US4 Million FERRARI CAR - PARIS MOTOR SHOW 2006; Owner: James Glickenhaus, Wall Street Fund Manager; More than 60 Concept and Production Cars Display

The Paris Auto Show 2006 opens with more than 60 concept design cars from manufacturers in Detroit to China and is expected to draw a crowd of 1 million visitors. The most lavish car of ALL is the 2006 Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarinai which cost a whopping US 4Million and the proud owner is American Wall Street fund manager James Glickenhaus



James Glickenhaus: “A Pina Ferari designed and made all of the engineering. So it was really what my dream was. They say, what is your dream? Once I told them, they scan me and then they put me in ‘virtual reality’ and they made sure I feel comfortable driving and reaching for the controls, my son can do it and my daughter came over and work on the details”

ABOVE:The car was created for collector James Glickenhaus, and is valued at around $4 million. It was inspired by the P4 racer of the 1960s. Essentially, the P4/5 is a rebodied Ferrari Enzo, with a Pininfarina-designed exterior. BELOW: James inside his car with the "thumbs up" sign at the Paris Show

He has already pick up the car 2 weeks ago and has ‘test drive’ it over 1125 km around France and after the show to return ride in New York to enjoy his Ferrari.

Today, the Auto Show serves a twofold purpose. It is not just a huge showcase where the general public can admire models built throughout the world, it is also a favorite meeting place for professionals from all branches of the automobile industry.


Though many other auto shows have come into existence since 1898, the first to have been staged remains the premier event both in France and on the international scene. Automobile manufacturers often continue to present their new models in Paris, which was the world’s automobile capital for many years.


Before 1914, France was the world leader in terms of car volume and quality, and today it continues to stage the world’s most highly rated shows. The Paris Auto Show may no longer be the high-society gathering it was early in the century, but the MONDIAL DE l’AUTOMOBILE is still a very festive event that continues to celebrate an invention that has been constantly improved for over 100 years and that efficiently meets the requirements of an ever-larger number of people day after day.

Korean Carmakers Out in Force at Paris Motor Show
The Paris Motor Show 2006 opened Thursday in Paris with Korean carmakers Hyundai, Kia, GM Daewoo and Ssangyong introducing new models and concept cars targeting European consumers. Automakers from Europe and Japan are competing intensely in the fields of sports and hybrid cars.

ABOVE: Hyundai Motor’s concept car Arnejs at the Paris Motor

The reason so many Korean carmakers take part in the Paris Motor Show is that they urgently want to boost their exports to Europe as shipments to the U.S. are losing money due to the strong won against the dollar.

ABOVE: Kia Motors’ new Cee'd compact car at the Paris Motor Show

Kia Motors unveiled its Cee’d line, developed with an eye on European customers by its chief design officer Peter Schreyer, who should know since he used to work for Volkswagen. The Cee’d will be produced at Kia’s Zilina factory in Slovakia, which is to be completed in December.

Hyundai Motor introduced a concept car named Arnejs at the show. The hatchback model equipped with a 2,000 cc diesel engine was developed by Hyundai’s design research institute in Europe. Korea’s largest car maker also introduced the Grandeur TG diesel model, which will be released at the end of this year, and a modified version of the Tuscani sports car. Ssangyong Motor also unveiled the Rexton II, which is equipped with a diesel engine meeting the Euro 4 emission standard, and the Actyon. GM Daewoo takes part under GM’s Chevrolet brand.

European and Japanese Cars

ABOVE: The Audi R8/provided by Audi Korea

The Audi R8 made an impressive debut at the show. The high-performance sports car with 420 horsepower and a maximum speed of 301 km/h comes with a bodyline design that, the company believes, conjures the image of a running leopard. Mercedes-Benz introduced high-performance models: the CL 63 AMG, a 525-horsepower car, and the SLR McLaren 722 Edition super sports car. Peugeot unveiled the 908 RC concept car equipped with a 5,500 cc engine which will compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans rally next year.

But European carmakers are also doing battle with the Japanese for the future of the environmentally friendly car market. Toyota, the leader in hybrid car development, introduced the Lexus LS600h, the world’s first V8 hybrid sedan. With 430 horsepower, the LS600h is also Toyota’s top four-wheel-drive model. BMW introduced a hybrid dubbed Efficient Dynamics and a hydrogen-powered car at the show. Peugeot’s 207 Epure, a hardtop convertible model running on fuel cells, also made its debut at the show. BMW’s new Mini models, Volvo’s C30, the Audi S3 and the Honda Civic Type S all target the European market, where compact cars are widely favored.

Other Concept Cars

To see a BIGGER View of these models, GoTo

The follwing Models are from here

FRANCE

Global automakers unveil strategies at Paris show

The Paris Motor Show is now the stage where U.S. and European carmakers can display new designs to combat flat sales and tough Asian rivals.

BY LAURENCE FROST AND MATT MOORE; Associated Press

PARIS - On the opening day of the Paris Motor Show on Thursday, beleaguered European and U.S. carmakers unveiled ambitious new designs and strategies to combat rising costs, flat home markets and ever-tougher competition from Asian rivals.
The 2006 show finds manufacturers on both sides of the Atlantic cutting jobs, closing higher-cost plants and scrambling to revamp aging model ranges as they lag behind the profitability and growth of competitors like Japan's Toyota and Honda.

On their home turf, French automakers gave new momentum to an attempted push by Europe's largest carmakers into luxury market segments -- until recently the domain of upscale German and Italian brands.
Renault presented a prototype SUV called Koleos and a sporty concept car, Nepta. Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said the cabriolet's design offered a hint of the eight high-end models the company plans to launch by 2010, starting with a new Laguna sedan.

Another Renault prototype revealed the smarter features of the new Twingo, to be launched next year. The once-popular supermini has steadily lost ground to newer rivals like Toyota's Yaris.
A new, sporty 1.8-liter Yaris was among Toyota's show offerings, and Honda unveiled new versions of its Civic sedan and CR-V compact SUV.

Citroen excited the crowds with its C-Metisse, a sleek coupe prototype powered by a hybrid diesel-electric engine of the kind that will equip vehicles available from PSA Peugeot-Citroen's stable around the end of the decade.

DaimlerChrysler, a mainstay in the upscale market through its Mercedes brand, showed off new high-performance CL63 and S63 AMG models along with a silver, sleek SLR McLaren 722.

Mercedes is recovering from a weak patch, when business was undermined by quality and reliability concerns, and global unit sales for January through August were 11 percent higher than in the year-earlier period.

''We have worked hard and achieved a great deal -- and now we are reaping the benefits,'' CEO Dieter Zetsche said.
DaimlerChrysler's micro carmaker, Smart, showed off a revamped version of its peppy two-seater that is ubiquitous in European cities but will not be available in the United States until 2008.

HYBRIDS OUT IN FORCE

Hybrids and alternative-fuel vehicles were out in force, as soaring fuel prices cause headaches for U.S. carmakers reliant on strong SUV sales or late developers in hybrid technologies, like DaimlerChrysler and the Renault-Nissan alliance.

The German group's Chrysler unit, which includes the Jeep Cherokee and Grand Cherokee brands, surprised investors earlier this month by saying it would more than double its expected third-quarter operating loss to $1.5 billion, amid weakening U.S. sales of four-by-fours.
By contrast, Europe's smaller SUV market segment is so far shrugging off higher fuel prices to show strong growth.

''As the industry gets more global, they're really running up against geographical preferences,'' said Rebecca Lindland, an auto analyst with Global Insight.

Presenting a new show car, the Dodge Avenger sedan, Chrysler Group said it now expects full-year unit sales to fall instead of remaining stable as previously forecast, after posting a 10 percent decline in the first eight months of the year.

Business should pick up with the rollout of eight new models that deliver better fuel economy, increasingly in demand on the U.S. market, Chrysler's head of sales and marketing Joe Eberhardt also told Dow Jones Newswires.
Toyota, which was the first major carmaker to enter the hybrid market with the popular Prius, presented its LS 600H, a luxury sedan powered by a hybrid V-8 engine -- another first.

Ford Motor Co. showed off a concept car that foreshadows the next generation of its new Mondeo, available in Europe from late 2008 -- an example of the company's new ''kinetic'' design aesthetic that gives an impression of speed even when standing still.

Ford, which is shedding thousands of U.S. jobs and scaling back production, said the second half of the year would prove harder than the first for its European unit, where profit came in at $196 million in January-June.

CROWDED MARKET

The arrival of South Korean and Chinese carmakers on the European market was a concern, Ford Europe CEO and President John Fleming said. ``Anybody who is starting to bring vehicles into the European market, which is already very crowded, is going to add to the pressures.''

China's presence at the show was discreet -- but ominous for the established global car brands. Great Wall Synergie Hellas displayed a new pickup and the five-door SUV it recently began exporting to Italy.

General Motors Corp., which unveiled a new 2-liter turbodiesel SUV under its Opel badge, continued to face pressure to agree to a three-way alliance with Renault and its sister company Nissan.
Billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, who owns 9.9 percent of GM and is pressing for the deal, plans to buy up to a further 2 percent of the carmaker, according to a regulatory filing Thursday.

Uncertainties over the progress toward a possible extension of the RenaultNissan alliance to embrace GM, the world's largest carmaker, have threatened to upstage the new models and technologies on display in the French capital.

The show, known in France as Le Mondial de l'Automobile, opens to the public Saturday for two weeks.

= = =

Sept. 29, 2006, 1:38PM

Smaller Is Better at Paris Auto Show

By MATT MOORE AP Business Writer; © 2006 The Associated Press

PARIS — Smaller is better at the Paris Motor Show, at least for automakers looking to exploit consumer disgust with higher gas prices. It's a mantra that's been heard before when energy prices have risen. But for automakers around the globe, the idea of smaller cars that use less fuel yet retain the spirit of the traditional sport utility vehicle is taking root.

"Of new or redesigned products at the show, fully five were smaller SUVs or crossovers aimed at the growing European market for this kind of vehicle," said Stephen B. Cheetham, a European auto analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd. in London.

Most of the major automakers showed off high-end sedans and sport-inspired models, including the DaimlerChrysler SLR McLaren 722 Edition _ but smaller models proved top draws at the media preview ahead of Saturday's official opening.

With gas prices well above a year ago, automakers are trying to respond to consumer concerns about fuel costs and environmental effects, without driving away customers for their traditional offerings.

Europe has generally been a small-car mecca, said analyst Rebecca Lindland of Global Insight, where the "small streets, the need for fuel efficiency, make them good sellers." All automakers with any presence in Europe, from France's Citroen SA to Volkswagen AG's Skoda subsidiary, offer plenty of small, fuel-efficient cars.

Smaller cars are also attracting more buyers in the U.S. _ about 378,000 subcompacts are expected to be sold this year, up from 223,000 last year _ causing headaches for carmakers who were too reliant on trucks and SUVs. Even so, the Chevy Trailblazer alone sold 250,000, Lindland said. "We are still very much a truck-loving nation."

That spirit has also been catching on in Europe, despite reservations in a culture that has long favored pollution controls and frowns on too much excess.

Nissan Motor Co. is hoping that its Qashqai can break through those concerns.

The Japanese automaker bills it as compact that has the feel but not the aggressiveness of a SUV. It boasts large wheel wells and sits higher off the ground, but drives like a solid and small sedan.

Like Nissan, Hyundai Corp. has its popular Santa Fe SUV, but unveiled a new version, that was more upscale yet still not too large. Dubbed the Veracruz, it sports a 3,000 cubic-centimeter V6 diesel engine and is aimed chiefly at taking away buyers who would tend to go for a Lexus or Mitsubishi.

In a bid to gain more credibility with buyers, automakers pulled out the stops in alternatives to gas-powered cars, exhibiting new ways to market hybrids, which typically use something other than gasoline _ diesel, ethanol, hydrogen, electricity _ at least some of the time.

Citroen, Peugeot, Saab and Lexus showed off hybrid technology, which aims to make cars easier to drive and less costly both in terms of fuel costs and pollution.

Toyota Motor Corp. manager Colin Hensley said the Prius has seen its sales steadily increase, with 720,000 sold since it hit the market in 1997.

"In the first six months of this year, 135,000 customers bought them," he said. "By 2010, we will sell a million hybrids."

Automakers have taken note of that demand. The Lexus LS600H is a luxury car with a hybrid engine, while Citroen SA showed off its diesel concept car, the Coupe C-Metisse. Peugeot drew plaudits for its gas-cell powered 207 Coupe Cabrio concept.

Swedish automaker Saab had its 9.3 Cabriolet on display, which can be powered with pure ethanol feeding the 260 horsepower engine and zero exhaust emissions.

BMW Chief Executive Norbert Reithofer said his company was looking at entering the market, but didn't give any details.

In Brussels on Friday, the energy companies Shell Hydrogen BV and Total France, along with BMW, DaimlerChrysler AG, Ford Motor Co., Volkswagen AG, General Motors Europe AG and MAN AG, announced a joint project to advance the use of hydrogen as fuel for trucks in Europe.

"Hydrogen and fuel cell technology will bring significant change in the way Europe produces and uses energy," the companies said in a statement.

"The companies are together convinced that a joint approach between energy companies and vehicle manufacturers is an excellent means to bridge the gap between the present individual demonstration activities and future commercially available hydrogen vehicles including the corresponding refueling infrastructure," they said.

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Datuk ZAM Accused HARRY LEE of Ulterior Motives in Marginalizing Remarks; RESPONSES from Malaysian Papers; Overseas Views on Ethnic Malaysian Politics

Information Minister Datuk Zainuddin Maidin: "I think he wanted to scare the Chinese, to make them feel that the wealth that they have amassed can never be safe in the region"

See Update below: Oct 1 06, From M’sia NEW SUNDAY Times

See Update below: Sep 30 06, From S’pore Straits Times;

Non-bumi rights crop up once again

LKY Has Hidden Motives In Accusing M'sia Of Marginalising Chinese
September 29, 2006 15:42 PM
BEIJING, Sept 29 (Bernama) -- Information Minister Datuk Zainuddin Maidin said today Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew had ulterior motives in accusing Malaysia of marginalising the Chinese community when he himself had killed the Chinese culture in his own country.

