ALTANTUYA MURDER ~ THE MISSING LINKS by Americk Sidhu (reprise)

COMMENT This is the first time in 38 years I have actually found myself in agreement with (former) prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his recent, although rather belated, queries in respect of the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder saga.

These questions make sense. These are the same questions a very large portion of the Malaysian population has been asking for over eight years now.

Khalid Abu Bakar (right), our beloved (former) inspector-general of police (IGP), has in the meantime, been performing backward somersaults trying to avoid the entire issue and instead, appears to have dedicated his entire career to tracking Twitter messages on social media.

'Twitter Khalid' has even had the audacity to threaten (which he is very good at) anyone who dares to bring up the issue of 'motive' in the grisly murder of an innocent female foreign national at the hands of two of Malaysia's best trained commandos.

The excuse Khalid has given is that the Federal Court has made a decision and any questioning of the reasons behind that decision would be tantamount to contempt of court.

What Khalid has failed miserably to appreciate is the fact that no one is 'questioning' that decision. Everyone agrees the decision is correct.

However, it is the question of motive which has never been addressed in any of the three courts this murder trial has progressed through. In fact, evidence in respect of motive was never tendered by the prosecution.

Therefore, as far as I (and Mahathir) are concerned, it is still open season on motive.

So instead of terrorising twitterers, perhaps Khalid may see fit to revisit this issue with a little more fervour than he has shown in the past.

Despite the press releases being launched from the IGP's office, none of them detract from the fact that convicted murderer Sirul Azhar Umar has categorically said no officer from the Polis Di-Raja Malaysia (PDRM) has visited him in Sydney to interview him.

If Khalid disputes this, all he has to do is release the names of those officers who ostensibly attended to Sirul (left) and the exact date and time they clocked in with the detention centre authorities. Inspector Tonny Luggan (the investigating officer in Altantuya's case) says he was not sent to see Sirul in Sydney, so who was?

Khalid is also reported to have said that "Sirul's remark showed the fugitive was doing his utmost to bring disrepute and cast doubt over the investigations into the murder case, his involvement and the criminal justice system."

Yes. That is correct, because it is obvious to everyone that your investigations are incomplete.

As the current series of events appear to translate, Sirul is not disputing his involvement in the murder. All he is saying is that others were involved and they haven't been brought to book so why should he take the rap?

One need not have successfully completed an in-depth course in criminal investigation at Pulapol (Malaysian Police Training Centre) to be able to decipher the glaring holes in this entire saga.

A cursory viewing of a couple of episodes of Miami Vice or CSI New York would suffice in providing a clue as to how the matter ought to have been professionally addressed.

The established facts

Azilah Hadri and Sirul have been convicted of the murder of Altantuya by the highest court in our land. This has therefore been proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

Azilah Hadri

In the circumstances, there can be no question that these two gentlemen were in fact responsible for lodging two bullets in this poor lady's head and thereafter detonating some military grade explosives placed on her body causing it to be dissipated in the vicinity of some secondary jungle on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur.

Sirul, who has, rather astutely, sought refuge at the Villawood detention centre on the outskirts of Sydney, has candidly admitted he was acting under orders and that he has been made a scapegoat for others who had not been brought to court.

In other words, he has tacitly admitted to the crime and confirmed that there may have been others behind it.

The question is why would Sirul and Azilah (right) have done this for no apparent reason? The courts have been interested only in whether an offence of murder had been committed and not why it was committed.

The prosecution failed to seek or put forth an explanation.

This is really the question which the IGP can provide an answer to if he is so inclined. He certainly has the resources. As long as he possesses the will, he most certainly will find the way.

Khalid, for goodness sake, please, just do your job. At the moment the general public perceive inactivity on your part as yet another ubiquitous and notorious Malaysian cover-up.

May I suggest you simply haul up the following characters and ask them these simple questions:

Azilah - Why did you and Sirul kill someone you didn't even know?

