Obstinacy still grips the Najib regime as they continue to deny in the face of mounting evidence that there was ever tear gas fired or chemical-laced water sprayed into the Tong Shin Maternity Hospital compound in Kuala Lumpur during the Bersih 2.0 rally on 9 July 2011.
One day after the Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai made a press statement denying these infringements into the private hospital, his political boss, Chua Soi Lek, came out in support of the minister. "The police had to fire tear gas near the hospital to protect its patients from Bersih 2.0 protesters who had sought refuge there," he was reported to say, adding that the situation should be viewed “in totality” as the police would be accused of not doing their job had they decided against dispersing the crowd of protesters that had run into the hospital.
Come on, what sort of logic is that? That comes from a very warped mind, completely out of touch with reality. I can't imagine that firing tear gas at a hospital is to protect the patients. It's just like the case of charging the reporter under ISA in 2008 to order to protect her. The MCA has totally lost its marbles if it expects the common people to accept their way of thinking or believe them anymore.
And while on this subject, I must say that the 11 doctors on duty in the hospital at the time of the assault who made a statement yesterday to refute not only the police, the lying Liow and the hospital's own board of directors are the true professionals who are above all the politics and lame excuses. The doctors are the ones showing the most concern over their patients' well-being, not the lying politicians or the directors of the hospital who, for their own reasons, agreed with the politicians.
So I take my hat off to Dr Ng Kwee Boon (consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist), Datin Dr Low Paik See (consultant paediatrician), Dato’ Dr Musa Mohd Nordin (consultant paediatrician and neonatologist), Dr Mazeni Alwi (consultant paediatric cardiologist), Dr David Quek (consultant cardiologist), Dr Sheikh Johari Bux (consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist), Dr Steve Wong (consultant plastic surgeon), Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa (consultant cardiothoracic surgeon), Dr Ng Swee Choon (consultant cardiologist), Dr Mary Cardosa (consultant anaesthesiologist) and Dr Jeffrey Abu Hassan (consultant chest physician) for exposing the lies of the police and the Najib regime.
But another big question remains: what made the hospital's board of directors agree with Liow?
Thursday, 14 July 2011
Wednesday, 13 July 2011
Airport security at Penang
A lot has already been written about the arrest and conviction of Malaysia's infamous wildlife trafficker, Anson Wong. It's time for me to add another chapter to this story.
As a short recap, Wong was arrested at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 26 Aug 2010 when one of his checked-in bags broke open at the airport to reveal snakes and other protected animals that he was attempting to smuggle to Jakarta. Initially, the Magistrates Court handed him a six-month jail term with a RM190,000 fine but the High Court later increased the jail term to five years. His appeal is still pending.
But while his bag spilled open at the KLIA, he had actually begun his journey earlier from his Penang base. There were some questions why the airport security at the Penang International Airport had not detected the contents when the bag passed through their hands. An investigation was initiated but as usual, the results of the investigation was never announced to the public. Or if it was announced, nobody noticed it. Certainly not me. Wong's modus operandi remained unknown.
Well, I would believe that I now know what happened; how he managed to slip through the airport security without notice. For that to happen, he must have moved through the airport at the peak hours when human traffic was at the highest levels.
Anyone familiar with the layout of the departure floor of the Penang International Airport would know that there is only one X-ray station (with its two X-ray machines) on the whole floor. It's meant to screen passenger bags before these are checked in at the counters. Once screened, a security seal would then be stuck onto the bag. But having only one X-ray station here is woefully inadequate. It is not enough to cover the whole airport. Although this particular X-ray station is centrally located, people can still wilfully avoid using it if they purposely book a flight at peak hours and then skirt around the edge of the departure floor with their contraband goods to the check-in counters. Or the bag could be small enough to pass off as a carry-on item.
This was exactly what Wong did in August 2010. The airport was full of departing passengers, all waiting to screen their bags. The attention of the airport security officers were fully concentrated on this job. No one noticed that Wong had not subjected his bag to the X-ray treatment which would have revealed the hidden animals. He had just confidently walked straight to the check-in counters. He requested to check in his flight directly to Jakarta and the staff at the counter accepted his bag without noticing whether the airport security had already placed their security paper seal on it. In this age of modern terrorism, this is a big lapse in security. In my opinion, the airline counter staff has a lot to answer for this.
Wong would have gotten away with his smuggling if his bag had not spilled open during transit at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. He was unlucky. Or maybe, greedy. Whatever the reason, he was caught and the repercussions then rippled through the whole Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan).
How would I know all this? Well, last May I was the unwitting victim of my own failure to screen my bags at the X-ray station. My wife and I had a midnight flight and we had actually arrived at the practically empty Penang International Airport two hours before departure time. We were pretty excited over our holiday trip and while chatting to one another, we completely forgot to screen our two large bags. You see, suddenly I thought they were our carry-on cabin bags which could be screened when entering the departure hall. At my age, things like this do happen. One moment I want to do this, the next moment I do something else. Anyway, we walked past the two airport security officers directly to the check-in counter. From what I gathered later, these two jokers simply followed us with their eyes without doing anything.
Our bags were accepted at the check-in counter without nary a look at whether the security seals were present. Remember, this was practically a deserted airport at this time of the night. Then, as we walked to the departure gate, the two airport security officers stopped us and said our bags had to be retrieved from the airline for screening.
Naturally, we demanded why they had not stopped us before we had gone to the check-in counters. They replied saying they wanted to see what the airline counter staff would do. Would they notice that the security labels were not there? Apparently not. The airline staff had accepted the two bags and they are not somewhere on the tarmac waiting to be loaded onto the aircraft. "We want to teach them a lesson," the airport security had the cheek to tell us.