"I think he wanted to scare the Chinese, to make them feel that the wealth that they have amassed can never be safe in the region," he said to newsmen here after visiting Xinhua news agency. He arrived here yesterday for a three-day working visit.

Zainuddin said Malaysia had never marginalised its Chinese community even when there was an opportunity to do so such as in the aftermath of the May 13 incident in 1969.

"The Prime Minister then, Tunku Abdul Rahman, rejected such a notion. We have also never confiscated any assets of the Chinese community. "Instead, we broadened their participation in the government by expanding the Alliance to form the Barisan Nasional.

"Today, Malaysia has more Chinese schools than Singapore and the newspaper with the biggest circulation in the country is a Chinese language newspaper. "Lee Kuan Yew, on the other hand, has systematically killed Chinese culture by disallowing many Chinese practices. He also closed down Nanyang University and Ngee Ann College," he added.

Zainuddin said Lee must be congratulated for changing the Chinese identity in the island state such that it had become unrecognisable. He called on Chinese newspapers in Malaysia not to be taken in by Lee's statement to the extent of playing up Chinese chauvinism and endangering Malaysia's racial harmony.

= = = = = = = = = ==

Friday, September 29, 2006 10:26 PM
Subject: STS: Lively debate in Malaysian press over MM Lee's remarks
MALAYSIA: Lively debate in Malaysian press over MM Lee's remarks. Malay press generally critical of Minister Mentor Lee, but Chinese press divided on Lee's opinions of Chinese Malaysians: By Carolyn Hong Straits Times; Thursday, September 28, 2006

Kuala Lumpur --- The comments of Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew on Chinese Malaysians continue to draw heated reaction in the media.

The Utusan Malaysia and the Chinese press yesterday kept up the momentum, while the English press carried some letters from readers on the issue. The views expressed in the Malay press were generally critical of Mr Lee. The commentators felt that he was interfering in Malaysia's affairs, and that he was wrong.

However, the Chinese press is divided, and carried commentaries that lent some support to Mr Lee's opinion. At a dialogue for good governance in Singapore on Sept 15, Mr Lee said while answering a question that it was important for Singapore to have a government that was "really firm, stout-hearted, subtle and resolute." He noted that the attitude of Malaysia and Indonesia towards the Republic was shaped by the way they treated their own ethnic Chinese minorities.

Mr Lee said: "My neighbours both have problems with their Chinese. They are successful, they're hardworking and therefore they are systematically marginalised, even in education."
The Utusan Malaysia quoted Johor Tionghua Chamber of Commerce and Industry
president Soh Poh Sheng as urging Malaysians not to be taken in by Mr Lee's omments.

He said Mr Lee enjoyed seeing Malaysians quarrelling among themselves. The newspaper also quoted South Johor Small and Medium Industries Association chairman Teh Kee Sin as saying that the episode could jeopardize bilateral relations.

"As businesspeople, we want to be friendly with neighbours," he said. Malaysian Youth Council president Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said Mr Lee should stop interfering in the affairs of other countries.

Berita Harian published the results of an SMS poll asking readers whether they thought Mr Lee should apologise for his remarks. Eighty-eight per cent said he should, while 12 per cent said he should not.
The Chinese press also kept up a lively debate. A commentary in the Nanyang Siang Pau yesterday said that the dispute should be explored using hard data.

It said there should be a close look at how national resources are being distributed, and how the various races have benefited. "The current war of words is like a quarrel between children. Nothing may come out of it or it may end in a fight," it said.

It also called on the government to resolve problems in education funding, inadequate vernacular schools and teachers, and unbalanced university admission criteria.

"Solving these problems and letting Malaysians see the achievements is more effective than disputing the marginalisation issue," it said. A commentary in China Press said it was getting more difficult to hear true words from politicians because of the heavy price involved. It quoted Malaysian Chinese Association president Ong Ka Ting as saying that Chinese Malaysians were not a submissive lot.

He said they knew to speak up for their rights when the situation warranted it. The China Press also carried a report quoting the opposition Democratic Action Party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng as challenging Gerakan president Lim Keng Yaik to a debate.

The two leaders have taken opposing stands, with Gerakan supporting the government and the DAP agreeing with Mr Lee's views. Sin Chew Daily, meanwhile, reported opposition leader Lim Kit Siang as saying that not only the Chinese were being marginalised, even Malays, Indians and the bumiputeras in Sabah and Sarawak were being marginalised.

He said the marginalised groups should step forward and fight for their rights.
____

and from Times of India; Malaysia's identity politics; Maznah Mohamad 29 Sep, 2006

Malaysian society is now gripped by a fundamental question: Is the country, which is more than half Muslim, an Islamic state? In practice, various religious and ethnic groups give Malaysia a distinctly multicultural character.

But the Malaysian constitution provides room for arguments on both sides of the question, and the relatively secular status quo faces serious challenge. Drafted by a group of experts in 1957, under the auspices of the country’s former British rulers, the constitution includes two seemingly contradictory clauses. On the one hand, Article 3 states that Islam is the religion of the federation, and that only Islam can be preached to Muslims.

On the other hand, Article 11 guarantees freedom of religion for all. As a result, Malaysia has developed both a general civil code, which is applied universally, and Islamic law, which is applied only to Muslims in personal and family matters. Recently, however, some Muslim groups have pressed the government to proclaim Malaysia an Islamic state, on the basis of Article 3 and the Muslim population's majority. Ultimately, they would like Malaysia to be governed by Islamic law.

For years, there was little need to resolve this constitutional issue. For example, if a Muslim decided to renounce his faith, the matter would be handled outside the legal system, or conversion records would be sealed. Today, however, every Malaysian must declare a religious affiliation, which is registered with the government, a requirement that has made it difficult for a Muslim to leave Islam without formalising the change of status through the legal process.

The country is now riveted on the fate of ordinary citizens like sales assistant Lina Joy and former religious teacher Kamariah Ali, who are trying to change their religious affiliation through the legal system. Muslim professional organisations and the Islamic opposition political party hold the view that renunciation of Islam is punishable by death. Likewise, the defence by Malaysian civil reform movements of individuals' freedom of conscience has been denounced by some religious leaders as an attack on Islam.

Currently, Malaysia has no law that would impose the death penalty on apostates. Yet, public movements have been formed to highlight this Islamic tenet. If it is not applied, the argument goes, there will be a massive exodus of Muslims to other faiths.
Concerned about sparking an ethnic clash, prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has proclaimed a ban on open discussion of these issues, threatening to arrest Internet news providers and activists if they continue to fan such debates.

Badawi is right to be worried. Since independence, national politics in Malaysia has reinforced group identity, especially among ethnic Malays, an exclusively Muslim community. Identity politics allowed ethnic Malays to assert their claims to control over land, language, and religion. All attempts to reduce Malay influence serve to mobilise this community in both ethnic and religious terms. Malay politicians have learned how to play this card very effectively.
Ethnic Malays' special status has long been codified in affirmative action policies giving them special economic benefits. However, as Malaysia engages with the global economy, these privileges may eventually be removed in order to heighten the country's competitiveness.

As a result, many Malay-Muslims increasingly worry about the loss of familiar economic and political safeguards. In particular, tensions have grown between the Malay majority and the country's large Chinese minority, which has been quicker to benefit from Malaysia's economic opening to the world.
Moreover, efforts to Islamicise the state comes at a time when conflict in the Middle East has further politicised Muslim movements in Malaysia. They view themselves as counter-forces to cultural domination by the West, asserting their religious identity in the face of what they regard as imperialising ideas like secularism and human rights.

Many Muslims are wary of this brand of identity politics. They recognize that the intolerance of Islamist groups can easily be turned against moderate Muslims. Defending a multicultural national identity in the face of religious intolerance is thus a great challenge facing Malaysia's state and society.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The writer is at the School of Social Sciences, Sains University, Malaysia.

From Brunei Times’ 29-Sep-06

Can Asean stave off its ethnic card?

FOR believers of political stability, a series of controversies of late must make 2006 seem like a year of living dangerously for the Association of South-East Asian Nations, a regional grouping of ten nations comprising Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
At the helm of its stumbling block is the recent bloodless coup at Thailand, which did not bode well with Asean leaders despite strong support from the Thai masses and its monarch King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Continued military rule, said Asean Secretary-General Ong Keng Yang, is a setback for democracy in South-East Asia.

But beyond Thailand, inklings of yet a more profound rumbling threatens to unsettle the very fabric of Asean's foundation. This time, bilateral relations between its pioneering members are fast deteriorating after Indonesian and Malaysian leaders took offence with Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew who, in a recent dialogue on good governance held at the Republic, said: ``My neighbours both have problems with their Chinese. They're successful, they're hardworking and therefore they are systematically marginalised, even in education.''

``And they want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese, compliant.''
Mr Lee's rhetoric gave rise to high emotions from the Republic's Malay-majority neighbours. Angered Indonesian lawmakers are demanding a public apology from the senior statesman. The country has even summoned its Singapore ambassador to explain Mr Lee's statement.

Amris Hasan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle said Mr Lee's remarks has put Indonesia's unity at risk, and also threatens the good relations that Asean member countries share.
In Malaysia, several Umno politicians have called on Prime Minister Abdullah to ensure that Singapore does not benefit from the South Johor Economic Region plan.

Mr Abdullah reacted by writing a letter to Mr Lee seeking explanations to his remarks.
In a strongly worded rejoinder, Malaysia's fiery former PM Mahathir Mohamad told Mr Lee to guard his `rice bowl' and not interfere with other countries. He retorted that Malays in Singapore are equally marginalised.

Whether the situation will be a cause for concern remains to be seen. Much depends on whether leaders of countries affected can appeal to calm instead of playing on raw emotions. But far from the madding crowd's ignoble strife, those vying for Asean
integration can perhaps reap much merit by reading this situation with an objective mind.
In an increasingly globalised world, it is logical to hypothesise that people living in a largely peaceful, multicultural environment where cross-cultural engagement has become a routine daily affair are unaffected by racial divisions.

Indeed, a survey conducted by the Institute of Policy Studies, a think tank in Singapore, after its national election this year will affirm this line of thinking. It found that a candidate's qualities like honesty and commitment more than his or her race hold sway over voters' final decisions.
Does this then mean that Singaporeans, and other like-minded South-East Asians, are ready to accept a governing style that is not centred on race? Hope flickers but for a mere moment.

Results of a separate poll released in early March just across the Lion City's borders are less encouraging. Malaysia's first ever survey of race relations reveal that racism still rears its ugly head despite 50 years of living together between ethnic communities.
It means that unflattering stereotypical mantras like ``the Malays are lazy, the Chinese are greedy and the Indians are cheats'' have become part of our cultural heritage. Over time, the latent drumming of such thinking into our minds may even become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

On the political front, perhaps the horrors of past atrocities like the 1964-65 racial riots in the early formative years of Singapore and Malaysia, as well as the Jakarta riots of 1998 where ethnic Chinese were targeted still haunt the people.
= = = = = = = = =
Update below: Sep 30 06, From S’pore Straits Times;

Saturday, September 30, 2006

Non-bumi rights crop up once again

Malaysians in heated debate over remarks made by MM Lee

By Reme Ahmad ; The Straits Times

THERE is a simple rule in Malaysian politics when it comes to Singapore. Anyone who attacks the Republic gains credibility as a stout defender of Malaysia.

Last week, Singapore was used as a whipping boy again. Politicians lined

up to take pot shots at Singapore after Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew commented on Malaysia and Indonesia's ethnic Chinese minorities. Yet, something unusual happened as well. Malaysians broke ranks, with many in the Chinese community agreeing with MM Lee's remarks. One reason was that the debate had widened to include the prickly question of the rights of non-bumiputeras in Malaysia, a country which has been independent for 49 years.

Non-bumiputeras refer to non-Malays in Malaysia such as the Chinese and Indians, while bumiputeras are the Malays and indigenous peoples. 'Bumiputera' in Malay means 'princes of the soil'.
The term has evolved into a code for the special privileges enjoyed by the Malays.

The race-rights debate, always simmering beneath the surface, has supplanted the Mahathir-Abdullah rift as the most important issue in the Malay and Chinese vernacular newspapers, not to mention Internet news portals and blogs.

What were the remarks that got Malaysians hot under the collar?
At a dialogue for good governance in Singapore on Sept 15, MM Lee had remarked that the attitude of Malaysia and Indonesia towards the Republic was shaped by the way they treated their ethnic Chinese minorities.

He said: 'My neighbours both have problems with their Chinese. They are successful, they are hardworking and therefore they are systematically marginalised, even in education. 'And they want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese, compliant.'

The reaction in Malaysia was almost instantaneous. Politicians linked to the ruling Barisan Nasional coaltion government demanded an apology from MM Lee and that he stay out of Malaysian affairs.

Johor politicians wanted pro-Singapore projects spiked.
Singapore's envoys in Malaysia and Indonesia were summoned by the respective governments and asked for an explanation.

The two main government-linked Chinese political parties, the Malaysian

Chinese Association (MCA) and Penang-based Parti Gerakan, took the line that MM Lee should not interfere in Malaysia's affairs, arguing that the ethnic Chinese were not marginalised.

But Chinese educationists, a powerful political lobby that mirrors Chinese feelings on the ground, agreed with MM Lee's remarks. So too did the opposition Democratic Action Party, which draws its main support from Chinese voters.

Together, they widened the debate into an examination of the political failure of the non-Malay parties within Barisan Nasional to stand up for Chinese and Indian rights. Opinions in letters and comments in the mainstream media and on Internet websites were split - mostly along racial lines.

Malay newspapers had politicians and opinion leaders pooh-poohing the suggestion that the Chinese were sidelined. They chided MM Lee for interfering in a neighbouring country's affairs.

The Chinese-language newspapers and politicians were of two minds.

