For Justice, Freedom & Solidarity PP3739/12/2008(007145) ISSN 0127 - 5127 RM4.00 2008:Vol.28No.6

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 1 COVER STORY Permatang Pauh and beyond The significance of the 26 August 2008 by-election which should return to Parliament as leader of a second coalition by Khoo Boo Teik

f we don’t live in them II but only notice them III while we travel the old trunk roads or veer off the highways, our small towns will seem to be neither-here-nor- there places. They have neither the preserved charm of rural set- tlements nor the catching vi- brancy of large cities.

One small town might be a shrine to a bit of history, like Baling, say, which hosted the abortive ‘peace talks’ of 1955. Another might for- tuitously be associated with an unexpectedly prominent person- age, rather like Kepala Batas, the hometown of Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

We rarely think of the small towns as repositories of deeply cher- ished tradition or cradles of con- sequential change. Truth be told, we seldom expect our small towns to rise above nondescript places that are inhabited by hicks whose lives are so parochial they touch or inspire few outsiders.

Small town, big waves

Perhaps that’s why many people are startled each time a small- town electoral constituency A time to rally and reassure: Anwar did that with unmatched eloquence

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 2 EDITOR'S NOTE

In our cover story, Khoo Boo Teiks discusses the significance of three recent elections involving small CONTENTS towns and goes on to the suggest that Permatang Pauh could be a major political battleground whose outcome may have national significance. For many COVER STORY , Permatang Pauh’s mission, come 26 ••• Permatang Pauh And Beyond 222 August, is more than about returning Anwar to Par- liament. This town has a national choice to make. FEATURES The recent hike in oil prices and inflationary trends ••• Yet More Turmoil In 888 are likely to figure prominently in the campaign. Wong Soak Koon looks back and reflects on the great ••• The Great Debate? 111111 oil price debate and laments its quality. ••• Working Their Way To The Grave 121212 ••• Resolution Passed Unanimously 151515 In the backdrop, Anwar faces a fresh charge of sod- ••• Light At The End Of The Tunnel? 191919 omy. Tommy Thomas discusses the implications of the second persecution of Anwar Ibrahim. ••• Bar Council Forum 212121 ••• Patto's Burning Passion 242424 Freedom of opinion and expression came under as- ••• A Second Prosecution Of sault by extremist elements in our society who wil- Anwar Ibrahim? 404040 fully disrupted the Bar Council forum by distorting facts. Read the Bar Council statement for a clearer picture. Sisters in Islam take a principled stand and REGULARS strongly condemn the extreme actions of some Mus- ••• LettersLettersLetters 171717 lim NGOs. ••• Current Concerns 323232 Meanwhile, veteran unionist N S Vigneswaran con- tends that pensioners who have served with devo- OTHERSOTHERSOTHERS tion and dedication deserve to be treated better and ••• Subscription Form 373737 they should be paid pensions based on the actual number of years of service as well as a cost of living ••• Special Offer 383838 allowance. ••• Aliran T-Shirt On Sale 393939

But there is the light at the end of the tunnel for a marginalised community. Yogeswaran Subramaniam discusses the implications of recent developments in court on Orang Asli land rights. Published by Persatuan Aliran Kesedaran Negara P Patto who passed away 13 years ago is fondly (ALIRAN)(ALIRAN)(ALIRAN) remembered as one of the best and most effective 103, Medan Penaga, 11600 Jelutong, parliamentarians. , Malaysia. Tel: (04) 658 5251 Fax: (04) 658 5197 Email (Letters to Editor): ALIRANALIRANALIRAN is a Reform Movement dedicated to Justice, Freedom & Solidarity and listed on the [email protected] roster of the Economic and Social Council of the Email (General): [email protected] United Nations. Founded in 1977, Aliran welcomes Homepage : http://www.aliran.com all Malaysians above 21 to be members. Contact the Hon. Secretary or visit our webpage. Printed by Konway Industries Sdn. Bhd. Plot 78, Lebuhraya Kampung Jawa, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 3 teaches us political lessons that political issues that grip the resonate beyond its geographical whole nation, an out-resourced, and social boundaries. harassed and otherwise disad- vantaged opposition could defeat Three such constituencies, each the BN machine by surfing a wave coming alive at a crucial moment of sheer voter rebelliousness. in our recent history, readily come to mind: Tambunan (), By-election in Lunas () and Sungei Siput Permatang Pauh ().

The Tambunan by-election of De- cember 1984 gave Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan a spirited triumph that heralded Parti Bersatu Sabah’s toppling of Datuk Harris Salleh and his Parti Berjaya four Ezam: Born-again foe of Anwar? months later. Tambunan’s many- sided impact on Sabah politics be remarkable. Almost everyone remains to this day. expects Anwar to win, after which the spin masters can go to work The Lunas by-election of Novem- on the winning margin. Already ber 2000, which ended Barisan some UMNO leaders belittle the Nasional’s 40-year control of the significance of the by-election – constituency, marked the furthest just another by-election, according point of ’s 1999 to UMNO Vice-President Tan Sri sally as a second coalition. The Muhyddin: Just another by-election? Muhyiddin Yasin. result broke BN’s customary two- thirds majority in Kedah, in hind- On 26 August, there will be just But were that so, there would be sight a harbinger of Pakatan such an election in Permatang no need for Deputy Prime Minis- Rakyat’s takeover of the state gov- Pauh, Penang – with a critical dif- ter Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Razak to ernment five months ago. ference (from Tambunan, Lunas lead the BN/UMNO campaign, or and Sungei Siput): the voter rebel- for the hotels in Bukit Mertajam On 8 March 2008, Sungei Siput liousness won’t be directed at a and nearby towns to be fully spurned Dato’ Seri Samy Vellu BN incumbent, but will support booked, or for born-again foes of after having returned him in eight an old incumbent against the na- Anwar, such as Dr Chandra consecutive elections starting in tional BN machine. Muzaffar and Ezam Mohd Nor, 1974. Without detracting from to train their sights on the Pakatan Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s tena- The immediate reason for the by- Rakyat leader. cious grassroots work, Dr election is the resignation of Datin Jeyakumar Devaraj’s victory after Seri Dr Startling results two failures revealed the reach of as Member of Parliament barely a Hindraf-inspired Makkhal Sakhti five months after she won her Permatang Pauh which has (People Power) and the scale of the third term since 1999. The most 58,459 voters presently has been rout of BN’s non-Malay-based keenly anticipated aspect of the an interesting electoral battle parties. by-election is Dato’ Seri Anwar ground. Ibrahim’s return to electoral con- Whatever their differences, each test after an involuntary absence Here in 1982, upon joining of those contests supplied a criti- of ten years. UMNO, Anwar won against the cal lesson. When a small-town Parti Islam incumbent, demon- constituency concentrates in itself The basic outcome itself may not strating the huge electoral support

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 4 Tun Dr re- power is unusually equitable. ceived when he led BN for the first Within Permatang Pauh, the State time. (Thereafter, Anwar retained Legislative Assembly seats of his seat against the challenges of Penanti, Permatang Pasir and other PAS notables, Mohamad Seberang Jaya are respectively Sabu and Mahfuz Omar.) held by Keadilan, PAS and UMNO. In other words, no party Seventeen years later, joining the has a monopoly over local sup- Malay revolt against Mahathir port. This situation may not glad- and UMNO, Permatang Pauh re- den the hearts of party partisans. sponded to Anwar’s humiliation But it needn’t dishearten those by electing his wife, Wan Azizah, who seek to pluralize the politi- in her contest against an erstwhile cal system. Anwar lieutenant, Dato’ Dr Ibrahim Saad. Moreover, the tripartite division of seats at state level suggests that Only Permatang Pauh was nar- this 69-percent-Malay constitu- Abdullah: Has offered nothing rowly left standing in 2004 when ency is barren soil for narrow ap- meaningful to assuage non-Malay BN’s unprecedented sweep cost peals to ‘Malay unity’, UMNO’s anger at UMNO Parti Keadilan Rakyat four of its constant refrain since Reformasi five parliamentary seats. was first declared by Anwar in Malay anger at UMNO, or to re- Permatang Pauh in September verse Malay disenchantment with Last March, however, any UMNO 1998. Abdullah’s leadership. For their hope of seizing Permatang Pauh losses in March, BN’s non-Malay- and wiping out Keadilan was And if a constituency such as based parties blamed UMNO dashed when Wan Azizah won Permatang Pauh, with its 31 per while large segments of UMNO her largest ever majority (while 30 cent non-Malay voters, is also poor blamed Abdullah. other Keadilan candidates were soil for BN’s ethnic politics, as victorious elsewhere). shown by the March 2008 elec- Hence, the low or sharply reduced tion, then the gerrymandering that popularity and approval ratings Significant shifts long favoured BN against the for Abdullah, Najib, and BN in the stand-alone race-based parties Merdeka Centre polls of July and What can we infer from Permatang has been undermined. according to other less methodi- Pauh’s electoral record and its cal soundings of public opinion. several startling results? In short, this small-town constitu- The ratings are indications that ency has quietly anticipated the the regime has not won back dis- For the past 26 years, the constitu- shifts in voter attitudes and vot- gruntled voters. ency has been loyal to Anwar and ing behaviour that now make a Azizah. Crucially, though, its elec- two-coalition system feasible. Inflation torate has taken turns over several decades to support PAS, UMNO Rebelliousness Second, there’s the post-election and Keadilan. In the heat of pre- anger at worsening inflation, vious battles, the deeper signifi- The tenor of the by-election will most starkly represented by the 41 cance of this willingness to vote surely be set by a persisting voter per cent and 100 per cent in- in and vote out might have been rebelliousness made up of four creases in petroleum and diesel overlooked. But such an attitude parts. prices respectively in June. By among the voters is precisely now, public resentment of infla- what’s necessary to liberalize the First, the 8 March voter defiance tion is part of a deeper loss of con- political system. of BN remains. Abdullah fidence in the Abdullah regime’s Badawi’s regime has offered noth- ability to manage what many fear The present state-level balance of ing meaningful to assuage non- is impending economic decline.

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 5 Indeed, at the Bankers Club phrase Tengku Razaleigh, of ‘a Luncheon and Forum of 15 July, crippling loss of confidence in our dis- key institutions’ when ‘personal- missed Abdullah’s various ‘Cor- ity dominated politics degener- ridors’ as ‘stillborn projects’. ates’, leading to ‘the destruction Tengku Razaleigh described cur- of reputations, intrigues, spy scan- rent economic policy as being dals, succession plans and what- ‘haphazard, driven by whims and not as stratagems to resolve lead- special interest projects rather ership contests’. than by a cohesive design geared to shape areas of distinct national Crowd at a ceramah competitive advantage’. Against this political background, Many voters would remember that within and beyond the constitu- ’s New Malaysian ency of Permatang Pauh, Anwar Agenda stresses an urgent need for spoke at the Ceramah Perdana reform precisely to restore na- Razaleigh: Crippling loss of Menuju Ke , held in a tional competitive advantage. confidence in our key institutions field at Taman Pauh on Saturday, 9 August. The return of the over Abdullah’s undelivered sodomized promises of institutional reform. The large crowd, 15,000 accord- Politics in the country appears to ing to one media estimate, was Third, there’s the collective dis- have been reduced to a charade of predominantly Malay. The major- gust at Sodomy II (see ‘Conquer- allegations and counter-allega- ity sat in orderly fashion on the ing and vulnerable’, Aliran tions, police reports and counter- fenced field. The rest milled about Monthly, 28, 5, 2008). The charges, reports, and statutory declara- the perimeter of the field. based on Saiful Bukhari Azlan’s tions and counter-declarations. police report of ‘consensual sod- Where have these led? There were many elderly men and omy’ performed by Anwar on him, women, mostly dressed in casual will be tested in a court of law in These have not clarified controver- kampong attire. There were cou- September. sies such as the Shaariibuu ples with young children, a few Altantuya murder, Sodomy II, or mothers with infants, and a small But with only 11 per cent of the the alleged roles of the Inspector- number of children who were Merdeka Centre’s surveyed re- General of Police and the Attor- peddling balloons and snacks. A spondents believing Anwar to be ney-General in alleged evidence- lot of young men sat on or stood culpable, the court of public opin- fixing during Sodomy I. by their motorcycles. From the ion has resoundingly rejected nearby flats, some residents Sodomy II. These have not allayed suspicions leaned out of their windows. over the disappearances of private An electorate, and especially the investigator, P. Balasubramaniam Along one side of the field were Malay electorate, that painfully (who had made two opposed the stalls that regularly add a remembers Anwar’s 1998 sodomy statutory declarations in two pasar malam (night market) air to trial is bound to regard Sodomy II days, first linking and then the Pakatan Rakyat rallies. The as a politically-directed character delinking Najib from the stalls sold food, drinks, and the assassination to preempt Altantuya murder trial) and Hos- Pakatan Rakyat parties’ para- Anwar’s return to Parliament. pital Pusrawi’s Dr Mohamed phernalia – stickers, photos of Osman Abdul Hamid (whose Anwar and Tok Guru Nik Aziz Political medical report on Saiful had in- Nik Mat, DVDs of political degeneration dicated no sign of sodomy). speeches and events, and even ‘aic’ (Anwar Ibrahim Club) t- And fourth, there is impatience Such are the symptoms, to para- shirts.

