Anwar Ibrahim The Jew Baiter

By Syed Akbar Ali

Well that is what the Yanks are saying now. There is this American Online newspaper called The New Ledger which has written a long article on the chameleon’s . . . err Anwar Ibrahim’s transformation into a “Jew Baiter”.

The article is titled “The Reversal Of Anwar Ibrahim.” Considering Anwar is facing trial for sodomy, I dont know if they chose this title on purpose. You can read the whole article here.

I got wind of this story from Rocky’s Bru here, who in turn got it from Barking Magpie’s Blog here .

I have always held that Anwar’s greatest shortcoming is his intelligence. The brother can talk a lot but he dont think too well.

What Anwar has been doing is that when he travels outside Malaysia, he cultivates (or cultivated – its past tense now) powerful Jewish friends like Bill Cohen, Madeleine Albright, Al Gore, Paul Wolfowitz, Martin Indyk and others who helped him in his tirades against his so called persecution. American Jews have massive access to the media and Anwar needed that media to remain relevant outside Malaysia.

But Anwar’s close relationship to the Jews in the US has been leaked out through the Blogs here in Malaysia. The Malay Muslims do not like his close association with influential American Jews. This is part of the reason for the Pakatan’s loss in Hulu Selangor too. The Malay Muslims are catching on to Anwar Ibrahim’s chameleon role vis a vis the Jews when he is outside the country.

To counter spin this growing perception of his ‘talam dua muka’ role, Anwar created the story of APCO, Mossad influence in the Malaysian Police and so on. He accused the Najib Government of sleeping with the Jews. He stretched his imagination beyond boundaries again. When campaigning to Malay Muslim audiences he made his “anti Israel” (aka “anti Jewishness”) quite clear.

Anwar did not imagine, despite the Internet, that whatever he says would also be picked up by the Jews, including his Jewish friends in the Jewnited States. Hence this long and very critical article about him in The New Ledger. You can read the whole article but here are some choice snippets. They have also put up a rather unflattering photograph of Anwar, with a smirk on his face (pic).

The Reversal of Anwar Ibrahim

by Rachel Motte

· Anti-Semitism is now resurgent in Malaysia thanks to opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, a charismatic firebrand of a politician

· The proximate cause of Ibrahim’s descent into the foul rhetoric of anti-Semitism was his decision to exploit the government’s hiring of a Washington, D.C., public relations firm, APCO, to do minor communications work within Malaysia

· In Malaysia, the events of the past few months have made it crystal clear a strange role reversal: it’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim who is whipping up anti-Semitic sentiment

· This is not the first time Ibrahim has gone down this road: he has a history of Jew-baiting when expediency calls for it.

· Ibrahim himself has delved headlong into anti-Semitic theorizing, publicly alleging that there are “Israeli intelligence personnel in the Police IT unit.” Worse, he connected his anti-Semitism to his anti-Americanism

· “Anwar Ibrahim is a founder and director of the Muslim Brotherhood affiliated International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), a think tank in Virginia that has alleged links to terrorism.” In 2002-2003, Ibrahim’s institute in Virginia was even investigated by the FBI, IRS and CIA for alleged financing of Hamas and Hizbollah.

· But does Anwar Ibrahim’s portrayal of himself outside Malaysia match Anwar Ibrahim’s actions within his own country? Unfortunately, Ibrahim has decided to make his mark in domestic Malaysian politics — away from CNN, Al Gore, and Johns Hopkins — as an anti-American, anti-Semitic demagogue

· Yet it remains as hard as ever to figure out who are America’s real friends and allies in the Muslim world . . . The Malaysian state and its ruling party are broadly constructive and cooperative with the United States — but its political opposition is another story. And that’s the reverse of what often gets portrayed in Western media.

· The present Malaysian leadership is pro-business, pro-American and prepared to stand up and be counted in the Muslim world as a strategic U.S. ally.

· The sad truth is that we shouldn’t be surprised by Ibrahim’s descent into anti-Americanism or anti-Semitism. When he told CNN that “stoking the flames of anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism is a good distraction,” he wasn’t condemning: he was observing and prescribing

It looks like Brader Anwar Bin Ibrahim will be losing some support from his Jewish friends in the Jewnited States soon. Already Senator John Kerry has distanced himself from Anwar. It looks like it may be Turkey after all for Anwar. Thats where turkeys go.

The Shelter Home For Children & “Suriana”

By Syed Akbar Ali

I have been meaning to write this for some time but the Hulu Selangor By Election and other things got in the way.

