MORE PICS – EXPRESS BUS Plunges into Ravine 7 Killed; Car Plunges into Stream; Family 5 Killed; BOTH Cases trying to AVOID Vehicles after Accident

Were these just "accidents" or perfect timing at the right place and right time? The express bus at Km 254 N-S EXPRESSWAY was trying to avoid a 4_WD and a Kancil Blocking the road and the bus driver not wanting to kill those (their time is not up yet) swerved left and landed into the deep ravine killing 7 (the latest figure)

In the case of the family of 5 in Membau, they also had a similar situation, the driver of the Proton Iswara avoided knocking the stationary trailer and landed on the roof in the 1 m deep stream killing the whole family.

ABOVE: This Minister of Transport (Chan Kong Choy from MCA) has carried out 3 LRT incidents inquiry plus the Langkawai Ferry incident and promised to release them but "don't known when". Too embarrassing?

Now we have the useless Transport Minister coming out again AFTER the bas “accident” called it mishap and saying that an Inquiry would be held with the assistance of JPJ, his Transport Ministry, the Police and most importantly the newly formed (RM20 million) Institute of Road Safety. Isn’t all these waste of time and money (for those involved, going to the scene of accidents & meetings claiming mileage and hotel accommodation etc) Now what can they recommend enhancing road safety and try to play God to prevent all these deaths.

When their souls decided to leave after a certain period of physical life on earth, surely you cannot stop them when they were at the right place and the right time and there are NO ACTUAL causes as there are NO accidents. Even Traffic Chief Datuk Nooryah Md Anvar admitted "It is fated that these accidents happened. These were the last experiences for them and their families to chew on and to evoke their feelings of how much they might miss them after they are gone – the lessons in life.
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March 09, 2007 23:12 PM

Six Killed, 30 Injured As Bus Plunges Into Ravine;;

ABOVE and BELOW: The express IPOH-TAIPING Bus eventually landed on its roof. Why buses have a tendency to land on its roof, more stable on roof than on the 4 sets of wheels?

KUALA KANGSAR, March 9 (Bernama) -- Six passengers were killed while 30 others were injured when an express bus skidded and plunged into a ravine at KM 254 of the North-South Expressway near the Sungai Perak Rest and Service Area, near here Friday.

Kuala Kangsar OCPD Supt Zakaria Pagan (ABOVE) said five of the injured victims suffered serious injuries and were admitted to the Kuala Kangsar Hospital for treatment. The Ipoh-Taiping express bus, which was believed to be carrying more than 40 passengers, skidded and rammed the steel railing on the left side of the road before plunging into the ravine which was about five metres deep, he said. The accident occurred about 6.30pm as the bus was travelling from Ipoh to Taiping. "Preliminary investigations found that the bus skidded as it was trying to avoid two cars which had collided,"

Zakaria told reporters at the scene tonight. He said all the dead victims had died on the spot and their identities had yet to be determined. The bodies of a Chinese man, three Chinese women, a Malay woman and an Indian woman, aged between 20 and 40, had been sent to the Kuala Kangsar Hospital, he said.

ABOVE & BELOW: The injured were rushed to hospital for treatment

Five victims who suffered serious injuries had been sent to the Ipoh Hospital while the medical team from Kuala Kangsar Hospital and Ipoh Hospital had treated the injured passengers before they were sent to the Kuala Kangsar Hospital. Zakaria said another 15 of the 25 injured passengers were pinned under the overturned bus and a team from the Fire and Rescue Department had to cut the body of the bus to retrieve the victims. He said that so far, three passengers were confirmed to have escaped injuries.

He said the actual number of passengers on the bus could not be ascertained as it was believed several other passengers who had escaped injuries had left the scene. He said the bus driver had also left and had not lodged any police report as of tonight. Zakaria said the accident was being investigated under Section 41 (1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 because of careless driving which had resulted in the loss of lives. Meanwhile, a student nurse who survived the accident said she was sitting in the rear seat when the bus suddenly swayed. "All of a sudden I felt the bus was not stable after which it skidded and overturned...everything happend in a split second. Alhamdulillah, I managed to crawl out of the bus unhurt," she said. The passenger, who requested anonymity, said she then helped the injured passengers but most of them could not be taken out as they were pinned under the bus.

Another victim, Mohd Noor Jaafar, 40, said the bus driver tried to avoid two cars which were involved in an accident when it skidded and veered to the left of the road. Mohd Noor, who only sustained minor injuries in the accident, said as soon as the bus hit the steel railing, some passengers screamed and there was pandemonium for several seconds before the bus overturned. He said he was on his way home in Kamunting, Taiping from Ipoh. The accident caused a massive traffic jam stretching about 15 kilometres at the Jelapang Toll Plaza heading south.
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Six killed in accident as bus plunges into ravine; STAR

KUALA KANGSAR: Six passengers of a Taiping-bound express bus were killed when it plunged into a ravine outside the Menora Tunnel along the North-South Expressway yesterday. Three of the victims were identified as Lee Ah Chuan, 53, of Batu Kurau; Chung Keaw @ Cheong Yue Moy, 65, of Kampung Baru Malim Nawar and 22-year-old A. Thanalachumi of Taiping. At press time, the names of the other victims were still not released to the media. Six passengers with serious injuries were warded at the Ipoh Hospital while 15 others who suffered light injuries were sent to the Kuala Kangsar Hospital.

Frantic search: Rescuers searching for passengers trapped inside the wrecked express bus which plunged into the ravine outside the Menora Tunnel on Friday.

Kuala Kangsar OCPD Supt Zakaria Pagan said it was raining when the bus, with 40 passengers on board, went off the road at 6pm. It had left Ipoh about an hour earlier.

Police investigations showed that the bus driver was trying to avoid colliding with two cars involved in an earlier accident. He lost control and the bus turned turtle down a five-metre deep slope near Kampung Rambai Tujuh, Supt Zakaria told reporters. Passenger Kasmawati Azmi said she was sitting near the back of the bus when she felt its swaying.

“It wasn’t speeding. It was drizzling and I felt the bus driver trying to avoid hitting the other cars,” said the 25-year-old trainee dental nurse. “But the bus ended up skidding sharply to the left before crashing through the guardrail and plunging down the slope.

“Everyone screamed. I saw two passengers bleeding after their ears were severed in the crash,” she added. Kasmawati said she was returning to her home in Taman Kuning Sari in Taiping, when the incident occurred. “It was my first time taking the bus. Usually my parents would fetch me at the Ipoh Hospital,” she said. Kasmawati, who crawled out of the bus through the emergency door, said she thought the bus was going to burst into flames and that she would die instantly.

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March 10, 2007 19:46 PM

No More Need For Police In Express Buses, Says Nooryah

KUALA LUMPUR, March 10 (Bernama) -- Drivers should not rely on the police to monitor road users all the time, Bukit Aman Traffic Chief Datuk Nooryah Md Anvar said. As licensed drivers, she said, they should know the laws and to abide by stipulated regulations."If we are with them all the time, when are they going to obey the regulations," said Nooryah when asked whether police would continue to have uniformed policemen travel in express buses to ensure the drivers observed traffic regulations. Although it was carried out following a suggestion by Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hasan, she said, it was inappropriate for the police to practice it all the time. She said it was implemented to educate and ensure express bus drivers observe traffic regulations so that their passengers arrived at their destinations safely. "I will not compromise with drivers who are reckless," she said when contacted by Bernama here today.
She expressed regret with accidents involving express buses, including the one in Kuala Kangsar, Perak, in which six passengers were killed and 30 others injured, when it plunged into a ravine along the North-South Expressway yesterday. It is fated that these accidents happened but I cannot accept excuses like faulty brakes because it is the responsibility of the drivers to ensure that their buses are in tip-top condition and safe before they begin their journey," she said. As such, Nooryah said she had told all express bus operators to conduct a post-mortem to find out the actual cause of accidents involving public transport service. "Following which I will have a meeting with them to find out the outcome," she added.
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March 10, 2007 19:43 PM

Police Identify Victims Of Bus Crash
KUALA KANGSAR, March 10 (Bernama) -- Police have identified the six passengers killed in the accident involving a Taiping-bound express bus which plunged into a ravine at Km254 of the North-South Expressway yesterday.

ABOVE & BELOW: Both Polytechnic Ungku Omar students

Two of them are students of the Ungku Omar Polytechnic in Ipoh. They are Nafsiah Ishak, 22, of No. 226-A, Jalan Makam DiRaja, Pantai Remis and A. Thanaletchumi, 22, from Lorong C, Aulong Lama, Taiping.

ABOVE: Lee An Chuan, 54, of No. 119 Jalan Besar, Batu Kurau; BELOW: Chung Keaw @ Cheong Yue Moy, 65, from Kampung Baru, Malim Nawar;

The others are Lee An Chuan, 54, of No. 119 Jalan Besar, Batu Kurau; Chung Keaw @ Cheong Yue Moy, 65, from Kampung Baru, Malim Nawar;

ABOVE: Saw Guat Har, 45, from Lorong Kemunting, Taiping; (BELOW) Liew Yoon Kim, 55, of No. 7 Jalan Tujuh, Housing Trust, Ipoh.

Saw Guat Har, 45, from Lorong Kemunting, Taiping and Liew Yoon Kim, 55, of No. 7 Jalan Tujuh, Housing Trust, Ipoh. Kuala Kangsar OCPD Supt Zakaria Pagan said all the victims died on the spot in the 6.30pm accident and their bodies had been sent to the Kuala Kangsar Hospital.

Police had informed their next-of-kin, who would be claiming their bodies for burial, he told reporters here today. He said the bus was carrying 48 passengers. Twenty-three of the injured were warded at the Kuala Kangsar Hospital, seven others at the Taiping Hospital and another six at the Ipoh Hospital. The driver of the express bus, 49, was also injured and was treated at the Taiping Hospital. Zakaria said initial investigations showed that the bus driver was trying to avoid two cars which were involved in an accident when the bus went off the road and plunge into the five-metre deep ravine. Two cranes were used to lift the bus in the rescue operation involving the police and the Fire and Rescue Department. Meanwhile, Nafsiah's father, Ishak Mahd Noor 54, said he only knew only learnt about the accident in the accident when his son called Nafsiah on her handphone after she failed to arrive home as expected about 7pm.

"A fireman answered the call and informed him (son) about the accident," he added. He said Nafsiah returned home every weekend to be with the family. "She called me about 5.30pm to inform me that she was on her way home and would call again when she arrived," he added.

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Five in family die after car plunges into stream in Mambau

10 Mar 2007; BERNAMA
SEREMBAN, SAT: Five members of a family were killed when their car skidded and landed in a stream at KM 11 of the Seremban-Port Dickson road near Kampung Bemban, Mambau, last night. Negeri Sembilan Public Order and Traffic Chief Supt Junaid Zakaria said today Ismail Sehan, 56, his wife, Jemiah Baharom, 52, daughters Maslina, 30, and Nurul Shahierah, 7, and adopted daughter Aida Rosli, 11, died at the scene.

He said the accident happened about 10.50pm while the family was returning to their public housing unit at KM12.8 Teluk Kemang, Port Dickson, after fetching Maslina at the Terminal 1 bus station here. It is believed that Ismail was trying to avoid hitting a trailer, which was involved in an earllier accident, when he lost control of his Proton Iswara car, causing it to skid and land on its roof in the 1 metre-deep stream. Firemen took about an hour to extricate the bodies which were then sent to the Tuanku Jaafar Hospital for post-mortem.

MORE PICS–ALTANTUYA SHAARIIBUU MURDER TRIAL Rescheduled to June 4- 29 07 under Trial Judge Judicial Comm. Datuk Mohd Zaki-took over Datuk KN Negara

Part VII

MORE PICS–ALTANTUYA SHAARIIBUU MURDER TRIAL Rescheduled to June 4- 29 07 under New Trial Judge Judicial Comm. Datuk Mohd Zaki-who took over from Datuk KN Negara

UPDATE: March 12, 2007 21:13 PM

DNA Test Results On Altantuya's Son To Be Out Saturday

KUALA LUMPUR, March 12 (Bernama) -- Results of the DNA test on Altanshagai Munkhtulga, 4, son of Altantuya Shaariibuu, the Mongolian model who was murdered last November is expected to be out by this Saturday. The Mongolian consul in Malaysia, Datuk Syed Abdul Rahman Al-Habshi said the test would be conducted at the National Hospital of Ulan Bator (NHUB) Wednesday morning. "Our special team comprising Federal CID deputy director (II) Datuk Syed Ismail Syed Azizan, Kuala Lumpur deputy serious crimes chief DSP Gan Tack Guan and a forensic specialist Dr Azreen from Kuala Lumpur, will witness the test to ensure the test is conducted fairly.

"NHUB officials told me that it would take about two or three days to conduct a thorough DNA test. I have learnt the final result of the test is very vital for the prosecution on the June trial, to determine the real father of Altanshagai," he told Bernama here Monday. Abdul Rahman said the team would be leaving this midnight and his counterpart in Ulan Bator had already been informed of the visit. "A Mongolian Interpol officer informed me this morning that our special team will be receiving a VIP treat. There, both parties will have discussion on the DNA test process and other related matters. "Even Dr Shaariibuu Setev Altantuya's father) called me yesterday and promised me that he will give his full cooperation to our special team in order to expedite the DNA test," Abdul Rahman said.

On Sunday, Bernama reported Altanshagai's health condition was turning for the worse

[…]
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UPDATE: 11 March 2007

March 11, 2007 17:06 PM

Altantuya's Father Pleased Trial Date Brought Forward

KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 (Bernama) -- "I am very pleased to hear that the trial of my daughter's murder has been brought forward," said Dr Shaaribuu Setev, the father of murdered Mongolian model, Altantuya, whose body was blown to bits by explosives at a secondary forest near the Subang Dam in Puncak Alam, Shah Alam last November. The Shah Alam High Court had originally fixed March 10 next year for the trial because of a heavy backlog of cases. But in light of the Judiciary having hired more Judicial Commissioners recently, the date now has been brought forward to June 4 this year and 25 days have been set aside for the hearing. "The Mongolian consul in Malaysia (Datuk Syed Abdul Rahman Al Habshi) contacted me on Friday evening and informed me the good news.

It gives me great relief to hear this," he told Bernama when contacted by telephone in Ulan Bator Sunday. Shaaribuu, 56, who is the director of the National University of Mongolia's Information and Educational Centre, said that everyone in Mongolia including the Prime Minister Miyeegombo Enkhbold had hoped that the trial would start early. C/Insp Azilah Hadri, 30, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 35, have been charged with murdering Altantuya while a prominent local political analyst, Abdul Razak Baginda, 46, has been charged with abetment in it.
The trio are alleged to have conspired to commit the murder at Bangunan Getah Asli in Jalan Ampang here between 9.45am and 11.05am on Oct 18 last year. Shaaribuu said that he had been haunted by the tragedy every night, and added:

"Only God knows my ordeal." "I have strong belief and trust in the Malaysian judicial system and that the perpetrators will pay for their heinous acts," he said in an emotion-choked voice. He said that a grand funeral for Altantuya, his eldest daughter, had been planned early this year but the family decided to postpone it to after the trial was completed. "I want to collect all the remaining bone fragments of her still being held by the police in Malaysia before holding the grand funeral. Based on our beliefs, a person's soul won't rest in peace if body remains are kept apart," he explained. The Malaysian police surrendered a portion of the bone fragments of the 28 year-old Altantuya recovered from the murder scene to the father but are still holding on to some of them to be presented as exhibits during the trial.

