Sand scandal: Kapar MP reveals 'witness'

Hazlan Zakaria
May 31, 10

Kapar MP S Manikavasagam has produced a witness to corroborate his allegation that a state-owned company has been involved in illegal sand-mining operations in Selangor. "Today, it is not empty talk, I am bringing a witness," he said at a press conference in his office today. Sand-mining contractor Zahar Rusili then told reporters that he has uncovered proof of illegal sand- mining activity in Sungai Rasa, near Rawang, near a site where he was working. Zahar, 43, claimed that the sand was mined illegally on state-owned land, alleging possible collusion between state-owned company Kuala Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB) and the authorities, as well as his former business partner. "Hundreds of lorry-loads of sand were taken out from the disused mine without proper documentation," he claimed. He said he had submitted a complaint and evidence to KSSB, the police, the office of Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim (left) and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, but to no avail. The evidence was in the form of video recordings and a written record of all sand removed without proper clearance, up to the time that he received a threat on his life. "They sent nearly 30 gangsters to threaten me... A guy with a gun came to my home... My car was even rammed by a another vehicle just after I submitted a report to the MACC," he said. Although he then stopped pursuing the matter, he said he felt compelled to come forward after Manikavasagam took up the issue. The contractor said he was awarded a contract to mine sand from a river-bed but was unable to handle the job on his own and engaged a partner to assist him. After a while, however, his partner 'hijacked' the permit in order to mine sand from a nearby state-owned disused mine. "This was done using my permit under my name, so I wanted no part of it (illegal sand mining)," he said. 'Not allowed to testify' Manikavasagam said Zahar was among the key witnesses who had been turned down by the Selangor legislative assembly's Select Committee on Accountability, Competency and Transparency (Selcat) which is holding an inquiry. Selcat's letter did not prevent his witnesses from testifying, but cited procedure in stating that only witnesses summoned by the committee may testify. The letter also said that, if his witnesses want to testify, they are required to submit written testimony with their personal details. If their accounts are relevant to the public hearing, they would be asked to testify. Manikavasagam insisted that such procedures would only lead to more delays, while information about his witnesses may be leaked, thereby jeopardising their safety. "All of this will take time and it may endanger the witnesses. Look at what was done to me and I am an MP. Imagine what they may do to the witnesses. Mr Zahar here for one, had gone through a lot already," he said. His lawyers are due to elaborate on the matter at another press conference tomorrow, which will address the Selcat rejection and other legal matters. Manikavasagam has kicked up a storm with his recent outbursts. While he has claimed to be only doing his job, certain quarters have questioned why he did not wait for the investigations to be completed. Some have claimed that he is using the issue as a smoke-screen for a planned exit from PKR, which he has vehemently denied.

Read more here:

Kapar MP reveals video of 'sand thieves'

Illegal sand-mining: The buck-passing begins

Hello Khalid , care to answer ? Isn't PKR preaching about no bribery and no corruption ?

12 M'sians on ship attacked by Israeli soldiers

Joseph Sipalan, May 31, 10

Twelve Malaysians, including two members of the media, are confirmed on board the Mavi Marmara, the lead vessel of a pro-Palestine flotilla that was attacked by Israeli forces today.

The two media staff are from Astro Awani have been identified as journalist Ashwad Ismail and cameraman Samsul Kamal Abdul Latip.

They are part of an 11-member mission out of Malaysia called Lifeline4Gaza, which is participating in a 'Freedom Flotilla' to bring humanitarian aid and supplies to the Gaza strip.

Lifeline4Gaza's Dr Hafidzi Mohd Noor said the other nine are volunteers from six Malaysian NGOs.

The NGOs include Haluan, Aqsa Syarif, Yayasan Amal, Muslim Care, Palestine Centre of Excellence (Pace) and Jemaah Islamiah Malaysia (JIM).

Dr Hafidzi however noted that they still do not know the identity of the 12th Malaysian on board the Mavi Marmara.

"We were made to understand that one volunteer from Mapim (another Malaysian NGO) was supposed to join them on the Mavi Marmara as the Greek ship he was on was facing technical problems, but we don't know if he actually went on or not," Dr Hafidzi said when contacted.

16 activists killed

Earlier today, international media reported that Israeli Naval commandos stormed the Mavi Marmara killing at least 16 activists.

The Israeli government had vowed to prevent the convoy, a 'Freedom Flotilla' of six ships carrying 10,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid, from reaching Gaza's shores.

Various agencies reported that the strike was launched when the three transport and three cargo ships were still in international waters.

The flotilla, which set sail from Cyprus on Sunday, carries an international group of 700 activists including 1976 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire of Northern Ireland, European legislators and an elderly Holocaust survivor.

Those killed have yet to be identified, as the Israeli Navy has reportedly enforced a communications blackout on the Mavi Marmara.

MCA leaders must teach Samy Vellu

Meenachi Indian
May 31, 10

The turnout at the Gerakan Anti-Samy Vellu (GAS) gathering may have been much lesser than the anticipated number but the fact that people had actually gathered to boot the shameless Samy Vellu out as MIC president is good enough to show him the door.

However, knowing the kind of person he and his goons are, Samy Vellu will probably cling on to the power seat until he is dragged out by his defective hair by the Indian masses.

To make matters worse, Samy Vellu has shown the type of leader he is by sacking party secretary-general M Murugesan simply because the latter spoke up against the president's dictatorship.

By sacking all those who had questioned him, Samy Vellu has proven once again that he is not much better than ousted Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.

Speak to anyone from within the party, promising them the strictest confidentially, and they'll tell you that they want Samy Vellu out but dare not speak up because of fear that the party president and his son would victimise them.

These include the party's state chairmperspns and elected representatives.

Only cohorts like youth leader T Mohan would continue to support the disgraced leader.

Mohan has also shown the kind of person he is by warning party members not to attend the GAS gathering and threatening them with action if they did.

This is not democracy. The MIC gangsters should emulate the MCA which accepts dissent from members and acts on it accordingly.

The shameless Samy Vellu has much to learn from MCA leader Ong Tee Keat.

MIC leaders must also stop being cowards and speak-up against Samy Vellu openly instead of castigating him in private and pretending to be his ally in public.

We do not need spineless leaders who are willing to forego their principles simply because they are frightened of being sacked by Samy Vellu.

It is also time for Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to step in and get the much hated Samy Vellu out.

His son Vell Pari's recent outburst against Umno is merely a tactic to ensure the PM does not step in.

Najib must not fall for this ploy and must involve himself in the mess and remove Samy Vellu in his capacity, not as the Umno president, but as the prime minister for all Malaysians including those of Indian ethnicity.

The prime minister must not allow the Indian community to be taken for a ride over and over again by Samy Vellu and his gangsters.

Samy using same tactics as Chua ? or is it the other way round ?

Chua Soi Lek does not fill the bill as during a recent incident in Alor Gajah where a Youth Division Sec took out a placard telling him to resign , he was forcibly removed and assaulted . Worst , his car was damaged and he will be expelled from MCA . Maybe Samy has learn't from him or he has learn't from Samy .

Has MCA changed enough to regain Chinese support?

Alan Ting

Sunday, 30 May 2010 13:40

ANALYSIS The MCA, the second largest Barisan Nasional (BN) component party, is striving to revamp its previous conservative image: it wants to adopt a bolder approach to win the hearts and minds of the Chinese Malaysian community.

There are enough reasons for this change. The Hulu Selangor by-election results, which showed that the Chinese support for the BN had continued to decline, is one of them.

Another is the Sibu parliamentary by-election in Sarawak.

Although the MCA has no presence in Sarawak, the Sibu by-election results has again sent a distress signal that the declining Chinese support was not confined to Peninsula Malaysia alone.

Barely a week after the Sibu by-election, the MCA unveiled its new approach by announcing a 100-page memorandum to the Prime Minister and Barisan Nasional chairman, Najib Abdul Razak, for the 10th Malaysia Plan where the party requested RM1 billion to support the Chinese vernacular education.

Too conservative

Explaining the changes, MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek said the MCA had long been too conservative, thus giving the wrong impression that the party "does not dare to speak out".

As such, he said, opposition parties had successfully "built an image" for the MCA as "a party that doesn't understand the Chinese community" and "is even disconnected from the community."

