Anti-ISA rally: 7 arrested in Penang

Source : M'Kini


Arrest-free protest at KLCC - Video Link

Seven persons were detained, including a blogger and a woman activist, during a 45-minute anti-Internal Security Act demonstration in George Town, Penang this morning.

Among those were social activist BK Ong (photo) and blogger K Satish Kumar, who were arrested after they took part in the demonstration held at Gurney Drive at about 11.10am.

Meanwhile, rights group Suaram activists Lau Shu Shi and Teh Chun Hong were detained after they lodged police reports at the city police headquarters in Jalan Patani, Georgetown at 2.45pm.

Five were freed on police bail after being held for seven hours. However, Lau and Teh had been remanded and are expected to brought to court to be formally charged tomorrow.

The other three released today were K Sudhagaran Stanley, M Suparamaniam and B Vimal.

Georgetown police chief ACP Azam Abd Hamid said Ong and Satish Kumar were picked up because they were 'active' during the demonstration held by nearly 150 people near the Gurney Drive roundabout at 10am.

The gathering, part of a nationwide protest, was to urge the government to release all ISA detainees and grant Hindraf legal adviser P Uthayakumar proper medical treatment.

Uthayakumar, who was detained under the ISA on Dec 13 last year along with four other Hindraf leaders, is said to be suffering from heart complaints.

His family said that as a result of his detention, he is riddled with a blood sugar level of 13.5, disrupted eyesight, chest pains, and possibly damaged heart muscles. His supporters want the government to refer him to the National Heart Institute (IJN) for further treatment.

The demonstration in Penang was jointly organised by the Penang group of Hindu Rights Action Front (Hindraf), Suaram, Penang Watch, Tanjung Workers Service Centre, Repeal ISA Coailition (GMI).

Incident-free gathering in KL

A similar gathering was also held in Kuala Lumpur this morning, with about 30 people - including Subang MP Sivarasa Rasiah - assembling at the Kuala Lumpur City Centre shopping mall. This was a revisit by Hindraf to the location after its mammoth Nov 25 rally last year which attracted about 30,000 people.

As a result of that massive rally, the government launched its crackdown on Hindraf, culminating in the detention of five leaders in Kamunting detention camp. Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy is presently in self-imposed exile in London.

R Kannan, a Hindraf coordinator who was the key organiser of the Kuala Lumpur protest, said that the government had been silent on the numerous appeals lodged to seek immediate medical treatment for Uthayakumar (photo).

“Even criminals are given medical treatment, so why not our Uthayakumar? He has done so much for the people, we cannot let this happen,” said Kannan.

“Uthayakumar has been having diabetes since early on. The medication he has received is not sufficient,” chipped in MP Sivarasa who joined in the gathering to show support for the movement.

“We also demand that all ISA detainees be released. We should emulate our neighbours Thailand and Indonesia for fair trials,” he added.

It is also learnt that Uthayakumar’s mother would be handing in a memorandum to the prime minister tomorrow, calling for the release of all ISA detainees.

“We hope they will consider releasing the detainees this time,” added Kannan.

No arrests were reported in Kuala Lumpur although there was a strong police presence. Similar gatherings were also held in Ipoh and Seremban today.

Arrested for not dispersing

In Penang, OCPD Azam said Ong and Satish were picked up to question on their role in the demonstration.

A police team from the Pulau Tikus police station arrived at the demonstration scene at 11.10am and told the demonstrators to abandon the rally and disperse from the area.

However, Ong and Satish were arrested in Gurney Plaza, about 500 metres away, after they had left the venue.

Azam claimed the duo failed to adhere to police instruction to abandon the 'illegal' rally and leave the area.

However, a Hindraf activist from Penang, K Vasantha, 26, said the demonstrators were not told to disperse immediately.

"We were given 45 minutes and we complied to it. I don't understand why our friends were arrested," she said.

The Suaram duo however were detained after Lau lodged a police report against police harassment at the rally.

Lau had just came out from the Jalan Patani police station premise when an unidentified police officer raised his voice against her.

When Lau told the officer to lower his voice and show respect to her, a shouting match ensued between them. She was then taken under the police custody for questioning.

Teh was also detained for recording the Lau incident. His video camera was also seized.

Second rally in Penang

No untoward incidents were reported, however at another Hindraf demonstration in Megamall Pinang in Prai.

