AdilanClub

Bodies of reporter, photographer found in Syria: official

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 11:33:36 PST

DAMASCUS - Syrian authorities have found the bodies of US journalist Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik in the Baba Amr district of powderkeg Homs Thursday after rebels retreated, the foreign ministry said.

"Authorities this morning located the bodies of the two journalists, American Marie Colvin and Frenchman Remi Ochlik, in a great humanitarian effort," a source at the ministry said quoted by Sana news agency. The two had been "buried in the region which was controlled by armed terrorist groups".

The journalists were killed during a February 22 rocket attack on a makeshift media centre in Baba Amr, a rebel stronghold in the central Syrian city of Homs.

There was also a third body which a "reliable source" said was that of Spanish journalist Javier Espinosa. However a Spanish newspaper reported that he was safe and well

"It is impossible," that he is dead, said Inaki Gil, deputy director of El Mundo.

"I spoke to him this morning and this afternoon. He is in Beirut."

The bodies were transferred to a Damascus hospital and they will be handed over to the Polish embassy, which is representing the United States, France and Spain, in the presence of the International Red Cross, after Syria has carried out DNA tests on the remains, the ministry said.

"Syria offers its condolences to the families of the victims and hopes that foreign citizens will abstain from entering Syrian territory illegally and going into regions where there are armed terrorists," the ministry statement said.

Info : News

Be careful of who you hire, kindies warned

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 11:13:31 PST

JOHOR BARU, Malaysia: The Welfare Department has advised kindergarten operators to ensure that those working with them undergo proper training so they are mentally and physically fit to handle children.

State Welfare Department director Khatijah Abdullah said it was compulsory for caretakers to undergo training under the department and this was to provide them with the necessary information to handle children.

Khatijah was commenting on a recent report by a Malay daily on two kindergarten caretakers who tightly wrapped nine children under their care in cloth, taped their mouths with cellophane tape and took a video and uploaded it on YouTube.

The two female caretakers, aged 22 and 20, had initially said they committed the act to keep the children, aged nine months and below, quiet.

However, they later said they wanted to defame the kindergarten located in Kota Masai through the video upload as the owner had fired them.

Khatijah said although the case was an isolated one, kindergarten operators needed to be more aware of their caretakers and ensure that they undergo proper training before being allowed to handle children.

“Those who hire untrained staff could be compounded or have their establishment closed down,” she said, urging those who are unregistered to quickly do so.

Khatijah also confirmed that the kindergarten in Kota Masai was registered but several of its caretakers had yet to undergo training, adding the department would ensure all of them would be sent for training as soon as possible.

The department, she said, would let the police to investigate the alleged abuse and uploading of the video.

The kindergarten's caretaker, Shaherah Abd Malik, 39, has also lodged a police report.

Meanwhile, Seri Alam OCPD Supt Roslan Zainuddin said the police have received four reports relating to the case.

“Both women have been brought in for questioning,” he said

Info : News

The 10 mistakes of Mahathir Mohamad

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 09:14:25 PST

Former premier Mahathir Mohamad has criticized every prime minister of Malaysia from the late Tunku Abdul Rahman to the current leader Najib Razak, sparing no one except of course, himself. Mahathir has also criticized other world leaders including UK's Tony Blair and of course George W Bush, the 43rd president of the United States.

So far none of his local peers have swung back at him, which is not surprising considering that several are already dead and only Najib and 5th prime minister Abdullah Badawi are alive. As for the international leaders, they have largely ignored Mahathir's existence, which only adds to his frustration, but there is nothing he can do to them. However, he can make life miserable for his successors here, and this he is already doing.

When Mahathir retired in 2003, after 22 years as PM, there was talk about his 'great' legacy and he was even called Bapa Pemodenan or Father of Modernization. Some 9 years after his retirement, the excesses and sheer ill-judgement of his economic, social and political decisions have come back to wallop the nation with a backlash stronger than the ferocious tsunami of 2006 that devastated much of South Asia.

At 86, Mahathir is now reviled by most Malaysians, blamed for the massive corruption that may soon bankrupt the country if no remedial economic action is taken, and for the apartheid-scale racial fissures amongst the various ethnic groups in the country.

NEP

Just pick the New Economic Policy, which was the brainchild of the policymakers of the 1960s but which he abused to the maximum. This abuse alone is enough to ensure that he will stay in the Malaysian Hall of Villains rather than in the Hall of Fame which he still thinks he belongs in.

His peers with better memories including former Finance minister Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said last week that the NEP was never meant to create or to be used to incubate a class of Malay capitalists, but to address poverty and to raise the level of Malay participation in the economy. It was never meant to be abused by the government of the day to handpick a select group of Malay entrepreneurs, load them with sharply-discounted government deals and then expect them to prosper and create enough economic ripples to help lift the rest of the community.

This was Mahathir's first and major mistake. But was it really a mistake? Doubters and critics point to the enormous wealth he accumulated for his cronies and proxies through the money-making schemes hatched under the guise of the NEP, and by privatizing government assets to favored Malay entrepreneurs, one of whom is the disgraced former MAS chairman Tajudin Ramli. Not able to deal with the 'instant success' or the stress of big time business, many succumbed to debt during the 1998 Asian financial crisis. Tajudin and friends like Halim Saad fell from hero to zero, losing enormous amounts of money and requiring massive government bailouts.

Cronies but the masses get nothing

The second mistake Mahathir, in his foolishness, made was to pool the major part of the nation's wealth in the hands of a few. This time he included non-Malays millionaires such as Vincent Tan, Robert Kuok and Ananda Krishnan. Tan has just announced his retirement, Kuok unhappy with the worsening racial system in the country has chosen to stay Hong Kong, while Ananda is wanted by the Indian authorities for allegedly having corruptly wangled a telecoms licence to buy into Aircel.

