Why are the Chinese skinny?

Why are the Chinese skinny?
Nov 28, 2008
China Daily

WHAT makes Chinese people so skinny? Is it all due to genes? A more active lifestyle?

In her new book, Why the Chinese Don't Count Calories, British writer Lorraine Clissold set out to discover what it was that kept the Chinese so skinny when they were eating large, delicious meals, while she and her British and American counterparts were suffering on bland salads and still not managing to lose weight.

Interviewed from her home in North Yorkshire, Clissold's ultimate answer for the secret to the slim Chinese physique is not surprising: the traditional Chinese diet, supported by a strong cultural background.

Humorous and insightful, Why the Chinese Don't Count Calories is a thought-provoking analysis of what makes the Chinese diet work. Drawing on Clissold's 10 years in Beijing as a teacher of Chinese cooking and presenter of a cooking programme on CCTV, it will likely have many readers re-examining their lifestyles and eating habits.

Although it isn't your usual dieting book, it also includes tips and recipes for non-Chinese readers so they can incorporate some of the healthier aspects of Chinese diet into their lives.

Clissold lays out several ideas for why the Chinese diet is so healthy, ranging from what is actually eaten to attitudes toward food.

Vegetables play a much stronger role in Chinese cuisine than in a British or American one. Instead of being relegated to limp supporting roles, vegetables are much likely to be stars of the show, and appreciated on their own with meat used as a flavouring or side dish.

Taking in liquid food also plays an important role. Chinese and Western ideas about soup are extremely different. Western soups are often hearty and sometimes even 'a meal in its own right', but Chinese soups tend to be based on simple broths, providing a liquid element to the meal that is full of nutrients.

'By drinking the liquid in which the vegetables are cooked, Chinese diners ensure that no vitamins are lost during the cooking process,' she says.

Clissold also believes that China has a much stronger culture of eating as an enjoyable communal activity, making every meal an occasion.

She says that while she has always been fascinated by food, British attitudes toward food were often based on guilt over how many calories were consumed, and unhealthy cycles of guiltily eating rich meals only to punish herself by having a bland meal afterwards.

Clissold says: 'In China, I found myself surrounded by people who enjoyed eating, ate until they were full three times a day and never worried about getting fat or talked about cutting back to compensate after a good meal.'

One of the most intriguing parts of Why the Chinese Don't Count Calories is in Clissold's examination of how Chinese food culture is influenced by Taoist ideas about food and the body.

'Chinese people have never doubted that what you eat is directly related to your state of health. They eat to nourish the whole body, rather than being concerned with just its outer shape, which is the case with many Western diet regimes,' she said.

She describes the need for balance in a diet, balancing out both yin and yang foods as well as the five flavours: sweet, pungent, salty, sour and bitter. Each flavour affects a different organ; for instance, sweet flavours affect the spleen and the stomach, while bitter flavours affect the heart and the small intestine.

'The right amount of a flavour will benefit an organ; too much will put it out of kilter and damage the organ. A good Chinese diet will feature a mixture of yin and yang foods and the five flavours.'

Even a properly cooked, traditional Chinese meal will reflect this kind of balance, as no one flavour will overwhelm the others, or a bitter dish may balance out a sweeter one.

Clissold believes that Westerners tend to overindulge in particular flavours in their diet, leading to bodies that Taoist food theory would consider unbalanced and dysfunctional.

'Sweet (and bland) foods are the pre-dominant flavours in most Western diets, which is why many Western waistbands are stretched to the limit and digestive disorders are so common.'

She also compares the way that Chinese food is holistic with Western ideas of breaking down foods to their nutritional components, a notion that does not acknowledge that foods work in tandem with each other.

'Modern nutritionists break a meal down into proteins, carbohydrates and fats,' she says. 'There is increasing awareness of the need for vitamins, minerals and micro nutrients but the Western nutrition model combined with the ready availability of food in the West tends to promote very limited eating.'

One surprising discovery that Clissold made during her research was that the Chinese actually consume 30 per cent more calories than Westerners but stay 20 per cent slimmer, a claim originally made by T Colin Campbell in The China Study, a comprehensive survey that examined the link between diet and disease in China and other countries.

The China Study debunked the idea that the Chinese are thinner because of a more active lifestyle and therefore consume more to maintain this lifestyle. In fact, to make its point, the survey compared the least active group of Chinese, office workers who led sedentary lives, with a more active group of average Americans who exercised moderately.

But even as The China Study extolled the way that rural Chinese ate, one danger that Clissold sees is that as China modernises, the Chinese themselves are moving away from their own traditional diets with their accumulated knowledge and falling into Western practices of eating on the run, snacking, buying processed foods and consuming empty calories, leading to the diseases of the industrialised world: cancer, diabetes and obesity.

Still, she ends her book on an optimistic note about the role of foreign influences in Chinese cuisine, saying, 'I have faith that the influence will not be long-term. Chinese culture has done a pretty good job of withstanding invasion to date.'

China Daily/Asia News Network

I sabotaged the boss, says Khalid

I sabotaged the boss, says Khalid
28 Nov, 2008

"I sabotaged his plans. The fact is we won in other States with the help of other parties in Pakatan Rakyat. Why should we form a State government with BN?" he told Malay Mail yesterday.

By Zainal Epi, The Malay Mail

Shah Alam MP Khalid Abdul Samad has claimed that he had sabotaged plans by Selangor Pas commissioner Datuk Dr Hassan Ali to form a possible joint government with Barisan Nasional after the March 8 general election results were announced.

"I sabotaged his plans. The fact is we won in other States with the help of other parties in Pakatan Rakyat. Why should we form a State government with BN?" he told Malay Mail yesterday.

BN had won 20 State seats in Selangor, and former Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo had mooted the idea of an alliance with Pas, which won eight seats.

Dr Hassan accepted Mohd Khir’s invitation for a discussion, but the talks failed. Pas then stayed with Parti Keadilan Rakyat, which won 20 seats, and DAP, which secured two seats in Selangor.

While Khalid, who is the older brother of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Shahrir Abdul Samad, got his way in thwarting a BN-Pas coalition, he himself has been ejected from the State Pas line-up announced by Dr Hassan last Friday.

Khalid, who was the party's State deputy commissioner, said the differences in opinions and approaches between him and his boss had reached a non-reconciliation stage.

"He wanted team players in the committee and I cannot be a team player with him as the boss. So, he dropped me and chose his men. Now, I will wait and see if he delivers or not," Khalid said.

"It’s either he stays or I stay in the State committee. There is no way we can reconcile and sit in the same committee anymore."

The bad blood between the two has been a long-standing issue way before March 8 with Dr Hassan wanting more seats for Pas so that the party could play a more prominent role in the State if the opposition alliance were to win.

However, Khalid felt that Pas should just help strengthen the Pakatan Rakyat alliance in Selangor and take the lead in the other States.

"Put it this way...I am closer to the Pakatan Rakyat government while Dr Hassan is inward looking. He does not want to play second fiddle in the State government while I am willing because in Pas-held States, other parties in Pakatan Rakyat are playing second fiddle. This is what Pakatan Rakyat is supposed to be," he said.

The split between the two does not stop there. The relationship between the Pakatan Rakyat-led State government and Selangor Pas is also strained.

Dr Hassan has disagreed on several policies implemented by Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim that he deemed were not beneficial to the Malays in the State but his arguments have been ignored.

This had led to him shying away from several State exco meetings recently.

Some Pas members believe that Dr Hassan might continue to stay away from the State exco meetings and this would affect relationships as well as the position of Parti Keadilan Rakyat as the backbone of the State government.

Khalid is a close associate of PKR adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, while Dr Hassan was moulded by former Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Muhammad Muhd Taib.

Fatwahs galore

Fatwahs galore
26 Nov, 2008

In time, these great Islamic empires became so corrupt that they eventually disappeared from the face of this earth. What we see in the Middle East today is the residual of the once great Islamic empire from the Golden Age of Islam.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Aiyah, so many people phoned me to ask why I have not written about the current fatwah controversy. People seem to have the impression that it is my duty to talk about everything under the sun. I think enough people, right up to the Sultans and Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, have touched on the matter. Do you really need me to also offer my two cents worth?

I suppose I can’t run away from my ‘duty’ of also whacking the issue seeing that I have been ‘officially’ labelled as an insulter of Islam. People just expect me to put my foot in my mouth on any issue involving Islam. Anyway, he goes.

I have no problems with the Fatwah Council or religious bodies coming out with fatwahs. It is not like anyone would follow them anyway. It is just an exercise in hot air as far as I am concerned. I mean, take the many ‘fatwahs’ already passed by God and cemented in the Quran for eternity. Do Muslims really take heed over what has been forbidden by God?

I remember a talk that Sheikh Imran Hosein once gave in Kuala Lumpur about ten years ago on the subject matter of riba’ or usury. We published his lecture into a booklet and distributed it free to all and sundry.

Sheikh Imran said that, according to the Prophet Muhammad, there are 80 levels of usury, bribery being just one of them. And the sin of the lowest level of all, said Sheikh Imran, tantamount to the sin of sexual intercourse with your own parent.

Can you imagine yourself having sex with your father or mother? Well, the sin of the lowest level usury is the same as the sin of sex with your own father and mother. And bribery is not the lowest level yet. So the sin of bribery certainly ranks higher than the sin of sex with your own mother or father.

Is there a fatwah on bribery? Do you even need a fatwah from the Fatwah Council or any religious body when God has already issued His ‘fatwah’? A man-made fatwah would be unnecessary and redundant. A fatwah can never make bribery more haram than it already is. And that is probably why no one sees the need for coming out with another fatwah.

But this does not stop Muslims from taking bribes. Considering that more than 90% of Malaysia’s civil servants are Muslims, and bribery is most rampant amongst the civil service, this would mean the Muslims are the most corrupt lot, at least as far as Malaysia is concerned.

Look at Umno. Even Tun Dr Mahathir laments about corruption in Umno. They call it ‘money politics’, of course, but this is just corruption by another name. And are not all Umno members Muslims (except for maybe some from Sabah)? Umno is actually very concerned about the matter and can’t quite figure out what to do. Even the most corrupted Umno leaders are concerned about it. When the crooks worry about the spiralling crime rate then rest assured the problem is very serious indeed.

Sure, ban yoga for all I care. After all I do not do yoga and it does not really affect me personally. Even ban lipstick and high heels as well if that makes us more Islamic. Have separate checkout counters for men and women and ‘his’ and ‘her’ swimming pools. These, to me, are small potatoes. But while we are at it can we also issue fatwahs and ban the more serious practices that ail the Muslim community? Can we ban corruption?

I don’t see how yoga, lipstick and high heels can weaken the ummah (community). I don’t think Muslims will convert to Hinduism or Christianity because of yoga, lipstick and high heels. But corruption can destroy the ummah. And most Islamic communities have collapsed because of corruption.

Muslims are fond of talking about the ‘Golden Age of Islam’. Yes, at one time, Islam was a great empire. But it no longer is. And why is that? In time, these great Islamic empires became so corrupt that they eventually disappeared from the face of this earth. What we see in the Middle East today is the residual of the once great Islamic empire from the Golden Age of Islam.

And that is why the 'fatwah' from God, as related by the Prophet, says that bribery is one of the 80 levels of riba’ and the sin of the lowest level of riba’ tantamount to the sin of sex with your own parent. And this is more disastrous than yoga, lipstick or high heels.

Muslims have to get their priorities straight. Sure, come out with fatwahs if need be. But let these fatwahs be about what really ails us and not about some minor issue that was not really a danger to the ummah in the first place.

Armain Carlier, my one-time business contact from Schlumberger, related a story about how he went to Iran many years after the Iranian Revolution. He was there to visit their partner and to see how their joint-venture factory was getting along. It had been years since anyone from Schlumberger had visited Iran and they did not know even if the business was still in operation.

He was surprised when their Iranian partner handed him a cheque for the profits they had made over all those years. He thought the factory no longer existed, let alone was still making a profit. And he never expected Schlumberger’s Iranian partner to be so honest as to hand Schlumberger’s share of the profits over to him.

Carlier was so impressed and said that Islam must be a great religion if its people can be so honest. Yes, that is the example of an un-corrupt Muslim, which impressed even a non-Muslim like Carlier. And this should be the target of the Fatwah Council and religious bodies, to indoctrinate Muslims into becoming honest and un-corrupt.

So carry on fatwahing. I have no problems with that. It is just that maybe we should put yoga, lipstick and high heels way at the bottom of the list of items to be banned. Corruption should be the first target. That hurts us more than yoga, lipstick and high heels. That was what saw the end of the Islamic empire. That was what caused the extinction of the Golden Age of Islam.

And this fatwah fiasco has raised another problem. It has set the Rulers and religious authorities on a collision course. Will we now see a turf war between the Rulers and the religious authorities? The outcome of all this is going to see one party embarrassed, either the Rulers or the religious authorities. And would this not be embarrassing for the Malays as well? And, in the meantime, corruption prevails. It is getting from bad to worse. And no one wants to come out with a fatwah on this.

Rude, crude and obscene - and untouchable

Rude, crude and obscene - and untouchable

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 – He is untouchable. He can use swear words with impunity. He can spray sexist comments in the chamber and use sexual innuendo when he sees fit.

Judging by proceedings in Parliament since the March 8 general election, Datuk Tajudin Rahman, the Barisan Nasional MP for Pasir Salak can pretty much do as he pleases.

He is also living proof that some of the lessons of Election 2008 are being ignored and tossed aside by elected representatives. A walking advertisement that, despite being decimated in five states and having its customary two-thirds majority in Parliament taken away, arrogance and pride still courses through the veins of ruling coalition members.

More troubling perhaps for the average Malaysian is that Tajudin Rahman’s boorish behaviour is a reflection of the reality here – that the winds of change ushered in by the events of March 8 have begun to wane and that Malaysia is settling down once again to a state where apathy and fatigue reign.

Where the public feigns outrage at excesses of politicians and the government, then do a collective shrug of their shoulders and put it down to the way of life here.

Politicians from both sides of the divide know the drill. And that is why the likes of Tajudin Rahman and before him, Datuk Badruddin Amiruddin, Bung Mokhtar Radin and Mohd Said Yusof have shamed the House with outrageous remarks with the conviction that they will be untouched by any sanction or rebuke.

Still, it appears that Tajudin is in a class of his own. In this same Parliament session, he has called his nemesis, the DAP MP for Ipoh Barat a “bloody bastard”, introducing colourful language which the House has not heard before.

Granted that M. Kulasegaran has the ability to get under anyone’s skin with his comments, but "bloody bastard" in Parliament?

Tajudin was asked to withdraw his comments and went on his merry way. Yesterday, he scored a hattrick. The skirmish happened when the House was debating a motion by DAP’s Teo Nie Ching to cut the Education Minister’s salary by RM10 for failing to meet his promises on vernacular schools.

Within minutes of the motion, a shouting match ensued between MPs from BN and Pakatan Rakyat.

During the uproar, Tajudin called Kulasegaran “keling’’. Several minutes later, he labelled PKR’s Azmin Ali as a “biol” (dumb).

Azmin said: "This is too much. If it is only once or twice it is forgiveable, but every time he opens his mouth, he has no respect for anyone."

After being directed by Deputy Speaker Ronald Kiandee, Tajudin reluctantly withdrew his remarks.

But he outdid himself later when he attempted to interject while Pas’ Mujahid Rawa was debating on Teo’s motion.

This was the exchange.

Tajudin: Oh, tak masuk lagi?

Kiandee: Dia tak bagi, Yang Berhormat. Tak bagi.

Tajudin: Dia tak masuk lagi? Dah lama tak masuk-masuk. Main tepi saja.

Mujahid: Yang Berhormat Pasir Salak sabarlah.

Tajudin: Bila nak keluar lagi air dia ?

DAP’s Fong Po Kuan evoked Parliament’s Standing Orders against Tajudin for using offensive remarks. In all likelihood, Tajudin will be given a rap on his knuckles by the Speaker. He may be asked to apologise, something he has done a number of times since Parliament was convened.

Will he face any action from Umno or BN leaders? Unlikely. The prevailing view among Umno politicians is that BN needs some “fighters’ in the chamber to keep the resurgent Opposition in check.

Will the BN Whip Datuk Seri Najib Razak haul Tajudin up and read him the riot act? Unlikely. His supporters argue that there is only one way to deal with the likes of Azmin, Kulasegaran and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the loss of two-thirds majority. And that is not by yielding any ground or being cowed by the Opposition.

Will Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi do anything? Unlikely. He is already in retirement mode and only has time for several pieces of reforms which he has to push through before March 2009.

So looks like we will be stuck with the untouchable Tajudin Rahman and his antics for some time.

MalaysianInsider

Challenge accepted

Challenge accepted
27 Nov, 2008

Negeri Sembilan History Association treasurer, Mohd Misan Mastor, said Raja Petra Kamarudin is ignorant of history for saying that Chin Peng was a freedom fighter and has challenged Raja Petra to provide proof. The proof that Misan seeks is in chapter 34, PUTERA-AMCJA Conference (1947), in the book, MALAY NATIONALISM BEFORE UMNO: THE MEMOIRS OF MUSTAPHA HUSSAIN.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Raja Petra ignorant of history, says historian

SEREMBAN: Blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin has been described as being ignorant of history for assuming that the former secretary-general of the Communist Party of Malaya, Chin Peng, was a freedom fighter.

Negeri Sembilan History Association treasurer Mohd Misan Mastor said today the Malays had fought colonialism since the fall of Melaka Sultanate and throughout the Portuguese, Dutch, British and Japanese occupation.

"Chin Peng was not the first man who put up the fight," he told Bernama here.

He was commenting on a recent talk by Raja Petra who said that the country's independence was initiated by a non-Malay, and that Chin Peng was a freedom fighter.

Mohd Misan said the peak of the Malays struggle for freedom was when they thwarted the British effort to introduce the Malayan Union which, among others, would have usurped the powers of the Malay rulers.

He challenged Raja Petra to prove that the independence of the country was due to the efforts of others.

"This is what happens when the Malays lose their spirit of nationalism and become ignorant of history," he added. (Bernama)

******************************************************

The fight for Merdeka started before the Second World War and continued all through the Japanese Occupation of Malaya. After the War, all the races, members of the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) included, joined hands to fight for Merdeka. Only when the British refused to accept the Malayans’ terms for Merdeka did the CPM take to the jungles to continue their opposition to the British. But it was not only the members of the CPM who took to the jungles. Many non-Communists did as well and they filled the ranks of the CPM guerrillas.

The struggle for Merdeka was not an exclusive Malay affair but an effort by all the races, as the following piece shall show. It cannot be denied that, before that, many Malays did oppose the British and some died because of it. But it was not until the Second World War, during the Japanese Occupation, when the idea of Merdeka was finally taken to a higher level of a united Malaya or Federation of Malaya -- a Federation comprising of the Straits Settlements, Federated Malay States and Unfederated Malay States. Before that, all the states were independent of one another and no nation, as we know today, existed.

*****************************************************

PUTERA-AMCJA Conference (1947)

By the grace of God, through the PUTERA-AMCJA Conference, I was given a second opportunity to participate in efforts towards drafting Malaya’s Independence Constitution. The first time had been in July 1945, through the Japanese-sponsored Hodosho and KRIS, at a time when Japan was like a dragon in its death throes, struggling against the Allied onslaught. There were two differences. My first effort had been with Dr Burhanuddin, who had served the Japanese Sumatra-Malaya Military Administration in Taiping while I was a farmer. Then, there had been only five Malay States; this time, there were nine.

On 22 December 1946, multi-ethnic, but mainly non-Malay leftist political bodies in Malaya formed a coalition called the All-Malayan Council of Joint Action (AMCJA). Its members comprised:

1. Malayan Indian Congress (MIC) – led by John Thivy,
2. Malayan Democratic Union (MDU) – led by John Eber,
3. New Democratic Youth League (NDYL),
4. Malayan People’s Anti-Japanese Ex-Comrades Association (MPAJECA),
5. Pan-Malayan Federation of Trade Unions (PMFTU).

Four months later, on 22 February 1947, left-wing Malay parties formed their own coalition during a meeting at the MNP Head Office in Kuala Lumpur. It was called Pusat Tenaga Rakyat (PUTERA) or the Centre for People’s Power. Led by Ishak Haji Muhammad (Pak Sako), the member parties were:

1. Malay Nationalist Party, MNP as its nucleus – led by Dr Burhanuddin
2. Angkatan Pemuda Insaf, API (Generation of Aware Youth) – led by Ahmad Boestamam
3. Angkatan Wanita Sedar, AWAS (Generation of Conscious Women) – led by Shamsiah Fakeh
4. Gerakan Angkatan Muda, GERAM (Young Generation Movement) – led by Aziz Ishak and A. Samad Ismail
5. Barisan Tani Se Malaya, BATAS (Pan-Malayan Farmers/Peasants Front) – led by Musa Ahmad,
6. Majlis Agama Tertinggi SeMalaya, MATA (Pan-Malayan Supreme Religious Council).

While travelling all over North Malaya with Dr Burhanuddin, we had discussed, at great length, the forthcoming PUTERA-AMCJA Conference, consisting of left-wing Malay and non-Malay political parties, to promote our demand for Independence from the British through constitutional means. Most post-war non-Malay unions and political parties were left-leaning. MNP was the only Malay political party which, even as early as 1946, had realised that Independence could not be achieved unless the demand was unanimously made by the three major communities in Malaya – the Malays, the Chinese and the Indians.

UMNO, led by Datuk Onn bin Jaafar, had yet to fathom this reality, and continued to function as if it was still in pre-war Malaya. In 1951, six years after the war ended, an UMNO-led delegation went to London to demand more Malayan Civil Service officers, more Malay police officers, especially above the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), and improvements in Malay education and other issues. Yet not one mention of Merdeka (Independence) was made. Ironically, it was also in 1951 that Datuk Onn began to realise that the co-operation of non-Malays was vital for obtaining Independence.

As mentioned earlier, Ishak Haji Muhammad had been earlier sent by Dr Burhanuddin to Kuala Lumpur to meet AMCJA representative Gerald de Cruz to initiate arrangements for PUTERA and AMCJA to work hand in hand in our struggle against the British. The resulting draft, The People’s Constitutional Proposals for Malaya, was the document Ishak Haji Muhammad had handed to Dr Burhanuddin and me at the end of our two-day Balik Pulau visit. Ishak said, “This is all I managed to achieve. If something is unsatisfactory, please bring it up at the forth- coming PUTERA-AMCJA meeting.” We promised to go over the draft on our way back to Kuala Lumpur. Ishak left before we could even invite him to a meal. Dr Burhanuddin commented, “Ishak is like that. He is a man of few words.” I suspected a slight tension between Dr Burhanuddin and Ishak then; they could hardly bring themselves to talk to each other.

I was willing to play the role of the mediator. However, there were four things that kept the two connected: the struggle, the party, the Malay race and the nation. Nothing could keep the two men apart with these four elements present.

The clauses proposed by AMCJA and MDU were for:

1. Malaya and Singapore to be united.
2. A popularly elected Federal Consultative Council.
3. Equal citizenship rights to be accorded to all those who considered Malaya their permanent home and the object of their undivided loyalty.
4. The Malay sultans to become constitutional monarchs. The British would no longer have the right to interfere or advise the Malay sultans. The popularly elected Federal Consultative Council would be exclusively responsible for all such advice.
5. Islam and Malay customs would be fully controlled by the Malay people through a special council, not by the sultans.
6. Special privileges for the advancement of Malays in all fields.

Having read the draft, I was certain that if the leftist Malay parties accepted the draft in toto, the parties would lose credibility, influence and support. However, in the draft’s preamble I saw a loophole in the words ‘the Nine Malay States’. I drew Dr Burhanuddin’s attention to the word ‘Malay’. If we ‘used’ this loophole wisely, the Malays would gain substantially. During the tiresome mail train ride from Penang to Kuala Lumpur, Dr Burhanuddin was happy with one boiled egg, a banana and a cup of coffee. I had to supplement that with a plate of fried rice from the buffet coach. Food was important to me.

As I had mentioned, as soon as we arrived in Kuala Lumpur from North Malaya, we looked for lawyer John Thivy at his High Street office. He was MIC’s Secretary-General, while Budd Singh was President; both were socialists. Thivy, being from a notable Kuala Kangsar family, fully understood Malay customs and aspirations. He confided in us that the Indian community shared a common fear with the Malays – that of being drowned by the Chinese. He therefore promised to support all proposals beneficial to the ‘safety’ of the Malays and Indians. I believe Thivy left MIC when it leaned to the right; I am told he is now in Fiji.

Before attending the PUTERA-AMCJA Conference, we Malays met in the rented Kampung Baru home of Ibrahim Karim, API’s Secretary- General. We drank black coffee out of a pail for lack of proper utensils. It was bought with the paltry balance of money collected from our garland-auctions and the sale of photographs of Dr Burhanuddin and Ibrahim Yaakub. Disappointingly, the photos were not selling. No one bought the one of Ibrahim, although he was then deemed a Malay hero.

We took a bus to a five-storey building in Foch Avenue, the highest building in Kuala Lumpur at the time, where the MCP flag fluttered inthe wind. However, the conference was not held on the floor housing the MCP’s headquarters. Desks were arranged in a circle. Dr Burhanuddin sat rigidly, with me on his left, and Taha Kalu on his right. John Eber (MDU) was on Taha’s right and farther on, beside John Eber, were Ahmad Boestamam (API), Lim Kean Chye (MDU) and John Thivy (MIC). Ishak sat opposite me with Conference Secretary Gerald de Cruz (MDU) on his left while Sir Cheng Lock Tan (AMCJA) dressed in a shirt and coat ensemble sans tie, sat on Ishak’s right. On Sir Cheng Lock Tan’s right were representatives from the New Democratic Youth League (NDYL), Malayan People’s Anti-Japanese Ex-Comrades Association (MPAJECA) and Cheng Loo from the Pan-Malayan Federation of Trade Union (PMFTU) – all very young men. They were probably the front men or dummies. Everyone held a draft of The People’s Constitutional Proposals for Malaya. Mine was full of markings, reflecting my pre-occupation during the train journey.

The PUTERA-AMCJA Conference began with a speech by Ishak as Chairman. We had to tread carefully; no undesirable elements should come into play lest an ugly impasse rear its head. Nothing untoward must happen to jeopardise our efforts to gain the nation’s Independence. We had to be of one heart; bickering would only contribute to prolonged British rule. Even the normally vocal and aggressive Ahmad Boestamam was extraordinarily impassive. Everyone adopted a passive attitude, a patient disposition, a tolerant demeanour, a peaceful mind and a united stance. Everyone wanted an end to British rule. Everyone craved to live in a free Malaya. Chairman Ishak was extremely careful in choosing his words and ministering his responsibilities. The only one who spoke more shrilly than the rest was Conference Secretary Gerald de Cruz, who was known for his humour and jest. All the six items were endorsed with ease. I noticed that the representatives from the NDYL, MPAJECA and PMFTU hardly uttered a word, just like Sir Cheng Lock Tan.

On behalf of PUTERA, I proposed four more clauses to strengthen our rights, referring to the magic phrase ‘the Nine Malay States’ already in the preamble as proof of PUTERA’s absolute right to claim them:

a. Malay to be Malaya’s national and official language,
b. Malaya’s defence and foreign policies be handled by the Malayan and British Governments with equal responsibility,
c. Melayu (Malay) as the nationality of the people of Malaya,
d. The National Flag would have a red band above a white one.

Clauses (a) and (b) were quickly endorsed with the support of NDYL, MPAJECA and PMFTU representatives who abhorred colonialism. But clause (c) raised the conference room’s temperature. The same degree of unrest was experienced each time the Malays demanded a 60-40 quota in the running of the administration and in employment.

Sir Cheng Lock Tan vehemently opposed demand (c) while the three young men looked calm enough. I stood up to voice my disappointment at the opposition, drawing their attention to one question. How would hundreds of thousands of Malays – supporters of MNP, API and AWAS in the kampungs – react, should PUTERA announce that ‘Malayan’ and not ‘Melayu’ would be the term used to describe the people’s nationality? They would probably charge at us like bulls provoked by a red cape. Leftist Malay parties would be ruined, much to the glee of the British and right-wing Malay parties.

Even though I had presented my case with great care, Lim stood up and remarked, “We are not dogs to be led by the people. We lead the people.” In response to such strong words, I retorted in a flash, “Are you not here at this conference table because the people chose you? Do not humiliate the people. You ought to retract your words.”

I then saw Conference Secretary de Cruz write something on a large piece of paper and hold it up for all to see. On the paper was written “CRACK” in big, bold letters. Chairman Ishak wisely proposed the matter be handled by a sub-committee later that evening and its decision be announced the next day. The sub-committee met that night in Kampung Baru over a Malay dinner of rice and tapioca shoot vegetable curry, during which time a PUTERA representative managed to positively influence members who had opposed the proposal to describe our nationality as ‘Malay’.