One side said there was no marginalisation while the other said that Malaysia's 35-year-old pro-Malay programme to help bumiputeras made non-Malays feel like second-class citizens.

The mainstream pro-government English-language papers - the New Straits Times and The Star - remained comparatively muted in their coverage. They reported the news and did not editorialise. Not so the alternative media - on Internet news portals such as Malaysiakini, chatrooms and blogs.

The views came thick, fast and unvarnished. The Malay argument on these unfettered channels of communication ran largely along the lines of one opinion logged into an Internet forum:

'If the Chinese here are marginalised, please explain why the Chinese community forms the bulk of the rich? Not only that, no less than 40 per cent of the wealth in this country is owned by them.'

An editorial in the Utusan Malaysia daily which is owned by Umno, the predominant party within the Barisan Nasional coalition, said: 'Since the country achieved independence, the Malaysian economy has been controlled by the Chinese.

'The Malaysian government is happy to follow the concept of powersharing with each ethnic group having a representative in government so that they are not marginalised.'

Those who support this argue that the Malaysian Chinese are well represented in Parliament and the Cabinet. Malays cite the Forbes 2006 list of the 10 richest Malaysians as proof of Chinese well-being.

Only one Malay - port owner and industrialist Syed Mokhtar Albukhary - is on the list.

The non-Malays disagree. 'I totally agree with Lee Kuan Yew's comment. The smartest and brightest Malaysian Chinese are overseas because they don't have equal opportunities for them in Malaysia,' said a comment on a blog.

Most Malaysians, whether they agree with MM Lee's remarks or not, would agree that the trigger point on the nation's debate about race-rights can be traced to a pro-Malay policy aimed at helping bumiputeras draw level economically with the more advanced Chinese. Called the New Economic Policy (NEP), it was launched two years after the country's worst race riots on May 13, 1969 in which the victims were largely Chinese.

While the NEP was designed to eradicate poverty and end the identification of economic function with ethnicity, it evolved almost immediately into a policy favouring Malays in education, the civil service and government-linked businesses.

Largely because of the policy, the Malay professional class has swelled, thanks to help from public funds. More than a third of the country's doctors and lawyers are ethnic Malays today, compared to only a handful 35 years ago.

Malays also comprise 20 per cent of all accountants and nearly half of the engineers and surveyors, according to the government's five-year blueprint, the Ninth Malaysia Plan (2006-2010).

But the policy's excesses which overwhelmingly resulted in ethnic favouritism gradually drew loud complaints from the Chinese and Indians, many of whom felt they needed as much help as they were not well-off. Because of the policy, they complained, children of rich Malays received free school textbooks.
Developers give bumiputeras discounts of 5 to 10 per cent to buy million-dollar bungalows.

And there are disputes on whether the government's aim to make bumiputeras own a 30 per cent equity stake in the economy has been achieved.
While the government says the bumiputera equity stake is now around 18.9 per cent, non-Malay leaders say the figure is 45 per cent. This would mean that the NEP has to be abandoned because its target has been surpassed.

That is unlikely to happen any time soon, and the controversy - and race-based angst - will go on with or without MM Lee's contribution.

= = = = = = =

Update below: Oct 1 06, From M’sia NEW SUNDAY Times

.. Extracts from

Sunday Column: Growing legion of the unfooled;
01 Oct 2006 Kalimullah Hassan

….On a subsequent night, at another buka puasa, someone asked why Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew had haughtily commented about the Chinese in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Lee, who ruled Singapore with an iron fist when he was Prime Minister of the island republic for more than two decades, has maintained his influence by remaining in the Cabinet first as senior minister and now, in the uniquely Singapore-created position of Minister Mentor.

Lee claimed that the Chinese in Malaysia are marginalised and compliant and that Malaysia and Indonesia wanted Singapore to "be like their Chinese — compliant".
We should not be surprised that Lee made that statement. It is not alien for him to get on the high moral ground and make derogatory comments on the affairs of other countries.
There were many theories on why Lee would have wanted to make such profoundly inaccurate observation about Malaysia, especially when relations between Singapore and both Malaysia and Indonesia had taken on a better turn in the last few years.

"Wag the dog" — that was the common consensus at our table of Chinese, Indians and Malays.

…..So what better way to divert the attention of fellow Singaporeans and seek the sympathy of the international audience by reverting to the age- old and tested formula of the "big brothers" from Indonesia and Malaysia trying to bully "poor, little Singapore"?

Only, this time, Malaysia reacted in proper and civil fashion — seeking an explanation from Lee on what certainly was an ill-thought, inconsiderate and provocative statement.
Had Malaysia reacted in any other way, it would have only lent credence to Lee’s assertions of a "bullying big brother".

Lee may not have changed but Malaysia has changed a lot from the days when he was engaged in building up his island state in a period of great recrimination between both countries.
Today, both countries’ leaders often speak about the need to leave past emotional baggage behind and work towards a new era of friendship and co-operation as two sovereign nations should. But, it appears, Lee’s baggage is still in tow.

The facts, Lee, are different. Yes, there are continued grumblings about the abuses in the New Economic Policy’s aims of restructuring society but not one Malaysian who has studied the country’s history and grew up in pre-May 13 Malaysia will dispute that it is the Tun Abdul Razak-initiated NEP which provided the stability and peace for Malaysia to become what it is today.
Take the top 20 richest Malaysians and more than half are Chinese. There are also Bumiputeras and Indians on that list now, a sure sign that no one is targeted for marginalisation.

Malaysia has Tamil- and Chinese-language schools. How many does Singapore have for its own multi- racial population?
The Malaysian Cabinet is made up of all the country’s races. How well are the minorities reflected in the Singapore government?
Sure, Malaysia is not perfect. There are many weaknesses. But we could also use statistics in Singapore and portray a picture of prejudice and marginalistion.

Talk about compliant people. Lim Kit Siang is not compliant; Karpal Singh is not compliant; Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat and Hadi Awang are not compliant; many NGOs are not compliant; the MCA is often not compliant as is the Chinese-based Gerakan; and most of all, many politicians in Umno are not compliant, leading to fractious battles every few years or so.
But they get their say and today, in the changing Malaysia, they have never had as much freedom to be "not compliant" as they have now.

Now let’s look at Chee Soon Juan and J.B. Jeyaratnam or a host of others who were not compliant in Singapore.
We should all read To Catch a Tartar by Francis Seow and James Minchin’s No Man Is An Island. Malaysia doesn’t look so bad, does it?
Maybe my Australian dinner companion was right. It is just a game. Like some Malaysian politicians think it’s a game to make unfounded allegations and tell lies to achieve their objectives
But as we grow up, the legion of the unfooled is also expanding. And the legion of the unfooled in Singapore, too, has substantially outgrown the Cold War mentality of aging politicians.

see also new posting, Oct 03 06 on

HARRY LEE says Sorry; NO Intention to MEDDLE, Influence MALAYSIAN Politics or INCITE FEELINGS; REGARDLESS, PEOPLE Have Own JUDGEMENT-TRUE POSITION

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MALAYSIA & INDONESIA DEMAND APOLOGY from LEE KUAN YEW over Marginalized Remarks; SINGAPORE’S Envoys in KL & Jakarta Summon for Explanations

Once again what we are witnessing is a “matter of absolute truth”. And when you have the philosophical argument over some data which can be questioned and open to interpretation and when one party just refused to accept what is obvious and more correct and up-to-date information; this gives rise to dispute between two nations and demands for apology. What good is an apology as the naked truth which is more appropriate would stare you in the face?
Even further explanation and the meditation from a third party would be useless if one party is so insistent, unbending and unyielding in their “automatic” beliefs which is just expressed beliefs they regard as their “truth” and they want their truth to be the Truth.

Yes, and the recognition and appreciation of the differences. But if you choose, you shall know that you are choosing, and the conflict shall be different. It shall not be a conflict to be expressing conversion or expressing the absoluteness of one or the other. The conflict may be more likened to debate than struggle.

But if you are not aware of the beliefs and if you are not aware of the energy, you may be expressing “automatic” beliefs more strongly, which many times become quite confusing to individuals and even conflicting in the face of more useful information.

The immediate response from Singapore’s envoy in KL is “appropriate reply will come through appropriate channel”

= = = = = = = = = =

S'pore Should Apologise Over LKY's Remarks, Says Syed Hamid

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- Singapore, as a good neighbour, should apologise to Malaysia for the recent remarks by its Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew that the Chinese community in Malaysia is being marginalised.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said Thursday Malaysia deserved an apology from Singapore for the remarks, which caused concern among Malaysian leaders.

"They should (apologise) for the sake of the two supposedly good neighbouring countries, they should do that.

"That statement went beyond fair comment, describing something that is not true in our country, an instigation. So I think with all honesty, it should be polite for them to say they were sorry," he told reporters after a meeting of the Umno Supreme Council, here.

Speaking at a forum in Singapore on Sept 15, Lee had said that Malaysia and Indonesia "have problems with the Chinese. They are successful, they are hardworking and, therefore, they are being systematically marginalised".

Lee Kuan Yew at the forum. His "off the cuff" remarks about Chinese marginalization landed him in hot soup

He also said that the two countries "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese -- compliant".

Syed Hamid also confirmed that Singapore's High Commissioner to Malaysia Ashok Mukar Mirpuri met Foreign Ministry Secretary General Datuk Rastam Isa Thursday.

"We called (him), we want to know exactly the nature of the statement. We have given our views and how we feel about it. So we wait for his response. Subsequently, we will decide what action is to be taken," he added.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has sent a letter to the Singapore government seeking an explanation over Lee's remarks, which he said could cause racial tension.

From NST

Wisma Putra summons Singapore envoy over Lee’s remarks

29 Sep 2006
Hamidah Atan, Jason Gerald and Azura Abas

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PUTRAJAYA: Singapore’s envoy here was summoned to Wisma Putra over remarks by Lee Kuan Yew that the Chinese in Malaysia were being systematically marginalised.

High Commissioner T. Jasudasen had a brief meeting with Datuk Kamaruddin Mustafa, the ministry’s Southeast Asia Division secretary,

A senior ministry officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Jasudasen was summoned to explain on Lee’s remarks.

ABOVE: High Commissioner T. Jasudasen leaving Wisma Putra remarked: "appropriate reply will come through appropriate channel” BELOW: His Secretary accompanying him
BELOW: Left in the White Car

"He gave an assurance that he would report back to the Singapore government. Until then, we will have to wait and see."

Lee, who is Minister Mentor, told a forum in Singapore earlier this month that Malaysia’s minority Chinese community was being systematically marginalised.

He also said it was vital that predominantly ethnic Chinese Singapore stood up to Malaysia and Indonesia. He noted that the two countries "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese — compliant".

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Lee’s remarks were unjustified and he has sent a letter to the Singapore government on the issue.

"So far, I have not received a reply," he said. Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said the country expected an apology from its neighbour."We expect Singapore to say sorry for Lee’s remarks."For the sake of being two good neighbours, Singapore should do that.

"I think that the statement was way beyond fair comment. "Malaysia has given its views to the Singapore officials and how we feel about it," he said.

= = = = = = =

Background to Jasudasen experience

The Singapore Government has appointed Mr T Jasudasen as Singapore's next High Commissioner to Malaysia. He will assume the post on June 19.
Mr Jasudasen has been Singapore's ambassador to Myanmar since 2004.
Before that, he was the ambassador to France between 1997 and 2004.
Mr Jasudasen joined the Foreign Affairs Ministry in 1977 and has served at the Singapore Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, Singapore's Embassy in Manila, and the Singapore High Commission in Kuala Lumpur.
At the Foreign Affairs Ministry, he was Director of the ASEAN Directorate and a Director of Policy, Planning and Analysis.
Mr Jasudasen graduated with an Honours degree in Law from the University of Singapore. He also studied Public Administration at the Ecole Nationale d'Administration in Paris, France.

Mr Jasudasen was awarded the Public Administration Silver Medal in 1990

= = = = = =

And from a disgruntled REFUGEE trying to settle an old score

S'pore Malays Oppressed By Kuan Yew's PAP, Says Former S'pore Politician ; September 28, 2006 19:52 PM; By Mohd Haikal Isa
JOHOR BAHARU, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- The Malays in Singapore have been systematically marginalised since Lee Kuan Yew became Prime Minister, and the government under the city state's founding father also committed "ethnic Malay cleansing", said Singapore's veteran politician who migrated to Malaysia.

Prof Mohammed Yacob, who was political secretary to Singapore's second Chief Minister Lim Yew Hock, said the Malays were systematically marginalised since the People's Action Party (PAP) came to power in 1959.

According to Mohammed, the PAP reduced the Malay political power through the implementation of the government's housing policy.

He attested that Malays were uprooted from their villages and were resettled separately at various new townships including Tampines New Town, Bedok North and South, Toa Payoh and Ang Mo Kio.

"The PAP divided and ruled the Malays. The Malays were separated from each other and resettled in various housing estates so that they no longer have a political voice," he said in an interview with Bernama here.

"The PAP government used the racial quota system to re-organise the population of Singapore to weaken the Malays. Each housing estate must have 72 per cent Chinese, 16 per cent Malays and 12 per cent Indians and others."

The Malay political clout gradually diminished after the housing policy was implemented, he said.

"The PAP government also deliberately allowed the marginalisation of the Malay language and Malay schools to occur gradually and naturally.

"During the colonial rule, there were so many Malay schools in Singapore including in Kampung Gelam, Tanglin Kecil, Kampung Jaguh, Tanglin Besar and Kampung Melayu. The Tun Sri Lanang and Sang Nila Utama Malay schools were the pride of the Malays then.

"But when Singapore pulled out of the Federation of Malaysia in 1965, Lee Kuan Yew changed the education policy which resulted in the marginalisation of the Malays along with their schools and language.

"The policy emphasised on Mandarin and English... and today, Malay stream schools are no longer in existence in Singapore.

"In other words, the PAP government made a mockery of the constitution in paragraph 153 (2) which states that Bahasa Melayu is the national language of Singapore. PAP is committing ethnic Malay cleansing in Singapore," he said.

