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Aliran Monthly : Vol.27(3)

PP3739/12/2007 ISSN 0127 - 5127 RM4.00 2007:Vol.27No.3

For Justice, Freedom & SolidarityFor Justice, Freedom & SolidarityFor Justice, Freedom & SolidarityFor Justice, Freedom & SolidarityFor Justice, Freedom & Solidarity


When the incumbent four-term assemblyman for Ijok,Datuk K Sivalingam unexpectedly passed away, Ijokpromptly became the focus of attention. This semi-ru-ral, very much forgotten and very often-neglected state

constituency suddenly became a very important constituencyfor the Barisan Nasional. This is the constituency where resi-dents had been waiting vainly for 30 years for land grants toput up their houses with no sign of ever obtaining them. Theroads badly needed repairs. Schools and mosques urgentlyneeded allocations. Their assemblyman was hardly around andhe was not even accessible to the local residents.

All this changed drastically and even dramatically. Ijok, theforsaken constituency, all of a sudden became a much soughtafter constituency. All this happened simply because there wasa contest. If there were no contest, nothing would have changedin Ijok. Nobody would have bothered with Ijok. The people ofIjok would have continued to wait hopelessly for some form of

COVER STORY

Keadilan defeated but notd e s t r o y e dIf the by-election had been fought on a level playing field, theopposition would have made mince-meat of the BN candidate

by P Ramakrishnan

WWWWW

development, which would not havecome easily.

But because there was a contest that wasspearheaded by none other than DatukSeri Anwar Ibrahim, the former deputyprime minister and deputy Umno presi-dent, that really got the BN worrying.There was this gripping fear thatKeadilan, with Anwar leading the chal-lenge against the BN, was capable of stag-ing an upset victory. This would haveaffected the BN’s image of invincibility


In our cover story, P Ramakrishnan looks back atthe Ijok by-election (‘buy election”?) and its impli-cations for Keadilan, which didn’t stand a chancewith all that media, money and machinery pumpedinto the constituency during the campaign. HaveKeadilan and Anwar been destroyed by the result?

Jeyakumar Devaraj warns that the Australian con-sultant hired by the Health Ministry has proposeda neo-liberal health financing scheme. This proposalwould treat health care as a commodity and rely onmarket forces to match supply and demand, hepoints out, in a critique endorsed by the CoalitionAgainst Health Care Privatisation.

Angeline Loh contributes two pieces. In the first,she expresses dismay at attempts to smear the workof the United Nations Commissioners for Refugees.And in the second, she expresses concern that theplan to raise the number of police personnel couldbloat the ranks of those who revel in “hunting” downundocumented migrants. Caram Asia, for its part,highlights the increasing trend to restrict the free-dom of movement of migrant workers in Malaysiaand Thailand in a misguided move to curb crime.

In an interview with Fomca’s IndraniThuraisingham on the threat of genetically alteredrice, Jennifer Mourin and Anne Haslam point outthat the number of rice farmers in Malaysia has beendwindling.

Johan Saravanamuttu meanwhile reviews a newbook by Ooi Kee Beng on the political life and timesof former deputy premier Tun Dr Ismail AbdulRahman and provides his own insights.

Our back cover story features a plea from JapaneseNGOs urging Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi andthe ACA to probe the corruption allegations againstSarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud.

C O N T E N T S

EDITOR'S NOTE

COVER STORYCOVER STORYCOVER STORYCOVER STORYCOVER STORY••••• Keadilan Defeated But Not DestroyedKeadilan Defeated But Not DestroyedKeadilan Defeated But Not DestroyedKeadilan Defeated But Not DestroyedKeadilan Defeated But Not Destroyed 22222

FEATURESFEATURESFEATURESFEATURESFEATURES••••• Watch Out For The Aussie Consultant'sWatch Out For The Aussie Consultant'sWatch Out For The Aussie Consultant'sWatch Out For The Aussie Consultant'sWatch Out For The Aussie Consultant's

ProposalProposalProposalProposalProposal 88888••••• Strengthen The Public HealthStrengthen The Public HealthStrengthen The Public HealthStrengthen The Public HealthStrengthen The Public Health

Service InsteadService InsteadService InsteadService InsteadService Instead 1 01 01 01 01 0••••• Sweeping Dirt Over The UNHCRSweeping Dirt Over The UNHCRSweeping Dirt Over The UNHCRSweeping Dirt Over The UNHCRSweeping Dirt Over The UNHCR

CarpetCarpetCarpetCarpetCarpet 1 41 41 41 41 4••••• Migrant Workers Or Slaves?Migrant Workers Or Slaves?Migrant Workers Or Slaves?Migrant Workers Or Slaves?Migrant Workers Or Slaves? 1 61 61 61 61 6

••••• Improved Security?Improved Security?Improved Security?Improved Security?Improved Security? 1 81 81 81 81 8

••••• Why The Penan Set Up BlockadesWhy The Penan Set Up BlockadesWhy The Penan Set Up BlockadesWhy The Penan Set Up BlockadesWhy The Penan Set Up Blockades 2 02 02 02 02 0

••••• Malaysia's DisappearingMalaysia's DisappearingMalaysia's DisappearingMalaysia's DisappearingMalaysia's DisappearingRice FarmersRice FarmersRice FarmersRice FarmersRice Farmers 2 62 62 62 62 6

••••• Japanese NGOs Urge Abdullah ToJapanese NGOs Urge Abdullah ToJapanese NGOs Urge Abdullah ToJapanese NGOs Urge Abdullah ToJapanese NGOs Urge Abdullah ToProbe AllegationsProbe AllegationsProbe AllegationsProbe AllegationsProbe Allegations 4 04 04 04 04 0

REGULARSREGULARSREGULARSREGULARSREGULARS••••• Thinking AllowedThinking AllowedThinking AllowedThinking AllowedThinking Allowed 2 22 22 22 22 2

••••• LettersLettersLettersLettersLetters 3 23 23 23 23 2

••••• Current ConcernsCurrent ConcernsCurrent ConcernsCurrent ConcernsCurrent Concerns 3 43 43 43 43 4

OTHERSOTHERSOTHERSOTHERSOTHERS••••• Pesta Rakyat MerdekaPesta Rakyat MerdekaPesta Rakyat MerdekaPesta Rakyat MerdekaPesta Rakyat Merdeka 1 91 91 91 91 9

••••• ‘The Third Man’ Of Malaysian‘The Third Man’ Of Malaysian‘The Third Man’ Of Malaysian‘The Third Man’ Of Malaysian‘The Third Man’ Of MalaysianHistoryHistoryHistoryHistoryHistory 2 82 82 82 82 8

••••• Subscription FormSubscription FormSubscription FormSubscription FormSubscription Form 3 83 83 83 83 8

••••• A p p e a lA p p e a lA p p e a lA p p e a lA p p e a l 3 93 93 93 93 9

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with disastrous consequences,something that the BN could notafford to live with.

This fear factor forced the BN tofocus its attention on Ijok, bring-ing to town its entire formidablearsenal of machinery, money andmedia to prevent at all costs anopposition victory. It was nolonger an ordinary by-election.

That was the only reason why theBN poured everything into thiscontest. Thousands of BN partyworkers descended on Ijok tomount a house-to-house cam-paign. Ministers skipped parlia-mentary sessions to throw theirweight behind the BN candidate.The Deputy Prime Minister him-self took charge of the entire di-rection of the campaign.

The formidable assault mountedby the Barisan against its adver-sary in Ijok would have crushedany other lesser party into smith-ereens. But Keadilan refused to bepulverised by the mighty BN.

Thousands of party workers fromthe various BN component partiespoured into Ijok with all the re-sources at their command. Ijok,once a sleepy hollow, came to life,bubbling with excitement andswarming with people from allover the country.

These party functionaries rentedhouses paying RM3,500-5,000 amonth while empty single-storeyshop-lots were taken up forRM2,500. Even barber shopsalong the main street ceased op-erations temporarily as they hadbeen rented out as operations

rooms for political parties.

Party volunteers and supporters,mostly from the BN, took oversome houses in villages and hous-ing estates as operation centresand for their own accommoda-tion. Strings of banners an-nounced the presence of thesetemporary occupants of theserented buildings: “RumahKelantan”, “Rumah Pahang”,Rumah Pemuda BN” and“Rumah Puteri”. There were alsoUmno, MIC and MCA housesfrom all the states includingSabah and Sarawak.

All this for sure added up as extraelectoral expenses and this can-not be dismissed as having noth-ing to do with the candidate’s ex-penditure. This expenditure con-tributed to the candidate’s cam-paign. When we talk of free andfair elections, this must be takeninto consideration.

But the BN was acutely aware that

numbers and personalities wouldnot be sufficient to sway the Ijokvoters. Sweeteners were necessaryto persuade them to swing behindthe BN. And the BN had limitlessfunds to entice the people. Theyused our money for this purpose.According to some BN sourcesanything from RM70 million toRM100 million was spent ongoodies in Ijok. So much was givenin so short a time that it promptedSamy Vellu to observe very aptly,“Ten years development was de-livered in 10 days.”

The BN’s new-found concern forthe welfare of the local communityand its locality – long ignoredand lacking in amenities – did notescape the notice of many people.Suddenly everything was possi-ble and accessible for them. Allyou had to do was ask today andit was delivered the next day. TheBN was that super efficient on thisoccasion!

Goodies galore

10 years' developmentin 10 days


New traffic lights sprang up over-night. Even roads into oil palmestates in the area were resurfaced.New mosques, surau, and reli-gious schools were promised. Al-locations were granted to Chineseand Tamil schools for new build-ings. Streetlights and telephoneboxes materialised overnight.

In the run-up to the by-election,many voters were also grantedland titles. These very voters hadbeen fighting for these titles formore than 30 years. Without go-ing through any hassle, withoutencountering the usual bureau-cratic obstacles, these very votershad these titles thrust upon them!

On 22 April, Deputy Prime Min-ister Datuk Seri Najib AbdulRazak announced a special allo-cation of RM3.5 million from thePrime Minister’s Department forseven mosques, 16 surau and sixschools in the constituency. Inannouncing this, Najib stated,“Although there has not been anyrequest for these, we feel that weneed to do this as a sign of the BN’s

commitment.”

If one looks at the dilapidated con-ditions of Tamil schools across thecountry - which sorely need allo-cations to upgrade their buildingsand facilities - we have to ask whydidn’t the BN, as a sign of com-mitment, show their generosityand compassion by providingreasonable funds to meet theneeds of these schools? Is it be-cause there were no by-electionsin their locations?

The Menteri Besar of SelangorDatuk Seri Mohd Khir Toyo an-nounced that the executive coun-cil meeting held in the KualaSelangor District Office on 25 April- three days before polling – de-cided that the transfer of homeownership no longer need to gothrough the executive council.“This power has been given to thedistrict officer to speed up theprocess from two months to twoweeks,” he revealed.

The procedure of going throughthe executive council requiring

two months for approvals hadbeen the practice for many years.In spite of the delays and the trou-ble of going through the executivecouncil, this procedure was thestandard practice all these years.Why was it necessary to changethe procedure at this juncture?

Some residents couldn’t believethe sudden ground-breaking forthe long-waited mosque inKampung Sungai Darah by MohdKhir. The swift effort to fix pot-holes along the bumpy Ijok-Batang Berjuntai roads also tookthe residents by surprise.

The haste to build roads and tarthem and to provide other ameni-ties, however, resulted in the usualshoddy workmanship. One BNparty worker even admitted thatwhen the rains came, the roadsreverted to their former terriblestate the very next day.

One long-standing grievance ofthe local community was thestinking presence of the dump-sitelocated about 2 km outside town.Over the last nine years, the com-munity’s repeated pleas for its clo-sure because of the stench and forhealth reasons had fallen on deafears. But four days afterSivalingam’s death – and in an-ticipation of the forthcoming by-election - it was closed on 7 April.Was winning the election so veryimportant as compared to the wel-fare of the people? Where was theBN’s commitment to the peoplebefore the by-election?

The crucial Indian voters were tar-geted for their support for the BNeven to the extent ofundemocratically denyingKeadilan party supporters accessto the Indian areas. This was es-


pecially true in the Tuan Mee elec-toral area, when the Deputy PrimeMinister, on the eve of polling,promised land titles to 800 Indianvoters. This was a hotly debatedissue which had remained unre-solved by Sivalingam for manyyears.

Allegations that cash rewards,some as much as RM500, weregiven to voters emerged. Televi-sion sets and 200 sewing ma-chines were also reportedly givenaway to secure more votes. Oneresident who wished to remainanonymous revealed that he re-ceived RM500 in cash and a brandnew television set.

It was drummed into the votersthat only a candidate who had thefull support of the state and fed-eral governments could continueto bring development to the con-stituency.

If that was the case, then whywas all this development pour-ing into Ijok during the by-elec-tion which was sorely missingwhen the BN representative wasalive? Wasn’t he also the excomember of the Selangor stategovernment with considerableclout to lobby for such develop-ment from the state and federalgovernements? Why was it thatnobody cared for Ijok then?

Gerakan acting president Tan SriKoh Tsu Koon, claiming that hisparty was targeting to contribute1,300 votes in Ijok to ensure a com-fortable victory for the BN, said,“BN is offering the people of Ijoksomething the Opposition cannotdo – continuous development andunity.”

But the Keadilan candidate, TanSri Khalid Ibrahim, rightly refutedthis by demanding that the BNhad to “explain why this area wasleft behind in Selangor’s develop-ment”.

Election Commission chairmanTan Sri Abdul Rashid AbdulRahman stressed on 16 April 2007that election candidates and po-litical parties cannot make prom-ises to voters during an election.

But the BN candidate for Ijok, KParthiban, announced that theKuala Selangor District Office hadscrapped assessment on severaltraditional Malay villages. Wasn’tthis announcement meant to gar-ner votes?

