Zeti and Jomo appointed to UN taskforce

Published: Sunday November 16, 2008 MYT 4:57:00 PMUpdated: Sunday November 16, 2008 MYT 5:02:07 PM
Zeti and Jomo appointed to UN taskforce
By JOSEPH CHIN

PETALING JAYA: Bank Negara Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz and Malaysian economist Jomo Kwame Sundaram have been appointed members of a high-level United Nations taskforce that would examine possible reforms of the global financial system.
The taskforce was formed as a result of the current global economic turmoil.
The Commission of Experts on Reforms of the International Monetary and Financial System would also look into the possible reform of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, the United Nations said in a statement.
The commission would also suggest measures which member states could take to secure a more stable global economic order.
Former World Bank chief economist Joseph Stiglitz, who won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2001, will chair the commission.
Other members include Jean-Paul Fitoussi, professor of economics at the Institute d’Etudes Politiques de Paris in France; Avinash Persaud of Barbados, who is chairman of Intelligence Capital Ltd, and Yaga Venugopal Reddy, former governor of India’s Reserve Bank.
Other members of the panel are Japan’s Eisuke Sakakibara, who is professor at Waseda University in Tokyo; Chukwuma Soludo, the Governor of Nigeria’s Central Bank; and China’s Yu Yongding, the director of the Institute of World Economics and Politics.
Jomo, a former Universiti Malaya lecturer, is currently the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs’ assistant secretary-general for economic development.
UN General Assembly president Miguel D’Escoto, who announced the formation of the panel last month, had noted that a coordinated effort at the global level was needed to resolve the current turmoil in the financial system.

MALAYA, LAND OF IMMIGRANTS... THEREFORE, TIME FOR NEO 'BUMIPUTERA-ISM'

Malaya, land of immigrants... therefore, time for neo 'bumiputera-ism'

Posted by Erin
Sunday, 16 November 2008 17:00
… kini kita cuma tinggal kuasayang akan menentukan bangsahasil mengalir, ke tangan yang lainpribumi merintih sendiri…
Azly Rahmanhttp://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/
My loose translation of this 1980s propaganda song by the Biro Tata Negara reads:"… political power is what we are only left withone that will determine the fate of our nationwealth of this nation flows into the hands of otherssons and daughters of the soil suffer in solace..."I do not think we have a clear understanding of what the lyrics means. I doubt if the songwriter even understand what a 'people's history of Malaya' means. But propaganda songs will remain as propaganda materials shoved into the bright minds of Malay youth and civil servants so that they may go into trance and speak in tongues.History is a complex syntagmatic pattern of interplay between technology, ideology, culture, inscription and institutionalisation not easily reduced to simplistic lyrics as such sung to the tune of pre-war German-nationalistic-sounding compositions.History is about the complex evolution of the ruling class who owns the technologies of control. As Marx would say, at every epoch it is the history of those who own the means of production that will be written and rewritten. The winners write history, the losers write poetry or study anthropology.Back to the lyrics. After 51 years of independence, who is suffering in Malaysia? Who has become wealthy? Who has evolved into robber barons?Language of power and ideology is at play in those lyrics. The definition of 'bumiputera' is at play. It has become a problematic word in this age of deconstructionism; an age wherein as the poet WB Yeats said, "the centre cannot hold".Rock musicians will recall the Scorpions' famous song 'Winds of Change' to serenade the fall of the Berlin Wall and the beginning of the breakdown of the Soviet Empire. We have to face the 'wrath' of the word.Process of rebirthThere is an old Malay practice in Johor of renaming a child 'Buang' if his given name does not 'suit' him. My grand-uncle who passed away in the early 1970s had 'Buang' as a name. His old name did not suit him. He was often sick when he was a child 'carrying' his old name. Buang means 'discard'. I would call it with a more noble word 'reconceptualisation', so that we may now talk about the 'reconceptualisation of bumiputera-ism'.Several semesters ago, when I was lecturing an undergraduate class in African philosophy, using Chinhua Achebe's novel 'Things Fall Apart', I began to understand how similar my grand-uncle's predicament is with that of the main character , Okonkwo, of that great African novel. 'The Broadway play The Lion King' explained the concept even better.The name 'bumiputera' has to undergo 'reconceptualisation'. The Indonesians had their process of 'Buang-isation' perhaps as Bung Karno (Soekarno) had envisioned. It has to undergo 'rebirth' or karma, as the Hindus would say.We indulge in this ritual called 'election', another problematic word, commissioned to be executed 'fairly'. When we are done with the general election, when we have shaken up the illusionary foundation of race that define 'bumiputera-ism', when we have begun to realise that it id the unseen hands of local and international corporate-crony-crypto-conspicuous-consuming capitalist class that is corrupting our material, emotional, ideological and spiritual landscape, we will start our post-mortem session on this process of 'Buang-isation' or 'reconceptualisation' of this idea of 'bumiputera-ism'.But the present regime cannot perform this process of Malaysian 'divining' and 'discarding'. It cannot conduct this 'Buang-isation' ceremony because it no longer possess a good spiritual core. Its "vegetative soul", as the Islamic philosopher Professor Syed Naguib Alatas would call it, is too calloused with the carcinogens of corruption that its "rational soul" is forever lost and transported into the yuga (spiritual age) of this materially corrupt world - the kali yuga.The ceremony must be performed by a group of philosopher-rulers whose idealism lies in the establishment of a 'republic of virtue'; one that drives its economic foundation from the accumulation of 'spiritual and metaphysical' rather than the material capital. 'Das Kapital' of the spiritual accumulation of wealth will be the product of this divination. Georg Hegel would agree with this idea of spiritual revolution. It cannot be performed by investment bankers-cum-politicians.Names connote and denote something. Words, Pinker or Lacan or any of the bio-semioticians/linguistic anthropologists would say, carry metaphors and manifestations of history, material, power, knowledge and ideology. Worse still these words become institutions and become institutionalised into architectures of power and control.Writers such as Lewis Mumford and Jacques Ellul have analysed this phenomena of architectures of power as these structure relate to the nature of Man within the context of the language in which he/she is situated.'Bumiputera' is one such word. A problematic word. A word that assumes race and religion as one. To say that a Malay is generally a Muslim and hence a 'bumiputera' and therefore have special rights and privileges is an imprecise way of explaining a concept. It is an old-school approach to defining that word.We must find ways to enrich the concept better so that it will become inclusive. Who toils for the soil? Labour, more than language, seems to be more a more linguistically just way to look at the definition of bumiputera and how we will go about the 'Buangi-sation' process.We need a premise for this process though. Let's begin with this phrase: "We hold these truths to be self-evident and Divine-ly sanctioned that All Malaysians are created equal and that they are endowed by their Creator the inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, happiness, justice and social equality… and we shall resoundingly declare that from now on we will be constructed as equal and be called 'the new bumiputera'...Sounds like a Rousseauin, Lockean, and Jeffersonian ideal locked in one, with a Malaysian ethos as its foundation. Sounds like what the Quran, Bible, Bhagavad Gita, Sutras, Puranas, Tao Te' Chng , Granth Sahib and Tibetan Book of the Dead would advocate.That can be our premise for this radical change. Now the second stage of the 'Buang-isation' process can begin.Critique the ideologyWe must do something different to ourselves if we are to move to the next level of evolution as Malaysians.Let us reconstruct the old concept of 'bumiputera' so that we will have a better foundation in preparation for a redefinition in the Federal Constituition - so that the constitution can now protect all rather that the few. Isn't democracy for the powerful few only good for plutocracy?Yes - who is a 'bumiputera'? After 51 years this term should have evolved and changed. The base and superstructure, the ideology and material foundation, and the body and spirit of this nation-state called Malaysia have changed.The old definition has run its course. It is fine to see this as the right time to change. We must remember that words get refined and redefined in the course of history. Ask any linguist in Universiti Malaya, Universiti Sains Malaysia, or even Universiti Utara Malaysia.Words like democracy, freedom, justice and equality get reconceptualised after every social revolution. Words like Malays, Indians, Chinese, East and West Malaysians used as classification systems are good during the colonial period and in the early years of independence. They have lost their connotative and denotative power as we celebrated our 51st. year of independence.Language is reality - words become flesh, inscriptions become institutions.Redefine what 'bumiputera' means, so that we will not be forced to sing more propaganda songs.After 51 years of Merdeka, aren't we all bumiputera now? Is not Malaya a land of immigrants whose bounty and beauty is to be shared by many whose grandfathers toiled on it for centuries?Ah.... we still have not understood the philosophy of history. We are not ready to design a blue ocean strategy.