Mohammed sought refuge in Malaysia in 1978 after he heard that he was going to be arrested. He is now a Malaysian citizen.

Recently, Lee said Malaysia and Indonesia systematically marginalised their ethnic Chinese, sparking outrage among ethnic Chinese in both the countries.

PM sends Singapore letter on LKY remarks

28 Sep 2006
Farrah Naz Karim

---

PUTRAJAYA: Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has sent a letter to the Singapore government seeking an explanation over recent remarks by Lee Kuan Yew.

Lee, Minister Mentor in the Singapore Cabinet, had said the Chinese in Malaysia were being marginalised. Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said the Cabinet was informed yesterday that the letter has been despatched. "We expect Singapore to say sorry for Lee’s remarks," he said.

He added that if Singapore continued to come up with baseless remarks, it would be difficult to maintain cordial relations.

Syed Hamid said that Lee, as the former Prime Minister of the republic, should have known better than to utter such remarks as it also went against Asean’s non-interference policy.

"I believe Singapore’s motive is to make Malaysia look bad to foreign investors but they won’t succeed because the world can see that we Malaysians always stand together as one nation," he said.

Abdullah said on Monday that he wanted Lee to explain himself as his comments could cause racial tension.

Lee told a forum in Singapore on Sept 15 that the city-state’s neighbouring countries, Malaysia and Indonesia, "have problems with the Chinese. They are successful, they are hardworking, and therefore, they are systematically marginalised".

He also said the two countries "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese — compliant".

Abdullah had said Lee’s remarks were not welcomed and the republic’s founding father had appeared to show he had no qualms about making such a highly-charged statement.

The Umno supreme council meeting today will discuss the forms of action to be taken against Singapore following the remarks.

Umno information chief Tan Sri Muhammad Muhammad Taib said the matter would be raised following immense pressure from the grassroots for stern action to be taken.

In Jakarta, Indonesia summoned Singapore’s ambassador to explain Lee’s remarks.

Director of the Indonesian foreign ministry’s East Asian and Pacific Affairs division, Yuri Thamrin, described Lee’s comments as "inaccurate" and required explanation.

Indonesian lawmakers urge Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew to apologize

Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa;Published: Tuesday September 26, 2006

akarta- Angry Indonesian lawmakers have demanded a public apology from Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew over reports that he accused Indonesia of systematically marginalizing its Chinese minority, local media reported said Tuesday. "The statement is full of lies. We are very upset because it has disgraced Indonesia. We will ask the government to send a letter of protest to Lee," The Jakarta Post quoted lawmaker Djoko Susilo as saying.

Susilo, from the National Mandate Party (PAN), claimed there was no longer discrimination or systematic marginalization of the ethnic Chinese in the country.

"Now, the minority Chinese have access to all positions, even in the military. We even have ministers and lawmakers from the ethnic group," he said.

Reports quoted Lee as telling a forum in Singapore recently that it was vital for the Chinese-majority city-state to stand up to its Muslim-majority neighbours.

Lee was reported to have said Malaysia's and Indonesia's attitude towards Singapore were formed by the way they treated their own ethnic Chinese minorities. Lee reportedly claimed Malaysia and Indonesia had problems with their Chinese populations because those minorities worked hard and were successful.

Malaysian leaders also have reportedly demanded an apology from Lee.Another lawmaker, Amris Hassan, criticized Lee's remarks for the danger they posed to Indonesian unity as well as ASEAN's good relations.

"Beside obstructing our bilateral relations, the remarks also hinder the process of establishing the ASEAN community," said Hassan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). He demanded that Lee issue a public apology and explain what he meant not only to Indonesian leaders but also to the Indonesian people.

ASEAN stands for the Association of South-East Asian Nations, which comprises of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

Indonesians of Chinese descent account for approximately 3 per cent, or around six million, of the country's 220 million population. But they control the bulk of business activity in the world's fourth most populous nation.

MORE Pics - 90 sec RM80,000 ROBBERY- PBB BankTaman Cheras by TWO; 3000 ESCTASY Pills & Gun Seized in RAID - Pulau Pinang Police Detained Trio

ABOVE & BELOW: The PBB Bank in Taman Cheras robbed the 2nd time; No Shots were fired.

Two robbers wearing full faced helmets struck the PBB Bank in Taman Cheras branch at about 3.58pm just before closing and escaped with RM 80,000 just within 90sec. They seized the security personnel pump gun and ordered the bank staff and customers to remain silent. No shots were fired.

The suspects were believed to be in their 30’s escaped on a motor-cycle after ordering staff to fill up two plastic bags with money. This is the second time the bank was robbed. In December last year, robbers escaped with RM 150,000.

ABOVE: The guard's gun being abandoned by the robbers and BELOW: Police personnel dusting for finger prints from the glass door

The KL CID Chief said the Police are investigating the incident based on the CCTV footage and on finger prints lifted from the glass doors.

Anyone who have information can contact Rakan Cop at 03-2115-9999 or at any police station

And more details from STAR

RM80,000 gone in 90 seconds as robbers strike bank; By MARC LOURDES

KUALA LUMPUR: Ninety seconds – that’s all the time it took for two robbers to “withdraw” RM80,000 from a bank in Cheras in a brazen hold-up.

This was the second robbery at the Public Bank Taman Cheras branch in less than a year, only it was in record time in yesterday’s instance.

Acting City CID chief Asst Comm Ramli Din said the men, armed with revolvers, made it in the nick of time just before the bank closed at 4pm.

“They wrested a shotgun from the lone security guard before vaulting over the counter and ordering the teller to dump cash into plastic bags they brought along,” he said.

In full view of the 10 customers and 13 staff members, the robbers, dressed in dark jackets and wearing full-face helmets, grabbed the bag with RM80,000 in it and escaped through the front door to an alley behind, where they dumped the shotgun in a drain.

They then made their getaway on a motorcycle.

“The whole incident was over in 90 seconds,” said ACP Ramli, who added that no shots were fired and no one was injured.

Police are studying images of the robbers from the bank's CCTV cameras. A forensics team also lifted fingerprints from the bank counter and glass door.

ACP Ramli said police have not ruled out the possibility of the robbers being the same men involved in the hold-up at the Public Bank Sungai Chua branch earlier this month.

In that incident, pistol-toting robbers in full-face helmets took only two minutes to disarm a security guard of his shotgun before escaping with RM114,000.

= = = = == ==

ABOVE: Police deisplaying the assortment of items and drugs seized and BELOW: The vacuum cleaner where the gun and bullets were found

3 men were detained (including a former ISA detainee) in a raid in an apartment in Pulau Pinang on Wednesday afternoon for criminal activities. The three were between 25 – 48 years in ages and were remanded for 12 days or investigation under section 8 of the firearms act (1971) and section 39 (B) of the dangerous drugs act.

ABOVE: The 8mm revolver recovered and BELOW: The 27 shinny brass bullets

The police seized a cold revolver with 27 round of ammunition hidden in a vacuum cleaner in the 3 pm raid. Also 3000 ecstasy pills worth RM56,000, a proton saga aero back, and fake car registration plates believed to have been used by the trio for criminal activities.

ABOVE: The assortment of drugs seized and BELOW: Closer look at some of the Esctasy pills

All the three detained were from Johore.

And details from STAR,

Trio held for trafficking and armed robbery

PENANG: Three men said to be involved in trafficking of Ecstasy pills and a series of armed robberies in the country were arrested in Bandar Baru Air Itam here.

State CID chief Senior Asst Comm II Azman Yusof said an automatic pistol with 27 rounds of ammunition and 2,843 Ecstasy pills worth more than RM70,000 were seized.

He said police had been monitoring an apartment from where the suspects had been operating for some time.

At about 3.30pm on Wednesday a team led by Chief Insp Samsuddin Mamat raided the apartment and detained the suspects.

“The three men, aged between 25 and 46, had since been remanded for a week by a magistrate's court pending investigations,” SAC Azman told a press conference yesterday.

He said that one of the suspects was an ex-Internal Security Act (ISA) detainee while another was wanted by Yong Peng police in Johor in connection with an arson case in 2004.

“The trio are believed to be part of a larger group of traffickers and robbers,” he said.

“We are now trying to determine the source of the firearm and Ecstasy pills meant for distribution nationwide,” he added.

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NO PAY RISE FOR CIVIL SERVANTS; NO NEW SPORTS CENTER in LONDON; TARRC Existing FACILITIES UTILISED Fully; RM1 Million ALLOCATION - Athlete’s WELFARE

With PM Abdullah as Finance Minister trying so hard to reduce the country’s deficit budget, it is not surprising, the government is saying NO to demands for a pay rise revision for the lower end of the civil servants support group and also a NO to the proposed high performance sports complex.

.
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi :"The government was expected to incur additional cost of about RM6 billion under the exercise."

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Thursday the government was not prepared to consider the request for a salary revision for civil servants from the support group and police personnel.

The Prime Minister said any salary revision would involve all public sector employees, and the government was expected to incur additional cost of about RM6 billion under the exercise.

"At present, I can't say we are ready to cough up such a big sum. The government's financial capability must be taken into consideration.

"This is because the government has also to spend a huge sum on development for the people," he told a press conference after chairing the Cabinet Committee on Public Service Management and Salary meeting here.

Cuepacs was recently reported to have asked for a hike in the basic salary of RM480 for the support and lower groups, while Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan also proposed that the basic salary of police personnel of lower ranks be revised.

Abdullah, who is also Finance Minister, said it was a known fact that salaries of some police personnel were low, but if the allowances were included, their gross incomes were higher than those in certain categories of the public sector.

"However, the burden on the police is increasing. The matter (salary adjustment) could be considered," he added.

The Prime Minister said although a salary revision had not been undertaken for a long time, the government from time to time had made salary adjustments, besides approving various allowances and bonuses for public servants.

The Public Service Department had earlier said that since 1992, the government had made salary revisions and adjustments five times.

"There had certainly been an increase when civil servants enjoyed salary adjustments of up to 10 per cent," said Abdullah.

He also touched on the provision of the Cost of Living Allowance (Cola), besides bonus payments to civil servants involving an allocation of RM2.4 billion.

He said a salary revision meant that the government would also have to review the pension.

"And pension is not a small matter for our country. This means more money (will have to be spent by the government) if it is also reviewed.

"But a general salary revision will involve a massive exercise," he added.

However, he said the PSD would study the proposed salary revision as a whole.

Abdullah also announced the incentive payment of RM100 a month for firemen providing emergency medical treatment to disaster victims before the medical team reaches the scene.

He also said that the federal government would negotiate with the state governments on extending the working hours gradually for both federal and state civil servants nationwide.

"The proposal is aimed at facilitating the operations between agencies, either between federal and state agencies or head offices which are based in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya with state branches, to be more effective and productive."

As part of efforts to improve the public service delivery system, Abdullah said lateral appointments of public service personnel would be extended to the federal, state and district levels.

This involves appointing contract staff with wide experience outside the public service to serve the government.

The Immigration Department would also be strengthened with the creation of the Management and Professional Group at the service level.

Abdullah said the meeting also noted that those who wish to be appointed as penghulu must have not less than 10 years' experience in community work.

"This is to avoid those who are too young or have no experience from assuming the post," he added.

M'sia May Not Build New Sports Complex In London, Says Najib; Sept 28, 2006 16:19 PM

Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak: "A centre at the TARRC will be vital if the country aspires to produce more world-class athletes like Nicol David"

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- A new sports complex may not be built in London but facilities at the Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre (TARRC) in Brickendonbury may be used as a high performance training centre for Malaysian athletes, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said Thursday.

The Deputy Prime Minister said the centre was necessary to realise the government's vision of excelling in sports at the international level.

"A centre at the TARRC will be vital if the country aspires to produce more world-class athletes like Nicol David. It will help facilitate certain sports which require to base their athletes abroad to gain valuable exposure.

"The centre will also serve as a transit or forwarding base for our athletes who go overseas for competitions, especially in Europe," he told reporters after chairing the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Sports Development.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Azalina Othman Said said today the government would not build a new complex but would utilise facilities at the existing centre.

Najib said the national Under-20 and Under-17 football teams could be based at the centre and compete with teams in England and Europe.

He said the Youth and Sports Ministry and the National Sports Council would meet national sports associations to discuss their requirements before a final decision was made.

Today's decision by the Cabinet Committee on Sports Development puts to rest earlier speculations and reports that a new sports complex would be built in Brickendonbury costing RM490 million.

The 19.2ha TARRC has facilities like an administrative building, laboratory, staff quarters, canteen, kitchen, football field, 10m swimming pool and a cricket oval.

Najib also announced that a foundation to oversee athletes' welfare would be set up with an initial allocation of RM1 million, while sports schools in the country would enjoy a flexible education system to enable school-going athletes to excel both in sports and studies.

"Since the prime objective to set up such schools is to produce elite athletes who can represent the country, they must be given flexibility to extend their duration of studies based on their requirements.

"If an athlete requires three years to sit for his or her Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination after the PMR (Penilaian Menengah Rendah) examination, they should be allowed to do so," he added.

Malaysian Internet Exchange to be Formed by MCMC, Telcos and ISPs: Announced Datuk LIM K Y; EDtone To Expand TRAVLEFON Service To 20 Countries

Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik said such an exchange would need to be formed to reduce the outflow of internet traffic that had caused the country to lose in terms of foreign exchange.
Meanwhile, Keng Yaik said the Ministry was in no hurry to roll out the Mobile Wimax Broadband service, the next level of broadband.

TravelFon service Hong Kong, China, Indonesia and US by 2007 and to 20 countries over the next three years


MCMC, Telcos And ISP Directed To Work On Malaysian Internet Exchange; September 16, 2006 17:02 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 16 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has been asked to work with local telecommunication companies (telcos) and Internet Services Providers (ISPs) to form a Malaysian Internet Exchange.

Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik said such an exchange would need to be formed to reduce the outflow of internet traffic that had caused the country to lose in terms of foreign exchange.

