SISTERS in Islam (SIS) urges the police to take action against the individual(s) who threatened to rape Batu Tiga state representative Rodziah Ismail during the chaotic dialogue between the Selangor government and the residents of Section 23, Shah Alam, on the issue of relocating the Hindu temple to the area. SIS condemns the incident as […]
Letters to the Editor
One rule for all, please
By MCCBCHSTTHE Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST) notes with deep concern that the cow-head incident in Shah Alam is not an isolated case. Another recent example of this kind of insensitivity was when the holy eucharist was desecrated when certain persons went to a church, took the consecrated bread, and […]
Minister must resign for condoning violence
By Civil society groupsWE, the undersigned organisations, condemn Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein for defending the cow-head protesters and justifying their incitement of violence and hatred. He should now resign or be sacked as home minister as he cannot commit to law and order. The most important issue in the cow-head incident is the threat of violence […]
Hishammuddin has trivialised issue
By Ragunath KesavanTHE Malaysian Bar is disappointed with Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein‘s response to the demonstration outside the Selangor secretariat building on 28 Aug 2009. By not denouncing the offensive actions of some of the demonstrators and instead accepting their weak explanation, he has trivialised the seriousness of the incident. It is also disquieting that […]
Problematic licensing laws hamper freedom of expression
By CIJ and WamiTHE Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) and Writers Alliance for Media Independence (Wami) are concerned about the confiscation of a cartoon magazine on current issues edited by prominent cartoonist Zunar. The confiscation smacks of harassment and censorship of discussion of current issues. On 25 Aug, officials from the Control of Publication Department of the Ministry […]
Celebrating Women’s Day
By The Joint Action Group for Gender EqualityTHE Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) welcomes the National Women’s Day celebration on 25 Aug 2009, and Independence Day on 31 Aug 2009. The celebrations this year is bittersweet. JAG was galvanised over the past few weeks in dealing with a seemingly intractable issue: violence against women. This is a form of discrimination […]
Bar: Abolish whipping
By Ragunath KesavanTHE Malaysian Bar is heartened to note that the authorities have apparently decided not to proceed with the sentence of whipping in Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno‘s case. As recently as at its 61st annual general meeting held on 17 March 2007, the Malaysian Bar resolved to denounce and reject whipping as a punishment for any […]
Islam kejam atau Islam rahmah?
Oleh Norhayati KaprawiSEBAGAI seorang Islam, saya tertanya-tanya wajah Islam bagaimanakah yang Malaysia mahukan? Negara Islam, Islam madani, Islam hadari, atau Islam “hududi”? Apa pun jenamanya, tentu yang kita mahukan adalah Islam yang adil, rahmah, berihsan, penyayang, mesra kepada orang perempuan, prihatin terhadap orang yang kurang bernasib baik, dan Islam yang sentiasa bersangka baik pada manusia. Akan tetapi, […]
The point of demonstrating
By David AnthonyRECENT public demonstrations like the anti/pro-Internal Security Act (ISA) rallies and others have publicly defied the ruling for police permits. Police permits are seen as going against Article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948 by the United Nations general assembly. Article 20 states that “everyone has the right to freedom […]
A(H1N1): “No need to panic”
By Dr Ng Swee ChoonTHERE has been much alarm over the rising number of cases and the fatality rate of the A(H1N1) virus, and rightly so, because the A(H1N1) is infectious. Unfortunately, 67 have already died in Malaysia. But if you were to be objective, 67 deaths, out of a possible 70,000 to 80,000 cases, amounts to a death […]