"So I've decided to take a different approach. I think we should say everything that should be said. As for whether we succeed in negotiations, let the government leadership decide," he said.

MCA Central Committee (CC) member Loh Seng Kok viewed this approach as making it known to the public on what the party wants to do.

It has to be more informative to the people instead of having a low profile as in the past, he said.

"For a long time, MCA's practice in negotiations and discussions related to issues and policies affecting the Chinese community was doing it behind closed doors.

"Due to this approach, the people think MCA is not working or championing their issues," he said, adding this approach had dealt a severe blow to MCA as most people thought that the party was always agreeing to policies implemented by the government even though the people were not happy about it.

However, some also argued that by merely presenting their demands and asking for more allocations would not work anymore as the Chinese were known to be more dynamic in their thinking and needs.

But as Loh said, "At least, the political scene will be vibrant."

"All parties have to accept the people's view. There must be a platform for all political parties to make their stand and opinions. Let those opinions be evaluated by the people," he said.

Another CC member, Chong It Chew, said the new MCA leadership was firm enough to tackle long-standing issues.

These include education, a matter which is close to the hearts of the Chinese community, and MCA had now directly asked the government to increase allocations to Chinese schools from about four per cent to 20 per cent under the 10th Malaysia Plan, he said.

Besides that, the MCA is also asking the government to recognise the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) by Chinese independent schools.

Merely changing strategies

"These two issues have been going on for some time. We want to let the Chinese community know that we are doing something. We don't want to wait until it is approved, only then we announce it," he said.

However, for some political analysts, what MCA is doing is merely changing its strategies and not amounted to fundamental changes on principles and struggles.

Fundamental changes, they said, are important in regaining support from the people.

"What I see now is that the MCA under Dr Chua's leadership is building up a new image for the party, mostly by making changes to its strategy. I did not see any changes to the party's principles," political analyst Cheah See Kian asked.

Merely making changes to its strategy and "behaving like the opposition" would not help the party regain much support, he said.

"They just can't be like the opposition, like being vocal and demanding this and that. The people will ask, 'you are also the government and why can't you resolve the issues and help the community?'

"Besides that, I see some other BN components, particulary Umno having already changed. They have broadened their voting processes and have come up with more direct approaches, including reaching out to other communities," he said.

However, Cheah alleged that the people had not seen MCA, Gerakan or MIC or even SUPP changing.

Another political analyst, Khoo Kay Peng, said the MCA should do more than just submitting a memorandum to the prime minister because such an action was outdated.

"MCA should walk the talk. They should learn to bite and not just bark."

Penang 'playing politics' in sports betting ban

Susan Loone
May 29, 10
10:23am

Not everyone is thrilled with Penang's decision to ban legalised sports betting recently endorsed by the federal government. Seberang Jaya (BN) assemblyperson Arif Shah Omar Shah deemed Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's ban directive on such gambling outlets yesterday as merely "playing politics". "Pakatan Rakyat governments have the authority to stop all gambling outlets, not just sports betting, that is the real meaning of having good intentions," Arif Shah told Malaysiakini. "But it looks like they are now playing politics," he added, referring to Penang's decision to only bar sports betting outlets, the legalising of which was recently announced by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak. Rising in defence of gov't move Arif Shah (left) defended the federal government's decision to legalise sports betting, saying it was meant to control gambling. "When it comes to illegal betting, it is very difficult even for police to take action," he said. "But if there was a campaign against gambling, it is easier to pin down those involved if it was legalised, so it is actually a form of control," he added. However, he was quick to add that gambling was prohibited and rejected by every religion. Lim is acting under the Local Government Act Section 101(v), where the local council is empowered to deal with issues concerning the municipality's safety, health and convenience. In conjunction with his Wesak Day message, Lim said the state wanted to promote a "healthier and more responsible lifestyle" for all Penang families, and therefore decided to ban the activity. On Thursday, several local councils in Selangor moved to freeze the license of gambling premises which offer sports betting.

Is it necessary to ban ?

Then the Penang govt should also ban Magnum , Sports Toto and Pan Malaysian Pools if it want s to control gambling , or is it that they are supporting syndicates involved in illegal betting ? Everytime when the World Cup is being played , we hear stories of schoolboys , teenagers , girls betting among friends and with illegal betting syndicates which the govt can never erradicate . So with the banning of legalised betting , the triads and underworld gangsters have taken over , perhaps this is one way Guan Eng can repay them before and in future for their support and services .

Dr M: Criticising leaders makes you healthy

Hazlan Zakaria
May 28, 10
11:51am

Former premier Mahathir Mohamad said that one of the things which helps to keep him mentally active and healthy despite his mature age, is the pleasure he gets from ribbing present leaders. Mahathir said this while delivering his very lively keynote address at the fifth Malaysian Healthy Ageing Conference in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, a mere hop away from the Umno headquarters in PWTC, where the Malay-based party's Supreme Council were gathering for an afternoon meeting, many of whom has felt the lashing of his caustic tongue. "I never really retired from politics, my interest in it is still there... and because we are better than others, we criticize them. That is what keeps me young," he said to the general outburst of laughter from the 200-strong audience. "It is also very enjoyable," he punch-lined, to more applause. He explained that the human mind will vegetate if left idle, advising those who wants to follow in his sprightly "and not quite his age" footsteps not to rest their brains, but to find avenues of interest to exercise their mental capacities even in retirement. Mahathir (left) urged retirees to find something that they are passionate about and stick with it to hone their minds to keep its keenness. "When I was still a doctor, the first piece of advice I would give to those newly retired is for them to find something to do and keep themselves occupied. Write, read or whatever. "Sometimes the newspapers won't cooperate and refuse to publish what you write, well you can tell them that they must publish your article because you are doing this to try and stay young," said Mahathir tickling the crowd further. However he added that the refusal of newspapers to publish is no longer a stumbling block, as the age of the internet has brought blogs into our midst, opening up the possibility of being published to most people. "I have a blog. And whatever I write will appear on the screen... even it is a bunch of nonsense," Mahathir deadpanned to more laughter. Mahathir stressed that a healthy lifestyle and a positive outlook and disposition will do wonders both to soothe wrinkles and to make life more amenable when one has reached the "golden age". The key to keeping a youthful appearance and an active mind, in addition to ribbing national leaders, according to the former Umno president, is in the attitude and discipline. The counting game Always smile, because it will make you look young, he said, reminding the audience to find ways to laugh and smile. He told of a game he used to play with his wife when they have nothing to say to each other. "You count. You say 'one', you wife 'two', then you say 'three' and your wife 'four'... after a while you will laugh at each other, because you are playing a game," Mahathir related to the bemused crowd. But to keep up the attitude, the former medical doctor told the audience that the body must also be willing. To make sure of which, one must abstain from "violent sports". "I know I sound like I am anti-sports... especially to the chairperson of the Malaysian Olympic Council who is here...But it is bad to engage in violent sports like squash... badminton. It can cause damage to your joints." "But if you plan to win a medal in the Olympic, don't follow my advice," he said. More importantly Mahathir said, we must refrain from overeating, smoking and drinking alcohol as these are activities which is not required for humans to survive and are in fact harmful to our health. "As my mother told me, stop eating the moment you start to enjoy your food... you will have a smaller stomach and won't need to eat too much... The amount you eat may be small but it is enough for you to lead an active and healthy life... You will also build up your willpower as it is not easy to stop when you are enjoying something." he added. As if to prove his theory, Mahathir broke his silence over recent events at a press conference later proceeded to sound the horn over Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's (left) "unfinished business" in the dealings with Singapore, the misadventures in MIC and the sports betting license recently issued by the government.

Constructive criticism , not critisise without basis or facts or for the fun of it ! That is destructive .

China may have F-22 rival by 2018

May 21, 2010

An F-22 Raptor deploys flares over Kadena Air Base, Japan, Jan 15, 2009. — Reuters pic

WASHINGTON, May 21 — China is building an advanced combat jet that may rival within eight years Lockheed Martin Corp’s F-22 Raptor, the premier US fighter, a US intelligence official said.

The date cited for the expected deployment is years ahead of previous Pentagon public forecasts and may be a sign that China’s rapid military build-up is topping many experts’ expectations.

