Friday, August 30, 2013

From someone who saw 'Tanda Putera'

Dear Ms Shuhaimi Baba,
Last night, I went to watch your movie Tanda Putera, despite the many calls to boycott it. I went to see the movie because– 1) You urged Malaysians to see it before criticizing and 2) I had hoped to learn something about the May 13th riots.
After watching the movie, as per your recommendation, I feel I learnt very little, if not nothing, about the May 13th incident. And I believe this is due to two reasons - One, the film tackles the incident in a manner so shoddy, it downright insults the viewer’s intelligence. Second, the director’s poor ability to translate historical interpretation into production leaves the viewer confused as to whether events in the film are fictional or not.
To be quite honest Ms Baba, you lost me at the very beginning of your film when you chose to show communists killing an UMNO election worker and then showed members of DAP and Gerakan terrorizing Malay neighborhoods in KL.
You fail to show how these incidents are related and instead seem to have a jolly good time insinuating that the Chinese were primarily responsible for inciting all forms of violence during the period while the Malays are portrayed as simply trying to defend themselves.
In fact, the scene where former Selangor MB Harun Idris gathers his men and urges them to drop their weapons and then faints when his mob runs riot is simply pathetic. The urination scene too was totally unnecessary especially since, by your own accord, it did not even take place.
Indeed, it is irritating that many fictional scenarios of Chinese belligerence were conveniently created to justify actual decisions made by the country’s leaders.
Ms Baba, you deliberately chose to portray the Chinese as disrespectful and violent knowing you could get away with it. All Umno leaders meanwhile are portrayed as holier than thou.
Your depiction of how Tunku Abdul Rahman “happily resigned” when he had in fact been ousted was also disappointing. Surely as a story-teller, you must realize having one-dimensional characters does your movie no justice whatsoever.
That being said, I must commend your feeble attempt to show how friends of different races stood up for each other during the racial riots. I think, however, there was a lot more you could have done with the subject which would have driven Malaysians to the cinema in droves.
I’m not sure I agree with the Penang government’s directive against screening the film, however, after seeing the film myself, I wouldn’t encourage anyone to watch it.
The last historical drama I watched was Lincoln which reflected on Abe Lincoln’s handling of the Civil War and perhaps I unfairly had that as a benchmark when I watched your film.
Still, when I think of how this film was showed in FELDA areas prior to the elections, I can see why the story had to be distorted even further than what we usually encounter in our history textbooks.
Ms Baba, Malaysia is a young country that has a long way to go in terms of generating honest discourse on racial issues. You unfortunately have in no way contributed to that.
[Sugasini Kandiah]

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

This is humanity at its best ....


Be mindful when you are at the cinemas from August 28 to September 3.


So, the "Negara Ku" will be screened before the start of the movie from August 28 to September 3, and when it is on, patrons are supposed to stand up in respect of the national anthem or you will be arrested and charged under the National Anthem Act 1968.  Just thinking aloud.  Will Malay Muslims stand up when the Negara Ku echo the lyrics ".... Tuhan kurniakan". Remember, "Tuhan" is a Christian god [so says UMNO Baru]. So if Malay Muslims don't stand up, will they be arrested?  Hmmmm .....

Faith, Hope and Trust, simply explained


For once, Tengku Adnan, you did something right by standing up to Utusan

Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s (DBKL) project to turn Jalan Alor in the city centre into a food haven will go on despite Utusan Malaysia’s criticism, Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said today.

He said the project, which aims to promote Jalan Alor as a street food haven in KL’s Golden Triangle to tourists, should be viewed in a “positive light”.

“We’ll go ahead with it,” Tengku Adnan (picture) told The Malay Mail Online after meeting Federal Territories lawmakers across the political divide here.

The editors of Malay broadsheet Mingguan Malaysia — the Sunday edition of Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia — had in an editorial yesterday panned the project, saying only the Chinese community would benefit.

Writing under the shared “Awang Selamat” moniker, the paper's editors claimed a strong Chinese image in the Bukit Bintang area already made it resemble Hong Kong.

The newspaper also attacked Chinese voters, saying that they have never supported the Barisan Nasional (BN) government and that giving them “the moon and the stars” would not garner further appreciation.

Bukit Bintang MP Fong Kui Lun said separately today that Jalan Alor played an “important role” in attracting tourists.

“It’ll benefit the country, not just the Chinese,” Fong told reporters after the meeting with Tengku Adnan today.