Abdul Rashid also mentioned thatdevelopment promises and allo-cations given out in kind by min-isters cannot be construed as vote-buying or be deemed as bribingvoters. “Ministers and function-aries, people connected to the gov-ernment, they’re doing their job,”he told reporters.

But the question is, “Should theybe making such promises andgiving out grants only when thereis an election?” Couldn’t this bedone before an election is held orafter an election has been con-cluded? When they undertakethis, aren’t they also urging vot-ers to vote for their party candi-date? The moment they campaignfor a candidate they must be per-ceived as party functionaries andnot as ministers.

Weren’t all the ministers and gov-ernment leaders who were in Ijok

handing out land grants andother goodies and promising allsorts of things abusing their posi-tions by using government facili-ties and funds during the by-elec-tion? They could have done allthis before or after the by-election,but to do so during the by-electionis to use public funds to campaignfor their party which is undoubt-edly immoral.

Why was Najib squatting in Ijokthroughout the campaign period.If he was there as the DeputyPrime Minister, then we need toask him why he was spending somuch time in Ijok and not concen-trating on the affairs of the nation.Why was he not in Parliament asa matter of duty? Was he in Ijok asdeputy president of Umno anddeputy chairman of BN? Or washe there as Deputy Prime Minis-ter?

As if all this wasn’t sufficient todefeat Keadilan, the police had toplay their role as well. Their heavypresence had an intimidating ef-fect on the electorate. Not onlythat, they were responsible for thecancellation of nine Keadilanceramahs on the flimsy groundsthat no police permit was obtainedfor these ceramahs.

What permit are they talkingabout? Selangor deputy policechief Supt Ibrahim Chin had saidthat the police did not restrict thenumber of political gatherings aslong as organisers complied withelection rules. And the electionrules do not require political par-ties to obtain police permits fortheir ceramahs.

There was also a silly strategy todefeat Keadilan. At the launch ofthe BN youth election machinery

S q u a t t i n gand shouting

Why only now?


by BN and Umno Youth leaderDatuk Seri Hishammuddin, thegathering, which included KhairyJamaluddin, most of the BN youthleaders, Khir Toyo and MIC presi-dent Datuk Seri Samy Vellu, wasasked to shout as loud as possi-ble to frighten off Anwar Ibrahim.And they screamed their headsoff. How naive can they be! A de-termined Anwar was there every-day to lead the challenge.

All these abuses and antics did notseem to work in BN’s favour. Theedge was still with Keadilan. Adesperate BN had to get the PrimeMinister himself involved in thecampaign. He came in a helicopterbut did he come as the Prime Min-ister or as Chairman of the BN? AsPrime Minister, he cannot use thefacilities of the state to campaignfor his party’s candidate. As Chair-man of the BN, he has no access tostate facilities to campaign for theby-election. Abdul Rashid shouldstate his views on this and we hopehe will do so soon.

In getting involved directly in theIjok by-election, the PM revealedthat the BN was not all that confi-dent in obtaining a victory in Ijok.It was a last-minute effort, twodays before polling, to avert thedefeat that was staring in theirfaces. In doing so, the PM had topart with a policy that had beenin place for a long time.

On 9 April 2007, the Deputy PrimeMinister had publicly stated dur-ing the Machap by-election, “Ithas been our policy during anyby-election that the prime minis-ter does not have to come down tomeet the voters and campaign for

the candidate. Thishas been the prac-tice since long ago.”

And then on Thurs-day, 26 April 2007 ,two days beforepolling, Abdullahcame visiting threesensitive Malay ar-eas in Ijok. And thisperhaps saved theBN from certain de-feat.

Ijok was notKeadilan’s Waterloo. It was onlya skirmish and it will live to fightanother day.

The Barisan threw everything intoIjok, resorted to every trick in thebook to win. Ministers came, partybig wigs walked the streets, thou-sands of party workers from com-ponent parties went on a house-to-house campaign, nearlyRM100 million was spent and theDeputy Prime Minister himselftook charge of the campaign. Allthat the BN had to their credit inspite of everything was 201 extravotes compared to their previousvictory. And that is nothing tocrow about.

They set out to crush Keadilan butfailed miserably.

The BN would want to project apicture of a vanquished Keadilanon the brink of disintegrating intonothingness but has failed to con-vince thinking Malaysians thatthe days of Keadilan are over.

Yes, Keadilan was defeated but itwas not destroyed. That is the realtruth. Keadilan was not demol-

A fear haunts the BN

Hello, Abdullahshows up...

ished in Ijok. It was dented butcertainly not vanquished . In spiteof the tremendous advantage andprivilege of office, the BN couldnot stop Keadilan’s march for-ward. In spite of tremendous oddsstacked up against Keadilan, itperformed extremely well in in-creasing its previous tally of votes.It gained another 470 votes – morethan twice the number of newvotes garnered by BN.

If the by-election had been foughton a level playing field, if the Elec-tion Commission had ensured afree and fair election, if the policehad not interfered withKeadilan’s ceramahs, if the gov-ernment had not played dirty withmoney politics, in short, if it hadbeen a clean election, there is nodoubt that Keadilan would haverouted the BN and made mince-meat of its candidate in the Ijokby-election..

It is this realisation – and the fear- that the next general election willnot be smooth sailing for the BNthat has forced it to show somebravado by claiming that Anwarand Keadilan were rejected by thepeople. But, in spite of putting ona brave face, this fear will hauntthe BN for a long time to come.

Shouting to frighten off Anwar?Shouting to frighten off Anwar?Shouting to frighten off Anwar?Shouting to frighten off Anwar?Shouting to frighten off Anwar?

q


he study commissionedby the Economic Plan-ning Unit (of the PrimeMinister’s Department)

and the Health Ministry with fi-nancial sponsorship from theUnited Nations Development Pro-gramme (UNDP) appears to beprogressing on schedule. An in-terim report was released in Au-gust 2006 and another updated250- page Interim Report was re-leased in February 2007.

There have also been meetings ofa “Steering Committee”, whichhas representatives from the doc-tors associations, the insuranceassociation, the association of pri-vate hospitals and other bodies.Sadly, the government has notseen it necessary to invite any ofthe consumer bodies in the coun-try to sit on this committee. Nei-ther have health advocacy groupssuch the Citizens Health Initiativeor the Coalition Against HealthCare Privatisation (GMPPK) beeninvited - although the latter hasbeen most pro-active in present-ing ideas regarding health carereform. The final report is expectedin May 2007.

What is the thrust of the consult-ant’s recommendations? Will the

recommendations lead to an amel-ioration of the problems besettingour health care system? Or do wehave cause to be worried?

The consultant, Karl Karol fromAustralia, has thoroughly re-viewed the various studies andsurveys that have been done priorto this and, to his credit, has sum-marised the major findings ofthese previous studies clearly.However he has gone on to en-dorse the government’s concept ofthe future health care model forMalaysia with only a few minorrefinements. The main features of

the model being proposed are neo-liberal to the core in that• the funding for health care is

to be from the people and notfrom general taxation;

• government hospitals are to becorporatised so that they willfunction like companies, sothat they may be renderedmore efficient through marketdiscipline;

• there will be integration of theprimary health care sector, thegovernment hospitals and theprivate hospitals under thisscheme;

• the “internal market”, finan-

HEALTH CARE

Watch out for the Aussieconsul tant ’s proposalWorryingly, he is proposing a neo-liberal to the core health caremodel

by Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj

TTTTT

The consul tant ’s mainr e c o m m e n d a t i o n s

The diagram below summarises the main features of the model pro-posed by the consultant.

6

Health financing model: The consultant’s proposalHealth financing model: The consultant’s proposalHealth financing model: The consultant’s proposalHealth financing model: The consultant’s proposalHealth financing model: The consultant’s proposal

N A T I O N A LHEALTH FUND

GGGGGSSSSSTTTTT

PPPPPUUUUUBBBBBLLLLLIIIIICCCCC

EEEEEHHHHHBBBBBPPPPPGovt HospsGovt HospsGovt HospsGovt HospsGovt Hosps

Priv HospsPriv HospsPriv HospsPriv HospsPriv HospsGPGPGPGPGPPrivPrivPrivPrivPriv

InsuranceInsuranceInsuranceInsuranceInsurance

123

45


cial incentives and the profitmotive shall be the main driverof the system;

The main features of the HealthFinancing Model proposed by theConsultant are outlined below.

1 . A National Health FinancingFund will be set up, owned byand controlled by the govern-ment through the “NationalHealth Financing Authority”,which will be established withParliamentary approval.

2. This fund will receive incomefrom an “ear-marked” VAT(Value Added Tax or Goodsand Services Tax or GST). Itmay also receive some inputfrom general taxation espe-cially in the initial period.

3 . The National Health Fund willpay for all treatment of the ill-nesses listed under the Essen-tial Health Care Benefits Pack-age (EHBP) with the provisothat patients must first go to aGeneral Practitioner (GP) towhom they are designated. Ifspecialist referral or hospitaladmission is required, it mustbe done by the patient’s GP.The fund will not pay up if thepatient by-passes the GP andgoes straight to the specialistor hospital.

4. All GPs in the country will bebrought under the scheme, andthey will all be allocated a cer-tain number of patients. TheGPs will be paid a capitationsum based on the number ofpatients registered under them.They will get the same incomeper patient whether the patientcomes to their clinic ten timesin a year or not at all. They

have to treat the patients regis-tered under them for free.

To prevent over investigationand treatment by the special-ists, the model envisages thatthe GPs will become “fundmanagers” for the initial partof specialist care for the pa-tients registered under them.In other words each GP willbe given a fund for referringpatients to specialists. If theystay within their budget, theGP will get a hefty bonus. Ifthe GP exceeds this referralbudget, he may face a finan-cial penalty! The purpose ofthis mechanism is to makeGPs efficient gate-keepersand to prevent abuse of thesystem by both patients andthe specialists.

5 . Government hospitals will nolonger get an annual budget.They will be paid by theamount of clinical service theyprovide. All illnesses listed inthe EHBP will be classified asDiagnosis-Related Groups(DRGs). Each DRG will be re-warded a certain payment thatwill be specified in the EHBP.For example, treatment for ap-

pendicitis may be RM1,000,and this will be irrespective ofwhether there are any compli-cations or the length of the hos-pital stay. A private hospitalthat handles an appendix casewill also get the same paymentfrom the national health fund.The idea is that this competi-tion with private hospitals willhelp make government hospi-tals “leaner” and more “effi-cient”.

6. Private insurance will be al-lowed for illnesses that are notcovered by the EHBP and tocover specialist costs that arenot incurred through the GPreferral system.

Conclusion:

A market driven system as pro-posed by Karl Karol, illustratedhere, will serve to restrict and limitaccess and the kind of healthcareservices made available to thepublic. Access to health care is ahuman right. Health care shouldnot be subjected to the dictates ofmarket forces. We now present inthe following pages, the Coali-tion's response to Karl Karol'sproposal. q


he GMPPK isstrongly againstseveral aspects ofthe health system

model proposed by theconsultant. Our reasonsare outlined below.

Income distribution inMalaysia is getting in-creasingly skewed in fa-vour of the rich in all com-munities. At present therichest 20 per cent of thepopulation get more than50 per cent of the nationalincome whereas the bot-tom 40 per cent only get12.5 per cent. A GST

would further worsen the situa-tion because such a tax woulddisproportionately burden thepoor.

As illustrated in the table below,a GST would widen the incomegap between the rich and thepoor.

The GMPPK therefore calls for

• No new taxes on ordinary citi-zens;

• An increase in the health allo-cation from the current 2 percent of GDP to at least 3 percent;

• The channelling of RM5 bil-lion from Petronas profits tothe national health carebudget every year. (Petronasprofits were some RM80 bil-lion in 2006);

• The channelling of a portionof the RM2 billion worth of lev-ies on foreign workers to thehealth care budget and thegranting of subsidised healthcare for all foreign workers (atthe same charge as Malaysiancitizens);

HEALTH CARE

Strengthen the publichealth service insteadThe Coalition’s critique of the Aussie consultant’s proposal

by Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj

TTTTT

A. The GST is aregressive tax

Table One: Impact of GST of 10 per centTable One: Impact of GST of 10 per centTable One: Impact of GST of 10 per centTable One: Impact of GST of 10 per centTable One: Impact of GST of 10 per cent

Economic % of % of % ofClass income income income

spent invested or taxedsaved by GST

Richest 10% 40% 60% 4 %

Poorest 40% 90% 1 0 % 9 %

Poorest 10% 1 3 0 % - 1 3 %


• An end to all out-sourcing orprivatisation of health caredelivery.

Table Two above highlights oneof the key problems affecting thepublic health sector now – thedepletion of the pool of special-ists, who are drawn to privatehospitals, which are able to offerincomes that are five to ten timeshigher than those in the govern-ment sector. Using the NationalHealth Fund to subsidise treat-ment in private hospitals will ex-pand the market as now more pa-tients will be able to afford goingto the private sector. This will ag-gravate the brain drain and mightlead to the collapse of the publichospitals.

We must not forget the crucial roleof the public sector in the overallhealth system. Not only does itcurrently cater for 7 per cent of thein-patient load in Malaysia, it isthe training ground for house-men, junior specialists and para-medical staff. Also, the distribu-tion of government hospitals ismuch wider and much more eq-

tate the public health sector;

• the setting up of a separateService Commission for thepublic health sector staff;

• a moratorium on the buildingor expansion of private hospi-tals;

• he shelving of health tourism.

The GMPPK agrees that good pri-mary health care will help cutoverall costs and that patientsshould be encouraged to seektreatment with family doctorsfirst before going to specialists.But the creation of “fund-hold-ing” mechanisms and financialpenalties for referring too manypatients will undermine the pa-tient-doctor relationship and maylead to delays in referral.