Led by Makkal Sakti coordinator RS Thanenthiran (photo), about 300 people took part in the rally.

The rally lasted for about 40 minutes before the demonstrators dispersed peacefully in the present of about 100 riot police personnel armed with batons and helmets.

At both rallies in Penang, protesters display banners rallying cry for the release of the detained five Hindraf leaders and urging the government to repeal the tough ISA, which allows for detention without trial.

Besides Uthayakumar, the other four Hindraf leaders detained are M Manoharan, R Kenghadharan, V Ganabatirau and T Vasantha Kumar.

Free Hindraf detainees or face more demos

Source : M'Kini


Ethnic Indian activists today warned the government to provide medical aid to one of its leaders and free those detained under tough internal security laws or face more street rallies.

About 30 protesters from Indian rights group Hindraf blocked the entrance to a shopping mall at the iconic Petronas twin towers in downtown Kuala Lumpur to demand medical attention for P Uthayakumar, who is diabetic.

Uthayakumar and four other members of the rights group Hindraf have been detained under the tough Internal Security Act (ISA) since December after holding an anti-discrimination rally.

"This gathering is to send a clear message to the government," Hindraf coordinator S Jayathas told reporters.

"If (the government) deny (treatment to Uthayakumar and do not release the ISA detainees), then we will have a bigger gathering, that is definite," he said.

Hindraf leaders angered the government last November with a mass rally alleging discrimination in Malaysia, which is dominated by Muslim Malays.

Mounting anger within the Indian community was said to have been a factor in the government's drubbing in March 8 polls where it lost its two-thirds majority in parliament.

Nationwide protests

Opposition lawmaker Sivarasa Rasiah, who turned up to support the event, said the government should release ISA detainees unless they had proof to charge them in open court.

"As far as I am concerned, one day under ISA detention is too long, one ISA detainee is too many," he added.

Close to 300 policemen were deployed outside the busy shopping mall to control the protesters, with watercannon vans and riot police waiting nearby.

Hindraf supporters carried posters showing a weak-looking Uthayakumar behind bars as the crowd yelled, "Abolish the ISA" and "Freedom."

Similar protests were held in six other locations through the country, organisers said.

Rights groups say 70 people, mainly alleged Islamic militants, are being held under the ISA.

Parts of the ISA date back to the British colonial era, when it was used against communist insurgents. It provides for two-year detention periods that can be renewed indefinitely.

Correct, correct, correct, it's Fairuz

Source : M'Kini via AFP


A royal inquiry has identified a former Malaysian chief judge as the man involved in a video clip allegedly showing a senior lawyer brokering judicial appointments, reports said today.

In a front page headline, the influential Star newspaper said the inquiry panel identified former chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim as the man on the other end of the line with senior lawyer VK Lingam in the 2001 clip.

The five-man inquiry panel, which submitted a lengthy report to the Malaysian King on Friday after a long hearing, found the clip to be authentic and the conversation to be true, the paper reported, quoting commission sources.

Commission chairman Haidar Mohamed Noor has called for the full findings of the report to be made public but Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said he had yet to read the report so could not yet decide on its release, the paper reported.

Drunk or bragging

Commission officials could not be reached for comment.

Former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim unleashed a furore last year by releasing the clip, which apparently showed the lawyer telling a judge over the phone that he would put him forward for a top job.

The government then set up a royal commission to investigate the tape, with prominent witnesses like former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, a cabinet minister and several former high-ranking judges taking the stand.

Lingam has refused to confirm he is the man in the video, and said that if it was him he must have been drunk or simply bragging.

The scandal has affected the image of Malaysia's judiciary and questions have been raised over the outcome of legal cases involving figures implicated in the scandal.

Parameswara didn't convert, Hang Tuah not Chinese

Via M'Kini by Donplaypuks | May 7, 08 4:11pm

I refer to the letter Don't butcher history to create your own 'truths'.

‘Truth Seeker’ perpetuates a number of common errors regarding Parameswara and other matters. Historical records referring to Parameswara are attributable to 3 sources:

1. The Portuguese Gordinho D'Eredia, son of a Portuguese mariner and a Melakan lady from Macassar, referred (circa 1600) in his writings to a Melakan ruler called 'Permicuri.' Not much more information emerged from this source. The Sejarah Melayu for example, makes no mention of a Parameswara at all.