This pooling of wealth in the hands of a few inevitably left the ordinary Malays and Malaysians with just a few crumbs to share amongst themselves, a slow-boil situation that has blown up to today's red-hot disputes about social and economic fairness. Not only is there not enough money for scholarships, education, healthcare, employment and welfare for everyone, even the Malays who have been repeatedly told by Mahathir's Umno party that they will get priority, have left in the lurch.

Malays now form 96% of the poorest 40% lowest income earners in the country. As for the non-Malays, of course, they have felt the pinch more. Many have been forced to go overseas to work and to study. That's right, educational and employment opportunities are scarce for the non-Malays in the country. Again, the only group that benefited were the elite in the Umno party, their families and cronies. So Mahathir - despite his self-praise - was in fact rather shortsighted. Money was far more important to him than he cared to admit.

Trusting the wrong people

The third mistake that Mahathir made was choosing the wrong people for the wrong jobs. He also trusted the wrong people. All of the Malays tycoons that he picked had no real business savvy but were merely the trusted aides of former Finance minister Daim Zainuddin. That is why guys like Tajuddin, Halim, Rashid Husein of RHB Bank, Mohd Noor Mutalib and Abdul Rahman Maidin of MRCB fared poorly in the end. Some have even been hauled to court to settle debts.

Only Daim Zainudin remains 'filthy' rich. His nominees ended up owning all the various banks and business enterprises meant to be transferred into Umno Baru. Somehow, as the Umno legend goes, Daim managed to secure these for himself. This was obviously a huge letdown for Mahathir. Instead of 'tricking' people over to his point of view, for once, he had been had!

Set Malaysia off on the borrowing habit

Mahathir did not foresee that the National Debt could be as high as it is today, having ballooned to over RM450 billion. Despite several 'begging' trips to Singapore and Brunei, he was politely rebuffed. In the end, he borrowed from overseas by issuing bonds and 'stealing' every spare sen from Petronas and the other Government-Linked-Companies to fund his mega projects. Throughout his 22-year rule, Mahathir never saved a sen for Malaysia for a rainy day. And this was his fourth mistake.

Weak grasp of economic principles

Mahathir is just an ordinary doctor; a general practitioner and not a specialist. His understanding of economics is as rudimentary as the average Malaysian. His idea of increasing the equity of the Malays is so simplistic - use the GLCs. Mahathir’s vision of doing business is by profiteering through controlling shares in as many companies as possible without considering the possibility of losing money. Sad to say, real life businesses involves losses, not just profits.

Mahathir’s economic policy was not based on any solid foundation and had never been tested in any country before. It was based on his opinions and viewpoints. If these had been any good or worked, many countries would have already implemented similar ideas centuries ago. Even established capitalist and communist economic systems have come under fire and economic collapse is a norm these days, part of a man-made boom and bust cycle. Several economists have even urged nations to revert back to gold-based currencies, an ancient and established type of monetary system, so what are Mahathir’s child-like economic concepts by comparison? His fifth mistake is therefore his skewed understanding of the economy. It led to the controversial de-pegging of the ringgit from the US dollar and the overnight closure of the CLOB share market trading in 1998 - two events that investors have still not forgiven Malaysia and Mahathir for.

Dictator syndrome

Mahathir's ego and unconscious desire to be a dictator is his sixth mistake. He amended the constitution to weaken the Agong and the Sultans and then made sure that the law and enforcement bodies obeyed him. He sacked the Chief Justice Tun Salleh Abbas and closed both eyes when judges were openly bought by those who had money. It would be tough for Malaysians and their investors to fully trust the judiciary system again. This is why the Umno-BN has lost its integrity and the people their faith in the coalition. Malaysians will always distrust whatever Umno-BN does even if it may be well-intentioned.

Racist policies

To prevent the disintegration of his policies and his misdeeds from being exposed, Mahathir had to resort to his favorite racial politics. He had to convince the Malays that what he had done was necessary and in their interests. He kept for himself the great jewels and gave out the small chips so as to convince the Malays that the war against the other races was real. The non-Malays had to be kept back. Thus the budget allocations for places like BTN or the National Civics Bureau where Malay graduates and civil servants were openly taught to be suspicious of the other races.

But not all the Malays bought it. Such teachings were against Islam and also against universal values. The Malays were left confused, while the non-Malays totally sidelined. So being racist is Mahathir's seventh mistake.

Corruption

If Mahathir and Umno have been successful in making sure Malaysia achieves developed nation status by 2020, why does the record show so many serious faults to date. There are only eight years to go but the economy is still in a shambles with the national debt soaring, racial and religious harmony in disarray, and the political situation worsening with Umno-BN now openly resorting to physical violence to stop the opposition from holding their rallies.

The education system is also leading nowhere, healthcare is getting worse and more expensive, the much-touted and corrupt 1Care already rejected before it can even come on-stream, law and order is still questionable, mismanagement and graft more entrenched than before in the Umno-BN government. Instant of all cylinders kicking in, and culminating into the realization of Vision 2020, Malaysia may go bankrupt instead. Not fighting corruption, but perpetuating it is Mahathir's eighth mistake.

Meddling with the running of the country

The majority of the Malays are poor and still need government help despite 55 years of Umno “successes“ (read failures). The non-Malays have been patient enough and have given Umno enough chances. They have waited until the third generation after the nation's independence in 1957 and they are now fed-up with Umno-BN. The same too is happening with the Malays. Those not in the direct line of the Umno gravy train, and this would be the great majority, are getting fed-up too. More have voted for the opposition and will continue to do so.

When Mahathir realized that things were turning sour, he handed over the baton to Abdullah Badawi, thinking that he could still control the running of the government by 'remote control'. But when things were not carried out as he had wished, Mahathir forced an ouster and replaced Badawi with Najib. Granted, the disorganized Badawi was in no capacity to lead Malaysia but Najib is just as incapable too. All through, instead of giving a helping hand, Mahathir continued to meddle with the running of the country. Interfering with the running of the country and disallowing the current leaders to put in solutions that suit the era is Mahathir’s ninth mistake.