"If you want to develop Malaysia into an international ICT hub, we have to build up (our own internet exchange) and keep our local (internet) traffic local," he told reporters after chairing Parti Gerakan's monthly meeting here Saturday.

He said as of now, a point-to-point Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone call made within Malaysia would have to be re-routed to either Singapore or even the United States due to the absence of our own internet exchange.

"Even if I want to call Tsu Koon (Gerakan Deputy President and Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon) in Penang using VoIP, my call had to go (re-routed) to Singapore and even United States. This is ridiculous," he said.

He added that at any given time, internet traffic in Malaysia would always be more than in Singapore but the reality that made the island state to enjoy higher traffic was due to the absence of Malaysia's own internet exchange.

He said in his initial consultations, local telcos and ISPs had expressed their agreement in principle on the idea but insisted that there should be an "industrial neutrality" once the internet exchange was put into place.

"I don't care who (would eventually) owns it (the internet exchange) but what is most important, the exchange must be neutral to all ISPs. (If) you charge so much for one ISP, you are going to charge the same for other ISPs," he added.

He said through industrial neutrality, the eventual internet exchange owners would also encourage international ISPs to utilise the exchange.

Meanwhile, Keng Yaik said the Ministry was in no hurry to roll out the Mobile Wimax Broadband service, the next level of broadband development planned in the country.

He said MCMC has been asked to look further into the Wimax usage especially to improve VoIP, Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), broadcasting and other data services in the country, while ensuring that the licence to operate it would eventually be given to the right company.

==========================

EDtone To Expand TravelFon Service To 20 Countries

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 25 (Bernama) -- REDtone International Bhd plans to expand its TravelFon service to 20 countries over the next three years, says its group managing director, Wei Chuan Beng.

He said the company planned to introduce the services in Hong Kong, China, Indonesia and US by 2007.

"In markets where we are currently not represented, we can either enter into joint-venture partnerships with local partners, franchise the business or have a direct presence," he told reporters at the media briefing, here Monday.


Wei said the service would enable the company to tap the huge international roaming market which was estimated at US$50 billion (US$1=RM3.65).

He said the company may consider an initial public offering to raise funds to fuel TravelFon's expansion.

"We are optimistic of TravelFon's growth potential and are prepared to look into listing in another market to ensure that it is given every opportunity to succeed," he said.

He said the TravelFon service combined a proprietary phone routing technology and REDtone's network to deliver a full mobile service to users without any roaming charge and offered savings of up to 80 percent on call charges while overseas.

"The service's main customers are expected to be the corporate segment and small- and medium-scale enterprises which typically spend substantial sums on overseas calls made by their staff while they were out of the country.

"It will also benefit individuals who travel abroad frequently," he said.

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TUN SALLEH ABAS Bares ALL- New and Important Facts for a REVIEW of the 1988 JUDICIAL CRISIS & Dr MAHATHIR Immediate RESPONSE

LATEST UPDATE: CABINET SAYS NO REVIEW and read Datuk Shahrir Support for a review below
Cabinet says case closed; 28 Sep 2006 ;V.Vasudevan

No review of the sacking of three judges in 1988

---

KUALA LUMPUR: It’s final.
There will be no review of the sacking of three judges in 1988, the Cabinet decided yesterday. They felt that there must be finality on this issue and said that the the sacking of Tun Salleh Abas, Datuk George Seah and Datuk Wan Sulaiman Pawanteh will only be revisited when there is “new and important’’ about the case emerge.

And what qualifies as “new and important’’ facts? Datuk Seri Nazri said that he will call for a review if one of the judges who had sat on the tribunal came forward and said that they were instructed to find Salleh guilty.

“If any one of the five judges says he was instructed to act in a certain way, I will advice the Cabinet to allow the review as it would have been a miscarriage of justice.”

Barring that happening, the case of the three judges and the Judicial crisis of 1988 is closed.

“The Cabinet has endorsed the position taken by me at yesterday’s meeting,” said the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Nazri said that he told the Cabinet that Salleh’s disclosure of five incidents did not merit a review as they had occured before the tribunal was formed.

He said that the matter was not on the Cabinet agenda but was discussed following newpaper reports highlighting the former Lord President’s call for a review of his sacking and that of his fellow judges.

In a statement, Salleh had highlighted five incidents which he said showed that the decision for him to step aside had been made even before the tribunal was set up. He said that on May 27 1988 he was summoned to the Prime Minister’s office and told by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to step down because he had been biased in the discharge of his judicial duties.

Salleh said that he refused to resign and was threatened with dismissal.

Dr Mahathir on Tuesday said that he had asked Salleh to step down to prevent any scandal.

On Aug 8, 1988, Salleh and five Supreme Court judges - Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin, Tan Sri Eusoffe Abdoolcader, Tan Sri Wan Hamzah Mohamed Salleh, Tan Sri Wan Sulaiman Pawanteh and Datuk George Seah - were accused by the Government of misconduct.

The five were suspended but Salleh, Wan Sulaiman and Seah were later sacked.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = =
On 28 Sept 2006, the Sun said
A chance to establish truth and justice

THE question of a review of the 1988 judicial crisis centres around the fundamental principle of the separation of powers among the executive, legislative and judicial branches of our democratic system. It must be acknowledged firstly that so far in Malaysia, the executive arm has overshadowed the judiciary and legislature, and as a result, the safeguards that are enshrined in our constitution against the excessive use of its powers have not worked to the extent that is desirable in a functioning democracy.

Due to the weakened check and balance mechanism, it is likely that aberrations of justice may have taken place in the administration on public affairs. The judicial crisis of 1988 is certainly among the most far-reaching of challenges that has occurred to the democratic system that is at the core of our national life.

It is therefore an episode without parallel in the annals of our constitutional experience. Today, 18 years after the event, we have an opportunity to reexamine that chapter with a view towards reaffirming the core principles of natural justice and administrative integrity in the conduct of the nation's affairs.

If we do not have the stomach on this occasion to set the ship of state on the right course, we will have missed a rare chance to chart a future that is guided by the shining star of truth, fair play and integrity, and so build a democratic system that can stand the
scrutiny of the generations to come.

Who knows whether there will be another such chance?

http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=15613

Bar Council: Are we interested (in an independent judiciary)?
B. Suresh Ram Updated: 05:39PM Wed, 27 Sep 2006

PETALING JAYA: Whether the 1988 judicial crisis should be reviewed boils down to whether the people and the government want the truth to come out, the Bar Council said today (Sept 27, 2006). Its chairman, Yeo Yang Poh, who recently called for the review, said the revelation of "new facts" by former Lord President Tun Salleh Abas yesterday makes the move more important and pertinent now.

Salleh's airing of five reasons for a review was in response to a recent statement by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz that a review can only be justified if "new and important facts" have arisen.

Nazri, in an immediate response to Salleh's "new facts", reportedly said the new information did not merit a review. He reiterated that there must be a finality to such cases.

Said Yeo: "Are we interested, that is the question?"

He said with the new revelation by Salleh, the finality argument by Nazri did not hold water. Yeo said there is thus a need for the government to seriously reconsider its position on the matter.

"The question is this: Does our society want the truth to come out? If so, then this exercise is all the more meaningful," he said. Johor Baru MP Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad, who is also parliamentary Public Accounts Committee chairman, said he would support the review of the 1988 crisis, which led to Salleh's sacking and that of two other colleagues, on the basis of new evidence.

"This issue is very close to me," he said. Shahrir said the issue was one of the reasons why he stood as an independent candidate in a by-election he won in August 1988.

"It is very personal (the sacking) and it was for this reason I had refrained from commenting on it," he said. He said that for the matter to be re-opened, the basis or the idea as to why t should be reopened must be there. Shahrir said the best and the utmost one can do is learn from the crisis and not repeat it.

The 1988 crisis represents the darkest period in the country's judicial history and was criticised as the executive interfering in the judiciary.

= = = = = = == = = = == = = =

The following is the FULL 5 -page statement issued dated 26th Sep 2006

I must thank (defacto law minister) Nazri Aziz for agreeing to the review of the 1988 judicial crisis if "new and important" facts emerge.

In response to his comments, it seems to me that he has not agreed to the review because the decision of the two tribunals - the first tribunal which decided on me and the second tribunal which decided on my five other colleagues - were accepted by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the government in 1988. Thus, he would agree to the review only "if there are new and important facts in the case".

In refusing to agree to a review of the 1988 judicial crisis, the honourable minister seems to also place great reliance on the fact that acceptance of the recommendations by both tribunals were also accepted by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

According to Article 40(1) of the Federal Constitution, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as a constitutional monarch must act "in accordance with the advice of the cabinet or a minister acting under the general authority of the cabinet, except as provided by this constitution".

Thus, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is not even allowed to refuse advice tendered by the cabinet or the prime minister. This is further provided in Article 66(4)(a) where the Yang di-Pertuan Agong cannot refuse to assent to a bill passed by Parliament. He is given three months within which to assent to the bill. If he fails to do so, the government is free to gazette the bill into law.

The history of this country has shown that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong has never acted against the wishes of the prime minister or the cabinet including on the issue of depriving the rulers of their own immunity. There is therefore no way for the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to refuse consent to accept to the recommendations of the two tribunals when they were submitted to His Majesty.

In my view, no emphasis need therefore be placed on the acceptance of the recommendations of the two tribunals by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, since in the light of constitutional provisions and practice, His Majesty's powers have become, with respects, almost procedural and reflect the wishes of His Majesty's government, even if the prime minister of the day is dictatorial. That the then government of the day was dictatorial was admitted by the minister himself in one of his recent press statements.

As regards "new and important facts", which are the conditions stated by the minister on which the review could be held, these facts should actually be given to the tribunal or commission (or whatever authority) charged with investigation into the matter, should the government decide to order the review. However, since the minister prefaced his agreement to review the 1988 judicial crisis only if so-called "new and important facts" emerge, I shall now touch on five incidents only in general terms without labouring into details.

First incident

The first incident relates to my meeting with the then prime minister (Dr Mahathir Mohamad) in his office on May 27, 1988 in the presence of the then deputy prime minister (Ghafar Baba) and the then chief secretary to the government (Sallehuddin Mohamed).

I was asked by the then prime minister to step down because I was accused of being biased in the discharge of my judicial duties. My understanding of this accusation was that it must have been connected with the impending Umno 11 case, when I decided to establish a nine-member panel of the Supreme Court to hear the appeal. I strongly denied the accusation and told him that I was not prepared to resign.

Then he threatened to dismiss me by instituting a tribunal under the constitution. I told him I was prepared to be dismissed rather than leave the judicial office under a cloud. This was a very short meeting and after I had left the prime minister's office and returned to my chambers, I immediately wrote by way of an aide memoir a note of what had transpired during that meeting. That note coincidently appears in the latest issue of the Aliran.(see below)

Second incident

The second incident relates to the visit to me on the same day of a messenger who was a very important officer of the government. He came with the idea of persuading me to resign or go on long leave and at the same time threatening me with dismissal should I choose not to.

Were I to resign, I would be appointed to a lucrative job in Jeddah as a director of Islamic Bank with a high salary I could never have dreamed of, coupled with an unlimited amount of entertainment allowances and travelling expenses.

The officer said he had been authorised to pass this message to me by a very important minister. When I told him that I could not accept the offer, I was then threatened with dismissal and the ignominy of having to face a tribunal. My answer to the messenger was the same as I had given to the prime minister earlier on in the day.

Third incident

The third incident took place on June 24, 1988, almost a month after my suspension as Lord President when two benevolent messengers arrived at my home to tell me that some Malay rulers then gathered at Istana Kelantan at Jalan Kia Peng and wanted to see me. Post haste, I made my appearance before Their Royal Highnesses.

I was informed that the Yang di Pertuan Agong (HRH the Sultan of Johor), had just left the meeting. Taking the lead upon my appearance was HRH the then Raja of Perlis and also present were the other Malay rulers or their representatives. (The Sultans of Kedah and Selangor were away abroad and the Sultan of Pahang was unable to attend on account of the serious illness of his then consort who in fact passed away the following day.)

I was informed by HRH the late Raja of Perlis that agreement was reached between the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the rulers then present that should I tender my apologies to and ask forgiveness from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for writing my impugned letter to His Majesty at His Majesty's Istana Bukit Serene in Johor Baru, my suspension would be lifted and the matter would end there.

I was to travel to Istana Bukit Serene with my chief counsel, Yang Mulia Raja Aziz Addruse (left). Since we could not get seats on the plane, I decided to travel to Johor Baru by car whilst Yang Mulia Raja Aziz chartered a private aircraft for that purpose. Upon my arrival in Johor Baru, I was admitted into the Istana but Yang Mulia Raja Aziz, despite all the trouble he took to charter the plane, could get only as far as the gates of the Istana as he was prevented from entering the palace.

At the Istana, contrary to my expectation, my mission was a failure because the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had earlier been briefed by two very senior government officers from Kuala Lumpur not to forgive me for the wrong I had not committed.

Fourth incident

The fourth incident relates to the suspension of my colleagues with the eventual dismissal of two of them. The suspension was engineered for the purpose of thwarting them from hearing my judicial review application challenging the legality and constitutionality of my suspension and the composition of the tribunal to deal with my dismissal.

A particular High Court judge who was reluctant to hear my application feigned illness on the day fixed for hearing. His replacement did his utmost to delay hearing my application and when he finally did so, my application was dismissed. I appealed to the Supreme Court and succeeded.

An order of the court must always be sealed before it is served on the respondent. The chief registrar of the Supreme Court was the keeper of its seal but when I succeeded in my appeal, the seal could not be found as it was purposely hidden. However, after a search by the late Wan Suleiman Pawanteh, the seal was discovered.

The sealed copy of the order had then to be served on the respondent tribunal which was located at Parliament House. But when my counsel Raja Aziz Addruse attempted to effect service of the order on the respondent, he found that the authorities had ordered the Parliament gates closed. However at the request by the late Wan Suleiman for assistance from the office of the IGP (police chief), the gates were opened and the order was served.

