IS MERITOCRACY RACIST?

By

Dr. Mahathir Mohamad

on August 24, 2010 5:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (237) | TrackBacks (0)

 

 

1. In 1964 Malaysia held its first elections. The Tunku had an understanding with the Chief Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Kwan Yew that the PAP (People Action Party) would contest only in Singapore and would stay out of the rest of Malaysia. It was really not a smart kind of agreement. It was not put on paper at all. Only an understanding between two leaders.

2. It was not surprising that the PAP decided to contest in the peninsular. Lee had expected the Malaysian Chinese who had been represented in the Government only by the MCA could be persuaded to support him. If he defeated the MCA then the Tunku would replace the MCA with the PAP in the Alliance.

3. The PAP is a Chinese party largely. But it had always projected itself as non-racial. To win in Malaysia he had to appeal to Chinese chauvinism. However he could not do this openly.

4. Being the astute politician that he is, Lee came up with a slogan which did not sound chauvinistic but which played up Chinese sentiments to the core. The slogan was "Malaysian Malaysia".

5. While appearing to be appealing for all Malaysians the slogan was clearly suggesting that there was no equality between the Chinese and the Malays. He and his party was made out to be fighting for equality between the Chinese and the Malays, whereas the MCA represented only the Chinese towkays.

6. The Malays were alarmed at the prospect of the Peninsular Chinese combining with Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak Chinese to outnumber them. Split as they were between PAS and UMNO, their chances of continuing to dominate Malaysian politics was at risk.

7. Strangely the PAP bid failed against the MCA. But the Tunku was shocked and decided that Singapore's inclusion in Malaysia posed great danger. One year after the election Singapore was expelled. But the PAP chauvinistic legacy was taken up by the DAP. And the slogan "Malaysian Malaysia" continued to figure in Malaysian politics, evolving into a new catchword, "Meritocracy". If "Malaysian Malaysia" conjures equality between races, "Meritocracy" implies something stronger. It implies dominance by the race with the greatest merit in every field; in education, in business and in all fields of human endeavour.

8. When the Malays, understanding the implications, protest against meritocracy, they were condemned as racists. Faced with being labelled as such, most Malays dared not support even the NEP. Some, perhaps due to mistaken pride have begun to support meritocracy, undermining the Malay position further.

9. Today we see a lot of Malay NGOs trying to defend the Malay position. Invariably they have been labelled racists. The unfortunate truth is that those who labelled them are equally racists because of their advocacy of meritocracy.

10. It is the same with political party which appeal on the basis of the religion of Islam. In Malaysia the Malays are all Muslims. There are quite a large number of Indian Muslims in Malaysia but they do not figure in the political party said to be Islamic. The party, by using Islam, knows full well they are appealing to Malays almost exclusively. But the intention is not to defend the Malays but merely to gain their support. One can say they are not Malay racists. Rather they are Malay political opportunists.

11. That is why they find no difficulty in switching tactics in order to win the support of the non-Malays. Where before they condemn UMNO for working with non-Muslims, today their co-operation with non-Muslims knows no bounds.

12. The difference between UMNO and the other parties is that UMNO is openly partisan, not hiding its concern for the well-being of the Malays. Unfortunately because of mismanagement it has become weak. That is why today we have Perkasa and other Malay NGOs who are as openly concerned about the Malays as the UMNO once was. The condemnation by those said to be advocating meritocracy is because they see the racism of the meritocrats, just as the Malays of 1964 saw the racism of "Malaysian Malaysia".

13. What we are seeing today is not a campaign against racism but a campaign by racists against racists. The meritocrats are as much racists as the Malay NGOs, and Perkasa.

14. Incidentally by writing this I know the meritocrat racists will condemn me as racist. So be it.

****

ADAKAH MERITOKRASI BERSIFAT PERKAUMAN?

1. Pada tahun 1964, Malaysia telah mengadakan pilihanraya umum yang pertama. Tunku dan Ketua Menteri Singapura Lee Kwan Yew bersetuju supaya PAP (Parti Tindakan Rakyat - People's Action Party pimpinan Kwan Yew) hanya bertanding di Singapura dan tidak di mana-mana kawasan di Semenanjung Malaysia. Ianya bukanlah satu perjanjian yang bijak. Tidak pun dimeterai secara rasmi. Hanya persefahaman di antara dua orang pemimpin.

2. Tidak mengejutkan PAP kemudiannya memutus untuk bertanding di Semenanjung. Lee menjangkakan yang kaum Cina Malaysia yang diwakili di dalam Kerajaan oleh parti MCA dapat di galakkan untuk menyokong beliau. Jika MCA Berjaya dikalahkan, Lee percaya Tunku akan gantikan MCA dengan PAP di dalam Perikatan.

3. PAP ialah sebuah parti yang didominasi kaum Cina. Tetapi ia sentiasa mengetengahkan ianya sebagai parti yang tidak berlandaskan kaum. Untuk menang di Malaysia dianya mesti menarik sokongan chauvinis Cina. Ini tidak dapat dilakukan secara terbuka.

4. Sebagai ahli politik yang cekap, Lee memperkenalkan slogan yang tidak terlalu berbaur chauvinis tetapi tetap menyemarakkan sentimen Cina. Slogan tersebut ialah "Malaysian Malaysia".

5. Sementara ianya ternampak menarik bagi semua rakyat Malaysia, slogan tersebut sebenarnya menarik perhatian kepada tidak adanya kesamarataan antara kaum Cina dan kaum Melayu. Dia dan partinya diketengahkan sebagai memperjuangkan kesamarataan antara Cina dan Melayu, manakala MCA hanya mewakili golongan towkay Cina.

6. Orang Melayu berasa cemas akan kemungkinan penyatuan kaum Cina di Singapura, Sabah dan Sarawak akan menyebabkan orang Melayu menjadi kaum minoriti. Perpecahan di antara PAS dan UMNO menyebabkan peluang orang Melayu untuk terus mendominasi politik di Malaysia menghadapi risiko.

7. Yang anehnya PAP gagal dalam cubaannya menentang MCA. Tetapi Tunku amat terkejut dan memutuskan yang penyertaan Singapura di dalam Malaysia membawa bahaya. Setahun selepas pilihanraya, Singapura disingkir. Tetapi legasi chauvinis PAP ini diteruskan oleh DAP. Slogan "Malaysian Malaysia" terus dimainkan di dalam politik Malaysia, dan berubah menjadi satu perkataan yang baru, "Meritokrasi". Jika "Malaysian Malaysia" membawa makna kesamarataan antara kaum, "Meritokrasi" membawa maksud yang lebih keras. Ianya bererti dominasi oleh sesuatu kaum yang mempunyai merit di dalam setiap lapangan; di dalam pendidikan, perniagaan dan semua lapangan yang diceburi manusia.

8. Apabila orang Melayu, memahami akan akibatnya, mula menentang meritokrasi, mereka dicerca sebagai bersifat perkauman. Kerana tidak mahu dilabel sedemikian, ramai orang Melayu tidak berani menyokong Dasar Ekonomi Baru. Ada sesetengah, mungkin kerana sikap bodoh sombong, mula menyokong meritokrasi dan menekan lagi kedudukan orang Melayu.

9. Hari ini kita lihat banyak NGO Melayu bangkit mempertahankan kedudukan orang Melayu. Dan semestinya mereka ini dilabel sebagai bersifat perkauman. Malang sekali, sebenarnya yang melabel mereka ini juga bersifat perkauman kerana sokongan mereka terhadap meritokrasi.

10. Sama juga dengan parti politik yang meraih sokongan menggunakan agama Islam. Di Malaysia, orang Melayu kesemuanya beragama Islam. Terdapat juga sebilangan besar kaum India Muslim di Malaysia tetapi mereka ini tidak berperanan dalam parti politik yang dikatakan parti Islam ini. Dengan mengguna Islam, parti ini sedar yang ianya hanya untuk menarik secara eksklusif sokongan orang Melayu. Niat mereka hanya untuk meraih sokongan orang Melayu dan bukan untuk mempertahan kedudukan orang Melayu. Mereka ini boleh dikatakan bukan bersifat perkauman pro-Melayu. Tetapi mereka mengambil kesempatan politik ke atas orang Melayu.

11. Itulah juga sebab kenapa mereka tidak punyai masalah menukar taktik untuk menarik sokongan bukan Melayu. Jika dulu mereka mencerca UMNO berkerjasama dengan bukan Islam, hari ini kerjasama mereka dengan bukan Islam tiada batasan.

12. Perbezaan di antara UMNO dan lain-lain parti ialah UMNO secara terang menyebelahi sesuatu pihak, tidak menyembunyi akan perjuangannya untuk kebajikan orang Melayu. Malangnya kerana kelemahan urusan pentadbiran ianya menjadi lemah. Sebab itulah hari ini ada Perkasa dan lain-lain NGO Melayu yang secara terbuka memperjuangkan nasib Melayu sebagaimana UMNO terdahulu. Pencercaan oleh golongan menyokong meritokrasi ialah kerana mereka melihat NGO Melayu bersifat perkauman, sebagaimana orang Melayu pada tahun 1964 melihat sifat perkauman dalam "Malaysian Malaysia".

13. Yang kita lihat hari ini bukanlah kempen menentang sifat perkauman tetapi kempen oleh pejuang perkauman menentang pejuang perkauman yang lain. Penyokong meritokrasi juga bersifat perkauman sebagaimana NGO Melayu dan Perkasa.

