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Chua Soi Lek should resign or retract his statement

by Richard Teo

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek Should resign or retract what he said when he suggested that “Medical graduates who studied overseas may have to sit for a unified medical examination and,whether their university is recognised or not, a pass in the examination would allow them to practise in Malaysia”.

Almost all medical students who opted to obtain their medical degrees overseas are force by circumstances and not by choice.

Dr. Chua should be aware that majority of STPM students who attained excellent grades were deprieved of an opportunity to do medicine at a local university because most of the places were filled by Matriculation students reserved for bumiputras.

The dilemma faced by students who aspire to become doctors were either to do their course in a private medical instituition or venture overseas if they can afford the astronomical costs.

For those who can afford and opted to do their course overseas the news of Dr. Chua’s statement that they have to undergo a medical exam in order to practice in Malaysia must be a body blow. Continue reading “Chua Soi Lek should resign or retract his statement”

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Dewan Rakyat House Committee – 5 BN MPs not fit and should resign

Before I left Kuala Lumpur last Sunday for Tokyo for an international conference at the Japan Diet, I had issued a media statement calling on the Dewan Rakyat House Committee under the chairmanship of the Speaker to come out of its hibernation and hold an emergency meeting to take ownership of the many deplorable problems of Parliament House — roof leaking and even fire risks from short circuit despite a RM100 million renovation two years ago — and to resolve them once and for all.

The sole Opposition MP on the House Committee, Tan Kok Wai (DAP — Cheras) wrote to the Speaker, Tan Sri Ramli Ngah as Chairman of the House Committee on Monday asking for a House Committee meeting to discuss matters concerning Parliament’s leaky roofs, wiring, details of the building’s renovation and upgrading, its progress and the contractor’s inefficiency.

I just checked with Kok Wai and he told me that no meeting of the House Committee has been convened.

The other members of the House Committee apart from the Speaker and Kok Wai are all from the Barisan Nasional: the Chairman of Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club, Dato Raja Ahmad Zainudin bin Raja Omar (BN — Larut); P. Komala Dewi (Kapar), Datuk Goh Siow Huat (BN – Rasah), Datuk Wan Junaidi bin Tuanku Jaafar (Santubong) and Datuk Suhaili bin Abdul Rahman (Labuan).

Malaysians are seeing a disgraceful aspect of Parliament – MPs of the Dewan Rakyat House Committee who are not in the least bothered about the scandals of leaking roof and fire hazards in Parliament despite RM100 million renovation. Continue reading “Dewan Rakyat House Committee – 5 BN MPs not fit and should resign”

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Don’t interfere in doctor transfers

by J Martin

I read with interest in the mainstream media regarding Lee Kah Choon’s reply in parliament and appeal to politicians from interfering with doctor’s transfers.

This, of course, is a long standing problem in not only the Health Ministry but almost every ministry in the country, especially when it involves the transfer of senior officers.

However the Health Minister should also look into other areas where politicians have been known to be a nuisance.

Politicians should further:

1. Not interfere where hospitals are to be built. We have frequently multi-million ringgit hospitals in constituencies where there are actually more cattle than people just because the ruling party candidate there wants a leg-up to win the election.

This is an absolute waste of health resources. Even recently the MOH suddenly allocated RM16 million for a “health clinic” for Ijok which has a total population of less then 15,000.

2. Not interfere with who gets the equipment contract to supply the MOH.

3. Not push their own favored, frequently incompetent contractors, to build hospitals.

4. Not interfere with who gets to supply pharmaceuticals and consumables.

5. Wives or husbands of politicians should not be promoted for positions when there are other more loyal and dedicated employees who have been waiting for ages to be promoted. Continue reading “Don’t interfere in doctor transfers”

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Malaysian heads Fiji Anti-Corruption Commission?

(1) Radio New Zealand International

Head of Fiji’s Independent Commission against Corruption to remain head of LAWASIA

Posted at 01:33 on 26 May, 2007 UTC

The newly appointed commissioner of the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption , Mah Weng Kwai of Malaysia, says he will remain the president of the Law Association for Asia and the Pacific.

As well, Mr Kwai has told the Fiji Times he will maintain his law practice in Kuala Lumpur.

He says he did not apply for the job but was offered it and accepted because of concern about allegations of corruption.

Mr Mah says he deems his appointment valid and questions about the validity of the commission would be best dealt with by the courts.

He says there is a need for foreigners to take up the reigns at the anti-corruption commission because they are not connected to local politics.