“Last year, tourists spent RM60 billion,” added the DAP lawmaker.

Last month, KL Mayor Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib announced a project to upgrade Jalan Alor into a “food paradise of international standards”.

Ahmad Phesal had said that quality furniture, including an efficient waste disposal and water system, would be provided to merchants to preserve the hygiene in the former red-light district.

The project to upgrade Jalan Alor to become the global “Food Paradise” is scheduled to begin in October and is expected to be completed 11 months later.

[Source : themalaymailonline.com]

Monday, August 26, 2013

Monday Humour

THREE THINGS KJ LIKES ABOUT PAKATAN

Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin was put on the spot at a student summit today when he was asked to name three things he liked about Pakatan Rakyat.

Khairy, who is usually a good orator, had his jaw gaping wide a few times while composing his thoughts.

"Umm... The first thing I sort of like about them, I have to be grudging about it... Oh come on give me a chance here," he said at the 7th Annual Malaysian Students Leaders Summit in Kuala Lumpur to roars of laughter from the crowd.

When he finally managed to come up with an answer, Khairy said he admired the sense of camaraderie among Pakatan components.

"You would see DAP, PAS and PKR at the same ceramah.

"We (BN) try to do that as well but the sense of being together is quite obvious in Pakatan which I think is something to respect," he said.
For the second point, Khairy conceded that Pakatan appeared to give more space to young people, to which the room applauded in agreement.

"You don't have to clap, you don't have to make things worse for me, it's already uncomfortable.

"The third (thing) I think is their (Pakatan's) engagement on social media is a bit better than ours... Just a bit," said Khairy, who is among the most active BN politicians on Twitter.

'Too many old men'

To a question on whether Umno had an unwelcoming attitude towards youths, Khairy admitted that this was the case but the party was trying to change this.

He added that young people in Umno must also go the extra mile by going to the ground and cannot expect to be parachuted as candidates.

"I was Umno Youth chief but was not appointed to any ministry, I was in the wilderness for five years but I stuck (with it), learned about the programme, got to know the party and grassroots," he said.

While some young people think that they would have more space by joining Pakatan, Khairy had an advice for them.

"Some young people say they should join Pakatan because it's easy to be a candidate because BN has many old warlords who do not want to give way.

"But Pakatan has so many 'young people' that if you wait for them to 'expire' it's going to take a long me.

"But we (BN) got many old men," he quipped.

_________________________________________________________________

Irish Joke

Bono is at a U2 concert in Ireland when he asks the audience for some quiet. Then in the silence, he starts to slowly clap his hands.

Holding the audience in total silence, he says into the microphone..."Every time I clap my hands, a child in Africa dies."

A voice from near the front of the audience pierces the silence..."Oh, please, stop doing it then!"
___________________________________________________________

A SPAGHETTI LOVE AFFAIR

For several years, a man was having an affair with an Italian woman. One night, she confided in him that she was pregnant.

Not wanting to ruin his reputation or his marriage, he said he would pay her a large sum of money if she would go to Italy to secretly have the child. Furthermore, if she stayed in Italy to raise the child, he would also provide child support until the child turned 18.

She agreed, but asked how he would know when the baby was born. To keep it discreet, he told her to simply mail him a post card, and write 'Spaghetti' on the back. He would then arrange for the child support payments to begin.

One day, about 9 months later, he came home to his confused wife. 'Honey, she said, 'you received a very strange post card today.'

'Oh, just give it to me and I'll explain it later,' he said. The wife obeyed and watched as her husband read the card, turned white, and fainted. 
On the card was written:
Spaghetti,
Spaghetti,
Spaghetti,
Spaghetti,
Spaghetti.

Three with meatballs, two without.
Send extra sauce!
____________________________________________________________

PRANK OF A RETIREE

As a public service to my retired friends and others who may get trapped
into going shopping .........

After I retired, my wife insisted that I accompany her on her trips to
Target.
Unfortunately, like most men, I found shopping boring and preferred to get
in and get out.
Equally unfortunate, my wife is like most women - she loves to browse.
Yesterday my  dear wife received the following letter from the local Target:
Dear Mrs. Harris,

Over the past six months, your husband has caused quite a commotion in
our store.