14. Sehubungan itu saya juga akan dicerca sebagai bersifat perkauman oleh pejuang meritokrasi yang bersifat perkauman. Biarkan.

Umat Islam Diminta Bertenang?

Pendapat DRT:  Mengapa bila Rumah Ibadat Agama lain di cemar semua pemimpin Negara berpusu datang menziarahi.  Tapi bila Rumah Ibadat Islam dicemari tidak pula ramai yang datang melihat keadaan.  Adakah Rumah Ibadat Islam ini kurang Mulia kah?

 

Umat Islam diminta bertenang?

Mohd. Hasbi Ismail, melihat cermin dan dinding Surau Taman Seri Pulai, Temiang, Seremban, yang disimbah cat, semalam.

SEREMBAN 23 Ogos - Umat Islam di Taman Seri Pulai, Temiang dekat sini dinasihatkan supaya bertenang dan melakukan ibadah solat seperti biasa di surau yang disimbah cat merah dan dilempar botol minuman keras oleh individu tidak bertanggungjawab pagi ini.
Pengerusinya, Mohd. Hasbi Ismail juga meminta ahli kariah dan penduduk di situ supaya tidak melakukan sebarang tindakan yang boleh menyalahi undang-undang dan menyerahkan siasatan berhubung kejadian berkenaan kepada pihak polis.
"Biarlah polis menjalankan siasatan. Kepada umat Islam dan ahli kariah, teruskanlah datang ke surau ini untuk bersolat dan usah bimbang dengan kejadian yang berlaku itu," katanya kepada Utusan Malaysia di sini hari ini.
Dalam kejadian pukul 1 hingga 5 pagi tadi, sekumpulan ahli kariah yang hendak bersolat subuh berjemaah di Surau Taman Seri Pulai, di situ terkejut apabila mendapati bangunan surau itu disimbah cat merah.
Lebih mengejutkan, surau berkenaan yang baru sahaja beroperasi di situ sejak bulan lalu dilempar botol minuman keras oleh individu yang tidak dikenali.
"Kita berharap, pihak yang bertanggungjawab dengan perbuatan menyimbah cat dan membaling botol minuman keras di surau ini dapat ditangkap dan dibawa ke muka pengadilan," tegasnya.
Tambah Mohd. Hasbi, insiden ini kali pertama berlaku terhadap surau berkenaan sejak mula beroperasi 24 Julai lalu.
"Kalau ikut kata penduduk di sini, mereka mendakwa kejadian itu berlaku sekitar pukul 3 hingga 4 pagi ini kerana mereka terdengar bunyi botol kaca dipecahkan.
"Jadi apabila ada jemaah yang datang ke surau pagi ini untuk solat subuh sebelum 5.53 pagi, mereka terkejut kerana mendapati pintu utama dan beberapa dinding di surau ini disimbah dengan cat merah.
"Mereka terkejut apabila ada juga serpihan kaca daripada botol minuman keras yang berselerak," katanya.
Mohd. Hasbi berkata, dia juga hairan bagaimana tin cat yang dipercayai digunakan untuk menyimbah surau berkenaan terdapat di belakang rumahnya.
"Saya terdengar bunyi orang melemparkan sesuatu dan apabila diperiksa pagi ini, ia adalah tin cat yang kita percaya digunakan untuk menyimbah surau ini," katanya.
Sementara itu, Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Pelancongan, Perpaduan, Kebudayaan, Kesenian, Warisan dan Adat Istiadat Melayu negeri, Datuk Mohammad Razi Kail dan Timbalan Ketua UMNO Bahagian Seremban, Datuk Zakaria Nordin turut berada di tempat kejadian.
"Kita serahkan kepada pihak polis untuk menyiasat kejadian ini. Saya harap semua umat Islam di negeri ini dan di sini bersabar dan bertenang," katanya.
Manakala Zakaria berkata, isu agama ini sensitif dan janganlah pula ia merebak menjadi satu ancaman kelak.

The Legacy Of The Mandailing Mansion

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The  exterior of Istana Raja Bilah in Papan, Perak gives a glimpse of the Grandeur of the Mandailing Mansion in its heyday - NST picture by Muhaizan Yahya

Read more: MANDAILING MANSION: Stately grace of old 'istana' http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/12MAND/Article#ixzz0vpy85Jl9




Rumah Raja Bilah is a 'standout' mansion by the Sungai Perak where the rich and famous of old Perak built their palatial homes. JASPAL SINGH, HALIMATUL HAMID and ILI LIYANA MOKHTAR report.
BY any measure or design, the Bagas Godang (literally large house) of Papan is awe-inspiring.

Situated atop a hillock, the stately, palatial mansion certainly befitted the dignified persona of its first owner -- Raja Bilah, a Mandailing aristocrat of Sumatran descent, who made Perak his home and final resting place.

Completed in 1896, the two-storey villa has always been the largest building in Papan.
Situated next to his 128-year-old timber house (now known as Rumah Asal), overlooking the Papan mosque, the mansion, which is now referred to as the Rumah Besar, was built by Raja Bilah when he was the penghulu of Papan.

Acccording to Abdur-Razzaq Lubis, a local expert on Mandailing history, once Raja Bilah and his followers had attained some measure of prosperity, his concern was to ensure the long-term future of the Mandailings in Perak.

"Although most of the Mandailings left Papan by the late 1890s, Raja Bilah maintained his vision that it would be the community hub in Kinta.

"The Rumah Besar was the local equivalent of Bagas Godang, the residence of the Mandailing Raja (in the Mandailing heartland of Sumatra)," said Abdur-Razzaq in an interview with the New Straits Times recently.

Abdur-Razzaq, who with his wife, Khoo Salmah Nasution, co-authored a comprehensive book on the early history of the Mandailing in Malaysia titled Raja Bilah and the Mandailings in Perak: 1875-1911, said the Rumah Besar Raja Bilah looked similar to the mansions of Malay aristocracy and the Chinese miners of Kinta. But the interior was different.

On the ground floor was a large hall with octagonal columns and a raised platform (pangkin). In Mandailing architecture, the eight-sided columns symbolised that the building was erected with the support of people from the eight directions of the compass.

Upstairs, there were a few guest rooms and another large hall.

The Rumah Besar, functionally, was more like a Sapo Godang (a hall for the conference of Mandailing nobles and elders) than a Bagas Godang (a Raja's residence), said Abdur-Razzaq, adding that neither Raja Bilah nor any other family member ever moved into the Rumah Besar.

Historically, it was used for weddings, feasts and other receptions.

"But, most of all, it was a gathering place for the Mandailings and other Muslims of western Kinta, many of whom would come to Raja Bilah with their problems and proposals, especially after Friday prayers at the Papan mosque."

Going by Raja Bilah's will, the Rumah Besar and its "contents" were a family endowment or private waqf.

"It was a tradition among the Mandailing chiefs, and men and women of standing, to leave an ancestral home for the clan. It would serve to bring the children and descendants together during ceremonial occasions, such as marriages and Muslim feasts."

Abdur-Razzaq said that before work commenced, supplications (doa) were made and an auspicious day chosen to start building the house, adding that a fistful of soil from the Mandailing homeland would be scattered on the foundation of the mansion.

"Although constructed mainly by Chinese craftsmen, the Mandailings chipped in, gotong-royong fashion, helping their chief put up the house. Elephants may have been used to raise the large timber beams."

A penghulu's office was built into the buttress wall along the side of the hillock, and this was thereafter called Balai Penghulu.

The descendants of Raja Bilah, Abdur-Razzaq said, had always called the council hall Rumah Besar, but in more recent times, it has come to be known as Istana Raja Bilah (Raja Bilah's Palace), in the mistaken notion that Raja Bilah was a Malay Raja and his house, an istana.

According to Saadiah Kamaruddin, the great-granddaughter of Raja Bilah, who now lives in Rumah Asal: "My mother told me that the large hall on the ground floor was used for feasts, meetings and other receptions. It was also my playground when I was a little girl. ."

Saadiah, 69, said the men would dine on the pangkin at the end of the hall after Friday prayers at the Papan mosque. It is the only mosque in town and still stands tall, although it is no longer used as most Mandailing families moved out after 1910.

A postal bedframe occupies the space in the hall, while a desk and a steel single bed frame are in one of the rooms.

Saadiah said the Rumah Besar was always locked and would only be opened when it was in need of cleaning or at the request of family members and visitors.

"We don't hold ceremonies or feasts in the mansion anymore; not even when the whole family returns for Hari Raya. Everyone would gather at the Rumah Asal."

Saadiah said the Heritage Department had visited Rumah Besar on several occasions and promised to restore and preserve her great grandfather's mansion.

"They replaced a few broken wooden planks in the staircase and under the door of the main entrance, but it was attacked by termites. Now, we can't open the door because the rotten wood makes it hard to push it open."

Saadiah said the green walls in the Rumah Besar were scraped, but not repainted, and looked more like a "ghost house" now.

Saadiah's grandmother was the daughter of Raja Bilah. She was born in 1941 and grew up during the Japanese occupation when most Mandailing families had left Papan for greener pastures.

"I don't have children. My sister takes care of the mansion and our house when I am not here."

The Architecture Department of University Technology Malaysia (UTM) made a measured drawing of the Rumah Besar in 1993. It was used as a location set for local and international movies, the most famous being Anna And The King in 1999.


Community taking stock of identity and legacy

REMEMBER Aminuddin Baki (1926-1965)?

He was the "Father of Education" and a Mandailing.

The Mandailings are members of an ethnic group who first arrived on our shores between the 1840s and 1870s from north-western Sumatra. Many ended up in Perak and Selangor, where they worked as miners, traders and factory hands.

