Dari Tranungkite
Oleh Aspan Alias

Slogan-slogan politik bercambah-cambah dan slogan-slogan itu bertukar apabila bertukar kepimpinan sehinggakan kita sudah kenyang dengan slogan-slogan itu. Slogan selalunya diperkenalkan oleh seseorang pemimpin itu untuk membezakan ‘brand’ kepimpinan masing-masing. Selalunya ia akan diwar-warkan yang dibawah pimpinannya keadaan itu berbeza dari keadaan yang lazim dialami rakyat dizaman kepimpinan sebelumnya.

Berslogan mula bercambah sejak kepimpinan Mahathir sahaja. Apabila Mahathir mengambil alih, rakyat telah cuba di dakyahkan sebagai zaman yang amat berbeza dengan pimpinan sebelum beliau. Gandingan beliau dengan Musa Hitam digambarkan sebagai pimpinan yang sangat berbeza dengan kepimpinan sebelumnya kerana bermula dari beliau zaman itu bermulalah zaman kepimpinan negara diterajui oleh orang biasa. Maka pimpinan itu telah dipanggil sebagai kepimpinan 2M (Mahathir Musa)

Pimpinan 2M terbengkalai dengan perletakkan jawatan Musa sebagai Timbalan Perdana Menteri pada Februari 1986. Perletakkan jawatan Musa telah akhirnya membawa kepada pertandingan besar dalam UMNO pada tahun berikutnya 1987 diantara TR/Musa dan Mahathir /Ghaffar.

Apabila Mahathir mula-mula mengambil alih, maka terciptalah slogan ‘Bersih, cekap dan amanah’. Tetapi slogan ini hanya tinggal slogan kerana semasa itu tidak ada yang bersihnya, tidak ada kecekapan dan jauh sekali untuk melihat amanahnya. Zaman ini lah bermulanya rasuah yang begitu hebat dan budaya itu terus  diwarisi oleh kepimpinan Pak Lah dan pimpinan DS Najib sekarang ini.

Dalam masa yang sama tercipta juga slogan  ‘kepimpinan melalui tauladan’ dan inilah satu-satunya slogan yang amat berjaya yang dicipta Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Ini adalah kerana segala budaya rasuah itu telah diteladani oleh semua pemimpin setiap peringkat dalam kerajaan dan parti serta pimpinan-pimpinan yang mewarisi kepimpinan Mahathir sehingga  zaman sekarang ini.

Semua pimpinan UMNO dan BN benar-benar berjaya melaksanakan slogan ini sehinggakan susah untuk mendapatkan kepimpinan yang tidak rasuah. Semuanya ini adalah hasil dari kempen ‘kepimpinan melalui tauladan’ anjuran Mahathir itu. Di adakan pula slogan ‘penerapan nilai-nilai Islam’ dalam pentadbiran dalam masa yang sama tetapi tidak ada addin keislaman di dalamnya kerana kejayaan slogan kepimpinan melalui tauladan tadi.

Kita terus pula kepada slogan dalam pentadbiran Najib iaitu ‘1Malaysia’ yang masih belum difahami oleh rakyat satu Malaysia ini. Yang kita lihat hanyalah pin-pin 1Malaysia yang terlekat di dada dan kolor baju-baju pemimpin-pemimpin dan pegawai-pegawai kerajaan sahaja. Yang sedapnya Mahathir sendiri mengaku yang beliau tidak faham tentang slogan ini.

Bagaimana slogan 1Malaysia hendak berjaya sedangkan kepimpinan termasuk Najib yang mencipta slogan itu sendiri bercakap isu rasis apabila bertemu dengan ahli-ahli UMNO. Muhyiddin Yassin pula tidak menyokong slogan ini kerana beliau secara terbuka telah mengakui yang beliau mengambil sikap Melayu dahulu barulah rakyat yang lain.

Walau bagaimana pun rakyat tidak perlu gusar tentang slogan yang tidak terlaksana oleh penciptanya sendiri. Ada pihak lain yang mampu melaksanakan slogan ciptaan pemimpin-pemimpin UMNO itu. Kita tidak payah pergi jauh. Kita tinjau sahaja apa yang dilakukan oleh negeri-negeri yang ditadbir oleh Pakatan Rakyat.

Selangor telah berjaya mempunyai bajet yang seimbang dengan ‘reserve’ hampir RM2 billion. Pulau Pinang telah berjaya untuk menghilangkan budaya rasuah dan telah menunjukkan nilai kesamarataan. Peruntukkan Hal Agama Islam sekarang telah meningkat sehingga RM63 juta sedangkan semasa BN memerintah negeri itu peruntukkan untuk hal ehwal Islam hanyalah RM12 juta sahaja.

Tidak ada kedengaran skandal kewangan sehingga RM12 billion seperti isu PKFZ di Selangor sekarang ini ataupun kedapatan pemimpin negeri itu yang telah membina rumah peribadi sehingga RM20 juta di Shah Alam. Tidak ada lagi kedengaran skandal kehilangan RM500 juta wang Yayasan Selangor.

Kedah dan Kelantan juga mempunyai rekod baik dan tidak kedengaran rasuah yang berbillion ringgit berlaku di negeri-negeri tersebut. Kedah merupakan salah satu negeri yang mendapat kemasukan pelaburan dalam bidang pembuatan yang besar dan negeri itu adalah salah sebuah dari lima negeri teratas berbanding dengan negeri-negeri tadbiran BN.

Pulai Pinang merupakan negeri yang berkedudukan nombor satu dan diikuti oleh Selangor. Sarawak menduduki tempat ketiga dan yang keempat Johor, satu-satunya negeri yang ditadbir BN yang masuk ke dalam kategori lima teratas itu.

Dalam kata-kata lain secara ringkasnya jika slogan ‘Bersih, cekap dan amanah’ adalah laungan BN semasa Dr Mahathir menjadi PM dalam senyap-senyap negeri-negeri tadbiran Pakatan Rakyatlah yang menjayakan slogan itu. Begitu juga slogan ‘1Malaysia’ ciptaan Najib, BN tidak mampu melaksanakannya tetapi yang berjaya melaksanakan konsep 1Malaysia ialah parti-parti dalam PR kerana setiap bangsa bersatu dan tidak ada parti untuk satu-satu kaum sahaja.

Oleh itu kita nampak dengan jelas yang BN hanya pandai berslogan tetapi  PR lah yang mampu melaksanakannya. Kita akui slogan-slogan ciptaan BN itu adalah baik kesemuanya. Hanya mereka tidak mampu melaksanakannya dan ia hanya tinggal retorik kosong BN sahaja.

Maka kita simpulkan sahaja isu ini: BN berslogan PR melaksanakannya. Maka tidak ada lagi masalah perlaksanaan slogan-slogan tersebut apabila Pakatan Rakyat diberi mandat oleh rakyat semasa pilihanraya yang akan datang ini.

UMNO dan BN boleh membantu mewujudkan slogan-slogan yang baik semasa jadi pembangkang nanti dan berikan tugas kepada Pakatan Rakyat untuk melaksanakannya dengan baik sebagai kerajaan baru yang begitu lama ternanti-nanti saat untuk membetulkan kebobrokan yang dilakukan oleh bekas parti pemerintah, iaitu Barisan Nasional (BN) yang semasa itu sudah duduk dikerusi pembangkang di semua Dewan-Dewan Lagislatif di negara ini.

Apabila perubahan berlaku maka bermula jugalah sistem 2 parti yang sangat penting untuk mendapatkan pimpinan yang mengakui yang kuasa dalam negara demokrasi ini terletak di tangan rakyat. Rakyat tidak payah lagi bersusah payah kerana jika Pakatan Rakyat  tidak melaksanakan tugas seperti yang dijanjikan maka rakya boleh memberikan kembali mandat itu kembali kepada BN.

Tetapi yang penting sekali kita mesti bermula untuk menunjukkan kepada kepimpinan yang bongkak dengan kuasa itu bahawa rakyat, jika diizin Tuhan, merupakan penentu kepada nasib mereka yang berkuasa. Rakyat boleh menggali dan menganjak kepimpinan negara, kerana negara ini sebenarnya adalah kepunyaan rakyat.