We had asked, “What is wrong with using the term ‘Malay’ to describe our nationality? If this request is denied, we can only deduce that colonial elements have infiltrated this conference, and that colonialists are still in control.” Gerald de Cruz loved Malay food. Perhaps the tapioca shoot vegetable curry contributed to the agreement that ‘Malay’ will be the agreed nationality of the people. I was glad that the matter had not split up the conference. Actually, the Malay nationality proposal was won due to the votes of the three Chinese youths. They were the first ones to be convinced by our little speech and appeals.

On the second day of the PUTERA-AMCJA Conference, API leader Ahmad Boestamam, who was honoured with the final vote, gave PUTERA the winning edge. With that victory, I felt that the Malay states and the Malay race would be forever preserved. In Hang Tuah’s words, “The Malays will not perish from this earth.”

Next in the discussion was the question of citizenship. AMCJA had proposed the jus soli concept, but PUTERA found it difficult to accept. However, Taha Kalu seemed to agree with jus soli. As he sat near me, I raised my fist as if to warn him, “Should you support this jus soli concept, I will punch you.” To my relief, he voted in support of PUTERA. Despite some frantic hand signalling, Ahmad Boestamam – who sat at a distance from me – did not understand my signals. He chose AMCJA’s stand. I said to myself, “Allah! What will happen now?”

The AMCJA won and we were in deep trouble. My mind quickly came up with an idea to overcome the matter. Pretending not to know the meaning of ‘amendments’, I asked the chairman to define the term. Then, I asked what ‘clause’ meant. I pretended not to know these words so as to allay the fear of the others. I then proposed a ‘clause’ be included to determine the quota for Malays and non-Malays in all Federal Councils and in all government business. I wanted a restriction or a certain formula in the Malay and non-Malay sharing.

Conference secretary Gerald de Cruz commented on my proposal as sweetly as he could. He said he had anticipated it. He explained that if the ‘universal franchise’ policy was adopted, the Malays should get 95 per cent of the vote and 95 per cent of all seats and posts. The other conference members were taken in. Chairman Ishak could not do much as his hands were tied. Dr Burhanuddin’s mouth was shut tight, as the conference was conducted in English. (Earlier, when the ‘national language’ issue was being discussed, non-Malay members had asked for a compromise, “Please give us ten years to master the Malay Language.”

In view of this, how could we compel them to use Malay at the conference?) I stood up, stating with great care that, “We Malays do not want 95 per cent as that is unjust. We do not want 80 per cent as that would be unfair. Neither do we want 80 per cent or 70 per cent. But in the name of all Malays who own this land, we want 60 per cent. We ask for only 60 per cent because we are holding fast to the concept of democracy. At the same time, we want to preserve the rights of the people of this land.”

I was shouted at by the MDU leader, the lawyer John Eber. He snarled, “I did not want to say anything harsh earlier, but now, I have to. The truth is, your people do not have the right to claim Independence – what more to obtain other people’s help to appeal on your behalf.” He added, “We are the ones who are willing to work with you and help you claim it. Now you want to determine the quota for yourselves and for us?” He paused and continued, “I am standing here to promote my party principles and one of them is democracy.” Before sitting down, he pointed his finger at me and asked clearly, “Is he democratic?”

I was forced to stand up another time to respond to his words. I forgot how to remain calm and collected. I had forgotten about compromise and co-operation. Luckily, I remembered Sutan Jenain’s words, “Be hot in the heart, but not in the head.” With whatever was left of my composure, I said, “Look at the appearance of PUTERA members, the Malays, at this conference. Their hair uncombed, clothes unkempt and not ironed. Some did not have a chance to wash as they slept in bus stations and train stations in order to attend this conference. Some did not even have breakfast. They drank coffee out of a pail. But you, sir (looking at John Eber), even though you were given a comfortable rattan chair, you still need a folded towel to serve as a cushion. Who among us truly needs Independence, you or us?” John Eber got up to pull the folded towel off his chair. His face was red with anger. He was enraged, but I could not care less. An insult for an insult!

The Chairman stood up to calm the situation and again suggested the quota issue be discussed by a sub-committee. The outcome was positive. AMCJA agreed to the 60-40 quota. I was thankful to God for His blessings. The Malay States and the Malay people were now secure and safe. This would maintain Malay pre-eminence. The outcome would guarantee the future of the Malays, especially in a situation where non-Malay votes may outnumber Malay votes. I must add that MIC John Thivy in the AMCJA kept his word by giving us his vote every time, to our mutual benefit.

Outcome

The ten principles we discussed came to be known as the Ten People’s Principles, to represent all communities. Since The People’s Constitutional Proposals for Malaya was endorsed and announced to the nation, the PUTERA-AMCJA partnership was reinforced because the masses, not the administrators and the elite, were strongly behind us. The final copy of The People’s Constitutional Proposals for Malaya was sent to the British Government as the voice of the different communities living in Malaya who clamoured for Independence. The people’s response to the constitution was proof of their spirit. But the British appeared unconcerned, refusing to hold discussions with us, or even to read the constitution, as if nothing urgent was happening. We had to think of our next constitutional move. As a result, the hartal of October 1947 was organised and received widespread support from the people. Shops and business houses shut their doors. Kuala Lumpur looked deserted.

What the Dailies Wrote

I don’t remember what the Malay papers wrote. Majlis was certainly in opposition to the hartal as it was wary of any co-operative efforts by the three races. But the 23 September 1947 edition of The Straits Times described the hartal as: “The first attempt to put Malayan party politics on a plane higher than that of rival racial interests and also the first attempt to build a political bridge between the domiciled non-Malay communities and the Malay race”. The other English language newspaper editorials also found The People’s Constitutional Proposals for Malaya generally fair.

Conclusion

The PUTERA-AMCJA effort was my third attempt to gain Independence. I had failed in all three but I continued to work towards loosening the colonial grip on Malaya and freeing Malaya from British fetters. With that uppermost in my mind, I decided to continue fighting for the cause with Dr Burhanuddin. As that required my staying on in Kuala Lumpur, I felt that it was time I brought my family (whom I had left for months in Matang) to join me in Kuala Lumpur.

Sexism in politics

Sexism in politics
27 Nov, 2008

By Marina Mahathir, The Nut Graph

IN October, I had posted on my blog my thoughts on Datuk Chamil Wariya's despicable short story based on a character very similar to DAP Member of Parliament (MP) for Seputeh, Teresa Kok.

I had wondered aloud whether there was a sexist element to recent incidents involving opposition MPs. Most of my commenters opined that there was nothing sexist about it, just the same old politics, and that indeed I was imagining things.

Still, I have to wonder. Since when have firebombs been thrown into anybody's garden in this country, regardless of their political beliefs? If this is a new phenomenon, how is it that in both cases they were aimed at women — Datuk Ambiga Sreenivasan, Chair of the Bar Council (albeit they got her address wrong), and Kok?

Has there ever been a case where a short story based on a character, so closely resembling a real-life person that there is no mistaking who she is, ended so violently? I don't recall any in recent memory. Would it have attracted the same attention had the lead protagonist been a man?

Even more recently, Datuk Tan Lian Hoe, Gerakan Wanita chief, was attacked by male MPs for some remarks she made about the New Economic Policy (NEP). The substance of her remarks aside, the attacks upon her seemed particularly vicious, as evidenced by the televised proceedings of Parliament that day. The man doing the attacking looked like he was ready to physically attack her, not just to dress her down verbally.

Not that attacks on female MPs are anything new in Parliament. Most people can vividly recall the lewd remarks made by some male MPs aimed at their female counterparts. After public outcry, the male MPs only grudgingly apologised, if their utterances could even be called an "apology". Few other male MPs said much in defense of their female counterparts. The impression is that Parliament is full of braying hounds, laughing at women who squirm in a space the men obviously think of as only theirs.

Perhaps that is the core of the issue — men still think that politics is not really the place for women. If they have to be there at all, female politicians should be seen and not heard, and even then, only spouting sweet flatteries to their male leaders.

Exclusive boys' club

Crude jokes and leery one-liners are thus a form of sexual harassment. They are aimed at making the work environment so uncomfortable and hostile that women will be deterred from any ambitions to participate, or will be forced to quit. Thus will the boys' club of politics remain exclusively testosterone-powered.

Not only is the form of politics sexist in nature — it could be argued that even when politics does not relate directly to women, an element of machismo alien to female discourse is evident. It is surely no coincidence that incidences of keris-waving and other supremacist postures occur in male-dominated fora.

The person who called non-Malays pendatang and who then launched a whole chain of unsavoury events was certainly a strutting rooster of the worst kind. The fact that two of the "beneficiaries" of his strutting were a young female reporter and Kok is not coincidental.

Neither was the paternalistic excuse given by the minister in charge of arresting them under the Internal Security Act (ISA) that it was "for their protection". The protection excuse had never been used when men were arrested under the ISA. Whether it is merely a slip of the tongue in the case of the arrested women or underlying patriarchy at work is up for discussion.

But it must be said that within female political circles, supremacist talk is minimal, if it exists at all. Perhaps women are by necessity more concerned with the difficulties of gaining even the slightest smidgen of power — a result of male supremacy — that talking about racial supremacies seems irrelevant.

When women succumb

It is worthwhile to note, however, the case of the Perak state assemblywoman who caught people's attention by making a racist joke about Indians. Women will succumb to the temptations of race-baiting when in the company of men. One could postulate that this is merely to gain the attention of the men in order to advance one's own position. To join the braying hounds, one needs to bray as well.

Which leads us to muse on whether our political environment would be different if women ruled the roost. Trying to imagine the Malaysian political scene differently is hard — it is so dominated by both men and racial politics.

Unfortunately women in politics have only kowtowed to the system and have steadfastly refused to buck it. In the recent MCA elections, Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen was elected the party's first female vice-president in its history. It was undoubtedly a remarkable achievement.

(© Stephen Stacey / sxc.hu)Nevertheless, in the early days of nominations, Ng still felt the need to talk about canvassing the grassroots membership for their views on having a woman leader. Men never feel the need to ask if their sex matters because they know that being male is what gives them political currency.

But then Malaysia is not alone in this. In the recent US elections, the question in people's minds was whether Americans had any problem electing a black or a woman as president. We know the answer now but some people still feel that they would rather elect a man of any colour than a woman.

Others may point to the elevation of an unknown woman candidate for vice-president as proof that Americans, even Republicans, are making progress. But nothing could be further from the truth. Sarah Palin got her chance because she was a man's ideal female candidate — good looking, motherly, and untainted by modern feminist ideas.

When she became more assertive and therefore veered from the feminine, the carpet was pulled from under her. If Senator John McCain's campaign still thought Palin could offer a winning chance, women refused to fall for it, seeing the whole charade for what it was.

Maybe the sexism in Malaysian politics is all in my head. Maybe I am just imagining it. But I prefer to call it intuition

Some breast cancers may naturally regress: study

Some breast cancers may naturally regress: study

Wed, Nov 26, 2008 Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - Researchers who tracked breast cancer rates in Norwegian women proposed the controversial notion on Monday that some tumours found with mammograms might otherwise naturally disappear on their own if left undetected.

But leading cancer experts expressed doubt about the findings and urged women to continue to get regular mammograms, saying this screening technique unquestionably saves lives by finding breast cancer early on when it is most treatable.

Dr. Per-Henrik Zahl of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health in Oslo and Norwegian and U.S. colleagues examined invasive breast cancer rates among nearly 120,000 women age 50 to 64 who had a mammogram -- an X-ray of the breast used to find evidence of cancer -- every two years over a six-year period.

They compared the number of breast cancers detected with another group of about 110,000 Norwegian women of the same age and similar backgrounds who were screened just once at the end of the six-year period.

The researchers said they expected to find no differences in breast cancer rates but instead found 22 percent more invasive breast tumours in the group who had mammograms every two years.

This raises the possibility that some cancers somehow disappear naturally, although there is no biological reason to explain how this might be, according to Zahl, whose findings were published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

"We are the first ones to publish such a theory," Zahl said in a telephone interview. "What we say is many cancers must spontaneously disappear or regress because we cannot find them at later screenings. I have no biological explanation for this."

Mammography and breast self-examination for tumours are standard methods used for early detection of breast cancer, the leading cause of cancer deaths among women worldwide.

The American Cancer Society estimated that about 465,000 women die of breast cancer globally each year, and 1.3 million new cases are diagnosed.

"I think generally when we look at studies like this it is important to keep in mind there are some studies that change practice and others that make us think a little bit more, said Dr. Eric Winer, director of the Breast Oncology Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

"The idea that somehow these cancers go away entirely is, I would say, an intriguing hypothesis, but one we don't have a lot of evidence to support," said Winer, who was speaking on behalf of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

In much of Europe women undergo mammograms every two years after age 50 except for in Britain where it is every three years, Zahl said. The American Cancer Society recommends that women get an annual mammogram beginning at age 40.

Bob Smith, director of cancer screening for the American Cancer Society, said Zahl's team misinterpreted the data, and expressed doubt about the idea that a significant number of breast tumours "spontaneously regress."

"I imagine there are still some people who believe the Earth is flat, but there are not very many of them," Smith said in a telephone interview. "It's not usual -- it happens every day that research is published that gets it wrong."

The researchers acknowledged many doctors might be skeptical of the idea but they cited 32 reported cases of a breast cancer regressing, a small number for such a common disease.

The researchers said their findings provide new insight on what is "arguably the major harm associated with mammographic screening, namely, the detection and treatment of cancers that would otherwise regress."

Mission and vision statement, revisited

Mission and vision statement, revisited
25 Nov, 2008

We use our enemies to fight our enemies. Enemies of our enemies become our friends. We keep our friends close and our enemies even closer. That is the order of the day.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

I have said this before and it looks like I will have to say it again. Malaysia Today is about the fight for social justice. And just what comes under the ambit of social justice? I suppose anything that touches or affects our daily lives.

Racism, inequality, economic disparity, any form of violence, oppression, persecution, a manipulated judiciary, an unfair election system, social problems, any form of slavery, suppression of the fundamental rights of citizens, violation of the Federal Constitution, corruption, plundering and mismanagement of the country’s coffer; you name it and it would certainly be a fight up the alley of Malaysia Today.

These are actually very broad issues and within each issue they can again be dissected into sub-issues. For example, ‘any form of violence’ could be about wife beating, police violence, road rage, the Mat Rempit problem, crime on the streets, and so on. ‘Suppression of the fundamental rights of citizens’ could be about the stifling of freedom of speech, the University and University Colleges Act which forbids students from speaking out or from getting involved in politics, the Police Act which forbids assemblies of more than four people, the Publication and Printing Press Act which makes it mandatory to apply for a licence before one can publish a newspaper and which is renewable every year, and much more.

Okay, those are our focal points. Those are the issues that have become our focus. Most Malaysians would agree that these are issues that ail our society and which need addressing. But how do we address them? How do we attack these issues and grab them by the horns? This would involve a viable strategy and a coordinated and concerted tactical move. Knowing the problem is one thing. Knowing what to do about them would be the more important issue.

Understand one thing, the problems that plague us are merely the symptoms and not the disease. We can’t get rid of the problem by curing the symptoms. We need to get to the root of the problem and attack them there. Once the root of the problem has been eliminated, the problem will cure itself. But too much time is wasted trying to cure the symptoms rather than the disease itself. And this is why we see very little success from all that effort. And this despairs us and leaves us with the feeling that whatever we try to do is pointless. It leaves us with the feeling that it is hopeless to continue because whatever we try to do we will never see changes.

To understand where we are now, we must first understand where we came from and where we wish to go from here. Therefore, it is crucial that we know our history. Once we know our history and understand what went wrong then we will know what needs to be done to be able to put things right.

Malaysia is 51 years old. For me to explain what happened over the last 51 years and to plot the probable scenario the next 49 years and what Malaysia will be like when we celebrate our Centennial would require me to write a thesis. But then I can’t do that in my normal three to four pages and I am really not looking for a PhD. But how do I summarise in 1,000 words what would require 100,000? Let me try.

In any turn-around exercise, you need to look for the top ten problems. Then you attack the top three and most likely the top three would represent 80% of the organisation’s problems. This means just by solving the top three problems you solve almost all the problems. And chances are you need no longer even look at the balance of the problems because by solving the top three, which represent 80% of the problems, the other problems solve themselves. In other words, the other problems are the result of the top three and by taking care of the top three the balance takes care of itself. And even if they don’t you can still live with them if the top three or 80% of the problems no longer plague your organisation.

So what are the top ten problems facing Malaysia and what are the top three? Let us try to look at them in order of importance and in the priority that it impacts society.

1. Violation of the Constitution.
2. Erosion of the independence of the four branches of government.
3. Arrogance of those in power.
4. Denial of the fundamental rights of the citizens.
5. Corruption.
6. Mismanagement of the nation’s coffer.
7. Unequal representation of the people.
8. Lack of understanding of the nation’s history.
9. Distorting of information.
10. Poor education system.

That would be my list in order of priority. Of course, this may not be the list of others and, even if it is, the order of priority could be disputed. And certainly our problems are not confined to just these ten. Nevertheless, my believe is that by attacking the top three problems we need not even look at the balance seven because the balance can solve themselves if we tackle the top three.

For example, items 4 and 7 can be addressed by solving item 1 while items 5 and 6 can take care of themselves if we solve item 3, etc. So, by my reckoning, solve items 1, 2 and 3 and most problems will go away.

The Constitution that we have is already quite complete. But this Constitution has been amended so many times and these amendments have distorted what our Founding Fathers and the British Colonial Masters who gave us our Constitution had originally intended.

Many laws that we have today actually violate the Constitution and were formulated using provisions in the Constitution that allow for ‘illegal’ laws. For instance, Malaysia declared an emergency 46 years ago and, under the emergency provision, laws can be passed which actually take away your rights that were originally guaranteed in the Constitution. But the circumstances (war with Indonesia) that allowed for laws which take away your rights have long since disappeared but the emergency was never lifted and therefore the ‘illegal’ emergency laws, though ‘illegal’ going by the Constitution, remain ‘legal’ as long as Malaysia is still in a state of emergency.

Lift the emergency, repeal the emergency laws, allow the Constitution to revert to how it was intended, and laws such as the ISA and many more would no longer exist. And the same would apply for laws such as the Police Act, Societies Act, Sedition Act, PPPA, UUCA, OSA, and many more, which would no longer be needed as well since Malaysia is no longer in a state of ‘declared’ war with Indonesia.

Most countries have three branches of government -- the Executive, the Legislature, and the Judiciary -- which are all supposed to work parallel to one another and independent of each other. Malaysia, however, is unique. Malaysia has a fourth branch, the Monarchy. If the Executive, Legislature, Judiciary and Monarchy were all independent of each other then we would have a fantastic system of checks and balances.

As it is now, power rests in the hands of the Executive and the Executive tells the other branches of government what it should do.

Imagine a company run by the Managing Director who does the accounts and audits the books plus he is also the Registrar of Companies who is supposed to safeguard the interest of the investors. A well-run company has to have an accountant who manages the books and an auditor who checks the books and a Registrar of Companies who make sure that the MD, accountant and auditor all do what they are supposed to do and according to the law. This means four different parties are involved in safeguarding the company’s money.

In Malaysia’s case the man who runs the organisation also balances the books, check the books, and decides if the books have been cooked -- all four functions in one. How can we expect Malaysia to have any transparency when one man decides all and no one can question or look into what he does?

And this brings us to the third ailment, the arrogance of those in power. The Executive and his band of merry men feel that they are unshakeable and that no one can remove them, so they blatantly do what they want with total disregard for the citizens’ rights and needs. They violate our trust and mandate every step of the way and retaliate with a vengeance if we have the audacity to question them. This is why items 4 to 10 prevail, because they feel they can do what they like and they think there is nothing we can do about it.

Malaysians need to put these people in their place. We need to cut them down to size. We need to show them that the people made them and the people can therefore unmake them. We gave them that power and we can also remove them from power if need be.

Those who walk in the corridors of power are playing the very dangerous divide and rule game. They divide us by race and they divide us by religion. This is similar to a very dangerous time bomb that, if not properly controlled, can explode with drastic repercussions. And this divide and rule game has escalated of late and has become a matter of concern to many Malaysians who realise that not all fires can be controlled, as much as those who walk in the corridors of power erroneously think it can.

So they play the divide and rule game to keep us apart, as they know a united Malaysian bodes trouble for those who wish to cling to power. Then let us too play this same game. Let us too divide and rule them. United, they are too formidable a foe, as would we be too if we are united. So, as they divide us racially and religiously, let us too divide them politically.

We must support Pakatan Rakyat to keep Barisan Nasional in check. When Pakatan Rakyat forms the federal government then we shall support Barisan Nasional to keep Pakatan Rakyat in check. When Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was under attack we supported him (at least Malaysia Today did from 2006) to keep Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in check. Now that Mahathir is, again, strong and his ‘kuda’ is about to become Prime Minister we must support Abdullah Badawi to be able to keep Najib in check.

Yes, it’s a dirty game of checks and balances and divide and rule that Malaysia Today plays. So be it. Dirty or otherwise that is the game they too are playing -- and a more dangerous one of race and religion on top of that -- so let us play that same game. If we can’t beat them, we will join them. And all is fair in love and war and is this not just that, war?

So don’t become perplexed when Malaysia Today changes side and realigns itself from time to time. We do what is expedient and what the situation demands at that point of time. We need to see a two-party system emerge in Malaysia. And we will support the weak to match the strong in our effort to achieve this. We work with the underdog whoever that may be. And we are not apologetic about it. This is not about lack of principles. Our principle is: absolute power corrupts absolutely. So no man or political party must be allowed absolute power.

We use our enemies to fight our enemies. Enemies of our enemies become our friends. We keep our friends close and our enemies even closer. That is the order of the day.

And that will be how we address the top three problems that plague this nation of ours. The US works with the Al Qaeda to fight Russia and with Iraq to fight Iran. In this game of denying someone absolute power there are no permanent friends or permanent enemies. Enemies become friends and friends become enemies in the interest of balance of power. Sentiments have no place in this game of power.

Anwar faces long trek

Anwar faces long trek

Tue, Nov 25, 2008 Reuters

KUALA LUMPUR - AFTER a botched bid to oust the government in September, Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim will likely have to bide his time until elections in 2012-13 before making another bid for power.

From watershed elections in March to his triumphant return to parliament after a decade's absence, Anwar dominated the headlines. Even his arrest and trial on fresh sodomy charges failed to thwart his campaign to topple the government by his self-imposed deadline of Sept 16.

Victory seemed within his grasp when the government apparently felt compelled to ship 40 MPs to Taiwan on a 'study trip' in mid-September to prevent them from defecting to Anwar's camp and thus giving him a majority in parliament.

The deadline passed. Financial turmoil swept the globe, and with an economic slowdown looming, voters in this Asian country of 27 million people suddenly had more immediate worries than Malaysia's chronic political intrigue.

Now the 61-year-old Anwar, whose People's Justice Party holds its annual convention this weekend, has to explain why he is not addressing the meeting as the new prime minister of Malaysia.

'His (Anwar's) strategy of haste that he adopted after March 8 (elections) stopped working after Abdullah was forced to retire,' said Ooi Kee Beng, an analyst at Singapore's Institute of South-east Asian Studies.

'Now, he has to do it the patient way.' Lacklustre Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi essentially derailed Anwar's express train to power by deciding to hand power to his more assured deputy, Najib Razak, earlier than planned.

Affirmative selection
Mr Abdullah's National Front coalition, which has ruled uninterrupted for 51 years, stopped being transfixed by Anwar and started making policies to deal with an economy that is expected to grow by only 1.5 per cent next year from 5.4 per cent this year.

Mr Najib, 55, will take office in March when he becomes president of the United Malays National Organisation, the dominant party in the 13-party National Front.

Mr Najib, who is deputy premier and finance minister, has taken the fight to Anwar by linking him to unpopular measures proposed by the International Monetary Fund when Anwar was finance minister during the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, while projecting an aura of economic competence himself.

He has announced some measures to offset lower economic growth, but hasn't raided the treasury to do so, putting US$2 billion (S$3.02 billion) saved from petrol subsidies into pump-priming measures.

Mr Najib even stole some of Anwar's thunder by relaxing a requirement that ethnic Malays have to own 30 per cent of companies - one of the affirmative action programmes that aim to uplift Malays who constitute 60 per cent of the population.

Anwar's opposition coalition had campaigned for abolition of those programmes in the March elections.

Inflation is falling rapidly from a peak of 8.5 per cent in mid-year and the central bank on Monday unexpectedly cut interest rates for the first time in five years.

'There's a widespread acceptance that Anwar will no longer take over the country,' said an investment analyst at a foreign bank in Singapore. 'Being PM is out of the question right now.' 'Najib is reinforcing his power base. He's the new face of Malaysia,' he said.

Snap elections?
The opposition and some pro-government newspapers have started to push the idea of snap elections soon after Mr Najib takes power in March, saying he would need to win a popular mandate.

But Umno's coalition allies are still in disarray after the electoral debacle eight months ago.

'The risk (for snap polls) is very great. It will be suicidal because of the hangover from the March political tsunami,' said political author Yahaya Ismail.

Other analysts said Mr Najib would likely wait for mandatory re-drawing of electoral boundaries in 2012 before calling for polls. The government's current five-year mandate ends in 2013.

One glimmer of hope for Anwar could be polls in the timber- and petroleum-rich state of Sarawak on Borneo island. Sarawak has been a Barisan stronghold since it joined Malaysia in 1963 and may hold state elections as early as next year.

Provided Anwar can fend off what he says are politically motivated sodomy charges that are a reprise of the court action that got him jailed in the 1990s, and can keep his fractious three-party coalition together, victory in Sarawak could be another lever to apply pressure to government legislators.

Key to that will be how well the opposition runs the five states it controls. There has already been a backlash in the pro-government media over issues ranging from race relations to dual language street signs.

'The next electoral showdown is the Sarawak election, so it is a given goal for (the opposition coalition) to make an impression there,' analyst Ooi Kee Beng said. 'It will try to open the floodgates so that the 'March 8 tsunami' will flow into east Malaysia as well. -- REUTERS

Shooting nudes for art?

Shooting nudes for art?

Tue, Nov 25, 2008 The New Paper

By Ho Lian-Yi

WEARING nothing but an anklet and a ring, the model, a former Thai adult film actress, reclines on an armchair in a hotel room here, as a group of photographers circles her for a good angle.

Artistic photography or just plain pornography?

Whatever it may be, The New Paper on Sunday found out that such photography sessions are happening here, for groups of amateur photographers.

Local models are also offering themselves for such shoots for quick money, and may sometimes find themselves in unsavoury situations.

Such sessions have been publicised by the organisers on the local photography forum Clubsnap.

Some photographers also display their pictures. There were titles like 'Jess in Nude' and 'Nude Series 1.2 Shoot - Be mesmerized'.

Clubsnap is a Singapore website with nearly 72,000 members where photographers exchange notes and display and critique their pictures. Meet-ups, photo workshops and sales of equipment also take place.

Usually an organiser hires a model and makes a post on the forum with details of the shoots, including whether it's fashion, bikini, lingerie or nude.

Photographers taking part are required to pay a fee, from as low as $15 to $150, or even more.

The organisers, it appears, are often not photographers themselves. They can be models, their agents or others.

The shoots can take place outdoors, in studios, or in hotel rooms.

One photographer at the session with the Thai model made some of his pictures available and gave us his impressions for this report.

The former adult film actress was flown in from Bangkok last weekend by an organiser who had posted his invitation on the forum.

Groups of several photographers were given two-hour blocks to take pictures of the model in a Pan Pacific Hotel room last Saturday.

The photographer said there were four others in the session he attended. They all looked like they were aged 25 to 35.

No contract signing

Each had to pay $150 but did not have to sign any contract.

While the organiser promised 'sexy lingerie to sexy nude pose(s)' on Clubsnap, he downplayed the model's past in his post, saying 'she has discontinued her profession in the pornography modelling industry; therefore strictly no posing of pornography style or equivalent'.

The organiser and an Englishman who claimed to be the model's boyfriend were also present in the hotelroom.

The conversation revolved around lighting and equipment, and nothing was said about women or sex, the photographer said.

The shoot took place in the afternoon, and the photographers had their own equipment. One brought the mobile equivalent of a studio light.

They used mostly mid-range digital SLR cameras.

The model at first wore a tiny red bikini, and about 45 minutes into the two-hour shoot, it came off.

Most of the photographers seemed to be taking tasteful pictures, though one of them was often jostling for shots that may have been more sexually angled.

TIRED: The model drank two cups of coffee during the shoot at a Pan Pacific hotel room. She brought a suitcase of skimp clothes, donning a tiny bikini in the first of three costume changes, before shedding all her clothes.

The photographers requested poses and the model mostly obliged. Some of her poses were sexual in nature, the photographer said.

