Implement the ‘Rule of Law’ on everyone, even on UMNO Youth

Recently, the clampdown against people who organize and participated in illegal assemblies and street demonstrations invited adverse reactions by different groups. Some said the Government should allow the ‘freedom of expression’, as defined by them as part of human rights within the Constitution of the Federation, where else other people vehemently detest these new and upcoming trend of ‘expression of feelings and stance’, especially when it turned violent.

Its provided under the law that assembly without Police permit is unlawful, let alone ‘demonstrations’.

 

Some quarters have defined actions done by some UMNO Youth leaders in organising illegal demonstrations against the Israeli Zionist regime and United States of America (being Israeli’s strongest ally, supplier of arms and international ‘defender of policy’) as justified because for almost sixty years the Palestinians have been brutally treated under occupation forces and lived as refugees in lands that were formally their homeland and this is very much the flavour and feeling of the international community.

The first instance came to mind was the storming over the Police barricade at the KLCC Convention Centre 28 July 2006 when US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice met the ASEAN Foreign Ministers for the invasion and illegal war against Lebanon issue.

Again, a demonsration was organised infront of the Myanmarese Embassy, in protest of the crackdown against protesting monks.

Bernama.com has the story:

December 11, 2007 22:48 PM

 

Demos By Umno Youth And Hindraf Have Nothing In Common     KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 (Bernama) — Attempts by certain people to equate the demonstration by the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) with efforts by Umno to stand for the rights of Palestinians are difficult to be accepted because the gap in their struggles is very wide, like between the earth and the sky. The public may still remember when Umno Youth vice chief Khairy Jamaluddin and 10,000 other Malaysians of various religions stood together in a wave of anger towards the United States (US) for defending Israel that openly murdered the Lebanese and Palestinians. The rally on July 28 last year in this capital city, initiated by Umno Youth, finally managed to hand over a memorandum to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who was here for the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, calling for the world power to broker a ceasefire to end the Israeli military campaign. Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) senior lecturer Dr Siva Murugan said the demonstration by Umno, participated by people of various races and religions, was a genuine global struggle compared to the one by Hindraf that was desperate in trying to champion its personal interest. “The issues fought for by Umno Youth and Hindraf are far different. It is clear to the people that both have different ideologies though in principle, they voice out oppression against a particular race,” he said. Dr Siva said Hindraf actually tried to cloud the eyes of the Malaysian people by saying that it was fighting for the Indians in the country to the extent that it was willing to use violent means including “battling its own people and authorities.” “Peaceful demonstrations are not something new in the country and often allowed by the authorities. The issue now is Hindraf has exceeded the line by disrupting public order and challenging the authorities,” he said. He said an assembly bent on radicalism and extremism should not be accepted by the people in the country. “It is not our way. It is not our culture. I agree with the government’s firmness on Hindraf who tries to promote violent demonstrations,” he said. Dr Siva said Hindraf was not only challenging the law of the land but also other principles enshrined in the Federal Constitution including by questioning Malay privileges and trying to challenge the Malay rulers institution. Malaysian Association for Community Development president Norizan Shariff said the demonstrations by Umno Youth and Hindraf had nothing in common. The one by Umno Youth, he said, was the only way to protest against the Israeli aggression after international powers refused to prevent Israel from year to year from murdering more Palestinians. “There are two things completely different. Umno Youth tried to stop the aggression in Palestine when the world saw Israel attempted to commit ethnic cleansing at rampant. “It (Palestine) required assistance after no help came from the international community. Because there was no platform to voice the issue out, it was channelled through a demonstration in Malaysia and other places as well,” he said. On the other hand, Hindraf deliberately created issues and had their own agendas, he said. “In Hindraf’s context, all their allegations are more of a claim that has yet to be proven,” he said. In fact, MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu also disputed Hindraf’s accusations, he said. Norizan said Hindraf leaders had adopted a wrong strategy by staging a demonstration which clearly showed it was not sincere in its struggle and drew criticisms from the majority of people in the country. “They did not meet members of the government first. Instead, after staging the demonstration and breaking the law, only then they wanted to meet the government,” he said. On Hindraf’s allegation that the government had violated the people’s basic rights by disallowing public assemblies, Norizan said: “No one has denied them the freedom to assemble but only if it does not make the people worry. “If they say their basic rights have been violated when their assembly have been disallowed, what about the rights of others who are disturbed by their actions at the assembly?” he asked. – BERNAMA

Two wrongs will not make it right. We cannot ‘correct’ or ‘try to correct’ something is wrong by doing something wrongful.

