:: Quranic Verses for Year End Reflection ::

    Are they, then, not aware that they are being tested year-in, year-out? And yet, they do not repent and nor do they learn a lesson (from it). - (Quran 9:126) 

:: 11 more verses More ::

Japan's population shrinking

TOKYO: Japan's population shrank by a record margin in 2010 as the nation rapidly ages, according to an annual estimate released by the welfare ministry Saturday.

The number of Japanese people fell by 123,000, the biggest drop since records began in 1947, the ministry said, an illustration of the demographic crisis the country faces as a smaller working population has to support a mass of pensioners.

It is the fourth consecutive year that Japan's population has declined.

The fall was far larger than the 72,000 registered in 2009, the previous record.

The ministry estimated 1,071,000 babies were born in 2010 on Japanese soil, almost flat from 2009, while deaths soared by 52,000 to a record 1,194,000.

Japanese seniors enjoy increased life expectancy while many young people continue to defer starting a family because of the burden on their finances, lifestyles and careers.

-AFP/wk  cited from chanelnewsasia

From Bill to Law

Malaysia has a similar Practice :

UKParliament | December 23, 2010 - Parliament has the power to propose new laws and change old ones, but how does the lawmaking process work? What role do the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the monarch play? And what steps do they go through to try and make sure each new law is as beneficial as possible.

PM Najib's : Balancing meritocracy with social justice.

thestaronline | December 22, 2010 - Datuk Seri Najib Razak says the Government will strike a balance between meritocracy and social justice when rewarding students for outstanding academic achievements.

Can you access sarawakreport.org?

S'wak whistleblower site 'hacked':

Whistleblower website Sarawak Report, which often publishes documents that it claims are evidence of Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud's immense wealth, is apparently hacked.

Malaysiakini report  :: 21 Dec 2010.

Sarawak Chief Minister's : BILLION RINGGIT BRIDE

Did she marry for his money or his morals? All we know of the bride is she is around 29 and from Lebanon

We have an exclusive picture of Sarawak Chief Minister, Taib Mahmud’s, new young bride.  Kuching has been aflame with interest and amusement at the leaked information that the 74 year old has found himself a second wife who is apparently still in her 20s.

However, the government has refused to issue official confirmation of the wedding ceremony, which was celebrated at the weekend in the Chief Minister’s vast mansion (the financing of which remains a mystery, like the rest of his properties).  Even senior Government Ministers have been scouring the web for details of the new “Thief Lady”, who has yet even to be announced by name. In desperation calls were even going out to Sarawak Report.  We feel honoured to oblige.

SARAWAKreport | 20 Dec 2010 - read full post :

Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) functioning from London!

The Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) is an organization now. MCLM had a public forum in London on the 12th December 2010.

MCLM officer bearers are as follows:

Chairman: Raja Petra Kamarudin
President: Haris Ibrahim
Secretary: Yolanda Augustine
Treasurer: Natalie Sylvia Chow
Legal Adviser: Gilbert Jacobs

3 Committee Members: Farouk A. Peru, Jeff Tan and Sam Chong
3 Board of Trustees: Amarjit Singh Sidhu, Lee Wai Siang and Paramjeet Singh Karam Singh
2 cheque signatories: Legal adviser and Treasurer

Bank account: HSBC

Visit MCLM website to view MCLM vision and mission statement. Readers may join MCLM via that website too.

A Tribute to the Grand Shahid, Sayyidina Hussein a.s.

Asyura or the 10th Muharam in the Hijri(Islamic) calender have many things religious for the Ibrahmic faith followers,more so for muslims. One tragic event also occurred on the day of Asyura too, that is the unjust killing of Sayyidina Hussein (as) by the forces of the then regime under the Caliphate of Yazid of Banu Umayyah. Politics probably, have it that this sad event is forgotten in many Islamic environment. Nonetheless by the scheme of things in the Wisdom and Grace of the alMighty, the fact that it occurred on the 10th of Muharam make it not easily erased  episode from the minds of many ordinary Muslims.

We hear many people says that Sayyidina Hussein(as) sacrifices is remembered by millions of Muslims. They also said that Sayyidina Hussein(as), stood up against a tyrant, that appears to me like a suicide mission - largely due to the Yazid regime's utilization of disproportionate used of force, which was his trademark and norm. Sayyidina Hussein(as) almost sacrificed almost all his family, in the name of Islam, his Grandfather's (saw) religion is to save his & his grandfather's(saw)religion. Which part of their religion is Sayyidina Hussein(as) saving by being dead through this apparent suicide mission of his?

Isu Sultan Kelantan akan hangat kembali?

Ada kah isu siapa sebenarnya Sultan Kelantan yang sah dari segi undang-undang tubuh Negeri Kelantan akan menjadi hangat kembali dengan penglibatan Ku Li?