That's when we exploded. Teach them a lesson? At our expense? Obviously, they knew the difficulty of retrieving the bags when it has been checked in. Already from this practically empty airport, it had taken about half an hour to bring them back. What if this had been peak hours at the airport? What if we had then missed our flight? I was fuming and I told the airport security that this wasn't funny. If they wanted to "teach them a lesson," why do it at the passenger's expense? It was an empty airport. They saw us; they could have called us as we walked by. I told them that they were putting unnecessary stress on me. It may have been my mistake in the first place but if anything were to happen to me health-wise, I would hold them responsible for it. They would suffer the consequences. I would be lodging a complaint.
So sheepishly, they apologised and said that they would work with the airline staff to see that my bags be given priority treatment in re-checking them at the counter. That's how this has been a hot, heaty, sweaty and stressful lesson for us. And that's how I finally understood how Anson Wong had managed to slip through with his snakes at the airport.
Luckily for me, luckily for them, nothing happened to me, my wife or our bags. Our holidays were still intact and on schedule. Eventually past midnight, we had an uneventful flight to the KLIA low-cost carrier terminal, arriving there at one o'clock in the morning and checking in at the airport's Tune Hotel for a few hours of much-needed sleep.
As a short recap, Wong was arrested at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 26 Aug 2010 when one of his checked-in bags broke open at the airport to reveal snakes and other protected animals that he was attempting to smuggle to Jakarta. Initially, the Magistrates Court handed him a six-month jail term with a RM190,000 fine but the High Court later increased the jail term to five years. His appeal is still pending.
But while his bag spilled open at the KLIA, he had actually begun his journey earlier from his Penang base. There were some questions why the airport security at the Penang International Airport had not detected the contents when the bag passed through their hands. An investigation was initiated but as usual, the results of the investigation was never announced to the public. Or if it was announced, nobody noticed it. Certainly not me. Wong's modus operandi remained unknown.
Well, I would believe that I now know what happened; how he managed to slip through the airport security without notice. For that to happen, he must have moved through the airport at the peak hours when human traffic was at the highest levels.
Anyone familiar with the layout of the departure floor of the Penang International Airport would know that there is only one X-ray station (with its two X-ray machines) on the whole floor. It's meant to screen passenger bags before these are checked in at the counters. Once screened, a security seal would then be stuck onto the bag. But having only one X-ray station here is woefully inadequate. It is not enough to cover the whole airport. Although this particular X-ray station is centrally located, people can still wilfully avoid using it if they purposely book a flight at peak hours and then skirt around the edge of the departure floor with their contraband goods to the check-in counters. Or the bag could be small enough to pass off as a carry-on item.
This was exactly what Wong did in August 2010. The airport was full of departing passengers, all waiting to screen their bags. The attention of the airport security officers were fully concentrated on this job. No one noticed that Wong had not subjected his bag to the X-ray treatment which would have revealed the hidden animals. He had just confidently walked straight to the check-in counters. He requested to check in his flight directly to Jakarta and the staff at the counter accepted his bag without noticing whether the airport security had already placed their security paper seal on it. In this age of modern terrorism, this is a big lapse in security. In my opinion, the airline counter staff has a lot to answer for this.
Wong would have gotten away with his smuggling if his bag had not spilled open during transit at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. He was unlucky. Or maybe, greedy. Whatever the reason, he was caught and the repercussions then rippled through the whole Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan).
How would I know all this? Well, last May I was the unwitting victim of my own failure to screen my bags at the X-ray station. My wife and I had a midnight flight and we had actually arrived at the practically empty Penang International Airport two hours before departure time. We were pretty excited over our holiday trip and while chatting to one another, we completely forgot to screen our two large bags. You see, suddenly I thought they were our carry-on cabin bags which could be screened when entering the departure hall. At my age, things like this do happen. One moment I want to do this, the next moment I do something else. Anyway, we walked past the two airport security officers directly to the check-in counter. From what I gathered later, these two jokers simply followed us with their eyes without doing anything.
Our bags were accepted at the check-in counter without nary a look at whether the security seals were present. Remember, this was practically a deserted airport at this time of the night. Then, as we walked to the departure gate, the two airport security officers stopped us and said our bags had to be retrieved from the airline for screening.
Naturally, we demanded why they had not stopped us before we had gone to the check-in counters. They replied saying they wanted to see what the airline counter staff would do. Would they notice that the security labels were not there? Apparently not. The airline staff had accepted the two bags and they are not somewhere on the tarmac waiting to be loaded onto the aircraft. "We want to teach them a lesson," the airport security had the cheek to tell us.
That's when we exploded. Teach them a lesson? At our expense? Obviously, they knew the difficulty of retrieving the bags when it has been checked in. Already from this practically empty airport, it had taken about half an hour to bring them back. What if this had been peak hours at the airport? What if we had then missed our flight? I was fuming and I told the airport security that this wasn't funny. If they wanted to "teach them a lesson," why do it at the passenger's expense? It was an empty airport. They saw us; they could have called us as we walked by. I told them that they were putting unnecessary stress on me. It may have been my mistake in the first place but if anything were to happen to me health-wise, I would hold them responsible for it. They would suffer the consequences. I would be lodging a complaint.
So sheepishly, they apologised and said that they would work with the airline staff to see that my bags be given priority treatment in re-checking them at the counter. That's how this has been a hot, heaty, sweaty and stressful lesson for us. And that's how I finally understood how Anson Wong had managed to slip through with his snakes at the airport.
Luckily for me, luckily for them, nothing happened to me, my wife or our bags. Our holidays were still intact and on schedule. Eventually past midnight, we had an uneventful flight to the KLIA low-cost carrier terminal, arriving there at one o'clock in the morning and checking in at the airport's Tune Hotel for a few hours of much-needed sleep.
