Friday, March 19, 2010

Hindraf initiates London start for global Anwar campaign - Malaysiakini

Hindraf Makkal Sakthi has initiated a global campaign for opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim beginning with an Early Day Motion (EDM) in the British Parliament.

Malaysiakini was tipped off on the EDM by Suresh Grover who heads The Monitoring Group, a human rights organisation in Britain and Northern Ireland.

Anwar's people, according to Grover, approached Hindraf chair P. Waythamoorthy to do something for him and the latter suggested an EDM filed through an MP.

Jeremy Corbyn, Labour MP for Islington, North London, who will introduce the EDM, said he was approached by Waythamoorthy.
"We are 100 per cent for Anwar. He's a good man badly treated by the Malaysian Government," said Corbyn yesterday in a telephone interview with Malaysiakini.

"The charges levelled at him are not correct. The EDM is an expression of parliamentary opinion on the matter."

NONEThe Labour MP based his characterisation of Anwar(right) on his efforts over the years to forge a closer understanding between the West and Islam.

He also disclosed that he, like many other members of the British Parliament, had known Anwar for a long time and could vouch for him.

Citing his EDM, Corbyn called on the Malaysian Government to "bring an end to the harassment and persecution of members of the political opposition".

He plans to call on the British Foreign Secretary to discuss an appropriate British Government response to the Anwar case.
This will go together with an appointment with the Malaysian high commissioner to Britain.

Corbyn is certain that the UK Government will make known its views on Anwar either publicly or privately besides the stand that would be taken by the British Foreign secretary.

The British MP will also be raising the issue during a forthcoming executive committee meeting of the British chapter of the Inter Parliamentary Union.

The IPU in Britain will be making common cause with other IPUs across the world to forge a common stand on the Anwar issue.

Members of the public and media are welcome to pen their thoughts on the EDM to Corbyn, at corbynj@parliament.uk.

Grover said that his movement will be monitoring the EDM for starters and will lobby MPs to ensure there's 100 per cent support in the house for it.

Political manipulation

Unlike Corbyn, Grover did not mince his words and dismissed the Sodomy 11 charges against Anwar as "not based on any real evidence but merely political manipulation of criminal legislation and members of the judiciary".

"This is an extreme example of the Malaysian Government's attempts to silence the opposition and human rights activists," said Grover.

"The ruling elite are intolerant of any political opposition or advocacy of human rights issues and reform."

Anwar aside, he said that reference can be made to many other cases against other opposition leaders and members in Malaysia.

In all these cases, he added, the basis of the government's action was to manipulate the criminal laws in the country.

The Monitoring Group, Grover disclosed, will hold a public forum in the British Parliament on Anwar after the forthcoming elections which is likely to be held by May.

Members of the local Muslim community, lawyers, MPs, NGOs, academicians, civil society and Malaysians resident in the UK would be among those invited to attend and participate.

Waythamoorthy said he did not see the EDM being initiated by him as being at variance with his publicly announced decision to cut off all links with the opposition Pakatan Rakyat and the Parti Keadilan Rakyat.

"Basically, I am a human rights lawyer and advocate," stressed Waythamoorthy.

"What they are doing to Anwar is wrong and I am just chipping in with my little contribution".

WAYTHA FIGHTS BACK

Promises to go to the International Court of Justice

waytha
PETALING JAYA:
The self-styled leader of Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) P. Waythamoorthy (pic) yesterday challenged the Malaysian government to revoke his citizenship.

He said this would give him the opportunity to bring his case to the International Court of Justice and Malaysia could then defend their case against him.

Waythamoorthy, who is in the United Kingdom after he fled from Malaysia, said this in response to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz's statement in The Malay Mail yesterday that he was not welcomed in the country due to his stand to abolish Article 153 of the Federal Constitution which involves Malay rights.

