WHITHER UMNO?

UMNO'S POPULAR SUPPORT AND BACKBONE -- 1957



---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



UMNO'S POPULAR SUPPORT AND BACKBONE -- 2011

THE END FOR POWER CRAZY TYRANTS IS VERY NEAR.

MACC's Attempt To Boost Its Image Doomed To Fail

There is an interesting report in today's NST that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's 13-member Anti-Corruption Advisory Board has made two recommendations to turn it into a more credible institution.

One is that the Federal Constitution be amended to pave the way for the creation of an Anti-Corruption Service Commission for the appointment, confirmation and promotion of members of the anti-graft body.

The other is for the top graftbuster to be accorded a position equivalent to the inspector-general of police.

But these are merely cosmetic changes that benefit the MACC staff and will in no way lead to improvement in their dismal service. What does it matter if the head of the MACC is accorded a higher rank? Will it make him less subservient to the Umno leadership? Or will he suddenly develop larger testes to take on government-sponsored corruption? It is a fallacy that creating an Anti-Corruption Service Commission which will result in a better deal for MACC staff will in itself cause the officers there to suddenly become more efficient. On the contrary a sudden infusion of 'goodies' will have the undesirable effect of making the already pliant MACC thugs more beholden to Najib and gang.

The NST further reported that the board, chaired by former chief justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad, said despite a credible performance last year, the MACC’s biggest challenge was to rectify the negative perception the public had against it.

"The long-term goal should be to make the MACC one of the leading anti-corruption bodies in the world and for Malaysia to be seen as a corruption-free country," it said.

As everyone knows, former chief justice Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad is himself a disgraced and discredited figure having bent over backwards to help former PM Dr Mahathir oust the then Lord President in a government backed coup d'état against the judiciary. This man should first be removed as chairman of the board.

The only recourse for the MACC to become more credible and help repair their battered public image is:

1) Be made answerable only to Parliament. This will at least limit the level of executive interference somewhat.

2) Remove as many of the deadwood from the highest ranks to the lowest officers as possible and recruit a more ethnically balanced force.

3) Stop sourcing completely from the morally and ethically challenged Royal Malaysia Police.

4) Endeavor to employ highly qualifed and experienced foreigners such as those from the Independent Commission Against Corruption Hong Kong who won't be easily susceptible to licking the rears of government leaders.

Of course none of this is going to happen until Umno is blown away in the next G.E. Hopefully the Pakatan federal government which will take over can preside over the creation of a genuine anti-corruption force we can be proud of.

Sack This Unabashed Cop Lover

From today's TheStar.

Cuepacs has called on politicians, non-governmental organisations and the public to stop bashing the police and be fair to them.

Its secretary-general, Ahmad Shah Mohd Zin, said of late the police had been under relentless criticism from various quarters over isolated incidents.

“Certain quarters just jumped on the bandwagon to pour out a barrage of hatred against the police for which they do not really deserve. Most of the time they are doing a great job, but hardly honoured,” he said.

He hoped Malaysians would refrain from unfair criticism of the police as it would demoralise them without any mention of the gratitude so many feel for their work.

***** What is wrong with this guy Ahmad Shah Mohd Zin? Who is he to advise us about whether we should criticize the cops or not? Is he saying that the police is above the law and therefore have some sort of immunity? Or is he simply currying favour with the authorities as it is perhaps time for his next promotion? If the cops behave like thugs then they should be publicly berated and brought to book. THAT is accountability and not what this rear licker is advocating. Cuepacs should sack this self serving slime ball.

This Is Umno's Malaysia

With the way that Umno is misusing the police, MACC, the Attorney General's chambers, the judiciary and other government institutions on a daily basis, the above cartoon may well describe the situation in Malaysia today. Very sad.

The Government Won't Control Rela. Perhaps This Court Judgement Will

From today's The Star

The High Court has ordered a Rela member to pay a former guest relations officer RM100,000 as damages for taking a picture of her relieving herself in a truck five years ago.

Justice Tengku Datuk Maimun Tuan Mat also told Mohamad Tahir Osman, 45, to pay costs and 8% interest until full settlement to Maslinda Ishak, 31, who is now a dental nurse.

The judge said what Tahir did was outside the scope of his duty which was to maintain security.She said that in taking the picture, Tahir had caused emotional damage to Maslinda.

The incident happened after Maslinda and several colleagues were arrested by Federal Territory Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) enforcement officers and Rela members during a raid at Kelab De Vegas in Jalan Imbi here at 11.30pm on March 21, 2003.

After the arrest, they were led into a truck. At 12.50am, when the truck was at Jalan Jejaka 5, Taman Maluri, Cheras, Maslinda asked to go to the toilet but was denied permission.