Causing trouble in Umno and pushing Mukhriz up the ladder

Yet Mahathir stubbornly refuses to accept or to admit to his mistakes. This is one man who refuses to face up to reality. He is not really interested in the welfare of Malaysians at all, not even the Malays or Umno. He only wants to save his face and to make sure that his son Mukhriz will become prime minister no matter what deals he has to execute with the current batch of Umno warlords to effect this.

Ruthless and completely selfish, Mahathir would think nothing of creating chaos just to fulfill that ambition. After all, he could de-register Umno just to stay in power. Imagine what he won't dare to do to get Mukhriz in as Umno president. But it is this incessant interfering and trouble-making in Umno that will be his tenth and last mistake.

Mahathir will doom Umno, and in imploding, Umno will very likely take Mahathir down for the count.

Info : News

MCA - prepare to be the Opposition after GE-13!

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 08:42:15 PST

I MUST say the action, inaction, behaviour and words of the MCA leaders recently certainly display consistency and political maturity in preparing for their future after the next general election.

I noticed that the common trait of MCA leaders is to utter without using their brain, so much so they appear to be preparing to become federal Opposition politicians. Or worse still, the MCA leaders continue to insult the intelligence of Malaysians.

Take for example, the highway toll collection issue in the country.

Just because, under tremendous political pressure, the lame duck prime minister Najib Abdul Razak halved the Cheras-Kajang toll collection (not abolish as the pro-Barisan Nasional media tries to project), Federal Territory MCA Youth chief Senator Chew Lian Keng quickly seized the opportunity to bootlick so as to enhance his political future in BN.

Chew said in a statement: “While BN keeps its promise to abolish tolls (if so, why are we still paying RM1.90 to use the Cheras-Kajang Highway?), Penangites are still living in a dream thanks to (Penang Chief Minister Lim) Guan Eng.

“I fully support the announcement by Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Najib Razak regarding the abolishment of the RM1 charge at the 9th Mile toll plaza towards Kuala Lumpur and the 90 cent charge at the 11th Mile toll plaza towards Kajang along the Cheras-Kajang Highway. Besides that, I also wonder when is Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng going to abolish the Sungai Nyior toll and the Penang Bridge toll as previously promised to the people before the 12th General Election?”

Is Chew so ignorant to the following:

>That toll collection is a federal government matter. Is Pakatan Rakyat (PR) already in control of Putrajaya? and

> That the PR has consistently pledged to abolish toll should it be given the mandate by the people to govern Malaysia

Chew must be thinking PR has taken over Putrajaya and is, therefore, calling Guan Eng to step down if he cannot abolish the Sungai Nyior toll.

Or, perhaps, Chew is also as idiotic as Miss Jessie ‘Tow Truck’ Ooi, assuming Malaysians are also as idiotic as them.

Consistency

The consistency that I am pointing out in MCA is also displayed by party Youth chief Wee Ka Siong who is upset with Kajang councillors for wearing green at the groundbreaking ceremony of SJKC Sungai Long.

Not to be outdone by Chew, Wee wrote that the wearing of green had disrupted the ceremony. Obviously, green has become an ugly colour for BN and MCA because it reminds the rakyat of the Lynas nuclear shit, a public health hazard which can cause slow death to those exposed to radiation.

But the ugly scene of Umno-Perkasa hooligans, manhandling and beating up anti-Lynas demonstrators on Penang island’s Esplanade ground, is nowhere in Wee’s radar.

MCA has been reduced to a party that is not only subservient to Umno but also to Malay non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like the racist Perkasa.

Wee also continues to ramble the same nonsense, year in and year out, that the DAP has never delivered on their promises pertaining to Chinese education.

Again, I guess it is time for Malaysians to send PR to Putrajaya in the next general election so that Malaysians can judge whether the DAP and PR can deliver.

Giving the rakyat peanuts, while they take billions

It is so crystal clear that the goodies being dished out by Najib to the rakyat recently is to pacify the restless rakyat to continue to support the BN in the next general election which must be held by March next year.

Malaysians are fully aware of this, and also that the goodies did not come from the pockets of BN leaders or the BN government. It is from the contributions of loyal Malaysian taxpayers.

In short, the rakyat are the masters and that any government of the day will be able to dish out goodies, not just the BN government.

What is really threatening Malaysians and Malaysia’s future is the corrupt BN government and its tacit support for the likes of Perkasa, Jati, Utusan Malaysia, etc to freely divide Malaysians so as to continue to rule and plunder the country’s wealth.

What Najib and BN are dishing out to the rakyat are peanuts compared with the billions of corrupt money being siphoned via cronies and one-sided project agreements that cripple the government (read taxpayers).

At the moment, accept and take what Najib and BN have to offer and give, but when the general election comes, vote with your heart and conscience because it is about your children’s future.

The national ballot paper of Malaysians is the master, not BN.

Info : News

JB, Lido..... kau menjelma lagi

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 07:54:00 PST

JB, Lido..... kau menjelma lagi

JB, Lido....kau mengamit nostalgia silam
kemasan persisiran pantai, deruan angin Lido suatu ketika
menjadi saksi kesumat mutlak
pertemuan tawarikh yang abadi
tanpa rancang....tanpa perjanjian....tanpa rencana....
kita diketemukan buat acap kalinya

Hati ku bergetar kala melihat sinaran tatapanmu
diri mu umpama sebutir permata yang sirna
suatu ketika akulah dunia, bulan dan bintang
anganku.....
andai dapat ku undurkan putaran dunia
ingin aku kembali kekitaran ketika dan saat itu
untuk merancang....merencana....merungkai perjanjian
agar pertemuan kita kala itu lebih romantik dan syahdu
namun JB, Lido.... kau disederetan sejarah kini
kerana angan ku tidak berkesempatan

19 tahun putaran masa berlalu
JB, Lido.... kau menjelma lagi kala ku ditemani
kekosongan....
kesepian....
kesunyian....
ketandusan...
ketika aku keguguran dalam kehancuran

Dulu pernah ada cinta
dulu pernah ada kasih sayang
dulu pernah ada belaian
dulu pernah ada hilai tawa
dulu pernah ada gurau senda
kini tiada lagi
ditelan kerakusan ajenda masa dan keadaan yang kejam

Sekelip mata kau berubah
meninggalkan aku dengan luka yang teramat
kejammm........!
hancur hati ku
telah kau sakiti perasaan ini
apa salah ku?
apa dosa ku?

