Bersih runners 'infiltrate' Dataran Merdeka

 

All roads to Dataran Merdeka were cordoned off today, but it is not because of another Bersih rally.
Instead, the iconic square acted as the finish line for the annual  Standard Chartered KL Marathon, thus had to be closed off to vehicles.
Nevertheless, the event still attracted its fair share of Bersih supporters who used it as a legitimate reasons to be in Dataran Merdeka and make a point.

Back in April 28, about 100,000 Bersih supporters had surrounded the venue, only to be pushed back by the tear gas and water cannon fire.

This time round, Bersih supporters could freely wear yellow bibs which read "I run for Bersih 2.0" and rush into the square.

Malaysia's human rights abuses highlighted at UN

A team of civil society activists from Suaram, Bersih, Empower and Aliran wrapped up a week-long visit to the 20th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva today.

Their aim was to highlight human rights violations in Malaysia, in particular the clampdown on freedom of assembly, association and expression and police brutality at the Bersih 3.0 rally in April.

During the week the team took the opportunity to brief various UN Special Rapporteurs, country specific permanent missions and human rights organisations on deteriorating conditions in Malaysia.

Consumer, Investor confidence down

By Joe Fernandez
KOTA KINABALU : We were earlier at CentrePoint Sabah after church.

One IT shopowner came running towards us. He opened a 2nd outlet at the complex in Jan. He opened an outlet in Megalong last year. It's still losing every month.

He complained that business at CPS, including his, was down 40 per cent in May compared with Jan. He won't make even RM 4, 000 this month to cover the rental at the 2nd CPS outlet. His workers here are down to two from three previously.

The number of workers at his first CPS outlet is down by two to three. For the first time, he's not sure the outlet can break even this month.

Want to Live to 100? Sleep

By Glenn Ruffenach of SmartMoney

Your chances of reaching age 100 could be better than you think – especially if you get some additional sleep and improve your diet.

New research from UnitedHealthcare looks at centenarians and baby boomers, asking the former about the “secrets of aging success” and evaluating whether the latter are taking the necessary steps to celebrate a 100th birthday.

Lack of sleep can increase stroke risk

WASHINGTON: Habitually sleeping less than six hours a night significantly increases the risk of stroke symptoms among middle-age to older adults, according to a research presented at the SLEEP 2012 conference.

 

The study, which followed about 5,600 people for about three years, concluded that poor sleep can undermine all the other things we do, China's Xinhua news agency said.

 

Skeletons in Sabah’s closet

Already reeling from a spate of scandals, the
revelation that foreign authorities have been
scrutinising the bank accounts of some
well-connected Malaysians adds a new twist
to the power struggle in the country.

(FMT) - The spotlight on large sums of unaccountable money linked to Chief Minister Musa Aman going in and out of bank accounts overseas is threatening to crack open the Barisan Nasional’s “fixed deposit” state of Sabah.

Allegations and investigations of shady timber deals and money laundering may be the proverbial ‘last straw’ to shatter the ruling coalition’s hopes of hanging on to power.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has announced that investigations into the alleged money laundering by Sabah timber tycoon Michael Chia has been completed and handed to the Attorney-General’s Chambers.

“The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission has conducted investigations into the Michael Chia case which is linked to the Sabah chief minister.

Long-serving PBS branch chairman quits to join Star

(From left) Sidil Tangkangau (with cap), James Bagah,
Suwah Buleh, Dr Jeffrey Kitingan and Rubin Guribah.

KOTA BELUD : Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) lost its long-serving pioneer branch chairman from Tempasuk when he quit the party to join opposition State Reform Party (Star).

Sidil Tangkangau, 54, PBS branch chairman for Ulu Kukut, Tempasuk, handed over his membership application form to Star Sabah chairman, Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan during a Star function at Kampung Ulu Kukut in Tempasuk near here today.

When your sins can be cleansed

Raja Petra Kamarudin

On 24th June 2006, Malaysia Today organised a dialogue session with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad at the Kelab Century Paradise. Many of the PAS and DAP leaders attended this dialogue, which was the platform that Dr Mahathir used to launch his attack on Umno and Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Basically, it was Dr Mahathir’s version of the ABU or ‘anything but Umno’ campaign.