Instead, she was scolded and told to relieve herself in the truck.

She did what she was told behind a scarf held by several friends but suddenly Tahir came, pushed the friends aside, pulled the scarf and photographed her.

Maslinda brought the suit on April 25, 2003. She is seeking RM5mil in damages from Tahir, the Rela director-general, Jawi and the Government.

The judge ruled that the Rela director-general, Jawi and the Government could not be associated with Tahir’s actions.

***** This is the type of concern that all judges must clearly demonstrate, that they will not tolerate such perverted behaviour by those who claim to be on official government duty. Justice Tengku Datuk Maimun Tuan Mat should be praised for handing down this punishment which will serve as a deterrent and warning to others in Rela and elsewhere.

What the government should have done but is most reluctant to do, to provide justice and relief to the victim, has been fulfilled by the courts. Shame on the kerajaan.

Malaysian Cops Accused Of Assaulting Disabled Driver

A 29-year-old Malaysian lorry driver with a disabled left hand has accused two off-duty policemen of physically assaulting him for allegedly grazing their car with his vehicle, news reports said Sunday.

In the Saturday afternoon incident, Mohamad Azlan Hashim said he was driving a 10-tonne lorry in the central state of Selangor when a car with two men overtook his vehicle and made him stop.

Fearing they were loan sharks, Azlan alleged that, when he refused to obey their instructions to alight from his vehicle, the two men, who identified themselves as police officers, dragged him out after smashing the lorry's windows and assaulted him, the Star daily reported.

'The car was behind my lorry and I did not even know that I had grazed their vehicle as the vehicle I was driving was very big,' said Azlan, who suffered head and arm injuries from the assault.

District police chief Noor Azam Jamaludin has confirmed that both Azlan and one of the accused policemen had lodged reports. (Monsters & Critics.com)

***** While foreigners may be surprised or shocked by the above report, Malaysians are by now used to news like this. The cops here are really getting out of hand and nobody seems to be in a position to set them straight. What a shame.
Image - Source

Malaysian Student's Mother Makes Tearful Plea Over Son's Assault In Melbourne

From THE AGE, Australia

The mother of a Malaysian student attacked by a group of men in Melbourne's CBD last Friday, leaving him in an induced coma for several days, has broken down in tears while speaking about her son.

Kevindra Joseph, 19, was lost and asking a friend for directions on a mobile phone when he was attacked by a group of men in Little Lonsdale Street, near the intersection of Russell Street, about 2.50am, police said today.

The engineering student, who had been in Australia for about a month, was found unconscious on the footpath and spent several days in an induced coma at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. He remains in hospital.

Police today released images of two men they believe can assist them with their inquiries, and appealed for witnesses to come forward.

His mother, Rohini Devi, today made a tearful appeal for information about her son's attack. (You can read the full report HERE)

***** As early as May this year there had been many reports of racist assaults on foreign students including at least eight Indian students who were attacked in the month of May 2008 in Melbourne alone.

According to the news.com.au website, seventeen foreign students have died in Victoria in the past year from boarding home fires, murders, car crashes and drowning.

These incidents were well publicised and the serious risks involved in being out alone late at night is common knowledge. Vicious assaults especially in Melbourne’s central business district (CBD) are common after dark and police have issued warnings about walking alone at night. Therefore one must ask why this young man was so foolish in venturing out at the unearthly time of 2.50am?

The Evil Some Malaysians Do

A restaurant worker who flagged a passing car for help to save his dying mother was instead robbed and beaten unconscious by the occupants of the vehicle.

By the time help arrived about two hours later, his mother had died from an asthma attack.

The incident occurred in Skudai yesterday when Moh Cheng Mau, 39, (pic) returned home from work around 3am to find his mother, Foo Yoon Yew, 63, fighting for her life.

Cheng Mau left his mother near the door of their home along Jalan Hang Jebat 52 in the care of his younger brother Seng Fong, 37, and ran to stop a taxi about 100m away from their home.

According to the victim’s elder brother, Mok Aik Kuan, 41, the taxi refused to stop and Cheng Mau then flagged down a dark-coloured car with four men inside. “He begged them for help and got into the vehicle when they told him that he had to follow them to get an ambulance,” he said.

Aik Kuan said the men stopped the car near a graveyard about 300m away from the house, beat his brother unconscious and robbed him of a handphone and around RM500 in cash.

According to him, by the time his brother regained consciousness and staggered back home, it was past 5am. Neighbours then called the ambulance and police, he said.

Aik Kuan said the ambulance took his brother to the Sultanah Aminah Hospital for treatment as his mother had died at about 5.40am.