They subsequently established themselves in more respectable positions, like Aminuddin, who rose to become the chief adviser on education to the government (the equivalent of director-general of education today).

Aminuddin, who hailed from Chemor, near Ipoh, was responsible for getting Bahasa Melayu recognised as the national language and as the medium of instruction in schools in post-Merdeka Malaya.

"Many of the Mandailings in Malaysia today -- including myself -- are descended from these immigrants," said local Mandailing expert Abdur-Razzaq Lubis.

The Mandailings gradually involved themselves in local events, such as the Pahang War (1857-63), Selangor War (1867-73) and Perak War (1875-1876).

Abdur-Razzaq said the Mandailings were first labelled "foreign Malays" and later, "Malays" for "administrative convenience".

"By 1931, 'Mendeling' was altogether removed from the British Malaya census."

In the peninsula, he said, the Mandailings not only identified with Malayan (and subsequently Malaysian) nationalism, but were also compelled to identify with the Malays to the extent of compromising and suppressing their own identity and culture.

The process of acculturation and assimilation was assisted by a measure of colonial social-engineering, followed by post-Merdeka state conditioning, he added.

"Once the Mandailing in Malaya were redefined as Malays, it was only a matter of time before their political-economic functions were prescribed accordingly."

But, said Abdur-Razzaq, there was now an awareness among educated Mandailing who realise how important it was for the community to take stock of its cultural, social and political identity in a globalising world.

"We believe that the past is for our ancestors, the present is ours, the future is for our children. As the Mandailing elders always tell their children, every generation has a legacy to protect," said Abdur-Razzaq, who has a website, www.mandailing.org, detailing various aspects of the Mandailing community here and abroad.


Papan's penghulu and rich history

FORMER headmaster Zainal Harun, 80, from Bota, cannot recall much about the house that sits majestically on the other side of the Perak river, except that it belonged to "someone important".

"All houses along the Perak river belonged to penghulus, powerful people who heard criminal and civil cases. In the past, the river was the main mode of transportation, so it was a strategic place for people of importance."

Zainal said the only thing he remembered about Papan was that it was a tin-mining area populated mainly by Chinese settlers.

"As time went by, the younger generation left for better prospects in the cities. That is why the town is deserted now."

Zainal said Papan was quite a distance from his kampung and it was too much of a hassle to travel there to perform prayers at the mosque there.

"But, usually, the penghulu would treat the kampung folk to a 'feast' after Friday prayers."

There were many old mansions and houses of historical value situated by the river, he said.

"Some of these houses have rich histories just waiting to be discovered. Research should be done into these houses and maybe they can be restored for the younger generation to appreciate.

"If I remember correctly, there were many communists in Papan and people used to say that it was a dangerous place."


No plans to restore glory of building

THE Rumah Besar Raja Bilah was not just recognised as the symbol of greatness of the Mandailing community leader in Papan.

It was remembered by many as a film set, most notably by Oscar-winning production designer Luciana Arrighi for the movie Anna and the King (1999).

Arrighi was fascinated with Papan. She described it as a ghost town on the edge of large mining lakes, set in a mysterious cul-de-sac, shrouded and surrounded by dark, forested hills.

However, the mansion will soon be but a distant memory as it slowly decays in the "ghost town".

Seven years have passed since it was last restored by the National Museum. The latest check by New Straits Times reporters revealed that signs of termite infestation could be seen on its wooden staircases and under the doors. Some sections of the roof were also dilapidated.

A source from the National Heritage Department said the department was involved in conservation efforts of historical buildings in the country. However, Rumah Besar Raja Bilah is not on the Perak list.

The source said the Rumah Besar was a family endowment or private waqf, hence its restoration and preservation should be shouldered by Raja Bilah's descendants.

Read more: MANDAILING MANSION: Stately grace of old 'istana' http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/12MAND/Article#ixzz0vpxZ1Cjp

Denda RM500,000 jika tipu sijil dan logo halal

Denda RM500,000 jika tipu sijil dan logo halal

02/08/2010 4:11pm

KUALA LUMPUR 2 Ogos - Pengusaha restoran boleh dikenakan hukuman maksimum penjara lima tahun atau denda RM500,000 atau kedua-duanya sekali, sekiranya didapati melakukan penipuan dalam sijil dan logo halal.
Syarikat pula berdepan hukuman maksimum penjara lima tahun atau denda RM1 juta, atau kedua-duanya sekali, jika melakukan perbuatan yang sama.
Menteri Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi dan Kepenggunaan, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob berkata, tindakan itu akan dikuatkuasakan sebaik sahaja Parlimen meluluskan pindaan terhadap Akta Perihal Dagangan 1972.
"Kementerian sedang dalam proses membuat pindaan ke atas Akta Perihal Dagangan 1972, yang akan dilaksanakan tidak lama lagi selepas kementerian membentangkan akta ini, yang kita jangka akan dibuat pada sesi Oktober yang akan datang ini,” katanya ketika menggulung perbahasan Rang Undang-undang Perlindungan Pengguna (pindaan) 2010 di Dewan Negara hari ini.
Akta sedia ada memperuntukkan hukuman maksimum penjara tiga tahun atau denda RM100,000 atau kedua-duanya sekali bagi pesalah individu, manakala syarikat pula berdepan hukuman maksimum penjara tiga tahun atau denda RM250,000 atau kedua-duanya sekali, jika sabit kesalahan.
Ismail Sabri berkata selepas pindaan akta tersebut, mana-mana pihak yang didapati mengulangi kesalahan tersebut, tempoh hukuman penjara ditambah kepada 10 tahun manakala denda pula dinaikkan kepada RM1 juta. - Bernama

Malay Unity and the role played by Perak Mufti

DRT Comments:  It is interesting to read this article written by a seasoned Chinese journalist looking at the various issues within the bigger context of Malay Unity

Mufti plays role of mediator

INSIGHT: By JOCELINE TAN

Malay unity is making headlines again and this time no less than the influential Mufti of Perak, Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria, is the hottest topic of political chatter.

TAN Sri Harussani Zakaria, the outspoken Mufti of Perak, is no stranger to controversy. But he may have stepped up to his most controversial role yet in offering himself as the mediator in forging peace and cooperation between Umno and PAS.

His call for Malay unity came with the dire prediction that, unless they unite, the Malays are in danger of losing power in the next general election.

It was a highly political statement from a mufti. It went down well with Umno but he is now under heavy fire from PAS leaders and supporters.

But he is not in the least flustered.

“I am not taking sides with anybody. What I say is what I believe is for the good of Muslims and our beliefs,” he said.

Harussani was the rallying figure at a gathering of the Gagasan Melayu Perak (GMP or Perak Malay Movement) last weekend. GMP is one of those Malay rights groups that have been part of the post-2008 political landscape.

Or as Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah sees it, these groups are part of the emerging third force in civil society who want a say on the future of the nation.

Like Perkasa and the Terengganu-based Gertak, GMP champions all things Malay – Malay rights, the royalty, Islam, Bahasa Malaysia and Malay culture. Its functions are often preceded by a display of Malay silat. Its membership also tends to overlap with that of Umno. Thus, it was not suprising that PAS saw red when Harussani lent his weight to GMP.

Harussani is a very influential ulama and his support for the Malay unity cause probably set off alarm bells in PAS.

PAS leaders from Perak rejected outright his peace mediation offer and told him to stick to his duties as mufti. They also do not see PAS going into any unity arrangement with Umno.

Malay unity is a notion that has been blowing hot and cold over the decades without amounting to much.
“They oppose us; then they want to unite with us. They are what we call gila talak, you know, quarrel, divorce and reconcile over and over again,” said Asmuni Awi, the PAS central committee member from Perak.

Yet it was barely a year or so ago that several top leaders in PAS were toying with the idea of a unity government with Umno. So what is going on?

Some said PAS had been ready to talk with a Pak Lah-led Umno. They felt comfortable with the laidback Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

But Umno under Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is a different kettle of fish altogether. Najib is a seasoned player. He is not surrounded by a bunch of young and inexperienced advisors, he knows the game and he means to win.

Moreover, PAS and its Pakatan Rakyat partners have been deeply distrustful of Umno after the Perak takeover. That episode in the state’s history also caused a rift between them and Harussani who stood by the Perak Sultan’s decision on the takeover.

The Perak Mufti had played a pivotal role because the chain of events in Perak would have been vastly different had he taken his moral endorsement elsewhere.

“What they want to say about me is up to them. I’m only doing my duty as a mufti,” Harussani said of the way PAS has turned on him. He said he accepted the invitation to speak at the GMP’s gathering because he agreed with their goal of Malay and Muslim unity.

“I am not playing politics. I am 71, too old for politics,” he said.

Motives questioned

The question being asked now is, how real is this push for Malay unity?
As Asmuni pointed out, Umno only talks about Malay unity when its support is on the decline, as in 1990 when it lost Kelantan and in 1999 when Malays deserted the party after Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sacking.
“When it did well in 2004, there was nothing about Malay unity,” he said.

Some see it as a ploy to dilute the PAS influence among Malays, to stop them from giving their votes to PKR or even DAP in the next elections.

However, said publisher Datuk A. Kadir Jasin, the Malay sense of discomfit and fear of losing political control is very real.

The Malay right wing is still struggling to deal with the ascendancy of new and especially non-Malay voices in the political arena.