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Queensland to Penang in 14 days
I purchased some music compact discs from Australia recently. I couldn't find what I wanted from my regular source, Amazon.com, so I had to search for an alternative supplier. Eventually, I found the music CDs from an online store in Queensland.
I placed the order on 23 Jun 2011 and the merchandise was shipped out five days later. After a six-day journey by first class international airmail (why, why, why must it take so long even by airmail?), the package arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 4 July 2011 and was then diverted to the Customs Department.
The sharp-eyed Customs boys immediately tore open my package, obviously alerted by the description of the contents on the sticker that said "CD/DVD" to check that the contents were innocuous music CDs or some contraband dirty porno DVDs. Pure disappointment for them. Nothing to confiscate. Sorry, lah, boys, I don't buy such stuff, okay?
Then they resealed the envelope and were good enough to secure the flap with one of their "Dibuka Untuk Pemeriksaan KDN" or "Opened For KDN Checking" tapes before hammering it with their "Dilepaskan oleh Kastam" rubber stamp which must have contributed to breaking off some of the plastic parts in the CD case's middle spindle. Damn. That's one of the hazards of ordering goods from overseas. Not the first time it has happened to me. Why can't they handle people's goods with more care?
Anyway, from the Customs office at Sepang, my package finally made its way to my house this morning, courtesy of the General Post Office delivery system. That, by the way, took eight days to arrive: from 4 July to 12 July. Gosh, what on earth had been happening on the ground? Why couldn't the Malaysian Postal Services be more efficient and deliver the package to me more quickly? Why eight days for my package to travel from Sepang to Bukit Mertajam? They have have asked their postmen to cycle all the way. This, I really don't understand....
But I'm glad that my package arrived intact except for the damage to the CD case. Nothing's wrong with the compact discs themselves. So excuse me while I go tend to my music now...
I placed the order on 23 Jun 2011 and the merchandise was shipped out five days later. After a six-day journey by first class international airmail (why, why, why must it take so long even by airmail?), the package arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 4 July 2011 and was then diverted to the Customs Department.
But I'm glad that my package arrived intact except for the damage to the CD case. Nothing's wrong with the compact discs themselves. So excuse me while I go tend to my music now...
Bersih 2.0: Liowing through his teeth?
At best, it's pure nonsense. At worst, it's a denial, again, by the Najib regime. I'm referring to Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai's statement that the Tung Shin Hospital was not caught in the water cannon and tear gas crossfire between the armed riot police and the unarmed Bersih 2.0 participants on 9 July 2011.
Among some of the ludicrous things he said: "Demonstrators should not ambush the hospital," "The wind may have blown smoke from the tear gas into the hospital," "The edge of the water from the water cannon may have entered the hospital" and "Don't cite whatever pictures or videos again."
Aiyah, all these go against common sense or visual evidence. Demonstrators should not ambush the hospital? Hey, they were like little animals fleeing and scurrying away from the attacks, okay? The hospital was just a building to them. I'm sure they didn't purposely use a hospital for hiding. Huh, perhaps with hindsight, the hospital should have known better than to have been built there in the first place. Then this problem would not have arisen.
There are also numerous evidence in YouTube that do not suggest that tear gas was not fired into the compound or only the edge of the water had entered the hospital. Can't be the wind. It must have been a tornado. But funny, I didn't know we live in a tornado zone. Here are two such videos. Question: As the evidence mounts up, is it that difficult to admit a mistake?
Among some of the ludicrous things he said: "Demonstrators should not ambush the hospital," "The wind may have blown smoke from the tear gas into the hospital," "The edge of the water from the water cannon may have entered the hospital" and "Don't cite whatever pictures or videos again."
Aiyah, all these go against common sense or visual evidence. Demonstrators should not ambush the hospital? Hey, they were like little animals fleeing and scurrying away from the attacks, okay? The hospital was just a building to them. I'm sure they didn't purposely use a hospital for hiding. Huh, perhaps with hindsight, the hospital should have known better than to have been built there in the first place. Then this problem would not have arisen.
There are also numerous evidence in YouTube that do not suggest that tear gas was not fired into the compound or only the edge of the water had entered the hospital. Can't be the wind. It must have been a tornado. But funny, I didn't know we live in a tornado zone. Here are two such videos. Question: As the evidence mounts up, is it that difficult to admit a mistake?
Bersih 2.0: Exposing the "Home Alone" kid
This is the Home Alone tin kosong (empty vessel).
In case you still don't know who he is, Ibrahim Ali is one of Malaysia's members of parliament. He jumps about from party to party but finally decided to style himself as an "independent". But we know how "independent" he is. He placed himself as the head of a racist non-government organisation that called itself Perkasa. He spews a lot of racist rants under the pretext of championing his race. He doesn't care whether he is upseting the rest of society with his foul mouth. Under any normal circumstances, he would have already been hauled up for sedition. But our government, in its infinite wisdom, allows this guy to get away with verbal murder. It's all verbal garbage and verbal diarrhea, if you ask me. Unfortunately for him, he has been exposed as a yellow-livered coward.
For all his racist bravados and provocations, this tub of fat (as one of my Muslim friends recently described him) was forced to stay at home on 9 July 2011 because his wife did not allow him to go outside and play. But while this Home Alone Kid hid inside his house, he ordered his 15,000-claimed members to go take a walk at the Titiwangsa lake. I heard that all of 20 of them who bothered to show up went for a teh tarik drinking session at a mamak stall. Maybe the rest participated by SMS. How very pathetic. He's finished!