But she seemed tired, yawned at times and drank two cups of coffee during the shoot.

When contacted after the shoot, the organiser declined to comment.

The question is - when is something like this art and when is it porn?

Professional photographer Albert Chua, who has taken nudes himself, said there is 'a thin line' between a tasteful picture and pornography.

For him, a nude photograph should be about 'showing the body form to its best using lighting and photography'.

Wedding photographer George Wong, 30, who takes nude pictures only of couples for his work, said his goal is to achieve 'good and meaningful photographs', distinct from porn.

The participants could be treading on risky legal ground as the distribution of obscene materials is prohibited under the Undesirable Publications Act.

The penalty is a fine not exceeding $10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or both.

Criminal lawyer Amolat Singh said: 'There is no clear cut definition of obscenity.'

Something is obscene if it tends 'to deprave and corrupt persons' likely to come in contact with it.

He reckoned that in practical terms, something could be deemed obscene if the pictures taken are 'grossly indecent'.

'If they are pursuing the hobby for (artistic) purposes, I don't think they are doing anything wrong or objectionable. But if they highlight private parts or have poses suggestive of sexual acts, they may have crossed the line,' he said.

He said the law doesn't usually go barging into private occasions, but if you disseminate the nude pictures, you could get into trouble for distributing pornographic material.

Lawyer Shashi Nathan said there are nude art works and photos that do not give a sense of obscenity, while some fully clothed people can seem obscene, depending on what they are doing. And what is obscene in one society may not be in another.

He said, based on the photographer's account of the shoot: 'I don't see, on the face of it, anything that is wrong.'

But he suggested there may be 'borderline' issues.

He wondered, for instance, if the model was on a social visit or work pass. If it was the former, she may be violating its conditions.

Any photographer who recorded a video may also be in trouble for making an obscene film under the Films Act.

It could also be an offence for the model under the Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act, which bars people from appearing nude in a public place or in a private place exposed to public view.

'It's a grey area,' he said.

Lawyer Anthony Lim felt that as it involved an adult film star exposing herself, likely for monetary returns, it would be an indecent act.

'If it's in public, they would definitely be charged,' he said.

In private, he said, it depends on whether anybody is insulted by the act, and makes a police report.

Another issue, he said, is whether the hotel has given permission for the activity. It could be an offence if the hotel prohibits such activity.

In October, The New Paper reported on a similar case when a nude model appeared in an online erotic magazine in a picture taken in a local hotel with the Singapore skyline clearly in the background.

Said Ms Cheryl Ng, relations manager at Pan Pacific Hotel, where the latest shoot took place: 'The hotel respects the privacy of guests and will not intervene in guest activities confined within the room. However, based on local law, all guests must be registered at the front desk in the interests of maintaining safety within the hotel.

'The hotel must be informed regarding all photography or filming that will feature the hotel or takes place within public areas. Permission is granted based on the context and availability of resources.'

This article was first published in The New Paper on November 24, 2008.

Calcium, magnesium deficiencies cause insomnia

Calcium, magnesium deficiencies cause insomnia

Tue, Nov 25, 2008 NST

Q: I'M an engineer with two children. For the past two months, I have had difficulty falling asleep at night. And I can't seem to concentrate on my work.

A: INSOMNIA, defined as trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, could be a sign of calcium and magnesium deficiencies.

Insufficient amounts of calcium can cause tension, fatigue and cramps, which may interfere with your sleep.

Other contributing factors include stress, asthma, depression, muscle cramps, arthritis and heartburn. It would be good if you could find out the underlying reasons for the sleepless nights.

Diet-wise, you can take calcium and magnesium supplements daily. Magnesium may help promote sleep quality by relaxing the muscles and soothing the nervous system. Regular exercise, avoidance of caffeine, nicotine and alcohol as well as effective stress management is strongly suggested.

Exercising 20 to 30 minutes a day, reading or simply enjoying relaxing routines before bed can make it easier to fall asleep.

As for poor concentration, try taking ginkgo. It can be used to overcome fatigue, improve memory and mental capabilities. Eat more food high in Vitamin B such as eggs, green leafy vegetables and grains.

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AsiaOne and NST disclaim any and all liability for injury or other damages that could result from use of the information obtained from this article.

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This story was first published in the New Straits Times on Nov 24, 2008.

Recession, Dubai style

Recession, Dubai style

by The New Paper|24 November 2008

Champagne flowed, fireworks burst in the nightsky and celebrities were among the 2,000 guests who had descended on Dubai's Palm island to celebrate the launch of Atlantis Palm Jumeirah on Thursday.

Its developers threw a lavish US$20 million ($31m) which saw a star-studded guestlist of names such as Hollywood thespians Robert DeNiro and Charlize Theron, reported AP.

Other celebrities spotted include Michael Jordan, Lindsay Lohan, Wesley Snipes, Mary Kate Olsen, Shirley Bassey, Janet Jackson, Mischa Barton, Yasmin Le Bon, Jade Jagger and Lily Allen.

Even the headline act, Kylie Minogue, made her Middle East debut after being reportedly paid 2 million pounds ($4.6m), reported Guardian newspaper.

After her performance, the sky lit up with the world's largest fireworks display, seven times greater than this year's Olympic Games opening ceremony in Beijing and extravagant enough to be seen from outer space, said The Times.

Even the menu didn't disappoint.

As guests sipped Dom Perignon, they were treated to food masterminded by four Michelin-starred chefs helped by 500 sous chefs and 1,000 waiters.

In all, some 4,000 lobsters were dished out .

There was no evidence of the global financial crisis as party organisers seemed to pull out all the brakes for the world's most expensive private party.

In defence, British travel agent Graham Frazer said the party was planned a year ago.

The firework show's producer, MrColin Cowie, said: 'Had we been aware of the economic situation a year ago, I don't think we'd have done this on such a scale. But it was all designed a year ago and we wanted to dream - and then live that dream.'

South African tycoon Sol Kerzner, 73, chairman and chief executive officer of Kerzner International, who built the resort on the man-made Palm Island, said the costs were justified.

'If I had it all over again and I understood that the timing was what it was, one might modify a couple of the things ... but not significantly.

"We've built something that's quite extraordinary, and we've got to tell the world about it."
South African tycoon Sol Kerzner, 73, chairman and chief executive officer of Kerzner International, who built the resort on the man-made Palm Island

'When you consider US$20 million, it's a lot of money (until) you consider it up against establishing a US$1.5 billion resort.

'We've built something that's quite extraordinary, and we've got to tell the world about it,' he said.

The 1,539-room Dubai Atlantis resort opened for tourists in September.

This article was first published in The New Paper on Nov 22, 2008.

S'pore to make 'iconic investment' in Iskandar M'sia: Najib

S'pore to make 'iconic investment' in Iskandar M'sia: Najib

Nov 24, 2008
The Star

LIMA, PERU - Singapore has proposed to make an 'iconic investment' in Iskandar Malaysia as a symbol of commitment between the two countries, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib.

He said the suggestion was put forward by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong when the two met at the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders summit here on Saturday.

'The investment will be some sort of high impact economic project that is viable and effective for the two nations.

'The Singapore PM said the investment was a symbolic one as a commitment of his nation to Iskandar Malaysia,' said Najib to Malaysian newsmen at the end of the two-day Apec summit on Sunday.

Iskandar Malaysia in Johor is the new name of the Iskandar Regional Development Area, one of the five regional development corridors launched by the Government in the past four years.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had said at the launch of the project that Iskandar Malaysia would be to Singapore what "Shenzen is to Hong Kong" as the area is close to the Second Link that connects the two neighbouring nations.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim, who was present at the meeting between Najib and Lee, said the two leaders have left it to their officials to discuss details of the proposed investment.

'The officials will also decide on the scope and value of the investment that is to be made,' Dr Rais added.

He also revealed that he would meet with his Singaporean counterpart George Yeo in Bali to discuss the schedule for the negotiations of unresolved issues between the two countries.

Najib had earlier announced that he and Lee had agreed that the two Foreign Ministers should meet to discuss the unresolved points of agreement that was stated in the 1990 agreement between Malaysia and Singapore.

Dr Rais said he and Yeo would discuss the schedule for discussion as well as the issues.

Monday November 24, 2008

Cancer survivors dismayed by blanket ban on yoga

By SA’ODAH ELIAS

PETALING JAYA: Many Muslim cancer survivors who practise yoga to promote general wellbeing are disappointed and confused over the National Fatwa Council’s edict on the ancient form of exercise.

National Cancer Society of Malaysia’s advisor Datuk Zuraidah Atan said she had been inundated with calls from the survivors who were confused and apprehensive over the edict or fatwa.

“An overreaching fatwa like this is not good for them as unnecessary worry can have a negative effect on them psychologically and physically. Some are already feeling guilty for practising it.

“There is a need for the Fatwa Council to explain their edict properly so that Muslims who practise yoga, including cancer survivors are not made to feel guilty,” she said.

Zuraidah said the council organised a weekly free yoga session for cancer survivors, especially those who were over 40 as a form of relaxation and breathing exercise.

“Besides yoga, we also have qi gong sessions. Is the Fatwa Council going to ban qi gong, too, because it has its origins in Buddhism? Then how about line dancing? We also organise that as a form of light exercise for cancer survivors,” she said.

She said yoga, qi gong and line dancing were good for cancer survivors because they were group dynamics which also helped promote positive thinking and unity among survivors of different race and religion.

She said there were many levels of yoga and only yoga in its purest form involved religious chanting.

“Most Muslims know this. The yoga that is being taught in yoga centres nationwide only concentrates on techniques and has nothing to do with the promotion of Hinduism,” she added.

The National Fatwa Council on Saturday declared that yoga is haram (prohibited) in Islam and Muslims are banned from practising it.

Chairman Datuk Dr Abdul Shukor Husin said yoga had been practised by the Hindu community for thousands of years and incorporated physical movements, religious elements together with chants and worshipping, with the aim of being one with God.

He noted that while merely doing the physical movements of yoga without the worshipping and chanting might not be against religious beliefs, Muslims should avoid practising it altogether as doing one part of yoga would lead to another.

Can Dr Mahathir cure Umno of money politics?

Can Dr Mahathir cure Umno of money politics?
24 Nov, 2008

There is considerable irony is his threat. It was under his 22-year tenure that corruption flourished and took root within the party. Dr Mahathir tried with words to root it out - scolding, cajoling, imploring, begging, even crying on occasion. He would have been better served by coming down hard on offenders, using some of his formidable powers that he amassed when he was premier.

Business Times Singapore

Umno has already nominated the candidates who will contest party elections for every post from the deputy president downwards. Unfortunately, there's more than four months of campaigning before the actual polls itself.

The reason for the delay is Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Abdullah has declined nominations for the Umno presidency but he still wants to be Prime Minister until March so the party's supreme council, not without reservations, postponed the polls to that month while allowing nominations to begin in September.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is already premier-elect because no one secured enough nominations to challenge him for the presidency. But there are fights everywhere else with three candidates jostling for the deputy presidency; eight for the three vice-presidential posts; and contests for both the head of the Youth and Women's wings - unseen in Umno for a long, long time.

Some might say that this is a healthy development for a political party that claims to champion democracy. But this is Umno - where money politics has been on the rise since the late 1980s. The fear is that a successful candidate may actually have been the best that money can buy and it is a concern that is grounded in not inconsiderable evidence.

Most of the evidence is anecdotal but it is widely believed. Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen, a former foreign minister and current head of the party's disciplinary committee, has labelled the party "sick" and in need of "strong medication".

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad thinks that he knows the medication required. Writing in his blog last week, Dr Mahathir threatened to publicly reveal the people whom he alleges are involved in money politics.

There is considerable irony is his threat. It was under his 22-year tenure that corruption flourished and took root within the party. Dr Mahathir tried with words to root it out - scolding, cajoling, imploring, begging, even crying on occasion. He would have been better served by coming down hard on offenders, using some of his formidable powers that he amassed when he was premier.

Be that as it may, Dr Mahathir, 82, is now fed up and thinks that the time is ripe for stern action. He has proposed to do several things. He said that all reports on money politics submitted to him would be forwarded to the Umno disciplinary committee and the Anti-Corruption Agency. "If these two means are futile, I will reveal the names of those involved together with reports in my blog," he wrote.

Dr Mahathir has already endorsed both Najib and International Trade Minister and Umno vice-president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for Umno president and deputy respectively. But Muhyiddin faces a two-cornered challenge from Malacca Chief Minister Datuk Ali Rustam and Land and Regional Development Minister Tan Sri Muhammad Muhammad Taib. Both are candidates whom Dr Mahathir scornfully described as "jokers" before they received enough nominations to qualify as aspirants to the post of deputy president.

His appraisal of them didn't stop them from receiving quite decent support for a deputy presidential bid. Truth be told, there are no lack of stories about most aspirants - except Najib, who does not have to - judiciously using money to help their causes.

There is only one thing wrong with the former premier's threat. He is an interested party as his youngest son Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir is among three candidates eyeing the Umno Youth chief's post. So he will have to be seen as impartial and come out with everything he knows or risk a backlash with those he named pointing fingers elsewhere.

That could be a disaster for a party that's trying to regroup and re-invent itself for the future. But that's just the talk. There has been no corresponding walk and Umno has shown no desire to change. Who knows? Dr Mahathir's "surgery" may be just what the doctor ordered.

Ketuanan Melayu rebutted

Ketuanan Melayu rebutted

24 Nov, 2008

According to PSM's Nasir, the implementation of the NEP which focused on one race soon gave currency to the ketuanan Melayu rhetoric. But he says ketuanan Melayu is just a red herring. "Name me one Malay who is a pure Malay. There is virtually none — all Malays are mixed-blood to some degree."

By Shanon Shah, The Nut Graph

"IF you live in Malaysia, you cannot have ketuanan Melayu. The word 'ketuanan' is alienating. Malaysia has Eurasians, Indonesians, Chinese, Indians, and so on. If anyone deserves to be called the 'tuan' of this land, it's the Orang Asli."

Most Malaysians would be forgiven for thinking that it was a non-Malay Malaysian politician speaking out against ketuanan Melayu. But these sentiments were articulated by Nur Farina Noor Hashim, the People's Progressive Party (PPP) Puteri bureau head.

"I just had no interest to join Umno," Farina, who joined PPP in 2004, tells The Nut Graph. PPP is a component party of the Barisan Nasional (BN), of which Umno is the dominant party.

Farina is, of course, referring to the position taken by Umno leaders that suggests ketuanan Melayu is synonymous with Malay rights, and that Malay rights are under threat. Or rather, any questioning of ketuanan Melayu is tantamount to threatening the Malay race.

The consistent message from these Umno leaders of late seems to be that only Umno is capable of defending Malays. Or that Umno is the Malay race. And their currency is ketuanan Melayu.

Farina is not the only Malay Malaysian politician to view with some amount of circumspection Umno's position as defender of the Malays and their supremacy.

"I love Malays and I love Malaysia," says Gerakan central committee member Dr Asharuddin Ahmad. "But this country cannot survive without non-Malays. We are all Malaysians. The future of Malaysia lies with multiracial parties," he tells The Nut Graph.

Future of Malaysia lies with multiracial parties, says Asharuddin

Interestingly, Asharuddin is a former Umno member. He joined Umno in 1988, but left to join Gerakan 10 years later. He says he has been branded a traitor to Malay Malaysians, but asserts that joining Gerakan does not make him "any less Malay or more Malay".

"Umno's struggle is not wrong, but I prefer Gerakan's multiracial approach," Asharuddin says.

"Ketuanan" alienates

Umno leaders' defensiveness around the ketuanan Melayu rhetoric is not new. Their recent rancour in attacking dissenters within the BN, such as former Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Zaid Ibrahim and Gerakan Wanita chief Datuk Tan Lian Hoe, was therefore alarming yet unsurprising.

The question, however, is whether Malay Malaysian politicians have a future outside of Umno, especially if they want to remain within the BN.

In that sense, the case of Gerakan's Asharuddin is interesting, having crossed over from a party that champions ketuanan Melayu to a multiracial one.

But Asharuddin is not alone. Another ex-Umno member who jumped ship to join a multiracial BN component party is Datuk Nik Sapeia Nik Yusof from PPP.

Nik Sapeia was invited by party president Datuk Dr M Kayveas to join, even though he is still facing court proceedings for the charge of attacking former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in 2006. Nik Sapeia is now the party's Kelantan chief.

"Before I came along, nobody believed PPP had any supporters in Kelantan," Nik Sapeia tells The Nut Graph. "Now in Kelantan, every time I organise an event I get thousands of people attending and supporting it. The Kelantanese are ready and they want change to happen in the political scenario here."

He says the Kelantanese are increasingly seeing that PPP will bring about this much-needed change.

Malaysians are very open-minded and
intelligent, says Farina

Asharuddin and Nik Sapeia are undoubtedly minorities among the BN's multiracial component parties. However, they are slowly coming out of the woodwork, especially since the BN's unprecedented losses in the 8 March 2008 general election.

Farina feels that Umno's outbursts and threats will only backfire in the long run.

"Malaysians are very open-minded and intelligent now," she says. "Our politicians must be on par with the rakyat's intelligence, because it's the rakyat who want change and will eventually change this country."

Multiracial politics

The voices of these non-Umno Malay Malaysians within the BN join those in the Pakatan Rakyat that have also been upping the ante against Umno's ketuanan Melayu rhetoric.

As part of its election campaign, PAS launched its "PAS for all" tagline. The Islamist party also continues to aggressively recruit non-Muslim support via Kelab Penyokong PAS.

Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) leaders, such as Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Dr Syed Husin Ali, have been promoting "ketuanan rakyat" instead of "ketuanan Melayu". And the DAP also scored a coup when it recruited Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim as the party's vice-chairperson. He was formerly vice-chairperson of Transparency International's board of directors.

The Pakatan Rakyat parties are therefore, in varying degrees, grappling with their respective multiracial futures. The previously monoreligious, monoracial PAS is trying to appeal to a wider section of Malaysians. In an interview in the November 2008 issue of Off the Edge, even party spiritual advisor Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat said, "[I]f there is a Chinese person in Kelantan who is good, pious and clean, I will campaign for him to become chief minister. As long as he is qualified, as long as he is a Muslim, I don't care what ethnic background he comes from."

Nik Aziz Nik Mat (© Murdfreak)

The Chinese-dominated DAP is trying to increase its appeal to non-Chinese Malaysians, specifically Malay Malaysians. And high-level Malay Malaysian leaders in PKR are trying to consolidate the party's tentative multiracialism.

A little-known fact is that two other opposition parties, albeit non-Pakatan Rakyat members, are multiracial and led by Malay Malaysians. They, too, are vocal in their opposition to the ketuanan Melayu rhetoric.

Historical miscalculations

Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) national chairperson Dr Nasir Hashim says Umno's racial outbursts are rooted in historical miscalculations.

"We made a mistake, even after Merdeka, when we were emerging as a nation. We should have talked about helping the poor among all races and not just zero in on one race," he tells The Nut Graph.

Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) president Hassan Karim concurs. He tells The Nut Graph: "The NEP (New Economic Policy), being capitalist and race-based, only benefited a minority of Malays. What about analysing it from a class perspective? Not all Chinese are rich either, you know. There cannot be ketuanan Melayu or ketuanan bukan Melayu. There must be justice for all."

Nasir: Ketuanan Melayu is just a red herring

According to PSM's Nasir, the implementation of the NEP which focused on one race soon gave currency to the ketuanan Melayu rhetoric. But he says ketuanan Melayu is just a red herring. "Name me one Malay who is a pure Malay. There is virtually none — all Malays are mixed-blood to some degree."

Rather, Umno's outbursts can be seen as the increasingly desperate acts of a party frustrated by its loss of power, he argues. "Umno is frustrated by its losses during the general election, and continues to use race and religion to divert the anger of poor Malays," adds Nasir.

"Because as so-called leaders of the Malays, Umno has failed. It has not even been able to help poor Malays and Malay entrepreneurs," he asserts. Therefore, the ketuanan Melayu rhetoric conveniently redirects the frustration and anger of disenfranchised Malay Malaysians towards other races. Herein lies the danger of Umno's rhetoric, says Nasir.

"In times of economic difficulty, the ketuanan Melayu rhetoric will likely give rise to fascist tendencies. When people are feeling the pinch and they are frustrated, you just need to cucuk them and then they'll meletup. Umno knows this only too well," he says.

Hassan: We cannot move forward if we follow Umno

Again, PRM's Hassan concurs. "Ketuanan Melayu will destroy our country. I'm a Malay too, you know, but I believe that what Umno is fighting for is feudalistic. We cannot move forward if we follow Umno."

The Malay Malaysian leaders interviewed all say that interest in their respective parties, both in the BN and opposition, has risen since 8 March, especially among Malays.

It is definitely heartening that there is a diverse and growing number of Malay Malaysian political leaders speaking out against supremacist rhetoric and for an inclusive society. But it is even more encouraging that they are gaining support.

Perhaps this, then, is the most encouraging indicator yet that racial politics is losing currency in Malaysia.

Najib can't solve it, says Mahathir

Najib can't solve it, says Mahathir
23 Nov, 2008

(Daily Express) - Curtailing corruption and money politics in Umno will be a difficult task even with Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak becoming the Prime Minister and Umno President in March, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

"Will the power transition (from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to Najib) restore the party? I am not yet convinced as I have yet to see whether Najib is able to solve corruption and money politics.

"We will not regain the 'clean' Umno of yesteryears to represent us unless money politics is curbed," said Dr Mahathir at a discourse entitled the "Malay Dilemma" organised by the Federation of Malaysian National Writers' Associations (Gapena), Saturday.

The former Prime Minister said the scourge had become a culture in Umno and had become more pronounced in the run-up to the party's polls (in March). Dr Mahathir said if Umno did not return to the roots of its struggle, it would no longer be relevant to the Malays.

"The leaders must lead by example by taking stern action against those involved in corruption. Do not vote for leaders who are involved in corruption," he said.

When asked if he had referred any names to Umno's disciplinary board for indulging in money politics, said he had not done so as many had lodged reports for the same with the board.

He said what was important was that action be taken on the complaints. On Wanita Umno chief Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz's decision to defend her post, he said, "It is up to her. What is important is that Umno members should choose their leaders wisely."

Meanwhile, Dr Mahathir also said the teaching of science and mathematics in English should be continued to ensure Malaysian students, especially the Malays, are not left behind.

He said the change to teach the two subjects in English from Bahasa Malaysia was to ensure students could master them and at the same time become more proficient in English, the number one language in the world.

"It is not aimed at neglecting Bahasa Malaysia. Furthermore, most publications on science and mathematics are in English.

"Take for example the cellular phone. If foreigners manufacture them equipped with cameras and the short-messaging facility but the manual is in English, can we used our science which is in Bahasa Malaysia to make the same hand phone?

"By the time we are done with the translation we will be left far behind," he said. He also cited the dark ages of the Arabs where they had to learn everything from the Greeks.

"Obviously they could not ask the Greeks to translate their knowledge into Arabic. The solution then was for them to learn Greek so that they could have access to the knowledge in their possession. By doing this, the Arabs became a progressive race," he said, adding that the same applied in the current scenario in the country.

He also said being proficient in two languages was a great asset and cited himself as an example.

"I studied in a Malay school for two years before my father transferred me to an English school. Thereafter all my education was in English.

"Did I lose my ability to use Bahasa Malaysia? It will not signify the end of the Malay race if we are to learn in English as well," he said.

Scandal exposes Islam's weakness

SPENGLER
Scandal exposes Islam's weakness
By Spengler

"Did you hear about the German Gnostic?"
"He couldn't keep a secret."

Just such a Teutonic mystic is Professor Muhammad Sven Kalisch, a German convert to Islam who teaches Muslim theology at the University of Munster. Kalisch recently laid a Gnostic egg in the nest of Islam, declaring that the Prophet Mohammed never existed, not at least in the way that the received version of Islamic tradition claims he did. Given that Kalisch holds an academic chair specifically funded to instruct teachers of Islam in Germany's school system, a scandal ensued, first reported in the mainstream English-language press by Andrew Higgins in the November 15 edition of the Wall Street Journal.

On closer reading, Kalisch offers a far greater challenge to Islam than the secular critics who reject its claims. The headline that a Muslim academic has doubts over the existence of the Prophet Mohammed is less interesting than why he has such doubts. Kalisch does not want to harm Islam, but rather to expose what he believes to be its true nature. Islam, he argues, really is a Gnostic spiritual teaching masquerading as myth. Kalisch's heretical variant of Islam may be close enough to the religion's original intent as to provoke a re-evaluation of the original sources.
A labor of love from inside the fortress of Islamic theology may accomplish what all the ballistas of the critics never could from outside the walls. Koranic criticism, I have argued for years (here and elsewhere - You say you want a reformation? Asia Times Online, August 5, 2003) is the Achilles' heel of the religion. That argument has been made about Christianity for years by Elaine Pagels and other promoters of "Gnostic Gospels", and it is dead wrong. In the case of Islam, though, it might be dead accurate.

Kalisch is a Gnostic, a believer in secret spiritual truths that undergird the myths manufactured for the edification of the peasantry. But he is a German Gnostic, and therefore feels it necessary to lay out his secrets in thorough academic papers with extensive footnotes and bibliography. It is a strange and indirect way of validating the dictum of the great German-Jewish theologian Franz Rosenzweig: Islam is a parody of Judaism and Christianity.

It is in weird little byways of academia such as Kalisch wanders that the great battles of religion will be fought out, not at academic conferences and photo opportunities with the pope. For example: the Catholic Islamologists who organized the November 4-7 meeting of Catholic and Muslim scholars in Rome envision incremental reforms inside Islam through a more relaxed Turkish version (see A Pyrrhic propaganda victory in Rome Asia Times Online, November 12, 2008 and Tin-opener theology from Turkey Asia Times Online, June 3, 2008). Despite their best efforts at an orderly encounter with Islam, events have a way of overtaking them. Last March, Pope Benedict personally received into the Catholic faith the Egyptian-born Italian journalist Magdi Allam at the Easter Vigil. In September, Kalisch dropped his own bombshell. In a way, it is longer-acting and more deadly.

A small group of Koran scholars, to be sure, has long doubted Mohammed's existence. Their scholarship is sufficiently interesting, though, to question whether it is worthwhile exposing the alleged misdeeds of the Prophet Mohammed, who may not have existed in the first place (The Koranic quotations trap Asia Times Online, May 15, 2007). Earlier this year, I reported on the progress of the critics, as well as belated emergence of a treasure-trove of photocopies of Koranic manuscripts hidden away by Nazi Islamologists (Indiana Jones meets the Da Vinci Code Asia Times Online, January 18, 2008). The Nazis had a Gnostic interest in Islam (call them "Gnazis"). The manuscripts and copies are now under the control of mainstream scholars at the University of Berlin, with deep ties to Arab countries.

Kalisch is the first Muslim scholar to dispute the Prophet's existence, while continuing to profess Muslim. If the Prophet did not exist, or in any case did not dictate the Koran, "then it might be that the Koran was truly inspired by God, a great narration from God, but it was not dictated word for word from Allah to the Prophet", he told a German newspaper. A German Protestant who converted to Islam as a teenager in search of a religion of reason, Kalisch can live with an alternative of reading of Islam. Very few of the world's billion and a half Muslims can.

Islam cannot abide historical criticism of the sort that Judaism and Christianity have sustained for centuries. "Abie, if you're here, then who is that there in my bed?," responds the Jewish wife in the old joke when her husband catches her in delicto flagrante. No one can offer an alternative explanation for the unique persistence of the Jewish people after 30 documented centuries of Jewish life. "If Moses didn't exist," the Jews respond to skeptics, "then who brought us out of Egypt?" Told that perhaps they didn't come out of Egypt, the Jews will respond, "Then what are we doing here today?"

Christians, by the same token, read the writings of numerous individuals who either met Jesus of Nazareth or took down the accounts of people who did, and who believed that he was the only begotten Son of God. Proof of Jesus' divinity, though, is entirely beside the point. If the Christian God wanted to rule by majesty and power, he would not have come to earth as a mortal to die on the cross. The Christian God asks for love and faith, not submission before majesty. The Christian is not asked to prove the unprovable, but to love and believe. Muslims have a different problem: if Mohammed did not receive the Koran from God, then what are they doing there to begin with? Kalisch has the sort of answer that only a German academic could love.

"We hardly have original Islamic sources from the first two centuries of Islam," Kalisch observes in a German-language paper available on the Muenster University (website). It is fascinating reading, and since it is not yet available in English I take the liberty of translating or summarizing a few salient points. Responsibility for any errors of translation of interpretation is my own.

Kalisch continues, "And even when a source appears to come from this period, caution is required. The mere assertion that a source stems from the first or second century of the Islamic calendar means nothing. And even when a source actually was written in the first or second century, the question always remains of later manipulation. We do not tread on firm ground in the sources until the third Islamic century."