While there are some who are critical of PAS’ alliance with the DAP, whom they see as a Chinese chauvinist party, others are still unsure of the 1Malaysia idea which they think will lead to an erosion of Malays rights.
“There is a lot of chatter going on among Malays, a lot of concern about the position of the Malays and Islam,” said Kadir.

PAS and Umno, he said, are making a mistake if they ignore such chatter and the activities of these Malay groups.

“The fact that the membership of these groups overlap with that of established political parties is a sign that there are Malays out there who feel that the stance of established parties is not in tangent with Malay and Muslim concerns.

“Otherwise, how do you explain Malay academics, intellectuals and businessmen rallying around this man called Ibrahim Ali?”

Datuk Ibrahim Ali and Perkasa have been attacked from all sides but his ultra-Malay message has resonated among a segment of Malays.

Of late, Ibrahim has taken to sending out text messages with the heading “Dari Jaguh Kampung” (from the kampung hero). When he returned to his Pasir Mas constituency recently, his supporters staged a hero’s welcome for him and carried him on a pedestal.

Others like Juhaidi Yean Abdullah, a former aide to an Umno minister, viewed the Malay unity effort as the Malay way of giving notice to the non-Malays “to not push them to the limit because the Malays can be a big and powerful group.”

Exploring peace

For Umno politician Dr Faizal Tajuddin, anything that fosters unity is good. He sees Harussani’s encouragement to explore peace and unity among the Malays as part of Islamic teaching.
“His concerns are justified. If you follow the political discussion on the Internet, there is so much hatred that it’s scary. It’s virtual but it’s also a reflection of society. There are instances in Perak where one side refuses to attend the other side’s kenduri, things we thought happened only elsewhere,” said Dr Faizal who is from Pasir Salak, Perak.

Some in PAS have accused Harussani of being the “Jaguh Umno” or Umno hero. He has been making news in Harakah almost daily over the last one week.

Even Ahmad Awang, a fellow Perakian and schoolmate from Kolej Islam Malaya, has been involved in a running battle with him on the Internet

“He is sincere but his argument is too Malay-based. What he is saying is more about Umno unity than Malay unity,” said Ahmad who is a former PAS vice-president.

The irony is that Harussani was seen as pro-PAS for the most part of his career as the Perak Mufti which began in 1992.

He was regarded as too independent and conservative. He was then seen as hostile to Umno because he was one of the few government-employed ulama who would criticise the policies of the Mahathir administration.

But he commanded such respect among Muslims in the state that no one could touch him.
“He is a powerful religious figure. Any Malay political party would want him on its side. You could say we lost him during Tun Mahathir’s time,” said Juhaidi.

He has also made news for the right and wrong reasons. For instance, he caused a huge sensation with his claim about mass apostasy (which turned out to be baseless) and about how Bollywood movies promoted negative values.

The beauty of all that is the Perak royal house took all of it in its stride; and that may explain his loyalty to the sovereign in the latter’s moment of need.

More recently, he has been all fire and brimstone in opposing the sports betting licence. Earlier last week, he lent his two-cents worth to the argument that Malays should not wear football jerseys with the symbol of the crucifix or the “Red Devils” slogan.

“He will voice his opinion regardless of the political party and he was so angry about the gambling issue. All the mosques in Perak took the cue from him, you should have heard the sermons on Friday,” said Dr Faizal.
Despite his fierce appearance, Harussani is very accessible, is not afraid of tough questions and speaks good English because he is one of the few ulama who had gone to an English-medium school. He can be hard-hitting and intimidating but he is not without his own sense of humour.

But the PAS love affair with Harussani waned after the 2008 elections.
He had played a role in trying to forge a PAS-Umno coalition government in Perak when the state fell to Pakatan, with DAP in pole position. His concern over Malay unity, political power and the paramount position of Islam was apparent even then.

He is no longer the darling of PAS.

The Malay unity idea, said former Abim president Yusri Mohamed, will remain largely an idea.
“It would be really good if it happens but I don’t see Umno and PAS coming to any consensus. Both have the interests of Muslims at heart but the political divide is too great,” said Yusri.

MIDA DIJENAMA SEMULA, PUSAT SEHENTI PELABUR

MIDA dijenama semula, pusat sehenti pelabur

27/07/2010 12:57pm

SEOUL 27 Julai - Lembaga Pembangunan Perindustrian Malaysia (MIDA) kini dikenali sebagai Lembaga Pembangunan Pelaburan Malaysia berikutan penjenamaan semulanya dalam usaha menarik lebih banyak pelaburan asing ke Malaysia.
Timbalan Perdana Menteri, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin berkata, penjenamaan semula itu bagi membolehkan MIDA menjadi pusat sehenti untuk memudahkan pelabur terutamanya dalam proses mendapatkan kelulusan projek pelaburan di Malaysia dalam tempoh paling singkat iaitu sehari.
Berikutan itu, tiga akta berkaitan akan dibawa untuk pindaan pada sesi Dewan Rakyat Oktober ini iaitu Akta Promosi dan Pelaburan, Akta Cukai Pendapatan dan Akta MIDA.
“Penjenamaan semula MIDA sudah dilakukan pada peringkat pentadbiran dengan penubuhan sebuah jawatankuasa yang bertanggung jawab meluluskan semua pelaburan bernilai sehingga RM1 bilion.
"Jawatankuasa ini yang dianggotai wakil-wakil koridor pembangunan negara dan Kementerian Kewangan yang dipengerusikan oleh Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
“Semua kelulusan dibuat jawatankuasa ini adalah muktamad,” katanya pada sidang media di sini selepas bersarapan bersama-sama wartawan Malaysia yang menyertai lawatan rasmi empat hari beliau ke Korea Selatan bermula semalam hingga Khamis ini.

Di bawah pindaan itu, Muhyiddin berkata, MIDA akan mempunyai bidang kuasa untuk memberi insentif kepada pelabur tanpa merujuk kepada Majlis Tindakan Ekonomi Negara dan Kementerian Kewangan.
Untuk membolehkan MIDA memberi kelulusan segera terhadap permohonan pelaburan dari luar negara, katanya, beberapa kuasa daripada agensi berkaitan seperti Jabatan Kastam dan Eksais Diraja, Jabatan Imigresen serta pihak berkuasa tempatan akan diperturunkan kepada lembaga berkenaan dengan menempatkan pegawai berkaitan di bawah MIDA. - Bernama

Married GROs Cought. These GROs are Married or they went through Marriages of Convenience ??

Married GROs caught. These GROs are Married or they went through Marriages of Convenience ??

GEORGE TOWN: At least six men turned up at the Patani Road police station claiming that their wives were among 28 foreign guest relations officers (GROs) arrested during a raid at an entertainment outlet here yesterday.
The men came with marriage certificates, hoping to secure the release of the women from police custody but were turned away.
A police spokesman said they were detaining the women under the Immigration Act for 14 days to facilitate investigations.

Shamed: The GROs being brought to Patani Road police station to facilitate investigations.

“We want to question the women first although the men had come with their marriage certificates,” he said.
Police, he said, would also investigate and question the men who claimed the foreign women were their wives.
“We will check the authenticity of the marriage certificates and other pertinent documents,” he said.
In the latest raid codenamed Ops Noda, State CID chief Senior Asst Comm I (SAC I) Datuk Wan Abdullah Tuanku Said said 28 foreign women were rounded up at an entertainment outlet in Madras Lane.
Also nabbed during the 12.25am raid was a 36-year-old female caretaker.
The GROs – 22 Chinese nationals, four Indonesians and two Vietnamese – were busy entertaining customers when police raided the premises.
SAC I Wan Abdullah said the women, all in their 20s and 30s, were without valid documents and had overstayed in the country.
He said police were also looking for the outlet owner.

DRT's Comments:  Who are Mr M Veera Padiyan, the Star Columnist referring to??  Suqiu, Hindraf,  or Dong Jiao Zhong??  It is worth the while to get an anwer from him and to ask him the reasons why he is bringing this issue of racism now and not in 1999 and 2008 respectively.  Is he practicing double standards and being hypocritical??  One group can do it while another can not??  Is this true democracy??

Thursday July 15, 2010

Show racists the red card

Along The Watchtower
By M. VEERA PANDIYAN - THE STAR

Malaysians expect the Government to take a firm stand against extremists but not necessarily through the use of outmoded laws such as the Internal Security Act.

Lebih Ramai Cari Hartanah Untuk Pelaburan

Pendapat DRT:  Apakah yang kita dapat pelajari dari kajian iProperty.com ini??  Kita perlu gunakan wang simpanan kita untuk beli hartanah umumnya dan rumah kedai khasnya.  Pada mereka yang ada rumah atau rumah kedai yang telah langsai pembayarannya yakni 'free from encumberances' bolehlah rumah atau rumah kedai tersebut di 'refinance' semula.  Dengan duit dari 'refinancing' ini bolehlah beli rumah kedai di lokasi yang strategik.  Pada saya adalah lebih baik membeli hartanah di lokasi yang strategik dari membeli saham.  Krisis Ekonomi Asia Tenggara 1997 telah banyak memberi pengajaran kepada saya.  Semenjak itu saya tidak main Pasaran Saham dan Saham Syarikat yang tersenarai di Bursa Saham Kuala Lumpur lagi. Saya tidak mahu tertipu dua kali. 

