PKR Women’s chief Zuraida Kamaruddin ticked off her counterpart in Umno, telling that she should focus on getting the federal government to act on long outstanding issues such as the rape cases against the Penan women and children, rather than poke her nose into the Anwar Ibrahim sodomy trial.
"Wanita Keadilan Sarawak will be most grateful and appreciative if Wanita Umno can help to call on the Ministry to address the cases on the alleged rape of the Penan girls and women by loggers. It has been a year since the National Task Force report on the rapes was sent to Dato Shahrizat in Kuching," Zuraida, who is also Ampang MP, said in a statement.
Nearly 1,000 Wanita Umno members had gathered in Perak last weekend in a blitz co-ordinated by Prime Minister Najib Razak’s Umno party to pressure Anwar, the Opposition Leader, to give his DNA sample to the High Court.
Anwar has denied sodomising his former aide Saiful Bukhari Azlan and has accused Najib and wife Rosmah Mansor of master-minding the conspiracy to bring him down.
What we need in this time of uncertainty is not more technology, but more human relations, more understanding of different perspectives and working with that to achieve peace and social justice.
THIS MAN WAS A “JUDGE” OF MAN, SOME KIND OF JUDGE? NOW HE FACES GOD, THE CREATOR, THE GREATEST EQUALISER, THE ALMIGHTY AND THE SUPREME DIVINE JUDGE OF ALL MEN AND THE UNIVERSE, WHO WILL CONSIDER HIS “CREDENTIALS” (IF ANY) IRRELEVANT! WHAT IS RELEVANT IS HOW HE JUDGED OTHERS. DID HE UPHOLD HIS OATH OF OFFICE WITH IMPARTIALITY, PURE CONSCIENCE, PRUDENCE AND GOOD FAITH? ONLY GOD KNOWS.
RAJA PETRA KAMARUDIN
NOW THAT THE COURT HAS DELIVERED ITS DECISION — THAT SAIFUL BUKHARI AZLAN AND FARAH AZLINA LATIF WOULD NOT BE CALLED TO TESTIFY WITH REGARDS TO THEIR SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP — ALLOW ME TO COME TO THE REAL ISSUE.
YES, THE SEXUAL ESCAPADE BETWEEN SAIFUL AND FARAH IS NOT WHAT I WAS TARGETING AT. THAT WAS ACTUALLY THE RED HERRING TO DRAW THEM OUT AND MAKE THEM RUN ROUND IN CIRCLES IN PANIC. AND, BOY, DID THEY PANIC. PUTRAJAYA WAS SO FLUSTERED THAT EVEN AN ATTACK ON JOHOR BY THE SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES COULD NOT HAVE OUTDONE THAT.
BUT NOW EVERYTHING HAS SETTLED DOWN AGAIN. YESTERDAY, EVERYONE, IN PARTICULAR THOSE IN PRIME MINISTER NAJIB TUN RAZAK’S OFFICE, HAVE BREATHED A SIGH OF RELIEF. WITH THE COURT’S RULING BLOCKING SAIFUL AND FARAH FROM TESTIFYING WITH REGARDS TO THEIR RELATIONSHIP THEY FEEL THEY ARE NOW WELL PROTECTED.
WELL, IF THAT WAS MY MAIN TARGET THEN MAYBE SO. IT WOULD MEAN THEY ARE QUITE SECURE. BUT THAT WAS NOT MY MAIN TARGET. THAT WAS MERELY A DISTRACTION TO GET THEM TO FLUSTER FOR AWHILE AND JUST WHEN THEY THOUGHT IT IS NOW SAFE TO GO INTO THE WATER, AS THEY WOULD SAY IN ‘JAWS’, I SPRING THEM WITH WHAT I WAS REALLY AIMING FOR.
BEFORE THAT, DO YOU REMEMBER DATUK SYED ABDUL RAHMAN ALHABSHI? HE IS THE MONGOLIAN HONORARY CONSUL TO MALAYSIA WHO ESCORTED ALTANTUYA’S FAMILY WHENEVER THEY WERE IN MALAYSIA AND WHO HELD A FEW PRESS CONFERENCES CONDEMNING THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT WITH REGARDS TO HOW IT WAS CONDUCTING THE ALTANTUYA MURDER INVESTIGATION.
SYED RAHMAN WAS VERY VOCAL. HE PRACTICALLY ACCUSED THE MALAYSIAN POLICE OF COVERING UP CRUCIAL FACTS OF THE MURDER. HE EVEN THREATENED TO TAKE LEGAL ACTION AGAINST MALAYSIA.
SYED RAHMAN WAS ON A CRUSADE. HE WAS ANGRY AND WANTED TO EXPOSE THE REAL CULPRITS BEHIND ALTANTUYA’S MURDER. HE MET TENGKU RAZALEIGH HAMZAH, ANWAR IBRAHIM, AND MANY OTHER POLITICAL LEADERS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON. HE ACTUALLY MENTIONED NAJIB BY NAME AND DECLARED THAT HE HAD IN HIS POSSESSION THE PHOTOGRAPH OF NAJIB, RAZAK BAGINDA AND ALTANTUYA, WHICH HE HAD HANDED OVER TO THE IGP.
