(Zulkifli image source: zul4kulim.blogspot.com; al-Quran pic by Crystalina / Flickr) PETALING JAYA, 23 March 2009: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Member of Parliament (MP) Zulkifli Noordin has tried to move four motions in Parliament to amend the Federal Constitution regarding the status of Islam. The first motion is to amend Article 3(1) to: “Islam is the […]
Shanon Shah
PMs on Perak
By Shanon Shah“You cannot topple a menteri besar or a prime minister without a no-confidence vote in the assembly. There is no other provision…Umno-Barisan Nasional was too careless and did not wait for an assembly but instead asked the ruler to sack the menteri besar…As far as I know, there is no such provision in the Perak […]
A nation divided
By Shanon Shah and Zedeck SiewPolice, media and the majority Malay Malaysian crowd during the GMP gathering on 7 March 2009 PERHAPS the easiest observation one could make about the Gerakan Mansuhkan PPSMI (GMP) gathering on 7 March 2009 is that it was mono-cultural. While there were representatives from Chinese-language education proponents in the thousands-strong crowd, these numbered in the […]
Bullying Malaysians
Translation by Shanon ShahBULLYING in schools, the continuing crisis in Perak, and the teaching of science and mathematics in English were some issues that occupied the Malay-language press from 2 to 8 March 2009. On 5 March, Utusan Malaysia frontpaged the issue of gangsterism and bullying in schools. In the headline story, Hapus konsep senior-junior, the paper listed […]
“We don’t want another KT”
By Shanon ShahTHE upcoming by-election in Bukit Selambau, Kedah, on 7 April will be tricky. At least in Bukit Gantang and Batang Ai, by-elections were called as a result of the incumbents’ deaths. The Bukit Selambau by-election was called because the incumbent, Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)’s V Arumugam, tendered his resignation after alleging that he was bribed […]
Arguing over “Allah”
By Shanon Shah“Before this they demanded to use the Malay language for their Bibles. Then they demanded to use the word ‘Allah’ for Christian publications. Today they demand to use the word ‘Allah’ without restrictions. After this, they will demand the right to convert Malays to Christianity without restrictions. What else will they end up demanding?!” PARTI […]
Agitating Malay Muslims
By Shanon ShahOVER the past year, several Malay-Muslim groups have been in the headlines. From lawsuits filed against the DAP’s Teresa Kok for allegedly insulting Islam, to campaigns responding to the crisis in Gaza, the defence of Islam and Malay rights has occuppied the national attention, sometimes in frightening ways. Just what are these groups about? What […]
Astro dan homoseksual
Oleh Shanon ShahBAYANGKAN keluarnya satu filem tempatan tentang pejuang kemerdekaan tanahair, Dr Burhanuddin Helmi, salah seorang pengasas dan mantan presiden PAS. Siapa yang sesuai mendukung watak Burhanuddin? Farid Kamil? Rosyam Nor? Farhin Ahmad? Katakan Rosyam yang terpilih — Farhin dan Farid dapat main watak pembantu. Mungkin watak Khatijah Sidek pula diberikan kepada Nasha Aziz. Sharifah Amani mendukung […]
Let’s talk about sex
By Shanon Shah(Dmytro Konstantynov / Dreamstime) PRESS reports that intimate photos of Elizabeth Wong have been exposed and are circulating have opened up a new can of worms. The discussions so far on the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) politician’s case have revolved around our public leaders’ right to privacy. But if it was merely Wong’s privacy that […]
Representing Israelis and Palestinians
By Shanon ShahFEW believe that peace will break out in Gaza anytime soon, with Israel and Hamas adding demands to their hostage exchange negotiations. In the meantime, the dominant discourse on Israel in Malaysia is still that the Jews and the West are out to disempower and even destroy Islam and Muslims. But exactly what sorts of […]