This, Kalisch observes, is extremely suspicious: how can a world religion have erupted in a virtual literary vacuum? A great religion, moreover, inevitably throws off heresies: where are the early Islamic heretics and Gnostics? Later Islamic theologians knew the titles of some of their works, but the content itself was lost. "The only explanation for the disappearance is that it had long since become unusable theologically," he alleges of certain Shi'ite sources.

Kalisch draws on the well-known work of Patricia Crone and Martin Hinds, whose criticism of the received version have a distinctly minority position in Koranic scholarship:

It is a striking fact that such documentary evidence as survives from the Sufnayid period makes no mention of the messenger of god at all. The papyri do not refer to him. The Arabic inscriptions of the Arab-Sasanian coins only invoke Allah, not his rasul [messenger]; and the Arab-Byzantine bronze coins on which Muhammad appears as rasul Allah, previously dated to the Sufyanid period, have not been placed in that of the Marwanids. Even the two surviving pre-Marwanid tombstones fail to mention the rasul.

The great scandal of Islamic tradition is the absence of Islamic formulations from coins and monuments dating from the its first two centuries, as well as the presence of material obviously incompatible with Islam. "Coins and inscriptions are incompatible with the Islamic writing of history," Kalisch concludes on the strength of older work, including Yehuda Nevo and Jutith Koren's Crossroads to Islam.

The oldest inscription with the formulation "Mohammed Messenger of Allah" is to found in the 66th year of Islamic reckoning, and after that used continuously. But there also exist coins found in Palestine, probably minted in Amman, on which the word "Muhammed" is found in Arabic script on one side, and a picture of a man holding a cross on the other. Kalisch cites this and a dozen other examples. Citing Nevo/Koren and other sources, Kalisch also accepts the evidence that no Islamic conquest occurred as presented in much later Islamic sources, but rather a peaceful transfer of power from the Byzantine empire to its local Arab allies.

"To be sure," Kalisch continues, "various explanations are possible for the lack of mention of the Prophet in the early period, and it is no proof for the non-existence of an historical Mohammed. But it is most astonishing, and begs the question of the significance of Mohammed for the original Muslim congregation in the case that he did exist."

The numismatic, archeological, source-critical and other evidence against acceptance of the received version of Islamic history was well developed by other scholars. But it was never accepted by mainstream Orientalists. Cynics might point to the fact that most Middle Eastern studies programs in the West today are funded by Islamic governments, or depend on the good will of Middle Eastern governments for access to source material. Academia is not only corrupt, however, but credulous: the question arises: if Mohammed never existed, or did not exist as he is portrayed, why was so much effort devoted in later years to manufacturing thousands of pages of phony documentation in the Hadith and elsewhere?

Why, indeed, was the Mohammed story invented, by whom, and to what end? The story of the Hegira, Mohammed's flight from Mecca to Medina allegedly in 622, provides a clue, according to Kalisch. "No prophet is mentioned in the Koran as often as Moses, and Muslim tradition always emphasized the great similarly between Moses and Mohammed," he writes. "The central event in the life of Moses, though, is the Exodus of the oppressed Children of Israel out of Egypt, and the central event in the life of Mohammed is the Exodus of his oppressed congregation out of Mecca to Medina ... The suspicion is great that the Hegira appears only for this reason in the story of the Prophet, because his image should emulate the image of Moses."
Furthermore, "the image of Jesus is also seen as a new Moses. The connection of Mohammed to the figure of Jesus is presented in Islamic tradition through his daughter Fatima, who is identified with Maria ... The Line Fatima-Maria-Isis is well known to research. With the takeover of Mecca, Mohammed at least returns to his point of origin. Thus we have a circular structure typical of myth, in which beginning and end are identical. This Gnostic circular structure represents the concept that the soul returns to its origin. It is separated from its origin, and must return to it for the sake of its salvation."

Kalisch concludes that Islam itself began as a Gnosis, a secret teaching much like the Gnostic Christian sources rejected by the Church Fathers. "The myth of Mohammed ... could be the product of a Gnosis, which wanted to present its theology in a new and original myth with a new protagonist, but actually is the old protagonist (Moses, Jesus). For the Gnostics it always was clear, that the issue was not historical truth, but rather theology. Moses, Jesus and Mohammed were only different characterizations of a mythic hero or son of god, who would depict an old spiritual teaching in mythical form."

He explains,

In the Islamic Gnosis, Muhammed appears along with [his family members] Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Hussein as cosmic forces ... the Gnostic Abu Mansur al Igli claimed that God first created Jesus, and then Ali. Here apparently we still have the Cosmic Christ. If a Christian Gnosis was there are the origin of Islam, then the Cosmic Christ underwent a name change to Mohammed in the Arab world, and this Cosmic Mohammed was presented as a new edition of the Myth of Moses and Joshua (=Jesus) as an Arab prophet.

Thirst for secret wisdom drew Kalisch to Islam as a teenager, and keeps him within the faith despite his devastating critique. As he writes,

The teachings of Islamic mysticism are not specifically Islamic. They are a new minting of the perennial philosophy, which is found everywhere in the world in various traditions ... For me, this perennial philosophy is what the Koran means when it speaks of a teaching that God brought to humankind in all epochs.

My own views on the subject of Islamic mysticism are contained in a recent essay, (Sufism, sodomy and Satan Asia Times Online, August 12, 2008). Kalisch, it should be noted, adheres to a minority sect within the minority Shi'ite current in Islam, the Zaydi variant. His conclusions will convince few in the Islamic mainstream. But his work points to the great vulnerabilities of Islam. As I wrote some months ago, the German Jesuits who advise the Vatican on Islamic matters invested heavily in the supposedly moderate establishment of Sunni Islam in Turkey, and the theology department of the University of Ankara in particular (Tin-opener theology from Turkey Asia Times Online, June 3, 2008).

Of far greater interest may be the wide assortment of variant and quasi-heretical trends within Islam. Something very ancient and entirely genuine long buried within Islam may be struggling to the surface, a cuckoo's egg, as it were, waiting to hatch. It is noteworthy that Germany's Alevi community (immigrants from Turkey's 5-to-15 million strong Alevi population) expressed solidarity with Kalisch when he came under attack from other Muslim organizations.

Coming from a minority within a minority, Kalisch has offered a new and credible explanation of the motive behind the great reshuffling of Islamic sources during the second and third centuries of the religion. I cannot evaluate Kalisch's handling of the sources, but the principle he advances makes sense. It is another crack in the edifice of Islam, but a most dangerous one, because it came from the inside.

(Copyright 2008 Asia Times Online (Holdings) Ltd.

Dear Pete

Dear Pete

22 Nov, 2008

Any assembly of more than four people at a candlelight vigil is haram and you can get arrested for participating in a perhimpunan haram if you do not have a police permit. The police would normally approve your permit application as long as you do not light any candles at the candlelight vigil.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Dear Pete,

I plan to get a dog but I live in a neighbourhood where some of my neighbours are Muslims. I was told that dogs are taboo to Muslims and I do not want to upset my neighbours. I also read somewhere that the majlis perbandaran has a team of dogcatchers that goes around mercilessly killing dogs. How can I ensure that I do not upset my Muslim neighbours and will not run foul of the authority?

Mike

*****************************************

Dear Mike,

Muslims do not like doggies licking them as doggie saliva is considered najis or unclean. They have no problems getting licked by pussies though. In fact, they quite enjoy it. Just make sure that your doggie does not lick any Muslim and you should face no problems. The best would be to keep your doggie within your compound and not allow it to stray outside. Anyway, doggies that stray all over the place face the risk of getting knocked down by a car or it might catch an infectious disease. So that is all the more reason to keep them within your compound. And avoid Mongolian breeds as the police SWAT team has been told to be on the lookout for Mongolian bitches, though for what reason I really don’t know.

Pete

******************************************

Dear Pete,

I am engaged in a land dispute and was advised, in the absence of a valid land title, to file a Statutory Declaration to support my claim that I am the owner of the land. Will such a Statutory Declaration stand up in court?

Clarence Tan

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Dear Clarence Tan,

Statutory Declarations are no longer regarded as having any credibility, like in the past, so the court may not give any weight to it. Anyway, you might run the risk of getting charged in court as, nowadays, those who sign Statutory Declarations are arrested and charged for criminal defamation. Nevertheless, if you sign a new Statutory Declaration within 24 hours to recant what you said in your first Statutory Declaration then you will be exempted from prosecution. Instead of signing a Statutory Declaration, my advice would be to engage a well-connected lawyer with strong links to the Attorney-General and Chief Justice and try to ‘negotiate’ your case ‘under the table’ before it goes to court. Most cases in Malaysia are won on this basis. I could probably give you the name of an Indian-Muslim lawyer whom you can get in touch with if you contact me privately.

Pete

**********************************************

Dear Pete,

I am a Muslim and my ustaz advices me that Muslims should not participate in candlelight vigils, as, according to Islam, this is considered haram. Is this true?

Maimunah Harun

***********************************************

Dear Maimunah Harun,

Yes, that is true. So make sure that the organisers first apply for a police permit. Any assembly of more than four people at a candlelight vigil is haram and you can get arrested for participating in a perhimpunan haram if you do not have a police permit. The police would normally approve your permit application as long as you do not light any candles at the candlelight vigil.

Pete

************************************************

Dear Pete,

Yesterday, the Anti-Corruption Agency arrested my cousin and alleged that he had attempted to bribe a Road Transport Department officer. They found the money hidden in his underwear and said that they had been monitoring his movements for some time on suspicion of handing out dirty money. What should I advice him to do? Should he just plead guilty and hope for a lesser sentence or should he fight the case out in court?

Wong

*************************************************

Dear Wong,

It would be very hard for the prosecution to prove that your cousin had attempted to hand out dirty money unless they can first prove that his underwear was not clean. I would advice him to fight the case out in court. Just make sure that he removes his underwear and lodges it in a safe place or else something ‘dirty’ might be planted on it like they sometimes do in cases such as sodomy.

Pete

***************************************************

Dear Pete,

I run my own business and am engaged in state government contracts. At the end of every year, just before Christmas, I hand out ‘red packets’ to the government officers who sign my contracts. Should I stop handing out ‘red packets’ in the Pakatan Rakyat-run states or is it safe to continue doing so?

Kok Leong

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Dear Kok Leong,

I think it would be dangerous to continue handing out ‘red packets’ to the government officers in the Pakatan Rakyat-run states. I would suggest you hand out ‘green packets’ instead, which is more Islamic, and which the PAS members of Pakatan Rakyat would be more comfortable with.

Pete

Balasubramaniam’s Statutory Declaration revisited

Balasubramaniam’s Statutory Declaration revisited
21 Nov, 2008

The Federal Constitution of Malaysia does not state that the Umno President must become the Prime Minister of Malaysia. What it does say is that the Agong must appoint a Member of the House (one of the 222 Members of Parliament) who has the confidence of the majority of the Members of the House as the Prime Minister.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Balasubramaniam a/l Perumal signed the following Statutory Declaration on Tuesday, 1 July 2008. On Wednesday, 2 July 2008, I spent about six hours with him from 6.00pm to midnight where he not only repeated what he said in his Statutory Declaration but much more, which he said would be fully revealed in part 2 and part 3 of his Statutory Declarations that would follow over the next few days. There were six people with us at that meeting, that included three lawyers.

On Thursday, 3 July 2008, Balasubramaniam held a press conference at the Parti Keadilan Rakyat headquarters in Merchant Square, Tropicana. After that press conference we had lunch with about 20 people or so, which included members of the media, and an elated Subramanian told us to wait for SD2 and SD3, which are going to be more explosive than his first Statutory Declaration.

Of course, SD2 and SD3 never happened because on Friday, 4 July 2008, Balasubramaniam signed another Statutory Declaration recanting what he said in his Statutory Declaration of 1 July.

My lawyers tell me that what Balasubramaniam told us on 2 July 2008 is hearsay and therefore not admissible as evidence in a court of law. This means I am not at liberty to reveal what Balasubramaniam told us. It’s a shame really because the story would make a great Bollywood movie script.

On Monday, 24 November 2008, my ‘criminal defamation’ trial will kick of at the Jalan Duta court. This is with regards to my own Statutory Declaration that I signed in April 2008. I have lined up about a dozen or so witnesses who will confirm, amongst others, what I said in my Statutory Declaration, plus of course much more not revealed in that Statutory Declaration of mine.

I am actually looking forward to this trial because this will give my dozen witnesses and me an opportunity to reveal what we cannot say under normal circumstances. Let us see, after this trial commences, whether Malaysians would still want Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to resign in March 2009. My suspicion is most Malaysians would regard Pak Lah as the ‘lesser of the two evils’ and will beg him to stay on till the end of his term on midnight of 7 March 2013.

By the way, the Federal Constitution of Malaysia does not state that the Umno President must become the Prime Minister of Malaysia. What it does say is that the Agong must appoint a Member of the House (one of the 222 Members of Parliament) who has the confidence of the majority of the Members of the House as the Prime Minister. And Pak Lah already has 82 Pakatan Rakyat Members of Parliament with him plus 20 from Umno. All he needs is ten more and MCA, MIC and Gerakan has 20. So, even without Sabah and Sarawak, Pak Lah can still remain as Prime Minister of Malaysia.

That is the reality of the situation and this is what the law says. So let us not celebrate the new regime of Najib Tun Razak just yet as it may not happen after all. One week is a long time in politics, let alone four months. So many things can happen. And there are many things that are going to happen over these next four months even if they win their appeal against my release from Internal Security Act detention and succeed in sending me back to Kamunting.

STATUTORY DECLARATION

I, Balasubramaniam a/l Perumal a Malaysian Citizen of full age and residing at [deleted] do solemly and sincerely declare as follows :-

1. I have been a police officer with the Royal Malaysian Police Force having jointed as a constable in 1981 attached to the Police Field Force. I was then promoted to the rank of lance Corporal and finally resigned from the Police Force in 1998 when I was with the Special Branch.

2. I have been working as a free lance Private Investigator since I left the Police Force.

3. Sometime in June or July 2006, I was employed by Abdul Razak Baginda for a period of 10 days to look after him at his office at the Bangunan Getah Asli, Jalan Ampang between the hours of 8.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m each working day as apparently he was experiencing disturbances from a third party.

4. I resigned from this job after 2 ½ days as I was not receiving any proper instructions.

5. I was however re-employed by Abdul Razak Baginda on the 05-10-2006 as he had apparently received a harassing phone call from a Chinese man calling himself ASP Tan who had threatened him to pay his debts. I later found out this gentleman was in fact a private investigator called Ang who was employed by a Mongolian woman called Altantuya Shaaribuu.

6. Abdul Razak Baginda was concerned that a person by the name of Altantuya Shaaribuu, a Mongolian woman, was behind this threat and that she would be arriving in Malaysia very soon to try and contact him.

7. Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that he was concerned by this as he had been advised that Altantuya Shaaribuu had been given some powers by a Mongolian ‘bomoh’ and that he could never look her in the face because of this.

8. When I enquired as to who this Mongolian woman was, Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that she was a friend of his who had been introduced to him by a VIP and who asked him to look after her financially.

9. I advised him to lodge a police report concerning the threatening phone call he had received from the Chinese man known as ASP Tan but he refused to do so as he informed me there were some high profile people involved.

10. Abdul Razak Baginda further told me that Altantuya Shaaribuu was a great liar and good in convincing people. She was supposed to have been very demanding financially and that he had even financed a property for her in Mongolia.

11. Abdul Razak Baginda then let me listen to some voice messages on his handphone asking him to pay what was due otherwise he would be harmed and his daughter harassed.

12. I was therefore supposed to protect his daughter Rowena as well.

13. On the 09.10.2006 I received a phone call from Abdul Razak Baginda at about 9.30 a.m. informing me that Altantuya was in his office and he wanted me there immediately. As I was in the midst of a surveillance, I sent my assistant Suras to Abdul Razak Baginda’s office and I followed a little later. Suras managed to control the situation and had persuaded Altantuya and her two friends to leave the premises. However Altantuya left a note written on some Hotel Malaya note paper, in English, asking Abdul Razak Baginda to call her on her handphone (number given) and wrote down her room number as well.

14. Altantuya had introduced herself to Suras as ‘Aminah’ and had informed Suras she was there to see her boyfriend Abdul Razak Baginda.

15. These 3 Mongolian girls however returned to Abdul Razak Baginda’s office at the Bangunan Getah Asli, Jalan Ampang again, the next day at about 12.00 noon. They did not enter the building but again informed Suras that they wanted to meet Aminah’s boyfriend, Abdul Razak Baginda.

16. On the 11.10.2006, Aminah returned to Abdul Razak Baginda’s office on her own and gave me a note to pass to him, which I did. Abdul Razak Baginda showed me the note which basically asked him to call her urgently.

17. I suggested to Abdul Razak Baginda that perhaps it may be wise to arrange for Aminah to be arrested if she harassed him further, but he declined as he felt she would have to return to Mongolia as soon as her cash ran out.

18. In the meantime I had arranged for Suras to perform surveillance on Hotel Malaya to monitor the movements of these 3 Mongolian girls, but they recognized him. Apparently they become friends with Suras after that and he ended up spending a few nights in their hotel room.

19. When Abdul Razak Baginda discovered Suras was becoming close to Aminah he asked me to pull him out from Hotel Malaya.

20. On the 14.10.2006, Aminah turned up at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house in Damansara Heights when I was not there. Abdul Razak Baginda called me on my handphone to inform me of this so I rushed back to his house. As I arrived, I noticed Aminah outside the front gates shouting “Razak, bastard, come out from the house”. I tried to calm her down but couldn’t so I called the police who arrived in 2 patrol cars. I explained the situation to the police, who took her away to the Brickfields police station.

21. I followed the patrol cars to Brickfields police station in a taxi. I called Abdul Razak Baginda and his lawyer Dirren to lodge a police report but they refused.

22. When I was at the Brickfields police station, Aminah’s own Private Investigator, one Mr. Ang arrived and we had a discussion. I was told to deliver a demand to Abdul Razak Baginda for USD$500,000.00 and 3 tickets to Mongolia, apparently as commission owed to Aminah from a deal in Paris.

23. As Aminah had calmed down at this stage, a policewoman at the Brickfields police station advised me to leave and settle the matter amicably.

24. I duly informed Abdul Razak Baginda of the demands Aminah had made and told him I was disappointed that no one wanted to back me up in lodging a police report. We had a long discussion about the situation when I expressed a desire to pull out of this assignment.

25. During this discussion and in an attempt to persuade me to continue my employment with him, Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that :-

25.1 He had been introduced to Aminah by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at a diamond exhibition in Singapore.

25.2 Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak informed Abdul Razak Baginda that he had a sexual relationship with Aminah and that [deleted by nat out of respect to the family of the deceased].

25.3 Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak wanted Abdul Razak Baginda to look after Aminah as he did not want her to harass him since he was now the Deputy Prime Minister.

25.4 Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Abdul Razak Baginda and Aminah had all been together at a dinner in Paris.

25.5 Aminah wanted money from him as she felt she was entitled to a USD$500,000.00 commission on a submarine deal she assisted with in Paris.

26. On the 19.10.2006, I arrived at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house in Damansara Heights to begin my night duty. I had parked my car outside as usual. I saw a yellow proton perdana taxi pass by with 3 ladies inside, one of whom was Aminah. The taxi did a U-turn and stopped in front of the house where these ladies rolled down the window and wished me ‘Happy Deepavali’. The taxi then left.

27. About 20 minutes later the taxi returned with only Aminah in it. She got out of the taxi and walked towards me and started talking to me. I sent an SMS to Abdul Razak Baginda informing him “Aminah was here”. I received an SMS from Razak instructing me “To delay her until my man comes”.

28. Whist I was talking to Aminah, she informed me of the following :-

28.1 That she met Abdul Razak Baginda in Singapore with Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

28.2 That she had also met Abdul Razak Baginda and Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at a dinner in Paris.

28.3 That she was promised a sum of USD$500,000.00 as commission for assisting in a Submarine deal in Paris.

28.4 That Abdul Razak Baginda had bought her a house in Mongolia but her brother had refinanced it and she needed money to redeem it.

28.5 That her mother was ill and she needed money to pay for her treatment.

6. That Abdul Razak Baginda had married her in Korea as her mother is Korean whilst her father was a Mongolian/Chinese mix.

28.7 That if I wouldn’t allow her to see Abdul Razak Baginda, would I be able to arrange for her to see Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

29. After talking to Aminah for about 15 minutes, a red proton aeroback arrived with a woman and two men. I now know the woman to be Lance Corporal Rohaniza and the men, Azilah Hadri and Sirul Azahar. They were all in plain clothes. Azilah walked towards me while the other two stayed in the car.

30. Azilah asked me whether the woman was Aminah and I said ‘Yes’. He then walked off and made a few calls on his handphone. After 10 minutes another vehicle, a blue proton saga, driven by a Malay man, passed by slowly. The drivers window had been wound down and the driver was looking at us.

31. Azilah then informed me they would be taking Aminah away. I informed Aminah they were arresting her. The other two persons then got out of the red proton and exchanged seats so that Lance Corporal Rohaniza and Aminah were in the back while the two men were in the front. They drove off and that is the last I ever saw of Aminah.

32. Abdul Razak Baginda was not at home when all this occurred.

33. After the 19.10.2006, I continued to work for Abdul Razak Baginda at his house in Damansara Heights from 7.00 p.m. to 8.00 a.m. the next morning, as he had been receiving threatening text messages from a woman called ‘Amy’ who was apparently ‘Aminah’s’ cousin in Mongolia.

34. On the night of the 20.10.2006, both of Aminah’s girl friends turned up at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house enquiring where Aminah was. I informed them she had been arrested the night before.

35. A couple of nights later, these two Mongolian girls, Mr. Ang and another Mongolian girl called ‘Amy’ turned up at Abdul Razak Baginda’s house looking for Aminah as they appeared to be convinced she was being held in the house.

36. A commotion began so I called the police who arrived shortly thereafter in a patrol car. Another patrol car arrived a short while later in which was the investigating officer from the Dang Wangi Police Station who was in charge of the missing persons report lodged by one of the Mongolians girls, I believe was Amy.

37. I called Abdul Razak Baginda who was at home to inform him of the events taking place at his front gate. He then called DSP Musa Safri and called me back informing me that Musa Safri would be calling handphone and I was to pass the phone to the Inspector from Dang Wangi Police Station.

38. I then received a call on my handphone from Musa Safri and duly handed the phone to the Dang Wangi Inspector. The conversation lasted 3 – 4 minutes after which he told the girls to disperse and to go to see him the next day.

39. On or about the 24.10.2006, Abdul Razak Baginda instructed me to accompany him to the Brickfields police station as he had been advised to lodge a police report about the harassment he was receiving from these Mongolian girls.

40. Before this, Amy had sent me an SMS informing me she was going to Thailand to lodge a report with the Mongolian consulate there regarding Aminah’s disappearance. Apparently she had sent the same SMS to Abdul Razak Baginda. This is why he told me he had been advised to lodge a police report.

41. Abdul Razak Baginda informed me that DPS Musa Safri had introduced him to one DSP Idris, the head of the Criminal division, Brickfields police station, and that Idris had referred him to ASP Tonny.

42. When Abdul Razak Baginda had lodged his police report at Brickfields police station, in front of ASP Tonny, he was asked to make a statement but he refused as he said he was leaving for overseas. He did however promise to prepare a statement and hand ASP Tonny a thumb drive. I know that this was not done as ASP Tonny told me.

43. However ASP Tonny asked me the next day to provide my statement instead and so I did.

44. I stopped working for Abdul Razak Baginda on the 26.10.2006 as this was the day he left for Hong Kong on his own.

45. In mid November 2006, I received a phone call from ASP Tonny from the IPK Jalan Hang Tuah asking me to see him regarding Aminah’s case. When I arrived there I was immediately arrested under S.506 of the Penal Code for Criminal intimidation.

46. I was then placed in the lock up and remanded for 5 days. On the third day I was released on police bail.

47. At the end of November 2006, the D9 department of the IPK sent a detective to my house to escort me to the IPK Jalan Hang Tuah. When I arrived, I was told I was being arrested under S.302 of the Penal Code for murder. I was put in the lock up and remanded for 7 days.

48. I was transported to Bukit Aman where I was interrogated and questioned about an SMS I had received from Abdul Razak Baginda on the 19.10.2006 which read “delay her until my man arrives”. They had apparently retrieved this message from Abdul Razak Baginda’s handphone.

49. They then proceeded to record my statement from 8.30 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. everyday for 7 consecutive days. I told them all I knew including everything Abdul Razak Baginda and Aminah had told me about their relationships with Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak but when I came to sign my statement, these details had been left out.

50. I have given evidence in the trial of Azilah, Sirul and Abdul Razak Baginda at the Shah Alam High Court. The prosecutor did not ask me any questions in respect of Aminah’s relationship with Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak or of the phone call I received from DSP Musa Safri, whom I believe was the ADC for Datuk Seri Najib Razak and/or his wife.

51. On the day Abdul Razak Baginda was arrested, I was with him at his lawyers office at 6.30 a.m. Abdul Razak Baginda informed us that he had sent Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak an SMS the evening before as he refused to believe he was to be arrested, but had not received a response.

52. Shortly thereafter, at about 7.30 a.m., Abdul Razak Baginda received an SMS from Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and showed, this message to both myself and his lawyer. This message read as follows :- “ I am seeing IGP at 11.00 a.m. today …… matter will be solved … be cool”.

53. I have been made to understand that Abdul Razak Baginda was arrested the same morning at his office in the Bangunan Getah Asli, Jalan Ampang.

54. The purpose of this Statutory declaration is to :-

54.1 State my disappointment at the standard of investigations conducted by the authorities into the circumstances surrounding the murder of Altantuya Shaaribuu.

54.2 Bring to the notice of the relevant authorities the strong possibility that there are individuals other than the 3 accused who must have played a role in the murder of Altantuya Shaaribuu.

54.3 Persuade the relevant authorities to reopen their investigations into this case immediately so that any fresh evidence may be presented to the Court prior to submissions at the end of the prosecutions case.

54.4 Emphasize the fact that having been a member of the Royal Malaysian Police Force for 17 years I am absolutely certain no police officer would shoot someone in the head and blow up their body without receiving specific instructions from their superiors first.

54.5. Express my concern that should the defence not be called in the said murder trial, the accused, Azilah and Sirul will not have to swear on oath and testify as to the instructions they received and from whom they were given.

55. And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same be true and by virtue of the provisions of the Statutory Declaration Act 1960.

SUBCRIBED and solemnly )

declared by the abovenamed )

Balasubramaniam a/l Perumal ]

1st this day of July 2008 )

Before me,

………………………………….

Commissioner for Oath

Kuala Lumpur

Link to this article:
http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/15161/84/

Woman, 92, sues bank for freezing her $8.9 million

Woman, 92, sues bank for freezing her $8.9 million

Tan May Ping Fri, Nov 21, 2008 The New Paper

ALL she wants is to get the $8.86million in her bank accounts.

But OCBC Bank would not let 92-year-old Hwang Cheng Tsu Hsu withdraw her money, and has frozen her accounts.

The bank feels that she might not have the mental capacity to make such decisions, and that it is duty-bound to take reasonable care to ensure it acts on valid instructions before releasing the money.

Because of the stalemate, the retired Chinese teacher filed a civil suit against the bank demanding her money back with interest.

In May, Madam Hwang went to the bank with her adopted daughter, Madam Hsu Ann Mei, 43, to open a joint account.

Madam Hsu, who is acting on behalf of her mother, told The New Paper that they both agreed that she could help facilitate transactions given Madam Hwang's advanced age.

They were made to sign some forms at the bank that day, she said.

When they didn't hear from the bank after a few days, Madam Hsu called her mother's relationship manager, and was told that their request was rejected.

She then asked if they could transfer all of Madam Hwang's fixed deposits, when they matured, into the latter's current account, but that request was also turned down.

The bulk of Madam Hwang's money is held in fixed deposits.

A few days after their request to open the joint account, the relationship manager and another officer went to Madam Hwang's house where she lives with a maid.

Many questions

They were there for 10 minutes, and asked Madam Hwang many questions, said Madam Hsu.

'As my mother didn't know them, she just kept saying 'I don't know' to their questions,' she added.

Mother and daughter then decided to close all the accounts amounting to $8.86million with the view of depositing the money at a different bank.

But when they went to close the accounts, Madam Hsu said she was separated from her mother, who was then interviewed by four bank officers, including the head of private banking.

After less than 10 minutes, Madam Hsu went in, repeated the instructions to close the accounts, and then left with her mother.

Madam Hsu and her lawyer subsequently wrote to the bank several times over the next three months asking for the closure of the accounts but to no avail.

Madam Hsu then wrote to the chairmen of both the bank and the Monetary Authority of Singapore seeking advice.

In mid-August, the bank responded, saying it wasn't able to release the money as it had doubts about Madam Hwang's mental capacity.