2. The Portuguese mariner Tom Pires who lived in Melaka, referred to a ‘Xaquem Darxa’ and a ‘Modafarxa’ in his 1513 Suma Oriental.

3. The Chinese Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) archives have records of the visit to Nanking of the envoys and rulers of Melaka. These were:

(a) Pai-li-mi-su-la in 1405

(b) his son Mu-kan-sa-yu-ti-er-sha in 1414 and

(c) his grandson Hsi-li-ma-ha-la-che in 1424

These visits to China and the court of Emperor Yung-Lo were to pay tributes to China and seek protection for Melaka against Thai and Indonesian invaders. The three above have been interpreted respectively as:

(a) Parameswara

(b) Megat Iskandar Shah

(c) Sri Maharaja

The two visits to China in 1414 and 1424 were also to report the deaths of Parameswara and Megat Iskandar Shah respectively, and to re-affirm the close relationship between China and Melaka. All three Rulers of Melaka and their envoys made their respective journeys to China in one of Admiral Zheng He's (Cheng Ho) several fleet-ships.

It is clear from these records that Parameswara never converted to Islam. He was an Indian Hindu or an Indian/Malay/Aboriginal Malay mixed Hindu who fled Palembang in Sumatra to eventually found Melaka circa 1400 AD.

It was Sri Maharaja who converted himself and the court of Melaka to Islam, and as a result took on the name of Sultan Muhammad Shah (possibly the ‘Modarfaxa’ of Tom Pires) sometime after 1435.

Megat Iskandar Shah was thought to have changed his name after marriage to a Pasai princess, the name ‘Megat’ signifying a marriage between a commoner and one of royal stature. But his conversion to Islam is in doubt, given that his son was named Sri Maharaja and therefore, the possibility of another non-Malay wife emerges.

These details of Parameswara and the succession to the Melakan throne were resolved definitively by our own Professor Wang Gungwu in his paper ‘The First Three Rulers of Melaka’ published in 1968. This is the basis on which current school history text-books are constructed vis-B-vis the Melaka Sultanate.

With regard to Raja Chula, we can take a more definitive stance, ie, that without a shadow of a doubt, this is a reference to Raja Chulan/Cholan of the Chola Dynasty (7-13 century AD) of South India. The most famous of these Indian Hindu Kings were Rajaraja Chola and his son Rajendra Chola who invaded Southern Thailand, Kedah, Perak, Johor and Sumatra about 1000 AD.

With regard to the legend of Hang Tuah and questions about his origin/ancestry, I believe that many have been misled that Tuah and his musketeers were of Chinese descent. That it was verified by DNA tests. Such a claim can be found on the Internet and refer to a source, viz., The Federal Association of Archaeology and Research of Michigan, USA.

This is a spurious claim and the association referred to, in fact, does not exist.
There is also a hypothesis that ‘Hang’ is associated with the Chinese Princess Hang Li Po from China who married Sultan Mansur Shah of Melaka in 1459. But there is nothing offered by way of tangible proof/evidence by those who espouse this line of thinking. What is true though, is that, Hang Tuah is dismissed in a single line in school history text-books. The Education Ministry will have to answer this mystery.

But what is really sad is that our children are taught as though Malaysian history suddenly began in 1400 with an Islamic Melaka. The cultural influences of India in particular, and China, in South East Asia span over 2,000 years, starting perhaps with the arrival from India of the Brahmanical prince/scholar Aji Saka in Java in AD78, through to Vietnam, Cambodia (Indo China), Thailand, Burma, Indonesia, Bali, Borneo, Brunei and beyond.

We are led to believe that the Indians and Chinese first arrived on the shores of Malaysia in about 1850 as desperate indentured labourers, farmers and miners.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The findings at Bujang Valley speak of an ancient Indian/Hindu presence in Kedah. There were Chinese settlements in Pahang and Kelantan around the 13th -14th century and in 12th century in Singapore. The early Brunei Sultanate had a Chinese Queen. One need not ponder at length the implications of Angkor Wat and Borobudur or that 40%-50% of Bahasa Malaysia comprises Sanskrit/Tamil words.

The time has arrived for us to record our history as the facts tell us and not as we would like to wish it for. The truth will never hurt anyone. Lies, always will.