The Shelter Home For Children is an organisation set up by Mr James Nayagam (pic) and a few friends to help homeless children and other kids who need our care.

Shelter steps in and often adopts the kids legally and places them in one of its four Homes around Kuala Lumpur. Sometimes single parents who find it difficult to care for their children may also find a sympathetic friend in Shelter. Shelter takes care of the kids but without losing touch with the parents.

You can visit their website here http://www.shelterhome.org

My wife and I have been fortunate to know Shelter for six years now. My wife, who also teaches slow learners at a Government school and does other social work, spends some time with the kids. We are foster parents to one of of the children from Shelter for five years now. It has been challenging but fulfilling to be just close to a child.

I hope everyone will be encouraged to seek out places like these and to help the children in any way you can. Do think about this. It does not take much. If you have had kids, have some spare time, do think of these kids. The most important thing is time. Just a few hours a week should be sufficient.

Writing cheques or throwing money is the easy way but spending time with them has a more productive impact on the kids. And its ok if you can only focus on one kid at a time.

Here is an encouraging thought : time flies by so quickly. Before you know it, these kids are grown up. They sit for their SPM and after that they are all dressed up, they can find jobs and start off in life.

Of course the earlier you can “intervene” into a child’s life the better but what is needed is ‘intervention’ at the right time ie at the latest when they are in the early teenage years.

Getting close to the kids at the right time, spending some time teaching them their lessons, sending them for tuition, taking them out on holidays, sleepovers at home, staying over during the school holidays and just being friends does wonders to a child’s self esteem. Its just like watering a withering plant. They just respond marvelously and start blooming.

You may not create neuro surgeons and atomic scientists out of every challenged child but you may save them from becoming something else which no one likes or wants to have around. I am talking about drugs, bad behaviour, gangsterism and what ever else.

Other than Shelter, there is also the Home of Peace in Seputeh which is run by a remarkable woman by the name of Justin who takes in young girls and gives them a solid footing in life. We have known them longer, about 10 years now, and we have actually seen young kids from very challenged backgrounds bloom into self confident, well educated and productive human beings.

Without the proper ‘intervention’ at the right time by folks like Justin and Shelter, these young people may not get the chances and the choices that every child deserves.

Shelter has evolved beyond caring for challenged kids. They are also spending time on juveniles usually young boys who are caught up in the country’s legal system. Not all of them are on the wrong side of the law. Even if they are on the wrong side of the law, it is a bit unfair to hold a 15 year old or even a 17 year old responsible for his wrong doings. They are too young to know what is right and wrong all the time (in this area maybe the adults are also juvenile).

I blame it entirely on bungling adults especially parents. Perhaps we should pass a law that if a junior gets in trouble, one of the parents goes to jail. That should put a dent, at least, on children being neglected. My wife and I have come into contact with cases and stories which can pick you up and throw you against the wall. It is unbelievable what adults can do to their own children. Kebinatangan.

Back to Shelter, some of the folks who are involved in the organisation are setting up Suriana. Suriana seeks to help people ‘caught up’ by the Law. For example there are about 300 teenagers (juveniles) now in prison. They do not belong there – with other hardcore prisoners. But this is our system. It needs improvement.

For example there is a 15 year old in Kajang prison. He was caught without an IC. So he was taken to Court. No one came to bail him out because family, relatives semua tak ada or they dont want to get involved. Then the ‘postponements’ started (only Anwar Ibrahim is a beneficiary of postponing cases). Because the lawyers, magistrates, courts etc are clogged up, the cases take months to be disposed of. In the meantime, because it is a ‘criminal case’ a 15 year old is put away in Kajang Prison for up to six months.

There are 16 year olds selling fake VCDs who were also arrested and sent to jail – while waiting for their cases to be disposed of. It takes a minimum of six months. Some juveniles have been locked away like this for three years.

There is a place called the Immigration Detention Center somewhere near the KLIA Depot. There are about 150 people kept there at any one time, including young foreign children who are the victims of human trafficking. There is no where else (in the system) to place them. These are kids who may have been brought here to beg, to get involved in vice etc. When they are ‘caught’, they also ge caught in the system. They also have to spend months waiting it out at the Detention Centre.

The detention center has a zinc roof and the detainees are fed on a budget of RM1.90 per person per day. They speak of one sad case where an Afghan girl, who with her husband was brought here on the promise of a job, was sent there because her visa had expired. She went from cloistered Afghan girl to sleeping with strangers in a zinc shed with no end in sight to her detention. Folks say she lost her mind and went berserk.

