1Malaysia- The Regional Rapists' Hub?

It could very easily be argued that under the guise of religious freedom,
Malaysia is actively promoting child exploitation,
gender discrimination and sexual violence.
Of course, if we are really fine with this state of affairs,
we can earn a few more tourism dollars
by marketing ourselves as a legal paedophile haven.
Lolita, anyone?

Lolita anyone? - The Malaysian Insider

Kapil is an advertising strategist turned brand consultant based in KL, who likes nothing better than to figure out why people behave the way they do. Naturally this forces him to spend most of his time lounging in coffeeshops and bars. He can be reached at kapilanski@yahoo.com

Lolita anyone?

December 29, 2010

DEC 29 — The recent case of a 14-year-girl schoolgirl getting married with the full approval of a Syariah court has raised more than a few eyebrows. While a lot of commentators have focused on the religious side of the matter, there are deeper social issues at stake here too.

In 2009 according to the health ministry quoted by the NST, out of 479 children waiting to tie the knot, only two were boys. Also, 32 of them were below 10 years of age.

Clearly only young girls seem to be interested in getting married at eight or 14. So in our society, traditional gender divisions are alive and well. Boys have to study and get a job and cannot be put under the pressure of managing a household at such a young age, but it is perfectly fine for girls who are children themselves, to take up all these responsibilities.

We are told that these girls are making these decisions on their own and are perfectly happy with their choices. Where are they getting these ideas from? Mass media certainly doesn’t glorify or even generally depict this kind of behaviour.

Shah Rukh Khan hasn’t been spotted romancing a nine-year-old in the cinema recently, unless I missed something. We are hopefully not teaching this in our education system. So it is clearly a cultural custom among some families that seem to find nothing wrong in this practice. Some parents also clearly seem to be in a hurry to transfer the responsibility of a girl child onto another family for economic reasons.

If we look at this for a minute from the perspective of the would-be husbands of these child brides, the picture becomes even starker. What possible reason could there be from their perspective, apart from wanting to have sex with a child, that cannot wait for the girl to achieve majority? Whether he is in love with her, or he wants a union between their families, or wants to help the girl or her family out of poverty, all of these can be achieved without immediate marriage. If the intention is noble, sex can be withheld till the girl is of age. So from the prospective groom’s perspective, we are left with the inescapable conclusion of wanting to take advantage of legalised paedophilia.

Even from a religious perspective then, there should be no justification to grant sanction to such a union in this day and age when we are all aware of the range of negative consequences of such marriages on the child concerned.

That is why our muted response is so shocking. The excuse that discussing this would tread on religious sensitivities has a hollow ring to it. Do we really believe that it is fine for girls of 11 to be sexualised legitimately and being allowed to make long-lasting life-changing decisions at such a young age, just because a loophole exists in the law? Is our regard for women so low that we don’t care about the multitude of mental, physical and emotional traumas we are condemning them to when we look the other way?

As a society, is it enough to say that since it is allowed by a particular religious segment, it is for them to resolve? Or that this is not just a Malaysian problem, it happens in other parts of the world too? Is the definition of a developed state purely economic? Should we not also be developed in the sense of protecting our children? Is our notion of criminal behaviour really this shallow?

It could very easily be argued that under the guise of religious freedom, Malaysia is actively promoting child exploitation, gender discrimination and sexual violence.

Of course, if we are really fine with this state of affairs, we can earn a few more tourism dollars by marketing ourselves as a legal paedophile haven. Lolita, anyone?

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Cruzeiro says:

With the current obsession to become the "Hub" of anything & everything,
surely certain 'leaders' who are philanderers, murderers, rapists & paedophiles
would be pleased with the "progress" Malaysia is making in this 'noble' endeavour
to make it the premier regional Paedophile cum Rapist Hub ....

and I'm sure, as Ibrahim Ali and the "Ketuanan" boys would say-
"Others (especially Singapore) would be 'jealous' of us"!

Sarawakians Wake Up: Development Is Not Reward For Supporting BN, But Your Rights « Hornbill Unleashed

Karim Raslan

Travelling through Sarawak has prompted me to think about the fundamental paradoxes that lie at the heart of governance in Malaysia.

While they’re at their most pronounced in Sarawak, the themes and challenges are pretty much uniform wherever you go in the country.

As in the peninsula, the cities and towns of Sarawak have turned against the BN. At the same time, most rural areas remain solidly ‘blue’. It’s a mirror of image of what is happening across the South China Sea, with the notable exception of Kelantan.

So what’s the contradiction? Well, those who’ve benefited the most from the BN development policies and politics – viz the urban Malaysians of all races — have become the ruling coalition’s toughest critics.

They’re not thankful supplicants — kissing the hands of the local MP or state assembly member. Ordinary Malaysians want more and they want it now. In their eyes, legislators are just ‘public servants’ – whose basic obligation should be on serving.

The critical factor is that urban Malaysians are no longer dependant on the BN for basic amenities like water, housing or electricity. Besides that, many now work in the private sector. Their livelihoods are no longer solely dependent on political influence.

Because of this, they’re able to turn their backs on the patronage and service ‘machine’ that empowered them and indeed their parents’ generation.

