People of Sabah, KICK BN OUT, Thank You!

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

MAHATHIR'S INFAMOUS PROJECT IC
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Project IC is the name used in Malaysia to describe the systematic granting of citizenship to immigrants (whether illegal or legal immigrants) by giving them identity documents known as IC (identity card), and subsequently, MyKad. The practice is centered in the state of Sabah in East Malaysia. The term is used mainly by the media as well as other political commentators and the general public.


Another term used is Project M, where "M" stood for Mahathir Mohamad, the former prime minister of Malaysia, owing to his being allegedly involved in the spearheading of this project. The object of Project IC was to alter the demographic pattern of Sabah to make it more favorable to the ruling government and certain political parties, especially with regards to changing the electoral patterns.

The project, in its widespread and intensive form, is suspected to have begun in the early 1990s after the entry of United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) into Sabah politics. However, there were also allegations of mass immigration and naturalization of migrants in the 1970s under the United Sabah National Organization (USNO) government, and in the early 1980s under the BERJAYA government. On a nationwide scale, illegal immigration is a major social issue. The problem is linked with phantom voters, a phenomenon also noted in other parts of Malaysia during elections.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

PROJECT IC BOILS OVER IN SABAH

By Newmond Tibin
Malaysian National News Agency
January 19, 2007 22:12 PM

KOTA KINABALU, Jan 19 (Bernama) - Former Internal Security Act (ISA) detainee Hassnar Ebrahim shocked a lot of people, particularly the locals, when he exposed a Malaysian identification card (IC) scam or known as Project IC in Sabah, in a recent interview with a local newspaper.

The locals here are stunned as many of them who reside in the state's interiors have yet to own the sophisticated Malaysian IC or MyKad, but based on Hassnar's claims, it seems that the card was easily accessible to foreigners.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

While Project IC is not a new issue in Sabah, it continues to be debated by many who express concern as the matter is related to the issue of illegal immigrants in Sabah which is perceived as the mother of all social woes in the state.

Hassnar, an entreprenuer, confessed that he unknowingly became involved with others who made it possible for thousands of foreigners to secure Malaysian ICs.

The former Sandakan district chief, while refusing police's request to make a statement on the issue, however, is willing to give testimony in court.

Hassnar was detained under the ISA on Aug 9, 1998 for two months, and then placed under house arrest for two years in Sandakan from Sept 6, 1998. He was also among the material witnesses in the Likas election petition trial in 1999.

Meanwhile, Sabah Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) deputy chairman Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan has claimed that currently there are 1.7 million foreigners in Sabah, including 600,000 who possess the ICs.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

Responding to the allegation, former Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak challenged Dr Jeffrey to list the names of the 1.7 million people but the latter has so far not done so.

Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said the state government viewed the matter very seriously and was doing all it could to solve it.

He asked those who exposed the issue to come forward and cooperate with the police.

"Do not simply talk through the newspapers. Cooperate with the authorities," said Musa, who also directed the National Registration Department (NRD) and the Immigration Department to explain the issue to the public in the interest of all.

Following the expose, Sabah police commissioner Datuk Mohd Mokhtar Hassan had requested Hassnar to assist police in the investigation.

He said the police could not complete the investigation into Project IC without the cooperation of those with information.

As such, the police were putting Hassnar's statement on the issue on record to speed up the investigation, he added.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

Mohd Mokhtar said the police would not arrest Hassnar or anyone without sufficient proof to link them with the criminal activity.

Several residents here met by Bernama, however, admitted they were from the Philippines and had secured the Malaysian IC through the said project.

"True. Project IC exists. I secured my IC from the project in the early 1980's," said Fuad Arif from Tawi-Tawi island, the Philippines, who now resides in Kampung Sabang in Menggatal, near here, with his family.

According to him, he came to Sabah in the mid-1970's with his parents, and they had stayed at Pulau Mantanani before moving to the village.

"After living here for several years, I finally received my Malaysian IC in 1984. At that time, a middleman came to our village to distribute the cards.

"I still remember the middleman coming to every house in the village to fill up forms for the IC and collect the fee of about RM10 each for stamp duty.

