Another crap! The government-appointed independent advisory panel into the Bersih 3.0 rally is hoping to learn from foreign experts how to handle peaceful demonstrations, protests and assemblies. The panel, chaired by former IGP Tun Hanif Omar, yesterday made requests to diplomatic representatives from four countries for their experts to  share advice and experience  in handling situations of unrest. The countries chosen  - the US, UK, Canada and Pakistan. WHAT? Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) is old enough, over 200 years now since its small set up in 1807. Throughout that long years, are we still looking down at our own force, once lauded as among the best in the world? Hanif himself, who was the longest-serving IGP for 20 years (1974-1994) seemed 'lost' and not having strong confidence in the force he used to lead. Or was he whipping at the PDRM current administration? Having confronted with some serious situations during his tenure, including the Memali (Baling) case...

FORMER Umno Supreme Council Member, Datuk Seri Lajim Ukin's decision to quit all party posts is influenced primarily by Pakatan's psychological warfare that they will form next government after the upcoming general election" which has no basis at all". Describing the Pakatan's confidence to achieve the desired goal as a mere political propaganda, Sabah Umno deputy liaison chief Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak said his resignation has nothing to do with internal Umno problems in the state. "I believe he (Lajim) does not want to miss the boat...that's why he tried to find an excuse for his mission, but to me, what Pakatan is promising is just a hope or dream," he told Bernama, here today. Lajim had earlier announced he was resigning as an Umno Supreme Council member, Beaufort Umno Division chief and Beaufort Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman with immediate effect. However, he has chosen to remain an Umno...

TEMERLOH: Felcra has allocated RM400mil for dividend payment to its 85,000 settlers this year, Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal announced here. He said the payment would be made beginning next week and the amount to be received by the settlers would depend on their land size. "The dividend is for the harvest from Felcra's plantations for the first six months of this year," he said at a breaking of fast function with Felcra settlers at Padang Seri Ketumbit Kerdau. He said the dividend to be paid to the settlers would be lesser that the amount they received last year. "This is because of the uncertainty in the price of the oil palm commodity in the global market," he added. Despite that, he expected Felcra to generate income of up to RM800 million at the end of the year, following improvements in its oil palm planting method to increase yield. He said ther...

KOTA MARUDU: Senator Datuk Maijol Mahap's decision to quit Barisan Nasional (BN) was not made overnight. According to the former United Pasokmomogun KadazanDusun Murut Organization Vice President, he thought long and hard about the matter but Sabah's outstanding problems was what made up his mind for him. Maijol was among the UPKO leaders, including the party's deputy president and Tuaran member of parliament Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Bumburing, who announced their resignation from the party and BN on Sunday. In a statement yesterday, Maijol said he had been in BN for 14 years. "I can say for myself that UPKO which I belonged to is a beautiful party with correct culture. Its president, Tan Sri Bernard Dompok is a nice and good leader. UPKO is lucky to have a leader like him. "However after taking into consideration the long outstanding problems that we have in Sabah and with no solution in sight, with heavy h...

July 31, 2012 www.thestar.com.my Karim Raslan: Time For ASEAN to stand together China is claiming more of the South China Sea as its own. Unfortunately, China's territorial pretensions clash with separate claims by Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines. SANSHA City is China's newest municipality. Extending over two square kilometres and with 613 residents, Sansha City has its own mayor, sea and airport, supermarket, as well as a People's Liberation Army (PLA) garrison. Established on the Yongxing or "Woody" Island in the Paracel Islands of the South China Sea, the municipality represents a bold assertion of Chinese control. Sadly in the face of such brute determination, ASEAN has merely whimpered. Indeed, earlier this month at the normally-staid ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Phnom Penh, the grouping revealed its ineffectiveness and lack of unity in the face of high-level lobbying from Chinese and American officials when the associat...

FORMER Umno Supreme Council Member, Datuk Seri Lajim Ukin's decision to quit all party posts is influenced primarily by Pakatan's psychological warfare that they will form next government after the upcoming general election" which has no basis at all". Describing the Pakatan's confidence to achieve the desired goal as a mere political propaganda, Sabah Umno deputy liaison chief Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak said his resignation has nothing to do with internal Umno problems in the state. "I believe he (Lajim) does not want to miss the boat...that's why he tried to find an excuse for his mission, but to me, what P! akatan is promising is just a hope or dream," he told Bernama, here today. Lajim had earlier announced he was resigning as an Umno Supreme Council member, Beaufort Umno Division chief and Beaufort Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman with immediate effect. However, he has chosen to remain an Umno member and as the deputy housing and local gove...

July 31, 2012 Confiscation of ZUNAR's  Books and Artwork unwarranted, says KL High Court Judge by Koh Jun Lin@ www.malaysiakini.com The Kuala Lumpur High Court has held that the arrest and detention of political cartoonist Zunar in 2011 was lawful, but that the continued confiscation of his books and artwork is unwarranted. As such, Justice Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera today ordered that the cartoonist's works be returned. He also ordered the court registrar to determine the quantum of damages payable to Zunar, whose real name is Zulkiflee SM Anwar Ulhaque. No order was made as to costs. The judge said arresting officer Arikrishna Apparau and investigating officer Marina Hashim had the power to arrest Zunar under Section 20 of the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA) and to seize his works under Section 11 of the Sedition Act. He said the officers had shown that they had reasonable grounds to suspect that the contents of the book 'Cartoon-o-phobia' were...