Continue reading “Malaysian heads Fiji Anti-Corruption Commission?”

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World’s second largest court complex – most mishaps and no CF!

For two consecutive days on May 9 and 10, 2007, I had asked in my media statements whether a certificate for fitness for occupation (CF) had been issued for the second largest court complex in the world in Jalan Duta, Kuala Lumpur in view of its many mishaps, and if so when.

If no CF was issued, why was the court complex allowed to be used; and if there was CF, whether actions would be taken against those who had been so negligent as to issue the CF when there are still so many defects, including structural ones, which had to be rectified?

There was silence from the relevant authorities for a fortnight, until Berita Harian front-page headline today screamed: “Mahkamah tiada CF — DBKL belum terima sebarang permohonan: Datuk Bandar”.

I am surprised that Datuk Nazri Aziz, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of the law portfolio, had not acted with dispatch following the alert I sounded on May 9 as to whether there was any CF for the Jalan Duta court complex.

Nazri should also explain why two different figures for the cost of the court complex had been quoted by the media in the past month — RM270 million and RM290 million. Or have we reached a stage where RM20 million is chickenfeed and is not worth any bother, when damages, losses and criminal misappropriation are in the region of hundreds of millions or even billions of ringgit? Continue reading “World’s second largest court complex – most mishaps and no CF!”

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ASSK’s continued detention – suspend/expel Myanmar from ASEAN

The extension of the house arrest of Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi by the Myanmese military junta, which will keep her confined to her residence for a fifth straight year, must be condemned in all ASEAN, Asian and world capitals.

Myanmar’s membership in ASEAN must be seriously reviewed as the continued detention of Aung San Suu Kyi marks the abysmal failure of the 10-year ASEAN experiment to influence the Myanmar military junta to be a responsible member of international community when Myanmar was admitted into ASEAN as a member in 1997 in the teeth of regional and international opposition.

At that time, the rationale was that “constructive engagement” with the Myanmese military junta was the only option for ASEAN nations to influence Yangon and wean it from its ruthless and repressive form of dictatorship as it had proved to be completely impervious to regional and international opinion.

This year 2007 marks the ten-year membership of Myanmar in ASEAN, which is also to celebrate its 40th anniversary.

The blatant defiance of regional and international opinion urging the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, who had spent 11 of the past 17 years in detention, despite the unprecedented Open Letter by 59 former heads of state and government including former Malaysian Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, former Presidents in ASEAN like Corazon Aquino, Fidel Ramos, Abdurrahman Wahid, Megawati Sukarno is testimony that the Myanmar military junta is not prepared to make any concession to become a responsible member of the international community.

In the circumstances, the other ASEAN nations must seriously consider whether they should continue to allow Myanmar to be a millstone around the neck of ASEAN, bringing disrepute to the regional organization, or whether they should face up seriously to the option to suspend or expel Myanmar from ASEAN.

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Electronic discovery – Of bytes and briefs

May 17th 2007
From The Economist

The courts are struggling to cope with information technology

A CHICAGO law firm recently put up a billboard with the slogan “Life’s short. Get a divorce.” Also on the billboard were pictures of a hot babe in her underwear and a hot hunk in a towel–a sample of the delights that await the newly single. This is the kind of lawyer story that makes the evening news. Deeper, broader problems with America’s legal system tend to be ignored. Electronic discovery is one.

What’s that? Well, let’s say you follow that Chicago law firm’s advice and sue for divorce. And let’s say your soon-to-be ex-spouse gets angry. His or her lawyers might then demand to inspect your hard drive so that they can, for example, acquaint the court with your love of porn before it decides who keeps the children.

As technology changes the way people communicate, the legal system is stumbling to keep up. The “discovery” process, whereby both parties to a lawsuit share relevant documents with each other, used to involve physically handing over a few boxes of papers. But now that most documents are created and stored electronically, it is mostly about retrieving files from computers. This has two important consequences.

First, e-discovery is more intrusive than the traditional sort. Catty or salacious gossip, the kind that was once swapped at the water cooler, is now often committed to e-mail. This is easy to subpoena and virtually impossible to erase. There is always a back-up somewhere, so even if you delete the e-mail privately denigrating a stock you are publicly urging your clients to buy, it will still be read out in court. If your firm is sued for sexual discrimination, expect the plaintiff to demand all the lewd e-mails your male executives have ever swapped with each other. Continue reading “Electronic discovery – Of bytes and briefs”

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MPs Bung Mokhtar/Mohd Said – the “Ugly Malaysians”

The Barisan Nasional (BN) Member of Parliament for Kinabatangan Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin is trying to jump out of the burning quagmire which he found himself in together with the BN MP for Jasin, Datuk Mohd Said Yusof as a result of their unrepentant and recalcitrant sexism in Parliament more than a fortnight ago.