Educated and well-informed, they’ve started questioning the way the BN has governed for decades. They deplore shady back-room deals and controversial use of public funds. They want greater openness and transparency. Of course, the BN has proven deeply resistant to greater freedoms of any kind, especially for the media.

But the voters are smart. They understand the connection between civil liberties and government services. They know that a strong media will question and probe the deals that have driven up the cost of many public projects.

Still, tight media controls have not stopped the public from being highly critical of the leaders proffered by the BN.

I find it hard to believe that Khir Toyo and Noh Omar are the best Malay leaders that can be found in Selangor. Surely there must be hundreds — if not thousands — of highly-educated Malay professionals to be recruited from Subang Jaya, Kepong and Melawati — the ‘cream’ of the NEP?

Why don’t these men and women want to join Umno?

The failure to recruit the best human resource lies at the core of Umno’s continuing failure to win back the urban Malay middle classes. It also reinforces my point as the products of the NEP turn their back on the original ‘agent’ of change — namely Umno.

The same dilemma is slowly emerging in Sarawak.

Take Sibu, the business hub of the Rajang river basin, for example. The city is remarkably clean, organized, and safe. Indeed, the covered market — surely one of the largest in the country — is an impressive sight.

As we all know, the city’s voters rejected the BN in spectacular fashion at a by-election only months ago. This was a calculated, considered move by Sibu’s predominantly Foochow Chinese community, who knew they could manage without government assistance.

However, the same is not true of the small long-house communities beyond the city limits. The disparities between these areas and the urban centers are stark. Roads shrink and eventually disappear in rural Sarawak.

Running water is also a major problem — especially during the dry season. Many of the longhouses must rely on large water tanks and elaborate rain-water traps to survive.

In certain cases, the local rivers have also been polluted by the use of industrial-scale fertilizers in nearby plantations or pig farming.

Difficulties in enforcing the Native Customary Rights (NCR) over the land also often results in the dislocation of these communities.

The haphazard access to public utilities and property rights – have made rural Sarawakians very dependant on developmental politics.

Sarawak’s rural poor realize that only the state government of the day can help them. They therefore keep voting for BN representatives in the hope that their needs will eventually be met.

Therein lays the contradiction for the BN: providing these services would mean an inevitable loss of rural support.

As a consequence, Sarawak’s piece-meal development of the interior reinforces the BN control. Indeed, it makes communities more wary of challenging authority.

Needless to say, this is no way to achieve the ETP, NEM, 1Malaysia or any of the ambitious goals we have set for ourselves as a nation.

Development is not a reward, it is a right. Solving the paradox, however, comes at an exceedingly high political cost. But then again, the BN has no choice: we simply cannot go on like this. — Bintulu Org

Sarawakians Wake Up: Development Is Not Reward For Supporting BN, But Your Rights « Hornbill Unleashed

Rais stresses for "deep study" on Laws For Rape

Source: The Star Online, Malaysia. Thursday, April 11, 2002.

Full force of law against rape

By JANE RITIKOS

KUALA LUMPUR: Further amendments to the Penal Code may be made to compel the court to mete out the maximum sentence on perpetrators of rape and incest.

“We are considering altering the language of the law to make it mandatory for the court to mete out the maximum sentence,’’ Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Dr Rais Yatim said yesterday.

He confirmed that he had proposed to submit a note to the Cabinet on the need to amend Section 376A of the Penal Code with the proviso that it had been amended and gazetted last September but yet to be implemented.

“This is to comply with the expressions of the Deputy Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) who wants a proportionate and deterring sentence for rapists and those who engage in incestuous acts,’’ he said, adding that the note would be submitted within a month or two.

Dr Rais said another possible recommendation was prescribing the number of whipping to be meted out on those found guilty of such crimes.

“The Act made whipping a mandatory penalty for rape and incest but the number of strokes is not spelt out. It is up to the discretion of the prison and depending on the fitness of the perpetrator,’’ he said.

Dr Rais said another possible recommendation was to look into the procedures of evidence gathering so that the cases would be foolproof for prosecution.

He, however, stressed that a “deep study” would have to be conducted with the consultation of the Attorney-General as further amending of the Act at this time would require legal justification.

“We are looking into the possibility of recommending stiffer punishment for rape and incest although some quarters may query why as the (amended) law has not been implemented,’’ he said.

The Penal Code was amended last year to include a new section 376A, which separates incest from other forms of rape.

While the jail term for rape has been retained at between five and 20 years, the new section provides for a minimum of six years and a maximum of 20 years jail. The Act also includes mandatory whipping for rape and incest.

Dr Rais said amending the Act at this time would not augur well with the practise of imposing new laws.

“Bear in mind that the section was just amended. But we will comply with the public view, especially when translated through the comments of the Deputy Prime Minister.

“We want to apply quick reaction,’’ he said.

Asked why the penalties imposed through the previous amendments was not harsh enough to cause a public outcry, Dr Rais said the study would also see whether there was a widespread reaction or just the concern of some.

“While we are concerned with the rising incidences of incest where children are mostly the victims, we must also be fair in law- making.