Hanya sebelum ini rakyat belum lagi sedar yang kuasa itu adalah kuasa mereka. Baru sekarang mereka (rakyat) sedar yang mereka lah yang mesti bertindak untuk melakukan usaha memperbetulkan keadaan negara kita ini.

Lagi pun BN sudah terlalu lama memerintah, iaitu selama 55 tahun. Kita mesti ingat jika pokok kelapa itu sudah berumur 55 tahun ia terlalu tinggi dan beruk pun takut untuk memanjatnya. Jika ditebang pokok kelapa yang berumur 55 tahun, umbutnya pun sudah keras dan tidak sedap lagi untuk digulai.

From The Guardian
By Nick Cohen

Authoritarian governments have learned from the Arab Spring that the best way to nip revolution in the bud is to exploit the new technologies

For a moment at the Oslo Freedom Forum, it was possible to believe that Pyotr Verzilov was the coolest guy on the planet. Breathless and unshaven, the young performance artist arrived in Norway from the street protests in Moscow. With the élan of an exultant radical, he explained the personal and political reasons for taking on Putin’s kleptocracy.

He had been lucky enough to persuade a member of Pussy Riot to be his wife. The celebrated feminist collective had been outraged when Patriarch Kirill continued the Russian Orthodox Church’s subservience to whatever autocrat occupied the Kremlin by announcing that Putin’s leadership had been a “miracle of God”, and adding for good measure that the regime’s opponents were a degenerate minority in love with western culture.

Pussy Riot responded with a “punk prayer” at Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. The protest was not the offence to delicate religious sensibilities it seems on the web, Verzilov explained. The women danced for about a minute in their balaclavas and fluorescent tights before security guards told them to leave. They added the screaming soundtrack to “Holy Mother, Blessed Virgin, Chase Putin Out” later. For this impromptu stunt, the FSB jailed his wife, and threatened her with a seven-year sentence, even though she was pregnant.

They would not win, said Verzilov with indomitable confidence. As soon as the conference was over, he would return to Russia to take part in a revolution that would free his wife and unborn child. All the other Russians on the stage agreed that regime change was coming – even Garry Kasparov, who is hardly an adolescent hothead.

It was easy to feel that way in Norway. The Oslo Freedom Forum is a Davos for revolutionaries. Activists who have overthrown dictatorships meet activists who want to overthrow dictatorships. Even if they need translators, everyone speaks the same language. They agree on the radical potential of the new technologies. The magnificent Egyptian feminist Mona Eltahawy said that when Mubarak’s interior ministry police beat and sexually abused her, she knew her first task was to get to her mobile and tweet that she needed help to her 133,000 followers. Help came.

The audience was not surprised. It took for granted the ability of the web to mobilise support – a power that would have been incredible even five years ago. They agreed on tactics – non-violent civil disobedience. They had a common programme – secular democracy, the rule of law and human rights. And they agreed that they should look west for support. Not necessarily to western governments. But to the west of the human rights movements, George Soros, activist charities, concerned journalists and academics: Europe and North America’s network of altruists. The camaraderie generated the exultant feeling that a new world was not only possible, but inevitable.

Thor Halvorssen, founder of the Oslo Freedom Forum, exemplifies the best the west can offer, but he is a realist with no time for light-headed optimism. He pointed me to statistics from the human rights monitoring group Freedom House. Despite globalisation, “Twitter revolutions” and the Arab Spring, the numbers living under oppressive regimes have not shifted in a decade. Freedom House defined 86 of the 192 countries in the world in 2000 as “free”; 58 as partially free – authoritarian states with some liberties but restrictions on full democratic participation; and 48 as straight “unfree” dictatorships. In 2010, 87 of the by then 194 countries were free, 60 partially free and 47 unfree.

Technological and economic changes are strengthening the ability of autocrats to dominate. Authoritarian men have learned the lessons of the Arab Spring well. They are exploiting the sinister potential of the new technologies to ensure that the net-literate activists never surprise them again. Western companies are eager to oblige them. A recent documentary on Swedish television exposed double standards in the Nordic telecoms giant TeliaSonera. Its executives in Stockholm have a fine line in progressive babble. They talk about their commitment to democracy and respect for the privacy rights of their customers, while giving the security services of Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Uzbekistan unrestricted access to the phone system previous generations of secret policemen could only have dreamed of.

A young member of the Belarusian opposition, Franak Viacorka, told me how the state’s new powers disorientate and demoralise. After hiding with friends in the Minsk underground for 10 days he made the mistake of alerting the KGB to his presence by turning on his mobile. When they tracked down the signal and hauled him in, the interrogator showed him copies of all his texts to parents, friends and political allies. The intercepted messages filled 20 sheets. “These are moments you want to cry,” he said. “You feel undefended. Very weak. It looks like Sweden helps the regime to suppress, to isolate and control the opposition. Europe does not live by its principles. Business interests come first.”

The traditional response of human rights activists has been to force the west to behave with at least a minimum of morality. I worry they will not win their arguments in a recession. We are living through a crisis in western economies as far-reaching as any since the 1930s – and historians among you will know that liberty, equality and the pursuit of happiness did not flourish in that “low dishonest decade”. The British and American banking systems have collapsed. America has a feeble recovery but Britain’s leaders have no idea how to repair the damage. Meanwhile, the eurozone has become a machine for wealth destruction, which Europe’s politicians cannot turn off. Those who want governments to put human rights before jobs or spend blood and treasure on humanitarian interventions are going to have an even harder time of it than before.

The economic crisis is also a crisis of political legitimacy. It may be vulgar to say so, but in the late 20th century, many wanted to be free because they wanted to be rich. Last week a global survey by the BBC World Service showed how the crash of the west had shifted attitudes. Respect for democratic EU countries had gone down and admiration for authoritarian China gone up. The post-2008 lesson appears to be that repression works. It makes money. It is good for business. Who are liberals from declining countries to lecture others?

I am not arguing that we should stop lecturing. Quite the reverse. Simply that we should not fool ourselves. It has always been hard to win a change worth having, and it will soon get harder.

From Vancouver Sun

A Paris court of inquiry has started an investigation which may finally link the dots between Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, his country’s purchase of two French submarines, bribes worth nearly $200 million and the murder of a Mongolian model by his bodyguards.

The in camera inquiry by judges Roger Le Loire and Serge Tournaire, who are highly experienced investigators in corruption and human rights cases, will try to discover if the French defence company DCNS and its project partner Thales International paid the bribes to secure the 2002 contract to supply two Scorpene submarines to the Malaysian navy.

Their inquiry will build on two years of investigation and evidence-gathering by French police.

The deal was done while Najib was defence minister and attention is focused on the role played by Najib’s close friend and policy adviser, Abdul Razak Baginda.

French officials have let it be known they are especially interested in two payments by the French arms dealers.

One was for 114 million euros ($148 million) and went to a Malaysian company called Perimekar for “logistical support.”

Perimekar was at the time wholly owned by a company which was controlled by Razak Baginda and his wife, Mazalinda.

The examining magistrates also want to hunt down the story behind payments worth $46 million to a company called Terasasi, which was originally incorporated in Malaysia, but then registered itself in Hong Kong where, according to the online magazine Asia Sentinel, it is listed among 142 companies at a convenience address in the Wan Chai district.

The registered directors of Terasasi are Razak Baginda and his father Abdul Malim Baginda.

Questions about the submarine deal became more intense and sharp in October 2006 after the body of Mongolian model and translator Altantuya Shaariibuu was discovered in the jungle outside Kuala Lumpur.

She had been shot in the head and an attempt then made to destroy her body with military C4 explosive.

Altantuya was the jilted lower of Razal Baginda and she had last been seen causing a scene outside his house.

A few years before she had been a model in France and in 2004 she accompanied Razal Baginda to act as translator when he was negotiating the Scorpene deal.

