Sunday 31 March 2013

For our beloved country Malaysia.

謝謝我的詩人好友王濤記得我即將飛回瑞士的回程日期並致電給我鼓勵並獻上他誠摯的祝福。

This week is already my 8th week back to Malaysia. I am counting my time to fly back to Switzerland as scheduled. Nevertheless, I still intend to fly back to cast my vote in person in Malaysia when election is called.

In the evening two days ago i felt tired thinking of the hours sitting in the plane as well as the hours waiting at the transit airport. I wonder how exhausted my body would be when i fly back again. I say to myself: Yes, some people may not be able to understand why i am so stubborn and i see my single vote is such a big matter, even i myself also think i am silly as the airfare is really not cheap, i will still insist to do it: Fly back to cast my vote in person in Malaysia. Not for anyone, but to be responsible to my own conscience and my own heart: I want Malaysia and my fellow Malaysians to live in a clean, safe and green land that they have long deserved.

Few days ago, my German husband and i spoke over Skype. He has to fly to New York on the 3rd week of April whilst our house is expecting a French exchange student and thus our house would need an adult to take care of the French teenager. We have to discuss the plan due to the possibility of me flying back to Malaysia on short notice when election is announced.

Yes, i am one of many Malaysians whose life have been putting on hold for the upcoming election that has yet to to be announced.

Still, we must be patient and stay calm because we aspire to have our country Malaysia to go through a legal and peaceful transition of Change which is in the coming general election.

I miss my husband. I have not been away from him for these long since our marriage. Also, thinking of the inconvenience of not knowing when is the time i have to fly back again whilst it is a fact that i have a life to conduct in a foreign land, i tell myself: INI Kalilah! The upcoming general election is the only time i must be persistent to vote for the sake of my home country. 

******

王濤:  

 如果你有感动,请协助传分享——
(我的朋友离开丈夫,从瑞士回国已2个月,却等候不到宣布解散国会进行大选,后天就要飞回雪山之国;感到很无奈,但是她说,她一定将再飞回来,回来投票, 亲自投下自己的民主一票,虽然需要花费许多金钱、精神和时间,她希望我们国家走上真正的民主,建立健全的民主体系——她告诉我,她不愿欺骗自己的生命和信 念!朋友,如果你放弃了最基本的投票权,未来岁月,你如何向自己交代?——向这位爱国女性致敬!用我写的诗,共勉励。)

致母亲马来西亚
——第十二届全国大选

/ 王涛
今天,母亲,您要比昨天更漂亮
三月春雨刚刚降落,母亲
我们挂起了心房的明灯
尽管脚下道路崎岖
飘摇风雨雷吼......
母亲,我们醒来了
我们本来就是这大地的主人
拥有民主的投票权利
MAKKAL SHAKTI人民的力量
因为爱您,母亲
——团结!我们拨散烟霾
大地是那么美好
蓝天白云——
听,我们真挚的诉求
高歌飘扬风中
母亲,您一直都是最漂亮的
50岁的您,母亲
您的智慧教导我们
要诚恳、勤奋、
要相亲相爱
贯彻民主......
在这地球,母亲
我们充满和乐 自信
我们都是您爱护的孩子
我们叫马来西亚人
活着,明天有希望
今天,母亲,您让我们感到漂亮。
谢谢妈妈!

2008-3-9

Tuesday 26 March 2013

Penang Municipal Council wins Best Municipality Award by Europe Business Assembly

I look forward to seeing Malaysia, and not only Penang, to be competitive in the international arena. Malaysia is (or at the moment "can be") one of the best countries in the world. Malaysians at home/abroad, let us come out/fly back to vote: Restore what Malaysia has long deserved!

******

Double boost for council
The Star, March 26, 2013


PENANG Municipal Council (MPPP) president Datuk Patahiyah Ismail, who was the first woman in the country to head a local authority in 2010, has added another feather to her cap.

She has just being awarded the Best Municipal Manager by the Europe Business Assembly (EBA).

EBA is a UK-based independent corporation for development and management of economic, social and humanitarian collaboration.

Besides Patahiyah, EBA also bestowed the MPPP with the Best Municipality Award.

Patahiyah said she received an email from the EBA on Friday to inform her about the two awards in the Sphere of City and Administrative Management categories.

“I’m truly honoured. It is the first time in MPPP’s history that we are bestowed with such prestigious awards,” she added.

She said this after officiating the newly upgraded Datuk Keramat field (Padang Brown) on Sunday.

She said the awards were in recognition of the city’s reputation, the effective management of the city, its constant growth and its attractiveness to tourists.