There was another shock in store when Madam Hwang and her daughter tried to withdraw money from her OCBC account in late August - all her accounts had been frozen.

Madam Hwang filed the suit in the High Court in August.

She is represented by Mr Andrew Ee from Andrew Ee & Co.

In its defence, the bank claimed that Madam Hwang does not have the mental capacity to make such important financial decisions independently.

It said that it was Madam Hsu who asked to open the joint account and to transfer the fixed deposit amounts into the account.

Further, when the two bank officers went to Madam Hwang's house, they found her disoriented, and unable to remember things.

The bank, which is represented by Mr Adrian Wong and Mr Jansen Chow of Rajah & Tann, insists it is being cautious.

Mr Wong told The New Paper: 'In the case of a bank learning that a customer may be mentally incapable, it is the law that all operations on the account must be stopped pending the establishment of an appropriate arrangement to deal with the situation.

'This is only logical as any 'instructions' from a mentally incapable customer surely can't be valid.'

At a hearing in chambers yesterday, the court ordered for Madam Hwang to undergo a psychiatric re-examination.

Mental status

She had been found in March to be suffering from mild dementia, which affects her short-term memory. But the evaluation found her general mental faculties intact, and that she was able to make decisions in her everyday life.

The court has given both parties seven days to agree on a medical expert, failing which the court will appoint one.

Madam Hsu was legally adopted when she was a year-old. Her adoptive father, who was a senior banker, died in 1987.

She said her mother had accumulated the money from a $3 million enbloc sale of a condominium apartment, and from encashing shares which she held.

'Up to this day, I can't understand how it ended up like that. It started out as something very simple,' said Madam Hsu, who quit her job as a tour guide to deal with this matter.

This story was first published in The New Paper on 20 November 2008.

They sacked me because I'm a woman

They sacked me because I'm a woman

Wed, Nov 19, 2008
The New Paper

YOU are biased against women.

That charge against the Malaysian ministry in charge of higher education comes from the former vice-chancellor of the country's oldest university, Universiti Malaya.

Datuk Rafiah Salim, who was the first woman to head a public university in Malaysia, said she was sacked just 48 hours before her term ended.

She was appointed in May 2006.

'Just because we are women so we are not good,' she told news website Malaysiakini. The popular website which offers alternative news and views has attracted its fair share of controversy.

'It's so sad because there is a ministry in charge of higher education and you'd expect them to be more liberal and advanced in their thinking,' the 61-year-old former law lecturer and former Bank Negara assistant governor said.

Ms Rafiah told Malaysiakini that she recently learnt that the women vice-chancellors were only given a two-year contract while male vice-chancellors were given a three-year contract. This included her successor Professor Dr Ghauth Jasmon.

'Doesn't this (show they are) more confident in men than in women?' she asked.

She is also very upset with Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Idris Haron whom she claimed insinuated in parliament that she had a poor track record, the Star newspaper reported.

'Idris should not have undermined me by implying that they needed someone with a track record and who was high-performing, implying that I was not,' said Ms Rafiah, in reference to the appointment of her successor, Prof Ghauth.

Mr Idris, who denied the claim, had earlier said in parliament that UM needed someone with a high level of performance who could elevate the university's status. He said Prof Ghauth had vast experience in public universities and had built up the Multimedia University. Prof Ghauth was appointed to a three-year term to head UM on 8 Nov.

Support

Former national unity and social development minister Napsiah Omar also expressed her displeasure over the decision to sack Ms Rafiah.

She hit out at women leaders for not speaking up for Rafiah.

The Wanita Umno permanent chairman described Ms Rafiah as a woman of substance and supported her re-appointment.

Defending her two-and-a-half year term at UM, Ms Rafiah said the transformation plan she laid out for the university was on track and one example was that she has successfully increased the number of UM publications from 3,300 three years ago to 5,882 as of June this year.

But the university's performance kept sliding, from 192th ranking in the Times Higher Education Supplement in 2006 to 245th ranking last year, reported the New Straits Times.

But Ms Rafiah pointed out that the university has managed to climb back to 230 this year.

'When were just about to come up, they stop me,' she told Malaysiakini.

Despite her anger, Ms Rafiah denied she was bitter and said it was the ministry's choice to chose who they want.

'They have a right to appoint a monkey if they want,' she said.

Ms Rafiah also stressed that she was not interested in seeking reinstatement to the post.

'I am not interested in reinstatement. I am not interested in the job any more, I have moved on. I have booked my holiday to see my grandchildren and I have started my book...'

She also questioned the transparency of the system.

'The system is flawed, he (Higher Education Minister Khaled Nordin) talks of transparency... what transparency? Was it advertised? What are the criteria? Do any of us know the criteria they are looking for?' she said.

'Stop this debate'

Mr Khaled, who was Ms Rafiah's student when the latter was a UM law lecturer, has called for the debate over the controversy to stop.

The minister also stressed that the appointment was made according to procedures.

He said three months prior to the end of a vice-chancellor's term, the ministry would form a search committee.

The committee is made up of experienced and prominent figures in higher education, he said .

It evaluated the performance and if the performance was up to expectations, the committee could recommend an extension of contract.

'If the committee is not satisfied with the VC's performance, they have the task of finding a new candidate,' he said.

'The committee's decisions are highly respected and the ministry never or rarely disputes them'.

This article was first published in The New Paper on Nov 18, 2008.

Will Razak tell police to find out who's behind Mongolian murder?

Will Razak tell police to find out who's behind Mongolian murder?

Fri, Nov 21, 2008 The Star

This is the full transcript of Abdul Razak Baginda's question and answer session during the press conference held at Hotel Maya, Kuala Lumpur, on Thursday.

Q. Have you contacted (Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri) Najib (Tun Razak) since your release?

A. To be honest I have not and neither has he (contacted me). None whatsoever.

I have not met him, I have not seen him, spoken to him, SMS-ed him or e-mailed him. I have not been in touch with him at all.

Q. Describe your relationship with Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

A. The press, the media, the bloggers and the man on the street have described my relationship with Najib in all forms - from a close aide, a close friend, an associate and, adviser. In jest, I would say why don't you take a pick.

My relationship with Datuk Seri Najib has evolved over the years. Obviously, there was a professional relationship and this goes back as early as the 1990s.

I have known him professionally and I have also gotten to know him personally.

Q. Your comment on (private detective) P. Balasubramaniam and his statutory declaration?

A. I have been interviewed by the police after my release. The whole issue of the SD by Bala is now under police investigation. I have been interviewed and I have given full cooperation to the police.

What I say today is what I told the police, that Najib never met the deceased.

Q. How do you know Najib did not meet (Mongolian murder victim) Altantuya (Shaariibuu)?

A. (smiled, looked at lawyers, paused, then said). It's like asking me you know ... I know okay ... I know.

Q. Will you still be working with Datuk Seri Najib?

A. I never had any formal relationship with Najib. At one point someone described me as his political secretary. I have never held any official positions with the DPM. I have my own plans and I will pursue my own plans.

Q. What are your immediate plans?

A. I will be going back to the UK to do my doctorate. I was once a student at Oxford University. On Sept 28, 2006, about two weeks before my arrest, I submitted my doctoral dissertation to Oxford University, having studied at Trinity College for a number of years. So when I was arrested, the university placed my dissertation on hold. So now that I am released, I informed the university that I can be examined so I'm going back to be examined. What that entails is that my examiners will read my dissertation and subsequently interview me. Insya Allah I hope to get a doctorate some time early next year.

Q. Why were you implicated in the case?

A (whispered with lawyers). You must appreciate one thing, that the main trial is on and there is also the civil proceeding. The deceased's family has taken a civil suit against the Government of Malaysia, myself and the two other accused. So I am not at the liberty to elaborate. I hope you can appreciate that.

Q. Why did you change lawyers at the beginning?

A. I am flanked by lawyers. The legal profession has their own ethics and I don't think I should reveal any reason why. Whether I like a person's face or I don't like a person's face. I don't think it is appropriate. I hope you can appreciate that.

Q. What is your reaction to the prosecution's decision not to appeal your acquittal and why did you cancel your previous press conference?

A. I can't comment on why they did not appeal but I can comment the reason why I cancelled the last press conference.

It has nothing to do with my appeal or whatever. I was quite confident when I was released that I could face the outside world, especially the press but after a few days I found that I really wasn't ready.

You really have to be in prison for two years to find out what I am saying. My mind is incoherent. It is jumping from one point to another point. I keep losing things.

Because in prison, you can't lose things, because you don't have many things to begin with and the space is so limited that you cant really lose things.

These days, I lose my glasses. I can't find my glasses. Now that my daughter has gone back to the UK, I have one less person to look for things for me.

Q. How well did you know the deceased?

A. Let me talk about the relationship with the deceased. To me, of course there is a court proceeding, but I just want to make this statement. The person has died and that has not been the basis of any court proceeding so let the person rest in peace.

There is no point for me to say this and that. I know there are a lot of lies being spread about this and that.

One example, is from a reputable media, let's not mention who. It stated that I met her in a party. Where did that come from? Let's leave it at that. (whispers between him and lawyers)

Q. On the SMS between Najib and his former lawyer?

A. I was in prison then. I was in police remand or Sungai Buloh. I can't remember, it was very early on. Sorry, alleged SMS because it wasn't proven. Why don't you be more critical and not take it at face value? Are you planning to be in touch with Najib?

(laughs) Let me put it this way. I have my immediate plans and that is my immediate concern.

Q. Some reports said you would leave the country and not return. Is this true?

A. Why should I run away? I am innocent and have been acquitted by the courts. I want to stay here. This is my home and I will be back here.

You will see me in a couple of months' time. I just want to get my doctorate and that's it unless I get a cushy job like the Prime Minister of UK.

Q. You mentioned that you are speaking up because you did not want the liars to prevail. Can you elaborate?

A. I don't want to be specific but in the last two years, I didn't realise the extent of the rich or the so called borderless world, the Internet world and how bloggers have really taken almost centre stage.

The last one or two weeks, I checked with some of my non-Malaysian friends abroad, in the UK. They said to me there was a period in the British society when bloggers ran supreme but after a while everyone realised bloggers are bloggers.

I can start a blog and say anything to infinity. So he said to me the phase will go away after a while.

People will say I can be a blogger, my daughter or even the taxi man can be a blogger if he writes well and he can manufacture facts. So to me, they are out there.

Q. Are you going to take action against some media over their reports?

A. I never actually made any comment until today. I kept silent from the day I was arrested until today so I never said a word. So I never actually said I would take legal action. That's all I want to say for the time being.

Q. What about the purported photograph of you and Altantuya?

A. When I was in Sungai Buloh, I was investigated by the (Malaysian Communications and) Multimedia Commission and I was shown the photograph. You must be a real idiot or moron to believe the photograph was authentic. To begin with, the girl was not even the deceased. If any of you believe the photo, you guys have been taken for a ride.

Q. On the purported deals connected to Altantuya including the (Scorpene) submarine deal?

A. My press conference today is specifically about what I went through over the last two years. I am aware of the insinuations, all sorts of stories about the linkage and all that. Let me tell you now. There is no linkage whatsoever. Let me tell you of the time frame. That is why in my statement I said I am shocked and appalled by the extent of lies.

There were linkages made between the deceased and some deals. I'm sure all are aware but everyone is lazy these days, no one checked their facts.

The purported deal was signed in June 2002. I first met the deceased around November/December 2004. This is an almost two year lapse so I fail to see the connection but yet it still went on and on. These are the malicious lies I have been mentioning in my earlier statement.

Q. What is your relationship with the two accused, (Kpl) Sirul (Azhar Umar) and (C/Insp) Azilah (Hadri)?

A. I can't comment on that at all. Sorry. My lawyers are jumping at me and said I can't say any word on that. I can't comment. Sorry.

Q. Do you know where (the private detective) Bala is?

A. Sorry, I can't comment on that. I don't know. I can't comment because it is under police investigation.

Q. What is the most important lesson you have learnt through this ordeal?

A. Give me three hours. Let me say this. I will be frank. When you are down, you are basically alone. I still have my family but when you are down, you are basically alone. There are many lessons but I can't sit down and tell all.

Q. Do you feel betrayed?

A. It's not betrayal. I think it is human nature. If I reflect back, I too may have shied away from someone who was in trouble. Maybe this is a way God wants to remind me hey you did that to others so now it's payback time for others unto me. So it's quite natural for people to shy away. But there is no sense of betrayal whatsoever.

Q. On looking distressed in court and your outburst?

A. My wife was distressed. She only saw me in prison once a week. There was no physical contact. There is a glass window and we speak through a 'phone.'

When I first met them, it was June 2007 and that was the first time I could physically touch them for almost six months.

I can appreciate my wife's distressful state and obviously I don't want to be a PM. I got no comment on that.

It is difficult for anyone to feel how I felt when a case was postponed, the frustrations, the build up. I think it is different when one is innocent. And I am innocent so I felt things were dragging so that's just frustration that's all.

Q. Will you be writing a book about your experiences?

A. If I say yes, you will be haunting me about when it is coming out. My first plan is to get a doctorate, this has been on hold and I just want to get it.

Q. During the trial, you were often seen smiling but the other two accused constantly covered their faces. Did you know that you were going to be released?

A. I am innocent and at some point I said, God willing, I will be released because I am innocent. At some point, I knew I was going to be released because I cannot imagine an innocent man being found guilty. I was of course worried as people were talking about pandering to the public, media. Then I realised these are two different things. I went through the justice system. People tend to forget I spent 22 months in jail. To me, I'm innocent so I will be released at some point.

The family is the single most important alongside God. I became close to Allah. I regard myself quite lucky because in a person's life at some point, I always believe something bad is going to happen to you and God has given me a better option than death.

People can die, from a heart attack or whatever. But God has given me imprisonment and that was a better option than death as I have a chance to reflect on life and that helped me significantly.

And my fellow friends/inmates helped me through inside.

It is amazing how human beings adopt to their circumstances quickly and also it is a question of no option. You really have to adapt quickly.

Until today, I am still amazed how I could survive 22 months but I did.

Q. Will you contact Altantuya's father and family?

A. I expressed publicly my statement of deepest sympathy to the family. I never knew the family of the deceased.

Q. Was Najib aware of your problem with the deceased?

A. None whatsoever.

Q. But you were his close aide?

A. I'm just a friend with personal contact with him. A close aide is someone who holds an official position.

Najib as DPM and Pak Lah as PM have their own assistants and aides. So I am not an aide. Let's leave it at a personal level instead of asking whether or not he contacted me.

Q. How have the last three weeks been?

A. I have been eating a lot, it is revenge time. I think I have put on a lot of weight.

For 22 months, I did not do anything and now suddenly for three weeks I have to do so many things.

In prison, everything is regimented and determined for you. Your time is outlined. This is what you eat, this is when you sleep.

So when I?m out, suddenly I think I don't have much time. Then I realise I do have time so I'm adjusting myself. Not too well I'm afraid. I'm still eating a lot.

I have been reading a lot in prison. I started reading a lot of biographies. Last year, my focus was on the Middle East and books on Islam. I wanted to know more about the Prophet ... read a lot about political Islam. I read things which I didn't have time to read when I was outside.

Q. Where did you meet (Altantuya)?

A. I don't want to go there. There is a death and it doesn't make any difference where I met her. All I want to say in my statement is that Datuk Seri Najib never met the woman. From here, whoever said whatever, they are all lies.

Q. Are you a victim of a political game?

A. I know there has been a lot of speculation about that. I don't sense that at all. What has happened to me simply is that I was caught in the system, you know and I went through the system.

I am glad to say that I survived the system as my wife always tell and reminds me that the system put you in, the system will get you out. So I went through the system.

Q. If you were in Shaariibuu's (Altantuya's father) position, would you think the verdict was fair?

A. I can't be in his position or in someone else's position. I can't think what he is thinking or what you are thinking. I can't comment on that. It's unfair for me to comment on that.

Q. On Shaariibuu's intention to go to the International Court of Justice to seek justice?

A. He can do whatever he wants to do. I can do whatever. You can do whatever you want to do. He is free to do all that.

Q. Is your reputation unjustly damaged? And how are you going to repair it?

A. Thank you very much. I didn't realise I had a reputation to protect before.

I would like to close this chapter of my life and open another one. The sooner I get on with my life, the better. I just want to move forward.

Q. Some quarters felt, you should be implicated. What do you say about this?

A. When you say public opinion, I wonder who you have in mind. When you talk about people's power, in Thailand for instance, people are against the government. One hundred thousand or 500,0000, the media blows it out of proportion. But is that democracy? If we talk about 500 people going out to the streets as opposed to 100 million, does that reflect democracy? If I have money and pay people RM10 each and get 100,000 to protest against the government, is that public opinion? Blimey, that's not public opinion but manipulation.

You talk about public opinion as if there is a coherent, consistent consensus. I don't think there is a consensus and I don't want to pander on the so-called public opinion. Can a blogger reflect public opinion? As Malaysian society develops, we should question and not descend. If we descend to a level where a taxi driver, for example, someone who does not know the facts writes and that becomes public opinion, then I feel sorry for society. Just one or two individuals or one or two bloggers can form public opinion? Give me a break.

Q. Are you blaming bloggers for what happened to you? Particularly (Malaysia Today editor) Raja Petra Kamarudin?

A. No. But the whole idea that bloggers or so-called opinion makers can form an opinion and that becomes the truth; that worries me if bloggers become the source of truth. Then the society is in trouble. Can you imagine enemies of the state using blogs to erode confidence? You are talking about something more sinister. We are in trouble if concerted efforts are made towards the state, government and people. In more developed countries, they have gone through this phase we are experiencing and after a while they say not to worry about them.

Q. Do you think the speculation will stop after this press conference?

A. There will be twists and turns even with my press conference today. Even if I held this tape recorder in the air like what I'm doing now, someone will say Razak Baginda held a gun. I can't be responsible for that. I just want to tell the truth.

Q. Would you urge the police to find out who was really behind Altantuya's death, or if there was an alleged "order" behind the actions of the two accused?

A. I can't comment on that.

Q. How do you see Najib today? As future PM.

A. I have known him for quite a while. He will make a good Prime Minister. He is a well-read person. I used to give him books. We used to exchange books. He is well-tuned to what's going on in the world. Intellectually, in terms of experience, he has got all that.

Q. Would you serve under Najib if he became Prime Minister?

A. I am very happy with my freedom. I don't want to be tied down to any appointment.

Q. Was there political interference to set you free, did the alleged SMS play a part?

A. I was charged, I went to prison. I waited for the trial, the 151-day trial. I did not see my family. I did not touch them until the trial started. I went through all that. How can there be any interference if I went through all that and spent 22 months in jail? Come on.

Q. How is the people's reaction on the street when they see you? Were you congratulated or looked at weirdly?

A. A lot of people actually came up to me and wished me the best. Some, even total strangers, said they were happy for me that I was out. I thought I would be frowned upon. I thought I was going to be a leper. But it was to the contrary.

Q. More on bloggers (last statement)

A. More often bloggers don't base their writing on facts but rather more on hearsay. This person told me this, that person told me that, this little bird told me this.. Rather than I was there, I saw this, I did this. Let us be more critical and not accept things verbatim. If you don't then you can also write the same thing and tell lies. I can tell you how easy it is to tell lies on the Internet.

Updated: Wednesday November 19, 2008 MYT 3:36:10 PM

Multi-cultural societies no longer the exception: Raja Nazrin

By SHAHANAAZ HABIB

PETALING JAYA: Mankind is failing badly at creating a sense of community in multi-cultural societies and great dangers lie ahead if it continues on this path, said Raja Nazrin Shah.

The Perak Raja Muda said multi-cultural societies were fast becoming the rule rather than the exception.

“Contrary to the rhetoric, however, it is not becoming a source of strength. Instead race, culture and religion have become the dominant discourse.

“When we think of social fragmentation as good rather than bad, something is awfully wrong. Our moral gyroscopes have gone completely awry. If we continue on the present path great dangers lie ahead,” he said Wednesday in his address at the Diversity Matters Forum on Diaspora in the Commonwealth at Monash University’s Sunway campus.

Raja Nazrin warned that society must avoid falling into a new and destructive form of “modern day tribalism.”

“Nothing is inevitable. Cultures can co-operate as much as clash,” he said.

He added that people need to reclaim religion from those who distort its truths and reject radicalism and extremism of all types.

“If there is someone in my society who is hungry, or unemployed or sick and cannot afford treatment, then it diminishes me even if he is of a different race or religion,” he added.

Malaysia, he said, is a prime example of how a diaspora of Chinese, Indian and other races have led to the creation of a more heterogeneous and prosperous state.

He noted that a pluralistic society is one that not only tolerates but appreciates and encourages the active participation of those of different races, cultures and lifestyles.

Fundamental to this, he said, is the principle of equality and fairness particularly in the application of the rule of law.

Touching on Britain’s Scarman Report which pointed out how minorities often had difficulty getting good behaviour from the police and felt discriminated against, Raja Nazrin said, while he did not want to reduce the problem of managing diversity to a matter of law, this, however was a “most basic building block underpinning pluralism”.

Raja Nazrin also said that the principles of equality and fairness suggest a preferred policy of integration rather than assimilation.

“Integration accepts and enlists; it does not coerce. It respects and values differences as legitimate. Assimilation, on the other hand, seeks to change language, customs, religions and even world views,” he said.

Even so, he said, integration is in many ways more difficult than “forced assimilation” as it ends up at times with countries having enclaves of isolated and alienated communities - each staying in its own little box - without contact with the others.

Raja Nazrin believed that integration should be a gradual process consisting of many acts over many generations.

He said people with different cultural backgrounds should be allowed to live a free life without being forced to do things they did not want to do but at the same time forging a community of people with shared values and interests should be paramount.

Narrow-minded bigotry

Narrow-minded bigotry
19 Nov, 2008

The ISA detainees have since relented though. They now no longer perform their Friday prayers. They realise that the more they defy the government the longer they shall remain in Kamunting.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

The frequent mention of Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz and the phrase ‘amar ma’ruf nahi mungkar’ (enjoining good and avoiding wrongdoing) by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has been questioned by a Barisan Nasional backbencher. Lim frequently mentioned the caliph, a social reformist and one of the finest rulers in Muslim history, who ruled from 717 to 720.

Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya (Teluk Bahang-BN), during his debate on the Supply Bill 2009, questioned if Lim was qualified to invoke the caliph’s name or the phrase. “You should not use these at your whim and fancy. Are you qualified to speak about the caliph? Even the phrase ‘amar ma’ruf nahi mungkar’ has been used in your posters all over the place.”

“It has not been ascertained if you or even Professor P Ramasamy is qualified to use them. The matter should be referred for clarification with the mufti who has to determine if you can use the caliph’s name and the phrase,” Hilmi added.

Permatang Berangan assemblyman and Penang Islamic Religious Affairs president Shahabudin Yahaya said Lim should not use the term ‘amar ma’ruf nahi mungkar’ as he is not a Muslim.

Debating the Supply Bill 2009 presented by Lim last Friday, Shahabudin said Lim and other non-Muslim assemblymen and MPs should stop using them on the banners put up in the state. “It means to avoid or shun wrongdoing, do good and to enhance one’s faith in Allah, and not to Jesus or to any ‘tokong’ (deity). You are not Muslim, so you should not use it,” he added. – The Edge

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What utter rubbish! Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin don’t know what they are talking about. Since when can only Muslims talk about the Caliph Umar or amar ma’ruf nahi munkar? This is sheer nonsense. Anyone can talk about propagating good and avoiding wrongdoing. This is not the exclusive subject matter of only Muslims.

Are they now going to make a police report against John Esposito? In the first place, have Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin even heard of Esposito?

John Louis Esposito is a professor of International Affairs and Islamic Studies at Georgetown University. He is also the director of Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University.

Esposito was raised a Roman Catholic and spent a decade in a Catholic monastery. After taking his first degree he worked as a management consultant and high-school teacher. He then studied and received a Masters in Theology at St Johns University. He earned a PhD at Temple University in Pennsylvania plus studied Islam and held post doc appointments at Harvard and Oxford Universities. He is well-known as a promoter of strong ties between Muslims and Christians and has even challenged the Vatican to make greater efforts to encourage such ties.

Esposito founded the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University and is its current director. The center has received a US$20 million endowment from Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal to advance education in the fields of Islamic civilisation and Muslim-Christian understanding and strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural and inter-religious dialogue.

Esposito more than just talks about Caliph Umar and amar ma’ruf nahi munkar. His credentials can put both Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin to shame. Dr Hiimi and Shahabudin are novices in comparison. They should be ashamed to even talk about Islam considering they have achieved so little in the cause of Islamic propagation and understanding.

What Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin have failed to comprehend is that Islam is a message for all mankind. The Quran addresses mankind, not just Muslims. Muslims should, in fact, give the Quran to non-Muslims as gifts so that Islam can be better propagated and the message of Islam can reach all mankind, far and wide.

Malays have the impression that we should only preach to Muslims. If you just talk to Muslims sitting cross-legged on the mosque floor then what are you achieving? You are merely preaching to the already converted. It is the unconverted whom you should preach to even if only to make them understand Islam better and to eradicate the misconception about Islam and clean up the negative image that Islam has acquired over the last seven years or so.

We should be proud that non-Muslims find the message of Islam appropriate. When non-Muslims talk about Caliph Umar and amar ma’ruf nahi munkar we should hold our heads high. Instead of criticising Islam, non-Muslims are quoting Islam. This is something we should be elated about. Instead of condemning these non-Muslims we should be shouting far and wide that even non-Muslims are quoting Islam, even if it is just amar ma’ruf nahi munkar. So Islam can’t be all that bad as some people are trying to suggest.

Amar ma’ruf nahi munkar are not holy words. There is not even any magic in those words. It is merely Arabic for propagating good and avoiding wrongdoing. You can say it in Arabic. You can say it in English. You can even say it in Tamil or Mandarin. It does not matter what language you use. The meaning remains the same. And there is no taboo in saying it in Arabic as there is in saying it in any other language. It is just a language of choice and the choice of language is yours.

Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin are being very petty and silly. They should stop all this nonsense. People like these give Islam a bad name. They give an impression that Muslims are unreasonable and intolerant. And this invariably reflects on the religion and the religion is unfortunately faulted. And Muslims grumble when people criticise Islam whereas it is their actions that attract all this criticism.

What Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin should instead do is to take the government to task for not allowing the Muslim detainees to perform their Friday prayers. For a long time the Internal Security Act detainees have been fighting with the government to be allowed to perform their Friday prayers. But the government has persistently denied them permission.

On one occasion, the Kamunting detention camp authorities invited the Perak Mufti to talk to the detainees. The detainees demanded that they be allowed to perform their Friday prayers but the Perak Mufti scolded them. Cikgu Samad, one of the Kamunting warders, confirmed this and said that the detainees are very stubborn. They won’t even listen to the Perak Mufti, complained Cikgu Samad, and defied the ‘fatwah’ by still performing their Friday prayers amongst themselves.

The ISA detainees have since relented though. They now no longer perform their Friday prayers. They realise that the more they defy the government the longer they shall remain in Kamunting. Some have been under detention almost eight years now and it is not worth insisting you be allowed to perform your Friday prayers if it only means that you are going to spend the rest of your life in Kamunting and eventually die under detention.

Most of those under ISA detention are said to be Islamic extremists and are perceived as a danger to society. They are said to be intolerant of non-Muslims and that they wish to set up a regional Islamic empire that includes Malaysia, Indonesia, Southern Thailand, the Philippines, etc. And that is why they have been detained without trial in Kamunting.

I would imagine that, considering the so-called background of these detainees, the government would want to rehabilitate them by making them more tolerant of non-Muslims and less inclined to a regional Islamic empire. I was quite surprised when I attended my first lecture by an ustaz from JAKIM on 28 October 2008 and he condemned all other religions and their holy books. Isn’t this ustaz just spreading hate amongst Muslims and which will convince the ‘extremist’ ISA detainees that they are right in trying to set up a regional Islamic empire?

I, in fact, made a police report on this matter at the Sentul Police Station at 2.30pm yesterday to enable the government to investigate this matter. My police report also included the fact that the ISA detainees are being prevented from performing their Friday prayers. Over to you Dr Hilmi and Shahabudin! Let’s see how you handle this more important issue.

Bad breath blues

Bad breath blues
Mon, Nov 17, 2008
The Straits Times

By Zureena Habib

Many people who suffer from bad breath find it an embarrassing condition. If the numbers are any indication, there must be a whole lot of embarrassed people around.

An estimated 35 per cent of the world's population suffer from halitosis, more commonly known as bad breath, according to Dr Tan Shuh Chern of White Dental Group, who has 10 years of experience in treating this problem. He runs a 'bad breath clinic' in Singapore.

What makes such a clinic different from other dental surgeries? Dr Tan is equipped with a special machine called a hallimeter which measures bad breath.

A patient who wants to address this problem will have to fill in a questionnaire that will help the dentist determine the sources of his bad breath.