In a handwritten letter found after her death she said she intended to confront Razak Baginda and demand $500,000 as the price of her silence on the details of the Scorpene agreement.

Even the politically attuned Malaysian courts could not avoid this case.

But although Razak Baginda and two of then-defence minister Najib’s bodyguards, Azilah Hadri and Sirul Azhar Umar, were charged with murder the outcome was deftly finessed.

In an astonishing piece of courtroom stage management, Razak Baginda, was not required to answer to the charges of abetting Altantuya’s murder, was released and now lives in exile in Britain.

The bodyguards took the fall and have been sentenced to death. They are appealing the verdict, but that hearing has been delayed.

It is widely predicted that appeal will not be heard until after the next elections, expected in June, when, if Najib and his governing coalition are returned to power, a way may be found to acknowledge the bodyguards’ loyalty.

After failing to get a full investigation of the Scorpene affair in Malaysia, many Malaysian human rights advocates and Altantuya’s family put a lot of faith in the French investigation.

However, there was initial disappointment when it appeared that judges Le Loire and Tournaire would investigate only the bribery allegations and not look at the murder of Altantuya.

But 10 days ago the Malaysian human rights group Suaram was allowed to give the judges a private briefing. Spokesmen for the group said afterward they described the political context of the affair from the Malaysian point of view and gave the judges a list of potential witnesses.

Among them is Razak Baginda, and there are reports the judges may attempt to subpoena him from Britain.

Others on the list, such as Prime Minister Najib, are unlikely to take any notice.

But Altantuya’s father, Setev Shaariibuu, says he intends to go to Paris from Mongolia and that from his last conversation with his daughter he can “connect the dots” for the judges.

The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, May 15 — The Malaysian Bar accused Putrajaya today of feeling “threatened by an independent Bar” after Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz proposed a law academy to be “an alternative” to the statutory body of lawyers and called on the Bar Council to dissolve itself.

The de facto law minister had said this in response to the Bar’s resolution condemning “excessive” and “indiscriminate” use of force by police during the April 28 Bersih rally and its demand that the government and police chief apologise for alleged acts of police brutality.

“The announcement lends itself to the perception that the proposal is revived from time to time when the government feels threatened by an independent Bar that does not countenance the abuse of power by the institutions of the state (the police, in this case), and speaks up in defence of the public at large.

“The Bar, in doing so, is fulfilling its duty under section 42(1)(a) of the Legal Profession Act, namely, ‘to uphold the cause of justice … uninfluenced by fear and favour’,” president Lim Chee Wee said in a statement, adding the Bar was “flabbergasted” at Nazri’s statements.

Nazri and Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had accused the Bar Council, which administers the Malaysian Bar, for being prejudiced in condemning the police and government after the April 28 rally spiralled into chaos.

Nazri said yesterday the proposal to set up a law academy will be discussed by the Cabinet and the Attorney-General soon as it is high time a new organisation, other than the Bar Council, be formed to represent those who have studied law.

The Padang Rengas MP had said the setting up of the academy was aimed at avoiding a monopoly in the issue of legal interpretation.

“I’m sure those in academia would have a better interpretation of the law. The Bar Council may not get it right all the time. They are very partisan. I don’t think they should be given a monopoly,” he said.

But Lim said today the Bar was opposed to Nazri’s proposal of a legal academy, “which appears similar to the proposal that the Government had mooted, and subsequently withdrawn” in 1996 and 2002.

I’m sure those in academia would have a better interpretation of the law. The Bar Council may not get it right all the time. They are very partisan. — Nazri Aziz

“Regrettably, this third occurrence appears to have come about purely as a reaction to the Bar’s strong message… of grave concern and condemnation of the use of excessive force by the police during the public assembly.

“The test of a mature and democratic society is the manner in which it treats the weakest amongst it. On April 28, 2012, when the mighty weight of the police was unleashed without restraint onto the streets of Kuala Lumpur, many innocent participants were undeservedly harmed.”

Lim also urged the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration “not to attack the messenger, but to act on the message contained in the Bar’s final report and the extraordinary general meeting resolution instead.”

The Malaysian Bar approved the resolution on Friday after only 16 out of 1,270 lawyers opposed the resolution, which contained findings of alleged police brutality against protesters and members of the media.

A total of 939 votes were recorded in support of the resolution. There are some 14,000 members of the Malaysian Bar.

The April 28 rally, which saw tens of thousands gather at six different locations before heading to Dataran Merdeka, was peaceful until about 2.30pm when Bersih chief Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan asked the crowd to disperse.

But the former Bar Council president’s announcement was not heard by most of the crowd who persisted to linger around the historic square which the court had already barred to the public over that particular weekend.

Just before 3pm, some protestors breached the barricade surrounding the landmark, leading police to disperse the crowd with tear gas and water cannons.

Police then continued to pursue rally-goers down several streets amid chaotic scenes which saw violence from both sides over the next four hours.

KeadilanDaily

Ketua Umum KEADILAN, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim berkata, kemenangan Presiden Perancis yang baru, Francois Hollande akan mempercepatkan siasatan terhadap skandal rasuah Scorpene membabitkan Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“Kemenangan presiden baru Perancis akan mempercepatkan siasatan kes rasuah kapal selam,” kata Anwar dalam satu ceramah di Batu Caves, baru-baru ini.

Menurut Anwar, rakan karib Perdana Menteri yang juga pemilik Perimekar iaitu Abdul Razak Baginda dan Najib sendiri antara saksi yang akan dipanggil.

Katanya, Mahkamah Perancis bukan hanya menghadkan siasatan mereka terhadap pembelian Scorpene, tetapi juga akan mengheret siasatan dalam kes pembunuhan Altantuya Shaariibu, apabila turut memanggil Dr Setev Shaariibu sebagai saksi perbicaraan.

“Kalau begitu, nama Malaysia akan terjejas. Proses keadilan sedang berjalan, apa keputusan saya tidak tahu.
“Tetapi yang saya tahu, ia tidak seperti badan kehakiman seperti Malaysia. Ia (Mahkamah Perancis) lebih bebas dan terbuka dan siasatan adalah berat kerana melibatkan kes rasuah yang besar.

“Kes ini ada kaitan dengan penjualan Submarine di Pakistan yang melibatkan 13 orang terbunuh dan penjualan submarine di Taiwan yang menyebabkan seorang terbunuh, dan di Malaysia mengakibatkan seorang terbunuh (Altantuya),” ujarnya.
Pendakwa awam Perancis yang menyiasat urus niaga pembelian Scorpene baru-baru ini menemui bukti bahawa Najib ketika menjadi Menteri Pertahanan meminta AS$1 bilion (RM3 bilion) untuk syarikat tempatan Perimekar daripada DCNI – anak syarikat pembuat kapal Perancis DCN.

Menurut kertas pendakwaan yang didedahkan NGO hak asasi Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), terdapat faksimili menunjukkan Najib meminta jumlah itu sebagai syarat mengadakan pertemuan dengan beliau pada 14 Julai 2001.
7 Mei lalu, Francois Hallonde, menewaskan Nicholas Sarkozy untuk jawatan presiden.

Harakah
Ahmad Lutfi Othman

Keriuhan teka-teki tarikh Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13 kembali bergema. Kali ini, ramai bersetuju bahawa ia hampir pasti diadakan sebelum Ramadan; lebih tepat 9 Jun ini, iaitu penghujung cuti sekolah. Namun, ada pihak melihat tarikh itu tidak sesuai, terutama faktor hari keputeraan Yang di-Pertuan Agong, yang akan dirayakan pada 2 Jun.

Apa pun, cuti sekolah tidak semestinya menjadi ketetapan untuk mengadakan pilihan raya. Puasa dijangka bermula 21 Julai. Maka, boleh saja Parlimen dibubarkan, sebelum bulan penuh keberkatan itu, selewat-lewatnya pertengahan Jun.

Walaupun ada desakan kuat dan menyeluruh agar tempoh kempen minimum ditentukan 21 hari, tetapi seperti diketahui umum, yang dipersetujui Jawatankuasa Pilihan Parlimen (PSC) hanya 10 hari.