“Cheng Mau’s face and body were swollen. Two of his ribs were broken,” he said, adding that his brother had also been repeatedly kicked and stepped on with studded shoes.

Nusajaya OCPD Supt Abd Aziz Ahmad urged those with information to call 07-221 2999. (The Star)

***** What kind of bastards would do such a thing? I hope the cops would somehow nab the culprits. Let them get the harshest punishment that can be given by the justice system. They deserve it.

Karpal Receives Live Bullet And Warning Note

DAP chairman Karpal Singh received an envelope containing a live bullet and a warning note at his law firm in Jalan Pudu Lama here Tuesday.

The envelope was delivered by a motorcyclist who wore a full-face helmet.

Karpal, who is MP for Bukit Gelugor, has lodged a report at the Dang Wangi police headquarters on the incident.

Accompanying him were Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo and DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang.

Karpal told reporters that the man had entered his firm about 12.30pm and handed over a yellow envelope containing the bullet and the note. "I was at home when my clerk informed me that I had received the bullet and the note.

"According to her, the man kept silent and left immediately," he said, adding that he was worried for his safety.

He declined comment on whether the incident was related to his controversial remarks pertaining to the power of the Malay rulers.

Karpal said this was the second time he had received a live bullet. In 1981, he received an M-16 bullet which was delivered to his house in Penang. (Bernama)

***** Now WHO has grudges and grievances against Mr Karpal Singh which are serious enough to result in such a threat? Hmm. Shades of C4?

City Hall's 'Gangsters In Uniform' Strike Yet Again With Impunity

Restaurant operators in Sentul alleged that City Hall officers were unnecessarily high-handed when conducting raids last night. Following the raid, six police reports were lodged by both the operators and customers.

The operators, as well as some customers, claimed that a group of 100 City Hall officers smashed several glass panes at the stalls, pulled out the electrical wires, damaged water pipes and even poured food all over the floor during the 11pm raid.

In the chaos, one customer had curry splashed on his clothes.

The officers’ alleged highhandedness had allegedly caused a near riot, claimed Batu MP Tian Chua, who was at the scene last night.

"This is not an isolated case. We have discussed the rough tactics of City Hall enforcement units with the mayor, but nothing has been done to rein them in," said Chua, adding that he would be bringing the matter up with City Hall today.

Angered by the treatment, restaurant operators and customers described the City Hall officers as "gangsters in uniforms".

"We were given no warning, no explanation, no notice. We tried to talk to them but they came in suddenly like gangsters. They shoved tables and chairs where our customers were eating. They chased our customers out. The children were all crying too," said D.Nanthakumaran, a manager of Seri Makhota mamak restaurant.

Nanthakumaran said that he had permits for his business and had applied for permits to put tables on the pavement outside his outlet.

One stall owner at another restaurant, Ariffin Abdul Majid, said: "These people should have come and talked to us. This is against basic human rights. People were eating and they acted harshly." The customer, who had curry splashed on him, said he came to watch the Chelsea-Newcastle match like many others in the large crowd last night.

"It happened so fast. The waiter was coming with my roti canai. The next thing I knew, I was wet," said Low Weng Foon, 52. "Everyone was scared." A mother, whose 11-year old girl had her arm placed in a cast earlier, had been waiting for her food when the raid occurred. "We were so afraid they would knock her arm. The plaster had not even dried," said the mother, adding their food was thrown away as they ran to hide in a corner. (Malay Mail)

***** What a bunch of vicious bastards. They behave as if they are above the law and despite so many complaints and reports, no one wants to take responsibility or rein them in.

Despite Change In Political Landscape, Rela Still Alive And Kicking

A 42-year-old tour guide has lodged a police report after a group of Rela members allegedly tried to break into her apartment in Tingkat Tong Shin here while apparently tracking a suspected illegal immigrant.

Leow Mee Leng said that the men had failed to identify themselves properly, did not have a search warrant and were not accompanied by any policeman or Immigration officer.

In the 3.15am incident on Monday, Leow said she was fast asleep at her apartment located on the second floor of a town house. "I heard a thumping sound at my front door and heard a man shouting loudly, asking me to come out.

"I went to the door and asked him what the problem was, but he only shouted back that if I did not open the door he would break it open. I peeked through the peephole and saw several men standing outside. Fearing for my life, I ran back into my room and telephoned my first-floor neighbour who advised me to open the door,'' she said.

Leow said she hesitated for several minutes but decided to open the door when her neighbour and his wife came over to her apartment and shouted at her to open the door.

"There were about six to eight men in uniform, and one of them just dashed into my house with a torchlight. The man came out several minutes later and told his superior that he did not find anything,'' she said, adding that they refused to tell her what they were looking for.