DSP Musa Safri (left) (then aide de camp DPM Najib Razak) - What exactly did you tell Sirul and Azilah to do to that poor Mongolian lady and who exactly asked you to engage their services?

Nasir Safar (Najib’s special officer) - What were you doing driving around in front of Abdul Razak Baginda's house on the evening of Oct 19, 2006, watching Azilah and Sirul abduct Altantuya?

PM Najib - Did you know that four of your staff were involved in this? If so, then why were they?

Deepak Jaikishan (businessman with close ties to Najib’s wife, Rosmah Mansor - Who asked you to shut private eye P Balasubramaniam up and get him and his family out of Malaysia immediately after he released SD1 (first statutory declaration)? (This should be easy as Deepak has already confessed to all of this).

Rosmah - Was it you? If not, then who?

Johari Razak (Najib’s younger brother) - Did you telephone senior lawyer Cecil Abraham on the evening of July 3, 2008 and ask him to prepare SD2 for Balasubramaniam to sign? If so why, and on whose behalf?

Cecil - Did you receive a telephone call from Johari Razak on July 3, 2008 to prepare SD2? If so, did you?

Sunil Abraham (Cecil’s son, who is also a lawyer) - Did you or did you not, assist your father in preparing SD2 and did you then personally deliver it to the Hilton Hotel, KL Sentral on the morning of July 4, 2008?

Zainal Abidin Muhayat - Were you a commissioner for oaths in 2008 and did you have your office at Zul Rafique and Partners, Lorong P Ramlee, Kuala Lumpur? If so, who sent you to the Hilton Hotel, KL Sentral on July 4, 2008 to attest the signature of one Balasubramaniam on SD2?

Nazim Razak (another brother of Najib) - Were you and your wife at the Curve, Mutiara Damansara late in the night of July 3, 2008? If so did you meet one Balasubramaniam (right) next to the VW showroom?

And if so, did you or did you not, threaten Balasubramaniam to follow the instructions of one Deepak Jaikishan and leave the country with his family immediately, otherwise his family's safety could not be guaranteed?

Najib - Did you instruct Johari and Nazim to arrange, respectively, for SD2 to be prepared and Balasubramaniam's subsequent departure from Malaysia? If so, why was that necessary?

Hamzah Zainuddin (Umno MP for Larut) - Did you, in 2011, offer Balasubramaniam safe passage back to this country and a cash inducement if he pleaded guilty to affirming a false statutory declaration (SD1). If so, why and on behalf of whom?

Khalid, may I also suggest that you contact a senior investigation officer from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) by the name of Abdul Rahman Bachok. He is a very diligent officer and has the entire file on investigations into the circumstances under which Balasubramaniam affirmed SD2. I am sure he will lend you his file and assist you in any way he can.

I believe he is a little annoyed that his file has been closed by the Attorney-General's Chambers. He had put a lot of effort into his investigations.

You may also care to contact the Brickfields police station and ask them why they have not followed up on the police report I lodged on July 8, 2008 in respect of Balasubramaniam's disappearance. I have sent them reminders but there has been no response.

All the above 'persons of interest' and their answers to the questions posed may possibly assist in revealing a motive for the crime. Is there any reason why you, Mr IGP would be disinclined to pursue the matter further and if so what are those reasons?

---

AMERICK SIDHU is a senior lawyer and counsel for late P Balasubramaniam and his widow, A Santamil Selvi. Reproduced courtesy of Malaysiakini.

[First posted 6 April 2015]

IGP Khalid Abu Bakar must be charged with abuse of power & conspiring to cover up a most heinous murder

LANDMARK CASE: IGP found liable for covering up Kugan's "murder", abuse of power

The mother of Kugan Ananthan, a 22-year-old car theft suspect who was brutally beaten to death by his police interrogators, has won a landmark case against the government, the Inspector General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar and two others.

In delivering his judgement, High Court judge VT Singham minced no words, lambasting the IGP and the government for failing to ensure Kugan's safety.