JB, Lido...sampaikan kerinduan nestapaku kepadanya
katakan, katakan dan laungkan padanya
rindu ku tak bisa tertahan lagi
cinta dan kasih sayang ku tetap seutuh JB, Lido.... 19 tahun lalu
walau sekali pun aku dibatasi kebencian teramat

JB, Lido.... jelmalah engkau
Bayangilah masa masa silamku
Meskipun keujudan mu kini telah dinoktahkan
aku pasrah dan tega
aku tak bisa untuk menahan mu

Disember 21, 2011 12:17am

I don't have love, I don't have JOB

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 07:26:31 PST

THESE dramatic photographs show the moment a suicidal young woman was dragged kicking and screaming to safety from a 32nd floor window ledge of a tower block.

Chinese police had to physically pull the 24-year-old, who once appeared in a television dating show, to safety after three hours of talks to persuade her to come down failed.

She had previously cut her left wrist with a stone and climbed out onto the ledge of the building under construction in Changsha.

While out on the ledge, she was seen talking on her mobile telephone. She reportedly complained that she had failed to kill herself. One police officer tied a rope to one of her feet, while the other grabbed her other foot.

The third officer then pushed himself from the balcony to the top of the bay window to hold the girl’s arm. Another two officers then pulled the girl back to the room.

Police said the woman was originally from Pinjiang County outside of Yueyang City in Hunan Province, and once participated in a dating show on television.

When asked afterwards why she wanted to kill herself, she repeatedly said: 'I don't have love, I don’t have a job, my family hates me, and everyone is very disappointed in me.'

Info : News

Girl, 11, raped by schoolboy street gang members in McDonald's restaurant toilet

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 07:06:06 PST

Terrifying attack: The final attack happened in the toilets of this McDonald's in East Ham

An 11-year-old girl was raped in a McDonald’s toilet in a campaign of sex attacks involving up to eight underage members of a street gang, a court heard yesterday.

They took it in turns to rape the child a dozen times over several months at various east London locations.

As if the ordeal of being raped wasn't enough, they later beat her up as a warning not to tell anyone about what had happened.

The sex attacks, on three separate dates between September 2009 and March 2010, are said to have been motivated by a ‘mixture of bullying and possibly gang bravado’.

The 11-year-old was first attacked in a park by two boys, one said to be the gang leader who was the youngest member, aged just 13 at the time, Inner London Crown Court heard.

He led a second attack at his east London home, involving a queue of up to eight thugs.

On the final occasion in March 2010 she was cornered by three boys in the McDonalds toilet in East Ham, where one of them raped her.

The leader, now 15, was convicted of two rapes following a trial but he was released on bail yesterday, ahead of sentencing next month.

He claimed he was playing football at the time but jurors rejected his story. Another 15-year-old boy earlier admitted raping the girl in the McDonald's cubicle.

At one of the suspect's houses, police also discovered pornographic images depicting a gang rape attack.

Prosecutor Elizabeth Smaller said: ‘The girl appears to have been raped in furtherance of an unattractive mixture of bullying and possibly gang bravado.’

Horrific: The first attack on the 11-year-old was at Central Park in Canning Town, East London where the ringleader and another boy started asking her about sex and then both raped her

The girl first met the gang on a bus and they went to Central Park in Canning Town, where the ringleader and another boy started asking her about sex.

‘She went to walk off - but she was pulled back by one of them. She said to him 'don’t touch me' but he turned her round and she ended up in a corner.

‘She remembers saying 'can’t you leave me alone' but she also said that she knew what was going to happen and in the end, just let it happen.’

After the first boy had sex with her, jurors heard a second then raped her too.

This was followed by bullying, with the boys calling and texting her not to tell anyone what had happened, the court heard.

A week later, the girl went to the ringleader’s home in east London, where she was attacked by him followed by the rest of the gang.

A couple of weeks later, she was beaten up again, and afterwards she was verbally abused by some girls - asking her why she was with the gang and calling her a slag,' said Ms Smaller.

Several months later, the girl was spotted by the 15-year-old in McDonald’s in East Ham, and he followed her into the restaurant’s toilets where he proceeded to rape her.

She initially did not say anything about the attacks, but was convinced to go to the police by a cousin in September 2010.

When police searched the home of the boy who was later cleared, they found pornographic pictures on his laptop depicting a gang rape similar to the attack in the bedroom.

His mother told the court the porn actually belonged to her and 'even though she admitted she thought the images were nasty, she claimed she had looked at them out of curiosity,' said Ms Smaller.

The boys were arrested in September 2010, and officers seized their computers.

Police recovered details of a Facebook conversation about the girl contacting police between the ringleader and another 15 year-old boy.

‘There was a Facebook chat between the two boys, where they discussed the rumours that she had gone to the police,’ said Ms Smaller.

During their police interviews the boys denied raping the girl, and answered ‘no comment’ when asked specifically about the girl.

The 15-year-old ringleader denied three counts of rape and was convicted of the first and third offence.

The 15-year-old admitted the McDonalds rape.

A 16-year-old denied the Central Park rape and was cleared.

A third 15-year-old was also cleared of rape.

Miss Smaller said there was only enough evidence to bring charges against the four teenagers, but others may be prosecuted in the future.

Following the verdicts Judge Patricia Lees allowed the leader bail with a strict tagged curfew ahead of sentencing on March 20.