UMNO – WHAT A FINE MESS YOU'RE IN

Umno – What A Fine Mess You're In

Posted by St Low
Sunday, 16 November 2008 10:15
Now that the Umno divisional meetings are over. And we now know who's fighting who for what in 9 March. Things will get more intense. In other words will get worst.
Surely many of us must have heard about all this and will surely be hearing more as March draw nearer.
We hear of Umno folks asking big money to nominate candidates for national level party poll. Candidates paying big money to get voted even at divisional level. All kinds of tactics used to buy support. Threats and intimidation being used to stop nominations. Candidates prevented from meeting potential voters. Again threat, intimidation are used with "persuasive" techniques thrown in. Instructions are given on who to support and who not to. And many more. It's all happening now. And can only get worse as the national level party election in March gets nearer.
Lies and wild accusations? And just who's making such "vicious remarks" against the party proclaimed as the backbone of the Barisan Nasional? Undesirable elements? Irresponsible bloggers? Heck no. It's Umno leaders themselves who are spilling the beans. And they are saying it in the open. On record.
Browse the local papers and you will read about Khairy Jamaluddin talking of being victim of what he call "politics of demonisation". And who's behind the "demonisation"?" I think it's obvious they are coming from indie (Umno)", he told an old friend of mine Zainal Epi who now writes for The Malay Mail.
Before this his opponent for the Pemuda chief post Mukriz Mahathir said he was facing difficulties to meet Umno grassroot to campaign. Apparently referring to what can be termed as "roadblocks". Umno folks prevented by Umno folks from meeting him, an Umno man.
We have read also about Muhamad Mohamad Taib revealing "dirty tricks" had been used to deprive him of nominations for the post of deputy Umno president. He said he had been "victimised" by "certain quarters". By "certain quarters' he meant people in Umno.
"There were some places where they (delegates at Umno divisional meetings delegates ) were threatened. After they had nominated a person and that was seconded, nomination was closed right away," Muhamad was reported to have said.
But Ruhanie Ahmad, former strongman of Musa Hitam and still active in Umno have another story to tell. In his blog, Ron as he is popularly known , wrote about "talk" among Umno members of "kuasa ghaib" (unseen forces) instructing certain Umno divisions to nominate Muhamad and Ali Rustam for the deputy presidency "to prevent Muhyiddin Yassin from winning uncontested". (Incidently Ruhanie did not get a chance to bid for a supreme council seat ,falling five short of the required 10 nominations).
Azalina Othman Said, who is eyeing a shot at the Wanita Umno deputy chief post also have interesting things to tell. " My journey is very difficult. I was informed by my campaigners that Wanita Umno divisions have received calls to block nominations for me", she was quoted by The Star recently.
And she went on to say : "I am not hopeful ( of getting the 29 nominations required) because I accept the fact that this is the culture of Wanita Umno". Blocking nominations a culture of Wanita Umno? The norm? A few weeks after saying she was not hopeful, Azalina's 'fear' was realised. She failed to qualify for the deputy Wanita chief contest, securing only 21 nominations.
Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen, chairman of the Umno disciplinary board admitted "money politics (read corruption) has gone out of hand." But said the board have indentified candidates who have abused their power and practised money politics.
If all that are revealed in the open, imagine what more is happening in the party which can only be said behind closed doors and "off the record". What more with many "wars" between the warlords at all levels of Umno. The party, to say the least, is in a mess.
But an aide of Muhamad Mohamad Taib told me that all this "hoo haa" is because of the March election and will "quieten down after that".
Yes, but after all the expose, how do Umno face the people ,Malays and non Malays alike, come the next general election? And say "trust us to safeguard your interests "when the rakyat have been told by Umno itself that the party is capable of doing nasty things to it's own kind?
Still an Umno loyalist tells me the "open talk" is proof of the party being honest and "telus' ( transparent). A party not afraid of admitting it got skeletons in it's closet. So said the Umno loyalist. But the problems are not new. We have heard of money politics and dirty tactics in Umno before. Acknowledging there's a problem is one thing. Solving it is another. There have been effort and attempt of course. But without success. Still Umno have carried all the "dirty baggage" before to face previous elections and somehow "successfully". Well, with the 08/03/08 polls being the exception.
So does Umno really want to rid itself of all it's dirty linen? Does the party have the will to clean itself up? Can Umno boleh? (By MOHSIN ABDULLAH/ MySinchew)
(He is an Editor in Chief for News and Current Affairs of Ntv7 and 8TV/ MySinchew)
Comments (10)
...written by michael chick, November 16, 2008 10:22:54
UMNO brought in on themselves. Send them in for whipping. Fatwah them for Corruption!!
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Votes: +38
...written by ahmadneil, November 16, 2008 10:25:34
This racist party is doomed.Money politics added another ton of C4 to it.
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Votes: +16
...written by Lembing, November 16, 2008 10:35:21
UMNO leaders are not capable of solving its own election messes for the past 2 decades and that's why Malaysian's rampant corruptions will continue. Its leaders are only capable of setting up middleman's companies to siphon (steal is a better word) billions of government funds in government projects.
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Votes: +16
...written by Fair n Square, November 16, 2008 10:43:56
It boils down to PRINCEIPAL Question: What is the real & actual reason to join UMNO? To serve the party or to make $$$? It is obvious that it is the latter!!! So, UMNO has been attracting the wrong members all these while- one that wants to make $$$ in UMNO So, how to eliminate the $$$ politics when practically everyone, right from the bottom to the top have their hands in the pie!!!
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Votes: +15
...written by yy88, November 16, 2008 10:56:07
Does the UMNO Displinary Board even exist? With so much accusations and proofs in the open by "leaders with integrity", yet these toothless tigers keep roaring with their mouth shut, or more like the cows mooing away.
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Votes: +8
...written by loosecannon, November 16, 2008 11:05:37
Looks like they are using the same dirty tricks they used in general elections. Bribes, underhand tactics, lies, back-stabbing etc. Some things just never change do they? I say let them slaughter each other. Just sit back and enjoy the circus.
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Votes: +8
...written by cruzeiro, November 16, 2008 11:44:00
They can twist and turn all they want. They can play all the word and mind games. They can make all the denials that they are good for. The Toyo's statement that "poltical money" isn't "money politics" should be good enough for all to know what's going on, and what "umno is all about!
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Votes: +12
...written by sonofmalaysia, November 16, 2008 13:56:35
MAhashit head had brought this disaster and great shame upon Malaysia !! Because of his policies, the dominanant political party only attracted crooks into the party and these crooks are ruling the country. Look at all the mountain high shit now, the lanuns are getting paid by the Rakyat, yet they are not working for the benefit of the country, instead they are busy engaging in all sort of useless and sordid affairs, worst , all are scheming to steal and plunder more and more. Such was the treacherous and heinous crime of MAhashit head. !!
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Votes: +8
...written by asguard, November 16, 2008 14:30:43
UMNO is totally screw-up ...and they will screw -up more... what else can you say about them.... ?
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Votes: +5
...written by Lim Lim, November 16, 2008 17:51:41
come on guys,nothing to fuss about!!for decades,this racist party hav been not only doing vote buying for the party election or more appropriately 'tender',it is out in the open that they hav been buying votes to get voted during general elections too!!so,what's new ???