 

Lebih ramai cari hartanah untuk pelaburan

KUALA LUMPUR 16 Julai - Kaji selidik aliran pengguna iProperty.com bagi separuh pertama tahun ini menunjukkan lebih ramai rakyat Malaysia mencari hartanah bagi pelaburan.
Kaji selidik dalam talian yang dikendalikan oleh laman web iProperty.com Malaysia, disertai 500 responden dan disasar untuk mendapatkan pemahaman mendalam tentang pembeli hartanah Asia, termasuk motivasi bagi membeli hartanah dan bajet.
Laman web hartanah itu dalam kenyataannya di sini hari ini berkata, daripada 500 responden, 47 peratus merancang untuk membeli rumah manakala 31 peratus adalah pelabur yang mahu mengembangkan portfolio kewangan mereka dengan hartanah.
Kaji selidik itu menunjukkan motivasi untuk melabur bagi pendapatan sewa turun pada 2010 manakala pelaburan hartanah bagi pertumbuhan modal meningkat.
Ia juga berkata, peningkatan kecenderungan kepada untung daripada jualan semula ini dikaitkan dengan kenaikan harga hartanah, ketika pasaran hartanah Malaysia terus bertambah baik.
Sejumlah 43 peratus responden berada dalam hartanah mewah bernilai antara RM400,000 hingga RM5 juta Ini mewakili kenaikan 16 peratus bagi permintaan hartanah mewah dengan segmen RM500,000 hingga RM1 juta sahaja meningkat sebanyak 10 peratus.
Kaji selidik itu menunjukkan bahawa harga hartanah yang meningkat, pulangan sewa yang lebih baik dan keuntungan jualan semula yang tinggi, menjadi antara alasan kepada peningkatan permintaan bagi hartanah mewah.
"Ketika keyakinan dalam pasaran hartanah meningkat, kami melihat lebih ramai pembeli dan pelabur rumah beralih kepada hartanah mewah sebagai satu kaedah untuk meraih keuntungan daripada peningkatan modal dan mengembangkan portfolio kewangan mereka," kata Pengurus Negara iProperty.com Malaysia, Ken Tsurumaru.
Bagi menampung permintaan yang semakin meningkat bagi hartanah mewah, beliau berkata Pameran Hartanah Koleksi Mewah Eksport iProperty.com yang akan datang akan menjadi pameran seumpamanya yang terbesar di Malaysia, mempamerkan perkembangan hartanah dari seluruh dunia.

Blasphemy Can lead Lead To Apostasy

Blasphemy can lead to apostasy

Ikim Views
 

By DR WAN AZHAR WAN AHMAD
Senior Fellow/Director, Ikim

Though Islamic tradition offers no exact equivalent for the term blasphemy, Muslims without proper knowledge who criticise the religion may fall into infidelity or apostasy.

BLASPHEMY, derived from the Greek term meaning “speaking evil”, is contemptuous or irreverent words or speech about God or things regarded as sacred.

Its synonyms, among others, are abuse, desecration, execration, profanation, repudiation, derogation, denunciation, heresy, insult, impiety, sacrilege, scurrility and reviling.

“To blaspheme” is to speak about the Divine or those sacred things impiously, disrespectfully.
In Islam, words that pierce the Almighty God with insults (sabb), insinuate the Prophet Muhammad, or mock any part of the Revelation constitutes religious crimes.

Though Islamic tradition offers no exact equivalent, these situations are analogous or comparable to blasphemy. The Quranic term that comes fairly close to blasphemy is “words of infidelity” (kalimat al-kufr).
Theologically speaking, blasphemy may overlap with or lead to infidelity, i.e. deliberate rejection of God and Revelation.

To a lesser degree, but equally destructive, expressing religious opinions at variance with the standard established Islamic worldview or creed could easily be looked upon as blasphemous.

And this blasphemy may also be defined as any verbal expression that possibly gives grounds for apostasy (riddah).

Blasphemy can also be considered as equivalent to heresy (zandaqah). This pre-Islamic Persian term is employed in Islamic literature to describe the heretics (zindiqs) whose teaching becomes a threat to the state and religion. Originally zindiqs was used to refer to the followers of Mani (d. 277 AD) who deviated from the original teachings of Zorostrianism.

From the inception of Islam, the religion has been confronted with a lot of opposition. The Prophet Muhammad himself encountered vehement rejection from the Arab people and leaders of Mecca. They disputed, abused, rejected and ridiculed many Quranic teachings brought by him. They not only mocked his claim as the prophet of God but also accused him of many derogatory names and professions.

Based on the Noble Quran and Sunnah, the nature and conditions for blasphemy have been elaborated upon by scholars. They describe it as the expression of denigration, contempt or scorn for God, the Prophets, the Quran, the angels, or the traditional religious sciences based on Revelation.

The list goes to those remarks that offend the qualified and true religious scholars. Insults to the authoritative religious scholarship is tantamount to rejection of religious knowledge itself. It implies that the Revelation is untruthful, implicating the Prophet and ultimately Almighty God.

The aforementioned antagonism has been taking place in Islamic history since the time of the Prophet. It is still happening today and will continue to the future.

What is more unfortunate, is that it is done by Muslims themselves, the confused ones. They question the rationale and even validity of certain religious pronouncements, claiming injustices and discrimination, for example, against gender, as well as violation of human rights on the part of Islam.

The terms blasphemy and heresy are invoked here to remind and caution many modern educated Muslims who are inclined to follow the footsteps of those early blasphemers and zindiqs by criticising their religion without having proper knowledge.

It appears that those educated but ignorant Muslims become zindiqs or “free thinkers” making their external profession of Islam not sufficiently sincere due to improper guidance.

Therefore, Muslims must always be careful with their intentions, words and actions. They are supposed to be sensible enough to realise that whatever they do, it must be done in accordance with the true teachings of Islam.

All arguments must be constructed upon premises based on right knowledge. And true Muslims must always be ever willing to come back to the right path and correct themselves if what they are holding to is proven wrong.

Blasphemous Muslims must be aware that they may fall into infidelity or apostasy if they choose to remain obstinate after being told the truth.

German, Swiss media in frenzy over 'Imam Muda' show shown on Astro Oasis

German, Swiss media in frenzy over 'Imam Muda' show

FRANKFURT (Bernama): The media in Germany and Switzerland have been widely reporting about a Malaysian reality television show called "Imam Muda" (Young Imam). While in many Western countries, a television talent show is organised to select a star, Malaysia is hiring the next "star imam" through a talent search show, as many German and Swiss dailies have been reporting.
Details of the "Imam Muda" show have been widely reported by a number of dailies - from the Tagesspiegel, Merkur Online through n-tv.de, Bild.de, Sueddeutsche Zeitung to the Swiss daily Tagesanzeiger - and have kept the readers engrossed, as comments from readers to the news report suggest.
The "Imam Muda" talent show reported about eight young men who appeared on Malaysian television at prime time, attired in suits and the traditional caps.
Switzerland's "Tagesanzeiger", for example, describes the candidates as "superstars" on Malaysian television and reports that they seem to have become heart throbs of many young girls.
Unlike in other reality shows, where participants usually sing or dance, the candidates in the "Imam Muda" show recite verses from the Quran, have the necessary training in washing dead bodies for Islamic burial, and pledge to protect young Malaysians from sex and drugs.
The talent show casts young Islamic clerics, the paper goes on.
The weekly talent show is headed by Hasan Mahmud, a former imam himself. He is creating a pool of exemplary young imams and using their help to combat the "social and moral decadence".
The candidates, aged between 18 and 27, are selected according to personality criteria and their knowledge of religion.
As in "American Idol" and other talent shows, candidates are phased out each week after they failed to qualify.
Many viewers and readers were surprised to know that for the duration of the show, the candidates are isolated and kept in the sleeping hall of a mosque - without any mobile phones, Internet, television and other modern gadgets - so that they "think for themselves" and do not have to rely on any outside help or prompting."
The winner of the contest can expect a pilgrimage to Mecca, financial assistance in pursuing studies at the Islamic university of Medina, and employment in a mosque," says a commentator in the German daily Tagesspiegel which is published from Berlin.
The German daily contends that all the casting participants can be sure of having the "admiration of young female admirers and potential mothers-in-law".
"For Muslims, the ideal sons-in-law are aspiring imams because they are educated and well-versed in Islam," the daily quoted Iselan Bazar of the cable channel Astro Oasis which airs the religious talent search.

The American Indepedence Day Commemoration

A Jekyll and Hyde story

 