Meanwhile, Syed Abdul Rahman told Bernama today that a Malaysian team comprising two police officers and a forensics specialist from the Kuala Lumpur Hospital (KLH) would be leaving for Ulan Bator on Tuesday to conduct a DNA test on Altantuya's three-year-old son. "The police officers are from Bukit Aman (Federal Police Headquarters) and city (Kuala Lumpur) police. I received a call from the police requesting me to make the arrangements for them to go to Mongolia. "The Mongolian Interpol will accompany them upon their arrival. I have learnt that the test is to determine whether the boy's DNA matches Razak's. I don't want to comment more about it as I do not want to prejudice the trial," he said. Abdul Rahman said that the boy's health condition was turning for the worse as he is suffering from a severe brain disease which has caused his head to be swollen. "I have also learnt that the Mongolian government is doing all it can to help Shaaribuu save his grandson's life," he added

= = =For More info on "hydrocephalus",(head swelling, see 1st Post H E R E)

= = = == = = = = = 12 Mar 2007; NST… more details

KUALA LUMPUR: The Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial has been brought forward but police are still not done with investigations. Tomorrow, a high-level team from Bukit Aman and here, accompanied by a forensic specialist, will leave for Mongolia to take blood samples from Altantuya’s three-year-old son for DNA testing. This is to ascertain if the boy is the child of political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda who is charged with abetting two policemen in the murder of Altantuya, a part-time model. The team headed by Federal CID deputy director (II) Datuk Syed Ismail Syed Azizan will be in Ulan Bator for four days. Accompanying Syed Ismail will be the Kuala Lumpur deputy serious crimes chief DSP Gan Tack Guan and a forensic pathologist from the Kuala Lumpur Hospital. The New Straits Times learnt that they will be assisted by their Mongolian counterparts.It is also learnt that the boy, who is suffering from a severe brain disease, is getting worse.

= = = = =UPDATE from SUN, a more detailed account

Mongolian's murder hearing set for June 4 to 29; R.Surenthira Kumar; SUN

SHAH ALAM (March 9, 2007): A tug-of-war unfolded between the lawyers representing the two police personnel and the political analyst in the Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial mentioned in the High Court here today.

ABOVE: Lawyer Zulkifli Nordin briefing newsmen on what happened in court today

Lawyers Zulkifli Nordin and Kamarul Hisham, representing C/Insp Azilah Hadri, 30, and Kpl Sirul Azhar Umar, 35, respectively told Judicial Commissioner Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin they needed adequate time to prepare their case and applied for the case to be heard in June. The third accused, Abdul Razak Abdullah, 46, charged with abetting the two policemen in the murder, through his lawyer Wong Khian Kheong, however insisted for an early hearing date.

“Due to public interest, the trial should begin as soon as possible, probably early next month,”aid Wong. Deputy Public Proseutor Salehuddin Saidin, who earlier addressed the court, said “today’s mention is to fix the trial date”. “All the lawyers must be free for the case to carry on,” said Salehuddin when asked outside the courtroom why the DPP’s office did not voice any objection to the two policemen’s lawyers’ request for a June trial date. There was also another new development during the proceedings when Wong informed the court that new solicitors have been appointed to represent Abdul Razak.

He named the solicitors from the law firm Norendra & Yap. “However I will (still) remain as a counsel for Abdul Razak,” said Wong. Mohd Zaki said the court had received a letter from Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill, the firm which Wong was attached with, that it no longer represented Abdul Razak. He also told the lawyers, with reference to the letter received from the Deputy Registrar which stated that following the appointment of three new Judicial Commissioners, the cases scheduled for end of the year and next year have been re-distributed because there were now six judges to handle criminal cases. He said the move was also in line with the Chief Justice’s circular for courts to bring forward and dispose pending cases.

“Moreover, the circular stressed that cases involving government servants should be given priority. There are about 200 such cases here and this is one of them. Even though Abdul Razak is not a public servant, his case has been brought forward because he is being jointly tried with the two policemen. Lawyer Karpal Singh, who is holding a watching brief for Altantuya’s family and the Mongolian government sought an explanation the reason for the change in the judge as it was previously heard before Justice Datuk K.N.Segara. “Do you have any problems with me hearing the case?” Mohd Zaki asked. “No, no problems, it is because of public apprehension.” Karpal Singh responded. Mohd Zaki said the reasons were as stated earlier and the case was transferred to him because Segara had more part-heard cases to be disposed off compared with him.

“Do the others have any problems with me hearing the case?” Mohd Zaki asked, and Salehuddin responded with “ there was none”. The courtroom drama again focused on the “battle” between Kamarul, Zulkifli and Wong over the fixture of the trial date. Kamarul said he and Zulkifli require ample time to prepare their case and setting an earlier date will result in them having insufficient time for them to have a strong line of defence. “We are sole proprietors and have been giving emphasis on other cases as this case was initially set for March next year and the sudden change has affected our preparations,” added Zulkifli. Wong said his client has given firm instructions for his case to be heard and disposed off as soon as possible. “My client wants to be vindicated as soon as possible,” he added. He said the request for an early date was based on:

1. the Chief Justice’s directive to bring forward and dispose cases involving government servants;
2. the case involved the death of a foreigner and the interested parties have to travel far to attend the proceedings;
3. the case is of public interest; and his client’s unprecedented move, to file and reveal in open court an affidavit detailing his relationship with the victim, which was aimed at assisting the court to expedite the case.

“I understand my learned friend’s concern, but I donít think hearing the case on a later date will cause any ‘dents’ to public interest,”Kamarul rebutted. Zulkilfi said it was only fair for the court to give him and Kamarul adequate time to prepare their case fully as the offence carried the death penalty upon conviction. “If Wong’s client has firm instructions, so do I. My client has firmly told me to begin in June,” said Zulkifli. Azilah, Sirul Azhar and Abdul Razak were not present in court today. Their families were, however, present to witness the proceedings. Mohd Zaki said usually it was the accused who would seek for early trial, but it was the other way round in this case.

“We don’t want any hiccups to occur during the trial and for the case to be disrupted,” he stressed. Mohd Zaki then asked Salehuddin how long time he would require to ready his case, to which the DPP said about a month as they will be calling between 30 and 40 witnesses. Ahmad Zaki also reminded there was another murder trial involving a government servant set in April and he would not want to change the dates set for that case. He asked Zulkifli if he could go on at end of April and May, but the lawyer insisted that he could not as he will be away, but did not tell the court the details. “Are you saying you will not be present if I set the case on May 14?” asked Mohd Zaki. Zulkifli responded with a “Yes”. Mohd Zaki also said it would be court vacation in June but he was willing to forego the leave to attend to the case. “We will be ready from June 4 and can proceed full swing until the end,” said Zulkifli. Mohd Zaki, after much deliberation, finally set June 4 to 29 for hearing. “No excuses for postponements will be entertained until the completion of the case,” he added before continuing to hear another case.

There was a commotion at the end of today's hearing when Datuk Zaki was about to hear another case.

ABOVE:Rowena, the daughter of Abdul Razak started crying aloud in the courtroom (probably having to endure another 3 months of separation from dad' remand in Sungai Buluh prision). Her mother apologized for her condition and escorted her back home via the Mercedes Benz (BELOW). Meanwhile the judge adjourned hearing for 10 mins.

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Many are questioning WHY there has been a change of Trial Charge. In today’s hearing, Judicial Commissioner Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin who took over from judge Datuk K.N. Segara, gave two reasons why the case has been expedited.

1. Appointment of three new judicial commissioners to hear the backlog criminal cases in Shah Alam High Court.
2. Case was transferred to him as Segara has a lot of partly heard cases to handle compared to him.

Are these all the valid reasons? What is strange is that Datuk K N Segara is still in the Shah Alam High Court and, there was no proper application to transfer the case to another judge. Also in normal circumstances if an accused person is not happy with a particular trial judge, the proper procedure is to make an application that the said judge be removed. An in this case, was there such an application?

Even the counsel Zulkifli Noordin for the two accused (ABOVE) of murder in the case was informed about the change on 7^th March and was not involved in any such application.

This change in “choosing the judge” must have been ordered by the higher ups in the judiciary or from the Executive. The truth is hard to determine.

ABOVE: Breaking News from Msiakini; None of the accused were present in court this morning for the mention of date.

March 09, 2007 12:31 PM

Altantuya's Murder Trial Brought Forward To June 4

SHAH ALAM, March 9 (Bernama) -- The Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu murder trial has been brought forward before a Judicial Commissioner to June 4, this year. Judicial Commissioner Datuk Mohd Zaki Md Yasin who took over from judge Datuk K.N. Segara, fixed the new date after the case came up for mention Friday.He fixed one month from June 4 untill June 29 for the trial. The same High Court had earlier fixed four weeks from March 10 next year for the trial as the court had too many backlog cases to hear. Mohd Zaki said the trial of the case had been expedited following the appointment of three new judicial commissioners to hear the backlog criminal cases in Shah Alam High Court.

He also said that the case was transferred to him as Segara has a lot of partly heard cases to handle compared to him. Abdul Razak Baginda, 46, a political analyst is accused of abetting two policemen from the special unit force to murder Altantuya. The case attracted wide publicity following the discovery of the remains of the 28-year-old Altantuya in a forest in Puncak Alam here, in November last year. Her body had been blown to bits with explosive.

Abdul Razak (pictured ABOVE on Jan 19 07)allegedly committed the offence between 9.54 am and 11.05 am on Oct 18 last year, at level 10 Bangunan Getah Asli in Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur.

C/Insp Azilah Hadri, 30, and Kpl Sirul Azhar Umar, 35, were accused of murdering the woman in Lot 12843 and Lot 16735, Mukim Bukit Raja, Selangor, between 10pm, Oct 19 and 1 am, Oct 20 last year. Razak is charged under section 109 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 302 of the same code which carries the mandatory death sentence, if convicted. Razak is currently withheld in prison pending the trial following his failure in several attempts to be released on bail on health reasons. Mohd Zaki explained that all the three accused were not brought to court for today's proceeding as today was only fixed for mention to determine the trial dates.

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Friday March 9, 2007; STAR, Brief report today (wait Tomorrow, for FULL STORY?)

Altantuya murder trial brought forward to June 4 this year

SHAH ALAM: The Altantuya Shaaribuu murder trial at the Shah Alam High Court has been brought forward to June 4 this year. The trial was recently transferred to the Shah Alam High Court (Criminal) 3 before Justice Mohd Zaki Md Yassin The case was previously before Justice K.N. Segara, who had fixed the hearing for March next year
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Altantuya murder case: Karpal urges police to use affidavit to reopen case

23 Jan 2007, NST;
KUALA LUMPUR: The police have been urged to reopen investigations into the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case in the wake of what the man charged with abetting in the crime had said in his affidavit. Lawyer Karpal Singh (ABOVE), who is holding a watching brief for Altantuya's family, said the startling revelations in the affidavit by political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, read at the Shah Alam High Court on Friday in support of his bail application, had brought into focus the necessity to reopen investigations. Abdul Razak stated in his affidavit that he had a seven-month affair with Altantuya before their relationship turned sour. He had been with her in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, France and Kuala Lumpur between 2004 and 2005, and they had been lovers. "She claimed to be a student and did side business (cari makan sampingan),"

Abdul Razak said, adding that he gave her money on several occasions, including US$10,000 (RM35,000) on three occasions. This money, he said, was to meet the medical expenses of Altantuya's mother, who was suffering from cancer.Abdul Razak said sometime towards the end of 2005, he stopped giving her money and lodged a police report on Oct 23 last year as "I could not tolerate her nuisance". Karpal, who is also the Bukit Gelugor MP, called on the police to record the statement from the Commissioner for Oaths who affirmed Abdul Razak's affidavit.

"The commissioner would certainly be an important prosecution witness at the trial," he said. "The affidavit is a sworn statement and amounts to evidence as if given from the witness box under oath. "The evidence in the affidavit is stronger than a cautioned statement, which is not given under oath." Karpal said the affidavit itself seemed like a confession and this led to judge Datuk K.N. Segara to comment that "there is also no dispute that the accused, on face value, abetted in the crime".

The judge also said Abdul Razak and Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri, one of the men charged with her murder, were in constant communication before Altantuya was killed. Karpal called on the police to investigate Abdul Razak's assertion that Azilah admitted he had killed six to seven people. "This incriminating statement is compounded by the fact that Azilah is a chief inspector attached to the Special Action Squad." Karpal said every effort should be made to bring to justice those responsible for Altantuya's murder. The case created a media frenzy after it was reported that Altantuya was shot before her body was blown up using explosives. Her bone fragments were found in a jungle clearing near Shah Alam. Abdul Razak is charged with abetting Azilah, 30, and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, 35, in Altantuya's murder. Azilah and Sirul were alleged to have committed the offence in Bukit Raja, Petaling, between 10pm on Oct 19 and 1am on Oct 20.

= = == =Some interesting read on the Malaysian political scene . The darker side of politics in play
Mongolian model murder a potential time bomb? –an Incisive Opinion by Kim Quek; Jan 17, 07 2:03pm

Anwar Ibrahim's recent call for transparency and for widening police. Investigations into the Mongolian model's murder is a stark reminder that all is not well with the Malaysian government's handling of this murder case. In fact, the standard of transparency and accountability falls so short of that practiced by a democratic country that once again we are painfully reminded of the perversion of justice that took place in the infamous persecution of Anwar Ibrahim more than eight years ago. The injustice then was to condemn and persecute an innocent man. This time, perhaps it is to provide shelter to one guilty of murder.As in the earlier Anwar case, democratic institutions - police, attorney general's chamber, judiciary and the media - seemed to have been mobilised again to act in concert in a critical damage control exercise, upon which may hinge the fate of the power structure of the country.

However, before dwelling into the details, let us take a perspective view of the case. At the heart of the scandal is a beautiful Mongolian girl, Altantuya Shaariibuu, who was rather erroneously known as a model, but in fact a multi-lingual interpreter and translator - Chinese, Russian, English and French - for which she travelled frequently. She was alleged to have been a lover of Abdul Razak Baginda, a political analyst and a confidante of the Deputy Prime Minister cum Minister of Defence Najib Tun Razak. The former travelled extensively and often accompanied the latter in his trips overseas.The gravity of Altantuya's bizarre murder - shot and blown to pieces - looms from its indirect link to Najib, as two of his bodyguards were charged for killing and Razak Baginda for abetting; and the explosives used were no ordinary explosives, but high power C-4 which was in the exclusive custody of the ministry of defence. Compounding this gravity was another scandal also indirectly linked to Najib via Razak Baginda, whose company was the dubious recipient of an exorbitant commission paid out in connection with the multi-billion purchase of submarines by the ministry of defence.

So Najib (pictured ABOVE, in his recent trip to Japan, Mar 2007), who in many ways acts like the de facto leader of the country, has become the ultimate focal point of two explosive scandals, albeit linked to him indirectly. That this scandal touches the nerve centre of the top political hierarchy is apparent from the extraordinary treatment accorded to it by the police, attorney general's chamber, the judiciary and the local media. The local media's collaboration was most recently demonstrated in the blackout of news on the Anwar Ibrahim press conference on Jan 10, where apart from calling for wider probe, he also bombarded the authorities with a series of incisive questions which would have hit headlines if Malaysia is a country with a free press.

