Bahrain reject royals

Bahrain protesters seek to overthrow royal family 

Tweet

MANAMA, Bahrain (AP): A group of protesters on Monday called for the ouster of Bahrain's entire ruling monarchy as part of sweeping demands to call off the weeklong uprising in the tiny, but strategically important Gulf nation.

Tensions are still running high in Bahrain after seesaw battles that saw riot police open fire on protesters trying to reclaim landmark Pearl Square last week.

At least seven people have been killed and hundreds injured in the clashes since the unrest spilling across the Arab world reached the Gulf last week.

Bahrain holds particular importance to Washington as the host of the US Navy's 5th Fleet, which is the main US military counterweight to Iran's efforts to expand its armed forces and reach into the Gulf.

The manifesto Monday from a group calling itself "Youth of Feb. 14" - after the day of the first marches - apparently seeks to stake out an uncompromising stance before possible talks between the opposition and the monarchy.

"We demand the overthrow of the oppressive Al Khalifa regime," the manifesto said, referring to the ruling royal family. "The people will choose the system they will be subjected to."

It is unclear how much weight the group, made up mostly of the hundreds of youth camped out on Pearl Square, carries. Nor is it clear what their relationship is with the official Shiite opposition that includes 18 members of the 40-member parliament who resigned in protest on Thursday.

But their manifesto shows the range of demands among the opposition, from the all-or-nothing youth group to others who would let the monarchy survive but with many of its powers and privileges turned over to the elected parliament.

In the statement, the youth group called for authorities to be put on trial for attacks on protesters last week and demanded an elected government.

They said the first priority should be the cancellation of citizenship for thousands of foreigners, who were granted Bahraini nationality as part of an effort to change the sectarian balance in the island nation.

Few policies anger Bahrain's Shiite majority more than bestowing citizenship to outside Sunnis, mostly Arabs but also from Pakistan and other South Asian countries.

Shiites in Bahrain have often complained of discrimination by the Sunni rulers. The Al Khalifa royal dynasty has been in power for 200 years and has strong backing from other Gulf Arab leaders, who fear that Shiite powerhouse Iran could gain further footholds through the uprising led by Bahrain's Shiites.

Bahrain's rulers have offered talks with opposition groups to try to defuse the showdown, but the opposition appears to be in no hurry to talk with Crown Prince Sheik Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, who has been delegated by the king to lead the dialogue.

The leaders of the official Shiite opposition said they are not refusing to talk to the crown prince, but want guarantees the rulers' words will be backed by action after they meet.

Their main demand is the resignation of the government that is responsible for this week's bloodshed and has been led by the same prime minister - the king's uncle - for 40 years.

Other demands include abolishing the monarchy's privileges to set policies and appoint all key political posts, along with addressing long-standing claims of discrimination and abuses against Shiites, who represent about 70 percent of Bahrain's 525,000 citizens.

‘Assalamualaikum

Non-Muslims can use greeting, says exco man

Tweet

GEORGE TOWN: A state executive councillor has defended Kebun Bunga assemblyman Jason Ong Khan Lee who has come under fire from two assemblymen for uttering ‘Assalamualaikum’.

Abdul Malik Abul Kassim, who heads the state Religious Affairs committee, said there was “nothing wrong” if non-Muslims want to use the greeting.

“Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, who is PAS spiritual leader, has even said it is okay for non-Muslims to quote the Quran provided they do it correctly and respectfully,” he said here yesterday.

Ong was taken to task by state Opposition Leader and Penaga assemblyman Datuk Azhar Ibrahim and Seberang Jaya assemblyman Datuk Arif Shah Omar for using ‘Assalamualaikum’ when addressing a group of university and college students at the state assembly building on Thursday.

It is learnt that Ong refused to retract the word and a commotion ensued before state Assembly Speaker Datuk Abdul Halim Hussain, who was also present during the visit by the students, intervened.

Later, Ong defended his use of the greeting, saying he had used it at many functions.

Abdul Malik said non-Muslims could use the word as long as they do not misuse or ridicule it.

On another matter, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng defended the state’s move to set up a non-Islamic religious affairs portfolio, saying the same was practised in Perak which was ruled by Barisan Nasional.

He said Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir had also set up a similar portfolio which is held by the sole MCA leader Datuk Mah Hang Soon.

