PM ABDULLAH-CNN TALK ASIA Replies MAHATHIR's ALLEGATIONS in Bloomberg Interview; NO Political Suicide in ABORTING Dr M Projects; PROTON DOOMED if...

After 3 weeks of Ramandan fasting, Mahathir is renewing his criticism of PM Abdullah government in an interview he gave at Putra Jaya with Bloomberg..
In the interview, Dr Mahathir, 81, said that Datuk Seri Abdullah should increase spending on technology-related economic activities rather than concentrating on agriculture or signing trade accords with countries like Japan.
Dr Mahathir also expressed doubts his so-called Vision 2020 could be achieved and called on Abdullah to raise spending on technology complaining of neglect of MSC (Multi Media Super corridor).'
Dr Mahathir also warned that national car maker Proton will collapse unless it finds an international partner, and criticized a free trade pact between Japan and Malaysia to eliminate tariffs.
'If you import a car, how many container loads of vegetables are you going to export to Japan?' Dr Mahathir said. 'We're not good at that.'
Dr Mahathir’s final parting shot said. 'I don't want to enter politics.'
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PM Dismisses "Political Suicide" By Reversing Dr M's Decisions;
October 14, 2006 18:09 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 14 (Bernama) -- Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has dismissed the notion that he may be committing "political suicide" by reversing some of the decisions made by his predecessor Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and be seen as rolling back on everything the latter had put in place.
Admitting that Dr Mahathir is still being held in the highest regard by many people after 22 years leading the country, the prime minister said he too commanded majority support. "No, no, no, I don't think it's a political suicide. He has been saying a lot of things; I've decided to keep quiet and to go on doing what I want to do.
"And the people want me to do what I want to do.


Hosted by Anjali Rao in the "Talk Asia"

And I have and I still command majority support today," he said in an interview with Anjali Rao in the "Talk Asia" (Note: Full transcript not available yet) programme aired by Cable News Network (CNN) Saturday.

Abdullah also pointed out that not everybody appreciated it when Dr Mahathir began his criticism. He, however, said despite his silence, he did not ignore Dr Mahathir's criticisms and have made necessary adjustments if the criticisms were relevant."
And some I can't accept," he said when asked by Anjali if he ignored Dr Mahathir's criticism of him. The prime minister also dismissed a suggestion that he was rolling back everything Dr Mahathir had put in place by calling off some mega projects namely a new bridge linking Malaysia and Singapore. "Not everything he put in place. No. Vision 2020, his biggest achievement, that's my target too. That we share, I share the vision. I have developed what I call a national mission. The mission is very big in order to achieve that vision," he said.
Abdullah said he believed there were other things the Government could do to develop this country. "We are very practical about our approach and the bridge has nothing to do with the life and death of Malaysia," he said. To a question whether Malaysia could have achieved such a major success if Dr Mahathir did not rule the way he did, Abdullah said as the prime minister for 22 years, Dr Mahathir had achieved considerable success for the country."We are proud of his achievements. That's a fact," he said.
On Singapore founding father Lee Kuan Yew's remark on Sept 15 that Malaysian Chinese are being "systematically marginalised", Abdullah reiterated that it was a groundless allegation.
"Yes, it's groundless. And it is an issue that can cause unhappiness to many people. Why? Some may even regard it as tantamount to interfering with what we are doing. "The Chinese in Malaysia are doing well. They are better off than the indigenous people, than the Malays," he said. He said the Malaysian Chinese achieved what they have today because the Government provided them opportunities to be successful.
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Mahathir Says Abdullah Is Endangering Malaysian Economic Growth
By Angus Whitley and Haslinda Amin
Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, three years in office this month, is jeopardizing economic growth and confidence in his administration is waning, said former leader Mahathir Mohamad.
Abdullah should increase spending on technology rather than boosting agricultural production or signing questionable trade accords, Mahathir, 80, said in an interview. The medical doctor, who led the nation for 22 years until 2003, said he's being sidelined in the media and in Malaysia's ruling party.
``I don't see any new projects coming in which would boost the economy,'' the former premier said in his office in Putrajaya, south of the capital, Kuala Lumpur. ``The last few years, I don't see any change for the better. It is affecting the nation and the growth of the country. It is not personal.''
Mahathir, who transformed Malaysia from a tin and rubber exporter into an industrialized manufacturer, is unable to stay out of politics. He's extending a feud that started after Abdullah reversed high-profile investment decisions made under Mahathir in favor of plowing funds into education and health care.
``The fundamental problem with Dr. M. is he feels that what he has done has a right to be continued perpetually,'' said Abdul Razak Baginda, executive director of the Malaysian Strategic Research Centre. ``That's a fallacy for any leader. The current prime minister has a different philosophy. He's concerned with a more balanced development.''
Azhar Osman, Abdullah's press secretary, said by phone that the prime minister wouldn't respond to any comments made by Mahathir in the Oct. 9 interview.
Vision 2020
In 1991, Mahathir laid out a 30-year plan known as Vision 2020 that aimed to win Malaysia developed-nation status by that date. He accelerated growth by wooing foreign manufacturers, created a technology hub in Cyberjaya, south of Kuala Lumpur, and championed the cause of ethnic Malays. He assured them easier access to housing, education and jobs.
Abdullah announced in March that he plans to increase public development spending 18 percent to 200 billion ringgit ($54 billion) from 2006 to 2010 compared with the previous five years. He allocated a fifth of total spending to education and training, and plans to raise palm-oil output 31 percent by 2010. Asked if he was optimistic of meeting Vision 2020's objective, Mahathir said, ``right now, I am not.'' He declined to say whether he regretted picking Abdullah as leader.
`Within Reach'
Deputy Finance Minister II Awang Adek Hussin said in an interview today the goal of becoming a developed nation by 2020 ``is still within reach,'' and that the government is committed to achieving the target.
The economy of Thailand, Malaysia's northerly neighbor, may expand 4.6 percent in 2006, the country's central bank has said.
Muzzled
The former premier said the government prevents his views appearing in local newspapers, while the movements of members of the ruling United Malays National Organization are engineered to avoid coinciding with those of the former prime minister.
``He doesn't allow me to even meet party members,'' Mahathir said. ``He says he's my friend. On the other hand, he muzzles me.''
Mahathir was defeated in a September ballot to select speakers for the November meeting of UMNO, as the party is called. Members were bribed to vote against him, he said.
Government Failures
Mahathir in June said the government's failures included scrapping construction of a bridge to Singapore. In December 2003, less than two months after Abdullah assumed power, he postponed a $3.8 billion rail project. The following month, he scrapped plans to sell 60 percent of the government-owned company managing the Bakun hydroelectric dam project in Sarawak.
``The current government is making an honest and brave effort to put Malaysia on the right track,'' said Manu Bhaskaran, a Singapore-based partner at economic research company Centennial Group. ``It takes a long time before good policies result in a stronger economy, so we need to be patient.''
Taking Risks
Mahathir in the interview urged Abdullah to raise spending on technology, saying the search for tenants at his brainchild, the Multimedia Super Corridor at Cyberjaya, had been neglected. ``It's not being sufficiently promoted,'' he said. ``There are a lot of companies which would like to come.''
The government must be willing to lose money on some information technology investments in return for the chance to profit from a few successful bets, Mahathir said.
``If out of 10 or 20 projects you succeed in one, that is a good result, Mahathir said. ``Unfortunately, we are not really able to understand that we have to take risks.''
Mahathir also criticized an agreement between Japan and Malaysia to eliminate tariffs on $27 billion of goods within 10 years. The accord, which came into force in July, cut duty on products ranging from clothes to agriculture. Malaysia imports Japanese goods and Japan takes Malaysian fruit and vegetables. ``If you import a car, how many container loads of vegetables are you going to export to Japan?'' Mahathir said. ``We're not good at that.''
`Moron'
Mahathir has a history of verbal volleys. On Oct. 16, 2003, in a speech to the Organization of Islamic Conference, he provoked outrage when he said Jews ``rule the world by proxy.'' In 1997, Mahathir called investor George Soros a ``moron.'' Soros described Mahathir as a ``menace to his own country.''
Attacks on the administration don't signal a desire to return to power. Mahathir ruled out following former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who now holds the position of Minister Mentor in the city-state's cabinet.
``I would never do it,'' Mahathir said in the interview. ``I don't want to enter politics.''

Mahathir spends three days a week as honorary president of the Perdana Leadership Foundation, formed in 2003 to promote the ideas of Malaysia's previous prime ministers. He spends two days a week as an adviser to national oil company Petroliam Nasional Bhd. at the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur.
Last Updated: October 11, 2006 18:50 EDT

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Proton Will Collapse Without a Foreign Partner, Mahathir Says
By Soraya Permatasari and Haslinda Amin
Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Proton Holdings Bhd., Malaysia's biggest carmaker, will collapse unless it finds an international partner such as Volkswagen AG, said former premier Mahathir Mohamad, who set up the company more than two decades ago.
``At the rate it is going, it's not going to last long,'' said Mahathir, 80, who became an adviser to the Shah Alam, Malaysia-based automaker after stepping down as prime minister in 2003. ``Proton is reporting losses all the time, and they still have a lot of cars which they cannot sell.''
Proton has been losing market share to overseas rivals including Toyota Motor Corp., and needs to gain new technology and designs to compete. Volkswagen ended talks with the Malaysian carmaker in January because the two sides couldn't agree on issues including control of thep company.
``The government may need to offer a bigger stake or give up management control,'' said Raymond Tang, who manages $1.7 billion as chief investment officer of CIMB-Principal Asset Management Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. Those are ``the main points which they failed to agree on in previous talks,'' said Tang, who doesn't own the company'shares.
Proton's Chairman Mohammed Azlan Hashim and Managing Director Zainal Abidin Syed Mohd Tahir weren't immediately available for comment, the company's head of corporate communications, Faridah Idris, said by telephone today.
Proton, which produces eight car designs under its brand and two types of Lotus sports cars, has been seeking a foreign partner since Mitsubishi Motors Corp. and Mitsubishi Corp. ended more than two decades of investment in the company in January 2005.
Volkswagen
Proton and state-owned investment agency Khazanah Nasional Bhd., which owns 43 percent of the automaker, are studying whether a foreign investor could revive its fortunes, Malaysia's Second Finance Minister Nor Mohamed Yakcop said Sept. 5.
Selling a majority stake isn't ``absolutely necessary,'' Mahathir said in the interview. Volkswagen, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, didn't want control of the company, he said.
``I still think Volkswagen is willing'' to talk, he said. ``Despite my initial intervention,'' Proton ``seems to be not keen at all to have anything to do with Volkswagen.''
Proton is also in talks to make cars with China's Jinhua Youngman Automobile Group Co. and Chery Automobile Co., as well as India's Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. Those companies may be allowed to buy a minority stake in the company in return for helping it expand in the world's two most populous nations, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak said on June 19.
``We were working with Volkswagen and we had nearly completed'' the negotiations, Mahathir said. ``We would be manufacturing Volkswagen cars here and also using Volkswagen technology here. But the new management wants to work with China and India, thinking that they can enter these markets. I don't think they are going to get very far.''
Tariff Protection
The Malaysian carmaker's competitiveness has been eroded by the government's new auto policy, introduced in March, which made it cheaper to import cars into Malaysia, Mahathir said. The government cut import taxes to 5 percent from 15 percent.
``Proton cannot survive'' without protection, he said. ``When you go to Korea you don't see foreign cars. It's the same in Japan. They have ways and means of ensuring that foreign cars do not compete with their cars in their country.''
The company's share of Malaysia's car market fell to 40 percent last year from as much as two-thirds during the 1980s.
Malaysia, aiming to become a regional hub for car manufacturers such as Toyota and Isuzu Motors Ltd., offers incentives and tax breaks for overseas carmakers to assemble their products in the country.
Honda, Toyota
Proton's loss widened to 58.6 million ringgit ($16 million) in the first quarter ended June 30, from 12.4 million ringgit a year earlier as a lack of new models damped sales, the company said in August. Revenue fell 31 percent to 1.42 billion ringgit.
``Proton needs a strong partner,'' said CIMB-Principal Asset's Tang. ``The best partners could be something like Honda or Toyota. Those companies are very good at what they do but they may want to be able to institute changes.''
Proton last month signed an initial agreement with PSA Peugeot Citroen to study the possibility of developing new models together. The agreement is Proton's third this year with an overseas carmaker for possible joint product development.
``If you merely make an arrangement in order to get the platforms from some company, that is not a transfer of technology,'' Mahathir said, referring to the Peugeot accord. If ``that's what they intend to do now, that's not going to do any good for Proton.''

New Models

Proton is also developing a new model using Mitsubishi Motors' components and technology, which it plans to start selling early next year. The Malaysian carmaker, which last year posted its lowest profit since 1991, aims to introduce six models, including its first multi-purpose vehicle, this year through 2008 to reverse slumping sales.

