Strong-headed: Ong Tee Keat (left) and Chua Soi Lek THERE are two heavyweights currently in the MCA ring. But what do party president Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and his sacked deputy Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek represent? And what consequence will the fight between the both of them have? After all, the split […]
Features
No Islamic prohibition against temple
By Ding Jo-AnnPARTICIPANTS of the 28 Aug 2009 cow-head protest claim that a Hindu temple cannot be built in a Muslim-majority area as this would affect the way they function as Muslims. Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim was even labelled a “traitor to the Malay race and Islam” because of the state government’s proposal to […]
Do secular laws benefit Muslims?
By Shanon Shah“IN order for me to embrace, fully and publicly, my African-American, feminist lesbian identity, I didn’t believe I could simultaneously embrace, fully and publicly, my Muslim identity,” Aishah Shahidah Simmons tells The Nut Graph. “But given all the repression I’ve faced as an African-American, feminist lesbian, I have so many privileges in the world as […]
Whither Perak?
By Deborah LohPakatan Rakyat Speaker V Sivakumar (left) and Barisan Nasional Speaker R Ganesan THE Perak Pakatan Rakyat (PR)’s persistence in not legitimising the Barisan Nasional (BN) state government draws either admiration or irritation. In part, it’s a difference of opinion that reflects political alignments. The BN-aligned depict such resilience as “buat kecoh”. This was aptly described […]
Whipping Kartika
By Deborah LohTHE Pahang Syariah High Court‘s sentencing of Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno to whipping and a RM5,000 fine for drinking beer has thrown up all kinds of issues. As pointed out by the Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) in a 25 Aug 2009 memorandum to the prime minister, “the implementation of these [syariah] laws […]
Can Malaysians practise civility?
By Shanon Shah(Source: GuelphMercury.com) “CONFLICT is prevalent in all multicultural settings,” says Associate Professor Dr Alberto Gomes, an anthropologist at Australia’s La Trobe University. Quoting studies by other researchers, Gomes says it is common for different groups to have stereotypes about, or even dislike, each other. This question of conflict and civility between different groups is relevant […]
The meaning of Permatang Pasir
By Deborah LohPAS candidate Mohd Salleh Man (right), Anwar Ibrahim and Lim Guan Eng on nomination day, 17 Aug (Pic courtesy of theSun) IT was a by-election the Barisan Nasional (BN) knew it would lose, but had to fight anyway. Unable to use the same excuse it had for opting out of Penanti, the BN went into Permatang […]
Permatang Pasir: PAS win likely
By Deborah LohBuka puasa delicacies outside a PAS centre in Permatang Pasir “ALL this is just to create the setting,” Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) elections director Saifuddin Nasution says. He waves his hand, gesturing towards a just-concluded press conference by PAS leaders in which they again harped on the disbarment of Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Rohaizat Othman. […]
Salleh Man’s role in Permatang Pasir
By Deborah LohPAS candidate Mohd Salleh Man THE fate of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) in Penang rests on the shoulders of one man, Mohd Salleh Man. If the PAS candidate in the Permatang Pasir by-election loses at the polls tomorrow on 25 Aug 2009, the alliance will have no co-operation to speak of within the state government. PAS […]
BN’s offer in Permatang Pasir
By Deborah LohRohaizat Othman AT 1am on Wednesday, 19 Aug 2009, Rohaizat Othman finally appears for this interview after a day of campaigning. The Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate for the Permatang Pasir by-election looks terribly exhausted as he walks into the sparse media room at the BN by-election headquarters in Permatang Pasir. The BN command centre is […]