Dengan itu, jangka masa daripada hari Parlimen dibubarkan hingga tarikh mengundi, tidak akan melebihi sebulan. Gosip terkini: Bubar Parlimen, 14 Mei; penamaan calon, 26 Mei; dan mengundi, 9 Jun.

Jika mahu ditunda lagi melepasi Ramadan, tarikh alternatifnya sama ada sebaik saja Aidilfitri, tetapi sebelum penerbangan pertama haji (tempoh yang dilihat begitu singkat dan mengikat), ataupun selepas rombongan terakhir jemaah haji pulang ke tanahair, iaitu hujung November.

Bekas Perdana Menteri, Dr Mahathir Mohamad pernah mengadakan pilihan raya semasa musim haji dan dikritik hebat. Saya kira Najib tentu mahu mengelak sebarang insiden yang boleh mencalarkan imejnya lagi, terutama pada kaca mata masyarakat Melayu.

Sesungguhnya gerak-geri Perdana Menteri Najib Razak diperhatikan secara dekat dan cermat. Diari beliau diamati terutama jadualnya ke luar negara, termasuk menghadiri konvokesyen anaknya.

Pengumuman “durian runtuh” kepada peneroka Felda — meskipun dipertikai daripada segi amaun, yang dilihat kecil (RM15,000) berbanding sepatutnya RM38,000 seperti kata Husam Musa  — dianggap membawa petanda pembubaran Parlimen semakin dekat.

Sebelum aroma bantuan one-off hilang serinya, Najib perlu mendapat mandat buat kali pertama daripada rakyat. Beliau cukup menyedari, dibantu informasi perisikan rasmi dan tidak rasmi, majoriti pengundi tidak sabar lagi menunggu kesempatan untuk melakukan perubahan menyeluruh.

Ramai menjangkakan, tidak mustahil Najib mencipta sejarah mengejutkan, malah mampu mengalahkan rekod Presiden Perancis, Nicolas Sarkozy, yang gagal melepasi penggal pertama pemerintahannya.

Najib bakal kecundang dalam pilihan raya pertama yang diterajuinya? Ya, cuba bayangkan situasi itu. Masakan Najib dan konco-konconya sekadar menunggu hukuman rakyat? Sudah pasti tidak.

Segala ikhtiar  dan perancangan (lebih tepat, komplot) diusahakan bagi menyekat kemaraan Pakatan Rakyat. Jika komplot jahat dan licik itu didedahkan, misalnya melalui konspirasi SPR-JPN dalam memanipulasi senarai daftar pemilih, mereka bersikap pekak badak saja. Persetankan!

Meskipun Umno-BN kalah di Kelantan sejak sekian lama, dan pernah tewas di Sabah dan Terengganu, manakala empat tahun lalu lebih buruk lagi dilanda tsunami politik, iaitu kecundang di Perak, Selangor, Kedah dan Pulau Pinang (selain Serambi Makkah), namun ia tetap berkuku di peringkat persekutuan, yang masih memungkinkan untuk terus menguasai sumber dan peluang ekonomi.

Kekalahan itu rupanya tidak pernah menginsafkan pemimpin, aktivis dan penggerak Umno. Mereka mungkin lebih kerap turun ke padang, menyantuni rakyat, mengambil berat keperitan orang ramai, dengan pelbagai slogan menarik, tetapi motif utamanya hanyalah untuk meraih kembali kuasa.

Lagak dan gaya kehidupan mewah pemimpin Umno di negeri-negeri yang mereka kalah ini masih tidak banyak berubah. Benar sekali, rasuah politik dan amalan koprupsi tidak dapat dicerai-tanggal daripada budaya Umno. Ubat mujarab adalah memberikan pengajaran bermakna dengan menyingkirkan Umno-BN dari Putrajaya.

Taliah hayat kini mungkin terputus satu saluran, tetapi jantung masih berdegup. Keghairahan untuk kembali merebut takhta tidak pernah pudar, malah mungkin semakin segar-bugar!

Ingat ucapan popular Najib, yang menggesa ahli-ahli Umno mempertahankan Putrajaya walaupun ke “titisan darah yang terakhir”. Bagi saya, frasa itu ia bukan sekadar pembakar semangat, tetapi menyimpan motif tersirat yang menggerunkan.

“Sejak awal merdeka, khususnya di zaman Pemuda Tahan Lasak, gelagat Umno memang dikenali dengan tindakan provokasi yang melampau, terutama sewaktu kempen pilihan raya. Saya bimbang, ketika mereka di ambang kejatuhan, macam-macam perkara buruk boleh dicetuskan Umno,” petikan emel yang saya terima daripada pembaca Harakah.

Beliau menambah, parti-parti dalam Pakatan Rakyat terbukti sabar dan reda ditimpa kekalahan. Tiada rusuhan dicatatkan, sebaliknya pemimpin dan ahli-ahlinya tabah melalui siri tribulasi yang memedihkan.  

Zaman sudah berubah. Rakyat kian matang dan cerdik. Proses pendemokrasian dan fenomena langit terbuka, serta kemajuan ekonomi dan pertambahan kelas menengah telah mengubah lanskap politik Malaysia.

Umno yang gelisah berdepan kebangkitan rakyat, masih memainkan sentimen dan emosi perkauman (kadang-kadang bersalut agama yang dangkal). Ia akan terperangkap dengan jeratnya sendiri. Aksi ganas menganggu aktiviti Pakatan makin memburukkan lagi imej yang sedia jelik itu.

Umno akan mencuba seribu dalih, termasuk serangan psikologi dan juga fizikal, bagi menghalang peralihan kerajaan dalam PRU13 yang kritikal ini.

Ahli dan penggerak Pakatan tidak harus terjerumus dalam “permainan kotor” Umno itu. Rakyat sedang memerhati, menilai dan menghakimi. Tetap istiqamah dengan strategi dan pendekatan yang telah dirumuskan. Sampaikan maklumat secukupnya ke seluruh pelosok tanahair.

“Parti yang paling kurang melakukan kesilapan akan meraih kemenangan dalam PRU13.” Peringatan itu saya kira cukup bermanfaat dalam situasi sekarang.

Dari JalanTelawi.com

Oleh Najwan Halimi

Saya dibesarkan dalam persekitaran Melayu yang kuat. Sejak dari kecil, orang-orang tua dalam keluarga sering memomokkan saya akan bahaya yang dibawa oleh bangsa Cina dan India.

Kata mereka, Cina ini kaum pendatang yang suka menipu dan mahu merampas hak orang Melayu. India pula bangsa yang kuat mabuk, suka mencari gaduh dan melakukan jenayah. Untuk mendukung teori celaka ini maka minda Melayu saya disogok dengan satu kisah puaka yang terjadi empat dekad yang lalu.

(i)

Teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – ini terbawa-bawa sehingga ke alam persekolahan rendah menerusi pergaulan saya yang hanya terbatas dalam kelompok anak-anak Melayu sahaja. Saya tidak berkawan dengan murid-murid bukan Melayu dan sering memandang curiga terhadap apa saja yang mereka lakukan.

Sewaktu darjah lima, seorang teman sekelas (budak Melayu yang saya lupa namanya) membuka kisah 13 Mei. Katanya, ini cerita benar yang didengar dari datuk dan bapa saudara yang (didakwanya) terlibat secara langsung dalam peristiwa tersebut. Saya jadi tertarik dan bertanya lanjut.

Maka dikatakan bahawa waktu itu orang-orang Cina bertindak biadap dan kurang ajar kerana menghina dan mencerca orang-orang Melayu. Orang Cina mengutuk hak istimewa Melayu dan merendah-rendahkan bahasa Melayu. Kerana merasakan bahawa maruah bangsa telah dicabar, orang-orang Melayu mengangkat senjata dan mengamuk dengan menyerang dan membunuh orang-orang Cina yang celupar itu.