"One of the documents used to support the IC application was the late birth certificate registration letter," he recalled.

Fuad said that once the ICs were ready, the middleman would return to the village to distribute the cards to the residents, who were immigrants and had lived there for a long time.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

In fluent Bahasa Melayu, he said that his family believed that they would have a better future in Sabah compared to Tawi-Tawi.

"There is no unrest here. We are free to roam anywhere we want. We can go to Tanjung Aru, Mount Kinabalu or Kota Kinabalu," said Fuad, who is the holder of the IC bearing registration number H0504933.

Earlier, Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) secretary-general Radin Malleh had questioned the authencity of ICs with numbers starting from H0288001 to H03840000, involving 96,000 holders; H0480001 to H05760000 (96,000); H0609601 to H0610000 (400); H0658001 to H0658200 (200); H0658401 to H0659000 (600); and H0666001 to H0666400 (400), saying he had taken up the matter in the Dewan Rakyat when he was the Member of Parliament for Tenom.

Another Kampung Sabang resident, Jamili Bungsu, 53, said the issuing of ICs under the project was rampant in the early 1980's until 1985.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

"Just imagine, in the early 1980's at Kampung Pondo in Pulau Gaya (near Kota Kinabalu), there were only about 10 houses there. But the number soon increased to almost 500 squatter homes whose occupants were immigrants from the Philippines.

"It was not their fault that there were locals who were willing to arrange getting the ICs for them. Not many knew who were the masterminds behind the operation. It might have been done by those with high ranks as it was not easy to make an IC," he said.

Jaidy Kamlun, 26, from Kampung Pulau Gaya, said most immigrants who secured the ICs through the project had been living in the country for a long time and were involved in the state's development projects.

He said in Pulau Gaya alone, there were now more than 10,000 immigrants from a neighbouring country and most of them were helped by 'locals' to get the ICs.

(Photo courtesy of Ian Macfarlane)

"Of course the immigrants would grab the golden opportunity as it required no documents. Furthermore, they wanted to stay here. Most of them now have MyKads and can vote. As far as I know, the project not only benefited Filipinos, but those from Indonesia, India and China. The modus operandi was the same, that was, through a middleman."

He said it was unfair to link immigrants holding the ICs with criminal activities in Sabah.

"Perhaps some of them are involved in criminal activities or social problems but not all. Society's perception is inaccurate as we came here to earn a living.

"Our parents have lived in Sabah for a long time, and as a new generation, we do not desire to return to the Philippines. We are like the locals who love and are loyal to Malaysia," he said.

Jaidy supported the government's efforts to send back illegal immigrants to their home countries and prevent them from re-entering Malaysia.

"Let bygones be bygones. There is no need to determine whose fault it was. Let's work together towards a better Sabah," said Jaidy, who received his education up to Form Five here.

His views were echoed by his village friend Tamskie Abdul Said, 36, who said that until now, nobody knew who were the masterminds of the IC project that involved Pulau Gaya residents.

"Project IC was different from those involving fake identification cards. The immigrants preferred Project IC as fake ICs did not allow voting rights and the holder would be repatriated if caught by the police," he said.

Several quarters including political parties and non-governmental organisations in Sabah have expressed concern over the existence of Project IC as it could threaten the country's security and deny genuine citizens employment opportunities as blue collar workers.

In this regard, they have appealed to the government to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry to get to the bottom of the issue and ways to resolve it.

The state and federal governments are also aware of the illegal immigrant problem in Sabah.

Even the Barisan Nasional component parties including the PBS, United Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (Upko), Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), Liberal Democratic party (LDP) and Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) have been vocal in expressing their concern over Project IC. - BERNAMA

SABAHANS MAY PETITION BRITISH GOVERNMENT

A Sabah group is taking a page from Hindraf’s book - it is seriously considering petitioning the British government on the situation of illegal migrants in the state.

Having seen their proposal for a royal commission to probe the issue of illegal immigrants in the state rebuffed by BN lawmakers, the group is exploring the possibility of filing a petition to Britain through the Commonwealth office.

[Read the rest here.]

