ISA is the Choice of Citizens ?

It is hard for a small-time blogger like me to make a decision on such a question. Perhaps, I shall just agree with Nazri Aziz's statement in the Aljazeera Forum . He said "Malaysians are not stupid and will be able to decide for themselves". It is high time for this blog to prove his words as true. Without further ado, let's take a look at a few matters at hand.

Citizens Want ISA It Seems
It is hard for one to restrain oneself from writing a blog when this piece of news from Bernama is floating around the net: Government Will Impose ISA When Situation Warrants, Says Abdullah .
Some important excerpts from the article:
"The ISA is a preventive measure to spare the nation from untoward incidents that can harm the prevailing peace and harmony and create all sorts of adverse things.

"So, I don't know (when to invoke the ISA), but ISA will be there. When it is appropriate to use it, it will be used," Abdullah, who is also Internal Security Minister, told reporters on his return from a two-day visit to Egypt.

The Prime Minister was responding to reports that several street demonstrations would be held in the country soon.

Commenting on calls from the people urging the Government to invoke the ISA to tackle street demonstrations, the Prime Minister said: "I am very surprised that the people want the ISA. I thought they never wanted the ISA".

Questions abundant
Let me put it this way. I am as surprised as the Prime Minister himself when I read the last sentence above. I was in the state of confusion for a while. After some thoughts, perhaps it is best to ask a few questions to our Prime Minister in order to clear things up :

1) When you are talking about people wanting ISA a.k.a. The Detention-Without-Trial Act, which group are you referring to?
a) UMNO, MCA, MIC and BN people? or
b) Malaysian Commoners?

2) Please define properly, in unambiguous, official language on what is considered as "appropriate" for use? If certain races are marginalised and they only choose to submit a memorandum, would that be considered appropriate ? How about those that ask for electoral reforms and clean elections? Is it "appropriate" to use it on them?

3) Will ISA be executed on people who wield keris in meetings, asking when the keris would be used and expressing an interest to bathe it in someone's blood? Please do not tell the citizens that such actions and remarks are peaceful. Anyway, since Nazri had mentioned Malaysians are not stupid, I shall let them judge.

4) Is challenging or criticising the Prime Minister in one's written opinion liable for ISA as well? Citizens are concerned when certain people express words like "Saya Pantang Dicabar" ( I am Allergic to Challenge) in public.

5) Pak Lah, perhaps you should read the statements from Wikipedia on Internal Security Act . Allegedly, it mentioned what you spoke in 1988 and the year before on ISA being a draconian law. Is it true? Now you are saying you will use ISA. What is that supposed to mean, goodness gracious ?

Citizens Want Oppression ?
The defintion of "Draconian" according to Wiktionary :
Etymology: From the Athenian lawmaker Draco, known for making harsh laws.
Description: Very severe, oppressive or strict.
Example of usage: The despot chose a draconian punishment for the revolutionary. The Nazi regime was a draconian regime.

Meanwhile, a Malay progressive published an open letter in her blog titled "Dear PM Abdullah Badawi, Please Don't Follow Musharraf". As a Malay Muslim, she does not support the points mentioned in Hindraf's memorandum but she understands draconian law should never be executed in the name of democracy.

Furthermore, I would like to reiterate Nazri's statement ( Aljazeera Forum ) : "Malaysians are not stupid". I do not think Malaysians are stupid enough to support the implementation of an opressive law that will be imposed on themselves.

However, there could be some "smart" Malaysians who may want to impose such law on other Malaysians for a number of reasons beneficial to themselves, like free lunches etc.

Think about it.....

Maintenance of Peace and Harmony
There are many ways a government can maintain peace and harmony. Take for example, the previous Malaysian Indians rally in Malaysia.

For so many years, Malaysian Indians have been silent over their problems. They did not march or do anything of such massive proportions. The fact that they did it the other day signifies there are serious underlying issues concerning the society that should be addressed immediately.