“We’re anticipating China to have a fifth-generation fighter ... operational right around 2018,” Wayne Ulman of the National Air and Space Intelligence Centre testified yesterday to a congressionally mandated group that studies national security implications of US-China economic ties.

“Fifth-generation” fighters feature cutting-edge capabilities, including shapes, materials and propulsion systems designed to make them look as small as a swallow on enemy radar screens.

Defence Secretary Robert Gates had said last year that China “is projected to have no fifth-generation aircraft by 2020” and only a “handful” by 2025.

He made the comments on July 16 to the Economic Club of Chicago while pushing Congress to cap F-22 production at 187 planes in an effort to save billions of dollars in the next decade.

Ulman is China “issues manager” at the centre that is the US military’s prime intelligence producer on foreign air and space forces, weapons and systems. He said China’s military was eyeing options for possible use of force against Taiwan, which Beijing deems a rogue province.

The People’s Liberation Army, as part of its Taiwan planning, also is preparing to counter “expected US intervention in support of Taiwan,” he told the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

He said the PLA’s strategy included weakening US air power by striking air bases, aircraft carrier strike groups and support elements if the US stepped in.

Attacks against US “basing infrastructure” in the western Pacific would be carried out by China’s air force along with an artillery corps’ conventional cruise missile and ballistic missile forces, he said outlining what he described as a likely scenario.

He described China as a “hard target” for intelligence-gathering and said there were a lot of unknowns about its next fighter, a follow-on to nearly 500 4th generation fighters “that can be considered at a technical parity” with older US fighters.

“It’s yet to be seen exactly how (the next generation) will compare one on one with say an F-22,” Ulman told the commission. “But it’ll certainly be in that ballpark.”

Lockheed Martin, the Pentagon’s No 1 supplier by sales, is in the early stages of producing another fifth-generation fighter, the F-35. Developed with eight partner countries in three models with an eye to achieving economies of scale and export sales, it will not fly as fast or as high as the F-22.

Gates has argued that the United States enjoys a lopsided advantage in fighters, warships and other big-ticket military hardware. Some US congressional decisions on arms programs amount to overkill, out of touch with “real-world” threats and today’s economic strains, he said in two speeches on the issue this month.

“For example, should we really be up in arms over a temporary projected shortfall of about 100 Navy and Marine strike fighters relative to the number of carrier wings, when America’s military possesses more than 3,200 tactical combat aircraft of all kinds?” Gates said on May 8.

“Is it a dire threat that by 2020 the United States will have only 20 times more advanced stealth fighters than China?” he added at the Eisenhower presidential library in Abilene, Kansas.

Geoff Morrell, the Pentagon press secretary, discounted the gap between the timelines cited by Gates and Ulman. He declined to comment on whether China had made enough progress since last July to change intelligence on the next fighter’s debut.

Richard Fisher, an expert on the Chinese military at the private International Assessment and Strategy Centre, said Gates’ decision to end F-22 production is proving to be “potentially very wrong.”

“We will need more F-22s if we are going to adequately defend our interests,” he said in an interview on Thursday at the hearing.

Bruce Lemkin, a US Air Force deputy undersecretary for ties to foreign air forces, told the commission he had visited Taiwan twice in his official capacity and that the capabilities of Taiwan’s aging F-16s, also built by Lockheed, were not “keeping up.”

Whether to meet Taiwan’s request for advanced F-16 fighters or upgrade the old ones was still under review by the Obama administration, he said before Ulman spoke. — Reuters

JUSTICE for MALAYSIANS wishes its readers Happy Wesak Day

Buddhism and human evolution

Fri, 28 May 2010 10:36

By Stanley Koh

COMMENT Gautama Buddha walked the earth in the sixth century as Prince Siddhartha in northern India, passed away at the age of 80 and left a legendary path for the 21st century with 500 million faithful followers calling themselves Buddhists.

Buddhism, ranking sixth among the world religions in terms of number of adherents, is a timeless path, a spiritual way of life in human evolution.

On this day, May 28, millions celebrate the birth, enlightenment and passing away of the historical Buddha (meaning “awakened” or “enlightened”), whom many also revere as Sakyamuni or Bhagava (Blessed One).

On this day, Buddhists all over the world rejoice and celebrate in remembrance of a human being extraordinaire who searched for truth and found the answers to the riddle of life.

Gautama Buddha was a role model during his time, a living example of the noble eight-fold path (middle path) encompassing a foundation of morality, cultivation of the mental faculties and transcendence from material existence with right understanding and wisdom.

It continues to be a non-dogmatic teaching and a guide that gives advisory precepts so that the follower may become compassionate, peace-loving and in harmony with himself or herself as well as with others.

Buddhism is a spiritual guide to the divine process of human evolution from the material realm to the spiritual planes of existence.

Every Buddhist must walk the spiritual path alone, just as each and everyone evolves at his or her own pace and according to his or her intellectual and spiritual capacity. For none can piggyback on another or walk the path on somebody’s behalf.

Universal laws

No Buddhist can attain enlightenment by merely worshipping the Teacher day in and day out without avoiding evil, performing meritorious deeds and cultivating wisdom in the process of practising the teaching.

If indeed the universal truth of man is all about an evolutionary path, the constitution of man, with his physical, mental and spiritual faculties, must operate within the confines of the universal laws.

The universal laws on love, logic, space, time and spirit pervade the cosmic plan of the Creator that many speak of as “universal consciousness and One-ness of Being”.

Buddhism speaks of the cycle of birth and death and karma, or the cause and effect of impersonal natural laws governing all forms of human behaviour.

We are then accountable only to ourselves, each one of us individually, for each is embarking upon this evolutionary journey not by choice, but by the natural progression of the spirit-form.

Buddhism, like other esoteric teachings compatible with it, teaches that the purpose of life is to gain knowledge and evolutionary progress (rather than process), absorbing life experiences after each reincarnation.

In 1975, it was exposed to the world that a spiritually extraterrestrial human-like race, called the “Plejarans” from the planet Erra (within an open cluster of stars in the constellation of Taurus, almost 420 light years, on average, from our planet Earth), had been contacting a Swiss farmer named Billy Miere in what has been called the Pleiadian Mission.

Material lives

The Plejarans gave Miere hundreds of discourses and left him with a thousand pages of notes on earth’s living science, tracing the origins of earth and the fascinating history of the human race.

One of the notes says the teaching of Buddhism is closest to the truth of the human evolution. It speaks of the laws of karma, the natural phenomenon of reincarnation, and countless spiritual planes or dimensions with different space-time configurations.

According to the Plejarans, well versed in the history of Buddhism and knowledge of the universe, there are seven levels for the human spirit beyond the earthly dimension. Two of these levels are called the “pure conscious” spirit forms and five levels are for human spirits undergoing the process of reincarnation through material lives.

On average, a human being requires 60 billion to 80 billion years to master the lessons of material life (that is, on earth or another similar planet) for the evolution of the spirit.

This is also mentioned by Gautama Buddha in some of his discourses on the existence of many worlds with forms and others without forms, that is, the spiritual worlds.

Hence, on Wesak Day, Buddhists should remember that the human spirit’s evolutionary progress is to gain “truth, knowledge and wisdom”. This is the true commemoration of Buddha’s Day.

Furthermore, as human beings, we create our own heaven or hell, and it is the duty of Buddhists to create an environment of wellbeing not only for themselves but for others as well.

I wish all Malaysian Buddhists a happy and joyous Wesak Day. May all beings be well and happy.

Expired permit but mining continues

Thu, 27 May 2010 13:27

By Stephanie Sta Maria, B Nantha Kumar and Patrick Lee

SEPANG: Jenderam Hilir is a solitary spread of land in Sepang with the nondescript Langat river running past it. Like many such areas, it has vast empty spaces which boast an abundance of sand. In other words, a choice location for sand-mining operations.

FMT visited Sepang earlier this week, following reports of possible illegal sand-mining activities there. Within a short drive to the district, a large signboard loomed indicating a sand-washing project being carried out in Kampung Sungai Buah.

The signboard belonged to Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB), the Selangor-owned sand-mining company currently being investigated for allegations of corruption.

