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Permatang Pauh: Calm before the storm

Anil Netto
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Busy day: Pas Youth leader Salahuddin Ayub speaking at a ceramah on Saturday night (9 Aug) in Permatang Pauh – after having taken part in the protest against the Bar Council’s forum in the morning. Sharing the platform that night were Anwar and Guan Eng.

The next day, I wrote the following piece for The Malay Mail from a food court in Permatang Pauh.

Still a calm before the storm

By A. NETTO

The rays of the evening sun stretch right into a hawker centre offering the Malay version of char kway teow.

Half a dozen tables are filled with local residents, chatting away as the evening breeze blows.

It would be hard to tell that a widely-watched by-election is taking place in Permatang Pauh on Aug 26. Life goes on as usual and the only tell-tale signs that something big is about to happen are the fluttering Barisan Nasional flags outside.

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Catholic Asian News gets a warning letter as well

Anil Netto
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The Catholic Asian News magazine has also received a warning letter from the Home Ministry. The letter was received some time in early July.

And it’s for about the same reason as the warning letter to The Herald: for publishing articles which touch on politics.

Don’t they know that Jesus talked about a kingdom of God? That was one of the reasons he eventually got into trouble and received a death sentence. The Roman prefect Pontius Pilate asked Jesus at his trial: “Are you a king?”

The magazine is a monthly publication of the Kuala Lumpur Archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Malaysia.

Another large crowd in Permatang Pauh

Anil Netto
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A large crowd, estimated at between 10,000 and 20,000, turned up to listen to a ceramah in the heart of Permatang Pauh, opposite the Seberang Prai Polytechnic. Among the speakers were Anwar Ibrahim and Lim Guan Eng.

The event also saw the launch of the national PKR youth wing’s election machinery with representatives from each state taking a pledge.

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Home Ministry issues “show cause” letter to Herald

Anil Netto
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This is not a great day for freedom of expression after what happened in KL this morning.

The Home Affairs Ministry has issued a show-cause letter (on 16 July) to the publishers of The Herald, an editorial in tomorrow’s edition of the Catholic weekly newspaper has revealed.

The paper was accused of committing two offences:

  • it has not followed the concept of “focusing” on religion
  • it carried an article that purportedly degraded the religion of Islam

In reply to an earlier warning letter from the Ministry, the editorial in The Herald remarked that the Ministry had not defined the concept of “religion” in the application form for a publishing permit.  Neither is there a definition in the Constitution. So, the publishers asked the Ministry to point out where they had gone wrong. No reply.

The editorial also maintained that the article in question “America and Jihad – where do they stand?” in no way degrades any religion; it was the writer’s analysis of the global political situation “for informed and educated people”. (I have not read the article myself so I am unable to comment on it.)

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New housing on Penang Island aimed at the wealthy

Anil Netto
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So how can low-income workers afford to buy homes?

There is real shortfall of affordable housing in Penang, especially on the island.

On the other hand, developers have been falling over themselves to build high-end condos and houses for the upper-middle class, the rich and wealthy foreigners, who are also grabbing choice real estate on the island. For example, at Hillside in Tanjung Bunga, wealthy foreigners are snapping up prime property.

House prices are expected to rise further with the rise in the cost of building materials. But when these new houses and condos are completed, who can afford to buy them? Will we end up with a glut in high-end housing?

What happens to all those factory workers, security guards, and small business owners who cannot afford houses on the island? In the past, they would go for cheaper houses on the mainland, even as far as Kulim and Sungai Petani in Kedah. But with higher oil prices and shrinking real incomes, it doesn’t make economic sense to commute such long distances to work. To make matters worse, if workers were to drive to work via the proposed second Penang bridge, their expenditure on toll and petrol charges – for the bridge segment of the commute alone – could come up to RM500-800/month.