REFLECTING ON THE LAW By Prof Emeritus SHAD SALEEM FARUDI 

shadsaleem@yahoo.co.uk

As the US commemorates its 234th Independence Day, it needs to re-examine its policies and purify its soul.
THIS Sunday, the United States will commemorate the 234th anniversary of its Declaration of Independence from Britain.
The historic document was not just an assertion of self-determination against colonial subjugation, it was also one of the world’s most stirring affirmations of the constitutional ideals of human rights, political participation and limited government.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
These beautiful, opening words of the Declaration have rightly been described as “the most potent and consequential words in American history”. Notwithstanding some sordid realities and shabby practices of the American body politic till the 1960s (like slavery and racial segregation), the ideals of the Declaration have animated American political theory over the last 234 years and inspired countless Constitutions around the world.
For much of its history, the United States has been regarded as a sentinel of constitutionalism, democracy and human rights. The US Constitution of 1787 distils one of the finest models of check and balance ever devised. The Bill of Rights, incorporated into the Constitution in 1791, provides a paradigm for entrenching fundamental rights against the naked power of the executive and the legislature.
It is a tribute to the greatness of the United States that for the last two centuries, its shores have beckoned millions of migrants from around the world. America’s bosom has cradled the dreams of disparate peoples from everywhere.
Its Statue of Liberty in the New York harbour symbolises America’s enduring love for liberty. Its free market system promotes economic opportunity and prosperity undreamed of elsewhere.
In the last century, the USA sacrificed billions of dollars and thousands of men to fight Nazism, fascism and communism. It supported de-colonisation and opposed apartheid. It condemned the Anglo-French-Israeli invasion of Suez.
It gave Marshall Aid to a Europe shattered by the ravages of World War II. It provided men, machines and money to many Third World countries.
It was the main architect of the UN Charter and many other gilt-edged provisions of international law. It contributes generously to many international organisations like the United Nations, World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Its universities sponsor foreign students from many lands.
Sadly, there is also a dark side to America. In some respects, US Governments since Truman have played Jekyll and Hyde around the world and exhibited multiple personalities. Evil has often mixed with good and heinous crimes with heroism. Liberty at home but a licence to impose hegemony and brutality on people abroad has been a consistent US policy of the last century.
The United States professes peace but is always at war with someone or the other. Its dominant military-industrial complex has transformed the creed “in God we trust” to “in arms we trust”.
From 1945 till now, it has dropped bombs and missiles on 29 countries, 24 of which are in the Third World. It used atomic weapons to decimate the innocent population of Hiroshima and Nagasaki even though the Japanese army was on the verge of collapse.
Washington maintains 180 or so military bases around the world. Its military budget in 2009 was US$661bil (RM2.1 trillion) or 43% of the world’s total! In the past it has conquered and colonised nations in Latin America and Asia.
George W. Bush invaded Iraq and Afghanistan and Barack Obama has not had the courage to undo that wrong. At the behest of Israel, the USA is threatening Iran with military strikes.
In the decades after World War II, Washington helped undermine many independence movements and propped up dictators in order to win the Cold War. To extend its imperial reach, it overthrew the rulers in Hawaii, Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Chile.
It intervened in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos causing the death of two million Asians and 58,000 Americans.
On July 4, 1988, its navy attacked an Iranian A300 Airbus in mid-air killing all 290 passengers on board. Under Bush, the CIA ran overseas torture chambers, resorted to kidnappings (renditions) of “terror suspects” abroad and transported 11,000 prisoners to camps for imprisonment without trial.
In the economic sphere, the United States preaches free trade but only to the extent that would assist its mega-corporations to take over indigenous economies.
In the legal sphere, the US Governments under Reagan and Bush walked away from treaty after treaty, whether on small arms, Kyoto Accord, land mines, Biological & Toxins Weapons Convention, Anti-Ballistic Missiles Agreement and the ICC.
Side by side with its fidelity to human rights at home, the US gives unconditional financial, diplomatic and military support to Israel’s 62-year-old genocidal, apartheid and military policies in Palestine, Syria and Lebanon.
To many American leaders, no law or ideal is so worthy that it cannot be sacrificed to prop up Israel. Despite policies on non-proliferation, the US conspired with France to enable Israel to develop nuclear bombs surreptitiously.
Then, in an act of incredible appeasement, Washington connived with Tel Aviv to transfer nuclear capability to the racist regime in Pretoria in return for Pretoria allowing its soil for Israel to conduct its nuclear tests.
Washington hinders any international scrutiny of Israel’s atrocities. It has vetoed 45 or so UN Security Council Resolutions against Israel. In 2001, a near unanimous, 14-1 Resolution to station a UN Peacekeeping Force in Palestine was shot down by Washington.
To the United States, the Palestinians have no right to international protection, not if that hinders Israel. The suffering of the Palestinians is regretted but the Promised People have to be given their Promised Land.
On June 26 at the G8 Summit, Obama joined other leaders to pontificate about Israel’s decision “to relax certain elements of its blockade” of Gaza. But he said not a word about the illegality and inhumanity of Israel’s three-year genocidal strangulation of 1.5 million people.
Despite all this dissonance between lofty principles and flawed practices, we wish to send our felicitations to our American friends on their Independence Day.
At the same time we are entitled to wonder: Has America taken leave of its conscience in the Mid-East? How far are its policies inspired by “enlightened self-interest” and not deep-seated racial and religious prejudices?
One will do well to repeat Martin Luther King’s reminder that “we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny” and “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”.
As it commemorates its independence, America needs to re-examine its policies and purify its soul. Its massive power combined with the lunacy of Israel can maintain the unjust status quo. But that will not bring peace because both Israel and America should know that the human spirit cannot be vanquished. There will always be people willing to die on their feet than live on their knees.
> Shad Saleem Faruqi is a graduate in Government from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut and carries fond memories of the USA despite his misgivings with US foreign policy.

Asia, The Leader In Global Economy

DAEJEON: Dominique Strauss- Kahn, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), highlighted the role of Asia in the future in global economic policies, vowing to allow stronger voice of the region in the IMF, China's Xinhua news agency reported.
"Asia's time has come. No one can doubt that Asia's economic performance will continue to grow in importance," Strauss-Kahn said in his opening address to the Asia 21 high-level conference held in Daejeon.

The two-day conference, titled "Asia 21: Leading the Way Forward," kicked off with opening addresses by South Korean Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun and the IMF head, where the participants will hold discussions over Asia's global role and its new growth drivers.

The IMF officials are also planning to evaluate Asia's economic growth model and its implications of change for the global economy, while showcasing lessons of Asia's resilience during the crisis for other regions, Strauss-Kahn said.

"Drawing the lessons of Asia's many successes is an important objective for this conference," Strauss-Kahn said.

"In my view, the macroeconomic, financial and corporate sector reforms put in place over the last decade have played an important role in the region's resilience," added Strauss-Kah, attributing it to Asia's faster-than-expected recovery.

Recognising Asia's rising role in the global economy, the IMF head said it was in need of stronger voice and representation for Asia in the international financial community, including the IMF, mentioning the IMF's planned quota reform.

The IMF is planning to shift 5.0 percent of its quota to emerging countries from advanced countries as decided in the G20 Summit held in Pittsburgh last year.

The director also vowed that the IMF will strengthen its support for Asia, particularly with respect to improving its analysis of economic and financial risks, facilitating international policy collaboration, and strengthening further the global financial safety net.

The event, bringing together some 300 high-ranking policymakers and high-level IMF officials, is expected to bring about many agenda items that will be discussed in more details in the upcoming Seoul G20 Summit to be held in November. - Bernama

Read more: Asia, the leader in global economy http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/Asia_theleaderinglobaleconomy/Article/#ixzz0tSPthzSU

Radix Fried Chicken ke Indonesia, China

Pendapat DRT:  Inilah contoh syarikat Bumiputra yang konsepnya betul dan diueuskan dengan berjaya.

Radix Fried Chicken ke Indonesia, China

KANGAR 11 Julai - Syarikat HPA Industries Sdn. Bhd. menyasarkan pelaburan RM20 juta bagi pembukaan kira-kira 15 cawangan restoran makanan segera, Radix Fried Chicken (RFC) di luar negara.
Pengarah Urusannya, Ismail Ahmad berkata, tumpuan utama kini ialah membuka tiga cawangan RFC di Indonesia pada awal tahun depan.
"Pada masa ini kami sudahpun membuka ladang ternakan ayam, termasuk ladang makanan ternakan seperti jagung di negara berkenaan sebagai persediaan bagi pembukaan restoran RFC," katanya.
Beliau berkata demikian kepada para pemberita selepas merasmikan cawangan restoran RFC yang keenam di Seriab di sini baru-baru ini.
Menurut beliau, selain negara jiran itu, HPA kini dalam proses membuka sebuah lagi cawangan restoran RFC di Quangzhou, China tahun depan.
Dalam pada itu Ismail berkata, RFC yang baru beroperasi selama setahun enam bulan merancang memperluaskan rangkaian restoran makanan segeranya yang berkonsepkan ayam segar organik di Lembah Klang pada penghujung tahun ini.
Dua lokasi telah dikenal pasti ialah Bangi dan Shah Alam dan dalam masa yang sama 10 buah lagi cawangan akan dibuka di Kelantan, Pahang dan Johor.
Beliau berkata, pasaran di Lembah Klang akan diceburi sepenuhnya apabila RFC mendapat lesen francais yang akan membuka peluang perniagaan para usahawan dan orang ramai yang berminat.
"Ayam goreng yang dihasilkan RFC kini semakin mendapat sambutan daripada orang ramai berikutan kesedaran mereka tentang kebaikan makanan organik, segar dan baik untuk kesihatan namun yang utama ia halal," katanya.
Katanya, dalam tempoh masa yang singkat RFC membangun dengan pesat sehingga hujung tahun ini dengan 12 restoran akan dibuka.
Menurut Ismail, pihaknya merancang membuka 400 cawangan RFC di seluruh negara dalam tempoh 10 tahun termasuk Sabah dan Sarawak melalui perniagaan francais.
"Setiap satu outlet RFC yang dibuka menelan kos sekitar RM1 juta sehingga RM1.5 juta manakala semua bahan mentah diselia rapi menggunakan produk keluaran daripada HPA," ujarnya.

DPM: Selangor heading for water crisis

Pendapat DRT:  Kerajaan Negeri Selangor perlu memikirkan kesejahteraan Rakyat Selangor mengatasi percaturan  politik semasa mereka. 