While nothing was amiss at the mentioned site, a quick chat with the workers hinted that “suspicious activities” were being carried out at another site nearby. That site was Jenderam Hilir.

Like Kampung Sungai Buah, the entrance into Jenderam Hilir was also fronted by a KSSB signboard. Unlike it, however, the contractor's name was left blank and the permit had expired on March 7.

A drive deep into the area revealed that operations were still in full swing. Heavy machinery were digging up sand from the river bed and numerous mounds of sand were already being stockpiled on its banks.

More brazen

The workers were unperturbed by FMT's presence and continued operations, which confirmed reports by industry sources that the illegal miners have grown more brazen over time.

One industry source, who only wanted to be known as BK, confirmed that the sand mining in Jenderam Hilir is illegal.

“Contractors must submit applications to renew their permit a few months before it expires,” he said. “There is no such thing as continuing operations while awaiting a new permit. And the signboard must list a contractor's name.”

When contacted, a KSSB employee, who only identified himself as Hamid, claimed no knowledge of the operations and refused to explain the process of permit renewal.

FMT then managed to get in touch with KSSB's executive director Ramli Abd Majed, who also declined to comment.

“I am in a meeting,” he said. “And I will be very busy this whole week, so I'm sorry but I will not be able to talk to you.”

What the hell is going on in the Selangor State Govt ? Breaking their own laws !!

The fourth monkey — Tianya Jianke

May 27, 2010

MAY 27 — I’m quite sure you have all heard of the story of three monkeys.

These three monkeys demonstrate three very different actions: One covering one of its eyes with its hands; the other blocking one of its ears with its hands; while a third gagging its mouth with its hands.

The story tells us not to see what we shouldn’t see, not to hear what we shouldn’t hear, and not to say what we shouldn’t say.

Some photographs were recently published by some Chinese-language websites in which someone turned Sin Chew Daily upside down while in another, a reader suddenly flashed a picture with Sin Chew Daily on it, and a closer look revealed text intentionally crafted to vilify Sin Chew.

To me, these are but promotional gimmick of some newspapers. In the past, whenever some websites or newspapers were trying to boost their sales or protrude themselves, they would do so by smearing Sin Chew Daily in a bid to command the readers’ attention.

These people’s behaviour has made me feel so strongly that there is indeed a need for me to add a fourth monkey to the existing three: one that sports a pair of coloured glasses and with its mouth tilting to a side.

This monkey has been treating Chinese-language newspapers with its own brand of utter prejudice, and its comments almost always leaning towards one side.

The family of Oriental Daily News boss Lau Swee Nguong (father of the BN candidate in Sibu) has been very active in Sarawak politics. During the Sibu by-election, I heard of many stories about the Oriental boss. Based on the criteria of online critics specialising in stories of famous political figures, by right this should make a perfect topic. However, I’ve not seen anyone penning these things.

I don’t believe that Chinese website authors have no clue about these things. The only reason I can think of is that many of them share very close relations with Oriental’s boss, and as a result things involving the cronies should best be covered and blocked.

Compared to print media, websites should enjoy a greater deal of speech freedom. Unfortunately, online writers have not harnessed such freedom to disclose unrighteous and unjust things in our midst. Instead, they have abused the freedom accorded to them hitting hard at other Chinese newspapers which they see as potentially intimidating.

These writers should bank on the freedom to lend their voices to print media writers who dare to voice up against unrighteousness and irregularities. On the contrary, many of them have attempted to magnify the lapses on the part of Sin Chew’s current affairs editors, with Tay Tian Yan, Lim Mun Fah and Lim Sue Goan their pet targets.

After the by-election, some online writers have rushed to conclude that election results show that Chinese Malaysians are no longer in fear of an “Islamic state”.

Such an arbitrary and distorted argument obviously harbours some ill intentions.

A Sibu friend told me: “Chinese Christians in Sibu are most definitely against Islamic state. They voted first to throw out unbearably unjust policies before turning against the Islamic state later.”

My Sibu friends have said Chinese voters in Sibu have consolidated their determination this time. They wanted to deliver a clear and distinct message through their ballots, and would not be swayed by the media’s analytical reports or politicians’ talks.

Chinese online writers should perhaps go down to the street to capture what the Chinese grassroots have to say. — mysinchew.com

RPK: Anwar dispensable, Khalid a failure

Wed, 26 May 2010 14:46

By K Kabilan

FMT EXCLUSIVE Opposition party PKR needs to wean itself off Anwar Ibrahim and start grooming a new batch of leaders to take it forward, said popular blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin who is now in exile in London.

He said that the party, and for that matter the opposition pact Pakatan Rakyat, was relying too much on Anwar for leadership.

“The problem with Anwar is that he does not have a good team. What if Anwar dies tomorrow? Do you mean that PKR or Pakatan Rakyat is also dead?

“No man is indispensable. Every one can be replaced, Anwar included,” he told FMT in an exclusive interview.

Raja Petra also disagreed with talks that Anwar was neglecting the opposition agenda as a result of his ongoing sodomy trial.

“The sodomy trial does not matter. What matters is that Anwar must have a good team.

“Even President Ronald Reagan was able to run the United States because he had a good team -- if you know what I mean,” he said.

He also said that while Anwar should remain the PKR and opposition leader, “his team must ensure continuity”.

“But this is what we do not have at the moment. Everything rests on Anwar’s shoulders. And that is bad.

“All they need to do is to send Anwar to jail or put a bullet in his head and we are all dead. How can we allow for that?” he added.

He stressed that the opposition's future should not be about Anwar. “Anwar can come or he can go,” he said.

Khalid has failed

Raja Petra also did not mince his words in criticising the leadership of Khalid Ibrahim as the Selangor menteri besar.

He said that Selangor is the flagship or jewel in Pakatan's crown and that therefore it has to perform better than Penang.

“But Penang is instead performing better than Selangor. Agreed, Khalid is facing a lot of obstacles. But so is (Penang CM) Lim Guan Eng, Azizan (Abdul Razak) in Kedah and Nik Aziz (Nik Mat) in Kelantan.

“But Guan Eng just plods on and takes these obstacles in his stride. He does not use them as an excuse on why he can’t perform the way he would like to,” he said.

He said Khalid failed to be “brutal” in attacking the remnants of Barisan Nasional in the state. He noted that there were “rats” happily nibbling away and plotting on how to bring Selangor down.

“But how many rats did Khalid burn? How many corrupt people did he line up against the wall and shoot dead?

“If Khalid can’t get rid of the rats, then he should go instead. Then let a new ‘Khomeini’ take over and clean up the state. That is the only way to save the state,” he said.

“If the fire is too hot, then get out of the kitchen. Don’t complain that you can't take the heat. There are others who can do your job if the job is too much for you to handle,” he added.

Performance of Pakatan states

Raja Petra then shared his views on the performance of the Pakatan states after the March 2008 general election.

He said that the people expected magic from the new Pakatan state governments and felt disappointed when they were not seeing any.

“They are only seeing some improvement. And they are not happy with this. But how much can the states do when a lot of things depend on the federal government and require federal government support or approval?

“They can’t even implement local council elections, which they promised the voters, unless the federal government agrees to it. And the federal government does not agree to local council elections. So the states are seen as breaking their promise to the voters,” he said.

He also said that it was important to have the backing of the state civil service for the Pakatan states to implement their policies.

“[But] many in the civil service in these states are Umno supporters and are working against Pakatan and are trying to bring down the Pakatan state governments.

“If we take into consideration the handicaps, acts of internal sabotage, and the thorns in the flesh from amongst the civil service, then I would say Penang and Selangor have done quite well.

“Let me put it another way. Penang and Selangor under Barisan Nasional would be far worse. So things can’t be any worse under Pakatan Rakyat,” he observed.

Excerpts from the interview:

Your views on the recent defections and do you think the Kedah and Selangor state governments are in danger?

I have already written about that at great length. Umno can’t be brought down from the outside. But it can be brought down from the inside. And if Kedah and Selangor fall, it will be because of the Trojan Horses in the opposition plus in the state civil service. And the Trojan Horses are in all the three opposition parties – PKR, DAP and PAS.

Kedah will dissolve the state assembly and call for fresh state election if there is just one more defection. Actually, they might as well dissolve the state assembly now because there may be more defections soon.