Wife: Uthayakumar very ill...

Source : M'Kini

Detained Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leader P Uthayakumar has taken ill again and would undergo medical tests at the hospital today.

His wife S Indra Devi, 36, who visited him at the Kamunting Detention Centre in Taiping yesterday, said her husband suffered heart problems and severe skin allergy for the past few days.

"His diabetic level is also high," she said.

Uthayakumar’s condition is reportedly stable after being treated by doctors at the centre.

She said Kamunting authorities had assured her that her husband would be taken to the hospital for further medical tests.

"We demand the authorities to provide the best medical care to protect his health," she told Malaysiakini when met outside the detention camp, where about 2,000-odd Hindraf supporters from all over the country gathered to call on the government to release all five Hindraf leaders held under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

Besides Uthayakumar, the others are M Manoharan, R Kenghadharan, V Ganabatirau and T Vasantha Kumar.

The five were arrested on Dec 13 last after organising a mammoth rally in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 25 against perceived marginalisation and discrimination of Malaysians of Indian origin.

Uthayakumar’s failing health has become a contentious subject for several human rights groups and social activists in recent days.

Various NGOs and politicians have condemned the camp authorities for allegedly failing to attend to Uthayakumar’s deteriorating health condition over the past month.

'Callous treatment'

Social reform group Aliran described it as "callous treatment of a human being."

Its president P Ramakrishnan said it was hard to believe and unacceptable that in a country that had exalted the virtues of Islam Hadhari could be so callous in the treatment of a human being.

"As a result of this gross negligence and wanton cruelty, Uthayakumar had fallen ill and had to be hospitalized," he said.

The Kamunting authorities, he said, had shirked their responsibility for the welfare of a detainee under their care.

"As a human, he is entitled to receive medical attention like any other Malaysian," he added.

Indra Devi’s statement refuted claims by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) commissioner N Siva Subramaniam that Uthayakumar was being put under good medicare at the camp.

"It was not true that he had been denied medicine for diabetes over the past month despite repeated requests to the director of the Kamunting camp," said Siva Subramaniam.

However, in an open statement sent to Hindraf or now popularly known as Makkal Sakti, the movement’s self-exiled chairperson P Waythamoorthy accused Siva Subramaniam and his team of lying..

"How could Sivasubramaniam be satisfied with the medication given to Uthayakumar when he had never interviewed my brother?" said Waythamoorthy in an online posting.

Losing steam

Makkal Sakti supporters, who held the gathering, later converged for a prayer session for their leaders at a Hindu temple in Taiping.

While calls from various groups for the release of the Hindraf five and other ISA detainees - estimated to be 80 at present - have gained pace over the past few months, the fire among Makkal Sakti supporters seems to be dying.

Yesterday’s gathering was more of a subdued affair than a fiery protest, which has been synonymous with Hindraf activities for the past two years to secure the freedom of their leaders.

This could have been due to fatigue, loss of interest after the election euphoria or poor organising by the coordinators.

Whatever the reason, the lack of enthusiasm was evident and the passion expressed by Makkal Sakti activists in front of the detention camp was not one to savour.

An estimated 500-car Makkal Sakti convoy from all over the country started to throng near the detention camp at about 2.30pm.

A small group of activists held a banner calling for the release of their leaders while others were mainly passive on-lookers.

Several Makkal Sakti supporters held up portraits of the five Hindraf leaders, and that of Mahatma Gandhi. They chanted `Makkal Sakti’ and `Release Our Leaders.’

The gathering, which apparently was carried out without a police permit, did not last long.

Point made

The crowd lost its momentum when Makkal Sakti coordinator RS Thanenthiran arrived at 3pm and told them to depart from the scene to a Hindu temple in Taiping, the Arulmigu Balathandayuthabani Alayam near Maxwell Hill.

Thanenthiran and his supporters were also warned by Deputy Taiping OCPD Supt Syed Wahab Syed Majid that "the demonstrators could be forcibly evicted if necessary."

"This is illegal assembly. You all are ought not to be here," he told Thanenthiran.

Syed Wahab later told Malaysiakini that the warning was given because he did not want any untoward incidents to happen near the detention camp.

Despite Syed Wahab’s warning and pleas by Thanenthiran and one of his deputies, MN Anbalagan, several Makkal Sakti supporters appeared reluctant to move.

