Inconsistency In Criminal Courts Sentencing

By Dave Avran. Published by Free Malaysia Today on 27 October 2012.

First, we saw how it is OK to rape a 13-year-old girl if you’re a star when Court of Appeal president Raus Sharif led the three-man panel in ruling that the jail term for national bowler Noor Afizal Azizan be substituted with a bound over sentence for good behavior for five years.

Now, two brothers are sent to the gallows for killing a burglar. Indonesian brothers Frans Hiu, 22, and Dharry Hiu, 20, were found guilty of murder for defending themselves against a violent robber. The High Court in Shah Alam sentenced them to death on Oct 18.

The brothers were jointly charged with having a common intention in the murder of 26-year-old R Khartic at a shophouse in Sepang on Dec 3, 2010. They were caretakers of the premises.

In her brief judgment, Justice Nurchaya Arshad ruled that the prosecution had successfully proven the case beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced the men to death.

What does “in her brief judgment” mean? How brief is brief? Two human beings are being deprived of their lives. Wouldn’t we require the court to give more substantial consideration than just a brief judgment?

Here are the facts of the case: three guys were inside their room. A burglar tries to break in first through the front door, then through the back door, and finally he climbs through the ceiling and falls into the room. There is so much determination and premeditation on the burglar’s part – he seriously wants to break in.

He then violently attacks the three occupants of the room. One of the occupants runs away. The other two defend themselves, there is a desperate life and death struggle and in the process the robber dies. Now the robbery victims are ironically sentenced to death.

Why not charge them with assault which carries a lesser sentence instead of murder? Criminal intent (Mens Rea) is a vital ingredient in all murder charges. How could the two brothers have entertained such an intention when in fact it is the burglar who had broken into their room and then attacked them?

He must have startled the brothers when he crashed through the ceiling and started attacking them. In self defence, the brothers fought back with their bare hands. They did not have any weapons in their bedroom.

Acting in self defence

The Malaysian Bar Council has weighed in on the issue and said that people should not take the law into their own hands.

Should the brothers not have defended themselves when attacked? The incident involved a robber who had gained illegal entry into a building and was motivated by a predetermined criminal intent.

In such cases, isn’t it instinctive and normal for the occupants to react spontaneously to restrain an intruder who may pose a danger to their lives?

It would be interesting to know which officer in the Attorney-General’s Chambers sanctioned the murder charge, knowing full well that the brothers were acting in self-defence. Don’t the people have a right to self defence in life-threatening situations? This is a seriously worrying question.

Why didn’t the court assign counsel for the defendants for a charge as serious as murder and for which a death sentence was a distinct possibility? The brothers were the only ones who testified in their own defence.

Doesn’t this case and the subsequent the charge reek of a serious defect in our legal system? There have been many similar cases where victims of crime have been penalised but for the sake of this article we will remain focused on this case alone.

Rightfully, several groups are calling for a judicial review into the death sentence imposed on the two Indonesian brothers, with National Crime Prevention Foundation vice-chairman Lee Lam Thye saying that the sentence was too extreme and would have implications on the way people react to situations that involved their own personal safety and security.

MARAH has also started a forum on the subject. There must be consistency and fairness in how sentences are meted out. What were the brothers supposed to do? Wait for the robber to kill them first?

What are we the public supposed to do when someone breaks into our home? What kind of signal is the court giving?

Given the current crime free for all spree in Malaysia, should we all simply give in to the inevitable and just wear t-shirts with a bright red target painted on it?

Visit MARAH Facebook here

Dave Avran is the founder of MARAH (Malaysians Against Rape, Assault & snatcH).

Read more here:

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/27/whats-the-matter-with-our-judges/

SUMPTUOUS EROTICA: Sex therapist said the couple needed immediate help

Published by Malaysia Chronicle on 20 October 2012.

SEX BLOG- Girlfriend's parents warn law student not to touch her again

KUALA LUMPUR: THE Malaysian law student who posted pictures of him and his girlfriend having sex on their blog was warned by the woman's parents not "to touch her again".

Alvin Tan Jye Yee, 24, a third-year law student at National University of Singapore, was given the stern warning by parents of his girlfriend, Vivian Lee, 23, after their blog, "sumptuous erotica", came under the spotlight. A Singapore daily quoted Tan as saying that both their parents were very upset over the pictures.