The presentation of the awards will take place on July 1 and July 2 in Montreux, Switzerland.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng commended Patahiyah on showing great performance in her job over the past years.

However, he also noted that some MPPP staffers still carried with them the “old mindset” and were reluctant to work harder.

Patahiyah said some of the personnel were reluctant to put in extra hours in their work.

“Nowadays, our phones are switched on all the time and if we receive complaints during weekends or even at night, we have to be at the site to inspect the situation.

“This year, we will upgrade two more fields in Lebuh Nipah 2 and Balik Pulau Sports Complex,” she said.

She added that MPPP would create several pocket parks, namely in Jesselton Crescent, Macallum Street and Taman Bukit Kukus/Jalan Beriksa in Bandar Baru Air Itam.


全馬首個獲殊榮‧檳島市局芭蒂希雅入圍EBA最佳榮耀


(檳城)檳島市政局憑著高執行力,促進島上的蓬勃發展,進而帶動投資及旅遊業,獲得歐洲商業議會(Europe Business Assembly,簡稱EBA)提名“最佳市政局";檳島市政局主席拿督芭蒂希雅則被提名成為“最佳市長"!

芭蒂希雅7月飛瑞士
出席頒獎禮

這項全球性的頒獎禮將於7月1及2日在瑞士的蒙特勒(Montreux)舉行,芭蒂希雅證實,檳島是全馬第一個獲得如此榮譽的市政局,因此她將會親自飛到瑞士出席頒獎禮。

她昨日(24日)在出席柑仔園大操場修復工程竣工後,向媒體出示歐洲商業議會寄來的邀請函,該函件上闡明,檳島市政局經該會位於英國牛津的分析中心針對全 球多個旅遊景點在投資、旅遊及休閒機會的調查與評鑑之後,決定提名檳島市政局及市長芭蒂希雅成為“最佳市政局"以及“最佳市長"。

稱讚檳島市局效率高

該會盛讚檳島市政局高效率的管理,致使檳島在發展、旅遊及投資表現上成績亮眼。

頒獎禮舉辦的同時,歐洲商業議會也會舉辦一項高峰會議,屆時全球超過30個國家的市長、市政局代表、企業、旅遊業者、商會代表、金融業者、外交官等皆會出席。

林冠英:若民聯再執政檳
芭蒂希雅將續掌市局

對於芭蒂希雅帶領的檳島市政局,檳首長林冠英予以高度肯定,並揚言若民聯再執政檳州的話,芭蒂希雅將繼續成為市政局的掌舵人,領導檳城邁向更好的未來。

他也說,改革之路不易走,政府為了讓檳城變得更好,實行了不少政策,包括鎖車輪等,引起了不少反彈。除此之外,抱有舊思維的公務人員,也不斷地挑戰芭蒂希雅的領導。

“儘管如此,為了廣大人民的福祉,即便會流失選票,我們也要堅持走下去。"

芭蒂希雅:7天24小時候命
工作時間變長遭反彈

針對林冠英爆料,指芭蒂希雅遭挑戰一事,後者在受詢時笑說,在還沒有換政府以前,市政局的公務員每天下午5時就能準時下班,但現在已經大大不同,因此引起部份人的反彈。

“這幾年下來,大家的工作時間變長,變成每天24小時、每週7天都要準備工作。部門領導人的手機甚至不能關機,只要接到電話,即刻就要處理事情。"

另外,針對日前市政局被指責對發展商發出停工令後,卻沒有嚴格執行,導致工地繼續有人開工一事,芭蒂希雅回應時否認這項指控,並解釋:“發展商接到停工令 之後,市政局必定會嚴格監控。他們會在工地開工,是因為必須依照規定作出修正,過後,我們才會收回有關停工令。"(星洲日報/大北馬)


Friday 22 March 2013

TV Coverage In Canada, As Taibs' Wealth is Exposed



 
***********
 
 



Richer Than The Queen! Top TV Coverage In Canada, As Taibs’ Wealth is Exposed

4 Dec 2011

Prime Time TV – Global News Canada 7.30pm Saturday

The campaign to expose the corruption behind the deforestation and land grabs in Sarawak has received a top TV billing on Canada’s Global News station.

During a prime-time slot aired on Saturday night’s 16X9 programme, investigative reporter Sean O’Shea focused on the massive property portfolio that has been developed in Ottawa, London and the US under the name of Jamilah Taib, the Chief Minister’s oldest daughter [see 'Family Trees' 16X9 Global TV]
Threats – Sean Murray has falsely accused Sarawak Report of being funded by Malaysian opposition parties !
This means that for the first time the questions about the money laundering of Taib’s corrupt kickbacks have been publicly raised in North America.