He thinks that he has found a very smart exit strategy for his predicament by challenging me to contest against him in his Kinabatangan constituency in the next general election and even offering 1,000 votes free — which was given front-page treatment in Sabah newspapers yesterday.

He cannot be more wrong or naive to think that he could distract or deflect national and international attention from his unrepentant and unpunished male chauvinism in Parliament on May 9, 2007.

Clearly, Bung Mohtar just don’t get it — that there is no way he could extricate himself from the quagmire and the furore he and Mohd Said had created would go away by just turning it into a cheap farce, such as challenging me to contest against him in Kinabatangan.

The issue at stake has nothing to do with him and me, and that is why my answer is a definitive negative when a reporter asked whether I would counter-challenge Bung Mokhtar to contest against me in Ipoh Timur parliamentary constituency.

The question is solely about Bung Mohktar himself Bung Mohtar’s greatest enemy is not any third party but his own self and he must wrestle with his own soul and devil as well as his own sense of decency, as he and Mohd Said have become the worst examples of “Ugly Malaysians” on the occasion of the 50th Merdeka anniversary, bringing shame and dishonour to Parliament, the nation and women in Malaysia, ASEAN and the world. Continue reading “MPs Bung Mokhtar/Mohd Said – the “Ugly Malaysians””

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“No more govt inefficiencies, no more IPCMC sabotage, no more mirages”

One of my first reactions when I received news in Tokyo on Monday of the Prime Minister’s announcement of pay rise and doubling of cost of living allowances for the civil service – and in particular the 18% to 42% in the basic salary increase for the police – is whether the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) Bill will at last be presented to Parliament next month for passage to demonstrate government commitment to have a world-class police service, whether in reducing crime, professionalism, accountability or integrity.

I had given my full support both in Parliament and outside for a generous increase in police pay as Malaysians want to have a world-class police service which is professional, accountable, incorruptible and efficient in reducing crime to restore to Malaysians their fundamental citizenship right to be free from crime and the fear of crime in the streets, public places and the privacy of their homes.

The reaction of the Inspector-General of Police, Tan Sri Musa Hassan to the “generous pay increase” has been quite euphoric, as illustrated by the headlines: “IGP: No more bribes, no more excuses” (The Sun), “IGP: No excuse for cops to take bribes now” (The Star) and “Musa: No leeway for corrupt cops” (New Straits Times).

Although the expression of Musa’s euphoric reaction is quite deplorable, as it is self-exculpatory in justifying the erstwhile police notoriety as one of the most corrupt government departments, let’s not quibble over the past but look forward to a clean, new and corruption-free future for the police service from now.

Malaysians have heard of many past announcements of “new dawns” for a professional world-class police service to keep crime low but they have all proved to be mirages. Examples of such past illusions include: Continue reading ““No more govt inefficiencies, no more IPCMC sabotage, no more mirages””

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Samy Vellu sexist – comparing dilapidated 43-yr-old Parliament with 50 yr-old woman

RESPECT WOMEN AND END ALL SEXIST COMMENTS
by Loh Cheng Kooi

Barely has the dust of the “bocor incident” settled in the House of Parliament when we are jolted with yet another gender insensitive statement. It is outrageous that the Works Minister, Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu finds it necessary to draw a parallel between the dilapidated state of the 43 year old Parliament House which is in need of maintenance and renovation to the looks of a woman of 50 years. This is not the first time the Minister has made such statements. In October 2005, he was quoted to have compared “toilets to new brides”.

The Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) finds it is inexcusable that one of the longest serving Cabinet Ministers in the country chose a sexist comment to make his point on the need for renovation works on the Parliament House. His remarks reinforce the gender stereotype that a woman’s worth lies with her extrinsic attributes (looks) and not with her intrinsic qualities as a human being. His statement and comparison are demeaning and an affront to women of all ages as they reduce women to objects of beauty, depreciating in value over time.

