PROTEST Govt Bailout OR PAY!!!

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 13 — Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim told Selangor residents today that they either protest or pay higher rates for water as his Pakatan Rakyat (PR) government launched a campaign against a potential bail-out of the privatised state utility.

The Selangor Mentri Besar kicked off the “Return water rights to the Selangor people” campaign which was attended by 500 people at the land office here, although they were aiming for 100,000 people to sign a memorandum to the King.

The state government plans to submit a memorandum to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on December 5 over the federal government’s possible bailout of Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas).

Khalid says protest or pay for Selangor water rates hike
- The Malaysian Insider

The "3rd Force" Conundrum .... and more bla,- Pt. 1

We are not forcing you to accept candidates we propose.
If you can do well enough without our help, well and fine.
If you want us to stay out of your affairs just say so.
Just give the word. Tell us to f^%# off and we will.
Then you will never hear from us again.
-RPK, So you want to rumble, let’s rumble

"Saya berharap Haris Ibrahim dan rakan – rakannya
dapat menjadi tulang belakang kepada pembentukan kuasa ketiga ini
dan menyokong Zaid Ibrahim untuk mengetuai kuasa ini."
-Shen Yee Aun, Demi Malaysia, Haris Ibrahim Harus Membantu Zaid ....
=========================

"Houston- we have a problem" .... Everybody is talking about it, but nobody seems to know anything about it!!

Yes- Everybody's going nuts over this much cliched ""3rd Force" thingie .... did you read the comments on MT in response to RPKs probing questions? Most were laughable- so much so, RPK deleted them!!! LOL!!

So what exactly is this "3rd Force"? Much like Najib's "1-Malaysia" thingie - many have different ideas about it, and most people think that it has to be a political party ....
Malaysian society matured enough as yet for a party like "Liberal Democrats", and we have numerous mosquitos (that suck the political life-blood out the country) waiting on the sidelines, for some money making scam/opportunity before & after every GE.
Come on, guys- haven't we had enough of political parties filled to the brim with crooks?
What we need is an actibve and enlightened civil society which can guide them along - nothing more.

Moving on- So what "two-party system" are we talking about? I think Nik Nazmi was way off the mark in asking to "Perfect the two-party system".
If anything, we seem to be headed for "Coalition Politics".
The difference is, we're hoping for two coalitions (which consist of parties with varying styles/opinions/convictions but understand the need to get to Putrajaya to make changes to the system) to compete for our votes- that's all.
Now that is not taking into account the many mosquito parties outside the coalitions, which have been set up to split votes (but support one or other when it suits them la).

Haris has been "doing the Spartacus" going to town whacking PKR out in the open.
Granted- giving them a little when required is warranted. Idealism is necessary. But let's not go overboard. Now, when we have a Mr. Pseudo-Intellectual/CronyCapitalist/PrincipledPolitics in the picture threatening to split the party - hold your horses, mate!!
He thinks he's "being fair & non-partisan" in his idealistic objectives. He's questioning & discrediting PKR which is already getting mauled by the MSM with the help of a "Mr Principled Politics with a healthy NEP/UMNO aided bank account".
You want "true-blue democracy" with everything hunky-dory in the party when it is creeping with rats & cockroaches? Get real, mate!!
What- you cannot live with a party that has its own "internal methods" of filtering out the many sleepers/Evelyn Salts/Trojan Horses? What do you hope to achieve? Have you forgotten history- when all the popular non-racist parties of the 1940-50s were hounded into oblivion by an aristocratic, elitist and small-minority party, who were collaborators with the colonialists? Now, you want an ange-white, all-perfect, idealistically optimum, purely democratic party to challenge this monster it is up against, is it?
Woi, brader- barger you .... wake up la- That exists only in dreams okay!!
Porah la- You thought all your political idols were angels is it? Bloody hell man- MLK, MalcolmX, JFK, Churchill, Nehru or Gandhi (and their goons)- for all their angelic philosophy would be laughing at you from their graves la!!
(Ooops!- Sorry for the lingo .... we are "1Malaysia" ... I "change my mode" okay ...)