In response Sean (Hisham) Murray, Jamilah’s husband, threatened Sarawak Report.  he stated “Jamilah and I find these statements about ourselves and our business false, highly defamatory and very damaging.”  However, the couple refused to be interviewed by the programme.

Devastating report on the Taib family’s company ownerships
The show was aired just before the publication of a separate, devastating ‘blacklist’ of Taib family companies by Switzerland’s Bruno Manswer Foundation, now available online.

BMF’s Stop Timber Corruption Report  lays out extensive research into the Taib family’s company ownerships in Sarawak, Malaysia and elsewhere.

It  establishes that Taib and his immediate family (his children, siblings and cousin Hamed Sepawi) have beneficial shares in more than 330 companies in Malaysia alone.  In many of these companies they also act as the controlling directors.

The Taibs also have a further 80 companies in 25 countries across the world including Australia, the UK, US, Canada, New Zealand, Jersey, Hong Kong, British Virgin Islands, Fiji, Cayman Islands, Indonesia, India, Jersey, Saudi Arabia, Labuan, Cambodia, Brunei, China, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam !

Richer than the Queen – assets of at least one and a half billion US dollars !
BMF’s ‘Stop Timber Corruption’ campaign is cornering Taib with allegations he has proved unable to anwer to a growing body of international critics
 
 
BMF acknowledges that this research only covers publicly available information from Malaysia’s Register of Companies and other official company registers.

This means it is likely to represent just a fraction of the Taibs’ actual wealth.

However, by calculating just the share values of 14 of the major companies on this list, they have estimated a total worth of one and a half billion US dollars (4.6 billion Malaysian ringgit).

Not counting their more hidden wealth, this puts the Taib family firmly into the category of one of the richest families in the world and makes them far richer than the Queen of England (whose assets are a mere half billion pounds).

Proceeds of corruption
Given that it can be clearly demonstrated that the majority of these Taib family companies have made their wealth from the receipt of contracts from the Sarawak State Government and land grants from the Sarawak State Government, it is impossible to deny that this wealth has come from the proceeds of corruption by Taib, who is Chief Minister, Finance Minister and Planning Minister of the Sarawak State Government!

My family only do business outside the country!
Business women or just beneficiaries? - Taib's oldest daughter Jamilah (who has interests in over 84 companies in Sarawak) and youngest sister Raziah (who has oil palm concessions greater than the size of Singapore).


All this from a man who had the brass-necked cheek to declare in a recorded interview just a short while ago that his family only does business outside the country, to avoid “being hounded” by accusations of using his political influence to enrich himself! [see Taib's claim]

So, sadly, we have to add liar to the list of Taib Mahmud’s numerous crimes.

Stolen
The wealth of the Taibs represents the wealth of the natural resources belonging to the people of Sarawak, which the Chief Minister has taken by cheating his people.  It is the value of their timber and their lands.

There is also the immense value of Sarawak’s oil, which is treated by Malaysia’s BN party as a national secret!

International disgrace
What rubies! - Taib's latest dependent, his new bride, decked in priceless rubies

The MACC (Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission) will continue to fail to proceed against Taib.  Their instructions are to torment him with their investigations, but not to rock BN’s 100% control over Sarawak’s vital federal votes.

Of course, Taib maintains this grip on Sarawak’s votes through deeply corrupt practices, which recently caused 50 thousand people in Kuala Lumpur to come out on the streets calling for free and fair elections.

Shamefully, BN have just responded to those calls at the Bersih 2 rally by bringing in laws to prevent more than 3 people gathering together in a public place without a permit!

So just in the same way that the international community are waking up to Taib, it is also waking up to BN’s corruption and repression in Malaysia.  Taib is going to find it harder to do his business abroad in future and BN are going to find it harder to find people prepared to speak up for them internationally.

But, wake up Sarawak!  In the end this man is your responsiblity, so don’t let West Malaysia’s BN Party keep treating you like meek children.  Get rid of him!


 

Tuesday 19 March 2013

Government theft in Cyprus – what it means for your money

The article serves as an alert to Malaysians.

From "Money Morning" with the title of "Government theft in Cyprus – what it means for your money.":

Here’s a scenario for you.

You wake up one morning. Over the radio, you hear that the government has said that all the banks are bust. Everyone is going to have to sacrifice 10% of their savings to bail the system out. It’s the only solution.

Now, you’ve only got £20,000 in the bank. You know up to £85,000 is insured under the nation’s deposit protection scheme. So you think you’re covered.