"I never thought this matter would become big. A lot of relatives called my parents asking why I did that. My girlfriend's parents also scolded me for turning their daughter into a 'bad girl'," said Tan, adding that the decision to post the pictures was mutual.

However, in a video posted on Tan's YouTube account early yesterday, he said his family was supportive and had not talked about the matter from a moral slant. In the video, the couple also did not show any remorse and said they would do it again.

They spoke of the massive support they received from friends and how they made hundreds of new friends after the blog came under the spotlight. Tan said they did not want to shut down their blog, but did so due to pressure from family members. He added that the blog had been shutdown temporarily.

Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Syed Ismail Syed Azizan said action could be taken against the couple if their blog was registered in this country. "We are checking where it was registered. If they did it in Singapore, it falls under the republic's jurisdiction."

A senior sex therapist said the couple needed immediate help. Dr Edward Chan, principle consultant psychologist at the LoveLife Centre for Sex Therapy, International Psychology Centre, said the couple showed symptoms of dangerous levels of sexual addictions. "From what was reported, I can say that the couple suffers exhibitionism -- a form of sexual addiction, and swinging, which is another form of sexual addiction."

"Both can be very dangerous if not treated, as they can't have a normal loving relationship. They have to resort to such extreme measures to achieve sexual satisfaction," he told the New Straits Times. He said it was good for a person to love his or her body, but there was a fine line between love for the body and being addicted to show it off for satisfaction.

On exhibitionism, Chan said an exhibitionist was a person who liked to show their private parts and get stimulated from it. Swingers are those who get satisfaction from watching their partner having sex with another person, or listening to their experiences after the sex has ended. It can also extend to partner swapping.

"Both forms of sexual addictions are treatable. They need to seek help immediately as these are illnesses which can lead to destruction of their relationship and also add stress to their lives," said Chan who has 16 years experiences in the field. For exhibitionism, he said the couple could seek help from LoveLife Centre where they would be given sex therapy sessions.

- New Straits Times

Link: 

http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=42778:sumptuous-erotica-law-student-warned-not-to-touch-girl-again&Itemid=2

Isu Lagu Harapan Bangsa: Hanya Nyanyi Untuk Penganut Kristian - Jac

Diterbitkan oleh malaysiandigest.com pada 20 Oktober 2012.

Penyanyi Jaclyn Victor menganggap lagu Harapan Bangsa yang dinyanyikannya adalah salah satu bentuk sumbangan dan tanggungjawab untuk agamanya iaitu Kristian.

Memetik kenyataan di mStar Online, jelas juara Malaysian Idol ini, dia menyanyikan lagu itu dalam Bahasa Malaysia bukan bertujuan untuk menyebarkan agama berkenaan tetapi dikhususkan kepada penganut Kristian di Sabah dan Sarawak. Tambahan kebanyakan mereka di dua negeri itu lebih faham Bahasa Malaysia.

"Saya hanya menjalankan tanggungjawab sebagai seorang penganut Kristian dengan menyanyikan lagu berkenaan kepada orang Kristian di Sabah dan Sarawak. Kebanyakan mereka di dua negeri itu lebih faham Bahasa Malaysia.

"Dan sebagai sebuah negara yang mengamalkan kebebasan beragama, isu tersebut tidak seharusnya dipertikaikan," katanya.

Beberapa hari lalu timbulnya kontroversi penyanyi berusia 33 tahun ni dipertikaikan kerana menyanyikan lagu yang mengandungi konotasi agama yang berkaitan dengan agama Kristian. Lantaran itu Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) turut mendakwa Jac telah menghina Islam dan mahu memboikot penyanyi itu.

Selain dalam laporan Utusan Malaysia semalam menyebut, Ahli Timbalan Menteri Pelajaran yang juga Ahli Majlis Tertinggi Umno, Datuk Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi meminta Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (Jakim) serta kementerian berkaitan menyiasat lagu Harapan Bangsa yang mungkin telah menyentuh sensitiviti penganut agama lain di negara ini.

Lagu tersebut pernah dinyanyikan Jac di gereja di Sabah dan Sarawak kira-kira lima tahun lalu. Bagaimanapun ianya mencetuskan kontroversi selepas ia dimuat naik menerusi YouTube bermula Januari lalu.

Tambah penyanyi kelahiran Kuala Lumpur ini, dia tidak melakukan sebarang kesalahan kerana lagu berkenaan bukan dihasilkan untuk tujuan komersial.