By FLORENCE A. SAMY 

KUALA LUMPUR: Selangor and the federal capital will face a serious water crisis in two years if water resources are not managed properly by the state government, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

And he told the people not to blame the Federal Government if this happens, saying that its efforts to ensure long-term supply were being stumped by the state government.
Muhyiddin said the Selangor Government’s move to provide free water and not increase tariff was taking a toll because it had to absorb the cost.
“They thought they were doing something popular with their election promise. They gave free water and promised that water prices would not go up.
“They are absorbing RM13mil a month and are facing big deficits.
“However, they say they cannot afford to pay (the concessionaires) if the cost keeps going up. If they don’t pay, the water processing companies will suffer losses as they too are facing problems as the cost of managing and processing water is very high,” he said when opening the Ampang Umno delegates meeting here yesterday.
Muhyiddin said people in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur would suffer a water crisis in two years unless the state government solves the water problem.
He said the Federal Government was facing stumbling blocks with the RM9bil Pahang-Selangor raw water transfer project because of the Selangor Govern­ment.
The Federal Government, he said, had held several discussions with the Selangor Government on the issue, including on the acquisition of land to build the Langat 2 water treatment plant for the project, which still had not been agreed upon by the state government.
“The state government has instructed its land offices and other departments not to cooperate with the Federal Government.
“We want to help out although land and water issues are under the state government. We do not want people to blame us,” he said, adding that Selangor could face bankruptcy if the deficits grew.
Muhyiddin said internal politicking in PKR and current troubles with the Selangor state government and Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim were not giving people confidence in their capabilities.

Israeli Prime Minister must take necessary risks for Peace, says US President

DRT'S Comments:  The US Government must be seen to be a neutral party in the Israeli - Palestinian Conflict in order  to be an effective peace maker to achieve real peace.  Only by being  neutral can the American Government nudges the belligerent Israeli regime whic depended on American support anyway, to make the necessary concessions needed to result in a lasting peace in West Asia. 



Israeli prime minister taking risks for peace, says US president at first meeting since March




Barack Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu today sought to paper over the deep political rift between the US and Israel and publicly avoided any mention of the main areas of friction, including the continued expansion of Jewish settlements.



In stark contrast to their last meeting, in March, when Obama humiliated Netanyahu by refusing to hold a press conference with him and leaving the Israeli prime minister to eat dinner alone at the White House, the president described their latest discussions as excellent. Seated alongside Netanyahu in the Oval Office, Obama said he believed the Israeli prime minister was a man of peace.



"I think he's willing to take risks for peace," said Obama.



Netanyahu added: "We're committed to that peace. I'm committed to that peace. And this peace will better the lives of Israelis, Palestinians, and certainly would change our region.



"Israelis are prepared to do a lot to get that peace in place but they want to make sure that after all the steps we take that what we get is a secure peace," he said. "It is high time to begin direct talks [with the Palestinians]."



Obama praised Israel for easing the blockade on Gaza following the international outcry over its deadly raid on a flotilla of aid ships in which eight Turkish activists were killed. The US president said he recognised the Jewish state's "unique security requirements".



Despite the dramatic change in public tone, there was little sign of significant movement on the underlying issues that led the Israeli ambassador to the US, Michael Oren, to say last month there had been a "tectonic shift" in relations.



The two leaders avoided speaking publicly about the issues that have led some in his administration to question whether the Israeli government is as serious about negotiations as it says.



Obama said nothing about the continued construction of Jewish settlements in occupied East Jerusalem which had prompted a bitter showdown in March after the Israeli authorities announced the building of 1,600 more homes exclusively for Jews while the US vice-president, Joe Biden, was visiting Jerusalem. Washington viewed that as a sign of contempt and evidence of Israeli indifference to the political impact of the construction on peace prospects.



Neither was there any mention of an extension to the partial freeze on building in Jewish settlements in the West Bank, which is due to expire in September.



Some members of Netanyahu's coalition cabinet, such as Benny Begin, son of the former hardline prime minister Menachem Begin, have said construction will resume at full force because there is little prospect of a peace agreement.



"The prime minister said a few times that the status of settlements would be determined only in a final-status peace agreement with our  neighbours," he told Israel Radio. "Such agreement is not imminent at all. In the meantime, we have to ensure that our settlements are developed."



Obama denied there had been any rift with Israel or its prime minister.



"I trusted prime minister Netanyahu since I met him before I was elected president. He is dealing with a very complex situation in a very tough neighbourhood," he said.



The president noted that the two sides have held five tentative meetings, known as proximity talks, under the guidance of the US Middle East envoy, George Mitchell. But the Palestinians continue to suspect that Netanyahu is paying lip service to the establishment of their own state in order to pacify the Americans.



The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, told Jordanian journalists that initial talks with Israel had not made any progress.



Earlier this week an Arabic-language newspaper in London reported that Abbas had submitted written proposals to Mitchell on core issues such as the borders of a Palestinian state and Jerusalem. According to the report, the Palestinians are prepared to consider a land swap that would allow Israel to retain the major Jewish settlements. But, according to the proposal, the Palestinians would gain control of East Jerusalem with the exception of the religiously significant Jewish quarter of the Old City and the Wailing Wall.



The reality of the settlements was highlighted by a new report by the leading Israeli human rights group, B'Tselem, today, which said that Jewish settlements now control nearly half of all land in the occupied West Bank.



The report said that the settlements take over land far beyond their nominal boundaries, ostensibly for security, much of it privately owned by Palestinians in breach of an Israeli supreme court ruling. B'Tselem calculated that more than 42% of the West Bank is under the control of the 300,000 Israeli settlers who live there. Settler organisations say the settlements control less than 10%.

Karpal Minta Pas Hormati DAP

Pendapat DRT:    Saya hanya teringat kepada ahli/penyokong Pas yang selalu berteriak TAKBIR Allahu Akhbar bila mendengar ucapan kempen politik di PRK Permatang Pauh, Bukit Gantang oleh Karpal Singh dan anaknya Gobind Singh  Deo.  Mereka keduanya ini adalah 'pointman' DAP dalam menentang sekuat-kuatnya hasrat Pas menubuhkan Kerajaan Islam.  Penyokong-penyokong Pas ini tidak fahamkah kenyataan demi kenyataan yang dikeluarkan oleh kedua anak beranak ini yang menentang Penubuhan Kerajaan Islam yang tidak pernah di sangkal oleh Lim Kit Siang , Penasihat DAP dan Lim Guan Eng Setia Agong  DAP??   Kesemua pemimpin DAP ini  sungguh baik dan handal lakonan mereka.  Boleh menang Anugerah Pelakon Terbaik Academy Filem Amerika Syarikat!!!!

Yang saya kasihan ialah saudara-saudara saya ahli Pas yang mengundi DAP di kawasan-kawasan mana Pas tidak bertanding.

Satu undi untuk DAP ialah satu undi untuk mengagalkan Penubuhan Kerajaan Islam yang menjadi visi dan misi perjuangan Pas selama ini. 

Karpal minta Pas hormati DAP

Oleh IRMAN HASHIM

KUALA TERENGGANU 4 Julai – Pas perlu menghormati DAP berhubung pendirian parti itu yang menolak konsep negara Islam.

Pengerusi DAP, Karpal Singh menegaskan, Pas harus terima apa yang telah dinyatakannya beberapa kali sebelum ini berhubung isu tersebut.

‘‘Ini bukan isu sama ada Pas perlu berkompromi dengan perkara ini atau tidak, tetapi ia perlu diterima oleh Pas,” katanya kepada pemberita di sini hari ini.

Beliau diminta mengulas isu negara Islam yang kembali tercetus ekoran kenyataannya bahawa DAP tidak dapat menerima konsep negara Islam yang dibawa oleh Pas jika berjaya memerintah kelak.

Dalam pada itu katanya, Pas perlu menerima hakikat bahawa Malaysia merupakan sebuah negara sekular dan bukan negara Islam seperti diperuntukkan dalam Perlembagaan.

Bagaimanapun kata Karpal, walaupun kedua-dua parti itu berbeza pandangan dalam isu tersebut, hubungan mereka masih baik.

‘‘Kami berbeza dasar tetapi masih bersama atas isu-isu lebih penting seperti tanpa menyentuh isu-isu melibatkan dasar,” katanya.

Kenyataan Karpal yang menyifatkan konsep itu sebagai salah, disanggah oleh Mursyidul Am Pas, Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat yang kemudiannya mencabar beliau membuktikannya.

Namun di sebalik isu yang tercetus semula itu, Karpal berkata, hubungan antara DAP dengan Pas yang bersatu di bawah pakatan pembangkang sehingga kini masih baik walaupun mempunyai pendirian berbeza.

Sementara itu, beliau mencabar Peguam Negara, Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail pergi ke Britain dan membawa pulang Raja Petra Kamaruddin ke negara ini untuk dibawa ke muka pengadilan.

Karpal mempersoalkan, mengapa Peguam Negara tidak berani berbuat demikian dengan mengambil tindakan mengekstradisi pengendali laman web Malaysia Today tersebut.

‘‘Jika kita tidak ada perjanjian ekstradisi dengan Britain, satu perjanjian dua hala boleh dibuat untuk mengekstradisikan Raja Petra,” katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian ketika diminta mengulas gambar pertemuan pemimpin parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Datuk Zaid Ibrahim bersama Raja Petra di United Kingdom yang disiarkan baru-baru ini.

Karpal berkata, tindakan Zaid bertemu dengan Raja Petra tidak menjadi satu kesalahan di sisi undang-undang.

‘‘Jika saya sendiri ke Britain dan ingin berjumpa dengan Raja Petra tidak akan ada halangan.
Terpulang kepada Zaid untuk membantu siasatan terhadap Raja Petra,” ujarnya.