YES, THERE WAS MUCH WHICH SYED RAHMAN ALLEGED. AND IN HIS CRUSADE TO BRING THE REAL MURDERERS TO BOOK HE MET MANY PEOPLE AND TOLD THEM THIS STORY OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
I WAS THERE TOGETHER WITH DATUK KAMAL AMIR, ASPAN ALIAS AND JADDAWI DATUK GHAZALI (ALL UMNO PEOPLE) IN THE BANGSAR SHOPPING CENTRE WHEN SYED RAHMAN SPENT ABOUT AN HOUR BRIEFING US ON THE ENTIRE FACTS OF THE MURDER. IN FACT, THERE WERE ABOUT 15 OF US THERE THAT DAY, ALL RELISHING THE ‘INSIDER INFORMATION’ THAT THIS HONORARY CONSUL WAS GIVING US.
the double faced honorary consul of mongolia: altantuya’s father gave all the pictures, notebooks, films, computer files – to the double faced syed rahman
AFTER THE MURDER OF ALTANTUYA, A CHARITABLE SOUL CONTACTED SHAARIBUU SETEV, THE FATHER OF THE YOUNG WOMAN : DATUK SYED, HONORARY CONSUL OF MONGOLIA IN MALAYSIA. “I AM READY TO DO EVERYTHING TO HELP YOU”, SAID THE DIPLOMAT TO SHAARIBUU SETEV. HIS DEDICATION EVEN PUSHED THE AMICABLE DATUK SYED TO MAKE REVELATIONS TO THE FATHER. “THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNEMENT IS READY TO SPEND ONE BILLION OF TUGHRIK (MONGOLIAN CURRENCY, EQUIVALENT TO 500,000 EUROS) TO COVER UP THE CASE”
RAJA PETRA KAMARUDIN
NOW THAT THE COURT HAS DELIVERED ITS DECISION — THAT SAIFUL BUKHARI AZLAN AND FARAH AZLINA LATIF WOULD NOT BE CALLED TO TESTIFY WITH REGARDS TO THEIR SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP — ALLOW ME TO COME TO THE REAL ISSUE.
YES, THE SEXUAL ESCAPADE BETWEEN SAIFUL AND FARAH IS NOT WHAT I WAS TARGETING AT. THAT WAS ACTUALLY THE RED HERRING TO DRAW THEM OUT AND MAKE THEM RUN ROUND IN CIRCLES IN PANIC. AND, BOY, DID THEY PANIC. PUTRAJAYA WAS SO FLUSTERED THAT EVEN AN ATTACK ON JOHOR BY THE SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES COULD NOT HAVE OUTDONE THAT.
BUT NOW EVERYTHING HAS SETTLED DOWN AGAIN. YESTERDAY, EVERYONE, IN PARTICULAR THOSE IN PRIME MINISTER NAJIB TUN RAZAK’S OFFICE, HAVE BREATHED A SIGH OF RELIEF. WITH THE COURT’S RULING BLOCKING SAIFUL AND FARAH FROM TESTIFYING WITH REGARDS TO THEIR RELATIONSHIP THEY FEEL THEY ARE NOW WELL PROTECTED.
WELL, IF THAT WAS MY MAIN TARGET THEN MAYBE SO. IT WOULD MEAN THEY ARE QUITE SECURE. BUT THAT WAS NOT MY MAIN TARGET. THAT WAS MERELY A DISTRACTION TO GET THEM TO FLUSTER FOR AWHILE AND JUST WHEN THEY THOUGHT IT IS NOW SAFE TO GO INTO THE WATER, AS THEY WOULD SAY IN ‘JAWS’, I SPRING THEM WITH WHAT I WAS REALLY AIMING FOR.
BEFORE THAT, DO YOU REMEMBER DATUK SYED ABDUL RAHMAN ALHABSHI? HE IS THE MONGOLIAN HONORARY CONSUL TO MALAYSIA WHO ESCORTED ALTANTUYA’S FAMILY WHENEVER THEY WERE IN MALAYSIA AND WHO HELD A FEW PRESS CONFERENCES CONDEMNING THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT WITH REGARDS TO HOW IT WAS CONDUCTING THE ALTANTUYA MURDER INVESTIGATION.
SYED RAHMAN WAS VERY VOCAL. HE PRACTICALLY ACCUSED THE MALAYSIAN POLICE OF COVERING UP CRUCIAL FACTS OF THE MURDER. HE EVEN THREATENED TO TAKE LEGAL ACTION AGAINST MALAYSIA.