Link: http://www.malaysiandigest.com/entertainment/142822-isu-lagu-harapan-bangsa-hanya-nyanyi-untuk-penganut-agama-kristian-jac.html

The Murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu

Written by John Berthelsen. Published by Asia Sentinel on 18 October 2012.

It will be six years tomorrow since bodyguards for now-Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak dragged the Mongolian translator and party girl Altantuya Shaariibuu out of a car in a patch of jungle near the Kuala Lumpur suburb of Shah Alam. As she begged for her life and apparently that of her unborn child, they knocked her unconscious, then shot her twice in the head. 

That was Oct. 19, 2006. According to court testimony, Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar, members of the elite Unit Tindakan Khas, both assigned to Najib’s office, then wrapped Altantuya’s body in C4 plastic explosives and blew her up, possibly to mangle her remains so badly that the fetus would be destroyed. 

Sirul Azhar was interrogated by police shortly after the murder was discovered. He was informed that anything he said could be held against him, in accordance with the law. In his cautioned statement, as his confession was called in Malaysia, he told authorities he and Azilah had been offered RM100,000 to kill the woman and her two companions, who were causing highly public embarrassment for Abdul Razak Baginda, Najib’s best friend. The 28-year-old Mongolian woman, in a letter found after her death, wrote that she was sorry she had been blackmailing Razak Baginda, who had jilted her after a jet-setting whirl throughout Europe and Asia.

If French police records are to be believed, Razak Baginda was allegedly central to a massive bribery case in which a total of nearly €150 million in payments were steered to two Razak Baginda companies, Perimekar Sdn Bhd and Terasasi Hong Kong Ltd. 

As Asia Sentinel reported earlier this year, records seized by the French police show that former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and the French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe were aware of the transactions. Memos obtained by Asia Sentinel show the French expected at least part of the money to be steered to the United Malays National Organization, Malaysia’s biggest ethnic political party. 

Sirul’s confession was never admitted in court despite its seeming legality. And, despite a 14-month trial, neither the prosecutors, the defense nor the judge asked who had offered the RM100,000 payment to the two men. Najib’s chief of staff, Musa Safri, reportedly dispatched the two policemen to pick up Altantuya and her companions, who mercifully weren’t around when the two murderers abducted Altantuya, or presumably they would have died with her, As nearly as can be detremined from official records, Musa Safri was never questioned about the matter, nor was Najib. 

This recounting is important because in recent weeks Najib’s government has embarked on a concerted legal campaign to discredit a long string of political reform and independent news organizations who have kept the Altantuya story and others concerning corruption and political misdoings alive in Malaysia. Instead, the government and UMNO leaders have accused the reformers of being the tools of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition, or of foreign powers, out to destabilize Malaysia. The presumptive foreign powers are shadowy ones, sometimes German, sometimes American, sometimes Israeli, sometimes unnamed. Enormously long blogs have been written calling into question the French documents, which were published by Asia Sentinel.

But whoever these foreign powers are, they are cast as out to hoodwink Malaysia’s voters out of the government that is best for them in national elections to be held sometime next year, probably in April. This is an old story, peddled by a long string of disreputable governments across the world when reformers get too close, and it may hold sway again in Malaysia. 

But there is one incontrovertible fact. Altantuya Shaariibuu is dead, and she appears to have been killed at the behest of someone with considerable clout in Kuala Lumpur. If her dying statement to Sirul Azhar, as he recounted it in his confession, is to be accepted, she appeared to have been carrying the baby of someone, perhaps high in power in Malaysia. 

And, despite indignant denials from the powers that be, Altantuya appears to have had inside knowledge of the later events in France when Razak Baginda and Najib Tun Razak visited to deal with matters surrounding the purchase of Scorpene submarines from the French contractor DCN. 

Although pro-government critics have denied she had ever visited France, according to testimony given by Abdul Razak when he was under investigation for ordering the two bodyguards to kill Altaantuya, he himself told investigators he traveled with her to France in 2005. 

Records seized by French investigators from DCN, the defense contractor that sold Malaysia the submarines, bear that out, According to French investigators’ records, Abdul Razak Baginda and Altantuya met with Jean Marie Boivin, the alleged French fixer who helped to organize “commissions” for friends in high places to pick DCN’s submarines on that same trip. Boivin arranged to pay for a jaunt by Altantuya and Abdul Razak to Macau.