Give it a break, mate- let them sort out their internal affairs before they move on to bigger things. At least they're attempting something positive.
[Note To all who have joined the PKR-bashing bandwagon:-
Remember that you talk & walk freely today BECAUSE OF WHAT YOU FOUGHT FOR- a strong opposition. Remember YOU did not vote for a democratic PKR- The democracy in PKR was, and is an aspiration, mind you!! Remember that it is imperative that UMNO goes down. ]

Don't they realize that they're still underdogs? Don't they realize that we need every person who can be an asset towards the goal of displacing UMNO? Don't they realize that they need DSAI/Azmin/LGE/Hadi/TGNA as the cornerstone of their struggle? Or have they developed delusions of grandeur through their "idealism" and purged pragmatism, realism ond politics out their aboral ends?
Mark my words- The next general elections will be staged amidst "heightened tensions" (staged or for real), simply becos there are those who wish to "defend Putrajaya even if it means crushed bodies"- and it would be a convenient excuse to suspend parliament and enforce Emergency (ala 513), "should the need arise".

As RPK said- "WE ARE THE THIRD FORCE", and we don't need to have a political hierarchy to "lead" us. We ARE a force to be reckoned with, even if Anwar doesn't think so anymore. We are a force to be reckoned with, even if PR thinks they can junk the People's Declaration.
However, I take exeption to RPK's tone of "tell us to f@&#-off and we will", okay - if I were RPK, I'd wait till they get to Putrajaya!!
Right now, Umno is having a ball of a time watching PKR/Anwar getting bitch-slapped & banged-up silly - and it affects sentiments/perception and confidence. Malaysians are political simpletons (yes- even the "kacang puteh" man/taxi-driver on the Trivandrum street can put them to shame)- People are confused. Especially when we have a Mr. Principled politics doling out idealistic hogwash which the many voters/idealist have lapped up.
That, my friend- is no good.
Right now, we have a goal to achieve- that's Putrajaya.
Even if they do get to Putrajaya in the next GE (despite the possibility, I'm not too optimistic as they don't seem to be able to come up with even a shadow cabinet- and if they do, it will be with a narrow margin) RPK can always tell them those words- with the help of Umno waiting to thrash the crap out of them.

Contrary to what "Mr. Principled Politics" said, PKR isn't just about Anwar- just because he's blinded by his envy and Anwar's "aura", he's come to that simplistic conclusion. It has taken a life of its own. It is more than Anwar. It is an "ideal" for a new polity devoid of UMNO, which isn't quite on a firm footing. It is the only force that can liberate "the Malay mind" right now. PKR is an "adolescent" in comparison to PAS and DAP, born under troubling circumstances- it is quite likely that it will need some "disciplining" now and then, but don't push it okay. You stand to lose all that you gained thus far.

"Give them a chance- We can kick them out in the next elections if ...." -Wasn't that what you said Pete- when we doubted PAS's commitment, when you stood by their "Islamic State" platform (in the early days of the debates on MT)? So what happened to that "Give them a chance?"? We gave PAS a chance- and they have made changes to adapt to national politics.
Now can you give a man a chance to get his house which is filled with creepy-crawlies, in order, before the next GE?

So drop the "F%#$-off" okay, Pete- let's work together to educate the masses on their rights, constitution and counter the lies spun by UMNO- notably their phanthom "social contract". Forget about the "leadership" for now- don't even "anoint" anyone. Haris as the "spokesperson" is fine. That (Leaders) will come with the credibility of those who make their stand over time.
THAT is the 3rd force you need- a people who can make an informed decision when they decide to vote for their candidates!! An educated electorate will be your third force- and let the intellectual debates guide them to make their choice. Throw a cat among the pigeons- let the debates begin. As for "change"- it can take any shape which the discussions will lean towards.
And Barisan Rakyat sounds good!!

RIGHT NOW- stay focussed, Pete .... the job at hand is to KICK OUT UMNO's RACE BASED POLITICS!!!

Now - Yee Aun and all those political juveniles who dream of "Mr. Principled Politics leading the third force", wake up, will you!!
You really don't know what you speak of, do you?
How do you know what the person is made of?
Simple- just look at his track record ....

(To be continued ...)

Fuyoh!!- The "Tight Discipline" we fear ....