MALAYSIAN UNIVERSITIES LOSING OUT TO THAILAND, INDONESIA AND PHILIPPINES

Malaysian universities losing out to Thailand Indonesia and Philippines

Posted by kasee
Sunday, 16 November 2008 11:53

Malaysia is losing out in the unrelenting battle for international competitiveness among nations, with Malaysian universities even losing out to universities in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines – something completely unthinkable in the first three decades of our nationhood.
For the second consecutive year, Malaysia had fallen completely out of the list of the world's Top 200 Universities this year in the 2008 Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) - Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings.
The national shame of Malaysia falling completely out of the list of the world's Top 200 Universities this year in the 2008 Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) - Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings is being compounded by the ignominy of Malaysian universities losing out not only to top universities in Singapore, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea but also to other South East Asian nations like Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines.
The 2008 THES-QS rankings should be a "wake-up" call to the Higher Education Minister and the Cabinet of the advanced crisis of higher education in Malaysia, but I have given up hope that the Barisan Nasional government is capable of "waking up"!
For the second consecutive year, there is not only not a single university in the 2008 THES-QS Top 200 Universities list, there is also not a single university in the separate ranking of Top 100 Universities for five subject areas – Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities; Life Sciences and Biomedicine; and Technology.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Universiti Malaya (UM) were in the 2006 Ranking, placed No. 185 and 192 respectively. UKM plunged to 309 last year and improved to 250 this year while UM fell to 246 last year improving slightly to 230 this year – but both remain outside the Top 200 Universities ranking.
The government named Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) as the Apex University but it has a dismal international rankings after being included once in the Top 200 Universities list – No. 111 in 2004, No. 326 in 2005, 277 in 2006, No. 307 in 2007 and No. 313 in 2008.
It is both sad and pathetic that our Apex University, the USM, at No. 313 ranking, is not only left far behind in South East Asia by Singapore (National University of Singapore No. 30 and Nanyang Technological University No. 77) but also by Thailand (Chulalongkorn University No. 166), Indonesia (University of Indonesia No. 287) and the Philippines (Ateneo de Manila University No. 254 and University of the Philippines No. 276).
Until last year, Malaysian universities were all ranked well ahead of the Indonesian universities, but in the 2008 THES-QS World Top Universities ranking, Indonesian universities are catching up with Malaysian universities in leaps and bounds.
Malaysia is losing out in the unrelenting battle for international competitiveness among nations, with Malaysian universities even losing out to universities in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines – something completely unthinkable in the first three decades of our nationhood.
For the second consecutive year, Malaysia had fallen completely out of the list of the world’s Top 200 Universities this year in the 2008 Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) - Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings.
The national shame of Malaysia falling completely out of the list of the world’s Top 200 Universities this year in the 2008 Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) - Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings is being compounded by the ignominy of Malaysian universities losing out not only to top universities in Singapore, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea but also to other South East Asian nations like Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines.
The 2008 THES-QS rankings should be a “wake-up” call to the Higher Education Minister and the Cabinet of the advanced crisis of higher education in Malaysia, but I have given up hope that the Barisan Nasional government is capable of “waking up”!
For the second consecutive year, there is not only not a single university in the 2008 THES-QS Top 200 Universities list, there is also not a single university in the separate ranking of Top 100 Universities for five subject areas – Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities; Life Sciences and Biomedicine; and Technology.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Universiti Malaya (UM) were in the 2006 Ranking, placed No. 185 and 192 respectively. UKM plunged to 309 last year and improved to 250 this year while UM fell to 246 last year improving slightly to 230 this year – but both remain outside the Top 200 Universities ranking.
The government named Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) as the Apex University but it has a dismal international rankings after being included once in the Top 200 Universities list – No. 111 in 2004, No. 326 in 2005, 277 in 2006, No. 307 in 2007 and No. 313 in 2008.
It is both sad and pathetic that our Apex University, the USM, at No. 313 ranking, is not only left far behind in South East Asia by Singapore (National University of Singapore No. 30 and Nanyang Technological University No. 77) but also by Thailand (Chulalongkorn University No. 166), Indonesia (University of Indonesia No. 287) and the Philippines (Ateneo de Manila University No. 254 and University of the Philippines No. 276).
Until last year, Malaysian universities were all ranked well ahead of the Indonesian universities, but in the 2008 THES-QS World Top Universities ranking, Indonesian universities are catching up with Malaysian universities in leaps and bounds.
Last year for instance, the three top Indonesian universities were all ranked behind the Malaysian universities – University of Indonesia (UI) No. 395, Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) No. 369 and Gajah Mada University (UGM) No. 360, as compared to the three top Malaysian universities University of Malaya (UM) No. 246, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) No. 307 and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) No. 309.
In this year’s ranking, University of Indonesia has improved by 108 placings to be ranked as No. 287, Bandung Institute of Technology No. 315 and Gajah Mada University No. 316.This means that in the 2008 THES-QS Ranking, University of Indonesia (No. 287) has narrowed the gap with University of Malaya (No. 230) and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (No. 250), while ahead of Malaysia’s apex university, Universiti Sains Malaysia (No. 313), University Putra Malaysia (No. 320) and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (No. 356).
The performance of Malaysian universities in the 2008 THES-QS Top 100 lists for the five subject areas are even more dismal, with not a single university making into the five lists for two years consecutively although Malaysia secured four of these 500 prestigious slots in 2006 - University of Malaya was ranked 49 in Social Sciences and 95 in Natural Sciences, UKM was placed No. 62 in Natural Sciences, and University Sains Malaysia placed No. 96 for Life Sciences and Biomedicine.
For the 2008 THES-QS ranking, National University of Singapore (NUS) (No. 30) is ranked among the Top 100 Universities for all the five categories while Nanyang Technological University (NTU) (No. 77) is ranked among the Top 100 universities for three categories, viz: Technology (No. 26); Life Sciences & Biomedicine (No. 78) and Social Sciences (No.89).
NUS is ranked No. 11 for Technology; No. 17 for Life Sciences and Biomedicine, No. 31 for Natural Sciences; No. 18 for Social Sciences and No. 30 for Arts & Humanities.
NTU is ranked No. 25 for Engineering & IT; No. 99 for Natural Sciences and No. 88 for Social Sciences.
Even Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University is rated among the Top 100 Universities for two categories – Technology (No. 86) and Social Sciences (No. 72); Indonesia’s Bandung Institute of Technology rated as among the Top 100 universities for Technology (No. 90) and two universities in Philippines ranked among the Top 100 Universities for Arts and Humanities - Ateneo de Manila University (No. 79) and University of the Philippines (No. 82).
After being placed in four of the 500 slots in the five Top 100 Universities for the five subjects in 2006, Malaysian universities has been conspicuously missing fromall the five listings of Top 100 Universities for the five categories for the past two years.
There are over 30 “elite of elite” universities, which are not only ranked in the Top 200 Universities list, but also ranked in every one of the five Top 100 subject list.
Universities in the Asia-Pacific region which are in this exclusive “elite of elites” list are:
(Ranking in Top 200 Universities in bracket)