Auto sales in Malaysia are set to decline for the first time in three years as falling prices of used cars, stricter lending rules, higher interest rates and an increase in fuel prices curb demand, the Malaysian Automotive Association said in July.
The reduction in import taxes earlier this year pushed down prices of new and used cars.
``The problem is the government insisted that the price of cars should be lowered, which is fine for the buying party but what they didn't realize is that they lowered the price so much that they lost money,'' Mahathir said. ``Proton certainly lost a lot of money.''
Last Updated: October 11, 2006 21:29 EDT

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UPDATE: Oct 14 06
Meanwhile the Government today has thrown a “life line” to Proton by having a special allocation of RM79.5 to purchase 2000 patrol cars for the police

Extract from Bernama, Oct 13 2006; 22:49 PM

An elaborate ceremony was conducted by Proton Edar Sdn Bhd in the handing over ceremony

On the delivery of the Proton Waja patrol cars, Musa said 500 patrol cars were handed over by Proton Edar today while another 1,500 would be delivered by the end of the year.Musa added that of the 500 patrol cars, 300 would be deployed in the Klang Valley while the others would be distributed elsewhere. "For me, this is a target that can be achieved," he told reporters at a handing-over ceremony of police patrol cars by Proton Edar Sdn Bhd here Friday.

And here are the Proton Waja Cars for the Police to patrol in. Was there any discount in such a big order?

The patrol cars were bought through the RM79.5 million special allocation provided by the government and will be distributed to all police contingents in the States and districts. With the additional 2,000 patrol cars, the police now has a fleet of 3,939 patrol cars in all.

Dr Mahathir will have another say in

Now read on in the latest post, Oct 17 06

Upon his return from performing the umrah, Abdullah warns all quarters (Malays & Non-Malays) to refrain from CAUSING Trouble; And Information Minister Datuk Zainuddin Maidin ATTACKED Gerakan Dr Lim Keng Yaik for Insinuations & Accusations on Transparency, fanning the flame and making it worse (with the little help from Kuan Yew). Advice from Tun MUSA HITAM; Stop PUBLIC Debate

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MORE PICS-77 Year Old DIRTY OLD MAN Jailed 12 Years. What a SHAME Raping Neighbor’s 8 –year Old Daughter in Tampin on Sunday Oct 8 in a Rubber Stall

Tan hancuffed and escorted by Policemen arriving in Session Court

A 77 year old man was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment by the Kuala Pilah Session Court on Friday after he pleaded guilty to raping his neighbor’s 8 year old daughter last Sunday.

A closed up view of the face of a neighbour being a rapist

Tan Mong An, 77 committed the crime between 5.30 to 6.30 pm at a rubber stall in Kg Gemichi Lama, Tampin. Tan was said to give the victim RM20 after raping her.

After sentencing and leaving court, heads down in shame of it all for doing such a nasty thing on a little girl

He was arrested on Oct 9 after the victim’s mother lodged a police report.

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Sexuality & Old Age

It was morally wrong for this man to cruelly force himself on a defenseless young girl to satisfy his urge or lust. He may be old for his age but his desires are still intact. The spirit is willing and so is his body.

It was most unfortunate, he could not controlled himself. He was in a dilemma, without access to any internet porn site and no prostitute around in his sleepy hollow, he gave in to a moment of weakness and suffered the consequence for his crime. 12 years jail with 1/3 remission, he will be out at 85 years if he can live up to that age.

Excessive sexual behavior obviously will be considered depraved by those most afraid of their sensual natures. Such rigid group will believe that youth is innocent and will deny sexual experience as having any place in childhood.

But for young adults if you believe sex is GOOD but old age is BAD, then you will find it impossible to consider exuberant sexuality as a portion of an older person's experience. Trust yourself for greater self-understanding and you will need not project repressed tendencies upon others

As humans we are all animals, if not what are we, vegetables? We are here our spirit joined itself with flesh, and in flesh, to experience a world of incredible richness. You are here to use, enjoy, and express yourself through the body with sex.

In the dream state the child and the old man or woman can exits simultaneously and the individual is made quite aware of the full range of creature hood at all ages.

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SHAHRIR: DISCUSS Bumi EQUITY DATA for Truth; Concentrate on LEAKAGES; NAJIB: DON’T DISPUTE OFFICIAL DATA; MALAYSIA 25/30 in BRIBE PAYERS INDEX (BPI)

There are still quite a few Malays who are enlightened enough to see through the follies of this obsession with the equity percentage, but most are in the silent minority. Datuk Shahrir is one of them and is an exception who is brave enough to stick his neck out and make some meaningful and useful comments on this controversy which can be hurtful to those on the receiving ends. He further suggested that a more meaningful emphasis should be on the excessive “leakages” that are more insidious for its continuation .

When will the bred of more such Malays be reborn at this time simply to help them understand? They are forcing the issue, and forcing the crisis, for there still have time to change their ways.
The Malay race must learn the value of the individual man and its dependence upon other races and species and to comprehend its existence in the whole framework in physical reality. However, they faced two main problems and both involve the sacredness of the individual, and the individual's relationship with others and with all physically oriented consciousness.
The continuation of the NEP is just turning the clock back again for their future progress. Over a generation, the UMNO youth’s parents had their NEP fruits given to them on a silver platter and now youths are demanding the same clutches to prop them up. It is about time they learn the hard way to create some wealth for the Nation and not sponged upon it.

UMNO youth and in particular the Malays must first change their system of beliefs.
They have to change their ways of seeking help from others in avoiding responsibilities and in so doing deny their own abilities for self-understanding and growth. When will the breed of UMNO politicians be born, conscientious and honest, and made every effort for businessmen to invest not only to earn a reasonable return, but to achieve good things in life for the rakyat.

Why must they want to gain their fortunes by political pull, by having government grant those favors and franchises at the expense of their fellow-men? Why all these short cuts and get rich quick mentality to get all the attending materials comfort.
But because you have free will you also have the responsibility and the gift, the joy and the necessity, of working with your beliefs and of choosing your personal reality as you desire.
And this of course, would include creating experiences that most of us might label as negative – the failures, the hurt and hard struggle to achieve your success. But as you each move individually through the dimensions of your own consciousness, you will understand that all seeming opposites are other faces of the one supreme drive toward creativity.
How can we have any semblance of democracy and fair play when every time there is an intellectual discourse over race based issues, it would be termed as “sensitive and seditious” and itimidation and threats are the only responses to silence the debate? Are we are returning to the politics of intimidation?
Do not disavow the experience of feelings you consider negative and try only to 'affirm' what you think of as positive emotions. By not permitting yourselves the dimensions of your creature hood and by pretending not to feel what you feel, you deny the integrity of your own experience

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Sort yourselves out, Shahrir tells parties in Asli fallout

13 Oct 2006 ;Shamini Darshni; N ST

KUALA LUMPUR: The two bodies at loggerheads over the actual amount of Bumiputera equity ownership should sit together and explain how they reached their respective conclusions.
"The statistics have to be accurate so the government policies and strategies will also be the right ones," said Member of Parliament for Johor Baru Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad. Shahrir was commenting on the controversy following the initial statement by Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (Asli) that Bumiputera equity ownership stood at 45 per cent. But on Tuesday, Asli president Mirzan Mahathir said the study was based on flawed assumptions and calculations and added that its conclusions couldn’t be "vigorously justified".
His comments came in the midst of a heated debate between the government and politicians on one side and Asli on the other. The Economic Planning Unit had said that its more exhaustive study showed that Bumiputera corporate entity ownership was at 18.9 per cent, which fell short of the 30 per cent government target.
"They should have sorted themselves out a long time ago instead of getting into a public debate and getting everybody upset," Shahrir said. He said the statistics must be credible as they were used as a basis to form government policies.
He said that if the centre’s figure of 45 per cent had included government-linked companies, then it was a matter of definition. What concerned the Malays, he said, and the current leadership, were "leakages" that had been occurring since 1990.
"Everyone has seen that there were parties who were beneficiaries of government policies, strategies and decisions in the name of the new National Economic Policy. Yet, at the end of the day, the beneficiaries could not hold on to their gains." The concern should be on how to prevent the leakages now that the NEP was back in the picture. To do this, the statistical information had to be accurate, he said.
"Everybody was upset with the leakages, Malay or non-Malay. We cannot go through another period of continuing to give opportunities to the Malays and seeing these opportunities wasted again." Shahrir said that the present focus should be on reducing the leakages and openly tendering government contracts while cutting down on direct negotiations to ensure competition for a more effective economic system.

"If we miss the point and talk about whose statistics are correct, we may miss the whole thing," he said. Asked whether he thought it was right for the director of the Centre for Public Policy Studies Dr Lim Teck Ghee to quit his post, Shahrir replied: "If he feels very strongly about it, he should quit but why must he quit at the end of the month? If it’s a matter of principle, then you quit immediately, like me. But he may have his reasons."
Asli’s stalwart economist had announced on Wednesday that he was quitting as he could not accept the backdown by Mirzan. Shahrir said that while people should stand by their decisions and take responsibility for their opinions, he did not think that Lim’s decision to quit would resolve the situation.
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Mirzan: No one put pressure on Asli to back down

13 Oct 2006; NST

On Tuesday, the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (Asli) distanced itself from findings of its think tank that Bumiputera equity ownership in public-listed companies may be as much as 45 per cent. Dr Lim Teck Ghee, the head of the think tank, resigned in protest. But so many questions remain unanswered over this episode. V. VASUDEVAN speaks to Asli president Mirzan Mahathir on the controversial findings.

Mirzan says the study was flawed
Q: When was this report commissioned? What was the idea behind it?
A: It was the first project for the Centre for Public Policy Studies which aimed to provide recommendations for the Ninth Malaysia Plan. It was submitted in February. It was never meant to be a public document.
Q: Are you convinced that the study is flawed?

A: Absolutely. Categorically, I am convinced. I was away when all this blew up. When I came back, some people wanted to see me regarding corporate equity distribution.
So, I spent two days reading it. I doubt it would stand scrutiny so we decided if we are wrong, we are wrong, we have to admit it.
Q: Why did it take so long for you to realise that the study was flawed? From March until now, that is quite some time.
A: I must admit I was given a copy, but I did not go through it in detail. It slipped past me. If I had, I would have queried it. Dr Lim Teck Ghee (Centre director) was convinced it was correct and it was submitted.
When it was brought to my attention, I did not want to rush to make a judgment.
I had to read it and determine if it had any merit. I have to look at the interests of Asli, for Asli has been around for a long time.
Q: Is it not strange that no one in Asli found the findings disputable, even before it became public knowledge?

A: Yes, I know. I don’t know how widely it was circulated within Asli.
Q: Were you pressured into questioning the findings of the study?
A: Nobody called me up and said ‘Look, you have to back down’. We just felt that we had to look after the interests of Asli.
I spoke to my colleagues and said we had to come up with something. So I worked on it. I read the report, did an assessment and made the decision.
Q: Where did the report go wrong?

A: I feel some of the statements in the report were not substantiated. There was no flow in the report. A good report would present data that is relevant, and it would have logic. From there, you can come up with conclusions. They followed except that it was not as logical as it should be. For example, if you say that government-linked companies are considered Bumiputera companies, there should be justification. This is a 20-page report. There is no reference as to why a GLC should be considered a Bumiputera company.
Q: Will Asli conduct this type of study again?
A: Our theme or motto is to try and create a better society. We should not shy away from doing research where the outcome would be useful even in areas which are sensitive.
Q: Has this episode damaged Asli’s reputation?
A: What can you do? Damage is damage. The only thing is to limit it and try to come back. To do that, you have to do a better job, basically.
When you are down, it does not mean you are out. You have to work hard to come back. That’s what we have to do.
We have to look at changes that need to be made to ensure we have a proper process.
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Najib Hopes No One Will Dispute Official Data On Equity Ownership; October 12, 2006 17:16 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 12 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said Thursday he hoped that no one will dispute the government's official data on the equity ownership of bumiputera and non-bumiputera.
He said the government stood by the accuracy of the official data. "We hope this will be accepted and not disputed by anyone," he told reporters after the presentation of Aidilfitri goodies from contributors to the Malaysian Armed Forces at the Defence Ministry here.
"We have explained in public statements about the basis of the calculation made by the EPU (Economic Planning Unit) all this while and all quarters concerned had understood the methodology used by the EPU.
"We do not want something done that causes discord. Possibly, at the beginning, such discord could be seen as intellectual discourse but if it touches on sensitive issues, it could hurt the feelings of certain races and could be regarded as sedition even though that was not the intention."
He was commenting on a controversial study by the Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) of think-tank Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (Asli) which concluded that bumiputera equity ownership could be as high as 45 per cent, more than double the government's official figure of 18.9 per cent.

Asli president Mirzan Mahathir has issued a public apology over the CPPS report and also retracted it, saying the study was based on flawed assumptions and calculations and its conclusion could not be "vigorously justified".
Following the retraction, CPPS director Dr Lim Teck Ghee announced he would resign end of this month to take responsibility for the report's fallout, but he said he stood by the findings and disagreed with Mirzan's statement.
Najib said the government hoped everyone would adopt a responsible attitude on this issue because of its "big implications". "It would have been better to just submit the (study's) findings to the government instead of making them public," he added.