The judge also found Khalid and the late Subang Jaya police chief Zainal Rashid Abu Bakar guilty of trying to cover up the cause of Kugan's death while lauding N Surendran, a human rights lawyer who had fought for a second post-mortem to be carried out.

"The court has found all defendants liable as per our claim. The court found that Kugan died as a result of the assault and battery and detained inflicted while trying to extract a confession," Latheefa Koya, the lawyer for Kugan's family, told reporters outside the courtroom.

"It also found he was detained unlawfully. The first defendant and third defendant (Khalid and Zainal) are found liable for covering up the incident and also found liable for misfeasance in public office (abuse of power). As for the second defendant (V Navindran), the judge actually referred to all the police witnesses and he found them to be unreliable and their stories untenable and they could be liable."

[As to be expected under the BN rogue regime, Khalid Abu Bakar continues to abuse his power as IGP two years following this damning indictment and has, in fact, filed an appeal against the High Court's judgment.] 

Another Victim of PDRM's "Ku Klux Klan"?

KUGAN'S DEATH: What The Pathologist Discovered

I have a 14-year-old son too...

And that's why I have a personal stake in ensuring that never again must the police force be allowed to deteriorate into a goon squad serving the petty interests of a rogue regime. Below are two important items lifted from Free Malaysia Today (which is fast gaining credibility and stature as an alternative news portal)...

The arrogance of police power
Wed, 05 May 2010 15:08

A week after schoolboy Aminulrasyid Amzah's death by police shooting, Malaysians have been treated to the ghastly spectacle of a government withdrawing into itself in the face of public outrage, and seemingly intent only on finding grounds for justifying its actions.

Left in abeyance is the fact that governments exist in democratic nations to ensure the safety of all its citizens, and to ensure equal justice for all, no matter what their station in life.

Aminul is dead, at the age of 15, after a late-night caper. Under normal circumstances, he would have faced punishment from his parents. Instead he was, in effect, served the death penalty in appallingly suspicious circumstances.

The Malaysian public is justifiably angry and upset. Justice must be served in dealing with how Aminul died — not just for his sake, but also for the sake of all citizens who need reassurance, in no uncertain terms, that they are safe from their own guardians.

It is at times like these that a democratically-elected government rises to the occasion and acts in the larger interests of everyone.

Instead, for the past week, the image that emerged is of an uncaring police force intent on protecting its reputation and its manliless, aggressively demanding that its word is accepted at face value without question.

If that is not the image they sought to build, the Inspector-General of Police and the Selangor police chief only have themselves to blame.

Musa Hassan (above, right) made a childish threat to keep the police force in barracks, aggressively showed he expected unquestioning acceptance of the policemen's own accounts, then tried to pin on a dead boy and his family any responsibility for the circumstances that led to his death, in between keeping up a plaintive pleading for the public to be fair to his men.

It is no wonder that many demanded that he leave immediately and not wait for his contract to expire.

Khalid Abu Bakar (left) also insisted that the public should believe his policemen's story and showed a callous willingness to label a schoolboy a criminal on the unproven assertion that a parang was found in his car, and arrogantly threatened politicians who took up the issue and questioned police accounts.

It is no wonder that questions are asked whether he considers himself a policeman, an officer of the law, or is really a politician.

[Read the whole of this superb editorial here.]

PM Paper Doll by Sharon Chin (ink on paper)

Open letter to Najib
Thu, 06 May 2010 12:11

Below is an open letter to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, penned by Amnesty International Canada's coordinator for Malaysia and Singapore, Margaret John. She expresses concern over Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy trial.

Dear Prime Minister,

I write with respect in order to inform you about high-level concern in Canada regarding Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and to request your urgent intervention.

As you must be aware, there is worldwide concern about events relating to this prominent opposition leader’s current situation, thus putting a critical spotlight on Malaysia. As prime minister, you are undoubtedly concerned, for example, that the respected Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) recently declared that Anwar’s current trial on a charge of sodomy is riddled with defects.

The IPU has now made a decision to send an observer to the coming court hearings. The United States of America expressed its intention to continue to scrutinise this controversial trial.