Orang Cina bertindakbalas dan turut bertindak agresif. Maka saat itu parang, kayu, keris dan segala macam senjata melayang ke udara, cerita teman saya itu. Tambah beliau lagi (entah betul atau tidak), datuknya juga turut ditetak di dada oleh seorang Cina namun langsung tidak cedera kerana memiliki ilmu kebal yang menyebabkan badannya tidak lut senjata. Saya kagum dan teruja dengan cerita teman saya tadi.

Kemelayuan saya semakin jitu dan teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – kini saya yakini sepenuhnya. Melayu itu hebat, pantang dicabar. Kalau dicabar, nahas!

Di rumah, saya bertanyakan bapa tentang 13 Mei. Kata beliau, waktu itu dia masih kecil dan tidak tahu menahu kerana peristiwa itu hanya berlaku di Kuala Lumpur sedangkan beliau menetap di Pahang. Tiba-tiba, bapa saya bercerita tentang Tun Razak, Dasar Ekonomi Baru dan UMNO.

Sekali lagi, teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – bergema dalam minda saya. Ya, saya Melayu. Saya bangga jadi Melayu!

Hidup Melayu!

(ii)

Sewaktu bersekolah menengah, saya sekelas dengan ramai pelajar berbangsa Cina. Kesan daripada puaka 13 Mei ini, saya kekok dan sukar bergaul dengan pelajar-pelajar lain yang bukan berbangsa Melayu. Saya hanya senyap dan menyendiri di dalam kelas sehinggalah saya ditegur oleh seorang anak Cina yang fasih berbahasa Melayu.

Budak Cina ini bernama Tan Chien Liang. Dia anak orang kaya yang dihantar dan dijemput setiap hari oleh pemandu keluarganya. Ya, bapanya ahli perniagaan dan memiliki rumah banglo yang mewah.

Mulanya saya prejudis dan gemuruh dengan budak Tan ini. Puaka 13 Mei dan teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – masih lagi bersarang dalam benak Melayu saya. Namun demikian, lama kelamaan saya mulai senang dengan Tan. Dia baik dan tidak menipu. Setiap kali saya terlupa membawa wang belanja, dia akan meminjamkan wangnya untuk saya beli makanan di kantin. Dia juga tidak akan beri jawapan kepada saya setiap kali saya cuba menirunya waktu peperiksaan. Tidak baik katanya.

Kami bersahabat. Macam belangkas, kata pelajar-pelajar lain. Dan saya semakin terlupa akan teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – yang sering dimomokkan oleh orang-orang tua dalam keluarga saya. Saya senang dengan Tan. Dia fasih bercakap Melayu. Dia suka makanan Melayu. Dan dia juga menaruh cinta pada gadis Melayu!

Suatu hari, Tan bertanyakan saya tentang Islam. Dia mahu saya mengajarkannya perihal Islam. Katanya, dia suka berkawan dengan saya sebab saya baik. Sebab dia nampak orang Islam baik. Saya terpinga. Namun saya bersetuju.

Maka saya pun mula belajar dan pada masa sama mengajar Tan tentang Islam. Saya kaji Al-Quran, saya baca hadith. Oh, rupanya semua manusia ini bersaudara. Semua manusia ini berasal dari Adam. Melayu, Cina dan India rupanya manusia bersaudara. Cuma faktor sejarah, geografi dan budaya yang membezakan mereka. Hakikatnya – menurut pembacaan saya itu – semua manusia bersaudara.

Tiba-tiba teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – cuba menyerang kesedaran yang baru terbina. Ada bisikan puaka yang mengingatkan saya tentang 13 Mei. Tentang kebiadapan Cina terhadap Melayu. Tentang kehebatan Melayu yang tak lut senjata. Tentang keris. Tentang Hang Tuah. Bisikan puaka ini menyuruh saya menafikan kenyataan bahawa manusia itu bersaudara dan sememangnya Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh.

Ah, tak mungkin! Tan baik orangnya. Dia tidak pernah menipu saya. Dia jujur sewaktu jawab peperiksaan dan dia mahu belajar tentang Islam. Dia suka berkawan dengan saya sebab saya juga baik kepadanya.

Dan bisikan puaka 13 Mei serta teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – mendiamkan diri. Barangkali bengang kerana saya tidak melayani.

(iii)

Di universiti, saya belajar kejuruteraan. Sewaktu hari pertama kuliah – waktu sesi memperkenalkan diri – seorang budak India bernama Ganesan dengan bangganya mengatakan beliau seorang ateis.

Selepas kuliah, saya menghampiri Ganesan dan bertanyakannya kenapa dia tidak meyakini Tuhan. Dia hanya tersenyum sambil menyatakan bahawa dia sebenarnya masih dalam pencarian ke arah kebenaran. Saya berjabat tangan dengannya dan kami ke kafé untuk minum. Cukup mengejutkan kerana Ganesan juga fasih bertutur Melayu!

Ganesan, meski tidak percayakan Tuhan merupakan seorang siswa yang pintar. Dia rajin dan tidak lokek berkongsi pengetahuannya dengan saya. Dia juga tanpa silu selalu meminjamkan saya tugasan kuliah untuk ditiru. Kata Ganesan, hidup ini mesti tolong-menolong.

Setiap petang selepas kuliah, saya akan melepak di kafé dan bertukar cerita dengan Ganesan. Kami akan berbual pelbagai isu termasuk agama, politik, budaya dan sukan. Saya terharu tatkala Ganesan menyatakan bahawa dia amat mengagumi adat dan kebudayaan orang Melayu. Kata Ganesan, orang Melayu merupakan bangsa paling budiman dan halus pekertinya. Ganesan juga meminta tolong saya untuk memikat seorang siswi Melayu yang diminatinya.

Pengetahuan dan keprihatinan Ganesan terhadap budaya dan adat Melayu mendorong saya untuk mendalami budaya dan adat masyarakat India pula. Maka saya mengkaji dan menelaah makalah-makalah sejarah tentang ketamadunan India silam.  Agak menarik kerana rupa-rupanya, pembinaan tamadun Melayu banyak dipengaruhi dan berasal dari tamadun Hindu klasik dari India.

Saya teruja sebaik mengetahui bahawa asal moyang orang-orang Melayu dahulunya menganut ajaran Hindu dan bertutur dalam bahasa Melayu yang disaring dari perkataan-perkataan Sanskrit. Parameswara, pengasas kesultanan Melayu Melaka juga asalnya merupakan seorang Hindu sebelum diislamkan oleh saudagar Arab yang berdagang di Melaka.

Keterujaan saya pada ketika itu sekali lagi cuba digugat oleh bisikan puaka 13 Mei dan teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – namun ianya gagal lagi. Ungkapan ‘Ketuanan Melayu’ dan ‘Hidup Melayu’ dipandang sepi oleh jiwa saya yang semakin mengerti hakikat kemanusiaan.

Ganesan dan saya kekal akrab. Meskipun dia ateis dan saya aktivis gerakan mahasiswa Islam, rutin minum petang di kafé selepas kuliah kekal diteruskan sehingga tamat pengajian.

(iv)

Hari ini, puaka 13 Mei sudah tidak mahu mendampingi saya lagi. Ianya telah jauh menghilangkan diri. Teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – juga sudah tidak wujud dalam kematangan intelektual saya.

Selepas 8 Mac 2008, percubaan sesetengah pihak yang masih meyakini teori celaka – Cina penipu dan India suka cari gaduh – untuk menghidupkan semula puaka 13 Mei jelas sekali gagal. Manipulasi media untuk meracuni akal budi rakyat dengan menyemai sentimen kebencian melalui ego perkauman sememangnya keji dan menjengkelkan.

Saya bertuah kerana telah melalui kerencaman pergaulan sejak dari alam persekolahan rendah sehingga ke peringkat universiti dengan mengenali pelbagai bentuk karakter dan individu tanpa mengira latar bangsa dan kepercayaan. Semakin saya cuba untuk menegakkan ego kebangsaan dan keangkuhan ras, semakin terbentang ruang dan kesempatan untuk saya mendekati kepelbagaian dan keindahan multi-budaya.