In fact, it may already be a little too late. Still it is better late than never. If the government ( I would prefer to refer this to the Malaysian Indian Congress a.k.a. MIC ) intends to maintain an ambience of peace and harmony within the community, the leadership of MIC must answer their woes and explain thoroughly to the laymen Indians instead of condemning hard on those who have participated in the rally. Direct or indirect attempts to simply dismiss the rally as non-relevant will not make the people satisfied. MIC should also provide a blueprint on what is their long-term constructive plan to improve the livelihood and rights of the community. Temple demolition issues should be addressed. By right, all these actions should have been done earlier. Prevention is better than cure.

Using an oppressive law to curb dissent is definitely easier than all the efforts above. Members of Parliament should know that their tasks are not meant to be easy. MPs are supposed to be serving the community instead of placing full concentration on money-making only.

Problems should be solved from the root and not the symptoms. The logical outcome of utilising oppression on protesters will create a negative situation. When people choose not to protest, it could be out of fear of ISA. Intimidation using non-humanitarian laws or denial of social issues are equivalent to eliminating the symptoms of a critical disease. The absence of symptoms does not mean the absence of disease. Once the disease reaches the point of incurability, the protests may resume in bigger numbers when overwhelming anger and/or dissatisfaction supercedes fear.

From time to time, MIC MPs must speak to the commoners to understand and solve issues faced by the community. It is THE JOB of an MP. This is the only way to maintain peace, harmony and stability. Opression is not a permanent solution.

Indeed, somebody said the culture of protest is not the culture of Malaysians, especially Indians. I dare to bet protests are not even the first choice of Indians to highlight their problems. It is not the culture of human to feel happy being dismissed or their problems ignored for several times. Is it the culture of the MIC MP to listen and to seek to understand their community?

Ooops, I am sorry, that is supposed to be A JOB, not a culture. Did you do YOUR JOB well (to maintain peace and harmony), my dear MIC MPs? Ask yourselves.

In the meantime, Malaysiakini reports : More rallies in Kuala Lumpur next month (December 2007) .

Oppression is not an option in a democratic nation.

BERSIH: Malik, Khairy, Nazri in Aljazeera Forum

Malaysiakini has many news, letters and articles on BERSIH rally. To top it off, Aljazeera had just organised a forum to discuss related issues pertaining to the biggest Malaysian rally of this decade.

Speakers comprised Human Rights Lawyer, Malik Imtiaz Sarwar of the blog Disquiet, Deputy UMNO Youth Leader, Son-In-Law of the Prime Minister, Khairy Jamaluddin and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Nazri Aziz attended. It was chaired by award winning journalist, Teymoor Nabili .

( Videos by matsputnik posted here on 16 November 2007)
matsputnik : 101 East , Aljazeera (part 1 of 4)
matsputnik : 101 East , Aljazeera (part 2 of 4)
matsputnik : 101 East , Aljazeera (part 3 of 4)
matsputnik : 101 East , Aljazeera (part 4 of 4)

( Updated on 18th November 2007 : Official videos from AlJazeeraEnglish )

AlJazeera English - 101 East (part 1 of 2)


AlJazeera English - 101 East (part 2 of 2)


Key points to take note:
1) Khairy said "The Prime Minister had said during the current UMNO General Assembly that in the near future media can regulate themselves".

[Sagaladoola: Yes, Khairy said that in the forum. My question is, can anybody confirm whether the Prime Minister REALLY said that? Get what I mean?

I have Questions, Is it true that the Media is not allowed to regulate themselves now? Hmmnnnn, then who is regulating the Media now? Dear me, I shouldn't have asked that.]

2) Khairy said Election commissions are doing changes all the time, therefore that shows the government listens to the people but Malik thinks the Saturday rally symbolised Civil Societies wanting an Institutional Reform for the eletions. Teymoor asked whether there is any validity that Election commissions have made those changes.