In case you still don't know who he is, Ibrahim Ali is one of Malaysia's members of parliament. He jumps about from party to party but finally decided to style himself as an "independent". But we know how "independent" he is. He placed himself as the head of a racist non-government organisation that called itself Perkasa. He spews a lot of racist rants under the pretext of championing his race. He doesn't care whether he is upseting the rest of society with his foul mouth. Under any normal circumstances, he would have already been hauled up for sedition. But our government, in its infinite wisdom, allows this guy to get away with verbal murder. It's all verbal garbage and verbal diarrhea, if you ask me. Unfortunately for him, he has been exposed as a yellow-livered coward.For all his racist bravados and provocations, this tub of fat (as one of my Muslim friends recently described him) was forced to stay at home on 9 July 2011 because his wife did not allow him to go outside and play. But while this Home Alone Kid hid inside his house, he ordered his 15,000-claimed members to go take a walk at the Titiwangsa lake. I heard that all of 20 of them who bothered to show up went for a teh tarik drinking session at a mamak stall. Maybe the rest participated by SMS. How very pathetic. He's finished!
Monday, 11 July 2011
Bersih 2.0: The Najib regime blew three chances at redeeming themselves
Murphy's Law was probably thought up with the Najib regime in mind. In my opinion, the Najib regime had three chances to come out honourably from the Bersih 2.0 rally but they fucked everything up.
The first was when Bersih 2.0 invited all parties to walk with them to demand for clean and fair elections. I see nothing wrong with that. It was an open invitation to both the ruling party and the opposition parties. The Najib regime could have declared that yes, they were also for clean and fair elections and yes, let us work with you to improve on the electoral process. That way, they could have been seen as above board and they wouldn't be viewed with the deep suspicion as now.
Like I mentioned earlier, there can not be two ways about it. You either support the Bersih 2.0 cause for clean and fair elections, or you do not. By demonising Bersih 2.0, my only conclusion is that the Najib regime is not bersih (clean) and can only be kotor (dirty). Who can blame me for believing this? So the Najib regime failed in this respect and they should not blame the Opposition for supporting this cause. Najib, you had your first chance and you blew it!
The second was when Najib offered Bersih 2.0 the use of a stadium for their rally, instead of walking through the streets. Initially, I had thought that this was a magnaminous offer, an olive branch, a compromise made after the request by the Agong to avoid using the roads of Kuala Lumpur. But what happened after that? The Najib regime went back on their words. No use of any stadium in Kuala Lumpur, they demanded. Looking back, this smacked of insincerity, a plot to throw Bersih 2.0's plans into disarray. The regime could have regained some goodwill by opening up the Stadium Merdeka for this purpose. But they didn't. Najib, you had your second chance and you blew it!
There was still a third chance at redemption. Now, knowing jolly well that Bersih 2.0 was proceeding with their plans, the Najib regime brought in 7,000 policemen to shut down the Kuala Lumpur city centre. On the day of the rally, the policemen appeared in battle gear, all ready to confront unarmed citizens who only wanted to walk for clean and fair elections.
Now, if the Najib regime still had their brains with them, they would have used this opportunity to direct the policemen not to confront the people with chemical-laced water cannons or tear gas cannisters or shields and batons but be ambassadors for the government by ensuring that the walk to the Stadium Merdeka would be smooth. So what if the doors into the stadium remained shut. The whole objective was to walk to the stadium anyway. And if the policemen on duty can marshall the people along without incident - be a friend rather than an enemy - a lot of the tension would have been dissipated. Najib, you had your third chance and you blew it!
The first was when Bersih 2.0 invited all parties to walk with them to demand for clean and fair elections. I see nothing wrong with that. It was an open invitation to both the ruling party and the opposition parties. The Najib regime could have declared that yes, they were also for clean and fair elections and yes, let us work with you to improve on the electoral process. That way, they could have been seen as above board and they wouldn't be viewed with the deep suspicion as now.
Like I mentioned earlier, there can not be two ways about it. You either support the Bersih 2.0 cause for clean and fair elections, or you do not. By demonising Bersih 2.0, my only conclusion is that the Najib regime is not bersih (clean) and can only be kotor (dirty). Who can blame me for believing this? So the Najib regime failed in this respect and they should not blame the Opposition for supporting this cause. Najib, you had your first chance and you blew it!
The second was when Najib offered Bersih 2.0 the use of a stadium for their rally, instead of walking through the streets. Initially, I had thought that this was a magnaminous offer, an olive branch, a compromise made after the request by the Agong to avoid using the roads of Kuala Lumpur. But what happened after that? The Najib regime went back on their words. No use of any stadium in Kuala Lumpur, they demanded. Looking back, this smacked of insincerity, a plot to throw Bersih 2.0's plans into disarray. The regime could have regained some goodwill by opening up the Stadium Merdeka for this purpose. But they didn't. Najib, you had your second chance and you blew it!
There was still a third chance at redemption. Now, knowing jolly well that Bersih 2.0 was proceeding with their plans, the Najib regime brought in 7,000 policemen to shut down the Kuala Lumpur city centre. On the day of the rally, the policemen appeared in battle gear, all ready to confront unarmed citizens who only wanted to walk for clean and fair elections.
Now, if the Najib regime still had their brains with them, they would have used this opportunity to direct the policemen not to confront the people with chemical-laced water cannons or tear gas cannisters or shields and batons but be ambassadors for the government by ensuring that the walk to the Stadium Merdeka would be smooth. So what if the doors into the stadium remained shut. The whole objective was to walk to the stadium anyway. And if the policemen on duty can marshall the people along without incident - be a friend rather than an enemy - a lot of the tension would have been dissipated. Najib, you had your third chance and you blew it!
Bersih 2.0: Najib's different world
It is very importnt to take a very close examination of this picture from the Al-Jazeera website. This Reuters picture was taken in Kuala Lumpur on the afternoon of 9 July 2011. It was at the height of the Bersih 2.0 rally. What do you see?
