders, vents his anger at the Philippine government in a radio interview with InterAksyon.com, the online news portal of Philippine TV channel TV5.

“The government is ordering the arrest of our companions even if we haven’t done anything bad,” he said. “It’s like we aren’t Filipinos.”

Meanwhile, Abraham Idjarani, spokesperson of the sultanate, tells radio station dzBB that Azzimudie had phoned to inform them of the start of the assault.

“There is nothing to be done about that now,” Idjirani said in a separate interview with AFP.

He stressed that Azzimudie’s earlier announcement that they will fight to the end remains.

“We are not intruders. They (Malaysians) are the ones occupying our ancestral land,” he says.

10.09am: Police have set up a checkpoint on the main road in Tanjung Labian, which is about 5km from the site of hostilities. No one are allowed into the area.

The sounds of bombings have stopped in the last one hour. It is unclear whether ground troops have moved in as Kampung Tanduo has been off-limit to journalists since the stand-off began.

10.05am: In Manila, a team of police and journalists are gathering outside the Malaysian embassy. They are expecting a group of protesters to arrive there.

9.55am: Azzimudie Kiram confirmed during an interview with ABS-CBN’s dzMM radio that Malaysian forces are using fighter jets in the latest attack on their position in Lahad Datu.

The royal army’s leader also expressed his disappointment over Philippine President Benigno Aquino’s position on the crisis.

He said that the governments of Malaysia and the Philippines has obviously stopped listening to their calls for a peaceful resolution of the standoff. Continue reading “Fighter jets bomb Kg Tanduo, villagers flee area”

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Why are our troops still on the defensive?

― Hussaini Abdul Karim
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 04, 2013

MARCH 4 ― Based on the reports and images as shown in our mainstream newspapers on the standoff between our troops and the armed Sulu group at Kampong Tanduo, many things seem to be wrong.

Firstly, while there are some members of the troops who were seen to be donning bullet-proof vests, none were wearing helmets. Some were seen wearing long-sleeved tee-shirts and standard ‘soft’ headgear, bandanas and some were not even wearing any headgear at all, especially the members of the VAT 69. Many were also seen not wearing bullet-proof vests. This is most surprising and wrong.

We are not cowboys on horses fighting against Red Indians armed with arrows, spears and axes!

Malaysian soldiers guarding the area were, however, seen wearing helmets and bullet-proof vests.

Mind you, unprotected bodies and unprotected heads aren’t bullet proof!

Secondly, there doesn’t seem to be any trenches and bunkers with sandbags to protect troops who are keeping watch and who came into contact with the enemy, resulting in eight already dead. Soldiers taking defensive positions must be dug in, whether in bunkers or trenches. They should not be taking up positions where they can be seen and shot at.

What I wrote above is basic modern warfare tactics, and in the standoff at Semporna, even these basics are not followed.

I was a soldier before and I do know something about basic modern warfare tactics. Continue reading “Why are our troops still on the defensive?”

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Worried over security crisis, but Sabahans warn against stereotyping Filipinos

By Ida Lim
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 05, 2013

File photo of police commandos on alert where the armed Filipino militants are holding up in a plantation outside Lahad Datu. — Reuters picKUALA LUMPUR, March 5 — While worried about their safety as armed foreigners roam the Sabah east coast, Sabahans have warned against stereotyping the thousands of Filipinos living in the Borneo state.

Followers of a claimant to the Sulu sultanate’s throne landed in Lahad Datu on February 9 to revive their claim to Sabah but clashes with police have left eight Malaysian policemen and 20 militants dead over the weekend.

“Yes. Too much chaos. I can’t take it. I just want Sabah to be peaceful again. No more bloodshed. But at the same time, I don’t want our leaders to make decisions without thinking,” 26-year-old Sabahan Audrey W. told The Malaysian Insider.

She had a lot of unanswered questions over the armed rebels who had set foot three-weeks ago in Kampung Tanduo, a village about 130km from Lahad Datu, asking: “How did they land in Sabah? Who allowed them?”

But she also pointed out that a number of Filipinos in the Borneo state have lived happily and were friendly with the locals for decades without problems.

“My parents are serving in a church where there are a lot of Filipinos and Indonesians members, church goers. My parents have been working so closely with them. They are very friendly and helpful and generous, giving people,” said Audrey, who works in a law firm in the state capital Kota Kinabalu.

“However there are a lot of Filipinos in Sabah. If they really want to retaliate or rise up, it’s actually quite scary. Most Sabahans are fearful for their safety,” she said.