Keeping bad breath at bay can be as simple as going for a routine dental check-up as untreated cavities and gingivitis, or inflammation of the gums, are often the causes.

Another likely cause of bad breath is volatile sulphur compounds (VSCs), said DrTan.

VSCs are produced by bacteria in the oral cavity and can survive with little or no oxygen. In fact, oxygen helps to neutralise VSC production and this keeps halitosis away.

Saliva has high oxygen content, so making sure you do not have a dry mouth is essential for solving the problem. This is one of the reasons why drooling babies do not have bad breath.

'The precautions against bad breath are as simple as drinking water and eating breakfast in the morning,' Dr Tan said. These activities stimulate salivary glands and can help neutralise the odour produced by VSCs.

Brushing your tongue may also help as bacteria tend to get into the grooves and fissures on the tongue.

Caffeine, smoking and alcohol increase the production of acid in the mouth, allowing VSC-producing bacteria to thrive.

Foods like onions and garlic are full of sulphur compounds and can worsen the problem.

Diagnosing bad breath involves running a series of breath tests which can determine how serious the problem really is.

These tests are painless and involve blowing into a hallimeter, which is used to quantify the amount of volatile sulphur compounds in your mouth.

If the hallimeter reading is found to be normal and VSCs are not to blame, then an organoleptic test can be done. This involves the dentist using his olfactory senses to determine the source of the patient's bad breath.

To get rid of bad breath, mouthwashes that contain oxy-8 - a compound high in oxygen content that neutralises sulphurs - are usually prescribed by dentists.

'Many over-the-counter mouthwashes are made just to mask the smell and also contain alcohol which can increase acid production in the mouth and worsen the problem,' warned Dr Tan.

zureenhr@sph.com.sg

This story was first published in Mind Your Body, The Straits Times, on Nov 13, 2008.

Taking a second bite of the cherry

Taking a second bite of the cherry
18 Nov, 2008

The legal brains may argue that a person can’t be punished twice for the same crime. This might be true but this did not stop them for punishing me twice for the article ‘Let’s send the Altantuya murderers to hell’.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Today, at 3.00pm, I have to, yet again, report to the Sentul Police Station. It seems the police wish to record my statement, which is a nicer way of saying that I am going to be interrogated. Under Section 112 of the CPC, the police have a right to ‘record’ your statement and:

1) You must answer all questions (you may of course reply by saying that you do not wish to reply to the question which is considered answering the question).
2) If you lie then the police can charge you.
3) If you tell the truth then what you say can be used to charge you.

In other words, if you refuse to open you mouth you die. If you lie, you also die. And if you tell the truth you also die. Either way you die. There is no escape.

According to the police, in September 2008, four people from JAKIM and the religious department made a police report against me. What was said in the police report and under which section of the law they are going to record my statement is not known yet and will only be told to me later today.

The last time they called me to the Sentul Police Station was when they wanted to record my statement on the Statutory Declaration that I signed in April. At that time they told me they were going to charge me for the crime of making a false declaration. So I took pains to prove to them that I did not make a false declaration but had in fact told the truth.

I of course did not realise then that this was merely a trap. They wanted me to make a statement that would incriminate me and after they got what they wanted they used my statement to charge me for the crime of criminal defamation instead of for the crime of making a false declaration. I mean, it’s like they accuse you of murder and then when you offer an alibi to prove that you were not at the scene of the crime but had in fact been sleeping over at your girlfriend’s house they charge you for kalwat (close proximity) instead. So, because of your airtight alibi, they are able to charge you for another crime.

The police report against me was made in September 2008. Based on this police report they detained me under Section 73 of the Internal Security Act on 12 September. From the 13th to the 22nd of September, they recorded my statement in a marathon interrogation session and one hour after my statement was completed they served a Section 8 detention order on me and the following morning packed me off to Kamunting.

They though that that was the end of the whole episode but on 7 November the Shah Alam court declared my detention unlawful and at 4.00pm I was released from detention. So it is now back to the drawing board and they are trying to get a second bite of the cherry. So my interrogation at 3.00pm today is merely an exercise to see how, since I am no longer under ISA detention, they can get me on a ‘legitimate’ charge.

They are of course also appealing the Shah Alam court decision. But if they lose the appeal they can still send me to jail. And if they win the appeal they have the benefit of two detentions that they can hold me with.

The legal brains may argue that a person can’t be punished twice for the same crime. This might be true but this did not stop them for punishing me twice for the article ‘Let’s send the Altantuya murderers to hell’. Not only am I facing trial under the Sedition Act but one of the four charges for my ISA detention was this very same article. Therefore, apart from facing trial I was also detained without trial for the very same article. That is certainly being punished twice for the same crime.

It appears like they are all out to get me at whatever cost, even if they have to look silly for punishing me twice for each so-called crime. Maybe they feel that the more shots they take at me the better chance they have of at least one shot hitting it’s mark. I suppose when they use a machine gun they have more chance of at least one bullet striking me.

According to the police, the crime rate has doubled. The police has expressed concern that as the economy becomes worse in the coming year crime is going to get out of control. They are having their hands full trying to maintain law and order. Next year we may see an orgy of crime where Malaysians will no longer be safe even sleeping in their beds. With so much resources wasted on trying to send me to jail it makes one wonder whether the police has got its priorities right.

I wrote some time back that Umno blamed its 8 March 2008 general election debacle on the internet, in particular the blogs. Umno feels they it needs to put the blogs out of action if it wants to be able to silence its critics. The Permatang Pauh by-election again proved what damage blogs can do to Umno. So the focus today is not on how to reduce the spiralling crime rate but on how to put the bloggers behind bars where they can no longer do any damage to Umno.

And that is why I have to report to the Sentul Police Station at 3.00pm today. I am now a free man again, at least for the meantime. So they need to see how they can put me back behind bars so that Umno can be safe. It is all about Umno and how Umno can be protected from the bloggers. And they do not care how they do it as long as they can stifle criticism against Umno. The end justifies the means.

On another note, the police has warned the public not to question fatwahs (decrees) by the religious people. If the religious people issue a fatwah declaring that you are wrong then you are wrong. This can’t be questioned and if you do the government will take action against you.

On the Tuesday after Deepavali I was made to attend a religious class conducted by JAKIM. This was part of my religion rehabilitation class while in Kamunting. I stood up to say that, if go by to the many fatwahs issued, all of us in the room that day are infidels (kafir).

In January 2006 the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia issued a fatwah declaring Shias as kafir. The Shias in turn issued a fatwah declaring the non-Shias as kafir. Malaysia too will detain any Malaysian who converts to Shiism, as what happened to a few university lecturers some years back. In short, going be the many fatwahs issued, all Muslims are kafir. None of us are Muslims.

The question would be: whose fatwah is the one we need to follow? And this raises another question of which religious scholar is the legitimate one to follow.

JAKIM has said that I have insulted Islam and must be put in jail. Other people, well-versed and equally knowledgeable in Islam, have contacted me to say that they can’t see in what way I have insulted Islam. They in fact feel that what I wrote was absolutely true. And these people are Arabs who speak the language of the Quran fluently and do not agree with the Malaysian government’s interpretation of Islam. In fact, they laugh at Islam Hadhari and regard it as utter rubbish.

So whose version of Islam is the correct version? The Malay version or the Arabic version? The Malays say I have insulted Islam. The Arabs tells me I have not insulted Islam and they think it is stupid of the government to say that I have.

Unfortunately, in Malaysia, it is what Umno says that carries weight and no Arab, however much he may support me, can change that. That is the reality of the situation.

The Malaysian swan song

The Malaysian swan song
17 Nov, 2008

Call it what you want, Ketuanan Melayu is racism just like Apartheid. A rose by any other name, as Shakespeare would say. There is no way you can water down Apartheid by calling it Ketuanan Melayu.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

First read this news items from the Jakarta Post of 29 October 2008.

Indonesian anti-discrimination law

The House of Representatives has unanimously passed a bill that terms ethnic and racial discrimination as serious crimes.

Deputy Speaker Muhaimin Iskandar, who presided over the House's plenary session to approve the draft law, said Indonesia no longer had any room for any form of racial or ethnic discrimination.

Chairman of the House's special committee deliberating the bill, Murdaya Poo, said the endorsement of the bill should put an end to the long-standing dichotomy between indigenous and non-indigenous people in the country.

"A man cannot choose to be born as part of a certain race or ethnic group, and therefore discrimination must cease to exist," said Murdaya, who is Indonesian-Chinese.

He said the House proposed the bill as part of its effort to ratify the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination, which has been enacted since 1999.

Under the new law, leaders of public institutions found guilty of adopting discriminatory policies would face jail terms one-third more severe than those stipulated in the Criminal Code.

Citing an example, Murdaya said the governor or government of Aceh could not ban a gathering held by Javanese ethnics in the province.

He said the deliberation process had been delayed by a disagreement on whether imprisonment should be made the minimum punishment.

Jail as a minimum sentence is typically sought for serious crimes, such as corruption, terrorism, money-laundering or drug abuse.

"We decided to set prison as the minimum sentence to deter people from committing racial or ethnic discrimination," said Murdaya, a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

The bill was passed on the same day Indonesia celebrated the 100th anniversary of Youth Pledge, which Murdaya said should encourage Indonesians to uphold the diverse nature of the nation.

*******************************************

Indonesia used to be the ‘best’ example of a country with one of the poorest human rights record in this region -- alongside Vietnam, Myanmar, the Philippines, etc. Malaysia and Singapore would be considered the ‘better’ countries, though their Prime Ministers then -- Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Lee Kuan Yew respectively -- would always remind their citizens that we do not practice absolute democracy, which is bad, but ‘guided’ democracy, which is better for Asian countries such as Malaysia and Singapore.

Malaysia can’t allow western-style absolute freedom and democracy, argued Dr Mahathir, where people are free to carry guns and shoot each other at will or indulge in gay marriages or sunbath nude on the beaches or have sex on park benches in full view of the public and whatnot. Granted there are some things that should not be allowed but to ban the good so that one can prevent the bad is like throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

Today, Indonesia allows equal airtime on national TV for opposition parties and makes it a mandatory jail sentence for the crime of racial discrimination. How far Indonesia has come since its cowboy days, the image it used to carry for a long, long time.

Malaysia has many Acts. Publishing and Printing Press Act, University and University Colleges Act, Societies Act, Police Act, Sedition Act, Official Secrets Act, Internal Security Act, amongst just some of our draconian laws, and all these Acts were passed by Parliament after Merdeka. Therefore it is not true when our leaders argue that these are old British Laws inherited by our country.

The old British laws are called Ordinances, such as the Emergency Ordinance, which also allows for detention without trial. In fact, Malaysia has many duplicate laws -- Acts and Ordinance -- and both are still being applied. In other words, the Ordinances have not been repealed in spite of the newer Acts that have been passed which should have replaced the old British laws.

As an example, although we have the newer Anti-Corruption Act, Anwar Ibrahim was charged, convicted and sentenced to six years jail under the old British Ordinance in 1998-1999. They chose to charge Anwar under the old Ordinance rather than the newer Act because it was easier to get Anwar convicted. They felt under the newer Act they might have problems convicting Anwar.

There are certain laws still being applied which actually violate the Federal Constitution of Malaysia. But then there is a provision in the Constitution which allows Parliament to pass unconstitutional laws in the event the country is facing an emergency. In other words, if Malaysia were under ‘attack’ it would be legal for Parliament to pass ‘illegal’ laws. This is called the ends justifying the means or matlamat menghalalkan cara.

Emergency was actually declared back in 1962 when Indonesia declared war on Malaysia and we went through a period of Konfrontasi. Though the confrontation with Indonesia ended later on, the emergency was never lifted and when race riots erupted in may 1969 the government just ‘rode on’ the emergency already declared in 1962 and which was never lifted.

Technically, Malaysia is still ‘under emergency’ although Indonesia is now our friend and the May 1969 race riot has ended and the Communist Party of Malaya officially ended the war and signed a peace treaty with Malaysia in Haadyai, Thailand, in 1989.

In other words, Malaysia has ‘officially’ seen peace for almost 20 years now (though unofficially we have had about 40 years of peace) but the emergency still remains and Parliament can still use the ‘special’ provision in the Constitution to legally pass illegal laws that violate the Constitution. Boleh ke macam ni? Mesti boleh because in Malaysia semua boleh.

South Africa too used to be just like Malaysia and at one time Malaysians were banned from travelling to South Africa (plus to Israel, China, Russia, North Korea, North Vietnam, etc.). Today, South Africa no longer has an Internal Security Act and instead has a Bill of Rights. Apartheid ended in South Africa a long time ago and there is no longer any racial discrimination in that country. Lawyers from South Africa, in fact, look down on Malaysia’s laws and judicial system. Is that not an irony of sorts?

The last few months since the recent general election have seen racism on the increase. Barisan Nasional appears totally blur that it did badly in the 8 March 2008 general election because of its racist policy. Instead of toning down racism it is stepping up the race rhetoric. It has not learnt from the election beating that it received at the hands of the voters, 50% who voted for the opposition parties.

Call it what you want, Ketuanan Melayu is racism just like Apartheid. A rose by any other name, as Shakespeare would say. There is no way you can water down Apartheid by calling it Ketuanan Melayu. Ketuanan Melayu is Apartheid by another name but Apartheid just the same. And Barisan Nasional had better get this through its thick head if it knows what’s good for it.

Racism in Malaysia should be made a crime just like in Indonesia and it should attract a mandatory jail sentence also just like in Indonesia. And anything that smacks of racism should be banned and made illegal. And that should include Malaysia’s version of Apartheid going by the name of Ketuanan Melayu.

Anwar Ibrahim has replaced Ketuanan Melayu or Malay Supremacy with Ketuanan Rakyat -- the people are supreme. This must be our mission and vision statement. And all those who oppose this must be rejected in toto. Let that be the swan song of all Malaysians, irrespective of race. And you are either with us or you are against us, as President Bush would say.

Rebel blogger caught in the middle of a power struggle

Rebel blogger caught in the middle of a power struggle
15 Nov, 2008

Raja Petra with his wife Marina soon after his release on Nov 7 by the Shah Alam High Court.

Raja Petra Kamarudin knows he could soon go back to jail. The country’s leading blogger was released by order of the Shah Alam High Court last week, after being held in detention since Sept 12, but his troubles are far from over and his freedom could be shortlived.

"The decision to free me was a good sign of a new-found strength by the judiciary. But it is only a sign," said the blogger, who was arrested under the Internal Security Act.

The ISA is an inheritance from the British, who used it in the colony prior to independence in 1957. In essence, it allows for the arrest and internment of any person without the need for a trial in certain defined circumstances.

Raja Petra's alleged crimes were linked to his writing. For several years he has published provocative opinion pieces on the issues of the day, as well as a number of articles unmasking corruption scandals, drawing his information from a wide array of contacts. His blog, Malaysia Today, is one of the most popular sources of independent news in a country where the mainstream media refrains from criticising the government.

With popularity, however, came a lot of trouble. His latest arrest stemmed from accusations lodged by several religious groups, which claimed that his Aug 8 article entitled "I promise to be a good, non-hypocritical Muslim" had offended Islam.

After being held for a few days, he was sentenced to two years in detention without trial. But, on Nov 5, High Court judge Mr Justice Datuk Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad ruled that the arrest of Raja Petra, 58, was contrary to the constitution and said he should be released. He was freed two days later.

Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail is expected to file an appeal against the decision, and the blogger could find himself back in custody.

Raja Petra remains defiant. He said his battle with the authorities was a proxy for the larger contest that sees Malaysia torn between the old political establishment and the new contender, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Raja Petra is a close ally of Anwar's and this association has made him a target of the ruling coalition led by Umno.

"I support Anwar because I believe in what he stands for. But I have attacked him in the past and I would do so again, if he changed his programmes," he said.

"Anwar and (Deputy Prime Minister) Najib (Razak) are like the kings in a big chess game, and my friends tell me that I am the queen. There is little doubt that my future depends on the future of Anwar," he added.

Anwar has promised to allow freedom of expression and to do away with the ISA and pro-Malay policies that have discriminated against the Chinese and Indian minorities for decades. He is trying to convince 31 lawmakers from the ruling Umno-controlled Barisan Nasional coalition to switch sides and allow him to form a government.

Raja Petra's friendship with the former deputy prime minister goes back to 1998, when he was a leading member of Keadilan — the party set up in response to Anwar's arrest and detention.

Anwar, the deputy and heir apparent to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, was charged with, and jailed for, sodomy and corruption, accusations widely believed to have been politically motivated.

Raja Petra, who was also the main mover behind the "Free Anwar" website, campaigned tirelessly for Anwar's release and freely criticised the political establishment. He was eventually arrested under the ISA on April 11, 2001. Accused of plotting to overthrow Dr Mahathir, he spent 52 days in jail.

Fast forward to this year and his political connections have placed him in the middle of a power struggle between Anwar and Najib. The latter is poised to take over as prime minister in March when Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is scheduled to step down.

Najib has been one of the main targets of Raja Petra's columns. In his most controversial article, "Let's send Altantuya's murderers to Hell", published on April 25, Raja Petra claimed that Najib and his wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, were involved in the October 2006 murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, a Mongolian-born translator and former model, who was shot in the head twice before her body was blown up with explosives in a jungle outside Kuala Lumpur.

It is known that the former model had had an affair with Abdul Razak Baginda at a time when he was one of Najib's closest advisers. It is also known she tried to blackmail Abdul Razak when the affair ended, though her motives remain unclear. He was acquitted of abetting the murder on Oct 31.

It has also been alleged that she had an affair with Najib. Many wonder what happened to private detective P. Balasubramaniam, who had also linked Najib to the case on July 1 — but then retracted the allegations and has since gone missing.

For his part, Najib has denied any involvement in the case and swore on the Quran that he never met Altantuya.

Anwar has called for the case to be properly investigated.

The article came at a crucial juncture, and has played a key role in the larger political struggle.

"I am aware that I have raised the stakes with this article and I am prepared to go all the way," Raja Petra said.

Following the article's publication, Raja Petra was charged with sedition and three counts of criminal defamation. The cases are ongoing.

The blogger's wife, Marina, has stood by her husband's claims, and said she feared that when Najib takes power, "there may be even more problems for us".

In the meantime, Raja Petra said he had taken heart from the courage shown by the judge in releasing him, and that he hoped more would follow his example.

"There have always been independent judges, but they were sidelined and subjugated by the government under strongman Dr Mahathir. The government is now weak, Umno is plagued by infighting and there is a strong opposition," he said. "I hope more judges will come out of their shells."

His wife said she had taken strength from the support she received when she led the fight to release her husband. Prominent among those are fellow bloggers who share Raja Petra's view that Malaysia needs change.

News about Raja Petra, a minor member of the Selangor royalty, was — and still is — widely reported and commented on in Malaysia's blogosphere. Bloggers were also behind an online petition to free him and other ISA detainees, which has gathered almost 42,000 signatures, and they attended a weekly vigil in Kuala Lumpur.

Marina explained that she also received public support in the streets from people not normally associated with political life.

"During those days I was often stopped in the street, where people hugged me, shook my hand and told me to keep strong," said Marina, who did not miss any of the court hearings involving her husband. — South China Morning Post

Who in the world is Pablo Banila?

Who in the world is Pablo Banila?

Bianca Consunji Wed, Nov 12, 2008 Philippine Daily Inquirer, ANN

HE began as a series of mysterious avatars popping up on my Multiply viewing history. He didn't bother me at first, because I was used to friendly strangers visiting my site. But when he began visiting on an almost daily basis - and under different usernames, although with the same avatar?

I started to wonder who in the world was Pablo Banila.

Visits to his websites offered no clue. His avatar showed a creepy-looking guy with matted chin-length hair (think Severus Snape from Harry Potter) and a flashing sign that read, "Pablo Banila has a crush on you! That's why he visited your website!"

That would have been almost flattering had I not already known that he had visited the websites of at least a hundred other people - all under different usernames and the same annoying avatar. He also has a dotcom, www.pablobanila.com, but it offers no clues, only rambling passages of text and close-up photos of himself.

People started complaining. "Please get a life, you pervert," wrote one girl in her blog, after listing down his many usernames - pablobanila, ppaabblloobanila, rainbowinmycoffee, carrotperfume, laughingmankuze, edwardward, blackbetweenthestars, theblackbetweenthestars, etc. People left similar comments on that entry, saying, "OMG he viewed me too!" or "He views mine too, it's so creepy!"

Others chimed in, "He views me every other day, more often than I check my own Multiply site," while guys posted nervous comments like, "He checks me out too, and I'm a boy."

So far, his visits to sites have been harmless (all he does is view homepages; he doesn't leave comments), but creepy - there's just no other word for it. Attempts to discover his identity have so far been futile. But identity aside, what everyone wants to know is, how does he find time to check out all those Multiply pages?

Is Pablo Banila actually a team of high school kids with nothing better to do?

Is Pablo Banila actually a group of college students doing a psychology research project for their thesis?

Is Pablo Banila a new Internet virus?

Is Pablo Banila actually just the government looking for suspected terrorists by combing through the pages of unsuspecting Multiply users?

Is Pablo Banila merely the victim of pranksters who are out to get him?

Or is Pablo Banila just really a sad person with no friends and nothing better to do?

In any case, Multiply users are waiting for an answer. But until then, Pablo Banila continues to stalk our websites - and our nightmares.

Robespierre on freedom of the press

Robespierre on freedom of the press
13 Nov, 2008

UMNO still does not get it. They are still in denial mode. They do not know what happened on 8 March 2008. And this is why UMNO will die.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

“The law must be founded on principle,” said Robespierre on 7 April 1791 while addressing the Jacobin Club in Paris, France. “There must be absolutely no limits on liberty. In a free state, each and every citizen acts as a guardian of liberty. Everyone must be completely free to protest, in person or in print, at anything endangering liberty. If, as a consequence, public officials were to find themselves exposed to calumny, so be it.”

Robespierre went on to say: “Incorruptible men, who have no other passion besides the well-being and glory of their country, do not dread the public expression of the sentiments of their fellow citizens. They know only too well that it is not easy to lose their esteem, when one can counter calumny with an irreproachable life and proof of disinterested zeal; if they are sometimes victims of a passing persecution, this is, for them, a badge of their glory, the brilliant testimony of their virtue; they rest assured with gentle confidence in the suffering of a pure conscience and the force of truth which will soon reconcile theirs with their fellow citizens.”

In essence, what Robespierre was saying is, when it comes to public servants, there should be no “Criminal Defamation” law and no Sedition Act -- two charges which I am currently facing trial in court. And he said this more than 200 years ago -- around the time the British first came to Malaya to colonise this country -- in his speech on freedom of the press.

Malaysia has a penchant for hiding behind draconian laws that are created merely to justify preventing “sensitive” issues from being raised. Anything can be declared “sensitive” and all it needs is one man -- a minister, a police officer, etc. -- to declare a certain matter as “sensitive”. There need not be any grounds, much less reasonable grounds, offered to support the classification of that particular matter as “sensitive”. One man's personal opinion is good enough.

This puts too much power in the hands of one man. This man becomes the “trustee” or conscience of the nation. What he says goes and is final. His word is indisputable and unchallengeable. And the fact that it is merely his personal opinion appears lost to most.

If this is beginning to sound like the characteristics and qualities of God then this is certainly no coincidence. The person with this power to declare anything he does not like as “sensitive” is certainly playing God. And what more when he actually believes that he is second to God.

Syed Ali Alhabshee has taken MCA to task with regards to its comments on the Malays and the NEP. “The MCA assembly is not an arena to vent one's anger or to provoke the Malays,” said Syed Ali, the UMNO Cheras division chief. Why is it when anyone talks about the NEP it is interpreted as “provoking the Malays”? “Provoking” means asking for trouble. But this is how UMNO sees it when anyone talks about the NEP: you are asking for a fight.

The UMNO Bera division chief, Ismail Sabri Yaakob, wants the Gerakan Wanita Chief, Tan Lian Hoe, sacked from her party for allegedly saying that Malays are also immigrants, just like all the other races. Hello, brader, is that not so? Why get so hot and bothered about what is true? Many Malays are only second or third generation Malaysians. Their parents were born in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Middle East, etc. Tun Dr. Mahathir and Khir Toyo, amongst but just two, are cases in point.

Anyway, where is the spirit of allowing for freedom of speech? What is so wrong in expressing your opinion? Aren't we entitled to our opinions even if it may be wrong? This is what is wrong with UMNO and the government. They stifle freedom of expression. They regard it as provoking the Malays. They want you sacked and detained under the Internal Security Act if you speak your mind.

UMNO talks about the “Social Contract”. This is what Rousseau said in his “SOCIAL CONTRACT”. “All men and groups in positions of power have an interest apart from that of the people.” That was Rousseau's interpretation of the “Social Contract”. And that, too, is UMNO's version of the so-called “Social Contract” -- it means that those in power are looking after their own interests and not the interests of the rakyat.

And this is why the NEP has failed. The Malay “immigrants” abuse the NEP for their own benefit. The people do not really benefit. The gap between the haves and the have-nots has in fact widened. Do we really need a NEP that allows a minority in power to get rich at the expense of the majority?

In time, there will emerge a new struggle in Malaysia. And no, it will not be a racial affair. It is going to be a class struggle. It is going to be a clash between the oppressed and the oppressors. It is going to be a fight between the poor and the rich.

Salaries over the last 40 years have doubled. Starting pay, which 40 years ago was about RM350 per month, is now about RM750. But the cost of living has gone up 10-15 times. What used to cost RM3,000 40 years ago now costs RM50,000. What used to cost RM8,000 40 years ago now costs RM100,000. People can no longer afford basic necessities.

During my stint in the Kamunting detention center I asked my prison warders what their starting salaries are. They told me it is only RM800 per month. By the time they retire at the age of 58, after working more than 35 years, their salary will be only RM2,200 per month. What can they buy with RM800 per month? Before the middle of the month they are already broke. Most sit at their desk the entire duration of their 8-hour shift because they can't afford to go to the canteen for tea.

Those with families live in 900 square feet single-storey terrace houses which cost them RM60,000 plus. They shall still be paying the installments on these houses long into retirement. 900 square feet is smaller than the master bedroom in the houses of the elite. The common people -- the salaried workers -- have to settle for that as the size of their entire family home.

These things must be said. UMNO and the government can't stifle this and go on pretending that all is fine. The NEP has failed. The “Social Contract” is a farce. It has to be said and it must be clearly understood. The 8 March 2008 general election was not about the opposition being strong or about it having a better election strategy than the ruling party. It was about the people rising up in revolt and saying: enough is enough.

UMNO still does not get it. They are still in denial mode. They do not know what happened on 8 March 2008. And this is why UMNO will die. But it will not be Anwar Ibrahim or the opposition that will kill UMNO. UMNO will kill itself. It will commit hara kiri. And the present UMNO party election is accelerating the destruction of UMNO.

For about two months I was locked up 24 hours in a day and could not go anywhere or meet anyone. The only “entertainment” I had was to listen to the prison warders chatting amongst themselves. And what they talked about was very telling. They lamented about the cost of living. They grumbled about the cost of basic necessities. They don't care who the next prime minister is going to be. Never mind if Anwar Ibrahim takes over by Christmas or Najib Tun Razak takes over by March next year. The cost of rice, meat, fish and vegetables is still unaffordable on their meager salaries.

UMNO and the government has to wise up to the reality that basic salaries should be not less than RM1,500 per month. The poverty level should be pegged at RM1,200. The incoming government, whichever it may be that is going to take over from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, has to seriously consider this crucial point. People can no longer afford basic things. It is not about politics. It is about money in your pocket, or the lack of it. And this is going to be the struggle of the future. It will be a class struggle. And no Sedition Act or criminal defamation law is going to change this. Sending people to jail is not going to put more money in their pockets. It will instead just make the people more determined to realise phase two of the “revolution” that started on 8 March 2008.

Can Zaid be a third force?

Can Zaid be a third force?
13 Nov, 2008

By Baradan Kuppusamy, THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER

Zaid has always shown a willingness to speak his mind on sensitive issues.

With forces in Umno pushing for action to be taken against him, former de facto Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim appears headed towards joining Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s PKR.

Zaid has been asked to show cause by Umno, a move that sets the stage for his sacking or eventual resignation.

Except that with the spotlight in PKR focused on adviser Anwar, Zaid might find himself isolated if he does join PKR.

If he eventually finds PKR unpalatable, Zaid has the choice of remaining independent and work to forge and lead a third force in national politics.

It is a serious issue for a bold, forthright and uncompromising man like Zaid whether he can really fit comfortably into a party like PKR or for that matter political parties that are usually dominated by powerful, ambitious and ego-driven individuals.

In any case Zaid might not exactly be welcomed in the PKR because potentially he might overshadow the likes of vice-presidents Azmin Ali and S. Sivarasa and information chief Tian Chua, who all share the same secular, liberal political platform.

