THERE was much cause for celebration when Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman announced on 16 Feb 2011 that the plan to build a 30 megawatt coal plant in the state’s pristine east coast had been scrapped. Instead, the government is now considering gas and other cleaner energy options like biomass. Activists, particularly those […]
Local council incompetence — whose fault?
Ampersand by KW Mak
IN my previous column, I had presented two scenarios of how people interpret the law; with one viewpoint from the public and the other from the local council. Indeed, many people have complained about the inefficiencies of local government and the lack of coherence in how things are done, causing a few to disregard due […]
Speaking up for Arts-Ed
By Natasha Khanum
THE idea that all us are out to “hina Melayu” is so last decade. By blaming Arts-Ed for bringing out “isu perkauman”, the Gabungan Bela Hak Insan has stooped really low in order to spread its own political ideologies. According to the Gabungan, they were “merely pointing out errors” in the My Balik Pulau newsletter […]
“Thorough- bred Malaysian”
By Gan Pei Ling
Lawyer. Activist. Trainer. Loyarburokker. Edmund Bon wears many hats in his quest to champion human rights. Bon is currently the Bar Council’s constitutional law committee chairperson. This is the committee that, since 2009, has been running the MyConstitution campaign to popularise the federal constitution among Malaysians. Bon and his contemporaries — Amer Hamzah Arshad, K […]
Regulating the internet: What’s BN afraid of?
Holding Court by Ding Jo-Ann
CAN the Malaysian government actually be thinking of imposing more controls on our already overly-regulated right to freedom of expression? There’s a myriad of laws available to arrest, charge, fine and jail Malaysians for speaking their minds in ways the government disapproves of. But apparently, these controls are still not enough. On 24 Jan 2011 […]
The impossibility of policing the web
By Sonia Randhawa
The endless distractions on Facebook are the bane of my working life. As a freelance consultant, I need discipline and a strict schedule to meet tight deadlines. But then a friend from university announces his baby is having problems feeding, and so I stop my work to suggest strategies for feeding babies. Or to respond […]
A Matter of Interpretation
Ampersand by KW Mak
As a councillor, I have come across some of the strangest interpretations of the law. This can be by council officers who are tasked with implementing the law, or by laypeople at the receiving end of the law. Along with their peculiar interpretations are mixed messages about whether the law works or not, or if […]
Ancaman hubungan sejenis di Malaysia
Oleh Shanon ShahPada 15 Dis 2010, muncul sebuah video di YouTube yang memaparkan Azwan Ismail, 32, seorang lelaki Malaysia Melayu-Muslim, di mana dia menyatakan, “Saya gay, saya ok.”
In defence of diversity
Shape of a Pocket by Jacqueline Ann Surin
WHAT comes to mind when Malaysia‘s political leaders declare that Malaysia’s strength lies in its diversity? Do we believe the claim that is being made? And if yes, do we believe that they too, believe in these pronouncements they make and that they will do anything to defend Malaysia’s diversity? There is ample evidence that […]
Malaysia’s gay threat
By Shanon Shah
ON 15 Dec 2010, 32 year-old Azwan Ismail, a Malay-Muslim Malaysian, posted a video on YouTube in which he declared, “I am gay and I’m OK.” One week later, he told the media that he feared for his life. And who could blame him? He now has the de facto minister of religion, the Perak […]