SYED RAHMAN WAS ON A CRUSADE. HE WAS ANGRY AND WANTED TO EXPOSE THE REAL CULPRITS BEHIND ALTANTUYA’S MURDER. HE MET TENGKU RAZALEIGH HAMZAH, ANWAR IBRAHIM, AND MANY OTHER POLITICAL LEADERS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON. HE ACTUALLY MENTIONED NAJIB BY NAME AND DECLARED THAT HE HAD IN HIS POSSESSION THE PHOTOGRAPH OF NAJIB, RAZAK BAGINDA AND ALTANTUYA, WHICH HE HAD HANDED OVER TO THE IGP.
YES, THERE WAS MUCH WHICH SYED RAHMAN ALLEGED. AND IN HIS CRUSADE TO BRING THE REAL MURDERERS TO BOOK HE MET MANY PEOPLE AND TOLD THEM THIS STORY OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
I WAS THERE TOGETHER WITH DATUK KAMAL AMIR, ASPAN ALIAS AND JADDAWI DATUK GHAZALI (ALL UMNO PEOPLE) IN THE BANGSAR SHOPPING CENTRE WHEN SYED RAHMAN SPENT ABOUT AN HOUR BRIEFING US ON THE ENTIRE FACTS OF THE MURDER. IN FACT, THERE WERE ABOUT 15 OF US THERE THAT DAY, ALL RELISHING THE ‘INSIDER INFORMATION’ THAT THIS HONORARY CONSUL WAS GIVING US.
the double faced honorary consul of mongolia: altantuya’s father gave all the pictures, notebooks, films, computer files – to the double faced syed rahman
AFTER THE MURDER OF ALTANTUYA, A CHARITABLE SOUL CONTACTED SHAARIBUU SETEV, THE FATHER OF THE YOUNG WOMAN : DATUK SYED, HONORARY CONSUL OF MONGOLIA IN MALAYSIA. “I AM READY TO DO EVERYTHING TO HELP YOU”, SAID THE DIPLOMAT TO SHAARIBUU SETEV. HIS DEDICATION EVEN PUSHED THE AMICABLE DATUK SYED TO MAKE REVELATIONS TO THE FATHER. “THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNEMENT IS READY TO SPEND ONE BILLION OF TUGHRIK (MONGOLIAN CURRENCY, EQUIVALENT TO 500,000 EUROS) TO COVER UP THE CASE”
the double faced honorary consul of mongolia: altantuya’s father gave all the pictures, notebooks, films, computer files – to the double faced syed rahman
AFTER THE MURDER OF ALTANTUYA, A CHARITABLE SOUL CONTACTED SHAARIBUU SETEV, THE FATHER OF THE YOUNG WOMAN : DATUK SYED, HONORARY CONSUL OF MONGOLIA IN MALAYSIA. “I AM READY TO DO EVERYTHING TO HELP YOU”, SAID THE DIPLOMAT TO SHAARIBUU SETEV. HIS DEDICATION EVEN PUSHED THE AMICABLE DATUK SYED TO MAKE REVELATIONS TO THE FATHER. “THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNEMENT IS READY TO SPEND ONE BILLION OF TUGHRIK (MONGOLIAN CURRENCY, EQUIVALENT TO 500,000 EUROS) TO COVER UP THE CASE”
readmore THE DOUBLE HEADED SNAKE SYED RAHMAN’S DAUGHTER, SYARIFAH NABILA SARA MARRIED TO A.GAY KHAIRIL ANAS SAIFOOL IS REAL PARTNER
Lies and exaggeration - but from whom?
Sharizat, who led the protest in Perak, had been accompanied by another of Anwar’s former aides Rahimi Osman, who has since switched allegiance from PKR to Umno, giving the entire rally further overtones of political vengeance against Anwar.
Meanwhile, there is growing national and international concern over the plight of the Penan women and children. Independent NGOs have verified and published many reports stating that the tribal folk continue to remain exposed to systemic rape by illegal loggers sanctioned by corrupt officials in the Sarawak state government.But Sharizat has refused to get drawn into the issue, taking the line that such news and police reports were exagerrated.
Yet, a report from the federal government’s National Task Force had found truth in rape allegations that Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud has frequently denied.
In July 2010, amid growing public unhappiness over the issue, both Najib and Shahrizat promised to personally look into the complaints. Shahrizat was sent to the Ulu Baram area to have a first-hand look into the problem.
“It is not an easy straight-forward situation but I am very keen to reach out to them,” she told The Star upon her return from her fact-finding mission.
“I want to have a feel of the place and to have a chance to meet some of the Penan people face-to-face. I want to know how they feel and see how best the Government can help them. Only then can we propose the next agenda for the National Task Force (NTF) to look specifically into the plight of Penan women and children."
Publicity but nothing done
Shahrizat even urged the police to take the Penan rape allegations seriously.
“Rape is rape, there are no two ways about it. Whether it occurred in the deep jungle of Sarawak with Penans or in Jalan Chow Kit in Kuala Lumpur, the perpetrators must be punished," she had said then.