He was commenting on Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir’s remarks in a Malay daily that the setting up of the portfolio had insulted the Muslims in the country.

“Mukhriz is staging a ‘sandiwara’ over the matter. How come Umno never made any noise when Perak set up theirs then?

“Why make an issue when the same portfolio is set up here?” Lim asked at a press conference held in his office at Komtar here yesterday.
\
Lim also said the state would be organising a concert featuring artiste Ning Baizura to celebrate Penang’s success in attracting the most investment in the country.

He said the concert would be held on March 12 at the Penang International Sports Arena at 8pm.
Entrance to the concert is free.

Penang attracted RM12.2bil worth of total capital investments last year, the highest in the country.

China girls are syndicate victims, Chong

By ALLISON LAI newsdesk@thestar.com.my

Tweet

PETALING JAYA: There have been many cases of young women from China ending up in the sex trade here after they are duped by syndicates to travel overseas for jobs.

“They were usually told they would work as factory workers, maids or masseuses. Upon arrival, they are forced into vice,” said MCA Public Services and Complaints Department chief Datuk Michael Chong.

Chong said most of the women were from poor families in the rural areas of China who were enticed by the promise of well-paying jobs overseas. He believed some even knew they would eventually end up as sex workers, but would still accept the jobs overseas to escape the abject poverty they faced.

Chong suspected international syndicates were working with local ones to illegally traffic these young women.
He lauded Malaysia’s recent pact with China to tackle transnational organised crime as a good move to go after these syndicates.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had on Saturday said Malaysia would sign a memorandum of understanding with China which not only focused on the exchange of information, but also involved joint efforts in training, border control and in-depth study on criminal activities.

Separately, MCA vice-president Datuk Donald Lim Siang Chai described the collaboration between China and Malaysia as timely, as crimes were becoming more prevalent with more economic activities taking place between the two countries.

Chinese exclusion - US lawmakers seek apology

US lawmakers seek apology for Chinese exclusion
By Shaun Tandon (AFP

Tweet

WASHINGTON — More than a century after the United States shut its doors to Chinese immigrants, Asian American lawmakers are seeking an official apology that they hope will serve as a lesson for future generations.

Approved by Congress in 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act banned immigration by Chinese workers and their naturalization as US citizens, marking the first time the United States explicitly closed itself to a particular nationality.

Census figures show that more than 100,000 ethnic Chinese were living in the United States at the end of the 19th century. Many had been recruited to build the transcontinental railroad, but faced racism from white workers.

Representative Judy Chu, a Chinese American who took over this month as the new chair of the Asian American caucus in Congress, said that legislation offering an apology for the act would be a key priority.

Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943 during World War II after Japan highlighted the law in propaganda questioning China's alliance with the United States. But apology advocates note that the US government has never voiced regret.

After the act's repeal, the United States still let in only 105 Chinese each year. The United States opened up to large-scale immigration by non-Europeans under a landmark 1965 law championed by then-senator Ted Kennedy.

Representative Mike Honda, the outgoing chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, called the anti-Chinese law "a shameful chapter in our country's long history of exclusion."

"The great thing about humanity is that we have the opportunity to learn from our mistakes," said Honda, who was interned as a child during World War II due to his Japanese ancestry.

"Chinese were used as cheap labor to do the most dangerous work laying the tracks of our transcontinental railroad to strengthen our nation's infrastructure, only to be persecuted when their labor was seen as competition when the dirtiest work was done."

Honda, like Chu a member of President Barack Obama's Democratic Party from California, said he saw "the same hatred" now in calls aimed at Mexicans for an end to US birthright citizenship.

"We must not vilify entire groups of people because it is politically expedient," Honda said.
But some advocates said they hoped to steer the debate clear of sensitive issues such as immigration and US-China relations, particularly with Republicans in control of the House of Representatives.

"This is not about immigration. Certainly the US government has the right to set its policy. We are talking about how you treat people," said Michael Lin, chair of the 1882 Project, a coalition of rights groups seeking the apology.

"We will make sure that this is not an apology to China. It has nothing to do at all with foreign relationships," he said.

Lin said an apology would mark closure and also encourage schools to devote more than cursory mentions to the Chinese Exclusion Act.

"We strongly believe that this needs to be in education so that future generations will learn this lesson and, hopefully, something like this will not happen again," he said.

