KUALA LUMPUR: An intense fight is expected for the post of MIC Wanita chief in the party elections this year.

Talk is rife that Wanita chief Datin Paduka P. Komala Devi (picture) will face a contest from her deputy and Perak Wanita leader, Thangasvari Suppiah, and Federal Territory Wanita chief G. Loga Chitra.

The nomination date for posts in the Wanita wing is Aug 8, with the election fixed for Aug 16.

Wanita sources said an increasing number of members were unhappy with Komala's leadership.

Paya Besar Wanita division chief S. Uma Rajan said most members had high expectations after she ousted former Wanita chief Datin Paduka Jaya Partiban but were disappointed.

"The last time Komala came to meet us in Kuantan was to campaign in 2006.

"After that, she has never visited us or even made a phone call," she said.

However, a division leader, who did not want to be identified, said Komala should stay for another term to groom new leaders and that there should not be a contest to avoid friction in the movement.

"Besides, the other two who are vying for the post are not new people. They have been there all this while but holding different posts. What changes did they bring?" she asked.

Supporters of Loga Chitra said she had an edge as she was younger and had a voice in government as she was a senator.

Supporters of Thangasvari said she was more approachable and had better grassroots backing compared with the other two.

Another plus point for Thangasvari is the support from Jaya's camp.

One source said the top party leadership favoured a compromise, but a Wanita leader said even if the three agreed, there would be others who would want to contest.

"This time, a contest is unavoidable," she added.

Komala, when contacted, said she would only make an announcement to defend her post after all the 12 Wanita state conventions were held.

"My priority now is to refine the Wanita movement," she said.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak today dismissed the possibility of exiled former Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) leader Chin Peng returning home.

“The government will not allow this because it would cause unhappiness, especially to the families of those who were killed during (the communist insurgency),” he said.

Najib was asked on the matter today during a quick seven-minute press conference at the Prime Minister’s Department today.

The issue of Chin Peng's return has been widely debated in the media ever since it was raised by Barisan Nasional component party Gerakan recently.

Several quarters and individuals, including Information, Communication and Culture Minister Dr Rais Yatim, have opposed the idea.

"Chin Peng and his commandos killed many people in the past and they certainly do not deserve any consideration from us," Rais had said.

"The communists abused this country and we had been shackled through killings and terrible actions committed by them," he added.

Umno Youth wants Dr Teng removed

Today, Penang Umno Youth had lent support to the call to remove Gerakan Penang chief Dr Teng Hock Nan over the matter.

Chin Peng, who led a bloody 12-year insurgency half a century ago, lost his final legal appeal to return to Malaysia last month.

The one-time boss of the outlawed CPM, left Malaysia in 1961 after the uprising and has been in exile since. His lawyer said he is currently living in Thailand.

Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had said his return would be an insult to the families of nearly 50,000 British colonial and government troops who died during the “Malayan Emergency”.

However, many historians say less than 2,000 colonial troops and Malaysian forces perished, along with up to 7,000 communist fighters.

In addition, certain quarters have argued that Chin Peng is a war hero who helped the nation in its struggle for independence.


Lawyer: It's a travesty of justice
The decision by the government not to allow Chin Peng to return to Malaysia is a travesty of justice, said his lawyer Darshan Singh when contacted today.

He said the decision reflected that the government's decision not to adhere to the peace treaty signed in 1989 to end hostilities.

"If Malaysia does not respect this international treaty, than no country will have any respect when the country signs other international treaties," he said.

Darshan said Chin Peng should have been allowed based on humanitarian grounds and Malaysia's commitment to the treaty.

"Chin Peng only wants to visit his ancestors' grave in Sitiawan and also to meet up with his two children who are in Kuala Lumpur. The children are all Malaysian citizens, so are his brothers and sisters. Hence, he should be allowed in," he said.

"Claims that the CPM had killed many people are incorrect, as the British had killed more people during their occupation here compared to the emergency period.

"One thing that we always forget is that Sir Robert Thompson (the then defence secretary in Malaya) had said that the communists' fight for independence had hasten Malaya's independence by 10 years. This is something which the people should always remember," said Darshan.

The lawyer also blamed Najib's decision today to be influenced by pressures from MCA as the party was once led by Kuomintang sympathisers who were always against the communist in China.

All state PPP annual general meetings (AGM) held since Sunday would not be recognised by the party, said newly 'elected' party president T Murugiah.

"I don't recognise (the meetings)," he told reporters in between his meet-the-people session in Sentual, Kuala Lumpur today in his capacity as deputy minister in the Prime Minister department.

Murugiah's latest move is likely to further frustrate M Kayveas, who was "ousted" as president during a controversial emergency general meeting on Sunday.

The Pahang PPP AGM held yesterday was attended by Kayveas and officiated by state information committee chair Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin, representing Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob.

At the time of Murugiah's press conference, Kayveas was attending the Perak PPP AGM. Several more are scheduled to lead up to the May 30 nominations for party polls.

On the scheduled June 7 party elections, Murugiah said it has been postponed indefinitely and a new date would be announced soon. He declined to comment on the May 30 nomination process.

He added that the party now has up to two years to hold an AGM, after the May 24th EGM.

Waiting to meet DPM

Murugiah also denied accusations that he was trying to cause PPP to be de-registered, as alleged by Kayveas.

"Leaders come and go, but it doesn't mean we have to bury the party. The party is not at fault. As long as our documents are in order, the Registrar of Societies won’t bother us," he said.

PPP's position with the ROS has been the focal point of attacks against Kayveas by Murugiah's faction.

Kayveas is accused of failing to submit its list of office bearers and financial records to the ROS since 2002.

Kayveas has denied this, saying PPP is in good stead with the ROS as documents have been submitted up to 2007.

Murugiah added that he had submitted some documents to the ROS yesterday morning, informing them of the May 24 EGM and submitted a list of new office bearers.