THE POLICE

Starting with the police, why was Najib not queried? (Reuters on Jan 10 quoted a government source saying that no one else had been questioned other than the three accused). The police had no possible justification not to question Najib, as the alleged murderers and the explosives were in his domain. Keep in mind that these bodyguards are from the Special Action Force where they were trained for extreme duties and absolute obedience and that they had no apparent motive of their own to annihilate the girl.

Take note that Razak Baginda was not charged for ordering but abetting the murder (he couldn't have ordered any way since he had no authority over them). So who had ordered the bodyguards to abduct the girl while she was attempting to enter Razak's house and later killed her? Shouldn't the police have been curious to find out some answers from the bodyguards' immediate boss (Najib) as to why and how they had embarked on such a violent venture? What inference can we draw when the police failed to act as it should have in regards to Najib? Or do the police know what the public don't?

And why have the police been extremely tight-lipped over details of the case, with the head of the criminal investigations department (Christopher Wan) remaining steadfastly mum?

Why has the Inspector General of Police (Musa Hassan) (ABOVE) taken the most unusual, and in fact, unprecedented measure of taking personal charge of this investigation? Is it proper for the police to hide crucial facts of the case when the news has been hogging nternational headlines, casting aspersion on the integrity of the government? Being also minister of security which controls the police force, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is directly responsible for proper police conduct over this investigation. Though he was quick to vow for a no-holds-barred probe and due punishment to the culprits irrespective of status, his words have not been matched by deeds.

PROSECUTOR AND JUDICIARY

Murder is a non-bailable offence. When Razak was granted bond (without security) on Nov. 23 and again extended on bail on Dec. 14 on the questionable ground of having had bronchitis, both the prosecutor and the judge were seen as acting with partiality in favour of the accused, as such bail was rarely granted, safe on grounds of extreme health hazard. On Jan. 5, Razak's application for extension of bail was rejected, to the shock of almost everyone. However, the rejection was not against the application per se, rather it was against the presentation in oral form. The judge then fixed Jan. 19 to hear the written application. However, impatient to wait till Jan. 19, Razak appealed and was granted a hearing by the Court of Appear on Jan. 11. The Appellate Court rejected the appeal on the ground that there was no judgment for the court to deliberate on, as the high court had yet to hear the application on Jan. 19.

Apart from his dereliction of duty in failing to oppose bail, the deputy public prosecutor (Salehuddin Saidin) from the A.G.'s chamber had also engaged in improper conduct when he ruled out the possible involvement of parties other than the three accused when the investigation is manifestly incomplete and the self-motivation of the killers ostentatiously lacking. His overzealous push for such a premature conclusion has thus fanned further speculation on the existence of a real master mind behind the three accused. Perhaps what disappoints the public most is the distant date fixed for the hearing - March 10, 2008. The judge's (K.N.Segara ) explanation of first-come-first-serve cuts no ice.

For an important case like this, where the integrity of the highest strata of the government is brought into question at home and abroad, the court has every justification to allocate priority, since it serves public interests to have justice served and law and order restored to regain public confidence at the earliest. Here again, we are reminded of the contrast in treatment accorded by the court between the Anwar Ibrahim trial for corruption (no money involved) and the present murder trial. If the Anwar trial could commence in just over a month from his arrest, why can't the present trial, which involves an offence many times more serious, be also given an expeditious trial? Does this not confirm the oft-repeated accusation that our judiciary acts under the dictates of the Executive - insignificant charges could be tried by express, while trials for grave charges could be pushed off, if such judicial arrangements so suit the political interests of the power that be?

SUBMARINE SCANDAL

The key to any murder case is the motive. This is where we have to bring in the submarines deal scandal, for Altantuya's apparent part in it may provide an important lead to the motivation of this murder. Reports from Mongolia have thrown light on Altantuya's working relationship with Razak Baginda.

Based on an interview with Altantuya's father Professor Shaariibuu (ABOVE), a report states that the Professor has established from Altantuya's documents that the latter had been rendering translation and secretarial services to Razak, interpreting for him in high level meetings and negotiation. In particular, she had assisted Razak in the submarines deal.

The Professor further stated that the main purpose of Altantuya's recent trip to Malaysia was to demand settlement of the fees due to her. Such demand for fees would have been treated as an ordinary affair, if not for the fact that there is a dark side to this submarine deal. The Malaysian ministry of defence pays one billion euros (RM 4.5 billion) to the vendor Amaris (French/Spanish JV) for three submarines (including a used one), for which transaction, Razak's company Perimekar receives a commission of 114 million euros (RM 510 million) from Amaris. The commission is a whopping 11% of the sales value, a ridiculously high figure that suggests improprieties.

Excessive as the figure might sound, the true hidden leakage could be very much more if consideration is given to the fact that the sales was not conducted through competitive tenders. Being the interpreter, who happened to be a charming person, Altantuya could have played an important role in sealing the deal. And considering that this is a deal where money flows freely, it would not be far fetched to imagine that Altantuya could have been promised a more than generous fee, in addition to privy to information that could not be leaked out without causing grievous damage to others.

Under such circumstances, Altantuya could be looked upon as an unwelcome and dangerous visitor if there were irreconcilable differences between her and her Malaysian clients, whether these arose from pecuniary conflicts or sexual entanglement as widely rumoured. It is obvious that investigations into the murder case cannot be meaningfully pursued without at the same time probing into the submarine deal scandal. In this connection, the participation. of our docile Anti-Corruption Agency is long overdue. This is the time that Prime Minister must show his leadership by personally ensuring that these two law-enforcing bodies directly under his portfolios - police and ACA - work hand in hand to expeditiously secure a full and fair investigation into the murder case as well as to bring the corrupt to book in the submarine corruption scandal. He should further ensure that the judiciary and the attorney general's chamber be allowed to deliver justice without interference from the Executive.

= = == =for related last post (PART VI) (Jan 20 07) Go H E R E On

MORE PICS-MURDER Altantuya Shaariibuu; SENSATIONAL Details in Bail AFFIDAVIT; Abdul Razak Relationship with Her; Meeting- Azilah to “get rid” of Her

= = = == = == = == or the next POST (Part VIII) H E R E On
MORE PICS & (a Video link) of ALTANTUYA SHAARIIBUU (the murdered Mongolian); PICTURES of Early Childhood, Adulthood and Motherhood Life & TWO Children; Video Narrated by Father; She departed sensationally, distressing her parents

MORE PICS -36 VEHICLES RECOVERED -24 4WD in 17 CONTAINERS Enroute United Arab Emirates Sent Home; TOTAL Value: RM3 M; Police Arrested 3, Looking For 3

MORE PICS -36 VEHICLES Worth RM 3 Million RECOVERED -24 4WD in 17 CONTAINERS Enroute United Arab Emirates Sent Home; Police Arrested 3, Looking For 3 More; 4-WD Vehicle of Stolen Choice bound for Afganistan, Pakistan & Africa

Hopefully these recovered cars would be returned to the owners ASAP instead of letting them rot in the police compounds. The police usually do not released them until the court cases are over and by that time you would find some of the accessories are being re stolen as spare parts and possibly even wheels would go missing. In such cases, the police would not want to know as these are taken literally right in front of their own eyes - custody.

= = = = =Gang finds new markets for stolen 4WD vehicles

08 Mar 2007; Neville Spykerman; NST

KLANG: Afghanistan, Pakistan and Africa are the new destinations of stolen Malaysian four-wheel-drive vehicles. This revelation followed the arrest of three men and recovery of RM3 million worth of vehicles stolen by a local group with international links. The previous destinations were Batam Island, Thailand and Indo-China.

Klang police chief Assistant Commissioner Rodwan Mohd Yusof (ABOVE) said a month-long operation, which started with the arrest of a suspect in Pulau Indah on Jan 17, led to the recovery of vehicles and information on car theft activities.

ABOVE & BELOW: The twelve vehicles recovered locally

Police have recovered a Toyota Avanza and Hicom lorry in a 20-foot container truck and arrested the man driving it. Five other containers containing 10 vehicles — five Toyota Hilux, three Toyota Fortuner, a Toyota Rav 4 and a Nissan Frontier — were found in Pulau Indah and Northport. "The vehicles were stolen from the Klang Valley, Pahang and Penang," said Rodwan. He said police arrested two men and discovered that 17 other containers, carrying 24 other vehicles, were enroute to the United Arab Emirates.

He said working with Interpol, police managed to prevent the cars from being off-loaded at the Jabber Ali Port in Dubai and they have been ordered to be sent back to Malaysia. "We believe the UAE is a point of transit before the stolen vehicles are shipped to new markets and this is said to include Afghanistan, Pakistan and Africa," he said.

ABOVE & BELOW: Klang Police Chief Rodwan Mohd Yusof pointing to the favorite cars being stolen - 4-WD in the Klang Valley, Pahang & Penang.

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"The vehicles of choice being stolen for shipments are four-wheel-drives, probably because of the poor road conditions in those destinations." Police are looking for three men, with previous convictions for car thefts, to help in investigations.

The suspects police would like to question are hiding somewhere Report them and you would be handsomely rewarded.

ABOVE :Suspects S. Jeganathan, 29, and brother S. Thiagu, (BELOW) 31, from Jalan Kastam, Port Klang, Police are looking for them, the "professionals exporters" of stolen cars

And BELOW: Suspect K. Paneerselvam @ Veelasamy, 28, from Jalan Arang, Pandamaran.

They are two brothers, S. Jeganathan, 29, and S. Thiagu, 31, from Jalan Kastam, Port Klang, and K. Paneerselvam @ Veelasamy, 28, from Jalan Arang, Pandamaran. Those with information on them are urged to call investigating officer Assistant Superintendent S. Prabakaran at 03-3371-2222 or 03-3371-9999.

Majlis Berbandaran IPOH (MBI) One-eye-closed & Double Standards on Council Member, Ran a Business Since 2004 w/o licence (Now issued ONLY Feb 7 07)

Judge for yourself.

Started Operation Feb 2004

(Applied licence in Sept 2006) issued licence ONLY on Feb 7 2007

Conditional given licence Nov 2006

So from Feb 2004 to Feb 06 NO Licence. WHY no action? And a no explanation ignoring the period when it was NOT license.

This is a one-eye-close and double standards on their own KIND.

Mayor clears air on factory licence

07 Mar 2007

IPOH: Ipoh Mayor Datuk Rafiai Mokhtar has put to rest the furore over a city councillor accused of operating a factory without a licence. He said the city council had already approved a premises licence for the factory on Feb 7 and that the company had paid RM480 for 2007. The council’s delay in approving the company’s application for a licence was because it had been waiting for an evaluation from the Fire and Rescue Department. "As soon as the council received the fire department’s response on Feb 6, 2007, it issued the premises licence the following day."

And the company has already paid for the licence for 2007," he said when met yesterday at a seminar for village heads launched by Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Tajol Rosli Ghazali. The DAP had accused Ipoh city councillor Lim Huey Shan (see details in media statement below) in late January of operating a plastic injection moulding factory at Taman Perdagangan dan Perindustrian Ipoh without a licence. Lim, one of the directors, denied being involved in day-to-day operations at the SMI Company, which began operating in Feb 2004. He had also said that the company was a family business and that it started operating even before he was appointed city councillor in January 2005. Rafiai said the company had not violated any licensing regulations because it was operating in an industrial area and had applied for a premises licence on Sept 28 (2006) last year.

"The city council had issued a conditional approval last November for the premise licence and requested that the company comply with the fire department’s regulation for the installation of water sprinklers, which the company has done. "As a rule, the council will issue a conditional approval to an applicant and within six months he must comply with regulations and install whatever has been found lacking in the factory by the authorities. "In this case, the company has complied within the six-month period, and therefore the company is not operating illegally," he said.
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Ipoh City councilor abusing his powers and MBI condoning his illegal acts?

Media Statement; by M. Kula Segaran ; (30/1/2007)

MP for Ipoh Barat and DAP National Vice Chairman
(Ipoh, Tuesday) : On the 8th of January 2007 twenty two (22) local councilors were appointed for the Ipoh City Council or the Majlis Bandarraya Ipoh (MBI). Of this 22 is one Lim Huey Shan also known as Vincent H.S Lim who is in charge the zone known as the Bercham/Tasek/Dermawan areas. This local councilor is 31years old, a MCA nominee and is now serving his second year as a councilor. The said councilor Vincent Lim runs a business known as Marvellous Sdn.Bhd.

A check with the registrar of companies reveals that Lim is a majority share holder in the above company. He commenced and carries out a plastic related business from 7/11/03 at no.40, Lintasan Perajurit 17C, Taman Perindustrian & Perusahaan Ipoh. Last Friday Sdr. Siva Subramaniam and others made a spot checked on the above premises and the premises was without a sign board and the business was still being operated.

On 19th July 2006 upon investigation the MBI issued a notice to the registered owner of the above premises to cease operating the business as it was been done without a licence issued by the local authority. On 12th September2006 the registered owner of the said premises wrote a letter to MBI informing the local authority that the business is not operated by him but was being operated by local councilor Lim Huey Shan. In the same letter rental receipts were enclosed. Subsequently on 21st September 2006 MBI issued a fresh notice to Marvellous Sdn. Bhd demanding that business activity be ceased.

The Law and why no action taken against Lim Huey Shan?

For the last 3 years the business was being operated by this local councilor with total disregard of the law. How any why was he allowed to get away without a licence being issued by the MBI for so many years. These are the small napoleons who take the law into their own hands and who know that because of their political connections nothing can be done against him.

He has been conducting the said business illegally and without a valid licence. According to the bye laws of the MBI any person who carries on industrial or such businesses need to get approval from all relevant agencies and finally a licence from MBI to commence a business.
If he is charged in court and if found guilty he could be fined a maximum sum of RM2000 and or be imposed a maximum jail term of 1 year. To make matters worse, till to date the business is being operated with shear disregard of the law. MBI must explain why to date

1. Why he is still allowed to operate and run his business without a licence?

2. Why MBI have not taken the councilor to court and charge him?

3. Why no orders have been obtained from the court to close down the business?

Many ratepayers feel the MBI is practicing double standards in the discharge of the law. If the above disobedience act was done by any other ordinary individual the MBI would have implemented with urgency the provisions of the byelaws and stiff penalties and appropriate charges would have been preferred. The implementation of the law should not be based on who it is. Its incumbent the MBI must act without fear or favour.

Lim is in charge of the zone known as the Bercham/ Tasek/Dermawan areas. The business is being carried out in Bercham. How can rate payers have any confidence on the local councilor who breaches the very law he is entrusted to live and enforce.

Finally all of expect the MB of Perak /State Authority which appointed Lim as a councilor to prevail on MBI to demand appropriate action be taken against him. Also will the city councilor be sacked or the MB of Perak would close one eye!

MORE PICS - 6.3 & 6.1 POWERFUL QUAKES (6th Mar 07) HIT West SUMATRA Within 2 Hrs; So Far 70 Killed; Solok & Padang Hardest Hit

Indonesia Hit by Two Quakes; At Least 70 People Dead (Update2) By Karima Anjani and Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja

March 6 (Bloomberg) -- Two earthquakes greater than magnitude 6 struck Indonesia's Sumatra island within two hours, killing at least 70 people and destroying houses and shops, presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said. A magnitude 6.3 quake struck west Sumatra at 10:49 a.m. local time 49 kilometers (30 miles) north-northeast of Padang city and 424 kilometers southwest of Singapore, the U.S. Geological Survey said. A second quake of magnitude 6.1 hit the same area two hours later.