Thus actions should be taken against UMNO Youth Deputy Head Khairy Jamaluddin (who was formerly Deputy Chief Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister) and others who participated in ‘the storming over the Police barricade’, if they had violated the law, just like any other citizens. This is in the spirit of ‘Rule of Law’.

No one is and can be above the law, whether lawyers or family of people in power. That include HRH Rulers.

This is also in tandem with Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s call for ‘not sacrificing accountability to greater public and political fairness’, recently:

December 10, 2007 17:08 PM

I Will Not Sacrifice Accountability To Greater Public – Abdullah

 

PUTRAJAYA, Dec 10 (Bernama) — Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Monday said he would not sacrifice his sense of accountability to the greater public, especially in the face of police intelligence about planned fighting or other violent intents.

“If the choice is between public safety and public freedom, I do not hesitate to say here that public safety will always win,” the prime minister said.

“Malaysians must never, ever, take their peace for granted and they must continue to be responsible to each other,” he said at the Khazanah Global Lecture Series at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), here.

He said responsibility, particularly to each other, as an integral value of the nation, was as important today as it was in 1957 or 1969.

“If we are to evolve into a society that can peacefully live with media freedom, public debates or public show of expression, the value and the burden of responsibility must lie with the ordinary people, not just with those who manage the country,” he said.

The lecture was organised by Khazanah, the government’s investment arm, and moderated by Bernama chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Annuar Zaini.

“In this age of relative affluence and stability, we sometimes forget that there are many groups within the country — each with their own set of demands, each with their own set of sensitivities.

“These differences are very real, yet we do not descend into sheer unmitigated chaos. Why? Because I think there are enough of us who do not forget, who know and remember our complexities,” said Abdullah.

“Those who do not forget understand that our situation demands balance, conscientiousness, and a sense of accountability to the whole (society) rather than to a few.

“For me, this characterises a true Malaysian. A true Malaysian understands very well the impact of careless words and actions. A true Malaysian is acutely aware of who will be provoked into retaliation and who will actually suffer the consequences.

“Because of this, a true Malaysian will try to be judicious in word and deed, even when striving for change,” he said.

Fairness, responsibility and self-belief were the three values that had dominated Malaysia for 50 years as a nation and these would continue to shape the nation in the next 50 years, said Abdullah from his observation being in the public service for over four decades.

He said political fairness could be seen in the practice of power-sharing where all the major races were represented in government via a seat-sharing formula set up by the ruling coalition.

“All groups literally have a seat at the table — the Cabinet meeting table. Issues and concerns are discussed and addressed, often behind closed doors, to reach consensus, where no one is out-voted by the majority; where the rights of every group are protected and safeguarded.”

He said there was consensus on having cultural fairness, and added: “We, each of us, are a thread making up a larger design but if we look closely enough, we will see that each thread still retains its own quality.”

The country’s pursuit of economic fairness continued today, for example, in the approach of corridor development underlined by the same basic principles, which were to eradicate poverty and to provide people with the opportunity to better their lives through employment, business and education, he said.

Abdullah said government’s efforts to eradicate poverty, regardless of race, and eliminating the identification of ethnicity with economic function were now regarded as visionary and far-sighted, as socio-economic disparities widened throughout the world and posed a grave threat to global peace and stability.

“In self-belief, many of the doctrines and measures the country has undertaken fly in the face of popular thinking, from the National Economic Policy to capital controls during the Asian financial crisis.

“We held fast through the massive criticisms and doubts, and this trust in ourselves has paid off,” he said.

“Fairness, responsibility and self-belief were the values that guaranteed sustained unity and continued progress.

“So let us begin with fairness, responsibility and self-belief. Let us understand and appreciate the meaning of these values and start upholding them together. Everyone — leaders, political parties, companies, NGOs, people from all walks of life.

“Let us start building our hearts and minds as we enter into our next 50 years as a nation.”

Abdullah also touched on the country’s success this year, including the launching of two new growth corridors — the Northern Corridor Economic Region and East Coast Economic Region — as well as the education blueprint and the strategic plan on higher education.

Others include the establishment of Permudah, a government-private sector task force to facilitate business, review of salaries in the civil service and sending the first Malaysian into space.