B. Using the National Health Fund to subsidisetreatment in private hospitals will aggravate the

brain drain.

Table Two: Distribution of specialists in Malaysia 1999Table Two: Distribution of specialists in Malaysia 1999Table Two: Distribution of specialists in Malaysia 1999Table Two: Distribution of specialists in Malaysia 1999Table Two: Distribution of specialists in Malaysia 1999

Government Privatehospitals hospitals

Admissions in 1999 1,500,000 500,000

SpecialistsMedical 3 3 % 67%

Surgical 34% 66%

O & G (Obstetrics & Gynaecology) 20% 80%

Source : Eight Malaysia Plan. P 486

uitable compared to private hos-pitals. Moreover, treatment costsin the public sector are muchcheaper because staff are salariedand not paid fee-for–service as inthe private sector.

The GMPPK therefore calls for:

• the 60 per cent increase infunding to be used to rehabili-

C. Creating financialdisincentives to

d i s c o u r a g ec o n s u l t a t i o n / r e f e r r a l

by the family GP


“Homo Economicus”: Over-reli-“Homo Economicus”: Over-reli-“Homo Economicus”: Over-reli-“Homo Economicus”: Over-reli-“Homo Economicus”: Over-reli-ance on economic incentivesance on economic incentivesance on economic incentivesance on economic incentivesance on economic incentives

There is an over-emphasis on eco-nomic incentives and “marketdiscipline” in the model proposedby Mr Karl Karol. This appears tobe based on the following beliefs,which are shared by neo-liberaleconomists and planners:

• People respond best to mon-etary incentives;

• Ordinary men and womenpursuing their self-interest inmaximising earnings will re-sult in the efficient delivery ofpublic good or service, in thiscase health care;

• The role of government in so-ciety should be reduced for itimpairs the allocative effi-ciency of the free market;

• Corporatised governmenthospitals operating like pri-vate companies will performmore efficiently than the cen-

trally funded government hos-pitals that exist now;

• The creation of an “internalmarket” within the health caresystem will help allocate re-sources more efficiently andlead to a better output.

In the consultant’s own report,however, there is an awarenessthat relying on financial incen-tives and market mechanismswill make the main players moremoney minded. This in turn maylead to abuse and over-use of thesystem. Therefore there is a needto create safeguards. For example,the proposal that GPs should be-come “fund-holders’ for special-ist treatment arises out of a statedperception that specialists willotherwise over-investigate andover-treat!

To counter these perceptions theGMPPK would like to point outthat:

• Doctors and other health staff

have been working sincerelyin the public hospitals for thepast 50 years and more. Manydoctors and other health staffwork past their official hoursas they want to get the jobdone. Financial reward is notthe only motivation for work.People take pride in their work,in improving their skills andcompetence, and in solvingproblems. Peer recognitionand patient satisfaction arealso important incentives. Ofcourse, people like to get a de-cent income, and the GMPPKwants a review of the pay-scales for public sector healthstaff. But this is far removedfrom the consultant’s thrust torevamp the entire system tomake it run on the financial in-centive alone.

• The public health care systemin Malaysia has performedfairly well up till now. We haveachieved a reasonably highlevel of health care at a fairlylow cost – 2 per cent of GDP isreally very good – comparedto 9.8 per cent of GDP in theUK and 14.5 per cent of GDPin the US! The weaknesses thathave developed in the welfaristmodel were not internal to themodel, but were brought on bythe promotion of for-profit pri-vate hospitals on a large scalesince the 1980s. This is whatled to the exodus of experi-enced specialists and trainedstaff from the public sector,and this is the main cause ofthe perception that treatmentin government hospitals is in-ferior to that in the private sec-tor. It is indeed ironic that free-market solutions are beingsuggested to solve problemsthat originated from the imple-


mentation of free-market poli-cies in the health care sector25 years ago!

• Health care is a “merit good”.The medical treatment of anindividual leads to benefits forthe community by:> decreasing the risk of

transmission in the case ofinfections;

> decreasing the depend-ency ratio by getting the in-dividuals back on theirfeet;

> reinforcing a sense of so-cial solidarity throughsharing the risks associ-ated with ill-health.

The GMPPK’s proposalsThe GMPPK’s proposalsThe GMPPK’s proposalsThe GMPPK’s proposalsThe GMPPK’s proposals

For the above reasons, theGMPPK proposes the following:

• It is the responsibility of thegovernment to ensure that allcitizens and other residents ofMalaysia have equitable ac-cess to safe and adequatehealth care. No one must bedenied proper care because oflack of means;

• The government health carebudget must be increased to 3per cent of GDP. Currently, itis barely 2 per cent. This in-crease should come from gen-eral taxation as well as fromPetronas revenue. Thereshould not be any GST or spe-cial pay-roll taxes to supple-ment the health budget as suchtaxes are not appropriategiven the deterioration in theGini Coefficient for Malaysia;

• The public health care systemmust be strengthened as it isboth cost-effective and equita-

bly distributed. The measuresthat the government shouldimplement to achieve this are:

> Set up a separate ServiceCommission for health carepersonnel so that their remu-neration can be improved.

> Allocate a larger budget tooffset co-payments that arenow being borne by pa-tients, the degree of subsidydepending on the economicstatus of the patient.

> Freeze the development ofprivate hospitals – Do notpermit the setting up of anymore new private hospitalsand control the expansionof the existing hospitals.

> Do not promote health tour-ism. The main focus of ourhealth care sector should beto cater to the health needsof our population, and notto bring in foreign exchange.

> Implement schemeswhereby the expertise in theprivate sector is tapped inthe teaching of young doc-tors and other paramedicalstaff.

A team of independent academi-cians should be set up to evalu-ate the cost effectiveness of theprivatisation exercises involvingthe public health sector. The find-ings of this team should be madeavailable to the Malaysian pub-lic so that we can make an in-formed decision whether we wishto have any further privatisationof the health services in this coun-try.

Until the above study is releasedto the Public, there must be a strict

Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj isDr Jeyakumar Devaraj isDr Jeyakumar Devaraj isDr Jeyakumar Devaraj isDr Jeyakumar Devaraj issecretary of the Coalitionsecretary of the Coalitionsecretary of the Coalitionsecretary of the Coalitionsecretary of the CoalitionAgainst Health Care Priva-Against Health Care Priva-Against Health Care Priva-Against Health Care Priva-Against Health Care Priva-tisation (GMPPK)tisation (GMPPK)tisation (GMPPK)tisation (GMPPK)tisation (GMPPK)

moratorium on all further priva-tization and/or “outsourcing” ofcomponents of the public healthcare sector.

A National Health FinancingOver-sight Committee must be setup to ensure that the funds allo-cated to health care are properlyused. Adequate funds should bemade available for this commit-tee to perform its watch-dog func-tion effectively. The Suhakammodel of staffing and funding canbe considered, but at least 50 percent of the members of this com-mittee should be elected by thepublic. It should be mandatory forParliament to allocate time to de-bate the annual report of this com-mittee.

The health status of the 2 millionforeign workers in Malaysiashould be of concern to us all. Thegovernment must reverse the cur-rent policy of charging these pa-tients higher rates when theycome to government health facili-ties for treatment, as this will leadto delays in diagnosis and treat-ment. A portion of the RM 2bil-lion in leives collected from for-eign workers should bechanneled to the public healthsector, and foreign workersshould be charged no more thanour citizens.

Any future reform of the publichealth care system must only beundertaken after informing andgetting the feed-back of theMalaysian public.q


he media’s capability tomisinform the publicshould not be underesti-mated. A 9 April 2007

RTM Bahasa Malaysia eveningnews television report of a protestby a group of Myanmar refugeesoutside the Kuala Lumpur officepremises of the UN High Commis-sioner for Refugees (UNHCR) wasnoticeably unbalanced.

The allegations of incompetenceand mistreatment by the UNHCRmade by this particular group andthe call for the resignation of theUN agency’s representative, Dr.Volker Turk, seemed to be themain theme of this broadcast. Thereport did not refer to the chain ofevents prior to this protest thathad occurred between the protest-ers and the UNHCR. This protestwas in fact one of a string of suchdemonstrations that had beenheld outside the UN refugee agen-cy’s office in recent months.

The story was one-sided mainlybecause of the noticeable absenceof the UNHCR’s side of the storyin this media report - except foradmitting that about 40,000Myanmar refugees had been reg-istered by the UNHCR.

This flawed broadcast appearedto give the impression that theUNHCR was doing little to helpalleviate the problems faced by therefugees and was neglecting tocarry out their mandate by refus-ing and delaying registration ofthem as refugees under UN pro-tection. This gave the public afalse impression that UNHCRwas not doing its job.

On the contrary, the UN refugeeagency has been actively assess-ing undocumented immigrantsfrom Myanmar for refugee statusand permitting them to holdUNHCR documentation, despitethe obstructive actions and unco-operative attitude of the

Malaysian immigration authori-ties, the Home Affairs Ministryand Rela. It is common and pub-lic knowledge that the Home Af-fairs Ministry is reluctant to rec-ognise UNHCR’s documentationor its powers under their mandatein this country.

Refugees are seen as “illegal im-migrants” under Malaysian im-migration laws. There has been noattempt whatsoever to create leg-islation or to add new provisionsto the Immigration Act to coverrefugees or to make recognition ofUNHCR documentation manda-tory - despite the increasing influxof refugees from neighbouringAsean countries ever since the ar-

REFUGEES

Sweeping dirt over theUNHCR carpetMalaysia stands to lose more by being reactionary towards theUN agency for refugees

by Angeline Loh

TTTTT


rival of refugees from Vietnam onMalaysian shores about 30 yearsago.

Three years ago, the Malaysiangovernment promised to grantBurmese Rohingya refugees legalstatus by giving them identitycards and work permits (as re-ported in Malaysiakini in 2004).This was in fact put into action in2006 for a brief period of twoweeks, but was terminated whensome problems arose. The processhas since failed to be restarted;neither have the problems beendealt with. The Rohingya refugeeshave been left high and dry by theMalaysian government. The onusis on the Malaysian governmentto restart this process and giveRohingya refugees, who havebeen in the country for a reason-ably long period, a chance to makeconstructive socio- economic con-tributions to Malaysia as perma-nent residents.

In view of all these obstacles, it issurely unjust and misleading tocast the blame for the current al-leged maltreatment of the

Rohingya refugees on theUNHCR. Moreover, it is hard tobelieve that the UN refugeeagency would intentionally vio-late the human rights of the samerefugees they seek to protect –something which goes completelyagainst their mandate and mis-sion. There is no logical reason forthem to do this.

The mainstream media haveplayed a large role in influencingand shaping public perceptionsof various issues and sections ofsociety. It has, in the past, servedto demonise any party and indi-vidual who has incurred govern-ment disfavour, e.g. oppositionparties, particular NGOs, mi-grants, and Anwar Ibrahim. It hasalso used a variety of censorshipdevices to be “economical with thetruth” or to conceal informationfrom the public.

The government-controlled mediahas kept the lid tightly screwed onthe right to freedom of expressionand information (under Article 19of the Universal Declaration ofHuman Rights) of those theychoose to ban from claiming it.

The double-standards used to

Influencing publicp e r c e p t i o n s

allow or disallow free expres-sion to selected sections of soci-ety/ individuals and the infor-mation blackouts in the main-stream media - despite creatingthe illusion of press freedom -are significant abuses of thisArticle 19 right.

Fundamental rights and freedomsunder the UDHR cannot betreated as privileges selectivelygranted on a discriminatory ba-sis, without any viable alternativeor concrete reason for the with-drawal of such a right.

Malaysia is seen as a politicallystable country in comparison tosome of our Asean neighbours,particularly, Myanmar andThailand. There is no obviousstate of emergency here - exceptfor one alleged by the Home Af-fairs Ministry and Immigrationauthorities, that the large influxof migrants seems to be a threatto national security. This ap-pears to be mere justification forbeefing up security forces anddeploying Rela.

It is for the government to real-ise and activate the political willto sensibly deal with existing in-ternal problems instead ofsweeping them under the meta-phorical carpet, where they willaccumulate and worsen overtime. Moreover, demonising andsplattering metaphoric dirt overinternational agencies such asthe UNHCR and foreign nation-als only serves to lower the re-spect and esteem in which theinternational community holdsMalaysia. In other words, as amember of the UN HumanRights Council, Malaysia standsto lose more by being reaction-ary instead of pro-active. q


reedom to move and goabout doing things with-out controls is some-thing every human being

aspires to have. This basic humanright would be stamped out forsome 2.8 million foreign workersin Malaysia and Thailand shouldgovernments confine them to theirramshackle living quarters.

Caram Asia is deeply vexed withrecent announcements made bythe Malaysian government andThai provincial governments pro-posing measures to limit move-ment of foreign workers within thecompound of their employers. Forthese foreign workers who toil atjobs that locals usually opt out of,they would not only be workinglong hours in the same area butwould also be eating, sleeping andspending every other wakinghour near their work stations.

The latest announcement in Aprilcomes from the governor ofChiang Mai who said the rule isaimed at maintaining peace andorder in the province. The rule willban foreign workers from ridingmotorcycles or leaving their des-ignated working areas or theiremployers’ homes after 8 pm.More than five foreign workers arealso not allowed to congregate atone place. He expects the draft to

be enforced soon.

In February 2007, Malaysia’sHome Ministry proposed that allforeign workers be confined totheir kongsi (work areas) and havetheir movements monitored by themanagement to prevent them fromcommitting crimes. Prior to sucha proposal, the Inspector Generalof Police had reported (NST, 17Feb 2007) that foreign workerswere accountable for about 2 percent of crime cases in 2006. In thename of crime prevention, thisproposal is expected to be tabledas a bill in Parliament withoutprior consultation with civil soci-ety organisations.