Only a few of the PKR leaders attended, though, and later that year, during the PKR convention in Penang, Azmin Ali attacked me while Anwar Ibrahim looked on with a smirk on his face. Azmin called me a collaborator and in not so many words told me to go to hell. They were pissed big-time because I was now ‘working’ for Dr Mahathir. Well, I continued to ‘work’ for Dr Mahathir right up to November 2007 when we launched the now historical Bersih rally, which, incidentally, was also supported by Umno people, in particular those aligned to Dr Mahathir. They donated loads of T-shirts and caps as well.

Foreign traders in Sabah flouting law

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: The Consumer Affairs and Protection Association of Sabah (CAPS) wants the Sabah state government to explain how a burgeoning number of newly-arrived Pakistanis have been allowed to literally set up shop around the state.

CAPS’ deputy treasurer, Donny Yapp, said it was now quite easy to find Pakistani shopkeepers all around the city and its immediate outskirts.

He said CAPS had since last year been receiving reports and complaints both from consumers and local retailers that more and more foreigners, especially Pakistanis, had been given a free-hand to run groceries in many places that local retailers would normally have problem setting up business.

MoCS proposes new Borneo Airways for Sabah, Sarawak

KUALA LUMPUR: The Movement for Change, Sarawak (MoCS) has supported the proposal by an Umno MP to the government to award another low-cost carrier licence.

It also suggested that the new licence be given to the Sarawak and Sabah governments to jointly establish an airline to serve the interests of East Malaysians.

“Since Malaysia Airlines (MAS) is beyond salvation and AirAsia has become a ‘bully airline’, East Malaysia should start thinking seriously of the increasing demands of their travelling citizens,” MoCS leader Francis Paul Siah said today.  

‘Money talk’ from Sabah muddles SWP picture

By Joe Fernandez

The latest talk along the political grapevine in Kota Kinabalu and the local media is that the Sabah People’s Front Party (SPF) might be more than willing to “accommodate” the so-called Sarawak Workers Party (SWP) on one condition: that the SWP fields and finances SPF candidates in Sabah under its (SWP’s) banner.

The alternative is that SPF, led by Deputy President Osman Enting, would apparently “go all out to destroy SWP”.

The prime-movers behind SWP aren’t taking the bait so far and are unlikely to do so since that would be tantamount to their admission of being complicit in an alleged illegality. It would have been quite a different matter if the story had not gone public. In that case, the prime-movers would have been more than willing to throw money at the problems to make them all go away.

American caught a big pre-historic fish in Texas lake

By Pete Thomas
TEXAS : Whether Brent Crawford has captured the world's largest alligator gar will never be known -- his scale bottomed out emphatically at 300 pounds and he filleted the prehistoric-looking fish after attempting to obtain its weight.

But this much is clear: The gar Crawford landed while bow-fishing recently in Texas' Lake Corpus Christi is among the largest specimens ever captured -- and it was captured in a manner like no other gar captured beforehand.

(The largest-known alligator gar caught while bow-fishing weighed 365 pounds. The largest caught on rod and reel weighed 279 pounds.)

Crawford, who has lived on the lake for 20 years, was alerted to the presence of several giant gar in a wide canal feeding into the lake: an enormous female swimming with about five smaller males.

Persatuan Pengguna bangkit isu rakyat Pakistan bina kedai runcit merata tempat di Sabah

By Donny Yapp of CAPS
KOTA KINABALU : Sejak tahun lalu, CAPS telah menerima banyak aduan dan laporan dari kedua-dua golongan pengguna dan pekedai runcit tempatan berhubung semakin banyaknya kedai runcit yang dibina dan dan dioperasi oleh rakyat asing terutama Pakistan.

Kedai-kedai runcit Pakistan ini dikatakan tumbuh agai cendawan selepas hujan, dibina di merata tempat dan selekoh, di tempat-tempat yang biasanya rakyat tempatan tidak dibenarkan membuatnya ataupun pasti akan mengalami gangguan pihak berkuasa tempatan.

Egypt's Mubarak reported in coma, off life support

By HAMZA HENDAWI | Associated Press 

FILE - In this Saturday, June 2, 2012 file photo, Egypt's ex-President Hosni Mubarak lays on a gurney inside a barred cage in the police academy courthouse in Cairo, Egypt.