It’s probable that Zaid, having been a minister who had the gumption to resign and shown a willingness to speak his mind on sensitive issues, would be another star attraction in PKR besides Anwar.

He would most definitely overshadow Anwar's underlings and possibly spark friction in the PKR if he does joins the party as is widely speculated.

Not only would the secular leaders be unhappy, the fundamentalist hardliners like Kulim/Bandar Baru MP Zulkifli Noordin would also find Zaid anathema and are expected to object.

These and other political considerations are going through Zaid's mind, his aides said. "He is prepared to burn his bridges with Umno but is not sure yet on his political career except that he would continue to speak out against injustice," one aide said.

Bold or foolish, Zaid has challenged the Umno power brokers with his stringent views on the need to bury the NEP, promote meritocracy and repeal the ISA.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has picked Zaid as his latest punching bag and unleashed a volley of attacks on his blog aimed at tarnishing Zaid's reputation by questioning the source of his income.

This is just for starters because Dr Mahathir is not one to start a fight and leave the ring without victory.

Zaid naturally invites retaliation and it is not surprising that the new Umno leadership that is taking shape has asked Zaid to show cause why disciplinary action should not be taken.

Frankly, political analysts say, Zaid is just too big and too bold for Umno and the Umno power brokers feel they are better off without him.

Umno insiders said although some liberals in the party are strongly against it, most of the incoming team is for taking some action against the party's most wayward and headstrong member.

Zaid, who joined Umno in 2000 and who was suspended once as Kota Baru division chief for "money politics", might be either suspended again or sacked.

It would be a loss for the party to sack a man once described as the conscience of Umno.

With some doors shut and others not so palatable open to him, Zaid is confronted by the one logical choice before him — to develop and lead a third force in national politics besides the Barisan Nasional and the Pakatan Rakyat coalitions.

He is ambitious enough, rich enough and national enough to carve out a platform for himself and not necessarily at the head of a new political party but potentially as leader of a fledgling NGO with the potential to grow into a movement.

If the venture takes off he can later convert the movement into another multiracial political party.

Zaid has the stature and boldness to win support across the political landscape much as Anwar was able to do except that Zaid is open and bold enough to challenge the sacred ghosts of Umno and Pas unlike Anwar who avoids the minefields for fear of losing Malay support.

Scandal free and not bogged down by the Islamic baggage nor the need to pay obeisance to the Ketuanan Melayu ideology, Zaid is better placed to lead the Malay moderates who have always looked for a Malay leader to confront the growing impact of Islamic laws into what they see as their "private life."

Inter-racial collaboration is a fact in the Pakatan Rakyat but the push for more Islam and the need to defend Malay rights is also a growing force in the coalition that is fuelled by PKR hardliners and conservatives in Pas.

The tussle between the hardliners and the liberals is a constant theme in the Pakatan coalition and one that is quite impossible to resolve unless the coalition sets the rule, spells out clearly its agenda and works out a constitution.

It has to speak as a Malaysian party to all Malaysians unlike the current set up where each party speaks differently to its different constituents.

In such an environment Zaid has the advantage to speak to all Malaysians with a common message — an end to race politics, equality and meritocracy in an egalitarian society.

There is firmness and clarity to Zaid's message — that the old order is dead and a new one is necessary — that is missing in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition which is a marriage of dissimilar political parties glued together by the skills of one man.

Zaid should consider leading the emerging third force in national politics.

Zaid has always shown a willingness to speak his mind on sensitive issues.

With forces in Umno pushing for action to be taken against him, former de facto Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim appears headed towards joining Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s PKR.

Zaid has been asked to show cause by Umno, a move that sets the stage for his sacking or eventual resignation.

Except that with the spotlight in PKR focused on adviser Anwar, Zaid might find himself isolated if he does join PKR.

If he eventually finds PKR unpalatable, Zaid has the choice of remaining independent and work to forge and lead a third force in national politics.

It is a serious issue for a bold, forthright and uncompromising man like Zaid whether he can really fit comfortably into a party like PKR or for that matter political parties that are usually dominated by powerful, ambitious and ego-driven individuals.

In any case Zaid might not exactly be welcomed in the PKR because potentially he might overshadow the likes of vice-presidents Azmin Ali and S. Sivarasa and information chief Tian Chua, who all share the same secular, liberal political platform.

It’s probable that Zaid, having been a minister who had the gumption to resign and shown a willingness to speak his mind on sensitive issues, would be another star attraction in PKR besides Anwar.

He would most definitely overshadow Anwar's underlings and possibly spark friction in the PKR if he does joins the party as is widely speculated.

Not only would the secular leaders be unhappy, the fundamentalist hardliners like Kulim/Bandar Baru MP Zulkifli Noordin would also find Zaid anathema and are expected to object.

These and other political considerations are going through Zaid's mind, his aides said. "He is prepared to burn his bridges with Umno but is not sure yet on his political career except that he would continue to speak out against injustice," one aide said.

Bold or foolish, Zaid has challenged the Umno power brokers with his stringent views on the need to bury the NEP, promote meritocracy and repeal the ISA.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has picked Zaid as his latest punching bag and unleashed a volley of attacks on his blog aimed at tarnishing Zaid's reputation by questioning the source of his income.

This is just for starters because Dr Mahathir is not one to start a fight and leave the ring without victory.

Zaid naturally invites retaliation and it is not surprising that the new Umno leadership that is taking shape has asked Zaid to show cause why disciplinary action should not be taken.

Frankly, political analysts say, Zaid is just too big and too bold for Umno and the Umno power brokers feel they are better off without him.

Umno insiders said although some liberals in the party are strongly against it, most of the incoming team is for taking some action against the party's most wayward and headstrong member.

Zaid, who joined Umno in 2000 and who was suspended once as Kota Baru division chief for "money politics", might be either suspended again or sacked.

It would be a loss for the party to sack a man once described as the conscience of Umno.

With some doors shut and others not so palatable open to him, Zaid is confronted by the one logical choice before him — to develop and lead a third force in national politics besides the Barisan Nasional and the Pakatan Rakyat coalitions.

He is ambitious enough, rich enough and national enough to carve out a platform for himself and not necessarily at the head of a new political party but potentially as leader of a fledgling NGO with the potential to grow into a movement.

If the venture takes off he can later convert the movement into another multiracial political party.

Zaid has the stature and boldness to win support across the political landscape much as Anwar was able to do except that Zaid is open and bold enough to challenge the sacred ghosts of Umno and Pas unlike Anwar who avoids the minefields for fear of losing Malay support.

Scandal free and not bogged down by the Islamic baggage nor the need to pay obeisance to the Ketuanan Melayu ideology, Zaid is better placed to lead the Malay moderates who have always looked for a Malay leader to confront the growing impact of Islamic laws into what they see as their "private life."

Inter-racial collaboration is a fact in the Pakatan Rakyat but the push for more Islam and the need to defend Malay rights is also a growing force in the coalition that is fuelled by PKR hardliners and conservatives in Pas.

The tussle between the hardliners and the liberals is a constant theme in the Pakatan coalition and one that is quite impossible to resolve unless the coalition sets the rule, spells out clearly its agenda and works out a constitution.

It has to speak as a Malaysian party to all Malaysians unlike the current set up where each party speaks differently to its different constituents.

In such an environment Zaid has the advantage to speak to all Malaysians with a common message — an end to race politics, equality and meritocracy in an egalitarian society.

There is firmness and clarity to Zaid's message — that the old order is dead and a new one is necessary — that is missing in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition which is a marriage of dissimilar political parties glued together by the skills of one man.

Zaid should consider leading the emerging third force in national politics.

The Malaysian Obama

The Malaysian Obama
12 Nov, 2008

By Wong Chin Huat, The Nut Graph

COMMENTING on Barack Obama's presidential victory, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi assured Malaysians that anyone can become prime minister of the country. But one wonders if anyone actually believes him.

Just two time-zone-adjusted days before Obama's election, the New Straits Times's Syed Nadzri reminded us that our sixth, seventh and eighth prime ministers could incidentally be the sons of the second, third and fourth prime ministers, respectively. You can't rule out that possibility if Umno wins the 13th general election.

In other words, in an Umno-ruled Malaysia, there is not even a question of whether any non-Umno Malay Malaysian could have the chance of becoming prime minister. And for now just forget about non-Malay Malaysians, the functional equivalent of African Americans.

The question now is, can any Umno member whose father, father-in-law or uncle was not prime minister become the premier?

Legal and non-legal obstacles

Is there any obstacle in the country's or the party's constitution that bars a non-prime minister's son from becoming prime minister? Of course not.

Similarly, the question of whether we can have a non-Malay Malaysian prime minister is not a legal but political one.

As we all learned after 8 March, the legal obstacle on ethno-religious grounds does occur for the office of menteri besar in the Malay states. One can therefore see the federation as a more inclusive entity than some of the Malay states.

The political obstacles can be analysed from three dimensions: the executive electoral system, the extra-constitutional challenge, and the social cleavage.

Trevor Phillips (Source: trevorphillips.eu)

First obstacle: Indirect election

Some think it is easier for an ethnic minority candidate to win the office of chief executive in a presidential system, like in the US. It would be more difficult in a parliamentary system, like in the UK and Malaysia.

For example, UK Equality and Human Rights Commission Chairperson Trevor Phillips made an interesting observation about what Obama's chances would be like in the UK. Apparently, someone as brilliant as Obama would be unlikely to "break through the institutional stranglehold that there is on power within the Labour Party."

By constitutional logic, a presidential system maximises separation of powers by having separate elections for the chief executive (president) and the legislators (senators, representatives). Technically, a presidential candidate only needs a slight majority — in some cases a mere plurality — to win the election. If the candidate first needs to win the nomination from a major party, then he or she would similarly need only a slight majority from party members or delegates.

Assuming a two-party system, as with the US and some Latin American presidential democracies, the support needed from the electorate for a candidate's entry to the highest office can be as low as 25%.

Obama won only 48.1% of the popular vote in the Democratic primary, which translated into 53.6% of the delegates' vote. He went on to win 52.5% of the popular vote, which translated into 67.7% of the electoral college vote.

Fujimori (© Roberto Ribeiro)

And Obama was not the first ethnic minority who has ever won an executive presidential office. Ethnic Japanese Alberto Fujimori won the Peruvian presidential elections in 1990, and ethnic Hungarian Nicolas Sarkozy assumed the French presidency in 2007. France is a semi-presidential system, but the above logic still applies.

In contrast, a candidate would need to first win a parliamentary constituency and then win the support of fellow parliamentarians before becoming prime minister in a parliamentary democracy.

In a parliamentary system, it does not matter whether the party leader's position is formally elected by members, delegates or parliamentarians. Take this first scenario: a prime minister needs the support of parliamentary colleagues to form a cabinet and can be toppled by a no-confidence vote. And then take this second scenario: a president can appoint anyone to his or her cabinet and is not so easily impeached by Congress. Clearly, the prime minister needs more collegial support compared with the president to strengthen his or her position.

Manmohan Singh (Public domain)

Hence, if there is institutional racism amongst the party elites, it would be harder for a capable ethnic-minority politician to move upward in a parliamentary system. Because of this, an ethnic minority prime minister like India's Manmohan Singh should have raised more eyebrows than Obama, at least for citizens of Asian and Commonwealth countries.

Mind you, based on the size of its population, India is the world's largest democracy. The US is only the most powerful one. And India's ethnic problems are certainly no less complex than those the US confronts.

Just 22 years ago, one of India's most powerful prime ministers, Indira Gandhi, was killed by her two Sikh bodyguards after her bloody crackdown on Sikh militants. (Gandhi's daughter-in-law still controls the ruling Congress Party.) In 2004, however, the Congress Party had no qualms in appointing a Sikh to run the country. Neither did the largest opposition party, the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), protest that the Congress Party had sold out the Hindus.

Indira Gandhi (Public domain)

Now, if an African American had assassinated a US president in the past, could Obama have stood a chance to win the election? During the recent presidential campaign, Obama was already troubled by the "radical" views of his black pastor, Jeremiah Wright.

Second obstacle: The extra-constitutional challenge

Elections are but a part of the bigger picture. You may get elected to the highest office but you may not last long. For Obama, the threat of assassination is real. But he does not need to worry about a hostile police force or civil service sabotaging his administration. He need not even worry about a coup by a hostile military — the most integrated institution in the US, as a matter of fact.

Fiji's first ever ethnic Indian Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry was not so lucky. His Fijian Labour Party won 37 seats in the 71-seat parliament in 1999 and led a multiethnic cabinet, with 11 out of 18 ministers being ethnic Fijians. However, his government was overthrown in a coup led by a corrupt, bankrupt businessperson proclaiming to champion ethnic Fijians, who was later supported by a faction of the military.

Mahendra Chaudhry (© Michael Field)

The sustainable presence of an ethnic-minority chief executive therefore hinges on the de-ethnicisation of unelected institutions such as the military, police force and civil service. If vital institutions like the military see themselves as ethnic champions, no Obama can rule well whether the system is presidential or parliamentary.

Third obstacle: Social cleavages

However, whether an ethnic-minority politician can win office and survive depends much on how social cleavages translate into party competition.

If either the Republicans or the Democrats saw themselves as exclusive representatives of the whites, it is unlikely the election campaign could have been fought with such limited ethnic messaging.

And back to India — what has prevented Congress or BJP politicians from making a big fuss over Manmohan's faith?

The answer may lie in the founding ideals of the US and India — their "social contract" if you like.

While many of the US founding leaders were slave-owners, their Declaration of Independence states: "[A]ll men are created equal"(though not all persons), instead of "All white men are created equal."

India was similarly intended to be a multiethnic and secular state, not a Hindu equivalent of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

India's first prime minister Jawaharlal
Nehru (Public domain)

In other words, citizenship in America and India is based on equality and inclusiveness. The seeds of Obama's and Manmohan's rise were planted therefore in the likes of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Mahatma Gandhi, and Jawaharlal Nehru.

In this sense, whether Malaysia can have an Obama, or more relevantly a Manmohan, is a false topic for debate. Let's talk about equal opportunities in citizenship first before the equal opportunity for premiership. After all, if we are all treated equally as citizens, does it matter what our prime minister's skin colour or faith is?

It's time to dream, not of our own Obama, but along the lines of Martin Luther King Jr's dream.

---

A political scientist by training and a journalism lecturer by trade, Wong Chin Huat uses the Federal Constitution as his "bible" to fend off the increasingly intolerable evil called "state".

Updated: Monday November 10, 2008 MYT 1:08:42 PM

Umno issues Zaid Ibrahim showcause letter (updated)

By ROYCE CHEAH

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno has issued a showcause letter to controversial politician Datuk Zaid Ibrahim for his open letter and meeting with MPs on repealing the Internal Security Act (ISA).

At a press conference in his office here Monday, the former de facto law minister said he received the letter “a couple of weeks ago.”

“Apparently they found the letter (on the ISA) offensive and believe I had violated some rules in the party.

“They are also not happy that I attended the MPs meeting organised by Pakatan Rakyat at Parliament as I was still a Senator at the time,” he said.

Zaid said he had lent his support to the issue itself, not to support DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang, PAS or Parti Keadilan Rakyat adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

“According to them, it’s not what an Umno fellow should do. But it does not really bother me. I will let my lawyer handle it,” he said.

When asked if he had received a letter regarding his speech at the recent LawAsia conference where he talked about Ketuanan Melayu (Malay supremacy), Zaid said he had read news reports that there would probably be some action taken.

“But there will be many more speeches I will make, so my future looks bleak.”

Zaid had revealed the issuance of the showcause letter when he was asked if he would stay in Umno. Some members unhappy with his stance on the ISA and Ketuanan Melayu have issued strong statements against him.

He said it was no big deal whether or not he would leave Umno, even if he continued to get showcause letters for speaking out.

When asked later on what the future holds for him, Zaid he said he could make contributions in his own small way by ensuring smooth race relations, democracy and justice prevailed.

“It may be more effective if I speak independently on some of these issues,” he said.

He added that these were difficult issues for any political grouping to handle and one would have to compromise somewhat as a member of a political party.

When contacted, Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor confirmed that the party issued the letter asking Zaid to explain his open letter and why he attended the MPs’ meeting.

“He has until Nov 15 to reply. We will then take it up to the management committee for further action,” he said.

Fight, chairs flung at Umno's Seremban meeting

Fight, chairs flung at Umno's Seremban meeting

Mon, Nov 10, 2008 The New Straits Times

SEREMBAN, MALAYSIA - Two Umno delegates, including a woman, were injured after being hit by chairs flung during a scuffle which broke out at the Seremban Umno divisional meeting at the Tuanku Ja'afar Golf Club today.

The commotion began about 10.30am after division chief Datuk Ishak Ismail ended his opening speech when Sikamat branch chief, Datuk Md Yusof Harmain Shah stood up and questioned the legality of the meeting. Md Yusof claimed there was still doubt over the status of several branches under the division.

Md Yusof who is contesting the deputy division chief post against former Ampangan State Assemblyman, Datuk Zakaria Nordin, said nine branches had held their meetings, but were yet to be endorsed by the division, including six which were not allowed to send any delegate.

Division deputy permanent chairman Othman Senara then referred the matter to Supreme Council representative, Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik. Abdul Rahim said that the meeting could proceed with representatives from the nine branches sitting in as observers.

His reply was not accepted by observer Mohd Fadhil Kamaruddin who is the Umno Seri Aman branch chief, which was one of the nine branches not endorsed by the division and when he wanted to pursue the matter further, was approached by a group of men believed to be appointed by the division to oversee security matters.

The actions of these men upset several observers and delegates believed to be from two different camps - one supporting Ishak and the other division vice-chief Mohd Nor Awang who was earlier not allowed to contest the division top post.

The situation got out of control when observers and delegates, especially among the Youth began exchanging punches, pushing and throwing chairs which lasted for about 30 minutes despite calls from Othman to restore order.

The chaotic situation was brought under control by other delegates, observers and the men appointed to oversee security before Ishak, on the advise of Abdul Rahim, suggested that the meeting be postponed to another date to be set by the Supreme Counciil.

MEANWHILE, in KEPALA BATAS, Umno president Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has expressed disappointment over the fight which erupted at the Seremban Umno division delegates' meeting.

Describing the incident as embarrassing, Abdullah said disclipinary actions could be taken against those involved in the incident.

The big cover-up raises questions

The big cover-up raises questions

Mon, Nov 10, 2008 New Straits Times

By V. Anbalagan and Lee Shi-Ian

KUALA LUMPUR: The "special privileges" accorded to murder accused Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azah Umar are being questioned.

Close to 95 per cent of those who participated in a recent Bar Council poll felt it was "not right" that the faces of both policemen have not been exposed while analyst Abdul Razak Baginda was identified even during the murder investigations.

Razak was charged with abetting Azilah and Sirul in the murder of Mongolian beauty Altantuya Shaariibuu.

On Oct 31, however, the High Court acquitted and discharged Razak at the end of the prosecution's case after the judge ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove a prima facie case against him.

The two policemen were ordered to enter their defence and hearing will begin today.
But throughout the trial, which is coming to its second year, Azilah and Sirul always had their faces covered when in public.

They resorted to extreme measures in concealing their faces when they adorned ninja-like outfits which completely covered their heads.

The media, failing to capture the images of the policemen, have so far only provided sketches of the duo.

Many are questioning why their faces are being hidden in such a high-profile case which is even closely followed in other countries.

Bar Council vice-chairman Ragunath Kesavan said there is no law to compel the policemen to reveal their identities to the public.

"It is only a must for the identity of accused persons to be revealed during proceedings and in the presence of the trial judge, their lawyers and the prosecutors."

He said accused persons were presumed to be innocent until proven guilty and they could do whatever it took to cover their faces.

Criminal lawyer Datuk Baljit Singh Sidhu, however, pointed out that Azilah and Sirul were able to cover their faces only with the cooperation of the police.

"The two are constantly under custody and have adequate time to come up with such a facade."

He said since the trial began, many have asked him why Azilah and Sirul were accorded such a privilege while most other accused persons were denied such "luxury".

Lawyer Fahri Azzat said it was obvious that the police were practising a double standard in aiding Azilah and Sirul to conceal their faces.

"To my knowledge, this is the first time the public do not have an inkling how the cops charged in a high-profile murder trial look like."

He said on other occasions, it was the accused person who had to put his head down or get assistance from family members to prevent photographers from capturing their image.

"An impression is already built in the minds of most laymen that the police are not being fair," he said.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan pointed out that only the court has the power to order them to reveal their faces.

"We cannot force Azilah or Sirul or any other suspect for that matter, to reveal their faces in public.

"Only the court has that authority," Musa said.

"But why raise the issue now?

"It has been a year and a half since the Altantuya case began so why bring up the issue of their covered faces now?"

In the poll, a total of 821 voters participated with an overwhelming 774 voters or 95 per cent disagreeing that both Azilah and Sirul be allowed to cover their faces.

Those who agreed with the statement were a mere 36 voters or four per cent while 10 voters or one per cent were unsure.

Azilah and Sirul, both former commandos with the Special Action Unit, were charged with murdering Altantuya Shaariibuu at Mukim Bukit Raja, Selangor, between 9.54am on Oct 18 and 9.45pm on Oct 19, 2006.

I am Malay, and proud of it

I am Malay, and proud of it
9 Nov, 2008

It is time the crutches are removed and the Malays learned how to walk with their heads held up high. Malays have to be made to believe that the Ketuanan Melayu and the NEP is an insult and that is suggests Malays are weak creatures.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Religious superstition and persecution never ceases to amaze me. Take the case of Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow of Mogadishu, Somalia. On 27th October 2008, 13-year old Aisha was killed. She was killed when 1,000 people stoned her to death. And she was stoned to death because three men had raped her. She was raped, so they accused of adultery.

Imagine a 13-year old girl killed in a most brutal manner because she was raped by three men. Should it not be the three men who should have instead been stoned to death? And do you not wonder why Islam suffers from a serious image problem? Muslims should take stock of what they are doing and understand the disservice they are doing to Islam.

Our religious rehabilitation by the Kamunting detention camp started on the Tuesday after Deepavali. The highlight of the sessions was the “nasi tomato” and the chicken wing in a plastic bag that they served for lunch, courtesy of JAKIM but paid for by the Malaysian taxpayers, 90% who are Chinese.

The JAKIM ustaz told us that Islam is the true religion and that all other religions are false. We were reminded not to believe in or follow other religions, which are not accepted and recognized by God. Only the Koran is the true Holy Book and was sent to us by God through the Prophet Muhammad. All other books are false and were created by man and did not come from God.

We must also not copy or ape the non-Muslims as that will lead us astray and we will become an apostate if we act like the kafir. He did not, however, give any examples on what would be considered acting like a kafir.

In the meantime, in another incident that happened outside the Kamunting detention camp, an UKM lecturer explained that Muslims should not do yoga or meditate, as the origin of this is Hinduism. Muslims who do yoga or meditate would be led astray, argued the wise man from UKM. He then asked the religious scholars to come out with a fatwa or decree banning Muslims from doing yoga or meditating.

It is ironical that the JAKIM ustaz who visited Kamunting chose that subject matter to kick off our religious rehabilitation program. The article that got me into trouble with the government and which resulted in my detention under the Internal Security Act said exactly the same thing. I pointed out that the Friday prayer sermons run down the other religions. I also argued that we are told not to ape the non-Muslims or take them as our friends as the non-Muslims are sworn enemies of Islam and can never be our friends. For that I was detained under the Internal Security Act and my first lecture happened to be the very thing I said and which got me detained.

There are in fact many things which Malays do and which originated from Hinduism. Take the stringing up of coloured lights as one example. Seven days before Hari Raya Malays would string up coloured lights around their home, sometimes even on trees like they do during Christmas. This is a throwback of the old days when they used to use kerosene or oil lamps. And this was a custom borrowed from Deepavali because the Arabs do not do this.

So, the next time you pass by a Malay house during Hari Raya and you see all those coloured lights you can smile, knowing that the occupant of that house is borrowing a Hindu ritual -- only that he or she does not know it.

If we really want to go into the long list of Hindu customs and rituals that the Malays have borrowed the list would be endless. We should not ape the kafir, the religious scholars tell us. If not we would become a kafir. Well, what about wearing a tie, coat and pants? Is this not a kafir attire?

How many Malays go about wearing a robe and turban? Even that UKM lecturer who wants a fatwa issued banning Malays from doing yoga or meditation wears kafir clothes. Look at all the Malay government officers. They all wear kafir clothes and sometimes a tie as well. The security forces all wear kafir uniforms with a kafir hat on their heads.

We count our days using a Christian calendar. I am facing various charges for crimes I committed on certain days of the Christian calendar. What was the day of the Islamic calendar, the Hijrah calendar, that I committed my crimes? The charge sheet does not say.

I am facing various charges in a kafir court. The charges I am facing are crimes according to kafir laws. I was also under detention without trial according to a kafir law. In fact, according to Islam, I have not committed any crime. And Islam does not allow for detention without trial.

For that matter not only have I not committed a crime, according to Islam, but what I have done is what Islam has actually made mandatory. Islam makes it mandatory for all Muslims to perform “Amar Makruf, Nahi Munkar”. This means to uphold good and oppose evil. All Muslims must do this without exception. Not doing it, according to Islam, makes you an extremely weak Muslim.

I, however, am now facing trial and was under detention without trial for performing my Islamic duty. And kafir laws, not Islamic laws, are being used against me. Kafir laws are being used against Muslims for doing what Islam has made mandatory.

And what is the reaction of Muslims to all this? What is the UKM lecturer doing about it? Is he up in arms about the kafir system being implemented against Islam? Is the Member of Parliament for Kulim demonstrating on the streets and screaming, “I am a Muslim first I don’t care about other people’s opinions”?

Okay, the UKM lecturer wants yoga and meditation banned and the Kulim MP wants to shut the mouths of anyone who wants to talk about Islam. But that is about it. It never goes beyond that,

Sometimes the Malays can be amazing. Okay, not sometimes, most times. Now UMNO wants Zaid Ibrahim sacked as a Malay. Can any Malay actually be sacked as a Malay? I wonder, but UMNO thinks it can be done. UMNO says that Zaid would be nobody -- he would not be a lawyer of the biggest law firm in Malaysia -- if he was not a Malay and the country did not have Ketuanan Melayu and the New Economic Policy.

Zaid thinks that that is an insult. He would like to believe he is what he is because he is Zaid and because he is smart. If he would instead be a simple fisherman in Tumpat, Kelantan, without the benefit of Ketuanan Melayu and the NEP, then this means Zaid is actually quite stupid.

I share Zaid’s view. I also would like to believe that I am “somebody” and “special” because I am Raja Petra. If it is because of Ketuanan Melayu and the NEP, and if not because of that I would be washing cars in Bangsar, then this would certainly make me very unhappy.

Yes, Zaid and people like him do not need crutches. Only losers need crutches. And that is why UMNO wants these crutches to remain, because they are all a bunch of losers. I would like to believe that I am what I am because of who I am and not because of Ketuanan Melayu and the NEP. I take pride in that. I would hate people saying, “of course Raja Petra is successful. He is a Malay and Malays have Ketuanan Melayu and the NEP to help them. Malays need crutches to get ahead.”

It is time the crutches are removed and the Malays learned how to walk with their heads held up high. Malays have to be made to believe that the Ketuanan Melayu and the NEP is an insult and that it suggests Malays are weak creatures. Malays must be proud of their achievements and not credit their achievements to the protection and special privileges they enjoy because they are Malay. The Malays used to be a proud race. Now they are no longer proud. They accept that they are weak. So they demand protection to compensate for this weakness.

Sunday November 9, 2008

RPK unfazed by ISA ‘sting’

By G. MANIMARAN

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin will not be cowed into ending his controversial writing.

“Malaysia Today is meant to provoke society, but when you touch on sensitive things, you will be detained .... It is like poking at a beehive, sometimes, you get stung.

Raja Petra: ‘I am also sure there was no political intervention to get me out’

“But that is the only way to invite society to be united and to correct what is wrong,” he said when interviewed by The Star’s online Malay news portal mstar yesterday.

On his release from ISA detention, Raja Petra, also known as RPK, said he believed that the judge had acted independently without any outside influence.

“I think Pak Lah (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) did not interfere and he left it to the court.

“I am also sure there was no political intervention to get me out. It was left solely to the court and that is why I was released,” he said.

On Friday, High Court judge Justice Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad freed Raja Petra after finding that his two-year detention order under the ISA was unlawful.

When asked if the police had informed him why he was detained, Raja Petra replied they told him it was because he had insulted Islam through an article which demeaned Prophet Muhammad and also because of another article entitled “Let’s send Altantuya’s murderer to hell.”

“The strange thing is, I am already being charged under the Sedition Act for the article on Altantuya, but I was also detained under the ISA for writing it.

“Do they want to charge me or do they want to detain me. I don’t understand.”