Until today, Caram Asia as a re-

gional network of 23 partners cov-ering 15 countries in Asia work-ing on migration issues has re-ceived no details on such pro-posal from the Malaysian govern-ment despite its questionable ra-tionale. Based on the 2 per centstatistics of crime committed byforeign workers, theoreticallyspeaking, even if all foreign work-ers are imprisoned, 98 per cent ofcrimes would still occur.

The security reason cited for suchplans to restrict foreign workersis a mirror of discriminationagainst foreign workers. It is anattempt to imprison all foreignworkers for crimes that the major-ity of them have not been foundguilty or that have not yet even

MIGRANT WORKERS

Migrant workers or slaves?Growing trends restricting freedom of movement for foreignersworking in Malaysia & Thailand

by Caram Asia

FFFFF


happened.

Sadly, this is just the latest spateof developments after four south-ern provinces of Thailand includ-ing Phuket, Surat Thani, Ranongand Rayong (since December2006) introduced legislation thatsingled out a group of migrantworkers from Burma, Laos andCambodia. This is outright dis-crimination based on race andcountry of origin.

Citing similar security reasons asthe Malaysian case, this legisla-tion includes a ban on public as-sembly of more than five personswithout prior permission, a banon the use of mobile phones, mo-torcycles and cars, a curfew formigrant workers who have to bein their dormitories from 8 pm to6 am.

All these restrictions violate Arti-cle 13 of the Universal Declara-tion of Human Rights, whichstipulates freedom of movement ofthe individual as a basic humanright. Both Malaysia and Thai-land voted in favour of the Uni-versal Declaration of HumanRights. In fact, Malaysia has a seaton the Human Rights Council.Yet, are both governments seri-ously committed to upholding hu-man rights?

Moreover, both governments aremembers of the International La-bour Organisation (ILO). Meremembership of ILO entails that theprinciples of Core InternationalLabour Standard (ILS) must be re-alised. Among the Core LabourStandards are the Freedom of As-sociation and the Right to Organ-ise Convention, 1948 (C 87) andthe Discrimination (Employment

and Occupation) Convention,1958 (C111).

Malaysia is also a State Party to28 ILO conventions, amongstwhich is the Migration of Employ-ment Convention (Revised) 1949(C97) pertaining to equal treat-ment of migrant workers. Malay-sia’s ratification of this conven-tion means it should “apply treat-ment no less favourable that thatwhich applies to their own na-tionals in respect to a number ofmatters, including conditions ofemployment, freedom of associa-tion and social security”, as statedin the convention. Restricting thefreedom of movement and asso-ciation of foreign workers is al-ready an outright violation.

We urge governments to halt suchattempts to legalise the current il-legal practice of wrongful confine-ment of employees, which is thecondition of work of a slavery sys-tem. Besides fulfilling its obliga-tions to international treatiessigned, the Malaysia and Thaigovernments should further ratifyadditional ILO conventions andrecognise equal opportunities forforeign workers seeking to makea living. Both governmentsshould take concrete action togrant foreign workers freedom of

Outright violation

association, which will be a meas-ure to prevent exploitation at workand a platform to safeguard thewelfare and well being of foreignworkers, who contribute to eco-nomic development and incomefor both sending and receivingcountries. q

CARAM Asia is an openCARAM Asia is an openCARAM Asia is an openCARAM Asia is an openCARAM Asia is an opennetwork of organisations,network of organisations,network of organisations,network of organisations,network of organisations,consisting of 23 memberconsisting of 23 memberconsisting of 23 memberconsisting of 23 memberconsisting of 23 memberpartners covering 15 coun-partners covering 15 coun-partners covering 15 coun-partners covering 15 coun-partners covering 15 coun-tries in Asia. The CARAMtries in Asia. The CARAMtries in Asia. The CARAMtries in Asia. The CARAMtries in Asia. The CARAMnetwork works with Asiannetwork works with Asiannetwork works with Asiannetwork works with Asiannetwork works with Asianmigrants globally and withmigrants globally and withmigrants globally and withmigrants globally and withmigrants globally and withthe aim of creating an ena-the aim of creating an ena-the aim of creating an ena-the aim of creating an ena-the aim of creating an ena-bling environment to em-bling environment to em-bling environment to em-bling environment to em-bling environment to em-power migrants, theirpower migrants, theirpower migrants, theirpower migrants, theirpower migrants, theirfamilies and communities.families and communities.families and communities.families and communities.families and communities.


do a more effective job with simi-lar aids for upgrading investiga-tion methods. With heart-rendingpatriotic melodrama, our PM ap-pealed to the Royal MalaysianPolice to “battle them as aggres-sively as the police personnel whoserved in the RMP during the com-munist era had fought to keep thepeace and harmony of the coun-try. There was no compromise bythese policeman.”

Whiles we are grateful for pastblessings and for the PM’s wis-dom in initiating an increase of60,000 personnel in the profes-sional police force, the question re-maining unanswered is whetherthis would mean the reduction orabolition of Rela.

These amateur, non-profession-als, who have attracted muchpublic, NGO and even police criti-cism, far out-number the existingpolice force. (See Aliran Monthly,Vol 26:9). The Bar Council’s recentcall for the abolition of Rela dueto their unprofessional, heavy-handed methods and contra-hu-man rights practices has howeverhit a wall of official administra-tive silence.

Increasing police numbers maynot resolve the problem of humanrights abuse by Rela or any other

he front-page headline oftheSun on Thursday, 5April 2007 read, “PMAdmits weaknesses.” At

first glance it looked encouragingto see that the head of governmenthad finally decided to take thebull by the horns, scrutinising theprosecution service in this coun-try.

It was good that the more press-ing problems of the prosecutionservice were highlighted andneatly laid out with pertinent so-lutions for their resolution. Afterreading the article, there stillseemed to be something amisswith the whole handsome plan.

Whilst the fact of better investiga-tion, litigation and prosecutiontechniques is indisputably essen-tial, the Prime Minister’s boastthat conviction and punishmenthad been secured in 74.1 per centof cases tried in the High Courtlast year was rather disturbing.

The implication seemed to be thatsecuring convictions and punish-ment was “the be all and end all”of the prosecution service, withJustice simply shunted aside intoa dark corner. This is worrying!

A report on Friday, 6 April, front-paged by the same daily read,“All-out War on Crime, terror”.The PM now urged the police to

SECURITY

Improved security?An additional 60,000 police personnelcould bloat the ranks of the ‘hunters’

by Angeline Loh

TTTTT

Improved security?

‘pet vigilante’ force of the HomeAffairs Ministry. It would onlyserve to bloat the number of ‘hunt-ers’ to scrub out what the govern-ment perceives as the current threatto national security – migrantsand refugees.

The mainstream media appearedto have already launched an of-fensive against foreigners by high-lighting crimes allegedly commit-ted by them. This move came inthe wake of the IGP’s proposal toconfine migrant workers to theircompany-provided accommoda-tion and have their movementsmonitored by employers.

With all this ‘heavy artillery’ se-curity measures and bounties of-fered for the capture of any un-documented migrant, it appearsthat the state of security in thecountry has not improved in anyway. So will the increase in thenumber of police personnel alonedo anything to make this countrya safer place?

As long as proper systems to man-age immigration and refugeeproblems are not put in place -apart from political cooperationbetween Asean member states toresolve their home problems in ademocratic manner - and the ob-servance of international humanrights laws applied to all UNOmember states remains ignored,the situation will remain un-changed.

All in all, the biggest securitythreat to Malaysia is corruption -in all its guises and at all levelswithin the government hierarchy– which is contaminating our so-ciety. q


Celebrating the rakyat’s contribution to 50 years of Merdeka and 44years of Malaysia

Date: 24 June 2007Date: 24 June 2007Date: 24 June 2007Date: 24 June 2007Date: 24 June 2007Time: 9.30 am – 5.00 pmTime: 9.30 am – 5.00 pmTime: 9.30 am – 5.00 pmTime: 9.30 am – 5.00 pmTime: 9.30 am – 5.00 pmVenue: Dewan Sri Pinang, PeVenue: Dewan Sri Pinang, PeVenue: Dewan Sri Pinang, PeVenue: Dewan Sri Pinang, PeVenue: Dewan Sri Pinang, Penangnangnangnangnang

FeaturingFeaturingFeaturingFeaturingFeaturing:• An exhibition by Penang-based NGOs• Panel on milestones in Penang history

(speakers to be announced soon)• Independent films on Malaysia• A concert with songs, music and dance performances

Participating groups:Participating groups:Participating groups:Participating groups:Participating groups:Aliran Kesedaran Negara (ALIRAN), Jamaah Islah Malaysia (JIM),Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), Penang Heritage Trust (PHT),Penang Office for Human Development (POHD), Persatuan Orang-Orang Cacat Anggota Malaysia (POCAM), Pusat KomunikasiMasyarakat (KOMAS), SOS Penang, Suara Rakyat Malaysia(SUARAM), Tanjung Bungah Residents’ Association (TBRA),thefreemedia, Women’s Centre for Change (WCC) and others

For more information, contact 04-658 5251 orvisit http://pestarakyatmerdeka.blogspot.com/


e would like to makesome clarifications aboutthe five blockades whichhave been set up by

Penan communities in Baram re-cently to avoid any misunder-standing on the part of other par-ties. The villages which are in-volved in this blockade are LongSayan and Long Belok in SungaiApoh, Long Lutin in SungaiPatah, Long Kevok in SungaiLayun, Tutoh and the nomadicgroup Ba’ Bevan in Sungai Si’ang,

Tutoh.

Here we would like to explainwhy those blockades were set up.

Firstly, the reason the Penan vil-lages are forced to voice their pro-test in this way is that the issu-ance of logging licences inSarawak is done in a non-trans-parent way and has neglected toconsider the customary rights ofindigenous peoples in the state,including those of the Penan com-

munities’, resulting in loggingencroachments into our territo-ries.

Secondly, numerous Penan villag-ers have been writing to the au-thorities for years to appeal for theencroachment issues to be re-solved and for assistance to im-prove our standard of living to bedelivered. Until today, however,most of our requests have not beenfulfilled despite several meetingswith the authorities. Suhakam

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

Why the Penan set upb l o c k a d e sWe want the government to gazette our village forest reservesas Communal Forests and to stop logging companies fromencroaching into our land

by Ajang Kiew

WWWWWPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah Sarawak


Layun. This may destroy all thePenan customary territories ofLong Latie, Long Kevok, LongNen and Long Kawa di Tutoh upto Long Lilim, Long Daloh, LongLutin, Long Kawi and Long Itamdi Ulu Sungai Patah.

Thus, to avoid such blockadesfrom being erected, the govern-ment must take appropriate ac-tion. Firstly, each Penan commu-nity, including those which arenomadic, must have their territo-ries gazetted into Communal For-ests, which cannot be encroachedby logging and plantation compa-nies. The manner in which log-ging licences are issued must befurther improved, taking into ac-count and respecting native cus-tomary rights of local communi-ties and in consultation with us.

Secondly, the government mustprovide us with the assistance toimprove our standard of living.We are in desperate need of hous-ing improvement projects, agri-

(the Human Rights Commissionof Malaysia) itself acknowledgesthat the problems of customaryland rights in Sarawak need to beresolved. All such findings havenot been acted upon by the au-thorities.

Thirdly, logging companies oper-ating in our areas rarely choose toconsult us - not unless they arereally forced to. Sometimes, in theiroperations, not only our forest andriver resources are damaged, butour farms would also be de-stroyed, as what happened inLong Sayan and Long Belok. Inthis particular incident, we lostour rice fields in fallow and cropssuch as ipoh and other fruitingtrees such as durian, rambutanand jackfruit - which are oursources of food and income.

In many consultations and agree-ments between Penan villagesand logging companies, we fre-quently felt pressured, even in thepresence of authorities. In manycases, we would either be forcedto “consent” to agreements whichwere unfair and unclear and lack-ing in the ability to provide anyguarantee for us or to receive“compensation” of meagre value.In such conditions, we were oftendenied choices which are fair, andour original demand requestingfor our rights to be respected werealmost always effectivelysidelined. When will logging com-panies stop using such manipu-lative tactics when dealing withour concerns?

If we do not defend our rights to-day, after logging ends, our for-ests will be set to be destroyed byplantation schemes. Samling hasreportedly begun wood plantingin Sungai Belanah and Sungai

Take theappropriate action

Ajang Kiew is the chairper-Ajang Kiew is the chairper-Ajang Kiew is the chairper-Ajang Kiew is the chairper-Ajang Kiew is the chairper-son of the Sarawak Penanson of the Sarawak Penanson of the Sarawak Penanson of the Sarawak Penanson of the Sarawak PenanAssociationAssociationAssociationAssociationAssociation

culture assistance – including re-forestation of encroached areas toincrease our sources of food andincome – as well as assistance inbirth and identity card registra-tion, the construction of moreschools and the rendering ofhealth care services. All these willhelp Penan communities out ofpoverty and increase their oppor-tunities to be employed outsidetheir villages.

Thus, we would like to appeal tothe Sarawak State Government tobegin an official process to gazetteall Penan villages, including ourvillage forest reserves, as Commu-nal Forests, as provided for by thelaw and ensure that plantationand logging activities are stoppedfrom encroaching into our territo-ries. If such steps fail to be taken,then incidents such as blockadeswill most likely continue to takeplace in the future.q

Photo : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah SarawakPhoto : Rengah Sarawak


‘Waving the keris is very normalin Malay culture,’ so stated anUmno MP defending Umno Youthleader Hishammuddin, who hadunsheathed and wielded his kerisat the last Umno general assem-bly. Another Umno leader had alsochastised the MCA leader for hav-ing stated publicly that Hisham’shistrionics might have contrib-uted towards the drop in supportamong Chinese in the recent Ijokby-election.