Info : News

Exposed - couple behind naked Internet video chat scam

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 06:09:04 PST

The couple allegedly responsible for extorting money through a naked Internet video chat have been exposed.

Yap Siew Ting, 17, and Alexander Soh Zhi Ren, 22, were arrested together with Yap's mother and her mother's boyfriend at Blk 32, Marsiling Drive on Feb 27.

Yap's mother and her boyfriend, who were two of six people arrested in connection with the scam, have been released.

One victim, an NTU student, lost $97,000 over nine months as a result of the scam.

Yap and Soh were charged in court for allegedly extorting $6,000 from a student in January 2012.

They are believed to be involved in other similar cases, and will be back in court next Wednesday.

The maximum penalty for extortion is seven years' jail and caning.

The victim had befriended Yap on Internet chat room, Alamak.com sometime in May last year. He started a webcam conversation with her, and was persuaded to appear naked on the webcam.

Unknown to him, the woman recorded the footage and threatened to circulate his photos online if he did not transfer money to her.

The man complied and transferred a total of $5,000, but the extortion did not stop.

In all, he transferred a total of $97,000 to various bank accounts provided by the woman over nine months in more than 80 transactions.

According to Chinese language daily Lianhe Wanbao, the victim lives with his family in a condominium in Yio Chu Kang. His father is a doctor while his mother is a housewife.

Info : News

Stop Lynas, save Malaysia… but from what?

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 05:48:22 PST

MARCH 2 — Quick, name me another politician who is as passionate in opposing Lynas as Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh.

How about this instead: name me a politician who dared to break ranks on this Lynas issue. Besides that “nuclear scientist” guy. (His name is Che Rosli Che Mat by the way, and he taught nuclear science in UKM.)

If you are like the general public, you might have trouble naming names. Hence, the moment Tan Keng Liang of Gerakan demanded that Pakatan Rakyat politicians just shut up and agree with Che Rosli’s opinion unless they possess scientific arguments, he created an impasse that drew silence from most of his detractors.

Our elected representatives’ poor grasp on science (in this case, some basic nuclear physics) proved to be their undoing. As a result, both sides decided to either opt out or just toe their respective parties’ lines. A crucial environmental issue had effectively transformed into a political row with the government on Lynas’ side and opposition on the other.

To put things into perspective, let us recap what rare earths are, and what they are not. Rare earths by themselves are not radioactive. The by-product from their extraction, however, can contain thorium, and is radioactive. Thorium emits alpha-particles, instead of beta-particles — used usually for cancer treatments — or gamma-particles — the most dangerous of all, or in fiction, turns one into a green angry giant.

Alpha-particles cannot even go through human skin, but materials emitting it are harmful once eaten or breathed in. So, when people talk about the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP) being radioactive, they should actually mean its waste is radioactive, not rare earths or the plant itself.

Che Rosli had a point when he accused his colleague of being unscientific. The same accusations can be directed towards a segment of public with anti-Lynas sentiments too, who are prone to exaggerations and scare-mongering with their appeals to emotions. It is understandable though that they would go to such lengths. After all, the consequences might be too big to bear. But are such tactics justified?

After the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, the industry has struggled to regain its credibility. Nothing illustrates this difficulty more than some anti-Lynas activists who discredit themselves by bringing this topic up. Comparing rare earth plants to nuclear power plants reeks of desperation, and is just downright sinister. No radioactive fuel is used, nor will meltdown happen, in a rare earth plant.

Closer to home, anti-Lynas activists point to the abandoned Asian Rare Earth (ARE) plant by Mitsubishi Chemicals in Bukit Merah. This comparison is unfair, for two major reasons. First, ARE was built more than 25 years ago, which in technological terms, is ancient. Second, ARE was built to extract the rare earth yttrium from mining leftover monazite, which can contain eight to 10 per cent thorium. In comparison. Lynas claims that LAMP will not be processing monazite, but mineral from the Mount Weld mine which is prized for having very low radiation, containing 0.17 per cent thorium.

The bulk of this fear can be attributed to the level of distrust against our ruling government and local authorities. A number of Malaysians just do not trust ourselves to run something that involves nuclear science. You’d have to wonder what these people have to say about our nuclear agency which has been running a nuclear reactor in Bangi since 1982.

As noted by my fellow columnist Hafiz Noor Shams, the government has been guilty of exaggerating the economic benefit of LAMP. A 12-year tax holiday, accepting collateral money from Lynas and keeping the public in the dark until New York Times broke the story — these are easy ammunition for anyone to shoot down a government that is increasingly being distrusted by the public.

Lynas, too, is no less shady. Their rush to complete the plant in more cost-effective Malaysia instead of Australia is tainted with suspicions of cost-cutting from two of their contractors. UGL Ltd and AkzoNobel have pointed out major flaws within the concrete containment area, which Lynas promised would spare local soil and groundwater from toxic contamination.

Considering that rare earth is now indispensable in our lives — we need to get them from somewhere, somehow — what we are left with now is a case of “not in my backyard.” Until LAMP starts operating and Molycorp restarts its California site, China holds the world ransom by controlling 97 per cent of the world’s supply. Complete disregard for environmental and legal concerns means an even worse fate for the Chinese.

Like many other Malaysians, I do wish for a cleaner and greener Malaysia, but it should go beyond a partisan affair. Che Rosli might only be a nuclear scientist (the Lynas effect is a more multi-faceted issue) but at least he had the conviction to go against party line and bring forth his own arguments.

Why aren’t there more BN politicians questioning the environmental impact of LAMP? Shouldn’t the PR politicians go beyond “if we are the federal government, we’ll shut Lynas down”? Will anyone take Tan Keng Liang’s challenge and come up with a factual retort instead of shouting “RADIOACTIVE!” over and over again?

Stopping Lynas and saving Malaysia… they don’t always need to be the same thing.