The Works Minister’s comment taken together with the recent ‘bocor’ remark, also makes a mockery of the role and function of the Gender Cabinet Committee on Gender Equality and the government’s ratification of the international Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as well as the Federal Constitution which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender. Continue reading “Samy Vellu sexist – comparing dilapidated 43-yr-old Parliament with 50 yr-old woman”

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Cabinet got time for Manchester United but no time for Building Bridges Inter-faith Dialogue

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is again on an international tour to preach to foreign audiences his message of inter-civilisational, inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue, understanding, goodwill and peace.

Speaking two days ago at the Meiji University in Tokyo, where he was conferred an honorary doctorate, Abdullah said that dialogue between cultures and civilisations has now become another pre-condition to achieving the global goals of peace, security and prosperity.

He said dialogue could bridge the gap and generate greater understanding between cultures and civilisations especially between the West and the world of Islam.

He said: “This dialogue is essential to expose and establish the fact that Islam is a religion which espouses universalism, not exclusivity. Islam is a religion which does not make any distinction between race or culture.”

The university had specially requested Abdullah to speak on Islam and Islam Hadhari for his keynote address on “Bridging the Gap Between Cultures and Civilisations”.

It is sad and even pathetic however that the Prime Minister’s international message is being ignored locally, even by his own Cabinet. Continue reading “Cabinet got time for Manchester United but no time for Building Bridges Inter-faith Dialogue”

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Don’t ban it if you don’t get it

Don’t ban it if you don’t get it
Azly Rahman

There is nothing more frightening than active ignorance. – Goethe, German philosopher

The Internal Security Ministry denied that it had seized 10 copies of the book on May 13, clarifying that it had only taken the books to check the contents. The books would be returned if they contained nothing that violated the Printing Press and Publications Act 1984.

Deputy Minister Fu Ah Kiow said news reports stating that the books were seized were incorrect and believed that the matter was being deliberately blown out of proportion to gain publicity. “It is just a very ordinary procedure, something that the officers will do if they receive reports about any publication that may be unfavourable for the public.

“They will still carry out their duties even if there is no report,” he told reporters. Fu was asked to comment on the books taken from a bookstore in Mid-Valley Megamall in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday. Fu said his officers were still reading the contents.’ (The Star)

The above news report still amplified the culture of book banning we have had since independence. To be telling schoolchildren and parents that we ban books is not conveying a smart message for our smart schools. Why not tell these children to think and think freely and to read and read voraciously? Why use the schools to promote the message of active ignorance?

Active ignorance

In our history, one of the most famous books banned was of course The Malay Dilemma by a medical doctor from Titi Gajah, Kedah. The author later became Malaysia’s fourth prime minister, staying in power for 22 years. We banned Kassim Ahmad, Othman Ali, Karen Armstrong, and many work of national and international authors who proposed new line of thinking about society. We ban good movies on the Malaysian early political experience that tries to enrich our youth with a radical perspective of this nation and its narration.

We were even afraid of our respectable social scientist Dr. Lim Teck Ghee’s Asli findings on the New Economic Policy, written with such a refreshing and constructivist perspective. Through the repressive Internal Security Act, we jailed out intellectuals — without trial — people like Lim Kit Siang, Dr Syed Husin Ali, Kassim Ahmad, Dr Chandra Muzaffar, and many others who lived their lives presenting alternative viewpoints for a better Malaysian future. We have installed a government of active ignorance, interested in the advancement of poor understanding of human development. We continue to live a national life of contradiction. Continue reading “Don’t ban it if you don’t get it”

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2 sexist Malaysian MPs condemned – joint statement by ASEAN MPs

Joint Media Statement by ASEAN MPs (and former MP) from the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia and Malaysia in Tokyo on Tuesday, 22nd May 2007:

Sexism by two male MPs in Malaysian Parliament on May 9 an affront and outrage to all ASEAN MPs and ASEAN women — deserves fullest condemnation by all ASEAN Parliamentarians and ASEAN civil society as sexism has no place in a progressive ASEAN

We, the undersigned ASEAN MPs (and former MP) attending an international conference in Tokyo have decided to issue the following joint statement:

We are very distressed by the rank sexism in the Malaysian Parliament on May 9 when two male MPs made crude vulgar, derogatory, sexist and gender-offensive remarks at the woman MP for Batu Gajah Fong Po Kuan, which have been regarded as a shame and dishonour to Po Kuan, Malaysian Parliament, Malaysian women and Malaysia’s international reputation.