Hundreds of participants, including former Canadian prime minister Kim Campbell, at the World Movement for Democracy, signed a petition calling for a fair trial as well as for the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar . Further, some 50 Australian parliamentarians recently signed a letter calling for an end to the ongoing sodomy trial.

Joining the international outcry, concern is increasingly expressed at a high level in Canada . Please see enclosed documents. In brief:

Officers of the Canadian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur remain in private and public contact with Anwar and have observed the trial proceedings with great interest.

In a Globe and Mail article, former Canadian Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Paul Martin called for the charges to be dropped to enable Anwar Ibrahim to “pursue his vision of a democratic Malaysia, properly respectful of human rights.”

Opposition Liberal Party Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Bob Rae MP, called on Canada’s Parliament to take note of continuing political and legal harassment of Anwar, who has “long been a compelling spokesperson for democracy and for human rights in his country, and despite an unjustified prison sentence continues to speak out with courage and with determination.”

[Read the rest here.]

HELEN ANG ON "DOUBLE STANDARDS"

For the benefit of those of you who don't subscribe to Malaysiakini, I'm reproducing an excellent article by featured columnist Helen Ang whose lucid and no-nonsense analysis of Umno/BN's doublethink and double standards hits the nail soundly on the head. I particularly liked how Ms Ang chooses to call the home minister "the Umno minister in charge of police" - because that perfectly describes what's going on with all these counterproductive arrests of patriotic political dissidents for wearing black and lighting candles - while demented sadists in uniform (who apparently get high on torturing and beating to death helpless prisoners in their custody) continue getting paid their salaries out of the public purse. Bravo, Helen!

No room for double standards
Helen Ang | Jun 18, 09 11:35am

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein was surprisingly low key in his first days on the job. Then on June 5, Hishammuddin finally obliged fans with his inimitable doublespeak.

On the Manohara Odelia Pinot case, the Umno minister in charge of police said: “Saya rasa tidak perlu ada cover-up langsung tetapi dalam kita membuat siasatan jangan ada penganiayaan, jangan ada perbezaan oleh kerana seseorang itu berada dalam kedudukan yang tertentu mendapat layanan, bukan layanan secara positif, layanan yang negatif, dan itu tidak adil.”

Hishammuddin assures us that police would not treat someone who is in a certain [high] position any differently. However he then proceeds to insinuate that he fears Tengku Muhammad Fakhry Petra's status as Kelantan royalty would prejudice rather than advantage the prince in police investigation.

It is Orwellian reverse psychology to imply that Fakhry, due to his family's powerful and protected position, could possibly be victimised and treated less fairly than the average Joe. Since when has any major royal who's had a brush with Malaysian law come off the worse for it?

What we've had over the last month is only Polis Di-Raja Malaysia dancing poco-poco around the prince's runaway wife and her accusations of statutory rape, marital rape, kidnap and torture.

16-year-old bride Manohara Odelia Pinot and her Kelantanese prince Tengku Fakhry Petra

Recalling in chilling detail how the estranged husband supposedly inflicted the wounds on her chest, Manohara claims in Jakarta Globe – “[Fakhry] just took his time, slowly. He looked as calm as ever. It's like if you gave someone a paintbrush and told him to draw a flower”.

I'm inclined to believe Manohara's story as there is a ring of truth to her description, such as how she didn't tell her ambitious mother about the alleged rape (behaviour congruent with confused and conflicted teen), and how she was more frightened by the helpless condition due to the temporary drug-induced paralysis than by the sight of a razor slicing her (a rather astute psychological insight for a young person to be credited with).

Nonetheless, there are sceptics who fault Manohara for making too many public appearances since her escape and posing too prettily for the cameras.

But I for one can understand why she felt the need to recount her ordeal in numerous meetings with the press. It's the battle to win public opinion when one is a foreigner in Malaysia up against a privileged institution the local populace is well-trained not to criticise.