We cannot tolerate this behavior and have been forced to ban both of you
from the store. Our complaints against your husband, Mr. Harris, are listed
below and are documented by our video surveillance cameras:

1. June 15: He took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put them in other
people's carts when they weren't looking.*

2. July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute
intervals.

3. July 19: Walked up to an employee and told her in an official
voice, 'Code 3 in Housewares. Get on it right away'.

This caused the employee to leave her assigned station and receive a
reprimand from her Supervisor that in turn resulted with a union grievance,
causing management to lose time and costing the company money. We don't
have a Code 3.

4. August 4: Went to the Service Desk and tried to put a bag of M&Ms on
layaway.

5. August 14: Moved a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to a carpeted area.

Sunday, August 25, 2013

OMG, not again!

This is how Najib would have done when he discovered that the same slogan, "Endless Possibilities", was being used by Israel and Mongolia.  Of all countries.  This is totally unbelievable!!!

After "1Malaysia", now this!

17 Little Changes we can Make that Make a Big Difference


Altantuya’s annihilation – a fabulous drama

Who killed Cock Robin?
I, said the sparrow.
With my little bow and arrow,
I killed Cock Robin.
The little sparrow was obviously very honest and bold to admit it. But that was ages ago. Sorry if the younger, non-English medium school generation have not heard this.
Who killed Altantuya is the current question on the nation’s and the world’s lips.
From the drama of the killing, blasting and court case, a script emerges. The script was that if any questions are ever asked, the answers would be sharp:  “What Altantuya? Who is Altantuya? There is no such person registered with the National Registration Department. There is no such person in the immigration records. There never was such a person on Malaysian soil. So don’t make wild accusations. Don’t let your imaginations run wild. Check your facts before opening your mouths.”
OK, let us look at whatever facts are available.
Altantuya had definitely come to Malaysia but her immigration records had been wiped clean. This fact was established, albeit with difficulty, during the High Court trial. These records are supposed to be maintained for a long time, if not in perpetuity.
Let’s now ask some questions about this.
1 Is the disappearance of one name from the immigration records an accidental happening?
2 Could it have happened without the knowledge of or instructions from the Director General of Immigration?
3 What was the motive for the removal of her name?
4 If he had no motive, then who had “requested” him to do so?
5 And what was the motive of the person who made such a request?
6 Whose request would he have been obliged to fulfil?
7 What would his position have been had he not complied with the request?
Another fact that was established during the trial was that C4 explosives were used to blast the body and that such explosives are used exclusively by the armed forces and are not part of the police arsenal. Now, let’s ask a few more questions about this:
Was any report made by the army storekeeper responsible for the safekeeping of the C4 that his store had been broken into and some C4 stolen?
2 How could such a theft occur as the armoury is a guarded place within a guarded place? (Apologies for this stupid question: weren’t two jet engines stolen from the air-force stores?)
3 Who authorised the removal of enough C4 to blast a human body into smithereens?
4 What was his motive in doing so?
5 If it was not his motive, whose “request’ was he fulfilling?
6 Had he not fulfilled the request, what would his position have been?
Nobody seems to have had any motive, and the learned judge of the High Court said motive was irrelevant and he did not have to discover the motive behind the shooting and the destruction of evidence by blowing up the body using C4 that was supplied by the army. A unique murder case, not just by Malaysian standards, but probably even by standards of the countries around the world that practice rule of law. Malaysia Boleh! This is surely fit for the World Book of Records.
Mad people do things without a motive. So Malaysians are being told and expected to believe that all those involved in erasing the immigration record, in supplying the C4, in first shooting Altantuya and then blowing her up, were all mad people. They did what they did without knowing what they were doing. But mad people do not go about planning and scheming, to destroying records and evidences of their actions.
And, what was the motive of the AG in sending up to the court a case that had not been properly investigated, that had so many loose ends, that any first year criminal law student should have been able see as a sure failure in court?
AG owes the nation an explanation
So can a man in the street be blamed for feeling that the whole judicial process was a high drama played out to placate the Malaysian and Mongolian public but with the motive of ensuring that nobody would be found guilty and sent to the gallows, as those “charged” had no motive in the first place to do what they did?
This “disappearance” of Altantuya was supposed to have been a re-play of the disappearance without trace of Jim Thompson, albeit with a material difference. He was an American businessman living in Thailand and had almost single handedly revived the Thai silk industry that was in the doldrums.  For this he came to be known as the Thai Silk King. On March 26, 1967, he left Moonlight Bungalow in the Cameron Highlands where he had come for a holiday, for a walk. He was never seen again, despite a massive search operation with the help of the orang asli. Till today his disappearance remains a mystery.
