Everybody Hates Rais The Senile One

Bersih 2.0 chairman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan denied today all links between the recent spate of cyber attacks on government websites and her electoral reform group raised yesterday by Datuk Seri Rais Yatim, saying his conjecture is an attack on Malaysians.

 

A group of hackers calling themselves Anonymous mounted an attack on at least 200 websites last Thursday, saying they are against censorship of websites by the government.

“It’s a wholly unfounded, unreasonable, preposterous suggestion made by a Cabinet minister who should really know better than to make such wild accusations,” she told The Malaysian Insider.

She added that Rais’s comment was an attack not just on Bersih but on Malaysian citizens’ constitutional right to assemble peaceably.

“I am entirely surprised by the raving of a few members of the government against Bersih 2.0 and their attempts to demonise Bersih; and I view Rais Yatim’s comments as one of these attempts.

“I consider this an attack on the people and it is a shame they chose to do this rather than listen to the people,” the former Malaysian Bar president said.

Rais, who is the information, communication and culture minister, had linked yesterday the mass attacks on some 200 local websites to the upcoming Bersih rally on July 9 after Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Maximus Ongkili told reporters initial investigations showed 90 per cent of the hackers were based in Malaysia.

Rais further described the cyber attacks as politically-motivated and intended to disrupt the workings of the government, but did not provide details as to how the denial of service attacks were related to the July 9 rally that is pushing for electoral reforms.

Read more here

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No, it's not Everybody Loves Raymond but the title alone is opposite to what's happening right now.

I simply cannot understand how a minister with a PHD certificate would say something crap and nonsense as above. This has clearly demonstrated that he is unable to discern the clear difference of the real purpose of those attacks by Anonymous group and the purpose of Bersih 2.0 rally holding on. This also demonstrates that he is not worth living with the title given. Instead what is seen is jumbling things up, and trying to connect both as one. From what he said above, it seems clearly he has been probably wrongly advised by his advisers or other colleagues and bringing into his kind of conclusion.

Prior to this, he did say that Malaysia was unperturbed by attacks shows how ignorant can a minister be and chose to remain eye-closed to the reality.

Anonymous's intentions is clear: they, on behalf of Malaysia netizens want to send a message to the government of the clear displeasure of the MCMC, acting on the request of the Domestic Consumer Affairs Ministry, (Ismail Sabri a.k.a. Ayah Dafi) to block 10 file sharing sites, which includes some that are legit, and it got mixed with some that are famously the bane of some parties (e.g The Pirate Bay). They also want to send a message that the Najib administration has violated the promise of no Internet censorship, and blocking those websites is also considered a violation to that promise.

Note: If you have read the text they have sent - there are absolutely no references to Bersih. Unless it was deliberately skewed.

So Anonymous' intentions has totally nothing to do Bersih's objectives and intentions. Both Bersih and Anonymous are two different eggs, yet Rais puts them in one basket.

Until today, there are thousands of youngsters that are very angry at not only this senile old man but other ministers and parties that are behind their problems and inconvenience. Six minutes ago at this time of writing, the number of 1M Malaysians Don't Want SKMM Block File Sharing Website on Facebook hit 32000. Meaning, there are 32000 Malaysian netizens that angry at these people. Not only that, in the last two days, there are many tweets out there with the tag #yorais that vented anger at that imbecile.

Here's a screenshot to show the thousands of tweets focusing anger at that man.

A friend of mine recently lamented of the thesis that Rais wrote previously about the evils of ISA and other things that needs to be repealed that in later on, Rais's stance is a complete opposite of what he stood and wrote for. He did questioned of whether it's the matter of his own principle being compromised for the political stand and having his own principles run down. This was one of his observations regarding him and he summed  / rant one conclusion: "Someone should strip him the PhD certification."

There are still some people to this day call him "Rape Maid" Minister because of his scandal involving the rape of an Indonesian Maid , although it is a matter of time yet to be seen whether those being sued by him over that claim would be able to proof with many things that indicate that what actually happened is contradicting Rais' claims. This is still one of the skeletons remaining in his closet.

Maybe it's time for him to be dropped from the Cabinet, as what Abdullah Badawi did to Zam Maidin previously - but already too late.

You see below is the excerpt of an open letter written to the senile old man by the name of Rais "Ayah Dino" Yatim. There are many youngsters out there very angry at that old man. 

Assalamualaikum Datuk Seri. Hari ini saya ingin mengajukan beberapa soalan. Dimana , tidak semua yang mengetahui asal usul penyekatan yang dibuat. Dan saya memerlukan jawapan yang terperinci , bukan yang disebarkan oleh media-media akhbar , tetapi dari mulut Datuk Seri sendiri.

 Soalan pertama , Why block us?. Dan jika Datuk Seri cakap tentang Violation , What violation? If the malaysian citizens are downloading Local Artists music , video and others , you should compare that to what they gain. Even without us downloading their work , some of us wont even download it , "Why?" do you say? Because , i would rather HEAR Justin Bieber instead of hearing some of the locals. You should get a download statistic. Compare the downloads between locals and foreign.

If File-sharing is illegal , then am i sharing my notes to my friend , illegal aswell? Some of us , is working for a foreign company , but they are working inside of Malaysia , and sometimes they need to send a large files. So how do they do it if not through a file-sharing websites.?

No censorship for the internet was stated on the Bill of Guarantees and was said TWICE by both of our Prime Minister , that is Tun Dr. Mahathir dan Dato' Sri Najib Razak. Yet this line was crossed.

Local artist have a low income because of File-Sharing sites? And was it our fault? First of all , the quality standard , and the attitude of some local artist , i would say that it is BELOW average. That is NOT good.

To love the local artist? AS soon as you hear foreign artist , you would be throwing local away. Im talking about modern artist. Comparing V.I.P under KRU , with Rebecca Black , I would still rather HEAR Rebecca Black sing.

Dan apa pula KAITAN Bersih dengan hacker? Isnt the hacker that attacks the website is called Anonymous , which is a foreign hackers while the Dragon Force Malaysia , Rilekscrew and other hackers is NOT EVEN a political party hackers. Why would you even go THAT far to think about hackers involved with politics! I myself, is learning Software Engineering. I THINK like engineers and i THINK like those hackers as those hackers was also once a Programmer , a Software Engineer , a Networking Student. We IT student THINK alike , as we LOVE the same thing. My MIND doesnt even COME with politic, yet you said that those Hackers are involved with it.

AND! you said , the hackers have been identified , but yet you STILL accused Bersih to be having or IS the hacker. We need you to give us a proof please.. EVERYONE would like to know this.. Who is the hacker and Why do you still Accused Bersih if YOU HAVE the hacker already.

Read more here.

PPPA: When People Get Angry at Senile Old Men

It's already clear that with the recent events of introducing extending the scope of publishing controls to encompass online media as well as gagging a blogger over the "rape maid" scandal clearly implies that the access of information more than what is usually seen is reaching to the point that they were unable to bear to see their control is slipping out of their fingers. Instead of going for information transparency, the government with such dementia is resorting to tightening the noose on citizens, including the cyber community that is expanding exponentially. No doubt, the main excuses used to state their decision includes: that a lot of false information and lies out there, and of course to have more control of what information goes out or not since the Wikileaks disaster that put America to its knees.

How Far Can People Stand Before Reaching The Boiling Point?

Generally, the people who mostly does the writing on online avenues are mostly formed of youngsters and those who are less than 50 years old. The numbers and statistics do speak for themselves. These group of people are more Internet savvy and they now do have the right to talk whatever they want. The moment if a group of senile men decide to impose such controls on them, what does that imply to all of us? It means to simply catch people for a crime that does not make sense, which is to talk anyway. 

The Sedition act charge against the Sri Muda assemblyman simply tells us that Malaysia is still a neo-feudalistic country with people from NGOs who know nothing much about the advancement of human civilization open their mouths and shooting at the person who has legit points to say in reply to a subject or an occasion that arises. As what the ex-Mufti Dr. Asri previously said - rulers are not on the level as with the famous prophets that we read in the Bible or the Quran. Humans do have flaws, and to say that people that fall under the group of rulers as omnipotent is a misconception and wrong. Since 2010, Britain has abolished Sedition laws mainly because the reality is that you can't catch a person just because he talks. 

If the controls persist there, how long do people can bear before they say that such laws are nonsensical and decide that enough is enough and the hell with the men who wanted those controls? Egypt is the perfect example - people, like the young are angry at senile old men for blocking access to what they want to say online. Online social and blogging sites like Facebook, Twitter, and etc..got blocked. People get angry, they would find a way to bypass the block and do whatever they want. To them, the message to be conveyed is "the hell with you."

This same case also applies to the attempt by the government to go after people who do illegal downloading. But to do that without solving the root causes of the problem - unrealistic censor laws, poor services in the cineplexes, the high cost of buying a video from the store is to invite more anger from the cyber-savvy community. Can you imagine blocking a 18-year person off from Internet because he's just writing diaries or things he want to talk? 

Go To Prison Because of Talking?

Thus, if the number of people in prisons for illogical petty crimes - talk, get stuff, participate in gatherings, etc.. surpasses the number of prisoners,  who are in there for murder, theft, white-collar crimes, and violent-nature crimes, then something is really wrong with how the country is run. In this case, you might need to build more prisons to house thousands of people guilty of petty crimes. 100,000 petty against 5000 violent - you do the math and conclusion! 

Online Privacy Invasion

Many people too believe that such controls is tantamount to privacy invasion. Remember back in 2007 where our former Information Minister Zam Maidin wanted to do blogger classification? Similar thing to what the government is bent to do. It's like wanting to know what a person is doing, event privately? There's the case of where people get Chinese New Year greetings from Najib. How do people's e-mail addresses or phone numbers in particular reach the hands the men who relayed Najib's message out? Aren't the telcos bound by the privacy clause that the personal information is strictly confidential and only used for their internal marketing purposes - not to be given to other parties? 

People do not like to be intruded upon and to scrutinize what people write is to see the big scissors on top of the ceiling ready to come down on people for nothing.

Information Branded A Lie But Factually True and Vice-Versa

That thing is a problem to contend with. The scenario is like: if Bernama writes news that is not entirely accurate but someone who write reveals information that was deliberately withheld and turned around by the news agency, where does that news landed into? An outright lie? A truth covered up as a lie?

But then, the lie disguising as a truth can be more venomous in nature because it misleads people into thinking that the lie has distorted many things and make people believe of some stupid things. For example, Article 153 in paper and word never talks about Malay rights at all, but it has been fanned into a political issue by NGOs and those affiliated to UMNO themselves. It is very misleading if you are told of a lie but never bother to investigate further by tracing the source materials that are claimed to back up a statement.

Senile and Unqualified Old Men

So who's to blame for all of this? Look at Zam Maidin and Rais in example. These are old men (all in the 60s) that said of the desire to control access to information. But are they really qualified to do that? Do they have the knowledge of the information technology discipline to say that? Zam is an old-fashioned reporter before becoming a politician. Rais doesn't have much knowledge of things like e-mail, social networking and yet wants to do that? Do the other politicians have a familiarity with those modern technology materials?

In fact, to do those various print control amendments, retain sedition acts, monitoring petty things unravels their paranoia and dementia of people looking for information in cyberspace. Britain, who originated Sedition Act, has thrown it away to the bin because of the reality that you can't simply catch people for talking. Same in school, you can't stop a person from talking and asking questions. 

The young and educated community in Egypt are very angry at senile old men that attempt to turn off information and attempting to control cyberspace and talk. They have responded with street demos and various bypasses to the blocks. The American government tries to stop organizations from supporting Wikileaks, they got hit back with hacks and DDOS attacks..those have one thing in common - to snub senile old men who run and try to introduce nonsensical policies. 

Cops Questioned Zorro: Flashback - 8.8.2008

I was told yesterday that Zorro was questioned over a one-year-old posting on August 8 2008, entitled Childish Police Bullying Again. The Star was quoted that the police questioned him over the defaced police logo with a dog on it, but inaccurately said of the posting was dated on 13 August 2008.

The intention of the post was dig at the police for hauling in Penarik Beca (Bakaq) over one of his postings that got him investigated under the Sedition Act. I was there the night Bakaq was questioned by the same department (CCID).

If the cops have not hauled in Bakaq on that day one year ago, this and that posting that Zorro put up would not have existed. Anyhow, disregarding that logo, public perception of the police force still remains at the low due to the higher crime rates until now.

You're No Computer Expert, Rais..So Back Down!

The Malaysian Insider reports that Rais Yatim's ministry is evaluating the feasibility of the Green Dam software as part of the aim of filtering unwanted content from the Internet.

But as said, the idea will draw flak as it violates the MSC bill of guarantees.

Rais, listen to the IT experts. You are only a politician. There are technical people out there including myself who thinks that taking this idea is a waste of time and still will not be able to accomplish the objective.

"The move comes on the back of proposals to register bloggers, most of whom are said to be anti-government, and the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition parties to have a larger Internet presence."

Look....we criticize not of we don't like you...but the mistakes that you're committing and you don't bother to listen at all. Who is to blame later on?

Even other people, who writes blogs, will start getting very angry and bash you down the moment they hear some illogical idea. Just back down, will you?

Blogging Is By Passion, Not A Must.

The approach to blogging seems to be taken wrongly by certain quarters with for the sake of communicating with people and other readers alike.

As I remembered during the BUM 2009 event, a speaker (whom I can't recall) said that blogging of something of interest is born out of the self-interest and passion of someone. My blog friend, De Minimis told me before that he would write if there is something interesting to share or interesting to write, otherwise, he would not write at all.

As for myself, I have thought of several pieces of things to share with fellow readers and etc, and if I do not have something to write or being too tired from work, I would not write at all for that day.

You do not hire people to write a posting in a blog. That is the wrong approach, the case in point is that the Pahang government employing retirees to write and blog - it's not by passion, but it's by the money...wrong. And the next one coming is the Kedah state BN women's wing which according to Berita Harian tends to train them to blog. It's okay to train, but the question there is do they have the interest or do they required to answer every nook and cranny of whatever is happening in Kedah?

Snippets From Dr. M's Speech at BUM 2009

At yesterday's Bloggers United Malaysia 2009 event in Subang Jaya, special guest Dr. M has no doubt blasted his successor, Abdullah Badawi as well as the former media baron Kalimullah Hassan over the blockade of the media in Malaysia and claimed that he did not instruct any media editors to limit their coverage / criticism.

Noted snippets from yesterday's speech:

1. “But mainstream media such as New Straits Times or Utusan Malaysia sort of second guessed what kind of things they want to print (about the leaders). Sometimes they were wrong. But this time it was more interesting because there was a supremo."

He keeps referring Kalimullah as the man with the Indian god name.

2. “I had at least 14 invitations from UMNO members to give a talk but these people were later told to withdraw their invitations, which they did. So I was cut off from being able to give my views even to members of my own party.”

3. "The Johor people asked for a bridge that will allow them to travel to and fro Singapore. This was agreed upon (including the water and sand deal) with the Singapore government. But then my successor decided to withdraw it."

4. Also a reference is also mentioned to Muhyiddin Yassin over the CIQ complex where in my opinion, the complex is worthless without the new bridge.

5. "The double-railway project from Johor Bahru to Padang Besar was originally costs at $14 billion, but now the cost from Ipoh to Padang Besar costs $12 billion, which we lost a lot of money."

6. "There were accusations thrown at me, saying that I was worse during my time. But I would like to say that newspaper editors are very sensitive people especially those in mainstream media.They self-censor because they believed I would not like (what they report) and that I would object – that was all. Other papers said nasty things about me but I never stopped them. "

“The situation was moving towards (racial riots of May 13) 1969″. “It was increasing to a point that UMNO wanted to have 500,000 people to show their strength and I thought it would escalate, that was why we had to take action. If I had told them not to, they would soon feel that I was not very supportive. The police have the guns and the power, and we don’t. When managing people with guns, you have to be very careful.”

7. "My biggest regret is that I am unable to convince the Malays to change their ways. I keep reminding them during every UMNO general assembly."

Majority of the points is on bashing Abdullah Badawi and Kalimullah Hassan.

He also gave his opinion on regulating Internet in Malaysia. But admittingly, he said that it is almost impossible to impose Internet censorship in Malaysia.

8. "If you wish to do so, then I wish you good luck."

Indirectly I admit that the point mentioned is a dig at Rais Yatim who earlier said "Self-Regulate or else" to bloggers (see Malaysiakini).

9. Last piece of advice - "Bloggers are VIPs and they should behave."

At BUM 2009

At BUM 2009

Still it's quite a good crowd turning up for BUM 2009 the annual event of bloggers and non-bloggers alike who wish to know those people. Following the success of last year's edition, the organizing team is making it bigger with three sessions, instead of one and of course more food....yum.

This time, the Perak Network bloggers, whom I met at Bukit Gantang also showed up.



Covering from morning to evening, it's the drinks and coffee that makes people awake although some skipped the BM session.


Well some of the speakers invited could not turn up but nonetheless most came. Many people awaited with bated breath when Dr. M showed up and talked for one hour followed by a press conference at a separate room.

Morning speakers with opening speeches by Dr. Lim Teck Ghee and Desi YL Chong:

Phillip Koh, Art Harun, Dr. K.J John

Afternoon speakers hosted by Helen Ang:

Datuk A.K Jasin, Fathi Aris Omar, Fahri Azzat and Faizal Mustaffa

Evening speakers hosted by Dr. Lim:

Steven Gan, Jeff Ooi, Nik Nazmi Ahmad, Rocky, Citizen Nades

A few things that were mostly discussed is regarding the anonymous identity on blogs dispute on whether to use your name or otherwise, then the quality of content in internet over popularity and of course, mainstream media failing the citizens with second guessing methods (as in Melayau) and NST, and finally, Dr M's message is that if the government chooses to regulate Internet, do it at their risk of violating the international laws agreed after the MSC.

A good head start is a piece by Sim Kwang Yang seen here.

Media coverage can be seen at either Malaysiakini or The Malaysian Insider.

I had taken a good deal of pictures there, and they showed up well minus flash, dang the noise

You can view the rest of the pics at my Facebook link here.

But do watch out later for a special posting on snippets of Dr. M's talk yesterday, seems a bit funny and interesting to hear about. (will update you when it's done.)

BUM 2009 - Coming May 16!

Bloggers United Malaysia - coming on May 16.

Visit http://bum2009.wordpress.com

In case you have not seen what's it like for BUM 2008, here are some pictures for your preview of what's to come for the event.

Six Bloggers Charged...Two More on Sunday

I received a text message forwarded, source from The Star that mentions of 6 bloggers to be charged tomorrow for the apparent insult over Sultan Azlan.

Rocky and Jed could be the among the six (unconfirmed) to be charged by under Section 233(1) CMA Act 1998 and Penal Code 34. But interestingly, the was one party that caught my interest which is basically the Perak State Secretary. My hunch is that the Barisan government which many said that they took over illegally, mostly because of Najib's brokering and Hamzah's buying are pissed off over the 'gossip' and damaging material.

I remembered that in the village of Kampung Simee, near my housing estate, people are absolutely disgusted by Mamak Zambry and once he came over, people hated him passionly as when he went to the Yuk Choy primary school in Hugh Low Street.

I stumbled upon a line by Hisham Rais on his piece "Ekonomi, bukan Raja atau Sultan" quote:

Kebelakangan ini tiba tiba kita mendengar kembali suara-suara untuk mengembalikan kekebalan Raja-Raja Melayu. Ini tidak menghairankan – pada satu ketika dahulu orang yang sama juga telah berkempen untuk melupuskan kekebalan ini. Hari ini mereka ini mengembalikan kekebalan Raja Melayu. Kenapa?

Jawabnya bukan kerana mereka cinta buta kepada Raja dan Sultan tetapi kerana punca ekonomi mereka semakin mengecil dan ada yang telah hilang dapor mencari makan. Mereka berharap Sultan dan Raja ( yang mereka tongengkan dahulu ) akan menjadi benteng untuk mempertahankan kepentingan ekonomi mereka.

Ekonomilah yang melahirkan budaya bangsa. Punca ekonomi orang Melayu telah berubah justeru kesetiaan mereka juga akan berubah sama. Manusia Melayu tidak mungkin lagi akan menyembah buta Raja atau Sultan. Zaman itu telah berakhir. Mengundurkan manusia Melayu kembali ke zaman feudal adalah mustahil.

The news piece also said that one from Penang could be charged. The other day, I asked OBE who are these Mighty Pen (sjsandteam) gang are. One phrase he said of is, if I recalled correctly: 'from Penang'. I thought just now that they could fit the description of the newspiece over two reasons, firstly how they address Sultan Azlan via remarks / titles and secondly given of them posting almost 20 posts per day, more than even top bloggers like Rocky. I thought those two things could invite the men in blue.

Maybe these guys can slow down a bit in writing. There's still time in writing posts...

A Sultan Entering Blogosphere!

Sultan Azlan Shah has just entered blogosphere a few days ago.

Stumbled upon the blog hosted by Blogspot a few days ago. It was setup a few days following the state constitutional crisis.

The official statement said this was setup as the alternative to the Dreambook guestbook which was disrupted.

I am not sure whether there's some sense of sincerity in this top first posting:

"His Royal Highness understands there are a lot grouses, grouches or even grievance on the recent BN/PR switchover debacle. It's hoped that a win-win-win (NB: It has to be TRIPLE WINS) solution can be attained through a direct dialogue such as this blog in the not too distant future.

Please therefore speak your mind freely, without fear or favour here."

The URL for the blog is here.

The Bloody Sunday

What turned out to be a double celebration: celebrating the anniversary of the Bersih rally and together with the candlelight vigil turned bloody in the second-half of the event as 24 men and women were arrested at the Civic Centre in Petaling Jaya. The term Bloody Sunday was mentioned twice in history, one in 1972 where 26 civil rights protesters were shot in Derry. Another reference to the name was in St Petersburg 1905 where protesters were shot as they intended to submit the petition to Tsar Nicholas II.

I was there with a few friends and guys and was covering both halves of the event, but the aftermath of the second half was so bloody that a some of them were brutally beaten by the FRU.

At Amcorp Mall

All roads leading to Amcorp Mall were sealed off by the police before event time at 9.30 p.m. This time, the federal police was involved in the operation given that the event involves BERSIH, the NGO coalition that calls for clean and fairer elections. However, there were two routes that were not covered: the back way going through Nestle office in Persiaran Barat and the small road leading to the court house.



The FRU men were on Standby mode at the outdoor parking ground while most of the people who wish to attend the event were either at inside Amcorp Mall or at the A&W restaurant. Given that the situation that seems to show police intimidation, the event was shortened by approximately five minutes. Note that there at least 15 Special Branch people around there with the blue-uniform and the FRU. The reason of shortening the thing in Amcorp is not to give excuses for the police to act before the mall closes at 10 p.m. Any such violent and brutal action at a private property warrants a lawsuit / complaint by the owner against the government.


Earlier on, the commanding officer was heard shouting at the bullhorn, "We will take action" (or somewhat) The event at Amcorp Mall wrapped up at 9.35 after a singing of the National Anthem. After that, everyone is asked to dispersed in groups of two. Some left while some went towards the Civic Centre for another vigil.

At MBPJ Civic Centre

Another round of gathering took place there after that where special guests there include Ronnie Liu, Tony Pua (also present at Amcorp Mall), Mat Sabu, Bersih secretary Faizal Mustaffa and Raja Petra Kamaruddin who has been asked to give a word or two following his release from ISA three days ago.


After Ronnie gave a speech of proposal of reinstatement of local government elections, Raja Petra was invited to give a few words before leaving. At that time, three trucks of FRUs, Special Branch people and the blue-uniform were standing by - moving their positions from Amcorp Mall and stood at the sidewalk of the main road. By the time they were fully mobilized everyone was singing again Negaraku. Apparently the police snapped upon hearing the song the second time.


Ronnie tried to approach the police to inform them of that they would have another five more minutes before dispersing. Before he could do so, the FRU started coming in as if being the Roman Legions and the OCPs screaming rudely at the crowd. I was standing there, thinking that the FRU would simply beat a person like me with their batons, but they moved past me and Pete and went after the others behind me.

And that's where the beatings and arrests started. The first two arrests made were Indians. The police are targetting those who are Indians and those who wear yellow shirts first before going after the others.

Calmly I walked briskly out of the place and when crossing the main road, Augustine, my friend (moving behind me, about to leave) was jumped by a Special Branch man, overpowered and was arrested. I could not stop anymore or do anything but to keep moving and tag after Pete, Marina and Serena who's ahead of me. I broke out the bad news of Augustine caught to the others.

Brutal Beatings and Arrests

At a break session, we were establishing the number of people arrested and their identities as well as the discussion of the brutal assaults that the FRU went against unarmed ordinary citizens.

We established that 24 were arrested. Angela Ooi, the girl actively in the anti-ISA vigil in Seremban was one of them, Augustine, Arif Abdull - a fellow blogger, the priest Father Paulino from the Mercy church in Shah Alam. We thought Ronnie was also arrested. He was released immediately becuase the police apparently saw him trying to approach them to request for time before dispersing.

Tony was dragged by Special Branch into the Black Maria truck. Kampung Tunku assemblyman Lau Weng San was assaulted by a special Branch man whom he managed to identify, but the man responsible was rude, refused to reveal his identity. Some of the organizing team for the vigil in Penang including were arrested as well.

The first two arrests were premeditated. Two Indians were arrested. This could allow the police to give a context that HINDRAF, the banned organization being involved in this event. Chris' friend, Dian was dragged behind and fell down, her son arrested and her husband dragged by the Special Branch. The bleeding was so profuse that she was taken to the Assunta hospital, requiring 4 stitches. Another woman, while attempting to run away from the melee, struck her head onto a pot plant, head bleeding profusely.

The Malaysiakini videographer, who was there to record the event was also arrested. He also recorded RPK's word or two at the Civic Centre before he was taken away. A concern out of this is that Pete could be called in tomorrow or so to provide an explaination his appearance on video. This could possibly give a further reason for the government to appeal agains the ruling of Pete's release.

Excerpt from Malaysiakini:

Shortly afterwards the police started dispersing the crowd using their shields.

In the ensuing melee, police arrested PJ Utara member of parliament and DAP leader Tony Pua, Kampung Tunku state representative Lau Weng San and about 20 others. Also arrested was Malaysiakini videographer Shukri Mohamad.

Eyewitnesses said that Pua was physically manhandled and thrown into a waiting Black Maria. The police were also seen chasing the crowd into an Indian restaurant located opposite the Civic Centre.

Angela, who was arrested, had a cut on the nose when she was arrested. At the end of the night, I was told that many were brutalized by the FRU and Special Branch before they were arrested.

Serena received an SMS from Augustine, assuring her that he was fine and asked her to go back to the Wharf.

Scenes at the Police Station

Following the arrest, Malik Imtiaz, and 15 Bar Council members led by Edmund Bon started coming to the police station. Later, the MPs including Loh Gwo Burne and Lim Kit Siang started coming in front of the station. They were not allowed to go in until all the 24 detainees were processed. The FRU was once again called to mobilize for crowd control.

It is highly probable that the 24 detainees would be charged under Section 27(5). However, word has it from Tony is that the police could be obtaining a court remand order to have them remand overnight. At 3 a.m, the lawyers were allowed in for the observation. It seems that most of the detainees are told to leave out answering interrogation, which forms part of the possibility of remand order. BERSIH led a vigil outside the station. No tear gas was fired as initially feared.

The police could provide too many excuses and adamanting on having a person arrested including resisting arrest for refusal to answer interrogation, HINDRAF - for Indian presence or wearing the orange T-Shirt and etc..

The blood is now on Khalid Bakar's hands.

Musings on Bloody Sunday

1. The one key observation is that the National Anthem song seems to make the police snapped. This happened when someone in the FRU were shouting when the people were singing the anthem at Amcorp Mall. The second time the song was sung, they snapped and started charging into the crowd.

2. During the charging into the crowd thing, the police have forgotten to follow the basic rules of engagement which is to provide ample warnings of dispersal. Since the gathering is in two spots, the police must informed them, provide 5-15 minutes to disperse before the next action. In this case, there was no warning given, and they simply go in.

3. The police were simply rude and normal people are considered as lowlife and very dangerous. Bringing an FRU squad against people who do not carry anything but candles? The entire thing is to fueling fuel with fire. A deliberate intention by the BN government to provoke people so that they can use the Solution 1969 again.

4. There will be a shouting match in the Parliament tomorrow with the government, Police and UMNO accused for this matter. Currently we are trying to find out who actually gave the order. It could be an out-of-control OCPD, Khalid Bakar himself or a minister. In that case, Syed Albar is going to get grilled badly tomorrow though my feeling is on Najib.

5. Over the last six hours, much of the coverage can be seen at Anil's blog. This is far in contrast to the Ipoh vigil, which ended peacefully and with the same amount of people present in P.J.

6. This finally proves that the Icke Theorem is true, Malaysia is adopting the prescription of the Bush style of United States.

Do watch this space later on as I include more pics from last night.

Update: 9.55 p.m: Here are some additional pics from the event:



I somehow must admit that I salute this woman who brings her child out for this vigil. I think it is a good step as to get children understand the full truths of the modern Malaysian history, not the ones that we learn in schools which are UMNO-approved ones.

Dollah Macam Tak Nak Jumpa....But...

Hindraf and the civil-conscious group of people who opposed the ISA today grouped together to go to the PWTC for the PM's open house.

They came into PWTC with a message to be delivered to Dollah Badawi personally: release" all ISA detainees. We mean business."

I was tagging along with fellow bloggers and a few activists. I met them at Secret Recipe opposite The Mall before going there. Everyone is already dressed in red, black or orange T-shirts to express the message of rejecting the misuse of ISA. A little info from Malik Sarwar indicates that a second habeas corpus was filed. The first one was because of the police recommendation, while the second one is against the signing by Botak Albar.

Bloggers and some people gathered at Secret Recipe before going.

The Hindraf Group

At 11.15 a.m we started to move to PWTC. While we were moving, we saw many in orange, the HINDRAF group. They were intending to reach there with the same message. Compare to a dozen or two of civil-conscious group, the number of orange people was around 500.

At 11.30 when we reached there, the group was met with resistance from the men in blue. There, it was the same man, ASP Sydney Jeremiah that was telling them they were under instructions to not allow those wearing the shirts to enter into the building.

Of course this has attracted the attention of reporters and other passer-bys. Haris and Amarjit was haggling with the police and some of the officials. It took them 30 minutes and by intervention of some officials before they were allowed to enter in. As soon as we entered in, Hindraf came in a big group and tried to enter as well. They did.

Amarjit and Haris saying thanks to ASP Sydney Jeremiah after much of haggling.

You're going to have a hard time lining up.

As usual like last year, the crowd swelled, eager to meet Dollah and the ministers. But it seems that the PWTC people are trying to play a game of diverting the HINDRAF and the group from meeting them. I remembered at the point where there is a live feed, you usually take an escalator to go up - that's the route of going to the 4th floor. But going right just takes you to the food, and nothing else. Everyone went right. I think at that time, the VIP period wasn't over yet.

Of course it ended up as a false end. And we ended unable to go up to the 4th floor.

Anyhow, the crowd decided to try one more time using a different route. They used the staircase and discovered the VIP route. The routed ends up at Dollah and his entourage shaking hands with guests.

Of course, the HINDRAF group was caught in the melee. But I managed to sneak past them and followed behind someone. Thankfully, a PWTC guy allowed me - since I was tagging with a guy behind him to go inside the hall.

Finally, I managed to shake hands with a few ministers. Of course, it's Dollah, Jeanne, Najib, Nor Yackop and of course finally Hisham Hussein. Among them Kerishamuddin was the most cheerful of all, besides exchanging pleasantries, he asked me where I was from. I merely told him, "We're La Sallians!" He chuckled.

The anti-ISA activist who was with me told me how Dollah's face went plume the moment he saw HINDRAF and those wearing anti-ISA T-shirts. From the way the party was diverted it seems that he doesn't want to see them. The Malaysian Insider has one interesting line that was quoted from him that said: "I cannot have a special meeting with anyone. It is an open house." I thought it means it is against forgiveness that he emphasized the night before.

When he shook hands with Najib, the hand moves in a way of saying "go away". As for me, his head was turning away before he looked at me. I thought it's like saying no interest in meeting.

After a while, Haris and other people of the Hartal event met Dollah Badawi and told him: "Datuk Seri, please release all ISA detainees immediately. Please, please please." Hindraf would also come in to present gifts and a card for Dollah. Dollah reluctantly gave his Mr. Clean smile.

As a sign of protest, they did not touch food served to visitors in PWTC.

Mission Accomplished (pic by Malaysiakini)

We gathered at one corner after they entered. Mission accomplished.

They have sent a message to him. Now the ball is at his corner.

One Last Pic Before I Left

Haris has his posting up at his blog plus pictures.

Internet Censorship --- Round 2 -- FIGHT!

Since Tuesday evening, Malaysia Today has been blocked by major ISPs with a directive from the Multimedia Commission over the fact that the government is not quite happy over the piece called Malays: Enemies of Islam.

Many had found ways to bypass the blockade through other accesses, which is provided for your convenience. Many are convinced that MCMC is taking orders from the above, which is either pointing to Abdullah Badawi or Najib.

Malaysiakini has pointed out that Syed Hamid Albar has defended the move to have Malaysia Today blocked over the obvious reason mentioned above. Of course, this does not bode well with Pete Kamaruddin and he has vowed to bring down the act that violates the MSC charter. Of course, this goes against what was agreed by Mahathir previously. A reference to Mahathir was mentioned today that Nazri has asked MPs to stop referring to Mahathir today.

The whole thing was borne out of the aftermath of Permatang Pauh elections. Najib was actually the director of election operations for the BN camp and he should be responsible for everything, not Abdullah. In fact from this, some Najib loyalists see this as another hide behind way to attack Abdullah since many UMNO people will directly point that Abdullah is weak and bloggers are the bane.

Supporters of Najib have been pushing for tougher action to be taken against Raja Petra and his ilk, arguing that the same rules which bind the mainstream media should be applied on the alternative media.

If it's the fight that these dinosaurs want, then it will be good fight to the finish. I think that there could be a point where allegations that are actually through could leak out. One touch of the button that goes out to the international press and certain people in the Malaysian political scenario will be indeed finished. It can be anyone..Abdullah, Najib, and even Pakatan Rakyat as well. Well, Abdullah got whacked last week for calling bloggers 'evil' and I wonder who would be the next person to become the punching bag?

It's now Round 2, fight!

Up Next: Malaysian McCarthyism on Netizens

In my previous posting, Bury Him? No, Man, BN Got Buried! , I have indicated that one of the things that the government would fall back on after this by-election would be to play the blame-game on bloggers and netizens. To them, the bloggers have been proven as the bane of BN government and it was due to their ignorance that they lost badly on March 8.

Yes, the BN government is facing many allegations from bloggers and they are trying to counter them. However, to some, some of the allegations are actually true in nature but the ones that walk in the corridors of power will try to deny them.

As the result, the Barisan regime has concluded that tough action is needed to put hold bloggers responsible for they understood that if nothing is done so, they would be wiped out in the next general elections. Among those who concurred were senior officials, ministers and especially Najib Razak.

UMNO loyalists are the ones that are pushing for tougher action against bloggers and newsportals including hauling up bloggers for their opinions that could be against the government.

Full article here.

So, they are still not listening to what the people have spoken? Whoever said that is still in the realm of dinosaurs - people who don't even know of Information Technology. Someday, when that happens, some other bloggers could be pissed off and will start whacking at these idiots. As for me, you might have a good guess of what I'm going to do. And for Najib, it's Auf Wiedersehen....I've promised a friend, I'd go to Finnegans when the real deal leaks out!

Teaching Abdullah Badawi

[Source]

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has described the action of a blogger in calling on his blogsite followers to fly the national flag upside down as a sign of protest, as evil.

He said flying the Jalur Gemilang upside down could not be regarded as an act of mischief alone but a despicable one, what more with Malaysia about to celebrate its 51st independence anniversary.

“This is uncouth behaviour, showing no respect at all for the national flag. What is there to be angry with the Malaysian flag?” he said after officiating at the Third Scouts International Peace Jamboree, here today.

“If there are Malaysians who want to take up the idea that came from the pro-opposition blogger, they are insulting this important national symbol (flag),” he said.

Abdullah said the blogger came up with the idea to fly the national flag upside down hoping that others would follow suit, without thinking of the implications.
“It’s all in the blog...only he can do a good job. He’s simply creating trouble by coming up with dubious stories,” he said.

It was reported in cyberspace that Kelantanese blogger Sheih (Kickdefella) had on Aug 3 launched a campaign to fly the Jalur Gemilang upside down as a symbol of the people’s frustrations and as a signal of a nation in distress.

He also wrote in his blog that “it is internationally accepted that raising the flag upside down is a mark of a state in distress. It is never a mark of disrespect.” Some bloggers and commentators quickly declared their support for the idea but many, including from the opposition, were against it as they felt the national flag deserved the utmost respect.

A blog visitor wrote that in India, flying the national flag upside down as an international symbol of distress was unacceptable, and in fact an insult to the nation. Abdullah, meanwhile, hoped the police would act on the matter.

**********************

First of all, Dollah, 'evil' is a very big word to be used. In fact it is the wrong word used. The more appropriate word is not 'evil' but it can be like 'inappropriate' or a statement like 'please don't do that'. To say evil simply implies that a blogger like Sheih does atrocities without conscience like being in the role as a killer of Nurin (incidentally, it's the first anniversary of her death).

Dollah, you might want to watch the Tommy Lee Jones movie called "In The Valley of Elah" to give a better understanding of why a flag is upside down. In the case of Malaysia, it is to say that Malaysia is riddled with problems everywhere that could cripple the progress of a nation. And the fault lies with you. You just didn't see it happening and there is still no repairs at all. For instance, following the election disaster, you finger the blame on others but not on yourself.

I kept wondering of freshies (fresh graduates) who have a hard time of finding jobs and perhaps some of them get very low starting pays than what they are supposedly entitled to. A freshie should start earning at least $3000 instead of $1600 from the beginning. Look at how Singapore do financially. Don' you dare say 'why you compare Malaysia to Singapore'... I kept wondering of how people are struggling to meet ends when there is no salary increase to meet this financial problems. I felt a pity when other foreign professionals look down on our locals, at work ethics, education literacy and etc. Malaysia has yet to reach the acceptable civilized level of society as intended by visionaries.

So therefore Dollah, my advice is simple: the flag is purposely done to convey this message; to tell that Malaysia has gone to the wrong direction. Malaysia should be moving forward but it is moving backwards. And most of the mistakes were made by you. Therefore, it will be your duty to correct your mistakes everywhere. No more sleeping on the job.

Going after the wrong people who is criticizing for the good of the nation is a waste of resources and the police should be hunting the evil people - Nurin's killers (one year past and nothing!?) , criminals and scum of the society instead of messengers and patriots!

Sometimes, it is sensible to listen to a fool's advice for the fool might never show up tomorrow?

Do you remember a song from The Eagles, New York Minute that says that thing above?

Sometimes, even the old take lessons from the young really and it works...

Raden Galoh Says Hello To All

I just got back from the KL General Hospital 10 minutes ago - coming from office in the afternoon - to visit Dalilah (Raden Galoh) who is going to undergo operation tomorrow for her liver cancer treatment. I was informed of this by Elviza's posting in regards to the matter. Since I met Dalilah through Mob and Rikey during a dinner for Daphne's, I might as well drop by for a visit.

According to her, following the operation, she would be undergoing three sessions of chemotheraphy to treat her cancer - doctors estimate she could be in either stage 4 /5 (critical) stage. The chances for this thing , in my estimation is at around 30-40 percent. If it is successful, she could see her level of inflamation in her body reduced to an acceptable level and doing another few rounds of chemo sessions with the doctor.

With me at the ward was also Kak Maria and another two of her friends as well. At first they do not know who I was, when Dalilah related me to Howsy and Mob, then they remembered.

Before I left, Dalilah (she asked me to pass the message) would like to say hello to all of you blogger friends out there. And let's hope for the better things coming soon.

If you would like to visit her, go to Operation Ward 14, Room 13 but come at the proper time to give her a good rest.

Little Men Against The Orwellian Government

In Brazil, a little man known as Sam Lowry unknowingly in his pursuit of the woman that he saw in his dreams, one Jill Layton, breaks many rules that it seems that challenges the might of the an Orwellian English government and somehow won psychologically and spiritually over the big machine.

And so does Anwar Ibrahim and and this blogger called Penarik Beca.

I'll start with Anwar. Anwar has a strong alibi, he has proof including a SD by the Puswari doctor and etc to say that the government is deliberately setting him up. Yes, they are setting him up because the moment he walks into Parliament, it's likely to be a premature game over for Abdullah Badawi and Najib Razak. And now the semen evidence that they are banking on is not likely going to work. And then there's a taped confession by Saiful's associate that is going to be revealed later that shows that Saiful lied all along.

You could picture how the prosecutors in the AG chambers react in this morning's court session. Their reaction implies that they are being pressured politically by either the F.F.B or Abdullah Badawi himself or the inner circle that he belongs to. Abdullah indeed is lying to the public to say that he's not involved. He is involved. He is ordering them to keep charging Anwar, and to put him away at jail.

At least Komala, the judge isn't stupid. She asked DSP Jude Pereira whether Anwar had co-operated fully. He nodded, so she gave a personal bond minus surety. Isn't that better? At least someone had co-operated and not run away as many police top brass would believe in Anwar.

I can be like Roy Batty in Blade Runner - a tragic figure who wants to preserve his memories and wants to move on. I am kind of similar to him, scared of what will happen when things change. I wanted to go along with the change, but not without people helping me through - otherwise I could be lost in the middle. At least, I admit that I'm not like UMNO people who refuses to change for the better good.

I remembered reading a page from David Eick's book called Tales of the Time Loop which says that if you say things that is you feel is right and not against what government wants, in other words different opinions, you are considered as an extremist. So that's what happened to Penarik Beca today - arrested for Sedition Act. When the real thing comes out, the wrong will use that to gag the truth and people who look for truth. To put fear in people - the kind of people who could stand up against the corrupt machinery, the Orwellian government.

After some time keeping tabs of the updates of Penarik Beca, I thought of maybe the name Little Taffer carries the same purpose as this two men...little men against Big Brother who calls them low-life..maybe that's what my blogs means for now!

Image by Kickdefella

100 Days MPs Party

Last night at Blog House, a big party with most bloggers together with some notable MPs was held to commermorate the 100 Days post March 8 elections . It also hosts a fund raising event in which funds (at the end, it was close to $45K, 90% of the target) will be donated to All-Blogs. Also, LG was also promoting some of its gadgets including the upcoming model called SECRET.

Food was graciously provided by Gus of the Wharf together while satay was provided by a restaurant in Lucky Garden. Drinks..not sure. I came over from the Sentul police station picking up two people who did not have transport to go over there. I met a photo-journalist whom I helped to introduce to some notable people including TV Smith.

Apart from the usual suspects of bloggers and denizens, notable lawmakers who arrived there include Nurul Izzah, Loh Gwo Burne, Mr. Screenshots Jeff Ooi, Ronnie Liu (who was there at the police station) surprisingly, Marina's brother, Mukhriz and the last one to came was Wee Choo Keong (who made only after 12.30 a.m). Notable celebrity Erra Fazira (with her husband Engku Emran of SURIA FM) came there as well.


Raja Petra, who was questioned in Sentul Police Station, came 5 minutes after me with his wife Marina and his lawyer, Amarjit. He had a small talk with everyone. MPs were also asked a question or two by some numerous people but Mukhriz gave a very good answer on rejuvenating UMNO which drew applause from the crowd.


There was a lucky draw where one of the prizes include a LG Secret and a auction in which most of the things were purchased by Amarjit. Captain Lokman tried to buy one item but was outbid mostly by Amarjit! I missed out on bidding for a SECRET. Should have offered more than $900 since it's less than the market rate of $1400. :(

I was there, having drinks beer, wine and some liquor until 1 a.m where I went back because I need some sleep before covering the next event, the PROTES rally.

For further pictures you can view the photo album for this event at my Facebook link here.

Other postings by the other suspects:

Galadriel: 100 Days Bla..bla...bla
Rocky: MPs, Bloggers, Celebrities at 100 Days Night
Marina: Night of the Stars at Blog House
Jinggo's photopage

Promoting YEW-TUBE on TV1's BLOG

I asked Tony today, in the afternoon how he got invited to the show. According to him, after last week's episode, the heads of the show was asking Rocky on any person he can suggest for this week's episode. And then his name was mentioned because he was one of the few people who has vlogs or video logs.

So he was invited there.

Told me that he had to be there around 8 p.m for some makeup before the show and in terms of security, he has to notify security of what car (reg. num) he'd be driving over to there. He also had to prepare a brief summary about his blog a few days before coming over for the interview.

I was expecting him to raise some lamenting and high-tone criticism and confrontation, as he told me in the afternoon, but then it turned out otherwise. I heard that there would be about 13 episodes or so for this show (perhaps it's a trial run) but not quite sure though.

So far, out of 7 episodes, it's 6 males to 1 female (Nuraina of course!) and mostly those old and senior age bloggers. I wonder who could it be in episode 8? A very old one or a young blood one like Galadriel?

Ok, he's promoting his video log there and well, hope to rewatch it on YouTube a few days later.

Credit to Howsy for the extra info.

Media Freedom Day - The Walk and the Talk

De Facto Law Minister Zaid Ibrahim was the guest of honor for the media freedom day as media professionals wanted to engage with him on the demand of giving better freedom to the press. The event was held today at the National Press Club opposite Bank Negara.

Some had started walk from Merdeka Square with some police seen around the square and around Bank Rakyat opposite the Royal Selangor Club but they were no incidents of intimidation or brutality as they knew that Minister is participating in the event. I came from Bank Negara, from by train and spent 5 minutes walking from there to the club.

Many people gathered there from 9.15 a.m onwards as they were treated to a sumptuous meals of nasi lemak and roti canai with free coffee / tea while awaiting for Zaid. In addition to the regular lot of bloggers, special guests being there including Bernama GM Azman Ujang, journalist / playright Kee Thuan Chye, Star Chief Editor, Wong Chun Wai, with the organization's journalists like A. Asohan, Shahanaz Sher Habib, NUJ head Norilla Daud, A. Gayathry from CIJ, Malaysiakini's Steven Gan with columnists Helen Ang and KJ John and of course two assemblymen, Wee Choo Keong and Ronnie Liu.



As planned, the event kicked off at 10.15 a.m and the show was cut short at 11 a.m as Zaid had to attend to certain matters. Following introductions and hackling from the press professionals, Zaid took to the stage. Despite being booed and criticized by the media, Zaid, all in all told the media professionals to join collectively and give proposals and strategies in providing, part of the roadmap for better press freedom. Zaid pointed out that most of the media professionals did not look to the other side of the coin. But some of the questions during the Q&A session, a proposal forwarded by Chun Wai on having a one-time permit seemed to get cold reaction from Zaid's answer. His answer was merely to forward it to Syed Hamid Albar and support whatever decision Hamid will take. He told that there must be a mechanism that can manage changes otherwise anarchy will happen.

Note: There was a minor incident where some people had to calm down blind-blogger Alfred Ho over a remarks and speaking against the subject today.

Excerpt from Bernama:

"Show unity. Show your role in the process. If you want to change something in existence ...(then) you must propose and offer a solution ... a mechanism to manage the process.

That you must do. If you want greater press freedom, you must have a plan," he said at a dialogue organised by the National Press Club (NPC) and the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) Malaysia (NUJ) at the NPC premises, here.

"The country needs a good and free press. If you talk about reform, you must have plans. I believe that if we have good proposals, maybe certain progress can be made. Not necessarily (one has to) repeal everything," he said.

The video, courtesy of Malaysiakini: Zaid did not endear himself to journos today


After the session, people were invited to continue the walk for freedom from the club to the big flag pole at Merdeka Square. Fortunately there were no bad incidents happening there. Most left after 12 and bloggers mostly stayed back at the club for rounds of drinks and brunch. I also had a the pleasure of meeting a renowned Malaysian aviator, Lokman Sardon, (Tun Sardon Jubir's son) and the father of Malaysian documentary filmmaker Adam Lokman and had a good discussion session on aviation, conspiracy theories and political stuff.

Additional photos from the event can be seen at my Facebook album here.

Further accounts from fellow bloggers on the event:

Galadriel: Walking on The Wild Side with Zaid Ibrahim
Howsy: Yes, There Was a Walk and a Talk But Was There a 'Walk The Talk?'
Rocky: Where Were The Editors?

Special NOTE: YEWTUBE's Tony Yew will be the guest for tonight's BLOG on TV1 so join in!