“We have to be very transparent and tell the real story, especially about the plight of Penan women and children in relation to these rape allegations. The Penan community should know that now they have someone to champion their cause and that is us.”
INVESTIGATION PAPERS ON SOI LEK’S SEX VIDEO TO BE SENT TO AG
KUALA LUMPUR – The investigation papers on the distribution of the sex video involving MCA President Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek will be submitted to the Attorney-General’s Chambers soon.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said Dr Chua lodged a police report after being informed by a colleague on the distribution of envelopes containing two DVDs in several areas in Batu Pahat, Johor, which was intended to smear his image.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said Dr Chua lodged a police report after being informed by a colleague on the distribution of envelopes containing two DVDs in several areas in Batu Pahat, Johor, which was intended to smear his image.
Following the report, police conducted an investigation and the investigation papers submitted to the Attorney-General’s Chambers, before the Attorney-General ordered for further investigation, he said in a written reply to a question by Hee Loy Sian (PKR-Petaling Jaya Selatan) in Parliament Tuesday.
Hee wanted to know the rationale Dr Chua was not charged in court.
Hishammuddin said the case was investigated under Section 292/509 of the Penal Code.
In January 2008, Dr Chua resigned from his cabinet post and as MCA vice-president after admitting that the man in the sex video was him
Rachel Maddow had a lot of fun with the twisted tale of Senator John Ensign's personal life on her Monday show.
Ensign, a Nevada Republican, announced on Monday that he would not run for re-election in 2012. Maddow took the opportunity to remind viewers of why he is leaving politics--namely, the affair he had with a staffer, which he revealed in 2009.
Maddow's recounting involved copious uses of everyone's favorite Yiddish synonym for sex: "schtupping." She took particular pleasure in playing footage of Ensign's retirement speech, where he praised his staffers for their hard work.
"Uh...asterisk!" Maddow said, making the motion for the sign in the air. "What he's saying is, not the staff member I was schtupping, or the staff member whose wife I schtupped."
She also pointedly noted that Ensign had spoken in favor of a federal amendment to limit marriage to straight people. The sanctity of marriage was very important to him, she said, when he was trying to "define marriage as not for the homos."
Barisan leaders declare their support
LABIS: Several Barisan Nasional leaders yesterday declared their support for Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek and wished for him to continue serving the rakyat.
LABIS: Several Barisan Nasional leaders yesterday declared their support for Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek and wished for him to continue serving the rakyat.
They also hit out at those behind the DVD, saying they had employed a dirty tactic to topple a politician.
Johor MCA liaison committee deputy chairman Tan Kok Hong said the DVD was an extreme example of using dirty tactics to damage the reputation of a politician.
"If we allow this to go on, anyone could be victimised. I hope this episode will not be repeated.
"Dr Chua has a proven track record in the development of Labis, ever since he became the MP for the constituency four years ago.
Johor MCA liaison committee deputy chairman Tan Kok Hong said the DVD was an extreme example of using dirty tactics to damage the reputation of a politician.
"If we allow this to go on, anyone could be victimised. I hope this episode will not be repeated.
"Dr Chua has a proven track record in the development of Labis, ever since he became the MP for the constituency four years ago.
"He has contributed significantly to its development and has shown his dedication in improving the quality of life of the people in his constituency.
"We want him to be nominated as the candidate again in the next general election," Tan said at a press conference, which drew applause from other MCA leaders and members present.
Umno Labis division chief Datuk Sulaiman Tahar, who expressed his sadness over the matter, said Dr Chua had taken a bold step to come forward to reveal the matter rather than denying it.
He said he was disappointed that there were people out there who would intrude into other people's private life, especially if it was politically motivated.
"This is a shameless act. However, as part of the BN family, we will not allow this to shatter our unity and our spirit," he said.
Former health minister Datuk Seri Chua Jui Meng said his heart went out to Dr Chua and his family and he hoped that they would stay strong and united.
"I appreciate the fact that Dr Chua did not deny committing the act. It takes courage and humility to admit to it."
"We want him to be nominated as the candidate again in the next general election," Tan said at a press conference, which drew applause from other MCA leaders and members present.
Umno Labis division chief Datuk Sulaiman Tahar, who expressed his sadness over the matter, said Dr Chua had taken a bold step to come forward to reveal the matter rather than denying it.
He said he was disappointed that there were people out there who would intrude into other people's private life, especially if it was politically motivated.
"This is a shameless act. However, as part of the BN family, we will not allow this to shatter our unity and our spirit," he said.
Former health minister Datuk Seri Chua Jui Meng said his heart went out to Dr Chua and his family and he hoped that they would stay strong and united.
"I appreciate the fact that Dr Chua did not deny committing the act. It takes courage and humility to admit to it."
Police to probe secret recording
by Lee Shi-Ian
KUALA LUMPUR: Police will investigate the "hidden camera" aspect of the sex act involving Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek in a hotel room.