CAIRO (AP) — Hosni Mubarak was in a coma on Wednesday but off life support and his heart and other vital organs were functioning, according to security officials.

Overnight, state media reported that the 84-year old former president, ousted in last year's uprising and now serving a life sentence in prison, suffered a stroke and was put on life support. He was transferred to a military hospital from the Cairo prison hospital where he has been kept since his June 2 conviction and sentencing for failing to stop the killing of protesters during the uprising.

Clean water, dirty loan

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KENINGAU: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s sudden announcement of a RM235 million loan from the federal government to Sabah to upgrade water supply for Keningau alone has caught many here by surprise.

Most people here were sceptical of Najib’s announcement during his trip here last weekend.

One economist from Kuala Pemyu, Dr James Alin, questioned the motive behind the abrupt decision to grant Sabah a loan and not a federal grant, as was the normal procedure.

Harrowing 'torture notes' emerge from Kamunting

By Aidila Razak
The emergence of 'torture notes' smuggled out of the Kamunting detention camp, where Internal Security Act detainees are held, has raised questions about interrogation methods used by the authorities. 

The notes, allegedly smuggled out by camp staff and passed on toMalaysiakini, detail the Guantanamo-style 'torture' experienced by some of the 45 detainees still held at the infamous facility in Taiping, Perak.

No dates are given, but the incidents are said to be from the interrogation process while they were held at a remand facility, prior to being transferred to Kamunting.

No Putrajaya for PR without total Indian support

By Joe Fernandez
The consensus at the grassroots level is that the 13th GE won't see a repeat of the 2008 political tsunami in Peninsular Malaysia despite the alternative media because the vital Hindraf Makkal Sakthi factor, representing the Indian underclass in particular, will be missing this time.

The reasons are aplenty.

Bersih under super duper rich lawyer Ambiga Sreenivasan won't be able to help Pakatan Rakyat (PR), especially Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), compensate for the absence of Hindraf.
Amibiga is no match whatsoever for Hindraf. She doesn't represent the Indian underclass. She continues to get the support of the Chinese and Malays, the converted, for PR but the Indians, the crucial factor, is missing. Attacking Ambiga in racist terms is not going to make the Indians come rushing to her defence.

Sabah natives protest Malayan rule

By Luke Rintod of FMT 

STAR leaders with part of the crowds holding the provocative banners

KENINGAU: As Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak went about wooing support for his embattled government in this interior district of Sabah, he was kept blissfully unaware that the natives here are restless.

The stage-managed show of support for the federal government which is bitterly resented here for failing to raise the quality of life in one of the richest states, was in stark contrast to the heartfelt show of protest and call for freedom just down the road in a tamu (local bazaar) ground.

Holy Father Receives President Of Un General Assembly

Vatican City, 15 June 2012 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office released the following communique at midday today:

"This morning the Holy Father received in audience Nassir Abdulaziz al-Nasser, president of the sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly of the United Nations. The president subsequently went on to meet with Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. who was accompanied by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, secretary for Relations with States.

Astaga, Najib datang Keningau umum bagi "loan" RM235 juta kpd Sabah pula

"Saya datang ni bukan dengan tangan kosong. Saya datang kerana beberapa bulan kebelakangan ini, pemimpin Sabah minta saya buat sesuatu untuk Keningau," kata Najib.

KENINGAU: Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak meluluskan pinjaman berjumlah RM235 juta kepada kerajaan negeri Sabah untuk membina sebuah loji rawatan air baharu untuk manfaat kira-kira 200,000 penduduk Keningau. Perdana Menteri berkata pada masa ini segala dokumen mengenainya sedang disiapkan dan projek berkenaan akan dilaksanakan sebaik sahaja proses penyediaan dokumen berkenaan selesai.

“Saya datang ni bukan dengan tangan kosong. Saya datang kerana beberapa bulan kebelakangan ini, pemimpin Sabah minta saya buat sesuatu untuk Keningau. (Timbalan Ketua Menteri) Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan mencadangkan dan disokong oleh Datuk Seri Musa Aman sebagai Ketua Menteri Sabah.

Deaths in custody - the hurt lock-up

S Thayaparan

Three years is not a long time. Here in Malaysia, it's just a year short of how long a regime can legitimately hold on to power before it needs to hold an election to get the endorsement of the voting public to remain in power.