To a question, Murugiah said that he would meet deputy Barisan Nasional chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin and attend the BN supreme council meeting only if he receives an official invitation.

Yesterday, Muhyiddin said he would meet both leaders to clear the air. However, only Kayveas has met him, during a meeting this morning in Putrajaya.

Murugiah also revealed that he had moved into a new PPP president's office located in Sentul.

The party's current headquarters is in Kampung Attap, Kuala Lumpur.

Peeved by the alleged remarks made by Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim pertaining to minority groups, Kapar parliamentarian S Manikavasagam reminded him not to forget the past.

"I was very disappointed to read the news report that the menteri besar would not meet minority groups over the problems faced by them.

"Moreover, Pakatan Rakyat's victory in the last elections was a result of the solid support from these communities," he said in a statement today.

Manikavasagam also told Khalid that he would not have become menteri besar if not for their backing.

"As a leader, he should obtain the views of all quarters, even if they are minority groups," he said.

The PKR parliamentarian was responding to the allegation by outspoken grassroots party leader, A Thiruvenggadam that the menteri besar had said that he would not "meet any minority groups" pertaining to lack of job opportunities given to the Indians.

According to the PJ city councillor, Khalid had made the remark during a seminar for city councillors that was held in the secretariat building in Shah Alam last year.

Last week, Thiruvenggadam had lashed out at Pakatan and its administration in Selangor for continuing to marginalise the Indian community in the state, saying that it is not much different from what Barisan Nasional had done.

However, Khalid's political secretary Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad described the allegations as baseless.

Ensure that all races benefit
Meanwhile, Manikavasagam said although he has yet to verify the allegations against Khalid, he however stressed that it is incumbent on the menteri besar to ensure that all races benefit from the state.

"As a parliamentarian, I have stressed from the onset that the Indian community has equal rights under the constitution so the authorities must cease classifying it as Indian problems," he said.

As an immediate measure, Manikavasagam called on the state government to approve licences for scrap metal dealers without any hindrance.

Apart from this, he also suggested that Pakatan state governments must works towards the objective of assuring that the Indian community sees a 15 percent economic achievement in these states.

Manikavasagam has also planned a meeting with Pakatan Indian leaders and grassroots to obtain their feedback in order to craft detailed short and long-term plans.

PPP which has been sailing in troubled waters was hit by another storm today, this time from Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

The premier told reporters that he had been invited to officiate the Barisan Nasional component party's general assembly on June 7.

However, the BN chairperson said he would have to check the status of the party first.

"I will verify PPP's status with the Registrar of Societies (ROS) first (before deciding on whether to attend the assembly)," he was quoted as saying by Bernama.

For a long time, tension had been brewing between PPP's vocal president M Kayveas and the party's rising stalwart T Murugiah, who is also deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Murugiah, who heads the public complaints bureau is popular with the masses and the party grassroots. He was rumoured to be eyeing the top post in PPP, much to the chagrin of Kayveas.

De-registration threat

Following this, the PPP supreme council sacked Murugiah after he said that the ROS might de-register the party because its records have not been updated.

It was even alleged that Kayveas' own branch Tupai Lane in Taiping could face a similar fate.

On Sunday, Murugiah got himself elected as "president" at an emergency general meeting in Putrajaya, attended by 1,784 delegates.

Kayveas retorted by saying that the EGM was illegal as Murugiah had failed to notify the party secretary-general about it while his own branch had been de-registered by the ROS.

Murugiah said he would leave it to the ROS to decide whether the EGM was lawful and he was the rightful PPP president.

Kayveas - a former deputy minister who got wiped out in the March 8, 2008 polls - and Murugiah will be meeting Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin today.

Police report filed

In a related development, PPP Johor chairperson Dr K Siva Kumar filed a police report against Murugiah claiming that the latter had misused a permit to organise Sunday's emergency meet.

After filing his report at the Johor Sentral police station, he told reporters that the police permit was given to hold a meeting with the public but it was turned into an EGM.

Siva also said that the EGM was not valid since there was no 14-day notice issued to the branches.

He also claimed that a majority of those who attended were not PPP members.

Previously, two police reports were filed over the EGM.

KUANTAN: The People's Progressive Party (PPP) will issue a show-cause letter to members who attended the "extraordinary general meeting" in Putrajaya on Sunday.

Its president, Datuk M. Kayveas, said the party had recorded proceedings at the EGM and knew who had attended the meeting, which he termed "illegal".

"I had around 100 agents who monitored the EGM and reported to me like James Bond," he said after attending the opening of the Pahang PPP annual general meeting by state information committee chairman Datuk Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin. Also present was Pahang PPP chairman Datuk M. Elayppen.

Kayveas claimed that more than 90 per cent of those who attended the Putrajaya EGM were not PPP members.

At the EGM, sacked PPP supreme council member Senator Datuk T. Murugiah was "elected" party president while delegates also adopted a resolution of no-confidence against Kayveas.

The EGM also reinstated six supreme council members who had been sacked by Kayveas but dismissed 43 others allied with Kayveas.

Kayveas accused Murugiah of being a "publicity-crazy maniac" who had used a lawless platform to gain power.

"He should check in at Tanjung Rambutan (mental hospital). You cannot simply hold a meeting and elect a new president.

"This is not a Miss World pageant where the winner wears a sash and a crown."

Kayveas said Murugiah had set a bad example to the younger generation by organising a programme that was not in accordance with the country's laws and party constitution, adding the party was still united.

"I've gone through more difficult times before and this will not hamper my efforts to strengthen the party."

He also explained that the PPP had no problems with the Registrar of Societies as all its documents and reports were in order.

"There are some technical problems but they can be rectified."

KUALA LUMPUR: The MIC wants scholarships to be offered to all students with 9As or more.

In last year's Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination, 6,277 students scored straight As in all subjects.

MIC treasurer-general Datuk S.K. Devamany said the government should announce a third stimulus package to allow more students to receive Public Service Department scholarships.