Why wait like Perak when it is already too late and you have already lost your majority in the state government? Then the Sultan can refuse your request to dissolve the state assembly since you no longer have the majority in the state assembly. Do it while you still have the majority, not after you have lost it.

How would you rate Pakatan's performance, especially in Penang and Selangor?

It depends whether you gauge their performance against the old regime or you look at their performance in isolation. Compared to the old Barisan Nasional government, Penang and Selangor under Pakatan Rakyat have done better.

But then we are comparing bad to worse and of course bad is better than worse. But people are not happy with just being better than worse. They want to see good - which is better than bad and far better that worse.

The SIHRG event in London on May 22 was your first formal public appearance since you left Malaysia in the middle of last year. What took you so long to come out in the open?

I was always in the open. I walked the streets and attended functions and met many people, Malaysians as well as non-Malaysians. Umno people, ex-ministers included, even came to my house for dinner.

One even asked for permission to give my phone number to Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the second time he came for dinner, he confirmed he had given my number to Mahathir.

I have been meeting more Barisan Nasional people here than when I was back in Malaysia. Maybe they feel safer meeting me here than back in Malaysia where someone might spot us together.

Do you know how many Malaysians (Malays, Chinese, as well Indians) own restaurants here in the UK (not only in London but in the other cities as well)?

I have been to almost all these restaurants and have met all the owners. I even signed the visitors’ book and many other Malaysians who signed the book after me have seen my name and one even took a photograph of that page and put it in his blog.

Can you give more details on your future plans?

I have no plans to speak of. I will just continue doing what I have been doing for more than 30 years since the 1970s and over the last 12 years since reformasi in 1998. And that is to write and speak on matters of social justice and fundamental human rights.

RPK: 1Malaysia will be Najib's downfall

Tue, 25 May 2010 14:17

By K Kabilan

FMT EXCLUSIVE KUALA LUMPUR: Exiled blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin says that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak will be toppled by forces within Umno if he continues to press forward with his 1Malaysia concept at the expense of “Ketuanan Melayu”.

Saying that Najib faces a huge problem in selling the 1Malaysia concept to his Umno colleagues, Raja Petra said the Umno culture would not allow the premier to stray away from the party's politics of warlords and patronage and the need to protect the Malay interest.

“Umno knows that its future depends on Malay voters. So the Malays must come first. And 1Malaysia does not serve the Malay interest.

“If Najib tries to go against the flow, then Umno will kick him out like they did (former premier) Abdullah Ahmad Badawi,” Raja Petra told FMT in an exclusive interview.

The blogger, who left Malaysia in the middle of last year in the face of criminal charges against him, said while 1Malaysia was an attempt to bring change, many Umno people, however, had no understanding of the concept.

1Malaysia concept is Najib's brainchild to unite Malaysians and was introduced as soon as he became the prime minister last April.

“Even Dr Mahathir (Mohamad) does not understand it as well, as he admitted. Is 1Malaysia going to end up like Islam Hadhari -- a misunderstood concept that died a natural death and which no one speaks about any longer today?” asked Raja Petra.

He added that for Umno leaders, the Ketuanan Melayu concept was more important and that they (the Umno leaders) would go to the extent of urging the government to invoke preventive laws, such as the Internal Security Act, to protect the rights, privileges and interests of the Malays.

“We need to detain without trial anyone who questions Malay rights and privileges, but those in Kamunting are not Chinese who question Malay rights. Most of the detainees are Muslims. So how do we reconcile this statement?

“This means, to the Umno people, Ketuanan Melayu is more important. And 1Malaysia runs contra to Ketuanan Melayu. We can have only one or the other. We can’t have both. But Najib wants both,” he said.

He added that 1Malaysia has to fail for Ketuanan Melayu to succeed.

A challenge to Najib

Raja Petra, who for long had been writing on the alleged involvement of Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor in the death of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu, however, said he would give Najib due credit for trying to make the 1Malaysia concept work.

“I have to give credit to Najib in that he is trying very hard. But, just like Mahathir and Abdullah before him, Najib is faced with a huge Umno culture problem,” he said.

Adding that he was a supporter of the 1Malaysia concept, Raja Petra said he would gladly return to Malaysia to serve for the unity programme.

“If Najib is serious about his 1Malaysia, and if he invites me to serve his 1Malaysia programme, I am even prepared to return to Malaysia,” he said.

He said that he was willing to serve a jail sentence “as long as I can receive a guarantee that I will be allowed to continue writing and speaking from jail”.

He challenged Najib to accept this offer in the interest of his 1Malaysia.

“I am prepared to surrender myself and even go to jail for Najib’s 1Malaysia. But he must not silence me while I am in jail. I must be allowed to continue writing and speaking while supporting his 1Malaysia,” he said.

“How far is Najib prepared to go for his 1Malaysia?” he asked.

He further said that while he was detained under the ISA in Kamunting, the detention centre authorities did not allow him to write, and went to the extent of doing a body-check on his lawyers.

The authorities had also confiscated whatever he had written.

“They gave me no choice but to leave the country. Don’t prevent me from writing and we have a deal. They can have me back in jail.

“So, I support his 1Malaysia if he supports my freedom of expression -- freedom of expression even from prison.

“Just allow me my notebook computer in prison and I will happily write away from prison. Now they won’t even allow me pen and paper in prison,” he said.

Excerpts from the interview:

FMT: Where are you now?

Everyone knows that I am now in the UK. Enough said!

Have you any intention of returning to Malaysia?

That would be planning too far ahead. Anyway, do you mean Malaysia under Barisan Nasional or Malaysia under Pakatan Rakyat? Even if Pakatan Rakyat forms the new federal government, I am not sure whether the Sultan would allow me back in Selangor. If Umno can have its own way, even Zaid Ibrahim will be exiled or banished from Selangor. And yes, the Sultan can declare you persona non grata in his state.

Are you worried for your safety?

I have been advised to be very careful. I suppose anything can happen so it pays to look behind once in awhile.

What is the status of your trials?

There are no arrest warrants against me. They have all been cancelled when the charges against me were dropped (discharge not amounting to an acquittal). So I also have no trials pending.

If they want to put me on trial, they would have to file new charges against me. The old charges have been dropped and no longer apply. But to do that they would first have to extradite me. And I look forward to my extradition hearing in a British court. Let’s see if they can manipulate the British court and move the goalposts halfway through the trial like they did during my trials in Malaysia.

I still want my trials to go on. But if they want to put me on trial, they will have to ‘transfer’ the trial to the UK.

The mainstream newspapers say I should return to Malaysia to prove my innocence. This is hogwash. I do not need to prove my innocence. They have to prove my guilt. The onus is on them to prove my guilt, not on me to prove my innocence. And it is ‘innocent until proven guilty’.

So come here, to the UK, and prove my guilt in a British court. Do they dare, knowing that they can’t manipulate the system?

Sun Tze says you must fight your adversary on your terms and in a terrain that you know and which is advantageous to you. Never fight your adversary where you are at a disadvantage and where you will be weak. Let that be what happens.

Also read this article : The moron in RPK strikes again In London

Malaysia and the missing 'jiwa'

Datuk Dr Agoes Salim

Tuesday, 25 May 2010 14:51

OPINION Dominating role is not healthy for the nation, I think we are farther apart now than we were in 1969.

But you have to remember that I grew up going to an English school, to a university where there were people of all races. At that time, although we did think in terms of race, it wasn’t in the way people do now. We felt that we were Malayans. We socialised much better than we do now.

Bahasa Malaysia can be a unifying factor. But it can be a factor separating people, too. As Sukarno would say, “The important thing is the jiwa.”

You don’t have to have a common language, if you have the same 'jiwa' (heart, spirit, passion, devotion).

This is what we don’t have right now...

In 1956, the historical society of Universiti Malaya went to India. There were lots of Indians in the group, but they didn’t think of themselves as Indians, they thought of themselves as Malayans.

That’s the 'jiwa'.

But later on, because of certain reactions, suddenly people stayed away from this 'jiwa' — they don’t feel as though they are fully Malaysian. They are made to feel that way.

When I was in the service, there were lots of non-Malays in the civil service, holding good positions. But do you see them now? If you go to the universities, where are the non-Malay professors?