It is more than that — it is also an affront and outrage to all ASEAN MPs and ASEAN women and deserves the fullest condemnation by all ASEAN Parliamentarians and ASEAN civil society as sexism has no place in a progressive ASEAN.

In fact, it is also a global affront and outrage, which was why MPs and State Legislators attending the GlobalPOWER (Partnership of Women Elected/Appointed Representatives) 2007 Conference in Washington May 7 — 11, 2007 was the first global response to the “sexist and demeaning statements that male Members of Parliament in Malaysia made to their women colleagues”. Continue reading “2 sexist Malaysian MPs condemned – joint statement by ASEAN MPs”

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RM100 million Parliament “House of Leaks” – Is Abdullah heading a shambolic administration?

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said in Tokyo yesterday that the Public Works Department (PWD) is responsible for maintenance of government buildings and there should be no “finger-pointing” whenever a defect occurs.

Abdullah said: “I’ve told Samy Vellu that the PWD was responsible for matters related to maintenance, don’t quarrel among yourselves, it’s embarrassing.

“It’s alright if you want to talk it over and carry out the repairs jointly …what’s the point of quarrelling with each other to the extent of the people knowing.

“If there’s something wrong, talk to each other, cooperate and do it quietly… what’s the point of quarrelling in the newspapers, one says they’re responsible, the other says it’s your problem.

“Already people are unhappy with what has happened, who is to take responsibility and who is responsible have also become a public issue, two agencies quarrelling…this is not good.

“Whoever is responsible must have the sense of responsibility to make sure what it was responsible to do. It takes action, it carries out its responsibility.”

While the first public reaction is one of relief that the Prime Minister has finally broken his “elegant silence” on the RM100 million Parliament leaks, the latest in the litany of government building and public construction defects, Malaysians’ concern and even alarm about the effectiveness of the Abdullah premiership has not been addressedl

This is because Abdullah’s comments have only served to aggravate increasingly widespread public disquiet about the shambolic administration and the lack of effective and dynamic government leadership in the country, with many questions jostling for answer, such as: Continue reading “RM100 million Parliament “House of Leaks” – Is Abdullah heading a shambolic administration?”

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Educational Discrimination of a Different Kind

Educational Discrimination of a Different Kind
by Nathan Petrus

An issue which is commonly blogged about is educational discrimination on ethnic lines.

With such volatile competition, it is no wonder that another form of educational discrimination is normally ignored by the masses…

This is none other than discrimination by educational stream.

The following quote tells all:

“At lower secondary, students who score a string of As are considered suitable for the Science stream and the rest are placed in the Arts stream.” – NST Report

‘Tis indeed a sad but true fact in our country that the Arts stream is seen as a receptacle for “second-grade students”. The world of education in Malaysia is divided into those in the Science and Arts streams, with the former being exalted far above the latter. All students who do well in the PMR are siphoned off to the Science stream, while those regarded as less academically-capable are sent to the Arts.

The notion that the Arts is less academically-rigourous than the Sciences has no basis whatsoever. To be frank, it’s a load of rubbish. Continue reading “Educational Discrimination of a Different Kind”

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Two sexist BN MPs – Cabinet must step in tomorrow to reject their fake apologies

The Cabinet tomorrow must step in to make clear that the two sexist Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs, Datuk Mohd Said Yusof (Jasin) and Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin (Kinabatangan)’s fake apologies are unacceptable and support civil society’s demand for six-month suspension as MP and community service with women groups as punishment for the duo, with parliamentary allowances for this period donated in their entirely to women organizations.

It will be a most adverse reflection on the Cabinet and government if Cabinet Ministers endorse the fake apologies by the duo, including accepting the report of the Women, Family and Community Development Minister, Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, who had clearly failed to stand up for gender respect, sensitivity and equality in her eagerness to resolve the controversy — even if it was in the form of fake, insincere and dishonest “apologies”.

If Shahrizat had not realized that she had been bamboozled by the two BN MPs with their fake apologies, she should have realized it by now in the face of very critical and even hostile public comments at her failure to do justice to repair the grave wrong done in Parliament by the sexism of the two BN MPs — bringing shame and dishonour to DAP MP for Batu Gajah, Fong Po Kuan, Malaysian women, Parliament and the nation’s international reputation — as well as women in ASEAN and the world!