"As we know, many excellent students are heartbroken to find out that their applications for a PSD scholarship were rejected," he said.

Devamany supported the government's move to review the criteria to end the problem faced by many students.

"The selection criteria should be reviewed to end complaints about injustices of the awards so that it is in line with the 1Malaysia concept," Devamany said.

Recently, hundreds of students knocked at his office door appealing for scholarships to further their tertiary studies.

Devamany, who is a deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department, said some of the students, including those from poor families, had failed to get scholarships despite scoring more than 9 1As.

KUALA LUMPUR: A lawyer has filed a RM160mil suit against the Bar Council for denying him the use of its premises to launch his book Presumed Guilty.

T. Vijayandran is seeking a declaration that its decision violated his rights to equality under Article 8 of the Federal Constitution.

He filed the writ of summons naming the Malaysian Bar Council as defendant at the High Court Registry at 8.52am yesterday.

He is seeking a declaration that the council’s decision was unreasonable, null and void, and for an order to compel the Bar Council to allow him the use of its premises at a date of his choosing. In his statement of claim, Vijayandran said he had met with the Bar Council’s chief executive officer on April 1 requesting permission to use the Bar Council’s premises for the launch of his book.

“Upon the chief executive officer’s advice, I forwarded a copy of the synopsis of Presumed Guilty together with a written request to rent the Bar Council premises,” he said.

He added that on April 13, the council replied saying permission was denied because their Legal Profession Committee had been assigned to study his earlier book No Intention to Kill.

This was to determine if there were any possible breaches of the Legal Profession (Publicity) Rules 2001, the Legal Profession (Practice and Etiquette) Rules 1978 and Bar Council Rules and Rulings 2008.

No Intention to Kill is based on the true story of an 18-year-old Indonesian maid charged with the murder of her employer, who died on Aug 14, 2001. Vijayandran was counsel for the accused. Vijandran said following the reply, he wrote to the secretary of the Bar Council of April 19 and April 27, saying that the reasons given were “preposterous and unacceptable”.

He said that No Intention to Kill was launched at the Bar Council auditorium in June last year, and the defendant had also sold the book and earned a commission from the sales.

“They had also not raised any objections for a whole year,” he said.

He said that Bar Council premises were acquired through the contribution of all members of the Malaysian Bar, including himself, and was meant to be a facility for reasonable purposes of members of the Malaysian Bar.

KUALA SELANGOR: Sixty Tamil schools will be rebuilt, many with new buildings, under the second phase of the Government’s Tamil school redevelopment programme, said MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu.

He said the schools would be redeveloped under the RM100mil fund allocated by the Government, adding that 72 schools had been redeveloped under the first phase.

He was speaking after visiting the partially-burnt Selangor River Tamil school in Kuala Selangor with Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk S.K. Devamany.

There are about 525 Tamil schools in the country, with more than 300 falling under the partially-aided government schools category.

On the Selangor River Tamil school, he said RM650,000 had been set aside by the Government for a new building with six to seven classrooms.

He also visited the Batang Berjuntai Tamil school in the Ijok constituency to follow-up on the rebuilding of the school, for which the Government had allocated RM1.5mil.

The fund was approved by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak when he visited the school during the Ijok by-election in 2007.

Samy Vellu said the MIC would continue to ensure the progress of Tamil schools with assistance from the Government.

Yesterday at approximately 11am, Y. Bhg Dato Seri S. Samy Vellu had visited the site of the fire which engulfed part of S.J.K (T) Ladang Selangor River, Kuala Selangor. After a brief discussion with the representatives of the Parents and Teachers Association of this school, it was proposed that this school be provided with several facilities such as 6 classrooms and 1 canteen which will cost an estimated sum of RM615,000.00.

Y. Bhg Dato Seri S. Samy Vellu subsequently visited S.J.K (T) Batang Berjuntai. Y. Bhg Dato Seri S.Samy Vellu upon inspecting the school has noted the shortage of space due to the increase in the school’s enrolment and has hence proposed that a building be constructed comprising of a 3 storey building which will cost an estimated sum of RM1.6 million to accommodate the rising student population.

Thereafter, at around 2p.m, Y. Bhg Dato Seri paid a visit to the Maha Mariamman Temple at Ladang St. Moore, Sungai Darah, Batang Berjuntai. He held a meeting with the Management Committee of the Temple to discuss issues regarding construction and renovation of the Temple. The meeting was successful in that it also encompassed a discussion on issues affecting the Indian community in Batang Berjuntai. 'The representatives of RTM, Makkal Osai, Nanban and Tamil Nesan provided media coverage of the visit of Y. Bhg Dato Seri S Samy Vellu.

Source : MIC HQ
Date : 22 May 2009, 02:00 PM

KUALA LUMPUR: Hundreds of people, including Tamil MPs from both sides of the political divide, gathered at Batu Caves temple yesterday to protest against the mass killing of Tamils in Sri Lanka.

The protest, organised by the World Tamil Relief Fund and several non-governmental organisations, also condemned the Sri Lankan government and the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Deputy Federal Territories Minister Datuk M. Saravanan said the rally was not meant to support any militant groups, but to show concern for innocent Tamil civilians victimised by the war in northern Sri Lanka.

"We urge the international community including Malay-sia to not support the Sri Lankan government and to help the Tamil community there to live peacefully.

"We call for the Sri Lankan government to be charged with war crimes for killing innocent civilians," said Saravanan.

The protest started around 10am and ended about 1pm, without incident. It was carried out without a police permit, despite warnings by the Selangor police against it.

Several policemen in plainclothes were seen monitoring the situation but no arrests were made.

Participants were seen carrying banners and placards highlighting the plight of innocent lives lost and condemning the Sri Lankan government.

Some also carried banners glorifying LTTE's late commander, Velupillai Prabhakaran.

Among those present were Kapar MP S. Manikavasagam, Teluk Intan MP M. Manogaran and MIC Youth adviser S. Vel Paari.