Najib has sworn on the Quran that he never met Altantuya, although she was in France at the same time as he was, accompanying Najib’s best friend, Abdul Razak Baginda. On June 11, 2005, Najib gave a press conference after having visited the site where the Scorpene submariners were being trained. 

“As a maritime nation, (the) acquisition will give our navy the added capabilities,” he told the media. Earlier, in the port city of Brest, Najib visited a naval base where Malaysian navy submariners were training, and, according to the log of an Australian submariner association, presented jackets made available by Perimekar – Abdul Razak Baginda’s company – to the crew.

Back in Kuala Lumpur when it was realized that Altantuya was missing, her cousin lodged a police report and sought help from the Mongolian embassy in Bangkok. The Malaysian police found fragments of bone, later verified as hers, in forested land near Shah Alam. The honorary Mongolian consul in Malaysia was given a packet of pictures of Altantuya in Paris, apparently recovered from her hotel room. She had posed in front of the Louis Vuitton headquarters and a variety of other Paris sites. Altantuya’s cousin said she had been shown a picture of the dead woman at a dinner with Najib. If it existed, it was not included in the packet made available to the Mongolian consul, who forwarded the rest of them to Asia Sentinel.

After the arrest of Razak Baginda and the two policemen, there ensued a carnival of a trial in a Malaysia high court, in which prosecutors were switched at the last minute; in which Abdul Razak Baginda was acquitted without having to put on a defense; in which nobody in Najib’s office was called to testify about who offered to pay the RM100,000; in which Sirul’s confession was never introduced, nor was he asked about any of the facts in it; in which nobody ever asked why immigration records for Altantuya and her two companions disappeared; why or how the two policemen were able to get their hands on C4 plastic explosives available only to the military in the bid to destroy her body. The honorary consul was never asked who gave him the pictures, nor if there others that might have shown more than just her.

On Feb. 3, 2009, Sirul pleaded with the court not to sentence him to death, describing himself as "a black sheep that has to be sacrificed" to protect unnamed people. "I have no reason to cause hurt, what's more to take the life of the victim in such a cruel manner .... I appeal to the court, which has the powers to determine if I live or die, not to sentence me so as to fulfill others' plans for me." 

Eventually the two bodyguards were convicted and packed off to prison. They launched appeals, then other appeals. Their appeals were supposed to have been heard in February this year, eight months ago. Mysteriously their appeals have been delayed. They were supposed to be heard in August. They have been delayed again, and the suspicion is that they will be delayed until after the next election, or perhaps forever. 

Altantuya Shaariibuu continues to await justice. Birnam Wood still may come to Dunsinane.

Link:
http://www.asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4908&Itemid=178

Auditor General's Report for 2011: Bouquets and Brickbats

The Auditor General's Report for 2011 can be accessed via following link :

http://www.audit.gov.my/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=636&Itemid=11

Related reports:

The financial performances of government ministries and departments have improved in 2011 from the year before, Auditor-General (A-G) Tan Sri Ambrin Buang said. In the Auditor-General Report 2011 released yesterday, he also said a total of 23 out of 47 government companies for the period of 2008 to 2010 recorded pre-tax profit for three consecutive years amounting to RM255.83 billion. The report also highlighted that of these companies, nine suffered accumulated losses amounting to RM2.45 billion for three consecutive years. However, from the 23 companies which recorded profits, only 10 companies paid dividends amounting to RM109.36 billion to the government for three consecutive years while four companies only paid a dividend in specific years.

http://themalaysianreserve.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2312:auditor-general-report-2011-financial-performances-improved&catid=36:corporate-malaysia&Itemid=120

A Customs officer bought hundreds of items not allocated for, raking up a bill of RM1.82 million.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/211770

Some canteens in residential, vocational, technical and government-assisted Islamic schools have been serving imported frozen buffalo meat instead of fresh beef.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/211794

RM366 million project to monitor traffic in Kuala Lumpur is hampered by the fact that more than half of the cameras involved are not working.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/211740

National sewerage company Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd (IWK), which incurred accumulated losses of RM888.81 million until end-2010, had successfully developed a better sewerage system in the country after 17 years of handling, but was found wanting on the financial performance front, according to the Auditor-General (A-G) Report 2011. “IWK’s financial performance was not satisfactory as the company could not generate profit and was too dependent on government subsidies to cover rising operating expenses,” according to the report which was released at the Dewan Rakyat…

http://themalaysianreserve.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2308:a-g-report-iwk-financial-performance-not-satisfactory&catid=36:corporate-malaysia&Itemid=120