Leow said that when urged by her neighbour, one of the Rela members told him that they were looking for "someone" who had escaped and believed to be hiding in Leow's house.

"The man also asked my neighbour's wife whether I was a Malaysian. When she told them that I was, they told me to go back into my apartment and then left hastily,'' she said.

Leow claimed that several minutes later, she saw the men taking away four women and two men from another apartment. She said her front door had been damaged and is missing an iron bar.

She lodged a report at the Dang Wangi police station on Monday evening. (The Star)

***** Governments may come and go, but the infamous Rela's Nazi-style tactics stubbornly remain and steadfastly continue to be an affront to the sensibilities of an increasingly impatient public. They should be leashed and muzzled as one would a rabid mongrel.

What the Devil Is Going On In Prai?

From a report in The Sun.

A series of violent incidents between two ethnic groups has occurred in the last 48 hours following a misunderstanding over a road accident in Prai on New Year's eve.

Police said it all started when a drunk motorcyclist, in his 40s, was involved in a minor accident with another motorcycle ridden by two youths, in their 20s at about 10.30pm on New Year's eve.

The accident, in front of a place of worship in Kampung Manis, Prai, was witnessed by two groups of people and a fight broke out between them. The fight resulted in two people being hospitalised for injuries and two others receiving outpatient treatment. The two men who were hospitalised are reported to be in stable condition.

Penang police chief Datuk Koh Hong Sun told a press conference today 16 people, aged between 16 and 30, had been arrested for being directly involved in the fight.They have been remanded until next week while police are still tracking down others involved in the fight, he said.

Several vehicles along Jalan Utama in Prai were also damaged during the incident.

However, the misunderstanding was far from over as more "violent incidents" occurred between 12.30am and 2.30am today, said Koh. However, he declined to divulge details of the incidents, saying only that cars and motorcycles were damaged in the incidents in several places in central Seberang Perai and in one location in north Seberang Perai near Kepala Batas.

"One person was injured in one of the incidents but he is in a stable condition," Koh said.

"We have determined that the main cause of these incidents was the misunderstanding between the parties involved and also because of the influence of alcohol during the New Year celebration."

He stressed that it had nothing to do with any racial or religious dispute and that it did not involve any organisation.

"All these incidents are being investigated and we will take appropriate actions according to the law," Koh said.

"We urge the public to avoid speculating on the incidences and spreading rumours through the SMS or other methods."

He said such rumours may be misconstrued and threaten the peace of the country. "It is an offence to spread such rumours, so we will not hesitate to take action against those found committing the offence," he said.

Koh urged the public to remain calm and to avoid taking any drastic action which may worsen the situation.

He said police had contacted political and religious representatives in the areas to mediate and calm the situation.

***** What contradictory statements from the Penang police chief. At first he claims that the 'misunderstanding' had nothing to do with any racial or religious dispute, but then he quickly adds that political and religious representatives have been asked to mediate and calm the situation!

This was the same bullshit that was given during the Kampung Medan massacre. With an almost homogeneous police force can they be expected to exercise reasonable neutrality in handling inter-ethnic strife?

I hope that the Umno-led government is very happy at the brittleness of our 'stability' as a result of their strategy of divide-and-rule and playing off one race against another by indirectly encouraging religio-racist feelings and animosity from their 'target' group. Let's hope that at least the CPO Datuk Koh Hong Sun can bring a quick end to the explosive situation there.
Image - Source

"We Are Not A Police State," Says Syed Hamid. Tell That To Those Who Were Arrested Or Injured.

Malaysia denied on Wednesday it was a police state, despite launching the biggest crackdown on anti-government activists in a decade.

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told Reuters the government was merely trying to ensure public safety in enforcing a blanket ban on street protests that has prompted opposition groups to accuse it of political repression ahead of a possible early election.

"We have never been a police state," he said in an interview in the administrative capital of Putrajaya.

"To say Malaysia is heading into a police state is an untrue statement and is an exaggeration, especially under our current PM. He is very careful, open and transparent. I think there is a limit to everything."

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi raised the country's expectations for reform when he took office in 2003, vowing to fight corruption and usher in more transparent, open government.

Four years later, frustrations at the slow progress of his reform agenda, coupled with discontent over rising living costs, have boiled over into the biggest street protests in nine years.

More than 20,000 people defied riot police and took to the streets of the capital, Kuala Lumpur, in two separate protests over the past five weeks, on issues that chimed with the clamour for reform: fairer politics and more equal race relations.

The last major rally, staged by more than 10,000 ethnic Indians complaining of racial discrimination, drew world attention particularly from India whose prime minister voiced sympathy for the plight of the Indian diaspora in Malaysia.