A specially-arranged emergency meeting involving several sacked People's Progressive Party members today passed a resolution to appoint Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department T Murugiah as party president.

The sudden move comes in the wake of a bitter feud between incumbent party president M Kayveas and his protege-turned-nemesis Murugiah, who was sacked from the party along with six others a week ago.

The latest development may also jeapordise triennial party elections due on June 7 and subject the party to close scrutiny by the Registrar of Societies (ROS).

According to figures from the meeting, 1,762 delegates attended the emergency session at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre this morning, where they voted unanimously through a show of hands to reinstate Murugiah and the six others as party members.

Following this, a resolution was passed to sack Kayveas as the party president and be replaced by Murugiah. A new 25-member supreme council and women's wing chief were also elected.

According to witnesses, Murugiah was carried into the hall after he was reinstated and was given a rapturous standing ovation.

In his policy speech, Murugiah pledged that he was a PPP president for all Malaysians and would work closely with other Barisan Nasional component parties.

"I'll never threaten other BN component parties. That will never happen again," he said, in an obvious reference to Kayveas' acrimonious relationship with MIC, Gerakan and MCA.

"The members want our own building for our party headquarters. Leave that to me. We will have our own building," he told the delegates who replied in roars of approval.

Question marks over validity

Though initially appearing triumphant in the meeting hall, Murugiah became visibly irate when repeatedly quizzed by reporters during a press conference over the validity of the meeting.

Seven-minutes into the press conference, the usually composed and mild-mannered Murugiah abruptly got up from his seat and left in a huff.

Just before that, Murugiah described the EGM results as "political tsunami" for PPP.

"I accept the decision of the delegates from all over the country who have unanimously supported me. I'm sure they have thought deeply before deciding," he said.

Murugiah said he would be meeting the ROS and Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak soon to inform them about the EGM decision.

Quizzed on technical matters, such as the quorum for the meeting, Murugiah said it was best left for the 10 independent lawyers present to answer the question.

"I was invited to attend the meeting, and thus I came... on the legal bits, I'll leave it to the lawyers," he said. However no lawyers came to address the press.

To another question, Murugiah said that the EGM was organised by heads of party branches, but was unable to name any of them. He also declined to comment when asked about the haste to hold the EGM despite party elections to be held in two weeks.

He repeatedly stressed that all decisions in the EGM were not made by him but by the delegates. He added that any dispute should be taken up with the ROS.

‘He might as well call himself the PM'

Reinstated party member and newly elected supreme council member M Jeyaratnam told reporters later that the EGM had met the quorum with more than two-thirds of total party branches attending the meeting.

He added that the party constitution allowed for branch chairpersons to hold an EGM and also allowed party delegates to overrule the party supreme council's decisions.

In an immediate reaction, Kayveas told Malaysiakini that the meeting was an illegal gathering called by expelled party members. He added that he was still the party president.

"He (Murugiah) is abusing his position as a deputy minister to call for the meet-the-people session which suddenly turned into an EGM. I suggest he might as well call himself the prime minister," said Kayveas.

"This is a bad example being set by a deputy minister who is creating lawlessness. It really shows the true colours - a desperate and power crazy politician," he added.

Asked if the EGM would jeapordise the June 7 party polls and force the ROS to take action on the party, Kayveas said that the matter does not arise.

"The ROS does not deal with sacked members," he stressed.

Earlier today, dozens of busses which ferried EGM participants and Murugiah's supporters lined up the road towards the venue.

Some 20 uniformed police personnel were also seen manning several positions in the venue.

Sixteen people, including Teratai state assemblyperson Jenice Lee, were arrested by the police just outside her service centre at about 8.45pm tonight for allegedly holding an illegal assembly.

Those arrested have been taken to the Pandan Indah police station. It looks quite certain that they will be held overnight.

They were arrested after a lightning short police warning for them to disperse.

Ampang Jaya district police chief Abdul Jalil Hassan told reporters that the 16 were arrested for gathering without a police permit.

But Abdul Jalil retorted that her permit application, which was made at 2pm today, was not approved by the police.

Earlier, a small group of people had gathered at Lee's service centre at about 8.30pm to hold a candlelight vigil to mourn the 'death of democracy' in Perak. The vigil was organised by Pandan DAP Youth wing.

About 40 police personnel, along with members from the light strike force unit, were deployed to the area.

Following the arrest, the crowd which had gathered for the vigil started to disperse.

It is the second time this week that Lee was arrested. She was detained by the police for six hours at another candlelight vigil on Tuesday.

'It was a birthday celebration'

Among those detained was Lim Swee Kuan, the personal assistant to veteran DAP leader Lim Kit Siang.

When contacted by Malaysiakini while he was held at the police station, Lim said that the group had walked to the DAP Teratai service centre with candles and a birthday cake to celebrate his birthday.

"But when we came down to the road, a police officer shouted to us, saying that we were holding an illegal assembly," he said.

Following that, state assemblyperson Lee and several others tried to negotiate with the police for them to gather for awhile to "celebrate Lim's birthday".

"But the police ignored Lee and pushed her away," Lim said, adding that the police gave them 10 seconds to disperse before arresting them.

He said that members of the group were arrested while they were singing 'Happy Birthday' to him.

Lim also accused the police of brutality in physically assaulting the detainees.

Some of those detained were dragged and shoved into the waiting police truck, he claimed.

At about 9.40pm, Lee and party member S Supiramany - who is also a MPAJ councillor - were seen taken from the Pandan Indah police station to the Ampang district police headquarters for their statements to be recorded. The others remained at Pandan Indah police station.

Lee told Malaysiakini when contacted at 10.20pm through her mobile telephone that she was waiting for her lawyer to arrive at the district police headquarters.

Her lawyer Mohd Radzlan Jalaludin arrived at the police station at about 10.35pm. As of 11.30pm, he said, Lee was still waiting for the police to record her statement.