[…]

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Transparency International; Bribe Payers Index (BPI) 2006 ; Analysis Report

Released on Wednesday 4 October 2006

The BPI 2006 ; Methodology
The BPI is a ranking of 30 of the leading exporting countries according to the propensity of firms with headquarters within their borders to bribe when operating abroad. It is based on the responses of 11,232 business executives from companies in 125 countries to two questions about the business practices of foreign firms operating in their country, as part of the World Economic Forum’s Executive Opinion Survey 2006.
To assess the international supply-side of bribery, executives are asked about the propensity of foreign firms that do the most business in their country to pay bribes or to make undocumented extra payments. The survey is anonymous.

The questions on which the BPI is based first ask respondents to identify the country of origin of foreign-owned companies doing the most business in their country. Respondents are then asked:
‘In your experience, to what extent do firms from the countries you have selected make undocumented extra payments or bribes?

Respondents are asked to answer on a scale of 1 (bribes are common) to 7 (bribes never occur). In calculating the BPI, the answers are converted to a score between 0 and 10, and the ranking reflects the average score.
The 30 economies ranked in the BPI are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzer land, Taiwan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.
These countries are among the leading international or regional exporting countries, whose combined global exports represented 82 percent of the world total in 2005.

The Bribe Payers Index (BPI) RANKINGS for 30 Exporting countries

Note: There is a CLOSE CORRELATION between this index (BPI)and the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) also issued (2006 values Not yet released) by Transparency international.
The full 12 page PDF (BPI) analysis is available from here

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In global trade, wheels greased by greasing palms
A bribery index ranks India as the worst offender among leading exporters.
By Saurabh Joshi and Mark Sappenfield
NEW DELHI – Surely the report was meant to shock, to agitate, and even to anger Indians. Yet, in the face of news that an international watchdog group has just labeled his country home to the world's biggest bribers, Sonal Sinha struggles even to feign interest.
"It doesn't surprise me," says the Delhi lawyer as he walks to work. This is the country where the last foreign minister was sacked for being implicated in the Iraqi Oil-For-Food scandal. Police raids of government officials' homes routinely find mattresses full of rupees. One Madras (Chennai) businessman laments that he has to pay multiple bribes just to get his clothes to market.

From a British bureaucracy that excelled at self-enrichment and utter obfuscation, India has wrought a business culture that too often idolizes these qualities, say critics. As India collides with the comparatively higher standards of the Western world, it is beginning an effort to reform. But the resigned reactions of Mr. Sinha and others here to Wednesday's report indicate how far reformers still have to go.
Corruption needs to be tackled "at least for the sake of reputation," says S.K. Agarwal of the India office of Transparency International (TI).
His group released its annual Bribe Payers Index this week. It found that Indian companies were more likely to give bribes while conducting business abroad than were companies from any of the world's other top 30 exporters, according to a survey of 11,000 businesspeople in 125 countries.
Switzerland was given the highest grade by the global anticorruption group, although it had among the lowest percentages of international trade for 2005, at just 1.2 percent. The US tied for the ninth most honest broker along with Belgium.
Keeping India company as countries where bribery is a nagging problem, according to the TI list, are China, Russia, and Turkey, who, respectively, placed above India.
In response to India's worst-of status, one garment exporter snorts, "It's common knowledge that people have to pay up just to get an export order from abroad," he says, asking that his name not be used to avoid retribution from government officials.
And that is just the finish line. The exporter says he had to run a gamut of bribes before that: "First, the customs people want a cut for every consignment exported."
For the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), that sort of attitude is disappointing. The organization suggests that Indian companies are not the worst bribers, and it questions the findings, noting that they are based purely on the perceptions of businessmen in various countries.

"Most of the Indian companies conducting business abroad are also very respected," says Vivek Bharati of FICCI.
Yet Mr. Sinha, the Delhi lawyer, has a different take: "Even if reputation suffers, one needs to get the contract - after which it hardly matters how you get it."
Besides, he adds, bribery doesn't get far if there are no takers. If an Indian company acts unethically while trying to get an oil contract in Nigeria, for example, then let Nigeria deal with it. "A new law in India for this specific purpose would prejudice Indian business dealings," he says.
There is growing sentiment in India, however, that India must take some action, even if it would be forcing its companies to play by rules that companies from other countries can ignore. A law would not only clarify a murky area of ethics but also help India in its expanding relations with the West.
"While India is a signatory to the UN convention on corruption, it has yet to ratify it," says Dr. Agarwal of Transparency International, adding that India should make a law similar to America's Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Reformers are combating entrenched practices and a long history. In a different Transparency International survey, India ranked No. 88 of 158 countries in terms of its own citizens' perceptions of the pervasiveness of corruption in the country. Moreover, proving corruption in a court of law has proven near impossible.
Prosecutors find it difficult to compile evidence supporting a corruption charge, says Reshmi Mitra, an activist at the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. The system of government that India inherited from the British was inherently bureaucratic, and it jealously guarded any information about government dealings. The result is that most information is considered a privilege that the government will bestow upon those it favors, says Ms. Mitra.
"This is a mentality that has been there for a long time," she adds.
Heralding some progress for Indian transparency, activists have succeeded in getting a new Right to Information law on the books. But officials and the public are still unsure about how to handle it.
"This is an excellent start," she says. "You cannot expect what has been there for 50 years to change in a minute.... India is still at a nascent stage when it comes to tackling corruption."

MORE PICS – TRAGIC DEATH; Man Leapt 5 m Down PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE in LRT STATION to JALAN AMPANG, Wednesday Afternoon.

ABOVE: The overhead bridge (in Dang Wangi LRT Station) where the man suffering from depression fell to his death below


A 35 Year old man suffering from depression leapt to his death after jumping from the Dang Wangi overhead bridge onto Jalan Ampang on Wednesday The incident happened at about 1.30pm between peak hours at the LRT station.

According to an eye witness, the man was seen paving up and down the pedestrian bridge for sometime before jumping down the 5.1m bridge. Miraculously, he was not run over by any car at that time

The victim was identified as Tham Weng Wooi, 35 and suffered massive head injuries due to the fall. The Police had to close a section of the road before the body was removed causing quite a bit of a jam as onlookers slowdown to have a closer look.

The lunchtime crowd and the slow down traffic required police control

Malaysian Red Crescent society received and emergency call and arrived to take the remains to KL hospital for a post mortem

Notes on suicide

No man dies unless he wants to die, and for a much better reason than that you want him to. There is always some conscious recognition, however, though the individual may play tricks with himself and pretend it is not there. Even animals sense their dying ahead of time and on that level man or woman is no different.

Sometimes you think of suicide as ignominious and passive, but of war as aggressive and powerful. Both are equally the result of passivity and distorted aggression and of natural pathways of communications not used or understood

However, suicides and would-be suicides often have such a great literal lust for life that they constantly put it into jeopardy, so that they can experience what it is in heightened form.

Some people might say, I have a right to die, when they are arguing the case for suicide. And while this is true, it is also true that the people on our planet need every bit of help and encouragement they can get from each person alive. In a certain sense, the energy of each individual does keep the world going, and to commit suicide is to refuse a basic, cooperative venture.

Left alone, the self and the body are so entwined that the separation would be smooth. The body would automatically follow the wishes of the inner self. In the case of suicide, for example, the self is to some extent acting out of context with the body, which still has its own will to live.

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MORE PICS – DRAMA - Cirrus SR20 PLANE SMASHED NY 50-Storey APARTMENT; US Jets SCRAMBLED; REMINISCENT of 9/11 Terrorist Attack But Was An ACCIDENT

ABOVE: A Google image of 50-storey Belair Apartment Building before crash; BELOW: The Burning Apartment after the fire started

ABOVE: Height of the fire & BELOW: Fire simmering down


ABOVE & BELOW: Closed up views of the burning inferno at the 30th & 31st Floor of the Belair 50-storey Building

Manhattan plane crash reawakens spectre of 9/11

Staff reporter and agencies ; 12 October 2006 06:58

Smoke billows from a 50-storey New York high-rise after a small plane crashed into it on Wednesday. (AFP)
It may only have been a matter of minutes but for many New Yorkers it seemed so much longer -- and so terribly reminiscent. A pall of thick black smoke hung over the Manhattan skyline. Bits of the tail wing of a plane lay scattered on the pavement. Two floors of a tower block were engulfed in an intense blaze.
Shortly before 3pm on Wednesday, New York City went through it all again. In 72nd Street on the Upper East Side, just 8km from ground zero, crowds assembled as news spread that a small aircraft had ploughed into the 30th and 31st storeys of the 50-floor Belair building.
Manhattan's wide avenues were clogged with emergency vehicles and helicopters hovered overhead as crews of firefighters prepared to enter the building. And in the most eerie echo of five years ago, the cellphone networks jammed as people rushed to telephone their loved ones. Even the Pentagon got in on the act, ordering fighter jets to scramble over several cities including New York, Washington, Los Angeles and Seattle.
And then, details began to emerge. The crash had been of a single-engine light plane that had swerved off its path over the East River. It looked like an accident.

ABOVE: Cory Lidel, the pitcher with NY Yangkees Club was the owner of the plane but it could not be established if he was the pilot at that time

And then another telling detail: at the controls had been a celebrity, a pitcher with the United States's largest baseball club, the New York Yankees. Cory Lidle was identified as the owner of the Cirrus SR20 plane and one of the two victims -- the other being his flying instructor.
The city's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, giving a public address shortly after the accident, touched on how New York's nerves had momentarily been tweaked: "Everybody is sensitive when a plane goes into a building. But homeland security sees no evidence of anything relating to terrorism or anything remotely like it."
Lidle (34) had acquired his pilot's licence only a few months ago and had been planning to head for California where he intended to spend the off-season improving his piloting skills. Ironically, he had bought the Cirrus model because he thought it was safe. "The whole plane has a parachute on it," he told the New York Times last month. "Ninety-nine per cent of pilots that go up never have engine failure, and the 1% that do usually land it. But if you're up in the air and something goes wrong, you pull that parachute and the whole plane goes down slowly."
On the Cirrus website, the company says its "revolutionary Cirrus Airframe Parachute System" (CAPS™) is comprised of a ballistically powered 55-foot (16m) parachute that can lower the aircraft and its occupants safely to the ground during a life-threatening emergency.
The website said the parachute is activated by a simple pull handle, "and is a safety feature much appreciated by non-flying members who know that in the event of a pilot incapacitation, they can still make it safely to a survivable landing". "For even the most highly skilled pilot, events can occur outside the realm of control. Many of these emergencies could result in a fatal crash. CAPS™ provides one final option—a lifesaving parachute of safety."
The New York Times quoted one of his instructors as saying: "He was probably my best student. He learned very, very quickly, and a lot of it is desire. He had huge desire."
The Cirrus took off from New Jersey's Teterboro airport, across the Hudson river from Manhattan, at 2.25pm. Radar signals showed the plane circling the Statue of Liberty then flying over the East River alongside Manhattan at 1 500 feet. It then turned into Manhattan and lost height very rapidly to just 400 feet. At that point the radar signal was lost.
A federal official, speaking to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, said the plane sent a distress call to the Federal Aviation Authority before it crashed. Henry Neimark, a pilot who witnessed the accident while driving along the Brooklyn to Queens expressway, said he saw a plane banking very steeply to the left over the East River at a height of 700 or 800 feet. "It was very odd to see a plane manoeuvring so close to the ground -- doing what almost looked like acrobatics," he said. "I suddenly saw it hit the building in a huge ball of flames."
Richard Drutman, a professional photographer who lives on the building's 11th floor, said he was speaking on the telephone when he felt the building shake. "There was a huge explosion. I looked out my window, and saw what appeared to be pieces of wings, on fire, falling from the sky." He and his girlfriend quickly left the building, he said.
Witnesses reported the sense of panic when the plane struck. "I just saw something come across the sky and crash into that building. There was fire, debris and an explosion," said Young May Cha (23) a medical student at Cornell University. A mystery writer, Carol Higgins Clark, who lives on the 38th floor of the building, was coming home in a cab when she saw the smoke. "Thank goodness I wasn't at my apartment at the time," she said.
The FAA said it was too early to determine what caused the crash. One question the authorities will address is how the plane managed to reach airspace above residential areas of Manhattan, which has been strictly prohibited since the September 11 attacks five years ago.
Firefighters injured

ABOVE & BELOW: Firemen at Ground Zero looking at the mess created by the fallen debris of the remains of the burnt out plane

Twenty-one people -- most of them firefighters -- were taken to hospital.. Two people in an adjoining apartment miraculously escaped injury. Apartments in the E. 72nd Street luxury high-rise, called the Bellaire Condos, can sell for upward of $1-million (about R8-million). Large crowds gathered at the crash scene, with many people in tears and others trying to reach loved ones by cellphone. Rain started pouring at the scene at around 4pm.
Surreal
A South African travelling in New York on business at the time, JP Farinha, told the Mail & Guardian Online on Wednesday that it felt "surreal" to hear the news of the crash on the radio in a cab.
"My first thoughts were predictably of a terrorist attack but it was ruled out quite quickly. Once the full story emerged what struck me most was the fact that a private plane was able to fly so close to Manhattan without even a flight plan."
"I would have thought that after 9/11 it would be near impossible for something like this to happen. It makes you wonder how many other easy opportunities for terrorist attacks still exist in cities across the world," he said. - Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006, Staff reporter.