Warkah Sultan Ismail kepada dunia

KERATAN Kosmo! semalam.

KUALA LUMPUR - Ahli Parlimen Gua Musang, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah meminta Majlis Raja-Raja, Kerajaan Persekutuan dan kerajaan negeri memberi perhatian serius terhadap krisis istana di Kelantan yang berlanjutan bagi mengelakkan kegelisahan dan kekeliruan rakyat dengan situasi semasa di negeri itu.

Beliau juga mengedarkan kenyataan yang dikeluarkan Sultan Ismail Petra yang tertulis bahawa baginda adalah Sultan Kelantan yang sah mengikut Perlembagaan.

Kenyataan bertarikh 27 November lepas diedarkan oleh Tengku Razaleigh di pejabatnya di sini supaya dapat memberikan gambaran sebenar kedudukan Sultan Ismail Petra.

KOSMOS menyiarkankan berita ini pada 7 Disember 2010 - baca berita seterusnya ...

December 8, 2010
PENGHAKIMAN YANG MENGIKTIRAF KEABSAHAN SULTAN KELANTAN
IN THE FEDERAL COURT OF MALAYSIA AT PUTRAJAYA
(ORIGINAL JURISDICTION) SUIT NO. 1 OF 2010

28. For the reasons abovestated we allow the jurisdictional objection of the first respondent. Consequentially, having allowed this jurisdictional objection we therefore dismiss both the petitions with no order as to costs.

Laporan Staronline : 8 Disember 2010

The gloves come off in royal discord

It looks like Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has severed ties with his grandnephew, the new Sultan of Kelantan, following his no-holds barred remarks on the royal succession. Read Full Report :

Rulers Council cannot interfere in the affairs of Kelantan palace

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said ascension to the throne was outside the purview of the federal government or the courts. Read Full Report

Loyarburok.com book launch & talked of their future social & welfare programs.

malaysiakini | December 12, 2010 - Former Perak Menteri Besar Nizar Jamaluddin today launched the book published by popular website Loyarburok.com detailing the events of the notorious BN ouster that saw him and Pakatan Rakyat removed from office.

The book, 'Perak: A State of Crisis' is a compilation of articles written by lawyers and activists on the blog, mainly in support of the crusade mounted by Nizar to restore the Pakatan-led state government after the coup.

The death of the good old welfare state!

Independent Living Fund to be shut down by 2015

The fund helps people stay out of residential care

A fund which supports more than 21,000 people with severe disabilities is to be phased out by 2015.

The £359m Independent Living Fund pays out an average of £300 a week, to help people pay for carers so they can live at home and not in a care home.

It was already shut to new applicants for this year and will now shut to new claims permanently, said the minister for disabled people, Maria Miller.

Payments to existing users are to continue until 2015.

Ms Miller said: "An independent discretionary trust delivering social care is financially unsustainable."

But Richard Hawkes, chief executive of disability charity Scope, said the decision to phase out the fund was "bemusing".

BBC News | 13 December 2010 - read full report :

The information war?

Or is it the misinformation war :: ?

The Listening Post - AlJazeeraEnglish | December 11, 2010 - On the show this week: it is a multi-faceted media story that has generated myriad news strands and angles but also legal complications. At the centre of it all is WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. He has become the human face of an information war that has left free speech activists on one side and cagey politicians on the other. The fight has drawn in some unlikely participants, from credit card companies to Swedish lawyers. Its uncharted waters for the media - some had to report the story while defending their coverage. It is an uncertain future for politicians who are desperately trying to shut down the website while putting out diplomatic fires across the globe. It is a moral dilemma for those who question the right to information over the danger of too much information. It is a lot of things, but mostly - it is a fascinating story!

"Confucius peace prize".

December 09, 2010 - And that Nobel Peace Prize award for Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo has prompted one group in Beijing to offer its own prize—the newly created "Confucius Peace Prize."A local group that claimed an affiliation to China's Ministry of Culture awarded the prize today (Thursday) to Lien Chan, the former Vice President of Taiwan.

The new prize is somewhat of a mystery. After the Ministry of Culture said it knew nothing about it, the Confucius Peace Prize group then said they had no affiliation with the government.

And the office director for Lien Chan in Taiwan also said he'd heard nothing about the prize. Lien himself did not attend today's ceremony to accept the award.

Confucius was once China's most revered philosopher. Under Mao Zedong, the Chinese Communist Party denounced Confucius. But in recent years, the Party has promoted aspects of his teachings in a bid to promote so-called "social harmony."

Collectivism success story !

Village typifies China economic boost.

AlJazeeraEnglish | December 11, 2010 - China's inflation rate has risen 5.1 per cent in November compared with a year ago, which is the country's fastest pace in the last 28 months.

The hike in consumer prices is yet another indication of the world's second largest economy's unrelenting growth.