Despite receipt of the order, the tribunal proceeded with its deliberation. The end result of this incident was that upon my refusal to recognise the composition of the tribunal especially with regards to the appointment of its chairman on grounds of a serious breach of natural justice, I was, in my absence, adjudged guilty and subsequently dismissed.

The five Supreme Court judges which allowed my application were themselves suspended. Another tribunal was established to try them and two of these valiant judges, namely the late Wan Suleiman and George Seah, were dismissed. The other three, namely the Eusoffee Abdoolcader, Azmi Kamaruddin and Wan Hamzah Mohamad Salleh were reinstated.

If the Supreme Court order were obeyed, my reinstatement would have automatically followed and this would have been unacceptable not only to the government of the day but also to those who would benefit from my dismissal. Thus my five colleagues were innocently suspended with all the consequences that have adversely affected them and their families until this day.

Fifth incident

The fifth incident relates to the government's action to deprive the rulers of their immunities. The late Tun Suffian Hashim and I acted as advisors to the rulers. By then, HRH the Sultan of Johor was no longer the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and His Royal Highness was very concerned about the government's intention.

This was my first audience with His Royal Highness after my dismissal, HRH said to me in no uncertain terms that he very much regretted what had happened to me as he said he then realised that he had been "made use of". I told HRH that there was no need to feel sorry for me personally but he should express his regrets and apology to the people of this country for losing a judiciary that was independent and could look after their rights.

I was later summoned again by HRH to Istana Bukit Serene for advice after HRH learned that a bill had already been introduced in Parliament to disband the Johor Military Force (JMF). My advice to HRH was that the JMF, which was established long before the Malay Regiment, was and is part of the privileges of the Sultan of Johor and, without the consent of His Royal Highness, such privileges could not legally be withdrawn.

My opinion was confirmed by Neil Lawson, Queen’s Counsel, the legal adviser to the Malay rulers during the negotiation for Merdeka. There was no doubt that HRH was very pleased with my effort over HRH's then predicament and, in appreciation thereof, offered to make a public apology in Johor Baru over HRH's role in my dismissal.

The Johor Palace then began to put in place arrangements for the occasion but, once again, mightier hands from Kuala Lumpur managed to persuade HRH from keeping to his pledge.

Identity of unnamed persons

The above are some of the new facts which I hope could persuade Nazri to change his mind. These incidents undeniably go to show that come what may, I must be made to give up my judicial office. There would of course be other incidents and other details which would emerge if the review is held but for the time being, I shall keep the identity of those unnamed persons in this statement concealed.

As regards responses from the other two judges who were also dismissed, Wan Suleiman is no longer with us. His widow has, nevertheless, supported the call for a review. But the speech made by the late Tun Suffian during a special reference organised by the Malaysian Bar in Wan Suleiman's memory and honour should give an indication on the role played by my late colleague during the crisis which, in the learned Tun Suffian's opinion, certainly did not deserve his dismissal.

George Seah is currently unwell to make any contribution to Nazri's call for "new facts" but the series of articles on the crisis written by him not so long ago continue to appear in the websites of both the Malaysian Bar and Aliran. Knowing the character of the late Eusoffee Abdoolcader, I am sure that he too would support a review. Azmi Kamaruddin has already come out publicly for a review. I believe Wan Hamzah is also of this view.

For these reasons, I hope that Nazri will present the proposal to the cabinet for a review of the 1988 judicial crisis so that the truth of this important episode in our nation's history is uncovered.

Tun Salleh Abas; Sept 26, 2006;

From Ailiran; exclusive private notes made by the meticulous Tun Salleh:

When I arrived at the Prime Minister’s Department I was met by a policeman who took me by lift to a waiting room. After waiting for about two or three minutes, I was shown into the Prime Minister’s Office by an officer, whom I did not recognise. There I found YAB Perdana Menteri (then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad) seated at his table with YAB Encik Ghafar Baba, Timbalan Perdana Menteri (then deputy prime minister) and Tan Sri Sallehuddin Mohamed, Ketua Setiausaha Negara (the then chief secretary to the government) seated at the same table opposite the Prime Minister. When I entered the room I gave the Prime Minister and the others my salam very loudly and he replied my salam. (Peace be on You).

After I had taken my seat, the Prime Minister told me that he had an unpleasant duty to perform and on being asked what it was, he replied that he had been asked by (the then) DYMM Seri Paduka Baginda Yang Di Pertuan Agong to tell me that I should step down. I then expressed my surprise in an Islamic way saying “Glory to God, who is free from any partnership.” Then I asked him for the reasons and in reply he said that he was not prepared to argue with me, but finally he said the reason was that I had written a letter to DYMM Seri Paduka Baginda Yang Di Pertuan Agong regarding the state of relationship between the Judiciary and the Executive.

I told him that I wrote the letter simply because Judges, at a meeting on 25 March 1988, had informed me that they were very concerned about the present situation and asked to express their views through me. YAB Perdana Menteri then said that I made speeches indicating that I am biased and I am not qualified to sit in UMNO cases. I told him that I said nothing of that and the speeches I had made only dealt with the criticisms levelled at the Judiciary. I am not at all biased or bipartisan in political matters. While all this was going on, YAB Encik Ghafar Baba kept his head down while Tan Sri Sallehuddin was writing in a note book, which he was then holding.

When finally I said I would not resign, he told me that if I stepped down I would be given everything that I was entitled to. I told him that I was entitled to nothing since I was not yet 60. Obviously, he was surprised when told I was not 60 yet. Finally, he said that if I did not step down he would institute a Judicial Tribunal with a view to removing me. I told him I would not resign because if I did, I could not show my face to anyone and I might as well die.

He said that I could see the Agong if I wanted to and he would not stop me from doing so.

I told him that I would not be resigning and he could do what he pleased with me, including going ahead with the Tribunal. As there was nothing else to discuss, I finally said “Datuk, I should not waste anybody’s time”, and I shook his hand, also Encil Ghafar Baba’s and Tan Sri Sallehuddin’s. None of these three looked me right in my face and I could detect Encik Ghafar Baba was strangely silent and Tan Sri Sallehuddin only caught me by the side of his eyes but he too appeared to be subdued.

The Prime Minister himself, from the beginning to the end, did not even look me in the eye. He was looking down at his table all the time.

I left his room and I only saw one policeman outside his room who appeared surprised to see me there. When I went downstairs there was nobody even to see me off and no one called for my driver. I had to go out to look for my driver.

My future is tied up with the fate of this country. I come from an unknown family and I have reached the top of my profession. I have no desire to leave until I have reached the age of 65 like my predecessors, except the Sultan of Perak, who vacated the job because of a call of duty to be the Ruler of Perak. I leave my fate to the judgment of Allah and as it is Friday, I wish to quote the Quran, which says, “No misfortune will fall on us except what has been decreed by Allah. He is our protector and in whom the believers should place their trust.” This passage from the Quran struck my heart as I entered the door of the Prime Minister’s Office and it remained with me during the course of our discussion till the end, and to my exit from his room.

.
And Dr Mahathir’s lapse of memory response

Wednesday, September 27, 2006; The Star

Dr M: I personally asked Salleh to resign

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he had personally asked Tun Salleh Abas to resign from his post as Lord President in 1988 as he thought it was the best move.

He said Salleh had first agreed to step down but a few days later refused to do so, which prompted the Government to take the necessary action to remove him. “He agreed first, then later on, I don’t know how many days later, he decided that he should not step down.

“Then of course the Government was forced to take action,” he said, adding that Salleh did not give reasons as to why he had decided against stepping down. Dr Mahathir was responding to a statement by Salleh yesterday, where he claimed he was asked to resign by the former premier.

Salleh also claimed he was offered a high paying job as a director of an Islamic bank in Jeddah if he resigned. When asked about the job offer, Dr Mahathir said since Salleh had refused to resign, it meant he did not want to take up the job.

When asked if there was indeed such a job offer, Dr Mahathir said he could not remember what he had exactly offered. “I don’t remember exactly what I offered him but I did ask him to step down so as to prevent any scandal or necessity to take action (against him),” he said, adding that he later started the necessary process to remove Salleh as the Lord President. “Removal of a judge requires a decision by his peers as required by the Constitution, so we have to abide by the Constitution."

“The Agong thought that it was just a matter of dismissal by me." “I don’t have the power to dismiss anybody, any judge,” he said.

Dr Mahathir, who is the new president of Perkim, was speaking to reporters here after breaking fast with Perkim members at the Perdana Leadership Foundation here yesterday.

At the event, 40 converts also received cash aid and goodie

See previous post dated Wednesday, August 23, 2006

TUN SALLEH ABBAS REVEALATIONS: DR MAHATHIR AMENDED & ENACTED ONE-Sided Laws for ABSOLUTE Power; DISMISSAL of JUDGES – A Great Fraud on JUDICIARY ;

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EPF I-AKAUN–ON-LINE Registration - Check Statements, WITHDRAWAL Amounts & Status; ACCESS to Forms; EMPLOYERS - PAY on Line; ACCESS Form A & the FRAUDS

For the 5.8 million active members wherever you may be, here’s your chance to check your hard earned savings through the internet using the i-akaun and for the rest; the petition writers will do for you for a customary fee. But be careful, when you surrender you account no & IC details, the amount might evaporate away by the time the hard-copy statement arrived at your address or it never reached you as your address would have been changed to someone else. I wonder if the EPF management has ever consider the negative fraud aspects of this I-Akaun like changing addresses and perhaps even bank's accounts.

And for the thousands of EMPLOYERS, you can do On-line payments but for many in these troubled times they would avoid it until bankruptcy sets in.

i-Akaun represents the employer's or member's personal account; same as the EPF account except that it can only be used on the internet especially at myEPF portal. By having this account, the user can obtain many EPF services online. The EPF will enhance its online services from time to time.

For EPF Members

• To enable members to check online their Statement of Accounts for the current year as well as for previous years

• To enable members to check online their withdrawal status and records

• To give members the convenience of updating their addresses online

• To enable members to calculate online the amount eligible for withdrawal for the various withdrawal schemes

• To enable members to have access to their withdrawal forms which have been completed with the members' particulars?

EPF Services for Employers

• To enable employers to check items such as fines and dividends

• To enable employers to update their address

• To enable employers to access Form A electronic which has been completed with the employers' particulars

• Payment of EPF contributions through the Internet service

To register as MEMBER Go here

and you get the message
/suspended.htm

This is typical of most semi or quasi government websites, they are in a hurry to announce some new features and their half-past six webmasters are not ready

I-Akaun: Online Service For EPF Contributors; September 25, 2006 16:47 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 25 (Bernama) -- The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) has introduced the i-Akaun online service to facilitate subscribers, especially its 5.8 million active members, and their employers through its myEPF website.

EPF Chief Executive Officer Datuk Azlan Zainol said subscribers and their employers could register for the i-Akaun facility, which enabled them to carry out online transactions with the EPF safer and faster, by surfing the website.

"The positive response to myEPF and i-Akaun proved EPF's success in providing a more efficient service to its contributors through the implementation of Information and Communication Technology," he said in a statement issued Monday.

Azlan said through the i-Akaun service, subscribers could check, among others, their accounts and the status of their applications for withdrawal.

As for the employers, he said they could update their addresses, have access to Form A and pay the EPF contributions online through several commercial banks like the BCB Bank, Public Bank, Maybank and RHB Islamic Bank Berhad.

Registration for the i-Akaun can be made through myEPF at www.kwsp.gov.my.

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More Pics – 4 Killed -7 Month PREGNANT DRIVER, Passenger + 2 MOTOCYCLISTS - Accident: 41.5Km Jln Johor Baru-Batu Pahat, near Pekan Nenas on Monday

ABOVE: The scene of the accident, Km 41.5 Jlan Johor baru-Batu Pahat Trunk road; BELOW: The car crushed by the sand lorry killed the driver and pasenger on the spot



ABOVE: One of the knocked down motor cycle

The 8.00 am incident involved a Sand lorry, a car and two Motor cycles. The Police identified the dead as the driver of the car Poring Koh, 31 – 7 months pregnant; passenger besides driver Chan Mei Yin 29 and Motorcyclists Tan Kai Peng, 49 and Tee Ah Ahu 41. Another motor cyclist and the lorry driver cheated death.

ABOVE: The victims from left: Poring, Chan, Tee & Tan

The victims from Pontian were believed to be on their way to work

Details from NST (see the error in the age of the lorry driver)

Man loses pregnant wife, unborn child; 26 Sep 2006; Jassmine Shadiqe

---

JOHOR BARU: Yap Chee Peng was a broken man yesterday, his grief going well beyond the death of his wife in an accident that claimed four lives.

The 31-year-old, who works in Singapore, also had the excruciating task of burying the seven-month-old foetus that his wife Poring Koh, 31, was carrying.

His agony is understandable as the couple was eagerly awaiting the birth of their first child in November after a miscarriage last year that devastated them.

Yap was in a state of shock, as relatives wailed beside him, while awaiting the release of Koh’s body by Pontian Hospital authorities.

Koh had been driving to work with a colleague, Chan Mei Yin, 29, when a runaway lorry rammed into their car and two motorcycles in Pekan Nanas near Pontian about 8am. Koh and Chan died on the spot.

Ceramic tile-layer Tai Kai Peng, 49, and his pillion rider, Tee Ah Ahu, 41, who were on their way to work in Singapore, also died instantly.

The second motorcyclist, whose identity could not be ascertained immediately, is fighting for his life at the hospital.

Pontian district police Chief Superintendent Zainuddin Zainal said the accident occurred near the Pekan Nanas Immigration Depot after a heavy downpour.

He said the 26-year-old lorry driver, who escaped with minor injures, has been held for questioning.
ABOVE: This lorry driver whose vehicle caused all the fatalities

Initial investigations showed that the lorry, travelling from Johor Baru to Pontian, was negotiating a sharp bend when it went out of control.

"Based on the skid marks on the road, the lorry rammed into the car and then ploughed into the two motorcyclists. All the vehicles then ended up in a 25-metre deep ravine."