Puaka 13 Mei dan pendekatan politik yang berlandaskannya harus dibunuh terus oleh kita semua. Teori celaka yang mewujudkan persepsi negatif terhadap ras-ras tertentu juga wajib disingkirkan daripada terus melatari keharmonian dan kelangsungan hidup warga negara ini.

Malaysia ini milik semua. Milik saya, Tan, Ganesan dan anak-anak cucu kami yang bakal mewarisinya nanti.

—

NAJWAN HALIMI adalah Ketua Penerangan AMK Selangor dan juga merupakan Timbalan Ketua Penerangan AMK Pusat.

The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, 12 Mei – Panel bebas yang ditubuhkan Putrajaya untuk menyiasat dakwaan penggunaan kekerasan Bersih 3.0 pada 28 April lalu haruslah “berhati-hati” dalam memastikan hasil siasatannya dapat selesaikan perkara ini, Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia Malaysia (Suhakam) berkata.

Dalam satu kenyataan media, pengerusi Suhakam, Tan Sri Hasmy Agam menyeru panel itu supaya bebas, tidak berat sebelah, telus dan berintegriti tanpa gentar atau pilih kasih apabila menjalankan siasatan agar dapat pulihkan keyakinan orang ramai terhadap pihak berkuasa.

“Ini merupakan ciri-ciri penting demokrasi yang berfungsi sepenuhnya seperti yang rakyat cita-citakan dan kerajaan komited untuk mencapainya,” beliau ujar.

Tambahnya lagi, Suhakam akan terus mengkaji aduan dan pengemukakan daripada pelbagai pihak dan laporan media berkaitan dengan insiden yang berlaku pada hari itu.

“Suhakam benar-benar menyedari  mandatnya untuk menyiasat dakwaan pencabulan hak asasi manusia dan sedang meneliti aduan-aduan yang telah diterima daripada orang awam mengenai persitiwa tersebut sebelum membuat keputusan mengenai tindakan selanjutnya yang sesuai.”

Dalam hasil siasatan Suhakam ke atas perhimpunan Bersih 2.0 pada 9 Julai 2011, Suhakam mendapati pihak polis menggunakan taktik yang “tidak sesuai” untuk  menghalau kumpulan perusuh Bersih 2.0 dengan menggunakan gas pemedih mata tanpa sebarang jalan keluar.

Suhakam juga mendapati beberapa organisasi media arus perdana gagal untuk melapor secara adil pandangan Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan mengenai Bersih 2.0, dan juga menjejaskan keselamatannya dengan menerbitkan maklumat peribadinya.

Hari ini, ketua setiausaha DAP Lim Guan Eng telah mencadangkan Suhakam menyertai panel bebas itu untuk menyiasat insiden keganasan Bersih 3.0.

Semalam, Majlis Peguam berkata bahawa panel bebas itu tidak mempunyai kedudukan dari segi undang-undang dan pendirian Tan Sri Hanif Omar terhadap Bersih tidak melayakannya untuk mengetuai siasatan itu.

Bersih juga berpendapat kumpulan itu akan berat sebelah dan diibaratkan sebagai pasukan petugas sahaja.

Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak telah mengumumkan akan melantik panel bebas yang “kredibel, berpengalaman, dan dihormati” untuk menyiasat keganasan polis terhadap peserta dan wartawan sewaktu insiden Bersih di Dataran Merdeka.

Tambah Najib, rakyat boleh melihat perkembangan siasatan tersebut bagi menyiasat kebenaran dakwaan keganasan terhadap wartawan, media tempatan dan antarabangsa ketika perhimpunan menuntut pilihan raya adil dan bersih itu berlangsung.

Enam media dan kira-kira 12 jurugambar termasuk media asing dikatakan telah diserang pihak polis ketika kekacauan di dataran bersejarah terbabit, selepas polis melepaskan meriam air dan gas pemedih mata untuk menyuraikan perusuh yang menceroboh ke kawasan dataran.

Media antarabangsa dan tempatan mula mengkritik pentadbiran Najib menggunakan kekerasan terhadap kumpulan itu, yang menurut mereka hanya menjalankan tugas.

Pakatan Rakyat berikrar, sebaik menubuhkan kerajaan persekutuan kelak, kami akan menyelesaikan permasalahan yang telah sekian lama diabaikan, iaitu masalah sebilangan besar rakyat Malaysia yang tidak punya dokumen pengenalan diri, terutamanya sijil kelahiran dan kad pengenalan.

Saya nyatakan disini bahawa isu ini akan menjadi keutamaan Pakatan Rakyat dan kami akan berusaha sesegera mungkin dalam menyelesaikan permasalahan ini.

Terdapat ratusan ribu masyarakat India, Dayak dan lain-lain yang lahir di Malaysia hidup tanpa dokumentasi pengenalan diri yang sah kerana prosedur kerajaan itu sendiri yang menggagalkan mereka. Tanpa dokumen tersebut, mereka dinafikan hak untuk bersekolah, bekerja, mendapat perkhidmatan kesihatan, keselamatan, bantuan kerajaan dan juga hak mengundi.

Kebanyakan dari mereka adalah daripada latarbelakang yang sangat miskin dari segi ekonomi. Tanpa dokumen tersebut, mereka akan terus dipinggirkan dan dipandang hina oleh masyarakat setempat. Mereka juga disisihkan secara total dari menyumbang kepada peningkatan ekonomi negara.

Jumlahnya sangat besar dalam komuniti India dan sebilangan kecil dalam masyarakat Dayak; pelbagai janji telah ditabur oleh Barisan Nasional dan pemimpin-pemimpin mereka, namun ternyata ianya hanya retorik politik yang memualkan.

Hak kerakyatan adalah hak yang paling fundamental dalam sebuah negara yang demokratik.

Bahagian 3 dalam Perlembagaan Persekutuan dengan jelas memperuntukkan bahawa, tiada seorang pun boleh dinafikan kerakyatannya di Malaysia. Namun, masih ramai yang dinafikan hak tersebut kerana sejak sekian lama mereka telah diabaikan kerajaan Barisan Nasional (BN).

Tambahan pula, kebanyakan mangsa adalah warganegara, melalui kuatkuasa undang-undang di bawah Perkara 14 Perlembagaan Persekutuan dan mereka dilahir dan dibesarkan di Malaysia. Mereka ini, samada tanpa dokumentasi atau dipaksa untuk menerima MyKad yang ditetapkan untuk bukan warganegara.

Satu kes telah mencetuskan kebimbangan rakyat Malaysia dua minggu lalu. Reshina Batumanathan, seorang pelajar Tingkatan 5, lahir dan dibesarkan disini telah berulangkali dinafikan MyKad. Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara telah mengeluarkan permit bukan warganegara kepadanya supaya beliau boleh menyambung persekolahannya. Masa depannya kabur dan tidak menentu tanpa MyKad yang sepatutnya dimiliki beliau. Reshina adalah contoh rakyat Malaysia yang dinafikan kerakyatannya.

Isu ini adalah isu moral, yang paling utama dalam keadilan sosial. Reshina dan ratusan ribu yang lain yang tidak punya dokumentasi pengenalan diri dipinggir di negara sendiri. Pakatan Rakyat akan menjuarai permasalahan ini dan akan mengembalikan hak mereka yang dijamin Perlembagaan Persekutuan apabila menubuhkan kerajaan persekutuan kelak.