Esther Chin, 23, also from Kota Kinabalu, appeared puzzled when commenting on the self-proclaimed followers of the Sultanate of Sulu who are now claiming that Sabah belongs to them, saying she did not understand why they suddenly wanted to “rise up”. Continue reading “Worried over security crisis, but Sabahans warn against stereotyping Filipinos”

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The real fuss is the Sabah crisis

― Abdul Samad Sulaiman
The Malaysian Insider
March 04, 2013

MARCH 4 ― What a show we had today at the National Monument. Bet it was the first time the likes of Rahim Noor, Samsuri Arshad and other former IGPs have even graced the place of fallen heroes in recent years!

The jokers have no standing to comment on Sabah or, for that matter, anywhere in Malaysia. While they were enjoying the “perks” of the top job, Sabah was being flooded by illegals and recipients of Project IC.

Did Rahim and his so-called patriots kick up a fuss about the acts of high treason in giving away Malaysian citizenships to people who did not qualify ― people who today hold Sabahans at ransom in their own state?

Did any of them resign in protest when the Mahathir administration opened our borders wantonly?

No, they didn’t. And now they shed crocodile tears for the loss of real heroes, and they are falling over themselves to score some points with the government by feigning indignation at that lightweight, Tian Chua.

Tian Chua may be stupid and callous, but he did not kill Malaysian policemen. Continue reading “The real fuss is the Sabah crisis”

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Dato’ Seri Najib Razak sewajarnya menumpukan usaha memastikan kedaulatan wilayah negara, keselamatan rakyat Sabah dan anggota pasukan keselamatan

Kenyataan media pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat

Setiap pimpinan mana-mana negara sekalipun bertanggungjawab mempertahan kedaulatan wilayah negara, keselamatan rakyat dan anggota pasukan keselamatan.

Kegagalan mempertahankan kedaulatan negara dan keselamatan rakyat merupakan satu pengkhianatan serta menodai amanah rakyat. Justeru Pakatan Rakyat berhasrat mengingatkan pimpinan negara agar tegas mempertahankan kedaulatan wilayah negara dan tidak alpa memastikan keselamatan setiap rakyat Malaysia, terutamanya di Sabah ekoran dari insiden pencerobohan sekumpulan bersenjata warga asing di sekitar Lahad Datu serta Semporna. Setiap inci tanah Sabah dan keselamatan rakyatnya wajib dipertahankan.

Pencerobohan di Lahad Datu telah mengorbankan dua nyawa perwira negara manakala insiden terbaru di Semporna pula mengorbankan enam nyawa perwira negara. Kita merakamkan ucapan takziah buat keluarga mereka dan rakyat Sabah serta berdoa moga roh mereka dicucuri rahmat.

Pakatan Rakyat juga mengajak seluruh rakyat Malaysia untuk tetap teguh mendokong pasukan keselamatan, samada dari pihak polis atau tentera. Kita berdoa moga mereka kekal selamat serta bersemangat mempertahankan negara dan rakyat Malaysia dari ancaman penceroboh.
Continue reading “Dato’ Seri Najib Razak sewajarnya menumpukan usaha memastikan kedaulatan wilayah negara, keselamatan rakyat Sabah dan anggota pasukan keselamatan”

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The Federal Government should now priortise on guarenteeing our territorial integrity and security

Lahad Datu Statement from Pakatan Leadership

Any leader of any country must defend his nation’s sovereignty and the security of his people.

Failing to do so is a grave betrayal of the people’s trust in its government. Therefore, Pakatan Rakyat urges the present national leadership to do that which is required of them, to defend our land and never to compromise the safety of each and every Malaysian, and the test of those principles is ongoing in and around Sabah’s Lahad Datu and Semporna with the escalating violence brought by armed foreigners.

In Lahad Datu two of members of our security forces have lost their lives, while the latest acts in Semporna have claimed six of our men in uniform. We express our sincere condolences to these men’s families and may God bless them for they have given the highest sacrifice for a grateful nation.

Pakatan Rakyat calls on all Malaysians to show unreserved support to our security forces, both the police and military. And pray that they remain safe while defending our nation and its people from harm.