Chased away the best brains

After 1969, suddenly there was this drive to make sure that all university vice-chancellors and faculty deans were Malay. So, in the end, we chased away all the best brains among the non-Malays.

When schools say you must start school with a doa (Muslim prayer recitation), you push away all the non-Muslims. When I was at school, we never had any prayers. Whatever we learnt in religious class was a separate thing.

I think it’s more important that we bring people together, rather than pushing religion so hard that it alienates other people. This is what’s happening. I can’t blame the Chinese and Indians; why should they go to a sekolah kebangsaan (national school), when they have to do all these things?

All the things are breaking down. Our school system is not as it used to be. We are producing supposedly so many students with so many As, but what do they know? Are we happy about it? The leaders seem to be happy about it.

We came up with the Rukun Negara because, after 1969, there was the feeling that the nation was breaking down. People had forgotten what it was all about. So, we thought we could bring people back together — unite them. That’s what the first part of the Rukun Negara is about: the objectives of the nation.

Understanding of Rukin Negara

Unfortunately, we did practically nothing to promote an understanding of the Rukun Negara. And when schools make mistakes, nobody corrects them. That should have been the role of the Department of Information.

In the beginning, Tan Sri Ghazali Shafie did try to apply the test of whether something was in consonance with the Rukun Negara or not. But then, the government just forgot about this.

We are supposed to be a united nation, not only in terms of state, but also in terms of people: that they would all consider themselves as Malaysians, and that this was their country and their nation. We wanted all these people to share the wealth of the nation.

One of the things we thought contributed to ’69 was the economic disparities, joblessness.

The New Economic Policy was a policy for all Malaysians; not just for the Malays. But we wanted to restructure the economy so that the Malays would come out of the rural agriculture sector into the commercial sector.

We wanted Malay participation at all levels of economic activity. We wanted to uplift the Malays without reducing the position of the others — “eradicating poverty regardless”.

And this was supposed to be in a situation of growth. Not just sharing the existing cake, but the cake must grow, so that these people also have the opportunity to grow.

Dominance or domination?

At the same time, we also hoped that the Malays would grow a little faster. So, they set this target of 30 per cent equity in 20 years. I was not much in favour of that because I didn’t think it was achievable. I felt that participation was more important than wealth.

We never thought that we would produce multi-billionaires. That was never the intention of the NEP. If some people can come up as everyone comes up, it’s okay. But it wasn’t supposed to be about some people getting contracts.

We did say that we should have Malay millionaires just as we should have Chinese and Indian millionaires, but not so much so that you don’t have to do anything.

You must differentiate between dominance and domination. As Tun Dr Ismail said, “We want to be dominant, but we don’t want to dominate.”

Dominant in the sense that we wanted the Malays to be everywhere; but not to dominate all the others.

But we seem to be dominating; and I don’t think that’s healthy for the nation. It’s not about taking your share and not caring about the rest.


* Datuk Dr Agoes Salim is an economist and first secretary-general of the National Unity Ministry. He is also former chairman of Bank Pertanian. He was on the public service secretariat of the National Operations Council following the May 13 riots in 1969 and helped draw up both the Rukun Negara and the NEP

Nissan's new Leaf sells out in US, Japan

DETROIT, Michigan – The first year of production of Nissan's new electric car Leaf has been sold out, the head of the Japanese automaker, Carlos Ghosn, said Tuesday.

"We have 13,000 orders in the US and 6,000 orders in Japan," Ghosn said at a news conference in Detroit, the US auto industry capital.

Ghosn said that all of the US orders had come from individuals and not from government entities, whereas some orders in Japan were for municipal fleets.

"I don't think we're going to have a problem marketing and selling these cars for the first two or three years," the Nissan president and chief executive said, adding that tax incentives had made the car very popular in California.

The Leaf -- an acronym for Leading, Environmentally Friendly, Affordable, Family -- is billed by Nissan as the world's first mass-produced electric vehicle with zero emissions.

The first deliveries are set in December in the United States and Japan.

The car, which has a top speed of more than 90 miles (140 kilometers) per hour and is powered by a lithium battery, will go on sale in Portugal and the Netherlands in December, and in Britain and Ireland in February 2011.

Nissan will assemble the Leaf in the United States, in a factory that is scheduled to open soon in Tennessee, as well at its Japanese site in Yokosuka, near Tokyo.

The govt should give tax free to all these cars so that everyone can afford to own it for many reasons

a) environmental friendly zero emission

b) less use of petrol thereby savings on subsidies on petrol

c) less pain for the consumers in ringgit savings on petrol with the eventual withdrawal of petrol subsidy

MCA appoints Chua junior, ex-veep to monitor party’s billions

By Clara Chooi

May 25, 2010

KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 — MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek today confirmed the party had appointed his son, Chua Tee Yong and former vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn to assist in managing the party’s assets, estimated to be worth over RM2 billion.

Dr Chua said the decision had been endorsed by the party’s central committee after holding a five-hour meeting at Wisma MCA here.

“The CC today decided that the asset management of MCA should be administered in a more professional manner.

“That is why we believe that the party’s assets should be managed by a professional group separate from the MCA so there is separation of power. But at the same time, the management team is still accountable to the CC so they still have to report to us from time to time,” he told a press conference after the meeting.

Dr Chua noted that the party’s most valuable asset was The Star newspaper, which at its height, he said, was worth up to RM1 billion.

“We do not have an exact figure (on the worth of the party’s assets) — people will give you all sorts of figures — but we know our biggest is The Star.

“Since The Star is a listed company and follows the market value, it could be worth about RM800 million today and at its height, up to RM1 billion.

“Then, we also have Wisma MCA and other big investments,” he said.

He explained that today’s appointments were to ensure that the party’s assets would be managed professionally and that there would be no abuse.

Appointed son Chua Junior

. to Central Committee

. to Presidential Council

. to this ....

. What's next ? ?

Building his empire ? or MCA - Million Chua Associates ? ?

Action speaks louder than words .We wait and see , let him do what he wants , maybe turn his office into a love nest , no need to use the Batu Pahat hotel anymore !

Following Samy Vollu footsteps in appointing his son Vell Paariah into the CWC of MIC , making him the Managing Director and CEO of Maika Holdings

Read more here on the Vollu fella

Dr M did not reveal all about radioactive waste issue — Choo Sing Chye


MAY 26 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had at last admitted, but not all, what the foreign experts (engaged by the residents) had been saying all along i.e., the danger posed by the radioactive waste from the Asian Rare Earth (ARE) company near Bukit Merah and the waste dumps near Papan was indeed genuine and serious.

What Dr Mahathir said a few weeks ago in the Star Online (May 15, 2010):

“In Malaysia, we do have nuclear waste which perhaps the public is not aware of.”

The answer is that the public is well aware and informed of this nuclear waste and the danger it posed. This was the reason why they took ARE to court.

On July 11, 1992, more than 3,000 residents from Menglembu, Bukit Merah, Papan and other affected areas were present at the Ipoh High Court where the judge, Peh Swee Chin, granted eight plaintiffs an injunction to restrain ARE from operating and storing toxic and radioactive waste. ARE was given 14 days to comply with the order.

Subsequently ARE appealed to the Supreme Court. Barely a month later, on Aug 5, 1992, the Supreme Court allowed the application by ARE to suspend the Ipoh Court’s order to cease operations pending an appeal by the company.

The parent company in Japan, Mitsubishi Kasei Corporation, immediately wrote a letter to the residents expressing regret over the application by ARE.

The letter reads, “... since the court ordered the plant to be closed down, we believe that the plant should not continue its operation without the harmonisation with the local people, whether this ruling is right or wrong.”

“Consequently, we believe that ARE should not apply for stay of execution of the injunction to stop operation, etc.”

On De 23, 1993, ARE finally won its appeal in the Supreme Court. Lord President Tun Abdul Hamid Omar order that the Ipoh High Court decision on July 11, 1992 be set aside with costs.

Then on Jan 19, 1994, to everyone’s surprise, ARE announced that it was closing its plant in Bukit Merah. According to them, the closing of its plant was inevitable because of the unavailability of raw material.

Dr Mahathir: “We have to bury the Amang, a by-product from tin mining.”