DATO’ SERI ANWAR IBRAHIM
KETUA PEMBANGKANG

Malaysia Chronicle

Motion in relation to the events of and surrounding the BERSIH 3.0 public assembly on 28 April 2012, and matters in connection therewith, proposed by Lim Chee Wee (Chairman, Bar Council), on behalf of the Bar Council, dated 4 May 2012

Whereas:

(A) A public assembly was called for and organised by BERSIH 2.0, a coalition of 84 NGOs, on 28 April 2012 for electoral reforms. The public assembly was commonly known was BERSIH 3.0;

(B) Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur refused to allow the assembly at Dataran Merdeka, as chosen by the organisers, and insisted on the use of alternative venues;

(C) Despite the Minister of Home Affairs having twice asserted that the BERSIH 3.0 assembly was not a security threat, the police obtained an ex parte order from the Magistrates’ Court on the evening of 26 April 2012 restraining Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan, the organisers of the BERSIH assembly and members of the public from gathering at Dataran Merdeka;

(D) The police announced, after obtaining the court order, that participants were permitted to gather at various points in Kuala Lumpur, except Dataran Merdeka;

(E) It has been reported by various news agencies that there were between approximately 30,000 to 250,000 people gathered for the assembly in Kuala Lumpur on 28 April 2012. The Malaysian Bar monitoring team estimated the crowd to be at least 100,000 people;

(F) The crowd that gathered that day reflected a broad cross-section of Malaysian society, and was peaceful;

(G) There were police barriers set up at every point/road leading to Dataran Merdeka, most of which consisted of metal gates, water-filled dividers and razor wire;

(H) There was massive police presence: approximately 14,000 personnel were reportedly deployed (including personnel from the Federal Reserve Unit) together with water cannons. It was observed that a substantial number of police personnel did not display their police identification numbers on their uniforms;

(I) At approximately 2:35 pm the organisers of the assembly, through its Co-Chairperson Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan, announced that the assembly had concluded and requested that the crowd disperse;

(J) The police were initially restrained. However, this changed at approximately 3:00 pm, when there was a breach of the perimeter barriers set up at the junction of Jalan Tun Perak and Jalan Raja;

(K) The police then responded by unleashing water cannon and firing successive volleys of tear gas directly into the crowd gathered at that junction, and along Jalan Tun Perak, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and Jalan Raja Laut. Similar police action was reported at other points where crowds had gathered;

(L) The Malaysian Bar’s monitoring teams reported witnessing the use of heavy-handed tactics by the police, including the indiscriminate discharging of multiple rounds of tear gas directly into the crowds, without any obvious provocation, and the arbitrary use of water cannons;

(M) The police also directed their use of water cannon and firing of tear gas to box in participants rather than allowing them to disperse quickly. As participants retreated, the police should have re-established their barriers and given sufficient time to the crowd to disperse in an orderly and safe manner, instead of chasing participants and persistently shooting water cannon and firing tear gas on them. It appeared that the purpose of the police was not to disperse, but to attack, the crowd;

(N) Random, widespread and wanton physical assault and brutality by the police on members of the public and media professionals have been reported. It has further been reported that there was confiscation and/or destruction of photographs and video recordings made by members of the public and media professionals, and damage caused to their recording equipment;

(O) There were unwarranted arrests of members of the public and media professionals. The police also arrested Members of the Bar who had participated in the public assembly. Whilst in the care and custody of the police, at least three of these Members were physically assaulted and beaten, and suffered serious injuries;

(P) In response to the use of force by the police, sections of the crowd resorted to retaliatory acts, including the throwing of stones and bottles. The police responded like for like. These skirmishes between the police and sections of the crowd carried on until approximately 7:00 pm;

(Q) The police have failed to display the maturity, discipline and restraint required of a professional force. Instead of acting to calm the situation, they aggravated it and contributed to its escalation;

(R) It has been reported that the organisers of the BERSIH 3.0 assembly had not made sufficient efforts to manage the crowds or to resolve the impasse between the police and the crowds;

(S) It has been reported that between 388 and 513 persons were arrested and taken to Pusat Latihan Polis (“PULAPOL”), Jalan Semarak, Kuala Lumpur. The Malaysian Bar’s urgent arrest team, comprising members of the Bar Council Legal Aid Centre (Kuala Lumpur) and volunteer lawyers, were present at PULAPOL to assist and represent the arrested persons. However, the police refused to allow them access to the arrested persons despite repeated requests by both the lawyers present and the arrested persons. This denial of access to legal representation is a violation of Article 5 of the Federal Constitution and section 28A of the Criminal Procedure Code;

(T) The right of every citizen to freedom of speech and expression, and to assemble peaceably, is enshrined in Article 10 of the Federal Constitution as well as Articles 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

(U) The right of every person to life and liberty, including the right not to be assaulted or harmed, is enshrined in Article 5 of the Federal Constitution as well as Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; and

(V) The Malaysian Government, as a member of UNESCO, is aware of the Medellin Declaration on Securing the Safety of Journalists and Combating Impunity, adopted at the UNESCO Conference on Press Freedom, Safety of Journalists and Impunity on World Press Freedom Day 2007;

Now it is hereby resolved that:

(1) The Malaysian Bar views with grave concern, and condemns:

(a) the excessive, indiscriminate and wrongful use of water cannons and tear gas by the police on participants of the assembly;

(b) the action of the police in not allowing the crowd sufficient time to disperse in an orderly and safe manner, and instead chasing the participants and attacking them by persistently shooting water cannon and tear gas on them;

(c) the tactics of the police in trapping and attacking the participants with water cannon and tear gas instead of permitting them to disperse;

(d) the random, widespread and wanton physical assault and brutality by the police on members of the public and media professionals;

(e) the unwarranted arrests of members of the public, media professionals and Members of the Bar, and the physical assault and beating of at least three arrested Members;

(f) the unjustifiable and unlawful confiscation and/or destruction of photographs and video recordings made by members of the public and media professionals, and damage caused to their recording equipment; and

(g) the lack of discipline and professionalism of the police;

(2) The Malaysian Bar calls for the police to identify their personnel involved in the misconduct and unlawful acts and surrender all the wrongdoers, in particular those who assaulted members of the public, media professionals and lawyers, for prosecution;

(3) The Malaysian Bar renews our call on the Government to give effect to the recommendation of the Royal Commission to Enhance the Operation and Management of the Royal Malaysia Police to set up the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission recommended therein, without further delay;

(4) The Malaysian Bar calls for the Minister of Home Affairs and the Inspector General of Police to issue a public apology for the actions and conduct of the police, including the excessive, indiscriminate and wrongful use of water cannons and tear gas;

(5) The Malaysian Bar calls for the Minister of Home Affairs and the Inspector General of Police to issue a public apology to members of the public, media professionals and lawyers who were assaulted or beaten by the police;

(6) The Malaysian Bar calls for the setting up of an independent commission to recommend and formulate proper guidelines or operating procedures governing conduct of police in the control and management of public assemblies, and the use of non-lethal and lethal weapons, which would be in accordance with internationally-accepted standards, in particular the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials (adopted by United Nations General Assembly resolution 34/169 of 17 December 1979) and the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials 1990;

(7) The Malaysian Bar calls on the Government to pay just and proper compensation to members of the public, media professionals and lawyers who were assaulted;

(8) The Malaysian Bar condemns the police for denying lawyers access to arrested persons and calls upon the police to abide by and give effect to Article 5 of the Federal Constitution and section 28A of the Criminal Procedure Code;

(9) The Bar Council will look into how it can assist those denied their constitutional rights and those who were assaulted to pursue claims against the relevant parties for just and proper compensation;

(10) The Malaysian Bar calls on the Government, in line with the Medellin Declaration, to:

(a) prevent crimes against media professionals, investigate and penalise such crimes, provide witness protection for those testifying about them and ensure that the perpetrators do not go unpunished;

(b) promote awareness and train Malaysian law enforcement agencies to respect and promote the safety of media professionals, and ensure that they are able to work in full security and independence; and

(c) take resolute action for the safety of media professionals and ensure respect for their professional independence;

(11) The Malaysian Bar calls on Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur to uphold freedom of assembly and the right of all to utilise Dataran Merdeka for public assemblies; and

(12) The Malaysian Bar reaffirms the right of individuals to participate in public assemblies. Such right must however be exercised in a peaceful and responsible manner. The Malaysian Bar reminds organisers of public assemblies of their responsibility to take all reasonable action to ensure a peaceful assembly.