Mohamed Nazri also said that the large majority of "our Tamil brothers" were loyal to the constitution but only wanted a bit more equality and a reasonable share of the economic cake. Waythamoorthy also reiterated that he wanted the Malaysian government to return his passport, which he said was revoked in April 2008.

"Allow me to come back and I am willing to face any criminal charges, including treason which carries the death penalty for questioning Malay privileges as suggested by the Malacca Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam in 2007," he said in an email reply to The Malay Mail.

Waythamoorthy said he would not apologise to the government when asked whether he was willing to do so for them to allow him to come home.

"There is no issue of apology as I have always spoken the truth and sought justice for the marginalised, oppressed and suppressed Malaysian Indians," he said.

When asked to comment about a report in a local Tamil daily last week that mentioned him, Hindraf adviser N. Ganesan as well as a group from Sabah and Sarawak represented by Common Interest Group Malaysia (Cigma) activists Daniel John Jambun and Nicholas Bawin Anggat who had visited the House of Commons to enlighten the British Parliamentarians about marginalised ethnic Indians in Malaysia, he said:

"Last week’s Conference at the House of Commons by both Hindraf and the natives from Borneo is just the beginning of a series of campaigns that Hindraf will mount to challenge the unlawful and unconstitutional act of the Malaysian government."

He said Malaysia was independent for 53 years and the government had instead recolonised the non - Malays and natives from Sabah and Sarawak.

"As the fifth and sixth generation labour migrants, we are equally sons of the soil and deserve the protection of Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, which provides equality for all," he said.

Last September, Waythamoorthy had also stated that he wanted the Malaysian government to return his passport and was prepared to take responsibility for his actions, even at the risk of being detained under the Internal Security Act.

He had said the government owed him an apology and held Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar, the former Home Minister, responsible for revoking his passport.

Syed Hamid, however, denied he had ordered it.

Utusan Malaysia for the first time seriously acknowledges Indian problems and as a national issue

Selangor Indian Exco Mandore’s MIC style peanuts representation

Getting some peanut reduction of land premium is an achievement for this Selangor PKR Indian Exco Mandore.This is the very same game his predecessor MIC Exco Mandore had been playing in the previous 50 years. This Indian Exco Mandore cannot get his ex UMNO Tuan PKR MB Selangor and a 17 year ex-UMNO No. 2 i.e., Anwar Inbrahim to solve substantive land issues for all 98 tamil schools, all hindu temples and cemeteries.

So he does this kind of wayang kulit tamil newspaper politics through his “able” ex-DAP mandore P.A Pakianathan to keep afloat and be seen as relevant among the Indian community.

How come we don’t read of these kind of cheap skate “achievements” in the Malay, English and Chinese newspaper?

Shame on this PKR Indian Exco Mandore, his tuan Selangor MB and Parti Chief Anwar Ibrahim.

A.Sugu

Tuisyen Rakyat Indians poor Indians excluded by UMNO.

UTM is a 100 % Malay Muslim only university with 120,000 undergraduates organizes tuition for poor Malay muslims but excluding almost all the poor Indians. We hardly hear of any Indians benefiting from this Tuisyen Rakyat, the same wayang kulit show pieces broadcasted on UMNO’s print and electronic media.

P.Uthaykumar

UMNO’s wayang kulit of a bag of rice to Indians only proves height of poverty.

This UMNO’s wayang kulit of giving one bag of rice to a poor Indian lady is reflective of the height of poverty among the Indians . We do not see or read of Malays or Chinese “begging” for just one bag of rice.

Giving a bag of rice is giving a fish and not giving a person the means to fish.

This Indian lady must be given the opportunity for upward mobility like the 10 acre land ownership schemes Felda, Felcra, Risda, Agropolitan, Mardi, Fama, etc which are 99.9 % denied to the Indians. Or the thousands of cow, goat, freshwater fish and shrimp farming opportunities by the Agriculture and Agro based Industries UMNO Ministry.

P.Uthayakumar