Illegals to be monitored

Kinda weird that only now that they are acknowledging the need to tackle this problem even though the number of crimes increase rapidly this few years.

Muhyiddin: Monitor illegal foreign workers in Malaysia

ROME: A special unit is needed to monitor the foreign workers and students still in Malaysia after their work permits or study visas expired, said the Deputy Prime Minister.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said checks showed that many of the foreigners had remained behind to work illegally instead of returning to their countries.

He added that the country’s workforce numbered about 10 million people, including two million registered foreign workers and students.

“We need a comprehensive and holistic approach to tackle the problem,” he told Malaysian journalists after attending the three-day World Summit on Food Security which ended yesterday.

Muhyiddin had earlier held bilateral talks with Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the sidelines of the summit aimed at pushing for a new momentum to eradicate global hunger.

Muhyiddin expressed concern that the illegal workers and some one million foreigners who entered the country illegally posed serious socio-economic problems.

Muhyiddin chairs the Cabinet Committee on Foreign Workers.

He added that the presence of the illegal workforce would thwart the Government’s efforts to create a pool of skilled local workers.

On his meeting with Sheikh Hasina, Muhyiddin said the Govern­ment would consider a request to allow Bangladeshi nationals to seek jobs in Malaysia following the freeze on work permits for some sectors last year.

He later held bilateral talks with Indonesian vice-president Prof Dr Bodiono.

Muhyiddin also expressed Malaysia’s support for the summit declaration to halve the planet’s hungry people by 2015.

However, he urged the Food and Agriculture Organisation and rich countries to speed up their aid to poor nations faced with hunger and poverty, saying “there must be less talk but more work.”

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/11/19/nation/5142059&sec=nation

Baba-Nyonyas :Truly Malaysian

Baba and Nyonya culture (or Peranakan) is one of the cultures that Malaysia is famous for and I might add that they are truly Malaysian as they contain both Malay and Chinese cultures.

Most of them are saturated in Malacca but further reading indicates that there are significant numbers in Indonesia and Singapore (wiki).

Some notable people who are Baba Nyonya in Malaysia:

• Tun Dato Sri Tan Cheng Lock - Founder and first President of Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA)
• Tun Tan Siew Sin - Third President of Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA)

There are also other notable Baba Nyonya in Singapore but I was a bit shocked when I saw Piere Png (aka Phua Chu Beng from Phua Chu Kang) .

Pierre Png - Mediacorp artiste

If you want to experience the true colours of Baba Nyonya, you could either visit them or if you are too lazy you can watch The Little Nyonya, a drama made by Mediacorp.

Not an accurate potryal but intriging nonetheless.

On anothe note:

Heng: Accord Baba-Nyonya culture heritage status

KUALA LUMPUR: The Information, Communication and Culture Ministry is pushing for the Baba-Nyonya culture to be recognised as a national heritage.

Its deputy minister Senator Heng Seai Kie said the recognition should be accorded as the culture had long existed in the country - from the time of the Malay sultanate in Malacca.

“The Baba-Nyonya culture is still strong to this day especially in terms of traditions and dressing,” she said after launching the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Baba-Nyonya Association at the National Museum here on Saturday.

time: Heng (second from right) and Lee (left) dancing the ‘joget lambak’ after launching the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Baba-Nyonya Association at the National Museum in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.— Bernama

Heng said, prior to the setting up of the association, various efforts had been undertaken to promote the culture like publishing catalogues and reference books on it besides organising exhibitions in 1985 and 2005.

Association president Prof Dr Lee Su Kim said the association - which was formed on July 28, 2008, with 60 members - had carried out various activities to en-sure the culture lived on. — Bernama

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/11/2/nation/5020970&sec=nation

1 dead, 2 missing, 19 safe after falling into Sg Kampar

The MACC should check this out.

Ironically, the iron-cable bridge, suspended about 3 meters over the river, was built recently to replace an old one that had fallen apart with age.

KAMPAR: One girl is dead, two pupils are still missing and nineteen have been found safe after 22 students fell into Sungai Kampar.

The pupils, on a camping trip, tumbled into the river when the suspension bridge they were crossing broke near Kuala Dipang, Kampar, at about 10pm on Monday.