Not so. Turns out the 10% fee is a tax. A ‘wealth’ tax, if you like.

So you lose £2,000 of your savings anyway, even although you thought you were playing by the rules.

Sound unfair? I’m sure the residents of Cyprus would agree with you. Because that’s exactly what happened to them this weekend.

JomBalikUndi from Bersih Singapore

Good news, everybody! We've managed to liaise with Easibook (buses from Sg to My), CatchThatBus (My to Sg and within My, so tell your friends), and AirAsia (flights) to arrange for discounted tickets to go back for GE13. Details here: http://balikundi.bersihsingapore.com/


【新加坡的大马公民,回家投票吧!】

Jom Balik Undi 和easibook.com(从新加坡回马来西亚)以及catchthatbus.com(从马来西亚去新加坡)合作推出优惠巴士车票供所有在新加坡的大马公民回家参与全国第13届大选投票。

Easibook 和CatchThatBus 也承诺每售出一张车票 (新元 / 马币) 将捐出 1元 / 1令吉 予 Mari Kita Membaca —— 一项为马来西亚乡区及落后地区儿童提供免费书籍的计划。

有兴趣者,请到此网站登记以索取你的优惠码 - http://balikundi.bersihsingapore.com/

更多详情或任何查询, 请浏览联系 - balikundi.bersihsingapore.com

【您知道吗?】

1)新加坡是海外最多大马人聚集的国家
2)在新加坡工作/ 定居的大马人有约30万
3)占海外大马人数的90% 以上
4)其中柔佛州的公民占最高比例
5)柔佛被列为改朝的前线州,新加坡大马人手中的一票将在全国第13届大选起着关键作用
6)无数的可疑选民,幽灵和外劳遍布全马各州,我们的每一票都很重要
7)定居在新加坡大马公民不符合申请为邮寄选民的条件,必须亲自回国投票

投票是宪法赋予公民的权利,也是我们应履行的责任。不要试图逃避,你现在住的房屋,穿的衣服,开的车子,吃的饭菜,玩的游戏等等等等,都是渗透着行政力量的结果,不要畏于眼前的权势,关心政治,参与并决定自己的命运!

BIG NEWS! We've partnered with Easibook (Singapore to Malaysia) and CatchThatBus (Malaysia to Singapore, and within Malaysia) who will be arranging chartered buses when GE13 is announced. 

For those who prefer a more flexible option, Easibook is also offering a discount on express bus bookings for GE travellers. Click below to sign up for your charter bus or discount code! 
http://balikundi.bersihsingapore.com/
 
【新加坡的大马公民,回家投票吧!】

Jom Balik Undi 和easibook.com(从新加坡回马来西亚)以及catchthatbus.com(从马来西亚去新加坡)合作推出优惠巴士车票供所有在新加坡的大马公民回家参与全国第13届大选投票。

Easibook 和CatchThatBus 也承诺每售出一张车票 (新元 / 马币) 将捐出 1元 / 1令吉 予 Mari Kita Membaca —— 一项为马来西亚乡区及落后地区儿童提供免费书籍的计划。

有兴趣者,请到此网站登记以索取你的优惠码 - http://balikundi.bersihsingapore.com/

更多详情或任何查询, 请浏览联系 - balikundi.bersihsingapore.com

【您知道吗?】

1)新加坡是海外最多大马人聚集的国家
2)在新加坡工作/ 定居的大马人有约30万
3)占海外大马人数的90% 以上
4)其中柔佛州的公民占最高比例
5)柔佛被列为改朝的前线州,新加坡工作的大马人手中的一票将在全国第13届大选起着关键作用
6)无数的可疑选民,幽灵和外劳遍布全马各州,我们的每一票都很重要
7)定居在新加坡大马公民不符合申请为邮寄选民的条件,必须亲自回国投票

投票是宪法赋予公民的权利,也是我们应履行的责任。不要试图逃避,你现在住的房屋,穿的衣服,开的车子,吃的饭菜,玩的游戏等等等等,都是渗透着行政力量的结果,不要畏于眼前的权势,关心政治,参与并决定自己的命运!

BIG NEWS! We've partnered with Easibook (Singapore to Malaysia) and CatchThatBus (Malaysia to Singapore, and within Malaysia) who will be arranging chartered buses when GE13 is announced.

For those who prefer a more flexible option, Easibook is also offering a discount on express bus bookings for GE travellers. Click below to sign up for your charter bus or discount code!
http://balikundi.bersihsingapore.com/




Swiss President Orders an Investigation into Taib’s Assets!