Syed Hamid, who now has the job of explaining Malaysia's actions to the world, said the government tolerated criticism but street protests risked public security and stability.

"You have to distinguish between riotous behaviour and open and transparent discussion," he said. "There is no problem with open and transparent discussion."

He also showed irritation at a media report that the U.S. State Department had also expressed criticism of the crackdown.

"If you look at every developed country, they don't tolerate riotous behaviour," he said, citing the large deployments of riot police in Western capitals during international summits such as the Asia Pacific Economic Forum and the World Trade Organisation. "During APEC or WTO meetings, they close up roads in order not to allow demonstrators. We are (doing) nothing more than that."

The risk of street protests turning into riots is a real fear among many Malaysians, particularly those who lived through the last major eruption of racial violence in Kuala Lumpur in 1969. Hundreds died in those riots between ethnic Malays, who make up most of the population, and ethnic Chinese. The current prime minister played a leading role in the immediate aftermath of that crisis to find a political solution to the racial troubles.

But the opposition accuses Abdullah now of using public order and the memory of 1969 as an excuse to stifle peaceful dissent.

In seeking to protect public security, police moved last weekend in the early morning to halt an annual human-rights march by just 60 people in the near-deserted streets of Kuala Lumpur.

***** Does Syed Hamid really believe what he is saying? Peaceful rallies to highlight the average Malaysian's dissatisfaction and unhappiness with the authorities have been declared illegal by our political leadership and the police have been wrongly and immorally ordered to be harsh and violent on its own citizens. The reason for this brutal government response is to somehow keep long-festering problems, abuses and misdeeds firmly under the lid, teach a lesson to the people that any form of dissent against Umno will not be tolerated and to make life for those opposition and 'anti-government' leaders as painful and miserable as possible.

Umno, MIC Biggest Losers In Hindraf Rally Crackdown

'Tear gas has been fired at a crowd of about 2,000 demonstrators at Jalan Semarak to disperse Hindraf rally of about 20,000. Scores arrested'. Thus reads a news alert via sms from The Sun.

Am I surprised? No. Did I expect anything less from our intolerant pemimpin2? No. These geezers wax eloquent on the virtues of democracy but have no inkling about what it really means and have no genuine desire to put it into actual practice. They have told lie after lie after bloody lie in order to realise their only aim, to remain in office. The bottom-line for them is to maintain the status quo and cling on to power for as long as they possibly can. This they can only achieve by playing the favouritism game, splitting the citizens into many factions, deliberately disallowing true concord from taking root between the disparate groups, brutally smothering even the slightest voice of dissent from growing stronger and if necessary to create government inspired and sponsored riots and conflagrations in order to maintain the tight rein which has slowly and steadily been choking the rights and lives of millions of citizens over the past several decades.

I personally feel that after the Bersih rally, Malaysians have finally crossed an invisible line which they would not have even dared to contemplate a few years ago. People of all ethnic origins have for a long time known of the hoodwinking ability of this government, of its propensity to preach different sermons at different venues and of its culpability in many of the wrongdoings, abuses and iniquities in the name of bangsa, agama dan negara. Even if the government orders the police to smash the Hindraf rally participants to smithereens, it will make no difference to the way law-abiding citizens will in future show their true feelings and resentment towards the authorities.

Public rallies are here to stay and the police permit requirement will in time become an evil part of our history. The cops will perforce have to be educated that in the event of a public rally their only duty is to clear the roads and enable easy access for the participants to reach their destination. That is their true job in a real democracy and not behaving like uniformed thugs in some impoverished banana republic. Sometimes I wonder what percentage of the police force, in their heart of hearts, actually have faith in the way our government handles these situations?

Whatever may have occurred or is still happening this morning at the Hindraf rally, the government has lost its credibility as a promoter and practitioner of democracy. The race-based political parties, Umno and MIC will come out of this mess with their already soiled reputation further ruined. Umno has only further confirmed that it is a racist party which will not bend to the sufferings of others and will not listen to the voice of reason. The MIC has not only overseen from the sidelines the marginalisation of Indians, it has also been castigated nationally for being a willing participant in the formulating and practice of apartheid-like policies while all along ravenously feeding on the morsels thrown by the big vulture, Umno. Moreover their 'legitimate' political role to 'serve' the Indian community as a whole has been wrested by others such as those from Hindraf who over the next few years can only grow stronger. As for the other eunuchs in government such as the MCA, Gerakan et al., the less said the better.

The government can trot out the Sedition Act and the ISA for the time being. But time, dear pemimpin is fast running out and if in the meanwhile elections are 'bersih-ed' up, it will not be too far-fetched to predict your early exit from Putrajaya.
Image - Source
A comprehensive report from Reuters HERE.

