New Petrol Prices.

By tomorrow, petrol prices will be increase from RM 1.92 a litre to RM 2.70 a litre. While for diesel, the price will be RM 2.58. These new prices were announced by Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

‘Sexy’ School Uniforms To Stay.

PALOH: The Education Minister dismissed talk that the current uniform worn by girls in government schools, which has been in use for decades, was too “sexy” and that it contributed to rape and other immoral acts.

Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Tun Hussein said the uniform would probably not change much in the next few years.

He said that he personally felt it was unfair to blame the students or their uniforms for sexual crimes committed against them.

“It is unfair to punish women and children for the clothes they wear for the act of the rapist,” he said, adding that he could not allow such stereotyping to continue.

“Clothing is not the main consideration for those who commit despicable acts like these,” he said, in reference to the National Islamic Students Association of Malaysia’s condemnation of the uniform for being too sexy.

The association said the uniform encouraged rape and pre-marital sex.

Hishammuddin said that although he believed that changing the uniforms would not reduce sexual crimes committed against schoolgirls, he would refer the matter to experts within his ministry before making a decision.

from thestar.com.my - 25 May 2008

Gerakan Retools Itself To Get Back In Mainstream Politics.

KUALA LUMPUR: Gerakan will be positioning itself as the party of choice for all Malaysians under a rebranding effort that it hopes would bring the party back to mainstream politics.

At the party's 40th anniversary on Sunday, Gerakan acting president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said the party's mission was to build a united and democratic nation.

"In order to achieve this, we must consolidate, evaluate, motivate and rejuvenate the party."

Dr Koh said three thrusts would be undertaken, one of which was to voice Gerakan's ideology and policy position, and to advocate a Malaysian solution for major issues.

"The other two is to rebuild, rebrand and re-empower the party at all levels to effectively serve and represent all Malaysians and by doing so, to win the people's hearts and minds while regaining their mandate."

Dr Koh said the party was at its most challenging crossroads following the dismal results of the March 8 general election.

"Most of us are dejected or demoralised but we must keep telling ourselves that we are down but definitely not out," he said.

Dr Koh said after meeting with grassroots members over the past two months, the picture was clear that the members wanted Gerakan to continue.

"A few may have gone astray. We can understand that. But we will keep fighting because we believe we are still relevant to the people."

He added that Gerakan had to quickly understand the new political environment and that politics now had moved from being racial-based to being issues-based.

"That is exactly what we are fighting for, but somehow we ended up on the other side.

"In this case, what is good for the country is negative for the party but it confirms that this is the way forward and we definitely have a role to play."

He added that Gerakan would execute its plan via eight strategies consisting of broad plans to expand and consolidate membership while rebuilding the party in Penang.

"One of the ideas is to provide a more flexible structure by opening cyber branches so that Malaysians overseas can also participate in the party," he said.

from thestar.com.my - 25 May 2008

S'pore Takes Pulau Batu Puteh, M'sia Gets Middle Rocks.

THE HAGUE: The International Court of Justice has ruled that Singapore has sovereignty over Pulau Batu Puteh while Malaysia owns Middle Rocks.

As for the South Ledge, the ICJ ruled that it belongs to the state in whose territorial waters it is located.

ICJ vice-president, Awn Shawkat Al-Khasawneh read out the judgment, which was carried live over RTM1 Friday.

Pulau Batu Putih, which Singapore calls Pedra Branca, an isle no larger than half a football field, is about 14.3km from Tanjung Penyusop in Johor and 46.3km from Singapore.

Middle Rocks is about half a nautical mile from Pulau Batu Putih and 1.7 nautical miles from South Ledge.

The 17-member bench heard oral arguments from Malaysia and Singapore between Nov 16 and 23 last year.

The judgment ends the 28-year old territorial dispute between Malaysia and Singapore and both countries had earlier pledged to abide by the decision of the ICJ that is final and not subject to appeal.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim described the judgment as a "win-win" situation. He said the status quo remained although Singapore has sovereignty over Pulau Batu Puteh and Malaysia over Middle Rocks.

More: International Court of Justice official press release on the judgement

from thestar.com.my - 23 May 2008

School Uniform Sexy, Says Group.

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian group condemned the uniform worn by girls at government schools, saying it encouraged rape and pre-marital sex.

“The white blouse is too transparent for girls and it becomes a source of attraction,” National Islamic Students Association of Malaysia vice-president Munirah Bahari said in a statement.