ABOVE & BELOW: The aftermath of the burnt out 30th & 31st Floor when the fire died out

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US scrambles fighters after NY plane crash
New York; 11 October 2006 10:14
US authorities scrambled fighter jets above US cities on Wednesday as a precaution after a small plane crashed into an apartment building in New York, a senior commander said.
Admiral Tim Keating, commander of the US Northern Command, would not say how many cities were under air cover but insisted there was no sign of terrorism in the accident on Manhattan's post Upper East Side.
"Fighters, along with early warning systems, they've been up there for half an hour, 45 minutes," Keating told CNN.
"There are no, repeat, no indications that there is anything underfoot beyond this one airplane or helicopter, whatever, light civil (aircraft) that flew into this apartment building in New York City," he said.
"But ... we reserve the right to exercise our capabilities, which is what we've done here."
White House not ruling anything out.
The White House was not ruling out any theory on the crash, a spokesperson said, adding that there was no change in the country's terror alert level."We are not in a position to rule anything in or out," said deputy White House spokesperson Tony Fratto after a small plane plunged into the apartment building killing at least one.

"There is no change of the alert level."
Frattor said President George W. Bush was informed shortly after the crash, which evoked memories of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

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MOE PICS-1.5 Million Fire LOSS at KLANG WAREHOUSE STORING PAINTS; HARI RAYA PREPARATIONS DASHED-FIRE DESTROYED 8 Houses in Kampung Pasir, Setapak.

ABOVE: The trading company warehouse where paints and other hardware materials were stored caught fire early wednesday morning
A warehouse storing paints and related inflammable materials was destroyed in a Wednesday morning fire which spread quickly. Loss was estimated to be 1.5 Million ringgit.

ABOVE: The burnt out shell of the building

Five fire engines were deployed and 35 firemen were involved to put out the blaze after a 999 call was received at 7.15 am, Wednesday 11 th Oct 2006.



Efforts to put out the blaze were hampered by a faulty hydrant but the firemen still managed to put out the blaze within 90 minutes.

BELOW: The fire engine was hampered by a faulty hydrant
If the fire was prolong dangerous fumes would have affected nearby residents. Nobody was injured in the fire

ABOVE: The Malaysia flag was left untouched by the fire

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Fire Damages Raya Preparations Of Four Families; October 11, 2006 15:23 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 11 (Bernama) -- It will be a sad Hari Raya for four squatter families in Kampung Pasir, Setapak here, whose houses and preparations for the celebration were destroyed in a fire today. The fire destroyed eight houses, four of which were not occupied.

ABOVE: The shouts of fire would scrambled people to move their belongings to a safer place before the firemen arrived from nearby Setapak

Swift action by firemen prevented the fire from ravaging the whole settlement, comprising about 500 houses which were built very close to one another. The fire was believed to have started about 8am when most of the residents were leaving for work and the children to school.

ABOVE & BELOW: What is salvaged is left in the open air for all to see

One of the victims, Yaakob Sahat, 45, said a relative telephoned him to inform about the fire as he was on his way to work. "I rushed back and found a portion of my sister's house, with whom I was staying, on fire. I rushed in and managed to salvage a few things, including some important documents," he added. Yaakob said he was informed by the neighbours that the fire started from one of the four unoccupied houses which were normally used by drug addicts. His neighbour, Shamsuddin Lazim, 50, said he was awakened from sleep by shouts of fire and people screaming for help.

Dousing the hot cinders to prevent reignition is the final act firemen would do.

He said he was grateful that only the kitchen wall of his house was burnt. Meanwhile, Federal Territory Fire and Rescue Department assistant director (operation) Md Ali Ismail said 54 firemen in six fire engines - four from Jalan Hang Tuah and one each from Sentul and Wangsa Maju, rushed to the scene after receiving a distress call at 7.53am and took about 20 minutes to control the fire.

He said the department believed the fire started from one of the four unoccupied houses but investigations were being carried out to determine the cause and losses incurred.

MORE PICS- SEVERE INDONESIAN HAZE; KHAIRY JAMALLUDDIN & UMNO YOUTH Gang DEMONSTRATING in EMBASSY; PRESIDENT SUSILO Apologizes to Malaysia & Singapore

Hazy Quote from Indonesian Embassy staff when the DAP made an earlier visit:

"When we export oxygen, you don't say anything; when we export haze, you complain"

ABOVE & BELOW: The hills are alive with Fires in Indonesia with 60000 Hot spots at its height

ABOVE & BELOW: More Fires and More smog & More wind to blow them away

ABOVE & BELOW: The thickening haze is way above "Unhealthy Level" and bikers are switching on lights

UMNO DEMONSTRATION in FRONT of KL INDONESIAN EMBASSY
ABOVE and BELOW: UMNO Youth Vice Chief Khairy Jamalluddin and his gang members "demonstrating" the Memo he presented to the 2nd Secretary in the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur


UMNO Youth Vice Chief Khairy Jamalluddin: “We want the Hanoi Action Plan 1998 measures to reduce fire to be implemented immediately. We also want the Asean Transborder Agreement 2002 to be rectified by Indonesia”

Umno Youth also called for:(Extract from Sun)
- earnest implementation of the recommendations contained in Asean's Hanoi Plan of Action 1998 which specifies various measures, including damage control through fire fighting, cloud seeding and monitoring using satellite imaging;
- facilitation of assistance from neighbouring countries to help put out the fires as no country, including Indonesia, has the resources to do it alone; and
- severe action under the law against those responsible for the fires,
irrespective of who they may be, including Malaysians.

Meanwhile the Indonesian President Susolio Bambang Yudhoyono apoligised to Malaysia & Singapore.


President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono: “We are continuing our efforts in the central and regional areas but in reality, I have to admit the haze is a nuisance, it is still disturbing Indonesian people and region and in a limited way disturbing countries Malaysia and Singapore. On behalf of the Indonesian government, I apologize to those countries.

from channelnewsasia.com
Indonesia apologises for haze, agrees to convene meeting to tackle problem Posted: 11 October 2006 2058 hrs
JAKARTA : Indonesia apologised on Wednesday to Singapore and Malaysia for the choking haze over both countries and agreed to convene a meeting of regional environment ministers to tackle the problem.
"On behalf of the Indonesian government, I have to apologise to the neighbouring countries for this incident even though clearly this is not an intentional (act) by Indonesia," said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
"Clearly, this is not a problem we intend to inflict to our neighbours and we are continuously trying to tackle it and prevent it in future," Yudhoyono told a press briefing at his office in Jakarta. Anger had been growing in Malaysia and Singapore over the choking haze fromfires raging in Sumatra and Kalimantan in Indonesia, which every year drift over parts of Southeast Asia - damaging health and and disrupting transport
and tourism.
Yudhoyono's apology came after Singapore had earlier invited environment ministers from affected nations Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Brunei to a meeting on Friday to discuss "urgent" measures to deal with the problem. But Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda insisted the meeting should be held in his country, possibly in Pekanbaru city on Sumatra island's Riau province, near Singapore.
"We want the meeting to be held nearer to the where the problem is being handled," he told reporters in Jakarta. Wirayuda did not say when the meeting in Sumatra would take place. Indonesia's annual burn-off causes a haze that typically smothers parts of Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand as well as Indonesia itself. Large corporations clearing forests for palm or timber plantations and small farmers using slash-and-burn methods have been blamed. - AFP/ms
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Rain Expected To Bring Respite To Haze Hit Areas; October 11, 2006 19:06 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 11 (Bernama) -- The haze, which had enveloped the southern and central part of Peninsular Malaysia over the past week, is expected to gradually improve due to more rain in the next few days. The Meteorological Services Department in a statement Wednesday said the haze in Sarawak was also in for some improvement, especially in the eastern part of the state, due to convective activities and rain.
"However, over the western part (of Sarawak), the situation is expected to remain the same. In Sabah, more convective activity is expected over the western part of the state.
"This may help improve the haze situation. Since the wind over the eastern part of Sabah is blowing from the south, the current haze situation may continue," said the statement.
The department said the visibility in the northern region of the peninsula, especially the central and southern parts, had generally improved due to the occurrence of more convective activities. "As the wind over the southern states is still blowing from the southeast and southwest direction, some areas of Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Johor and Melaka are experiencing intermittent hazy conditions.
"At 2pm today, the visibility at Kuantan, Batu Pahat, Mersing and Melaka were between 2.5 and 4km," the department added. It also said that although the coastal areas of Sarawak experienced scattered rain, there was no significant improvement in the haze affecting the state since last week.
The visibility at Sibu had however improved to 7km with Kuching and Sri Aman recording the lowest visibility of between 1km and 2km. In Sabah, the haze had deteriorated slightly over the last 24-hours with visibility at Tawau, Sandakan and Kota Kinabalu fluctuating between 2km and 4km.
It said that as of Tuesday, a total 452 hot spots were detected in Sumatera, where forest fires were raging covering most parts of the southeast Asian region with smoke.
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Asean Ministers To Meet Over Haze In S'pore On Friday; October 11, 2006 11:07 AM

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Azmi Khalid is expected to represent Malaysia at the meeting.
SINGAPORE, Oct 11 (Bernama) -- Environment ministers from five Asean countries will meet here on Friday to discuss immediate and long-term measures to tackle the regional haze problem. The meeting comes amid growing frustration among countries affected by the recurrent smoke haze phenomenon caused mainly by forest and bush fires in Indonesia's Kalimantan and Sumatra. Besides Indonesia, four others attending the meeting are Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei and host, Singapore -- countries which have been affected by the current haze problem.

The one-day meeting is at the invitation of Singapore's Minister of Environment and Water Resources Dr Yaacob Ibrahim."The meeting will discuss urgent and long-term measures that the countries could undertake to tackle the regional haze problem," the ministry said in a statement.


Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Azmi Khalid (ABOVE) is expected to represent Malaysia at the meeting, called the "Sub-Regional Ministerial Meeting on Transboundary Haze Pollution".
In Singapore, the air quality has returned to the range of "good" and "moderate" after hitting an unhealthy level of 128 of the pollutant standards index (PSI) on Saturday, prompting the National Environment Agency to issue its first health advisory. Visibility remained low at between 2km and 4km.
After a severe environmental crisis following the haze problem towards the end of 1990's, the 10-member Asean signed an environmental agreement in 2002 to bring haze pollution under control in the region. Since then, seven countries -- Brunei, Malaysia, Laos, Singapore, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam -- have ratified the agreement.
Indonesia, which is often blamed for the haze problem, is reported to be still in the process of ratifying it.

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MORE PICS-Fate of LANDSLIDE Flats in 1 Month; 571 Victims AFFECTED Relocated to New Sri SEMARAK Flats, Setapak; LANDSLIDE Causes being INVESTIGATED

Update: Oct 12 06;
October 11, 2006 22:38 PM

Landslide Victims To Stay In New Homes For Free For Three Months
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 11 (Bernama) -- The landslide victims from the Section 10 flats in Wangsa Maju will be given a reprieve from having to pay rent for three months when relocated to temporary homes at City Hall's People Housing Projects (PHP). The Federal Territories Ministry and City Hall would also bear the electricity and water bills during the period, said Federal Territories Minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique.
"The Cabinet, which has been informed about the matter, has agreed to relocate the victims of the landslide to a PHP, especially the one at Seri Semerak," he told reporters after breaking his fast with the victims, here Wednesday.He said each family was also given compensation of RM2,000 and the total amount handed out to them which came to RM276,000 was contributed by government agencies, the private sector and individuals.
About 600 residents of four blocks of flats in the area had to be evacuated when a section of the hillside nearby collapsed, taking along several vehicles with it on Monday. Zulhasnan said that City Hall would provide free transportation for the flat dwellers to move their belongings to their temporary homes on Saturday.
On the remedial work in the area, he said the contractor of the Duta-Hulu Kelang Expressway in the vicinity of the flats was taking steps to reinforce the collapsed hillside. Zulhasnan said the causes of the landslide, which was being studied by the Malaysian Public Works Institute, would be made public and he hoped the results would be known in one month time. He said that the land in the affected area was still not stable.