Government Uses Sedition Act To Cover-up Racist Practices! It's Like Using C4 Explosives On An Ant

Malaysian authorities charged three ethnic Indian activists with sedition Friday in an apparent attempt to stop a rally in support of a lawsuit that holds the British responsible for the Indians' economic woes.

The US$4 trillion (€2.7 trillion) lawsuit, filed in London in August, demands that Britain compensate Malaysia's ethnic Indians — who comprise some 8 percent of the country's 27 million people — for bringing their ancestors to then Malaya as "indentured laborers" and exploiting them under colonial rule.

The Hindu Rights Action Force, a non-government group, hopes to gather 10,000 people to demonstrate outside the British High Commission in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.

Authorities have warned that the rally would be illegal and have thrown a security cordon around Kuala Lumpur, citing concerns of potential violence ahead of the protest.

Police arrested the Indian group's chairman, Waytha Moorthy Ponnusamy, his brother and a senior associate Friday. The three men were later charged in court with making seditious comments, which carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison.

Two were freed on bail, but Waytha Moorthy remained in custody because he refused to post bail in a gesture of defiance. The court was scheduled to hear the case Monday.

Kuala Lumpur Police Chief Zulhasnan Najib Baharudin said police refused to issue a permit for the rally for security reasons and warned that protesters could face arrest. Malaysian law prohibits public gatherings of five or more people without a police permit.

"If there is any assembly, it's unlawful," Zulhasnan said.

Police have mounted security road blocks throughout Kuala Lumpur since Thursday, sparking massive traffic snarls.

Ethnic Indians, mainly Hindus, form one of Malaysia's largest minority groups. Activists say more than two-thirds of them live in poverty, partly because they are deprived of opportunities by affirmative action policies that favor the ethnic Malay Muslim majority.

Government authorities have rejected claims of discrimination.

Police had earlier served Waytha Moorthy a court order forbidding the rally's key planners from being present outside the British High Commission.

"We've told our people to continue" with the rally, Waytha Moorthy said.

A Malaysian human rights group, Suaram, called the arrests an "attempt by the police to intimidate and to prevent (activists) from exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly and the right to freedom of expression."

The group plans to submit a petition Sunday urging Queen Elizabeth II to appoint lawyers to represent the Indians in the suit, which is meant to show that British neglect allegedly caused Malaysian Indians to remain economically disadvantaged after independence in 1957.

The planned rally would be the second street protest in Kuala Lumpur in less than a month. Police fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse activists Nov. 10 at an opposition-backed rally that drew thousands of people demanding electoral reforms. (International Herald Tribune)

***** While this episode of arrest and charging in court was going on yesterday, that PM wannabe of keris-kissing fame, Hishammuddin started the typical bangsa, agama dan negara shit-stirring which Umno is notorious for. He said that "the 'silent majority' should make itself heard and stand up to people with their own agenda." Trying to give it a May 13 style ethnic twist he added that racial and religious sentiments made for a dangerous cocktail which could spell disaster. He also surreptitiously brought the thugs and goons of Umno into the picture by 'cautioning' Umno Youth members to remain calm. Do you think Hishammuddin or any of the other leeches in Umno will tell the truth that this is in reality a protest by a certain section of the citizens of this country against the practices of the GOVERNMENT and NOT against anyone else? Why should he? He has a lot more to gain personally by stirring shit and raising the political temperature.

In a way, this protest has come at a good time for the racists leading the government. They will use this opportunity to try and martial all the Malays or at least those naive, illiterate and some of the downright chauvinistic 'nationalists' with the clarion call of Melayu in danger or something equally silly.

They have no respect for human rights or sense of fair play. All that the greedsters in government are concerned about is fulfilling their dire need to stay in office. If one day in the future they have to stab the Malay in the back to preserve their power, they won't have any qualms in doing that as well.
Image - Source

Government Using Police To Create Traffic Jams in KL To Provoke Public Anger Towards Protesters

As you may be aware the cops have set up road blocks all over KL and Selangor since yesterday resulting in traffic jams in an ostensible bid to prevent people from entering the capital to attend the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) rally scheduled to take place on Sunday at the British High Commission.

Another 'reason' given by the police is they have 'received information' that there will be criminal activities taking place right up to Sunday’s gathering. From the wonderfully efficient police intelligence gathering, the cops have found that riots and fights had been planned and are therefore taking 'precautionary' measures.

For those of you who had been caught in these jams did you notice any thugs being arrested or at least being held for questioning? Were cars carrying several Indian adults stopped and their occupants thoroughly checked and interrogated?