As at midnight, all 16 of those arrested have yet to be released.

150 and counting

In an immediate reaction, DAP Youth wing expressed its disgust over the police action in the arrests.

It said in a statement that among those arrested included the wing's education director Ooi Leng Hang and a member of the public.

The others were all DAP Youth members. Among those were 72-year-old Chong Kong Yin.

"This is another unforgivable assault on our country's dying democracy. We have descended into something even worse than a police state in which the police just arrest citizens for the fun of it.

"We're about to hit the 150 mark on the number of arrests made in relation to BN's coup d'état in Perak," said the statement.

The movement urged the police to release all those arrested immediately. It also wanted the Home Ministry to put an end to the "nonsensical arresting-spree".

A grassroots PKR leader today lashed out at Pakatan Rakyat and its administration in Selangor for continuing to marginalise the Indian community in the state.

"The sidelining of the Indian community by the Pakatan in Selangor is not much different from what Barisan Nasional has done," said Petaling Jaya Selatan division's deputy chief A Thiruvenggadam today.

He alleged that all promises made by Pakatan leaders, including PKR president Anwar Ibrahim and Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim, before the general election in March 2008 to uplift the Indian community remained unfulfilled.

"In Selangor, the PKR-led state government has so far failed to keep up with its promise to do something for the community.

"No job offers have given to the Indian community. No contracts have also been allocated for the Indian businessmen in the state," said Thiruvenggadam, who is a PKR-appointee as a councillor to the PJ city council.

"I have been asking for the past one year or so for the state government under Khalid to make it a state policy to provide jobs and business opportunities for the Indian community but to date nothing has moved," he said in a statement.

He claimed that all Pakatan leaders were repeatedly lying to the Indian community by promising them better things as compared to the neglect committed by Barisan Nasional.

"They are only cheating the community to garner support. Nothing is being done.

"They have done nothing for the community by giving some money for the Tamil schools in the state. They must also help the community to be economically strong," he added.

He said that the Pakatan leadership's argument that it should not be looking after one particular race only does not hold water.

"Why do you want to neglect an already marginalised community? There is nothing wrong in helping this community to find its feet. Otherwise, it will just remain neglected," he said.

He added that it was ironic that many Pakatan leaders in power today were human rights defenders before this and now they were not seeing the sorry plight suffered by the Indian community in the state.

He also challenged the state government to come up with statistics on what it has done to uplift the Indian community in the state.

Thiruvenggadam said he would be revealing more on the state government's failure in helping the Indian community at a press conference next Monday.

Nalla: I am not surprised by this

The Indian community, for long BN voters, shifted sides to Pakatan in the last general election after complaining that they have been neglected for years.

Pakatan leaders had said that they would be different from BN and would help the community gain an economic status.

However many observers, including insiders like Thiruvenggadam, have complained that the plight of the community remained the same.

Commenting on this, BN-allied Malaysian Indian United Party (MIUP) leader KS Nallakaruppan said he agreed with the contention that the Pakatan state governments have done nothing for the community. Pakatan won control of five states in the general election.

"The complaints are valid. I have travelled throughout the country, including to the five states under Pakatan control and the feedback I get is that they are still in the same poor, neglected state.

"Apart from appointing some Indians to some high-profile posts and local councils, Pakatan had failed to deliver its promise for the Indian community," he told Malaysiakini.

He was referring to the appointment of DAP's P Ramasamy as the deputy chief minister 2 in Penang and V Sivakumar as the Perak assembly speaker.

"Temples are still being demolished in the Pakatan states. Tamils schools are still in the same condition. Have they reduced poverty?" he asked.

"I know full well about Anwar and other PKR leaders. They have never cared about the Indian community," he added.

He said that while BN could have been slow in reacting to the needs of the Indian community in the past, it has now learnt its lessons with the federal government implementing some policies to overturn the situation.

Nallakaruppan left PKR in 2007 after a fallout with Anwar and formed his party.

KANGAR: For the first time in 34 years, a Sikh has been elected to a top post in an MIC division in Perlis.

Pritpal Singh was elected deputy chairman in the Kangar division elections on May 8. He is the son of the first Perlis MIC chairman, the late Jarnail Singh.

MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said yesterday he was glad that a Sikh had won a top divisional post.

"It is a very positive move and I am sure with his inclusion, the division will work harder and serve a wider range of people in Perlis," he said when contacted by the New Straits Times.

"I have been working very hard to rebrand the party, including bringing in more members of the Punjabi community into the MIC. We have received good response from them. We hope to get even better response from now," he added.

Pritpal, 62, a former senior health inspector with the Kangar Municipal Council and former Indah Water Konsortium manager, said he had certain plans which he would implement, together with his division leadership.

He said his inclusion at the top heralded the rebranding of the MIC in Perlis.

"Rebranding of the party is necessary to serve the community better," he added.

Kangar MIC division chairman M. Kunasegaram said the inclusion of Pritpal showed that the MIC was for all Indians, not just those who originated from south India.

Kunasegaram said that after Jarnail Singh, the first Perlis MIC chairman, gave up his post in 1975, no Sikh had been elected in a leadership position at state or divisional level until now.

In the elections, Kunaseg- aram retained his post for a second term after getting nine votes to beat his rival S. Asokumaran, who received six votes. Pritpal secured 10 votes to defeat C. Pergas Chinatamby who had five votes.

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein today issued a stern warning to Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders P Waythamoorthy and his brother Uthayakumar against threatening the government.

He said the government viewed the duo's threats to hold street demonstrations seriously and would not compromise on national security.

"Once they convert the threats into something that (breaks the law) we will take action," he told reporters in Putrajaya.

Hishammuddin was commenting on the threat by Waythamoorthy, Hindraf's chairperson-in-exile, that mass demonstrations would be held if Uthayakumar was rearrested.

Uthayakumar was recently freed from Internal Security Act (ISA) detention but speculations of his re-arrest began after he refused to sign a document specifying conditions for his released.