= = = = = end update

ABOVE and BELOW; A visit to the site would indicate that these flats should NOT have been built in the first place. Under present guidelines, the Minister of Environment & Natural Resiurces would have demanded an EIA study as the slopes they were built were greater than 20 degrees. The developer was greed y to maximixe profits. These flats on slopes are so close to a ravine more than 15m below
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ABOVE: New roadworks and the construction of the DUKE (Duta Ulu Kelang Expressway); Note the LRT line at Setiwangsa); BELOW: Note the DUKE highway into the flats nearby and the construction of the Thunder storm Drainage

333333333333333333333333333333333333333333
ABOVE: The entrance to the newly uncompleted storm drainage at the bottom of the flats; BELOW: The abandoned section of the Drains after the landslide

4444444444444444444444444444444444444444ABOVE: The reinforced under-construction part of the drainage and BELOW: the partially completed Box culverts constructed on site. The drains were dug wider and deeper to accomodate the constrution and this could have further eroded the earthworks facing the flats. Samy Vellu has ordered the Duke Contractor to strengthen the collapsed part (see report below)

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ABOVE: Dewan Bandar Raya KL (DBKL) was in full force and brought along the "Portable Office" truck fully aircon and BELOW: Its Squad truck for rescue
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ABOVE: DBKL Water Tanker connected to the Portable Toilets (BELOW)


7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777
ABOVE The Fire engine truck was at hand (for gas leak?) but BELOW: the firemen were redundant and chatting away under the sahde
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888
ABOVE: The scramble to move was urgent and residents were allowed to collect the essential and expensive items; BELOW: Some of the evacuees were in the Section 10 Hall

9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999

ABOVE: Others were housed in the SR Asram just nearby and others with relatives. BELOW: The donated food and essential items in the Hall including the "dinner packages" -seen at 1pm for "breaking fast"?

Residents Fear LPG Tank May Explode If Another Landslide Occurs;

October 10, 2006 22:10 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 10 (Bernama) -- A victim of the landslide in Wangsa Maju fears that another one might trigger an explosion at the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) storage system there. Dzulfakar Alang, 49, said this was because the LPG tank that supplied cooking gas to residents at the flats and its piping system were underground. "In the event of another landslide, the pipelines may rupture and all it takes is a spark to ignite an explosion," he said here Tuesday. Dzulfakar said following Monday's landslide, residents could smell gas in the air and attributed it to a probable leak in the pipelines.
Federal Territory Fire and Rescue Department Director, Mohammad Hamdan Wahid confirmed that the smell was due to gas leak as a result of the landslide. "Although the leak is small it can become a threat to the residents. We acted fast and informed Gas Malaysia to shut down the system," he said, adding that his department had also built two drains for water run-off and were using a pump to divert water to prevent the soil from becoming soggy, thus affecting building structures.
Meanwhile, a research officer at the National Soil Erosion Research Centre (NASEC) of Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), Mohd Shafee Harun, believed that the landslide had been due to heavy rain over last week. Shafee said an initial investigation showed that rainfall in the affected area measured 127 millimetres, causing the soil to sink.
"Landslides can happen if rainfall exceeds 100 millinmetres in one week. However, it depends on the hardness of the soil as heavy rainfall will not lead to a landslide if the soil is hard. The soil in Wangsa Maju is of the soft type and reddish in colour categorized as laterite," Shafee added.
NASEC conducts studies on landslides in the country by studying the amount of rainfall and type of soil.
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Fate of Wangsa Maju Flats To Be Known In A Month ; October 10, 2006 20:27 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 10 (Bernama) -- A decision on whether the four blocks of flats in Section 10, Wangsa Maju affected by a landslide are safe for dwelling will only be known in about a month's time. Federal Territories Minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique said the decision would be based on the report provided by the Malaysian Public Works Institute (Ikram).
"For the time being, residents of the four blocks will be put up at the Sri Semarak people's housing project in Setapak," he told reporters during a visit to the affected area here, Tuesday. Also present were Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil and Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Ruslin Hassan.
Zulhasnan said the affected families would be moved to Sri Semarak, Setapak this weekend when power and water supply became available. They would be allowed to return to collect their belongings escorted by members of the security forces and other related agencies, he said.
Some 150 families were afected by the landslide Monday night. They are putting up at a religious school and homes of relatives. Zulhasnan said the developer of the Duta-Ulu Kelang Expressway (Duke) had agreed to strengthen the slope where the landslide occurred to prevent a recurrence.
"Work on the slope will start tomorrow and will take ten days to complete. Ikram will be monitoring the work," he said, adding that the developer had also proposed that a large drain be constructed to drain rainfall from the area.

Meanwhile, Shahrizat said the Welfare Services Department would continue to provide aid for the victims housed at the temporary shelters. "We have distributed blankets, mats, clothing and food to them. Food will be given out continuously.
"The National Welfare Foundation has set aside RM45,000 to be distributed among the affected families. Each family will be receiving RM300," she said.
Shahrizat added that as of noon, some 138 families affected had registered with the Welfare Services Department. They comprised 571 victims of whom 467 are adults and 104 children.
= = = = = = = =
Heavy Rain Triggers Landslide, 600 Flat Dwellers Evacuated; October 09, 2006 21:48 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 (Bernama) -- A heavy downpour, Monday evening triggered a landslide at the back of a low-cost flats at Section 10 in Wangsa Maju, forcing 600 residents from four blocks to be evacuated. The 7.10pm landslide also destroyed the rubbish-dumping area when tonnes of earth and debris were washed down. The evacuated blocks are 3, 4, 5 and 6.
A Bernama check at the scene showed the police, Fire and Rescue Department and Civil Defence Department personnel urging the residents to vacate their premises in the event the situation worsened. Each block has 160 units. A resident Anuar Madon, 54, told Bernama the soil erosion started before the downpour at about 4pm.
"I saw a minor erosion behind the blocks. I took a stick and poked through the soil and it caved-in to about a metre deep...the soil was loose. "At about 6.45pm, I went to the Wangsa Maju police station to lodge a report on the incident and I was informed of the landslide at 7.10pm," he said.
He said most of the residents were breaking fast at the time of the incident. The authorities were at the scene by 7.30pm and immediately cleared the area for evacuation. Anuar, who has been staying at the flats for 19 years, claimed a similar landslide but a minor one occurred at the same site.
"Four days ago, I noticed soil movements. I repeatedly lodged reports but the authorities did not take them seriously," he added. Federal Territories Minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique told reporters at the scene that the landslide occurred behind Blocks 5 and 6.
"The landslide is very near to the two blocks but there were no human casualties. Six cars and few motorbikes were damaged in the incident," he said. He said residents of the affected blocks would be allowed to collect important documents and belongings in stages. "They will be watched by the police. We don't want everyone to go up at the same time as this can destabilise the buildings," said Zulhasnan, who is also Setiawangsa Member of Parliament.
He said the residents would be evacuated to multi-purpose halls in and around Wangsa Maju. Tuesday, the authorities, including the Drainage and Irrigation Department, would conduct investigations, he said. "This incident is serious but under control. We do not know the cause of the incident, whether it was triggered by underground water seepage or construction of the Duta-Hulu Kelang Expressway (DUKE) near the blocks. "I have strongly advised the residents not to enter their blocks without the authorities' approval," he added.
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Samy Vellu Asks Highway Contractor To Repair Landslide Area; October 09, 2006 23:46 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 (Bernama) -- Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu has asked the contractor of the Duta-Hulu Kelang Expressway (DUKE) to undertake remedial work at the site of the landslide in Wangsa Maju.
"I have directed the contractor to start work as soon as possible. I have also asked the Highway Authority of Malaysia to investigate the landslide and submit a full report on the incident," he told Bernama when contacted in London where he is attending the 13th International Transportation System world Congress.
The minister said although the cause of the landslide was not known yet, the main contractor of the expressway had been asked to take all measures to complete the remedial work fast.

The landslide, which occurred at about 7.10pm Monday following a downpour, resulted in the evacuation of nearly 700 people living in four blocks of low cost flats.The landslide occurred at the side of the DUKE Expressway now under construction.

= = = = = == ==
Part of hill in Wangsa Maju collapses, 700 move out

10 Oct 2006 NST Account by Alang Bendahara, Fadhal Illahi Ghani and Leslie Andres
KUALA LUMPUR: Some 700 residents of the Section 10 flats in Wangsa Maju were evacuated yesterday after a section of the hillside nearby collapsed, taking several vehicles with it. At least six cars and 12 motorcycles are believed to have crashed 10 metres onto a road below in the 7pm incident.
Most of the residents were getting ready to break fast when the alarm was raised by residents of block B5, who were nearest to the site. No one was injured, but a paralysed 50-year-old resident was sent by ambulance to a relative’s house in Taman Datuk Keramat. The victims are from four five-storey walk-up flats. The victims from blocks B3, B4, B5 and B6 are being temporarily put up in several multi-purpose halls in the area.
A section of the hillside roughly 40 metres wide, slipped some 10 metres down the hill in the incident. Federal Territories Minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique said the 160 families were evacuated as their blocks were the nearest to the landslide, with blocks B4 and B5 especially considered at risk. He said the victims would be given temporary lodging at flat PPRT Seri Semarak in Wangsa Maju.
It is understood that there are also gas and water leaks affecting the blocks. The flats are fed by a central gas line. As at Press time, both mains had yet to be switched off. The flats are located next to the construction site of the Duta-Ulu Klang Expressway.

Resident Anuar Madon, 54, saidhttp://www.jeffooi.com/2006/10/301940.php he noticed a hole in the ground where part of the hillside had slipped when he came home from work about 6pm. The clerk with the Kuala Lumpur Education Department said the hole was slightly more than a metre deep. "I lodged a report at the Wangsa Maju police station at 6.45pm and when I returned, the landslide occurred." Another resident, Nurul Nur Ariani, 22, believes the landslide was caused by a burst underground pipe.
"We noticed the leak on Wednesday and informed the building maintenance clerk. No one came to repair the leak," she said. City mayor Datuk Ruslin Hassan said, "I will ask the relevant government agencies to do a study on the soil strength and the building structure.”I will wait for the report before making any decision on whether the blocks of flats are safe or not."

= = = = = = = = =
STAR Report, 600 flee flats after landslide in KL
By ZULKILFLI ABDUL RAHMAN, BEH YUEN HUI and CHOW HOW BAN
KUALA LUMPUR: Heavy rains triggered a landslide at the back of a row of low-cost flats in Section 10, Wangsa Maju, forcing about 600 residents to flee their units during breaking fast. No casualties were reported in the 7.10pm landslide that buried four cars and damaged three others, as well as several motorcycles.
The residents had to be evacuated to temporary relief centres, as the earth that slipped 50m down a slope seemed to pose a danger to the blocks.Part of the road leading to the flats collapsed.
Many of the residents rushed out while others shouted to their neighbours to get out of their flats when they saw chunks of earth sliding down the slope.

Following the landslide the authorities ordered residents in Blocks B3, B4, B5 and B6 to move out of their homes. Tour agency employee Syed Huzaimi Syed Sagap, 35, said he was visiting his father at Block B5 when he heard rumbling noises. “I was just outside my father's flat at the ground floor waiting to break fast at about 7pm. Minutes later, I heard some strange noises like something falling. I saw a storehouse sliding down the slope. I shouted at everyone to run out of their houses,” he said. Housewife Norzehan Zainal, 43, who was staying at Block B4, said she was outside her flat at the third floor watching workers building the Duta-Hulu Kelang Expressway (Duke).
“Suddenly, huge chunks of earth fell and I saw the workers running away. I also saw part of the road starting to collapse ,” she added.
Fire and Rescue Department operations commander Mat Ali Ismail said Hazmat team members were called in after reports of gas leaks.
Federal Territories Minister Datuk Zulhasnan Rafique said that residents from 160 units of house from the affected blocks have been advised to vacate their homes and they would be temporarily housed at several multipurpose halls in and around Wangsa Maju.
He said that seven cars and a few motorcycles were damaged.
“The residents of the affected blocks have been allowed to collect important documents and belongings. The flats have been cordoned off. Zulhasnan also said tests would be carried out on the affected area by officers from the Drainage and Irrigation Department.
“We do not know the cause of the incident, whether it was triggered by underground water seepage or construction of the highway.
According to news reports Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu had ordered the contractor involved in the Duke expressway project to carry out remedial work on the affected area and to submit a report on the incident to the ministry.

GOOGLE Bought YOU TUBE for US$1.65 BILLION With Much CASH & EQUITY AT Hand; BEATING A LAUNDRY LIST Of POTENTIAL BUYERS Like YAHOO & MICROSOFT

BUYS

FOR A BARGAIN?

GOOGLE Bought YOU TUBE for US$1.65 BILLION With Much CASH & EQUITY AT Hand; BEATING A LAUNDRY LIST Of POTENTIAL BUYERS Like YAHOO & MICROSOFT Etc.
The company still has a market capitalization of $128 billion. And it has mountains of money. As of June 30, the company had $4 billion laying around its Mountain View, Calif. offices. So WHY not BUY?