Info : News

Dr M: Minimum wage may bankrupt Malaysia

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 05:12:42 PST

Dr Mahathir said an increase in wages must be matched by an equal hike
in productivity. — File pic

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — Malaysia may become bankrupt as is happening now in the West if the federal government caves in to public pressure and sets a minimum wage policy, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today.

Still influential despite having retired from office in 2003, the former prime minister warned that the federal government’s seeming haste to adopt a minimum wage policy without taking into account the spike in public holidays to include the weekends and the holy days of all major religions was a serious risk to the country’s economy.

He described the West as bankrupt because they were unable to sustain the practice of paying large salaries for employees despite working them less, especially with the Asian markets becoming more competitive.

“I fear Malaysia may be heading this way if we pay more for less work, as we are doing now,” Dr Mahathir said in the latest post on his chedet blog.

“Increasing incomes must raise the cost of production unless there is a corresponding increase in productivity,” he added.

He highlighted that a setting a minimum wage would trigger cascading hikes in other areas, including pay for overtime work and the mandatory rates to the national pension fund.

He said cutting down development spending would not be good for a rapidly developing nation and cautioned Malaysians to be more competitive.

Various labour unions, including from the civil service, have been pressing Putrajaya to set a fair minimum wage of about RM1,500 since last year after several Southeast Asian nations hiked pay levels.

Human Resource Minister Datuk Dr Subramaniam Sathasivam had said that the government would decide on setting one at end of last year, but has since postponed it following outcry from the public sector following a revised wage scheme.

Last November, Selangor became the first state to pass a law for minimum wage to be set at RM1,500.

Info : News

Help us help you, Najib tells Kelantan

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 05:00:44 PST

Najib said the promised development would be founded on
“strong Islamic values and principles”. — File pic

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — Voters in Kelantan were today promised sweeping improvements to their economy and infrastructure by the Barisan Nasional (BN) if they were to put the coalition back in charge of the state it lost in 1990, Bernama Online reported.

“We pledge to make over the landscape but the changes will be based on strong Islamic values and principles,” Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was quoted as saying in the report.

Among the developments that would be derived under BN rule, said Najib, were upgrades to the water supply system, housing, and other forms of basic amenities.

Speaking in Jeli today, the prime minister told attendees that an administration needed more than just an Islamist foundation to govern the Muslim community successfully.

“We are not just talking about the importance of a strong akidah (faith), but Muslims also need to have sound akhlak (moral values) and be knowledgeable,” he was quoted further by Bernama Online.

“Sloganeering alone does not make Muslims strong.”

Najib later announced a RM1 million fund to set up an Islamic centre at Universiti Malaysia Kelantan.

Info : News

Girl, 15, FOUND After Missing And Proclaimed Dead From Sumatra Tsunami SEVEN YEARS AGO

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 04:34:39 PST

The girl identified as Wati, now 15, was just eight-years-old when she was separated from her family as a massive wave crashed into their village in Ujong Baroh on the island of Sumatra.

This was the moment a girl believed to have been killed in the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami was reunited with her father Yusuf.

Her mother, Yusniar had been trying to escape the waters to safety with Wati and her two siblings when she lost her grip on the little girl, according to the Indonesian news agency Antara.

Wati then disappeared into the consuming water and was swept away to her apparent death.

Yusniar managed to hold onto her other two children and became resigned Wati had perished.

Her family made several attempts to find her but she was not seen since.

But on Wednesday the girl’s grandfather Ibrahim met a friend at his home in the city of Meulaboh.

He took along a teenage girl he had found who had no memory of her family.

She had been discovered sitting alone in a coffee bar but when questioned she said that she had arrived in the city by bus from Banda Aceh and was trying to find her way home, The Telegraph reported.

Ibrahim immediately suspected that she could be Wati and contacted Yusinar and her husband who arrived to meet her.

The couple said they recognised the girl as their daughter after seeing a distinctive mole and scar on her elbow from when she was six-years-old.

It remains unclear what happened to Wati in the seven years since she disappeared.

The deadly tsunami, triggered by an 8.9-magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean and killed more than 150,000 people in several countries in southern Asia.

Info : News

Woman Arrested After Searching Craigslist To Find A Dog To SEXUALLY ABUSE

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 01:26:36 PST

Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office deputies busted Walker, her husband Shane, a 38-year-old flight attendant, and Robert Aucker, 29, on a felony count of conspiring to commit an act of bestiality.

A 33-year-old photographer, Sarah Walker, was arrested yesterday by Arizona cops for allegedly plotting with her husband and another man to procure a male golden shepherd so that she could have sex with the dog.

According to a probable cause affidavit, an undercover investigator earlier this month spotted a Craigslist ad titled “Wife looking for a K9,” which noted, “Let us know were [sic] and when we are looking for now.” During an exchange of e-mails with the targets, the undercover detective was told that the husband and wife “wanted a male dog to have sexual intercourse with the wife.”

At one point during the correspondence, the investigator was “offered sexual favors with the wife before the bestiality would occur,” the affidavit reports.

The February 6 Craigslist “casual encounters” ad, which remains on the popular web site, can be seen here.

The Walkers and Aucker were arrested yesterday when they traveled to a hotel to meet up with the undercover “for what they believed would be bestiality.” According to investigators, Sarah said she and her husband were “swingers.” She also copped to telling her husband and Aucker that she “wanted a dog to have sex with her.”

Aucker, a car salesman, told deputies that Sarah had told him she “had a fantasy of having a dog mount her.” Aucker added that he had met Sarah via a separate Craigslist ad, and had sex with her “one time prior.”

The suspects, investigators reported, told deputies that while Sarah was having sex with the dog, the two men would observe the encounter. The trio also believed that the dog owner “would also join in for intercourse” with Sarah. Additionally, the affidavit discloses that the group had “exchanged anatomical photos of a dog’s penis as well as other unknown animal photos.”

The Walkers, freed from custody this afternoon, were ordered by a judge to arrange alternate care for their two Pomeranians, since they will not be allowed to live with the dogs during the pendency of the criminal case.