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 6 The crowd very much recalled the now was a time to rally and reas- whereas Mahathir agonized over gathering outside Anwar’s house sure, and Anwar always did that the decline of the Malays, Anwar in Cherok To’kun ten years ago with unmatched eloquence. was indignant about the decline when Anwar issued the original of Malaysia. Permatang Pauh Declaration to His tone was measured, his ap- launch Reformasi to a resounding proach relaxed and comradely. The old doctor’s prescription was reception (see ‘Wit and Wisdom’, The crowd was not a sea of knowledge, work, discipline, and Aliran Monthly, 18, 9, October anonymous voters, curious on- the New Economic Policy. His 1998). lookers and itinerant stallholders. former ‘anointed’ successor’s so- He addressed them as friends and lution was terse: Change the gov- The world watches us neighbours which many of them ernment! were. Now he raised the pressing Several speakers spoke before economic problems they faced; Return to Anwar, namely Shamsul now he jested about the attempts Permatang Pauh Iskandar Mohd Akin, Mohd Fariz on his reputation, derisively mim- Musa, Khairil Anuar Ahmad icking some of his detractors. On Thus Anwar emphasized that his Zainudin, Tan Seng Toh and S. two occasions, he playfully broke agenda was not personal. Kesavan, all leaders of Keadilan’s into a few lines of song. Permatang Pauh’s mission, come Angkatan Muda; 26 August, was more than return- from ; Son, not traitor ing him to Parliament. This small- and from PAS. town constituency had to make a After all, this was Permatang national choice. ‘If you want a Their presence and speeches un- Pauh, and he its favourite son. He small petrol price reduction, vote derscored three points. Keadilan, wasn’t ever a sodomite; not then, BN,’ he said. ‘But if you want real itself a ‘youthful’ party, would not now. To charge him so was a improvement to your lives, vote for heavily mobilize young voters conspiracy then and now. a Pakatan Rakyat government.’ who have always been drawn to Anwar’s charisma. All Pakatan He was no traitor to the Malays. Barring massive electoral fraud, a Rakyat was united in defence of Since his University of Malaya qualification that even some ob- Anwar against Sodomy II and days he’d struggled for their in- servers indifferent to his fate have would spare no effort to secure his terests. He was no one’s tool. But found it necessary to make in victory. And not just Malaysia but as Pakatan Rakyat leader he cyberspace, Anwar is one by-elec- the world would be watching would be the instrument for up- tion and two weeks short of return- Permatang Pauh on 26 August. lifting all Malaysians. Before a ing to Parliament. When he does, crowd that was 90 per cent Malay, he’d be the Opposition Leader of New days he didn’t hesitate. No more a second coalition. ketuanan Melayu: that was the slo- Then spoke Anwar. gan of corruption and cronyism. After that people would want to know if he’d really form a new It was 11 pm, not the time of night He quoted Ibn Khaldun as if the Federal government in mid-Sep- for shouting oneself hoarse. It was Muqadimmah was meat and drink tember as he has declared, prom- August 2008, not the time in to his audience. Surprisingly, he ised, or threatened. Anwar’s career for demonstrating also drew on Arnold Toynbee and the desperate defiance of Septem- Edward Gibbons to make a point But about that, don’t ask me, I ber 1998 when his days of free- about the rise and fall of civiliza- wish I knew. Don’t ask Anwar ei- dom were numbered. tions and empires. ther; he might just quote Hamlet to you. True, his days of freedom could Anwar’s point was one that be numbered again if, he said, a Mahathir had repeatedly taught: Ask the Permatang Pauh voters: ‘correct, correct, correct’ judge pre- we have been sliding and sliding they may have something to do sided over the Sodomy II trial. But and we must catch up. But with it. q

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 7 POLITICS Yet more turmoil in Malaysia Has anything really changed? Ten years ago, they were equally determined to “get” Anwar by K George

am quite sure that all of fering and victimisation he was most revenue-generating state- II you have been reading subjected to while fighting for jus- owned assets with many clauses III our media which has tice and freedom. highly favourable to contractors been very faithfully high- and cronies. I have never heard of lighting the second case (or is it After Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad such a thing happening in other the third?) “sodomy episode” that became the fourth Prime Minister, countries. was supposed to have taken place he invited Anwar to join Umno in in our beloved Bolehland. More the early 1980s. Anwar happily news and stories are expected to accepted the invitation and be published. treated Mahathir as his “father”. He openly admitted that he loved While we wait for them, allow me and respected Mahathir. to refresh your memory on the events of the first episode of sod- What displeased Anwar, though, omy. I hope you have noted that was the squandering of huge whenever some of the Barisan sums of money on ‘white el- Nasional leaders speak about the ephants’: the twin towers, “second sodomy”, they compare Putrajaya, KLIA, etc. The fourth it with the first one, and readily PM improved Malaysia’s infra- admit that Datuk Seri Anwar structure, enriched the rich Ibrahim, the Deputy Prime Minis- Malays and cronies, undertook ter at that time, was treated rather non-stop privatisation even of the unjustly.

My recollection

I am 89 years old and at the fron- tier between life and death. My memory betrays me on and off, hence, if I happen to miss any event, please do pardon me.

Anwar was very active while he was in the university. He was a student leader and then president of Abim, committed to social jus- tice and democracy. I have two books about Anwar. I do sympa- thise with him because of the suf- Anwar and Mahatir: Not seeing eye to eye

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 8 At some point, Anwar the “son” that information. There was yet which he repeated another two tried to advise the “father” to another accusation against times. This one-time sodomy was change his style of spending. But Anwar by his wife’s driver that alleged to have been committed on the fourth PM was averse to any he was sodomised by Anwar. The three differing dates! At the end advice from any source or person. driver, of course, resigned and of the trial, the judge told the court This, it appears, disgusted Anwar, became a director of a business that, “I will make my decision af- the then Deputy Prime Minister concern. ter perusing the evidence ad- and Minister of Finance. Mahathir duced. I am a Muslim and I am sensed that Anwar might contest Well, the trial started in the court answerable to Allah.” Then he against him for the presidency of of Judge Augustine Paul, who was adjourned the court. Umno. Well, Mahathir, as we all newly promoted to hear this case. know, neither accepts advice nor Anwar was charged with sexual On the day of judgment, the judge bothers about threats. He decided abuse and corruption. After more sentenced Anwar to 9 years’ jail to get rid of his so-called “son”. than 40 days of trial, Augustine to commence consecutively after Paul expunged the so-called evi- the completion of the six years. The conspiracy dence connected to the mattress Well, what choice did Anwar episode, without giving the de- have? He appealed to the Federal The story has it that Mahathir fence the opportunity to present Court. needed evidence to realise his their submission to the court, goal. His private secretary, it was which I understand, was unethi- Federal Court decision speculated, managed to get five cal. Umno members for this purpose. As the date of judgment was ap- They were told that the PM Corruption charge proaching, there was a rumour wanted to remove Anwar from the that two out of the three judges cabinet and also to expel him from What do you think was the cor- had decided to acquit Anwar. Umno. They were also allegedly ruption charge? Anwar Ibrahim, The date of judgment was set for 2 informed that “money is no prob- the DPM, apparently told two po- September 2004. The night before lem”. One of the five members was lice officers to investigate the that, something unforgivable hap- one Raja Komando. I had the op- writer of the letter hoping to have pened. A police officer allegedly portunity to interview him for this letter withdrawn. There was approached the two judges and nearly 90 minutes. He told me that no transaction of money or gifts requested that Anwar not be ac- he was asked to conjure up evi- involved but, the judge sentenced quitted - but both the judges re- dence that Anwar had committed Anwar to six years’ imprisonment fused to comply. I came across this sodomy and leaked the nation’s without even granting him bail. allegation in the late MGG Pillai’s secrets to foreign countries but The entire nation was shocked. website. In fairness to the police Raja Komando’s reply was that he No one could reconcile with such officer, I don’t wish to identify him. would not commit such a crime a harsh sentence. He is still in service. But is this and subsequently removed him- the function of the police – to per- self from the pack of five and ten- Trial in Arifin Jaka’s vert justice? dered his resignation from Umno. court The BN politicians have been try- He also told me that he refused to While Anwar was undergoing ing to impress on us that our po- do it because he did not want to his six-year sentence, he was lice force has changed for the bet- falsely bring disgrace to Anwar’s again charged with committing ter. May I ask how many politi- family. Another story I was told sodomy. During the course of the cians have read the 600-page re- by Raja Komando was that a trial, the victim contradicted him- port of the Royal Police Commis- woman named Ummi allegedly self by telling the court that he had sion? Why has Abdullah not im- sent a letter claiming that Anwar not lodged any report to the po- plemented the most important was the father of a child born to lice, that he had not given any recommendations of the commis- the wife of his secretary and that dates to anybody and that he had sion: the establishment of an In- Ummi was paid some money for not been sodomised by Anwar, dependent Police Complaints

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 9 and Misconduct Commission anybody demanded any explana- ing to a doctor, who gave evidence (IPCMC)? I don’t think the PM has tion, I was told. to the Commission of Inquiry, any convincing answer except could have been lethal. that the police force is not happy Anwar’s sacking from the cabinet to have the IPCMC for obvious rea- and Umno sparked the Reformasi But, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad sons. movement and unleashed mam- was telling the world at large then moth demonstrations in support that the injuries had been self-in- A few months ago, in a startling of Anwar. Mahathir kept on harp- flicted! Rahim Noor told the Com- statement, Tun Hanif Omar, the ing that he had proof that Anwar mission that the PM was unaware retired IGP drew the attention of was involved in immoral sex. An of the assault. Are we to believe the people that if a survey was outraged woman sent a letter to him? Did the IGP act on impulse carried out, it was bound to dis- the media that if sexual abuse was or did someone instructed him to close that at least 40 per cent of a crime in Umno, then 90 per cent deliver those lethal blows on the Police Force would have to be of its leaders should be expelled. Anwar? retrenched. This statement was In my opinion, it was a bit of an carried by our media. If this is the exaggeration! Had Anwar died in the cell what view of the former IGP himself, would have been the explanation isn’t the public justified in persist- Coming back to Anwar from the Prime Minister? Would ing with the negative perception he have made that ludicrous claim of the police? On 20 September 1998, while in his cynical fashion that Anwar Anwar was having a press con- had induced it. But Mahathir The “father’s” charade ference together with his support- who had repeatedly claimed that against the “son” ers in his house the police draped Anwar was guilty of the crimes in balaclava dramatically he was charged did not appear Having decided to get rid of swooped down on Anwar’s resi- in Augustine Paul’s court or Anwar, Mahathir assailed dence at 9.30pm and arrested him. Arifin Jaka’s court to give evi- Anwar’s conduct and character He was allowed an hour to get dence. in the later part of 1998. He pro- ready. He was taken to Bukit claimed that Anwar was immoral Aman, handcuffed and blind- My prayer and not fit to take over from him folded. Then one coward of a man even before the court had con- entered Anwar’s cell and rained Based on my limited acquaintance victed Anwar. Mahathir was on brutal blows on him. A badly in- with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, I record as having said more than jured Anwar fell unconscious. A believe that he is a simple, honest once that “an accused person re- policeman pulled the cowardly and humble person, committed to mains innocent until proven attacker away and told him to stop social justice, equitable distribu- guilty”. But in accusing Anwar the torture. tion of wealth, racial harmony of being immoral, the PM deviated and, sympathetic to the poor. from his belief. He went on attack- Crowds turned up at the court the During the last 10 years – yes, a ing that Anwar was sexually im- next day - 21 September - and decade - he has unjustly suffered moral. waited in vain. But Anwar was a lot. not produced in court. It took nine Anwar is well known, on 1 Sep- days before he was produced in The formation of Pakatan Rakyat tember 1998, Anwar was sacked court. The nation was shocked to is a great achievement for the na- from the Cabinet. The next day at see a brutally attacked Anwar tion. There will be better and an emergency meeting of the who was badly injured. Anwar greater prosperity, racial harmony Umno Supreme Council, explained to the judge that he was – yes, a better Malaysia. The po- Mahathir told the meeting that his assaulted by somebody. It took lice have apparently tried to fix deputy was sexually immoral and months before a Commission of him up but they will fail miser- hence not fit to be the PM. The Inquiry could establish that it was ably in their attempt. Supreme Council decided to ex- the IGP, Rahim Noor, who had in- pel him from the party. Hardly flicted the injuries, which accord- May God bless you, Anwar. q