The government faces the risk of footing heavy losses because the agreements it has signed for the double-tracking project limits the compensation that can be claimed from contractors who fail to meet deadlines.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/211801

The government is “studying the possibility of civil action” against the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) and taking back the RM250 million soft loan provided to the company.

http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/211824

Military family quarters built by the Defence Ministry saw costs nearly double to RM3.2 billion amid a litany of defects including collapsed ceilings and leaking sewer pipes, according to revelations in the Auditor-General’s Report 2011. Among others, the report found that the majority of the military quarters projects audited were awarded by direct negotiation and that the government waived penalties worth RM87.12 million for failure to meet contractual obligations. “The waiver that was approved by the Ministry of Finance to the respective contractors caused losses and compromised the interests of the government,” said the report. The audit team said that the financial performance of the military quarters projects was “unsatisfactory” as costs has shot up 84.1 per cent from the original allocation of RM1.74 billion.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/costs-for-faulty-military-quarters-soared-to-rm3.2b-audit-shows

The road construction projects in Sarawak do not meet deadlines and are wanting in safety standards. The Auditor-General’s report states the construction and upgrading of rural road projects were approved during the Ninth Malaysia Plan.

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/10/15/sarawak-roads-way-behind-schedule/

The annual Auditor-General’s Report has revealed several projects that were directly negotiated and were plagued with issues and which could impact the level of trust in government say analysts. The most glaring example was the directly negotiated RM12.49 billion Ipoh-Padang Besar double-tracking project which was delayed twice and has incurred an additional RM3.6 billion in costs. Other examples include 1,000 brochure racks worth RM1.95 million for Visit Malaysia Year 2007 bought through direct negotiation by the Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board without the Finance Ministry’s approval resulting in a probe by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the five billboards worth RM3.64 million that it put up in Indonesia via direct negotiation that are also being investigated by anti-graft officials.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/audit-reveals-direct-negotiation-option-risks-public-trust

Malaysia’s national debt is at its highest yet: at a whopping RM456.12 billion, according to the 2011 Auditor-General’s report. It is a RM49.02 billion (12%) increase from 2010′s figure (RM407.1b) and 51.77% of the country’s RM881.08 billion Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In comparison, 2011′s debt percentage of the national GDP was lower (2010 recorded 53.15%).

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/10/16/national-debt-soars-to-rm456-12-bil/

RM111m ‘for’ Rosmah’s Permata?

By Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz. Published by Free Malaysia Today on 11 October 2012.

An interesting area that has raised many an eyebrow and has set Malaysian tongues wagging is the budget allocation for the education section. Note a whopping RM1.2 billion has been allocated for pre-school education. And of this Rosmah Mansor’s pet project, Permata Negara Programme, has been allocated RM111 million.

Now, what has Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s wife, Rosmah, done to deserve RM111 million? Or, for that matter, what has Permata Negara programme done and achieved? What Permata has done is to suck up taxpayers’ money to the tune of RM2 billion thus far. It’s the black hole in Najib’s budget. And nobody knows how the money was or is being used.

Does Rosmah’s project require such huge taxpayers’ money considering that most of the pre-schools are fee-based and privately-owned? The recent Times Ranking of Universities has revealed the problem we have.

Najib’s ETP and foreigner labour

Where do we get a trained workforce to propel the nation to the high-income economy with US$15,000 per capita income? We have so many universities producing quantity but not quality. Seriously, with so many more SPM-standard workers, how do we push up our productivity boundaries?

Our traditional plantation sector requires 500,000 foreign workers. It seems our economy is attracting the low-end labour force which will certainly frustrate our lofty aims of becoming a high- income economy by 2020. We have plenty of low-paying jobs that Malaysians shun but are attractive to foreigners, so we have three million foreigners here.

What does their presence do? They drive down wages. Foreigners set our salary/wage levels. Some 40% of our people are only as rich or as poor as these foreigners! We have become an attractive country to jobless Bangladeshis, Indonesians, Filipinos and Myanmars. They would all want to vote for Umno/BN/Najib if they could, and some can. Herein lies Najib’s Economic Transformation (Programme).

The writer is a former Umno state assemblyman but joined DAP earlier this year. He is a FMT columnist.

Link: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/10/11/rm111m-for-rosmahs-permata/

Canadian Archbishop warns U.S. of dire consequences of gay ‘marriage’

BY JOHN-HENRY WESTEN.