“The reasons (for the low participation of non-Malays) could be
because of a fear towards a tight discipline.
It could be because of a low spirit of patriotism.
It could be because certain ethnic groups had a negative perception
of the armed forces and did not encourage participation,”

-Zahid Hamidi,
Why fewer non-Malays in military?
Low patriotism and fear of discipline, says ministry
======================================

Malaysians just don't understand...... The people are condemning him for his statement. Firstly, he's giving the reasons why he didn't join the army- what's wrong with that? Y'see when he's got such loose disclipline in making statements in parliament, how can he join the army? He'll end up being a loose cannon!!
He needs to get his screws tightened first, I suppose ...

Then comes the low level of patriotism.
His patriotism is proportional to the cashflow- and that you don't get when you're a lowdown officer, maah. That's why he chose to be in UMNO!! Clever, eh?
The patriotism he speaks of isn't actually to the nation/King as we might think - it is actually allegiance to UMNO's Ketuanan Melayu and its warlords he's talking about.

You wanna know what "tight discipline" he speaks of? The discipline he talks about is like this:-

- the discipline in letting discrimination and bigotry itself become an unspoken 'discipline' among comrades,
- the discipline in allowing people to dictate terms to you simply becos they are of a "privileged class" of morons,
- the discipline in letting some jobless hotshot/warlord/screwball/philanderer use army facilities/equipments/helicopters for his entertaiment/golfing adventures,
- the discipline in how armaments are taken out of the dept without records (call it an arms heist if you must),
- the great discipline required in sweeping scandals under the carpet,
- the discipline required to get jet engines going missing,
- the discipline in allowing C4 to be used for "Mongolian private enterprise",
- the discipline in not maintaining the arms but ordering sub-standard "new" arms/helicopters/submarines which are below specifications at exorbitant prices,
- the discipline in having nothing to show for the RM billions spent on making OPVs,
- the discipline required to cut corners and make military hospitals below specifications
- the discipline in allowing comrades to die in mishaps due to shoddy maintainance,
- the discipline in letting yourself become the scapegoat in scams perpetrated by superiors,
- the discipline in allowing the boss to make sure you vote BN/UMNO ,
- the discipline in holding the people at ransom,
- the discipline in making sure that the victims/scapegoats in undesirable events/occurances come from a certain ethnicity (other than Malay),
- the discipline in letting the "disciplined" guys be used by politicians to protect themselves from the rakyat,
- apparently some say, even the discipline in gun-running & subversive activities
- etc etc etc

Fuyoh- this is what I call "Discipline" lah macha ..... where else in the world can we get such discipline ah? Nowhere brader- only in Bolaysia ....
These are just "stories" (aka rumours) okay- you shouldn't listen to all these "malicious rumour mongering".
Those who do it are all jealous of UMNO's success at "defending the nation" from its enemies (don't ask me which enemy, okay) and are enemies of UMNO ... err, sorry... I meant- enemies of state. But a little bird said said that in Bolaysia, rumours are often proven to be true after the damage is done la ..... but that is no reason to have a "negative perception" of the defence forces.
A little bit of "Patriotism" should be able to overcome all that .... NOT!

Yes Minister- with such "discipline"
as tight as Saiful's anus,
you can be damn sure that many are afraid of such "tight discipline"!!

Educating Zahid Hamidi ......

The Minister of Defence, Zahid Hamidi had apparently said that Chinese and Indians 'not patriotic enough' and scooted from the parliament before he could be confronted!! That was his rationale behind the low percentage of Non-Malays in the Defence forces of our country.
To say that his statement was a result of his ignorance of "Ketuanan Melayu" which his UMNO hordes have been brandishing as the ideology to control the nation, would be naive if not silly.

From Merdeka onwards, more so after the NEP was enforced- the number of Non-Malays in the public sector have progressively dwindled, while the performance and corruption hase progressively worsened.
(Note that the relationship is inversely proportional).

It is common knowledge that it has been the intention of the UMNO regime to turn all public services sectors into "Malay (read- Umno) Institutions". In fact (if I'm not mistaken), they have admitted to this fact). Stories abound- on how non-Malays are discriminated and humiliated in the system. Any man in the street can tell you why it is that non-Malays refrain from joining the public services (unless they don't have a choice).