[Sagaladoola: Very interesting answer indeed. Watch that in Part 4. Do not want to create spoilers]

3) Teymoor took out New Sunday Times and exclaimed: “In the largest protest march in Malaysia in a decade, the local papers were silent on the front pages and wrote about the traffic jams in page 4! “ Of which, Nazri said "Media is free to report anything" when questioned about the local media response on the BERSIH rally.

[Sagaladoola: Oh really, Nazri? I let the viewers judge. Fishy, really fishy. Speechless]

4) Nazri said "What's the point when you can call 50,000 (persons) but i can call 1 Million, does that show that I am right?"

5) Nazri said there should not be any Institutional Reform for this issue.

6) Khairy claimed BERSIH is an opposition initiative proven by these leaders sending the memorandum to Yang Di-Pertuan Agong.

7) Malik replied that this is not an Opposition Initiative but a Civil Society Initiative. Opposition parties can be a part of Civil Society. UMNO can join BERSIH, a Civil Society if they want to.

[Sagaladoola: Finally someone said it. I have mentioned it earlier in my post The Yellow Wave: How Come Opposition-Led? I asked, "why didn't UMNO support BERSIH electoral reform rally?" Why? UMNO, BN, why? Why didn't you join? There should be nothing to be afraid of. Or... Have I missed out something? I admit that I am a stupid person for asking this question]

8) Take note on Teymoor's questions on "permits for gathering". Excellent , really excellent and I do not mean the answers from certain people in the forum.

Badruddin Apologised, Nazri : M****r*****r ?

Previously, Malaysiakini reported ‘Karpal a disabled’ remark causes ruckus . I had written an article on this matter, titled Oh My God, Badut-Din Does It Again ! On top of that Karpal Singh also noted that Badruddin had previously used the foul word of Puki Mak in the Parliament.

Badruddin Apologised
In a rare moment of truth, almost non-existent action among the Barisan Nasional Member of Parliament, Badruddin has recently apologised on his statements, unconditionally for some unruly remarks he had said.

Of the many blunders he made in the past, this is certainly an action that shocked me for a while. Nonetheless, apologising for those who are offended deserve some good mention in my blog.

It is certainly in my hope that Badruddin will not repeat similar hurtful remarks in the future and debate with Parliamentarians in a more professional manner. There should be no repeat of the mistakes he made. If one makes too many similar mistakes and apologise too many times, one's integrity and sincerity should be put in doubt.

So, people. Shall we cut Badruddin some slack and give him some time to repent. This is certainly a slightly positive development from his side.

Give him a chance.

Nazri : M****r*****r
Now, that's enough, snap out of it .... Now, I am concentrating on Nazri ... Read Nazri says “M****r*****r!” Cabinet or da’ ghetto? from jelas.info . The text was extracted from NST.

As for what the asterisks stands for, it isn't hard to guess the word. This is the guy who mentioned a bill that does not exist and shouted Racist , Racist , Racist and Stupid , Stupid , Stupid in Parliament.

I am not sure if there is any apology from him. Now, in some ways Badruddin is better than this guy.


(Picture from Bodohland : The Incredible Nincompoo)

Teenagers Smarter Than Nazri? How Come ?

I mean, really.....

How come? These are teenagers, young schooling (college or university) people who have yet to fully graduate with a degree.

From what I have gathered, Nazri, is a law graduate. The ironic thing is, a person like him could make such a grave mistake by saying that there is a Witness Protection Bill in Malaysia when there is none. I am sure Malaysians are waiting for the de facto Law Minister to apologise for this blunder. Not getting what is required, the Minister even continued with calling certain group of people as "Crazy Lawyers". Amazing isn't it?

These teens were writing about the infamous video clip of Shock-A-Lingam. The clip was widely reported in the blogging world and Malaysiakini.

Here, the two pretty teen lady bloggers....
Pinkpau (Su Ann) : The Judiciary Issue
Charlenediane : My Thoughts Exactly

and Nat's of jelas.info ex-colleague....
Johnleemk : Malaysia's Judiciary, Failing Quantity and Quality Tests

What can I say? The "condition" in Malaysia is so bad until the extent that it is no longer even possible to cheat anybody, even teens. What more can I say?