Though Uthayakumar was released, speculation of his re-arrest intensified after he revealed that he was not attending an ISA advisory board panel hearing on May 19.

Following this, Waythamoorthy issued an ultimatum to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to revoke the order for Uthayakumar to attend the hearing or Hindraf would declare "war" by staging a series of demonstrations.

'Uthaya need not attend hearing'

Commenting on this, Hishammuddin said that it was not compulsory for Uthayakumar to attend the hearings.

"I was told that his presence at the ISA advisory board is not a condition for his release. The board had asked the detainees to attend to assess their rehabilitation process.

"If he was not present, it would be reflected on the report (but) it does not violate any conditions that allows us to take action," he said, adding that the board would submit the report to him.

Asked on Uthayakumar's refusal to sign the conditions for his release, Hishamuddin replied: "I have checked on the legal aspect of this even before his release. The fact that he didn't sign it is not something that is against the law. It would not affect his release.”

Inspector-general of police Musa Hassan has refused to reveal the conditions, but Uthayakumar has disclosed that among others, there were conditions prohibiting him from speaking at public functions and going to his hometown of Seremban.

The police tonight arrested more elected representatives - an opposition parliamentarian as well as a state assemblyperson - at a candlelight vigil to 'mourn the death of democracy'.

Serdang MP Teo Nie Ching and Teratai state assemblyperson Jenice Lee, two 20-something DAP female politicians, were arrested along with nine party workers at the vigil in Seputeh at 8.20pm.

The vigil, which was held outside DAP MP Teresa Kok's office, saw the participation of more than a dozen of black T-shirt clad protesters.

According to the organisers, the vigil was to mark the "killing of democracy by the illegal government in Perak."

The protesters had earlier gathered outside an empty space facing the DAP building and carried posters calling for the dissolution of the state assembly.

As they were about to launch a signature campaign when they were surrounded by a large number of police personnel.

'Protest held on private property'

The officer-in-charge subsequently ordered the group to disperse, declaring that it was an illegal assembly.

However, Kok pointed out that the protest was taking place on private property and therefore the police had no jurisdiction over the gathering.

The officer refused to budge and once again ordered the crowd to disperse.

At this juncture, Lee told the protesters to sit on the ground. The police officer then proceeded to count from one to 10, and when the crowd remained unmoved, they were arrested.

Teo had however tried to grab onto a pillar resulting in her being forcefully dragged away by a policewoman.

All those arrested were taken to the Brickfields district police headquarters.

Speaking to reporters later, Kok condemned the arrest and said that a team of DAP lawyers were working to free those nabbed.

Supporters chased away

At about 11pm, members of the Light Strike Force were deployed to disperse some 30 supporters who had gathered outside the Brickfields police station.

The group had earlier refused to disperse after being ordered to do so by district police chief Wan Abdul Bari Wan Abdul Talib.

The supporters regrouped 15 minutes later when DAP stalwart Lim Kit Siang, Kok and DAP Youth chief Anthony Loke arrived at the scene.

Among those present was Bersih activist Wong Chin Huat, who himself was arrested last week. The crowd, dressed mostly in black, went on to light candles outside the police station.

Four of the female detainees were later taken to the Travers police station where they are expected to be held overnight.

However, it could not be ascertained if the remaining seven men are still at the Brickfields police station or have been transferred to another location.

The supporters at the Brickfields police station dispersed at about 12.30am and plan to gather outside the Travers police station at the crack of dawn.

'Stop harassing the people'

Earlier, DAP Youth condemned the police's action and called for the immediate release of all those arrested.

"At a time when the people of Malaysia are mourning the accelerated death of democracy in this country fueled by the shameful events in Perak, the police has reinforced the idea that democracy does not exist in this country," said its executive secretary Lim Zhen Hui in a statement.

He added that DAP Youth demands the immediate release of all those arrested and calls on the government to revive the democratic process to save the face of the nation that has been tainted by numerous scandals and instances of human rights abuse.

Also calling for the detainees to be released was human rights group Suaram.

"Suaram condemns the police for their on-going attacks and intimidation on freedom of expression and right to assembly - fundamental rights which are guaranteed under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Federal Constitution of Malaysia.

"We demand the police to release the 11 individuals immediately and unconditionally. We also demand that police stop harassing the Malaysian people from exercising their rights to assembly and stop the assault on freedom of expression," said its coordinator, Wong Chai Yi.

Apart from the two elected reps, among the other detainees whom have been identified are Lam Kah Hon, Alex LC Ling, Koh Weng Ken, Chua Yew Choong, Lim Jen Yow, Tan Hak Lian and Fong Kok Leong.

All were however released at 3am on police bail.

The son of controversial blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin today pleaded guilty at the Shah Alam Magistrate's Court on four counts of theft as well as being in possession of stolen goods.

According to Bernama, Raja Azman Raja Petra, 32, whose address was stated as No 5, Jalan BRP 5/5, Bukit Rahman Putra, Sungai Buloh, pleaded guilty after the charges were read out by a court interpreter.

He was accused of stealing a Yamaha RX-Z motorcycle belonging to 24-year-old production operator Mohd Syaiful Setapa resulting in a loss of RM8,000 at No 65, Jalan Batas 2, 19/6B, Section 19, Shah Alalm, on March 20 at 9.30am.

Raja Azman, who was arrested on May 6, also admitted to breaking into Mohd Syaiful's house and stealing a wallet, containing RM20, the motorcycle’s road tax, two ATM cards and a driving licence on the same day.

Apart from this, the accused also confessed to stealing a mobile phone and wrist watch worth RM3,850 belonging to student Saipul Adli Mohamed Yunus, 21, at the victim's house in Section U2 in Shah Alam on April 24 at 10am.

Bail not posted

Raja Azman, who was not represented, also admitted to being in possession of a stolen motorcycle belonging to student Ahmad Firdaus Jalaluddin, 23, worth RM6,000.