Of course, Hisham denied that hisact of bravado, some might saymacho-ness, had caused Chineseto turn against the BN. Why, hestated that he would continue towield his keris whenever neces-sary, as if to tell off his detractors.

I suggest that Khairy and the otherYouth leaders should make surethat they wave their kerises too,whenever necessary; otherwise,others might think them not sonormal. They should make surethat they also look garang likeHisham did. It’s okay to do so; af-

ter all, there’s no mention of theenemy one’s threatening. Show-show only-lah. Hopefully, theYouths will comply. We shall thensee how the BN fares in theupcoming general election.

Alternatively, they could take aleaf out of the late First Lady’sbook. Like the keris, batik is an-other symbol of Malay culturalidentity. It’s normal to wear batik.Many do so on a daily basis. Why,on official occasions one can ei-ther go lounge suit or batik. But,unlike wielding the keris whichsignifies a threat, the batik is softand celebratory. It includes - un-like wielding the keris, which ex-cludes. There are many more beau-tiful Malay cultural symbols. Pitythat the hot-blooded young mencan only think of acting so macho-like and insensitive too!

Although the impact of the keris-wielders might cause a drop in BNvotes here and there, perhaps even

some loss of seats, of course, theBN will romp home to another vic-tory in the upcoming general elec-tion. No doubt, the BN will spendlots, as they always do, to ensurevictory. But will they spend asmuch as they did in the recentround of by-elections in Machapand Ijok? What a windfall for therakyat! Under the circumstances,it is not wrong to surmise, fromthe rakyat’s point of view, that by-elections are more important thanthe general elections?

Our strategy? Well, whateverinfluence one can muster shouldbe directed at helping to ensurethat some old and sickly (yeah,yeah, many are sick in theirheads, but I mean physically sickhere) BN candidates get elected.And then, after the general elec-tion has come and gone, weshould await for the buy elec-tions with bated breaths. Onthese occasions, the oppositionshould be able to mount a betterchallenge. And for us, it will bea buy and buy election!

Imagine, the rakyat of Machap inMelaka got newly paved roads,new street lamps, low- and me-dium-cost houses, and even hous-ing lots and land leases. Not tomention the T-shirts, free makan,caps and badges.

The rakyat in Ijok got even more.The Selangor MB announced thedisbursement of RM36 millionworth of development projectsthat had to be implemented withintwo weeks ( Can you imaginewhat happens to the longkang andthe newly tarred roads in a fewmonths’ time?). The PM’s Depart-ment distributed RM3.5 millionfor seven mosques, 16 surau andsix schools.

How to act macho andhelp the Opposition

Buy or by elections –Machap, Ijok, etc

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Nothing illegal here under Malay-sia’s election laws; simply notvery moral on the part of the BN.Time for the rakyat to wise up tothe importance of the buy election,the by-election.

Oh yes, there’s the danger that youmight also get more than you bar-gained for in a by-election. For therakyat of Ijok, like it or not, had towatch and listen to Samy Vellubreaking out in song a la MGRwhile campaigning. Must havebeen a little geli!?. At any rate,shouldn’t Samy have been spend-ing more time checking out thePutrajaya buildings, the hospitalsand schools, rather than doing asong-and-dance?

People normally go abroad to gainexperience, knowledge and openup one’s horizon by studying, vis-iting places and/or having occa-sional interactions with the localsof host countries.

In fact, this has become the favour-ite rationale of many appointedcouncillors in particular thatthey’d do almost anything to jus-tify their pleasurable tours underthe official rubric of ‘study visits’.It ranges from learning how, say,an Egyptian city council cleans itscity to the way another city coun-cil in another country beautifiesits city through flowers and trees.

And apparently Information Min-ister Zainuddin Maidin was alsoabroad recently to learn a thing ortwo from the countries he visited.But judging from the bad ‘ideas’that he had publicly expressed so

far, we feel that it’d do him ahelluva good if he had stayedhome. For example, in Britain, herecently reprimanded the BBC forhaving given the platform orspace to ‘rejected Opposition lead-ers’ of Malaysia such as thesacked Anwar Ibrahim, who nowhelms Parti Keadilan Rakyat.

Zam, as he is fondly referred to inthe journalistic fraternity, alsothreatens a thaw in bilateral rela-tions between Britain and Malay-sia should this ‘misdeed’ of theBBC persist, acting as if his min-isterial jurisdiction transcendsphysical and political boundariesin this globalised world.

And more recently, as if not to beoutdone by himself, he came outwith an idea, apparently freshfrom a visit to France, that allbloggers should be classified as‘professional’ or ‘amateur’ so asto weed out the so-called ‘irre-sponsible’ bloggers from the ‘re-sponsible’ ones.

Judging from his latest spurtof ‘imagination’, we are temptedto ponder whether Zam had actu-ally gone to areas in France whereeven the devils dare not venture,let alone supporters of the newlyelected rightist President NicolasSarkozy.

While Zam is still recovering fromhis jet-lag and whirlwind tours,we’d suggest that he go into deepreflection to see how and whystrange ideas emanate from thecranial vacuum between his ears.

This is because unless he exercisesdue care as to what comes outfrom his mouth, some people inthis country may just call for himto be declassified as a cabinet min-

ister. Worse, they may even insistthat a court take away his pass-port so that the collective dignityof this country can be protected.

Another group of people whohave been travelling, althoughnowadays in smaller numbersand with less fanfare, are the sci-entists from Malaysia’s publicuniversities. Geneva is the pre-ferred destination. Winning goldmedals, the goal.

Following a query in Parliamentover the large amounts of moneyspent by public universities toparticipate in Geneva’s ‘Interna-tional Exhibition of Inventions,New Products and Techniques’,there is now general consensusthat it is not a world-class aca-demic event. Some VCs have alsoclarified that they would nolonger be sending delegations toGeneva henceforth.

Penang’s USM also recognisesthat the Geneva exhibition is notone heck of an academic event.Nonetheless, it has decided thatit will continue to send its scien-tists to compete for golds and, inso doing, gain exposure and at-tract the attention of the corpora-tions, venture capitalists andwhat not; otherwise, how wouldone commercialise one’s inven-tions? There’s some logic in thisargument.

If this is so, the university shouldnot be treating these gold medalwinners as though they are tomor-row’s Nobel Prize winners. For in-stance, there should be no need to

Desperately seekingmadness abroad

Geneva Golds, i t ’s theexposure, stupid!

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hold a welcoming ceremony forthe people who were merely com-peting to gain exposure in Ge-neva. Nor should they be furtherhonoured in some other ceremonyand given monetary awards forgaining those Geneva golds, sil-vers and bronzes. Was it an expo-sure trip? Or has USM been mis-leadingly honouring these exhi-bition winners as though theywere world-class academics andresearchers?

Tahniah to UniMAP (that’sUniversiti Malaysia Perlis), whichhas just won a Geneva gold. It’sunderstandable for a new univer-sity to participate in this Genevaexhibition. No doubt it needs theexposure. Although even little-known UniMAP shouldn’toverdo these trips. But a well-known university like USM,which used to be listed among thetop 200 universities of the world,should be more focused on regain-ing its place among the top 200,then the top 100, then the top…(oh,forget it) rather than celebratingthe winning of these Genevagolds.

As a thinking Malaysian I am se-riously concerned about the levelof intelligence of our men andwomen at the helm of affairs inpolitics and the civil service — iftheir pronouncements are any-thing to go by.

We have the Menteri Besar of astate who publicly announced hisintention to use thugs and ex-criminals to maintain social or-der. Right-thinking Malaysianswere aghast at his suggestion. Ipresume that, with galloping

crime rates in the country, hewould have no difficulty in thearea of supply. Even if there is ashortage he may entertain hopesof mercenary ex-cons from the in-ternational market.

I wait with bated breath every yearwhen the SPM/STPM examina-tions commence. The comedy oferrors is laughable like a questionpaper getting a principle in phys-ics wrong. Then we had the Di-rector-General of Education say-ing that there is nothing wrong inthe wholesale lifting of questionsfrom a workbook.

Still on the Ministry of Education,there was a suggestion to engagesoldiers as teachers to stem thetide of rising indiscipline atschool. Come to think of it, sol-dier-teachers could do no worsethan the current crop that staffschools. How nice to have a realgeneral as Director-General ofEducation, Brigadier-Generals asVCs of public universities, andCaptains as Heads of schools.

The Menteri Besar of Perak used apeculiar criterion to gauge devel-opment — traffic jams. If this isreally true, Penang must be themost developed state in the worldand qualifies to enter the Guin-ness Book of Records. People whotake two solid hours to get fromMinden Heights to TanjungBungah on a Saturday night willconfirm the high level of Penang’sdevelopment!

Still on the subject of Penang, ourHonourable Chief Minister recom-mended an increase in bas sekolahcharges to encourage more peopleto become bus drivers. What anoble aspiration for the state!Napoleon called the British “a

nation of shopkeepers”. Wouldsomeone be wrong if he referredto Malaysia as a nation of busdrivers?

The head of the Public AccountsCommittee, Selangor, in his indig-nation that a trip to Egypt —which included belly dancingand a cruise down the Nile — didnot materialise said that a penaltywould be imposed on the DAPcandidate, who stood firm on amatter of principle, morality, eth-ics and accountability and re-fused to go on the trip. What levelof IQs does a Menteri Besar whowanted to take his whole familyat public expense together withstate official possess?

Sports in our country is a big joke.The president of the SepakTakraw Association said thatnone of the players comprising thepresent team would be sackedthough they recently lost toMyanmar. The same team hasbeen thrashed by Singapore andThailand. According to him, theplayers are young. Though old-ies are goodies, it looks as if wehave to wait for the young to be-come oldies to register some vic-tories!

The print and electronic mediacarry daily the irrational, some-times stupid, utterances of ourleaders which assault our brainsand move us to tears.

It is an irony that while the greatscholar, Prof. Syed HusseinAlatas, successfully debunked thecolonialist-created notion of ‘thelazy native’, Dr Mahathir rode topolitical power, fame and fortune

The things they say

Genetic weakness

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by propagating the idea that thelocal natives, the Malays, are whatthey were because of genetic weak-ness. His half-past-six book ‘TheMalay Dilemma’ made dubiousclaims about this due to inbreed-ing. Therefore, a strong case forprotection of the Malays was madeout. This gave birth to the NEP,ostensibly to rectify economic im-balance and eradicate poverty.

This noble aim went awry and theNEP provided the perfect camou-flage to help those in power, theirchildren, relatives and croniesamass tremendous wealth. Thevast majority of Malays got littleor no benefit. Small wonder thenthat the income disparity is thewidest in the Malay community,currently. The so-called protectorswere actually wolves in sheep’sclothing and shamelessly helpedthemselves to the wealth of thenation — its money, land, lucra-tive logging concessions, govern-ment contracts, share allocationsthrough the infamous pink forms,APs etc. One only needs to look atthe palaces they live in, the poshcars they and their children drive,the holidays they go on, the de-signer clothes they wear to get con-firmation of how successfullythey have enriched themselves atthe expense of the nation.

Little did those who hero-wor-shipped Dr M realise that the eco-nomic “crutches” had con-demned a whole ethnic group tomediocrity in a tough, demandingand competitive world underglobalisation. If one examines DrM’s speeches, one would realisethat he often talked down to thepoor, dependent Malays becausehe had then realised that if theMalays did not discard the“crutches”, they would ultimately

find themselves in ‘wheelchairs’.To even a casual observer, how-ever, the indoctrination of theMalays regarding the so-calledefficacy of the NEP has created amindset that, without it, theMalays would become extinct!

A Malay colleague who was at thepublic university where I workedtold me that asking the Malays,especially the Umnoputras, togive up the NEP is like asking thetiger to be a vegetarian!

Dr M is still stuck in the quagmireof the so-called genetic weaknessof the Malays. He called JohorMalays “weak” in respect of theconcessions granted to attract for-eign investments in the IskandarDevelopment Region in Johor.When he called Johor Malays‘weak’, Dr M did not mean physi-cal weakness but rather mentalweakness. Interestingly, thiscomes in the wake of Ghani’sclaim that the Malays are a supe-rior race. Umno enjoys a largeMalay support-base in Johor.Now we can understand why.

Zam, the Minister of Information,took to task some clan for alleg-edly erecting tombstones for fallenmembers of the Communist party.

There is tremendous hypocrisyand double standards on the partof the government with regard tothe murder of Malaysians by theCommunists and the Japanesearmy.

From December 1941 till the endof the Second World War in themiddle of 1945, the death and de-struction caused by the Japanese

army was tremendous. A largenumber of Malaysians were mer-cilessly tortured before being shotor beheaded.

This death toll from Japaneseatrocities far outnumbers thenumber killed by the Commu-nists, whose insurrection began in1948 and literally fizzled out af-ter Malaysia attained independ-ence. Yet today, the Japanese areenthusiastically welcomed, em-braced, granted PR status, androyal titles are heaped on them. Itappears that past sins can be for-gotten and forgiven because ofeconomic power. The yen indeedtalks loud.

The treatment meted out to theageing Chin Peng lacks fairnessand compassion. Hypocrisy anddouble standards on the part ofthe powers-that-be are obvious.Even the judiciary appears to bedenying speedy justice to ChinPeng in his struggle to return toMalaysia.

Zam claims to have deep knowl-edge of Malaysian history. If thiswas true, he should know that theBritish coordinated the activitiesof Force 136 from its headquartersin Kandy, Ceylon. Force 136 wasactive in Kedah, Perak andPahang and many Malay officersand soldiers, together with others,harassed and sabotaged Japaneseattempts to transfer arms and menfrom the East Coast to the West.Some officers of Force 136 collabo-rated and cooperated with theMPAJA. (Tun) Abdul Razak wasa captain in Force 136, PahangWataniah. Going by Zam’s logic,these freedom fighters would betraitors guilty of treason.