Pakatan realises the recent incidents in Sabah raise concern and fear, but we urge the public to remain calm and not to act rashly and hurt their fellow countrymen.
Continue reading “The Federal Government should now priortise on guarenteeing our territorial integrity and security”

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Pengiraan Detik 39 Hari ke PRU13: Cadangan agar ditubuhkan majlis semua pihak untuk membantu menguruskan krisis Sabah dan menyeru Najib untuk membuat lawatan segera ke Sabah

Dikala rakyat Malaysia masih berkabung untuk kematian dua wira negara, komando polis Insp Zulkifli Mamat 29 dan Sabaruddin Daud 46 yang terbunuh di dalam insiden tembak menembak dengan penceroboh bersenjata Sulu di Kampung Tanduo Lahad Datu pada pagi Jumaat, tiga lagi komando cedera, negara dikejutkan lagi pagi ini dengan berita bahawa terdapat dua lagi polis maut di Semporna malam semalam.

Rakyat Malaysia bangun pagi ini dengan berita sedih bahawa “Polis terbunuh bertempur dengan militan Filipino di Semporna” tetapi menjelang tengah hari, pihak polis mengesagkan terdapat dua pegawai polis yang terbunuh di dalam serang hendap di Kampung Seri Jaya Siminul, sebuah perkampungan atas air, di Semporna pada sekitar 6.30 petang semalam – dan yang ketiga sedang bertarung nyawa di hopistal awam di Semporna.

Namun yang lebih buruk bakal terjadi, apabila rakyat Malaysia mendapati berita sidang akhbar bersama pertama oleh polis dan tentera di Felda Sahabat Residence, Lahad Datu selepas tiga minggu stand-off dengan penceroboh bersentaja Sulu di Kampung Toudou, seperti yang digambarkan di dalam laporan Malaysiakini:

  • Lima anggota polis terbunuh di Semporna, kata IGP
  • IGP: Lebih ramai penceroboh mendarat di Sabah
  • Panglima ATM kata penceroboh ada kemahiran

Turut dilaporkan terdapat satu lagi pendaratan oleh penceroboh di Kunak. Continue reading “Pengiraan Detik 39 Hari ke PRU13: Cadangan agar ditubuhkan majlis semua pihak untuk membantu menguruskan krisis Sabah dan menyeru Najib untuk membuat lawatan segera ke Sabah”

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Time to unite to fight a common enemy, not bicker

By Jahabar Sadiq
Editor
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 04, 2013

COMMENTARY March 4 — There comes a time when Malaysians must unite and fight a common enemy, not bicker and blame each other over what is going wrong. That time is now for Sabah.

We need to support our policemen and troops facing Filipino militants who wish to lay claim over a land whose people decided to form Malaysia 50 years ago with Malaya and Sarawak.

We need to make sure the sacrifice of eight fallen policemen was not in vain, that their widows and children know their husband or father’s death has helped keep Malaysia intact and free.

We need to see what our priorities are now, to end the bloodshed and standoff in Sabah with Filipino militants who have broken our territorial integrity and laws.

We need to get our peace and security back. We stand united or we fall divided. Pure and simple.

The time for investigating what went wrong with our defence of Sabah will come. The time for apportioning blame and reveal the traitors will come.

Right now, we need our politicians to stop blaming each other and accusing each other of instigating this incursion. Such talk is not constructive and will not help our security forces do their job. Continue reading “Time to unite to fight a common enemy, not bicker”

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The worst home minister

— Willy Gomes
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 03, 2013

MARCH 3 — You are off the hook, Syed Hamid Albar. You are no longer the worst home minister Malaysia has had. And for that you can thank your fellow politician from Johor, Hishammuddin Hussein.

Syed Hamid, you will forever be remembered as the minister who ordered the arrest of a journalist under the ISA for her own protection! You also ignited the Allah debate by not allowing the Malay section of the Herald to use the word Allah.

Bravo!

But you have nothing on Hishammuddin. The man is clueless about everything. He looks like a tourist in Lahad Datu and actually thinks that it is reassuring for Malaysians to hear that he will not leave Sabah until the incursion situation has been resolved.

Can someone get him out of there and allow the police or army to handle this grave situation? His handling of the incursion has been a joke as have the portrayal of the Sulu fighters. Continue reading “The worst home minister”

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Now will you listen to Sabah?

— Erna Mahyuni
The Malaysian Insider
March 03, 2013

MARCH 3 — Living on a knife’s edge: that was the Sabahan reality for the last two weeks.

While Putrajaya played at diplomacy and our home minister mugged for the cameras, many Sabahans were left angry and confused.

There are intruders on our doorstep! Why are they not being chased out?

Do not believe the rumours, Putrajaya said.

We are hoping for a peaceful resolution, Putrajaya said.