Australia
ANU (16)Sydney U (37)Melbourne U (38)Queensland U (43)New South Wales U (45)Monash U (47)
Japan
Tokyo U (19)
Hong Kong
Hong Kong U (26)
Singapore
National University of Singapore (30)
China
Peking U (50)Tsinghua U (56)
South Korea
Seoul National U (50)
Why is Malaysia not in this “elite of elites” listing and when will Malaysia have a university which will have all-round excellence as to be included in this list?
Speech at the Tawau DAP Thousand-People “Towards A New Era” dinner at Lau Gek Poh Memorial Hall, Tawau on Saturday, 15th November 2008 at 9 pm)
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33 Responses to “Malaysian universities losing out to Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines”
1. Bigjoe Says: Today at 08: 57.50 (9 hours ago)
Ah! But 10 years from now, we will still be better than University of Zimbabwe, university of Sudan AND university of Taliban!!!
2. tpk203 Says: Today at 09: 00.45 (9 hours ago)
We don’t care about how the world looks at us. We just want to be “syiok sendiri”! The old education system is rotting.
3. tpk203 Says: Today at 09: 01.59 (9 hours ago)
Sorry, I mean the “whole” education system.
4. madmix Says: Today at 09: 26.50 (9 hours ago)
Eh who says our unis no standard. Look at the large number of gold medals won by our Professor datuk doctors at numerous expos all over Europe. Even MIT, Oxford and Cambridge kalah!
5. max2811 Says: Today at 09: 42.07 (8 hours ago)
UMNO doesn’t care if Msian unis aren’t ranked at all. They keep putting lesser-qualified students to be tutored by under-qualified lecturers. Don’t complain too much, Mr Lim. Or you will find yourself arrested for insulting the social contract and put under ISA.
Let the country rot. Rot until they come to the better part of the citizens for help. Till they willingly forego their grasp on the country’s coffers. Till the day they say we are all Msians from the bottom of their hearts.
6. ktteokt Says: Today at 09: 55.41 (8 hours ago)
Like I have been saying all along, it takes one community to admit “inferiority” if another community wants to achieve “superiority”! This Ketuanan stuff is bogging their heads and if they still want to maintain this type of attitude, thinking they are more “superior”, then Malaysia is DOOMED forever!
Couldn’t they see that despite providing all these advantages to the Bumiputras, the non-Bumiputras have still thrived on and became more prosperous all these years since the implementation of the NEP? They should ask themselves how the non-Bumis did it and then turn to ask themselves again why the Bumis cannot! Like the saying goes, “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going”. This is exactly what the Chinese have done. A famous Chinese saying, “Suffer the greatest sufferings so that one may become a man of man”.
In fact, looking at my argument above, by maintaining the NEP and prolonging it, will be suicidal for the Bumis. Whilst the non-Bumis advance under such unfavourable conditions, the Bumis themselves would deteriorate relatively! By offering them all the perks and special concessions, they have grown to become jellyfishes and parasites and unless Malaysia is ready to close its doors to the international community, these people will never make it in the global scene! How can they compete with others in the open market when they have been provided with “handicap” all along?????
7. Cinapek Says: Today at 10: 27.14 (8 hours ago)
“Apex University” is a “shiok sendiri” label awarded much like many of the honorary doctorates dished out by the local univerisites to dubious recipients. Because they could not get genuine recognition elsewhere, they create such awards as self consolation.
All these continous denial of the THES ranking by the relevant authorities as being relevant to Malaysia is not going to bring the rankings up. Similar to their mindset to create the matriculation as equal to the STPM as another standard for university entrance in Malaysia when they fail to compete, they created the APEX label to satisfy thier bruised egos of being ranked lower and lower year by year.
I have an interesting observation of Gajah Mada university. In the late seventies, a bumi colleague took his HSC (the forerunner of the STPM) and his results were not good enough to be accepted by any of the local Malaysian universties, whose international standings were then unquestionable. But he got himself accepted into Gajah Mada to do medicine. If such a university could now rank near to the Malaysian universities, it speaks volumes how much their quality has fallen.
8. kowtim Says: Today at 10: 54.45 (7 hours ago)
Never Mind, we have the best UPSR, PMR, SPM and STP results every year. Last year one bloke had 21 distinctions and this year it will be 25. WHo said we are regressing. Our target is to win all the Nobel Prizes by 2020, after all we have th emost professors per capital.
9. Godfather Says: Today at 11: 17.51 (7 hours ago)
Aren’t we represented in the Top 300 ? C’mon Kit, be fair. We are ranked ahead of University Burkina Faso.
10. monsterball Says: Today at 11: 29.44 (7 hours ago)
When you have a government…putting out low class…yes man/woman chancellors….to make UMNO look smart…and not choose the smartest to be chancellors..what do you expect?Just look at those crooks..dressed up with false titles..with no shame at all..designed to fool the public..and belittle Malaysians.Such kind of mentalities…such kind of hypocrites…such blatant crooks…..keep playing race and religion politics…..everything and anything…will be mismanaged by them.The problem is….their race and religion politics…still alive and ruling.So…vote them out…or be prepared for being worst than Vietnam and Cambodia soon.
11. monsterball Says: Today at 11: 36.22 (6 hours ago)
UMNO knows they are loosing Malaysians confidences.So here comes few corrections and goodies….to try win back votes.Just look back..more than 50 years….and they are talking like Malaysia was formed…..25 years ago.Worst of all…they never admit their mistakes..keep denying…denying.If next election…UMNO still rule…then Malaysians deserve to be disunited….unhappy… and disloyal.YOU ASKED FOR IT!!
12. Godfather Says: Today at 11: 43.50 (6 hours ago)
It wasn’t that long ago that life in Bolehland was so much more peaceful, without any pressure from externalities, and without any competition.
Then your ancestors came, and everything changed. Your ancestors came from India, China, Arabia and Indonesia and they started introducing the concept of competition. Your ancestors married local lasses, and claimed to represent all the locals.
We yearn for the old days where we could all squat under a coconut tree in the kampung, smoke our hand-rolled cheroot, discuss who would marry as No. 1, or No. 2 or No. 3 or No. 4. Now you folks want to push us into the fast lane and compete against our neighbours. Heck, this concept is so alien !
13. pathfinder Says: Today at 12: 11.58 (6 hours ago)
We must preserved our standards. Without doubt we are glad that USM and UM is still the top two University in the country. Even with the direct competition of the local Nottingham U, University colleges. They are nowhere to be seen in the Malaysian list. But we must be very careful not to include in those other foreign Univ. Because their sylabus is not local, therefore no doubt we are still better then them. One day if they become officially better we must either nationalised them or close them down. We can’t let those Universities better than us.
14. madmix Says: Today at 12: 31.58 (6 hours ago)
We have the best universities in the world; why? because we have the best professors. Where else in the world can you find almost every professor is held in high regard and recognized by every state and central government and accorded a datukship or tan sri title. That means they must be very good. Even Professor Stephen Hawking does not have a knighthood from QE2. Maybe we should give him one: tan Sri professor Datuk Doctor Stephen hawking. Sound good eh?
15. pulau_sibu Says: Today at 12: 53.21 (5 hours ago)
> datukship or tan sri title
it is quite likely datuk and tan sri are no longer good enough. all the professors have to be given boleh-nobel prize
16. katdog Says: Today at 13: 02.56 (5 hours ago)
Education is a key cornerstone in the advancement of any society or civilization.
Given that, what are PR’s plan’s and policies on education?
I have seen Penang put up road signs in other languages. Hmm.. doesn’t help education in the slightest. Perak wants to build a new airport. Oh yeah and they want to rename Jalan Silibin to honour a former DAP political secretary. Hmmm.. nope, doesn’t really help education as well.
So any direction from PR what they intend to do regarding education for the next 5 years? Or just keep blaming the federal government?
17. paix Says: Today at 13: 24.58 (5 hours ago)
All this can be summed up in four words - garbage in garbage out.
18. yellowkingdom Says: Today at 13: 43.57 (4 hours ago)