Why Buy YouTube? Why Not?; Louis Hau and Rachel Rosmarin 10.06.06, 6:20 PM ET

Why would Google pay $1.6 billion for YouTube? Because it can.
That's the instant reaction among media and tech types Friday to reports that the search giant is considering buying the immensely popular video-sharing site.
A deal, reportedly still in early stages, would give Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) the kind of clout in the fast-growing market for video content that it already enjoys in the Internet search business. In the last week of September, YouTube drew almost half of all United States visitors looking for Web video, according to research firm Hitwise, Inc.
The purchase would also solve a problem, albeit a nice one, that has recently been worrying Google executives: What should they do with all the cash and equity the company has amassed? Even after Google's stock has dropped from its high of $470 early this year, the company still sports a market capitalization of $128 billion. And it has mountains of money: As of June 30, the company had $4 billion laying around its Mountain View, Calif. offices.
And while the reported price tag would make a YouTube deal the largest acquisition that Google has made in its eight-year history, a purchase would actually fit Google's pattern of buying small, early stage companies. For all the noise that YouTube has made in the last year, the company still employs just 60 people at its San Mateo, Calif. headquarters.
The potential deal was first reported in the technology blog techcrunch; neither Google or YouTube would respond to requests for comment Friday. YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley did spend the day at Google's headquarters this week, but his visit didn't raise many eyebrows at the time--the search giant was hosting one of its "Zeitgeist" conferences, aimed at advertising and media companies.
Google already has its own video service, which it launched in January. But the offering hasn't enticed nearly as many web surfers as YouTube--Hitwise pegs its most recent market share at about 12%. But both of the companies have drawn howls from media companies who have complained that users are posting copyrighted videos to the sites. Last month, Doug Morris, head of Vivendi's (nyse: V - news - people ) Universal Music Group, threatened to sue YouTube if it didn't pay his company for the rights to its music and videos, or take them off the site.
Those copyright issues are also what skeptics have thought would ultimately doom YouTube--according to that logic, either YouTube will have to pare down the 100 million videos it hosts on its site or spend all of its time fending off lawsuits.
Internet entrepreneur Mark Cuban, who has frequently argued that YouTube's copyright issue will cripple the company, said those same concerns should dissuade Google from making the deal. "They'd be crazy to. What [Google] went through when they started all their video originally, they thought people would appreciate the traffic," he said Friday. "But it didn't turn out that way. YouTube is in a far worse violation of copyright."
The counterargument: If anyone has enough resources to handle a slew of copyright complaints, it's Google.
"It makes a strange kind of sense," said Forrester Research (nasdaq: FORR - news - people ) analyst Josh Bernoff, who predicted last month that legal issues would kill YouTube. "To solve illegal content problem requires mostly an automated solution. Who do you think would be better at solving that problem? The engineers over at the Googleplex or the overworked 60 people at YouTube? It's true that Google presents a very attractive target for a lawsuit. But Google has a lot of assets with which to negotiate."
Executives at other startup video companies said they would welcome a Google-YouTube deal.
"It's a sensational validation of how significant online video and its attendant opportunities are,'' said Revver.com co-founder and Chief Executive Steven Starr. "I think it expands the competitive landscape dramatically.''
Google's formidable online advertising muscle could help drive more ad dollars into online video sites, so it would be "a net win for everybody in the space," said Break.com Chief Executive Keith Richman.
"You're delivering an audience and a community that Google doesn't already have despite the fact that they have mass reach in certain ways,'' Richman said. "They're accelerating their ability to enter a space where someone else has already established a reputation in.''
But Google isn't the only big media company with a potential interest in YouTube--the company has a laundry list of potential suitors. Here's a quick rundown:

Yahoo! (nasdaq: YHOO - news - people )--Yahoo! already streams billions of video clips a year, but most of them are professionally made clips from music and movie studios. In a bid to offer amateur video-sharers something they don’t already have, Yahoo! acquired online video-editing tools company JumpCut last month. “People interested in creating now have an interesting place to go in Yahoo!,” says JumpCut Chief Executive Mike Folgner. “The other leaders are going to have to do something like this very soon.”
Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people )--The software company, trails Internet competitors like Yahoo!, Google and AOL in most areas, and it's moving slow with user-generated video. Its first offering, Soapbox, launched in invitation-only form on Sept. 18. Its professional video site, MSN Video, has little more than 5% of the video market. Yet Microsoft’s MSN Spaces blogging platform is the most widely used around the globe, according to ComScore, so the company likely wants to get as many of its 100 million users of that product onto Soapbox. If that doesn’t pan out soon, expect Microsoft to belatedly consider other options.
Viacom (nyse: VIA.B - news - people )--Viacom Chairman Sumner Redstone hasn't written off pursuing YouTube; on Wednesday he told television host Charlie Rose that, “It’s a very good company. After letting MySpace slip away to News Corp. a year ago, Redstone could be eager to seal a deal with YouTube. Viacom already licensed its own content to Google Video in a deal announced in August; it bought the video-sharing site iFilm, for $49 million a year ago.
News Corp. (nyse: NWS - news - people )--Online video is a high priority for Rupert Murdoch. But why buy YouTube when News Corp.'s MySpace already generates more video streams? Even as YouTube and MySpace wage a battle for eyeballs, News Corp. inked a huge advertising deal with Google in August, making Google the exclusive search provider for MySpace and guaranteeing News Corp. shared ad revenues of at least $900 million by mid-2010.
Time Warner (nyse: TWX - news - people )--At the same time that the company's AOL unit dropped the remaining subscriber walls around its content, it launched a new video portal with user-generated video content. Meanwhile, it is still refining its strategy for implementing Singingfish, purchased in 2003, and Truveo, acquired in December 2005. Both sites gave AOL ample video search assets, but the company has yet to breakthrough as the clear leader in Web-video trawling--its share of the online video market doesn’t break into the top five, according to Hitwise.
Sony (nyse: SNE - news - people )--The Japanese media and electronics conglomerate hasn't done much on the Internet to date. But it clearly has some interest in doing so: It paid $65 million for online video startup Grouper.com in August.
Walt Disney Co. (nyse: DIS - news - people )--Disney's subsidiaries, including Walt Disney Studios, ABC and ESPN, own one of the largest content libraries around. But the company has exhibited little interest so far in user-generated video. Meanwhile, the company has proved willing to experiment with online video in general--it was the first to let Apple Computer's (nasdaq: AAPL - news - people ) iTunes sell its TV programs and movies online, and it has experimented with streaming its television programming for free on the Web.
NBC Universal--User-generated video doesn't appear to be a high priority for the General Electric (nyse: GE - news - people ) unit, although it was one of the first major content owners to partner with YouTube, where it hosts a channel. The company also launched an ad-supported online video service in September together with a team of content partners, including Forbes.com.
Comcast (nasdaq: CMCSA - news - people )--In June, the nation's largest cable company acquired thePlatform, a Seattle maker of digital media software to distribute online audio and video. User-generated video doesn't appear to be a high priority for Comcast, which is focused more on competition with major telecom companies to sell voice, broadband and video services.

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AIR ASIA PLANE DRAMA at THAI AIRPORT -TOOK OFF with DEFECTIVE WING, U-TURN; CEO FERNANDES URGES APPROVAL for KL-SINGAPORE ROUTE & NO LONG HAUL PLANS

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Update Oct 10 06, - the Minister is in response to the call by CEO Tony Francis (see below) for “quick approval”. From the carefully worded statement from the Minister, CEO Tony can dream on until the deadline 2008 "Open Sky Agreement". The final decision would most probably not be in its favor as the national interest is at stake and the cabinet has no choice but to keep MAS afloat; otherwise it cannot survive with AirAsia coming into this lucrative sector.

Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy declined to reveal details of study

Study On KL-S'pore Air Route For Budget Carriers Completed, Says Chan; October 09, 2006 19:43 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 (Bernama) -- The Transport Ministry has completed a study on opening the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore air route to the budget airlines in Malaysia and Singapore, Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy said Monday.

However, Chan, who received the report from his ministry's former secretary-general Datuk Muhd Safaruddin Muhd Sidek, declined to reveal details. Muhd Safaruddin, who headed a special committee to conduct the study, retired on Friday.

Chan said he would study the report before tabling it in the cabinet for a final decision. He said the cabinet would consider the views of all stakeholders. "The most important thing is, the nation's interests will be given priority," he told reporters after chairing the MCA disciplinary board meeting.
The committee to study opening of the route was set up two months ago.The route is currently monopolised by Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and Singapore Airlines (SIA) under a 34-year-old bilateral air services agreement between the two neighbours.

The Malaysian Government said in August that it was studying whether to allow budget airlines AirAsia and Tiger Airways to operate the route as part of efforts to implement the Asean Open Sky Agreement with Singapore earlier than the 2008 deadline.
Under the agreement, the 10-member regional grouping is expected to open up air routes between capital cities of member countries from 2008 before expanding to other cities by 2015.

AirAsia, Sunday (see below) urged the government to approve its application to fly to Singapore. The low-cost carrier formally applied to ply the lucrative hour-long route recently.
However, national carrier MAS is said to be not in favour of opening up the route before 2008 as it would jeopardise its business turnaround plan.

The Johor Government also protested, saying opening up the route earlier than scheduled would affect the Senai Airport's potential.
Chan said his ministry would take into account the views of AirAsia, MAS and the state government before making a final decision.

= = = = =end update

This incident can be damaging to Air Asia. As a budget airline, it must ensure the planes they are flying are safe and free from defects. As in the similar incident below from another airline in 1993, it could be due to weakening of rivets attaching the wing skin to its frame. In the report quoted, the defect was identified as due to "water contamination" and this happened when the planes are "getting old".

AirAsia do gave their planes visual checks now and then and depends on instrumnets for detection of other defects. Major overhauls and checks are done on scheduled hours. Keep you eyes and ears open, when you next fly AirAsia and help them spot defects.
In this case, no way can they detect this "skin peeling problem" which is Mechanical in nature due to materials wear before a flight. It can occured when the skin is weakened during a take off due to vibration on the structure. This can be a potential big problem, if large areas of the skin were to peel off during flight, an emergency dangerous situation could arise.

With the loss of skin, the wing would not be able to provide the necessay "lift" but an experienced pilot could handle this situation well and in ALL cases an emergency landing at any nearest airport would be the best option.

Southbound plane returns to Suvarnabhumi with wing defect

By News Desk The Nation ; Publication Date: 08-10-2006

After leaving Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday morning (Oct 7), a Thai AirAsia aircraft had to abort its flight to Narathiwat, officially due to technical reasons, but passengers said the U-turn was more about part of its wing falling off.


The jet eventually reached its destination safely after a five-hour delay at Suvarnabhumi and lengthy arguments between passengers and airline representatives.

One of the 94 passengers, Anothai Polsuwan, 40, a lecturer at Rajamangala University of Technology Thanyaburi, said they boarded at 9.35am and after half an hour into the flight, the captain announced that a technical problem had occurred and turned the plane back to Bangkok.

Passengers were told they would have a new plane ready for departure at 12.45, Anothai said. He and his co-passengers believed that the "the technical problem" was in fact the cover of the upper section of the jet's right wing that had peeled off.

They noticed that the mechanics fixing the wing did not look too confident, he said. After two hours of waiting,they became upset upon learning that they had to fly on the same aircraft, which the budget airline's officials insisted had been repaired, he said.

The chief mechanic was summoned to assure the passengers that the missing component - which was not replaced due to the lack of a spare - would not impair the aircraft's operability.
But some passengers were not convinced. They insisted that Thai AirAsia officials back up their word that the plane was safe by getting on with them and flying to Narathiwat.

"If it's a test flight, I won't complain, but this is a plane full of passengers. How can you fly it when its wing has no cover like that?"
Anothai said.

Airline officials even offered to refund the airfare. But after an hour of furious discussion between both sides, the passengers gave in and boarded the plane, finally arriving without any further adventure in Narathiwat at 2.30pm.
____

REPORT of similar SKIN PEELING incident

On April 12, 1993, at approximately 0954 central daylight time, a Boeing 747-269BC, Kuwait registration 9KADD, operating as Kuwait Airlines Flight 091, sustained minor damage when a non structural panel on the left wing became delaminated while the airplane was climbing through FL 310, approximately 25 miles south of Alexandria, Louisiana.

There were no injuries to the 24 passengers, 6 flight crewmenbers, and 10 flight attendants aboard. The airplane departed Ellington Field (EFD) near Houston, Texas, at approximately 0921, enroute to Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. A passenger seated on the left side of the airplane observed portions of the skin on a wing panel on the left wing peeling off and informed a crewmember of the condition.

The airplane was diverted to the Houston Intercontinental Airport (IAH), in Houston, Texas, where a uneventful landing was made at 1028, with airport emergency equipment standing by.
According to the operator, a slight vibration was felt on the left side of the airplane after part of the skin departed the airplane. Physical examination of the airplane revealed that a section (48 inches wide by 31 inches long), separated from the trailing edge of the fixed trailing edge upper panel (part number 65B22845 33) on the left wing. There was evidence of delamination, working rivets, and rows of rivets pulled through the skin on the remaining fiberglass laminated honeycomb panel. Additionally, a 3 inch portion of the trailing edge on the left wing fore flap panel, was also damaged and separated from the aircraft. There was no other damage to the airplane.
According to maintenance personnel returning the airplane to service, the delamination of the honeycomb panel was the result of water contamination.

