PENANG – Leaders of Malaysia’s opposition alliance have ended speculation that one of its three parties, the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), would break ranks to enter “unity talks” with the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the dominant party in the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition.
Najib clings on to ‘unity talks’ hope
It looks as if Najib has still not given up hope that Pas may be persuaded to engage in “unity talks” with Umno. From the BN’s perspective, the “unity talks” proposal is the best way to throw a spanner in the Pakatan works.
Unable to bring about meaningful reforms to shore up public support, the BN seems to be clinging on to the hope that Pas will change its mind, with Najib now claiming it is a religious obligation to hold unity talks.
Here’s something I wrote for Asia Times:
Federal Court blow for High Chaparral villagers
1640: The High Chaparral villagers have lost their application for a stay of execution and leave for re-trial.
They will now have to go back and explore their options.
Indonesia: 40 years of silence
Here’s a haunting documentary to look out for. Some 500,000 to 1 million Indonesians were butchered in the mid-1960s. The synopsis from the official website:
Directed by anthropologist Robert Lemelson and edited by two-time Academy Award winner Pietro Scalia, “40 years of silence: An Indonesian tragedy” is a moving feature length documentary film about one of the most horrific chapters in Indonesia’s history.
SXI brother-principal’s retirement marks end of era
St Xavier’s Institution principal Bro Paul Ho’s retirement draws to a close the presence of the La Salle brothers as principals of the mission schools in Malaysia. It began with SXI in Penang and it ends with SXI.
But Bro Ambrose Loke remains as director of St Francis’ Institution in Malacca and La Salle brothers continue teaching in several schools in Sabah, Malacca and Perak. Other brothers are involved in non-formal educational activities in learning, tuition, training and rural educational centres across the country.
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Pakatan rejects ‘unity talks’: What now, Hadi, Nasha?
So there you have it: the Pakatan leaders have come out with a firm stand against “unity talks” with Umno, much to the relief of the many Malaysians who voted for change and reforms in the last general election.
Surely, this must put all those within Pas who initially backed the “unity talks” proposal – notably Hadi and Nasharudin – in an awkward position. It’s time for the party to project leaders who are more open and in touch with the aspirations of the rakyat, namely folks like Husam Musa and Nizar.
Have speed sensors been replaced on all Airbus planes?
Spotted in a Bloomberg report after the recent Air France crash:
The plane maker (Airbus) recommended in September 2007 that airlines replace the Thales SA speed sensors, known as Pitot tubes, on single-aisle A320-series planes as well as the A330 and A340. Air France said June 6 it waited until April to begin installing the new sensors because it wasn’t until the beginning of this year that their high-altitude effectiveness for the A330 was demonstrated in lab tests.
Poll: Weekly day off for domestic workers?
I was shocked when I read that a recent SMS poll conducted by The Star revealed that 76 per cent of 769 respondents were against the idea of allowing domestic workers (maids) a day off every week.
Let’s see if you are any different from the readers of The Star. Hopefully, we can get a similar number of respondents here and then we can compare the results…
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High Chaparral villagers hold candlelight vigil
Photos by H S Lee and Anil Netto
Some 200 villagers and their supporters gathered tonight in Kampong Buah Pala in Gelugor, Penang, for a candlelight vigil and dinner in a show of solidarity against impending eviction.
16 Burmese held at Pakatan b’day bash for Suu Kyi
2345: 14 of them have been brought to the Kelana Jaya lock-up.
2334: Blog reader anony-mouse reports:
I had great piece of cake…! Tian was at the police station too. Irene Fernandez was in a car that came by the station twice, but did not alight.2228: Of the 16, three have been freed because they have documents. Five are undocumented; so if they don’t get UNHCR registration pronto, they could be deported. The remaining are all registered with the UNHCR as refugees; so they should be all right. 2215: About 25 people are now gathered outside the police station. They are cutting a birthday cake for Aung San Suu Kyi. 2057: All the Burmese – 16 of them – are arrested and taken to the PJ police station.
The RM40m Penang Hill railway “upgrading” controversy
The federal government is planning a RM40 million project to “upgrade” the historical Penang Hill funciular railway. See theSun’s report here.
What exactly does this entail? Few know for sure as there’s been a dearth of information on the scope of the work.