Why go so far- just check out the enrollment into the residential schools ("sekolah asrama penuh") these days - how many non-Malays are there? Parents fear sending their kids to places where they may be faced with hostile/bullying/humiliating environments. Performance/ Merit is never a consideration- in fact it works against you in the system. What is encouraged is racism, mediocrity and "pliability".

It might not be too far-fetched to say that it is the intention of the regime to use this excuse as a reason to have an all Malay Army which can be used to play up the "us against them" ideology- to intimidate the non-malays into submission to the rule of the elite Umnoputras (the hallmark of "Ketuanan Melayu").

So, the only conclusion that we can draw from this statement of his is that he is an ungrateful & shameless liar, who lives on "unpatriotic" tax-payers' money.

Here are a few comments which Zahid Hamidi generated on Malaysia Kini:-

Neders: Zahid Hamidi, how did you become the defence minister? You haven't a clue about the reality on the ground. I am an old boy of the Federal Military College (now Royal Military College) and many of my non-Malay contemporaries joined the armed forces.

Sure, a number worked their way up to become colonels and even a sprinkling became generals (you stood a better chance to be one if you were prepared to sacrifice your prepuce). This was because they were of a calibre that was hard to ignore.

However, a larger number got stuck at the 'major' level and were overtaken by Malay officers many years their junior. Also, the intake into the RMC progressively became so lopsided that the 'nons' became discouraged and later disinterested. Why would I want my sons to join the armed forces when their chances of fair promotions stand as much as that of a snowball in hell?

I dare tell you in the face never to question our patriotism. You are the one who created the situation and now blame the 'nons' for the problem.

Ranjit Singh: Patriotism or racism? Do you want me to lay the facts out about the selective recruitment process under Dr Mahathir Mohamad where mostly Malays were hired in all public sector under the New Economic Plan (NEP)?

Seriously, imagine such a statement from a minister. What more can I say? This is the quality of people we have in Umno. Doesn't that statement speak for itself?

AJ: I can speak of my experience in RMAF (Royal Malaysian Air Force). I joined in the early years of Mahathir's reign. The higher allowance went to the aircraft mechanics as they came in with higher school grades and did better in the aptitude tests. Malay to non-Malay ratio was almost 60-40. No one had to worry about promotions as it was a very fair process.

As the years past, the non-technical support staff allowance was adjusted to that of the technical staff's. Now there was no need to be smarter or start off with a higher aptitude. Moral and pride began to slip. Soon Malays, who were juniors and those who were left behind because they did not excel in their work, were promoted.

When questioned, those who did the appraisals showed us that promotions were race and not merit-based. It was a government directive and beyond their control. Non-Malays subsequently left the force in droves.

Rick Teo: Zahid, which school did you go to? Chinese and Indians don't want join the army because your kind will always bully the non-Malays in the army. Promotions do not go according to merit but kulit-fication.
Anonymous: Chinese and Indians are very practical. Why would they join the army when they will be marginalised and denied promotions? By the way, Chinese and Indians are patriotic in a different way, they contribute to nation building by paying the most taxes. Every race has different way of contributing to the nation.

Zahid, use your head before you say things.

OMG: The minister should be sacked for such an incendiary statement. It is pure rubbish. The Chinese and Indians don't join the army because they are passed over when it comes to promotions and are marginalised. The same goes for the civil service.

Xiao Zhu: Zahid must have his brain in the knee-cap. So many quotas and restrictions are imposed on non-Malays, and the government intentionally does not recruit non-Malays, and this practice applies to all government-linked companies. Look at past records in the Defence Ministry - how many non-Malays were serving the country in the past as compared to now?

Open the floodgate without quota and restriction, then let's see how many non-Malays will apply for the job.

Singa Pura Pura: You are grossly mistaken for saying so, Minister Zahid. Do you honestly believe that the Malays join the army and police out of sheer and wilful patriotism, not out of economic necessity or social conditioning?

The Chinese and Indians are 'prevented' (for want of a better word) from joining the civil service and innumerable other government-controlled services and companies. Yes, BN and Umno prevent and hinder the Chinese and Indians from being 'patriotic' Malaysians. That is the 'form' in which the regime wants to keep the 'nons' out.

In any case, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin says 'Malaysian' should be second after one's ethnicity. So don't even dare talk about Malaysian patriotism. There is only 'racial nationalism' in the insidious guise of 'national patriotism' under Umno, whichever way you choose to interpret it.