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http://asia.news.yahoo.com

AirAsia urges Malaysian approval for KL-Singapore route
Sunday October 8, 6:55 PM
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Low-cost carrier AirAsia has urged Malaysia to approve its application to fly to Singapore, arguing the government had to reduce protection for Malaysia Airlines.

AirAsia's Group Chief Executive Tony Fernandes said Malaysia had to improve its connectivity by allowing in more airlines, which would in turn
supplement the budget carrier's network.

Malaysian-based AirAsia announced last month it had made a bid to ply the
lucrative Kuala Lumpur-Singapore route, and that it expected to commence
flights by early 2007.

"We hope the KL to Singapore route is open quickly so we can get a share of their hub traffic," Fernandes told AFP.

"There should be no a reason for it it not to be open except for the protection of Malaysia Airlines," he said Sunday.
The Malaysian government has said it is studying whether to allow AirAsia and Singapore-based Tiger Airways to operate the hour-long route currently monopolised by Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and Singapore Airlines.

Fernandes said Malaysia Airlines was facing increasing challenges from airlines entering the country, and called on the government to allow fair competition for routes.

"More and more Arab airlines are being allowed into Malaysia and they have to compete with those airlines," he said. "We shouldn't be holding anyone back for the benefit of one party," he added.
The chief executive said AirAsia had no news yet of a decision from the Malaysian government, but indicated protection for Malaysia Airlines could
be a sticking point. "We are just waiting for the Malaysian government response," he said. "The only reason not to give a decision would be to protect MAS."

AirAsia was launched as a budget carrier in December 2001 with just two aircraft. It now offers more than 100 domestic and international flights to Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines.
____

AirAsia chief rules out starting long-haul budget carrier
Sunday October 8, 3:54 PM
http://asia.news.yahoo.com

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - The head of Malaysian low-cost carrier AirAsia ruled out establishing a budget long-haul airline and labelled as "preposterous" a report flagging the move.
AirAsia's Group Chief Executive Officer Tony Fernandes scotched a report that the carrier's management team was behind the new airline and would submit a business plan to the government. "It's a preposterous idea," Fernandes told AFP. "I'm ruling it out, I don't see it happening, I don't believe in the model."
The Edge financial weekly, quoting unnamed sources, reported at the weekend that Fernandes and his associates planned to launch the budget long-haul operator by early next year. One of the routes under consideration was the lucrative Kuala Lumpur to London route currently operated by Malaysia Airlines, it said.
Fernandes said he had considered the idea some four years ago before his involvement in AirAsia, but had been advised it was better to start a short-haul airline.

"I have enough on my plate doing a short-haul airline," he added.
AirAsia was launched as a budget carrier in December 2001 with just two aircraft. It now offers more than 100 domestic and international flights to Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines.

AirAsia founders eye long-haul airline -report
Updated : 07-10-2006

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 (Reuters) - The founders of Malaysia-based low-cost carrier AirAsia (AIRA.KL: Quote, Profile, Research) plan to set up a new budget airline that will operate long-haul flights, a business weekly reported.
The Edge, citing unnamed sources, said the new airline, which would be privately owned, might begin service as early as next year.

AirAsia directors Tony Fernandes and Kamarudin Meranun and their associates are believed to be working on the business plan, which would be presented to the government, the weekly said.

Fernandes and Kamarudin could not be immediately reached for comment. AirAsia currently flies to destinations within the region. One of the routes under consideration is Kuala Lumpur to London, the Edge said.

National carrier Malaysia Airlines (MASM.KL: Quote, Profile, Research) flies 18 times a week to London from Kuala Lumpur, and it is one of the few profitable routes on its international network. AirAsia Foreign Shareholding Exceeds Prescribed Limit Of 45 Pct

AirAsia Foreign Shareholding Exceeds Prescribed Limit Of 45 Pct; October 06, 2006 21:24 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6 (Bernama) -- AirAsia Bhd announced that the percentage of its foreign shareholding in the company has exceeded the prescribed limit of 45 percent.
As of September 29, 45.7 percent of its total share capital were owned by foreigners.

Pursuant to the Securities Industry (Central Depositories) (Foreign Ownership) Regulations 1996, shares owned by foreigners which are within the prescribed limit shall be entitled to all rights and entitlement attached to the shares.

However, shares held by foreigners which have exceeded the prescribed limit shall only be entitled to such rights, benefits, powers and privileges except for the voting rights in respect thereof.

Read on for these postings if you have not seen them:

MORE PICS-250 MAT REMPITS & SPECTATORS Detained -Illegal Racing-BANDAR TASIK PERMAISURI - EARLY SATURDAY; TRIO Killed in Kedah; 1 Murder in Damansara or

GOING, Going GONE Soon UM World UNIVERSITY RANKING in Top 200; V C RAFIAH:NO More “PREMIER” Status for UM; UKM & UPM Move UP by GIVING More INFO

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MORE PICS-250 MAT REMPITS & SPECTATORS Detained -Illegal Racing-BANDAR TASIK PERMAISURI - EARLY SATURDAY; TRIO Killed in Kedah; 1 Murder in Damansara

KL Dang Wangi Deputy Police Chief Supt Mun Kock Keong confirmed that the operation was for 48 hours and would end on Sunday night.

ABOVE and BELOW: The race was on, round and round they roared nosily along the streets in Bandar Tasik Permaisuri, outskirts of Kuala Lumpur
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ABOVE The roar of the Motobikes in the Illegal street racing with the bright headlamps on, Saturday, 7th Oct 06 morning and BELOW a wheelie stunt by a biker

Update, 9^th Oct 06, 15:32pm; NEW LAW! But is there a will to implement it? Will UMNO Putera agreed?
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Mat Rempit May Lose Motorcycles Under Proposed Legal Provision; October 09, 2006 14:03 PM
JITRA, Oct 9 (Bernama) -- Fed up with the antics of the "Mat Rempit" (illegal motorcycle racers), the Internal Security Ministry is considering introducing a new legal provision which will allow the confiscation of motorcycles of those caught involved in illegal racing.
Its Deputy Minister Datuk Mohd Johari Baharom said the ministry would propose to the government for a legal provision be made to seize the motorcycles of those caught in illegal racing to address the "Mat Rempit" problem.

"We have carried out various operations against illegal motorcycle racers, but they are back on the road again after paying their summonses and getting back their motorcycles, " he told reporters after presenting Raya contributions to settlers at Felda Laka Selatan, near here last night.
Mohd Johari said the ministry would submit the proposal to the Attorney-General for scrutiny before it could be tabled in parliament.
He said those involved in illegal racing were not only endangering their own lives but also other road users and urged the police to step up operations against their activities.

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The police are intensifying clean up operation in anticipation of the Visit Malaysia Year 2007. About 250 Mat Rempits along with spectators were arrested in a raid on illegal racing in Bandar Tasik Permaisuri in the early hours of Saturday morning.

ABOVE and BELOW: But the race was cut short, the Police were spotted, and it was escape time for many Mat Rempits over the road shoulders
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ABOVE: But the Police nets were intact and many were trapped including spectators and BELOW: After surrending their motorbikes, it was sitting and waiting time

The operation was carried out by Bukit Aman and KL police officers together with narcotics division staff and with the help of the Federal Police Reserve Unit following information received that the place was a hotbed for illegal Street racing in the weekends and during Public holidays.

ABOVE and BELOW: Over 200 Police & Narcotics officers and FRU personnel were involved the raid
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ABOVE and BELOW: After being caught, there was no choice but to push along the motobikes up to the waiting police trucks

Viewed by hundreds of spectators watching the race, the racers performed various dangerous stunts on their motorbikes and some spectators were also participating by crusing along.

Police say 220 motorcycles were seized and those detained include 11 women between the ages 16 – 26 years and were taken to Jalan Bandar police station for statements to be recorded and urine tests performed.

ABOVE and BELOW: More pushing along, 220 Bikes were seized and about 250 spectators Bikers were detained for Urine test for drugs
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ABOVE and BELOW: More waiting and sitting in the early hours of Saturday to be later transfered to Jalan Bandar Police station for tests and recording of personal particulars.
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It was a long and tiring night for many - trying to get "little naps" in between
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And some of the 11 women spectators being detained for questioning

Meanwhile reports from Kedah indicate that 3 Mat rempits were killed in an accident and over in Jalan Damansara Indah, Damsara Height, 1 person was killed and 3 other injured over a fight between a group of 4 who accidentally graced the bikes of a group of 40 Mat rempits racing.

Brickfields Police Chief ACP Dzuraidi Ibrahim confirmed 11 were arrested and 1 motor cycle seized in the Damansara Heights murder.

Police were alerted over the fight when they were flagged down by the injured in a petrol station at about 2.50 am on Saturday morning. The fight started when the small group after gracing the bikes of the bigger group tried to escape but were pursued. A knife was found 200 m from the scene. 1 motorbike was seized and 11 persons were arrested to help in investigation and were between the ages 18-22. All were unemployed but with no criminal records.

ABOVE: The Police van transferring the detainees in the mrder case to the Brickfields lockup
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More details from STAR, ; Monday October 9, 2006
Rempit clash leaves one dead
KUALA LUMPUR: Two rival groups of Mat Rempit clashed early yesterday, leaving one dead and three injured . Agusasrafi Sumarji was stabbed in the chest in the 2.30am incident near a petrol station in Jalan Damansara Indah, Bukit Damansara, here. Brickfields OCPD Asst Comm Mohd Dzuraidi Ibrahim said a passing patrol car was stopped by Agusasrafi’s friend after the stabbing.
The policemen then called for an ambulance and the victim was sent to the University Malaya Medical Centre. However, the 21-year-old Agusasrafi, who was admitted to the intensive care unit, died at 3.45am. According to ACP Mohd Dzuraidi, the fight is believed to have started when the motorcycles of two Mat Rempit from two different groups came in contact during a race.
"There were 40 of them in one group and four in the other. “Two men from the larger group and another from the other one were injured in the fight. They were all sent to Hospital Kuala Lumpur for treatment,” he added. The case has been classified as murder and 13 people, aged between 18 and 22, have been arrested in connection with the incident.
Police recovered a 15cm-long knife 200m from the scene as well as a motorcycle believed to belong to one of the suspects. ACP Mohd Dzuraidi said police were still looking for the rest of the Mat Rempit to help facilitate investigations.
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Meanwhile, two students who had just sat for the PMR examination were killed in what is believed to be an illegal race in Jalan Teloi Kanan, Baling, on Saturday night, Bernama reported. Muhammad Hilmi Zainol and his pillion rider Muhammad Ruslan Othman, both 15, were from Felda Teloi Timur.
Two others, Nai Narong Kriang, 16, and Son Neak Airon, 15, both from Kampung Lengkuas, Sik, who were on another motorcycle, were seriously injured. Muhammad Hilmi, Muhammad Ruslan and Son Neak were classmates at SMK Teloi Kanan.
Baling OCPD Acting Supt Mat Daud Mat Hasan said Nai Narong fractured both his legs while Son Neak, who sustained chest injuries, had been put on a life support system at the Sungai Petani Hospital.

Muhammad Hilmi’s father Zainol Mat Isa, 58, when met at his house, said he accepted the death of his son – the youngest of six siblings – as fated. “It is very sad with Hari Raya just around the corner and all preparations including his Raya clothing ready,” he added.

= = = = = = and this is HOW the Mat Rempis get the courage in the stunts and see how effective is the BELIEF SYSTEM is playing hvoc with people's life

Mat Rempit’s ‘viagra’; STAR, Nation; Monday October 9, 2006

MAT Rempit usually down themselves with tuak (fermented coconut or nipah sap) mixed with terrapin blood before taking part in a race.
Kosmo! said this was the secret behind their bravery in performing death defying stunts on motorcycles.
The terrapin blood is said to enhance the effects of the alcohol while the drink functions like a sort of “viagra” to overcome fear.
A Mat Rempit, who did not want to be named, told Kosmo! that the concoction gave them a “different feeling of being high”.

“Even if there is a narrow road, it will appear very wide to us,” he added.
He also told the daily that there are a few places in Pasir Mas and Jeli in Kelantan that processed the drink secretly for Mat Rempit. The brew is sold at RM5 per packet or by weight.
A police officer told Kosmo! that most Mat Rempit confessed they had drunk the special tuak and that it was a compulsory drink before racing.

