Tragedi Sungai Kampar

Terkejut mengetahui berita jambatan gantung yang merentas Sungai Kampar di Kuala Dipang Perak runtuh dan 22 orang murid sekolah rendah jatuh ke dalam arus deras.

Sehingga jam 6.20 petang har ini, di antara 22 pelajar sekolah yang terjatuh ke dalam Sungai Kampar ketika sedang meniti jambatan gantung di Kawasan Perkhemahan Pusat Kokurikulum Pejabat Pelajaran Daerah (PPD) Kinta pada pukul 10.30 malam tadi 19 orang pelajar selamat, seorang pelajar ditemui mati lemas manakala dua orang pelajar masih belum ditemui. [baca di sini].

The price of development

Here's another hedonism culture being touted as 'vouge @ happening' by the Starbuck coffee latte generation. A generation produced after 52 years of independence ... 

Tuesday October 20, 2009

Sexy dances, wild antics and late hours at outlet

UPPER class and urban Malays are patronising an entertainment outlet in KL Sentral where girls perform sexy dances on top of the bar, Kosmo!reported in its front page.

The scantily-clad Malay girls attract the men with their gyrating dance moves. The outlet, which has been in operation for two years, opens for business until 5am.

A patron, who only wanted to be known as Faris, said most of the customers were upper class Malays.

The 30-something said the activities at the outlet continued because of the weak enforcement and the tidak apa attitude of the local community.

A check by the daily showed it was packed with couples between midnight and 4am.

Brickfields district police chief Asst Comm Wan Abdul Bari Wan Abdul Khalid said police had raided the outlet several times since early this year.

Among the offences committed included operating beyond the permissible time as well as consumption and trafficking of illegal drugs.

> Berita Harian front-paged a report about the proposed amendment to the National Language Act 1963 and the Education Act 1996 to empower Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) to penalise the private sector and agencies that fail to use Bahasa Malaysia in official dealings.

The Attorney-General Chambers is studying the matter. Under the proposed law, action would be taken against those not using Bahasa Malaysia during meetings, preparation of minutes and official functions.

A draft of the proposed amendments to the Acts has been discussed with the Education Ministry and would be tabled in Parliament.

The report quoted DBP director-general Datuk Termuzi Abdul Aziz as saying it was timely the Government empowered the agency.

Currently, he said DBP could only advise the private sector and its agencies to use Bahasa Malaysia. He said a circular had been issued in 2006 for the language to be used during official functions at all government departments.

He added that some countries, including Slovakia, were already penalising those who did not use the national languages during official functions.

He said Malaysia should be proud because Bahasa Malaysia ranked fifth in the world in terms of the number of speakers.

Another con work: local

Aduhhhh. Tak tahu le nak kata apa.

First off, the lady is so gullible. Mudah sangat ditipu seolah tak ada akal pemikiran langsung.

Kot ye lah 'secret identity' ... pegi mamposs le ngan secret dia. Yang bagi respon kenapa? Alangkan doktor nak suruh pesakit baring untuk diperiksa di bilik pemeriksaan klinik/hospital pun tak boleh melakukannya sendirian ... perlu ada misi bersama pesakit. Ini yang bodoh bangang tak ada fikiran sampai benda cam tu boleh berlaku di BILIK DARJAH ... walaupun hanya guru sementara ... mungkin bukan lulusan universiti, NAMUN, tak lah perlu jadi rocket scientist untuk menyedari penipuan sebegini.

Secondly, pelik bin aNjaib pasal pompuan ni di suruh ke bilik darjah kosong dan lelaki tu plak sampai 'stark naked'. Waktu sekolah ke waktu bila kejadian ni?

Thirdly, the man can just brush aside this 'allegation' because the lady has no proof except for the threatening phone messages.

Finally, I wonder if the Malaysian police can and would take any action based on the said phone messages.

Makin parah masyarakat Nelayu Malaysia hari ini.