And now, good men are dead. Continue reading “Now will you listen to Sabah?”

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Sabah, Merdeka and Aquino

by Glenda M. Gloria
http://www.rappler.com
03/03/2013

Is it possible to understand Muslim Mindanao without looking at Malaysia? Perhaps not. This stern neighbor has played its hands rather wisely: feeding a Filipino rebellion on one hand, and helping end it on the other.

Sabah has been home to thousands of Muslims who once fought for independence under the Marcos dictatorship. It was their refuge when the military continued to pummel them with bombs and bullets in Mindanao. Sabah was always part of their real — and imagined — community. Before colonizers carved out superficial boundaries in that part of the world, the Muslims of Sabah, Tawi-Tawi and Sulu were one community that freely traded goods with each other, paid unhampered visits to one another, and spoke the same language. The imperious Sultanate of Sulu reigned over these islands.

Thus while Manila has consistently put the Sabah claim on the back burner, the reality is that to many Filipinos, Sabah has long been theirs. They grew up on the island, got married there, raised their kids, and put up businesses. An estimated 65,000 Filipinos carry passports as “political refugees” in Sabah. In the capital city of Kota Kinabalu, I once asked a former member of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) why he had chosen to live there. “It’s our land. These are my brothers,” he said. They call themselves “Suluks” not Filipinos.

At the height of the MNLF’s secessionist campaign in the 1970s and 1980s, Muslim rebels sought refuge in Sabah. In Sabah they mapped out plans to bring down the Marcos military to its knees. In its lush jungles they trained young recruits in guerrilla warfare. While Nur Misuari toured the Middle East to raise funds for his movement, his young commanders held clandestine meetings in Sabah to plot the war against Marcos.

Which begs the question, why would Malaysia tolerate this when it could not even put up with a ragtag group of old guards now holed up in Lahad Datu?

The answer partly lies not in Sabah or Sulu or Tawi-Tawi but in another place that keeps the dark secrets of a bungled special operation to invade Sabah: Corregidor Island. Continue reading “Sabah, Merdeka and Aquino”

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39-Day Countdown to 13GE: Proposal for an all-party council to help deal with Sulu Sabah crisis and call on Najib to make immediate extended visit to Sabah

While Malaysians are still mourning the death of two national heroes, elite police commandos Insp Zulkifli Mamat 29 and Sabaruddin Daud 46 who were killed in the shootout in Kampung Tanduo in Lahad Datu on Friday morning with Sulu armed intruders, with three other commandoes injured, the nation is shocked this morning at the news that there have been another two police casualties in Semporna last evening.

Malaysians woke up this morning to the sad news that “Cop killed in Semporna, another injured in gunfight with militants” (TMI) but by noon time, the police confirmed that there were two policemen who were killed in an ambush in Kampung Seri Jaya Siminul, a village on stilts above the water, in Semporna at about 6.30 pm last evening – and that a third is fighting for his life at the general hospital in Semporna.

But worse were to come, when Malaysians learnt of the news of the first joint press conference by the police and army in Felda Sahabat Residence, Lahad Datu after the three-week stand-off with armed Sulu intruders at Kampung Toudou, as reflected in the following Malaysiakini reports:

• Five cops killed in Semporna ambush, says IGP

• IGP: More armed intruders have landed

• Army General: Intruders ‘well-trained’

It is also reported of another landing by intruders in Kunak. Continue reading “39-Day Countdown to 13GE: Proposal for an all-party council to help deal with Sulu Sabah crisis and call on Najib to make immediate extended visit to Sabah”

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Two M’sians among 12 killed in Lahad Datu

From fb

Tweets:

1. Most shocking at death of 2 police cammandoes n 2 injured. http://goo.gl/YMnkq 2 M’sians among 12 killed in Lahad Datu (Mkini)

2. Death of two police commandoes unacceptable as Msian police enjoy superior security strength/logistics. Hisham also told press conference today “no deaths”

(From Malaysiakini) A spokesperson of the sultanate of Sulu claimed that 10 people were killed and four others wounded in a exchange of fire between Malaysian security forces and the Sulu sultanate intruders in Lahad Datu this morning.

Meanwhile, Bernama reported that two Malaysian police commandoes were killed in a mortar attack, and that another two injured soldiers have since been airlifted to a hospital.