300 juveniles in prison, 150 detainees at the Detention Centre, 40 kids in a Shelter Home, 15 kids in a Home of Peace may not sound like a lot but wait and read till the end. Bone chilling stuff is on the way.

When the 15 year old boys are sent to Prison they are picked up by the gangs in prison who have connections outside. They suffer threats and violence. They learn to become ‘couriers’. When they go to Court to attend their hearings, they may bring back drugs and even handphones carried in their anus! When they leave prison, they are again picked up by the gangs. So 300 juveniles in prison can become 300 gangsters, drug pushers, hired guns, murderers and other sorts of criminals. Even if one of them ends up killing someone, that is two lives destroyed.

So really the cost of intervention now to save these kids is infinitely much cheaper than the price we may have to pay later. So friends, put on your social worker hats and tolong sikit. I dont know about other Prisons or other detention centers. There are actually so few of these unfortunate kids in your own neighborhoods. Lets help our kids. Just start in your own neighborhood.

Suriana is a new organisation that has been set up by some folks from within Shelter to help in this direction. The young man in charge is Andersen (HP 012 227 7072) who has set up a contact e mail at suriana.org@gmail.com

For starters they want to create ‘advocacy’ – meaning pukul canang lah. Or make some noise to get the attention of everyone : Government, the people, NGOs and anyone else. For example, Andersen says that there is a Law which says that when a juvenile is arrested, the Police are bound to inform the Social Welfare Department. But there are so many other cases. The kids get lost among the files. When there is no one to pay the bail, the kids get sent to the lock up and after that to the Prison.

Suriana wants to set up links to the AG’s Chambers, the Police, the Prisons system and the Welfare Department. Volunteers and staff will intervene at all these appropriate points listed here and see how they can help these juveniles.

They are also targeting something called ‘First Line of Tapping”. These will be part of the ‘Children In Crisis Services’. The Welfare Department does have a Counseling Service where families with problems and having problems with their kids can go for counseling and aid. Often these kids graduate to become juvenile delinquents and criminals. It is the intention of Suriana to again intervene through these counseling programs and pick up some of these cases. First line of tapping.

The Welfare Department does not get the Budget of the Sukhois. So they too can use as much help as they can get too. Other plans they have in mind is for advocacy for Missing Children. Also to ramp up the dialogue on children’s rights including things like “Childrens Right To Play”.

All these easy sounding words cost money. Children’s Right To Play means urban developments must set aside areas for playgrounds including equipping them with swings, slides and monkey bars. It may evolve into minimum square feet required when homes are built. So not everyone will support what Suriana is advocating. But as we move along in life and become wealthier, perhaps we should become more sharing too.

The Pengarah, Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat Negeri Selangor has issued a letter of support for Suriana to begin operations. They say “Objektif pertubuhan ini adalah amat membantu pihak Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat dalam menangani masalah sosial di kalangan kanak-kanak”.

Suriana kicks off in June. They need funds too, to do all these things. The more money they get, the more things they can get done.

You can contact Andersen (HP 012 227 7072) or at suriana.org@gmail.com

Breaking News : Slumberjack's Legacy

By Syed Akbar Ali



This is from Tun Dr Mahathir's Blog - just up a minute ago. Please go to his Blog for some links Tun has put up.

MALAYSIA'S GENEROSITY

1. The Edge Financial Daily, an article by Joseph Chin (The Edge, April 22nd) as well as Brunei Times reported a substantial oil producing offshore area in the South China Sea, namely Block L and Block M, were no longer a part of Malaysia.

2. Malaysians and the Malaysian media did not ask how this came about. It would seem that the loss of a huge oil producing area that had apparently belonged to Malaysia is okay.

3. Block L and Block M had been claimed by Malaysia based on historical facts. Accordingly, Petronas entered into a production sharing contract with Murphy Oil to start drilling to produce oil. It is estimated that the reserves amounted to almost 1 billion barrels.

4. Abdullah Badawi negotiated with the Sultan to get back Limbang in Sarawak. In return he agreed to surrender the two blocks to Brunei. No Petronas representatives were present, only foreign office staff and the foreign affairs adviser to the PM.

5. As we all know Abdullah triumphantly announced that he had settled the Limbang claim with Brunei (here). No mention was made of the two blocks.

6. Brunei disclaimed (here) that they had agreed to give up Limbang. The foreign office and Abdullah did not rebut Brunei's statement.