KUALA LUMPUR: Police will investigate the "hidden camera" aspect of the sex act involving Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek in a hotel room.
This follows some concerns that the secret recording of the intimate scenes captured on a widely-circulated DVD was an indication of an invasion of privacy and the possibility of more cases of sinister taping of other privileged information.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Ismail Omar said investigations would cover all aspects of the case including how the recording equipment came to be in the room at a hotel in Batu Pahat.
At present, the matter is being investigated by police under Section 292 of the Penal Code for distribution of obscene material as the discs were reportedly dropped into the postboxes of selected houses and shops in Muar and Batu Pahat.
Some concerns have been raised by readers on whether it was safe to conduct meetings, whether by senior government officials, politicians or businessmen, for fear that the room may be under electronic surveillance.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Ismail Omar said investigations would cover all aspects of the case including how the recording equipment came to be in the room at a hotel in Batu Pahat.
At present, the matter is being investigated by police under Section 292 of the Penal Code for distribution of obscene material as the discs were reportedly dropped into the postboxes of selected houses and shops in Muar and Batu Pahat.
Some concerns have been raised by readers on whether it was safe to conduct meetings, whether by senior government officials, politicians or businessmen, for fear that the room may be under electronic surveillance.
Asked to comment on this, Ismail said surveillance equipment and cameras were now available in all shapes and sizes and could even be activated from long distance.
However, the quality of the images in the DVD is thought to be grainy and unclear, indicating that the equipment used to capture the couple's activities was not top-of-the-line.
The first disc, which is about 60 minutes long, contains footage from four different angles -- suggesting four cameras in the room -- of a black-and-white recording of what appears to be a hotel room.
The second disc is an enlargement of the angle above the bed.
Police are probing who made the recordings.
However, the quality of the images in the DVD is thought to be grainy and unclear, indicating that the equipment used to capture the couple's activities was not top-of-the-line.
The first disc, which is about 60 minutes long, contains footage from four different angles -- suggesting four cameras in the room -- of a black-and-white recording of what appears to be a hotel room.
The second disc is an enlargement of the angle above the bed.
Police are probing who made the recordings.
• Statement of Datin Seri Wong Sek Hin
IT could not have been easy for Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek to publicly admit he was the person in the video disc showing him and a long-time female friend having sex.
IT could not have been easy for Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek to publicly admit he was the person in the video disc showing him and a long-time female friend having sex.
From a state-level politician for many years, his career rocketed when he was made a minister and subsequently became vice-president of the second largest political party in the country, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA).
He was making political waves and the indications were that he would eventually go for the deputy presidency of the MCA and eventually have a shot at becoming party president.
And when he least expected it, his indiscretions caught up with him and have all but put paid to his career.
But, perhaps, that will be the least of Chua's worries.
He was making political waves and the indications were that he would eventually go for the deputy presidency of the MCA and eventually have a shot at becoming party president.
And when he least expected it, his indiscretions caught up with him and have all but put paid to his career.
But, perhaps, that will be the least of Chua's worries.
The greater burden he has to face, as a man, as a human being, as a father and as a husband, is the burden of guilt he bears for the pain he has brought upon his wife and children.
Chua could have played the denial game, like many prominent people and politicians throughout the world, including in our own country, played each time they are caught in embarrassing positions.
The tape was doctored; it was not me; it's a political ploy.
But no. Two days after the story of the tape hit the news, Chua came out, admitted his role, and left his fate to party elders, a fate that he knows is practically sealed.
Sadly, in an ironic way, Chua has displayed a sense of accountability that not many -- in fact, very few -- politicians, on either side of the spectrum, have ever displayed or shown in Malaysian politics.
Perhaps, painful as it may be to him, Chua should relinquish his government position to save himself and the government from further anguish.
By coming out in the open, Chua has saved his party leaders and cabinet peers the unenviable task of defending a colleague and friend whose position is difficult to defend.
By admitting his guilt to an act that cannot be seen as anything less than immoral, Chua has also taken the burden of guilt upon himself, as he rightly should, and spared his party and the government from second guessing whether it was indeed him on the tape or not.
But by confessing his sins, he has also paid a heavy price and deeply scarred his relations with his own family, who, by their own account, say that bar the indiscretions they were kept unaware of, Chua has been a good father and a good husband.
His wife, in her own statement through the national news agency Bernama, admits that things are not going to be easy going forward. Yet, she and her children know Chua as the father and husband he has been and will forgive him and try to move forward, tough as it may be.
Unfortunately for Chua, trust will not be easy to regain and he will have to live with his guilt for a long time, if not for the rest of his life.
What Chua did was wrong. And like it or not, we hold politicians to higher standards and we are less forgiving of their indiscretions and mistakes.
Chua is paying a very high price for his weakness and he has asked for forgiveness and appealed that we give him and his family space.
Perhaps we should ask ourselves one question when judging Chua -- who are we not to forgive him who has asked for forgiveness for have we, too, the fallible human beings that we are, not sinned at one time or another?