Magistrate Norkamilah Aziz set bail at RM10,500 and fixed June 19 for sentencing.

Nobody posted bail while his father Raja Petra was also not in court throughout the proceedings.

Raja Petra, who operates the popular Malaysia Today blog, is known for his no-holds barred commentaries and startling exposes against the ruling elite, namely Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

The 59-year-old blogger, who is of royal descent, has been arrested twice under the Internal Security Act before.

Currently, he is facing a sedition charge at the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court in relation to an article he penned on the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu.

He is also facing a series of defamation and civil suits.

Raja Petra and his wife Marina Lee Abdullah have five children, Raja Azman, Raja Suraya, Raja Shahril, Raja Azmir and Raja Sara and four grandchildren.

PETALING JAYA: The newly-formed Malaysia Makkal Sakti Party will not resort to street protests, preferring to solve things through discussions.

Its president and former Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) national coordinator R.S. Thanenthiran said grievances could be heard through round-table discussions.

“Enough fighting on the streets. We are more determined than ever that non-violence is the way forward with dignity and justice,” he told a press conference here yesterday.

The party, formed by several key Hindraf members, received its approval from the Registrar of Societies within two months of application and was officially registered on May 11.

Thanenthiran said they would remain an independent party but would not turn down funds from either Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat.

“We are not being funded by Barisan. But if they give us money, why not? We will take it. However, this does not mean that we will compromise our principles.

“We will work with any party coalition that supports and benefits the Indian community, be it Barisan or Pakatan,” he said, adding that the party would be officially launched in July.

Thanenthiran said he would meet Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Pakatan Rakyat’s Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim soon to convey the party’s aspirations.

Makkal Sakti is targeting an increase in membership from 5,000 to 300,000 by June next year.

Meanwhile, Kapar MP S. Manikavasagam, a former Hindraf coordinator who had threatened to leave PKR earlier this year alleging the party was not doing much for the Indians, said he would not join Makkal Sakti.

“I had plans to leave PKR several months ago but after having a talk with Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, I’ve decided that I won’t be going anywhere,” said Manikavasagam.

Kota Alam Shah MP M. Manoharan said he, too, would stay with his party, the DAP.

“I have been a DAP member for a long time and will continue to be in the party,” said Manoharan, the Hindraf lawyer who was recently released from Internal Security Act detention.

IPOH: Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin has verbally conveyed his wish for a dissolution of the state assembly to the Perak royal family.

The former mentri besar said the Raja Muda of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, had granted him an audience yesterday during an investiture ceremony held at Istana Iskandariah in Kuala Kangsar, about 45km from here.

“He said that as far as he was concerned, the royal institution was above politics and would not get involved in the squabble between Barisan (Nasional) and Pakatan (Rakyat),” said Nizar.

When the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled last Monday that he was the rightful Mentri Besar, Nizar had immediately sent a letter to the palace, seeking for an audience with the Sultan for the purpose of dissolving the state assembly.

Nizar’s letter was however overtaken by events when his successor, Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir, managed to obtain a stay on the ruling.

The appeal against the High Court ruling and Nizar’s application to set aside the stay order will be heard tomorrow.

Another party to speak for the Indian community may have the right agenda and connections to regain the community’s support for Barisan Nasional.

WHILE Hindraf founder P. Uthayakumar was busy enjoying freedom after his May 9 release from Internal Security Act (ISA) detention and, on Sunday, performed a “shaving the head” ceremony with his supporters at Batu Caves, his former chief lieutenant worked quietly to register a new Indian party under the Makkal Sakthi, or People Power, symbol.

Makkal Sakthi – the two most powerful and emotive words made famous by Pakatan Rakyat in the 2008 general election — now belongs to the Malaysian Makkal Sakthi Party, whose pro tem president is R.S. Thanenthiran, the erstwhile national coordinator of Hindraf, the movement banned by the authorities as an extremist organisation last October.

“We applied and have received approval for the party from the Registrar (of Societies),” Thanenthiran said.

“I am waiting for an opportune moment to make the formal announcement this week.”

The setting up of a grassroots-based party by an established Hindraf leader like Thanenthiran is significant as it adds a new dimension to Indian politics and possibly emerges as a rival to the MIC, which has all along claimed to be the sole representative of the Indian community.

A former teacher, Thanenthiran was instrumental in criss-crossing the country to mobilise Indian grassroots support for Pakatan but has since fallen out with the Opposition, blaming them for not “doing enough” for the Indian downtrodden.

“They rode the wave and won big but have not delivered on what they promised,” Thanenthiran said.

“That is why a new and independent political party for the Indian masses is urgently needed.

“The new party is independent but will work with any political coalition for the benefit of the Malaysian Indians,” he said, adding that a formal announcement naming the other office bearers would be made later this week.

While some Indian leaders say another new political party would be meaningless as the field is already crowded with numerous Indian-based political parties, Thanenthiran said a new vehicle was urgently needed.

“The political landscape has changed and the aspirations are different. A new political vehicle would better represent the aspirations of the Indian working class,” he said.

The Makkal Sakthi Party hopes to ride on the wave sparked by the Nov 25, 2007, Hindraf rally led by Uthayakumar, the brain behind the protest movement that was originally founded to stop temple demolition but grew into an anti-establishment political movement.

While Uthayakumar and others were incarcerated in Kamunting, it was Thanenthiran who virtually led the movement but advised by Waythamoorthy, another Hindraf founder, from self-imposed exile in London.

Waythamoorthy gave the green light to Thanenthiran to form the party and is returning home early next month to rejoin his brother Uthayakumar, who has said he is considering forming a political party of his own to “bring all Indians” under one roof.

Thanenthiran hopes Uthayakumar will give his blessing to the new political party but he is not waiting for approval from any one.

“If he supports, it is welcome. If he rejects, that’s all right but we are forging ahead without him,” he said, indicating the deep split in the Hindraf/Makkal Sakthi movement over the next course of action.