In Altantuya’s case, which was not a “voluntary disappearance”, providence intervened and brought a fishing enthusiast to a stream in that jungle at that unearthly hour to enjoy his hobby. He was shaken by the bomb blasts and reported them to the police. This had not been anticipated by all the motiveless persons whose combined efforts had brought Altantuya to this spot.
The forensics police carried out their duty and were able to establish that the explosions were caused by C4 explosives. It was also established that the person blown up was Altantuya.
This must have shocked all those who had had no motive in supplying the C4, in shooting Altantuya and then in blowing her up, confident that without any trace of their motiveless actions, no questions would be asked and have to be answered.
The police forensics report was explosive and blew up the original grand plan and a new script had to be written. Now somebody had to be made scapegoats and put on trial. The easiest way to ensure a person accused of a crime, any crime, is not convicted is to leave holes or even gaping holes in the ‘evidence’ presented to the court. A court then, with a clear conscience, can free the accused for failure of the prosecution to prove a prima facie case. And there is no provision in law to charge the prosecutor for not doing his homework thoroughly. He faces no penalty if he loses his case.
In contrast to this case where it was irrefutably established that the victim’s immigration record had been tampered with and she had been shot and then blown up with C4, an explosive used solely by the country’s armed force, there was the case of Jean Perera in 1976 where the then AG was able to secure conviction on circumstantial evidence and falsehoods by a key witness who later confessed.
It is normal when there are gaps in the evidence and therefore unsafe to convict someone, especially in a capital crime case, for the courts to order a re-trial to fill up those gaps. Closing the case and setting free the accused can be very dangerous for society. Supposing they were true hardcore criminals, they would now be free to commit more crimes, confident that if they are caught again, their chances of escape are great.  So in this case ordering a re-trial would have been the proper thing for the Court of Appeal to do. Why then did it free two murder accused without any interest in finding out the truth of what happened? So dear Home Minister, do not blame the repeal of the EO for the rise in violent crime.
Who decides what evidence to put before the court in a criminal prosecution if not the AG?  By sending to the courts a case that had many gaping holes, it would appear that the AG’s motive was to ensure there would be no conviction as the court would find it “unsafe to convict”. Were the gaps a deliberate act to let the court jettison the case? I may be wrong, but the AG owes the nation an explanation for the half-past-six prosecution of this case.
As a layman, it comes to me that since the original plan of those without any motive to finish off Altantuya without a trace went haywire due to the police report by the lone fishing enthusiast about the mysterious explosions in the middle of the jungle in the middle of the night, the script had to be re-written to put someone on trial to show action was taken, but with the motive of merely placating the public and actually ensuring no one was found guilty of the crime.
Well, the AG now tells the world he is not satisfied with the Court of Appeal decision to release the accused and he would appeal this decision to the Federal Court. Is it for the Federal Court to fill the gaps in the evidence? Can the AG present new evidence and call the missing witnesses to give evidence and be cross-examined in the Federal Court? Will the AG provide answers to questions surrounding the immigration records and the C4 explosives? Will he show the Federal Court that the two accused had a motive to finish off Altantuya without a trace, and explain what that motive was and why they had that motive in the first place? Without answers to all these, does he expect us to believe he is genuine in his declaration of not being happy with the Court of Appeal decision? Does he expect people to be happy over his unhappiness?
And the two hooded accused whose faces the public did not get to see. How would anyone know if they had actually been moving about among the people, perhaps in a different town, instead of being in custody. If the original plan had not been spoilt by divine intervention through that fishing enthusiast, no one would have been put on trial in the first place. The two were not supposed to face any consequences for carrying out somebody’s orders, for this was not their own doing as they had nothing to do with Altantuya, and probably had not even heard of her before that.
The police forensics department was obviously not aware of the game plan and they did a good job of identifying the cause and purpose of the explosion and I say syabas to them.
I also thank God for sending that fishing enthusiast to that spot on that fateful day and at that time of night when most people are comfortably asleep. Otherwise nobody would have known anything about this sordid, most disgraceful, event in Malaysian history.  God does work in mysterious ways, for man proposes but God disposes. If anything could be “takdir”, this was -  that the world should know how Altantuya’s life was snuffed out in the cruelest of ways.
[Source: FMT]