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 10 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION The Great Debate? Dodging questions and launching personal attacks are not the hallmarks of a great debater by Dr Wong Soak Koon

shall confess to not be- II ing overly excited when III I heard that Information Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek had taken up the gauntlet to debate with Parti Keadilan Rakyat adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. There is such a great gap between the two in terms of articulateness and think- ing.

Besides, anyone on the govern- ment side will inevitably be con- strained by the need to be defen- sive at all costs whether the issue is the fuel price hike or whatever. Logic and critical thinking, even if how the government intends to do so. one has these qualities, are often improve public transportation thrown to the winds of political with the recent huge fuel price in- One must not get needs. A veteran Malaysian min- crease when, after the last increase personal ister would have been less eager some time ago, nothing much was to take part in that public debate done. This was a missed oppor- As any debater worth his salt as there is a lot to lose. tunity to answer logically and should know, one must not get convincingly. personal. I read in (17 July As any schoolteacher who has 2008 ) that the Information Minis- trained debating teams will tell We, the watching and listening ter claims he did not “personally you, emotions have to be control- public, were left in a “nganga” attack the former deputy Prime led so that a debater can retain state , that is, in open-mouth dis- Minister”. Shabery is quoted as clear-thinking and the ability to appointment as there was no re- saying: “Personal attacks would take up the opponent’s questions ply. be more about criticising what he squarely and confidently, if they likes, his clothes or his face.” It is are important. Simply ignoring Not answering such a central quite amazing to see how nar- relevant questions just won’t do. question makes the public doubt rowly the Minister defines the if there is a well thought out plan word “personal”. And yet, with The Minister chose not to answer to improve public transportation a question asked by the gentleman at all or worse, we wonder if in- appointed by Anwar’s side on deed there is the political will to Continued on page 16

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 11 SENIOR CITIZENS Pensioners of His Majesty’s Government: Working their way to the grave Pensioners who had served with devotion and dedication deserve to be treated better by Sai NS Wigneswaran

Pensioners at a co-operative meeting

ension is in fact deferred tion in the same manner as the date of retirement. PP pay which the Pension- EPF, the employee would be hav- PPP ers have earned while in ing to his credit a handsome Pension not based on service. In those years amount on his retirement as secu- full service when a government employee is rity in the quiet seclusion of his seconded to another Organisation declining age. The cruelest cut of all is that the or an Agency of Government that employee is not given pension organisation pays to the employer- Today the employee is paid fifty based on the full service rendered. government an amount equivalent percent of his last drawn salary As a result the government pen- to sixteen percent of the wages of as pension. Even this fifty per cent sioner is the poorest of the poor in the employee towards superan- is not his total earning. Allow- this country with seventy percent nuation. ances such as Cost of Living Al- of them receiving a pension below lowance (COLA), housing allow- the poverty line. Their plight is Had the employer-government ance, etc; are not taken into ac- further aggravated by the deduc- paid the sixteen per cent of the count for the calculation of pen- tion of a substantial sum for the wages for all its employees and sion. This leaves the pensioner housing loan. Many of them have funded the amount along with the with a paltry sum of less than 40 sold the houses as the take home employee’s share of the contribu- per cent of what he earned on the pension is not even enough for

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 12 basic needs. pants as reward for their loyalty Pensioner - Gardener: He cuts the and dedicated service. grass in the compound including In this age of globalisation when the road side table and cleans the we compare the pensions earned Stooges betrayed drains around the houses once a by public employees in Malaysia, pensioners month because Alam Flora does globally our country appears to be not do its duty but rakes in huge the most under-developed pov- This grave injustice was perpe- profits. He is paid RM60 each erty-plagued country on the atlas. trated by the very same people month. He is in his seventies and It is sadly a story of poverty amidst who have today become pension- has worked in JKR for 38 years. plenty. Even island nations with ers. Perhaps the few who con- Due to competition from foreign little or no natural resources such nived and collaborated in this had workers from Bangladesh, as Sri Lanka and Singapore pay their dowries as reward for this Myanmar and Indonesia he is the government retirees one hun- treachery. Stooges may survive only able to get to work in a few dred per cent of the last drawn sal- but will never ever be glorified in houses each month. Looking at ary. Most countries in Europe, history. his frail and aged physic people South Korea, Japan and China are reluctant to engage him. pay eighty per cent of the last At long last the employer-gov- drawn salary as pension to its em- ernment has come up with an Pensioner - Taxi Driver: He is in ployees. adjustment like a tranquiliser to his late sixties. He had worked in relieve the pain but the pain still Telekom for 35 years. He drives a After years of procrastination a remains. rented taxi which he obtained by silver lining appeared to alleviate making a down payment of the pangs of hunger and pent up After thirteen years of the betrayal RM5,000. He had to work like a frustrations of the pensioners par- and painful waiting during bull to pay his daily rental to the ticularly those in the lower group which period a good number of taxi permit holder whom he de- who started work early in life and pensioners had made their last scribed as orang besar having hun- had put in an average of 35 years journey, the Prime Minister Dato dreds of permits in a Sharikat of service or more. Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in (Company). According to him the a labour day speech on 10 May permit holder after paying the in- The Director General of Establish- 2008 announced that instead of stalment for the vehicle earns ment issued a circular on 30 Janu- the full service being used for the about RM900 a month for doing ary 1996 approving among oth- calculation of pensions the em- nothing. His income is very ers pensions to be calculated on ployer-government introduced a meager and it is difficult to sus- full service as stipulated in the half-hearted solution to grant an tain his family. He had applied original Pensions Ordinance of additional five years to the already several times for a taxi permit and 1951. The effective date was de- existing maximum of 25 years for now he had given up any hope of termined as 1 January 1995 and the calculation of pensions with ever getting one. His party words: subsequently a sum of RM943 effect from 1 January 2009. The Kerajaan tidak adil (Government million was allocated for this. As pensioners particularly those in not just). a bolt from the blue the pension- the low income group have put in ers suddenly woke up to a rude an average of 35 years of service Pensioner - Security Guard: He is shock that the pension on full serv- or more and it is this group that is in his early sixties and is worried ice had been put in cold storage badly affected by the prevailing that he would not be allowed to but all other improvement and ad- socio-economic conditions. work after the age of 65. He had justments to the serving employ- worked in a hospital as an attend- ees contained in the circular cost- The plight of some of these pen- ant for 36 years. He stays in a ing to the tune of RM2.9 billion sioners who seek employment to rented house in Selayang and was approved and implemented. supplement their pensions to keep works in a high rise building base- CUEPACS members were laugh- body and soul together can be ment car park in . ing to the bank whereas the pen- gauged from what they spoke He has to pay for his uniforms and sioners were given a kick in the when approached by the writer: works long hours. After his trav-

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 13 elling and meal expenses he is left The limitation of the maximum sioners why not think intelligently with a paltry sum to pay for his period of 30 years for pension cal- and ask what is reasonable for serv- rental. culation and the effective date of ing employees also to be paid to implementation fixed for next year retirees. Whatever is said and done Pensioner - Cleaner: He works for was a rude shock and is a kick in the turn of events have made the a contractor to clean high rise the pants for loyalty and dedica- pensioners and their association buildings. I met him in a hotel tion. wiser. If there is anyone deserving where he is cleaning the building. COLA it is the pensioners whose He is in his sixties and works 8 to Pensioner earnings have been reduced to 12 hours a day. Here too the com- deserve COLA forty percent of what they earned petition is great because foreign on the date of retirement. workers are employed at low The payment of enhanced COLA wages by the contractor and he and Housing allowance was also Resolution adopted had to put up with a lot of hard- announced for serving employ- unanimously ships. Two of his children are suf- ees. There was no mention about fering from diabetes and has to COLA for pensioners. Perhaps At the General Meeting of the As- pay for the needles and glucose those in authority cynically as- sociation’s Wilayah branch held testing electrodes. The insulin is sume that pensioners are given on 8 June 2008 a resolution was given free by HUKM. He worked discounts for their purchases be- unanimously approved for action. as an attendant in a hospital for cause their earning capacity has The pensioners demand that 38 years. been reduced by sixty percent. COLA be paid in the same quan- tum as paid to serving employees. These examples are just a drop in If there is anyone who deserve The time has come for the pension- the ocean. There are thousands COLA it is the pensioners who ers to unite and demand their like these pensioners who are have to pull their belts beyond the rights instead of jumping into the struggling in their old age to keep last notches. The pensioners were band wagon to receive what is themselves and their loved ones paid COLA up to 1980. When dished out by the employer-gov- alive. They have become work- COLA was reintroduced to serv- ernment and sing priases. worn-worms and are working ing employees the pensioners their way to the grave. It is for were neglected and forgotten and The National Delegates Confer- these people the few extra years COLA was denied to them. In any ence of the Malaysian Pensioners of service when taken into account case the next stop for the pension- Association held at Port Dickson for the calculation of pension ers shall be a final full stop with in July 2008 having deliberated means a lot in their declining age. the words RIP. This is perhaps and adopted the resolution the thinking of those in authority handed it to the Director of Pen- When the Prime Minister made — quicken pensioner's haste to sions who was present at the con- the Labour Day announcement on the grave! ference by invitation for the con- 10 May 2008 CUEPACS must sideration and action of the gov- have had an insight of what is CUEPACS has now proposed to ernment. cooking but the Pensioners or the government that a flat sum of their Association knew not an iota RM500 be paid as COLA to all Now it is the duty of every right of what have had an insight of serving employees instead of the thinking Malaysian to ensure that what is cooking but the Pension- present RM100 to RM280 paid the men and women who had for ers or their Association knew not based on the location of employ- decades rendered service with de- an iota of what they are in for. The ment. votion and dedication to his Maj- Malaysian Pensioners Associa- esty’s Government are given their tion representatives were subse- CUEPACS has no locus standi to rightful dues so as to enable them quently invited for tea by the Di- represent the pensioners as the to spend the remaining few years rector of Pensions and given a pensioners are not members of of their life in peace without hav- copy of the circular which was CUEPACS. CUEPACS knows that ing to struggle for existence till already available in the internet. their members are tomorrow’s pen- their last breadth. q

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 14 SENIOR CITIZENS Resolution Passed Unanimously