One thing for sure. The internet has globalised the world. It has democratised knowledge. In this information age, it is no longer true that those of older age will know more than those of the younger age. The availability of various data on the web has enabled everyone to capture new things at their whim and fancy. You can only get it if you put in your effort.

Nazri, do you use the net or something? Do you think or do research before you speak? Do you blog?

"Not Asking Them to Write Truthfully" He Said !

Malaysiakini reported about this concerning Tengku Adnan, one of the name mentioned by a person in the Shock-a-Lingam tape.

"Oups, he did it again", the blogger Freethinker wrote in his Observer blog.

To quote Malaysiakini :
Tengku Adnan said this in his speech at the launch of the Bernama-Tourism Malaysia Treasure Hunt 2007 at the MTC. "On this earth, we can do whatever we like, but you must remember that when you die, you have to answer to someone. So whatever you write, especially the press, write responsibly...

"I'm not asking you to write truthfully, but write responsibly," said Tengku Adnan to a crowd of 50 comprising mostly of Bernama staff and sponsor representatives.

Hahaha .... Oh, he is "NOT asking them to write truthfully".

Wait, wait, is there anything wrong with that statement?

Again I repeat, he is NOT asking them (the press) to write TRUTHFULLY ... Hmmn yeah right, ok, darn .. hehehe.

So, what kind of news in the press we have been reading these days? Now I am a bit tad confused.. hehehe.

I thought WRITING RESPONSIBLY IS BY WRITING TRUTHFULLY? It is supposed to go hand in hand with ethical journalism and such. I wonder why Ku Nan would choose to use the word "BUT" to connect those two phrases. Shouldn't it be this :

" I am asking you to write truthfully AND responsibly? "

If Ku Nan thinks truthfulness and responsibility does not gel, then he should define his version of "Responsibility" to us.

For me, responsibility and ethics of journalism is "to tell the truth and nothing but the truth". It is all about impartiality. Journalists should not have any political affiliated mindset when they are writing materials. Ku Nan, do you have something else in mind? Whoops, I question too much.

Sheesh ... English problem or Mental problem or some symptoms in judiciary? Or rather all the above?

Good luck Malaysians. ...

As a minister, we have a role to "speak truthfully and responsibly too". What do you say, Nazri, the Minister and his ‘Stupid, stupid, stupid!’ utterances ?

Is threatening / intimidating whistleblowers a way forward to solve the judiciary issue? It is mind-boggling enough that the authenticity of the video is investigated in priority over the people implicated in the video. For your information, it is almost impossible to make such seamless video of clear graphics and audio. The best graphic team in the world can only afford the Final Fantasy Movie.

Let me give a better idea. Investigate those in the video and you shall know whether the video is genuine. Saves time. That provided the current Malaysian government is sincere in its intentions.

Quote of the day:
Actions are the fruit of all truth, it is by your words you may be heard, but by your actions you will be judged. by Joe Maclaine, Police Blogger.

Malaysians are watching and judging.... Election may be near....

Judiciary Issue! Opposition "Treated", NGOs Ignored?

(Picture taken from Jeff Ooi)

Chronicles of the "Walk of Justice"
"Lawyers don't walk everyday. Not even every month. Not even every year. But when they walk, then something must be very wrong."

These are the words from Chairman of Bar Council, Ambiga Sreenevasan relating to the Walk of Justice to Palace of Justice on 26th September 2007.

Indeed true. Especially when lawyers choose to walk when they are intimidated or had to brave the FRUs and Mother Nature in the form of rain to make their statement known.

The March / Walk for Justice stemmed from a recorded conversation between VK Lingam and purportedly with current Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim in 2002 (video format). The Shock-A-Lingam tape was released by former Deputy Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Malaysiakini has the whole set of news listed to cover this infamous video that somehow reflects on the state of the Malaysian judiciary system.