《砂拉越报告》揭露,瑞士总统米俏丽(Micheline Calmy-Rey)已指示瑞士金融执法机构FINMA (the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority) 彻查砂拉越首长泰益@白毛于瑞士境内所拥有资产与户口,这包括可能冻结这些资产与户口。

Swiss President Orders an Investigation into Taib’s Assets! 

 Exclusive carried by Sarawak Report.

http://www.sarawakreport.org/2011/05/swiss-president-orders-an-investigation-into-taibs-assets-exclusive/.

12 May 2011

 

In a fullsome letter to the Swiss-based NGO, the Bruno Manser Foundation, the President of the Swiss Federation Micheline Calmy-Rey has revealed that she has forwarded information about Taib Mahmud’s assets in Switzerland to the regulatory body FINMA (the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority) for investigation.

Calmy-Rey (pictured left at the Davos World Economic Forum, which is hosted annually in Switzerland) is the country’s Head of State.

The letter, sent on April 8th, is revealingly entitled: “Freezing of possible assets of Abdul Taib Mahmud, head of government of the Malaysian state of Sarawak, in Switzerland”.

In the letter the Swiss President makes clear that the country’s authorities take extremely seriously the concerns that have been raised internationally about Taib’s profiteering from timber corruption and are unhappy that such assets may have been invested in Switzerland.



Letter from the President of the Swiss Federation entitled "Freezing of possible assets of Abdul Taib Mahmud, head of government of the Malaysian state of Sarawak, in Switzerland"

Praise for the Bruno Manser Foundation
The President begins by thanking the Bruno Foundation for its commitment to the fight against corruption.  The foundation was set up in memory of Bruno Manser, the Swiss environmental campaigner who mysteriously disappeared in Sarawak after years of campaigning against logging on behalf of the indigenous Penan tribespeople.  It has recently  spearheaded an international anti-timber corruption campaign, which saw demonstrations outside a number of  property assets linked to the Chief Minister across the globe, including London, Seattle, San Francisco, Tasmania, Sydney, Adelaide and Ottawa.



One of the protests - in Sydney

The Bruno Manser Foundation had also pointed out that Taib Mahmud is believed to have invested heavily in the Swiss Banking system and has a family member married to a Swiss national (Elia Geneid), who has profited from a contested alienation of Native Customary Rights Lands.  Taib is believed to have invested a great deal in the once secretive Swiss banks over past decades, although, following recent reforms, he has more recently focussed his attention on Monaco which remains famously lax on the matter of money-laundering.

Prince Albert of Monaco 'goes native' in Mulu, while a guest of Taib last year.

Indeed, the Taib family has publicly fostered its relations with Prince Albert of Monaco over the past couple of years,  including heavily sponsoring the Prince’s own Foundation, which is meant to serve the interests of the environment!

Prince Albert enjoyed a luxury visit only last year to the Mulu Resort, which is owned largely by the Taib family, after the region was forcibly requisitioned from the native Berawan tribe.

The entire surrounding jungle has already been cut down, thanks to Taib, and is now faced with large-scale flooding, owing to his latest plans to dam most of the rivers of Sarawak.  This is all part of the so-called SCORE project, which promises to further hugely enrich Taib’s own family businesses.

As a result, the UN has already made clear that it is actively considering withdrawing the World Heritage status that was originally conferred on the Mulu site.  Concerns such as this, along with recent exposes about the Taib family landgrabs and wider corruption, has clearly been feeding in to the international perception of Abdul Taib Mahmud and his 30 year domination over Sarawak.


English translation
English translation of the letter from the President of the Swiss Federation to the Bruno Manser Foundation.

 

Key letter


In the letter to the Bruno Manser Foundation the President of the Swiss Confederation states that she is referring to a letter mentioning:
“the suspected overseas assets of the head of government of the Malaysian state of  Sarawak, Abdul Taib Mahmud, and of persons from his entourage”.
The letter goes on to thank the foundation for its “comittment against corruption” and confirms the comittment of the Swiss state also to the “restitution of potentates’ embezzled funds to the respective countries”.  Calmy also points out that Switzerland has already restituted 1.7 billion Swiss Franks in such fashion (admittedly this sum only represents a small fraction of the suspected value of Abdul Taib Mahmud’s suspected personal wealth):
“The fight against corruption and the restitution of potentates’ embezzled funds to the respective countries is also of great concern to the Swiss government“, writes Calmy-Rey in the lengthy and personally signed letter. “For years, we have been fighting for a clean financial centre, e.g. with a comprehensive anti-money laundering legislation which contains far-reaching due diligence and reporting obligations for the financial institutions, particularly concerning funds from politically exposed persons (PEP). If, despite these precautionary measures, assets of criminal origin should get to Switzerland, these assets are to be identified and, if possible, restituted to the countries in question. By applying such measures, Switzerland has, during the last 15 years, restituted approximately 1.7 billion Swiss franks, more than any other financial centre of comparable size”.
Switzerland gets clean
In the letter the Swiss President makes clear that she has fully absorbed the issues raised by the anti-timber corruption campaign and that the matter is taken extremely seriously by this, one of the world’s top banking centres and a facility which has been used by Taib to manage his finances.  She confirms that she has formally passed on the matter to FINMA, the powerful Swiss authority charged with investigating money-laundering.