Zainuddin said fire and rescue department officers from Pekan Nenas were called in to extricate the bodies.
ABOVE: The delicate task of the rescue team in extricating one of the dead woman from the total wreck of the car which suffered a very high impact momentum from the heavily loaded sand lorry. BELOW: One of the dead motocyclist in a police stretcher to be taken to Pontian hospital for the usual post mortem examination.

He urged those who saw the incident to contact the Pontian district police headquarters at 07-6871023.

Details from STAR

Pregnant woman among four dead

PONTIAN: A pregnant woman and three others were killed in an accident here that involved a lorry, a car and two motorcycles.

The accident occurred at around 8am yesterday at the Johor Baru-Batu Pahat trunk road.

A lorry driver on his way to Pekan Nenas lost control of the vehicle and skidded onto oncoming traffic, crushing a Toyota Altis and two motorcycles, before landing in a ditch.

The dead were identified as Poring Koh, 31 who was seven and a half months pregnant, her colleague Chan May Yin, 29, motorcyclist Tee Ah Whu, 41, and his passenger Tan Kai Peng, 49. All four died instantly from head injuries.

Koh and Chan were in the car, heading for their workplace in Taman University while construction workers Tee and Tan, who were pinned under the lorry, were on their way to work in Singapore.

Another motorcyclist, businessman Lim Cheng Soon, 38, was seriously injured while lorry driver Jono Gindot, 53, who has been detained by police, escaped with minor injuries.

Koh’s husband, Yap Chee Ping, 31, who was in tears, said he had planned to have a special dinner in Singapore with his wife today.

“It was her birthday,” said Yap.

He added that they were looking forward to the birth of their first child and had even chosen a name for the baby.

Pontian OCPD Supt Zainuddin Zainal said the driver had been detained and police were trying to find out if he had been speeding when the accident occurred.

“He might have lost control of the vehicle while taking a corner and skidded to the other lane,” he said, adding that it was raining heavily at that time.

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SAMY: Government funds Tamil & Chinese Schools not in 9MP; MIC proposes 14 New TAMIL Schools; from RM100 Million Allocation; MCA Still in the DARK?

ABOVE: A typical primary school, whose plans are standard and Samy Vellu can just snap his fiingers and have them ready for submission to the relevant authorities

ABOVE & BELOW: The construction can be completed within a year in most cases


see Update below Sep 26 06 for SAMY VELLU's Response to LIM KIT SIANG's Challenge

Was there any announcement the RM100 million was allocated for the building of new schools nationwide or was it an afterthought? As the works minister, Datuk Samy is privy to a great deal of information than Housing Minster Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting & others who keep quiet and in the dark on everything.

And how many is MCA planning to build or is totally unaware of the RM100 allocation? It looks like this is an ad hoc arrangement to solve the shortage of Tamil and Chinese Primary Schools.

According to DAP’s statistics; 50 years ago there were 310,000 students in 1,333 Chinese primary schools. Now enrolment in Chinese primary schools has more than doubled to 636,124. There should be a doubling of the number of Chinese primary schools. Instead, there was a decrease of 45 schools from 1,333 to 1,288 Chinese primary schools in the past 50 years. This is a grave injustice and the allocation of RM100 is definitely insufficient with MIC taking away 10%, how many is left for the Chinese schools

Datuk Samy mentioned that a similar situation occurred in the 8MP and yet new schools were built and upgraded. This was challenged by the Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang
See his Blog

Update: 26 Sept 06; Extract from BERNAMA; September 26, 2006 15:44 PM

Samy Vellu said he would not hand over the list of 21 new Tamil schools which were built last year to Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang.

Lim yesterday, through a statement, wanted the Works Minister to name all 21 Tamil schools constructed last year, after Samy Vellu announced that the government had constructed 21 Tamil schools nationwide last year.

"There are new schools. When people relocate, we have to build a new school. Although it is replacing an older school, it is still a new school. We have more than 500 Tamil schools in the country and out of these more than 100 schools need to be rebuilt. When we rebuild, they become new schools.

"He (Lim) is trying to poke to get more information he could harp on unnecessarily. Why should I give him the list of new schools...let him go find it himself. I will release the list to the media in two or three days but I am not going to present the list to him," Samy Vellu said

= = = = = = = = = = =

= = = = = = = = = = =

Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu, the Mr Fix-It Minister is privy to a great deal of info and is the Front man to 'explain' away any deleicate situation the government is facing.. He can announced that "Sungai Damansara" has got the approval to be deepened when there was last a "flash flood" and this funding for Tamil & Chinese Schools out of the 9MP is another of his effort to "save face" for a breach of promise by PM Abdullah.

Datuk Seri S Samy Vellu; the Works Minister announced on Sunday that the government would continue funding Tamil & Chinese schools even the projects do not come under the 9 Malaysia Plan. MIC will propose to the government to build 14 new Tamil Schools costing between RM10 -12 million.

He was commenting on Deputy Education Minister, Datuk Noh Omar reply in Parliament recently that the government would not build any vernacular schools under the 9^th MP. He said even in the 8^th MP there was no mention of construction of vernacular schools. In the end we managed to build 21 new Tamil schools and upgraded 64 existing schools.
Perhaps Datuk Noh has yet to look at the list of schools to be build as the MIC has been dealing with the Education Minister Hishamuddin on the matter

According to Samy Vellu six months ago the government allocated RM100 million for new schools nationwide and the funds for the 14 Tamils schools will come from this allocation. The new schools will be built in Kedah, Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Johor.

He added the government has approved the construction two schools SJK (Tamil) San Peng and SJK (Tamil) Sentul and the PWD would be submitting plans to the relevant authorities.

-= = = = = = = = = = =

DJZ: Gov't breaks promise on vernacular schools; Sep 22, 06 7:53pm

The government has allegedly broken its promise by pulling the plug on the construction of new Chinese and Tamil primary schools under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP).

Another broken promise

According to Chinese education movement Dong Jiao Zong (DJZ), Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (ABOVE) had promised to build more vernacular schools.

However, Deputy Education Minister Noh Omar revealed two days ago that under the 9MP there would be no more new vernacular schools.

Expressing disappointment with this, DJZ urged Barisan Nasional's Chinese-based parties such as MCA, Gerakan and Sabah's Supp and LDP to clear the air on this issue.

DJZ said the government should understand the people's need for education and provide fair treatment to all schools.

"Based on the funds allocated by the government, it is obvious that they have placed more emphasis on SK (national schools) and have marginalised SJK (vernacular schools)," the movement said in a statement.

Meeting the demand

From 1970 to 2006, it is estimated that the country saw an increase of 2,900 national schools. During the same period, a total of 193 vernacular schools - 58 Chinese schools and 134 Tamil schools - closed down.

According to DJZ, there is a demand for 134 Chinese schools nationwide at present.

"If the government only builds five or so Chinese schools every four years once when an election comes, then it will take 188 years or 47 elections before the 134 schools will be completed

"But by then, the population will increase and more schools would be needed," said the movement.

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REACTIONS to HARRY Lee’s Marginalized Comment: Abdullah: Clarification needed; Najib: Mischievous; MAHATHIR: Arrogant; DAP: LEE GUAN ENG: Very TRUE

It was unfortunate, Harry Lee, Singapore’s Minister Mentor “off the cuff” remarks were made are all influenced by his beliefs. It was an automatic response in the discussion forum that was motivated by his beliefs and he seemed unaware of the influence of his beliefs; and was not paying attention to what he was saying in relation to the subjects that deemed to be significant or important.
In all these actions, he was NOT incorporating thought to think what he said might be hurtful to others – no tact you might say or insensitive. He was not thinking concerning all of these automatic actions (remarks) — he was doing. He might be thinking but not paying attention to the doing.

We must pay attention to what we do and you pay attention to our emotional communications and to our translations of thoughts, but within our world most individuals do not.
And when isolated and taken out of context, he was accused of making “statements” to that effect. Of course his beliefs are not absolute truth.

Many of your TRUTHS— all of your TRUTHS— are mere BELIEFS

The belief systems that are strongest to us individually, we would call that a truth. You express it each day within your focuses. You associate with it continuously. Many of your automatic responses are associated within yourselves as truth.
This particular belief system may be one of the most insidious and one of the most difficult to identify and to notice. All of those automatic responses that you do not notice and you identify them as merely truths. Therefore, they are entirely unquestioned.

But your beliefs become reality. What you believe in and become real in your experience. There are no other answers. There is no area in your life to which this does not apply.
And the problem comes when he starts to ARGUE and FIGHT over philosophical differences in solving the nation’s perceived problems in his eyes.

When other information comes which are more correct and more helpful, you will find leaders still holding to old beliefs, reject or doubt them because their ideas or theory seem contradictory to the new data.

And this is one of the problems we encounter in our lives and in the world that has produced or given birth to many things, such as hatred, discrimination and conflicts between nations, between neighbors and between people.

Datuk Seri Abdullah: "I will write to him to seek clarification why he had said it,"

Abdullah Wants Kuan Yew To Clarify On Malaysian Chinese Issue ; September 23, 2006 20:09 PM

SEPANG, Sept 23 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Saturday he will write to Singapore's Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew, to ask for clarification on his statement concerning the Chinese community in Malaysia.
The Prime Minister said he wished to know the reasons why Lee had made such a statement. "I will write to him to seek clarification why he had said it," Abdullah told reporters upon arrival from a working visit abroad at the Bunga Raya Kompleks, KL International Airport.

Lee was reported to have said that Malaysia's and Indonesia's attitude towards Singapore was formed by the way they treated the ethnic Chinese minority in their respective countries.

Lee had claimed that Malaysia and Indonesia had problems with their respective Chinese communities because they were successful and worked hard and thus they were systematically marginalised.
Abdullah said he failed to see any justification for Lee to make such a statement.

"I concur with the statement made by (Deputy Prime Minister) Datuk Seri Najib (Tun Razak). It is a mischievous statement and can instigate the Malaysian Chinese," he said.

Abdullah, who pointed out that such a statement should not have been made by a neighbouring country, said Singapore would also be affected if there was instability in Malaysia. Furthermore, he said, Singapore too was facing internal problems with regard to its communities.

"We know that they too have problems, it's not 100 per cent smooth sailing," the Prime Minister said.

On Thursday, the Deputy Prime Minister had also commented on the matter, describing Lee's statement as mischievous.

Kuan Yew's comments misleading, says Najib

22 Sep 2006 Hamidah Atan

BANGI: Malaysia yesterday ticked off Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew for saying that Malaysian Chinese were being marginalised systemically.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak described the statement as naughty, adding: "I do not know his real motive but his comment is something that should not have been made in the first place. It is a comment that we can do without and is not appreciated at all. It is not accurate, has political impact and is very misleading."

Lee told a forum in Singapore last Friday that it was vital for Singapore to stand up to its bigger neighbours, Indonesia and Malaysia. "We need a government that will have the gumption and skill to say no to our neighbours in a very quiet and polite way that does not provoke them into doing something silly."

Lee was also quoted as saying that the attitude of neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia towards Singapore was shaped by the way they treat their own ethnic Chinese minorities.

"Our neighbours both have problems with their Chinese. They are successful. They are hardworking and, therefore, they are systematically marginalised."

Indonesia and Malaysia "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese - compliant", Lee said. Najib said the government had no intention to sideline or marginalise non-Bumiputeras.

The government, he added, had never adopted a policy which aimed at hindering the progress of the non-Bumiputeras as all it wanted was nothing but fairness and equal distribution of wealth for all races.

He said it would be up to the Cabinet to make a stand on the matter.

Najib was speaking to reporters after handing over Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) Sejahtera account books to 245 hardcore poor from the rural areas.

Malaysian Backbenchers Want Kuan Yew To Apologise ; September 23, 2006 18:02 PM

TAIPING, Sept 23 (Bernama) -- The Backbenchers Club (BBC) wants Singapore Minister-Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, who accused Malaysia and Indonesia of systematically marginalising their ethnic Chinese, to apologise openly to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his government.

"He (Lee) has no right to make such accusation (to say that Malaysia and Indonesia systematically marginalised their ethnic Chinese population). Our political culture is different from Singapore. We never get involved in Singapore's internal affairs.

"Singapore has gone overboard ... very often, its leaders say things that hurt the feelings of its neighbours. But we are wise and mature. We do not want to react when Singapore deliberately provokes us," BBC acting chairman Datuk Raja Ahmad Zainuddin Raja Omar told reporters, here Saturday.

Raja Ahmad also said Singapore's Ambassador to Malaysia must give a written explanation to the Malaysian government on why Lee made the statement so that the diplomatic tension between the two neighbours would ease up.

Last weekend Lee, who is Singapore's founding Prime Minister, told reporters on the sideline of the IMF meeting that Malaysia and Indonesia's negative attitude towards Singapore was shaped by the way both countries mistreated and systematically marginalised their Chinese ethnic communities.

Raja Ahmad argued that the Chinese in Malaysia were better off than the Malays in Singapore.

"In Malaysia, Penang State is ruled by Gerakan (a Chinese-based party). There are so many Chinese in the Malaysian cabinet, the military and the police force. Can we say the same about the fate of the Malays in Singapore?"

Singapore and Malaysia are often engaged in testy diplomatic rows since the tiny island republic of about 4 million people broke away from the Federation of Malaysia in 1965.

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news.php?id=221408

Mahathir Slams Kuan Yew As Arrogant
September 22, 2006 20:13 PM

KUALA TERENGGANU, Sept 22 (Bernama) -- Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad Friday slammed Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew for his insulting remarks about Malaysia and Indonesia's treatment of their Chinese minorities, describing him as arrogant and disrespectful of neighbouring countries.

The former premier said Lee was arrogant because he felt he was in a strong
position.
"He's not bothered with his neighbours. That is why he deliberately raised something he knew to be sensitive in our country," he told reporters after launching the building fund of the Kemaman branch of the Ex-Servicemen's Association and the district Warriors Day Campaign at Awana Kijal, Beach and Spa Resort in Kijal.