Police divers searching for 2 missing pupils who had fallen off the suspension bridge at Sungai Kampar in Kuala Dipang on Monday night.

The dead girl was identified as Dina Deve Nathan, 11, from SK Tamil Mambang Diawan. Rescuers found her at Kampung Pasir, about 2km downstream from the broken bridge, at about 8.40am Tuesday. Her body was sent to the Kampar Hospital.

Police said twenty other pupils, who were not on the bridge, escaped unscathed.

Some pupils jumped and shook the bridge

According to one of the survivors, Mohd Azid Teng, 12, from SKJC Bemban near Kampar, the pupils had had supper at SK Kuala Dipang and were crossing the bridge to get to the camping site when a few of the pupils started jumping and shaking the bridge.

A man walking near the ill-fated suspension bridge at Sungai Kampar which collapsed when a group of primary school pupils, who were camping near the river, tried to cross it last night. SAIFUL BAHRI/The Star

The bridge then gave way and he found himself falling into the river along with the other screaming pupils.

Fortunately, he fell into shallow waters and waded out.

Rescuers retrieving the body of Dina Deve Nathan, 11, from SK Tamil Mambang Diawan at 8.40am on October 27.

The pupils were among 298 from 60 primary schools from Kampar, Tronoh and Batu Gajah who were attending a 1Malaysia Camp co-curriculum activity organised by the Kinta Selatan District Education Department there.

Teacher saves several pupils

A teacher, Mohd Safri Abdul Rafar, said he was not far from the bridge when it collapsed and quickly jumped over a fence and dove into the river in the attempt to rescue the pupils, Bernama reported.

"I managed to pull out three or four pupils. The current was swift and I almost got dragged away," he said.

Safri, who is from Sekolah Kebangsaan Seri Tronoh, said he went into the river again and pulled out five more pupils.

Safri said he was sad that he could not rescue a pupil who had be clinging to a metal cable before being dragged away by the current.

Twenty-three teachers are involved in the camp, the second to be organised by the Kinta Selatan district education department after the first one at Sekolah Kebangsaan Pos Raya last week.

Similar camps were to be held simultaneously Tuesday in the Larut, Matang and Selama as well as Manjung districts, said Safri, adding that the pupils were from all races and the aim of the camp was to foster unity and interaction through activities such as traditional cooking, culture and games.

Newly built bridge

Ironically, the iron-cable bridge, about 30 feet (9 meters) over the river was built recently to replace an old one that had fallen apart with age.

In Putrajaya, Fire and Rescue Services Department director-general Datuk Hamzah Abu Bakar said that initial investigations revealed that the anchor for the bridge’s cable failed, The Star’s Dharmender Singh reported.

The anchor was pulled out and the bridge gave way. But why it gave way is yet to be ascertained, he said.

The river level late Monday had been relatively low but the current was strong as it had been raining upstream and this could have carried the missing children further away, he said.

He said the department had sent in aluminium rescue boats, three dogs from its Canine Unit and a helicopter to help with the search activities.

“We have also put a few members of out scuba team on standby at the site in case the missing children are trapped and need help in freeing them,” he said.

Perak MB orders probe into bridge collapse

Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir visited the scene soon after news of the bridge collapse reached him and ordered an immediate investigation into the cause of the accident, Bernama reported.

"The suspension bridge was newly built. We want to know if it was built to specifications as it collapsed after a metal pillar got ripped off the ground," he said.

A metal pillar and its concrete block foundation got ripped off the ground in the incident and part of the bridge walkway was afloat on the river.

The Kampar River is known for extreme water sports. The part of the river where the bridge collapsed is about 1.5 metres deep.

Villagers have joined in the search and rescue operation mounted by 222 personnel from the police, Royal Malaysian Navy, Fire & Rescue Department, People's Volunteer Corps (Rela), Civil Defence Department and other agencies.

Meanwhile, at 11.15am Tuesday, Ipoh Barat MP M. Kulasegaran filed an emergency motion with the Dewan Rakyat Speaker to discuss the collapse of the bridge, Lee Yuk Peng of The Star reported.