On her business web site, Walker notes that, “I specialize in weddings, fashion, portraiture, events, and product photography.” She adds, “I am incredibly laid back and love to have fun with my clients. My style is warm and genuine, yet edgy and funky when it comes to expression.”

Info : News

High School Teacher, 41, Resigned, Left Wife And Kids To Move In With 18-YEAR-OLD STUDENT

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 00:51:42 PST

A high school teacher, 41, resigned from his job and left his family so he could move in with a former student, now 18, he is having a relationship with.

Police are now investigating to discern whether or not something inappropriate or illegal took place before she turned 18.

Since then, the teen’s mother has waged a public campaign on Facebook after her daughter moved out of their home. She is alleging Mr Hooker actively pursued her daughter when she was underage and said his actions are tantamount to abuse.

The 41-year-old left his wife and children – one of whom is a year younger than Jordan and went to the same school – to move into an apartment with his teenage lover.

Mr Hooker was placed on administrative leave on February 3 by Modesto High Schools before resigning a few weeks later.

He taught business and IT as well as running several after-school clubs, one of which Jordan was a member.

Speaking to the Sacramento Bee, he said: ‘In making our choice, we’ve hurt a lot of people. We keep asking ourselves, “Do we make everyone else happy or do we follow our hearts?”‘

Jordan’s mother Tammie Powers is blaming Mr Hooker for pursuing her daughter and taking advantage of her.

She claims her daughter’s grades fell this year and she started to have panic attacks ‘from the stress’.

She said Jordan was always a good and ‘compliant’ daughter.

She told The Bee: ‘I was really, really careful. I wanted her to be safe. In hindsight, in retrospect, I should have looked at things differently.

‘She looked up to him. He was in the position of an educator, you don’t abuse your student. Period.

‘She’s still in high school. She still lives at home. She has a curfew. That’s not OK.’

Jordan has now stopped attending classes at the school and is doing independent study.

She and Mr Hooker both maintain they only got together once she turned 18 and their feelings blossomed as they spent time together during and after school.

‘He’s my best friend’, she told ABC. ‘I mean, he’s more than just a lover.’

The former teacher said he felt nothing for the teen when she was in his business class.

‘She was just a student,’ he said. ‘There was no attraction. There was nothing that was out of the ordinary, as opposed to any other student. We were very much a teacher-student role.’

Mrs Powers does not believe these claims. She discovered up to 8,000 text messages exchanged between them, emails and late night phone calls.

She has now even started a Facebook campaign against Hooker, calling him a ‘sicko’ and a ‘pervert’

Mr Hooker said, though he is being investigated, he is confident that he will be cleared of any inappropriate behaviour, but said he can see why people would be alarmed.

He told ABC: ‘I think the stigma of the teacher-student relationship just makes it messy, makes it really hard for people to get through to the point that we really do like each other.

‘We really do want to have a future together.’

Info : News

A-G sends back NFCorp investigation papers to police

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 22:22:34 PST

Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail did not specify why the papers
were sent back to the police. — File pic

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — Investigation papers on the National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) have been sent back to the police, Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Khalid Abu Bakar said today.

He was quoted by The Star Online as saying that the Attorney-General wanted more investigations to be conducted on the case but did not specify why the papers were sent back to the police.

CCID director Datuk Syed Ismail Syed Azizan recently confirmed that the police had recommended that the Attorney-General’s Chambers charge NFCorp directors with criminal breach of trust.

NFCorp, which operates national cattle-farming project, is chaired by Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail, the husband of federal minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil. Their three children also hold executive posts in the company.

The company has denied any criminal breach of trust in its loan agreement with the government and has accused the police of “unfairly” pre-empting the charge.

The NFC hit the headlines after it made it into the Auditor-General’s Report last year, and has continued to hog the limelight after it was linked to Shahrizat and her family. NFCorp has been accused repeatedly by PKR of siphoning off funds meant for the cattle-farming project and channelling them towards unrelated expenses like the purchase of several luxury condominium units in Bangsar and Singapore and land in Putrajaya as well as to fund personal umrah trips.

The company has also been accused of using part of the RM250 million government soft loan for companies owned by Shahrizat’s family members that are unrelated to the cattle-farming scheme.

Salleh told The Malaysian Insider this week the company intends to sell its beef products abroad as the local market was too small to support its intended output.

He explained that NFCorp was now building up the market in Singapore and will do the same in Indonesia as the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) was on target to produce 78,000 tonnes of beef by 2015.

The NFC, which is supervised by NFCorp, was set up in 2007 to provide food security and attain 40 per cent self-sufficiency for beef production by 2015.

Info : News

2011.....2012

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:59:41 PST

2011.....2012

Tik....Tik....Tik....
masa....
kau tetap berlalu pergi
dalam apa jua keadaan sekali pun
megah melangkah membelah badai
tanpa menoleh kebelakang

2011....
hanya berapa detik dan saat
cuma....
keujudan mu akan berakhir jua
meninggalkan nostalgia suka dan duka
pahit dan manis kehidupan manusiawi

2011....
tiada apa yang harus ku ungkapkan
tiada jua ungkitan
kau meninggalkan noktah hitam
kesan kehancuran keharmonian hidupku
hidupku musnah sama sekali
istana kasih yang ku bina
sekian lamanya
berkecai berderai ketika waktumu

2011....
ku kira panas hingga keakhiran waktu mu
namun gerimis mengundang
mengugat kestabilan ketenanganku
perjalanan waktuku musnah sekelip mata
dik kerana kesilapan dan kealpaan
akal fikiran insani

2011....
kau mengajarku tentang kehidupan sebenar
mendewasakan pemikiran cetek ku
membuka minda yang tertutup rapat
selama ini....
namun aku tidak pernah kesal
dengan apa yang terjadi
sudah tersurat
mungkin....