According to activist Ahmad Chik, his understanding is that the federally funded project would involve:
- RM40 million in federal funds;
- a 10-month complete shutdown. During this time, the residents around the present Middle Station would have no easy access up or down the hill, while hawkers and other traders would lose their source of income;
- the elimination of Middle Station; instead, there would be just a stop;
- the trains crossing somewhere around the middle of the hill;
- some realignment of the track route with about 80 per cent of the existing track still being used;
- a complete change in the machinery at the stations. (Ahmad feels that this is not necessary.)
- new coaches;
- possibly some environmental damage, perhaps resulting in some delays in project completion;
- a four-fold increase in capacity;
- a 10-fold increase in speed: it would take four minutes to get from the bottom to the top; that’s too fast, no chance to enjoy the scenery;
Black-shirted patrons turn up at kopi tiam in Bayan Baru
MIB (Malaysians in black): They later scrawled the word “Perak” below the “Bubar Dun!!” just in case anyone had any doubts about what they were referring to. Photo courtesy of Lucia Lai. More pictures and report on her blog here.
2219: The atmosphere is pleasant and and the group of black-shirted patrons are chatting and enjoying their drinks and the camaraderie, reports a contact at the scene. Every now and then, they simultaneously raise A4 sheets of paper on which is printed “Bubar Dun Perak!”
The manager looks a little nervous while the other patrons seem a bit taken aback, but otherwise, all is peaceful. The wireless Internet service is still down.
The plainclothes police, to their credit, continue to remain at a polite distance away.
The Gurney Drive swamp
One of the charms of Penang used to be the hawker stalls along Gurney Drive. Crowds still throng the sea-front to savour Penang’s street food. But I doubt they go there for the “invigorating” sea breeze now!
“Mickey Maos” T-shirts confiscated in Central Market
Officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Publications and Quranic Texts Control Division confiscated over 80 T-shirts – including Pop images of Bruce Lee and Mao Zedong portrayed as ‘Mickey Maos’ – because the material apparently glorified communism.
Accessible buses – but what about accessible streets?
One of Rapid Penang’s new accessible buses – Photo courtesy of The Star
Prototypes of RapdPenang’s new fleet of 200 accessible buses reportedly were introduced in Penang recently – something that people with disabilities especially have long waiting for. These buses are Scania K-series models from Sweden with bodywork made locally. They come with special bells outside the bus, ramps and a hydraulic system that can lower the bus for those on wheelchairs. See The Star report here.
How arrogance divides people
Muslims and Christians in conversation – Photo by Ben Ong, courtesy of Rev Sivin Kit’s blog
A unique event was held on 12 June, bringing together speakers living as minorities in plural societies, in this case Muslims in a Western society and Christians in a Muslim-majority society.
Over a hundred people flocked to Father’s House, Bangsar Lutheran Church, to participate in the dialogue, jointly organised by Friends in Conversation and the Muslim Professionals Forum.
High Chaparral case: Live from Federal Court
The villagers from Kg Buah Pala who are facing eviction have taken their case to the Federal Court.
Dalbinder is providing live coverage of the High Chaparral case from Putrajaya here.
Iranians protest in KL after Iran polls: More images
Here are more images from the Iranian protest outside the UN building in KL yesterday. The protest was held after Mahmoud Ahmadinejady was declared the winner in Iran’s presidential election held last Friday.
300,000 held in Sri Lankan “internment camps”
Sunila Abeysekera, an award-winning Sri Lankan human rights activist, speaks about the overcrowding, the lack of adequate medical attention and the disappearances at state-run camps holding up to 300,000 displaced civilians.
Riot police fire tear gas as 1,000 Iranians protest in KL
Photos by Rakyat@work. View his blog here.
1814: The crowd of protestors swelled to a thousand. Riot police fired rounds of tear gas, but, according to another eye-witness behind police ranks, some of the fumes gusted back to the police as well. Either the shots were fired too low or the wind was blowing in the wrong direction, he said.
Stung by the fumes, the protesters, many of them bearing placards with messages such as “Ahmadi get out” and “Stop coup d’etat in Iran”, have dispersed; others have re-grouped along Jalan U Thant.
The cops are looking a little more relaxed now.
7 arrested for defending houses from demolition
Seven people – six residents and an activist – have been arrested while they were trying to stop Kuala Lumpur City Hall from demolishing houses in Kg Jinjang Selatan Tambahan (KTJS), according to human rights group Suaram.
In an urgent alert, the group said it had also received reports that several people were injured during the incident.