The situation today is very much the same as yesterday and reportedly there are massive traffic jams again in various parts of the Klang Valley.

More than merely trying to keep the influx of protesters into KL to a bare minimum or fulfilling a sudden honourable desire by our men in blue to 'prevent crime', the apparent police strategy is to cause as much inconvenience to the public in general so that they would reflexly condemn and abhor protests of whatever nature. It is probably their hope that in artificially creating such jams, thereby raising temperatures and blood pressures, the organisers of this and future protests against government corruption and abuse would be considered as troublemakers by the public.

It is an age-old dirty trick employed by unpopular and shrewd dictators - if the people do not act in a manner which pleases the ruler, then the ruler will make things so stranglingly difficult and unbearable, without the obvious use of brute force, that the average citizen is coerced into behaving as the dictator deems fit. Our kerajaan is no different. This is their tactic, to wear down the peoples' patience and put a full stop to public expression of the citizens' anger and disappointment.

Sometimes such a sneaky strategy will succeed admirably, especially when the average citizen would rather fight a ghost than protest against official abuse and corruption. In our context, hopefully the public would not be deterred by this nuisance the cops are creating in the form of unnecessary traffic jams.

The police, under orders from 'above' are at the same time desperate to make an example of those responsible for this Hindraf protest. In fact a few minutes ago the cops announced that they have a court order to restrain anyone organising or participating in Sunday's gathering. The police have also arrested lawyer P. Uthayakumar, Hindraf legal advisor under the Sedition Act and he will be charged in court this afternoon. What is the point though? The nation's reputation has already been torn to shreds by the earlier protests and by the increasingly forthright and accurate reports from here and abroad about government sponsored racism and discrimination.

Of course the danger always remains in Malaysia that in the event such dirty tricks don't produce the desired results, government leaders or those holding extra-constitutional authority like a certain son-in-law, would unleash the thugs from Umno youth along with illiterate kampung boys who would do their bidding for a small monetary incentive. Manufacturing a crisis is the easiest and most effective way to temporarily or permanently shut the avenues available to those who can think and express clearly on what is terribly wrong with this country.
Image - Source

Malaysia's 'Vigilante Force' Unmoved By Rights Charges

Malaysia will not disband a 500,000-strong volunteer security force that was criticised this week for mistaking an Indonesian diplomat's wife for an illegal immigrant, its chief said yesterday.

Rela, which describes itself as the government's "eyes and ears" and was originally set up in the 1960s to help fight a communist revolt, has been criticised for its lack of discipline and abusing the human rights of migrant workers.

"I admit there are a few Rela officers who may be high-handed," said Zaidon Asmuni, Rela's Director-General, in an interview. "It will not be disbanded just because of a few bad hats. Rela is becoming a force to be reckoned with, so there are groups trying to distract Rela by harping on human rights," said the 51-year-old former immigration officer.

Wearing green uniforms and yellow berets, Rela groups have launched raids to trap illegal immigrants almost on a daily basis since being given such powers in 2005. Officers of the rank of platoon commander and above, are allowed to carry firearms, while the rest use batons.

Rela's crackdown is winning support from Malaysians, who routinely blame foreigners for rising crime rates, which could emerge as a major issue in a general election widely expected to be called within months. There are nearly 3 million foreigners doing odd jobs in Malaysia, some illegally.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch has described Rela as a vigilante force set up to target foreigners. "A 10-day course and a uniform does not transform anyone into a professional overnight," said Malaysian rights group Aliran. (Gulf News)

***** What a good name Rela is bringing our country internationally! They must be very proud. Malaysia Boleh!
Image - Source

Myanmar Refugees Want India To Step In

Huddled up in a corner near Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, a small group of pro-democracy activists and Buddhist monks from Myanmar did raise clenched fists to protest the reign of terror let loose by the military junta.

But they were dazed by the stand taken by New Delhi. It was easy for them to identify the factors that have impacted the Indian response. A young woman listed oil, market, China, North-East insurgency and Myanmar’s strategic location as the reasons why India was reluctant to douse the fire.

"The crackdown is more severe than before. I was 20 and leading a wild college life when the 1988 repression changed it all. I fled to India through Mizoram with a group of students, leaving my family behind," recalled Thin Thin Aung, now an activist of Women’s League of Burma in India.

Aung was at a refugee camp in Mizoram for two years before she moved to Delhi in 1990. "Enthused by our leader Aung San Suu Kyi, we were demanding a multi-party system when the military cracked down. I saw my friends being shot on the streets and decided to plunge myself in the movement," she said.

Another refugee, Ukhiang Maung, said the principles of Buddha, Gandhi and democracy were under severe attack in Myanmar. "India has a special role to play because all three originated here. Unarmed people and media-persons are being killed," he said.