Not unless the government is willing to accept highly-qualified non-Bumiputera Vice-Chancellors to lead these Malaysian universities, we will ontinue to slide down the abyss of ignominy. See how shallow-minded are our government leaders and champions of communal interests react to the appointment of non-Bumi to a S’gor state development company. Unless we can accept a man for the strength of his character rather than the colour of his skin.
19. calvin_ngan Says: Today at 13: 44.46 (4 hours ago)
@katdog,
Katdog, you’re right. I’ve stressed, emailed to kit and tony pua on the setting up libraries in pakatan states, university is out of pakatan’s management, so, the best thing kit can do instead of blogging over and over again is to propose ‘a library in each town’ project… only then will the people realize that pakatan is serious about education, but my advise was not taken seriously after all these years, it won’t cost much, pour in some money, as the people to donate their unwanted books… this is a step towards better education, for the poor as well when they can’t afford revision books.
Kit, you can’t change the university’s management, the least pakatan can do is to provide well equipped libraries in every town. the people will love pakatan, only then will they realized that pakatan is not about justice, peace… its about their children’s education and future. I doubt pakatan will take up this proposal…
20. Richardqed Says: Today at 13: 53.39 (4 hours ago)
University rankings dropping is not about a lack of libraries. If you have actually paid a visit to the libraries in these universities, you will find they are too well-equipped. It is also not about towns/states having or not having libraries or good books in them. To suggest that is totally naive, and if PR were to take up this proposal, they would be stupid.
This is about the education system totally lacking in meritocracy. People get high marks and high grades for being mediocre.
Do not bother trying to set up libraries. Change the bloody government, and then only do the rest.
21. old dad Says: Today at 14: 02.57 (4 hours ago)
Whooo. Surely all our m’sia unversities can’t be that bad uncle kit. At the very least they must be the best masterbating universities in the world!! (defination; masterbation= the art of self pleasure)
22. paperlesshomework Says: Today at 14: 06.44 (4 hours ago)
Hi there everyone …be it Kit or Tony Phua or Pakatan or BN.
We are a small start up with a very big heart :>)
We have spent hundreds of thousands of ringgit to develop a tool and contents that would help everyone in the country be it Malays, Indians or Chinese or Sabahans etc.
Go to my site at http://www.paperlesshomework.com/ and study what we are doing.
We are giving all our contents and tools free to all schools in the country …or the world actually to help rural schools.
Have a look and see , if any of you guys who posted a lot about education is willing to help out. Dont NATO … act!
This project has been approved by the Ministry of Education of Malaysia…and was in the finals of one of the most prestigious contest in the world on ICT4D Stockholm Challenge 2008.
1. Tell all schools in your area or within your jurisdiction to register their schools for free.
2. If you can , help the schools to know how to download or install because we do have lots and lots of school which do not know how …serious
3. If you wish to earn some good income you can too by being our affiliate see http://www.paperlesshomework.com/Yreseller.htm
As for Pakatan…. want to help education… study our system
As for BN want to help …. do so too.
Everyone gains …no one loses. Education is beyond politics.
So if we start young … our UNIs can have better students and better ratings.
regardsAlan ( hi Tony …kee Meng’s dad)and Looi (Kit .. remember me?)
23. chiakchua Says: Today at 14: 21.58 (4 hours ago)
The ‘Malay supremacy’ which leads to the ‘divide and rule’ education policy has resulted all these shit!Its only with PR in governance with ‘Fair, Just, Equal’ Rakyat Economic Agenda that we may have some hope. UMNOputra elites are the culprit, our Malay fellow countrymen need help.
24. BoycottLocalPapers Says: Today at 14: 39.44 (3 hours ago)
I am so very very very happy that Malaysian universities are losing out to Thailand, Indonesia, and Philippines, because I didn’t get the chance to enter local public universities.
20 years ago, my SPM grade 1 was not good enough for local public universities while my Malay friends with Grade 2 were accepted.
Some of my Malay classmates with Grade 1 were given scholarship to study overseas. My SPM wasn’t good enough for diploma course.
Now, I am glad that I was rejected by local U. Working in Singapore really taught me a lot of stuff I couldn’t learn in local Universities.
25. calvin_ngan Says: Today at 14: 57.12 (3 hours ago)
@Richardqed,
with all due respect, i believe pakatan should do what it can within its power, which is in the state government. I too want a change in government, before we can do that, we have to prove to the people pakatan can rule with care.
True, the library in our unis are too well equipped, but why is it not occupied? coz we’re taught from young to shy away from libraries, malls appears to be the favorite destination, on top of that, public libraries in each district is poorly equipped (only in districts, it should be in every town), and the public transport deters people from going there. We need a proper borrowing system, the digital age changed the way we search for books and borrow them, do look into it.
The state gov must do what it can within its power, university and taking over the government is currently out of the question.
26. k1980 Says: Today at 14: 58.26 (3 hours ago)
Dontcha worry. Next year, Malaysian universities will be losing out to universities in Burkina Faso, Haiti, Somalia, East Timur and the like. They will be placed in the world’s Bottom 200 Universities where the grads can’t even string a complete sentence in simple English. And they will keep on getting gold medals from the Education Minister
27. aje Says: Today at 14: 59.51 (3 hours ago)
To tell you the truth,Malaysian universities will NEVER EVER overtake NUS or NTU in a long time to come.You know why?It is simple.Firstly their medium of instruction is in English.Secondly entry is solely based on MERIT not race or needs.For your info ,for news I always watch Channelnews asia or SBC 5.Good luck Malaysian u.
28. propheticsam Says: Today at 15: 13.53 (3 hours ago)
The rot starts right from primary and secondary schools.Twenty years ago, half of the students I taught in lower secondary managed to score at least 50 marks for a pass. Nowadays you will be lucky if 25% can manage that. Yet so many of these underachievers get selected to our locals universities. Meritocracy? That’s a laugh.To me the whole education system is rotten to the core. A complete overhaul from the bottom up is needed before we can hold our heads high again.Even if we start now it will at least be a decade before we can undo the damage done.
29. ngahc Says: Today at 15: 15.26 (3 hours ago)
What is the point of sending our children to local u? Think carefully.
30. oedipus Says: Today at 15: 26.10 (3 hours ago)
i hope pakatan takes over the government and overhaul the whole education system in this country. the current flip flop government changes education minister every 5 years and its no wonder why certain well thought out policies and plans are never carried onto fruition.
i hope if EVER the pakatan takes over in the future, just assign 1 minister on a long term basis to overhaul the system. i think uncle lim, seem to have a burden on your heart for the children and future of Malaysia?
31. Loh Says: Today at 15: 42.50 (2 hours ago)
///Malaysia is losing out in the unrelenting battle for international competitiveness among nations, with Malaysian universities even losing out to universities in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines – something completely unthinkable in the first three decades of our nationhood.///– Kit
These countries did not have to be bothered to improve the standing of their universities they beat Malaysia flat. The reason is they dio not have NEP in their countries. Unless NEP is removed, there is no way the government can do the wrong thing and hope to achieve the right results.
32. ryan123 Says: Today at 17: 33.24 (1 hour ago)
Will the UMNOputra see this as a threats? No, they would rather have a fortress to defend their own interests, rather than opting for excellency which will jeopardize their racist policies which gain them popularity votes. Why bother since kerismuddin’s son is even studying in an international school?
After years of plunging down in ranks, the minister has changed their tone that “We will try to improve to fulfill the judging criteria of THES ranking, but THES ranking itself has too much flaws. So, do not blame if we are not doing good.”
See their way of diverting the responsibilities?
33. k1980 Says: Today at 18: 09.56 (25 minutes ago)
THES ranking itself has too much flaws– the main flaw being that Malaysia universities are not allowed to have 30% allocations in the top 200 rankings, as imperative under the NEP. Once that flaw is overcome, 30% x 200 = 60 Malaysian universities will be in the THES top 200. The remaining 140 places can go to the rest of the world