Three years for ‘causing hurt' to A Kugan is what an officer of the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) received.

The truth will never be known in this case or in the hundreds or perhaps even thousands of others who have suddenly died in police custody, immigrant detention camps, police shootouts and jails over the years. We will never know the anguish of families of those killed or who have died in custody due to negligence.

Awkward weekend foray for Najib

By Luke Rintod of FMT 

KENINGAU: The people in the interior divisions of Sabah are preparing to use the weekend visit of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, the third this year, as an opportunity to deliver a strong message about what they feel about his party, Umno, and his leadership style.

Najib will be in Keningau today (Saturday) to officiate at the national-level Kaamatan Festival and then he moves to nearby Tambunan in the weekend to launch the ground-breaking of a Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS)-initiated KDM College.

STAR: Keningau National Kaamatan Is Political Campaign

KOTA KINABALU: The State Reform Party (STAR) is naturally thankful for the establishment of the KDM College in Keningau, but contends that there is nothing special about the whole thing and that the BN is blowing the whole publicity about it out of proportion.

In a statement here, STAR Sabah Chairman, Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan said that the building of one community college for every parliamentary area has been decided for quite a long time now, and that this is just one of them.

“The KDM College is actually a community college, not one with a special purpose for the KDMs,” Jeffrey said. “And it is definitely not due to the special efforts of the PBS that the college is going to be built. And the college is not being built especially for the KDMs but for the Keningau community.

Egypt Voting For A Change – OpEd

By Jamal Kanj

This weekend, Egyptians will line up to select their next president in the first democratic election in the country’s modern history.

It was moving a fortnight ago to witness voters, old and young, standing in the simmering heat or being wheeled in to cast their ballots in the first round – for many, for the first time in their lives.

But unlike prior robotic participation in a process with a predetermined outcome, the voters were filled with excitement and anticipation.

The Palestinians And The ‘Piece’ Of The Process – OpEd

By Fadi Elhusseini, Embassy of the State of Palestine

Since 1990, both Arabs and Palestinians from one side, and Israel from the other side, decided to go through a peace process—presumably aiming to bring about peace and stability in the region, and to put an end to a sixty-year-old conflict. Now, it has been almost 21 years since that decision, and the result is an abject failure. Alas, violence engulfed the region, and the Middle East appeared to be raven, suffering from wanderings, political polemics and withering woes that appeared to be a Sisyphean ordeal; starting with the first Gulf war, to the second Gulf war, the second Intifada “Palestinian uprising II,” Lebanese and Palestinian internal clashes and assassinations, Israeli wars on Lebanon and Gaza Strip, bloodshed and atrocities in Iraq, and bombings in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Morocco and Algeria by Al-Qaida, and finally unrest in the whole Middle East region, causing more spilled blood. The two leaders (Rabin and Arafat) who succeeded in signing the Oslo peace accords in 1993 were killed; the first was assassinated by an Israeli extremist and the second in mysterious circumstances. What a success: An ominous process which was designed to end the Arab-Israeli conflict and bring about peace and stability in the region turns to indulge everyone in anything but peace or stability.

Nasa and Holy Communion

By Fr. Tommy Lane

In a book entitled Healing Through the Mass (pages 84-85, published by Resurrection
Press and authored by Fr Robert DeGrandis S.S.J)

NASA did some experimenting with a special type of camera that could see the energy levels in the human body. This is then seen on a monitor. This energy shows up as an aura around the body. NASA’s interest in the experiment was to investigate the effects of space travel on astronauts in orbit. Experimenting in a hospital they discovered that when a person is dying, the aura around the body is thinner and gets thinner and thinner until the person dies. The scientist carrying out this investigation in the hospital and his associate were behind a two-way mirror. They could see with their camera another man coming into the room with light coming from his pocket. Then the man took the object from his pocket and did something so that in the camera the whole room was filled with light and with their camera they could no longer see what was happening. They ran to the room to see what was causing so much light to appear in their camera. They discovered that the dying man was being given Holy Communion. Afterwards with their camera they could see that the aura around him was brighter. Although in his fifties, the scientist conducting the experiment decided to become a priest after witnessing that. (you may also be interested in the true story of a photographic miracle involving Mother Teresa of Calcutta)

‘Don’t recycle tainted Sabah BN leaders’

By Luke Rintod of FMT 

KOTA KINABALU: KDM Malaysia, a pro-Umno organisation in Sabah, has warned the ruling Barisan Nasional leadership to discard tainted politicians to prevent further erosion of support for the already embattled coalition.

