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Fake ferry wars: Bridges (and tunnel) over troubled waters (Part 1)

It was bemusing to see politicians on both sides of the political divide engaged in a recent war of words about saving the Penang ferries.

Both sides seemed to agree that these “‘iconic heritage ferries” should be saved or showcased elsewhere so that foreign tourists and local visitors could take joy rides.

But let’s be clear from the outset. The vast majority of daily riders on the ferries – whether passengers or motorists – are local residents from Penang, either going to work or running some personal errand or on weekend trips. From my observation, they far outnumber tourists and out-of-town visitors, who use the ferries mainly during school holidays, weekend breaks and festive periods.

So the premise for saving the old ferry service – for tourism purposes – starts on the wrong footing.

The hastily introduced boats are a poor substitute for the ferries, not to mention hardly friendly to people with disabilities. A crowd of people in an enclosed cabin with not much physical distancing is not ideal, unlike the old airy ferries where there was plenty of room for passengers with sea air freely circulating through the upper and lower decks. Full article on Aliran website

https://thisiskettering.com/accutane-pills/

Aliran speaks on the emergency

A worrying development. Is the emergency motivated by politics or the pandemic?

This is the latest statement by Aliran on the declaration of a nationwide state of emergency:

So this was 2020 … what happened to our Vision?

Not long before Rustam Sani passed away in 2008, I met him in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

You Are My Land – a song by AMIRAH

Do you all remember Amirah? She’s back with another haunting song, this time about our land.

1.8 … This changes everything

Something happened over the last few years which has slipped largely unnoticed.

Wishing you all a joyous Christmas

It has been a grim year for many of us and for Malaysia and for the rest of the word. Let’s hope the coming year will bring happier tidings for more justice, freedom and solidarity in Malaysia and beyond.

2020 – A year like no other for Malaysia

This has been an eventful year for all of us, not just for Aliran. We had the Sheraton Move at the worst possible time in February, when the coronavirus pandemic had begun spreading in Malaysia.

Video: Family of otters spotted in mainland Penang

First it was the dolphins, now otters have been spotted frolicking along the coastal waters of northern Butterworth.

Just when Muhyiddin thought the coast was clear… a volley is fired in Perak

Don’t you think it is poetic justice? The defectors are now getting a taste of their own medicine.

Soter Fernandez – from hospital dresser to cardinal of a ‘field hospital’ church

Cardinal Soter Fernandez, passed away at 12.35pm today aged 88. A humble man, he led the Malaysian Church with a steady hand, always passionate about authentic human development, social justice and interfaith dialogue. I wrote the piece below four years ago, soon after Pope Francis installed him as Malaysia’s first cardinal.

Original post on 18 November 2016

It seems altogether fitting that the archbishop who championed the ministry of justice and peace in the Malaysian Church should be installed as cardinal by Francis, the Bishop of Rome, on 19 November, which coincides with Bersih 5.

This is a piece I wrote for the Herald a few weeks ago.

Soter Fernandez – From hospital dresser to cardinal of a ‘field hospital’ church

Last year, when I met Archbishop Emeritus Soter Fernandez, he took pains to highlight two somewhat related areas that he seemed to be concerned about. He carried in his bag a clutch of documents relating to the Aggiornamento in 1976 and the present Bishop of Rome’s encyclical on the Joy of the Gospel.