PARTY HOPPING & THE ETHICS OF DEFECTION (Reprise)

[This was originally posted on 7 April 2008. Five months down the line the topic has become even more cogent, so I'm reposting it!]

ONG KIAN MING is a PhD candidate in political science at Duke University and OON YEOH is a writer and new media analyst. You can listen to both of them discuss this topic in their Realpolitik podcast. Read the original post at Malaysiakini.

I can understand and, in principle, agree with Ong Kian Ming and Oon Yeoh's prescription of choosing the moral high ground over the political expedient of accepting crossovers to the Pakatan Rakyat from a disintegrating BN. However, much as the strategy of accelerating the Pakatan Rakyat's takeover of the Federal government through negotiated crossovers is fraught with uncertainties and ethical ambiguities, I would applaud - and even encourage - such a move.

One month after the tectonic shift of the March 8th elections, it is clear to all observers that the BN sadly lacks professional ethics and dedication to the national good. Instead of quickly regaining their dignity by openly and willingly cooperating with the new Pakatan Rakyat state governments, BN diehards like Azalina Othman and Mohd Khir Toyo are actively focused on sabotaging and punishing what they perceive as the enemy.


They are unable to see that the Pakatan Rakyat represents the will of an overwhelming majority of Malaysians. By declaring war against the Pakatan, BN has effectively become the enemy of the people and, as such, cannot be trusted to act in the public interest rather than its own narrow party interests.

Each day the Federal government continues to be under BN control is another day of momentum lost in the direction of genuine reform. There is no political will within BN to address urgent issues like judicial rot and a less than professional police force. Abdul Gani Patail stubbornly clings to his position as Attorney-General and nobody has resigned from the ACA. Police reports filed against members of the former state excos in Penang, Kedah, Perak and Selangor for illegally removing or destroying official documents and records have led to absolutely no action - or at least none that I'm aware of. THe BN-owned media obstinately persist in their ingrained habit of partisan reportage, and all Umno can think about is its own survival as a no longer relevant monoethnic political party in a new transethnic political landscape.

One thing we can be sure of: every move the BN makes from now on will be aimed at undermining the Pakatan Rakyat instead of seizing this historic moment to genuinely reform itself.

So, even though it will spawn a measure of ethical ambiguity, the pragmatic wisdom of dealing the BN government a death blow NOW - before they have time to drag us deeper into irreversible ruin - holds a strong appeal. Many of us, like Ong Kian Ming and Oon Yeoh, are wary of sudden, radical change. Ong and Yeoh are academics and theoreticians with no dirt on their hands. Seasoned politicians like Anwar Ibrahim, Nik Aziz and Lim Kit Siang understand that no movement is possible without a little bit of zigzagging - indeed, that's how bipeds move in an apparent straight line, by swinging from left to right and back again. Instead of fearing contradiction, let us embrace it as the only way to organic truth.

I would prefer to give the BN crossovers the benefit of the doubt. It would be totally unrealistic to assume that everybody who enters politics does so to serve his or her community. Every creature is programmed to seek optimum advantage for itself. The more intelligent ones know their self-advantaging activities have to align and coincide with what benefits the greater community, otherwise they will soon be curtailed. Let's envision this: if 30 BN crossovers allow Pakatan Rakyat the option of taking over the Federal government in 2008 instead of 2012, there will be far less likelihood that we will all be dragged down with the sinking BN.

Perhaps the price isn't such a high one? Some of these crossover politicians are doing so primarily because they feel their leadership potential hasn't been appreciated and cannot be realized within BN. Why not give them a chance to prove their worth as Pakatan Rakyat MPs? Take a closer look at the illustration of a frog above. If you lean your head to the right you'll see it turns into a horse - and right now the Pakatan Rakyat requires more horsepower to outrun the vicious BN dogs snapping at its heels.

SYED HAMID ALBAR: A CLOSET CHRISTIAN?

WHY ELSE WOULD HE BE INVOKING NABI ISA TO HELP HIM DEFEAT RPK?