Then take a look at this YouTube video below. Never mind what you see and hear about people recounting their harrowing experiences during that same afternoon. Just concentrate on what Najib Razak said. But remember, that short clip on him talking was carried on Channel News Asia the day after the Bersih 2.0 rally.
Reuters. Al-Jazeera. Channel News Asia. All rather respectful sources of information. So what was it that Najib was saying? Just this: "Police used minimum force. There was no actual physical contact at all with the demonstrators."
Oh, how pathetic an explanation from the man who is supposed to control this country! If there was no actual physical contact, how can he explain this to the people who were handcuffed? Did the Police just handed out the handcuffs and asked the people to put them on by themselves? There you are, please put it on yourself. Or ask your friend here to put it on for you. Thank you. No actual physical contact. Indeed!
Then take a look at this YouTube video below. Never mind what you see and hear about people recounting their harrowing experiences during that same afternoon. Just concentrate on what Najib Razak said. But remember, that short clip on him talking was carried on Channel News Asia the day after the Bersih 2.0 rally.
Reuters. Al-Jazeera. Channel News Asia. All rather respectful sources of information. So what was it that Najib was saying? Just this: "Police used minimum force. There was no actual physical contact at all with the demonstrators."
Oh, how pathetic an explanation from the man who is supposed to control this country! If there was no actual physical contact, how can he explain this to the people who were handcuffed? Did the Police just handed out the handcuffs and asked the people to put them on by themselves? There you are, please put it on yourself. Or ask your friend here to put it on for you. Thank you. No actual physical contact. Indeed!
Heroine from Bersih 2.0
In my opinion, this is the most haunting image to emerge from the Bersih 2.0 walk in Kuala Lumpur on 9 July 2011.
The lady has been identified as Annie Ooi Siew Lan. There's some information about her here. She was just one of countless aunties and uncles who participated in Bersih 2.0. But the world's eyes may be now on her just because of this iconic picture.
Originally from Kedah and Penang, this retired teacher now lives in the Setapak area and is aged 65 years old. A firm believer of the ideals of Bersih 2.0, she put on a yellow T-shirt and took a bus ride to the city centre by herself. Along the way, the Police stopped her several times to check her identification card. When questioned about her attire, her answer was always the same: "Why can't I wear yellow?"
She walked with the other supporters of Bersih 2.0. And then she was sprayed with chemical-laced water or fired upon with tear gas or both. Violence was the furthest from her mind; she came unprepared for it. And all she carried with her were a water bottle and a stalk of flowers. A stalk of flowers. A symbol of peace.
"It's so sad," she lamented. "It's so sad that the Police are treating our rakyat like this. When you come to rallies, there's a spirit of unity, something I cannot describe, when everyone is united for a cause. Why do we have to feel so scared in our own homeland. And by our own countrymen too?"
Yes, why indeed?
[An update: Before you read further, this is an email from my friend, Kee Thuan Chye, in which he commented This is a great picture. It shows the desolation of a war zone, which was what KL became on July 9, and the figure of a steadfast symbol of defiance. And she's bearing a flower, an emblem of peace. Juxtapose that with the formidable line of brute force behind her, and you see ...]
Photo: Hugo Teng
The lady has been identified as Annie Ooi Siew Lan. There's some information about her here. She was just one of countless aunties and uncles who participated in Bersih 2.0. But the world's eyes may be now on her just because of this iconic picture.
Originally from Kedah and Penang, this retired teacher now lives in the Setapak area and is aged 65 years old. A firm believer of the ideals of Bersih 2.0, she put on a yellow T-shirt and took a bus ride to the city centre by herself. Along the way, the Police stopped her several times to check her identification card. When questioned about her attire, her answer was always the same: "Why can't I wear yellow?"
She walked with the other supporters of Bersih 2.0. And then she was sprayed with chemical-laced water or fired upon with tear gas or both. Violence was the furthest from her mind; she came unprepared for it. And all she carried with her were a water bottle and a stalk of flowers. A stalk of flowers. A symbol of peace.
"It's so sad," she lamented. "It's so sad that the Police are treating our rakyat like this. When you come to rallies, there's a spirit of unity, something I cannot describe, when everyone is united for a cause. Why do we have to feel so scared in our own homeland. And by our own countrymen too?"
Yes, why indeed?
Sunday, 10 July 2011
Bersih 2.0, you have my respect
I am astounded by the depths which the federal government has plunged into by trying to prevent the Bersih 2.0 rally from taking place at the Stadium Merdeka. I am upset by the way that the police force has been used to harm the people of this country. I am sickened by the constant denials spewed by Najib and company. I laugh with derision at the Home Alone "tin kosong" who chose to hide behind his wife's sarong while urging his goons to go for a stroll by the lake. However, I am deeply proud of the 50,000 fearless participants that were out on the streets of Kuala Lumpur.
This is the rally that will change people's perception of what a stupid and power-corrupted federal government will do to retain power. They may have tried to cover wool over our eyes but they cannot silence the anger that's all within us. We have seen and heard what actually happened n Kuala Lumpur yesterday. We have seen how our fellow Malaysians in faraway countries have supported Bersih 2.0's cause by holding events of their own. We have heard how the callous police force fired their tear gas cannisters into the Tong Shin Maternity Hospital grounds. What if the patients, expectant mothers and newborn babies were endangered? Yes, najib and company have a lot to answer with their suppression of people's right to be heard.
To my Malaysian brothers and sisters who participated in the Bersih 2.0 rally in Kuala Lumpur on this eventful date, 9 July 2011, I deeply salute you!