Florence Looi reports on how Huaxi, China's wealthiest village, is a prime example of China's rising success.

Unveiled: Work by Anthony Burgess suppressed for years.

The exclusive Malaysian school where the author taught finally allows his ode to be performed.

When Anthony Burgess (pic) returned to Malaysia in 1980 after a gap of 22 years to film an episode of the BBC series Writers and Places, he was not impressed. "The country and I," he announced, "have nothing to say to each other." The author of A Clockwork Orange and Earthly Powers died 17 years ago, but he is still being talked about in the land that launched his career as one of the most celebrated British novelists of the late 20th century. And last night, the capital, Kuala Lumpur, saw a historic royal unveiling of one of Burgess's first works, which was never published. Further, not only had it been forgotten, it had been deliberately suppressed.

"Ode: Celebration for a Malay College" was written while Burgess was a teacher at the Malay College Kuala Kangsar, set up in 1905 to educate the Malay elite in the manner of a British public school and dubbed "the Eton of the East". Then going by his real name of J B Wilson, Burgess composed the verse and its accompanying melody for the college's golden jubilee in 1955, two years before the Federation of Malaya gained independence from Britain.

Within months, . ...

5 Dec 2010 | The Independent UK - read full report :

Ploys to Shut Down Internet.

November 30, 2010 - They've tried a lot of things to mess with our ability to use the Internet as we do now. Most recently, the US government has taken to shutting down torrent sites. They shut down 76 sites in the week after passing a bill to give them that power. Of course, it won't end there.

Operation Payback by Anonymous:

: Cyber War in revenge for WikiLeaks

RussiaToday | December 09, 2010 - A group of activist hackers have begun attacking MasterCard.com, Amazon.com, PostFinace, Paypal.com and others in retaliation for cutting of the WikiLeaks organization. The targeted companies, after receiving pressure from the US government, opted to sever their relationships with WikiLeaks, preventing the organization from hosting its site, halting the flow of donations and freezing the organization's Swiss bank accounts. The group of hackers is leaderless and operates anonymously. The groups has attacked organizations in the past, notable Scientologist websites. In twitter posts and other online statements, the hackers said they agree with WikiLeaks mission of opening up governments, exposing lies and support the freedom of the press and the Internet. However, their online activism may have unintended consequences. Vague new regulations are being drafted by the Obama administration which would make it easier for the government to spy on Internet communications, including email, social media, general Web sites and mobile phones. Obama hopes to require all devices with online communications to be made with a build in ability to comply with a wiretap order.

Ku Li’s titles revoked by Sultan of Kelantan

KOTA BARU: Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has been stripped of two Kelantan state awards by Sultan Muhammad V Tuanku Faris Petra Sultan Ismail Petra effective Dec 2 for making statements that were detrimental to the Ruler.

Kelantan State Secretary Datuk Aiseri Alias said Tengku Razaleigh was stripped of the Darjah Kerabat Yang Amat Di Hormati (DK) and the Darjah Kebesaran Mahkota Kelantan Yang Amat Mulia (SPMK).

He added that Tengku Razaleigh had been formally informed about the revocation of the awards.

Proof in print: Mohd Aiseri (right) with Kelantan palace comptroller Datuk Halim Abdul Rahman showing the newspaper cutting after the press conference Sunday.

Tengku Razaleigh’s alleged statement, he said, had appeared in Sin Chew Jit Poh on Sept 14.

Staronline : Mon 6 Dec 2010

NWO :: ConDem British Coalition Govt is killing democracy!

Tony Benn: 200 yrs of British Democracy wiped out.

:: A tour of some of the best secret-busting websites

VOAvideo | December 01, 2010 - Wikileaks may be grabbing all the headlines, but they're not the only group online committed to spreading some sunshine into the darker corners of the web. A tour of some of the best secret-busting websites this week on "The Link."

UK Taliban Union aka NUS Launches "Right to Recall" Campaign.

For obvious reasons the press have chosen to report this specifically from the perspective of the Liberal Democrats' position on fees; this is despite the fact that the site (and our communications to the media) have framed the range of issues more broadly about pledges and trust.

As a result, in any communication about R2R, we would advise:

• It is important to frame the campaign when promoting it as principally about the issues of fees, EMAs (or both), with signing up the way to place pressure on the politicians. "Recalling" or unseating MPs is not an objective in and of itself of the campaign- it's the issues of fees, cuts and funding that must remain prominent in your comms.
• Try not to overtly target particular MPs or parties. The site contains details of pledges made by all three of the main political parties on both issues; those of you in universities can encourage students to think about home as well as university MPs, and all of you have more than one constituency where your students will live locally.
• The key thing to stress is that the campaign is about keeping all politicians to the pledges they make where those pledges relate to your goals as a students' unions (ie fees, EMAs or both)

Read full Post ::