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Meanwhile, back in Permatang Pauh…

Anil Netto
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The tranquil scene in Permatang Pauh hours after Anwar was charged in KL

I decided to head for Permatang Pauh yesterday – soon after Anwar was released on personal bond in KL – to soak in the atmosphere here ahead of the campaign. A few more flags had been put up at the entrance to the old town, but it still looked quiet. But that could change soon. On Saturday night, there is going to be another big ceramah, this time in the heart of Permatang Pauh. The stage is set as Nomination Day beckons…

I filed in this report for IPS from a Malay restaurant in the old town after lunch – but not before buying some tempting freshly picked sweet rambutans.

PERMATANG PAUH, Aug 8 (IPS) – It was a humid, sweltering afternoon here in Permatang Pauh on mainland Penang state in northern Malaysia, the scene of what could prove to be a pivotal by-election for the country on Aug. 26.

A lunch-time Malay-Muslim crowd was filling up a restaurant by the main road. Some appeared to be office workers while others looked as if they were from out of town. Women with headscarves sat with their families; a couple of them wore smart office attire without headscarves. Men with smart, bright batik wear stood in contrast with villagers in more traditional Malay attire with white skull caps.

Thursday might have been just another day here in this semi-rural town — but it was not. Hours earlier in the sessions court in Kuala Lumpur, Anwar Ibrahim, candidate for Permatang Pauh, was charged with consensual sodomy with a party aide Mohd. Saiful Bukhari Azlan on Jun. 26. Click here for the full story

Anwar, Parliamentary Opposition Leader from 27 Aug?

Anil Netto
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The leaders of Pakatan Rakyat consider the legal action against Anwar to be “blatant political persecution”; the whole nation is on trial, they said in a statement released today.

Wan Azizah was put on standby to serve as leader of the PR Leadership Council – just in case Anwar was denied bail.

They also reiterated their full endorsement for Anwar as candidate in Permatang Pauh and confirmed a joint campaign.

If Anwar wins the by-election, the Pakatan leaders will propose him as Parliamentary Opposition Leader.

The full statement is as follows:

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Anwar released on personal bond; mention on 10 Sept

Anil Netto
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Reports of massive traffic jams around the court area this morning. Hundreds of police in the vicinity of the court. Two hundred reformasi supporters also present.

Anwar pleaded not guilty to a charge of consensual sodomy at the Sessions Court and the Judge – to her credit – has agreed to release him on a RM20,000 personal bond without surety.

The mention has been fixed for 10 Sept – a week before the 16 Sept deadline!

Meanwhile, check out these documents on Malaysia Today, a report and statutory declaration purportedly written by Dr Osman of Hospital Pusrawi. The plot thickens – or should I say unravels.

Anwar to be charged: Ulang-tayang, here we go again…

Anil Netto
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Yesterday’s blog post was “What happens if Anwar is arrested before by-election?”

Unfortunately, we will get to find out now. Anwar is expected to be charged with sodomy at the Magistrate’s Court in Jalan Duta at 9.00am tomorrow. Whether he would be allowed bail would very much depend on the judge’s discretion.

For those of you who were too young to follow the first Anwar trials 10 years ago, now you get to see for yourselves what the rest of us had to put up with.  To put it mildly, the Malaysian judicial system did not distinguish itself.

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What happens if Anwar is arrested before by-election?

Anil Netto
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From the poll on this blog, about 85 per cent of you believe Anwar will win in Permatang Pauh by a much bigger majority compared with Wan Azizah’s winning margin of 13,388 in the March general election.

The PKR, for its part, has set a target of 20,000, which is certainly possible, barring any dirty tactics. After all, Anwar won here with a 23,000-plus majority in 1995, when he was standing under a BN ticket, over opponets from Pas and DAP.

But this time, he will face the entire weight of the BN election machinery – the 3 Ms plus perhaps more potshots from the double M (Mahathir Mohamad).

What happens if Anwar is arrested before the by-election? Will his majority be even larger?

The even bigger questions lie beyond that. Will a PKR win be enough to lure defections ahead of 16 Sept? And at what price to principles and ideals? Perhaps the hope for a new Malaysia founded on justice and freedom would make it all worth while. What do you think?

Here’s something I wrote yesterday for Asia Times.

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