Oh dear, what is this country coming to? On the eve of the Permatang Pauh by-election, Malaysia Today featured a statutory declaration by one Thangarajoo a/l Thangavelu, former chauffeur of Datuk Kenneth Eswaran, close personal friend of DPM Najib Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor, attesting that he had "on numerous occasions" driven a Hindu mystic named "Mr Ji" to the residence of Najib and Rosmah for the purpose of conducting Hindu prayer rituals "to ward off evil." Swamiji's magic is clearly potent, which might explain why neither Najib nor Rosmah has been subpoenaed to testify at the Altantuya murder trial, despite glaring evidence linking both to the crime.

And now here's the Arab home minister Syed Hamid Albar threatening to set Jesus (known as ISA to the Arabs) on puckish blogger king Raja Petra Kamarudin (known as RPK to his fans who number in the millions).

Well, I don't think this ploy will work. Jesus - or Yeshua as he was known to his friends and family - would probably side with RPK, being pretty much an anti-establishment type himself. Remember, he was also arrested for sedition 2,000 years ago.

Don't these imperious Roman General wannabes ever learn? 2,000 years ago, before digital tech arrived on planet Earth, truth-tellers like Yeshua had to travel from village to village giving ceramahs - just as Anwar continues to do today in order to reach rural folks who haven't yet plugged into the internet - no thanks to Telekom Malaysia's ludicrous monopoly that has long overstayed its welcome. These days those of us who are connected can post something on a blog and a million people can access it from the comfort and privacy of their own homes and offices.

Now if RPK has said anything "offensive" to anybody, they are free to retaliate by starting a phony blog like that Raja Mongrel scam sponsored by the 4th floor boys (too bad the blog has been deleted).
Absolutely no call to behave like alpha baboons with bared fangs shaking hyena bones at your presumed enemies. RPK may well be doing you a huge favor by showing you up for what you are before your hypocrisy gets you so deep in your own excrement you'll drown in it.

My advice to Syed Hamid: if you're really that pissed off with RPK, why not challenge him to a good old-fashioned Sumo-style wrestling match? I'll handle the publicity for you with pleasure. We'll call the match BOTAK VS BOTAK and stage it at the Bukit Jalil Stadium!

Rembrandt's rendition of a typical Yeshua ceramah.

When "Damage Control" Does Even More Damage...

Look what I found today on MarGeeMar's blog ;-)


Unfortunately the aspiring "doctor" was not smart enough and overlooked these things in his scam:

1. The domain eut.org.uk was registered by someone in Penang who originally gave his address as Sungai Dua, Pg. (This detail has since been removed from the Whois record of the domain name.)

2. The domain is parked at the nameservers of a web development company in Bukit Mertajam (how convenient); the site was probably developed by the same company, wsatp.com.

3. Domains's IP address is 202.71.98.130 and IP location: Selangor - Puchong - Telekom Multimedia Of Telekom Malaysia Berhad

4. Most of the text on the EUT site has been "borrowed," i.e. STOLEN from several other legitimate sites e.g. Honolulu University

Here is just ONE example. Compare the text on these two sites: EUT and Honolulu University.

Just in case, the aspiring doctor (who did complete his SPM by the way) decides to pull the plug on his website, you can see the Google cache of the site here while it is still available!

HERE'S ANOTHER DEAD GIVEAWAY (CHECK OUT THE DEFECTIVE SYNTAX - BUT CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE!)

And it comes with a fake "Certificate of Incorporation"!

Arif, oh Arif... kesian betul! If you don't mind my asking: Do you recall when was the last time you saw your own willy?

THE ANWAR PROPHECIES (from Malaysiakini)

[I'm cloning this clearheaded opinion piece by Joe Fernandez published in Malaysiakini for the benefit of those who still haven't subscribed.]

THE ANWAR PROPHECIES DISSECTED

Joe Fernandez | Sep 5, 08 12:05pm

They are still at it everywhere, at the teh tarik stalls, the warongs and kopi tiams, reliving the magic moments of Aug 26 in Permatang Pauh much like in the days when Tambunan in Sabah burst into the national headlines in 1984 and precipitated the fall of the Berjaya government.

Now, the wheels of fortune have turned once more and the worst nightmare of Umno has come true for the brigade of furious nail-biters in the party despite the sodomy II charges, "security" roadblocks on polling day and bizarre attempts to bus in phantom voters and an extended period of vote-counting.