7. Now it is made clear that the two blocks are no longer a part of Malaysia.

8. Abdullah has caused Malaysia to lose at least US100 billion dollars (about RM320 billion) of Malaysia's oil in this agreement.

9. Can Wisma Putra please explain why it did not stop Abdullah.


Actually I am getting fed up with us having to give away our territory, our resources etc. This is a huge bungle by Slumberjack. But all is not lost yet. No Prime Minister can give up territory. I dont think there is any provision for it in the Constitution.


Any such action will require at least a Parliamentary sitting or ratification by Parliament. So how can Slumberjack give away Malaysian territory to anyone? It could be an illegal act.



What kind of country are we running (or ruining) where a Sleepy Prime Minister can just sign away the country's territory?


Also this drilling area belongs to either Sarawak or Sabah - which joined the Federation according to agreed terms. How can a Prime Minister (and that too from the Semenanjung) give away territory that belongs to the East Malaysian states?



What do the people of Sabah and Sarawak have to say about this? Were they consulted? If they were not, then it was an illegal act. Lets get back Block L and M.



We fought tooth and nail for Sipadan and we got it. Are we saying that tomorrow another Sleepy PM may give away half of Sabah to the Phillipines or half of Sarawak to Indonesia without even consulting Parliament ?



I also want to know something else. It is not uncommon for wealthy Heads of State to lavish visiting Heads of State with lavish gifts like diamond sets etc. Were there any gifts? Have they been declared? Atau simpan dalam laci saja.



Why did he go and do a really stupid thing like that?

Apakah Kita Rasa Seronok Anak Kita Sudah Mati?

By Syed Akbar Ali

I wrote this two days ago. Then the other 15 year old child got shot in Shah Alam. It is another sad (actually quite terrible) piece of news.

Student falls to his death while fleeing raid

GOMBAK: A college student, who was trying to escape a raid by religious officers, plunged to his death from the fifth floor of an apartment here.

It is believed that the 21-year-old student, who was alone with his girlfriend, panicked when several policemen and officers from the Selangor Religious Department knocked on the door of the rented unit yesterday.

Here is the same news from the Malay press:

Pelajar maut tergelincir ketika elak diserbu JAIS

KUALA LUMPUR 24 April - Tindakan seorang pelajar perempuan sebuah kolej membawa teman lelaki bermalam di rumah sewanya di Pangsapuri Jelutong, Selayang Heights dekat sini, ketika rakan serumah pulang ke kampung akhirnya mengundang padah.

Dia yang menyangka tiada siapa akan menghidu perbuatannya itu ternyata silap apabila ada jiran yang membuat aduan kepada Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor (JAIS). .. Tindakannya itu bagaimanapun mengundang padah apabila dia tergelincir dari tingkat lima bangunan pangsapuri tersebut sebelum terjatuh ke dalam longkang dan meninggal dunia di tempat kejadian.

So are the religious authorities happy ? This happened in Gombak in the State of Selangor which is ruled by the Pakatan government.

Many people have made noise about the boy who was shot by the Police in Shah Alam. Why are they quiet about the death of this innocent child too?

And what happened to all the “Allah boleh digunakan dalam Bible” munafiqoons? What do they say? Why frighten a young man into climbing out the window and eventually killing himself?

In this Gombak case, a neighbour had reported the boy’s presence to the JAIS. The neighbour must be quite pleased now that their action has caused the boy’s death. I am wondering if the JAIS and the neighbour will attend the boys funeral. You know to do the baca Yassin, talqin and so on.

If I recall correctly, all “religious” raiding parties must be accompanied by the Police. Were there any Police accompanying the raiders? If not the raid was not legal. The family of the dead boy can make a Police Report for murder or homicide. Or at least sue the JAIS for a billion Ringgit.

Is this the example they wish to set for the whole world to see? Isnt it enough that tens of babies (maybe hundreds) are discarded and killed every year because unwed mothers from among young Muslim women are afraid to be found out?

They can get prosecuted and suffer ridicule. What kind of civilisation can be so cruel to its young people?

Like other members of the Club of Doom, we have created a nation of busybodies who go around spying on their neighbours and frightening young kids into jumping out of windows. This is not the first time this is happening. But it can be the last.

We really do not need these religious enforcement goons in the country. I hope we will come to our senses and disband these enforcement workers. They are neither intelligent nor competent enough to do such work.

It is better to teach our children good values rather than send goons to catch them. It is better to teach the goons some values too. What terrible lives they lead.