&&&&&&&&&&

Friday October 16, 2009

Man tries to con teacher into having sex

A temporary teacher with a secondary school in Seremban was almost fooled into having sex with her colleague after he pretended to be an undercover special health officer researching “diseases affecting female teachers.”

The teacher - known only as Hani - claimed that the married man in his 30s had even asked for his undercover identity to be kept from his wife, who is teaching in the same school, and from the school principal.

In a report in Kosmo!, Hani, 24, said the teacher had told her that his research comprised three phases, the first of which would require her to answer questions on the size of her breasts and waist.

She would then be required to get intimate with the teacher in the second phase and finally, have sex with him under the third phase, which was also a “weight test”.

Hani alleged that she had signed an agreement as well as a confidentiality form to participate in the study after the teacher approached her in March.

The “study” then moved onto the next phase, in which Hani said she was told to go to an empty classroom.

“In the classroom, he hugged me from behind before performing other sexual acts on me,” she said, adding that she pushed the man away after suspecting something was amiss.

“The next phase was even worse when he asked me to have sex with him,” she said, claiming that during this time, the teacher was stark naked and getting ready to film the sex romp.

“Frightened, I then fled from the classroom,” said Hani.

Since that day, Hani alleged the teacher has been harrassing her through phone messages, asking her for money as “penalty” for not completing the study and claiming that she could be “sued” by the Education Ministry.

The man even claimed that the Public Services Department could take action against her and her other family members serving in the Government.

“I lodged a police report on Aug 18 after I could no longer take his harassment. I have also filed a complaint with both the Health and Education Ministries and the department,” said Hani.

She said she also believed that the teacher had “conned” other victims in the school but that they were reluctant to come forward.

The teacher was subsequently remanded for seven days before being released and is said to be still teaching in the same school.

State education director Datuk Abdullah Muhamad confirmed the case was still under investigation and the matter would be brought up to the ministry.

Jempol Chief Police Officer Supt Mohd Sabri Muhamad@Awang also confirmed the incident.

International Sex Trade

Internet love scammers target lonely matured ladies through dating sites such as Zoosk or chatting application such as Skype. The perpetrators are African posing as Britons, Americans or occasionally Canadians or New Zealanders. I have yet to come across one posing as Aussie. Maybe "gedday mate!" is too obvious to miss in aussie speak.

This one here the international sex trade targets young women who are usually more adventurous and are willing to undertake higher risks for higher returns. Working overseas is very attractive in terms of better remunerations and glamours.

I have no idea what kind of job is being offered to these young ladies but I bet it is not the white collar job. However that opinion is very personal based on suspicious lucrative job offers.

Here's the news.

Friday October 9, 2009

Cops smash international sex trade ring

KUALA LUMPUR: An international vice syndicate that lures Malaysian women into the worldwide sex trade was smashed with the arrests of two members.

The women, who were duped by promises of lucrative jobs abroad, were instead sold as sex workers in countries like Australia and several European nations.

The couple, a 44-year-old man and his 55-year-old live-in partner, was nabbed at their home in Pandan Perdana, here, at 1am yesterday.

Following the arrests, eight local women and another from China, in their 20s, were rescued by a police team from the Bukit Aman secret societies, gambling and vice division that raided the house.

The women were believed to be the syndicate’s latest victims.

Federal CID deputy director I (Intelligence and Operations) Deputy Comm Datuk Hadi Ho Abdullah said the syndicate was a major player in the international sex trade with an extensive networking system.

DCP Hadi said the victims, who were mostly in their teens and early 20s, were promised high-paying jobs in countries of their choice.

“Initial investigations revealed that the duo, who have been operating for at least a year, made a profit of more than RM1mil thus far.

“It produces forged visas, passports and other relevant documents for the victims,” he said at a press conference at the federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman, here, yesterday,

DCP Hadi said police have yet to ascertain the number of Malaysian women who were duped and ended up as sex workers abroad but believed the figure could be in the hundreds.