[. . .]

ABOVE: Make shift hospital in Solok and BELOW: Make shift tent hospital in Padang

Powerful Indonesian earthquake kills 70
By ZAKKI HAKIM, Associated Press Writer

SOLOK, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake jolted western Indonesia on Tuesday, killing at least 70 people and injuring hundreds as they fled shaking hotels, homes and hospitals. Two children were crushed by debris on a playground. The 6.3-magnitude quake struck Sumatra island just before 11 a.m. and was felt as far away as neighboring Malaysia and Singapore, where some tall buildings were evacuated. Several aftershocks followed, the strongest measuring 6.1, adding to fears of people already too nervous to return indoors.

ABOVE: Shelter in Street is safer than in the house in Solok with the aftershocks BELOW: The tent hospital in Solok

Many said they would sleep in front of their homes or in the hills Tuesday night. "Women were crying out in terror. We all just fled as quickly as we could," said Alpion, a welder who joined thousands of others running to higher ground, fearing a tsunami that never came. Indonesia straddles one of the world's most seismically active zones and has been hit by a string of natural disasters in recent years, the most deadly being the 2004 Asian tsunami that killed 160,000 people on Sumatra's northern tip. At least 70 people were killed by Tuesday's quake, which hit the island's western coast, Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi told reporters in the capital, Jakarta.

ABOVE & BELOW: The collapsed buildings in Solok, West Sumatra

The hardest-hit area appeared to be Solok, a bustling town close to the epicenter, where two children were killed when a two-story building collapsed on the school playground, said police spokesman Supriadi, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. In addition, three members of one family were burned alive when their collapsed home burst into flames. Dozens of buildings were destroyed and hundreds of others were damaged, according to local police chief Lt. Col. Budi Sarwono.

ABOVE: The damaged Mosque in Solok and BELOW: Collapsed building with roof intact

TV footage showed a flattened three-story home and wide cracks in the road. "My house is on the brink of collapse," said Imelda Kusmawati, as she prepared to spend the night in an army tent with her two children and six other families. "I am still traumatized and worried about aftershocks." Patients poured into hospitals in Solok, many with broken bones and cuts, but most were treated outside because of fears of more quakes. Scores were laid out on cots on a soccer field, where they were attached to intravenous drips and given emergency care. "So far we have recovered 19 bodies and hundreds of injured people," Sarwono said of the toll in Solok. "The two hospitals are overwhelmed."

At one hospital in the nearby seaside town of Padang, panicked doctors and nurses fled into the street, startled patients limping behind, according to Metro TV. Electricity remained cut in parts of the town as darkness fell.

ABOVE & BELOW: Town of Payahkumbuh - several shops in the main street had collapsed

A witness in the town of Payahkumbuh said several shops in the main street had collapsed and police and soldiers were digging for survivors. Government spokesman Hasrul Piliang said the number of dead "would likely rise" because tallies from remote areas were still being collected and there were reports of other people trapped under debris. The U.S. Geological Survey said the tremor struck 20 miles below Solok. It was felt in Singapore, 265 miles away, forcing the evacuation of several older office buildings. In

Malaysia's southern coastal city of Johor, citizens fled offices, buildings and shopping centers, witnesses said. U.S. earthquake expert Kerry Sieh was in Padang on a research trip when the quake struck. He fled his fourth-story hotel room like other guests, stopping only to unplug his laptop.” I was pretty scared," he said, adding that the fault that spawned the quake was known as the Great Sumatran, which last ruptured in 1945. "I now know why people have a hard time remembering how long earthquakes last. ”Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. In addition to the 2004 tsunami, an earthquake killed nearly 5,000 on Java island last year. Tuesday’s quake was about 660 miles west of the Jakarta.

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March 06, 2007 22:58 PM

Two Quakes In West Sumatra Kill 70

By Mohd Nasir Yusoff

JAKARTA, March 6 (Bernama) -- At least 70 people were killed and hundreds of others injured after two earthquakes of 5.8 magnitude on the Richter Scale occurred in West Sumatara of Indonesia Tuesday. The quakes, which occurred at 10.49 am and 12.49 pm (local time), claimed lives in Tanah Datar, Solok and Padang Panjang, said Indonesian Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has directed the army commander and the police chief to deploy their personnel and equipment to assist in the search and rescue operation, he told reporters at the presidential office here. The death toll is a preliminary figure because police in Padang, the capital of the province, expect it to rise once the search and rescue operation gets underway. A spokesman of the Indonesian Meteorological and Geophysics Agency here told Bernama the first quake occurred at 10.49 am at coordinates 0.55 degrees south and 100.4 degrees east with an intensity of 5.8 magnitude, about 16 km southwest of Batu Sangkar and at a depth of 33 km on land. The quake caused tremors that were also felt in Riau, Jambi and Medan in Sumatra as well as in Singapore and Johor and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, he said.

ABOVE: Workers in Singapore's financial district waiting to return to offices to work after the 1st quake.

He said the second quake occurred at 12.49 pm at coordinates 0.47 degrees south and 100.49 degrees east with an intensify of 5.8 magnitude, about 11 km southwest of Batu Sangkar and at a depth of 23 km, also on land. Local television and radio stations reported that among the dead were four schoolchildren, who were burnt to death after their collapsed school building caught fire. Many others were killed by falling buildings and cracks appeared on many administrative offices, shopping complexes and hotels.

The Elshinta all-news radio reported that minor quakes continued to occur until this evening and many residents along the road from Padang to the Solok sub-district, which was worst-affected by the quakes, have moved to stay in temporary tents along the road.

Antara news agency reported that many road links between Padang and several areas had been cut off or covered by the rubble of collapsed buildings, including the Padang-Solok, Padang-Bukit Tinggi and Padang-Padang Panjang roads

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March 06, 2007 15:00 PM

KL, JB Experience Tremor From Sumatra's Quake

KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 (Bernama) -- Several areas in Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baharu experienced a tremor said to be caused by an earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter which jolted Indonesia's south-west Sumatra this morning. The tremor was felt at high rise buildings in the two areas following the quake at 11.49 am Tuesday, said the Meteorological Department in a statement today. It said the moderate quake which happened 65km south-west of Padang, Sumatra, 372km south west of Melaka did not pose any tsunami threat. Meanwhile, the tremor was also felt at the fifth, 14th and 15th floors of Bernama building and the staff came down to assemble at the lobby of the building. Bernama Corporate Communication Manager Hasnita Tamin said she and other staff were shaken when the office vibrated for a short while. "The computers in the office were shaking and we all rushed down to the lobby," she said.

ABOVE: Workers in a Johor Bahru office complex returning back to work

In JOHOR BAHARU, a tremor was felt at high rise buildings in the heart of the city at noon today. Scores of people rushed down from the Tun Abdul Razak Complex (Komtar), the tallest building here as well as from the federal government complex and the Larkin flats. A Fire and Rescue Department spokesman said it had yet to receive any report on the tremor but had mobilised firemen to be on the lookout. Singapore was also reported to have experience a tremor at a magnitude of 6.6 on the Richter scale while Johor Baharu 5.0.

Sultanah Bahiyah HOSPITAL DELAYS; Samy Blamed HEALTH MINISTRY & Excused Contractor; CHUA Denied Claim: "SAMY Representing & Championing CONTRACTORS?"

……UPDATE: Mar 06 07, 10:15pm; and the Response from Samy Vellu
March 06, 2007 17:12 PM
Everybody Is Wrong Except Health Ministry, Says Samy Vellu

SEREMBAN, March 6 (Bernama) -- "It's better for me not to say anything. Let them talk. We were wrong. "The Works Ministry) was wrong, the contractor was wrong, the sub-contractors were wrong, those who gave the land were also wrong. Only the Health Ministry was right. Thank you," said Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu here, Tuesday. He was responding to the statement by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek who denied that the delay in completing the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Star was caused by his ministry's decision to change the scope of work repeatedly.

Samy Vellu said this after the launching of the Eubiq and Grounding Sentry System (GSS), a Revolutionary Power Outlet System, here. Dr Chua also said he could not understand why certain government agencies were so keen to champion contractors that they stressed in newspapers the project was delayed not because of the contractors, but because the Health Ministry often changed the scope of work. Asked on the statement by Deputy Health Minister, Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad who admitted that the ministry had made several alterations on the hospital, Samy Vellu said, "they can say what they like".

Abdul Latif said at a function in Seremban yesterday that the changes were made to provide the people with the latest facilities. "We want the latest equipments for the benefit of the people. Surely we don't want old equipments that are fit for museums," he said. On the toll collection at the Sungai Nyiur Toll Plaza at the Butterworth Outer Ring Road (BORR) which was postponed, Samy Vellu said his ministry was still holding talks with the concessionaire and this may take a month.
The toll collection was postponed after the state government, residents and several non-government orgnisations (NGOs) appealed that the toll should not be implemented until an alternative road was constructed.= = = = =

UPDATE: 6^th March; 12.57pm

Who is the BOSS in the Health Ministry? The Minister Denies the BLAME from Samy Vellu But the Deputy Minister Accepts the Blame; They DON’T talk & Communicate?

If you read the NST, there is this report (below) quoting Chua Sooi Lek;’s Deputy accepting the blame. So who is correct? Do we need an arbiter to resolve this issue? Both are doctors and have been fed with different information and came to different conclusions? Or the Deputy is on different side of the camp.
We are not privy to all the details but his Deputy Dr Latiff was quoted “the original design plans, including the specifications for the medical facilities at the hospital, were completed in 2001”. But structurally, were the overall construction of the hospital buildings delayed? Surely there were not much changes to the architectural plans and the “shell” of the hospital should have not been delayed too long – read the problems brought up by the Kedah government. How can the contractor be blameless at all? Not even 1%? The extension of time was to add additional facilities to upgrade the obsolete specifications. If they cannot be done as promised then they should pay a penalty. What an expensive learning experience for this project?

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Delay of Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital project: Health Ministry accepts blame

06 Mar 2007; Ridzwan Abdullah, NST

SEREMBAN: The Health Ministry has accepted the blame for the delay of the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital project in Alor Star, but reasoned that it was only to make sure the building was safe for use. Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad said the ministry had asked the Works Ministry to make changes to the specifications and scope of work for the project. "But we had to do this to make sure the building is safe, besides meeting the required medical technology standards," he said at the countdown launch of the MS ISO 9001:2000 certification and accreditation of the Tuanku Ja’afar Hospital here.

Present was hospital director Dr Jaafar Che Mat. On Sunday, Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said the four-year delay on the RM565 million Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital was caused by the Health Ministry. Samy Vellu claimed the Health Ministry had made last-minute changes to the project. The project, which started in August 2000, was expected to be ready by December 2003 but the completion date was extended several times, with the last on Dec 31 last year. The delay had sparked a war of words between Samy Vellu and Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek.

Dr Abdul Latiff said the original design plans, including the specifications for the medical facilities at the hospital, were completed in 2001. However, there were too many changes made to them in the following two years. "They (changes) were made to keep up with the changes in medical technology. If some of the facilities were retained from the original plans, they would have been rendered obsolete by now." The 770-bed hospital, built by MH Projects Sdn Bhd, is now scheduled to be handed over to the Health Ministry by the middle of next month. Dr Abdul Latiff hoped that the experiences gained from this project would prevent similar problems for future hospital projects.
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ABOVE: The new Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital will be handed over on 15th Mar 2007 said Samy BUT Chua S L disputed the date to April 07

This is another classical case how Samy can settle most problems with “twist and turn” to protect the faulty contractors. Now why is he doing this all the time? If contractors are at fault they are liable for daily penalty payments for delays running into thousands of dollars. So why must the government accept these penalty payments if these can be channel to somebody else?

In this hospital delays, Samy is putting it squarely on the Health Ministry for agreeing to the additional facilities for neurology & cardiology. But surely these additional do not take another 3 years to do as the project was scheduled to complete on 2003. Samy chooses to to keep one-eye closed and ignore the complaints from Kedah officials and even the Sultan on “contractor kept changing its project director and subcontractor besides facing a labour shortage”. He is larger and bigger than anybody figuratively and physically also. He has NO fear and shame in all his wrong doings. Is he always in the right?

This is the first time we have an alert and no nonsense Minister of Helath questioning the unusual and nefarious actions of Samy Vellu in “representing the contractor and championing them”. If Chua denied the blame, then it must be the Contractor!. Then why is Samy protecting them? Call in the ACA if he is on the take. Even if the ACA is called in, Samy will always have excuses for ALL questions. Over the 30 years , he has become a Master & “PhD Holder” in ALL kinds of Delays Settlement by hook or crook or by magic!
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Chua Denies Hospital's Delay Due To Health Ministry's Fault

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek,:"I don't understand why Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu did not pinpoint at the contractor, but instead put the blame on our ministry"

PUTRAJAYA, March 5 (Bernama) -- Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, Monday denied that the delay in the completion of Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Star was due to the ministry's fault as it kept revising its scope of services. He said services such as neurology and cardiology departments were incorporated in the hospital at the request of Kedah state government. "As the ministry was concerned with the request, we had agreed to it. As such, the new scope was added and we would like to stress that the changes and the incorporation of the new scope was made only once," he told reporters after meeting fast food restaurant operators, here Monday.

He was commenting on a report Sunday quoting Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu as saying that the contractor was not at fault in the delay and attributed it to the construction of additional facilities. He said the completion date was extended not at the request of the contractor but to enable it to build the additional facilities requested by the client, the Health Ministry. "I don't understand why certain quarters in the government agency are so interested in championing the contractor and told the press that the delay was not the fault of the contractor but the Health Ministry which kept changing the job scope.

"We made the changes only once, even then it was at the request of the Kedah state government," said Chua. On the other hand, he said according to the Kedah Health Department, the contractor kept changing its project director and subcontractor besides facing a labour shortage. "I don't understand why Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu did not pinpoint at the contractor, but instead put the blame on our ministry.

As if he is representing the contractor and championing them. "To my knowledge, this is an unusual thing because we can only accept the hospital once it is completed," he said. Dr Chua said the ministry would not accept a faulty hospital either physically or in its facilities for the safety and well-being of the patients would be at stake. "If we feel that it is not ready yet, not adhering to the standards, we will not accept it. "And from what I understand, it would only be ready in April and not March as reported in the press," he said

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March 04, 2007 22:16 PM
HSB Delay Not Due To Contractor - Samy Vellu

ALOR STAR, March 4 (Bernama) -- The delay in the completion of the Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah (HSB) in Jalan Langgar, here is not due to any failure on the part of the contractor, said Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu Sunday. He said the delay was due to the fact that the contractor had to comply with new instructions from the Health Ministry which aimed to turn the HSB as one of the top hospitals in the country.

Speaking at a media conference after inspecting final preparations for the HSB which cost about RM557 million, Samy Vellu said the HSB had facilities for cardiac treatment which was on par with the National Heart Institute (IJN) in Kuala Lumpur. He said the HSB, which would have 730 beds in 23 wards and 11 intensive care units, was now 99.75 percent completed and it was expected to be fully completed in a few more days before being handed over to the Health Ministry on March 15.