This 21st Annual General Meeting of the Persatuan Pesara Kerajaan Malaysia - Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur held on Sunday, 8 June 2008 at the Hotel Dynasty, Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur:

NOTING With appreciation the announcement that the maximum number of years of service for the calculation of Pensions has been increased from 25 to 30 years;

REALISING that the accorded increase of five years which does not even measure up to the earlier calculation of Pensions based on 33 1/3 years or 400 months is grossly unfair and inadequate in the light of the fact that most retired Government employees have to their credit an average of 35 yeas of service;

EXPRESSING disappointment that the recent upward revision of the Pension by thirty-five (35%) percent to the Government pensioners in the lowest ebb had failed to uplift a consid- erable number out of the 70% per cent pensioners receiving an income below the poverty line;

EMPHASISING that Pension is a deferred pay of the Government employees whose over all wage structure is pruned down and adjusted taking into consideration the super annuation benefits accordedx to the employees;

RECALLING that in accordance with the Pension Ordinance, 1951 there was no service limits for the calculation of gratuity and pensions;

BEING AWARE that with effect from 1.1.1995 a gratuity and pensions calculation scheme with out limiting the full period of service was approved by the Government and sub-sequently a sum of RM943 million was allocated for Pension adjustments as contained in a letter Ref: JPA(R) 81/16/4/Kel.16 (43) dated 30.1.1996 signed by the Ketua Pengarah, Perkhidmatan Awan Malaysia;

TREATING that the allocated sum of RM943 million for the adjustment of pensions based on the WITH period of service had been surreptitiously thwarted with the connivance and CONTEMPT concurrence of CUEPACS, a Federation of Trade Unions which only repre sents tomorrow’s pensioners and have no locus standi to represent the Pen sioners as the Pensioners are not members of CUEPACS and the only rightful and recognised or- ganisation to represent the Pensioners, the Persatuan Pesara Kerajaan Malaysia, has neither been consulted nor informed of this colossal betrayal;

UTTERLY that after a long and painful waiting for more than 13 years since the approval for the DISAPPOINTED calculation of pensions for the full service rendered without any limit in 1995 during which period many of the heart broken Pensioners had been called to rest by the great time keeper of the universe and those remaining now are offered a pittance by adding

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 15 a paltry five years of service and that too only effective from 1.1.2009;

CALLS UPON The Government to commence immediate negotiations with the Persatuan Pesara Kerajaan Malaysia, the only registered and recognised organisation to represent the Government Pensioners in Malaysia with a view to:

(a) grant Pension benefits for full service rendered by the retired Government em- ployees; (b) accord back dating to 1995 the year in which Government allocated the sum of RM943 million for the adjustment of Pensions based on full period of service rendered; and (c) grant payment of Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) to pensioners in the same quantum as that paid to serving Government employees.

Proposed by: seconded by: Sai N S Wigneswaran Theresa Choong, AMN (M/S No. 334) (M/S No. 333) 15.5.08 15.5.08

Continued from page 11 It would have been far more use- opponent in a debate , as all de- ful if the Information Misister bate-trainers will testify, has the clear inconsistency, he takes of- had done his homework and opposite effect of creating empa- fence with Anwar’s one brief ref- used the time to provide con- thy for the opponent. I guess, as erence to his involvement in vincing statistics and informa- teachers, we can train our school- Semangat 46. If we apply the In- tion on the fuel price hike and children but whether they grow formation Minister’s own logic, the economic situation in our up to be fair-minded or not de- then he shouldn’t care about this nation. It is simply a waste of pends on them. brief reference at all. In fact the time to give us a long list of “personal” has wider implica- Anwar’s roles as a person who Such public debates, if there are tions than the Minister’s defini- dissents. to be more of them, and they are tion. aired on TV, will be the most ho- “Where has the key theme gone?”, hum (boring) affair if there is no Any good debater will know how the audience and public will ask, improvement in the quality of the wasteful of time it is (and time is as their earlier eagerness to get content and delivery and if the two always short in debates) to dredge answers is quickly dissipated. A sides are not balanced in terms of up old, old scenes especially if debate should be the place to stick calibre. these are not really related to the to the issue at hand. issue at hand but are meant to dis- In retrospect, I should have credit an opponent. Shabery need The Malaysian citizenry today watched one of my well-liked pro- not spend time going all the way are more politically savvy and can grammes on TV that evening in- back to Anwar’s undergraduate judge for themselves both incum- stead of that first-of-its-kind live days to trace the latter’s dissent- bent and opposition claims. They public debate on the fuel price ing role. If Shabery thought that are more aware of what good lead- hike. I should have chosen to this history discredited Anwar’s ership and good governance must watch the story of a forensic ex- credibility as a leader, he may well mean in actions that affect their pert which aired at the same time be wrong. Shabery may instead everyday lives. as the debate. At least, in that story, have enhanced his opponent’s the forensics would have been status. In fact, any personal attack on an worth my time! q

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 16 In addition, he or she must be to do all the above. In 1999, he lost tough enough to galvanise change in the elections but he still man- during his/her tenure as mayor aged to stay active to take on the and take on the challenge to cre- BN over the running of Ipoh City ate a new and better Ipoh for the and also at the same time manage people of Ipoh and not only for a his service centre. When he was selected few. The first task of the finally elected in 2004, he took up new mayor is that he must be pre- many issues; one of the main is- pared to form a steering commit- sues was pollution as, according tee to scrutinise all existing bylaws to him, this was the reason the Letters must not exceed 250 made over the last 50 years. If there Kinta Valley had the highest words and must include the is a need to streamline or remove number of asthma cases in the writer's name and address. them, he/she must immediately country. If Pakatan Rakyat Pseudonyms may be used. Send consult the state government for chooses a mayor other than letters or emails to Editor (see the necessary approval. Kulasegaran, please make sure he page 3 for address details). is not just a smiling, friendly bu- Views expressed need not reflect We cannot affect change of any reaucrat with a tengok dulu way of those of Aliran. If e-mailing, kind without changing the bylaws solving problems. include message in the e-mail first. For an example, bylaws re- body itself. lating to the assessment rates Choo Sing Chye should be reviewed and the rates Ipoh needs a tough should be lowered to ameliorate Maddening unmanned mayor the burden of the residents of Ipoh police roadblocks in this time of a rising cost of liv- At this point in time, there should ing. It was right for the police to arrest not be any qualms on who should Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. But be mayor or who should not. We As the problems in Ipoh are multi- the way they did it was all wrong. do not want another bureaucrat dimensional, the new mayor The federal Criminal Investiga- who has graced this position for should also look into a number of tion Department head had made more than 50 years. It is more than ways to solve these problems. This it very clear that the deadline for anyone can bear. We do not need could be done by setting up sev- Anwar to report to the police was someone who is experienced in eral committees to handle ongo- 2.00pm. But Anwar was arrested dealing with the civil servants ing issues such as past and at 12.45pm as was reported in all because Ipoh is not financed by present tenders, businesses, road major newspapers. This created civil servants. It is the Ipoh resi- repairs, the environment (Local doubts in the minds of all dents the new mayor has to deal Agenda 21), and the upkeep of Anwar’s supporters on whether with. parks. This would automatically the police investigation would be enlarge the participation of Ipoh fair. Ipoh residents have been paying residents. The mayor can invite through their nose in annual as- former lawyers, judges, teachers, Another point is the massive lock- sessments to finance the run- health inspectors, architects, en- down of Kuala Lumpur on 13-14 ning of Ipoh city. The services gineers and business persons July. While most people in KL rendered fell short of expecta- from all races to sit on these com- should have thanked the police tions and they are not on par mittees rather than restrict itself for keeping the city safe and free with the huge amount of money to a few selected city councillors. of demonstrations, sadly, most - if that was paid by the residents These retirees have amassed vast not everyone - were frustrated at of Ipoh. The new mayor must and invaluable experiences that the horrendous traffic jams all not only run the City of Ipoh, he the new Ipoh council should rely over the city. or she must totally break clean on. of the old corrupt and inefficient What angered the people most past. M Kulasegaran is the best choice was that almost all the police

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 17 road-blocks were not manned at ous other more posh watering all. Police personnel were seen holes. Don’t dismiss these con- about 50 metres away from the cerns by saying how much the road blocks, sitting under huge nation has benefited. People like umbrellas and chatting away. me would counter that by saying Sad to say, the police have a lot of we could have benefited more. work to do to regain the people’s confidence and trust. We can have very good intellec- tual discussions on this rather Lionel Perera then merely regurgitating the “feel Port Dickson good” diatribe without looking at all angles. Can’t you survive without Astro? It’s all our oil Kuala Lumpur I am reading in disgust the above article by Sai N S Wigneswaran Disgraceful behaviour from Cheras. He has the ultimate in Parliament power as consumer but didn’t use it to his fullest mean. Terminate it assets are actually the nation’s Recently we witnessed Barisan and don’t subscribe it any more. wealth and Petronas is just the reps demonstrating their antics in Can’t you survive with Astro? Put trustee entrusted to ensure all is the recent Parliament sitting. One the money to better use rather well. Therefore it does not mean showed an obscene hand gesture, than sticking to TV. that Petronas has the sole and ex- the other displayed gangsterism clusive right to do what it wants behaviour – challenging the op- Raymond Su with the nation’s oil revenue or to position to a fist fight. It is appar- decide how much it should re- ent that some Umno politicians Hold intelligent ward its employees in all sorts of can never learn to improve and discussions about ways for a good year’s financial are still arrogant. Their actions Petronas and oil results, which could be attributed created a bad impression on stu- to mainly rising prices rather then dents in the public gallery. resources any increase in efficiency or pro- There have been many quarters ductivity. It is still not too late for them to who have sought to silence the digest the cuts and thrusts of de- rest of us in relation to our coun- The complaints are also about the bate. The performances of Pas tries oil wealth discussions and general discomfort that the na- MPs are lauded. Perhaps Bong there were this really over-the-top tion’s wealth is not being distrib- and Tajuddin need to be sent to stomach-puking apple-polishing uted equally among all Nik Aziz for them to improve their letters espousing the greatness of Malaysians and is instead being mannerisms. Petronas. used not exclusively for nation building and to benefit everyone Enough disgrace has been I am sure many others like I would but for other reasons. Whether brought up in Parliament with never question the role Petronas those complaints are valid or not “Leak” and “End of Tunnel” re- has played in the development of can only be resolved by having marks. The two and others of their the nation and its society. To do adequate sensible intellectual dis- kind have made fools of them- so would be tantamount to being cussions, not merely chest - selves. Let’s hope they will not ungrateful for the God-given rich thumping diatribes. bring more disgrace to this law- resources entrusted to Petronas. making institution. Therefore there is valid concern The complaints mainly centre on among Malaysians and not only K T Ong the fact that Petronas wealth and in the coffee shops but at the vari- Ipoh

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 18 INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY Light at the end of the tunnel?

A landmark case is in the Federal Court that has wider implications for the protection of Orang Asli land rights by Yogeswaran Subramaniam

n 14 April 2008, the Fed- OO eral Court appeal in State OOO of & Ors v Sagong bin Tasi & Ors (‘the Sagong case’) against, amongst others, the court’s recog- nition of Orang Asli proprietary rights to their customary and an- cestral traditional lands was ad- journed following a request from the Selangor state government to re-examine their decision to pro- ceed with the appeal. The Selangor state government was reportedly aiming for a fair settle- photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas ment in the shortest possible time photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas (The Star Online, 14 April 2008).

This development must be seen as an encouraging sign for the many Orang Asli who have lived for generations on their traditional lands without security of tenure until the recent recognition of their customary rights over land by the Courts (see Adong bin Kuwau &Ors v Kerajaan Negeri & Anor [1997] 1 MLJ 418).(The Aboriginal Peoples Act 1954 provides that a State Author- ity may revoke a declaration of an Aboriginal Reserve at any time and the rights of occupancy on an Aboriginal Reserve shall be no better than a tenant at will.) photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas The new Selangor State Govern- photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 19 ment must be commended for hav- ing the gumption and compas- sion to take this independent stand, having fiercely contested the Sagong case together with the three other defendants, the Fed- eral Government of Malaysia, United Engineers (M) Bhd and Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia for more than a decade.