Later, the Dewan Rakyat extended its sympathies and condolences to the families of pupils who fell into the river.

Education Ministry sets up probe team; RM10,000 aid to dead Dina's family

Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who was at the scene Tuesday, said that a team, headed by Education Ministry Director-General Tan Sri Ali Muddin Md Dom, has been set up to investigate the bridge collapse, The Star's Sylvia Looi reported.

The ministry would give RM10,000 in aid to Dina's family, said Muhyiddin who is also the Deputy Prime Minister

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/27/nation/20091027085329&sec=nation

Teoh Beng Hock to be exhumed

Let's hope that he may find peace when the truth is found out...

KLANG: The family of deceased political aide Teoh Beng Hock filed an application at the Shah Alam Coroner’s court on Tuesday to seek permission to exhume his remains for a second autopsy.

His younger sister Teoh Lee Lan said the family decided to seek the order to exhume Teoh’s remains in order to seek the truth.

She said the family believed exhuming his remains would help to validate renowned Thai forensic pathologist Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand’s expert opinion.

Dr Pornthip had testified last week at the inquest into Teoh’s death that she believed there was an 80% chance his death was due to homicide, and not due to suicide as argued by two experts appointed by the Government.

“We want a second post-mortem to strengthen Dr Pornthip’s opinion,” said Lee Lan.

She said she and her eldest brother Meng Kee filed the application accompanied by their family counsel Gobind Singh Deo.

Dr Pornthip, who is the director-general of the Thai Ministry of Justice’s Central Institute of Forensic Science, had told coroner Azmil Muntapha Abas that she was willing to conduct a second post-mortem on Teoh’s remains.

She had added that she would be able to come up with a more concise and detailed analysis if she could examine the remains.

Dr Pornthip, who was engaged by the Selangor state government to give her expert opinion at the inquest into Teoh’s death, had said that the wound in Teoh’s anal region appeared as if something had been shoved up his anus.

She had said that he may have also been strangled given the finger marks around his neck.

When questioned by Gobind at the inquest last week, Dr Pornthip said she would still be able to conduct the post-mortem in spite of the deceased having been buried almost four months ago.

Meanwhile, Lee Lan added that the family will fix a date to offer prayers at Teoh’s grave in Semenyih pending exhumation once they had obtained the court order.

Teoh, who was the political secretary to Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah, had been summoned to the state Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission office on the 14th floor of Plaza Masalam here for questioning on July 15.

He was found dead at the building’s fifth floor service apartment the following day.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/27/nation/20091027145114&sec=nation

Malaysia Day now a public holiday. says PM

We now have another holiday.

KUALA LUMPUR: Beginning next year, Sept 16, which is Malaysia Day has been declared a public holiday.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the day would involve activities that would foster the 1Malaysia spirit.

He added this meant Malaysians would have a twin celebration, to commemorate the country’s independence starting next year

Najib said National Day on Aug 31 would be celebrated with formal events such as a parade to commemorate the historical moment and it would remind the people about the struggle in achieving independence from the colonists.

He made the announcement during the question-and-answer session at Parliament on Monday.

Najib said Sabah and Sarawak, which joined Malaysia in 1963 and the formation of Malaysia as an independent country was a very important moment in history.

“We want the joy and sorrows of the people in Sabah and Sarawak to be felt by the people in the Peninsula,” he said.

“Therefore, I would like to announce to the people of Malaysia that the Cabinet has recently made the decision to celebrate Hari Malaysia on Sept 16 starting 2010.”

Malaysia Day would be celebrated with events that would foster closer unity, understanding between the different races and community success and achievement through sports, social culture and arts, to spur the 1Malaysia spirit, he added.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/19/nation/20091019103509&sec=nation

40 tremors recorded in Malaysia over two years

Did you feel any of them?

PETALING JAYA: Since the end of 2007, 40 tremors were recorded in Malaysia but the significant fact was that 37 of these seismic incidences occurred along a fault line in Bentong, Pahang.

The three others recorded were in Manjung in Perak and Jerantut in Pahang.

Meterological Department director Dr Rosaidi Che Abas said that from November 2007 until May last year, Bentong recorded 29 cases of tremors, also known as temblors.