There may be a lesson for all of us to learn from what befell Chua and his family.
Chua could have played the denial game, like many prominent people and politicians throughout the world, including in our own country, played each time they are caught in embarrassing positions.
The tape was doctored; it was not me; it's a political ploy.
But no. Two days after the story of the tape hit the news, Chua came out, admitted his role, and left his fate to party elders, a fate that he knows is practically sealed.
Sadly, in an ironic way, Chua has displayed a sense of accountability that not many -- in fact, very few -- politicians, on either side of the spectrum, have ever displayed or shown in Malaysian politics.
Perhaps, painful as it may be to him, Chua should relinquish his government position to save himself and the government from further anguish.
By coming out in the open, Chua has saved his party leaders and cabinet peers the unenviable task of defending a colleague and friend whose position is difficult to defend.
By admitting his guilt to an act that cannot be seen as anything less than immoral, Chua has also taken the burden of guilt upon himself, as he rightly should, and spared his party and the government from second guessing whether it was indeed him on the tape or not.
But by confessing his sins, he has also paid a heavy price and deeply scarred his relations with his own family, who, by their own account, say that bar the indiscretions they were kept unaware of, Chua has been a good father and a good husband.
His wife, in her own statement through the national news agency Bernama, admits that things are not going to be easy going forward. Yet, she and her children know Chua as the father and husband he has been and will forgive him and try to move forward, tough as it may be.
Unfortunately for Chua, trust will not be easy to regain and he will have to live with his guilt for a long time, if not for the rest of his life.
What Chua did was wrong. And like it or not, we hold politicians to higher standards and we are less forgiving of their indiscretions and mistakes.
Chua is paying a very high price for his weakness and he has asked for forgiveness and appealed that we give him and his family space.
Perhaps we should ask ourselves one question when judging Chua -- who are we not to forgive him who has asked for forgiveness for have we, too, the fallible human beings that we are, not sinned at one time or another?
There may be a lesson for all of us to learn from what befell Chua and his family.
“We ... want the Attorney-General to make an immediate decision so that the said Bibles can be released by the authorities,” MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek said in a statement today.
In a thinly veiled reference to Pakatan Rakyat (PR), he said prolonging the issue would give rise to “exploitation” by “irresponsible people”.
Dr Chua also stressed that freedom of religion was enshrined in the Federal Constitution and that the right to practise any faith must be respected.
In a bid to deflect criticism over the Bible seizure, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Hussein earlier today said the release of the Bibles had been delayed pending advice from the AG.
Hishammuddin claimed the seizure of Malay-language Bibles in Port Klang and Kuching port had been due to the pending court appeal over Catholic newspaper The Herald’s use of the word “Allah” in its publications.
He gave assurance that the matter would be resolved amicably within the next few days to avoid turning it into an “emotive and polemic” issue.
Hishamuddin was responding to calls from various parties for the release of 35,000 Malay-language bibles presently kept in Port Klang and Kuching Port.
His ministry had come under fire for impounding the books, with many parties describing the move as an infringement of the constitutional guarantee to freedom of religion.
In justifying the seizures, the Home Ministry claimed that it was adhering to a 1986 Cabinet decision disallowing non-Muslims from using words like “Allah”.
But a 2009 High Court ruling allowed the Catholic Church use of the word in the Malay-language section of its news publication, which sparked off a series of church fire-bombings nationwide.
The ministry filed an appeal on the decision in February last year and won a stay, pending a decision by the Court of Appeal.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has also been dragged into the row, with Christian groups now blaming his administration for its intractable response to their repeated petitions for the Bibles’ release.
The Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) has lashed out at the federal government for what they see as a systematic move to deny their religious rights as enshrined in the country’s highest law.
The CFM, which represents 90 per cent of churches here, as well other political parties, including DAP, PKR and MCA, have demanded the immediate release of all Bibles held under lock and key.
Barisan Nasional (BN) has bent over backwards to resolve the issue, which opposition leaders say they will capitalise on in the upcoming Sarawak state election.
Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud is expected to call for snap polls in early April.
While BN is in no danger of losing the government, PR is hoping to deny Taib a two-thirds majority victory in his 30th year in power.