Unfortunately, the news is not all that great for the Orang Asli be- photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas cause, as at the time of writing, the photo by Colin Nicholas photo by Colin Nicholas Federal Government has still to re- consider its relentless contest and grounds for the appeal but the one nistic stance, the Federal Govern- pursuit of appeals in the Sagong of importance for present pur- ment is urged to take this oppor- case despite having lost at the trial poses is the Court’s recognition of tunity to try and win the hearts of of this case. Orang Asli customary title - was the Orang Asli as a community by dismissed. settling out of court as proposed After a full trial in 2002, the Shah by the Selangor State Government. Alam High Court in the Sagong Yet, the defendants have appealed Considering that customary and case awarded compensation for against the decision to the Federal ancestral lands occupied by the land acquired from a Temuan Court. Admittedly, all parties have Orang Asli amount to around 1 community who occupied what is a right to appeal, but the disap- per cent of the total land area of now part of the KLIA Highway. pointment is with the Federal Peninsular Malaysia (much of In doing so, the Court decided that Government’s decision to fight which is in the hinterlands) and the proprietary interest of aborigi- this case tooth and nail. Remark- around 50 per cent of them live nal people in their customary and ably, the very government that in- below the poverty line, is this too ancestral land was an interest in sists on contesting this case all the much to ask for? A settlement may the land. Accordingly, compensa- way to the highest court of the possibly pave the way towards tion was awarded pursuant to the land has a discretion under the the enactment of laws that would Land Acquisition Act 1960 with- Federal Constitution to legislate truly protect Orang Asli lands. out the need for a title under the for the ‘welfare of the Aborigines’ National Land Code 1965. (see Schedule 9 Federal List no 16) If this route is taken, such laws and the ‘protection, well-being or should be drafted on the under- In line with the Civil Law Act 1956 advancement of the aboriginal standing that unlike other com- that allows for the application of peoples’ (see Article 8(5)(c)). munities in Peninsular Malaysia, common law in Malaysia and protection of Orang Asli lands concurrent developments on in- To compound matters, the Federal does not only involve mainly eco- digenous land rights internation- Government argues in the Sagong nomic considerations but an in- ally, the Court exercised its dis- case that the Court should not extricable link with the preserva- cretion to do justice in recognis- have exercised its discretion to tion and survival of the Orang Asli ing Orang Asli customary title to recognise Orang Asli customary identity, culture and way of life. lands which they had tradition- title when the Government them- ally occupied for generations. selves have failed to legislate to Without the policy makers and provide Orang Asli security of ten- legislators appreciating and act- Fighting tooth ure over their traditional lands for ing on this reality, the Orang Asli and nail decades! struggle for their own special The subsequent appeal to the place in the Malaysian sun will Court of Appeal - there were other Instead of this seemingly antago- just continue where it left off. q

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 20 RELIGIOUS CONFLICT

Bar Council Forum on “Conversion to Islam : Article 121 (1A) of the Federal Constitution: Subashini and Shamala Revisited”

To find just and amicable solutions Meaningful debate needed The recently disrupted forum organised by the bar Council was a closed door affair. Par- ticipation was confined to those who registered themselves first in order to be able to attend the forum. The forum did not discuss Islam per se and therefore any in- sinuation that the hold- ing of the forum consti- ing of the forum consti- he Bar Council’s forum Syariah Courts. The coexistence tuted an insult to Islam TTT scheduled for tomorrow of two separate legal jurisdictions was a downright lie. It will proceed. The con- is not a new or uncommon phe- cerns of some quarters nomenon and there are naturally was a mischievous state- was a mischievous state- including a number of cabinet issues of conflicts of laws arising ment calculated to rouse ministers such as the Deputy from the different jurisdictions. the passions of those Prime Minister, Dato Seri Razak, Dato Hamid Albar and Dato We recognise and respect Article who were not well-in- who were not well-in- Zahid Hamidi, various NGOs 121(1A); however, there is a strong formed as to the nature and PAS are noted. viewpoint that it is unjust to com- of the forum. The Aliran pel anyone to be subjected to laws We reiterate that our concern is to and courts that are based on a re- Monthly carries two Monthly carries two address the issues of conflicts of ligion that they do not profess, statemnets from the Bar laws facing families caught be- and this viewpoint must be ad- Council to shed light tween the separate jurisdictions of dressed. civil and Syariah laws. and expose the lie. and expose the lie. Our concern centres on the man- The Bar Council is not question- ner of dealing with the current ing the provisions of Article conflicts. There must be a con- 121(1A), which confer Syariah ju- certed efforts by the Government risdiction over Muslims on the to address these issues construc-

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 21 tively and not pay mere lip serv- ice to the concerns of many.

Although the Bar Council is heart- ened by the Prime Minister’s re- cently-reported statements calling for more interfaith dialogues to be held in order to promote and en- sure religious harmony among Malaysians of diverse beliefs and we welcome his assurance that there is space for such dialogues, we urge that more be done by way of constructive dialogue and meaningful debate with all the relevant stakeholders to arrive at a just and amicable solution. forward to achieve a just, fair and know about, which is counter to amicable solution to the problems the principles of the open, pro- However, the Bar Council is trou- faced by so many individuals. gressive and democratic society bled by the continuing calls from that we have evolved into. We certain quarters that its forum to- The stifling of debates, talks and believe that it is the continued morrow be cancelled. These state- discussions would be counter- suppression of open and re- ments that claim the forum will productive and would only fuel spectful discourse, not public fo- create misunderstanding, anger hate, fear and insecurity within rums, that will cause tension and tension, are in stark contrast the affected communities. and jeopardise national unity. with the PM’s assurances. The Bar Council agrees with the The Bar Council advocates the The Bar Council reiterates that the Prime Minister that there is a high democratic rights of all individu- forum will not dispute Article degree of respect and tolerance in als and groups, and defends their 121(1A), nor question Islam or its Malaysia, and Malaysians are freedom to assemble, to associate status as enshrined in Article 3 of able to “discuss various issues, es- and to express their views. We the Federal Constitution. The fo- pecially on religion, without hav- are taking the necessary precau- rum is not about conversion per ing the fear of repercussions from tions to ensure that the dialogue se, as the Bar Council endorses the any other party”. Malaysian so- takes place in a controlled and absolute right of individuals to ciety is mature and responsible. constructive manner, by holding embrace Islam. Instead, the forum It wants to, and is ready to, ex- the forum in a closed setting and will address the ancillary issues change views in public, even on by requiring participants to regis- that arise from such situations and difficult issues, in efforts to further ter for the event. will emphasise the need for laws, strengthen national unity and fos- and a judicial system, that pro- ter interfaith harmony. The forum is open to everyone. tects everyone equally. The Bar Council urges supporters Discourse on issues confronting and critics alike to attend the fo- The way forward to resolving any the nation cannot take place rum and to air thair views so that dispute or issue is to firstly pro- only at official levels, behind together, we can strive to seek just mote greater understanding of the closed doors, but must be inclu- solutions to the issues faced by views of all the parties involved. sive and involve the public and our fellow citizens. We accept and understand that those whose lives are affected by matters relating to faith and race them. Calls to halt discussions Ragunath Kesavan are always sensitive and emotive. on any issue imply that there are Vice-President However, regardless of the aspects to those issues that the Malaysian Bar sensivity, we must strive to move public does not have a right to 8 August 2008

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 22 of Buddhism, Christianity, Hin- Malaysian citizen have duism, Sikhism and Taoism every right to discuss (MCCBCHST). Amongst the reso- lutions was for more dialogues to isters in Islam (SIS) did not regard the forum as insult- be held in discussing inter-reli- SS strongly protests the ex- ing or challenging Islam. gious issues in Malaysia includ- SSS treme actions by Muslim ing apostasy, conversion to Islam NGOs and political par- The Malaysian Bar Council has and its impact on matrimonial ties in halting the Bar Council Fo- duly informed several religious and family matters such as di- rum on “Conversion to Islam : bodies about the forum. In fact, vorce, alimony, custody and Article 121 (1A) of the Federal two religious officers – Tuan Dr. maintenance. Constitution: Subashini and Haji Naim Haji Mokhtar (Syarie Shamala Revisited” held on 9 Prosecutor for federal territory’s SIS thus is at a loss at to why the August 2008. Islamic Affairs Department & government, political parties and former Syariah High Court judge) the Muslim NGOs did not sup- SIS also strongly condemns the and Dr. Wan Azhar Wan Ahmad port the dialogue organized by violent actions of throwing Molo- (Director of the Syariah Law and the Bar Council. tov cocktails at the former resi- Political Science Centre / Senior dence of the President of the Bar Fellow of the Institute for Islamic SIS is disappointed that political Council, now the residence of Understanding of Malaysia parties which have been champi- Dato’ Seri Shahrizat Jalil’s family, (IKIM)) have initially agreed to be oning human rights, the voice of and for the planting of two kero- the panelists for the said forum. It the people and citizens’ rights in sene bombs in front of the Bar was unfortunate that both pulled airing their opinions etc, have ob- Council office. out at the eleventh hour. viously failed in practicing what they preach; in fact, they have Such violent acts only give a bad The fact was that based on the acted against their own manifesto image of Muslims and Malaysian programme, three of the five promised to the people in the last society surely does not tolerate panelists were Muslims. General Elections. these extremist or terrorist actions. SIS is of the position that SIS hopes for all parties to respect Government leaders should have Malaysian citizens have every the rights of all Malaysians in air- helped to allay the fears of Mus- right to discuss any national laws ing their views on issues that af- lims by giving proper explana- and policies that affect the rights fect citizens’ rights. q tions to the public. If the govern- of the people. In view that the ment anticipated any untoward Shamala and Subashini cases incidents, the government should impact on the rights of non-Mus- have taken the necessary measures lim spouses, non-Muslims have to ensure the forum could proceed every right to discuss how to deal smoothly without any disrup- with conflicts in matrimonial and tions. family matters such as divorce, alimony, custody and mainte- The police should not have bowed nance. to the aggressive tactics that forced SIS statement against the for the abrupt termination of a At the same time, the media re- disruption of Bar Council peaceful and mature dialogue. ported an inter-faith dialogue or- Forum on “Conversion to ganized in Universiti Malaya at Islam : Article 121 (1A) of The Muslim NGOs and political the end of July 2008, amongst the the Federal Constitution: parties that caused the cancella- government religious agencies, Subashini and Shamala tion of the forum should realize academicians, the Allied Coordi- Revisited” held on 9 Au- that there were many Muslim law- nating Committee of Islamic gust 2008..2008..gust yers and Muslim participants NGOs (ACCIN) and the who supported the dialogue and Malaysian Consultative Council

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 23 REFLECTIONS Patto’s burning passion He believed that one day Malaysia would have a place in the sun for all by Choo Sing Chye

he day was 13 July 1995; running of the government TT it was P. Patto’s funeral. and the economy without TTT The afternoon was hazy. being subjected to unjust The sky was densely and restrictive laws. covered with dark grey clouds. The weather on the day was as if He hated bigots it was intended to rhyme with the mood of the funeral. But what was most impor- tant to Patto was that this An occasional light drizzle fur- fair and equal participation ther confounded the free flow of should not elicit hatred thousands of mourners who had among races. It should come to pay their last respects. But, somehow elicit genuine the drizzle did not deter mourn- brotherly and sisterly coop- ers from coming to see Patto for eration, respect and love the last time. among all the races in Ma- laysia. This, Patto believed, Many leaders, friends and sup- could only be done by open- porters cried openly as the hearse door discussions and pub- began to inch forward to begin the lic forums as opposed to final journey for Patto to his rest- closed-door discussions where This quote summed up a large part ing place. He was finally return- issues were swept under the car- of Patto’s belief about brotherly ing to the place where he once pet as they often did. and sisterly cooperation, respect served as Member of Parliament and love among all the races in and State Assembly Member I wish to quote Mahatma Gandhi Malaysia. So for Patto, brotherly (1986-1990). who spoke on the lack of broth- and sisterly cooperation, respect erly and sisterly cooperation, re- and love played an important part This was the end of a man whose spect and love among the Mus- in creating a truly harmonious illustrious political life had lims and Hindus during his time Malaysia. spanned more than two decades, in India. fighting for an utopian society Conspicuously, he hated religious resting on the fundamental politi- In the book, “The Life of Mahatma and race bigots who came in many cal platform of the inalienable Gandhi’, Gandhi said that “the forms and shapes. It is frighten- rights of every citizen to freely Hindus did not love Moslems ingly true that some of the bigots participate in every function of enough and the Moslems did not in Malaysia hold high positions his/her own culture, language love Hindus enough. India would in the government. and religious belief. And further- therefore be divided between more, to freely participate in the them”. Take for instance, Arthur de

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 24 Patto saw these bigots as a hin- drance to a harmonious society in Malaysia. He had in him a burn- ing passion to fight against them. He believed that one day Malay- sia would have a place in the sun for all, a place where all Malaysians are judged not by the colour of their skin or religion but by their character.