Kelantan deputy police chief Amir Hamzah Ibrahim had warned that blogs considered to have defamed the Kelantan monarchy are being investigated under the Penal Code. It would be hard to blame Malaysians if they see the police as protecting particular persons while at the same time intimidating the ordinary citizen.

Hence it's lucky for her that Manohara is Indonesian and has an American biological father as well as a French stepfather, and commands sympathetic international media attention. Abuse victims in Malaysia who are less glamorous do not attract the same interest, especially if they're poor Indian males.

Police lock-up a dangerous place


Indians are the ethnic group in absolute numbers most numerously held under police remand. For them, contact with police is more deadly than swine flu contagion. Men die in police custody and show signs of abuse on their bodies. After death, they are abused some more by the authorities and mainstream media with unproven aspersions cast on their character.

This is how The Star on Tuesday reported the death of 53-year-old A Gnanapragasam. Its headline blared: 'Suspected thief died in lock-up due to infection.' Does the deceased being portrayed as a suspected criminal mitigate the human loss occasioned by his death? Gnanapragasam leaves behind a widow and eight children.

Another individual who died in police custody, A. Kugan was labelled 'suspected car thief.' Neither man had even been brought to court to face charges. Other Indians shot dead by police or who died in the lock-up were 'suspected armed robbers,' 'suspected rapists,' 'suspected gangsters,' etc. Not to forget, the Hindraf 5 lawyers, say Polis Di-Raja Malaysia, were suspected to have links with terrorists.

But rest assured we would never hear police top brass speculating that Tengku Fakhry is a 'suspected wife abuser.'

Contrary to Hishammuddin's disingenuous assertion on the fairness of police conduct, it's evident that the police do not apply the same standards to the under-privileged as compared to the privileged. Nothing has come out of the investigation into the death of Uthaya Chandran who turned 23 in Sungai Buloh prison last April and who was found dead on his birthday.

If they belong to the lower socio-economic order, then Indians be they young or old have a greater chance than the average person of suffering police abuse. Last August, police picked up N. Logeswaran, 10, from his school for suspected theft. Parti Sosialis Malaysia deputy chairman M. Sarasvathy, who took up his case, said police slapped Logeswaran on his face and tried to choke him.

“They even tried to melt some plastic on the boy’s private parts and it got his leg,” said Sarasvathy in Perak.

How can we trust police?

Recently in Taman Tennamaram, Selangor, 58-year-old grandma P. Thanggama was hauled from her home by a police raiding party at one o'clock in the morning. She was detained overnight at the police station to have her statement recorded for police investigation into gangsterism.

On June 9, The Malay Mail carried an article with the headline 'You can still trust the police, says Selangor top cop' which quoted state police chief Khalid Abu Bakar (right) saying, “The people should understand that my men have a job to do and they do it fairly. They must understand there was also a police report lodged against the grandmother for rioting and that was why she was picked up.”

A 'suspected rioter' granny now, eh? Selangor CPO Khalid, like Malaysian politicians, says the darndest things.

In the Gnanapragasam case, national news agency Bernama and the Malay papers Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian reported deputy inspector-general of police Ismail Omar relating how the deceased was a hardcore drug addict.

The police are trigger-happy in firing their slurs at Indians but otherwise show commendable restraint in refraining from adverse comments on the Kelantan prince.

Assurances from Hishammuddin, Khalid and other bigwigs about police acting fairly will not allay public distrust of the police.

The police station is the last place members of the public would want to be kept, however briefly. Kugan spent five days with police and was taken out in a body bag. Gnanapragasam was with police four days and died under their watch.

Gnanapragasam's wife saw that her husband had bruised eyes when he was brought before the magistrate two days before his death. He had also complained to the magistrate on beating and torture by police. But Petaling Jaya police chief ACP Arjunaidi Mohammed said the autopsy did not trace any bruises or injuries on the body, and appealed to the public not to believe rumours.

Deputy IGP Ismail, commenting on Gnanapragasam's sudden death, said according to police procedure, a magistrate and a doctor would be brought over to look at or examine the body before it was removed.

That's a bit too late, don't you think?