|
pillai@mgg.pc.my When the Merdeka celebrations kick off on August 31 at the Shah Alam stadium, it would reflect the contradictory and contrary trends which tear this society apart. The Yang Dipertuan Agung is the Sultan of Selangor, but the mentri besar, Dato' Seri Abu Hassan Omar, is forced out for an offence under the country's syariah laws, one which the Prime Minister wants forgotten as a "personal" matter that should not be aired in public. He had no such intent when instead of showing due consideration for the alleged homosexual tendency -- alleged because the prosecutor and judge was more intent on convicting him no matter what than in searching for the truth -- he ordered the man destroyed politically and personally without proof and ensuring the judiciary's compliance. So, when he attends the Merdeka celebrations, this would stick in his gullet, that this celebrations is against a backdrop of everything that is wrong with his administration. That his ebulliently irrepressible culture and tourism minister persuaded the government to have a month-long mishmash of celebrations, little known that the Anwaristas would see that as a red-rag to a bull, and behave likewise. The Prime Minister would have constant proof of the divisiveness inherent in the celebrations. His enemies could not have chosen a better spot for him to rue in his misfortune. For the crisis which forced Dato' Seri Abu Hassan to resign is not about to go away. When the Jawa Pos article on the Selangor sex scandal appeared in July, the deputy prime minister, Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, ordered Dato' Seri Abu Hassan and the man his wife's sister married to undergo DNA tests to determine the father of her 11-year-old son. Once the results were known, he ordered the mentri besar to resign in 24 hours. But the Prime Minister would not meet him, and he had to leave his resignation letter with an aide instead. So, contrary to the Prime Minister, the deputy prime minister and Dato' Abu Hassan said, he was forced out on a morals charge, that he had had an affair with his sister-in-law, who gave birth to his son, which he covered up by getting an MCA official to convert to Islam and marry her. This is not new. It did not raise a ruckus so long as no one made a fuss about it. When the Jawa Post raised it in an article, and a question about this disallowed by the Speaker in the last meeting of the Selangor state assembly, his days were numbered. He had no choice but to resign. But the Prime Minister could not let the egg fall on his face, as it would in the wake of the judicial assassination of his protege and prime minister-to-be, Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim. UMNO is so divided that every office holder has enemies galore quick to put the knife in. It was an UMNO official who gave the details to a Keadilan state assemblyman to raise the ruckus in the Selangor state assembly. The Prime Minister, as is his wont, ordered the affair swept under the carpet. It cannot be. Private moral crisis should not be the stuff of political careers. Otherwise, half the cabinet could not pass muster. But when the Prime Minister moved to destroy Dato' Seri Anwar on still-unproven moral charges of sodomy, such lapses had to be suitably punished. The Prime Minister and his deputy must explain why, since the DNA tests proved Dato' Seri Abu Hassan to be the father of his sister-in-law's child, they insist this is a private matter, when they proclaim to the world about another private moral crisis, which unlike Dato' Seri Abu Hassan's, remain unproven, is treated as a matter of seven official punishment. The Selangor syariah court, which is all too zealous to arrest beauty queens and karaoke singers in bars for breaching Islamic moral code, should act against the former mentri besar for breaching a more serious moral code, for not just zina but for the more serious breach of having sexual relations with his wife's sister. What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. So, who is this MCA official who married Dato' Seri Abu Hassan's sister-in-law to let him off the hook? He is Mr Tan Hoon @ Jefri Tan Hoon @ Abu Hassan bin Tan Abdullah, the chairman of the MCA Ampang Jaya division, within the parliamentary constituency of the Dewan Rakyat deputy speaker, Dato' Ong Tee Keat of the MCA. He is opposed to Dato' Ong, which probably accounts for the MCA leaders' quick distancing from this crisis. It is now important that this Abu Hassan surface and explain his role. He benefitted much from contracts and other help the mentri besar and his administration put in his way. Indeed, he should also be made to account for his deliberate role in abetting Dato' Seri Abu Hassan to breach Islamic law. The government has a stronger case against him that it ever had on Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim. If it wants to tell the world its system of justice is fairer than fair, it should demand a severe sentence on those committing offences for which without proof it would send its critic to a total of 33 years. |
NEW YORK TIMES RAPE STORY GHOSTS DO NOT DIE ABDUL RAHIM THAMBY CHIK RAPED A 15-YEAR-OLD SCHOOLGIRL, GHANI PATAIL’S COLOSSAL WASTE OF PROMISES, OR THE EXORCIST CANNOT RID MALAYSIA THE GHOST
Ghosts do not die. That is the power of a phantom. You can bury of the cases to the chanting of the prosecutor’s fraudulent funeral rites, but its restless spirit keeps rattling through the haunted house of the UMNO Party’s premier family. The latest rattle, in which the shocking revelations that Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wifeRosmah Mansor were involved in hatching sodomy accusations against Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim Ghani Patail has the chance to go down in his nation’s history as either a colossal waste of a promise, or as the exorcist who rid Malaysia of the ghost of all the ghost ., the then chief minister of Malacca, Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik, was reported to have raped a 15-year-old schoolgirl (under Malaysian law, sex with a minor constitutes statutory rape). Lim Guan Eng, currently the chief minister of Penang and the then MP for Kota Melaka, spoke out against the rape of a minor after the girl’s .grandmother-cum-guardian, who was also Lim’s constituent, turned to him for help.
However, far from deserving justice, both Lim and the schoolgirl received their “dues”. Lim was jailed for three years for speaking up against the rape while the girl was given three years “protective custody”. As for Rahim, because of the rape and pending corruption charges, he was forced to resign, after a 12-year stint as Malacca’s chief minister.