To Patto, the place in the sun is a place where no one single group of people should lay claim on Malaysia as their own. Patto be- lieved that Malaysia is for all Malaysians. His ideal could be neatly summed up as what the Iroquois Indians had in mind about a homeland in Canada: “the land does not belong to us but ...we belong to the land.”

Freedom for all

Another wish of Patto was that Malaysia would one day become a land where people are not pros- ecuted for what they think or say. If there is any prosecution at all, it should be for criminals such as robbers, rapists, and murderers.

Freedom should not be reserved for the ’s politi- Aliran Monthly 1995 Vol.15(6) cians only but for all. The Barisan Nasional’s politicians have al- Gobineau (1816-1882), the white the basis of his arguments was ways expounded the idea that supremacist, known as the Father that although there were beauti- freedom is anarchy. They want us of Racism. His demented philoso- ful non-white women, they were to believe it because they want to phy still lives in the minds of some definitely not as beautiful as the instil fear in us. If there is freedom of the elites in Malaysia. These whites. in Malaysia, they know that they elites are in fact politically strong. would not hold on to power that Like Gobineau before them who There are people (such as Anwar easily. They would be closely scru- served in important positions in Ibrahim, Hindraf and Raja Petra) tinised by the people; this they do the French Government, they too who are willing to sacrifice eve- not want. were well-positioned in the gov- rything to take on these ernment. Gobineau expounded Gobineaus in Malaysia. Unfortu- Freedom should not be seen as a the idea that Adam and Eve were nately, it is becoming rare to find commodity of the anarchists; it white and not of any low-down such people. And it had become should be seen as a tool of the peo- race. His other idea that formed rarer with the passing of Patto. ple to demand an honest and

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 25 open government. ple - a sincere form of recognition side ‘roti canai’ or mee stalls. and gratitude more valuable than Freedom, as Franklin Delano medals or titles. When he visited his constituency, Roosevelt put it in simple term: there was no great fanfare dis- The news of his death at the age played like those displayed for BN In the future days, which we seek of 48, on 12 July 1995, left us in leaders; neither were there huge to make secure, we look forward disbelief. Nobody could believe posters and flags to welcome to a world founded upon four es- that he died at a time when the them. Patto would just pop in and sential freedoms. party and the nation needed him talk to the people. most. • The first is freedom of speech There was no communication gap and expression - everywhere Had he lived, he would have been between him and his constituents. in the world. the firebrand in the Ninth He was always around to listen • The second is freedom of every Malaysian Parliament. Without and help whoever needed it - be person to worship God in his doubt, he excelled as one of the she or he a Malay, a Chinese or an own way - everywhere in the best and most effective parliamen- Indian, it did not matter to him. world. tarians. • The third is freedom from want He was not constricted to a nar- - everywhere in the world. On a few occasions, after his de- row view like many politicians • The fourth is freedom from fear feat in the 1990 General Elections, who thought in terms of “you - everywhere in the world. I came across many who said that Chinese”, “you Malay” and “you it was a shame that Patto was not Indian”. All he saw was, Patto was a humble, kind, gener- elected in 1990 for he would have Malaysians and nothing else. ous and compassionate man given hell to the Barisan Nasional without wealth or any official ti- politicians then. As Fate would Not many politicians could genu- tle. And yet he had a wealth of have it, he was to serve only 78 inely come down to earth to speak kindness and compassion in him days as Member of Parliament for or to listen to the ordinary people that won him admiration and love Bagan after the 1995 General Elec- like Patto. from all races. Those who knew tion. him had only one common feel- Internationally ing about this man: that of respect The people now had to be con- renown and love. tented with a parliament without his voice. A voice that had repre- Not only could he mix with peo- “Fighter of the people” sented the downtrodden, the ple of all walks of life, he also was weak and the poor. A voice that well known internationally. In all the years he fought for the we had known and loved for more people, he never once received an than two decades. A voice that When he was released from de- official title or medal from the gov- would be missed by all tention in 1989, there were restric- ernment. To Patto, this was not Malaysians who love democracy. tions imposed on him. He could important. What was important For Malaysia had just lost a true not hold any position in the party; was that the people recognised his son of democracy. his movements were restricted deeds and his sacrifices. He even and, worst of all, he could not disliked being called Yang It was not difficult to understand speak publicly to the people. But Behormat. or to get to know Patto. He was a when the restrictions on him were man who I know could mix liter- lifted, he was immediately sent Apparently, anyone visiting his ally with all levels of society - from overseas by the party to attend a office would have seen a huge the rich to the very poor, from the Socialist International meeting in wooden signboard with these intellectuals to the illiterate. Rome. There, he was over- words written on it: “Fighter of Hence, it was not surprising to see whelmed by the unexpected rous- the people”. The wooden board him very much at ease, chatting ing welcome given by socialist was presented to him by the peo- with his constituents at the road- comrades present.

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 26 The person who was most happy to meet Patto was the late Willy Brandt, former Chancellor of West Germany, and the then Chairman of Socialist International (SI). While Patto was incarcerated at the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak, Willy Brandt and SI ac- tively lobbied among interna- tional circles for his and the other detainees’ release. So when Patto walked into the conference hall, the crowd rose in standing ova- tion and Willy Brandt personally The people came in thousands to bid farewell to a good man came down from the stage to meet him. Tornadoes under the RM4.5 bil- grieved BN Member of Parliament lion ringgit British arms deals, was sore because he could not get From Rome, he flew to London. when the basic price of the tor- the taxi licences himself. This re- There he met Adam Raphael, a nado bought by the British RAF mark sparked laughter in the columnist from The Observer. and German Luftwaffe was 17-20 House. Adam Raphael had earlier writ- million pounds each, and whether ten a story on the purchase of Tor- it is true that the weapons agreed Not only was he quick with his nadoes by Malaysia at inflated under the deal are unsuitable for replies, he was also knowledge- prices. An excerpt from The Ob- Malaysia’s needs.” able in Parliamentary and State server: Assembly rules and regulations. After this scandal was known, the Many MPs and State Assembly- The basic price of the Tornadoes government dropped the pur- men, used to come to consult him bought by the RAF and the Ger- chase of the Tornado planes from on these matters. Apart from this, man Luftwaffe is 17-20 million Britain. he was also a good writer who re- pounds each, depending on the gretfully did not get his one wish scale of equipment. But the price Eloquent speaker - that was to finish his book. q of the Tornadoes being sold to Ma- laysia by British Aerospace is Patto was a man of many talents A video clip of Patto’s widow S A nearly 40 million pounds. This and one of his talents lay in pub- Mary can be viewed at: huge discrepancy in prices can- lic speaking. He was an eloquent http://www.youtube.com/ not be accounted for solely by dif- speaker who could speak perfect watch?v=RJsQp_vAwT4 ferences in equipment, servicing Malay, English, Tamil and some training or spares. Cantonese.

This issue was brought back to In Parliament, his performance The above was the intro- Malaysia, and Kit Siang effec- was par excellence. He had the rare duction that Choo wrote tively brought it to Parliament. gift of debating issues in parlia- in a book on the late One of Kit Siang’s oral questions ment with his spontaneous re- P Patto, “Nenjukku in Parliament: plies and rebukes earning him the Neethi” (Justice from My respect of the BN MPs. Heart). We are reproduc- The first question directed to the ing it to remember Minister of Defense asks, On one occasion, a heated debate Patto’s ideals and aspira- erupted between two BN Mem- tions on the 13th anniver- “…..why Malaysian Government bers of Parliament over the issue sary of his passing, which agreed to the price of 40 million of taxi licenses. Patto stood up fell on 12 July 2008. pounds each for the 12 British and quipped that perhaps the ag-

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 27 A SECOND PROSECUTION OF ANWAR? Continued from page 40

The leading personalities a dec- political scores, and should not ade ago were Prime Minister Dr be the forum to resolve political Mahathir, Chief Justice Eusoff disputes. It is not fair that a po- Chin, Attorney-General Mokhtar litical problem affecting the Ex- Abdullah and IGP Rahim Noor. ecutive, which is essentially Lawyers and litigants would re- non-justiciable, be thrust upon member the darkest days of Ma- the Judiciary. Any prosecution laysia’s Judiciary under Eusoff of Anwar in a sodomy charge Chin in the late 1990’s, symbol- would bring to focus the follow- ized by cases involving Anwar. ing elementary principles of criminal law; Because Anwar never received a fair trial in 1998, the entire pro- i that he is innocent, until ceedings were condemned as a proven guilty; sham by the Bar Council, interna- ii the relevant burden of estab- Chief Justice Eusoff Chin tional and local scholars and in- lishing his guilt is beyond rea- ternational bar organizations. sonable doubt; The Malaysian judiciary reached iii that burden always remains its nadir during the Anwar trial. with the prosecution, and never shifts to the accused: After Eusoff Chin’s retirement in thus, he can elect to remain si- 2000, each of his successors, lent and not cooperate with the Dzaiddin, Ahmad Fairuz and prosecution by not voluntarily Hamid took corrective measures giving his DNA, and the like; to improve the image of the judici- and ary. Each seemed to distance him- iv he is entitled to be free on bail self from the Eusoff Chin style of from charge to conviction. leadership, and each attempted to move the Judiciary in the right di- Entrenched principles like that rection. it is preferable that 99 “guilty” persons are let free than 1 “inno- Attorney-General Mokhtar Abudullah Without doubt, their collective cent” person should be con- actions have succeeded slowly, victed are not just idealistic but surely to enhance the status statements that students learn at and reputation of the judiciary to law schools; they form the bed- the extent that the vast majority of rock of civilized criminal juris- the members of the 13,000 prudence. Because these are the Malaysian Bar would concede hallmarks of any criminal pros- that the Judiciary in 2008 is in ecution in Malaysia, failure to much better state than in 1998. In- adhere to them would immedi- cremental steps have been taken, ately put public pressure on the and the Bench is stronger for that. credibility of the trial process, to the detriment of the Judiciary, as A second prosecution in 2008 the third branch of Government. would in one stroke undo all the In other words, well established good deeds carried out in recent principles of criminal law years. A second trial will again should not be suspended dur- demonstrate that the criminal ing a second Anwar trial, as court is not equipped to settle happened in the first trial. Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 28 It is instructive that since 1998 In the present climate a fair trial flicted on the major institutions of there have hardly been any sod- cannot be guaranteed to him. the state and the damage suffered omy charges against anyone. Thus, it can safely be stated that a by the entire nation by the extreme Does that indicate that no homo- prosecution of Anwar in 2008 actions taken against Anwar a sexual or lesbian activities have would have drastic negative con- decade ago have been permanent: taken place in Malaysia in the sequences to the administration the scars would take generations past decade? When the crime rate of justice. to clear. is shockingly high, becoming an issue during the March 2008 Gen- B. The Political It would be equally impossible to eral Elections, and resulting in a Consequences find many Malaysians in 2008 widespread breakdown of law who would believe that a second and order, is it not an absolute Again, the lessons of 1998 must prosecution of Anwar has noth- waste of limited police resources be considered. Despite the prot- ing to do with him as Prime Min- to focus attention on the sexual estations by Dr Mahathir and his ister-in-waiting. The undeniable preferences of a 61 year old man decreasing band of apologists, facts are these. The March 2008 with neck and back pain? This is there are only a few Malaysians General Elections saw the Oppo- wholly disproportionate, and not left who still do not believe that sition securing 51.3% of the popu- consistent with good law enforce- Anwar was removed in Septem- lar vote in West Malaysia, with ment. ber 1998 as Deputy Prime Minis- the Barisan securing 48.7%. Of ter, expelled from UMNO and the 165 seats at stake in Peninsu- In mature legal systems, homo- charged for sodomy because he lar Malaysia, the Opposition won sexuality has been de- was perceived by Dr Mahathir as 80 seats while Barisan Nasional criminalised, partly because con- a rival. It was Dr Mahathir’s won 85. The Barisan’s 2/3 ma- temporary society no longer re- method of eliminating a serious jority was breached. The Opposi- gards such behaviour as warrant- contender to his office. By such tion is ruling 5 States, and won 10 ing a criminal law response, and extreme action, Dr Mahathir out of 11 Parliamentary Seats in partly because such offences are achieved short term gain by re- Kuala Lumpur. The prospects for very difficult to prove on a crimi- maining in office for a further 5 a two party (or two coalitions of nal burden of proof since in most years. But at what cost. parties) system of government cases it is the word of one person have never looked more promis- (the victim) against the version Hence, any short term gain that ing. presented by another (the ac- Dr Mahathir personally secured, cused), with the latter enjoying was negated in the medium term, UMNO is on a path of self-destruc- the advantage of being innocent let alone in the long term, which tion, with Dr Mahathir leading the until proven guilty. only time can tell. The harm in- charge that Prime Minister