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Zam Jam

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ice farming is becom-ing more an industrywith the involvement ofthe private sector than

a way of life. With the introduc-tion of hi-technology on farms in-cluding the introduction of bio-technology in the country, our con-cern is that it might be a matter oftime before Malaysians end upeating genetically engineeredrice,” notes Indrani Thurai-singham, Chief Executive Officerof the Federation of MalaysianConsumers Associations (Fomca).

She is extremely concerned aboutthe state of rice farmers and ricecultivation in Malaysia. Themechanisation of rice farms hasbeen taking place since 1997 in abid by the Government to revital-ise the agricultural sector, but themove has resulted in the rural-ur-ban migration of small farmers asthere had been no concerted pro-gramme to absorb them into anyother sector.

Indrani, who is also SecretaryGeneral of Era Consumer, saidthis shift had resulted in dwin-dling numbers of agriculturalworkers and rice farmers. Sheelaborated that in 1995 there were

1.5 million farmers and, by 2010,the number was expected fall to980,000. The number of rice farm-ers dropped significantly byabout 47 per cent from 296,000farmers in 1999 to 155,961 in 2005.

Indrani said Fomca’s concern wasfor the safety of consumers whohave a right to information andthe right to a healthy environ-ment: “There was a push bybiotech companies to invest in thecountry; however we are unsureof these kinds of technology andthe safety aspects as there is noassessment done on the risks to

health and the environment.”

She said Fomca was pushing forthe implementation of the Bio-Safety Law which would regu-late genetically modified (GMO)food being sold in Malaysia. Shesaid that Malaysia was import-ing soya beans from the UnitedStates but because there are nolabelling laws, people have noidea if the soya is geneticallymodified (GM). Between 65 and75 per cent of soya beans in theUS are GM products.

AGRICULTURE

Malaysia’s disappearingMalaysia’s disappearingMalaysia’s disappearingMalaysia’s disappearingMalaysia’s disappearingrice farmersrice farmersrice farmersrice farmersrice farmersThe threat of genetically engineered rice

An interview with Indrani Thuraisingham, CEO, FOMCAby Jennifer Mourin and Anne Haslam

“R“R“R“R“R

R i s k s


“We have a right to know whatwe are consuming and whether itis GM, and the risks involved inconsuming this kind of food,” shestated, adding that this informa-tion was critical in view of the factthat the incidence of diseases suchas cancer and diabetes was highin Malaysia.

She said that the Week of RiceAction (Wora) was important forthe consumers’ movement to edu-cate consumers on this issue asrice was the staple diet of the peo-ple. Rice should be produced in aculturally suitable way and con-sumers should have informationon genetically engineered (GE)rice, which may be introduced inthe not-so-distant future.

Wora 2007 brought together farm-ers, rural communities, and othersectors of society to celebrate andprotect rice culture. Launched onMarch 13 in Bangladesh, the mainWora events were held in in 13countries across Asia from 29March to 4 April 2007 - an unprec-edented mobilisation of Asians“Celebrating and Protecting RiceCulture”. A key feature of Wora isits one-million signature cam-

paign calling on policy-makers totake immediate steps to save therice of Asia.

Indrani said in conjunction withWora, Fomca was looking at theSafe Food component of the fiverice pillars with respect to con-sumers. It had slotted two semi-nars focusing on GE rice on 5-6April to coincide with the launchof National Consumers Day.

She said that discussions withacademia, policy makers and en-forcement agencies would high-light the importance of labellingand adopting a precautionarystance in using new technologieseven though the biotechnologycompanies are saying there are noapparent risks.

She said the academia had animportant role to play in carryingout independent research in GMtechnologies, whilst policy mak-ers should also make decisions inallowing labelling and regula-tions to ensure that the risk assess-ment is done in a fair manner and

Jennifer Mourin and AnneJennifer Mourin and AnneJennifer Mourin and AnneJennifer Mourin and AnneJennifer Mourin and AnneHaslam work for the Pes-Haslam work for the Pes-Haslam work for the Pes-Haslam work for the Pes-Haslam work for the Pes-ticide Action Network’sticide Action Network’sticide Action Network’sticide Action Network’sticide Action Network’sAsia Pacific regional officeAsia Pacific regional officeAsia Pacific regional officeAsia Pacific regional officeAsia Pacific regional officein Penangin Penangin Penangin Penangin Penang

that ultimately consumers canmake informed choices and deci-sions.

“Our rice farmers must be pro-tected at all costs for the sake ofnational sovereignty and of na-tional security. We must have ourown food producers produce ourown food domestically. We can-not allow other countries to dic-tate to us especially on matters offood, particularly rice which isour staple food,” stated Indrani inrelation to Malaysia’s free tradeagreement (FTA) negotiationswith the United States.

Indrani concluded by saying shehoped that the Malaysian Govern-ment would keep to its stance tocontinue to protect the rice farm-ers by not lowering the trade tar-iffs as the US wanted Malaysia toimport more rice.

Labelling andfood sovereignty

q


t does not have as complex a plot nor is itas noir as the 1949 movie classic The ThirdMan. Ooi Kee Beng’s The Reluctant Politi-cian, however, certainly connotes a tale of

the critical role played by ‘the third man’ in Malay-sia’s early independence history.

Let me hasten to add that I’m not one to deny theplural character of our politics and the multiplestruggles of Malayan society for independence fromthe British. Surely more than a few men were re-sponsible for the shape of our history.

But when independence did arrive, admittedly therewere only a small number of persons, indeed usu-ally ‘men’, and perhaps just three, who were in thedriver’s seat from 1957 to 1976. They were the Tunku,Tun Razak and Tun Ismail.

There are certainly elements of plot and noir in Ooi’sbook. As perhaps revealed publicly for the first time,Ismail was the only one (besides their mutual doc-tor, Stewart MacPherson) who had intimate knowl-edge of Razak’s terminal leukemia while Razak washimself acutely aware of Ismail’s congenital heartproblem. Both men, however, believed that Ismailwould outlive Razak. In the event, Ismail’s heartfailed him on 2 August1973 while Razak went on tohelm Malaysia until 14 January 1976. Ooi capturesthese remarkable facts succinctly and dramaticallyin the opening chapter of the book.

How different would Malaysian history have beenor could it be had Ismail outlived Razak? Any read-ing of The Reluctant Politician would impel one to try

to imagine this, however wistfully. What would havehappened had Tun Ismail been at the helm afterTun Razak? For starters, certainly individuals whomIsmail disliked may never have gained political as-cendancy. Contrariwise, those he truly respectedwould probably still be in the thick of politics or atleast be in political contention.

BOOK REVIEW

Tun Dr Ismail Abdul RahmanTun Dr Ismail Abdul RahmanTun Dr Ismail Abdul RahmanTun Dr Ismail Abdul RahmanTun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman

‘The Third Man’ of‘The Third Man’ of‘The Third Man’ of‘The Third Man’ of‘The Third Man’ ofMalaysian HistoryMalaysian HistoryMalaysian HistoryMalaysian HistoryMalaysian HistoryReview by Johan Saravanamuttu

IIIII

Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,Singapore, 2006Singapore, 2006Singapore, 2006Singapore, 2006Singapore, 2006


For example, what would havebeen the fate of MahathirMohamad? All indications froma reading of the book would bethat Mahathir would probablyhave stayed in the political dol-drums since Ismail had objectedto his reinstatement to UMNO.Thanks to Razak, who evidentlysuccumbed to party politics andpressure, Malaysia’s longest serv-ing premier of 22 years was resur-rected, in spite of Ismail’s objec-tions. In the event, Musa Hitam,Ismail’s preferred candidate forpolitical ascendancy, probablylost out. But we are already aheadof our story and it is not really myintention here to delve into coun-ter-factual ‘what- might-have-beens’.

Although Ooi Keng Beng’s bookdoes not problematise history inthe manner that I for one wouldlike, his meticulous rendering ofTun Ismail’s life and time pro-vides us with rare and profoundinsights and fascinating detailsabout the Third Man ofMalaysian History. It remindsus pointedly of Tun Ismail’segregious contribution and im-pact on our political life in thepost-Merdeka years, up until theMay 13 riots and the momen-tous changes after May 13.

Thanks to the letters and papers(including a short memoir) leftbehind by Tun Dr Ismail andthanks to the liberal-mindednessof his son Tawfik to deposit themwith the Institute of SoutheastAsian Studies, Ooi has been ableto produce this highly readablebook, after also drawing onsources in the British archives atKew and conducting numerous

interviews with Tun Ismail’sfriends and previous associates inMalaysia and Singapore.

In this review, I wish to touch onthe following aspects of the biog-raphy; Tun Ismail’s personalityand character; his politics and for-eign policy; and his political andsocial relationships. Perhapsfrom such a reading we could sur-mise what sort of government andoverall temper of politics couldhave prevailed in Malaysia hadmore honourable men such asIsmail taken the helm.

Certainly, Ismail was not withoutfaults and one can easily gleanthis from this rich biography.There was also a very human andsociable person tucked within theouter exterior of a somewhat se-vere and no-nonsense persona. Solet me begin with his personalityand character.

What I found most engaging in thebiography were the insights intoIsmail the man, warts and all. Thestory of his failing health due to afaulty heart-valve which led to hisdeath at 58 years is already well-known. In spite of this, Ismail wasan active athlete who was intohiking and swimming in his Mel-bourne University days and, inlater years, an ardent golfer. Fromgolf, comes his famous analogy onthe temporality of the special po-sition of the Malays:

The special privilege or positionaccorded to the Malays under theConstitution is mainly intendedto enable them – to borrow an ex-pression from the game of golf –

‘to have a handicap’, whichwould place them in a position forfair competition with better play-ers. Therefore, like a golfer, itshould not be the aim of theMalays to perpetuate this handi-cap but to strive to improve theirgame, and thereby reducing, andfinally removing, their handicapcompletely. (p 217).

The young Ismail was an aviddancer as well and, from that, onecould well adduce his open-mindedness and his sociability. Avignette from his days as a medi-cal student in Singapore serves toillustrate this. Ismail used to fre-quent a local buy-a-coupon–per-dance cabaret with his friends.The practice was to rush to themost popular hostesses and getone on a first-come-first-serve ba-sis. Writes Ismail:

As I was dancing away, I hap-pened to look behind and saw aface red with anger. It was the faceof one of my professors, who hadexpected me to step aside and giveway to him to dance with the host-ess. The next day happened to bethe day on which I had to presentmyself to the professor for an oralexamination of the anatomy ofbones. He naturally gave me a dif-ficult bone to identify and de-scribe and when I could not, hemade the sarcastic remark that if Iwere to concentrate more on boneanatomy rather than surfaceanatomy, I would make a successof myself as a medical student. (p20).

In the event Ismail had to com-plete his medical studies in Mel-bourne and returned home onlyafter the Second World War.

The man


Ooi gives an interesting accountof how Ismail was persuaded toenter politics, essentially by theTunku, and to become the Alliancemember of the executive councilof the Federal Legislative Councilin 1953. Tunku himself had de-murred taking up the position ashe wanted to focus on the inde-pendence process. After inde-pendence, it was again the Tunkuwho prevailed on Ismail to leadMalaysia’s mission at the UnitedStates and the United Nations.

In his various dealings with su-periors and subordinates, Ismailcut a character who was princi-pled, if feisty. He detested incom-petence and was not one to sufferfools. As minister plenipotentiaryat New York, he worked hard tomaintain Malaysia’s anti-commu-nist stance and non-recognition ofthe People’s Republic of China inthe face of the continuing commu-nist insurgency in Malaysia. Hewas therefore incensed and imme-diately threatened to resign whenthe Tunku blurted out in Nether-lands that it was not a bad idea toconsider recognising China. TheTunku, who belatedly realised hismistake, intimates that Ismailtried to submit his resignation afew times, but after the Tunku de-liberately avoided him, the resig-nation never came.

It is interesting to note that, whileat New York, Ismail was also irri-tated by the manner some of hissubordinates under-performedwhile he praised and thoughtwell of persons who were respon-sible and conducted their work in-telligently. Among the individu-

als who won Ismail’s respect wereMusa Hitam, (who went on to be-come deputy premier; MohamedSopiee, a former Labour Partyleader, who became first secretaryto Ismail in New York; Ismail Ali,later to be Bank Negara Governor;Albert Talalla, a diplomat; SuffianHashim, chief justice; and LimChong Eu, the MCA leader wholater became Gerakan leader.

The Kuoks, Philip and Robert,were close friends, and in the book,copious reference is made toIsmail’s conversations and inti-mations to both brothers. William,the third brother, who died as aguerrilla at the hands of the Brit-ish, is also mentioned in Ooi’sbook. Other family friends and as-sociates included the Cheahs andthe Puthuchearys.

The picture one gets of Ismail theman is clearly that of a personwho was liberal-minded and hadclose associates from all the com-munities of Malaysia. Indeed,some of his closest friends werenon-Malays, some of them left-leaning. In fact, Ismail had fewhang-ups when it came to relat-ing with “others”; while studyingin Melbourne, he had three rela-tionships, including one with anAustralian girl and one with aGerman girl.

Tun Ismail’s view on politics andforeign policy issues are weavedin throughout the eight chaptersof the book. We have alreadynoted that he was introduced intopolitics by the Tunku. But, in truth,Ismail’s own family was already

deeply involved in public affairs:his father Abdul Rahman Yassinwas president of the Senate andhis brother Suleiman, having beenin Tunku’s circle since Cambridgedays, was High Commissioner toAustralia.