Link: http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/canadian-archbishop-warns-u.s.-of-dire-consequences-of-gay-marriage

MINNEAPOLIS, October 12, 2012, (LifeSiteNews.com) – “You are summoned to a tribunal where you cannot have a defense lawyer and you cannot record the proceedings nor have a witness present. The people judging and prosecuting you have no legal qualifications. The accusation is ambiguous, having to do with ideas the state does not like. The penalties could include fines equal to several thousands of dollars, public recanting, and rehabilitation classes. You are a bishop. This is not China. This is Canada. The offense: explaining why homosexual relations are a sin.”

Abp. Terrence Prendergast has seen the American church's future.

So began the address of Ottawa Archbishop Terrence Prendergast to St. Thomas University Law School Monday, October 8, where he laid out the alarming consequences of same-sex “marriage” from the Canadian experience. 

The archbishop was describing the true experiences of Calgary Bishop Fred Henry, who in 2005 was hit with a human rights complaint for proclaiming the Church’s teachings on homosexuality. The complaint was subsequently dropped by the plaintiff, who admitted that he only filed the complaint to get media attention.

Others, however, have not been so lucky. Alberta pastor Stephen Boissoin, for instance, was dragged through a several year process in a human rights commission, at the end of which he was found “guilty.” His crime? Writing a letter to the editor of a local newspaper expressing his concern about the gay agenda in schools. Boissoin was hit with a fine and ordered never again to publicly speak about his views on homosexuality.

Archbishop Prendergast also expressed his concern for those who, thanks to the legalization of gay “marriage,” are deceived into destructive lifestyles, approved of and funded by Canadian governments. "The Bible is being called hate literature,” he said. “Clearly, the Church is in the crosshairs. There will be growing pressure for the Church to comply or to be shut down.”

Enumerating the “consequences of same-sex marriages and related sexual license are already manifesting themselves,” the Archbishop noted:

- restrictions on freedoms; 

- forced sex education; 

- sexually confused children; 

- sexual experimentation among children; 

- muzzling and debilitating the Church; 

- more births out of wedlock; 

- more in vitro fertilizations;

- more abortions; 

- more poverty; 

- more misery; 

- more disease; 

- more addictions; and 

- higher health care costs.

Click “like” if you want to defend true marriage. 

“By reassigning financial benefits to same-sex marriage, what was once an incentive to fruitful, traditional families has become an incentive to sterile, destructive social arrangements,” he said.

Archbishop Prendergast ended his address on a positive note. “Every challenge to the Church’s teaching is an opportunity to clarify it,” he said. “Media attention is putting the Church on the front page, and we must see that as a good thing.”

“Just the same,” he warned, “the playbook of our opponents is unrelenting attempts to change or destroy the Church.” The state of Minnesota is set to vote on a referendum to protect traditional marriage on November 6.

1Malaysia, Double Standard: The Saga Continues...

Published by Malaysia Chronicle on 13 October 2012.

http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=42409:3-chief-ministers-a-wedding-a-divorce-a-donation-but-zero-action-from-macc&Itemid=2

Yesterday, the BN government was very proud to announce the exoneration of Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman from the S$16 million(RM40 million) cash scandal as he was cleared by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on charges of corruption and money laundering. Did MACC carry out a full investigation including recording the statement of Datuk Seri Musa?

According to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz’s written Parliamentary reply, the Attorney-General’s Chambers had not found any element of corruption in the case of the Sabah businessman who was detained in Hong Kong while trying to smuggle out RM40 million in Singapore currency. Nazri said that investigations revealed that the money constituted political contributions to Sabah UMNO, and not to Musa.

The BN must take Malaysians for fools if they expect people to believe this likely story and accept the fact that all is fine because the smuggled money was for Sabah UMNO and not for Musa. What are the conditions behind giving RM40 million for Sabah UMNO and why also in Singapore currency? Again MACC is attempting to cover up and whitewash this blatant act of money politics by BN.

Taib's son & Ali Rustam's son

This RM40 million smuggled cash scandal comes hot on the heels of two other scandals involving two other BN chief ministers. It was recently alleged by a Swiss NGO that Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Taib Mahmud’s wealth is estimated at RM46 billion, making him the richest man in Malaysia.The enormity of Taib’s family wealth is corroborated by the current divorce proceedings of his son Datuk Seri Mahmud Abu BekirTaib, in which his ex-wife has revealed that Taib’s son is worth at least RM1 billion, with 110 personal accounts in banks all over the world.