“But we can converge Section 376A to put in place the feelings of the public,’’ he said.

Suck your way up the ladder

"Umno Selangor is in deep shit. With the Khir Toyo corruption matter -- and talk that two Barisan Nasional state assemblypersons may also be involved in the murder of the Indonesian millionaires -- things are not going too well for UmnoSelangor.

It seems the Indonesians are pissed about what they perceive as a cover up of the murder of one of their nationals (like how the Mongolians were earlier) and now with talk in the Umno Blogs that the Minister who raped the Indonesian maid is Rais Yatim the government may be hard-pressed in covering up this scandal any further.

Anyway, as they say, a rumour is never confirmed until it is official denied.
So let’s wait for the official denial."
- RPK, Suck your way up the ladder

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

If you can remember, one of the crucial factors for the fall of Perak was the State Secretary. He was the one who summoned the police to prevent Nizar Jamaluddin from entering his office. In fact, State Secretaries have also played a role in bringing down governments in other states as well, Terengganu being one of them.

I was counting the days when the Selangor State Secretary would retire but now that he has I find that the appointment of the new State Secretary is outside the hands of the state government and is a man who is another Umno stooge.

Umno Selangor is in deep shit. With the Khir Toyo corruption matter -- and talk that two Barisan Nasional state assemblypersons may also be involved in the murder of the Indonesian millionaires -- things are not going too well for Umno Selangor.

It seems the Indonesians are pissed about what they perceive as a cover up of the murder of one of their nationals (like how the Mongolians were earlier) and now with talk in the Umno Blogs that the Minister who raped the Indonesian maid is Rais Yatim the government may be hard-pressed in covering up this scandal any further.

So Umno needs their man in the Selangor State Government and if Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim can’t convince the Selangor Sultan to reject the appointment of this Umno appointee then things may be very tough for Pakatan Rakyat.

Anyway, as they say, a rumour is never confirmed until it is official denied. So let’s wait for the official denial.

On another matter, politics in Malaysia is moulded after the Umno example. All political parties copy what Umno does. But then Umno is an expert at the game which they invented so to copy Umno means you are playing with a huge handicap.

In Umno, leaders are not headhunted. They work on the system of popularity contests. You start as a member then move up into the branch committee, then branch leader, then division committee, then division leader, then state committee, then state leader, then national committee, then national leader, and so on.

You serve your time and work your way up the ranks by becoming popular with the grassroots. You could be a postman or railway crossing guard or whatever but as long as you know how to play to the gallery you will make it after 10 or 20 years climbing up the ladder.

In Umno they work on the 30:70 formula. You must show 30% loyalty to the party and 70% loyalty to the leader. Shahrir Samad is a good party man. He will live and die with Umno. He shows 100% loyalty to the party. But that means he shows zero loyalty to the party leaders. And that is why he can’t go up.

MORE

Listen Then IF You Have Ears (& brains), DAP/PAS/PKR!!

14 lawan 3

If Pakatan Rakyat wants to form the next federal government it needs to talk to the other parties and maybe increase the membership of Pakatan Rakyat from just three parties to six, seven or eight.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

I am not well today, have not been since yesterday, so I am really in no mood to write long articles. I just want to get this one completed and then crawl into bed and sleep off my flu. And I am going to write what I have already written before back when Barisan Alternatif still existed and before there was even a Pakatan Rakyat.

Barisan Nasional verus Pakatan Rakyat (then called Barisan Alternatif) is 14 lawan 3. That is because there are 14 parties in the Barisan Nasional coalition and only three in Pakatan Rakyat.

Once upon a time Barisan Nasional too used to be only three parties when it was called the Alliance Party. The three members were Umno, MCA and MIC.

If Barisan Nasional remained three parties today it could not form the government. Umno, MCA and MIC combined could not even secure 100 seats. Today, Barisan Nasional (or the Alliance Party) would be in the opposition.

Say what you like, without the rest of the 14 members of Barisan Nasional they would not be in government. The figures speak for themselves.

What I wrote a few years ago was that Barisan Alternatif (or now Pakatan Rakyat) needs more than just three parties. Even Umno, never mind how strong it may be, can’t do it with just three parties. If Pakatan Rakyat wants to form the next federal government it needs to talk to the other parties and maybe increase the membership of Pakatan Rakyat from just three parties to six, seven or eight.

And this means not only a power-sharing formula must be ironed out but a seat allocation agreement as well. There are after all about 800 State and Parliament seats so there are enough to go around. And if each party does not bite off more than it can chew it may yet get to form the next federal government.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

BN MP submits evidence of Sabah IC scam to Home Ministry

KOTA KINABALU: The federal government has been given sufficient evidence to prove that foreigners in Sabah have gained Malaysian identification documents through dubious means, a Barisan Nasional MP said today.

Tuaran MP Wilfred Bumburing said he had submitted the evidence in a memorandum to Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein recently.

One of the many cases he cited in the memorandum, was that of a Filipino who had a genuine Malaysian IC but who travelled to Mecca to perform the Haj using his Filipino passport.

~BN MP submits evidence of Sabah IC scam to Home Ministry