Socialist Party of Malaysia: Building Human Capital and Socialism while Capitalism crumbles

Socialist Party of Malaysia: Building socialism while capitalism crumbles
By Choo Chon Kai, International Bureau, PSM
November 13, 2008 -- Kajang, Malaysia -- It was timely for the Socialist Party of Malaysia (Parti Sosialis Malaysia -- PSM) to host the ``Socialism 2008 –- Malaysia'' conference, when the world is caught in a deep crisis that is considered the worst since World War II. The conference showed that capitalism, during its 18-year term as the dominant ideology of the world, had wreaked havoc on the lives of people and the planet, and that there was an urgent need to put forward a socialist alternative.
Socialists from Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Singapore, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, Australia, Britain, Sweden, Taiwan as well as from different parts of Malaysia, gathered at New Era College, Kajang, Selangor state, during the weekend of November 7-9, 2008, to discuss and debate some of the burning issues related to the struggle against capitalism and for socialism today. The organiser chose November 7, the anniversary of the Great October Revolution, as the day for the opening rally and ``Youth Revolutionary Night''.
Five-hundred people attended the opening rally on November 7, with keynote speeches by Nasir Hashim (chairperson of the PSM), Syed Sharir (president of the Malaysian Trade Union Congress), Saraswathy (deputy chairperson of the PSM), "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-Hung (Hong Kong Legislative Council member), Francisco Nemenzo (from Laban ng Masa in the Philippines) and Colleen Bolger (from Socialist Alternative, Australia).
Speakers at the opening rally, with the theme, "Socialism in the 21st Century", spoke about the deep crisis of global capitalism and the urgent need to build socialism from below. Leung Kwok-Hung, a radical social activist who is often called "Long Hair", said in his speech, "You can call it neoliberalism, globalisation or whatever. It is merely another stage of global capitalism."
Nasir Hashim (left), chairperson of the PSM, stressed during his speech at the opening rally, "Socialists must always be prepared to grab the chance to replace capitalism when the crisis of capitalist economic crisis explodes one day."
All the representatives of the participating international groups in the forum, together with comrades in the PSM, were invited to go onto the stage and to wave their flags and banners, after the opening performance which depicted the struggle of the working class and ordinary people in Malaysia. The Internationale, the anthem of revolutionaries and working class all over the world, was sung in high spirits, on the day the October Revolution took place 91 years ago.
Following the opening rally, was the Youth Revolutionary Night, with many dramas, pantomimes, songs and dances performed by young people. There was a mixed media performance by children of Kampung Berembang about their struggle against eviction, as well as a "Malaysian Political Oscar Awards" which entertained the audiences with satirical political scenarios in Malaysia from the last year.
Such use of revolutionary and critical art and the dedication demonstrated by our young people greatly inspired the international delegates; some of whom said it has given them a lot of ideas on applying art in the same way in their home countries.
Capitalism in deep crisis
The next day, November 8, the program kick started with a session on "Crisis in Capitalism: "Financial, Food and Fuel Crisis." The chair for this session was Rajamoorthy, from Third World Network, while the speakers were Lim Mah Hui, an economist, and Mickael Von Knorring, from the Swedish Left Party.
Lim Mah Hui gave a brief yet detailed analysis on financial capitalism. He said, "Capitalism is prone to crisis. Capitalism is a highly productive system but prone to flaws –- inequality, destruction. Dominance of finance over productive capital is problematic. Financial capitalism has become even more unstable. Over the last 70 years there have been 124 banking crises -– South American, Scandinavian, Japanese. The current crisis started with the subprime. " Mickael's talk was more focused on the oil crisis and ways to overcome it.
After the first session, there was a launching of the Malay translation of Lenin by Ian Birchall. This is the first in a series of translations of the ``rebel's guide'' series of books planned by the PSM to help Malaysians understand socialism.
The second session "Climate Change -– How to Weather it?" was chaired by Nizam Mahshar, a social environmentalist, as he calls himself, from Friends of the Earth. The speakers of this session were Terry Townsend, editor of Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal and the Australian Democratic Socialist Perspective, and Jonathan Neale, a leading member of Socialist Workers Party of Britain, who is actively involved in campaigning against climate change.
Terry warned that "a 6˚C rise in temperature would mean billions of human beings will perish, with broad areas of fertile lowland swamped by rising seas and desertification." Jonathan also said, "They [governments] want to do something, but they cannot do it within their system. We have to build a global climate movement to force them to do it. We cannot build it based on sacrifice. This movement will be nothing unless we have it in USA, China, India and Asia. We cannot have a movement in Asia that's based on sacrifice. We cannot have a movement in Asia to tell people to go back and live a simple life. We have to build a movement that says we will have jobs, we will have growth and we will make poverty history." Only a socialist system driven by popular democracy and planning and not personal enrichment and consumption can alleviate the problems we have today.
Peoples' struggles around the world
The next session was on "Revolution and Counter Revolution in Latin America", chaired by Amer Hamzah, a human rights lawyer. The speakers for this interesting topic were Jorge Martin, International Secretary of Hands Off Venezuela, and Lisa Macdonald (at microphone, below right), national coordinator for Australia-Venezuela Solidarity Network.
Jorge shared the inspiring stories of the brave Latin American masses in fighting capitalism and imperialism. There's right now a major debate in Latin America to differentiate between reformist socialism and revolutionary socialism. Lisa also said, "The gains people have made in Venezuela have made an impact in the revival of mass uprising in a variety of countries. The Venezuelan revolution is unfinished and an open-ended process and threatened by the contradiction of the process."
After "travelling" to a continent far away, we returned to our own region in the session on "South East Asia –- People's Power and Betrayals". The session was chaired by K. Arumugam, a social activist, and the speakers were Giles Ji Ungpakorn, from Turn Left Thailand, and Francisco Nemenzo, from Laban ng Masa in the Philippines.
Giles raised a few crucial issues like the gap between mood and struggle, problems of alliances on the left, alliances with Islamic parties, transitional demands in a time of global economic crisis, and the need for a Marxist political organisation; while Francisco concentrated his presentation of the development and challenges faced by the Filipino left.
The fifth session on November 8 was on "Nepal under Maoists". The invited speaker from the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) was not able to make it to the forum but had sent his apologies and solidarity greetings. The speakers for this session were Farooq Tariq, from the Labour Party Pakistan (LPP), and Siritunga, from United Socialist Party of Sri Lanka. The recent developments in Nepal, a landlocked country of the Himalayas, has attracted tremendous attention and interest from socialists around the world including those in Malaysia.
Farooq spoke about the meaning of the success in Nepal and the challenges faced by CPN (M), while Siritunga talked about the problems with the Maoists. Farooq said that one of the victories of the Maoists was that they stood ordinary people against the government heavyweights in the electoral contest and they deserve credit for putting the maximum number of women in parliament. "Those already fighting on a hammer and sickle should then move forward, not backwards. It's our task to have an open mind and open eyes as socialists, and as internationalists," said Farooq.
After a long day of discussions, the second day ended with the screening of films about local and international struggles.
The way forward for the left
The third day, November 9, started with the session "Left in Coalition Politics", chaired by Koy, a social activist. Speakers for this session were Jesus Syaiful Anam, from International Marxist Tendency (IMT) Indonesia, and Jeyakumar Devaraj, central committee member of the PSM and member of parliament for Sungai Siput.
Jesus shared the experiences and debates about coalition politics in Indonesia. Kumar pointed out one of the main reasons for this topic is because the left is weak and divided. Kumar pointed out the dialectics of "success" in coalition politics, where the nature of the revolutionary party itself can change when taking part in electoral politics. Kumar outlined the principles of engagement in coalition-electoral politics – ideological clarity, democracy within the party and the avoidance of cultism. He also cautioned against elected representatives becoming too comfortable with their new positions. "Coalition politics does offer the left opportunities to spread its analysis and win over more supporters and members. But it is a doubled-edged sword which may actually result in the subversion of our aims and destruction of our party", said Kumar.
The session that followed was on "PSM – 10 Years and Beyond", chaired by Amir Muhammad, a well-known filmmaker. The speakers were Tan Jing Quee, who was a leader of Socialist Front in Singapore, and Arutchelvan (``Arul''), secretary-general of the PSM. Tan talked about the history of the left in Malaya, while Arul (left) shared the history of the PSM and challenges ahead.
Tan Jing Quee reviewed the inspiring history of the Malayan/Malaysian left, the contributions and the challenges faced. Having played a role in that great history, he spoke with passion, and sometimes with regret at current interpretations of certain events of that period.
According to Arul, there are four critical issues facing the PSM today which will determine its future path:
1. How do we build the party? Around election work or through building the class movement?
2. Welfare work/reformist versus revolutionary work.
3. Help build a two-party system or the third force, and
4. Creating a more multi-ethnic membership.
Arul also shared the three ``guiding stars'', advice from a very prominent socialist in her mid-80s:
1. Always read and understand ideology.
2. Do a lot of hard work with the people to gain their support, and
3. Never betray your members and the people at large.
The last session before the closing session was on an interesting topic – "Islam and Socialism". The session was chaired by Mashalina Hamzah, from Sisters in Islam, and the speakers were Farooq Tariq from the LPP, and Mat Sabu, vice-president of the Islamic Party (PAS) of Malaysia.
Farooq argued that religious fanatics are not anti-imperialist. Meanwhile, Mat Sabu said that Prophet Muhammad had established a welfare state in his time. Farooq said that a political leader, leading a simple life, by itself is not enough. The more important thing is what policies are you going to implement. Farooq also emphasised that "Socialism is a message of the future, religion is a message of the past. They both stand on two different ends in ideology. We must oppose religious politics but not religion."
Socialism strives on
The final session was chaired by Sivarajan, treasurer of the PSM. The line-up of speakers for the final session with the topic on "Building the Class Forces" included Nasir Hashim, chairperson of the PSM, Kohila, coordinator of the Oppressed Peoples' Network (JERIT), S.N. Rajah, an active trade unionist, Ishak Surin, a founding member of People's Party (PRM) and currently the deputy chairperson of the Bureau of Labour and Urban Pioneers in PAS, and A.J. Kattaiah, editor of the Tamil version of Malaysiakini.
After the five speakers delivered their speeches, representatives from each international organisation participating also gave their views about the way forward for socialist struggle and about the forum. Farooq Tariq (right, with Nasir Hashim) said, "You (PSM) brought together some of the internationals who would not meet each other or sit with each other in their own countries. In Labour Party Pakistan, we have Maoists and Trotskyists, ex-Maoists and ex-Trotskyists. They are all there and they call themselves socialists. We are almost the same because we want to build a party of the working class!"
Jonathan Neale also gave his comments about Socialism 2008, "I will go away very tired in my body, but I will go away with my heart singing, and with much more courage. This room is full of the spirit of struggle… I became a revolutionary in Asia. And I am not interested in a revolution in Britain that does not include a revolution in Asia… Along the struggle, you will make a lot of mistakes, but it is better to do that than to get the theory worked out and do nothing."
A three-day event filled with revolutionary passion ended with the singing of the Internationale in four languages -- Malay, Mandarin, Tamil and English. Socialism has shown its vibrancy and indomitable spirit at ``Socialism 2008 – Malaysia'', and it will continue to strengthen through mass mobilisation and rising of the working class all over the world to resist capitalism and to build a socialist world.
Long live the people! Long live socialism!