Ismail was a democrat at heart but,like most people of the Tunku’sgeneration, had strong viewsabout communism. As a diplomatand as Malaysia’s acting foreignminister, he ably argued for Ma-laysia’s anti-communist and pro-western stances and worked hardto get US financial aid for Malay-sia.

Interestingly though, Ismail wasalso responsible for the very im-portant shift to nonalignment inMalaysian foreign policy whichcame during Tun Razak era. In1968, after retirement from thecabinet because of his health, asUmno backbencher, he called forthe neutralisation of South-EastAsia, to be guaranteed by all themajor powers including China.This later became Malaysia’s andAsean’s iconic policy for a Zoneof Peace, Freedom and Neutrality(Zopfan) in South-East Asia. Andclose on the heels of his proposalcame the recognition of the Peo-ple’s Republic of China in 1974,Malaysia being the first South-East Asian country to make themove.

Thus, it is clear that Ismail was apragmatist while being staunchlydemocratic in his approach topolitics. In spite of his gloomyMay 13 statement that “democ-racy is dead in Malaysia”, it wasvery evident that after the May1969 incident, he was working

Democrat andp r a g m a t i s t

Reluctant politician


hard to resurrect democracy.Forced to re-emerge from his re-tirement, he played a crucial roleunder Tun Razak in the six-mem-ber National Operations Council(NOC), and for all intents andpurposes, Razak depended heav-ily on Ismail for final decisions.

Interestingly, Ismail initiallypressed for Harun Idris’s arrestbut was dissuaded by Hanif Omarwho said that the first incidentsof May 13 occurred in Setapak, notKampong Baru in Kuala Lumpur.Most importantly Ismail cogentlyargued against any military takeo-ver or martial law which was ap-parently what the Tunku hadwanted in the beginning. Thesense was that Ismail was consci-entious about the eventual returnto democratic politics as much ashe was uncompromising aboutstemming political instability. De-tentions and arrests comprisingall major ethnic groups totaled8,114 by 5 July.

Ismail also dealt firmly with theMalay “ultras”. MahathirMohamad was expelled fromUmno on 12 July and Musa Hitamwas sent off for study leave to Sus-sex University. Tengku Razaleighin an interview said it was Ismailwho wanted Mahathir expelledand it was also Ismail whostopped two attempts to re-admithim into Umno (p 206).

A significant aspect of Ismail’spolitical thinking relates to theepisode of Singapore’s mergerwith Malaysia and its subsequentseparation on 9 August 1965.While it was the Tunku’s decisionthat Singapore should leave Ma-laysia, the authors behind the

separation agreement were Razak,Ismail and Tan Siew Sin as wellas Singapore’s Goh Keng Sweeand Eddie Barker. In an article tothe National Geographic, Ismailwrote: “At the moment both na-tions, comparatively speaking, arewell off. If they can co-exist forsome time, each understandingthe other’s point of view, the timewill come when they will merge again.It is better to wait for this to come be-cause if they do not do so they willsink together instead of coming to-gether” (p. 160, emphasis added).

Another important contribution ofIsmail to political changes wasthe setting up of the Anti-Corrup-tion Agency. He led the anti-graftcabinet committee, which tabledthe motion for the ACA on 12April 1967. Robert Kuok inti-mates, “You would say, in Con-fucian terms, that he was a manwho led a very correct life, a manof the highest integrity. Money,favours, political hypocrisy ordeceit, all those were anathema tohim” (p 173)

No doubt from Ooi Kee Beng’scomprehensive and penetratingbiography of Tun Dr. Ismail, wecould conclude that Ismail was aloving and sensitive family man,a loyal colleague and friend, a fear-less and peerless politician, andnot least of all, an honourableman. He was at heart a democrat,if a bit authoritarian. He was notaverse to using the Internal Secu-rity Act to achieve the politicalimperatives of the day, but onesenses that, were he given thechoice today, he may opt for its

Where are thehonourable men?

Johan Saravanamutu isJohan Saravanamutu isJohan Saravanamutu isJohan Saravanamutu isJohan Saravanamutu iscurrently Visiting Seniorcurrently Visiting Seniorcurrently Visiting Seniorcurrently Visiting Seniorcurrently Visiting SeniorResearch Fellow at the In-Research Fellow at the In-Research Fellow at the In-Research Fellow at the In-Research Fellow at the In-stitute of Southeast Asianstitute of Southeast Asianstitute of Southeast Asianstitute of Southeast Asianstitute of Southeast AsianStudies, Singapore. TheStudies, Singapore. TheStudies, Singapore. TheStudies, Singapore. TheStudies, Singapore. Thethoughts presented are histhoughts presented are histhoughts presented are histhoughts presented are histhoughts presented are hispersonal views.personal views.personal views.personal views.personal views.

removal.

Admittedly, his firmness of deci-sion-making style verged some-times on intolerance. His hot-tem-pered nature may have reinforcedthis aspect of his character but hissharpness of judgment of humancharacter perhaps more than com-pensated for his feisty disposi-tion.

Beyond his actual impact onMalaysian politics, how is the lifeand time of a man like Tun Dr.Ismail important for us today? Iwould rather not indulge in coun-ter-factual thinking of whatwould have happened had he be-come “the third prime ministerMalaysia never had” but raise themore pertinent question, where onour political landscape are thehonourable men of Malaysia now,foibles and all? Where have po-litical courage, intellectual hon-esty and political imaginationgone?

It is well known that politics inMalaysia today has become in-fested by pseudo-intellectuals,dishonest politicians, incompe-tents and fools. It will be of somesolace that the life of Tun Dr.Ismail may inspire a new genera-tion of genuine men and women ofhonour to take to the politicalstage. q


Could you include one more col-umn in your ISA Watch list of de-tainees stating the crimes theyhave committed/suspected ofcommitting - and a brief explana-tion of what JI, KMM and Thaiseparatists means.

When you say a person is put inISA detention without evidence,it sounds cruel. But if you say aperson is put in ISA for suspectedcrime/murder/drug abuse, thenit seems reasonable. For there aresituations I can envisage wheresuch negative incidents can beassociated with a person, but thereis no evidence to prove it. If giventhe authority, I would put suchpersons under ISA detention forinvestigation.

You may never understand suchaction unless your loved ones diedue to the actions of such personsthough you can never prove it.

One more thing: are you aware of

Letters must not exceed 250words and must include thewriter's name and address.Pseudonyms may be used. Sendletters or emails to Editor (seepage 3 for address details).Views expressed need not reflectthose of Aliran. If e-mailing,include message in the e-mailbody itself.

any deliberate effort to use psy-chological means on a person tomake him/her a scapegoat for oth-ers. For example, since you are soagainst ISA, would you deliber-ately use psychological means ona person to make use of that per-son in your campaign against theISA? How would you justify mak-ing use of an innocent person?How would you sleep at nightknowing that you have donewrong to an innocent person?Would you use your children asscapegoats for the purpose?

Elcy Thomas Chandy

During the time of the Britishcolonialists we had local councilelections. Cast your mind back tothe Labour Party in control ofGeorge Town and the PPP in Ipoh— very efficiently run councils bymen of honesty and integrity.

It is indeed an irony that afterMerdeka the people have beendenied their right to a participa-tory democracy. Though the Alli-ance enjoyed great popular sup-port, they took fright at the pros-pect of local councils in the handsof the opposition. That fear hasremained for half a country, to thedetriment of the people. TheBarisan will not permit localcouncil elections. Ka Ting’s state-ment that Malaysia has devised aunique system of appointingtown and city councillors is de-plorable. Unique indeed! becauseit offers the Barisan a unique op-portunity to appoint party cro-nies, family members, bootlickers,political rejects and hangers-on astown or city councillors.

Thoughts on the ISA

How can this country progress?How can inept and corrupt menand women councillors offer firstclass service to town and citydwellers? Many appointed townand city councillors are corrupt,law-breakers and land grabbers.They carry out their nefarious ac-tivities with utter impunity. Thepowers that be protect thesescoundrels. One only need to lookat the case of Zakaria in Klang.The Minister of Local Governmentwashed his hands of the corrupt,law-breaking and land-grabbingcouncillor. The Menteri Besar ofSelangor said that “my hands aretied” to explain lack of action. Itis a case of Ali Baba and the FortyThieves — one protecting theother. There are hundreds ofZakarias who are festering con-cerns in the body politic at Fed-eral, State, Town, City and DistrictCouncil levels.

It is in the hands of the electorate torectify matters and bring aboutchange. The ballot is a powerfulweapon and should be used wiselyto reject those who appoint suchscumbags to town and city coun-cils. These corrupt characters arenot answerable to the people but totheir political masters. In advancedcountries local council electionsensure that experienced andknowledgeable professionals areelected as town or city councillors.

Dear town-city-dweller, do a greatservice to your country. You haveit in your power to effect much-needed change in town and citycouncils. It is time to insult thosewho insult your intelligence.Wake up! You have been takenfor a ride for far too long. Sayfirmly ‘Enough is enough’.

Pro democracy

Town & City Council:Zakarias aplenty


1 . Malaysia. a truly democratic country` Tidak Mahu2. A free print and electronic media “3 . Repeal of ISA “4. An independent Judiciary “5 . Everyone equal under the law “6. Total gender equality “7. Freedom of choice of religion for everyone as provided for in the Constitution “8. Establishment of an Inter-Faith Commission “9. Every Malaysian citizen regarded as “indigenous” “10 . Establishment of an independent Election Commission “1 1 . Introduction of proportional representation “1 2 . Reintroduction of local government elections “1 3 . Fairer delineation of constituencies and fairer weightage of urban/rural

constituencies in terms of voters. “14 . An independent ACA to eradicate corruption “1 5 . Appointment of an Ombudsman “16 . Public declaration of assets by all civil servants and politicians “1 7 . Legal protection for whistleblowers “18 . Introduction of revolutionary charges in education to keep pace with advanced

societies “1 9 . Appointment of non-Malays as Federal and State Directors of Education and

Vice-Chancellors of public universities “20. Repeal of the crippling Universities and Colleges Act “2 1 . Discontinuation of the NEP “22 . Meritocracy in Malaysia “2 3 . Open competition for jobs and scholarships “24. Transparent and open tender system for the award of government contracts “25 . Non-privatisation of sectors catering to the basic needs of people “26. Dismissal of inefficient and corrupt civil servants “27. Introduction of fairer Malay/non-Malay recruitment into the Civil Service “28. Severe disciplinary action against Ministers, Mentris Besar, Chief Ministers, Heads

of Departments and Civil Servants for dereliction of duty based on theAuditor-General’s Report “

29. No protection for the lunatic fringe; intelligent discussion of constitutional issues “30. Appointment of non-Malays as Governors of certain States “3 1 . Monthly wages for plantation workers “32 . Minimum wage for workers “3 3 . No requirement for non-Muslims to seek justice from Shariah Courts “34. Withdrawal of appointment of judges who refuse to defend the constitution “3 5 . An elected Dewan Negara “

Jadi mahu apa?... Agenda Umnoputra MAHUMAHUMAHUMAHUMAHU

Failed State

Tidak Mahu

Oh great leader you won the biggest mandate in the history ofMalaysian elections, thereby raising the hopes of Malaysians for anew and dynamic era. But to most Malaysians you have proved to bea great disappointment. This is why:


Aliran supports the Prime Minis-ter’s call “to bring back the glorydays of parliamentarians”. Thiscall to restore respect for and dig-nity to Parliament is long overdue.

In any case, we are heartened thateven the Prime Minister has atlong last acknowledged the dete-rioration in the standing of Par-liament in the public eye and theabsence of quality debates whenParliament is in session.This sen-timent finally reflects the views ofordinary citizens who are terriblydisappointed with the mannerParliament has been functioning.

According to Datuk Raja AhmadZainuddin Raja Omar the actingChairman of the BarisanNasional Backbenchers’ Club, “the prime minister wanted electedrepresentatives to engage in bet-ter quality debates, ...” (theSun, 20March 2007).

Parliament unfortunately hasbeen identified with silly banter

A record of A record of A record of A record of A record of Aliran'sAliran'sAliran'sAliran'sAliran's stand on current affairs. stand on current affairs. stand on current affairs. stand on current affairs. stand on current affairs.

and sick jokes by some domineer-ing Members of Parliament whoare quick to shoot from the hip.Racial slurs, stupid remarks andname-calling are often gleefullyreported by our undiscerningmainstream media. Quality de-bates and quality reporting aresorely missed these days.

When we compare the gloriousdays of Parliament in the 1960sand recall the quality of debates,it is difficult to fathom how low

we have sunk in our stature andregressed in the standard of excit-ing debates. Very often, well-re-searched and substantive debatesare sadly lacking these days.

The Question and Answer ses-sion used to be vibrant and excit-ing, punctuated with witty andintelligent retorts and repartee,which added colour and life toParliament. Those sessions havebeen greatly reduced to dull ses-sions by time limits and other con-straints.

The Prime Minister must put intopractice the essence of true par-liamentary democracy by allow-ing space for a Private Member’sBill to be debated. The presentpractice of deliberately draggingon with the matters of governmentso that there would be no time leftto debate the Private Member’s Billis undemocratic, unjust and un-ethical. Killing a Bill by this dis-graceful conduct is outrageous.

Parliament was not regarded se-riously by the previous PrimeMinister, who even used to beoverseas when the session wason. Leading by example, evenCabinet ministers were absent,often delegating their duties toothers. Under the circumstances,Parliament’s importance erodedand its relevance declined.