On the political winds of change sweeping through the country, he said young leaders needed to be given opportunities.

“I like what is happening in Umno now, where they have young leaders such as Khairy Jamaluddin and (Datuk) Mukhriz (Mahathir).

“Although Khairy does not like me, he agrees with the abolition of the ISA. This a common ground for change that the rakyat wants.

“I do not mind if he does not like me. A tourist asked me: if Khairy becomes prime minister, will I support him?

“I said yes. I will support him because he is smart. I will continue to attack him, but I do not hate him.

“We have to be realistic. They are future leaders, and they include (PKR MP and Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s daughter) Nurul Izzah Anwar and Subang Jaya assemblywoman Hannah Yeoh,” he said.

On what he had been doing after his release, Raja Petra said he met friends and relatives, as well as did some writing.

“During my detention in Kamunting, I managed to write about seven articles and I am waiting for the right time to publish them in my website,” he said.

Asked about his detention, he said he was placed in a solitary cell and allowed out from 7am to 7pm.

To pass time, he read books.

“I never touched any of the food they served. I only drank the milk brought by my wife, Marina, every day.

“I would only eat rice once a week when my family visited me, usually on Saturdays,’’ he said.

Catalyst For Change

Catalyst For Change
4 Nov, 2008

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

There are two types of changes: evolution and revolution. Evolution is the slow change. It normally takes years or generations. Revolutions are immediate, sometimes overnight or abrupt.

They say Malaysia can never see a revolution. This, they say, is because Malaysians are not revolutionary or violent. Well, yes and no. Malaysians may not be violent, at least the majority of Malaysians, but they can be revolutionary when they want to.

Revolutions should not be equated with killings and blood on the streets. You can have a paradigm shift, which is a revolution if done overnight, or a change of mentality, which would be a mental revolution.

Malaysia saw its revolution on 8^th March, 2008. It is a revolution and nothing short of that. You can’t really call it anything else.

Revolutions are good, if it can be un-bloody. Bloody revolutions normally never end because there will always be the tendency for revenge. But when there is no other avenue and if a bloody revolution is needed then a bloody revolution it would have to be like in Indonesia and the Philippines who fought against the Dutch and Spanish respectively.

Malaysian at first were quite prepared to allow for an evolutionary change. In fact, they waited 50 years. Then, on the 51^st year, they decided that the situation is getting from bad to worse and they can’t expect any improvements so they decided to go for a revolutionary change. And that is why Barisan Nasional did so badly on 8^th March 2008.

This triggered other events. The Barisan Nasional component members realized that they too need to change or else suffer death and we began to see dissent in the ranks of MCA, Gerakan, and so on. Umno too is going through change, at least a change of leadership.

But Umno needs more than just a change of leadership. It also needs a change of attitude. It can no longer threaten “another May 13” or ask the “immigrants” to “go back to their own country” whenever they raise “sensitive issues”. Umno must realize that the Chinese, Indians, Ibans, Dayaks, Kadazan, Portuguese, Thai, etc. have as much rights as the Malays. They too have a stake in Malaysia. Did not Tun Dr. Mahathir say that 90% of the income tax is paid by the Chinese?

The fear is that Umno’s leadership change is just that and nothing more; Umno is not going to change its attitude or policies. And why should it? After all, it is not 26 million Malaysians or 11 million voters who decide the Umno presidency. It is 191 division leaders. 191 Malay Umno leaders decide who becomes the President of Umno and ultimately the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

So 26 million Malaysians do not matter. 11 million voters do not matter either. Only 191 division leaders matter. And what matters to these 191 division leaders is what counts.

And what do these 191 Umno division leaders want? They want Umno to continue to uphold Malay rights and special privileges and to defend the New Economic Policy “with the last drop of their blood”. And this is what the Umno President cum Malaysian Prime Minister will have to do if he wants to keep his job. If not then he will be pressured into resigning like what happened to Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

The Prime Minister normally forgets that he is a prime minister of all Malaysians. Most times he thinks that he is the prime minister of just the Umno members – not even the prime minister of all Malays. And this is not going to change when Najib takes over from Pak Lah.

It is not that Najib does not know. It is just that he has no choice. It is not 26 million Malaysians or 11 million voters who gave him his job. It is the 191 division leaders. The 191 division leaders who nominated him and gave Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah only a single nomination. So he has to cater to their needs and not the needs of non-Umno Malays or the 11 million voters or 26 million Malaysians.

And this is why we need a prime minister from Pakatan Rakyat. We need a Malaysian prime minister, not an Umno division prime minister. And until Pakatan Rakyat takes over and as long as the prime minister is a man nominated by 191 Umno division that would be how long the prime minister will be an Umno prime minister and not a Malaysian prime minister.

But is this going to happen? Will we see a Pakatan Rakyat prime minister? And when will that be?

Yes, I think it will happen. And it may not be too long away, probably even before Christmas. The 8^th March 2008 revolution has not ended. It is still continuing. It continued into the Permatang Pauh by-election. It will continue into the Kulim by-election if they dare declare that seat vacant – which was why they dropped the case. And the revolution will only end once the Umno prime minister has been kicked out of office.

The incoming Umno leadership is a Mathathir leadership. Mahathir announced at Hotel Singgahsana in Petaling Jaya that the new prime minister will be guided by a Presidential Council. Who will head this newly set up Presidential Council? Can the people accept the fact that Mahathir will be back in power and will be ruling by proxy? This will be the issue debated these next couple of weeks and which will have a bearing on a Pakatan Rakyat prime minister taking over.

I know many are no longer holding their breath. Most Malaysians have given up hope for Pakatan Rakyat taking over the federal government. Well, it may be too early to give up hope. If by Christmas it has not happened then maybe it’s time to get worried. Until then keep hoping and plan for this year’s Christmas to be the best Christmas in 51 years since Merdeka.

I'm not a terrorist. I'm not a dangerous person. I'm just a writer: Raja Petra

I'm not a terrorist. I'm not a dangerous person. I'm just a writer: Raja Petra
8 Nov, 2008

"Malaysia Today" website operator and blogger Raja Petra Raja Kamarudin said he was surprised with the High Court's decision here to release him from ISA (Internal Security Act) detention.

He said not many people had succeeded in their application to challenge the detention under Section 8 of the ISA.

"Therefore, I had not placed high hopes in being released early. It was 50-50," he said when met by reporters after High Court judge Datuk Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad ordered his relase at 3.20pm today.

Asked about his feelings, Raja Petra who was surrounded by his supporters, said, "I'm just too tired."

Asked about the lesson he learned from his ISA detention, he said the court's decision showed that the ISA could not be used for a political motive.

"I suppose we have to fight all out to get the ISA abolished. I'm not a terrorist. I'm not a dangerous person. I'm just a writer," he said.

Raja Petra who was accompanied by his wife Mable @ Marina Lee then left the court grounds in a Rolls Royce with the registration number, WNT 71.

Earlier, the blogger who was clad in jeans and brown T-shirt, arrived in a white van at the court complex at 3.15pm accompanied by five officers from the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak.

He had been taken out of the centre at 11.30 a.m.

He was welcomed at the court grounds by his wife and their two daughters, Suraya, 34, and Sarah, 19, and about 100 supporters wearing T-shirts with the words "I'm With RPK" printed on them, and repeatedly shouting "RPK".

Some also carried banners that read, "We Want Our Rights", "No to ISA" and "Free RPK. Abolish ISA."

Joy was clearly written on Raja Petra's face as he hugged his wife tight.

About 50 photographers from local and foreign media jostled to snap pictures of the beaming blogger who made the thumbs-up sign. (Bernama)

Raja Petra: Abolish the ISA

Raja Petra: Abolish the ISA
7 Nov, 2008

By Adib Zalkapli

SHAH ALAM, Nov 7 - Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin said the judge's decision to release him shows that there is no justification for his detention under the Internal Security Act.

Raja Petra, garlanded by his supporters, speaking to reporters after his release. — Picture by Choo Choy May

"I am really glad it's over, but I still got a few more cases which I have to fight over the next few weeks," said Raja Petra referring to the sedition charge he is facing for implying that Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was involved in the murder of a Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Earlier, Justice Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad ruled that the Home Minister acted outside his powers in having Raja Petra arrested on Sept 12, and the grounds given for his detention were insufficient.

The judge ordered that Raja Petra be brought to the court no later than 4pm, for him to be released.

As Raja Petra walked to the courtroom, he was greeted with shouts of 'RPK' from dozens of his supporters, who came in t-shirts with the word "I am with RPK" printed on them, to celebrate his release.

Raja Petra was brought to the court at 3.15pm and the judge praised the prison authorities for its professionalism.

Lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, who represents Raja Petra, also told the court that he is thankful to the authorities for promptly producing his client.

The Malaysian Insider understands that Raja Petra left the Kamunting detention camp in Perak around 11.30am.

At about 3.30pm Syed Ahmad Helmy ordered the release of Raja Petra, however there was no order from the judge not too re-arrest him.

Malik later told reporters there was no reason to ask the court to order the authorities not to rearrest Raja Petra as it is very unlikely for it to happen.

In 2001, the same court ordered the release of Reformasi activists N. Gobalakrishnan and Ghani Haroon, and ordered the authorities not to re-arrest the duo, as there was heavy police presence around the court.

Raja Petra's wife Marina Lee said she is happy with the court's decision but did not expect her husband to be released.

"The country is changing and I hope that this change will continue," she said while waiting for Raja Petra's arrival at the court.

She was also confident that her husband would not be rearrested.

Raja Petra who was garlanded as he walked out of the courtroom as a free man, was arrested for allegedly causing racial tension and insulting Islam through his writings.

"We have to fight all out and get the ISA abolished," said Raja Petra on the struggle to abolish the act that allows for detention without trial. He added that he would continue to write for his website.

Raja Petra was first arrested under the ISA in 2001 for his involvement in the Reformasi movement, but he was released after 53 days.

Breaking News: RPK to be released TODAY!

Breaking News: RPK to be released TODAY!

The Shah Alam High Court has ordered the release of RPK. He will be brought from Kamunting to the Shah Alam high court at 4pm today. Be there to greet RPK!

Much thanks must go to the learned judge Justice Syed Helmy and the outstanding defence team of Malik Imtiaz, Azhar Azizan Harun, Ashok Kandiah, and Neoh Hor Kee. And last but not least, much gratitude to the friends and supporters who have been attending the hearings and vigils. Syabas everyone!

The candlelight vigils will continue in support of the remaining ISA detainees. And RPK will plan to be there, starting with the one in Seremban tonight.

************************************************************************************************************

Court ordered Raja Petra be freed

SHAH ALAM, Nov 7 — The High Court today ordered that Raja Petra Kamarudin, editor of the popular news portal Malaysia Today, be released from detention after ruling that his arrest for allegedly causing racial tensions was unlawful.

High Court Justice Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad ruled that the Home Minister acted outside his powers in having Raja Petra arrested on Sept 12, said the blogger’s lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar.

He quoted the judge as saying the grounds given for Raja Petra's detention were insufficient and that his arrest under the Internal Security Act was unlawful.

The ISA allows the government to detain anyone for an initial two-year period without charges, and to extend the detention indefinitely.

Raja Petra, who was accused of threatening public security and causing racial tension by publishing writings that ridiculed Islam, will be taken to court later today to be formally set free.

Malik said the order was a "historic ruling”.

It's not the first time that a court has ordered the release of ISA detainees, and the ruling also does not prevent the government from re-arresting him under the ISA. The government can also appeal the ruling.

Raja Petra has increasingly infuriated authorities by publishing numerous claims about alleged wrongdoing by government leaders on Malaysia Today. The government has denounced most of Raja Petra's allegations as lies.

The detention came at a time when the government's popularity hit at an all-time low and is riven with factional fighting and faces the threat of being ousted by the opposition.

The ISA is a holdover from British colonial days, when it was used against communist insurgents. Independent Malaysia's post-colonial government has kept it in the statute books and has used it sparingly against political dissidents, ignoring calls from opposition groups and others to disband the law.

Raja Petra's arrest triggered widespread protests by civil society groups, lawyers and other online commentators.

- AP

Arsenic found in soybean sauce from Japan

Arsenic found in soybean sauce from Japan

Wed Nov 05 2008
China Daily, AFP

China says the soybean sauce made by Morita Foods contain five times more arsenic than Chinese standards allow.

China, Nov 5, 2008 - Batches of soybean sauce made by a Japanese firm and imported to China have been found to contain excessive amounts of arsenic, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said on Tuesday.

The Tianjin quarantine bureau said the sauce, made by Morita Foods, contained five times more arsenic than Chinese standards allow, it said. Morita Foods is the family business of the late co-founder of Sony Corporation, Akio Morita. His ancestors had been making sake, miso and soy sauce production in Aichi Prefecture since 1665.

The Chinese quarantine bureau said all of the contaminated products were destroyed before they could enter the market.

Also, the same inspection officials discovered a batch of coffee from Japan that contained excessive amounts of copper, the release said. These products, too, have been destroyed.

This is the second time in less than a week that Chinese officials have detected toxic substances in Japanese soy sauce, the administration said.

On Tuesday this week, China said it had found dangerous substances in imported Japanese soy sauce and coffee, in the latest food-safety salvo between the two countries.

Inspectors in the northern city of Tianjin discovered Japanese soy sauce contained arsenic levels five times higher than allowable limits, China's product safety watchdog said in an announcement posted on its website.

A brand of imported Japanese coffee, meanwhile, was found to contain twice the allowable limit of copper, the brief statement by the General Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine said.

The two Asian giants, which do a brisk trade in food products, have swapped accusations of tainted food since the revelation in September of widespread contamination of China's milk supply with the industrial chemical melamine.

That scandal, the latest in a series to tarnish the image of Chinese goods, has been blamed for killing four children and sickening more than 50,000.

Japan last month ordered retailers to pull imported Chinese green beans off shelves after a woman fell ill from eating a product which contained 34,500 times the legal limit of pesticide. Two more people later also complained of illness.

The Chinese manufacturer, Yantai Beihai Foodstuff of eastern China's Shandong province, has denied responsibility.

Last week, Guangdong inspection and quarantine officials said they had found imported Japanese soy sauce and mustard sauce that had been tainted with toluene and ethyl acetate.

Separately, 10 people were hospitalised, including a girl who fell into a coma before recovering, after eating Chinese frozen dumplings in December and January.

Effect of coffee enema

Effect of coffee enema

1) Introduction

I went to America to study as a resident of surgeon in 1963. The previous year, Silent Spring by Rachel Carson was published, in which she warned that the agrochemical and chemical synthetic materials invented in 20^th Century could damage the nature and human body. It is the first sign of warning.

At the time America was in the boom of “mass production and mass consumption to symbolize richness” and was enjoying the food. During that time, in the medical world even very small polyps had to be extirpated by means of abdominal operation. I was having a serious doubt in such surgeries for a long time, and in 1969 I finally developed the epoch-making surgery of extirpating colon polyp using colonoscopy without abdominal operation.

In the process of inspection using colonoscopy, I discovered that people who had good intestinal phase were more likely to have good health. Since then I have done about 300,000 medical inspections and 100,000 polypectomies. As the result, I became confident that fine health was based on proper diet hence normal elimination that makes good bowel condition.

2) The change of diet brings tremendous burden on your bowel

I have had nearly 40 years of experience in medical care both in Japan and America.

During the 1960s, Japanese diet was rapidly westernized and high-calorie and high-protein diet became common. Besides, we were buying more and more fast food and eating out more. At the same time, the hazardous environment change including air pollution, ambient pollution, soil change, overuse of agrochemical and chemical fertilizer started having an effect on our health. My 300,000 diagnoses told me that those bad elements affected human bowel.

What is healthy diet;

1. Eat locally produced natural products
2. Follow the nutritious balance as follows;
   Cereal & beans: vegetable & fruits: meat & fish = 5:2:1
3. Take in animal protein from seafood
4. Keep healthy diet
   Chew food well
   Eat at least 4-5 hours before going to bed
   Eat moderately, do not overeat
   Preferably avoid eating between meals
5. Eat fermented food including miso (bean paste) and natto
6. Eat less sugar
7. Avoid processed food and ready meals with a lot of food additives
   

Those are the advice I having been giving to my patients. It is not always easy to stick to these rules in our busy society.

Even if patients have regular bowel movement everyday, I still find, through the polypectomy examination, a lot of them have food scum in their bowel wall or colon fold. The scum goes off and poison the bowel in the environment of 36.5℃ body temperature within 24 hours. The best thing to get rid of the scum outside your body before it goes off.

3) Digesting mechanism and elimination time

When you eat, digestion in your mouth starts at first with spit. Amylase, one of digestive enzyme is in spit, which has power to melt down amylum. 1g of amylase melts down 5 tons of amylum in 15 minutes. Food becomes acidy in the stomach and after being fully digested with hydrochloric acid and pepsin, the outlet of stomach (exit of stomach) opens from where food is sent to duodena. Digestive fluid in duodena is called bile and pancreatic fluid. Bile is a strong alkaline fluid of ph8.2-8.5.

1g of Lipase, one of digestive enzyme, dissolve 5kg of fat to glycerin and fatty acid. Pancreatic fluid has some enzymes. One of them is pepchitase that melts down amylum and the other is trypsin that melts down protein so that most food is digested in your duodena and then absorbed in your small intestine. Food melted in your stomach is mixed with some digestive enzymes such as pepchitase, lipase, trypsin, etc. and is degraded, then finally changed to nutrient grain. These nutrients are taken in by ciliation or micro-ciliation during passing through your small intestine, which is 6m in length.
The residuum digested is sent to your large intestine.

In your large intestine moisture and mineral get absorbed. The length of your large intestine is about 1.5m and consists of 6 parts including an appendix, an ascending colon, a transverse colon, a descending colon, a sigmoid and an archo. It takes about 9-10 hours for unwanted grain and non-digested material to reach your archo and get removed from anus as feces.

4) Gas-forming caused by inadequately digested food

Examining with a colonoscopy, cancer or polyp is usually found in the fold of large intestine where feces is likely to pile up. The diverticulum or the area where bowel spasm is chronically strong is the places for feces to halt because the feces flow is not smooth.

As you become older, the number of good bacteria in your bowel decreases and on the other hand the number of bad bacteria increases. I find that young people including children who suffer from chronic ulcerative colitis, Chrohn’s disease, atopia and any allergosis such as phthisis have very poor bowel condition (intestinal phase) and having more bad bacteria and less acidophilus (good bacteria).

Bad bacteria for bowel including Welsh bacteria, clostridium, staphylococcal, pseudomonas seruginosa, bacillus coli, are putrefactive bacteria, which rot undigested food and in the process produce a lot of harmful substances such as hydrogen sulfide, indole, carbolic acid, skatole, ammonia, methane and amine arisen. These bowel bacteria and cell of colon mucosa generate radical oxygen ( free radical) and lipid peroxide. Gas and toxin not only make bowel condition worse, but also enter the blood through mucosa of large intestine to give whole body bad influence. Dirty blood causes hematogenous disorder and congestion of lymph. Hematogenous disorder reduces normal body function from skin to cardiovascular and rate of metabolism lowers. Weakened organ can be attacked by every phlogistica and disease such as cancer.

5) Crud in bowel leads to all kinds of disease

Normally healthy person has 50-200 cc of gas in the large intestine and excrete certain amount of gas depending on the type of meal, frequency of excretion of feces, hygienics of intestine (usage of Coffee Enema). The amount of gas is the barometer of your intestinal phase level and health condition (please refer to endoscopic photography at the end of the book).

The number of well-known doctors point out that constipation and fecal impaction, that is retention of contents and the crud in the large intestine, are possible cause of various diseases. Recently not only doctors specialized in stomach and dietetics but also other healthcare practitioner argue the importance of basic hygienic in large intestine, and “clean intestine and cleaning and activation of intestine are important for human health” becomes main issue.

Patients suffering from piles, colon polyp, intestinal cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, cardiovascular function disorder, liver and cholecyst diseases, chronic ulcerative colitis, Chrohn’s disease, enlarged prostate, arthritis, rheumatism, atopic dermatitis, allergosis, fibroid, mastopathy, collagen disease, elevated blood pressure, brain infraction, diabetes, etc are likely to have abnormal intestinal function and its dysfunction.

Regardless of quality of food, cancer-causing substances generate in your large intestine. The longer cancer-causing substances stay there, the more likely you suffer from colon polyp and intestinal cancer.

Less serious cases like symptom of asitia, nausea, headache, vertigo, chalk mark, hives, adiposities, comedo and boredom are somehow related to the retention of colon contents. Harmful substances absorbed through bowel wall into blood cause such ill health.

I can say that my patients who suffered from those symptoms have very poor intestinal phase.

*Clean colon There are no waste substances that generate poisonous fumes, and good bowel easily produces good bacteria.	*Dirty colon Crud in the fold of intestine and bowel wall go off and generate toxins that are absorbed into the body to pollute the blood.

6) Laxative damages the natural function of bowel

To keep yourself young and healthy, it is important to get rid of food scum coming into large intestine after absorption of nutrition in small intestine as soon as possible. However in reality many people of all ages suffer from chronic constipation. Constipation and fecal impaction slow intestinal function down and various toxins and active oxygen produced as the result are said to be the most serious causes of adult diseases including hardened arteries, cancer and aging.

Many people easily tend to rely on laxative to solve constipation and fecal impaction. However I must warn you as a doctor that laxative has side effect such as toxicity to bowel movement and mucosa of bowel. Even if the herbal medicines such as aloe, senna or rhuberbe contain chemical substance “anthracin” that changes the color of mucosa of bowel. Herbal medicine causes deposition of pigment called “melanosis” which leads to intestinal cancer or polyp. The more you take laxative, the less your bowel movement you will have.

7) Prevention is the best medicine and dietary education will be important issue from now on.

For 24 hours, your liver works hard to counteract poison. You should keep your large intestine clean to help liver to work smoothly. It is important for you to prevent illness rather than seek help after falling ill. In America the government organization did a huge research and study on diet and disease because of its premature aging society with fewer children. In 1975, MacGarban Report was published and it reported the serious relationship between diet and disease and made a point that improvement of diet would be beneficial for prevention and treatment of disease.

On the other hand, in Japan, the relationship between disease and diet is ignored even now. Many doctors are interested in early detection of disease and treatment method, and patients are not informed about preventive medicine or change of lifestyle and diet.

In Japan insurance revenue is very high and if there is no examination or no prescription for drug, there’s no profit to hospital or clinic. As you pay your attorney or accountant consultation fee, it should be the same with doctors for consultation regarding your health. So the problem of over-prescription or chemical antagonism will be solved.

It is time for Japan to think seriously about the problem of healthcare cost and insurance method just as America did 30 years ago. If not, medical costs would escalate every year and would lead to fateful crisis. In Japan it was recognized that main cause of chronic diseases were poor lifestyle and diet 25 year later than America.

We will have to take care of our own health more if state support for healthcare is to be cut.

8) Take supplement and acidophilus after cleaning colon

The diverticulum is formed at the right of large intestine, if you eat a lot of refined grain (polished rice, white bread or pasta) and the diverticulum is formed at the left side of large intestine, (especially in sigmoid or descending colon) if you eat a lot of meat. Red meat, chicken, and dairy products leave predisposition of cancer or heart disease.

Human beings have natural digestive function suitable for vegetable so cannot fully digest animal protein. If you have young and flexible colon and good intestinal phase, the bowel condition will be better. Good bacteria such as acidophilus will increase. Large amount of good bacteria builds up natural healing power and immune system, and create good circulation that will prevent adult disease.

You should eat nutritious food to maintain good intestinal phase to regulate the bowel function and to maintain ideal amount of good bacteria even when you are old. First thing you have to do is to make sure your bowel is clean to benefit from eating nutritious food.

9) It is Coffee Enema makes that intestinal phase better

Coffee Enema is one of the methods to clean colon by improving constipation and fecal impaction. You can use Coffee Enema twice a day without disturbing the function of small intestine because it only cleans left side of large intestine.

If you are worried that Coffee Enema might be addictive, I can assure you by my data that you will still maintain normal bowel movement. People who use Coffee Enema have good intestinal phase, good bowel movement with few constipation and fecal impaction. Most of my friends are using Coffee Enema once or twice a day although they are not suffering from constipation. They would like to keep clean colon with clean fold of bowel. Especially crud and food scum tend to pile up at the left of large intestine.

10) Detoxication

Coffee Enema is one of Gerson therapies developed by Dr. Max Gerson about 70 years ago. The liver is the biggest organ that generates toxin in the body. It is ideal for the improvement of liver function if you can remove toxin and body wastes generated in the colon by using Coffee Enema as soon as possible.

Whatever you do has only temporary effect unless the large intestine is clean. So I developed coffee for enema by adding to organic coffee the ingredients for to create good bowel condition based on this theory.

Another profound effect of Coffee Enema is that toxin and body waste in the blood can be removed more efficiently. After nutrition of food you eat is digested and absorbed in small intestine, food scum and undigested material stay in the fold of colon and bowel wall. If it stays more than a day, decomposition and fermentation will progress and generate toxin. It is important to get rid of remnants of food as feces using Coffee Enema before decomposition and fermentation.

11) Gerson therapy

Dr. Gerson developed it to treat his own migraine. It is one of the alternative therapies in which you are advised to eat fresh and natural food and to use Coffee Enema at the same time to have normal bowel function in order to recover liver’s detoxifying function.

A large number of patients have been benefited from the therapy and a lot of specialists who are interested in it have proved its effectiveness.

This Gerson therapy requires you to change your life style and your willingness to put it into practice.

At first clean your colon (you do not gain if you throw everything in dirty river)

1. Eliminate unnecessary garbage from the body as soon as possible to prevent toxin from generating.
2. Colon polyp and colon cancer are usually found in archo, rectosigmoid colon and descending colon.
3. If your colon is clean, good bacteria will increase and you have good bowel condition.
4. Even if you have a normal bowel movement, some food scum and crud might remain in the fold of colon or bowel wall.
5. You can get rid of feces and body waste at the same time by Coffee Enama.
6. Food scum in large intestine after nutrition is absorbed into small intestine generates toxin at the temperature of 36.5℃ and absorbed by the body.
7. Heavy metal, agrochemical or food additive tend to pile up in the colon.
8. The crud of colon not only pollutes blood but also slows body function down.

12) Latest frontiers of Coffee Enema

After 300,000 cases of clinical study I developed “CafeCOLON” that consists of adequate thickness of organic coffee and ingredients for improving bowel condition based on this theory.

I use coffee with adequate density, Gulf of Suruga deep water, ribirth sea salt, acidophilus generated extract, EM-X, oligo acid, etc., which are good for creating good bowel condition. In theory it is the coffee made for the purpose to increase and activate good acidophilus. It also contains various minerals to maintain mineral balance in the body after sudden bowel movement.

*Bay of Suruga deep water The deepest area of Bay of Suruga has the depth of 2,500m, which is the deepest sea in Japan. Deep water with the depth of 687m is said to be formed more than 1,000 years ago and has rich mineral.

*Ribirth sea salt Reduced sea salt fermented and matured using the seawater collected under a full moon, which is rich with good bacteria including balm for a long time.

*Acidophilus generated extract Effective substances extracted from fermented substance that is reproduced and matured from 16 different acidophilus including soya bean.

*EM-X 100 % natural antioxidant drink which extracted from materials such as brown rice, papaya, sea weed and fermented with good bacteria of acidophilus and balm.

Zaid hits back at critics

Tuesday November 4, 2008
Zaid hits back at critics

KOTA BARU: Former de facto Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim has hit back at three Umno supreme council members who asked him to apologise over remarks he made about Ketuanan Melayu (Malay supremacy).

Stressing that he would never apologise, Zaid in a statement yesterday said it was because he loved his Malay race that he had recommended that open competition be allowed to ensure the race could compete with others in a globalised age.

“I am not surprised by the reaction of some Umno leaders especially since they have an ongoing party election,” he said.

“I am a village boy from a poor family, not an aristocrat or royalty. I want to see the Malays succeed in economy and education.”

Zaid said he was not questioning the special rights of Malays as enshrined in the Constitution.

He said the new model that he recommended was based on openness to ensure young Malays closed ranks and cooperated not only with other races in the country but also foreigners.

He named Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Syed Albar, Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim and Tan Sri Muhammad Muhammad Taib as the three supreme council members.

Zaid pointed out recently that the Malay supremacy concept had failed and distracted from the real issues confronting the country.

Yesterday, he said he hoped Malays could differentiate between leaders who thought of their interests from those who only used the name of the Malays for political mileage.

Zaid said the concept of Malay supremacy had a negative element.

Dr Hiromi Shinya — Colon therapy

It is widely recognized in the medical profession that a healthy & clean colon is one of the most important precursors to good health and that the great majority of body ailments and diseases originate in an acidic and dirty colon.

By: Dr. Hiromi Shinya, renowned colon specialist and inventor of the colonoscopy.

http://kangen-water.ws