The truth is, Amang (a tin trailing which is found in abundance in Kinta Valley) is not buried but is used as a raw material from which Monazite (high value mineral) is extracted. Monazite is a rare earth Othophosphate, containing significant amounts (up to 10 per cent) of the radioactive element Thorium Hydroxide, which is the end product. Thus, radioactive waste Thorium Hydroxide is buried, not Amang.

Dr Mahathir: “It is not radioactive but it is not good to handle. We had to bury it in Perak, deep in the ground.”

Thorium Hydroxide waste derived from Amang is radioactive! The radioactivity present in the waste is from the naturally occurring Thorium and Uranium series which will take millions of years to decay.

Dr Mahathir: “But the place is still not safe, and we have almost one square mile that is dangerous.”

The public already knew that! Twenty seven years ago, Dr Sadao Ichikawa, a professor from Saitama University in Japan found highly dangerous levels of radiation. The surface of the drums at the dumpsite produced a reading of 9,000 urad/hr, and on the nearby farm the reading was 140 urad/hr.

The mandatory level agreed between the Perak State government and ARE was only 200 milli-urad/hr.

(He) did not know exactly where in Perak the Amang was buried.

“Maybe it is a national secret but I know for a fact that we buried this activated material,” he said.

In sum, after a gruelling decade-old battle against the Barisan Nasional government led by Dr Mahathir himself, the people of Perak should be told of the whereabouts of these alleged illegal dumps.

The act of keeping these radioactive waste dumps a secret is downright immoral. — Aliran

* Choo Sing Chye is a former Perak state assembly member.

ISA only used as scare tactic, claims RPK

By Shannon Teoh

May 23, 2010

Raja Petra addresses a crowd of over 300 at the BPP Law School in London, May 22, 2010. — Picture by Danny Lim

LONDON, May 23 — Twice-detained without charge or trial under the Internal Security Act (ISA), controversial blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin said yesterday that the law had outlived its usefulness.

Describing how it was tabled by then-deputy prime minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein in 1960 to combat communist terrorists (CT), he added that it was now simply a political tool used by the Barisan Nasional government.

Raja Petra, who writes for the Malaysia Today web portal, insisted that the idea that the ISA was a relic of the British colonial government was a myth.

“The ruling party asks why we complain when it is the British who introduced the ISA. But it was tabled in 1960 and Malaya gained independence in 1957,” the blogger, known widely by his initials RPK, told a packed hall at the BPP Law School.

In his first public appearance since his self-imposed exile over a year ago, he described how even opposition MPs then had backed the bill after assurances from Abdul Razak, who was also home minister, that it would only be used to combat the communist insurgency.

“But after the 1989 treaty in Haadyai, the communist party no longer exists. The emergency situation no longer exists. But we are still officially under the emergency because the ISA is an emergency law and the government can still use it even though it violates the constitution,” he said, referring to clauses which provide for fair trials to Malaysian citizens.

Arguing that the ISA was now only used to silence dissent and keep secrets, he quoted then prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed as stating that the terrorist attacks on Sept 11, 2001 would not have happened if the US had a law like the ISA as it would have prevented such a crime.

“You use it to detain people before they commit a crime. We detain them while they are thinking about it. So it prevents you from thinking.

“In the past, the ISA stopped you from shooting and bombing. Today, it stops you from having thoughts. So you have a nation of robots,” he added.

He described how when he talked to many Malaysians, they would say that the government was “terrible” but when asked to vote for the opposition, they would reply, “Nanti kena ISA (we’ll be arrested under ISA).”

The fugitive blogger, who absconded from sedition and criminal defamation trials as well as a government appeal against his ISA release, which he claims were not being heard fairly, said the ISA had effectively planted “the politics of fear” in Malaysians.

He added that even the courts in Malaysia had from time to time declared that the ISA had outlived its usefulness, including his successful writ of habeas corpus against his own detention in 2001.

Raja Petra further described how during the 60-day ISA detention, one would be made to confess to crimes to demonstrate co-operation and then undergo a process of torture to “turn you over” and “abandon your cause.”

“We confessed to everything — including the Kennedy assassination,” he joked, referring to the murder of the former US president John F. Kennedy in 1963.

He said that some of those who were converted would become Trojan horses, making specific mention of former PKR MP Zulkifli Noordin, who until he was recently sacked, was often at odds with other Pakatan Rakyat leaders.

“They are put there to create controversy and remain as thorns in the flesh of the opposition,” he said.

Hosted by the Solicitors’ International Human Rights Group (SIHRG), Raja Petra was greeted by a crowd of over 300 Malaysians, some of whom had to stand for the duration of the two-hour talk and question-and-answer session.

RPK ?

This fella is a bloody liar, nobody had ever said or will say 'will be arrested under ISA' if we ask them to vote for opposition. Do not exegerate just tell the truth. You only accept 40% of what RPK says, the rest are all lies an exegeration, the thing that he says is influenced by his hatred and personal grudge against the police and the BN government, whom he believes has done great injustice to him, as such we cannot accept everything he says as the truth.

What utter rubbish are you spewing ? If the ISA is draconian he would have been inside Kamunting by now and now he is saying ISA is now used as a scare tactic , so what are you afraid of if the ISA is only used as a scare tactic ? The more you hear about this ass spewing rubbish the more damage he is doing for PR cause people nowadays are not stupid like dogs anyway and dogs are smarter than he thinks , maybe smarter and more intelligent than him . Maybe its good for BN that he is showing his half baked and premature intelligence .

"Arguing that the ISA was now only used to silence dissent and keep secrets, "

How many opposition politicians are being held under ISA in Kamunting ? how many RPK ?
If the ISA is being used to silence dissent dont you think Kamunting would have been filled to the brim instead of housing terrorists , forgerers of passports and i/cs ( immigration and nrd blokes ! ) If it is so , the whole Perak circus clowns would have been there today since Kamunting is in Perak . What a big baloney ! .
And what secrets ? are you talking about ? since you are the one who has been receiving secrets and classified information . Does that make you a possible spy or a traitor ? or a foreign espionage officer under the payroll of some democrazy bankrupt nation listed under 163 in my previous article ?

“In the past, the ISA stopped you from shooting and bombing. Today, it stops you from having thoughts. So you have a nation of robots,

So if that is the case don't you think your article calling and referring to all Malaysian Chinese as dogs are highly defamatory and slanderous and very RACIST just like the Perkasa idiot should have put you under ISA ? Well it didn't , and it didn't stop your dirty and confused mind from becoming a robot . Yeah everyone living in Malaysia is a robot except you the great Raja Putar Kongkek . Pordah ! What a scum enjoying life in London with your wife and having orgies with your mind with all those Mat Sallehs in threesome , foursome while your son rots here in a Malaysian jail and you preaching shit and baloney in London !

Singapore is No. 10, Malaysia is No. 17.. check who is No.163?