DCP Hadi said police also did not rule out the possibility of the syndicate working with personnel from the Immigration Department or other relevant government departments.

He advised the public not to be fooled by individuals promising them suspiciously lucrative jobs abroad.

Internet love scam: A Doctor Is Drugged and Extorted

The curse of a lonely heart.

Friday October 9, 2009

Doctor extorted and drugged by Net friend

Compiled by BEH YUEN HUI, IZATUN SHARI and A. RAMAN

A FEMALE doctor invited a friend over for dinner and ended up being extorted for RM10,000.

The 35-year-old doctor, who is a single mother, had apparently been photographed in the nude by the “friend” whom she got to know on the Internet three months ago.

China Press reported the friend demanded RM10,000 as a “settlement fee” and threatened to distribute the naked photographs.

The doctor said she befriended the Arab man on the Internet and found him to be congenial.

Last Sunday, she invited him over for dinner at her home in Subang Jaya, Selangor, while her two children were away.

The man made her coffee and the doctor claimed to have lost consciousness after consuming the drink.

“When I woke up the next morning, I found myself naked on the bed. The man, together with some RM2,000 worth of jewellery, was gone.

“The next day, he asked me to pay US$3,000 (RM10,500) for the photographs,’’ she told police after lodging a report.

Selangor CID chief Senior Asst Comm (II) Datuk Hasnan Hassan said police believed the doctor had been drugged.

The daily also reported an “upskirting photographer” in Malacca trying to capture pictures of a 22-year-old auditor on Wednesday.

The auditor was on her way to lunch when she noticed a man bending down and taking photographs below her skirt using a camera phone.

Appalled, she shouted for help. The man ran away but was caught by a policeman on his rounds and several passers-by.

Something I need to keep at hand [ source here].

I reserve my opinion on Kartika Sari's case. However, I am in total agreement with the writer's observation in relevance to the way justice is dispensed by Syariah Courts.

[highlighted in red]

Sunday October 4, 2009

Growing list of don’ts

SHARING THE NATION by ZAINAH ANWAR

Unless we truly want to turn Malaysia into a police state as in Iran and Afghanistan under Taliban rule, laws that turn every perceived sin into a crime against the state will only result in selective persecution and victimisation.

KAREN Armstrong says any belief that makes you compassionate, kind and respectful of others is good religion. If your belief makes you intolerant, unkind and belligerent, this is bad religion, no matter how orthodox it is.

This seems like great common sense to me. It puzzles me why those who insist that Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno be caned because that is what Islam demands fail to see the many injustices of her case.

She was a first-time offender; she showed remorse and pleaded guilty; and there was no violence in the commission of the offence. Under normal sentencing guidelines, she would have received an automatic one-third remission of the sentence.

But Kartika was sentenced with the maximum fine of RM5,000 and six strokes of the rotan for drinking a glass of beer.

And the Mufti of Perak, Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria, questions why all the fuss for just six strokes of the rotan when Kartika should have been punished with the full “Islamic” 80 lashes.

And there was Datuk Rosman Ridzuan, the chairman of U Mobile, who was fined only RM700 when he pleaded guilty for assaulting his now ex-wife. Under Section 323 of the Penal Code, this domestic violence offence carries a maximum fine of RM2,000 or one-year imprisonment.

But I am sure those who feel Kartika should be caned are shaking their head and wondering why Datuk Rosman should in the first place be charged and fined for beating his wife, and why indeed should the state intervene in what they deem to be a family matter.

A person who causes harm to another he is supposed to love, cherish and protect is fined a few hundred ringgit, while a young woman trying to make it in life gets the maximum sentence for drinking a glass of beer – which she did not even finish, she said.

And just recently in the same Kuantan Syariah Court, an odd-job Indonesian man who spent RM3.20 for a bottle of samsu which he shared with two other friends in a moment of respite was jailed for a year with six strokes of the rotan. He is in prison because he could not afford to pay the RM5,000 fine.