ABOVE Ultra new Hospital costing RM557 million has ultra modern up to the state rooms (BELOW)

Construction work on the HSB started on Oct 16, 2000 and it was scheduled to be completed in 2003. However to date, it had yet to be handed over to the Health Ministry which resulted in complaints being made by various quarters including criticisms from the state government and the Sultan of Kedah. Samy Vellu, who arrived at the hospital grounds in a helicopter, spent about an hour inspecting final preparations for the hospital. He said among the renovations at the HSB were upgrading the VIP ward into a Royal Ward and several facilities such as the third stage Biosafety forensic laboratory to control dangerous diseases.

MORE PICS - CANNY ONG Killer AHMAD NAJIB to Hang for RAPE & MURDER; Abducted & Killed on 14 Jun 2003; Appeal Court Upheld Death Sentence

This gruesome rape and murder shocked many after it happened and new cases will take its place. The accused still has the recourse of the Federal Court after this Court of Appeal upheld the death sentence imposed on Feb 23 2005; failing which is the final appeal is for pardon from the Agong.

March 05, 2007 13:24 PM

It Is Still The Hangman's Noose For Canny's Killer
PUTRAJAYA, March 5 (Bernama) -- The Court of Appeal Monday upheld the death sentence on a former aircraft cabin cleaning supervisor for the rape and murder of IT analyst Canny Ong Lay Kian five years ago. Justices Datuk Abdul Aziz Mohamed (now a Federal court judge), Datuk Mohamed Ghazali Mohamed Yusof and Datuk Azmel Ma'amor (now a Federal Court judge) unanimously dismissed Ahmad Najib's appeal to set aside the convictions, death sentence and jail term for raping and killing Ong, 29, at the 7th mile, Jalan Klang Lama, between 1am and 5am on June 14, 2003.

At the court today, 5th March 2007, the smile was for everyone, even though his fate is sealed

Ahmad Najib, 31 (always smiling, ABOVE ) , who wore a black and white chequered shirt and black trousers, appeared calm when the court announced the verdict. Justice Abdul Aziz said circumstantial evidence showed that it was Ahmad Najib, and no one else, who raped and killed Ong. Ahamd Najib was found guilty and sentenced to death by the Shah Alam High Court on Feb 23, 2005 for Ong's murder.

ABOVE: Even in 2005 after the death sentence, he was smiling

He was also sentenced to 20 years jail and 10 strokes of the rotan for raping her. The trial was given wide publicity and horrified the nation with tales of abduction, rape, murder and the dumping of Ong's body into a manhole measuring 3x3x3 ft, before it was burnt

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Haniff opted for client to remain silent in dock;

IT was a decision that stunned lawyers.; 26 Nov 2006

Lawyer Muhammad Haniff Khatri Abdulla did what many least expected: he told Ahmad Najib Aris to remain silent in court when his defence was called. The airline cabin crew supervisor had been charged with the murder and rape of 28-year-old information technology analyst Canny Ong, which the media had front-paged for days.
Haniff said he had no regrets over the decision as he had considered all angles before arriving at it.

"In view of the law, facts and science of the case, I felt that was the best option available to him," said Haniff, 40. Haniff, who was assisted by five other counsel, said they discussed all the options available to Ahmad Najib. "All six of us were divided between him giving evidence or remaining silent. As lead counsel, I decided that Ahmad Najib should keep mum," he said. Haniff said he advised the accused on the option and gave him time to make a decision. "We had to agree with whatever he decided as he was facing capital punishment. He finally gave us the go-ahead."

Haniff said Ahmad Najib had placed a lot of trust and confidence in them and this inspired them to give him the best defence possible. The lawyer, in practice since 1992, said he was only asked to appear for the accused about three or four weeks before the trial. "I agreed because the trial touched on delicate points of law and forensic science," he said, adding that a legal team was set up due to time constraints.

It was decided that Haniff, as leader of the team, would be the advocate while the other members would carry out research. Haniff felt that Ahmad Najib had been tried by the media even before the case went to court. "It was too late to rectify the damage. " Had we been retained much earlier, steps could have been taken to prevent prejudice to my client."
On Feb 23 last year, trial judge Datuk Muhammad Ideres Rapee sentenced Ahmad Najib to death for the murder and a further 20 years jail for raping his victim. Ahmad Najib appealed against the sentence and conviction to the Court of Appeal which heard submissions from his counsel and the prosecution in January this year. The appellate court reserved judgment. Ahmad Najib was charged with raping and murdering Ong at Jalan Klang Lama between 1am and 5am on June 14, 2003.
She was abducted from the Bangsar Shopping Centre in the early hours of that day.
Three days later, her charred remains were found in a drain inside a manhole. Forty-four witnesses gave evidence during the trial, which began on Sept 15, 2003.

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The Canny Ong murder trial; The victim; Canny Ong Lay Kian, 29, an IT analyst

The charge: Ahmad Najib Aris is charged with the murder of Canny Ong at 7th Mile, Jalan Klang Lama, Petaling Jaya, between 1am and 5am on June 14, 2003. Second charge: Rape of Canny Ong at the same place and time.
The accused: Ahmad Najib Aris, 27, aircraft cabin cleaner

The judge: Justice Muhamad Ideres Muhamad Rapiee

Prosecution: DPP Salehuddin Saidin, DPP Noorin Badaruddin

Defence:# For Ahmad Najib, defence team of six lawyers led by Muhammad Haniff Khatri Abdullah. # Counsel Karpal Singh is holding a watching brief for Canny's family. # Counsel Godfrey D'Cruz is holding a watching brief for Bandaraya Properties.

= = = =Background & history of trial in 2005

Reports of the court proceedings as reported by The Star

Day 54: Ahmad Najib told to enter defence for raping and murdering Canny. Aircraft cabin cleaner Ahmad Najib Aris was ordered to defend himself on charges of raping and murdering IT analyst Canny Ong. High Court Justice Muhamad Ideres Rapiee ruled that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against the accused on both charges.

Day 53: Accused to know decision on Aug 6. Ahmad Najib Aris will know on Aug 6 whether to enter his defence over the rape and murder of Canny Ong.

Day 52: DPP: Accused wanted to conceal fact that he had raped Canny. Ahmad Najib Aris killed Canny Ong to hide the fact that he had raped her, a prosecutor told the High Court.

Day 51: ‘Death knell’ from DNA. DNA tests proved that “live sperm” found in Canny Ong’s private parts was Ahmad Najib Aris’ and that was a death knell to the cleaner’s defence in the rape-cum-murder trial, a prosecutor told the High Court.

Day 50: No case to call for defence. Cleaner Ahmad Najib Aris should not be ordered to make his defence purely to satisfy curiosity, his lawyer argued in the High Court.

Day 49: Defence lists flaws in case. There are 10 reasons why aircraft cleaner Ahmad Najib Aris should be freed from the charges of raping and murdering Canny Ong without his defence being called, said lead counsel Haniff Khatri Abdulla.

Day 48: Prosecution closes its case. The prosecution has offered 75 people, including Canny Ong’s husband and friends, as defence witnesses after closing its case in the murder trial.

Day 47: Cop: Accused wanted revenge. The man who confessed to having mistakenly abducted Canny Ong before raping and killing her had told police that his actual target was his former employer, the High Court heard.

Day 46: Cop quizzed about benefactor. The mysterious lawyer who funded Canny Ong’s studies in the United States resurfaced as the thrust of the defence’s line of questioning at the High Court, with the prosecution being grilled for three hours on the matter.

Day 45: Accused took police to eight places. The accused in the Canny Ong murder trial led police to eight places from which various pieces of evidence had been collected, the High Court heard yesterday.

Day 44: Canny's body buried under tyres, court told. Police found Canny Ong’s badly burnt remains buried under two cement-filled tyres in a covered manhole four days after she was abducted from a basement car park in Bangsar, the investigating officer told the High Court.

Day 43: Phone ‘key to solving case’. Canny Ong’s handphone that went missing with her last June played a vital role in helping police solve the case, the High Court heard.

Day 42: Canny spoke on handphone ‘No one knows who made the call’.Murder victim Canny Ong spoke to someone on her handphone during a farewell dinner on the night she was abducted from the basement of a shopping centre here, the High Court heard.

Day 41: Accused confesses to raping and stabbing Canny. The man now on trial in the High Court for the rape and grisly murder of Canny Ong confessed that he killed her by stabbing her twice in the stomach and leaving her to bleed to death in a manhole.

The confession in full: Translation of Ahmad Najib Aris' confession as taken down by the then magistrate Muhamad Rushdan Mohamad.

Lawyer paid for studies, says Canny's father. Canny Ong’s father told the High Court that a philanthropist had sponsored his daughter’s four-year business studies in the United States.

Day 40: Court to decide in May on accused’s confession. The High Court will decide on May 10 if it should admit as evidence the confession of the man accused of raping and murdering Canny Ong last year.

Day 39: Trial-within-a-trial closing submissions today. Parties in the Canny Ong murder case will make closing submissions today at the end of a trial-within-a-trial to determine the admissibility of a confession made by the accused.

Day 38: Accused: I met cop before. A murder accused told the High Court that he had met a policeman, who had collected the identity cards belonging to him and Canny Ong on the night the US-based IT analyst went missing, even before his arrest.

Day 37: Accused: No bruises on me.The man accused of raping and murdering Canny Ong told the High Court that several police personnel had assaulted him during detention before taking his photographs..

Day 36: I knew Canny, says accused. The man accused of raping and murdering Canny Ong acknowledged that he knew the victim when a senior officer asked him on the day of his arrest, the High Court heard.

Day 35: Accused: I was assaulted by cops hours after arrest. The man charged with the rape and murder of Canny Ong claimed that he was assaulted by several police personnel, including a police superintendent, within hours of his arrest last year.

Day 34: Decision on confession today. The High Court will decide today whether the prosecution in the Canny Ong trial had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that rape-cum-murder accused Ahmad Najib Aris' confession was voluntarily given.

Day 33: Trial adjourned pending submissions. The High Court has adjourned the Canny Ong murder trial to Wednesday, pending preparation of written submissions by the parties involved.

Day 32: Submissions over accused’s confession set for Monday. Parties in the Canny Ong murder trial will argue on Monday as to whether there is prima facie evidence to show that the accused Ahmad Najib Aris voluntarily confessed to a magistrate a day after his arrest last year.

Day 31: Cop: No promise of lenient sentence. The accused in Canny Ong's murder trial asked to meet Selangor CID chief Senior Asst Comm II Abu Bakar Mustaffa immediately after his arrest in June last year, the High Court in Shah Alam heard.

Day 30: Accused ‘not persuaded to confess’. A prosecution witness denied that two policemen persuaded the accused Ahmad Najib Aris to confess or risk being treated like a dog, the High Court heard in Shah Alam Friday.

Day 29: Accused ‘not confused when he confessed’. Ahmad Najib Aris, who is charged with the rape and murder of Canny Ong, did not appear to be confused when he made a confession concerning his alleged crime to a magistrate last year, the High Court heard yesterday.

Day 28: Confession made voluntarily, court told. The confession of an aircraft cabin cleaner supervisor who is charged with the rape and murder of Canny Ong was made voluntarily, the High Court heard Wednesday.

Day 27: I found maggots in Canny’s car, says cop. A forensic expert told the High Court that he found maggots on the floor under the backseat of the car driven by Canny Ong when he was inspecting the vehicle last year.

Day 26: Police found bloodstains near manhole, court told. Police found bloodstains and strands of hair near a manhole where Canny Ong’s burnt body was retrieved in Jalan Klang Lama, the High Court heard yesterday.

Day 25: Cop: Body found in manhole. Canny Ong’s burnt body was retrieved from a manhole at Batu 7, Jalan Kelang Lama, last year, the High Court heard in Shah Alam Thursday. Selangor police forensic unit head Deputy Supt Amidon Anan said when he and his men arrived, they saw the knees and lower legs sticking out of the manhole.

Day 24: Cop: Bloodstained jeans among 11 items seized. A pair of jeans, which had Canny Ong's bloodstains, was among 11 items seized from the house of accused Ahmad Najib Aris, the High Court heard yesterday.

Day 23: Canny's death not the result of a sexual act. A pathologist told the High Court that Canny Ong’s possible cause of death by strangulation was not the result of a sexual act.

Day 22: Digestive tract ‘can show time of death’ .A pathologist told the High Court that the only way to indicate when Canny Ong had died was by studying her digestive system because her body was badly burnt.

Day 21: Canny ‘most probably’ strangled. Canny Ong was already dead when her body was set on fire in June, a pathologist told the High Court.

Day 20: Pathologist describes body parts. A pathologist told the High Court that he had in June examined a burnt human body trunk and a pair of severed legs believed to belong to Canny Ong.

Day 19: Canny Ong trial postponed to today. The hearing of the Canny Ong rape-cum-murder trial was postponed yesterday because Justice Muhamad Ideres Rapiee, who is presiding over the case, was on medical leave.

Day 18: Court told about DNA profiling by witness.

Any specimen sent for DNA profiling will not produce results if it is still contaminated after a purification process, a chemist told the High Court in Shah Alam.

Day 17: Defence attacks methods used by chemist.Lawyers for accused Ahmad Najib Aris launched their attack on the technical evidence given by a chemist, including DNA tests which could prove damaging for the defence.

Day 16: Blood found is Canny’s, says chemist. Blood found on a pair of jeans and a concrete block from a road divider was positively tested as that of Canny Ong’s, the High Court heard.

Day 15: Semen matched DNA of accused, High Court told. The Canny Ong trial: Semen collected from the remains of Canny Ong matched the DNA profile of Ahmad Najib Aris, the man accused of raping and murdering her, a chemist told the High Court.

Day 14: Five hours to display and explain exhibits to judge. Eighteen exhibits ranging from blood and semen-stained material, burnt hair and samples of vaginal fluid were tendered in the High Court when the Canny Ong trial resumed Monday.

Day 13: Queries over muslin cloth. The Canny Ong murder trial yesterday was dominated by questions over muslin cloth.

Day 12:‘Accused did not turn up for night duty’. Ahmad Najib Aris did not turn up for his night shift duty on June 13, 2003, the night Canny Ong “disappeared” from the Bangsar Shopping Complex, the High Court heard Tuesday.

Day 11: Videotapes footage authentic, says expert. A forensic expert told the High Court that the videotapes, with a footage taken by closed-circuit TV cameras at an underground car park showing images of the man accused of raping and murdering Canny Ong, was authentic and unedited.

Murder accused hit by vomiting and diarrhoea

Accused Ahmad Najib Aris sat alone in the dock as usual Monday but he was not his normal self.

Day 10: Identifying through gait. A forensic expert told the High Court that his observation of Canny Ong’s mother, her appearance, gait and the way she held her handbag helped him to identify her in an unclear photograph.

Chance to play forensic detective. The High Court judge, prosecutors and lawyers in the Canny Ong rape-cum-murder case had their chance to play forensic detectives Friday with a device used to magnify unclear images in photographs.

Day 9: Cop: Recorded images are that of accused. A police forensic expert told the High Court he had enhanced and enlarged images of a man captured on closed-circuit TV cameras at the Bangsar Shopping Centre on the night Canny Ong went missing before confirming that he was the person now accused of murdering her.

Video shots show accused loitering near Canny’s car.

Shots taken by cameras at the Bangsar Shopping Centre’s underground car park showed that the accused in the Canny Ong murder trial had entered the centre as early as 8.49pm on the night she went missing.

Day 8: Parties view tapes at mall. Two videotapes of recordings taken by cameras in the Bangsar Shopping Centre underground parking areas showed images which forensic experts have identified as those of Canny Ong and the man accused of raping and murdering her, the High Court heard.

