Manji scorches fatwa council's anti-Bersih edict

Controversial Uganda-born Canadian author Irshad Manji hit out at certain muftis and clerics, including those in Malaysia's National Fatwa Council, which she said are trying to impose their own mores and dogma upon the populace.

"Muftis, imams and clerics of various stripes love to tell us what we are to believe; in the course of telling us this, they also want us to adopt a particular identity.

"What they will never tell us is that they expect us to adopt their identity," said the 44-year-old New York University (NYU) professor in an exclusive interview with Malaysiakini in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Pak Samad: Stop All Personal Harassment And Intimidation Against Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan, Co-Chair Of Bersih 2.0

On behalf of BERSIH 2.0 and its steering committee members, I condemn the on-going harassment and intimidation meted solely against Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan.

It pains me to witness the despicable harassment committed against her, my fellow Bersih co-chairperson and fellow Malaysian. She is someone who has dedicated years of her life to the advancement of human rights and the betterment of our society. While abhorrent and sometimes aggressive attacks have been carried out at Dato’ Ambiga’s private home, Dato’ Ambiga has been handling the situation with dignity and grace.

The Trouble with Islam Today

The Trouble with Islam Today is... Muslims.
This book is an open letter from me, a Muslim voice of change, to concerned citizens worldwide -- Muslim and not. It's about why my faith community needs to come to terms with the diversity of ideas, beliefs and people in our universe, and why non-Muslims have a pivotal role in helping us get there.
The themes I'm exploring with the utmost honesty include:

• the inferior treatment of women by Muslims;
• the Jew-bashing in which so many Muslims persistently engage; and
• the continuing scourge of slavery in countries ruled by Islamist regimes.

Joe Fernandez' open letter to Malaysiakini

Dear Guma at malaysiakini,

Why not focus on what Bersih is all about?

Why degenerate into the politics of distraction and disruption a la Umno? Will it help make a difference? Will it go down in history?

Who will remember the beefburger, butt dance or whatever in a few days from now? Or the nonsense mouthed all the time by Perkasa and Mahathir in malaysiakini? Will we die of stupidity if we don't read what these two clowns have to say?

Two-party system in Parliament not ideal for Sabah, Sarawak

Dear Sir,
By“A disenchanted East Malaysian voter” (Daily Express Forum Sun 20 May, 2012) appears to be caught up with the politics of delusion in rooting for a two-party system for Sabah and Sarawak as well.

 

Don’t we want to not only stand up and be counted but also stand on our own two feet?

 

When are we going to stop living in fear and shed the slave mentality and the dependency syndrome foisted on us by the subsidy regime and other ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) dirty tricks to ghettoize us and make us think that we are incapable of doing anything and would have to depend on them forever to keep body-and-soul together?

 

Menukar Kerajaan Pilihan Rakyat Jika Gagal Memenuhi Aspirasi Rakyat, Roger Stimin

Oleh: Mail Mathew

TENOM: Ahli Majlis Tertinggi (AMT) Parti Maju Sabah (SAPP) Roger Stimin menegaskan bahawa ketiadaan kuasa otonomi kerajaan negeri menyulitkan para wakil rakyat disesuatu kawasan untuk melaksanakan sesuatu pembangunan yang mendesak. Ekoran masalah itu ia terpaksa tertangguh beberapa bulan sebelum kelulusan mutlak diperolehi dari kerajaan Pusat.

Tuberculosis makes a comeback in Sabah

By Luke Rintod of FMT

KOTA KINABALU: The uncontrolled influx of illegal immigrants into Sabah has spawned a lethal infectious disease, once thought to have been almost eradicated.

Tuberculosis, more commonly known as TB, is killing people on a weekly basis in Sabah and the spread of the disease is being pinned on the immigrants who have been pouring over its borders for years.

According to the health authorities here, Sabah is the most afflicted state in the country with at least four people dying weekly from the dreaded disease.

BN ruling Sabah another 5 years is not main issue

By Joe Fernandez

(Part 1) Critics in Peninsular Malaysia miss the forest for the trees when they complain that "Barisan must be laughing at these fringe parties" in Sabah. Obviously, they are referring to the "inability" of the opposition parties to forge an electoral pact to take on the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) one-to-one come the 13th General Election.

The issue is not whether the BN, in the absence of opposition unity, continues to rule Sabah for a further five years.

That doesn't mean that the BN in Sabah will surely "fall" if the opposition can get their act together.

Tiada Pengundi Hantu ? Baca rencana dibawah dan fikirkanlah

Comment by Ong Kian Ming
Malaysiakini.com, 17. May 2012

I have been asked many questions with regard to the 3.1 million potential non-resident voters which I first highlighted at a press conference together with members of the Bersih steering committee on April 23. I subsequently wrote about this issue in greater detail here.


In response to these questions, I would like to make the following points:

1. That not all 3.1 million of these potential non-resident voters are dubious voters.

2. There are many reasons why voters are not registered in the same constituency indicated by their IC address.

3. That one of the reasons is because of politicians registering their supporters in their respective constituencies even though these voters do not and have never lived in these constituencies.

Najib sparks demand for Sabah banana

Saba banana fritters

By Nurhafizah Yusof
Pictures by Ille Tugimin
Sabah’s ubiquitous banana is aptly named Saba. But it did not find favour with the people on the peninsula until Najib Razak, the prime minister, had a taste of it. Now demands for Sabah banana or Pisang Sabah in Malay have outstripped supply, according to Yahya Hussin, a deputy chief minister who heads the ministry of agriculture and food industry.

Saba is a hybrid of the genera Musa acuminata and balbisiana of the Cavendish group. Thus it has a mild tangy Cavendish taste. It stands out from other bananas because of its angular sides. It is between 8 and 13 cm long, about the length of a ballpoint pen, and looks rather stubby with a girth of between 2.5 and 5.5 cm. As a plantain, it is usually used to make fritters, chips and cakes.

Sebastian Chew