THREAT TO BAN YOGA TESTS BOUNDARY OF TOLERANCE

Threat to ban yoga tests boundary of tolerance

Posted by St Low
Sunday, 16 November 2008 10:11
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 16 - Norien Hassan is used to pushing the limits in her yoga studio. What she did not expect was to test religious as well as physical boundaries.
The 37-year-old began practising yoga in Kuala Lumpur after she heard it could help women conceive.
Three years later, she is a proud married mother of two who now practises yoga up to six days a week as she trains to become an instructor.
Ms Norien, a devout Muslim, never imagined the exercise could conflict with her Islamic beliefs.
"Yoga is a form of exercise. There's many benefits to it," she said. "I don't see it as being religious. I don't see how it would interfere."
Others disagree. Malaysia's National Fatwa Council, one of the country's highest Islamic bodies, is considering banning yoga for Muslims after a university lecturer advised people to stop practising it for fear that it could deviate from the teachings of Islam.
The proposal follows a number of fatwas, or decrees, that have sparked the ire of women's groups, who argue that the fatwas unfairly discriminate against Muslim women.
Sisters in Islam, which promotes the rights of Muslim women, has become increasingly concerned by the Malaysian authorities' "continuing sexist approach".
In June, the Kota Bharu Municipal Council in the country's northeast issued a directive asking Muslim women not to wear heavy lipstick or high heels.
In recent years, the National Fatwa Council has issued rulings forbidding Muslims from using botox and women from entering beauty pageants.
Last month it banned women from exhibiting tomboy behaviour, which it defined as behaving or dressing like men or taking part in lesbian sex.
Council chairman Abdul Shukor Husin told the Bernama news agency that many young women admired the way men dressed, behaved and socialised, which violated human nature and denied their femininity.
"It is unacceptable to see women who love the male lifestyle, including dressing in the clothes men wear," he said.
"It becomes clearer when they start to have sex with someone of the same gender, that is woman and woman.
"In view of this, the National Fatwa Council has taken the stand that such acts are forbidden and banned."
Norhayati Kaprawi of Sisters in Islam said the regulations that dictated women's behaviour were part of a regressive trend towards wanting to control women's lives and define identity and lifestyle within a narrow perspective.
She believes any rulings which discriminate against particular groups damage religious and racial harmony, and "gender justice".
"Sisters in Islam wishes that our National Fatwa Council focuses its effort on upholding justice, equality, civil liberty and democracy in Malaysia. These are all intrinsic values in Islam," she said.
"We have serious national issues that need special attention by our political and religious leaders, such as money politics in political parties, draconian laws like the Internal Security Act, a high crime rate, domestic violence and cases of non-payment of child maintenance by errant fathers. These should be the main focus."
Last week, a protest in Kuala Lumpur denounced the council's fatwa on tomboys.
The protesters claimed that Muslim women should have the right to express themselves and dress the way they wanted, the Star newspaper reported.
Ms Norhayati said the fatwa could lead to arbitrary arrests and undue harassment.
She questioned how the authorities would define a tomboy.
"Many Malaysian women sport short hair, wear pants, shirts and don't wear makeup. It is culturally normal for Malaysian women to be body-comfortable with each other - many women hold hands, hug their friends or kiss their friends on the cheek," she said.
"How does one define 'manly' behaviour? Not gentle and demure enough?
"Talking too loudly? Who would and how could one define and determine whether a woman is a tomboy or a lesbian?"
Ms Norhayati said the fatwas unfairly targeted women. She said in 2000, a female singer was charged with "insulting Islam" after performing while alcohol was served, while the male members of the band were not charged.
Islamic legal expert Ruzman Mohammad Noor said rulings issued by the National Fatwa Council had to be accepted and gazetted by individual states.
The laws were then enforced by the states' Islamic affairs departments. Dr Ruzman, of the University of Malaya's Academy of Islamic Studies, said the maximum penalty for breaking a religious ruling was three years' imprisonment, a RM5,000 fine and six strokes of the rotan, or cane.
About 60 per cent of Malaysia's 27 million people are ethnic Malay Muslims. The fatwa council's rulings do not affect non-Muslims.
The council was due to deliver its verdict on yoga earlier this month but the decision has been postponed. Manisekaran, founder of the Malaysian Yoga Society, is hopeful that the postponement is a sign the council may change its mind.
The yoga master, who said the ancient practice had become increasingly popular among women, believes the council has misunderstood the concept of yoga. "Through dialogue they should be able to get a clearer picture of the whole issue," he said, adding that he had written to the council.
What I've told them is that yoga is not a religious concern. It's purely a mind-body exercise which has very sound techniques of developing people's health and awareness."
A spokesman for the Department of Islamic Development said the council would discuss the issue next month.
He said the council was investigating whether yoga included elements of Hindu worship.
"From the Islamic perspective, we have to be very careful of what we are doing, including exercises," he said. "If the exercise that we do contradicts Islamic principles then they have to come up with suitable solutions from an Islamic perspective."
In the meantime, Ms Norien will complete her instructor's test in the hope she will be able to teach the technique.
"I've been telling a lot of people that it helps health-wise and I believe that if it's something good, we should practise it," she said.
Despite her disappointment over the decision to investigate yoga, Ms Norien still believes the council has an important role. "They are there for a good reason," she said. "Sometimes we tend to deviate from the teachings of Islam so they are there to remind us but I do hope that they will be more open and look at the benefits of yoga."
- South China Morning Post

Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is slashed to 8% from 11% next January

Sunday November 16, 2008
Little goes a long way for some

ACCOUNTS clerk Shalina Amin, 28, looks forward to taking home extra money in her pay packet when her contribution to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is slashed to 8% from 11% next January.
“As you know, the cost of living is high now, and my monthly expenses have gone up tremendously in the last year. Having extra money in my pocket will really help,” says the mother of two.
However, with her basic monthly salary at RM1,400, it means that the extra Shalina would receive is about RM42.
On the losing end: A reduction in the monthly contribution will mean less retirement savings for Malaysian workers who already have insufficient savings to see them comfortably through their old age.
The amount is small, she admits, but it is better than nothing.
The cut in employees’ EPF contribution by 3% will increase disposable income and thus stimulate domestic consumption and support economic growth.
The response to the measure, however, has been mixed.
For many in the lower income bracket, the cut is welcomed but most agree that it is too small to be of real help.
For Shalina, the extra money will mean the ability to pay their utility bills on time and prepare for emergencies, not buy more things.
“What will help more is if prices of goods are reduced some more. Can the Government do that?” she asks, adding that despite the lowering of petrol prices recently, the prices of other goods and services have not come down.
Rock quarry worker Azizi Osman, 32, also welcomes the cut in EPF, only because in the last year, his wages have been reduced a lot due to the reduced market demand.
“My basic pay is RM49.50 per day and I was able to take home up to RM1,500 with overtime. But in June, we were told that we couldn’t do any overtime; recently, they told us that from next January, we can only work four days a week because orders for our product have gone down. So yeah, whatever extra money we can get will be good,” he adds.
What is guaranteed is that a reduction in the monthly contribution will mean less retirement savings. And as EPF and other concerned parties have often forewarned, most Malaysian workers have insufficient savings to see them comfortably through their old age.
Sales manager M. Anucia, from Penang, says that she is worried her retirement savings will be inadequate if her EPF contribution is reduced.
Anucia, 33, who earns around RM3,200 per month says the amount received from the reduction is too small to help cover her monthly expenses but if left in the EPF savings, will grow into a substantial sum.
“If I take the 3%, it means I have an extra RM96 but that money will be used up just like that, especially now with high prices of things. I spend about RM88 a month on my baby’s milk formula and RM120 on her nappies. So yes, I can use it to help cover that cost but at the end of the day, it will go in the rubbish bin. Now, if I keep the money in EPF, it will earn about 5% a year and by the time I retire, I’ll have thousands,” she shares.
Another objection to the EPF reduction measure, which will be effective from January 2009 to December 2010, is the proposed procedure: automatic reduction unless the contributor fills up a form to maintain their contribution at 11%.
One irate contributor, a private college lecturer who only wants to be known as Lee, 39, stresses that EPF should promote saving, not spending.
“The main purpose of EPF savings is to assure that all members can afford a reasonable quality of life upon their retirement. The EPF must protect members’ interests, not the country’s.
“At the very least, they should advise us on the pros and cons of a reduced deduction,” he argues.
Lee feels that the EPF should reconsider their procedure.
“If it is not a compulsory deduction, the better way would be for members who require the reduction to fill in a form, not the other way around!” he says.