Swipenter: Before Mahathir started deliberately to Malay-nise the civil services, police and armed forces, there was a good mix of all races in all government institutions. After discriminating against the non-Malays by putting up glass ceilings and quotas for close to 30 years, this good-for-nothing defence minister is demonising the non-Malays as "not patriotic enough".

Nuckins: Not patriotic enough? Based on what studies and evidence? Can you please show us your source, minister? If you cannot come up with the appropriate studies or facts, then are you trying to destabilise our country's inter-ethnic relations by shooting off your big mouth? If this is not seditious, I don't know what is.

Pak Kulop Miko: In most countries of the world, accusing certain sectors of the population of being "unpatriotic" would have resulted in the minister being raked over coals.

What evidence has he adduced to support his view? This kind of reasoning (hell, it is not even reason) is typical of BN leaders - they shoot from the hip, never ascertain any facts, consult nobody and never bother to improve their intellect.

Hamisu: I'll admit openly I am not patriotic. I don't wave the Jalur Gemilang on Aug 31. So what? Dumb ministers and government officials still can't figure the real reason why non-Malays are not that patriotic.

What's there to be patriotic about when we are not even treated as equal citizens. There so much discrimination from the day you are born to the day you die under the Malaysian sun. Does the phrase "I love my country as much as my country loves me" ring any bell?

The government, and especially this really moronic minister, still expects non-Malays to be patriotic. Make some real changes that treats non-Malays as equals, instead of labelling non-Malays as 'pendatang' (immigrants). Then you will see patriotism instilled by our own parents rather than the government.

Hello: What about the lack of numbers in the civil service? Are the Chinese and Indians also unpatriotic in not going there? This simpleton of a defence minister has come up with very simplistic reasons.

Why not look into the manner the applicants are recruited? The promotion opportunities offered to these non-Malay recruits? The hidden agenda of 'ketuanan Melayu', the watchword of Umno?

All this alleged unpatriotism lies with the policies of Umno with the silent support of its lackeys - MCA, MIC, Gerakan, etc. When you have fair recruitment and promotion opportunities, you will find the non-Malays applying in droves.

Meranti Kepong: Indeed, if the Chinese, Indians and other minorities are truly giving a stake in the country and treated as bona fide Malaysians without prejudice and discrimination and not as 'squatters' and 'immigrants', then they would be prepared to not only defend the country but to become true warriors of the realm.

Yang: I am shocked. Who is to say I am 'not patriotic enough'?

Remove the shades- It isn't "politics", It's about bigotry ....

IN addition, this is also another typical Malay-bashing tactic of the opposition.

Yeah yeah you will start screaming that PKR is mainly Malay.

From where I stand, I believe that PKR is not so much multi racial
as they would sacrifice any ethnic group
or religious group as long as it gives them political mileage.
- Mr. Z (referring to the "Caning of a child over Pork in School" issue).

===================================

For a start, let me say that I did not see how this was a "typical Malay-bashing tactic of the opposition".
Maybe I missed something ... but I'll move on.

You're very right about both the parent & teachers- but in this case, other than educating the child about not sharing the food, I don't see why she should do anything else.
The way I look at it- she DOESN'T HAVE TO PREPARE HALAL FOOD for the kid to take to school. All she has to do is tell the child to keep it away from practicing MUSLIMS/ HINDUS/Buddhists. (From what I gather, she did just that).

If I were the parent, I'll go to the school myself with the non-halal food to prove my point- becos, if children can be allowed to bring meat (which isn't kosher to vegetarian Hindus & Buddhists) beef (which isn't kosher to hindus) to a school, I don't see what can be wrong with pork.
It should also be the job of the school to respect the cultural diversity, educate the children & have separate sections where non-kosher food may be had.

LOL- Sorry to disappoint you Z ... but I don't see why i should get worked up on what you said about PKR. The way I look at it, you're quite right about PKR- in a sense. They are what they are- they'll sell out anybody, if they're not kept in check. That goes for anybody, when they're not kept in check & "7 deadly sins" are allowed to creep into their minds & hearts when they lose their focus.