INTERESTING ARTICLE on Current Account Balance

Rank Country Current account balance (million US$)
1 People's Republic of China (PRC) 179,100
2 Japan 174,400
3 Germany 134,800
4 Russia 105,300
5 Saudi Arabia 103,800
6 Norway 63,330
7 Switzerland 50,440
8 Netherlands 50,170
9 Kuwait 40,750
10 Singapore 35,580
11 Venezuela 31,820
12 Sweden 28,610
13 United Arab Emirates 26,890
14 Algeria 25,800
15 Hong Kong 20,900
16 Canada 20,560
17 Malaysia 17,860
18 Libya 14,500
19 Brazil 13,500
20 Iran 13,130
21 Nigeria 12,590
22 Qatar 12,510
23 Taiwan 9,700
24 Finland 8,749
25 Iraq 8,134
26 Angola 7,700
27 Oman 7,097
28 Belgium 6,925
29 Austria 5,913
30 Argentina 5,810
31 Chile 5,063
32 Denmark 4,941
33 Philippines 4,900
34 Luxembourg 4,630
35 Trinidad and Tobago 3,259
36 Azerbaijan 2,737
37 Egypt 2,697
38 Korea, South 2,000
39 Bahrain 1,999
40 Gabon 1,807
41 Botswana 1,698
42 Yemen 1,690
43 Indonesia 1,636
44 Peru 1,515
45 Israel 1,643
46 Uzbekistan 1,410
47 Burma 1,247
48 Republic of the Congo 1,215
49 Vietnam 1,029
50 Ecuador 727
51 Bolivia 688
52 Papua New Guinea 661
53 Namibia 572
54 Ivory Coast 460
55 Cameroon 419
56 Morocco 389
57 Bangladesh 339
58 Turkmenistan 321.2
59 Equatorial Guinea 175
60 British Virgin Islands 134.3 (1999)
61 Kazakhstan 113
62 Cook Islands 26.67 (2005)
63 Palau 15.09 (2004)
64 Tuvalu 2.323 (1998)
65 Samoa -2.428 (2004)
66 Tonga -4.321 (2005)
67 Comoros -17 (2005)
68 Kiribati -19.87 (2004)
69 Swaziland -23.13
70 São Tomé and Pr íncipe -24.4
71 Vanuatu -28.35 (2003)
72 Federated States of Micronesia-34.3 (2005)
73 Anguilla -42.87 (2003)
74 Cape Verde -44.43
75 The Gambia - 54.61
76 Burundi -57.84
77 Haiti -58..72
78 Tajikistan -73.95
79 Lesotho -75.44
80 Seychelles -78.59
81 Antigua and Barbuda -83.4 (2004)
82 Guyana - 84.3
83 Rwanda -104.1
84 Honduras -160
85 Zambia -165.4
86 Republic of Macedonia -167
87 Belize -173.4
88 Malawi -186
89 Ghana -219
90 Armenia -247.3
91 Togo -261.9
92 Zimbabwe - 264.6
93 Kyrgyzstan -287.3
94 Paraguay -300
95 Chad -324.1
96 Benin -342.7
97 Guinea -344
98 Cambodia -369
99 Mexico -400.1
100 Uganda -423
101 Eritrea -440.5
102 Mozambique -444.4
103 Fiji -465.8
104 Panama -467
105 Madagascar -504
106 Laos -404.2
107 Belarus -511.8
108 Syria -529
109 Moldova -561
110 Uruguay -600
111 Burkina Faso -604.6
112 Mauritius -651
113 Albania -679.9
114 Georgia -735
115 Tunisia -760
116 Slovenia -789.2
117 Nicaragua -883
118 Senegal -895.2
119 Thailand - 899.4
120 Tanzania -906
121 Malta -966.2
122 Jamaica -970
123 Cyprus -1,051
124 El Salvador -1,059
125 Sri Lanka -1,118
126 Kenya -1,119
127 Dominican Republic -1,124
128 Costa Rica -1,176
129 Cuba -1,218
130 Guatemala -1,533
131 Bosnia and Herzegovina -1,730
132 Estonia -1,919
133 Ukraine -1,933
134 Colombia -2,219
135 Serbia -2,451 (2005)
136 Latvia -2,538
137 Lithuania -2,572
138 Jordan -2,834
139 Croatia -2,892
140 Iceland -2,932
141 Ethiopia -3,384
142 Slovakia -3,781
143 Czech Republic -4,352
144 Sudan -4,510
145 Poland -4,548
146 Bulgaria -5,100
147 Lebanon -5,339
148 Pakistan -5,486
149 New Zealand -7,944
150 Hungary -8,392
151 Ireland -9,450
152 Romania -12,450
153 South Africa -12,690
154 Portugal -16,750
155 Greece -21,370 ????
156 Italy -23,730
157 Turkey -25,990
158 India -26,400
159 France -38,000
160 Australia -41,620
161 United Kingdom -57,680
162 Spain -98,600
163 United States -862,300

Saving is sin, and spending is virtue...
Interesting article written by an Indian Economist

Japanese save a lot. They do not spend much. Also Japan exports far more than it imports. Has an annual trade surplus of over 100 billions. Yet Japanese economy is considered weak, even collapsing.

Americans spend, save little. Also US imports more than it exports. Has an annual trade deficit of over $400 billion. Yet, the American economy is considered strong and trusted to get stronger.

But where from do Americans get money to spend?

They borrow from Japan, China and even India. Virtually others save for the US to spend. Global savings are mostly invested in US, in dollars.
India itself keeps its foreign currency assets of over $50 billions in US securities. China has sunk over $160 billion in US securities. Japan's stakes in US securities is in trillions.

Result:

The US has taken over $5 trillion from the world. So, as the world saves for the US, Americans spend freely. Today, to keep the US consumption going, that is for the US economy to work, other countries have to remit $180 billion every quarter, which is $2 billion a day, to the US!

A Chinese economist asked a neat question. Who has invested more, US in China, or China in US? The US has invested in China less than half of what China has invested in US.

The same is the case with India. We have invested in US over $50 billion. But the US has invested less than $20 billion in India.

Why the world is after US?
The secret lies in the American spending, that they hardly save. In fact they use their credit cards to spend their future income. That the US spends is what makes it attractive to export to the US. So US imports more than what it exports year after year.

The result:

The world is dependent on US consumption for its growth. By its deepening culture of consumption, the US has habituated the world to feed on US consumption. But as the US needs money to finance its consumption, the world provides the money.

It's like a shopkeeper providing the money to a customer so that the
customer keeps buying from the shop. If the customer will not buy, the shop won't have business, unless the shopkeeper funds him. The US is like the lucky customer. And the world is like the helpless shopkeeper financier.

Who is America's biggest shopkeeper financier? Japan of course. Yet it's Japan which is regarded as weak. Modern economists complain that Japanese do not spend, so they do not grow. To force the Japanese to spend, the Japanese government exerted itself, reduced the savings rates, even charged the savers.

Even then the Japanese did not spend (habits don't change, even with taxes, do they?).. Their traditional postal savings alone is over $1.2 trillions, about three times the Indian GDP. Thus, savings, far from being the strength of Japan, has become its pain.

Hence, what is the lesson?

That is, a nation cannot grow unless the people spend, not save. Not just spend, but borrow and spend.
Dr. Jagdish Bhagwati, the famous Indian-born economist in the US, told Mamohan Singh that Indians wastefully save.. Ask them to spend, on imported cars and, seriously, even on cosmetics! This will put India on a growth curve. This is one of the reason for MNC's coming down to India, seeing the consumer spending.

'Saving is sin, and spending is virtue.'

But before you follow this neo economics, get some fools to save so that you can borrow from them and spend!!!

God Bless You

Malaysian Chinese don’t need MCA; they need Bruce Lee (UPDATED with Chinese Translation)

NO HOLDS BARRED

Thursday, 20 May 2010 Super Admin

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Malaysian Chinese do not need MCA. MCA can’t do anything for the Chinese, who remain second-class citizens in Malaysia, their country of birth.

What Malaysian Chinese need is Bruce Lee. Unfortunately, Bruce Lee no longer walks among us. He died some time ago. Tough luck.

Anyway, 30-40% of Malaysian Chinese voters still vote for Barisan Nasional. So they probably like being treated like dogs, running dogs to be specific. To these Chinese I have only one thing to say: no dogs and Chinese allowed.

SEE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE HERE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvK-VGPocQU

Well the Raja Putar Kongkek is at it again , implying all Chinese are Dogs . Only he is a man , others are animals .

Here is a comment posted on his article .

RPK,

Malaysia need no Bruce Lee and the other 30% Chinese is no dog either. 30% of 1.5 million Chinese voters have no impact and would not change the government today. What we need is Malay to grow up. 100% of Chinese despite supporting PAS would not go for Islamic Law (RPK, You know it). The other 100% of Malay in PKR are frogs. What choice do the Chinese have? VOTE PKR we are damn and vote PAS we are damn as well. RPK we all need to grow up and be realistic. Chinese vote for foods, Malay vote for power/Ketuanan and Indian are completely lost. Chinese would continue to votes with their stomach knowing so well they cannot attained power. (Check with LGE) So please stop insulting Chinese as dog. Malay need to grow up, if you are Malay you know what I mean .

I only have this to say .

Meanwhile the MAN who profess to speak as if he is the most righteous in deed and thoughts is in London while his son is rotting in jail. His boy really tried to swallow razor blades in jail. No one can force anyone to swallow razor blades.

The holy and righteous father does not care. The holy mother also does not care. They ran away to London - to live the easy life.

Strange family? or self serving family ?