On the economic front, this year saw the stock market reaching record highs with market capitalisation breaking the RM1 trillion mark and international trade of goods and services also exceeding RM1 trillion.

“We should continue to drive the economy towards higher-value sectors and activities, upgrade our education system, and reduce inequalities in income and opportunity.

“We should continue to improve the quality of life, and the effectiveness and performance of our public institutions, from the civil service to the judiciary.

“If Malaysians stay committed to this course, they can only grow stronger in the eyes of the world,” he said.

“However, I think there is something more that we must have, not only to rise in the eyes of the world but also in our own people’s eyes. We should not only think of what the country should do, but what the country should be,” he added before deliberating on the three values.

Also present were his wife Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah, Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, Raja Puan Besar Perak Tuanku Zara Salim, Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop and Bank Negara Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz.

This is the fourth global lecture series organised by Khazanah, and previous speakers included former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladash Dr Muhammad Yunus.

There was a video presentation of messages from some of the local university students, including their expectations in a peaceful and progressive nation in the next 50 years, before the lecture began.

In response, Abdullah said their dreams and aspirations were his vision.

The prime minister hoped that with the bigger capacity of knowledge they possessed, they could make a bigger contribution to the nation in the future.

– BERNAMA

There are other ways of doing the right thing, even against people like Zionist Israelis and their backers, the American. At least, then the newly appointed British envoy Boyd McLeary was willing ‘to be engaged’ in a healthy close debate in early September last year.

On another note, “BERSATU MALAYSIA” will be launched this morning at UMNO Head Quarters to call for the uphold of unity, harmony and stability and detest street and violent demonstrations which will threaten public order and security, inter ethnic and faith good relationships. The declaration is expected to be handed over to the Prime Minister.

*An update as of 12.45pm Thursday, 13 December 2007

The new NGO Damai Malaysia: Gabungan NGO Prihatin, which managed to get 397 different NGOs representing all the major ethnic groups and interests converged and jointly detested illegal assemblies and violent demonstrations and called for the Government and authorities to act strongly against the law defiants, this morning handed over the Damai Malaysia Declaration to the Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at TUDM Subang.

In response, Prime Minister Abdullah called the people Damai Malaysia complained and referred about as “People who do not love their country”.

Bernama.com has the story:

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December 13, 2007 11:35 AM

They Don’t Love The Nation, Says Abdullah

PETALING JAYA, Dec 13 (Bernama) — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Thursday that those who defame the country overseas are people who do not love their country.

“The people are also angry at those who go overseas to seek support and cook up baseless allegations.

“Actually they don’t love the country, they only hunger for power and don’t care about what happens to the country,” he told reporters after receiving a memorandum from the Damai Malaysia group opposing street demonstrations in the country.

Abdullah said that those who were obsessed with their views did not care about the consequences of their acts.

“We are the ones who have to face everything. We have to defend the peace and well-being of the people,” he said.

Damai Malaysia, a group of caring Malaysian non-governmental organisations (NGOs), submitted the five-page memorandum from 395 NGOs which jointly rejected street demonstrations and called on the government to take stern action against the culprits.

Abdullah said the country had become developed and successful based on the practice of democracy which respected and upheld the law and constitution.

Malaysia still gave the people the freedom to voice their opinions, including in the mass media, he said.

“If this freedom is used in an irresponsible manner, the people will suffer,” he added.

He said that as a result of the recent street demonstrations, various sectors, especially the tourism and business sectors, had suffered losses.

He had been informed that hotels in the Bukit Bintang area had received 10 per cent cancellations of room reservations because of these demonstrations.

“If already 10 per cent of the bookings are cancelled, it’s a loss to the hotels. Besides, I believe that the tour agencies and tour bus operators have also received cancellations,” he said.

The memorandum submitted by Damai Malaysia coordinating chairman Mohd Saiful Adil Mohd Daud contained a declaration condemning the organisation of any street demonstrations and rejecting discussions on sensitive issues like race and religion through this means.

The declaration also condemned certain parties which resort to fraud, defamation and sedition to get the support of foreign countries and powers to interfere in Malaysia’s internal affairs.

Among the 395 NGOs in Damai Malaysia are the Federation of Peninsular Malay Students (GPMS), Malaysian Association of Youth Clubs, Felda Youth Council Malaysia, Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia and the United Indian Welfare Organisation.

– BERNAMA

*Photo was uploaded from Rocky’s Bru