good intentions and progress, Swiss President will initiate a key investigation.
We can further report that FINMA has already contacted the Bruno Manser Foundation to acknowlege that it has been tasked with an investigation into Taib Mahmud’s assets and will be proceeding with that investigation.



FINMA has followed up the President's instructions and informed the Bruno Manser Foundation that it will be investigating Taib Mahmud's assets in Switzerland.

Key role of the Malaysian Government
Calmy-Rey in her letter also makes clear that under international money-laundering agreements the burden remains on the Malaysian Government to make a request to Switzerland to freeze potentially illegal assets. Otherwise, countries such as Switzerland might normally be constrained to wait until Taib has been ousted.

On the other hand the Swiss President specifically refers in her letter to the recent freezing of assets belonging to the potentates of Lybia, Egypt and Tunisia, which have been possible under existing provisions of Swiss legislation.

Demonstration against Taib in London earlier this year.
 
The question is whether Najib Razak will be prepared to move against his key fundraiser?  Taib dominates BN as “the tail that wags the dog” in Malaysia, because of his ability to deliver key seats through his dictatorial control over Sarawak’s “rotten” rural seats.
If Najib fails to do act, in the face of an investigation and requests by the Swiss authorities, this alone will become a contentious issue.

Signed by the President of the Swiss Confederation

 

***********
 

 

Monday 18 March 2013

A poem in Malay Language

written by Pakatan Menuju Ke-Putrajaya:
 


BN/UMNO GILA KUASA?

Hari ini tak ada cerita,
Yang ada hanya dusta,
BN/Umno gila kuasa,
Hanya tinggal tunggu masa,
Sekarang mereka berkuasa,
Mereka tak takut dengan dosa,
Sanggup memfitnah sesama bangsa,
Asalkan mereka dapat kuasa,
Kuasa rakyat sudah membara,
Untuk menumbangkan BN/UMNO durjana,
PRU 13 Rakyat akan rehatkan mereka selama lamanya.

Bersih Shanghai: Updates on "Fly Back to Vote Campaign"

 
UPDATES ON “FLY BACK TO VOTE CAMPAIGN”

Up to end of last week (17 March), we have received:
* 82 entries on the “FLY Back” list
* 62 of them applied for the RMB500 subsidy
* Due to the limited fund which could only subsidise 46 persons and based on first-come, first-serve basis, we have to put the remaining 16 of the applicants on our waiting list

We again urge all Malaysians abroad to fly back to vote for the upcoming GE13, for our Country and for our future. Inclusive political institutions in support of inclusive economic institutions will decide the successes or failures of the nations, we believe that the coming 13th General Election is an extremely important factor deciding whether Malaysia is growing prosperous or fail because politics determines what institutions a Country has.

There are still many Malaysians in China who wish to come back to vote but less affordable; following this special subsidy, we hope more people could now fly back to vote, and we would like to reiterate that the subsidy is for those who are less affordable especially the students and young graduates.

We also like to thank the contributors who make the Campaign a success. We will still continue the Campaign and we believe there will be more people require the support to go back, especially after the Parliament is dissolved.

DETAILS:
A) Below is the list of the 46 early applicants:

Nick 87********47/ Johnson Liu 70********69/ CYWong 79********11/ Shum 53********65/
Ann 60********52/ PAUL 80********11/ Rebecca Kheng 81********56/ Liew Sial Siun 82********85/ dennis 83********61/ CJ Lim 66********15/ Andy Yong 86********09/ Ivan Tan 78********87/ John teoh 84********39/ Siou 84********01/ kingkongyen 80********51/ ALEX 83********93/ ndrewy 79********37/ Sanny Wang 77********49/ Anthony Ng 73********21/ Ms. Hii 84********38/ B.Tan 86********33/ SENG SENG 87********05/ cp 75********07/ yk 75********28/ skyper 72********87/ Janette 80********42/ Celine 90********42/ Quincy Yau 76********02/ yth001 74********57/ SFO 86********94/ KAM DE ZHENG 81********41/ Lim Cheng Ghee 78********67/ Emily Lam 79********10/ EVONNE SIEW 87********72/ Radio Woon 83********49/ ONG CHEW EE 88********60/ ONG CHEE CHING 87********91/ KC 76********53/ CHAN 71********17/ pmoo 76********05/
Alfred 80********45/ Lau Seng Chiat 90********55/ Irene Woon 59********12/ Yiheang 90********58 / TK 60********45 / toqueZz 79********62

B) The procedures of airfare subsidy reimbursement:

Before departing to Malaysia from Mainland:
Send e-ticket / itinerary copy within 5-working days after the election date is announced to bersihshanghai@gmail.com. The election date must fall during your departing and returning dates.
After returning from Malaysia to Mainland:
Send the scanned copy / photo of boarding pass to bersihshanghai@gmail.com to claim the subsidy. The organizer will bank in the reimburse amount within 7-working days from the date of receiving boarding pass.

If you already register for the subsidy but your name is not on above list, please also do the above, i.e. send us the e-ticket and boarding pass as we might either get more sponsor or some of the applicants fail to provide the above and the subsidy will go to the next on the waiting list.


 
19 March 2013: NOW EVERYONE CAN FLY!

Following our announcement yesterday on the shortage of fund and 16 applicants were on the waiting list, we receive a contribution commitment of RMB10,000 from Mr. Rocky Loke today!

As such, with the total RMB33,100 of fund, we can now subsidy all the 62 applicants plus 4 more persons.

Now everyone can fly! All 62 applicants can now get the RMB500/person subsidy (conditions apply)!

Thank you to the Campaign contributors:
1. Mr. Liew: RMB5,000
2. Mr. Guan: RMB5,000
3. Mr. Chew: RMB3,000
4. Mr. Lew: RMB1,000
5. Ms Suan: RMB1,000
6. Mr. Chay: RMB100
7. Mr. Tan: RMB500
8. Mr. Por: RMB500
9. Ah Hin: RMB5,000
10. Mr. Chan: RMB1,000
11. Mr. Hoo: RMB500
12. Mr. Wong: RMB500
13. Mr. Rocky Loke: RMB10,000

Sunday 17 March 2013

Rights of the Dead: Teoh Beng Hock


How could one who had scheduled for his wedding as his fiance expecting the delivery of their baby be possible to commit suicide!?



Note: Should the video displayed on the blog is slow, kindly click the icon of "YouTube" on the particular video box to watch directly in youtube.com.
 

English version:



Malay version:





Chinese version:


Abstracts from Wikipedia:
Teoh Beng Hock (趙明福1979–16 July 2009) was a Malaysian journalist and political aide to Ean Yong Hian Wah, a member of the Selangor state legislative assembly and state executive council. On 15 July 2009, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) took Teoh into custody for questioning about allegations of corruption. Teoh was found dead the next morning on the rooftop of a building adjacent to the MACC offices. Pakatan Rakyat leaders and a number of federal government officials have called for a Royal Commission of inquiry into Teoh's death.

Sequence of events
MACC officials claimed that the interrogation had lasted for about 9 hours. According to the MACC also, Teoh was freed at 3.45am—however without proper explanation, his possessions, including his mobile phone, remained in MACC custody. MACC officials also claimed that Teoh asked to stay the night at the MACC office, and was claimed to be last seen alive around 6am. Teoh was found dead at 1.30pm later in the day. The investigation had been into allegations that Ean Yong had paid RM2,400 for flags to be used in Merdeka Day celebrations, but not taken delivery of the flags. Teoh's colleagues who had also been questioned claimed that they were put under pressure from MACC officers, including being denied access to legal counsel and food or drink. Teoh's mobile phone was still in the possession of MACC officials when he was found dead at 1.30pm despite the MACC's claims that Teoh was released at 3.45am. The mobile phone was later handed to the police for investigation.
One of Teoh's colleagues, Tan Boon Wah, later filed suit against the MACC for false imprisonment. In the case, Tan Boon Wah v. Datuk Seri Ahmad Said Hamdan, Ketua Suruhanjaya, Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia and Others, the High Court ruled that because Tan was interrogated after normal working hours, he had been subject to false imprisonment, and ordered the MACC to pay him damages. Tan's lawyer, Karpal Singh, said that Teoh's family could also sue the MACC for damages, citing this ruling. Democratic Action Party Parliamentary leader and former Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang lamented that "Teoh Beng Hock would not have died if MACC had followed the law" and interrogated him during the day. 