Lin was flexible on the wording, saying he may accept a statement of "regret" if Congress balks at the word "apology." He also made clear that Chinese Americans were not seeking financial compensation.

In a landmark apology, President Ronald Reagan signed an act of Congress in 1988 regretting the wartime internment of 110,000 Japanese Americans. Survivors each received $20,000 and a letter of apology.

But such apologies are rare. Congress formally apologized to African Americans for slavery in 2008. In 1993, the United States apologized to native Hawaiians for the overthrow of their kingdom a century earlier.

Honda chaired the Asian American caucus for seven years, fighting for a range of priorities. He helped win funding to close educational gaps and to provide counseling for Asian Americans facing home foreclosure, as well as securing promises of greater diversity in the media and government hiring.

Under Honda, the caucus achieved a key goal sought for decades -- winning compensation for Filipino veterans who fought for the United States during World War II.

Malaysia, truly paradoxical

ON THE BEAT WITH WONG CHUN WAI

Tweet

Foreigners are bemused by some of our peculiarities.

An expatriate friend of mine is slowly settling down to life in Kuala Lumpur. We will just call this American, Paul.

It is his first trip to Asia and he has found it easy adjusting himself. English is widely spoken here, which means he has no problem moving around.

The easy availability of news allows Paul to closely follow events and life in Malaysia but the country remains a paradox to him.

I assure him that he is not the only one who feels that way. Even Malaysians born and bred here are still trying to figure out the many contradictions of life in Malaysia.

Well, Paul has been pretty observant and has asked me about some of our peculiarities.

Below are his observations after a month:

Malaysians are supposed to be lazy when it comes to reading. They read an average of one page a year. Okay, the latest statistics say one-and-a-half pages.

But Paul is amazed at how we have become so emotionally interlocked over a book first published over 40 years ago. We may not have produced any literary giants, except our home-grown laureates, but he is impressed by how passionate we are when it comes to literature.

Like elsewhere, money doesn’t grow on trees here but access to it is pasted on every available place on the streets.
With thousands and thousands of notices plastered all over the city – offering competitive rates with just one mobile phone number to call – Paul thinks getting loans in Malaysia is rather easy.

He’s impressed that the country is both flushed with funds and how easy it is for people to borrow cash as there’s no red tape. Even those blacklisted can borrow. It’s a great country, he says.

Malaysians are health freaks. They are so health conscious that spas and services for massages, starting from foot massages upwards, have been sprouting all over towns and cities.

Notices promoting “Honey Massage” and “Rocket Massage” are even sprayed on walls. And of course, the Malaysian service providers are super efficient, making the massages available with just a phone call.

Malaysians love debates. Every other day, someone seems to be throwing a challenge to debate with another. He feels that these guys must have great oratory skills. He thinks that this is yet another indicator of a truly democratic country.

Paul finds it hard to fathom that Malaysia has a problem with corruption. Something is not quite right as Malaysians are also so religious. His question: If everyone gets all worked up whenever religious matters are questioned, how can the country be grappling with corruption? Many seem so puritanical too.

Paul also observes that Malaysians are environmentally conscious and take great pains in loving their trees. There may not be tree huggers like in the West but he thinks we protect our environment using the full brunt of the law.

He thinks our policemen spend an awful lot of time protecting trees because he always sees them behind trees, along the roads and highways. Such dedication and love for the greens, he says.

Paul has also found out that Malaysia, which used to rely on rubber for its economic growth in early days, still tends to stretch the meaning of being on time.

He has learned that when people say “on the way” or “coming soon”, it really means they are still at home or have yet to begin their journey.

Paul has also discovered that “traffic jam” is the most convenient Malaysian excuse for not being punctual, even if the person arrives an hour late. The rule of thumb is to add another hour if it rains.

But the best part is this: Malaysians must love many things about pirates. We call unlicensed taxis “pirate taxis” and imitation DVDs, “pirated DVDs”.

Pirated DVDs are illegal but openly sold. No one would admit buying or owning one but many Malaysians seem familiar with it.

And pirated DVDs even carry messages telling Malaysians why they should NOT buy pirated DVDs, with a short trailer of a speeding car, showing you the difference in quality between an original and a pirated copy.

Malaysia is truly amazing. Paul is already in love with Malaysia after being here a month.
To know Malaysia is certainly to love Malaysia.