And yet, we all know that every day, thousands of Muslims commit what are deemed to be offences under the all-encompassing Syariah Criminal Offences (SCO) laws and get away with it. I know of a certain Tan Sri who leaves his collection of expensive bottles of wine in the wine cooler of his favourite restaurant. His bottles are labelled, just like the expensive shampoo and conditioner bottles left by regular clients at their favourite hairdressing salon.

What riles me up every time the Syariah Criminal Offences law is enforced is the injustice of it all. It is often always the disadvantaged and powerless in society who are targeted. While those in powerful places are free to lead the lifestyle they choose, ordinary Muslims feel suffocated and oppressed that what they wear, do, drink, and where they hang out with their friends render them to arbitrary arrest and surveillance by the religious police.

Thousands of young men and women are caught and charged for khalwat, for which they meekly plead guilty in order to avoid further embarrassment. And for what great crimes against the state? The offence of “sitting together on a bench in a shopping complex with the man having his arm on the woman’s back; holding the woman’s waist while walking in a shopping complex; sitting closely and holding hands; sitting on a bench with the woman leaning on the man’s shoulder; sitting in the dark under a tree in a park; sitting on a bench in the dark by a lake”.

Why are Syariah Court resources, which are already stretched out, spent on prosecuting such offences, but women’s right to divorce, to maintenance, to compensation, to a share of the matrimonial assets are denied or delayed?

And how come these enforcement officers have all the resources and time in the world to go after young Muslims doing what young people usually do, and to barge into homes and hotel rooms in pursuit of amorous couples which have led to death and injury to those running away in panic, and to detain even those found in innocent circumstances?

Shouldn’t their resources and time be better spent going after the thousands of errant fathers who fail to pay child support? Why are the religious zealots impervious to the harm these men cause to their children and the family they left behind, and the impact of such gross neglect on society as a whole?

And how come Kajang Prison can execute the caning of Kartika who was sentenced in Pahang under state law, and yet a mother cannot enforce a maintenance order issued by the Kuala Lumpur Syariah Court against a father who has moved to Petaling Jaya?

It is tough being Muslim in this country as the list of the forbidden grows longer. And it’s a double whammy if you are young, and triple whammy if you are a woman. Just for being Muslim, you run the risk of being arrested and hauled into a lorry should the pub or club you are in be raided by the moral police. God forbid if there is alcohol on your breath or your dress is deemed too short, too revealing, too tight.

As with those caught for demonstrating, most of those detained for being Muslim in the wrong place are eventually released because they are in the pub or club to just listen to music or to hang out with their friends over a glass of coke. But the experience in the hands of the religious authorities is enough for a mountain of resistance and defiance to build up.

Since the public furor over Maslinda Ishak, where a Rela officer took a picture of her while she was relieving herself in the lorry used for these raids, the Zouk raid where 100 young Muslims were arrested, the raid on an elderly American couple on holiday in Langkawi and the spate of state attempts to establish citizens’ snoop squads to spy on courting couples and other errant Muslims in Terengganu, Malacca and Selangor, things have largely been quiet for a while on the moral policing front.

The former Prime Minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, had taken a clear stand that his Cabinet disapproved of such moral policing raids and intrusion into private lives. The Minister for Law, Datuk Nazri Aziz, had also warned against the “Talibanisation” of Malaysia following the Zouk raid.

Then came the appointment of the new Minister for Religion, Maj-Gen (R) Datuk Jamil Khir Baharom, in March. And a seminar on caning for syariah crimes was held in April, and the minister said he was most unhappy that the Syariah Courts hardly ever impose the caning sentence. He said the light sentences meted out contributed to the rise in syariah crimes every year. And now a sudden wave of caning sentences by the Syariah Courts and the determination to uphold such sentences no matter the national and international implications and cries of injustice.

In Selangor, where the PAS Commissioner Hassan Ali is the state Exco member in charge of religion, mosque officials were to be empowered to arrest Muslims for drinking alcohol. But his unilateral act incurred not just the ire of his colleagues in the Pakatan-led state government, but also the Sultan of Selangor.