Day 7: SIM card sold for RM10. A man who bought a SIM card from a stranger told the High Court he found out it had come from a murder victim's handphone, when the police detained him for investigations.

Judge plays language teacher during court case. Justice Muhamad Ideres Rapiee played the role of a language teacher by correcting some of the terms used by a lawyer and a witness who testified before him yesterday.

Day 6: Witness identifies Tiara belonging to victim Canny Ong. A motorist, who stopped to ease himself at a construction site along Old Klang Road, near where the gruesome remains of rape-cum-murder victim Canny Ong were found, told the High Court that a man was frantically trying to drive away in Canny’s car after he spotted a semi-naked woman lying on the back seat.

Witness: I took backpack and handphone from car. A prosecution witness, who saw the semi-nude body of Canny Ong in a Proton Tiara, said he saw the car 100m away from where he first spotted it when he passed the scene again two hours later. Day Five

Day 5: 'Car was parked at a blind spot'. Canny Ong’s car was parked at a “blind spot” which none of the 16 cameras at the three-storey car park at the Bangsar Shopping Complex recorded.

Lim: Canny last seen at ticket machine

Closed-circuit camera pictures taken by the Bangsar Shopping Centre showed that Canny Ong was last captured on video at 10.44pm while leaving an autopay machine and heading towards the lifts to the car park.

Court views tapes: Trial judge Justice Muhamad Ideres Rapiee left his bench and sat with prosecutors and defence lawyers to view the tapes.

Day 4: Cop: Accused reported lost IC on June 14. The accused in the Canny Ong murder trial lodged a police report one day after she went missing that he had lost his identity card the previous night, the High Court heard Thursday.

‘Car found a day later’: Police found the dark blue Proton Tiara that went missing with Canny Ong on June 13 abandoned behind a shophouse off Old Klang Road, one day after her disappearance.

Convoy visits crime scenes: A convoy of over 20 vehicles visited four crime scenes linked to the Canny Ong murder case Thursday.

Day 3: Canny tried to use facial signals, says witness

Canny Ong tried to use facial expressions to signal to a good Samaritan to rescue her while the man accused of her murder sought help to fix a punctured tyre in the wee hours of June 14, the High Court heard Wednesday.

Witness: We found a burnt corpse at construction site. A civil engineer testified that his men discovered a badly burnt corpse in a culvert pipe at a construction site under his charge in Old Klang Road, Kuala Lumpur.

Mother of accused scolds photographers: The mother of Ahmad Najib Aris, the man accused of raping and murdering Canny Ong, berated photographers who tried to snap pictures of her at the Shah Alam High Court complex where her son is being tried.

Day 2: Cop: Canny gestured as though begging for help. A policeman told the High Court that Canny Ong Lay Kian had gestured twice to him as though begging for help when he stopped to check her identity and that of the accused while patrolling in Petaling Jaya on June 13.

Venue chosen as mum liked steak. Canny Ong loved to eat crabs. She was crazy about them. According to her mother, she was supposed to have gone to the Fatty Crabs outlet in Taman Megah for dinner with her family and friends on Friday, June 13.

Day 1: Mum relates Canny’s last words. The rape and murder trial of Canny Ong Lay Kian began in a sombre mood in the High Court here yesterday, with her mother recounting her daughter’s last words on the night of June 13 before she was found dead.

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The pain is unbearable'; CANNY ONG'S MURDER; NST

Canny Ong's mother says she still aches for her slain daughter, and worries about Canny's husband. SHE did not miss a single day of the trial - all 52 days of them. But the pain is evident even after almost two years. Mrs Pearley Visvanathan, 58, said that even though the death sentence had been imposed on Ahmad Najib Aris, it would not bring her daughter, Ms Canny Ong, back.

In truth I'm angry with God. I feel He has not been fair to me. I don't know what I have done,' she told the media yesterday after aircraft cabin cleaning supervisor Ahmad Najib was sentenced to death by the Malaysian High Court. Ahmad Najib was found guilty of raping and brutally murdering Ms Ong, 28, between 1am and 5am on Jun 14, 2003. Mrs Visvanathan did not hear the verdict clearly initially and had to ask several people to repeat it before breaking into a weary smile, reported the New Straits Times. When asked about her feelings, she said: 'I sympathise with her (Ahmad Najib's mother).

This is funny and strange. It is part of the plot of fate, like a trap for her (Ms Ong) to come back.' She was referring to how her daughter had ended up at Bangsar Shopping Centre on that tragic night. Ms Ong, an information technologist, had flown back from the US to visit her ailing father in KL, was having a night out with friends at the Bangsar Shopping Complex on Jun 13, 2003. They had changed the dinner venue three times. She was due to fly back to the US to join her husband the following day. As her mother was not well, she decided to leave early and went to pick up the parking ticket that she had left in her car in the basement. That was when she was abducted by Ahmad Najib, who bundled her into the passenger seat and sped away.

Her family never saw her alive again.

Others did see her, including two policemen, but it is still a mystery why she did not try to escape when the opportunity arose. According to court testimony, Ahmed Najib drove Ms Ong to a deserted place, raped and stabbed her. He then strangled her and dumped her body in a manhole, returning later to set fire to her body.

After the verdict, Mrs Visvanathan told the New Straits Times that she would be calling her other daughters, who are in Europe, immediately. She said her husband did not wish to talk. 'He is taking it badly. We have lost three children,' she said referring to the toddler daughter they lost in drowning incident years ago and a baby son, who died following a fever. On Tuesday, she told the Malay Mail that she still wakes up at night with the feeling that 'God has been unfair to me and my family to have snatched Canny away from us'. Said the former teacher and remisier: 'Sometimes the pain is so unbearable that I want to scream. I miss my darling daughter so much. '

At times, I feel like swallowing her ashes with water so that she will still be with me. I feel like I'm going out of my head, thinking about her.' Yesterday, she told the media that she hoped Ms Ong's husband, Mr Brendan Ong, would remarry and start a new life. 'I hope her husband will get married again. I think he will find it hard because he is still holding on to Canny. 'Everyone has to move on. Sometimes I don't dare think of her.

I prefer it that way. I pretend, in a way. I have her photo with me. I keep thinking she is beside me.' Mr Ong has since sold his wife's BMW and the house they owned in San Diego, and moved back in with his parents in Hawaii, reported the Malay Mail. The 29-year-old former product manager of a software company was involved in two car collisions after his wife's death. His driver's licence in the US was suspended. For Ms Ong's mother, the agony goes on. She said: 'sooner or later, the case will be forgotten, but for us, there will be no end. The hurt will go on.' - The Electric New Paper

= = = = = =for the Keynote Speech for Canny Ong's Memorial by Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir; 19 July 2003 at HELP Institute; Go H E R E

MORE PICS – Narcotic CHIEF 51 & GRO 24 went to Sleep in BMW Car at Behrang Rest & Service along N-S Expressway Failed to Wake Up; CO Poisioning

UPDATE: Mar 07 2007

Narcotic Chief Inspector, Pauzi Ibrahim, 51 Found Dead with GRO (Piscilla Jim, 24) was on UNDERCOVER (No mask & No Disguise) Assignment and GRO (must be an INFORMER) Assisting Police Investigations

To give face to the dead and get some for the Police force, the police now have stated that he was on a “secret assignment” gathering drugs related cases and information. This is very legitimate excuse nothing unusual to gather information in his car. So now he died of “sudden death” in the course of his duty but was not accorded a “police funeral” which otherwise would be if he died in a blazing cross fire with some drug warlords or smugglers.
We can presume full compensation would be duly given to the family which would also enjoy his full “pension”
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Police: Cop found dead with woman was working undercover

06 Mar 2007; By P. Chandra Sagaran; NST

IPOH, TUES: THE 51-year-old chief inspector who was found dead with a woman in a car at the Behrang rest and service area of the North-South Expressway here last Saturday, was working Undercover. Slim River district police chief Supt Mohd Ali Mat Nayan said the former district narcotics chief Inspector Pauzi Ibrahim was given the assignment by the State police contingent headquarters, but he refused to elaborate on the nature of the job. Mohd Ali said the 24-year-old woman, who was also found dead in the car with Pauzi, was "assisting police in their investigations." The woman was identified as Piscilla Jim from Kanowit, Sarawak. She was believed to be a guest relations officer at an entertainment outlet in Slim River. Family members claimed her body on Monday.
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Reports indicated the officer was supposed to be on official duty but was clad in civilian clothes. It was NOT a suicide but Sudden Death in the course of neglected duty. It was “khalwat” by all accounts. But how a BMW 318 could be so badly designed that with the air cond running, exhaust gas (with carbon monoxide) can be induced into the interior of the vehicle? Apparently no hose was found into the car and he had no reason to kill himself. After enjoying himself he felt asleep in the cool comfort of the air cond besides a young GRO (guest relation officer) and “forgot” or could not wake up; so TWO officers died NOT in the course of duty. But it must be embarrassing to his family and colleagues.

Now how can the carbon monoxide (CO) seeped into a car? There are many theories. Most cars especially with the windows rubber seals worn out and if the air cond "ventilation" is set for "fresh air"; then the hot exhaust gases (with CO) can seep in slowly INTO the car. Furthermore on windless days, the exhaust are NOT dissipated away from the car (like when it is moving). So there is a concentration of hot gases underneath the car and the flow is from hot to cold - so it will get into the car. When you sleep soundly and absorbed enough of the sweet smelling CO, then you have a permanent sleep and cannot wake up. Any comments to these theories?

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March 04, 2007 22:21 PM

Autopsies Show Cop, Woman Die Of Gas Poisoning
IPOH, March 4 (Bernama) -- Autopsies on the bodies a police chief inspector and a woman that were found in a BMW car at the Behrang rest and service area of the North-South Expressway yesterday, reveal that they have died of carbon monoxide poisoning. Police had classified the case as sudden death, said Slim River OCPD Supt Md Ali Mohd Nayan.

ABOVE & BELOW: The Blue BMW 318 Vehicle being towed away apparently to a police station. The bodies were earlier removed when the door windows were smashed. The BMW dealers should investigate the vehicle.
He said the body of C/Insp Pauzi Ibrahim, 51, who served as Slim River Narcotics Division head, was buried at the Jalan Ketoyong muslim cemetery in Tanjung Malim at 11am today.

The family of the 24-year-old woman from Kanowit, Sarawak, had been informed of the incident and would claim the body soon from the Slim River Hospital, he said refusing to disclose the woman's identity. The woman was believed to have worked as a guest relations officer at an entertainment outlet in Slim River. Md Ali said Pauzi had lived in Taman Malim, Tanjung Malim, with his family. "He started working at the Slim River police headquarters as officer-in-charge of police station in 1999 and was reassigned as the Narcotics Division head in 2003," he said.

ABOVE: It was futile to send the bodies with the police van (BELOW) to the "emergency" Department at Slim River hospital as the bodies were dead and cold after so many hours.

The two bodies were found at about 2.30pm inside the car with both the engine and air-conditioner running. Pauzi who wore a T-shirt and jeans, was found in the driver's seat while the woman, clad in a T-shirt and short pants, in the front passenger's seat. They were believed to have spent the night in the car.

ABOVE & BELOW: The bodies were eventually taken in for autopsies to be done and the results was no foul play, "died of carbon monoxide poisoning"

Chief inspector, woman found dead in car; 04 Mar 2007; Brenda Lim; NST

SLIM RIVER: A 51-year-old chief inspector and an unidentified woman were found dead in a car at the Behrang rest and service area of the North-South Expressway yesterday. The two were believed to have died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Pauzi Ibrahim, who was Slim River district narcotics chief, was in the driver’s seat of the BMW. He was clad in a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. The woman, believed to be a guest relations officer, was in the front passenger’s seat. She was wearing a T-shirt and a pair of shorts.

There were black marks on the woman’s nose and red marks on the face, hands and feet of both the deceased. The air-conditioning was running when their bodies were discovered at 2.30pm yesterday, said district police chief Superintendent Mohd Ali Mat Nayan. "We believe they slept in the car on Friday night and died after inhaling carbon monoxide," he said. The bodies were sent to the Slim River Hospital for post-mortem at 6.40pm. Pauzi, who leaves behind a wife and four children, was the officer-in-charge of a police station in Slim River in 1999 before his promotion to head the narcotics district division in 2003. Police are still investigating their deaths and the age and identity of the woman.

According to sources, the woman, who is from Sarawak, was working as a guest relations officer at a local entertainment centre near here. A 22-year-old Indonesian road sweeper, known only as Prasto, said he noticed the BMW at the scene from as early as 6.30am yesterday but the couple appeared to be sleeping when he looked into the car at 8am. Ali said a PLUS patrol team noticed the car at 10am but did not contact the police until they returned and saw the car again at 2pm. Fire and Rescue Department personnel arrived at 3pm and broke the rear window to open the door of car.

MORE PICS - RM10 Million FIRE - Gas Filling Facility Section 26 SHAH ALAM, Early Thurs Morning; 8 Fire Engines put out Blaze; MORE Pics After Fire

MORE PICTURES AFTER the RM10 million SHAH ALAM Fire at Air Products STB Sdn Bhd (formerly Sitt Tatt Indust Gases S/B) Submitted by FARIZA SHUKUR; Hundreds of Burnt out Cylinders, Twisted roof & Burnt out Warehouse

ABOVE & BELOW: The company and its staff before the burnt out: Location 54 Jalan Jitra 26/7, Section 26, Shah Alam. Their empty boast -"an industrial leader in safety" -completely bombed & burnt out.
Air Products STB Sdn Bhd (website H E R E) is a subsidiary of Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. Air Products is headquartered in the United States and has sales of more than $9 billion USD to more than 30 countries in the world. We are a full-service industrial gas company with a broad product portfolio supplying specialty and medical gases, liquid/bulk, pipeline/on-site and noncryogenic units to the Malaysian marketplace.

The majority of our customer base is in the chemical process industries, electronics, steel and merchant markets. Our employees are committed to building lasting commercial relationships based on understanding our customers’ business. Through this understanding, we continually find ways to help them win in their markets while maintaining our focus on being an industrial leader in safety, health and environmental preservation.

Comments from Fariza: This type of company is too dangerous... The government should make them move to a more quiet area...Look at the amount of gas cylinder they have there, if all explode, the whole of Shah Alam and USJ will be wipe off...”

Whether you move them to the jungle or not this fire bomb was waiting to happen according to Murphy’s Law: “if something is going to happen, it will happen one of these days”. Remember the American Shuttle explosion; the chain is as weak as its weakest link

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ABOVE: An outside view of the burnt out Air Products STB Sdn Bhd (formerly known as Sitt Tatt Industrial Gases Sdn Bhd) and BELOW; A closed-up View

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ABOVE and BELOW: What is left of the blown & burnt out Roof with twisted I- beams and metal structures distorted by the heat.




ABOVE: Another view of the mess after the fire died out BELOW: Closed-up details

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ABOVE & BELOW: These cylinders opened up along the welded seams and exploded. They would also fly somewhere and gravity would bring them down. These "bombs" caused no "harm" as they are NOT filled with shrapnels or metal parts. They make loud explosive noise and just burned out.
ABOVE & BELOW: The adjacent buildings were also affected when the "cylinder missiles" came flying in attacking. But they did not cause much fire. The direction of these missiles depended on which part of the cylinder ruptured. It will fly a distance if the bottom part is opened and the explosive force acts like a jet to propel the cylinder in the direction it was angled.