2011....
kini....aku sendirian
untuk menempuh gelora kehidupan
yang tiada siapa akan dapat menduga
perjalanan waktunya
aku....
mengucapkan selamat datang
kepada 2012
semuga hidup ku bersinar dan bercahaya
kembali....
didalam waktu waktu mu

2011....
selamat tinggal untuk mu
walaupun berat untuk melepaskan
kau pergi....
jasamu ku kenang
kau akan ku rindui
bersemadilah engkau dengan aman

Disember 31, 2011 8:17pm

Mother Raped By Two Intruders – Then Physically Assaulted By POLICEMAN While Still Naked

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 11:05:17 PST

A San Antonio mother says she was raped. But she says that's not how she got horrific bruises and broken facial bones.

"They held me down on the floor naked and screaming," Rebecca Gibson said. "They are supposed to be the people that help, and they did more damage than any help."

The 29-year-old said she was kidnapped and sexually assaulted by two unknown suspects. Then when officers responded, she said she was treated inhumanely.

She said she went to her boyfriend's northwest-side home to look for her daughter the day after the rape. She says they got into a fight, and when officers responded, they found her naked and crying in a closet.

She said that's when they failed to follow protocol. Gibson said she asked for a female officer to help her because she had no clothes on. Instead, Gibson said an officer struck her.

"I said I didn't have any clothes on," Gibson said. "He came into the closet and punched me."

Gibson has hired a lawyer to follow up on the case.

"The aggressiveness and hostility toward this victim, it doesn't seem appropriate when dealing with sexual assault victims," said Augustin Arredondo Jr., Gibson's attorney.

Gibson said she was handcuffed even though she was still naked and taken to University Hospital.

According to hospital documents provided by Gibson's lawyer, "an ER nurse also reports the police officer was talking about it in a proud manner that he had hit her."

The San Antonio Police Department confirms that there is an ongoing internal affairs investigation.

On Monday night, the department released this statement:

"The preliminary investigation reveals an officer responded to the location for an individual refusing to leave. This individual appeared to be intoxicated and aggressive. After a brief struggle with police, she was subdued. During that struggle she was struck in the face. EMS arrived and she continued to be combative, refusing to cooperate. She was transported to a local hospital and released to their care."

"We take all allegations seriously and investigate them thoroughly," SAPD Sgt. Chris Benavides wrote in an email to KENS 5.

Meantime a rape kit has been administered, and the victim is waiting on DNA results.

Info : News

Woman Arrested For Flashing Breasts In Church – Then FLASHES JUDGE In Court

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 10:08:09 PST

Holly Van Voast, 46, was arrested after topless trip down the aisle of the famed New York Cathedral last month, and appeared in court today to face her sentence.

A performance artist known for flashing her bare breasts in public can now add a very holy spot to her growing list of conquests: St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

But it wasn’t her face- accessorized by a pencilled-in moustache- that was getting noticed.

After appearing before a judge, where it is believed that Van Voast kept her breasts under wraps, she couldn’t contain herself and sauntered over to the courthouse press room and let herself out in the open.

This wasn’t Van Voast’s first time in court for her daring habit: she appeared in court last fall after disrobing in Grand Central Station in October, and used that visit to strip in front of the shocked 89-year-old judge.

Van Voast, who sometimes goes by the name of her transgender performance character Harvey Van Voast, has also gone topless at the Statue of Liberty and on the Staten Island Ferry.

Growing list: In the past, she has gone bare breasted in Grand Central Station, the Statue of Liberty, the Staten Island Ferry, and Manhattan Criminal Court


	Uniform: Van Voast appears with her trademark pencilled-in moustache, tousled hair, camera, and sometimes wears stickers over her nipples

That legal speed bump didn’t stop her from setting her sights on higher- and holier- targets, so on January 30 Van Voast took off her top in St. Patrick’s and filmed the episode.

‘I had waited until the end of the afternoon service… I consider what I do advertisement in a way… I don’t like to disrupt other people no matter what their beliefs are,’ she posted on Facebook.

Security guards walked up to her and tried to cover her with their jackets before asking allegedly her to leave the premises- which she denies they did.

When she refused, she was handcuffed and arrested for criminal trespass, disorderly conduct, public exposure and possession of marijuana after police found two bags of pot in her bag.

Though her lawyer says that the arrest is bogus, as he questionably claims it is legal for women to bare their breasts in the state of New York and that her trespassing charge is not valid, she is less concerned about the legality and more about the publicity.

‘I want to have a reality show,’ she said after Tuesday’s appearance.

‘Nothing works like t***!’

‘This is what New York is begging for right now- something kind of funny, a little outrageous. Something that blows your mind.’

Info : News

Entah kenapa.... diriku merasa begitu ( Khas utk ct)

noreply@blogger.com (Sulaiman Kamal) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 09:09:06 PST

Entah kenapa.... diriku merasa begitu ( Khas utk ct)

Aduhai hati yang melati
entah mengapa....
entah bagaimana, pertama kalinya....
hati ini bagai di pukau....
ku rasa tak menentu
tika dirimu menjelma
sayang....
wajah mu menghantui harian ku
tersentuh tercuit jua galeri hati ini
apakah ertinya?

Entah mengapa....
kerapan rindu menujah menikam
berjalan berkeliling
Kekagetan menidakkan curahan hati
rasa malu menguasai diri
entah kenapa diriku merasa begitu....
cuba kau fahami perasaan isi hati ini
aku kekeliruan....
benarkah dalam
kesenyapan aku menyintai mu

Adakah sukar untuk kau memahaminya
betapa kerinduan mengamit lamunan pada mu
tegalah ....entah kenapa diriku merasa begitu....
sesungguhnya aku telah jatuh cinta
alam maya, bulan bintang, deruan angin, desiran ombak
seakan melagukan irama indah
bila saat bersamamu
Moga kau dapat menerima
keikhlasan cintaku
jangan kau persiakan
keutuhan....
harapan dan impianku

Disember 24, 2011 4:12pm