Underneath the team colours and the performance, the cheering and the competition – whether in the US or in Malaysia – what are elections good for? And how can they be improved?
Najib Razak
Uncommon Sense with Wong Chin Huat: Merdeka and the rise of citizens
By Ding Jo-Ann
MALAYSIANS are no longer content to watch the official government-organised Merdeka parade on their televisions. Instead, they have been taking to the streets to celebrate Merdeka in their own way. What’s behind these different celebrations and do they make Malaysians unpatriotic?
Examining Anwar’s inconsistency
By Shanon Shah
What is the big deal about Anwar’s stand on homosexuality? Sure, he speaks out against racism, detention without trial and corruption, but is he inconsistent for insisting that homosexuality remain criminalised? Does it matter that Anwar’s stand on homosexuality is no different from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s?
Najib’s legal reforms legacy
Holding Court By Ding Jo-Ann
Malaysia will be more open and democratic with “revolutionary” new laws that will herald a “new era”, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak. Really? Has Najib made good on his promises? We take a look at the prime minister’s legacy of legal reforms since Malaysia Day 2011.
Squaring Najib’s statements on “pendatang” and the Malay agenda
By Ding Jo-Ann
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak recently told Chinese Malaysians they are “citizens with full rights” and that those who call them pendatang are “lunatics”. But how do Chinese Malaysians having “full rights” accord with the “Malay agenda” that Najib also claims to champion? To what threat is Najib referring when he warns Malay Malaysians that they may become squatters in their own land? And what has Najib said previously about organisations such as Perkasa that have openly chastised Chinese Malaysians for being ungrateful to the Umno-led government?
The Scorpene scandal and the long arm of the law
In A Nutshell by Andrew Khoo
AS a party to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, how well do our government ministers understand Malaysia’s obligations under this international treaty and local laws on international cooperation on criminal matters? Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s recent snubbing of the inquiry by a French court into the Scorpene submarines scandal suggest ignorance, at the very least.
Uncommon Sense with Wong Chin Huat: What does Bersih 3.0 want?
By Ding Jo-Ann
ON 28 April 2012, the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih 2.0) will hold its third major demonstration in the city known as Bersih 3.0. Despite the government’s efforts at electoral reforms, the movement remains unsatisfied. What really is Bersih 3.0’s purpose?
False hope in Security Offences Act
Holding Court by Ding Jo-Ann
THE Security Offences (Special Measures) Bill (Sosma), passed by the Dewan Rakyat on 18 April 2012, will repeal the Internal Security Act (ISA) once it comes into effect. The ISA has long been criticised for allowing preventive detention for indefinite periods without trial. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the reform, including the rescinding […]
What’s wrong with Bersih 3.0?
Shape of a Pocket by Jacqueline Ann Surin
IF we were to believe everything the Barisan Nasional (BN) is saying about Bersih 3.0, the movement for free and fair elections is indeed problematic in several ways. According to BN elected representatives, the planned 28 April 2012 sit-down protest at Dataran Merdeka, known as Bersih 3.0, is “unnecessary”. It has been hijacked by, or […]
Why should we trust you, Prime Minister?
Shape of a Pocket by Jacqueline Ann Surin
IT’s hard to trust the prime minister, no matter if public approval for him has risen following a slew of government handouts. It’s not just because the seasoned journalist in me has seen more than my fair share of untrustworthy politicians. Trust, as we often hear and know to be true, has to be earned. Prime […]