In the mishandling of the latest instance of sexist and male-chauvinist outbursts by the two BN MPs in Parliament, Shahrizat is becoming an even bigger issue than Mohd Said and Bung Mohtar. Continue reading “Two sexist BN MPs – Cabinet must step in tomorrow to reject their fake apologies”

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Leaders of 5 original ASEAN nations should join call for Aung San Suu Ky’s release

The cause of democratization in Burma is a hard nut to crack and it is so easy to give way to despair as there does not seem to be any light at the end of the tunnel after years and decades of sacrifice and struggle by the people of Burma for democracy, freedom and justice, with many tempted to dismiss it as a “lost cause”.

Burma has in fact been described as the world’s longest-running civil war that has lasted nearly 60 years and sent millions fleeing into Thailand and displaced 500,000 people in Myanmar — a period that saw the tragedy of the transformation of once Asia’s rich country into a basketcase.

Developments in Myanmar can both be interpreted as signs of weakness or consolidation of the repressive, ruthless and mendacious military junta, whether it be the abrupt relocation of the national capital from Yangon to Nay Pyi Taw, about 390 kilometres north of Yangon in November 2005 or the construction of four vast hydro-power dams on the Salween River which have already destroyed 232 villagers in the country’s resource-rich east, drove 82,000 people from their homes, triggering a new wave of forced labour and devastating Salween’s ecosystem.

National and international attention is now focused on the date next week, May 27, when the latest period of detention of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi ends after having spent more than 11 of the past 17 years under some form of detention.

Would the Myanmese military junta, which has ruled Myanmar in various guises since 1962, ignored international calls for her release on May 27 and extend her detention as happened last year?

Last week, 59 former heads of state and government took the unprecedented step of issuing an Open Letter to the Myanmar military junta, calling for the immediate release of the Burmese Opposition leader and the world’s only imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi. Continue reading “Leaders of 5 original ASEAN nations should join call for Aung San Suu Ky’s release”

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A simple and dignified wedding celebration spoiled by the presence of the State Mufti

by Richard Teo

Like many Malaysians, I was particularly enthralled when the Raja Muda, Raja Nazrin Shah in a speech some time ago declared that “Malaysians of all races, religions and geographic locations need to believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that they have a place under the Malaysian sun”.

For such pearls of wisdom to flow from a regal figure is extraordinary especially when we compare to the diversive speech by our erstwhile politicians in a political meeting sometime ago.

However, like many others, I feel disappointed that the simple and dignified wedding celebrations was tainted by the presence of the State Mufti, Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria who was given a prominent role in conducting the wedding ceremony.

This religious head who is Perak’s State Mufti should have been charged and imprisoned for inciting racial riot at a Catholic church. His malicious intent to cause racial disharmony was deliberate. From his pulpit he announced to his shocked congregation that a mass conversion was about to take place in a Christian church.

His infuriated Muslim congregation marched to the Catholic Church and almost cost a riot. Fortunately, an ulgy incident was averted when it was found that the conversion was for a group of Indian girls. Continue reading “A simple and dignified wedding celebration spoiled by the presence of the State Mufti”

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ASEAN MPs back Po Kuan – censure Mohd Said/Bung Mokhtar

ASEAN Members of Parliament attending the International Conference of Japanese Diet Members and ASEAN Parliamentarians on “The International Symposium of the Way to Democratise Burma” in Tokyo today agreed at the sidelines that sexism in Parliament by two Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs, Datuk Mohd Said Yusof (Jasin) and Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin (Kinabatangan) are an affront and outrage to all ASEAN MPs and ASEAN women and deserve fullest condemnation by all ASEAN Parliamentarians and ASEAN civil society

ASEAN MPs are very distressed by the rank sexism in the Malaysian Parliament on May 9 when Mohd Said and Bung Mokhtar made crude vulgar, derogatory, sexist and gender-offensive remarks at the woman MP for Batu Gajah Fong Po Kuan.

This was more than a shame and dishonour to Po Kuan, Malaysian Parliament, Malaysian women and Malaysia’s international reputation.

It was also an affront and outrage to all ASEAN MPs and ASEAN women and deserves the fullest condemnation by all ASEAN Parliamentarians and ASEAN civil society as sexism has no place in a progressive ASEAN.

This was why there was also global affront and outrage, with MPs and State Legislators attending the GlobalPOWER (Partnership of Women Elected/Appointed Representatives) 2007 Conference in Washington May 7 — 11, 2007 being the first global response to the “sexist and demeaning statements that male Members of Parliament in Malaysia made to their women colleagues”. Continue reading “ASEAN MPs back Po Kuan – censure Mohd Said/Bung Mokhtar”