A blogger friend of mine, John Lee had pasted the full transcript of the conversation, taken from Malaysiakini. He asked the right question in the same article which is aptly titled as Malaysia's Chief Justice Rigged an Election?

Jeff Ooi and fellow blogger, Wattahack took a lot of pictures from the momentous event. I felt bad for not being there. I just came back from Macau and missed the whole thing.

Is Malaysia truly independent?
The Bar Council, which purportedly represents 12,000 lawyers submitted a few memorandums calling for an independent judiciary to serve the people. A request for an Independent Royal Commission of Inquiry was brought up as well. Without any form of Independence, justice will not be done in a manner that is beneficial to the law and order of the country. With so many calls for "independent" (inquiry and judiciary) set-ups , it is surely ironic given that the nation had just celebrated its so-called 50th Independence one month ago (31st August). Is our country really "Independent" anyway?

In my opinion, paper value and consistent shouts of "Merdeka" (the Bahasa Melayu word for Independent) carry no meaning if the governance and judiciary is being handled otherwise. Talking is easy. Working something out is tough. Not walking the talk or in Bahasa Melayu "Cakap Tak Serupa Bikin" equals to poor / inefficient governance.

The last I recalled, the citizens gave Pak Lah an almost uncontestable mandate to rule the nation running on the notion that this man would reform the nation, clean up the dirty stuff (corruption etc.) and gear the nation towards a progressive First World status.

If Malaysia is a developed democratic nation such as France and Britain, the ruling party would have been removed in immediacy. After all, the government and judicial system are created for the citizens, not the other way round. If those systems are meant to protect only the interests of a few elite powerfully-connected people, the country might as well be named a feudal country with peasants doing the work and the few invincible lords reaping the rewards. Think of a dictatorial medieval state, for example.

Nazri: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Response
MySinchew.com reported Malaysia: Nazri Ticks Off Lawyers . This is what the infamous minister has got to say:

Statement 1: "Those who participated in the "Walk for Justice", their brains are like opposition party. It is better for them to register as members of opposition party. I will be more delighted if they (Bar Council) register as an Opposition party. So that I know how to handle them," he told Sin Chew Daily when contacted today.

Comment: This is what happens when one protests for a fair judiciary system. A minister like Nazri will treat one like Opposition parties; is it so, Nazri? As a minister, one is supposed to be working for the citizens, not against the citizens. When citizens protest, it is a form of dissatisfaction with the way certain things are being done. Lawyers are citizens too. If the Shock-A-Lingam video expose is true, I am sure not only the lawyers are concerned. The rest of the citizens are dissatisified too.

Furthermore, Opposition party members are also citizens of Malaysia. If they saw something unjust going on, there should be no reason that should stay silent. So, what does Nazri mean by his statement? Is there any other different or more negative treatment for Opposition? Let's hope that's not the case, Nazri. Let's hope there is no double standards. Yeah, right.

As I write, I am starting to recall the Batu Burok incident.

Statement 2: "I will ignore them as if they are non-governmental organizations (NGOS)," he continued.

Comment: This is the biggest blunder of all. Does this statement mean that the lawyers, who don't walk everyday but choose to fight for an independently clean judiciary system will be ignored? I understand that Nazri is a trained lawyer. That is why I am doubly surprised by such words.

How can a trained lawyer ignore the calls of other lawyers for an independent and just judiciary system? What kind of law is the trained lawyer practising then? Surprise, surprise.

NGOs are supposed to represent citizens too. For example, Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), National Human Rights Society (Hakam) and Aliran. If MySinchew's derivation is correct, would that mean NGOs are mostly ignored ? Oh dear, what does Hakam represent again? Oh yeah, human rights of Malaysians.

Are they being ignored, Nazri?

Is this a judicial crisis? Please do not shock me by saying "No".

If that is the case Nazri, I can't help but support Mohd Kamal Abdullah's call for your resignation.