And then we have the recent wedding celebration of Malacca Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ali Rustam’s son, in which 130,000 guest were feted in an extravagant record-breaking celebration in Malaysia. Until today Ali Rustam has failed to explain how he is able to afford such a lavish wedding. Ali Rustam claims it cost only RM600,000 and he did not pay for it as it was fully sponsored. Is it not money politics if Ali Rustam had accepted “sponsorship” for his son’s wedding? In future, any couple getting married should ask Ali Rustam to fully sponsor their wedding as Ali could get sponsorship for his son.

Malaysians can no longer stomach the sheer arrogance displayed by such BN leaders who have not only accumulated extraordinary wealth but also flaunt it publicly. The Malaysian Anti-corruption Commission(MACC) has no credibility with Malaysians to conduct an independent investigation into the record breaking wedding of Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Sri Mohd Ali Rustam’s son with 130,000 guests and allegations of the extraordinary wealth of Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Taib Mahmud when no action is taken against the RM40 million given to Sabah UMNO.

Written by LIM GUAN ENG, THE PENANG CHIEF MINISTER & DAP SEC-GEN.

1Malaysia, Double Standard

Published by The Star Online on 13 October 2012.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said Saturday that the proposal should be studied so that there existed an Act that would prevent such an intervention which aimed at threatening national security, as well as peace and harmony in the country.

"The influx of foreign funds for such purposes will cause us to become agents of foreign powers and we will be forced to create lies to destabilise the country. That is very bad. We have to make sure things like this will not happen in our country."

Nazri said this in response to the proposal made by several members of Parliament that it was high time for Malaysia to have a law to regulate the influx of foreign funds, in particular to non-governmental organizations (NGOs), that was aimed at destabilising the country. Mohamed Nazri, who is also Padang Rengas MP, said the proposal should be scrutinised by making comparisons with similar Acts in other countries. - Bernama

Link: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/10/13/nation/20121013191738&sec=nation

Compare to this: By Md Izwan. Published by The Kuala Lumpur Post on 13 October 2012.

Najib Razak Refused To Disclose RM40 Million Political Donation Received By Umno Sabah

Datuk Seri Najib Razak refused tonight to disclose the source of a political donation received by Umno Sabah that was the subject of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) investigation of Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman.

“It is a political donation. All parties have a right to receive political donations. As long as it is through the right channels, it is not an offence,” the Umno president (picture) told reporters after chairing a Barisan Nasional (BN) supreme council meeting.

“We are not at liberty to disclose… the opposition also receives donations and they don’t disclose,” he said.

Yesterday, Parliament was told the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had cleared Musa of graft and money-laundering allegations after finding that the over S$16 million (RM40 million) allegedly channelled to the Sabah chief minister through corrupt means was meant for Sabah Umno’s use.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz said the Attorney-General’s Chambers had shelved the matter after finding no element of corruption in the case, which was first raised by whistleblower site Sarawak Report earlier this year.

In April this year, Sarawak Report had revealed documents allegedly from the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) showing that a Sabah lawyer was holding some US$30 million in a Swiss bank account for Musa.

The report also claimed that a paper trail showed that the millions in euro as well as US, Hong Kong and Singapore dollars had been channelled from several firms managed by Hong Kong-based timber trader Michael Chia to a number of British Virgin Island companies and subsequently to the lawyer’s Swiss account.

Musa has since denied any link with Chia, who was arrested and charged with money laundering after attempting to smuggle S$16 million (RM40 million) back to Malaysia in 2008. According to media reports, Chia had at the time allegedly told the Hong Kong authorities that the money belonged to Musa.

Musa had previously accused Sarawak Report of defaming him, claiming the graft allegations were likely part of a conspiracy by his detractors who wanted to topple Barisan Nasional (BN) in the east Malaysian state.

He had said he would offer full co-operation to the authorities if he was required to but stressed that in the meantime, his focus was on serving the state instead of “entertaining these frivolous allegations”.

Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) said today it was appalled with the government’s conclusion that “no element of corruption was proven” in its investigation of Musa. The anti-graft watchdog urged the authorities today to ensure a full disclosure of the political contribution. -hornbillunleashed

Link: http://www.kualalumpurpost.net/najib-razak-refused-to-disclose-rm40-million-political-donation-received-by-umno-sabah/