The latest tremors were recorded last Oct 8 where there were eight from 4.45am to 12.05pm measuring between 1.1 and 2.8 on the Richter scale.

All these tremors were detected at Bukit Tinggi and Janda Baik, along a fault line 15km wide and 70km long. The Meteorological Department detected one strong tremor of 3.5 magnitude on the Richter scale.

“What we can say is that even though Bukit Tinggi and Janda Baik are located on the fault line, any earthquake will not possibly surpass 5.0 in magnitude on the Richter scale.

“This means that if such an earthquake were to occur, it will not cause damage to a structurally-strong building.

“We are also stressing that the tremors occurred along that fault line and not at the Titiwangsa Range which is the country’s backbone,” he told Bernama in an interview here.

Concerns among residents
The concerned residents of Bukit Tinggi and Janda Baik had recently called on the Government to make a detailed study on the soil structure along the fault line there.

Their concerns were at a new high following the massive earthquake that hit West Sumatra on Sept 30 as the shocks and tremors were also felt at several locations in Peninsular Malaysia.

The residents claimed that while no buildings collapsed, there was some damage, including cracks in the walls and floors in some buildings.

According to the residents, Janda Baik and Bukit Tinggi were hit by the first tremors in November 2007 following a series of earthquakes that occurred in Indonesia and Philippines.

Dr Rosaidi said the Meterological Department will work closely with the Minerals and Geoscience Department as well as other agencies to conduct an immediate study of the earth’s surface and structure at both locations.

“We will also talk to the affected residents to know what they meant by earth movement and what they felt when this seismic activity happened.

“We also want to know the strength of the tremors said to have caused cracks in the walls and floors (of buildings),” said Dr Rosaidi.

Meterological explanation
Dr Rosaidi said so far the earthquakes that occurred were between one and 10 miles beneath the earth’s surface.

“Only on two occassions were there earthquakes with a magnitude of between 2.8 and 3.5 on the Richter scale and both occurred 10 miles under the earth’s surface,” he said.

There are 13 seismology stations operating in Malaysia, capable of detecting quakes and tremors that occur in the country. Seven are in Peninsular Malaysia with the rest in Sabah and Sarawak.

The latest seismology station to operate is in Jerantut, Pahang.

“Our officers are on duty around the clock. They will alert the authorities,” Dr Rosaidi said.

He said four seismological fault lines had been detected in the country -- Jerantut, Bentong, Kuala Lumpur and the latest, in Manjong, Perak.

Meanwhile, Meteorological Department director-general Dr Yap Kok Seng said any earthquake that measured 2.8 or less on the Richter scale was unlikely to cause damage and harm to life and limb.

“The tremors that happened in Bukit Tinggi was a restabilisation process of the earth’s structure at the fault line in Bukit Tinggi,” he said.

He said this restabilisation process followed the movement of the earth’s layers in the wake of the large-scale earthquakes that happened in the past few years.

Among the major earthquakes were that on Dec 26 in Aceh, Indonesia that caused a tsunami in the Indian Ocean, Nias (Indonesia) on March 28, 2005. The latest was on Sept 30 this year that hit Padang in Indonesia and Bengkulu (Oct 1, 2009).

The magnitude of an earthquake can be measured using the seismometer or seismograph that records it on the Richter scale of 1.0 to 10.0.

An earthquake that measures 1.0 on the Richter scale is too small and can occur daily without being noticed. -- Bernama

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/15/nation/20091015145657&sec=nation

Cops arrested for robbing foreign worker

A true story taken from the Star.

What has the world become? Is the government that poor that the cops have to rob?

GEORGE TOWN: Two policemen were arrested for allegedly robbing a foreign worker of RM500 in Jelutong here.

The duo, aged 22 and 26, had stopped a Bangladeshi worker on Monday to check his permit but then relieved him off his money.

Penang police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Wira Ayub Yaakob said the worker later lodged a police report and the duo were arrested Tuesday morning.

“The younger policeman had just joined the police force this year.

“They had abused their authority as policemen for their own ends,” he said.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/13/nation/20091013173253&sec=nation