KDM Malaysia’s president, Peter Anthony, said the BN top leadership must take into account its own slogan of transforming itself when it comes head-on with tainted leaders.

“The voters are more educated and selective nowadays and therefore (government leaders) must take cognisant of the adverse effect of fielding or renominating leaders who had been linked to scandals, corrupt acts and obvious abuse of power,” he said explaining his complaints about illegal logging believed to be linked to several Umno leaders in Papar and Kimanis areas.

Musa’s ‘dubious wealth’ questioned again

By K. Pragalath 

PETALING JAYA: Accusations of corruption against Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman are mounting. He has been linked with illegally selling off native land and logging since 1996 and there are allegations that he has more than US$90 million in banks in Zurich, Switzerland and Hong Kong.

These “revelations” were first highlighted by news portal Sarawak Report and now PKR is asking the chief minister to declare his assets.

“Musa must make a full asset declaration soon on his assets including assets and properties stashed in foreign bank accounts in his and his immediate family members’ names to prove whether there is an iota of truth in these allegations,” said three PKR MPs and a Sabah PKR leader in a joint statement last night.

The " Unemployment Insurance Scheme" Betrayal !

By Dr. Jeyakumar

The PSM is appalled to learn through a news item in page 6 of the STAR on 12^th June 2012  quoting Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek as stating that the Prime Minister has directed the Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Dr Subramaniam to shelve the “Unemployment Insurance Scheme”. Apparently this directive was given during a National Economic Council meeting on 11^thJune 2012.

Several parties including the PSM, JERIT and the MTUC have been pushing for a Retrenchment Fund ever since the recession of 1997 – 1998. The government has  said that they are seriously studying the issue, and more than a year ago, the government claimed it had referred the matter to the ILO for advice. Now after dragging its feet on this matter for 15 years, the BN government has decided to shelve the idea!

S'wak can’t step outside bounds on ties with Putrajaya

By Joe Fernandez

Malaysia Agreement or no Malaysia Agreement, Sarawak or Sabah/Labuan for that matter, cannot step outside the bounds with the Federal Government. Putrajaya belongs as much to the two Malaysian states in Borneo as to Peninsular Malaysia.

At a lower level, the Federal Government presides over the individual sultanates, states and territories in Peninsular Malaysia.

Five on-going issues, some simmering for long, have pitted the Sarawak state government in a head-long clash against the Federal Government. It’s anybody's guess how Putrajaya will bring the recalcitrant Taib Mahmud regime to heel. Surely, the Joseph Pairin Kitingan administration (1985 - 1994) in Sabah is the mother of all precedents!

Masidi please help us on our road, says STAR leader

RANAU : The State Reform Party (Star) head of Raau division has challenged Keranaan assemblyman Masidi Manjun to put meaning to the government slogan of "1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now" by immediately upgrading an important 5 kilometer road here.

"This slogan must be applied in solving our own perennial local poblem. Please upgrade or asphalt the $road that connect Kampung Pahu and Kampung Mohimboyon and Kampung Lipantai," said Jalibin in challenging the veteran Masidi in a statement here today.,

Egg-white treats burns

  A young man sprinkling his lawn and bushes with pesticides wanted to check the contents of the barrel to see how much pesticide remained in it. He raised the cover and lit his lighter; the vapors ignited and engulfed him. He jumped from his truck, screaming.  

What is ketuanan Melayu?

When we talk about Malay culture, it is perceived as Muslim culture. When we say we should integrate Malay culture, it is perceived as having a Muslim agenda. People feel the need to defend their race and religion from being compromised. 

Anas Zubedy

The notion of ketuanan Melayu did not just appear in recent years. It has historical basis, existing in Tanah Melayu since hundreds of years ago. In Malay historical culture and language, the term ketuanan Melayu originates from the word ‘Tuanku’ – a title reserved for Malay rulers since the early days of our society. Ketuanan Melayu thus can be seen as a contraction of the phrase‘ketuanan raja-raja Melayu’, the sovereignty of the Malay rulers.