| Must we rake the past? Posted: 22 Apr 2014 06:49 PM PDT History is for us to keep. Whatever happened in the past is dead. Yes, there are things to emulate but some are to be kept as guidance. However, raking the past about communal tension, atrocity and oppression will only raise discomfort to many. In our (Malaysia) case, it could widen the already thickened prejudice between race; between the Malays and Chinese. Had we continuously condemned Japan for causing extreme grief during its ruthless occupation of Malaya, we wouldn't have established a beneficially two-way relations with them. China and South Korea are still showing that askance toward the Japanese but diplomacy has fast overshadowed it. If the Jews still cling to the bad episode with the Nazi, Germany will not flourish from its bulky trade relations with Israel and the US. So, what's our reason for this? PUTRAJAYA, April 22 — The country's interracial tension especially between the Malays and the Chinese traces back to the latter group's "cruel rule" during the pre-independence period, former Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tun Mohammed Haniff Omar claimed today.
Haniff explained that this purported hostility between the communities did not exist before then, saying it was only sparked during a brief spell in 1945 when the Malayan People's Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA) declared itself to be in control.
"Pertempuran (clashes) between races never happened from zaman ke zaman (era to era) until the Chinese ruled cruelly part of the Malaya peninsular through the Malayan Communist Party (CPM) and Kuomintang in August, September 1945.
"Since then, Peninsular (Malaysia) has racial problems," the retired policeman said during a luncheon talk titled "Cabaran Keselamatan Awam Masa Kini" (Today's Public Security Challenges).
Pointing to the Chinese community's presence here that traced back to the Malacca Sultanate without issue, the former police chief said race had never been a problem until that point in 1945.
Before independence, Peninsular Malaysia was carved up into the Federated Malay states, Unfederated Malay states and Straits Settlement — all under British rule. History cannot be changed. Its fact remains. However, reliving it will only bring back the ghost of the past. Had we not learned our lesson? Saddam Hussein made a big mistake by claiming Kuwait as part of Iraq's territories in the early 1990. Remember what happened after that? Let's move forward!  |
| PKR lambasts Obama Posted: 22 Apr 2014 03:20 AM PDT Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) was 'disheartened' by Barack Obama's snub against Anwar Ibrahim! Just because the president had made it clear that he will not have any meeting whatsoever with the Opposition Leader during his visit to Malaysia on April 28, PKR has questioned the US' commitment towards democracy, freedom and justice. The PKR man is Saifuddin Nasution Ismail who said the US would lose its credibility if Obama fails to meet Anwar. What? PETALING JAYA, April 22 — President Barack Obama's decision not to meet with Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim here this weekend raises questions over the United States' commitment towards democracy, freedom and justice, PKR claimed today. The party's outgoing secretary-general, Datuk Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, further asserted that the Americans are well aware that the opposition Pakatan Rakyat pact led by Anwar was defeated by allegedly unfair practices in last year's national polls despite getting 52 per cent of the popular vote.
"This should have been taken into consideration by the Obama administration, that the majority support in Malaysia is for Pakatan Rakyat," he said at a press conference at the party headquarters here.
Saifuddin acknowledged that Obama is bound by the principle of non-interference in the affairs of a sovereign nation like Malaysia, but insisted that there are bigger issues of injustice that the world superpower cannot ignore.
The senior PKR leader said Malaysia has long suffered from malapportioned constituencies and gerrymandering, and the alleged abuse of the judiciary to politically persecute Anwar, of which the US are well aware.
The party's outgoing strategy director, Rafizi Ramli, admitted that they did not request for a meeting between the two leaders, but stressed that they should not have had to, given the circumstances surrounding the US' push for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA).
He claimed that he had, dutring a meeting with an official from the US Department of State, expressed in the "strongest terms that the US credibility in common Malaysians will plunge" if the controversial trade pact is made an overwhelming priority.
"At the rate things are going, obviously more and more Malaysians feel that the interest of the TPPA on the part of the Obama administration will be seen by the public to override any other democratic principles by Malaysia," he said.
It was reported last week that Obama has no plans to meet with Anwar, despite Washington's concerns that the opposition leader's ongoing Sodomy II case is part of a string of politically motivated charges to take him out of Malaysian politics.
National security advisor Susan Rice confirmed that the US president is "not likely" to meet with Anwar, though she indicated that there could be other engagements at other levels.
Obama will be the first sitting US president to visit Malaysia in nearly 50 years when he arrives on April 26, at the tail end of a weeklong tour of Asia which will include Japan, South Korea and the Philippines.
What rubbish was he talking? Obama is a world leader, a US President la! And who is Anwar to the Americans? And what makes you think that Washington will lose its credibility over Obama's refusal not to see Anwar? Obama knows all about Anwar, and that's why he decided not to see him, understand? Don't talk credibility when you don't have it!  |
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Betul lah. Obama will lose his credibility if he meets Anwar. A President of the strongest country in the world meets a person jailed for sodomy. Mesti mau fikir lah...budak sekolah pun tau.
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