This is the rally that will change people's perception of what a stupid and power-corrupted federal government will do to retain power. They may have tried to cover wool over our eyes but they cannot silence the anger that's all within us. We have seen and heard what actually happened n Kuala Lumpur yesterday. We have seen how our fellow Malaysians in faraway countries have supported Bersih 2.0's cause by holding events of their own. We have heard how the callous police force fired their tear gas cannisters into the Tong Shin Maternity Hospital grounds. What if the patients, expectant mothers and newborn babies were endangered? Yes, najib and company have a lot to answer with their suppression of people's right to be heard.
To my Malaysian brothers and sisters who participated in the Bersih 2.0 rally in Kuala Lumpur on this eventful date, 9 July 2011, I deeply salute you!
Saturday, 9 July 2011
Our support for Bersih 2.0's Yellow cause
Though we are too far away from Kuala Lumpur, there is a need for us to show our support for the men and women who shall be facing the might of the federal government's machinery this afternoon. Here is Long Kin and I, togged in yellow, before we ventured out to the Taman Bukit food court in Bukit Mertajam for our breakfast.
Nasi kunyit
I finally had my fill of nasi kunyit today. Saw it on sale at the market. What is important about this speciality dish is that the glutinous rice must be of consistent quality: soft yet sticky. This one was acceptable, but I didn't see any pepper corn in the rice. Should be there. As for the chicken curry and potato, well, my family cooks it better. But what to do? When you are craving for nasi kunyit and the family's not cooking it, you have to accept what's available from the shops or the market.
Anyway, this superbly coloured dish of yellow rice is dedicated to all true supporters of free and fair elections throughout the country. Either you believe in free and fair elections or you don't. There are no two ways about this.
Anyway, this superbly coloured dish of yellow rice is dedicated to all true supporters of free and fair elections throughout the country. Either you believe in free and fair elections or you don't. There are no two ways about this.
Thursday, 7 July 2011
Where are Penang's old record shops?
The mention of Wing Hing Records in yesterday's blog post set me thinking deeper. Where have all those old vinyl record shops in Penang gone to?
I know for sure that Wing Hing was located in Campbell Street, George Town, because this place was the most familiar to me. The proprietor was my father's good friend and we bought most of our stuff there. When the owner died, the business was taken over by his son, Jimmy. But alas, the shop is no more. Eventually, the growng popularity of the compact disc meant that fewer people were buying records and this forced him to fold up the business. I've completely lost touch with Jimmy but today, the shoplot is part of a tour agency's office.
There were other well-known record shops around the city then. The other one that I frequently went to was Hinson Records on Penang Road, very near to the junction with Hutton Lane. I knew the owner. Mr Yeoh, who should be well over 90 years old now if he is still around, was a member of the Old Frees' Association. The last I met him was in 2009 or 2010. Still strong and hearty then. Anyway, Hinson Records has also disappeared.
In fact, there is no big-name record shop left in Penang. Ngee Fah Records in Penang Road, a stone's throw from the Penang Road/Gladstone Road/Magazine Street/Brick Kiln Road/Dato Kramat Road intersection, which the locals called Goh Pah Teng, closed down after the Penang Development Corporation acquired the land to build the Phase 1A of the present KOMTAR podium block. I do remember that business was once so good that Ngee Fah Records extended to two shoplots but they used to stock a large selection of locally pirated records.
Then at Burmah Road, there used to be Rio Records. Although this shop was run by the father of an old class mate, I had never bought anything from there. It's rather too late for regret, actually, because it converted later into a music shop selling music instruments. Nowadays whenever I whizzed by Burmah Road, I hardly noticed this shop, not knowing whether it still exists or not, possibly because I'd be concentrating more on the traffic. This stretch of the road is too busy to risk diverting your attention.
There also used to be a record shop at the junction of Penang Road and Bertam Lane but I've forgotten its name. It survived the closures of Wing Hing, Hinsons, Ngee Fah and Rio by many years but inevitably in the 1990s, the business folded as well.
The years after the Komtar podium block was built, records were still a very popular music medium then. There were at least two or three record shops that opened here until the early 1970s. But Infinity Record Shop has closed while DB Music Centre still survived until today. After records, DB Music Centre went on to selling cassette tapes and compact discs. And these two shops had a thriving side business by selling customised cassette tapes. For a fee that included the cost of a blank cassette tape, people could just walk into the shops and requested them to tape up some music from their stock of records.
Wembley Park (known to the locals as Choon Man Hnooi) used to be located across from the Traders Hotel. It was previously the last surviving amusement centre in the city (the others being the Great World Park and the New World Park) that showcased entertainment like bangsawan performances and ronggeng parties. There were also dance halls, gambling stalls, food stalls and of course, the Wembley Cinema. There were lots of traders here and I do remember seeing two or three record shops. Unfortunately, these shops, like the Dragon Gate Record Store, were selling exclusively records by Chinese singers. I had no interest in them and so, I did little to visit them. Today, the Wembley Park is no more although I hear that the cinema will be converted into a hawker centre. The land was bought over by a developer in 2007.
Possibly the last surviving old-fashioned record shop in Penang is Angel Records in Hutton Lane. But there's no point wasting good time to search for music there as the shop stocks only old Hindi and Tamil records. There's hardly any customer anyway, and the shop's opening hours are very erratic.
What's left for people searching for first-hand records in Penang nowadays are the modern music outlets in the shopping malls. However, they don't carry records like in the old days. Invariably, they stock only a few pieces of the modern re-issues or releases that come on 180g or 200g vinyls. Meant only for the specialist market or the curious hifi enthusiasts that want to dabble in analog sound. And of course, you'd have to pay through your nose in order to own a modern-day record. Hardly cheap any more.
Wednesday, 6 July 2011
A lesson from Woodstock
You know, I never expected to take this long to finish a book but beside its thickness, the only other reason was because I read it as a bedside novel. Hilarious though it was, I could only manage perhaps three or four pages before the sandman came a-calling.