ABOVE: An aerial view of the burnt out acetylene cylinders and other gas containers. Many did not explode as the built up pressures were insufficient to rupture the cylinders due to insufficient heats and others just leaked off the gas when the valves gave way. The cylinders placed at the outer walls were again not affected (but only charred) as the radiated heat was also not strong enough. BELOW: A closer view, some of the cyliners were distorted in shape. Looks like "BBQ" sausages

ABOVE: The fire viewed at a distance and BELOW, a Zoom-up closer view

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1^st March 2007; Thursday, Shah Alam:

A fire broke out early Thursday morning at a gas filing facility (acetylene gas, used together with Oxygen for Gas welding or Metal cutting) in section 26 along Persiaran Serbak Bernam, Shah Alam.

ABOVE: The fireball explosion (that could be heard several kms away) and BELOW another closer burning view

The loss was estimated to be over RM10 Million and no one was reported to be injured. The fire started at about 4.30am in the morning and when an emergency call was received, the fire services department dispatch 8 Fire Engines from Shah Alam, Bukit Jelutong, Petaling Jaya, Klang, Sri Andalas, Subang Jaya.

ABOVE & BELOW: The burning of the buildings after the gas explosions

It took more than an hour before the blaze was put off. Several explosions were heard at the height of the fire when the huge gas tanks exploded.

ABOVE: The police personnel arrived at the scene and they had nothing much to do as the residential flats were far away and not much people bother to go there to watch the inferno even though they heard the explosions. Sleep is better.

A total of 60 officers from the fire services department and the Fire & rescues team were involved in putting out the blaze.

ABOVE: the arrival of the fire engines and the scramble to connect the hoses to the underground water hydrants (BELOW, & BELOW) and when turned "ON" the pumps from the fire engines booast up the water pressure to douse off the flames

As the factory lots in Shah Alam are well spaced apart with wide separating walls, there was no danger of the fire spreading but adjacent buildings were also affected.

A short video of the fire & explosions taken from a distance can be seen H E R E

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Chinese Text as Reported by CHINA PRESS

全 國選項： 社會／時事 更新: March 1, 2007 17:47 疑氣桶漏氣引起 莎阿南化學廠爆炸 （莎阿南1日訊）疑氣桶漏氣引起大火，莎阿南1間化學工廠今日凌晨發生爆炸，大批氣桶四處飛彈，導致化學廠毗鄰的2間工廠也受大火波及，損失慘重。 所幸，當時在廠內值勤的夜班員工，即時逃走，沒人在爆炸中傷亡。 這起事件于今日凌晨4時30分，在莎阿南SS26區1間化學工廠發生。 事發時，該間化學廠僅有數名員工看守，在發生爆炸后，他們立即逃生，馬上向附近消拯局投報。 據化學廠的員工指出，爆炸案發生后，引起熊熊烈火，大量氣桶也因火勢壓力，飛彈至30公尺遠對面工廠的空地上。 他指出，該工廠被燒毀的地點，是存放氣桶的倉庫，該些氣桶大部分已裝置1種叫乙炔的氣體；有關倉庫已被燒成灰燼，大量氣桶毀不成形，廠內也有1輛羅厘被 燒毀。 他說，與化學廠毗鄰的2間工廠也受波及，包括工廠內的辦公室、屋頂等，都有被燒毀的痕跡。 氣桶到處飛彈 “據夜班同事告知，當時的情況非常危急，氣桶到處飛彈，火勢更是一發不可收拾。” 他表示，存放氣桶的倉庫，經常都會發生輕微火患，不過都即時被工廠員工發現。 另外，莎阿南消拯局局長阿末接受《中國報》訪問時指出，當局是于凌晨4時30分接獲投報，並于4時47分趕抵現場，由于火勢猛烈，該局費時逾1小時15 分，才將火勢撲滅。 他說，目前，該局仍調查起火肇因，而3間工廠的損失數字仍在計算。 他表示，該工廠平時已做足防範措施，因此並不會以人為疏忽處理，相信僅是1宗意外。 新聞辭典 乙炔屬极度易燃氣體 乙炔，俗稱風煤，是炔類碳氫化合物中最小的一員，其化學式為C2H2。 乙炔在室溫下是一種無色、及极度易燃的氣體，並有一股大蒜的氣味。在壓力超過100 kPa下會發生非常猛烈的化學反應，並還原成為碳及氫。 一般上，乙炔主要作為工業用途，特別是燒焊金屬方面，另外也被用于碳化物燈（汽車和礦工用的燈）。
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Automatically translated Text of the above CHINA PRESS Report as translated by Google Translate; The meaning is NOT 100% but you can get some ideas what were reported.

March 1, 2007 17 : 47 barrels suspected gas leak caused chemical plant explosion Shah (Shah -- 1) a barrel suspected gas leak caused fire Shah one chemical factory explosion this morning, a large number of barrels of gas everywhere missiles 2 factory adjacent to the chemical plant caused by the fires also affected, resulting in heavy losses. Fortunately, the night staff on duty at that time in the factory, fled immediately, and with no one killed or injured in the explosion. This incident today at 4:30 in District 1 Shah SS26 chemical factories.

It emerged that the chemical plant only a few staff members and guards in the explosion, and they escape. According to save the near-reported to the Board immediately. According to the chemical factory in that explosion occurred, it caused a raging fire, a large air pressure barrel because of the fire. 30 meters long missiles opposite the factory to the ground. He pointed out that the location of the factory was destroyed, the barrels are stored gas storage, Most of the barrels were installed at some of the species called acetylene gas;

The warehouse was burnt to ashes, a large air crash flown  barrel. Romania 1% 000 factories have been destroyed. He said that the two adjacent factories and chemical plants are affected, including offices and factories, such as the roof, have been burned at the scene. Gas barrels everywhere missiles, "according to colleagues this night, the situation is very critical and gas barrels everywhere missiles The fire was too late. "He indicated that the gas stored in the storage bins, which often happen Fire hidden trouble in the aerial minor. But factory workers have been found immediately. In addition, Shah received According to save for the Emo "China" when that Administration received in the 4:30 a.m. vote reported, and arrived at the scene at 4:47, the fire is very intense, it time more than one hour and 15 minutes before the fire fight. He said, at present, which caused the fire is still under investigation, but the figure is calculated on the three factories.

He said that the plant usually have taken preventive measures, there would be no human negligence, I believe is only one accident. Acetylene is a highly flammable gas acetylene news dictionary, called oxy - acetylene, is the smallest member of synthetic hydrocarbons. Its chemical formula C2H2. Acetylene at room temperature is a colorless, and highly flammable gas, and the existence of the garlic smell. More than 100 kPa pressure that would occur in a very violent chemical reaction, and back to carbon and hydrogen. Generally, acetylene mainly for industrial use, especially welders, metal, It also has been used carbide lights (light vehicles and the miners).

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2007 Markets Meltdown –How It Happened? by Professor Paul Krugman, (Princeton U) University; Stanley Roach (S. MORGAN) : It was China Made Market (as Almost all things are now) Correction for Unbalanced Economy; US$1.5 trillion globally paper lost

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The Narcotics Officer (51) on official duty but was clad in civilian clothes and enjoyed himself with a GRO (24) in a BMW car. Went to sleep in the cool air Cond but “forgot” or could not wake up. Both killed by CO poisoning

& the latest police Update spin: he was on "secret assignment" and the 24 year old GRO is Pis cilla Jim

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= = == = or the latest post H E R E on

MORE PICTURES -36 VEHICLES Worth RM 3 Million RECOVERED -24 4WD in 17 CONTAINERS Enroute United Arab Emirates Ordered Home with Interpol HELP; Police Arrested 3, Looking For 3; 4-WD Vehicle of Stolen Choice bound for Afganistan, Pakistan & Africa

2007 Markets Meltdown–How It Happened? – Paul Krugman, Economics Professor Princeton U; S Roach (STANLEY MORGAN): China Made Market Correction

UPDATE: 5^th Mar 2007; 18:44 PM, CLOSING

KL Shares end sharply lower; 05 Mar 2007;BERNAMA; 18:44 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, MON: SHARE prices on Bursa Malaysia closed sharply lower today with late buying in a few key counters such as MISC and Petronas Gas helped to narrow earlier losses, dealers said. The market succumbed to heavy losses as selling pressures persisted with weaknesses in regional Asian bourses and Wall Street, dealers said. Genting and Resorts were the major losses.

The benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index fell 53.99 points to 1,110.69.

The Second Board Index lost 6.45 points to 87.98, the Technology Index declined 1.36 points to 26.73, Industrial Index dropped 51.33 points to 2,229.37 and the Finance Index eased 510.68 points to 9,102.20.Of the FTSE-BM Index series, the FBM30 lost 302.01 points to 7,144.38 and the FBMEmas lost 418.37 points to 7,302.65.Losers beat gainers 1,110 to 42 with 42 counters unchanged, 187 untraded and 36 suspended
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UPDATE: 4^th Mar 2007

Sunday March 4, 2007
Worst over for stock market, says scholar; By CHRISTINA CHIN

PENANG: The worst is over for the stock market, according to a prominent Yijing scholar here.

Dr Chuah Chong Cheng, who has studied Yijing (I-Ching Book of Change) for the past 30 years, said the recent plunge of the Asian and European markets was the worst that could happen to the stock market this year. A retired lecturer from Universiti Sains Malaysia and now an academic consultant at the Geocosmic Centre of Yijing Metascience Research Malaysia, Dr Chuah had predicted last week's market plunge.

He also assured the people that they need not worry about today's lunar eclipse because it would not carry any negative effect. “The full lunar eclipse is nothing to be feared but, generally speaking, 2007 is a blind year which is not so good. A year is considered 'blind' when the Chinese New Year is celebrated after the beginning of spring, which usually falls on Feb 4. “Malaysians should be prepared for very hot weather and haze. Towards the end of the year there will be another flood.” Worryingly, though, Dr Chuah is predicting another tsunami. “I am expecting a tsunami to hit our shores either at the end of the year or the beginning of 2008,” he said, adding that the tsunami would hit before the general elections.

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Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite Index of stocks fell 1.4 per cent yesterday (Friday, 2nd Mar 7), adding to a 9.3 per cent drop from a 13-year high on Feb 23he Malaysian ringgit posted the biggest weekly drop in more than three months, as a slide in stocks spurred concern that overseas investors will withdraw funds from the nation. Bonds rose. The currency fell for a fourth day after a stockmarket rout starting on Tuesday wiped US$1.5 trillion off markets globally
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MARKETS IN TURMOIL -COMMENTARY-
The big meltdown: how it could happen Take a leap into the future - it's easy to see then that it was mostly irrational complacency, says PAUL KRUGMAN

(NEW YORK) FEB 27, 2008 Published March 3, 2007

PAUL KRUGMAN, Professor of economics at Princeton University; "In 2007, as in 1987, investors rushed for the exits not because of external events, but because they saw other investors doing the same.

THE great market meltdown of 2007 began exactly a year ago, with a 9 per cent fall in the Shanghai market, followed by a 416-point slide in the Dow. But as in the previous global financial crisis, which began with the devaluation of Thailand's currency in the summer of 1997, it took many months before people realised how far the damage would spread. At the start, all sorts of implausible explanations were offered for the drop in US stock prices. It was, some said, the fault of Alan Greenspan, ex-chairman of the Federal Reserve, as if his statement of the obvious - that the housing slump could possibly cause a recession - had been news to anyone. One Republican congressman blamed Representative John Murtha, claiming that his efforts to stop the 'surge' in Iraq had somehow unnerved the markets.

Even blaming events in Shanghai for what happened in New York was foolish on its face, except to the extent that the slump in China - whose bourses had a combined valuation of only about 5 per cent of the US markets' valuation - served as a wake-up call for investors. The truth is that efforts to pin the stock decline on any particular piece of news are a waste of time. Wise analysts remember the classic study Yale's Robert Shiller did during the market crash of Oct 19, 1987. His conclusion? 'No news story or rumour appearing on the 19th or over the preceding weekend was responsible.'

What made the market so vulnerable to panic? It wasn't so much a matter of irrational exuberance - although there was plenty of that, too - as it was a matter of irrational complacency. After the bursting of the technology bubble of the 1990s failed to produce a global disaster, investors began to act as if nothing bad would ever happen again. Risk premiums - the extra return people demand when lending money to less than totally reliable borrowers - dwindled away. For example, in the early years of the decade, high-yield corporate bonds (formerly known as junk bonds) were able to attract buyers only by offering interest rates 8-10 percentage points higher than US government bonds. By early 2007, that margin was down to little more than 2 percentage points.

For a while, growing complacency became a self-fulfilling prophecy. As the what-me-worry attitude spread, it became easier for questionable borrowers to roll over their debts, so default rates went down. Also, falling interest rates on risky bonds meant higher prices for those bonds, so those who owned such bonds experienced big capital gains, leading even more investors to conclude that risk was a thing of the past. Sooner or later, however, reality was bound to intrude. By early 2007, the collapse of the US housing boom had brought with it widespread defaults on sub-prime mortgages - loans to home buyers who fail to meet the strictest lending standards. Lenders insisted that this was an isolated problem, which wouldn't spread to the rest of the market or to the real economy. But it did. For a couple of months after the shock of Feb 27, markets oscillated wildly, soaring on bits of apparent good news, then plunging again. But by late spring, it was clear that the self-reinforcing cycle of complacency had given way to a self-reinforcing cycle of anxiety.

There was still one big unknown: Had large market players, hedge funds in particular, taken on so much leverage - borrowing to buy risky assets – that the falling prices of those assets would set off a chain reaction of defaults and bankruptcies? Now, as we survey the financial wreckage of a global recession, we know the answer. In retrospect, the complacency of investors on the eve of the crisis seems puzzling. Why didn't they see the risks? Well, things always seem clearer with the benefit of hindsight. At the time, even pessimists were unsure of their ground. For example, Paul Krugman concluded a column published on March 2, 2007, which described how a financial meltdown might happen, by hedging his bets, declaring that: 'I'm not saying that things will actually play out this way. But if we're going to have a crisis, here's how.' - NYT

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The writer is a professor of economics at Princeton University

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The great China squeeze; yvia BusinessTimes.sg

The problem is that it is still very much a blended economy - both state andmarket driven
By STEPHEN ROACH Published March 2, 2007

LIKE nearly everything else in the world these days, it now appears that global stock market corrections are made in China. I have no idea if the rout that began in China was just a brief flash or the start of something big. But I have long felt that something has to give in China. This may well be the beginning of an important venting process.