ABS-CBNnews reported that Sulu sultanate spokesperson Abraham Idjirani said he had just talked to the self-proclaimed Sulu sultan Jamalul Kiram’s (left) brother Azzimudie Kiram, who heads the armed group in Lahad Datu. Continue reading “Two M’sians among 12 killed in Lahad Datu”

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Putrajaya welcomes all comers to Lahad Datu!

Erna Mahyuni
The Malaysian Insider
Feb 27, 2013

FEB 27 ― Welcome to Lahad Datu, where you do not need a passport so long as you carry a gun and a dubious claim to Sabah!

You will be greeted by the smiling Malaysian Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, who never misses a good photo op.

After all, he does have to cement his claim to being the most ineffectual home minister Malaysia has had since Merdeka.

Ignore party poopers like former CID chief Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim. He went and wrote a piece asking who, exactly, was taking responsibility for the whole mess?

Obviously, it was not the home minister. He was too busy being photographed in camos.

It probably is the prime minister who has been seen preening and proud about having “avoided bloodshed.” So far.

Of course no one in Putrajaya is stating the obvious: That foreign invaders trespassed on our waters, attempted to annexe part of the country and threatened the safety of our citizens. Continue reading “Putrajaya welcomes all comers to Lahad Datu!”

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Sulu sultan defies Aquino – ‘Point of no return is nearing’

Philippines Inquirer
12:02 am | Wednesday, February 27th, 2013

Withdraw now, or face the consequences.

President Aquino yesterday warned Sultan of Sulu Jamalul Kiram III he would face the “full force of the law”—possibly including arrest—unless he withdrew his armed followers from Sabah, Malaysia, but the sultan was defiant, saying his men were staying put in the disputed territory.

Amid the President’s warning, officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) met with Malaysian diplomats in Manila and simultaneously sent one of its senior officials to Kuala Lumpur to help end the crisis.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima told the Inquirer Tuesday night that among those who could face arrest and charges were “principals by inducement and principals by direct participation.” She said the sultan could possibly be charged for being a principal by inducement.

At a press conference before flying to Cagayan de Oro City, where he was to campaign for the administration’s senatorial ticket, Aquino called on Sultan Kiram to order his followers in Sabah to come home, saying the situation was nearing “the point of no return.”

“We are fast approaching that point,” Aquino said, apparently referring to the 48-hour extended deadline imposed by Malaysian authorities for the group led by Raja Muda Agbimuddin Kiram, brother of the sultan, to leave the village of Tanduao village in Lahad Datu town.

The deadline was to expire at the last hour of Tuesday.

“This is a situation that can’t persist,” the President said. “This is the time to demonstrate that you are a true leader both in name and deed.” Continue reading “Sulu sultan defies Aquino – ‘Point of no return is nearing’”

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Sabah for Sabahans?

by Erna Mahyuni
The Malaysian Insider
Feb 20, 2013

FEB 20 ― Before you send me to Kamunting, realise I am not advocating Sabah leaving Malaysia.

But I think it is high time Sabahans have a good, long think about the status quo.

As it is, things cannot stand.

Last I checked, Sabah is still the poorest state in Malaysia. Nabawan in Sabah is the poorest town in the country, with a 70-per-cent poverty rate.

On top of that, a small private army has landed in Lahad Datu intent on claiming Sabah as its own.

If we had a referendum, what with all the “free citizenships” Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s administration has so benevolently bestowed upon foreigners, would Sabahans actually have the numbers to keep the state in Malaysia? Continue reading “Sabah for Sabahans?”

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The police farce in Lahad Datu

— Donald Pinto
The Malaysian Insider
Feb 26, 2013

FEB 26 — How incredible can this be? The police treat some 100 armed militants with kid gloves but accuse a Filipino reporter with Al Jazeera’s English service of being a spy with the “Royal Sulu Sultanate Army”.

The media reported today Jamela Alindongan was accused several times of working with the self-styled army while being questioned by unidentified Special Branch officers.

Despite Alindongan showing them her employee ID, she was questioned for two-and-a-half hours, the longest among the three Al Jazeera crew detained in the sea off Tanjung Labian village, near the Lahad Datu standoff between Malaysian security forces and Sulu sultanate supporters, on February 20.

Can the police explain this? How do you treat one unarmed person this way but give almost-royal treatment to this rag-tag bunch of armed men.

At best, they are invaders, at worst just a bunch of pirates who have been treated too well too long.

This is embarrassing for Malaysians. We have a police force which can’t tell the difference between what is dangerous and what is harmless.

How much more do the police want to shame us with this farcical behaviour? Continue reading “The police farce in Lahad Datu”