New Homes For Shelter Folks

Pendapat DRT:   Tindakan yang baik dan cekaoleh Dato Seri Shahrizat and Dato Meme Zainal Rashid, Ketua Pengarah Jabatan Kebajikan.  Ini yang rakyat suka dan mahu.  Banyakkan tindakan dan kurangkan cakap yang retorik.



KUALA LUMPUR: Most of the Rumah Titian Kasih Puteri (RTK) residents have been relocated over the weekend to three care centres run by the government.

As of yesterday, all senior citizens and the disabled of the all-women shelter in Taman Tasik Titiwangsa were sent either to Rumah Ihsan in Kuala Kubu Baru, Rumah Seri Kenanga in Seremban and Taman Sinar Harapan, also in Kuala Kubu Baru.

Only seven single mothers and children are still at RTK Puteri.

Bedridden elderly people were sent to Rumah Ihsan and the mobile ones to Rumah Seri Kenanga. The disabled were sent to Taman Sinar Harapan.
The effort to relocate the residents came on Friday when Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil revealed that the shelter had been operating without a licence for 12 years.

She said all the residents would be placed in the different institutions under the Welfare Department, according to their needs.

Shahrizat had described the shelter' s condition as "worrying" after a tour of the home.

In a statement yesterday, Welfare Department director-general Datuk Meme Zainal Rashid said the home was being investigated.

Read more: New homes for shelter folk http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/23puta/Article#ixzz0soCSHSK3

DPM Slams Petty Malays for confusing The Issues

It is high time to ponder the future.  Whether it is better with Barisan Nasional which has a clear vision and mission giving a cohesive front.  Or with the confused and divided Pakatan Rakyat which has seen MPs leaving the sinking ship .  Anwar faces an uncertain future in view of his sodomy case.  Also the fact that the MB of Selangor, Tan Sri Khalid's position looks so precarious when Azmin was made PKR Selangor Liaison Chief  a few weeks ago which will end up making Selangor PKR having two equally strong generals.  Not a particularly good situation politically for PR going into the next General Elections.


DPM slams petty Malays for confusing issues

Submitted by Francis Nantha on Sunday, July 4th, 2010

• Local
• petty-malays

Bernama

Sunday, July 4th, 2010 22:00:00

BATU PAHAT: Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today lashed out at a small section of the Malays who are bent on questioning government policies, saying such actions could pose a threat to the struggles of Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN).
He said that these groups of Malays had been questioning the position of the Malay Rulers, the Malay language as the national language and the efforts to enhance the economic well-being of the Malays.
"The Malays should be united under one umbrella to ensure the agenda to develop them are achieved. We will never be able to achieve it if we are disunited," he said when opening the Parit Sulong Umno division meeting here today.
Muhyiddin said these groups of Malays supported the opposition particularly the DAP. "The DAP labelled me as 'ultra Malay' for fighting for the interest of the Malays when in fact it is (DAP parliamentary leader) Lim Kit Siang who is more racist."
The Umno deputy president said that in this challenging situation, the Malays especially Umno should unite and double their effort not only to strengthen the party but also in implementing the transformation plan so that Umno would continue to be accepted by the people.
He also called for continuous efforts to improve the party, saying the transformation plan to face the coming 13th general election had not been moving as speedy as it should be at the divisional level.
He said party members should carry out the transformation process to make the party relevant to the Malays and the people in general.
Earlier, Muhyiddin described the actions of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim lately as an act of betrayal, saying they had caused split among the Malays.
He said the Malays should realise the repercussions of Anwar's actions. "The people should realise that Anwar is causing split among the Malays." he told reporters after opening the Batu Pahat Umno meeting today.
He said that the Washington Post's report that Anwar had gone to the United States to tell his American friends that he regretted using the term such as "Zionist aggression", showed that the opposition leader were afraid of hurting their feelings.
"He has many friends there and this too should be looked into and gauged by the people," he said.
Asked to comment on the meeting between PKR leader Datuk Zaid Ibrahim and blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin in London recently, Muhyiddin said it showed that Zaid had good relations with the fugitive "Malaysia Today" editor.
Muhyiddin also reminded Umno members that they had two years to implement changes in their respective areas before the coming election.
In LAHAD DATU, Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said Anwar could not accept the fact that the BN was rightfully elected by the people.
He said that even now, Anwar continued to disparage the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in the international arena.
"Datuk Seri Najib is our prime minister. Not just Barisan Nasional members, everyone, whether the person in Anwar, Lim Kit Siang or (Datuk Seri) Abdul Hadi Awang, should show respect to the prime minister," he said.
"Anwar is a hypocrite who should be rejected by the people," Mustapa said when opening the Silam Umno meeting.
Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said Anwar was inconsistent with his stand. "Well, is that unusual for him to 'flip-flop'? The people are beginning to open their eyes and see him for who he really is," he told reporters after opening the 1Family 1Malaysia programme in Kuala Lumpur.DPM

Gaza Conference In KL On Sunday 11 July 2010 @ PWTC

Lets all attend this International Conference and show and give our support for the Suppressed Palestinians in their search for a sovereign country of their own.  May Allah give His blessings and protection to the Palestinians in their struggle for independence from the suppressive Israeli regime.



KUALA LUMPUR: An international conference, entitled ''Breaking the Siege: In the Spirit of Rachel Corrie and Mavi Marmara'', will be held at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) on July 11.
The conference, organised by Perdana Global Peace Organisation (PGPO), among others will discuss measures and efforts to be undertaken to challenge the illegal seige in Gaza.

In a statement released here today, PGPO said speakers at the conference included Turkish humanitarian relief organisation Insani Yardim Yakfi head Yildrim Bulent, former United Nations assistant secretary-general Denis J. Halliday and MV Rachel Corrie team head Derek Graham.

PGPO chairman and former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad will deliver the keynote address. Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin will deliver the closing address.

The one-day conference will be held at Dewan Tun Razak 1 at 9am. Entrance is free. The public are advised to come early as seats are limited.

For inquiries, call 03-88858965 (Maizatul), 03-88858960 (Noorinsun), 019-3843913 (Dr Zulaiha Ismail) or 019-9100090 (Shamsul). - Bernama

Read more: Gaza conference in KL on July 11 http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/GazaconferenceinKLonJuly11/Article/#ixzz0siNfA4YF

Toh Puan Nor Ashikin An Examplary Woman

Allahyarhamah begitu setia membantu suaminya Tun Dr Ismail bekas Timbalan Perdana Malaysia. Allahyarhamah kerap pergi menunaikan umrah selama sebulan penuh apabila tibanya  Bulan Ramadhan setiap tahun. Saya pernah bersua dengan Allayarhamah di Hotel Zahrah Mekkah sekitar tahun 90an semasa bulan Ramadhan.  Semoga Allah memasukkan roh Allahyarhamah ke dalam golongan mereka yang dikasihi dan disayangi Allah.  Amin Ya Rabbul A'lamin.


Toh Puan Norashikin an examplary woman

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak described Toh Puan Norashikin Mohd Seth, widow of former deputy prime minister Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman as an examplary woman. "Toh Puan Norashikin strongly supported her husband Tun Dr Ismail. She was a polite person and was involved in many charitable activities," he told reporters after the burial ceremony at Warriors'' Mausoleum, Masjid Negara here today.

Najib said Toh Puan Norashikin's death was a big loss to the generation who contributed to the country's independence and development.

Those present include former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Sidek Hassan.
Toh Puan Norashikin, 80, died of old age in Damansara Specialist Hospital at noon yesterday.
She was the second woman to be buried at Warriors'' Mausoleum after former welfare minister Tun Dr Fatimah Hashim.
Gua Musang Member of Parliament Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said Toh Puan Norashikin was a loyal wife and supported Tun Dr Ismail after the May 13 racial riots in 1969.

"She urged Tun Dr Ismail to accept the post of deputy prime minister during the emergency and was always supportive in the background."

Razaliegh said Toh Puan Norashikin was also concerned with the welfare of police personnel when Tun Dr Ismail was the home minister.
Her brother former armed forces chief Tan Sri Ghazali Seth said she was an active and spiritually strong person.

"She goes to perform the umrah in Mekah annually and visit her grandchildren in Australia regularly."

Ghazali said Toh Puan Norashikin was undergoing treatment for various ailments at Damansara Specialist Hospital. - Bernama

Khairy and Perkasa

 

My Comments:  I do not see how Khairy can benefit from continuing his feud with Perkasa.  Perkasa is not and should not be seen as an 'enemy' by Khairy.  He has nothing to gain from it and much to lose in term of his credentials as a Malay leader.  A sleeping tiger is much better not to be disturbed. 

 

By aazman

Created Thursday, July 1st

Bernama [1]

Thursday, July 1st, 2010 23:41:00

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin today asked the Home Ministry to investigate 'Suara Perkasa' over its front-page article which called for Deputy Education Minister Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong to be
arrested under the Internal Security Act.
"I'm not doing this because I want to defend Ka Siong but this article is an incitement and is wrong, and should be investigated," he told reporters at the parliament lobby today.
The feud between Pertubuhan Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) president Datuk Ibrahim Ali and Wee began when Ibrahim said that the MCA Youth chief had questioned the social contract and did not respect the Federal Constitution pertaining to the issue of distribution of Public Service Department scholarships.
Khairy said fighting for Malay interests was not an issue but one should also not forget the interests of the other races.
"For me, BN and Umno must be seen to be inclusive. It's okay for Perkasa to fight for the Malays but I don't agree with the way it's done," he said.
Wee, who wondered why the scholarship issue was still raised when he had already given his explanation, said he would see whether he could take legal action against Suara Perkasa over the article.