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Headache: The 9% one-day plunge in Chinese A-shares could certainly be interpreted as a sign that 'inside sellers' played a key role in sparking the decline

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The basic premise of this story is that China - despite its remarkable successes on the economic development front - now has a seriously unbalanced economy. The main problem is a runaway investment boom. By our estimates, in 2006, fixed asset investment exceeded 45 per cent of Chinese GDP - a record for China and, in fact, a record for any major economy in the world. By comparison, Japan's investment ratio in the 1960s - the period of maximum rebuilding from the destruction of World War II - never exceeded 34 per cent of GDP. China's annual growth in fixed asset investment has averaged 26 per

cent over the past four years. Should the investment boom continue at this pace, the odds of capacity excesses and a deflationary endgame will only increase. That's the very last thing China wants or needs. The Chinese government recognises the perils of just such a possibility. For nearly three years, it has conducted an on-and-off tightening campaign aimed at cooling down its overheated investment sector. Following relatively limited actions first implemented in the spring of 2004, Chinese authorities have upped the ante in the past eight months. The People's Bank of China has raised its short-term policy rate twice by a total of slightly more than 50 basis points, and beginning in mid-2006 the central bank boosted bank reserve requirements five times in increments of 50 bps from 7.5 per cent to 10 per cent - the last such action taking effect on Feb 25. The problem for China is that it is still very much a blended economy – both state and market driven. As such, market-based policy actions – especially interest rate adjustments - have had only limited success, at best. Two additional factors compound this problem: First, Chinese banks run chronic excess reserve positions; reserves amounted to 14 per cent of total

deposits by year-end 2006 - well above the mandated 10 per cent requirement set by the latest policy action. That means, of course, that recent increases in bank reserve ratios are not a binding constraint on the banking Second, much of China's bank lending remains outside the scope of the central control of its monetary authorities; dominated by a vast and highly fragmented system of autonomous local banks, there is only limited traction

between monetary policy adjustments and broad trends in Chinese bank lending. In light of that disconnect, together with only limited development of a domestic corporate bond market, Chinese macro officials have had to rely largely on 'administrative controls' - namely, a case-by-case project approval mechanism - to rein in the excesses of a runaway investment boom. The results of this effort have been mixed. Courtesy of the administrative edicts issued by the National Development and Reform Commission - the

modern-day counterpart of China's old central planning bureau – investment growth slowed from near 30 per cent at the start of 2006 to around 14 per cent at the end of the year. Unfortunately, bank lending went the other way - actually accelerating from 13 per cent y-o-y growth in mid-2006, when the latest tightening campaign began in earnest, to 16 per cent by December. That, in a nutshell, could well be the key to this story: China's central bank has been unable to get traction on bank credit expansion at the same time the central planners have succeeded in achieving traction in prompting the investment slowdown. This has resulted in an excess of bank-induced liquidity creation that is undoubtedly spilling over into the financial system. As a doubling of the Shanghai A-share index over the past six months suggests, the Chinese stock market appears to have been a major beneficiary of this mismatch. Here's where the story gets especially interesting - and, admittedly, somewhat conjectural. In China, stability is everything. The Chinese leadership believes it cannot afford to lose control of either its real economy or its financial markets. Pure market-based systems can rely on interest rates, currencies, fiscal policies, and other macro stabilization instruments to contain the excesses.

A blended Chinese economy does not have that option. The quasi-fixed currency regime compounds the macro control problem - making it difficult for China to manage its currency in a tight range without fostering excess liquidity creation. That puts the onus on Chinese policymakers to opt for non-market control tactics. Just as China has moved to bring its central planners into the business of containing the excesses in the real economy through administrative measures, I suspect it now feels compelled to rely on a similar approach in order to deal with excesses in its financial system. All this puts the onus on China's financial regulators to face up to the risks inherent in any asset bubble - in the current instance, an equity bubble. That's especially the case in the weeks just before the annual early March meeting of the National People's Congress - always a critical and delicate point in the Chinese policy cycle.

In that context, there were countless rumours of government intervention in the markets on Feb 27. The only such action our China team has been able to verify - and it's an important one - pertains to State-directed sales of its massive holdings of so-called reformed shares. Apparently, on Feb 27 it became public information that various local affiliate holding entities under the SASAC (State-owned Assets and Supervision Administration Commission) have been reducing government stakes in about 15 listed Chinese companies by close to the annual limit of 5 per cent of total outstanding shares. Following the equity market reforms of 2005, these previously unlisted shares have since been classified as market tradable shares – thereby opening the door for actions such as those which became evident on Feb 27.

The 9 per cent one-day plunge in Chinese A-shares could certainly be interpreted as a sign that 'inside sellers' played a key role in sparking the decline - either acting at the explicit request of the government or out of fiduciary conviction that the end was close at hand. Inside selling or not, the bottom line is that China's macro control imperatives are a critical ingredient of its overall stability objectives. And in recent years, risks have been multiplying on the control front. Just as China cannot afford an overhang of excess capacity, it cannot afford a major equity bubble. Lacking in market-based mechanisms to address these problems, the administrative option remains a very important tool in the Chinese policy arsenal. So far, that's mainly been true on the real side of the economy. The near-parabolic increase in the Chinese equity market over the past six months is good reason to believe this strategy is about to be tested on the financial side of the economy.

In the last five years, China has emerged as a major engine on the supply side of the global economy. But with that achievement has come a new set of risks - especially an overheated investment sector and an equity bubble. These two problems are related in that they are both very visible manifestations of China's control problem. The sharp break of share prices on Feb 27 may well be symptomatic of China's increased determination on the macro control front. Ultimately, this is good news for China and the broader global economy - it sets the stage for balanced and sustainable growth. But for those counting on open-ended Chinese growth, any such slowdown could come as a rude awakening. The China squeeze now appears to be on in earnest.
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The author is chief economist of Morgan Stanley & Co. This article was sourced from Morgan Stanley's research note, Economic Comment, dated Feb 28
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Stocks rout leads to worst week in over three months for ringgit

Published March 3, 2007

(KUALA LUMPUR) The Malaysian ringgit posted the biggest weekly drop in more
than three months, as a slide in stocks spurred concern that overseas investors will withdraw funds from the nation. Bonds rose. The currency fell for a fourth day after a stockmarket rout starting on Tuesday wiped US$1.5 trillion off markets globally. Buying by global funds helped drive the benchmark stock index to a 13-year high last week. Emerging-market bond yield spreads over US Treasuries widened this week by

the most since September. 'The ringgit is bearing the brunt of the selling in the stock market,' said Esther Ong, who helps manage US$580 million at Prudential Fund Management Bhd in Kuala Lumpur. 'Some foreign funds have exited and that caused the currency weakness.' The ringgit dropped 0.4 per cent this week, the most since the five days ended Nov 17. The currency traded at 3.5075 against the US dollar as of 5.54pm local time from 3.4935 a week ago, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite Index of stocks fell 1.4 per cent yesterday, adding to a 9.3 per cent drop from a 13-year high on Feb 23. Emerging-market bond yield spreads gained 21 basis points to 1.86 percentage points on Thursday from a record low of 1.64 points on Feb 22, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co's EMBI Plus index.

Ringgit-denominated bonds headed for a fourth week of gains as local investors shifted funds into fixed-income securities from stocks. The yield on the 3.718 per cent note due June 2012 fell 7 basis points to 3.6 per cent this week, according to the central bank, reaching the lowest in almost 16months. The price rose 0.32 to 100.54. - Bloomberg
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'Market needs time to recover' via Business.com.my

By Chong Pooi Koon March 2 2007
THE stock market drifted down another 15.6 points, or 1.3 per cent, yesterday as investors remained jittery after sentiment was rocked by the recent sharp decline in stock prices across the world. Analysts said the local market was consolidating after an almost

uninterrupted run-up in the last three months or so. They, however, believe that the market's longer- term uptrend remains intact as the country's economic fundamentals have not changed. The benchmark Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) fell further to 1,180.9 points, led by losses in utility Tenaga Nasional Bhd, the country's largest lender Malayan Banking Bhd and construction group UEM. "The market will need time to recover. It is entering a consolidation period and it needs to consolidate a while before continuing on the uptrend," head of OSK Research, Kenny Yee, said. Analysts predict that the consolidation period could last a couple of weeks and that share prices will likely continue to fall in the next two days.

"The market is still finding its footing. Investor sentiment has been affected by the recent declines," Yee said, adding that the KLCI support level should be around 1,150 points to 1,170 points. TA Investment Management Bhd chief investment officer Choo Swee Kee said that local share prices had first risen because of institutional and foreign buying, which until a certain level retail investors, too, were encouraged enough to join in to bring the market up to a new level. "But what happened in the last few days has created jitters, and already retail investors nowadays are more easily upset," Choo said. He said that even as the Dow Jones Industrial Average rebounded by some 50 points overnight in the US, investors were not convinced that the market was recovering, suspecting that it could be just a technical rebound. If this fear continues to linger, US stocks will drift even lower, Choo said. And what happened in China creates another concern that the market there cannot go up forever, he added.

"So, along the way, retail investors here have decided to sell, but of course they are more rational now," Choo said. Another group of bargain hunters are emerging, he observed, but overall, the market is still in a net selling mood and share prices on Bursa Malaysia are likely to continue falling in the next two days. Still, analysts are assured that the longer-term uptrend in shares on the local market remains intact given that the country's economic fundamentals are the same, crude oil prices are within the acceptable band and the satisfying corporate earnings are proofs that public- listed companies are growing fairly well.

Citigroup Asia Pacific economist Chua Hak Bin believes that the current stock market correction in the region has little to do with any major shiftin economic fundamentals. He said that while China, Malaysia and Singapore have borne the brunt of the sell-offs so far, these are also countries that have seen the largest absolute foreign equity fund inflows since the start of the year. "This suggest that the selling represents more profit-taking rather than any major vulnerability developing," he said, adding that even before this current market sell-off, there were already signs that the inflows into Asia were starting to taper off since early last month.
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SGX Market Commentary

Not just a bad week for stocks; Analysts say it's a bull market correction, not start of a bear market

By R SIVANITHY SENIOR CORRESPONDENT; Published March 3, 2007; via business.times.sg

TO SAY that it has been a bad week for stocks would be a bit of an understatement - the Straits Times Index (STI) began the week full of promise and with every chance of rising to new all-time highs but, instead, ended a whopping 230 points or 7 per cent lower at 3,078.74.
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The trigger: Stock prices tumble at a stock exchange in Chengdu, in China's Sichuan province. This week's meltdown in Asia came from China, where stocks on Tuesday plunged 9 per cent on worries that the government might introduce anti-speculative stock market measures
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A meltdown in China combined with computer glitches here and on the New York Stock Exchange to bring the sellers out in force. The result: the index fell on four consecutive sessions, making it the worst week for stocks since May 2006. The trigger to sell came from China, where stocks on Tuesday plunged 9 per cent on worries that the government might introduce anti-speculative stock market measures. This, in turn, brought Wall Street to its knees - the Dow Jones Industrial Average collapsing a jaw-dropping 545 points at one stage on Tuesday. The outcome since then has been a huge spike in volatility throughout all markets. As far as investors in this part of the world were concerned, Hong Kong and China set the pace and with both markets fluctuating wildly from Wednesday to Friday, it made for heart-stopping sessions for the local market. Between Tuesday and Friday, the STI routinely ran through 100-point bands, with Wednesday's intraday loss of 193 points perhaps the most astonishing. In yesterday's session, the index opened 35 points weaker, recovered all of this to move 10 points into positive territory before falling back to a net

loss of 13.84. Banks, property and SingTel have been the main index drivers throughout the week with the banks, probably suffering from 'buy in anticipation, sell on news', having run up sharply ahead of their results. In yesterday's session though, UOB and OCBC managed a semblance of a bounce but not so for property heavyweights CapitaLand and Keppel Land. The Singapore Exchange, in the meantime, saw its shares drop 25 cents to $6.50 on heavy volume of 22 million units. Meanwhile, the second line underwent a roller-coaster ride, as violent as their blue-chip counterparts with some spectacular moves for traders to latch on to. Indofood, Cosco Corp, China Fishery, Genting International and many other recent favourites posted large price moves in either direction, giving day traders ample opportunity to test their timing skills.

Throughout the week, analysts and various experts maintained that this is a bull market correction and not the start of a bear market. Henderson Global Investors, for example, yesterday said China is sitting on US$1 trillion of foreign exchange reserves and generating US$200 billion per annum current account surpluses, so there is no real risk of a more general financial crisis or lasting contagion in the region. 'We expect volatility within the Asia-Pacific region, especially in China and Hong Kong, to continue in the short term. However, we remain overweight in both countries as we believe the long-term story is a positive one. As the dust settles and sentiment improves, we will be looking to buy into both these markets, while looking for other good buying opportunities elsewhere within the region,' said Henderson.

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Jittery Wall Street braces for more volatility via Business.times.sg

By ANDREW MARKS IN NEW YORK; Published March 3, 2007

WITH Asia's markets still in turmoil and equities in Europe suffering another round of losses, the US market started yesterday with another decline.
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"We're going to be on a see-saw for a while, depending on what happens in Asia.' - Bill Evanesky

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An earnings warning before the market opening from Dell didn't help soothe market jitters, as the Dow Jones index sank by 26 points, or 0.22 per cent, just before 10am. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were trading down as well. The question that Wall Street will be asking over the short term will be whether the broader market volatility is merely a distraction that should not ultimately detract from the still-solid fundamental picture, or if

Tuesday's dramatic sell-off was the wake-up call to investors - warning of the increasing risk that market fundamentals both in the US and abroad could collapse. 'We've stopped the heavy bleeding, and now we're just trying to regain a sense of calm,' said Paul Nolte, director of investments with Hinsdale Associates. 'Now, we're tied to all of the markets overseas, and we'll be constantly watching them.' Wall Street will also be watching to see what the current and former chairmen of the Federal Reserve have to say about market conditions. Indeed, the debate over fundamentals has been personified this week in the contrary perspectives offered by Ben Bernanke (see BELOW) the current Fed chairman, and Alan Greenspan, the former and long-time head of the US central bank.

Mr Greenspan twice this week - in private, paid sessions with investors - said that it's at least possible the US will dip into a recession later this year. His gloomy assessment seemed to contradict current Fed chief Bernanke's statement that the economy remains on track for a soft landing, and that economic growth should in fact accelerate by the fourth quarter. Ryan Beck & Co's chief investment strategist Joe Battipaglia says the short-term fate of the market 'is not an easy call at this point'. He said: 'Here in the US, people are debating whether a soft landing scenario or a recession for our economy is more likely this year, and in China if that stock market has big problems or was just blowing off a little steam in the midst of its incredible rise. Investors will need some time before they vote with their money.'

On the bullish side is the ongoing liquidity boom. Investors have a lot of money to put into play, and with the expected operating earnings yield for the S&P 500 for the next four quarters around 6.9 per cent, stocks are still undervalued by almost 30 per cent with the 10-year note yield at current levels. Perhaps that accounts for the relatively high degree of complacency shown among investors and portfolio managers despite the market's plunge. 'There does seem to be a sense that the bull market will weather this storm and come out of it intact,' Mr Battipaglia said. 'But is that more sentiment than an analysis of market fundamentals, which is a pretty fragile leg to stand on when stocks have had such a big run-up?' he asked, warning that if sentiment does reverse, stocks could be set up for another big tumble incoming weeks. For Mr Battipaglia, the answer is a positive one.

'I think we'll be back on solid ground soon. We're not out of the woods yet by any means, but I think we'll be OK,' he said. Bill Evanesky, a specialist on the New York Stock Exchange trading floor, said: 'We're going to be on a see-saw for a while, or a roller coaster, depending on what happens in Asia, as investors try to sort out the risk here .'A roller coaster, indeed. Stocks plunged at the opening on Thursday, including a dive of more than 200 points in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. However, a solid report on the factory sector helped a comeback that saw blue chips soar into the green at about 2:00pm before slipping back into negative territory and closing with a loss of 34.29 points, or 0.28 per cent, at 12,234.34.

= = = =see also H E R E ON

Malaysia's Economy 2006 Expands 5.9%; US Slow Growth Curbs Export; Opposition Wants Govt To Cushion Losses; Bursa Malaysia: Market Fall A 'Healthy Correction'