The sons of the opposition MP, Gobalakrishnan, who spotted a phantom busload were even beaten up in public by the overzealous police on duty for their father’s act of public spiritedness.

Now, there are more than a few moments of disquiet these days in the corridors of power over a possibility that the powers-that-be had earlier dismissed as an elaborate opposition spin, even as they went into panic mode and kept pushing buttons at random.

Now, the tables have been turned, and it seems that it’s the spin of the government party machinery which seems to be spiraling out of control at the expense of the economy: savings and investments are down; jobs are slow; and prices, except that for the shares, keep moving north. There’s much to be said for the honest truth, decency, common sense and the realm of the possible in the art of political communication.

PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) Advisor Anwar Ibrahim had prophesized - predict being too mild a term - that he would take his seat in parliament as the opposition leader, opposite the prime minister and look into his eyes. His prophecy has now come true in the aftermath of Aug 26 when he took the Permatang Pauh seat which his wife, party chief Azizah, had kept safe for him through the ten long years when he was a lonely voice in the political wilderness.

What now? Will Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi blink, hang his head in shame or avert his gaze and squirm in his chair. This must be the most uncomfortable seat in the august house for now. From the opposition leader’s seat to the Prime Minister’s chair, it’s just a short hop, skip and jump away when the games of musical chairs begin.

Up to the MPs now

Members of parliament, the whispers along the grapevine goes, can now decide who they want as prime minister: Abdullah, who lost his home state, or Anwar who ironically is from the same place.

There’s already a father-and-daughter team here since eldest daughter Nurul Izzah, Puteri Reformasi, is in parliament as the member for Lembah Pantai. She easily wrested the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory seat on Sat 8 March from Umno Wanita deputy Sharizat who has been given a new lease of life as Special Advisor to the PM on Muslim Women’s Affairs despite an existing Ministry for Women. shahrizat abdul jalil

True, the sodomy II charges – conspiracy is another term used - hang like the proverbial sword of Damocles over Anwar’s head. All this will be academic if and when the opposition alliance, Pakatan Rakyat (People’s Pact), seizes the reins of power in Putrajaya by Sept 16, Malaysia Day, as predicted – prophecy being too strong a term for now - on the reformasi (reformation) theme of "Forgive, Not Forget."

Critics see a contradiction in terms here and forsee an accounting of scores under a Pakatan-led federal government. Anwar has pledged that there won’t be any acts of revenge – "although there must be a proper accounting", he said - but has admitted it was getting increasingly difficult to draw a line between "a proper accounting" and "an accounting of scores," "since the government continued to pursue him with a vengeance."

Ironically, it was not so long ago that IGP Musa Hassan, oblivious to the difficulties that it caused the man in the street, had parliament cordoned off for a five kilometer area to prevent Anwar from making an appearance. This was after obtaining an unprecedented court order, to arrest him if he appears within the five kilometer limit, amidst swirling rumours that police were hunting him down like a common criminal over allegations of sodomy.

Anwar’s house in Bukit Segambut is within the five kilometer limit and this fact alone must raised serious questions on the professionalism and competence of the police – "among the best in the world, if not the best", according to Musa Hassan - and cast severe doubts on the ability of the judiciary to properly scrutinize any application placed before them.

It is hard to dismiss that August 26 was poetic justice and the run-up may have had something to do with the IGP going into emergency surgery with a heart condition. Had his maker been kinder, he would have been spared the embarrassment and sheer humiliation that is sure to follow in the days, weeks and months ahead.

There was the case of one of his recent predecessors who did a spell in jail for beating up Anwar and giving him the infamous blue-and- black eye – Mahathir then explained that Anwar had punched himself to get public sympathy - which has now become the PKR logo.

If August 26 sealed the fate of the Umno-led Barisan Nasional government, after the electoral triumphs of March 8 - when Pakatan took 82 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, four states, one Federal Territory, and retained Kelantan - how will the finishing touches come for September 16?

What next?

What other prophecies are in store for the people?