Initially, I thought the whole book was all about Bertie Wooster and his valet, Jeeves, but it turned out that there were only two Jeeves stories among the five in this volume. A bit of disappointment. Nonetheless, the other three stories were equally absorbing, all written in the inimitable Wodehouse style.
So what's my next reading adventure now that all my Wodehouse books have been read and reread?
It's this: Back To The Garden, a book by Pete Fornatale, published in 2009 to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. Fornatale is an award-winning American broadcaster and his book celebrates the spirit of this music festival in the words of those who played or participated there.I had not intended to read this book but my trip to the island last Friday also took me to the Penang Botanic Garden. Much inspired by the greenery and flowers there, I had posted in facebook that I felt like a flower child that was back in the garden. It was just a wishful feeling but Jeffrey said it sounded like I was at Woodstock.
Well, I've never been to Woodstock or for that matter, haven't stepped foot onto any American soil in my life. In late 1969, I had already heard about this music festival from a pen friend in Australia. It opened my eyes to the world at large. I was beginning to understand some of the issues going on in the world around me. Then one day, I entered Wing Hing Records, a record shop in Campbell Street, George Town and saw this triple album record set. The music was a revelation and it created a deep impression but more importantly, there was this unmistakable message that half a million people can come together and co-exist together with little incident.
Rock and roll culture is often maligned with violence but Woodstock showed that when people were not provoked and they showed respect towards one another, public gatherings need not descend into chaos and violence. That, to me, was the lesson from the festival.
Tuesday, 5 July 2011
George Town festival, 2011
It's better late than never to post up this banner for the George Town Festival 2011, the month-long third anniversary celebration of George Town's attainment of the UNESCO world cultural heritage status. I'll be down to wander around the city this Thursday (7 July 2011) to take in the cultural displays. Hope to bump into some of my old friends there!
Monday, 4 July 2011
Everbright madman
Now I know how it is like when people take shortcuts and depend on Google Translate to get words or sentences translated. I picked up the Mandarin text from a Kwong Wah Yit Poh report about last Friday's boorish demonstrations in George Town and pasted it into Google Translate, as I don't know Mandarin but I wanted to know what was written. To my surprise, Google Translate mucked it all up properly:
It dawns on me now how many people felt outraged to know our super-efficient government translator depended on this service to translate Teoh Beng Hock's purported "suicide note". It was so ridiculous. In the meantime, here's the full translation below of the Kwong Wah Yit Poh article, courtesy of Google Translate. If you can make head and tail out of it, please let me know because I can't!
It dawns on me now how many people felt outraged to know our super-efficient government translator depended on this service to translate Teoh Beng Hock's purported "suicide note". It was so ridiculous. In the meantime, here's the full translation below of the Kwong Wah Yit Poh article, courtesy of Google Translate. If you can make head and tail out of it, please let me know because I can't!
(News Penang 1) 500 reputation as "anti-tyranny violent Lim Guan Eng" and "righteous" to "anti-Lim Guan Eng" and "anti-Net League 2.0 'to start the name of demonstrations, they marched to the Everbright Bank of Malaya When the police because they have to insist forcing the defense, the results of six people arrested by the police, those arrested included "Everbright madman," Abdul Ghani.
"Everbright Madman" Abdul Ghani to "Voice of Malaysian children" in the name of the organization, to lead about 500 people after prayers on Friday, gathering in the coconut foot street procession started about 3 km to the Everbright Bank of Malaya to memorandum was head of Penang Lim Guan Eng. They started in the coconut foot street parade, the police tried to stop their march, but the presence of a large number of police officers have been pushing the demonstrators to ignore the police to prevent any further forward towards progress.
In the procession on the road, they chanted "anti-violent Lim Guan Eng arbitrary" and distributed tomorrow at 9 am in Sungai Lai of a "violent anti-tyranny Lim Guan Eng" rally leaflets. Parade is also the portrait printed on Lim Guan Eng's "anti-tyranny violent Lim Guan Eng" posters onto the floor trampled, torn, burned; parade has 50 motorcycles before "escorting" campaign, which hit the motorcycle then jerk forward car flute pathfinder attention.
Procession started from the Sou foot street, through cow dry winter street, into the betel nut Road, then reverse walk name is Wang's (Bee Cheng Hiang meat shop front) arrived at the junction of Everbright Bank of Malaya. When they walk in reverse, also led to traffic chaos. With much attention to the procession, some passers-by questioned why the police do not take action?
When the procession arrived at Maybank, the police riot team has been stationed there, and warned them to disband and not across the room before the post office is located in the Everbright next line of defense. However, Abdul Ghani is still leading his men continue to move forward, to start immediately arrests the police arrested six people arrested included "Everbright madman," Abdul Ghani, "Voice of Malaysian children," Secretary Mo Xin et al. Confusion, there are protesters clash with reporters, someone tries to attack reporters.
With the police after the arrests started, the parade is to dissolve itself, coconut foot walk back street. To the deadline date, the police spokesman not to say something.
Sunday, 3 July 2011
I will survive
Who will win the finals of this year's Wimbledon tennis: Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic? I know it's going to be a red-hot match but nothing, I suppose, will be hotter than this youtube video of The Djoker's singing!
Hijacked by hooligans
I had good reason for wanting to drive out to the island on Friday morning. First, it was to meet a friend from Singapore for lunch and second, I had an appointment at one of the local private hospitals. I was rather thankful that my appointment with the doctor had finished at about 4.30pm, so that there would be enough time for me to drive back across the Penang Bridge before the dreaded Friday rush hour traffic jam began.