You say that they'll "sell out" any group? But that doesn't mean it is necessarily a bad thing.....
For a start, maybe all of us NEED to sacrifice our narrow/selfish sectarian interests & stop talking about our chauvinism/ethnicity/religious preferences/privileges when in comes to education/economy.

It's not like UMNO is really doing much good for the Malay community beyond shouting at the rooftops about "ketuanan Melayu" and encouraging mediocrity, you know ..... most of the Malays I see aren't doing so well, despite what UMNO calls "special rights" accorded to them. meanwhile the economy is in shambles .... just as the social fabric of the nation.

Y'see, Z- politicians are politicians .... it is their job to exploit the people & extract as much political mileage as possible. The ruthless ones will manipulate society through propaganda for his personal benefit.
What is necessary is the check and balance in the 4 institutions of state which we have. Sadly, despite claiming to defend their rights to a good government, some ruthless parties proceeded to destroy these institutions by rendering them mere administrative rubber stamps.

Look around you, Z-

• Corruption has become the order of the day, and bigotry is promoted as a valid sentiment.
• Lies are disseminated to the public by those in power.
• Crime is hidden, supported and even defended by those in authority.
• Chauvinism is applauded, while mediocrity and stupidity are rewarded.
• Are you telling me nobody has been "sold-out" in this scenario?
• Or did some ethnicity/religion actually benefit from it all?

Meanwhile, the public is still blissfully going on sacrificing their rights at the altar of prosperity, amidst all the trappings of wealth around them which they gawk at with stupid pride.
To make matters worse, the public has been brainwashed into thinking that their rights are preserved, while the nation is plundered by the privileged few.

I do not say that our leaders didn't do any good. They definitely did some good here & there - but the damage they have caused in bringing about those little good is gonna prove far too costly in the long run. I don't wish to debate about it la, Z- You will see it for yourself in due time. Maybe you'll know why it all happened, maybe you'll wonder why- I don't know you well enough to say.

Very sad it is. If Malaysia is lucky, we may recover from this after reforms .... in a generation or so- that too if it happens. Otherwise, we just slide down the slippery slope .... and say sayonara to the good times.

No pork allowed in school ?

The following came to my attention through Facebook:-

No pork allowed in school ?

KUCHING – A pupil was allegedly caned 10 times on his palm for bringing fried ri...ce cooked with pork sausage and the PKR Woman’s wing is crying foul over the issue as they held a press conference this afternoon.

The pupil, Basil Beginda was allegedly caned by the Penolong Kanan, Iskandar bin Fadeli who was from Simujan on October 15 (Friday) for bringing non halal food to school and is tramautised by the whole situation.

In a press conference this afternoon, the mother of the pupil, Angela Jabing with Vice Chairperson, Voon Shiak Ni, State Woman Chief, Ibi anak Uding, deputy woman chief, Nurhanim Hanna Dato’ Haji Mokhen said she was shocked to learn that her son was punished for bringing non halal food to school. “I have never received any written circular from the school that children cannot bring non halal food in the school,” she said.

On October 19th, Angela. also a PKR executive went ot the school to meet up with the Principle who was with Iskandar. Angela said instead of clarifying or apologizing on the reason for her son’s punishment, Iskandar claimed that he could not find it in his record the incident and he did not recall such incident.

He then asked Basil to come and Angela said she saw her son filled with fear looking at Iskandar. Basil told Iskandar that he was always advised by his mother not to offer his non halal food to the Muslim and he had never done so.

The Prinicipal, Alice Chung said Iskandar had announced during the school assembly in February this year that the students are prohibited to bring any non halal products to the school for their own consumption as a noble act to respect the Muslim students..

Iskandar then told Angela, “Jangan besar-besarkan’ hal kerana isu ini isu yang cukup sensitif di kalangan orang orang Isam…..

Not satisfied with the explanation, Angela wrote in for an explanation. On the third day, she got a call from the Principal and request to meet up on October 29. She insisted on a written reply.

The letter, she said did not answer her question on the issue of why her son was caned 10 times for eating friend rice with non halal sausage. “Is this a justified action to be taken by a school on the school children?” she asked.

Angela also seek to know why St. Thomas, a missionary school is trying to implement the non-halal food rules on the children brought from home or whether the instructions are from the Ministry of Education.