If the PM is really sincere in want-ing to restore Parliament’s dignityand relevance, he must seriouslyobserve the following points:

• He should make attendanceduring parliamentary sessionscompulsory by setting the ex-ample and insisting that hiscabinet colleagues and BNelected representatives are

Bring back the gloriousdays of Parliament


present;

• He should ensure that therewill be a quorum at all times. If26 MPs cannot be present toprovide the quorum, it be-comes a national shame andan embarrassment to parlia-mentary democracy;

• He should release bills for de-bate at least three months be-fore they are tabled so thatthere will be time for researchto contribute to quality debatesand to provide opportunity forordinary Malaysians to com-ment on them;

• He should increase the time al-lotted for the Question and An-swer session;

• He should free BN MPs fromthe control of the Party Whipwhen national issues of im-portance are debated so thatthese elected representativescan rise above petty partypolitics and cross partyboundaries to support mo-tions - even those moved bythe opposition - in the largerinterest of the nation;

• He should allow Parliament tomanage its affairs rather thanhaving a civil servant takingcharge of something thatshould rightly be the concernof Parliament itself;

• He should field as candidatesfor the national elections peo-ple who deserve to sit in Par-liament instead of using the se-lection process to reward partyloyalists. That is, if he reallywants to have parliamentar-ians of quality as he has ex-pressed.

These are some of the points thatdeserve to be considered to bringback the lost lustre to Parliamentso that it will stand out as a shin-ing example of our parliamentarydemocracy.

Let us strive together to make Par-liament in the next 50 years aninstitution that is meaningful andparticipatory - one that truly re-flects the principles of justice.

P RamakrishnanPresident

22 March 2007

Anti-Corruption Agency chiefZulkipli Mat Noor can no longerbe in office holding on to his posi-tion as Director General. It is anembarrassment to the ACA! Aninstitution entrusted with thehighly demanding responsibilityof checking and eradicating cor-ruption cannot be headed by anindividual whose character andintegrity comes under a cloud ofsuspicion. We cannot tolerate thisabsurd situation. The Prime Min-ister must surely understand this.

Zulkipli was not merely accusedof being corrupt by any ordinarycitizen. It was not a wild allega-tion by any means. But in this case,the accusation came from a sen-ior (now retired) ACA official,Ramli Abdul Manan, who had in-vestigated the issue of corruptioninvolving Zulkipli. According toRamli, the former Sabah ACA di-rector, he had studied this particu-lar case and had indeed filed hisreport in July 2006 alerting theACA, the then Inspector-Generalof Police and the Prime Ministerregarding Zulkipli’s corruption.Strangely, no action was taken topursue this matter.

Besides this, it has been disclosedthat several reports dating backto 1997 were lodged with the po-lice by a woman alleging sexualmolestation and behaviour unbe-coming of an official, whostrangely seems to be enjoying theconfidence of the authorities

In spite of these earlier reports,Zulkipli’s contract was extendedthree times since his appointmentby former Prime Minister DrMahathir Mohamad in 2001. (Hiscurrent term ends on 31 March

Mr PM, indict Zulkipli!


2007.) We are now told that thepolice are investigating this case.

Notwithstanding this, further al-legations of corruption haveemerged with Dr Jeffrey Kitinganlodging a 24-page police reportimplicating Zulkipli with corrup-tion.

What is really worryingMalaysians is that Zulkipli con-tinues to be on duty and in serv-ice as Director General of theACA. There is this real fear that,because of his top position, he hasaccess to ACA files and informa-tion pertaining to his case. It is le-gitimate to wonder whether thereis a possibility that evidence canbe tampered with or witnessesthreatened. This is something thatcannot be easily dismissed oroverlooked.

Zulkipli’s position in the ACA istarnishing the image of the ACA.People are losing their confidencein the ACA as a body truly dedi-cated to wiping out corruption.When citizens no longer view thehead of this very important agencyas a man of impeccable character,then the entire outfit suffers. Itscredibility is shattered and thevery purpose of setting up theACA is rightly questioned. Wecannot have a person remainingin such a crucial office if his in-tegrity has been called into ques-tion or if there is the slightest hintof irregularities.

Aliran is of the view that Zulkiplishould be indicted. Indicting anofficer while the case is being in-vestigated is part of the discipli-nary process. When an officer iscleared, he can be reinstated with-out suffering any loss in salary orseniority to his rank. Why should

it be different for Zulkipli, Mr PM?

P RamakrishnanPresident

28 March 2007

Charter 2000-Aliran is deeplyconcerned by the government’spotential move to impose manda-tory registration of bloggers whouse websites hosted in Malaysia.This is an obvious attempt to con-trol and curb local blogs and tocreate a culture of fear amongbloggers. Deputy Energy, Water and Com-munications Minister ShazimanAbu Mansor told Parliament yes-terday that the government wasconsidering this measure to pur-portedly “prevent the spread ofnegative or malicious content onthe Internet”.

Recent attempts by certain govern-ment ministers and politicians tosmear bloggers are a prelude topossible moves to control and cen-sor the Internet. These officials’reactions suggest that certainanalyses and breaking news onblogs and websites have hit homeand proved to be too ‘painful’ forcertain quarters in government. Although we do not deny that cer-tain elements could have put ma-licious content on the Internet, wecertainly do not welcome any at-tempt to register bloggers. It is tan-tamount, we reiterate, to state cen-sorship and control. It would alsoviolate the government’s pledge“to ensure no censorhip of theInternet”, which was part of the10-point “Bill of guarantees”aimed at attracting foreign inves-

Bloggers under threatof state control

tors to the Multimedia Super Cor-ridor.

In fact, the growing popularity ofblogging, we would argue, is inpart the result of too much statecontrol and censorship over themainstream media. Such controlof traditional media has promptedconcerned Malaysians to turn tothe Internet to express their viewsand to make public revelations ofmatters the government wouldrather not disclose. The govern-ment has been hiding behind theOfficial Secrets Act for too longand has not allowed the truth toprevail. Now it is trying to limitthe new space available on theInternet for that truth to reachMalaysians.

The only way to for the govern-ment to counter so-called mali-cious content and “negative re-porting” is to put forward imme-diately its own official version ofthe facts. But this the governmentis not prone to do because it is notefficient nor are ruling politiciansparticularly savvy at using theInternet to set the record straight.For the government to make freshattempts to rein in bloggers is tobelittle, if not ridicule and tarnish,the good work done by many con-scientious bloggers, especiallythose who dare to identify them-selves.

Instead of acting in a retrogressivemanner, the government shouldmove forward with the times. Itshould face up to the challengesof globalisation and the Internetby exercising more transparencyand less censorship.

Dr Mustafa K Anuar & Anil NettoCoordinators, Charter 2000-Aliran

5 April 2007


US$25 million (approx 2.5 billionyen) in intermediation fees to Re-gent Star in the ten years up to2005. An anonymous industrysource is quoted as admitting that“there was an understanding thatthese were payments to the ChiefMinister’s family” and in essence,kickbacks. According to the arti-cle, the NFA admitted that it hadin 1981 entered into an agreementwith Dewaniaga Sarawak (DNS)on log exports to Japan, and hadbeen instructed by DNS to payintermediation fees to Regent Starin Hong Kong.

The payments, which are said tohave continued for 26 years since1981, are said to have started at arate of approximately US$1.50 percubic meter of logs shipped, andto have increased over the yearsto the current rate of US$3.28,while the log shipments declinedfrom a peak of 3.8 million m3 in1990 to about 410,000 m3 in 2005.The report estimates that an aver-age of one to four million dollarsper year, totalling US $25,250,000,was paid to Regent Star between1996 and 2005 alone. The articlealso mentions that an industrysource alleged that DNS directorDato’ Onn Bin Mahmud, brotherof CM Taib Mahmud, sometimesparticipated in person in negotia-tions of the intermediation feesbetween Regent Star and the NFA.

From the above, it should be crys-tal clear that the allegationslodged against CM Taib Mahmudby Malaysiakini and PartyKeadilan Rakyat Sarawak are notbased on rumour or hearsay, buton information reported in a con-sistent manner by several leadingJapanese newspapers. As organi-sations working in the Malaysian

public interest, Malaysiakini andParty Keadilan have merely beenexercising their freedom of expres-sion and fulfilling their duty toraise concerns to the public andcompetent authorities regardinghighly disturbing informationmeriting further investigation. Infact, it would have been derelic-tion of their public duty not tohave done so.

If whistle-blowers immediatelyface threats of litigation for defa-mation, how can citizens play anactive role in eliminating corrup-tion? Should not CM TaibMahmud present a clear explana-tion rather than resort to such in-timidation? And if he disagreeswith the allegations in the reports,should he not question theirsources in Japan and the Japanesetax authorities, rather thanMalaysian citizens who aremerely bringing them to the pub-lic attention?

In light of your pledge to makeanti-corruption a top policy pri-ority with “zero tolerance forcorruption,” we urge you to liveup to your reputation by in-structing the Malaysian Anti-

•Sarawak Campaign Committee (SCC) •Friends of the•Sarawak Campaign Committee (SCC) •Friends of the•Sarawak Campaign Committee (SCC) •Friends of the•Sarawak Campaign Committee (SCC) •Friends of the•Sarawak Campaign Committee (SCC) •Friends of theEarth Japan (FOEJ) •Japan Tropical Forest Action Net-Earth Japan (FOEJ) •Japan Tropical Forest Action Net-Earth Japan (FOEJ) •Japan Tropical Forest Action Net-Earth Japan (FOEJ) •Japan Tropical Forest Action Net-Earth Japan (FOEJ) •Japan Tropical Forest Action Net-work (JATAN) •The Japan Citizens’ Coalition for the UNwork (JATAN) •The Japan Citizens’ Coalition for the UNwork (JATAN) •The Japan Citizens’ Coalition for the UNwork (JATAN) •The Japan Citizens’ Coalition for the UNwork (JATAN) •The Japan Citizens’ Coalition for the UNInternational Decade of the World’s Indigenous PeoplesInternational Decade of the World’s Indigenous PeoplesInternational Decade of the World’s Indigenous PeoplesInternational Decade of the World’s Indigenous PeoplesInternational Decade of the World’s Indigenous Peoples(INDEC) •Japan Network on Human Rights in Malaysia(INDEC) •Japan Network on Human Rights in Malaysia(INDEC) •Japan Network on Human Rights in Malaysia(INDEC) •Japan Network on Human Rights in Malaysia(INDEC) •Japan Network on Human Rights in Malaysia•Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC) •Papua New•Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC) •Papua New•Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC) •Papua New•Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC) •Papua New•Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC) •Papua NewGuinea and Solomon Islands Forest Protection Group inGuinea and Solomon Islands Forest Protection Group inGuinea and Solomon Islands Forest Protection Group inGuinea and Solomon Islands Forest Protection Group inGuinea and Solomon Islands Forest Protection Group inJapan Y. Sakamoto, Global Environment ForumJapan Y. Sakamoto, Global Environment ForumJapan Y. Sakamoto, Global Environment ForumJapan Y. Sakamoto, Global Environment ForumJapan Y. Sakamoto, Global Environment Forum

The above was faxed and emailed to Prime Minister AbdullahBadawi and the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) on 27 April 2007

Corruption Agency (ACA) di-rectly under your supervision toimmediately commence a formalinvestigation into the allega-tions raised in these media re-ports, and to keep the public in-formed of developments. PartyKeadilan Rakyat Sarawak hasalready lodged two reports onthis matter as of 13 April 2007,one with the Kuching CentralPolice Station and another withthe Anti-Corruption Agency inKuching, following your publicstatement advising that reportsbe lodged so that the ACA couldtake action. Japanese civil soci-ety will do its most to urge theJapanese tax authorities to co-operate with Malaysia in its in-vestigation, so that the truth canbe revealed and justice served.

Furthermore, we ask you to ensurethat Malaysian citizens do notface undue pressure or maliciouslitigation in an attempt to sup-press their freedom of speechwhen raising issues in the publicinterest. Certainly such transpar-ency is crucial in upholding thehonour and untarnished reputa-tion of Malaysia in the interna-tional community.

JAPANESE NGOs URGE PROBE Continued from page 40

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or 30 years, Aliran hasbeen a beacon forMalaysian society inmany important ways.

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e, the undersigned Japa-nese non-governmentalorganisations and citi-zens’ groups, wish to ex-

press our profound concern re-garding threats by the SarawakChief Minister Tan Sri Pehin TaibMahmud to lodge a defamationsuit against the Malaysiakininews service and leaders of PartyKeadilan Rakyat Sarawak for rais-ing allegations of his involvementin a RM32 million kickbackscheme reported by the JapanTimes and other Japanese news-papers.

We understand that the corrup-tion allegations raised againstCM Taib Mahmud originatedfrom a report in the Japan Timeson 29 March 2007 that nine Japa-

nese shipping companies whichtransport lumber from Sarawakfailed to report some 1.1 billionyen (approximately RM32 mil-lion) in income paid as remunera-tion to Regent Star, a Hong Kong-based agent with connections toCM Taib Mahmud and his fam-ily, during a period of seven yearsthrough last March. According tothe report, the Tokyo RegionalTaxation Bureau determined thatthese payments were rebates, notlegitimate expenses, and is likelyto impose well over 400 million inback taxes and penalties againstthe shipping companies.

The Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese)also reported the above facts in anarticle on 28 March. Furthermore,the Asahi Shimbun English edition

ACCOUNTABILITY

Japanese NGOs urgeAbdullah to probe allegationsCorruption allegations against Sarawak CM Taib Mahmud andfreedom of speech in Malaysia

WWWWWreported on 28 March that the To-kyo Regional Taxation Bureauhad ordered Kansai Line Co. topay 50 million yen in back taxesand penalties for falsely includ-ing so-called intermediation feestotalling 130 million yen paid toRegent Star over a seven year pe-riod until December 2005, in itscost of loading logs in ports inSarawak, in an effort to hide thepayments.

The Asahi Shimbun Japanese edi-tion further reported on 27 Marchthat shipping companies affili-ated with the Nanyozai FreightAgreement (NFA) cartel are sus-pected to have paid more than

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