Aung said life for them in India was not easy and some refugees managed part-time work with difficulty. "Through the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), I managed to secure admission in Delhi University for an MBA. “It requires a no-objection certificate from the junta’s embassy. Now they are not granting NOCs and, instead, ensuring that children of the military elite study in India," she added.

Esther, a 25-year-old Kuki Christian, has more recent memories of the situation back home as she fled to India in 2004. "The military survives on intelligence and so it keeps track of all activities in the rural areas. Most villages do not have proper schools. We are not allowed to start our own business," she said.

Esther said the soldiers and officers targeted women in particular. "It is not sexual exploitation but a more cruel way to change our ethnicity. Very often, the soldiers rape women and ensure that they give birth to babies. In some cases, they even marry the women in villages but the idea is to alter our identity. Traditional names of villages are being changed and they are being named after senior members of the junta or other military officers," she said.

Asked how the soldiers shot their own people, Aung said, "Most of them are uneducated and jobless. They are caught young and brainwashed to see an enemy in anyone who talks of democracy. Our leader, for whom India was like another home, said she expected a lot more from New Delhi. We hope the mandarins in the Ministries of External Affairs and Home Affairs rise to the occasion," she said.

The activists are in touch with members of the government-in-exile, spread out in Australia, US, Thailand and India. "Our New York office is trying hard to bring about a new resolution from the United Nations on the issue. We are for a peaceful solution but the junta is not ready to relent," said Aung. (The Times Of India)

***** What is happening in Myanmar is atrocious. It's a pity that they are not an oil rich country. If only they had that valuable resource, the opportunists in Washington, Beijing and Delhi would have intervened long ago.
Image - Source

100,000 Rela Members To Receive Initial RM9 Million Allowances. What A Bloody Waste Of Good Money!

The infamous People's Volunteer Corps (Rela) has received an initial allocation of RM9 million as allowances for some 100,000 members, Bernama reports. Apparently the thugs have made a requisition for RM32 million for services rendered, i.e. hatchet jobs and other 'operations' which lowlifes like these are normally linked to.

At a time when there are loud calls by the public and rational groups for the disbanding of these government-sanctioned and funded gangsters, the useless bums at the Home Ministry are actually encouraging serious discussion about the the blueprint for Rela's short-term and long-term plans to strengthen the organisation!

In fact the Rela director-general and other senior officers would be having a four-day 'brainstorming' session beginning today on the blueprint and the drawing up of a Rela Act to streamline its functions. (How are these guys going to brainstorm without the basic requirements? It is as incongruous as a thunderstorm without thunder!)

As if enough damage has not already been done by these hooligans, the Home Affairs Ministry Parliamentary Secretary seriously pondered whether "the time had come for Rela to be made a department," while adding that Rela had requested for an additional 3,000 posts of officers to the existing 664 to oversee 350,000 members throughout the country. OMG!!

And just as it seemed that things couldn't get any worse, he cheerfully disclosed that Rela also planned to build a new headquarters at a cost of RM50 million in Putrajaya!
A big "Malaysia Boleh, Sieg Heil" cheer to the ruling party's vigilantes. For them at least, Semuanya OK!
Image - Source
Earlier related post: RELA Achieves International Notoriety Now!

A 'Caring' Government's Unsympathetic Response To Vigilantism - "We Will Not Disband RELA."

From a report in TheStar today.

The Government will not dissolve Rela just because a handful of its members are involved in crime, Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad said.

He said Rela, which has 450,000 members, was still relevant in maintaining security.

“The Government acknowledges Rela’s role and Parliament has empowered its members to conduct raids and arrest illegal immigrants,” he told reporters.

He was responding to allegations by a non-government organisation and Al Jazeera cable TV station that Rela members had acted violently in operations involving illegal migrants, with the foreign media likening Rela members to militants.

Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) executive director Yap Swee Seng had recently also called on the Government to disband Rela to prevent the “growth of the vigilante culture.”

In defence of the voluntary community defence group, Radzi said: “Rela organises raids together with agencies like the Immigration and National Registration departments. It is not right to liken them to militia or call them vigilantes.”

Rela had helped detain 16,000 illegal immigrants so far this year, he said.

***** Vigilantes they definitely are and no amount of denial from the government is going to change that opinion. This group of indisciplined thugs have already gained international notoriety and are a disgrace to the nation. By persisting in maintaining the status quo, the authorities have shown that their personal and political interests are more important than the reputation of the country. These thugs are a solid vote bank for the ruling party as long as their opprobrious actions are left unquestioned and their members not harassed or punished.
Image - Source
Nutcase of a Rela Chief fights back. Details HERE