Reading through the list of offences under the Syariah criminal laws of the various states, you wonder how in the world those responsible for these laws think they could be enforced. Well, the Federal Territories Reli gious Department (JAWI) has set up a 24-hour hotline, and PAS Youth in Terengganu wants to set up a vigilante squad to advise courting couples to desist.

All those legal drafters and Islamic scholars who created the long list of offences and punishment, the Cabinet and state excos who approved them, and Parliament and the legislative assemblies that enacted them … wasn’t anyone thinking through the implications of such violations of privacy and personal rights, and to the kind of society and citizenship this will create?

And still there are those who are demanding that the list of syariah offences be expanded to include all actions deemed against the teachings of Islam and the court’s powers to punish be enhanced beyond the current maximum of three years imprisonment, RM5,000 fine and six strokes of the rotan.

Unless we truly want to turn Malaysia into a police state as in Iran and Afghanistan under Taliban rule – where moral police are at every street corner, every office, every campus – such laws that turn every perceived sin into a crime against the state will only result in selective persecution and victimisation. It is also simply unenforceable because there is no public consensus on what constitutes indecent behaviour that merits regulation and punitive action.

In the end, such moral policing laws will erode the credibility and survival of both the law and the law-making process, says Prof Hashim Kamali who now heads the International Institute for Advanced Islamic Studies, in a study on the SCO legislation.

That this is already the case in Malaysia is obvious. The continual public outrage, the abuses that occur, the need for the federal government or the Sultan to intervene, the release of most of those detained, the apologies that the religious departments have had to extend to those victimised and abused, the damages (Maslinda was recently awarded RM100,000) and compensation (to the Langkawi couple) that the Government has had to pay, the international damage it does to Malaysia’s effort to promote itself as a model moderate and progressive Muslim country.

So the question before the Government is this: Review the Government’s coercive and punitive position on Islam for a more nurturing and compassionate approach; or enhance further the powers of the religious authorities to control the lives of Muslims and punish them ever more harshly, and consequently bring Islam, Islamic law and the religious authorities into further disrepute. Just look at Iran.

Internet love scam: CAUTIONS!

Another report on internet love scams. [NST online]

Be wary of 'cyber-friends'

2009/10/03

SHAH ALAM, Sat: Be wary when making new "friends" on the Internet. Some "cyber-friends" might just turn out to be members of a scam syndicate.

The warning comes from Selangor police chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar, following numerous police reports where the gullible were duped of their money by new-found "friends" to claim non-existent gifts.

He said the victims were made to believe the gifts were supposedly with the customs department due to unpaid taxes.
Hence, they are lured into depositing a certain sum of money in the accounts of syndicate members claiming to be customs officers.

"In some cases, the money which the victims were asked to deposit, amounted to as much as RM5,000," Khalid told reporters after launching the Crime Prevention Exhibition and Seminar at Universiti Teknologi MARA here today.

In a separate incident, the police are in the midst of tracking down three African men in connection with the abduction of an Indonesian boy last night.

The boy, whom the police found outside the departure hall of the KL International Airport (KLIA) early today, has since been reunited with his mother.

The woman and her son were sent to the Indonesian Embassy for further assistance.

Khalid said that earlier, the woman had gone to the KLIA with her son to meet an African acquaintance. Subsequently, the three got into a car with two other African nationals.

He said that upon reaching Kota Damansara, the woman was embroiled in an argument with her friend before she was abandoned by the road-shoulder about 9pm.

However, the foreigners took away her son, a bag of clothes, laptop, US$900, (RM3,060) and an undisclosed sum of rupiah and ringgit.

Khlaid said initial police investigations revealed that the boy was sent to an apartment where he played video games before being sent to KLIA by taxi.

He urged the taxi driver to contact the police to facilitate investigations. -- BERNAMA