Teoh's family and others have called the MACC's version of events into question. When the investigating officer involved briefed the MACC's advisory board, several members of the board "asked why he chose to stay back. Any detainee would have run for his life! The investigating officer replied that since Teoh wanted to stay back, he allowed it." During this briefing it also emerged that no official records of Teoh's detention or his release existed. In August, a video of men in uniform assaulting a man in their custody began circulating as a supposed video of Teoh's interrogation. The Bukit Aman federal police headquarters denied the men were police personnel. The video had previously been circulated in June as a supposed example of police interrogation techniques, ruling out the possibility of it involving Teoh. A political observer attributed the video's popularity to the government's failing to provide adequate clarification about the circumstances of Teoh's interrogation: "The authorities are shedding little light about what happened to Teoh. This allows rumour mongers to spread ridiculous things."

Justice must be sought!

Saturday 16 March 2013

Valencia, Spain


Although i live in Switzerland now, i very much want to see the progress of Malaysia because it is forever my motherland. Indeed, Malaysia has the best quality to be one of the greatest countries in the world. I hope with me having lived and having travelled some parts of the world, my exposure is able to offer some suggestions to the nation building of my home country Malaysia

I visited Valencia, Spain in November 2011. Before I flew there, I thought Valencia is merely a fishing village. Later, Valencia has become the most impressive city for me. I am impressed not only with her culture, history, architecture, but indeed how a fishing village is able to turn herself successfully into an attractive city with lots to offer, not only to the locals, but also to the international tourists.

While Spain is bothered by its sovereignty debt, Valencia does not seem to be affected. Valencia is still vibrant with developments and tourists´ visits. 


(1) Tourism
I could see the efforts of the local government in its city structure with conveniently available and affordable public transport including the allocation of tourist buses that split into three major paths connecting all tourism spots with the availability of tourist information through earphones in 8 languages.

The facility of tourist buses that are available every 30 minutes and connect to major tourism spots make the journey hassle-less.  

Tourism brings in foreign money, creates job opportunities to the locals, and also enriches the city´s metropolital culture.


The availability of tourism buses provided by the state government, with reasonable price, offers tourists the convenient of going around major tourism spots. The convenience gives tourists a peace of mind along their travels and thus be able to attract more to visit.

Besides, bicycles on rent are available on the streets. Tourist can make reservation online, pick up the bicycle at the designed point and return the bicycle at any located bicycle points in the city.  

(2) Town planning
Valencia is well preserved with her history, culture, food and green nature. Valencia is basically constructed to new city center and old city center, making Valencia offer comprehensive needs.

Valencia is filled with museums (Ocean Museum, Arts & Science Museum, Ceramics Museum, History Museum, Natural Sciences Museum, Museum of Ethnology exploring social change in Valencia over time). All built in artistic architecture designs. Indeed, Valencia will not be bored to any age. Thus, Valencia is a good destination for family with young children as well, as those museums are made to be interesting and not boring, to be educational to adults as well as children.   














Besides new buildings, Valencia maintains her ancient buildings well also.







(3) Environmental preservation
Valencia suffered a severe flood in 1957. The Valencia government decided to divert the course of the river. The old river bed, which its water is already diverted to the new river bed, has been turned into a 9km green belt surrounded by ancient walls and buildings. The Turia old river bed is another jewel of Valencia. 




The fertile soil of the riverbed quickly gave life to a lush garden. One will not be able to realize that the garden was a river bed because the place is filled with trees, parks and has also a football field. One can enjoy walking along the green belt with being embraced with its unlost warmth and sunny tranquility. The Valencia government went further and developed the riverbed into an entire world of leisure and culture. There are numerous playgrounds and sports areas, fountains and well-trimmed arty gardens. The river bed is always full of people, there is something for everyone.


 












Indeed, the whole Valencia is filled with green. The easily available green parks planted with green trees and fruit trees make the city life cozier. 














You may check out for more info at the website http://www.valencia-cityguide.com/






I recommended a friend of mine who is originally from Africa, worked in Middle East and lives now in Germany to visit Valencia with bringing his 14-year-old son. Unexpectedly, after his one week visit, he told me that he has straight away bought an apartment by the sea in Valencia! 


I hope my sharing here is able to provide some suggestions in the nation building of Malaysia as well as to save those representatives from travelling around to "get inspired". 

And please...no more Toyo who had been visiting Disneylands in several countries with even bringing family members and also maids!!!