“It becomes a distraction to men, who are drawn to it, whether or not they like looking at it,” she said, calling for a review of uniform policy so that it did not violate Islamic ideals.

In multicultural Malaysia, home to majority-Muslim Malays as well as ethnic Chinese and Indians, female students at government schools have a choice of wearing a white blouse with a knee-length skirt or pinafore.

They may also wear a “baju kurung” and a headscarf is optional for Malay students.

Munirah said that “covering up” according to Islamic precepts was important to fend off social ills, including “rape, sexual harassment and even premarital sex.”

“This leads to babies born out of wedlock and, to an extent, even prostitution,” she said.

“Decent clothes which are not revealing can prevent and protect women from any untoward situations,” she said, suggesting that girls wear a blouse of a different colour or with an undergarment.

However, the girls themselves also came in for criticism, with the association saying that some used the white blouse to lure men.

“This is the source of the problem, where we can see that schoolgirls themselves are capable of using this to attract men to them,” Munirah said.

“This could see them getting molested, having premarital sex and all sorts of things.” – AFP

from thestar.com.my - 22 May 2008

S'gor Sultan Concerned Over Previous ADUNs' Spending.

SHAH ALAM: The Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has expressed grave concern over the issue of previous state administration assemblymen spending their RM27mil allocation for this year in a matter of months.

“I view seriously the spending of the allocation for assemblymen in the first two months of this year.

“Efforts to improve efficacy of the state will be meaningless if wastage or inappropriate spending goes on,” he said during his speech at the opening of 12th state legislative assembly here on Wednesday.

He said efficiency in managing finances was crucial to maximising the state’s income so it could roll out more benefits for the people.

On April 15, Selangor executive councillor Ronnie Liu was quoted as saying that the 54 Barisan Nasional assemblymen in the previous state administration finished their combined annual allocation of RM27mil for 2008 in the first 50 days of the year.

The Sultan also said he wanted more aggressive efforts and for rules to be relaxed, to attract more foreign and Malaysian investors to the state.

He said the state government should seek improvements in the manufacturing, services, tourism and agriculture sectors, and also promote small and medium scale industries.

Sultan Sharafuddin said he also hoped the state government would continue to emphasise on holistic rather than examination-orientated education and increase vocational courses for those with SPM and STPM qualifications.

The Sultan hoped to see no hardcore poor in the state by the end this year and reminded the state government to continue to help the poor, regardless of race.

On development projects, he called for an end to development on Level 3 and 4 highlands, as well as the clearing of jungles and open burning, adding that he wanted at least 30% of green areas retained in Selangor.

Sultan Sharafuddin also expressed concern over the rising crime rate in the state.

from thestar.com.my - 21 May 2008

Mahathir’s Decision A Blessing, Says Musa.

KUALA LUMPUR: The decision of former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to quit Umno is upsetting but it may actually be a blessing in disguise because a "thorn in the flesh" has been removed from the party, said his former deputy Tun Musa Hitam.

“The news of Dr Mahathir’s decision is indeed upsetting, especially now when Umno is facing challenging times,” said Musa in a press statement.

“However, Umno members should accept his decision calmly and with an open mind,” Musa added.

He felt that the Umno leadership should instead focus on accepting the fact that the party was no longer as powerful as it used to be. Furthermore, Umno is not as widely accepted, especially by the Malays, as it once was.

The Umno leaders should also accept that the concept of “Mahathirism” is outdated. They instead should return to the concept of “Bersih, cekap, amanah” which was positively received by the nation in the 1980s.

Party members ought to reflect on recent events. Musa felt that Umno has strayed from its purpose and should take this opportunity to return to its roots.

“Umno is a party which is firmly grounded and does not forget to realise its promises to the people,” he said.

Umno veteran and stalwart Tan Sri Aziz Tapa, 85, said that he was shocked at the news and was lost for words.

“How can it be when he (Mahathir) says that he loves Umno? I met him only few days ago in Johor and everything seemed okay. What he is doing is not right,” he said when contacted here yesterday.

Umno supreme council member Tan Sri Rahim Thamby Chik also could not come to terms with the news.

“It's shocking news to me. If true, then I would say that it is an interesting yet tragic development for the party,” he said yesterday.

However, both men said they were unable to comment much on the matter until a clearer picture emerged.

from thestar.com.my - 20th May 2008