As a working mother and a non muslim, she said she is concern that her son was punished unjustifiable and she is unable to produce halal food as she is a non muslim.

Nurhanim Hannah Dato Haji Mokhsen said the situation is not good for 1 Malaysia concept. She said it’s only food and all children of different races should sit and eat together as one family. “It is the way to live together in harmony. We are Sarawakians with different cultures, different religions,” she said.

Nurhanim said she was shocked at the punishment and that a boy that young should go through the punishment. “He did not cook the food and if the teacher is unhappy, they should call the mother,” she added.

Voon, Vice Chairman of PKR said she wanted the Education department to investigate the matter and ensure that appropriate action be taken.

She said the letter from the school did not touch on why Basil was caned and the letter did not touch on the real issue. The letter also clarified that Iskandar had told Basil not to bring non halal food to school.

Angela said if Iskandar is sensitive to the feelings of the Muslims, he should also announced that there should be no beef brought to school as a respect to Buddhist and Hindi and no meat should be brought to school as vegetarian are not allowed to do so.

She added that she wanted Iskandar transferred and if he did that in the next school, this sort of educationist should be fired.

When contacted, Principal Alice Chung said she has no knowledge of such situation and asked when it happened. When told that she had replied a letter to the mother of the boy on the pork issue, Chung said she is not allow to talk to any press as it is a directive from the education department.

When asked on the matter, she said she has no comment. When asked if a parent wants to know the condition of the regulation on the food, Chung said there was never any regulation that disallow the children to bring pork to school. “Anyone can bring whatever food they want,” she added.See more

by: William Lee

Happy Diwali!!

Diwali is a festival that relieves traditions/beliefs/faith which originates in Hindu Mythology. My exposure to Hindu mythology started during my student days ..... and not much since, actually.
Anyways, some regions in India have "localised" the myths associated with Diwali with different myths. However, the significance of it all remains the same- Victory of Good over Evil, Light over Darkness.

The info with regard to Diwali and how it is celebrated in various parts of India, is available all over the net. What is culturally predominantly prevalent in Malaysia is as practiced in Southern India, particularly Tamil Nadu.
Here is something from Musings of an Unknown Indian:-

Celebrations across faith: In Hinduism, across many parts of India and Nepal, it is the homecoming of Lord Rama (along with his consort Sita and brother Lakshmana) to Ayodhya - after a 14-year exile in the forest and his victory over Ravana, the King of Lanka (who had abducted Sita and held her prisoner). According to the legend, the people of Ayodhya (the capital of his kingdom) welcomed Rama by lighting rows (avali) of (ghee) lamps (dĭpa), [thus its name: dīpāwali] - along the way to light their path in the darkness. Rama is considered as a symbol of good and a positive force while Ravan represents evil. Therefore, Diwali is considered as the festival, which establishes the 'victory of good over the evil'. More on this here.

On the night of Diwali, people light diyas, which is again a symbol of positive energy... in order to conquer darkness, i.e., the symbol of negative energy. Since Ram traveled from South India to his kingdom in North India, he passed through the south earlier. This is the reason why the festival is celebrated a day earlier in South India. Diwali usually comes 19 or 20 days after Dasara/Dussehra. In South India, it marks the victory of Krishna over Narakasura. Over time, this word transformed into "Diwali" in Hindi and "Dipawali" in Nepali, but still retained its original form in the South and East Indian Languages. In the Dravidian languages it is called as Deepavali and the same is used in Malaysia and Singapore.

In Jainism, Diwali marks the attainment of nirvana by Bhagavan Mahavira - the founder of Jainism - on 15 October, 527 BC.

Diwali has been significant in Sikhism since the illumination of the town of Amritsar commemorating the return of Guru Har Gobind Ji (1595-1644), the sixth Guru of Sikhism, who was imprisoned along with 52 other Hindu kings at Fort Gwalior by Emperor Jahangir. After freeing the other prisoners, he went to the Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) in the holy city of Amritsar, where he was welcomed happily by the people who lit candles and divas to greet the Guru. Because of this, Sikhs often refer to Diwali also as Bandi Chhorh Divas - "the day of release of detainees."

The festival is also celebrated by Buddhists in Nepal, a majority-Hindu country, particularly the Newar Buddhists.

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