Finally by 4pm the crowd dispersed under the watchful eyes of about 200-odd police and the Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) personnel.

Thanenthiran said later that the assembly was organised to compel the federal government to release the five Hindraf leaders.

"We have made our point with our massive presence today.

"We will go to the temple to pray for divine intervention to secure the freedom of our leaders," he told the supporters.

Why bother waking up at 3am to study...?

YennaMike Says : " I read this letter publish on M'Kini website an it's sad to see especially from a students that has scored straight A's in her exam. This is the real fact on what is going on over here in Malaysia. There are many more students out there whos' future and dreams has been destroyed by the quote system set by our "irresponsible" government. Like millions of other fellow Malaysian...i pray that soon all this will be over and equal educations are available for all Malaysians...!!!

I refer to the letters A daughter devastated, a mother with no answer and Education system quota abused.

To ‘Schoolteacher, I would like to share with my case which is very similar to your case. I am a SPM leaver with an SPM result of 11A1s and I have a mother, whose is also a teacher in a government primary school. I am also the eldest daughter and I have two more younger brothers. With my family middle-class income, it's impossible for me to further my studies at a private college/university or overseas unless with a scholarship. I am pretty confident with my achievements as I hold extra-curricular posts eg, ,vice president, secretary, school prefect and I even went for the National Service programme.

I understand your daughter's feeling pretty well because I also was rejected for matriculation also for most of the scholarships that I've applied for (Petronas,Yayasan TNB,Yayasan Telekom,Yayasan Khazanah). Until now, I've only been called for an JPA interview.

Honestly, I don't really feel surprised I got rejected for those GLC scholarships and matriculation. As we know, matriculation is only open 10% for us, the non-bumis. Just imagine, out of 100 students, there are only 10 seats for us, the non-bumis. Frankly, I would feel surprise if I got an offer for matriculation.

In my school, there are about 20+ straight As scorers and they also did not get any offer for matriculation or other scholarships. We have only gone for the JPA interview so far. Even for the Petronas interview (they called it Petronas Educamp), out of the 20+ top scorers, only two managed to get selected. (One of them scored 11 A1s and one A2, another scored 11As and one B3, both non-bumis)

However, some of my Malay got an offer to do matriculation even with an SPM result of only 5As. I felt so hurt. I am so sad because I seem to be discriminated against. Nobody appreciates my talent, nobody appreciates my ability. As if our country has more than enough talented scholars.

So, to our country’s leaders, don't blame those talented scholars who do not want to come back to serve Malaysia. Don't forget who ‘threw’ them away before treating them as if they were rubbish. Frankly, sometimes I do question myself, why bother to torture myself? Why bother to wake up at 4am, sometimes even 3am to study? Why bother to score a straight A1s?

My mother once told me she is so disappointed with the Malaysian education system. Although I strived hard to score well in the SPM, but in the end, I ended up with no scholarship offer. Well, I am left the one and only hope- JPA. But my mother advised me not to put to much hope on this government scholarship.

Come on, after 51 years of independence, racism still exists in our country. We, the non-bumis, are like the blacks in US. In the past, US white people detested and discriminated against the blacks. They even put notices like,’No dogs and Blacks allowed’ in public places. Now, our government is putting up notices like ‘Only 10% non-bumis are allowed’ for matriculation.

(And who knows if the figure of ‘10%’ is true? They might take 7% of non-bumis only, who knows?)

Our government also puts up notices like ‘These courses are only reserved for the bumiputera’ for IPTA course with SPM qualifications. For your information, courses like,’Asasi Sains’, ‘Prepatory courses for medicine’ at local unisare only for bumiputeras. Non-bumis, wait until your next life!

Most of my friends and me will choose to challenge of the tough STPM if we really don't get any scholarship offer.And I believe, STPM is the last choice but is it is also the choice of most non- bumis after a series of disappointments. I observed a few batches of my own Form 6 seniors and there were almost zero bumis in the Form 6 Science Stream. Of course, since they got into matriculation with 5As,or even with 2As from SPM, why bother to take the STPM?

My last word to ‘Schoolteacher’ is that all those moral values and history they teach in school is really rubbish. My friends and I knew this when we started on those subjects. To ‘Hamisu’, my mother has already advised me to be a Pakatan Rakyat supporter.