IGP Rahim Noor Chief Justice Dzaiddin

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 29 Abdullah Badawi should resign. sult in the vast majority of Abdullah Badawi’s promise to Malaysians being sympathetic to retire by 2010 has received much Anwar, a trial would nonetheless criticism from UMNO grassroots. be deeply divisive at a time when the nation desperately needs heal- Against this background, whether ing and reconciliation. prudently or not, Anwar an- nounced that he would lead a For the sake of public harmony, a Pakatan Government by 16th Sep- trial must be avoided at all costs. tember 2008 (the 45th anniversary Malaysians must not be asked to of the formation of Malaysia). A choose: is Anwar getting a fair trial motion of no confidence which or not in a criminal court. was to be presented by SAPP, is yet to be moved, while a second Dr Mahathir E. Malaysia’s motion presented by Pakatan was International Image not accepted by the Speaker of the and ordinary life has become in- . Anwar then an- tolerable for millions, the politi- Since Merdeka, Malaysia has nounced that he was ready to con- cians are playing their selfish and placed much emphasis on how test in a by-election. Finally, wholly irresponsible games. The the world perceives her. Image Anwar out-performed Ahmad mismatch between the electorate’s building has very much been the Shabery in a much watched tel- expectations of their political lead- cornerstone of her foreign policy. evised debate. He was immedi- ers and actual political govern- Malaysia was heavily criticized in ately arrested in a high-handed ance (or the lack of it) is awesome. the conduct of the first trial. It manner. would be déjà vu the second time. In this context, for the nation to The United States and Japan It therefore defies belief that the embark on a wholly unnecessary (hardly a pushy friend) have al- Government can still repeatedly criminal prosecution of a poten- ready queried his arrest. The declare that politics is not in- tial Prime Minister would be po- Home Minister has already met 98 volved in the Anwar sodomy case. litical and economic suicide. That foreign diplomats in Kuala They are insulting the intelligence the market is spooked is best re- Lumpur to explain the position of of the Malaysians by such arrant flected by that barometer of pub- the Government. nonsense. The case is all about lic confidence and business sen- politics, and nothing but politics. timent, the Stock Exchange, which It is entirely predictable that right If Anwar were not a potential has declined by a quarter of its thinking countries would protest Prime Minister, and only an ordi- index points in the past 4 months in different ways if he is pros- nary citizen, he would not face for “political” reasons. The mar- ecuted. Malaysia would again this prosecution. It is as simple, ket would plunge further if take centre stage in CNN, BBC and plain and obvious as that. Anwar is prosecuted, the already Al Jazeera, and for the wrong rea- nervous Malaysian businessmen sons. C. The Economic would not invest in Malaysia and Consequences foreign direct investments will go F. The National elsewhere. Interest The latest sodomy charge against Anwar could not have occurred D. People of Malaysia That the Attorney-General, in his at a worse time while the nation capacity as Public Prosecutor, is is facing economic turbulence of The 1998 trial deeply divided not obliged to prosecute every “of- crisis proportions, and certainly Malaysians. In a typical family, fender” for every alleged “crime” the worst since the 1998 financial one spouse may have initially that may have been committed in crisis. While the people of Malay- supported the prosecution, while Malaysia is demonstrated by the sia are suffering from increasing the other spouse was sympathetic discretion vested in the office of costs of living issues, best exem- to Anwar. Although a second the Attorney-General under Arti- plified by the recent huge fuel hike, prosecution ten years later may re- cle 145 of the Federal Constitution

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 30 and Section 376 of the Criminal prosecutorial decision is Procedure Code. The Attorney- vested in the Attorney General is perfectly entitled in the General, the political re- exercise of his prosecutorial dis- ality is that in important cretion to take into account non- “high-profile” cases, the legal matters in the decision-mak- Prime Minister would ing process. Thus, he is not lim- have to give his sanction. ited to merely asking: “do I have a Indeed, no one would prima facie case to convict an accused deny that during his 22- for committing an offence”. year term, the effective decision-maker for major Other factors may be relevant, and prosecutions ( or not to weighty. The Malaysian position prosecute) was Prime is similar to most Commonwealth Minister Dr Mahathir, nations. Indeed, in the United and not the four Attor- Kingdom, because the Attorney- ney-Generals who General is always a Member of served under him. Parliament, he is often required to explain to Parliament the reasons George Santayana fa- why he has decided not to pros- mously observed: “Those ecute a particular individual. Nu- who cannot remember the merous reasons have been given past are condemned to re- by the Attorney-General in the peat it.” United Kingdom for not prosecut- ecution must be avoided. ing; the category of reasons is History is replete with examples never closed, and it always de- of leaders who refused to learn The Attorney-General, having re- pends on the particular circum- from past mistakes, and were gard to his high-profile direct per- stances of a particular case. doomed to repeat them. It would sonal involvement in the first trial, Hence, the operative word is “dis- be a tragedy of ancient Greek pro- should not personally take the cretion”, rather than a “duty” or portions if our leaders do not learn decision. Likewise, the office of “obligation”. the lessons from 1998. It is abun- the Attorney-General/Public dantly clear that all the factors Prosecutor should be precluded, In the late 1990’s after the British point in one direction: it is not in having regard to its previous con- Courts had refused to recognize the public interest to subject the duct. the immunity of General Pinochet nation and its citizens to the and ordered that he should stand trauma of a second trial. One hopes that taking these rel- trial in the United Kingdom for his evant considerations into ac- crimes against humanity commit- The only factor in favour of a count, Prime Minister Abdullah ted in the aftermath of the over- second trial is that certain poli- Badawi would act as a statesman throw of the Allende regime in ticians with a vested interest by personally deciding the mat- Chile, the British Government an- think that they may derive ben- ter, that is, by declining to pros- nounced that in the interests of efit. Whatever political benefit ecute in the national interest. Pos- British-Chilean relations and be- they may secure, would be very terity would generously reward cause of his age, it was not in the short term, and they may suffer the Prime Minister if he took this public interest for Pinochet to be electorally during the next Gen- decision because it is the right one tried in the United Kingdom. He eral Elections. If Malaysia does to take in all the circumstances of was allowed to return to Chille, not wish to descend to the level the case. q where he lived for another 10 of Burma and Zimbabwe, both years. of which were also British colo- nies and enjoyed the rule of law Tommy Thomas is an It must further be appreciated that and freedom for a few years af- Advocate & Solicitor although constitutionally the ter independence, a second pros-

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 31 even clarified that Balasubramaniam made the statu- tory declaration because the pros- ecution had wrapped up their case against Abdul Razak Baginda without raising his rev- elation to them in the course of the trial. What he had revealed to the police implicated Deputy Prime Minister .

According to Americk, Balasubramaiam wanted to bring to light the available evidence and tell the police and the prosecution that the private eye was at their A record of Aliran'sAliran'sAliran's stand on current affairs. disposal at any time. Up to this point there was no mention of any Army to help cal sphere, the country may be put coercion or duress from any quar- maintain law and under emergency rule. ter that compelled the former po- order in Malaysia? lice officer to appear at the press Aliran Executive Committee conference. We could only observe Inspector General of Police Musa 3 July 2008 the voluntary nature of his con- Hassan’s suggestion yesterday duct and it did not go unnoticed that the military could be asked to Was Bala’s second that he was at the press confer- help the police in maintaining law declaration made ence as a concerned citizen whose and order in the country is dis- under duress? primary duty was to ensure that turbing. justice prevailed. Aliran views private investigator For one thing, Aliran wonders P Balasubramaniam’s two contra- But his second statutory declara- whether the security of the nation dictory statutory declarations tion retracting his earlier declara- now has become unstable to the with shock and concern. It is dif- tion raises all sorts of questions. If point that it warrants military in- ficult to believe that he could have the first one was a false declara- tervention. Or is this merely a tac- retracted his earlier statutory dec- tion as he now claims, how are tical move to scare ordinary laration dated July 1, which im- we to believe that his second one Malaysians from exercising their plicates and condemns the is not another concocted story? right to express their stand in pub- Deputy Prime Minister’s involve- How are we to believe that his lat- lic through, for instance, peaceful ment with Altantuya Shaaribuu, est declaration was made freely, demonstrations on the street? within a matter of three days. His voluntarily and not under duress? latest statutory declaration dated Civilian matters should be han- July 4 retracts every thing that he It also does not go unnoticed that dled by the police force in the most had solemnly sworn “con- he came up with his retraction this professional way possible be- sciously believing the same to be morning after he had gone to cause as the experience of neigh- true and by virtue of the provisions Brickfields to meet an ASP yester- bouring countries has shown, of the Statutory Declaration Act day evening, soon after the first once out of the military barracks, 1960.” press conference. Malaysians the army may find it difficult to would like to know what tran- return. When he disclosed the contents spired last night. Was he turned of his first statutory declaration at over by their incredible methods The IGP’s remarks may only add the press conference on July 3, he of making people “see the light” fuel to the speculation that given was in the presence of his lawyer, as was demonstrated by a top po- the twists of events in the politi- Americk Singh Sidhu. His lawyer lice officer during the first Anwar