Friday is always a very bad day to use the bridge, especially from about 5pm or 5.30pm onwards. Only the week before, I was crawling all the way towards the Butterworth end. The only positive aspect from last week was that I wasn't the one driving!
Anyway, that's digression. As I entered the bridge on Friday, I was relieved that although traffic was heavy, I was at least moving forward at a reasonable speed. Until I hit the 6.6km mark. Traffic grounded to a halt. Then repeatedly, a hesitating lurch forward of a few feet before stopping again. All the way to the mid-span.
Then suddenly, it was all clear. But wait, why were there two or three traffic policemen on both sides of the bridge? What the fuck, I was thinking to myself. Are the policemen there to do spot checks on motorists? On the middle of the bridge? If so, they must have been out of thier minds. Then the thought left my mind as I picked up speed again. The rest of the way on the bridge was normal. Busy but normal.
I didn't give this incident any more thought until I came across this story in yesterday's papers. There really was an incident on the Penang Bridge, right at about the same time that I was crossing it. Seemed that a group of rowdy hooligans, wearing red headbands, had demonstrated at the midspan. These irresponsible idiots had taken it upon themselves to park their cars on two lanes of the bridge and reduced flow to a single lane.
But even before this disturbance on the bridge, I heard that about 500 other hooligans, mostly with red headbands again, had marched earlier in the afternoon with impunity from Pitt Street to Penang Road, passing by the Police Headquarters building, no less, with little immediate reaction from the Police within. I mean, why allow them to march until Komtar before trying to disperse them? Why not nix them in the bud as they passed by the Police headquarters itself? Needless to say, the longer they were allowed to march, the more mayhem created. Jammed up the roads in the city. Rowdy, noisy, irresponsible, abusive, aggressive, intimidating. What other words to describe them?
One thing that puzzled me was the common red headband. If there were so many of the bastards wearing these headbands, it can only mean that the disturbances on the streets of George Town and on the Penang Bridge were deliberate actions that had been planned way in advance. They weren't spontaneous. so there must be a culprit or several culprits behind them. It became clear later that the heavy hand of a political party, one that claimed to be leading the federal government, was behind the demos. All I can say to the goons is, shame on you for your desperate attempt to disrupt the peace. They discredit no one but themselves
As a postscript, the Police went around later to pick up about seven or eight of the fiery ringleaders but they were released within 24 hours. What a contrast to the fate of the 30-odd people, about half of whom were elderly people, who were picked up by the Police near Kepala Batas about a week ago and were only just released yesterday.
Friday is always a very bad day to use the bridge, especially from about 5pm or 5.30pm onwards. Only the week before, I was crawling all the way towards the Butterworth end. The only positive aspect from last week was that I wasn't the one driving!
Anyway, that's digression. As I entered the bridge on Friday, I was relieved that although traffic was heavy, I was at least moving forward at a reasonable speed. Until I hit the 6.6km mark. Traffic grounded to a halt. Then repeatedly, a hesitating lurch forward of a few feet before stopping again. All the way to the mid-span.
Then suddenly, it was all clear. But wait, why were there two or three traffic policemen on both sides of the bridge? What the fuck, I was thinking to myself. Are the policemen there to do spot checks on motorists? On the middle of the bridge? If so, they must have been out of thier minds. Then the thought left my mind as I picked up speed again. The rest of the way on the bridge was normal. Busy but normal.
One thing that puzzled me was the common red headband. If there were so many of the bastards wearing these headbands, it can only mean that the disturbances on the streets of George Town and on the Penang Bridge were deliberate actions that had been planned way in advance. They weren't spontaneous. so there must be a culprit or several culprits behind them. It became clear later that the heavy hand of a political party, one that claimed to be leading the federal government, was behind the demos. All I can say to the goons is, shame on you for your desperate attempt to disrupt the peace. They discredit no one but themselvesAs a postscript, the Police went around later to pick up about seven or eight of the fiery ringleaders but they were released within 24 hours. What a contrast to the fate of the 30-odd people, about half of whom were elderly people, who were picked up by the Police near Kepala Batas about a week ago and were only just released yesterday.
Saturday, 2 July 2011
It's yellow within
Still dreaming about the durian season in Penang. The season's not ending soon. There's still about three weeks to go but I understand the season may peak next Saturday. If you are like me, you'll love the durian. According to my durian friend in Balik Pulau, the ones with the yellow coloured pulp are the most prized among visitors to his farm. Their eyes, he said, always light up when the fruit is slowly opened to reveal this tantalising colour. It doesn't matter to them what's the colour of the skin. What's more relevant is the quality inside and if yellow means good quality, so be it. Me too, when I look at the durian, what's important to me is the quality of the fruit inside. Hope you have the same opinion too.
Friday, 1 July 2011
Delicious curry mee
I've long complained about the lack of good Curry Mee on the Penang mainland. However, here is one that I can definitely give the "two thumbs up" sign.
This Curry Mee hawker stall is located at the morning food court in Jalan Bukit Kecil and costs only RM2.50 per bowl. Apart from the pieces of long beans and the fried tau pok, there are also generous helpings of cockles and cubes of curdled pig's blood. But do ask for their extra chilli paste. That's where the whole delicious secret comes from....
If you are using a GPS to locate the stall, the coordinates are 5.354851,100.459255
This Curry Mee hawker stall is located at the morning food court in Jalan Bukit Kecil and costs only RM2.50 per bowl. Apart from the pieces of long beans and the fried tau pok, there are also generous helpings of cockles and cubes of curdled pig's blood. But do ask for their extra chilli paste. That's where the whole delicious secret comes from....
If you are using a GPS to locate the stall, the coordinates are 5.354851,100.459255
Tranquillity
I'm not asking for much from this picture but just to share its colour and tranquillity with everyone.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)