Sunday November 16, 2008
More now, less tomorow
By JOSEPH LOH, HARIATI AZIZAN AND RASHVINJEET S. BEDI

The move the reduce the Employees Provident Fund contributions from 11% to 8% on a ‘voluntary basis’ has irked some although it is welcomed by others. The sum that will be going into everyone’s pocket will, however, do the country some good.
THE LAST time members’ contribution to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) was reduced in 2003 by 2%, approximately 550,000 members chose to retain it at the original higher level. That translates to a mere 11% of the total number of active contributors at the time.
"The bottom line is that the smartest, most numerate people in Malaysia are opting for 11% while the uninformed will probably permit the default" - RAJEN DEVADASON
This group probably constitutes members who are determined to save more for their retirement and are willing to pick up the pen and fill up the form to retain their monthly contribution of 11%. Or perhaps their company made it easy for them to do so.
But while many really need and welcome the little extra, the majority of EPF contributors tend to be nonchalant about the exercise and couldn’t be bothered with filling up the form.
While the reduction in EPF contribution is said to be “voluntary”, the move has met with some resistance as it places the burden of filling up the form on those who want to maintain their contribution.
EPF public relations senior manager Nik Affendi Jaafar declined to be drawn into the debate that those who want to retain their commitment shouldn’t be the ones “penalised”, except to say that the forms would be available from Dec 1.
“Members who wish to maintain the contribution rate at 11%, may do so by filling up Form KWSP 17A (AHL).”
He says minor amendments are being made to the form and the form will be available at all EPF branches and can be downloaded at the EPF website from Dec 1 onwards.
“It is a simple form that needs to be filled in only once. All members need to do is to submit the completed forms to their respective employers for onward submission to the EPF,” says Nik.
The automatic reduction will be in effect for two years from January 2009. According to Deputy Prime Minister and also Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, if all contributors choose to reduce their contributions, the 3% would amount to RM4.8bil annually.
As of June this year, there are 5.5 million active contributors to the EPF.
The Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) is one of many groups opposing the measure.
“They mention that it is voluntary but it should be the other way round to avoid confusion and unnecessary hardship,” says its president Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud.
He believes that retirement plans for many will be jeopardised.
“In fact, some people want to increase their contribution,” says Shahir, adding that reducing the EPF contribution would affect the dividends earned by employees.
“The employees are going to lose on compounded interest and that will have a bearing on them,” he says.
For example, a 35-year-old person with a RM3,000 monthly salary would be reducing his EPF contribution by RM2,160 over the course of two years. Assuming that a 5% dividend is paid out annually with the compound element over a period of 20 years, he will be RM5,500 “poorer” when he retires. And this is not taking into consideration past (one-year period in 2001 and 2003) and future exercises of a similar nature.
But what is good for the pocket is even better for the retail sector.
Rajen Devadason, CFP, a Securities Commission-licensed financial planner with MAAKL Mutual Bhd, and CEO of RD WealthCreation Sdn Bhd believes this 3% can prove to be a stimulus to the retail sector.
“Retailers will benefit mainly from this measure. The overall health of the economy will also perk up a tiny bit,” says Devadason.
But is the economy in such a bad shape that it warrants such a measure? “Malaysia is holding up better than most other countries. But our economy’s growth will nonetheless also decelerate in the months ahead. This EPF cut is just one macroeconomic ‘bullet’ in our government’s arsenal to combat the worst effects of the global recession,” says Devadason.
Nevertheless, he recommends his clients to retain their contributions at 11%.
“The bottom line is that the smartest, most numerate people in Malaysia are opting for 11%, while the uninformed will probably permit the default,” he says.
Over the two years of the cut, a person who accepts the 8% default option will lose 72% of one whole month’s average gross income.
“The EPF is a great investment benefit to Malaysians. I urge all my clients – even business owners – to contribute to it. On top of that, additional non-EPF personal savings and investments should be carried out,” says Devadason.
The contributions are invested by EPF in a number of approved financial instruments to generate income including Government securities, money market instruments and property.
Legally, the EPF is obligated to provide 2.5% dividends. In the past three years, they have provided dividends of more than 5%. Even during the economic crisis of 1997 to 1998, the dividends provided were 6.7%.
“As long as the money flows into EPF first, contributors can invest in unit trusts on a regular basis. Because of EPF’s pro-active actions, those who invest in unit trusts using their EPF funds now pay much lower commissions on that portion than they do when they invest their discretionary funds,” says Devadason.
Devadason says that we are moving into a cash-is-king environment, therefore urging people to work harder and save more.
“The public should invest very carefully with an eye to elevating long-term passive income inflows from the highest quality dividend-paying stocks and dividend funds. For those with extra deep pockets, buying choice pieces of rental property would also be smart. However, focus on getting out of personal debt first,” he says.
A macro perspective
On a larger scale, it is necessary to make sense of how much this would affect the Malaysian economy.
Dr Yeah Kim Leng, chief economist at the Ratings Agency of Malaysia (RAM) says that of the RM4.8bil that will be added to the pockets of Malaysians, the marginal propensity of what will be saved must be taken against what is spent.
“Generally, people tend to spend about 60% and save the other 40%. This will go directly into consumer spending, and this will add to private consumption.”
Dr Yeah calculates that if 60% of RM4.8bil is spent, this would amount to about RM2.9bil. Using the end 2008 figure of RM660bil as a base for Malaysia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the additional RM2.9bil will give a boost of 0.44% to the overall GDP.
One of the most immediate effects, Dr Yeah informs, is that this will boost consumer confidence.
“This will give a boost so consumer spending can be maintained, and if we can achieve a growth of 6% to 7% next year, we can achieve modest growth in the face of adverse economic conditions.”
Dr Yeah adds that the key is sustaining consumer confidence.
“Malaysia has sufficient liquidity and savings, as we have experienced strong growth of about 9% to 10% over the past six years. Companies have been accumulating wealth, and would have the capacity to weather any economic slowdown.
“Confidence is the key factor, so banks will continue to lend money and support businesses, and it is important to ensure that both businesses and individuals do not cut back on their spending too drastically,” he says.
Dr Yeah explains that this monetary boost is a kind of incentive and says, “The spill over effect of this is that financial markets and stocks can stabilise, so massive wealth destruction can be stopped.”
It should be noted that the additional RM4.8bil that goes straight into the pockets of the people is different from the Government’s RM7bil economic stimulus package announced by Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak that will be spent on a wide range of projects, from the LRT to repairing of houses belonging to the poor.
“You have to see which projects the money goes into and the speed of the implementation. The extent of the multiplier will depend on the linkages, and how this spending will generate value-added activity to the economy,” he says, adding that it will vary across the types of projects, for example, the building of roads, and in turn if these facilities are used for productive purposes.
“There may be an increase in the number of people employed or in services available, and hopefully increase businesses and employment which will add to productive capacity,” says Dr Yeah.

Sunday November 16, 2008
Dilemma for EPF contributors

KUALA LUMPUR: More money to use now means less for one’s retirement. This is the dilemma Employees Provident Fund contributors face should they decide to opt to have their monthly contribution reduced from the mandatory 11% to the “voluntary” 8%.
The government’s decision to adopt this measure to help Malaysians tide the rise in prices of goods and services and the economic downturn is heartily welcomed by those in the lower income group and struggling to pay bills.
But there are many who prefer to stick to the 11% deduction and tighten their belts momentarily.
This group is also irked by the “burden” of having to fill up an EPF form – those who do not will be deemed to be agreeable to contributing 8% for two years effective Jan 1.
Under the new scheme, a 35-year-old employee with a RM3,000 monthly salary would be able to take home an extra RM90 in his monthly pay packet, which amounts to RM2,160 over two years.
However, assuming that a 5% dividend is paid out annually with the compound element over a period of 20 years until he turns 55, he will be RM5,500 “poorer” when he retires.
If his monthly income for the next two years is RM5,000, he would lose out on a total savings of RM9,200 in his EPF upon retirement.
As it is, the EPF has raised concerns about Malaysians not having enough savings to see them through 20 years past retirement, much less lead a comfortable life.
In a study by the EPF last year, the average contributor has only RM106,000 in his savings while one would need a projected sum of about RM747,000 (taking into consideration inflation rates) if one were to live for 25 years after retirement.