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 32 trial? When did the new lawyer, What is Syed Hamid where. This information is cru- Arulampalam, get involved in Albar afraid of? cial for Anwar’s rebuttal. this matter? Who recommended this new lawyer? Even Americk If Syed Hamid is wondering why is “extremely surprised” at the this information is urgent and change of lawyers. necessary, Aliran would like to take him back ten years ago when His second declaration was af- a similar report of sodomy was firmed before commissioner of lodged against Anwar. His ac- oaths Zainal Abidin Muhayat cuser then struggled to name a bearing an address reportedly be- date to make the allegation stick. longing to law firm Zul Rafique He gave three different dates vari- and Partners owned by Federal ously, including a date when the Territories Minister Zulhasnan building where the alleged sod- Rafique’s brother. omy was deemed to have taken place was not even up! The ac- This is what makes this sordid cuser contradicted himself several affair suspicious and question- times. He was even caught for able. It is difficult to believe that khalwat, raising questions re- Balasubramaniam had once again In a rhetorical stance, the Home garding his morality and reliabil- made “this solemn declaration Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid ity. consciously believing the same to Albar posed this question to be true and by virtue of the provi- Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, “What The injustice was so apparent in sions of the Statutory Declaration is he afraid of?” Aliran would like that episode of a decade ago that Act 1960.” to pose this very question to Syed the Federal Court overturned the Hamid, “What is he afraid of?” High Court’s controversial con- There is reason to believe that Why are they afraid to release the viction. there may be an attempt to sup- police report lodged by Mohd press evidence borne out by these Saiful Bukari Azlan against Based on this experience, Anwar contradictory declarations. There Anwar Ibrahim on 28 June alleg- has every right to suspect that the are hands, it seems, at work to ing sodomy? police want to get as much infor- derail justice and bury the truth. mation as possible from him so What has unfolded in this disturb- Syed Hamid is quoted by the New that the police report against him ing episode suggest that there are Straits Times as saying, “Give could be manipulated to incrimi- forces bent on subverting our jus- blood sample for the sake of nate him. Anwar had legitimately tice system. truth.” Aliran would like to tell asked, “Is it so that they can keep Syed Hamid, “Give the police re- amending and amending and Malaysians are perturbed by this port for the sake of justice.” amending it to fit in with the state- latest turn of events and are not ment that I have just given to the sure what to believe. Is this part of Justice demands that an ac- police. I gave my statement for five the script so that his first declara- cused person should know what hours yesterday (Wednesday) tion will be thrown out as evi- he is being accused of. Only then and for another 30 minutes this dence coming from an unreliable he can defend himself. It is ri- morning.” source? Thinking Malaysians diculous for the police to claim will remain sceptical with regard that Saiful had made a police He has raised a relevant and to the second declaration for very report against Anwar and there- pertinent point: “If they give the obvious reasons. fore they have to investigate report to me now, how am I sup- Anwar. Isn’t Anwar entitled to posed to know that it is the origi- P Ramakrishnan know the nature of the report? nal? Are they waiting to make President He has a right to know when the up the ‘perfect’ police report (to 4 July 2008 alleged offence took place and fix me)?”

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 33 The police report was inexplica- Let the DNA experts in this instance. The media then bly denied every time it was re- speak up gave ample publicity to his state- quested for on the premise that the ment. But did any of the media take police had been instructed against a little trouble to find out whether giving him a copy. Who is this face- the DNA taken in 1998 was in- less and nameless superior officer deed too old? Did they ask the who had given this despicable in- Prime Minister who gave him this struction? If they are after the truth, information upon which he based shouldn’t they have released the his argument? Was this a medi- police report so that Anwar him- cal opinion? If so, who is this self would be in a position to as- medical expert who ventured this sist the police in discovering the opinion? These are questions that truth? had to be asked - but did the me- dia raise these questions? If they Do they realise that by refusing to had, then they would have lived release the report, the police are up to the ethical standards of hon- seen as believing Saiful’s side of est journalism. the story and suspecting Anwar of being guilty? Where is the fair- Aliran would like the BN govern- ness? Both the accuser and the ac- ment to officially seek the opinion cused should be treated fairly and of local and international DNA justly so that the truth can be laid experts to ascertain whether a bare in the interest of justice. DNA profile remains permanent irrespective of when it was taken. It is three weeks since the police Much of Anwar’s sodomy contro- Is there a time period beyond report was made by Saiful. Why versy seems to hinge on the ques- which it does not serve any use- is it so difficult to make the report tion of Anwar’s DNA. The media ful purpose? Let us have this an- available to Anwar? Anwar has are intent on creating the impres- swer publicly. insinuated that both the Inspec- sion that Anwar is afraid to give tor-General of Police and the At- his DNA because he is deemed to The fear expressed by many, in- torney-General, who have been be guilty. They are playing up this cluding Anwar, is that his new accused of having manipulated view by giving wide coverage to DNA can be planted to incrimi- the evidence against Anwar in the the Prime Minister and Home nate him. Let the experts state past, could be the source and Minister openly asking why whether this is possible or not. cause for Anwar’s predicament in Anwar is afraid to give his DNA This will allay or confirm such this instance. if he has not done anything fears. wrong. Deputy Prime Minister Datuk The other question to be ad- Seri Najib Razak had com- In doing so, the media have dressed is, why not deposit Mohd mented that Anwar should be merely reduced their credibility as Saiful Bukhari Azlan’s DNA with accorded ‘the degree of decorum impartial commentators of news some international DNA agency and respect he deserves’. Would and events dedicated to unearth- to verify whether any other foreign he, having said that, now go the ing the truth in the interest of jus- body/DNA is present. Later - only extra mile by instructing the po- tice. Unfortunately, they also come later - should it be determined lice to release the police report across as mouth-pieces of the whether it matches with Anwar’s to Anwar. If he does that, he Barisan Nasional and nothing DNA. This should satisfy all par- would be walking the talk. more. ties concerned in establishing the truth. P Ramakrishnan The Prime Minister had stated President that Anwar’s previous DNA taken But we should not and cannot dis- 18 July 2008 a decade ago is too old to be used count or dismiss Anwar’s genu-

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 34 ine fear that there will be private investigator P porting it “for whatever reasons manupulation by the police Balasubramaniam to the stand in best known to the prosecution”. which he justifiably feels they are the on-going Altantuya Sharibuu capable of. To support this claim, murder trial comes as a great Most Malaysians will fail to un- Anwar had “adduced further evi- shock to all those praying for jus- derstand why a court is so reli- dence on how blood was forcibly tice to prevail. giously subservient to technicali- taken and then spread on the mat- ties and not driven by the moral tress, claimed that it was sperm, The court ruled that Karpal Singh compulsion to stand on the side and when it was challenged by did not have the locus standi to of justice. Justice should prevail international experts, they finally make this application since he at all times and it must not be de- withdrew that and amended the was not a party to the trial as he railed by technicalities. It would charge and the record was ex- was only holding a watching be a terrible injustice if justice is punged” (NST, 22 July 2008). brief for the family of the mur- sacrificed on technical grounds. dered Mongolian woman. Surely It is a terrible indictment on the Karpal could be treated as a friend P Ramakrishnan police and damning evidence to of the court and be allowed to President totally discredit the police. In the make this application in the in- 23 July 2008 view of all thinking Malaysians, terest of justice. Anwar has every reason to fear the The plot to frame police. The Deputy Prime Minister’s Anwar is revealed! name for whatever reason keeps P Ramakrishnan cropping up now and then in re- President lation to this case and this would 22 July 2008 have provided him with a golden opportunity to vindicate himself Justice must not lose and lay to rest whatever suspicion that may be lurking around. out to technicalities The private investigator P The Shah Alam High Court’s de- Balasubramaniam had contra- cision disallowing Karpal Singh’s dicted himself under oath raising application to call Deputy Prime serious questions as to his cred- Minister as witness and to recall ibility as a witness in this case. He has to be recalled to ascertain the veracity of his statement as a witness.

When these two crucial issues are hanging in the air begging for an answer, how can the court slam the door on this matter? The civilized world must be out- Karpal was right in expressing raged by what is taking place in surprise as to why the head of the Malaysia. Justice is being tram- Civil Division in the Attorney- pled upon and truth is being sac- General’s Chambers Tun Abdul rificed for political expediency Majid Tun Hamzah did not sup- without shame or remorse. And it port his application. Even the de- is not fair that we have to suffer fence counsel, Kamarul Hisham this humiliation. Kamaruddin, seemed bemused that the prosecution was not sup- Thinking Malaysians are per-

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 35 plexed how on earth the police Yet why was Anwar arrested, that is with Hospital Pusrawi. went ahead to investigate Anwar questioned and detained? Ibrahim for sodomy even though Doesn’t this indicate that there • Aliran would like to know there were allegedly medical re- was a plot to vilify him and con- whether the police is brave ports confirming that there was vict him on false charges? If the enough to make public the ex- no basis for their action. police had acted professionally, isting reports from hospital would they have gone ahead Puswari and Hospital Kuala According to the medical report with what they had done unnec- Lumpur in order to end the in the possession of , essarily putting to risk their rumours circulating that these Saiful was never sodomised by reputation and credibility? Or reports have indeed vindicated anyone, least of all by Anwar were they taking instructions Anwar Ibrahim. Ibrahim. Dr Mohamed Osman from politicians who felt threat- Hamid from the Hospital Pusrawi ened and therefore were bent on • Aliran would like to know in had confirmed this fact after destroying Anwar to preserve the event when these reports physically examining Saiful on 28 their power base? are verified as true and genu- June 2008. ine whether the police would The whole sodomy episode reeks forthwith drop all charges Yet four hours later, Saiful made with injustice and stinks to high against Anwar and stop a police report at the police heaven. This sordid affair brings hounding him as if he has a pondok in Hospital Kuala to mind something that was said case to answer. Lumpur that Anwar had long ago, “Of all injustice, that is sodomised him. At 6pm on that the greatest which goes under the • Aliran would like to know day, Saiful went to Hospital Kuala name of law, and of all sorts of when it is established that Lumpur for his second medical tyranny the forcing of the letter of Saiful had made a false report examination which, according to the law against equity, is the most to the police whether he would an unverified report by Raja Petra, insupportable.” be arrested and charged imme- also confirmed that Saiful was not diately. sodomised. Nevertheless, he made Under the circumstance, Aliran is his police report against Anwar. horrified and revolted that the • Aliran would like to know the police have seemingly paid scant unseen hands behind this epi- The police cannot claim that they respect to the rule of law. They owe sode who had apparently used were in the dark over the existence an explanation to the public. Saiful to frame Anwar for their of these reports. In any case po- political survival. lice are required to send victims • There are reports floating of rape or sodomy for a medical around that Dr Mohamed This matter has dragged on long examination to confirm the alle- Osman Hamid from the Hos- enough and it is time to bring it to gations and collect vital medical pital Pusrawi had gone miss- a closure without any further de- evidence for prosecution pur- ing because it is alleged that lay. Will the Prime Minister out of poses. he is being harassed to change respect for the dignity of the hu- the report to implicate Anwar. man being and in fairness to jus- When Saiful made that damning Aliran would like to know if tice display common decency in report against Anwar, he must this is true. setting up a Commission of In- have surely disclosed to the po- quiry to bring to book all those lice that such an examination had • Aliran would like to know who had tarnished our nation already been carried out by doc- whether the medical report in with their nefarious activities tors. That being the case, the po- the possession of Malaysiakini which had brought to question lice would have obtained these apparently from Hospital the credibility of our police force? reports and must be fully aware Pusrawi and signed by Dr that the police report made by Mohamed Osman Hamid is P Ramakrishnan Saiful was therefore without any genuine and a true and faith- President merit. ful copy of the original report 29 July 2008

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Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 39 POLITICS A second prosecution of Anwar Ibrahim? Is it in the national interest? by Tommy Thomas

efore the powers that be rush into a second pros- BBB ecution of Anwar Ibrahim for alleged sod- omy arising from the recent com- plaint by Mohd Saiful, it is criti- cal for a dispassionate public de- bate to be conducted as to whether such a prosecution would serve the public interest. It would be convenient to begin with the im- pact of such criminal proceedings on the administration of justice.

A. The Administration of Justice The starting point is the previous prosecution of Anwar for sodomy Anwar addressing his supporters in 1998 which imposed incredible strains on our legal system, and made Malaysia the laughing stock in the legal world. It would be sufficient to remind ourselves of the conduct of the prosecution in the 1998 case, the unfair publicity given by the mass media, the de- nial of bail, the “irrelevant” rulings by the trial judge, the conduct of the trial itself, the amendment of the charges, the shameful parad- ing of the mattress, the expungement of “inconvenient” evidence, the finding of guilty, the lengthy sentence, the appeal to the Court of Appeal, and finally the appeal to the Federal Court.

Continued on page 28 An enthusiastic crowd greeting Anwar

Aliran Monthly : Vol.28(6) Page 40