Is Anwar Ibrahim entering parliament as the opposition leader on Thursday, August 28, the first step towards the September 16 "Revolution", the third political tsunami, that he has been pledging ever since the opposition alliance unleashed the first on Saturday, March 8.

Many Umno leaders, rattled by August 26, are casting nervous glances over their shoulders while others continue to pooh-pooh the idea that an even bigger calamity is in store for them down the road in the not too distant future. Both Umno vice-president Muhyiddin and Kelantan political warlord Tengku Razaleigh are among the former.

There is a distinct divide in the corridors-of-power between those who don’t dismiss the possibility of Sept 16 outright and those who, critics say, continue to be in "a state of denial."

The prime minister, not surprisingly, doesn’t see Permatang Pauh as indicating a trend nationwide. This is the same man who discounted "the Anwar factor" on the eve of the March 8 polls, adding he had forgotten all about Anwar. He spoke too soon. In hindsight, had Anwar qualified to run for public office on March 8, Umno and BN would have been consigned to the dustbins of history sooner rather than later.

Abdullah’s deputy Najib, plagued by continuing controversy, swears that Umno’s two-year transition of power plan is on track and vowed to take office in mid-2010. Is he speaking too soon as well?

Cynics note that there appears to be a lack of warmth in the relationship between the two men and add that anything can happen in two years. "Even a week is a long time in politics," point out the cynics, echoing a longtime truism on politics.. There is a theory making the rounds that both men, in fact, don’t really trust each other at all and work behind the scenes to undermine each other.

"It’s their common fear of Anwar that holds them both back from going for each other’s throats," says a former branch secretary of the Umno Bukit Bintang before it was declared unlawful by Justice Harun Hashim in the late ‘80s. "Najib sees Abdullah as an usurper. Abdullah sees no reason why he must have Najib as his deputy or even less reasons why he must hand over power to that man of all people."

Seven reasons why

In general, seven factors are driving the Sept 16 phenomenon: the Indian community; the Chinese; Malaysian Borneo; the Malay grassroots; BN component parties; the arrival of political ideology; and the desire among ordinary Malaysians to see real political and other changes in Malaysia:

1) The Indian community’s almost total withdrawal of support for Umno. The community is the deciding factor in 67 of the Parliamentary seats in Peninsular Malaysia. The community has belatedly realized that they have been squatted on by the system and the government over the last 50 years.

2) The Indian "desertion" has had spillover effects on the Chinese community. The Chinese have traditionally looked to Indian leadership in trade unionism, NGOs and the law.

3) Malaysian Borneo sees March 8 as presenting them with a historical "window of opportunity" to correct longheld grievances and win a more equitable share of the federal government.


4) Increasing disenchantment among the Malay grassroots over the Umnoputra syndrome, i.e. few among the elite and their hangers-on and fat cats living it up at their expense.

5) Rapidly dwindling enthusiasm among BN component parties for the Umno leadership; the irrelevance of the race-based politics of the BN vs Hindraf’s (Hindu Rights Action Front) emphasis on equal rights, makkal sakthi (people power) phenomenon; PKR’s ketuanan rakyat (supremacy of the people).

6) The call by the Islamists of PAS for the race factor, forbidden by Islam, to be kept out of politics; and DAP’s (Democratic Action Party) call for a Malaysian Malaysia.

7) The desire among Malaysians everywhere for a reformation of national institutions which have been eroded and compromised over the last 50 years and especially in the last two decades.

In Singghei, thirty minutes by road from Kuching, a weather-beaten old Bidayuh villager sums up: "We no longer want the BN. We want a change. That’s why we support Anwar Ibrahim. He’s standing up against all these big people who have been in power for so long. We have been taken for granted all these years. We need to think of what we are going to leave behind for the future generations."

BN's Blockhead of the Year Award

FROM CNET.NEWS: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission earlier this week ordered all 19 of the country's Internet service providers to block the controversial political portal Malaysia Today.

According to a report on Thursday by online news portal Malaysiakini, the MCMC chief operating officer, Mohamed Sharil Tarmizi, confirmed that the commission was behind the site blackout. "It is being blocked because we found that some of the comments on the Web site were insensitive, bordering on incitement," Mohamed Sharil said.

Local news reports indicated that users were unable to access Malaysia Today through three major ISPs: TMnet, Maxis, and Time. However, a check by ZDNet Asia on Thursday evening found that the portal could still be accessed through a mirror site.

Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar (left) said the block was justified, as Malaysia Today was publishing offensive content. He told reporters Thursday: "We do not intend to curtail people's freedom or right to express themselves. But when they publish things that are libelous, slanderous, or defamatory, it is natural for the MCMC to act."

What a joke. I have a browser window open on Malaysia Today right now. Since the MCMC ordered the block on MT I've only been unable to access the news portal on one occasion - and the delay lasted no more than a few hours. So what's the point of trying to block it - when the blockade doesn't actually work? Instead, thousands of Malaysians who haven't been paying close attention to local politics prior to this attempt to censor the Internet have probably now discovered the goodies to be found on RPK's infamous news site. Nothing like the taste of forbidden fruit.

Everything BN does backfires

Not only has the attempt to block Malaysia Today been totally ineffectual, it has also been extremely bad publicity for the Umno/BN government - something it certainly doesn't need. So what exactly have they achieved with this knee-jerk reaction?


They have only enhanced RPK's stature as a national hero and made his explosive No Holds Barred column even more credible. If what RPK is saying isn't true, why bother trying to shut him up?

RPK's prime target in recent days has been Najib Razak. By flatly accusing his wife, Rosmah Mansor, of ordering the vicious, cold-blooded murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, RPK has exposed himself to defamation charges which he is fully prepared to answer in court. Najib's greatest fear, however, is that in an open court, evidence might surface that could drag him and Rosmah into the spotlight. What if RPK's lawyers subpoena Rosmah Mansor and Najib Razak as witnesses and cross-examine them? It would be interesting to see them attempt to squirm their way out of that. What about Lt. Col. Aziz Buyong and his wife Norhayati - whom RPK named in his June 18th statutory declaration as active participants in the disposal of Altantuya's body with C4 explosives? Will they be summoned to court too? That is exactly what Najib has been trying to avoid since November 2006.

As long as BN remains in control of the Attorney-General's Chambers, the police, and the judiciary, there is little chance of any of this coming to light in court. However, with Pakatan Rakyat taking over the federal government - very likely within the next couple of weeks - the Attorney-General will be sacked or asked to resign, paving the way for fresh evidence to be introduced in the long-drawn Altantuya murder trial. Evidence that will lead to the conviction of Rosmah Mansor for murder in the first degree; and Najib Razak for aiding and abetting his jealous, spiteful wife.

Another recent RPK target has been Umno lawyer Mohammed Shafee Abdullah (left), who was named as the mastermind behind the latest sodomy accusation against Anwar Ibrahim. Shafee's aggressive retaliatory attack has only resulted in angering the entire blogosphere - since his court order against Malaysia Today includes demanding the IP addresses and identities of dozens of commenters on Malaysia Today.

Shafee has become the #1 Enemy of Internet Freedom and exposed the fascist inner core of Umno

Umno's credibility is below zero. Can you imagine what Shafee Abdullah's credibility rating is, now that everybody knows he has been promised the post of Attorney-General if he does some dirty work for Umno?

You could say that RPK has successfully dashed the political ambitions of more than a few people. In fact, it wouldn't be too farfetched to say that RPK and Anwar as a combined force have proven to be absolutely fatal to Umno/BN.

DEFECT FROM THE TERMINALLY DEFECTIVE BN!

Breaking news on Malaysiakini!

This is a clarion call to all self-respecting MPs and politicians aligned with Umno and other BN component parties:

DON'T SINK WITH THE CONDEMNED BN SHIP. CROSS OVER NOW AND MAKE THE NEW DAWN FOR MALAYSIA A REALITY!

The countdown has begun....

World's Tallest Tower ~ Opening 2009 in Dubai!

The Burj Dubai tower, at 700 metres the tallest skyscraper in the world, is expected to be completed in September 2009. To celebrate it, David Hobcote has taken a series of amazing high resolution pictures from the air which give an exact impression of the breathtaking, massive scale of this building designed by Adrian Smith.