Lee on Friday told a forum held in conjunction with the International Monetary Fund conference in Singapore that Malaysia and Indonesia had problems with their Chinese minorities because they were successful and hardworking and therefore they were systemically marginalised.

He was reported to have said that the attitude of Malaysia and Indonesia towards Singapore was shaped by the way they treated their own Chinese minorities.

They "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese -- compliant", he claimed.

Dr Mahathir said Malaysia could question Singapore's marginalisation of its Malay minority.

"We could ask about the status of the Malays in Singapore, why they are not allowed to bear arms in the military or train to handle weapons. Why is it that the Malays in Malaysia are so capable in the military field but the Malays in Singapore cannot hold high posts (in the military)?

"Why is it that the Malays in Singapore are marginalised to the extent that they have no status at all? This is done deliberately by Singapore. There is no other country that does it like them," he said.

Dr Mahathir said Lee's allegation about the Chinese in Malaysia being marginalised was untrue because there are Chinese holding high posts, for example in the armed forces.

"The Chinese in Malaysia can join the military and rise to become general, major general and so on. But what is the per capita income of the Malays in comparison with the Chinese in Singapore?

"We should have an independent investigation on why the Malays are left behind in Singapore. It is not because they are lacking compared to the Malays in Malaysia but because they are pressured, marginalised and oppressed. That is the kind of government founded on the views of Lee Kuan Yew," he said.

In his speech earlier, Dr Mahathir told Lee not to feel smug about what he had said. "You should just guard your own rice bowl. You are not that clever. In a small group, perhaps you seem clever.

"But when he goes to China, the Chinese there don't want to listen to him. The Chinese in China don't think much of him and it is a fact that he is marginalised by Chinese in the world," he said.

From Malaysiakini; http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/57226
DAP agrees with LKY, slams BN leaders
Sep 23, 06 5:11pm

Politics of denial!

This is how opposition party DAP views the objection raised by Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders to Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's claim that Chinese Malaysians are marginalised.

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng expressed 'disgust' with MCA president
Ong Ka Ting and Gerakan top leaders Dr Lim Keng Yaik and Dr Koh Tsu Koon for denying an 'obvious fact'.

"... The Chinese and other non-Chinese have been systematically marginalised by discriminatory government policies that only favour the rich and politically connected," he said in a statement today.

"Such politics of denial is dishonest as BN leaders themselves have stated that discriminatory policies such as quotas and the New Economic Policy (NEP) are necessary for racial harmony and national stability," he added.

He said as long as BN leaders, including former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, cannot rely on reason, facts and logic to disprove Lee's claim, then "their emotional denials are like empty vessels making the most noise to cover up the politics of Umno dominance and discrimination."

Perverse logic

The DAP leader also took Koh to task for saying that the minister mentor did not understand and appreciate the challenges in administering a country bigger, more complicated and diverse than Singapore.

"This is perverse logic. If so, then can we support the apartheid policies of South Africa in the 1980s just because South Africa is bigger, more diverse and complicated than Malaysia?


"How can Koh (who is also Penang chief minister) be so thick skin to say the Chinese are not compliant when he was compliant towards Umno by not daring to even respond to the attacks by Penang Umno Youth leaders who humiliated him publicly with demonstrations and banners?" he asked.

Lim then trained his crosshairs on the MCA president, who argued that it was unfair and subjective to say the Chinese in Malaysia are marginalized because any injustices will be resolved by MCA.
MCA president, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting

"If that is the case, why is it that in cabinet, four MCA ministers could not convince but had to submit and bow to one Education Minister Hishammuddin Hussein?" he asked.

He was referring to Hishammuddin's public admonishing of Deputy Higher Education Minister and MCA vice-president Ong Tee Keat over a disclosure that Education Ministry officials had allegedly pocketed funds meant for vernacular schools.

Tee Keat was also reprimanded by the cabinet for his action.

"(What is) worse, Ong has not explained why he supported the Ninth Malaysia Plan's refusal to build a single Chinese or Tamil school out of the 180 new primary schools proposed," he added.

'Selfish acts'

As for Keng Yaik's statement that the "Chinese here will not follow and listen to what he says", Lim said it reflected how out of touch BN leaders are with the feelings of ordinary Malaysians.

At a press conference yesterday, Keng Yaik, who is Gerakan president, urged journalists to report that what Lee had said "was wrong, wrong."

Meanwhile, Lim described the 'false denials' by BN's Chinese leaders as 'selfish and politically motivated' to enable them to cling on to their government posts.

Lee ruffled feathers recently when he said that the Chinese in Malaysia and Indonesia have been systematically marginalised.

He said this was because Malaysia and Indonesia had problems with the Chinese because the community was successful through their hard work.

"In fact, Lee is half right in that it is not only the Chinese who are marginalised. The Indians and poor Malays are also marginalised," said the DAP secretary-general.

Mind your own business, Gerakan tells Kuan Yew
Alwin Yap Sep 22, 06 6:23pm [extract]

Gerakan today ticked off Singapore's Mentor Minister Lee Kuan Yew over his remarks that Chinese Malaysians had been "systematically marginalised"
because they were successful and hardworking.

Party president Lim Keng Yaik and his deputy, Koh Tsu Koon, both lambasted Lee for making comments without having the full facts and accused him of causing racial tensions here.

Lim, who is also the minister of energy, water and telecommunications, said
the former Singapore premier had a habit of making statements which infuriate Malaysians over the last 40 years.

When asked to speculate as to Lee's reason for the latest remark, a visibly
upset Lim said: "You go ask him-lah!".

He said Lee was wrong in making such statements, and he urged reporters to
report that Lee "was wrong, wrong."

BACKGROUND to remarks

At 83, Kuan Yew Still Has Fire In The Belly; September 23, 2006 18:11 PM

A News Focus By Jackson Sawatan
SINGAPORE, Sept 23 (Bernama) -- On Sept 16, Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew turned 83.

A day earlier he appeared as the speaker at the Raffles Forum held in conjunction with the World Bank/International Monetary Fund meetings here where he spoke about good governance and recounting how it had contributed to Singapore's success story.

He told them what good governance was all about.
"What every citizen wants is a good life, security, good health, good housing, good education and a future for their children. That's good governance," he said.

When former US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers asked him what he hoped for Singapore, 40 years from now, Lee had said: "My hope is that there will be a government that is equal to the job, as the PAP (the ruling People's Action Party) was".

The Minister Mentor, who was Singapore Prime Minister from 1959 to 1990, had also stressed the importance of preserving a government system that works like the one Singapore has.

"We have structured a system such that the competent group that gets in will find a machine that works...don't tinker with it. Run the system properly on the basis of merit, not nepotism and you'll always find a way out of a problem.

"My ambition is not to preserve the PAP. My ambition, having created this Singapore, is to preserve the system that produces the answers that we must have as a society to survive," he told the forum attended by some 250 participants.

Then along came the comments which drew the irk from across the causeway.

Lee stressed the need for Singapore to have a government that is "firm but polite" -- one that is able to deal with difficult neighbours "who want to pressure us to build pretty bridges without giving us commensurate benefits", according to a report by The New Paper.

"You need a government that will be able to not only have the gumption but the skill to say no in a very quiet, polite way that doesn't provoke them into doing something silly," he said.
Lee was also quoted as saying that the attitude of neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia towards Singapore was shaped by the way they treated their own ethnic Chinese minorities.

"Our neighbours both have problems with their Chinese. They are successful. They are hardworking and therefore they are systematically marginalised...and they want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese, compliant," he said.

The remark did not go down well in Malaysia, with Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak calling it "naughty."
"It's a comment that we can do without and it is not appreciated at all," he said.

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad also chided Lee, saying "he's not bothered with his neighbours. That is why he deliberately raised something he knew to be sensitive in our country".
In a tit-for-tat remark, Dr Mahathir said Malaysia could also question Singapore's marginalisation of its Malay minority -- a remark carried at length by The Straits Times today.

Reactions continue to pour in today with the latest coming from Malaysia's Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club demanding that Lee apologise to the Malaysian Government and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for what it called as "interfering in Malaysia's internal affairs."

There have been no counter-reactions so far here to the Malaysian reactions but the latest chapter in the "prickly" Malaysia-Singapore relations has the Internet ablaze with debates over the issue.
The forum section of the website of the Young PAP (www.youngpap.org.sg) -- the youth wing of the ruling party -- was no exception, with forumers posting opinions in support or against Lee's remarks.???????????Nothing there

Similarly in Malaysia, forumers and bloggers also have their field day discussing the issue.

This showed at 83, Lee, a fiery orator in his younger days, still has that fire in the belly.

===============================================

& a pertinent and insightful Letter from: "kim quek" <kimquek@hotmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 3:43 PM;
BETTER TO CALL A SPADE A SPADE

appearing on Singapore's

In the chorus of angry protests against Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's recent remark that Chinese Malaysians have been marginalized, can these angry protesters answer one simple question: “If there has been no racial marginalization, why has the word meritocracy been a taboo in Malaysian politics ever since the racial riot of May 13, 1969 - the only country in the world doing that?”

A few more simple questions:

1. Why have there been massive and unrelenting brain drains ever since the infamous debacle in 1969, resulting in countless Chinese Malaysians excelling in many fields in foreign lands?
2. Why has there been a virtual monopoly by one race - numerically as a whole as well as the top hierarchy - in the entire spectrum of the public sector, namely, the army, the police, the civil service, the judiciary, public universities, semi and quasi government bodies, government controlled financial institutions and enterprises?
3. Why have there been, year after year, the specters of top Chinese Malaysian students being barred from universities, only to be admitted later (only for some) upon begging by Chinese ministers in the Cabinet?

No doubt Lee Kuan Yew may be faulted for lacking diplomatic niceties in his remarks, but he has spoken the truth. And I think every Malaysian irrespective of race knows that, at least in the deepest part of his heart if not outwardly.
Yes, we have been practicing racial discrimination, and that is a zero sum game. When race A is barred so that race B can get in, it is one side's loss to another side's gain, as simple as that. It is sheer dishonesty and hypocrisy to deny that any race has suffered a disadvantage as a result of this policy.

But the real question is: is such policy justified?

To answer that question, we have to go back to where such policy started - the New Economic Policy (NEP), formulated after the racial riots in 1969.

It is necessary to refresh our memory over the original concept of this NEP, since it has almost become a dirty word now, having been hijacked by politicians for self-gain and for perpetuating political hegemony.

The prime objective of NEP was to achieve national unity, and the strategy to achieve that was two-pronged: to eradicate poverty irrespective of race, and to restructure society so as to eliminate the identification of race with economic function.

There is nothing wrong with such an affirmative action policy, but the tragedy is that over the years, through racial hegemony, it has been transformed into a policy synonymous with racial privileges, totally forgetting the over-arching objective of national unity and eliminating poverty across racial lines. Through two decades of dictatorial rule by
former premier Mahathir Mohamad, the NEP had been blatantly abused to justify uncontrolled corruption, cronyism and nepotism, which have continued to rage unabated under the present prime minister.

There is no question that in spite of these abuses, the NEP has achieved its limited objective of having elevated the status of Malays in the economic and educational fields to a respectable level, compared to those of other races. But the fallout of such abuses is devastating indeed, which is nothing less than the drastic plunge of the ethos of the Malaysian society tantamount to a virtual breakdown of morality and law and order.

The chief setbacks of the abuses of NEP are rampant corruption and cronyism, worsening racial polarization, unrelenting brain drains, warped educational system, thwarted economic competitiveness, ineffectual bureaucracy, retarded economic growth and perverted social values.

Such anachronistic and regressive policy has no place in the present globalizing world, and for that matter, in any civilized society. As it is, the pressure to dismantle such policy does not come from within the country - as the deprived races seem powerless to redress this wrong - but from the whole wide world who are our trading partners. Our trade negotiators should be able to testify how tough the going is when it comes to negotiating free trade agreements with foreign parties whether it is regional marketing pacts (Afta, WTO) or bi-lateral agreements such as those involving Japan, US, Australia, China and India (through Asean), etc due to the presence of Malaysia's race-based protectionist policies. Invariably, these NEP inspired policies stand as stumbling blocks to the opening of a wider window for two-way trades and investments for this country.

World trade liberalization is a one way road, and there is no turning back, whether we like it or not. So, for how long can Malaysia buck the world trend without causing unacceptable damage to its own economy?
Even worse than the anticipated trade frictions is the loss of Malaysia's economic competitiveness in the face of heightening competition from abroad. Our prime minister has correctly diagnosed this malaise as the prevalence of our third world mentality, but he has done nothing to correct our uncompetitive culture or to stamp the worsening racial and religious dissension within the country. In fact, he has done the opposite by intensifying the imprint of the perverted NEP philosophy on our economic plans, and prohibiting inter-religious and inter-racial discourse which would otherwise have contributed to greater understanding and harmony among the races.

Lee Kuan Yew's comments have understandably riled many Malaysian leaders particularly those in the ruling coalition, but he should also have struck resonance among many who have silently put up with these unjust policies all these years.
As for the great silent majority in this country, they should now ponder what would serve their interests best: to save face by angrily rebutting Lee Kuan Yew or to stare at the ugly truth bravely and institute changes that will put the nation on the right path?

I think we have reached a stage in our history critical enough to warrant caution in putting too much trust in the incumbent leaders. The people of Malaysia have traditionally placed much trust in the ruling power, perhaps more than they should, as evident from the fragrant abuses of government authorities. The fact that we have scraped through as a nation in the past despite such serious misrule does not guarantee that we will be similarly lucky in the future. This is due to the fact that both internal and external circumstances have so radically altered that we can no longer commit such major errors in policies and in the choice of leadership without putting our future in peril.
Looking from this perspective, Lee Kuan Yew's bitter medicine may yet work to our advantage if we are humble and brave enough to take this as a challenge to do some serious introspection that may eventually lead to our common good.

Kim Quek

see related previous posting

HARRY Lee’s Vision for SINGAPORE – FITTEST Rules - a NATION of ROBOTS – Controlled & Fenced up-No INDIVIDUALITY; No SPONTANIETY; Living in FEARS

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