HELEN ANG is a Malaysiakini columnist. She was arrested for dressing in black on 7 May 2009 near the Perak state assembly.

Another Victim of PDRM's "Ku Klux Klan"?

Kugan Ananthan, 22, died in police custody, 20 January 2009

Selangor police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said the young man died of "an asthma attack." It must have been an extremely violent one.

Malaysiakini, 20 Jan 2009

Four family members of Kugan filed the police report today and they were joined by lawyers, human rights activists and several politicians from both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat.

Among them were PKR's Kapar MP S Manikavasagam, DAP's Puchong MP Gobind Singh and Teluk Intan's DAP MP M Manoharan.

Also present was a group of MIC Youth members led by its head T Mohan. Hindraf representative, led by S Jayathas, were also there.

Some 80 people had also gathered at the police station to show their anger over Kugan's death.

They held up banners with pictures of the deceased, showing the injuries he sustained while in police custody.

Some of the banners read: "Police are licensed killers", "Police are killing Indians" and "Police are thirsty for Indian blood" in both Malay and English. They also briefly chanted slogans demanding a probe into Kugan's death.

Heavy police presence

Talking to reporters later, Kugan's family members said that the deceased did not suffer from asthma and could not have died from breathing difficulties as claimed by the police.

Manikavasagam and Gobind added that the police were attempting to cover up the death and that there should be a full and open investigation by the Home Ministry, which oversees the police department.

Manikavasagam also said that he would organise rallies to protest against the police.

The crowd then dispersed peacefully after gathering for about 30 minutes.

There was a heavy police presence outside of the station while the police report was being lodged.

Eight Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) vehicles were parked within sight of the police station.

Yesterday Khalid told reporters that Kugan had asked for a glass of water during interrogation and upon drinking the water, he collapsed and lost consciousness.

"A doctor from a clinic nearby who was summoned to examine the man, and later confirmed that he had died," he had said.

The state police chief also said that a thorough probe would be conducted on the matter and asked people not to speculate on the cause of death.

WARNING! Due to the distressing nature of the following material, viewer discretion is strongly advised...




[All images from Malaysiakini or captured from video footage]

I'm so angry right now I'll just let the images speak on my behalf...

EYEWITNESS REPORT: Orc Attack @ The PJ Uncivic Center

"None are more hopelessely enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


Had a brand new pack of 6 candles ready & an improvised windproof holder, but arriving at Amcorp Mall around 9:15 I saw no activity on the padang. People were gathered in front of the Mall and it was great to be greeted immediately by a few fellow bloggers who recognized me. That's the nicest feature of physically attending these community events - every face you see, even if you haven't been introduced, is already a friend.

Of course a few could be undercover Mat Rempit, SB officers, or plainclothes defectives - I mean detectives - but they are easily sniffed out. Look out for the tell-tale signs: no sign of human vitality behind those humorless eyes. I bear them no ill will because their minds have been implanted during their rigorous and inhuman training, and the poor fellows had their empathy circuits removed so they are quite incapable of independent thought and lack human biofields. One could easily mistake them for Orcs or Uruk-hai .

Haris Ibrahim suddenly appeared and, this being our very first physical meeting, I just had to give him a big hug for inspiring so many with his gigantic spirit and outstanding mind.

Got a call from a friend who said the cops had forced her to turn back at a roadblock, so she decided to go home. She added that a few other buddies were with RPK at a club further down the street so I decided it would make my 3-hour commute to PJ worthwhile if I at least got to say hello to the national superhero in person. True enough, there he was, looking mellow and benign, a digital-age version of man-for-all-seasons Sir Thomas More, being interviewed by a couple of people with videocams. When they finished I gave him a very heartfelt hug (I've only met RPK once before, briefly, in 1999 when he was coordinating the KeADILan website, but after I dropped a hint he did remember our meeting).