But the judiciary saw Rahim escape punishment for a crime committed; this came about after the public prosecutor withdrew the charge citing lack of evidence. The corruption charges against Rahim were also dropped.
The travesty of justice is such that on Feb 28, 1995, Lim was thrown into jail after he was charged under the Sedition Act for prompting “disaffection with the administration of Malaysia”.
On March 17 the same year, he was slapped with another charge under the Printing Presses and Publications Act for “maliciously printing” a pamphlet containing “false information”, specifically that Lim had used the term “imprisoned victim” to describe the schoolgirl who was raped.
As a result of his trying to seek justice for the rape survivor, Lim was barred from holding public office for five years, making him ineligible to contest in the 2004 general election.
As for the underage rape survivor, she was initially detained for 10 years without parental consent. She was subsequently sentenced to three years “protective custody” in a house for “wayward girls”. During Lim’s trial, the girl gave evidence that she had sex with a minister.
With such lecherous politicians in our midst, the safety of girls and women – be they our sisters, daughters, mothers and foreign female workers – is at risk. There is no telling which politician is waiting to sexually assault the girls and women in this country. What is annoying is the fact that the crime is easily dismissed by threatening and buying the silence of the victim.
In Rais’ case, if the rape had never taken place as he claimed, then what made his domestic helper of eight years to suddenly pack her bags and leave for home in Indonesia? If he has been such a kind and generous man as his former domestic helper claimed when retracting her allegation of rape, the question of her quitting her job would not arise. There is no doubt something is amiss here, no matter how much Rais denies it.
In the case of Rahim, he was never convicted and continues to enjoy life while Lim spent three years in jail and the the rape survivor was sentenced to three years in a house for “wayward girls”. What wrong did the girl do to end up in a house for wayward girls while the perpetrator, Rahim, walked a free man? Where was justice when it was desperately needed?
The public editor of the New York Times, Arthur Brisbane, sided with readers whoexpressed outrage over a story in the paper about a brutal gang rape in Texas.
The story, which was published last Tuesday, focused on the rape of an 11-year-old girl by 18 boys and men in Cleveland, Texas. But critics excoriated the Times for, in their view, blaming the girl for the attack.
In a blog post on Friday, Brisbane said he agreed.
“My assessment is that the outrage is understandable,” he wrote. “The story dealt with a hideous crime but addressed concerns about the ruined lives of the perpetrators without acknowledging the obvious: concern for the victim.”
Brisbane pointed to the sections that drew the most ire, where residents were quoted expressing worry about the burden the men will have to carry because of their crimes, and where the girl was described as often “dressed older than her age, wearing makeup and fashions more appropriate to a woman in her 20s.”
“If indeed that is the only sentiment to be found in this community – and I find that very hard to believe – it becomes important to report on that as well by seeking out voices of professional authorities or dissenting community members who will at least address, and not ignore, the plight of the young girl involved,” Brisbane wrote.
The Times initially defended the story in a statement, saying the writer of the article, James C. McKinley, was merely reporting what he had been told. But the paper’s standards editor, Phillip Corbett, seemed to walk back that defense in an interview with Brisbane, saying that the Times “could have done more to provide more context” to stress the fact that the victim was not being blamed.
* Unwelcome sexual behaviour like physical contact
INVESTIGATION PAPERS ON SOI LEK’S SEX VIDEO TO BE SENT TO AG
KUALA LUMPUR – The investigation papers on the distribution of the sex video involving MCA President Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek will be submitted to the Attorney-General’s Chambers soon.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said Dr Chua lodged a police report after being informed by a colleague on the distribution of envelopes containing two DVDs in several areas in Batu Pahat, Johor, which was intended to smear his image.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said Dr Chua lodged a police report after being informed by a colleague on the distribution of envelopes containing two DVDs in several areas in Batu Pahat, Johor, which was intended to smear his image.
Following the report, police conducted an investigation and the investigation papers submitted to the Attorney-General’s Chambers, before the Attorney-General ordered for further investigation, he said in a written reply to a question by Hee Loy Sian (PKR-Petaling Jaya Selatan) in Parliament Tuesday.
Hee wanted to know the rationale Dr Chua was not charged in court.
Hishammuddin said the case was investigated under Section 292/509 of the Penal Code.
In January 2008, Dr Chua resigned from his cabinet post and as MCA vice-president after admitting that the man in the sex video was him.read more New York Times Rape Story Ghosts do not die Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik raped a 15-year-old schoolgirl, Ghani Patail’s Colossal Waste of Promises, or the Exorcist Cannot Rid Malaysia the ghost
But after that blaze of publicity, there has been no follow-through from her or her ministry.
In the NTF report released in 2009, the incidents of sexual abuse among Penan women and children, lack of access to basic services, including healthcare and education, and problems related to registration of identity cards and birth certificates were highlighted.
There are about 16,000 Penans living in Sarawak with about 300 of them leading nomadic lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment