Brunei denies Limbang story

Borneo Bulletin | By Azlan Othman | March 18,2009

YB Pehin Orang Kaya Pekerma Dewa Dato Seri Setia Awg Lim Jock Seng, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade II, yesterday said claims on Limbang were never discussed during Monday's deliberations between Brunei and Malaysia.

He was responding to YB Dato Paduka Hj Puasa bin Orang Kaya Seri Pahlawan Tudin's query on the contents of the "Letter of Exchange" signed between Brunei and Malaysia, which also touched on Brunei's claims over Limbang at the Legislative Council meeting yesterday.

Pehin Lim said there were certain press reports yesterday claiming that Brunei has dropped claims over Limbang.

"In actual fact, the claim on Limbang was never discussed. What was discussed was the demarcation of land boundaries on the whole," he said.

"The joint press statement issued yesterday mentioned that the demarcation of the land boundaries between the two countries will be resolved on the basis of five existing historical agreements between the Government of Brunei and the State of Sarawak, and, as appropriate, the watershed principle.

"After that a working group comprising general surveyors of the two countries will follow with the technical aspect to solve the land border issue," Pehin Lim added.

His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam and Malaysian Prime Minister Dato' Seri Abdullah Haji Ahmad Badawi held a four-eye meeting at the Istana Nurul Iman on Monday and signed the Exchange of Letters to mark the successful conclusion of negotiations.

The negotiations have been ongoing for many years on outstanding bilateral issues between the two countries with regard to historical, legal and other relevant criteria involving both sides.

Both noted the agreement of their respective governments on the key elements contained in the Exchange of Letters, which included the final delimitation of maritime boundaries between Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia, the establishment of Commercial Agreement Area (CAA) on oil and gas, the modalities for the final demarcation of the land boundary between Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia and unsuspendable rights of maritime access for nationals and residents of Malaysia across Brunei's maritime zones en route to and from their destination in Sarawak, Malaysia provided that Brunei's laws and regulations are observed.

Meanwhile, YB Pehin Orang Kaya Johan Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Hj Adanan, the Minister of Home Affairs, said an allocation has been made in the budget to upgrade the Kuala Lurah Control Post.

After the border issue between Brunei and Malaysia is resolved, work will be carried out to identify the site.

He was responding to a query by YB Dato Paduka Hj Puasa on the long queues that border hoppers normally experience during school holidays, Hari Raya and other public holidays and the need to upgrade Pandaruan ferry services and Puni Control Post in Temburong.

YB Dato Paduka Hj Puasa added that the opening of a new bridge soon in Trusan, Lawas will further aggravate the situation should these control post projects are not carried out.

Initial >>>>>>>>>>> news from Malaysia

Staronline | Tuesday March 17, 2009 | By LEONG SHEN LI

Brunei drops claim over Limbang District, says Abdullah

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: Brunei has officially dropped its long-standing claim over Sarawak’s Limbang district after the two countries resolved various land and maritime territory disputes.

“Brunei has decided to drop the Limbang issue and as a result, Limbang is part of Malaysian territory,” Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced to Malaysian media.

The resolution of the disputes were sealed via the signing of the Letters of Exchange by Abdullah and the Sultan of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah at Istana Nurul Iman here yesterday.

A new era: Abdullah (second from left) and Sultan Hassanal exchanging the Letters of Exchange that mark the end of the territorial dispute. Looking on is Dr Rais (left) and Brunei Foreign Minister Pengiran Muda Mohamed Bolkiah. — Bernama

The other disputes include over where the maritime boundary between the two countries in the South China Sea should run, the rights to exploit potentially rich oil deposits in the disputed maritime territory, the right of movement by Malaysian vessels over Brunei waters and the demarcation of the common boundary of the two countries.

The dispute over Limbang can be traced back to the cession of the territory by Brunei to Sarawak’s White Rajahs in 1890. The cession had been strongly disputed by the Sultanate which regarded the transfer as annexation by Sara-wak.

Yesterday, Abdullah thanked the Sultan for the resolution of the various disputes, especially that of Limbang.

He said bilateral relations between the two countries would now enter a new era.

Abdullah and the Sultan said in a joint statement that they had reached agreement over the maritime boundaries between the two countries in the South China Sea.

They also agreed to establish a “commercial arrangement area” where oil and gas revenue in the disputed area would be shared between the two nations. How much each country would get was not disclosed.

The two sides also agreed to the existence of “unsuspendable rights of maritime access” which guaranteed the right of movement by Malaysian vessels through Brunei territorial waters provided Brunei’s laws and regulations are obser-ved.

Lastly, the Letters of Exchange also established the methods to demarcate the land boundary between the two countries.

The negotiations over the agreements, which began in 1995, took 39 rounds of talks to reach the resolution.

The dispute over maritime territory arose out of a 1979 map published by Malaysia which indicated that all deep-sea territorial waters off the coast of Brunei belonged to Malaysia.

The latest dispute over maritime territory occurred in 2003 when Malaysia and Brunei awarded petroleum production-sharing contracts for four exploration blocks to different companies in the disputed area, close to where a 440 million-barrel discovery had been made the year before.

Following the dispute, both countries agreed to stop drilling activities in the area.

Halabja remembers chemical weapons attack

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 02:40:18 GMT | PressTV

The colors of the Kurdish flag reflect off a memorial wall inscribed with the names of each victim of the 1988 Halabja chemical attack.

Halabja has commemorated the 21st anniversary of the chemical weapons attack that killed between 5,000 and 6,000 people, mostly Kurds and mostly civilians.

On March 16, 1988, former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's military helicopters swooped down into Halabja and the surrounding towns in Iraqi Kurdistan's Sulaymaniyah province and unleashed first bombs, then a combination of deadly gases.

Bodies of civilians were littered on the streets with children in their parents' arms.

The Halabja massacre took place at the end of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq.

The city still lacks adequate schools, medical care, and housing, residents say.

A new monument, depicting two clasped hands reaching skywards, a symbol for those who were killed, was unveiled on Tuesday and an attached museum was opened .

This year was the first time that the United Nations commemorated the 1988 tragedy. Ambassadors, members of the Iraqi parliament, human rights acivists, and massacre survivors decried the world's silence at the time and urged that steps be taken to ensure that such acts of genocide never occur again.

Leaving So Soon?

Sat, 14 Mar 2009 23:33:12 GMT       |      PressTV

By Kian Mokhtari Given the CIA's long line of total cock-ups in its reports leading up to the Iraq War, we can all be excused should we choose to take the agency's latest crystal ball predictions with a pinch of salt. The Central Intelligence Agency now says it has serious doubts about Israel's survival beyond 2030. The people in the Middle East have always had their doubts about the viability of a state made up of European refugees formed on Palestinian land. But polite Arab society has always chosen 'subtle' gestures over words in the past to get its point across! Arab etiquette obviously has a lot to answer for. The CIA report predicts the return of all Palestinian refugees to the occupied territories, and the exodus of two million Israelis who would move to the US in the next fifteen years. It adds "There is over 500,000 Israelis with American passports and more than 300,000 living in the area of just California," with those who do not have American or Western passports, having already applied for them. Over in California, unknown to the CIA, a resistance movement is already being formed but there are some minor disagreements in its leadership over the name for the movement. Should it be called the People's Front for Liberation of California or the Front of the People for the Liberation of California? But seriously, population studies demonstrate beyond any doubt that if Israel does not settle for a two-state solution soon, the disparity in the growing Arab population and shrinking Jewish population will see to the entity called Israel whether the Jews likes it or not. Using the examples of the unexpected quick fall of the apartheid government in South Africa and the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, the CIA suggests the end to the dream of a Jewish homeland is about to happen. The CIA study is likely to go down like a lead balloon in Tel-Aviv, coming hot on the heels of an award winning book by Jewish history professor Shlomo Sand's, "When and How Was the Jewish People Invented?" The book calls into question the modern day Jews' genetic lineage and argues that the mythical perception of the Jews as an ancient people is in fact little more than racism revisited. There have been many factors at work against the long-term survival of a Jewish state in the Middle East ever since its conception just over sixty years ago. But the most prominent obstacle to the success of Israel has been a long line of extremist, militaristic zealots in its leadership. Israel's behavior in its treatment of the native Palestinian population, its attacks against Egypt, Jordan and Syria, its invasion of Lebanon and atrocities committed against civilian Arab populations can not be perceived as particularly endearing it to the locals throughout its existence. Demographics has been given particular attention and prominence in the CIA forecast, one cannot help but wonder whether it has been used to paint over all the other factors that may indeed make their presence felt in the CIA's predicted final demise of Israel. Oh, and there's another thing: at a time when many people worldwide have serious doubts about the United States' own survival, wouldn't CIA resources be better spent in concentrating on matters closer to home?

Protest against UK troops : Has everyone gone mad?

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 12:46:40 GMT | PressTV

A group of about 20 Muslims in Luton protested against British soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment, who were parading in the town after coming back from a tour of duty in Afghanistan, Tuesday March 10.

The world must have gone crazy while I looked the other way.

In recent days the British establishment, media and public have roundly condemned a group of about 20 Muslims who peacefully (if provocatively) protested against British soldiers who were parading in the town of Luton.

Yet the British army - which has invaded and occupied two sovereign nations in the last decade, killed and tortured innocent civilians, and has been complicit in secret rendition - was hailed as heroic.

The Muslim protestors outraged the nation when they carried placards with slogans including "Butchers of Basra", "cowards, killers, extremists" and "British government terrorist government."

Gordon Brown and MPs from all parties spoke out against the protest. The prime minister summed up the national mood when he said, “The whole country is proud of our brave servicemen and women who serve their country with great distinction and courage.”

Radio phone-in shows were deluged with outraged callers who labeled the protestors unpatriotic traitors who wanted to create a medieval Islamic state. References were made to their “menacing” Islamic dress, and the general consensus was they were the enemy within and should be booted out of the country.

Escorted by police, British soldiers from the 2nd Battalion parade through the town of Watford, England, Wednesday March 11, 2009.

Mainstream Islamic groups feebly indulged in damage limitation, saying the protestors were inciting Islamophobia and did not represent ordinary Muslims. They said anger over the war on terror should be directed against politicians, not soldiers who were only obeying orders. Others with more forthright views have been cowed into silence.

Although I admit mine is a minority view in the UK, all of this strikes me as illogical and highly hypocritical.

A majority of British people, of all religions and none, think the war on terror has been a disaster and has unleashed the gates of hell in Iraq and Afghanistan. They also believe that far from protecting the British public against their enemies, the war on terror has incited terrorism and made the British mainland a target.

And while it is true that the politicians are primarily to blame for taking the country into these wars, surely the soldiers cannot be completely absolved of responsibility. After all, they are the ones who pull the triggers, or in the case of British soldiers in Basra, kick innocent Iraqis to death.

Moreover, soldiers are not robots. They are human beings with critical faculties who can refuse to fight if they believe they are involved in an unjust war. We know that many British soldiers don't believe what they're doing is right, yet they continue to pull the triggers nevertheless. Surely that makes them unscrupulous killers.

Don't forget the Nazis argued at the Nuremberg Trials that they were “only obeying orders.” That lame excuse has been rightly discredited forever.

So perhaps it's time for those Britons who opposed the Iraq and Afghan wars to face up to their own hypocrisy.

And perhaps it's time the British establishment, media and public reserved their righteous indignation for the right target - those who start illegal wars as well as those who carry them out.

The truth is the Muslim protestors offered an easy target - a weak minority who think and dress differently. Yet let's get things in proportion - all they did was wave a few banners around. They harmed nobody.

I wish I could say the same about the British army.

China military 'copy' machine irks Russia

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 19:32:07 GMT | PressTV

SU-33 aircraft

Moscow shrinks from selling Beijing the warplanes it needs for its future aircraft carriers after China manufactures 'fake' Russian fighters.

Alarmed at probable leakage of military information, Russia has canceled its plans to provide China with seaborne SU-33 fighter planes, Russia Today reported quoting a report by the Canada-based Kanwa Defense Review.

Russian refusal followed China's insistence on 'trying' the aircraft before purchasing them and after findings that Beijing had been illegally copying equipment for Su-27SK fighters.

China had ordered two SU-33's for the trial period but its request was rejected by Russia even after the quantity was increased to 14, on the basis that at least 24 units of the aircraft should be sold to recoup the production.

In February, Russian defense official Mikhail Pogosyan said the Chinese defense manufacturers had done so in breach of intellectual property agreements, DefenseNews reported.

The Chinese had apparently earned the license to build the Su-27SK but then developed their own version outfitting it with their own avionics and system against the provisions, the source added.

Cargo ship sinks in Red Sea off Egypt

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 09:02:53 GMT | PressTV

Safaga port

At least three people have been killed and seventeen others remain missing after a cargo ship sank off the Red Sea coast of Egypt.

The Cypriot-flagged Ibn al-Battuta with 26 crew members onboard sank Monday shortly after leaving the port of Safaga.

Six sailors were saved and rescue workers are still searching for the missing crewmembers, who are of Indian, Pakistani, Bengali, Somali, Iraqi and Sudanese nationalities.

Although the cause of the incident is yet unknown, some reports suggest that the 5,600-ton ship had experienced bad weather with low visibility and high waves.

The cargo ship carrying a shipment of silicon was on its way to the United Arab Emirates.

Egypt experienced one of its deadliest disasters in modern maritime history in 2006 when an Egyptian ferry traveling to Safaga from Saudi Arabia sank in the Red Sea, killing more than 1,000 passengers.

Katsav to be indicted over rape

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 18:58:35 GMT | PressTV

Moshe Katsav will be indicted on several charges.

Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav will be indicted on several charges including rape and sexual offenses, the Justice Ministry says.

"Following the completion of the investigation... the Attorney General and the state prosecutor decided to indict Mr. Moshe Katsav over sexual offences against several of his employees when he acted as tourism minister and president, including charges of rape and sexual assault," said a justice ministry statement.

"The decision was made after the attorney general and state prosecutor reached the conclusion that the complainants' testimony was reliable and that there is sufficient evidence for an indictment," read the statement.

The local media reported that the official indictment would be filed within days.

The case against Katsav was opened in 2006 when the then president alleged that a former female employee was trying to blackmail him.

After an investigation was launched, however, the female employee accused Katsav of raping her while she was his secretary in the late 1990s. Katsav was forced to leave office following the scandal.

Outdoing Abu Gharib

Khalid Samad is MP for Shah Alam. He is also Head of Shah Alam PAS Division and also member of the PAS political bureau which is the most powerful bureau in the party. His website is www.khalidsamad.com

MARCH 7 — The second autopsy report carried out on the body of A. Kugan was released on Thursday. It confirms without a shadow of a doubt that he was tortured and died as a result of this torture. The torture sustained by him was mind-boggling and only a sick mind can even begin to understand the reasons why it was done. How anyone can do something as terrible as this to another human being is beyond comprehension.

He was tortured continuously for six days, starved, beaten and branded like a cow. We do not treat even animals this way where pain is inflicted purely for the pleasure of it. How could this be carried out in the premises of the police itself? How could it happen without the knowledge of the other police personnel, especially the officers and the OCPD themselves? Are prisoners or detainees handed over to the interrogators and no supervision is undertaken whatsoever?

I was really upset on reading the report. We can only imagine the pain which Kugan suffered. The way the incident was handled seems to indicate that it is not necessarily an exception to the rule. There may have been other similar cases, and had it not been for the tenacity of Kugan’s family insisting on a second autopsy, this case would have been closed. How many similar cases have gone by unnoticed is anyone’s guess.

The first autopsy report was misleading to say the least. It is quite obvious that the doctor had no personal interest in this case and as such had no reason to hide the facts. Either he was completely incompetent, which is unlikely, or very slip-shod in undertaking his duties. This is also unlikely. The only other possibility is that he was instructed to provide the kind of report which he did. I believe the majority of people following this case are convinced that this is the case.

Similar is the case with the 11 police personnel involved in the incident. I do not believe that they would have done this, in the premises of the police station itself, if they did not believe that they could get away with this. In fact, I cannot conceive of a situation where they would be willing to do this without the consent or instruction from their leaders. The level of torture was such that there was no way for it to be hidden or concealed. It can therefore be safely deduced that the they were not planning to hide anything from their superiors nor did they think they had anything to hide.

This situation is obviously very worrying. The fact that their actions are condoned by the system which also provides for a cover up necessitates the revamping of the police system as a whole. This should start by the resignation of the Inspector-General of Police. It is unacceptable that the IGP can carry on with his job knowing full well that he has completely failed in the carrying out of his duties by ensuring high standards of justice and fair treatment of those detained by his personnel. The “lackadaisical” attitude shown by the IGP when shown the findings of the second autopsy is a clear indication that this is something which is not new.

For the institution of the police to be cleaned up, it requires leaders who have the vision and the desire to see it cleaned. This is obviously not something which the current IGP and the current administration can do. We are, as always, left with the conclusion that the longer this administration stays, the worse will it be for the nation as a whole.

Umno Palsukan Fakta dan Nafikan Ibrahim Yaakob

Oleh Tarmizi Mohd Jam

NAMPAKNYA kerajaan begitu giat berkempen bagi menjayakan sambutan '50 Tahun Kemerdekaan Negara' tahun lalu. Kini kempen itu kian suram. Tiada gerakkan yang menyanggah atau membetulkan fakta palsu yang disogokkan kononnya Tunku dan Umnolah yang menggerakkan usaha kemerdekaan. Bagaimanakah laungan 'Merdeka' oleh Ibrahim Yaakob? Dan apa kaitannya dengan gerakkan merdeka yang diperjuangkan oleh PKMM, KMM, API dan AWAS sebelum diharamkan penjajah? Ikuti pandangan Pengarah Jabatan Pilihan Raya PAS Wilayah Persekutuan, CIKGU ISHAK SURIN yang juga antara aktivis yang terlibat diperingkat awal gerakan kemerdekaan, ketika aktif bersama API bersama Pengarang Berita, TARMIZI MOHD JAM.

Harakah: Saban tahun, menjelang Ogos nampaknya kerajaan giat berkempen melalui media cetak dan televisyen sambutan hari kemerdekaan. Tujuannya untuk tanamkan kepercayaan bahawa Umnolah yang mempelopori kemerdekaan. Walhal faktanya palsu...

CIKGU ISHAK SURIN: Memanglah itu yang sedang berlaku. Usaha ini giat dijalankan untuk menafikan gerakkan awal kemerdekaan negara. Pada masa yang sama, kerajaan cuba menonjolkan Umnolah yang mempelopori kemerdekaan.

Bagi saya, usaha terancang begini amat dayus dilakukan oleh kerajaan semata-mata untuk mempengaruhi genarasi muda kini akur bahawa Umno dan pemimpin hari ini adalah kesinambungan pejuang kemerdekaan. Umno cuba menafikan fakta sejarah yang sebenar. Siapa Tunku pada waktu merdeka dulu? Siapa Umno? Macam mana Umno itu ditubuhkan?

Semuanya ini perlu dikaji semula oleh kita supaya fakta sejarah yang sebenar dapat diketahui oleh genarasi akan datang dan seterusya. Pada saya, Umno begitu takut untuk membongkar rahsia sejarah sebenar berhubung gerakan kemerdekaan ini. Pejuang-pejuang terdahulu seperti Ibrahim Yaakob, Ahmad Boeastamam, Dr. Burhanuddi Helmy dan lain-lain cuba dihapuskan dalam buku-buku dan dokumentasi sejarah.

Gerakan KMM, PKMM, API dan AWAS juga tidak disebut sebagai pelopor kemerdekaan sedangkan hakikatnya, kumpulan inilah yang mula-mula melaung dan membakar api kemerdekaan.

Maknanya kita ada pandangan kedua dalam isu ini. Umno bukan pelopor kemerdekaan. Tunku Abdul Rahman bukan Bapa Kemerdekaan. Begitu...

Ya. Ini patut di ketengahkan. Ia bukan idea atau sanggahan membabi buta tetapi ia adalah fakta sejarah. Ia tak boleh ditipu. Sejarah tetap sejarah. Dengan adanya kempen-kempen media cetak dan televisyen ini, kita amat bimbang genarasi muda sekarang dibohongi kerajaan dan Umno khususnya. Mereka mahu fakta sejarah dipesongkan, diseleweng!

Dalam hal ini, saya amat bertegas bahawa Umno bukan pelopor kemerdekaan. Umno ditubuhkan untuk menentang pembentukan Malayan Union. Tidak langsung disebut pada masa itu soal kemerdekaan.

Sebelum itu, telah ada kumpulan tertentu yang bergerak secara tersusun, selepas sahaja tamat Perang Dunia Kedua. Umpamanya penubuhan Kesatuan Melayu Muda (KMM) yang dipimpin oleh Ibrahim Yaakob. Diikuti penubuhan Parti Kebangsaan Melayu Malaya (PKMM) yang dipimpin oleh Dr. Burhanuddin Al-Helmy dan Ishak Haji Muhamad. Angkatan Pemuda Insaf (API) dipimpin oleh Ahmad Boestamam.

Merekalah yang memulakan gerakan tersusun untuk menentang penjajahan Inggeris di tanahair kita. Inilah golongan yang sebenarnya patut diketahui oleh rakyat dan genarasi kini.

Bukannya seperti yag diwar-warkan, Umno atau Tunku Abdul Rahman. Sebaliknya, orang-orang ini dilupakan langsung. Akibat laungan kemerdekaan mereka dan keberanian mereka menentang penjajah, maka mereka akhirnya disumbat dalam penjara dan KMM, PKMM, API dan AWAS diharamkan oleh penjajah.

Jadi, bila Umno muncul dalam catatan sejarah sebagai pejuang kemerdekaan?

Selepas pejuang kemerdekaan tulin macam Ibrahim Yaakob, Dr. Burhanuddin, Ishak Haji Muhamad, Ahmad Boestaman dan lain-lain dipenjarakan. Selepas KMM, PKMM, API dan AWAS diharamkan. Barulah mereka muncul. Seolah-olah pemimpin-pemimpin Umno inilah yang beriya-iya mahukan kemerdekaan setelah ruang kosong yang ditinggalkan oleh KMM, PKMM, API dan AWAS. Kita kena tahu, Umno ketika ini adalah anak didik penjajah dan bukan penentang penjajah.

Tadi disebut kumpulan awal macam KMM, PKMM, API dan AWAS adalah pejuang tulin kemerdekaan. Kemudian ditahan dan pertubuhan mereka diharamkan. Penjajah pula mengetengahkan Umno hasil kekosongan ini sebab hanya Umno yang boleh meneruskan dasar-dasar penjajah. Soalnya, mengapa penjajah menentang atau tidak bersengkongkol dengan kumpulan pejuang gerakan kemerdekaan tulin yang awal?

Inggeris tahu, mereka yang menggerakkan KMM, PKMM, API dan AWAS terdiri dari pejuang kemerdekaan tulin yag tidak mahu bersengkongkol dengan penjajah. Mereka ini tidak dapat diperkotak-katikkan oleh Inggeris.

Jika ditakdirkan mereka ini berjaya memerdekakan tanahair kita, tentu sekali lanskap politik negara kita tidak seperti hari ini. Selepas diberikan kemerdekaan pada 1957, kita masih dibelenggu dengan pemikiran penjajah, dasar-dasar penjajah diteruskan, pendidikan penjajah dijalankan, ekonomi penjajah diperkenalkan dan macam-macam lagi.

Kita diikat oleh penjajah. Dan yang sanggup menjalankan dasar-dasar penjajah ini ialah Umno. Inggeris percaya, jika kemerdekaan diberi kepada pejuang tulin macam Ibrahim Yaakob, dasar-dasar Inggeris tak dapat berjalan.

Sekarang jelas, sejarah dipalsukan dari segi gerakan menuntut kemerdekaan. Ini kerana Umno yang diberi kemerdekaan oleh Inggeris telah menggunakan kesempatannya sebagai kerajaan untuk memalsukan sejarah dalam semua aspek. Dokumentasi, buku sejarah dan seumpamanya. Bagaimana Cikgu melihat, 'jenayah' ini boleh dibetulkan?

Perkara ini harus ditangani secara serius. Lihat balik pemalsuan sejarah dan sejarah sebenar. Betulkan fakta dalam buku sejarah yang jadi rujukan sebagai teks bacaan pelajar kita di sekolah-sekolah. Ini penting.

Kerana melalui paparan dari buku-buku sejarah inilah, pemalsuan berjalan secara rasmi dan terancang. Pelajar-pelajar kita adalah genarasi akan datang yang bakal mentadbir negara.

Tetapi, fakta sejarah yang melekat dalam kepala mereka hanyalah fakta palsu. Mereka tak kenal siapa itu Ibrahim Yaakob, iaitu orang yang mula-mula melaungkan kalimah ?merdeka? kepada rakyat untuk mengnyahkan penjajah ketika itu.

Mengapa Cikgu kata Ibrahim Yaakob yang mempelopori kemerdekaan bukan Tunku Abdul Rahman?

Saya setuju dengan satu kajian yang dibukukan oleh Umno Johor. Buku itu dakwa orang yang mula mempelopori gerakan kemerdekaan tanahair ialah Ibrahim Yaakob. Berpusat gerakanya di Maktab Perguruan Idris, Tanjung Malim.

Bagaimana kita lihat, dia membentuk jaringan dari sini hingga idea kemerdekaan bertaburan ke seluruh tanahair hingga ke Brunei, Singapura, Sabah dan Sarawak. Ibrahim aktif menanamkan api kemerdekaan dalam kesatuan pelajar di Maktab.

Dari sini, pelajar Brunei, Singapura, Sabah dan Sarawak yang tamat pengajian mereka, bawa balik idea dan perjuangan kemerdekaan ini. Jadi menyeluruh. Di sinilah mula bibit kemerdekaan tercetus. Fakta ini dinafikan oleh Umno yang cuba meletakkan Tunku sebagai Bapa Kemerdekaan. Bagi saya, Ibrahim Yaakoblah patut dinabatkan Bapa Kemerdekaan sebenar bukan Tunku yang tak tahu apa-apa.

Jika begitu realitinya, apakah terdapat usaha dari pihak PAS untuk membetulkan senario ini atau menggerakkan suatu penulisan semula sejarah kemerdekaan Malaysia?

Kita kena betulkan fakta palsu Umno itu. Gembelingkan tenaga. Kumpulkan pejuang-pejuang yang terlibat diawal gerakan kemerdekaan tulin. Kumpulkan kajian-kajian ilmiah yang dilakukan oleh universiti-universiti.

Bagi saya, penulisan semula sejarah kemerdekaan wajib dibuat. Kita jangan asyik menyanggah soal kemerdekaan ini dalam tulisan-tulisan picisan ketika menjelang setiap kali sambutan hari kemerdekaan. Kita mesti sedarkan rakyat bahawa Umno bukan parti yang mempelopori gerakan kemerdekaan di tanahair kita. Tunku bukan Bapa Kemerdekaan.

Semuanya ini kita mesti persoalkan semula secara serius. Bukan main-main. Kita kena buat satu jawatankuasa khusus untuk tujuan ini. Saya percaya, semua tokoh-tokoh sejarah dalam negara kita akan bersama dengan kita jika usaha terancang dibuat untuk membetulkan fakta sejarah ini.

Tidak mengikut acuan sejarah yang disediakan oleh Inggeris dan dipekik-pekikkan oleh Umno. Saya yakin, fakta yang ada adalah fakta orientalis Barat yang mahu dilihat sebagai tiadanya penentangan serius dari rakyat terhadap penjajahan mereka.

Pemerintahan diberi secara aman kepada Umno bagi menunjukkan baik dan bijaknya Inggeris pada mata dunia. Saya setuju, PAS mesti mempelopori usaha ini kerana ia penting untuk genarasi akan datang. Ia tak boleh tunggu lebih lama lagi. Kalau lebih lama, maka banyaklah penyelewengan sejarah akan dilakukan oleh Umno.

Asean human rights plan runs into opposition

BANGKOK | March 1,2009 | Malaysianinsider - Inter Press News Service

Plans to create a regional human rights body for Asean, the 10-nation South-east Asian bloc, are threatening to expose the gulf that separates countries that seek to respect political and civil liberties and the notorious violators.

An incident on Saturday during a summit of Association of South-east Asian Nations revealed the tough road that lies ahead for the high-level panel of experts tasked with drafting the terms of reference (ToR) for this body.

Burmese Prime Minister Gen. Thein Sein and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen had threatened to walk out of a face-to-face meeting government leaders were to have with civil society representatives from across the region – if the latter included human rights activists from Burma and Cambodia.

A compromise struck to enable the 20-minute meeting to go ahead during the 14th Asean summit, being held in this resort town south of Bangkok, ensured that the Burmese military regime and the increasingly authoritarian Cambodian government got their way.

The eight-member group from South-east Asian civil society organisations (CSOs) attended the dialogue with the region’s presidents and prime ministers sans Khin Ohmar, head of the Network for Democracy and Development in Burma, and Pen Somony, programme coordinator of Cambodia Volunteers for Civil Society.

“It is disappointing but not unexpected,” Khin Ohmar told IPS. “Asean leaders need to take into serious consideration what the (Burmese) regime is all about. The Burmese regime’s rejection shows it is not serious about Asean’s push for a human rights body.”

For his part, the Cambodian premier not only objected to Pen Somony’s name but also wanted to insert a Cambodian activist of his own choosing to be part of the CSO team, according to a member of civil society who participated in the dialogue.

“The human rights body was discussed during our dialogue,” said Sinapan Samydorai, convenor of the task force on Asean migrant workers, who was part of the CSO delegation. “We do want a body that is affective.”

In fact, the civil society delegation was surprised by a welcome nod given by Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to the clamour by activists that the people of Asean should be seen as partners rather than as obstacles in the regional alliance’s quest to establish its new identity as a people-centred group.

“The Vietnamese leader said that while the non-interference principle (of Asean) holds true, he welcomes the interface (with civil society),” said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, political scientist at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University, who moderated the dialogue on Saturday afternoon between CSOs and government leaders.

Asean, which was established in 1967 to stem the spread of communism during the height of the Cold War, includes Brunei, Burma (or Myanmar), Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Last December, Asean adopted a charter to make the regional entity a rules-based body and more “people centred.”

But the promotion and protection of human rights varies among countries. Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand are more open to such precepts, while Malaysia and Cambodia have a mixed record. Brunei, Burma, Laos, Singapore and Vietnam suffer from a human rights deficit in varying degrees.

Bridging this gap is a daunting challenge if Article 14 of the Asean charter is to be met. That article is the need to establish an Asean human rights body (AHRB) to promote and protect human rights across the region.

“The establishment of an Asean human rights body (AHRB) would be based on three main principles,” Sihasak Phunagketkeow, a senior Thai diplomat and chairman of the high- level panel to draft the ToR, told journalists on Saturday. “We are talking of building and strengthening the human rights regime in the region.”

The three principles are: realistically “bear in mind the diversity in Asean,” establish a credible AHRB through “consistency with internationally accepted human rights standards and norms,” and develop AHRB “continually” through an “evolutionary process”.

During the current summit, Sihasak chaired an hour-long meeting with Asean foreign ministers to share the progress of the ToR, the final draft of which is to be presented at a July ministerial meeting in Thailand.

“We hope to establish this body at the next Asean summit to be held later in the year in Thailand,” Sihasak revealed. “I don’t think this is a PR (public relations) exercise.”

But the region’s human rights activists have reservations about the confidence of the Thai diplomat that Asean will have a human rights body on par with similar regional rights mechanisms in Africa, Latin America and Europe.

Doubts stem from the manner the ToR has been treated – as a secret document, not open to public scrutiny – and the insistence of the drafters on placing greater emphasis on promoting human rights awareness than protection from rights violations where abuses can be investigated.

“This [the ToR] is supposed to be a public document, but they are keeping it a secret,” says YuYun Wahyuningrum, an Indonesian national who is the East Asia programme manager at the Asia Forum for Human Rights and Development, a regional rights lobby. “We want the document to be out so that we can make our input and it will be the basis of a public debate.”

“Civil Society was invited to only one meeting to discuss the ToR, but that too was not based on the draft document. We were only asked to give our opinions,” the Indonesian human rights activist told IPS. “Only some governments are interested in our views – Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.”

An opening in cyberspace closes

BANGKOK - When a state-linked Cambodian Internet service provider (ISP) blocked access this month to a critical non-governmental organization report detailing the government's alleged mismanagement of natural and energy resources, the censorship closed the loop on the region's fast-closing cyberspace.

The Cambodian government has prioritized improving its Internet controls and legislation, despite the fact less than 0.3% of the population is online, one of the lowest Internet penetration rates in the world. The recent bust of an alleged terror plot against the government revealed that authorities had capability to hack intosuspects' - and perhaps perceived other adversaries' - e-mail accounts.

It wasn't long ago that Asia's Internet was being heralded as an inexorable force for democratic change across the predominantly authoritarian-run region. Rising Internet penetration rates and the proliferation of websites that provided alternative news and critical views, particularly in countries where the state had long dominated information flows, marked substantial democratic gains. [more]

'IMF, World Bank measures favor rich countries'

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 02:04:06 GMT   |    PressTV

Central Bank of Iran Governor Mohammad Bahmani

Iran has criticized international financial institutions for their silence on the massive injection of money into the economies of rich countries.

"Since the beginning of the economic crises in America and some major European countries, they ratified economic stimulus packages and injected thousands of billions of dollars into their economies that would increase inflation in the world in the near future," the governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) said on Tuesday.

Addressing a meeting of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Algiers, Mohammad Bahmani accused the IMF and World Bank of allowing the US and European countries to inject fiat currencies into their economies.

The US credit crunch has exacerbated the global recession, prompting governments to push through massive economic stimulus packages and overshadowing efforts to reform the global financial system.

Bahmani also called on the IMF and World Bank to increase their support for poor and developing countries, which are experiencing many problems due to the global economic meltdown.

In a meeting on Sunday in Berlin, the heads of Europe's largest economies agreed on the need for greater regulation of financial markets. 

The President Who Told The TRUTH

This vid contains one of the most awesome, inspiring and truthful speeches ever given by a president. This very speech must have caused a lot of panic among the higher echelons of the elite. Kennedy had been in office for only 3 months and he was already taking unprecedented steps to empower ordinary people. Kennedy did more for civil rights than any other president since Abraham Lincoln. Kennedy was a big supporter of the constitution, he was against the tyranny of big government. He wanted to withdraw US troops from Vietnam. He wanted to abolish the CIA and Federal Reserve, and he warned us of criminal elements within the establishment who wanted to seize an opportunity to restrict people's freedoms. He urged the press to be more open and to fulfill its obligation to inform the American people about pertinent facts. And on top of that he spoke openly and candidly about the dangers of secret societies and their influence over the way government works. So is it any wonder that he was dramatically silenced only two years after making this epic speech?

It seems that Kennedy wanted to blow the whistle when he found out about the true scale of corruption within the establishment and how freemasonry and other secret societies play an integral part in this corrupt agenda. It also seems that Kennedy wanted to speak out about the closed and secretive nature of organisations like the freemasons, especially at the higher levels. And it is only when a freemason reaches the higher levels that he can gain a fuller understanding of the kind of organisation he is part of. Freemasonry also has its own set of rules, oaths, allegiances and rituals. And the higher up you go in freemasonry, the more bizarre the initiation rituals become; this is a hallmark of the way criminal gangs operate. Remember, just because someone wears a suit and a tie, that doesn't make them a better person than the hoodie you see in the alley with the baseball bat.

I find it very curious that some people compare Obama with Kennedy, as if they are both one and the same. But you only have to look at the people that Obama has recruited to work alongside him to realise where he's coming from. Employing Zbigniew Brzezinski as his Chief Foreign Policy advisor is just one example. Then on top of that, Obama admits to being a globalist and he has publically admitted to attending a CFR meeting where he gave a speech. But what makes me feel most uncomfortable is the way that Obama stuttered and lied about the significance of his speech at the CFR. When questioned about his CFR involvement, Obama said "I don't know if I'm an official member" - He wants us to believe that the CFR would allow someone to attend their meeting and give a speech, and yet not even discuss the issue of membership. You're either a member of something or you're not, so the word "official" is an irrelevant filler word. If he doesn't know that he's a member then that could only mean that he is not a member - in which case, why didn't he just say: "I am not a member, although I did speak there once"? Why not just be open and honest about it instead of stuttering and lying to attempt to downplay the significance of it?

JFK didn't mince his words and when I listen to him I never get the impression that he is trying to pull the wool over my eyes. It is so nice to hear a president who speaks so openly about subjects like secret societies. It is also nice to hear a president who, unlike Bush and Obama, can string a sentence together without stuttering and without leaving ambiguity about what he really means. Listen to any of Kennedy's speeches, and then listen to a speech from the likes of Obama or Bush. The difference is astounding. Kennedy speaks eloquently and from the heart, and you can tell that his words have not been scripted for him by the elite string-pullers. Conversely, when you listen to the hypnotic political rhetoric of someone like Obama, you get the distinct impression that he is nothing more than a puppet who speaks the words of those who control him. Obama is the "Manchurian Candidate" who has been engineered into office (by the very people that JFK warned us about) in order to give us false hope so that we stay on this carousel horse that is the new world order agenda.

Livni, Netanyahu seeking potential coalition partners

Shireen Yassin, Press TV, Al-Qud Fri, 13 Feb 2009 15:00:56

1 in 4 Israeli below poverty line

Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:31:00 GMT | PressTV

An Israeli homeless man sleeps in Jerusalem, 2006

Israel spends millions of dollars to pour bombs on Gazan civilians and sit back to watch one fourth of its people live below poverty line, a new report says.

War on Gaza reminds that the Zionist utopia is far from coming true. The heir of Ben- Gurion must detach from the idea of “military supremacy” and reinvent a new national identity, according to an article published on France's weekly L'Express.

The article cites the semi-annual poverty report published by Israel's National Insurance Institute that the poor in Israel became poorer in the second half of 2007 and the first half of 2008.

It goes on to add that 1 in 4 Israeli lives below poverty line representing 1.63 million people, 777,400 of them children.

A recent report in Israeli Haaretz website said the percentage of unemployed poor families rose in relation to the previous report for 2007, from 69 percent to 71.4 percent. However, the percentage of working poor also rose: Families with two or more breadwinners living below the poverty line increased from 21.3 percent to 23.6 percent.

L'Express magazine also added that the global economic crisis is determined to leave 14,000 industrial workers unemployed by the end of the year 2009.

The article adds Palestine's 60 years of resistance has still not taught Israel that there is no military solution to its conflict with the Palestinians. So soon after the failed Israeli invasion of Lebanon, Israel made the same mistake again.

The act was even condemned within Israel. Even Israeli reservists have reportedly refused to enter the war on Gaza in protest at the ongoing killing of women and children. They say they prefer days in prison than Gaza and killing hundreds of civilians, including women and children.

Egypt, Israel blasted for Gaza closure

Mon, 02 Feb 2009 10:21:45 GMT | PressTV

John Ging, Gaza Strip director of operations for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA)

UN Relief and Works Agency operations Chief John Ging says the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip has caused an 'unbelievable' damage to the strip.

According to Palestinian sources, John Ging said on Sunday that tens of thousands of Gazans have been homeless and now they are living under tents due to the three-week Israeli incursion into the blockaded region.

Referring to the major damage to the houses and health centers, the UNRWA operations chief said, nearly one million people of 1.5 million Gaza's population depend on international aides while UNRWA is facing lots of problems due to the closed crossings of strip.

John Ging also condemned Israel and Egypt for closing the crossings into the Gaza Strip, calling on Cairo and Tel Aviv to ease the siege so that the organization can deliver 'thousands of tons of aid' to Gaza residents.

Working closely with the Israeli regime in its 18-month blockade on the already impoverished region, Cairo has refused to open the Rafah border-crossing even during the 23-day Israeli offensive in which Gazans were in dire need of food, fuel and particularly medicine.

Ging earlier said that "Shamefully, there are thousands of tons of aid waiting on the borders of Gaza that need to be connected right now with the people here."

"The donors have been very generous, the operation in getting it from all over the world to this part of the world has been a success and very quick, but now we have the bottleneck, and of course it has to be that the government of Israel in the first instance has to find operational solutions to get the crossing points open."

Referring to the Israeli strikes on the UN schools, Ging said that the Israeli strikes on the UN schools in the Gaza strip during the war were unacceptable as no fighters were in the school when the attack occurred.

Israeli strikes on three UN-run schools in the Gaza Strip killed at least 48 civilians and wounded 100 others during the war. One of the Strikes took place as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon was in Israel.

20 years of conflict costs ME $12 trillion

Sun, 25 Jan 2009 12:55:21 GMT     |     PressTV

A report says conflict in the Middle East has cost $12 trillion.

A recent study has revealed that armed conflicts in the Middle East have cost the region a staggering USD 12 trillion over the past 20 years. 

The fourteen digit figure was released as part of a study conducted by the Indian Strategic Foresight Group and financed by various research groups around the world, Reuters reported. 

The study suggests that the figure explains just how critical peace can be in stimulating growth in the Middle East, especially at a time of economic slowdown throughout the world. 

"The choice they have to make is the choice between the danger of devastation and the promise of peace," said Strategic Foresight Group President Sundeep Waslekar, who took part in the study. 

"Considering the enormity of the costs evidenced in this report which have direct or indirect negative consequences for the whole world, the urgent necessity of a stronger international engagement is inescapable," senior Swiss diplomat Thomas Greminger, who also contributed to the study, said. 

The research focused on the devastating effect of the region's most recent military venture -- Israel's 22-day offensive on the Gaza Strip, which claimed the lives of 1,330 Palestinians, wounded 5,000 and left thousands homeless. According to data released by Tel Aviv, 12 Israeli soldiers and three civilians were also killed in the conflict. 

According to the study's figures and analyses, Middle Easterners are now half as rich as they would have been if there had been peace since 1991. 

The study says next year's per capita income in Israel would have been USD 44,000 in the absence of Israel's military campaign, almost twice as much as the expected USD 23,304. 

As for the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, it says the figure could be USD 2,427 instead of USD 1,220. 

Next year's income per head in Iraq is projected at USD 2,375, one quarter of the USD 9,681 that would have been possible if that there had been peace during the past 20 years. 

In the Middle East, which stretches from Iran in the east to Egypt in the west, Israel has fought the most wars. During its 60-year-old history Israel has taken part in nine armed conflicts. 

Israeli Rabbi: Beautiful Rachel saved army

Sun, 25 Jan 2009 19:26:06 GMT | PressTV

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef says Mother Rachel helped Israeli soldiers kill Gazan fighters.

The spiritual leader of Israel's ultra-orthodox Shas party says a beautiful young woman sent by God assisted the Israeli army in Gaza.

Following rumors of a woman appearing before Israeli troops, warning them of danger ahead in different locations in Gaza, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef gave his rabbinical seal of approval to the widely tossed around battlefield tale.

"The soldiers arrived at a house and wanted to go inside. There were three armed terrorists waiting for them there."

"And then a beautiful young woman appeared before them and warned: Don't enter the house, there are terrorists there, be careful," said the prominent Israeli religious leader in his Shabbat sermon.

When asked by the Israeli soldiers, Yosef said, the woman introduced herself as "Rachel" -- the biblical matriarch, the beloved wife of Jacob.

The 80-year old rabbi then went on to say that with the help of Mother Rachel the soldiers found the terrorists inside the place and killed them.

As founder and spiritual leader of Shas, Rabbi Yosef is believed to be held in almost saintly regard by hundreds of thousands of Jews of Middle Eastern and North African origin.

Earlier this week, former Israeli Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu had confirmed the rumor, saying, "The story is true. I sent her."

Nigerian goat detained for armed robbery

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 19:25:20 GMT | PressTV

Many Nigerians believe that some people have shapeshifting powers and can transform themselves into animals or objects.

A goat has been taken to the police in Nigeria on suspicion of attempted armed robbery in the African country's western Kwara State.

A group of vigilantes took the animal to the police arguing it was an armed robber who was trying to steal a Mazda 323.

The vigilantes claimed the robber had used black magic to transform himself into a goat so that he could escape arrest.

"The group of vigilante men came to report that while they were on patrol they saw some hoodlums attempting to rob a car. They pursued them. However one of them escaped while the other turned into a goat," Kwara state police spokesman Tunde Mohammed told Reuters.

"We cannot confirm the story, but the goat is in our custody. We cannot base our information on something mystical. It is something that has to be proved scientifically that a human being turned into a goat," he added.

Residents come to the police station to see the goat and a national newspaper has printed its photograph.

Belief in witchcraft and shapeshifting powers is common among Nigerians.