Magnificent Marina was there too but got only a quick hug from me because Polis patrol cars were cruising up & down and the crowd started walking slowly towards the PJ Civic Center. Decided to WALK WITH RPK (literally) and when I got to the Civic Center, the Red Helmets were already lined up and beating their shields to scare people. Polis sirens were wailing just for effect. It appeared they had been instructed to intimidate & terrorize the peaceful rakyat gathered there simply because we value democracy and love this nation too much to allow it to be turned into a pirates' lair by a bunch of Scumno scoundrels.

I could sense the FRU guys pumping up their adrenaline - and for a moment thought it would be wise to not linger. But RPK was speaking under a cluster of yellow balloons and I moved closer to hear him describe what an emotional torture it is for some ISA detainees who don't even get one visit from family in 3 months - because the families are too poor or live too far to make regular trips to Kamunting.

We felt a ripple of aggression emanating from the Red Helmets - some Polis officer must have received a call with instructions to nab a truckload of law-abiding taxpayers just to show the Rakyat you can't mess with the Biggest Bodoh in Bodohland. A voice said, "Let's sing Negaraku before we disperse!" and with surprising sweetness & authentic sincerity, the national anthem was sung wholeheartedly by the 250-300 souls gathered around RPK. Before we could finish, I heard batons banging on shields and knew the Red Helmets were about to charge.


"Let's split," I said to my companion, "it's rather inconvenient to spend the night in the copshop!" As we turned to walk away, what sounded like Orcs on the rampage reached our ears. I turned around and saw the crowd being shoved around like waters in a lake being churned up by a descending helicopter. Good thing I was wearing a black shirt over my red No Holds Barred T-shirt. I remembered to blow out my candle so as not to draw unwanted attention and vanished into the shadows between some large bushes and then got back onto the path leading towards the main road. I could hear harsh voices and the sound of batons smashing on shields (or heads, I couldn't be sure and wasn't inclined to turn around and find out).

We managed to get safely back to New Town and found a coffee shop still open - a few of my friend's friends were already there. They, too, had been at the vigil and were outraged and shaken at the unnecessarily violent turn it had taken.

Home minister Hamid Albar vehemently denied any knowledge of the heavy-handed Polis action until this morning. What an incompetent home minister, to be entirely clueless about an event so politically significant - and to have so little control over the behavior of his own Polis force! Deserves to be sacked on the spot! Everybody knows that only a couple of days ago Hamid Albar suffered the humiliation of being ticked off by an honest judge, when the home minister was accused of abusing his power and bending the law to malicious and partisan political ends. It was nothing less than a public slap in his fat face.

No doubt the Usual Suspects were frothing at the mouth because RPK had the audacity to even exist - what more as a free man and evidently the most beloved, respected and celebrated Son of Malaysia!

Within 15 minutes I was receiving SMSes filling me in on the details - two DAP MPs pulled in (heard Tony Pua and Lau Weng San had been roughed up). Abolish-the-ISA activist Angela Ooi nabbed, along with a Malaysiakini videographer, and around 20 others, including Ashok Kandiah, a member of the legal team that had sprung RPK on Friday. One guy had apparently made a run for it but was chased by eight Red Helmets who knocked him down and pinned him to the ground before whacking him up. Now this is what the public would like to see being done to child rapists, snatch thieves and kidnappers - not to peace-loving citizens doing their democratic duty; assembling to call for the repeal of a tyrannical & oppressive law by lighting candles and singing the national anthem.



This video reveals that the red-helmeted Orcs not only failed to show respect for the national anthem by standing to attention - they actually attacked unarmed citizens in the middle of expressing their patriotism and rudely clobbered some of them, arresting others. I know a few of us did sing Negaraku offkey but is there a law that says the punishment is to be kicked in the stomach and truncheoned in public? Selangor Chief Police Officer Khalid Abu Bakar stated that those arrested were wearing red and yellow T-shirts. I know those are the colors of the Selangor state flag - but since when has it been a crime to wear those colors on a Sunday night?

What now, Malaysia? From Bodowiland to Mahathirville via Najibia? Or will the Sun break through the clouds sooner than we expect, signalling a New Dawn?