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= = = == Go H E RE for the latest arrest in Bandar Tasik Permaisuri on 16 Sep 07

MORE PICS & Video – Mat Rempits Fun Cut Off; 1-4am Sentul -Taman Wahyu Sat 15 Sep 07; 5 Cars & 4 Motorbikes Detained including the Drivers. More rounded up - Sunday 16 Sep 07 - Bandar Tasik Permasuri; Form 1 student & Form3 Girl

also in AUGUST 07 Go H E RE

GOING, Going GONE Soon UM World UNIVERSITY RANKING in Top 200; V C RAFIAH:NO More “PREMIER” Status for UM; UKM & UPM Move UP by GIVING More INFO

Come another year University of Malaya (UM) will probably be out of the top 200 in Britain’s the Times Higher Education Supplement annual rankings if the rot is not arrested. Even its Vice Chancellor Datuk Rafiah Salim has thrown in the towel by altering the University mission’s statement by removing the adjective “priemier”. In contrast UKM and UPM after last year’s listing bucked up and followed the rules and crawled up the list. Credit must be given to UKM for their efforts (see below, NST article). But Datuk Dr Sharifah Hapsah (VC UKM) is aiming too high when she said "We do not consider this a success until and unless we reach the No 1 position"

A sense of complacency has crept and set in UM and this can be seen in their websites from the various faculties. They have an International Relations Unit with a Mission to internationalise the University of Malaya as a leading centre of academic excellence. What have they done to stop the slide? Is everyone in UM involved in a plan of action to check the decline as proposed by he Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed who seems to be “happy & delighted” with the current situation.

“In line with its mission and vision to be a world class university pursuing excellence in the advancement and dissemination of knowledge, and producing graduates of the highest quality, the University of Malaya regards it as essential to establish and strengthen cooperation with national and international centres of excellence. With this in view, the International Relations Unit was set up to internationalise the university by promoting and developing academic excellence and cooperation at an international level.”

There is a lot of talk but not much commitments on the part of the separate faculties. And it appears there is no co-ordination; each faculty is on their own; maintaining their own websites (farmed out to outside companies) with NO minimum standard of presentation. Surely the people in the computer science and information Technology faculty could lend a helping and leading hand in doing a single website with all the faculties under it having a standard format.. If the staff cannot offer their time, the students could do it as a project and exercise to update the websites. Is the task beyond their scope? If the THES researchers were to access UM website, they would not be getting anything new


And if we were to access any of Faculties (ABOVE) for the academic staff, those that list them mainly give their contact numbers , email addresses and their academic and professional qualiication. Not much references to published works and researches.

ABOVE: The academic staff list becomes an alphabetically directory, who is the boss or DEAN? Can you find any U website with such a listing?

And in the Faculty of Education, the Academic staff is listed alphabetically and you wouldn’t know who is in charge but at least they list staff with the published papers and conferences.



The worst is the Faculty of medicine, NOT a single faculty staff is listed or named , not even the Dean who has a picture and a message BUT no name (check here). Perhaps, the problem is that the staff turnover is so high and fast, that the webmaster felt it would be a waste of time to keep updating their staff. So keep them blank seems to be the answer.

ABOVE: The Engineering faculty website. How long has it been temporarily closed?

In order for UM to be retained on the top 20 list, they should really need to seek the help of the UKM web staff and their team to improve on their presentation of information in their websites.

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UM Accepts World University Ranking Results ; October 06, 2006 20:28 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 6 (Bernama) -- Universiti Malaya (UM) which slipped to 192nd spot in the World University Ranking 2006 by the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES), said it accepted the fact that it was no longer the nation's premier university.

Can you see (ABOVE) UM Vice Chancellor Datuk Rafiah Salim smilingly (is she really sad at all, the drop in ranking just a laughing matter to her!) said: “I must say this is the saddest day of my career. Looking at my colleagues I feel everybody is disappointed. The university acknowledged that the 4 Criteria used in the THES were valid as proxies in values of higher education. Those criteria is not everything.”

Its Vice Chancellor Datuk Rafiah Salim, who was saddened by the turn of events, said that it also acknowledged that the top spot had been taken by Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

"We came out with our new mission which was launched yesterday and in our new mission statement we have actually dropped the adjective 'premier'.
"We are very realistic people really. Also we don't want to keep on believing and living in past glories, we would like to build from where we are now towards the future," she told a press conference here Friday.

Also present were Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Vice Chancellor Prof Datuk Sharifah Habsah Syed Hassan Shahabuddin, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Nik Mustapha Raja Abdullah and Universiti Sains Malaysia Deputy Vice Chancellor Prof Datuk Rosihan M.Ali.

Rafiah pointed out that in the past few months, UM had taken several action plans to improve its ranking in the future.

"It's probably a way of getting the UM family to really together bring up Universiti Malaya again," she said.

She however admitted that the result was one of the saddest days in her career.

The nation's oldest university, which was ranked among the world's top 100 universities two years ago, was ranked 192nd spot by THES, down from 169th spot last year. In 2004, it was the only Malaysian university which made the THES' top-200 list.

UKM was ranked 185th by THES in its 2006 rankings published yesterday, a vast improvement from the 289th spot last year.
VC: Second drop hard to face

KUALA LUMPUR: It was a hard pill for the country's oldest university to swallow – to drop for two consecutive years in a world university ranking.

Although Universiti Malaya had pledged to work harder on getting a better placement last year, this did not happen.

In fact, its recently appointed vice-chancellor, Datuk Rafiah Salim, said they were aware that not enough had been done and the further drop in rankings was not unexpected.

Rafiah: Was aware that not enough had been done and the drop was not unexpected. When asked how she felt on learning of UM's decline, Rafiah said: “It was one of the saddest days of my career. Looking at my colleagues in this room, I can see that they are all very sad too.”
UM dropped from 169 last year to 192 in the rankings. In 2004, in the inaugural QS-THES World University Rankings, the university was within the top 100, at 89.

“The reason for the drop is simply that we have not done enough in meeting the requirements, and for the next 12 months, we will specifically address those criteria without undermining a quality university education,” Rafiah said.
The added that the drop was a way of bringing “the UM family” together to work its way up again. “We will not rest on past glories,” said Rafiah, who chaired a joint press conference of four universities.

Present at the event were Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia VC Prof Datuk Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin, Universiti Putra Malaysia VC Prof Dr Nik Mustapha R. Abdullah, and Universiti Sains Malaysia deputy VC (academic and international affairs) Prof Datuk Rosihan M. Ali.
In a joint statement issued at the press conference, the four universities said they would be paying close attention to their performance in the criteria used in the ranking.

“We may question the validity and reliability of the data on international students and faculty, but we cannot ignore the data on peer review, employer or recruiter review, faculty-student ratio and the citation index,” the statement said.
The vice-chancellors emphasised that the THES rankings were only one indicator of a university’s quality.

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University rankings: The secret behind UKM's success

07 Oct 2006; Koh Soo Ling , NST

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KUALA LUMPUR: What does it take to be listed as one of the top 200 universities on the Times Higher Education Supplement World University Rankings 2006 (THES)?
Careful planning and lots of hard work, says former Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) vice-chancellor, Professor Datuk Mohd Salleh Mohd Yasin, who is now chief executive officer of the National Accreditation Board (LAN).

His words bear weight because UKM has managed to break into the list of the top 200 world universities for the first time.
Barely a year ago, UKM received a fax from Hussain Mehdi, a researcher with Quacquarelli Symonds and Evidence Ltd from the United Kingdom, who wanted details about the university.
When asked how the researcher had "tracked down" UKM, his answer was through the university’s website.
The rest is history and UKM was ranked 91 out of the top 100 science universities in the world last year.

And one year later, UKM has moved up 104 places from its 289th position last year on THES to the 185th spot this year.
Recognising that the university’s website had caught the attention of the researcher from Quacquarelli Symonds, UKM decided to beef up its content.
"Using Malay and English, we wanted our website to be user-friendly. We posted the curriculum vitae of academics and their areas of research; the top five publications of every lecturer were also posted on the website.
"That way, not only are we informing the public about our academics but we are also helping foreign postgraduates to identify the lecturers of their choice," says Salleh, who is also a professor of medical mycology at UKM’s Faculty of Allied Health Sciences.
Every faculty has an in-house webmaster. There is an internal exercise to rate all faculty websites. A team is put in charge of screening for informational, typological and grammatical errors.
Next, UKM chose rebranding to give the university a global flavour. It became known as the National University of Malaysia.
Its slogan, "The National University with International Reach", also highlighted the importance of UKM as an international player.
International bulletins about the university were distributed at embassies in Kuala Lumpur and brochures in Malay, English, Arabic and Mandarin were placed at strategic conference locations in the international arena in Britain, Europe and the United States. (Incidentally, many THES peer review forms this year were sent to Britain, continental Europe and the US.)

"We had to think about putting concise information in one-page brochures. Nobody wanted to carry extra baggage home, least of all thick advertorial booklets.
"At conferences, we would leave our brochures outside meeting rooms. By the time we finished presenting our papers, all the brochures were in people’s bags, going to other parts of the world," says Salleh.
"It is not surprising that the number of international students at UKM has doubled in the last two years."
For a university to be counted, producing quality graduates is a major concern. Visitors are amazed that the university produces around 120 doctorates and 1,400 master’s degree holders annually.

"We want to ensure that we have quantity and also quality. A fine example is our engineering degree that has received accreditation from the Washington Accord."
Under strategic planning, the three main items on the agenda are research, internationalisation and quality assurance. Research collaboration, especially with European and Australian universities, gained importance.

Research grants were sought from overseas through the Asia-Link Programme, an initiative of the European Commission to promote regional and multilateral networking between higher education institutions in Europe and developing countries in Asia.
Salleh says research efforts need to be further boosted and corporate communication is vital.
He says there should be an entity that works to spruce up networking and to let others know of UKM’s existence.
"Know who you are, where you are and what you are doing – that is the key to success," he adds.

Britain’s the Times Higher Education Supplement annual rankings are based on measures such as peer review, employer survey, international students, staff to student ratio and the number of times research is cited by other academics.

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Mixed reaction to ranking list; NST
There was elation, and sadness, yesterday as top officials of four public universities gathered to tell reporters what the results of the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) actually meant. The vice-chancellors of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (which made it into the top 200), Universiti Sains Malaysia and Universiti Putra Malaysia (which improved greatly) were beaming. But this was not the case with the University of Malaya (which dropped 23 places but still remained in the top field).
- University of Malaya Vice-Chancellor, Datuk Rafiah Salim: "This is one of the saddest days of my career." She was disappointed at UM’s slide of 23 places from 169th to the 192th spot.
Rafiah, however, saw some good arising from the university’s drop in ranking, saying it would spur the staff to get the institution back into shape. She said she had long suspected that the university would fall in ranking, and thus had taken steps over the past months to make improvement.
"But nothing much can be done in the last minute." On local and Asian universities, she believed a fair comparison was not possible. She cited Beijing University, which came in at 15th place, as an example.

She said THES did not address research done by individual universities nor take into consideration inventions and findings in areas like health and virus research.
"We must take the THES rankings with a pinch of salt."

- Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Vice-Chancellor Datuk Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin: She is not satisfied with UKM overtaking the University of Malaya in the rankings and improving to 185th spot from 289th previously.

Datuk Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin: "We do not consider this a success until and unless we reach the No 1 position."

Sharifah said: "We have to continuously strive and improve our rankings through quality education.’ On whether UKM would increase its tuition fees as it was now the No 1 university in Malaysia, she said this was not on the cards.

"We will increase tuition fees only when all public universities agree on a specific increment," she added. Harvard University, Cambridge University and Oxford university which came first, second and third respectively, may increase tuition fees to provide better education.

- Universiti Putra Malaysia Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Nik Mustapha Abdullah:
It’s not often that a university jumps 102 places in the THES ranking, an achievement that UPM can lay claim to. Nik Mustapha said the move from 394th spot to 292th spot was due to UPM correcting the perception that it was a university concentrating only on agriculture.
Universiti Sains Malaysia Deputy Vice-Chancellor Prof Datuk Rosihan M. Ali:

Rosihan is pleased with the 277th spot, 49 places up from 326 last year. "This is a far better showing for us than last year," said the elated academician.

Mustapa happy with results; 07 Oct 2006

Higher Education minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said: "We are committed to enhancing the quality of higher education towards establishing our country as a hub of educational excellence.

KUALA LUMPUR: Like a father pleased with his children’s achievements, Datuk Mustapa Mohamed is delighted with two public universities that have won worldwide recognition.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and the University of Malaya made it to 185th and 192th positions in the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) ranking of the world’s top 200 universities.
But UM’s slide of 23 places from 169th position is a source of concern to the Higher Education minister.
Mustapa has asked UM for a plan of action to check the decline in standing in the THES ranking.

"I have had frequent talks with UM Vice-Chancellor (Datuk Rafiah Salim) and her senior staff on the matter of quality," he said when asked on how he was handling the matter.
The minister was happy with Universiti Sains Malaysia which climbed nearly 49 places to come out 277 while Universiti Putra Malaysia rose 102 places to stand at 292.
"Viewed in totality, this indicates an upward shift in Malaysian university standing and with the commitment of the respective vice-chancellors. I am confident our universities are well-positioned to grow as drivers of Malaysia’s human capital development."
Mustapa told vice-chancellors of public universities yesterday that they should continue to strive for excellence despite the announcement of worldwide ranking.
"We are committed to enhancing the quality of higher education towards establishing our country as a hub of educational excellence."

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