The above Final Report is due to be discussed at Bar’s EGM slated for Friday, 11th May 2012 at 3pm

Malaysiakini
By Mariam Mokhtar

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak sealed his own fate, 11 years ago at a meeting to discuss the Scorpene submarine purchase. The date was July 14, 2001.

As any history student will tell you, the storming of the Bastille in Paris, on the morning of July 14, 1789, signalled the beginning of the French revolution. Every year, the French celebrate their National or Bastille Day, on July 14.

From now on, Malaysians may also attach some significance to July 14. It might not be the start of a Malaysian revolution, but it was on July 14, 2001, that Najib held a meeting with DCNI, the subsidiary of the French shipmaker DCN.

Najib, who was the defence minister at the time, had allegedly demanded that the French pay US$1 billion (RM3 billion) to the Malaysian company Perimekar, as a condition for meeting him.

These details were divulged by the French investigators for Suaram, and form only the tip of the iceberg. Their list of witnesses includes Najib, Abdul Razak Baginda and the current Defence Minister Zahid Hamidi. All are required to testify in Paris.

It has not been a good week for the PM. The government’s response to the Bersih sit-down protest has attracted international condemnation. In the week which coincided with World Press Freedom Day, his policemen have been accused of brutality and his administration has been villified for media censorship.

Independent foreign observers have criticised Najib for mishandling the peaceful protest, and denying the rakyat their fundamental right to freedom of assembly.

Two newspapers face legal action; the New Straits Times, by an Australian senator, Nicholas Xenophon, because the paper libeled him, and Utusan Malaysia, which ran a front-page story that the Opposition politician Azmin Ali was involved in a tryst.

Diminishing support

With the French court case looming, corruption scandals rocking his cabinet and further delays to GE13, Najib fears that support for him and his party will diminish further.

Is it any wonder that a few days ago, Najib tried to distract us, by claiming that Bersih’s sit-down protest was a plot to topple his government?

Najib’s opposition to Bersih 3.0 is a clear indication that Umno knows that it cannot win a clean election. He knows he cannot allow a free and fair election.

That explains the concerted effort by Umno and the Election Commission (EC) to cheat. In desperation, Najib has accused Bersih 3.0 of wanting to turn Dataran Merdeka into Tahrir Square.

In a press conference last week, Suaram confirmed that the French judicial probe had evolved from a “civil complaint” into a “criminal investigation.”

The French lawyer acting for Suaram, Joseph Breham said: “Investigations so far have provided sufficient evidence to point our finger at Malaysian officials in this (court) hearing.”

Suaram secretariat member and lawyer Fadiah Nadwa Fikri said, “….The parties involved in the scandal would soon be charged in the French criminal court. It’s going to be bigger than it already is now”.

Suaram secretary-general Cynthia Gabriel (left) called the Scorpene scandal, “the Great Malaysian Robbery” with several companies, including the pilgrimage fund (Lembaga Tabung Haji) and the military servicemen’s pension fund (Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera) being used to obscure the money trail.

Gabriel said, “The Malaysian and French people have clearly been misled, cheated and robbed of their monies through blatant corruption and mismanagement of funds in the name of national safety and security.”

The former finance director of DCN, Gerarde Philippe Maneyas, alleged that Malaysian officials in the deal had been bribed.

With the introduction of new laws in France and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Convention in 2002, bribes made to foreign officials are considered a criminal offence. Previously, these bribes were tax-deductible.

As a result of these laws and the OECD, all documentation relating to arms deals would replace reference to the payment of “commissions” with “payment to service providers”.

Terasasi surfaces

The French inquiry also revealed the presence of a previously unknown company, Terasasi, which is owned by the PM’s former aide, Abdul Razak Baginda.

Baginda (left) also owned Perimekar, and both these companies received several million euros in commissions and kickbacks. Baginda’s wife and father are also linked to Perimekar and Terasasi.

Interestingly, French investigators found an invoice from Terasasi to a French company, Thint Asia International, dated Aug 28, 2004 for 359,450 euros (RM1.43 million) with a handwritten note saying: “Razak wants it in a hurry.” Needless to say, the race is on to discover which “Razak” this refers to.

Despite the rapid pace of development by the French investigators, members of Najib’s cabinet have remained eerily silent.

One thing is clear. Najib cannot be non-committal in future press conferences and abruptly terminate them when any reference is made to Scorpene. He cannot use that old trick of saying he will go the mosque and swear on the Quran. He cannot avoid the French subpoena without risking an international arrest warrant.

Despite the internal power struggles in the upper echelons of Umno, none of those who wish to be PM has appeared to lodge the first knife in his back. Perhaps, they all realise that despite Najib’s unpopularity, they have to band together to save their skin.

Najib faces a dilemma. He needs the support of Umno members so he can remain as PM, because it is said that a head of state enjoys immunity while he is in office. Once he stands down, he becomes another ordinary person and will be prosecuted, for any crimes committed.

Najib probably rues the day he entertained the French on July 14, 2001. Even Swiss bank accounts and exile to a “friendly” country are no guarantees of freedom.

Kelab Anwar Ibrahim (AIC) mempertikaikan keputusan kerajaan yang melantik Tun Hanif Omar mengetuai enam anggota Panel Penasihat Bebas bagi mendapatkan gambaran sebenar mengenai kejadian rusuhan di Kuala Lumpur berikutan penganjuran Bersih 3.0 pada 28 April lepas.

Panel Penasihat Bebas itu terdiri daripada bekas Ketua Polis Negara Tun Hanif Omar selaku pengerusi panel, bekas Ketua Hakim Borneo Tan Sri Steve Sim, Pengarah Urusan Kumpulan Akhbar Sinar Harian Datuk Husammuddin Yaacub, Penasihat Undang-undang Kumpulan Akhbar Sin Chiew Liew Peng Chuan, Pengurus Besar Kanan Hal Ehwal Korporat Petronas Datuk Medan Abdullah, dan Pakar Psikologi Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Prof Dr Ruszmi Ismail.

AIC ingin mempersoalkan tentang kebebasan yang dimiliki oleh Panel Penasihat tersebut memandangkan majoriti daripada anggotanya adalah masih atau pernah berkhidmat dengan kerajaan dan juga mewakili kepentingan-kepentingan korporat yang mereka ketuai.

Amatlah malang juga apabila Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia (SUHAKAM) tidak dipertanggungjawabkan bagi mengetuai siasatan ini atau, sekurang-kurangnya tiada seorang pun wakil Suhakam yang dijemput bagi menganggotai Panel Penasihat yang dibentuk ini. Justeru AIC melihat ini lebih kepada satu lagi bentuk sandiwara kerajaan untuk membolehkan satus quo keadaan pada 28 April lepas memihak dan memberi kelebihan persepsi terhadap mereka. 

Tindakan kerajaan menolak sebarang wakil pemerhati dan siasatan daripada Pertubuhan Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu juga adalah satu langkah aneh dan terdesak, seolah-olah tidak mempercyai sebuah badan dunia yang Malaysia sendiri menyertainya sebagai anggota. 

AIC juga mempertikaikan pemilihan langsung yang dibuat terhadap Tun Hanif Omar yang sebelum ini begitu lantang mengkritik penganjur dan ratusan ribu rakyat yang menyertai Bersih 3.0 , satu sikap prejudis yang dipercayai bertujuan untuk menimbulkan rasa sangsi terhadap keganasan oleh polis terhadap rakyat seperti yang dilaporkan berlaku pada Bersih 3.0 

AIC mencabar Kerajaan Malaysia terutamanya Kementerian Dalam Negeri untuk berlaku adil dan benar-benar telus bagi mendapatkan gambaran sebenar tentang kejadian yang berlaku pada 28 April lalu, yang telah mencatat sejarahnya yang tersendiri dengan melihat kebangkitan rakyat dari satu sudut positif untuk membawa perlaksaan sistem di negara ini lebih teratur dan dipercayai.

Generasi Penggerak Zaman

Saifuddin Shafi Muhammad

Presiden
Anwar Ibrahim Club
Malaysia