“I am prepared to make way for him if he wants to lead the party,” Thanenthiran said.

However, Uthayakumar said he had no knowledge about the formation of the new party.

“I was not consulted and besides, we have our own plans,” he said, declining further comments.

The party, Hindraf insiders said, has the financial support of top Indian businessmen, some of whom are close to Umno leaders.

The speed of registration for the Makkal Sakthi Party also suggests that the new party enjoys some form of official support, political observers said, adding it was difficult to get a new political party registered in a matter of months.

“We have friends in the corporate and political world who support our ideals,” Thanenthiran said, adding nevertheless, that Makkal Sakthi was independent and prepared to work with anyone for the benefit of the Indian community.

A new Indian party, if it has official blessings, would also be an additional way for the Government to independently communicate with the Indian community, political observers said.

“It gives Barisan Nasional another option, besides the MIC and PPP, to reach out to the Indian grassroots that had fled to the Opposition,” the observers said.

They said a new political party with the right agendas and connections could win back the grassroots for Barisan in time for the next general election.

KUALA LUMPUR: There is no arrest order out on banned Hindu Rights Action Force leader P. Uthayakumar, said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan.

He said Uthayakumar was only required to be present at the Kamunting detention centre today to face the advisory panel that meets every six months.

“To say we are going to arrest him is very misleading and it only creates unnecessary problems or tension among the people, especially his supporters,’’ he said.

It is learnt that the advisory panel that comes under the purview of the Prime Minister’s Department had sent a letter to the Kamunting detention centre requesting Uthayakumar to be present today.

Uthayakumar’s presence is required as he was freed before the panel met.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had urged Uthayakumar last week to meet the panel with his lawyers and dismissed claims that the later’s movements had been restricted.

“His lawyers can write to me if they feel his movements are being restricted,’’ he said.

KUALA LUMPUR: All applications for birth registration of abandoned children must be made through the Welfare Department.

The directive from the Home Ministry was to quicken the registration process while serving as a safeguard against any abuse in the issuance of identification documents.

This was in response to newspaper reports last Thursday on the plight of four abandoned children who could not attend school or seek treatment at government hospitals as they did not have birth certificates.

The four siblings, including one who is handicapped, are staying at the Taman Megah Handicapped and Disabled Children's Home.

The home had sought the help of the MCA Public Services and Complaints Department last week as it was finding it difficult to obtain identification documents for the children.

Home Ministry corporate communications chief Jamilah Taib said the home had applied to the National Registration Department to register the children last year.

However, the NRD had yet to receive the forms provided by it to the home, to be filled and submitted to the Welfare Department.

Jamilah said this procedure was important as a safeguard against abuse in the issuance of identification documents.

In Ipoh, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Senator Datuk T. Murugiah said the Public Complaints Bureau would carry out a census involving primary schools to determine the number of pupils without birth certificates.

He said he had received many complaints from parents and Parent-Teacher Associations that their children could not pursue secondary education as they did not have birth certificates.

Murugiah cited SJK (Tamil) Puchong where 16 pupils did not have birth certificates.

"This problem is rampant in many primary schools. I have instructed the bureau to send special forms to all schools so that they can tell us how many students don't have birth certificates," he said, adding the schools have one month to fill the forms and send them back to the bureau.

KUALA LUMPUR: The MIC is supporting the MCA’s suggestion that the Public Service Department award scholarships based on meritocracy.

Its president, Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu, said giving out scholarships based on merit would be “good for everybody”.

He, however, said that the discussion must be brought up at the Cabinet.

On Friday, Ong expressed concern again that brilliant students were missing out on government scholarships, saying that meritocracy was the crux of the issue.

Samy Vellu, speaking to reporters after launching the Plus Eight 2009 programme, a project organised by Yayasan Strategik Sosial in co-operation with Women, Social and Community Development Ministry here yesterday, said:

“The Cabinet should be the one to review the scholarship issue as it was the one which had decided on the quota.”

A breakaway group from the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) has formed a political party to spearhead what they claimed to be "a political struggle for the betterment of the Malaysian Indian community".

In what is the first major split in the Hindu rights movement, the group led by suspended Hindraf national coordinator RS Thanenthiran is said to have submitted an application to the Registrar of Societies (ROS) to register a party named as Malaysian Makkal Sakthi Party (MMSP).

The ROS, it is learnt had approved the registration last week for the proposed Indian-based MMSP, paving way for its official launching within the next one month.

Sources said Thanenthiran and company has decided to go ahead to set up the political party after the Bukit Selambau by-election in March.

Although sources said that initially the new political party would remain outside both the Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat groups, a source close to Thanenthiran said that the party could join either coalition depending on which one could fulfill their wishes and demands.

Among the group’s major wish is Hindraf's 18-point demand to upgrade the standard of living of Indians, ranging from housing, education, welfare, political, economic and employment rights.

'They don't trust Pakatan leaders anymore'

Thanenthiran's group currently appeared to be happier and comfortable working with Prime Minister and BN chairperson Najib Abdul Razak rather than Pakatan leaders such as Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Kit Siang, Lim Guan Eng, P Ramasamy and Abdul Hadi Awang.

"They don't trust Pakatan leaders anymore. They believe Pakatan was only using Hindraf for their own selfish political gain," said a source.

The breakaway group's major grouse is that Pakatan-controlled states of Penang, Kedah, Selangor and Kelantan, and previously also Perak, have let down the Indian community and failed to implement any comprehensive policies to upgrade the standard of living of the community.

"They are upset that Pakatan governments have used Hindraf to capture Indian votes, but neglected them after achieving unprecedented electoral gains in the last general election," said the source.

The breakaway former Hindraf leaders were obviously unhappy with the Pakatan decision to turn down their demand to nominate Thanenthiran as PKR candidate for the Bukit Selambau by-election in Kedah in March.

Thanenthiran claims to have many supporters

When contacted, Butterworth-based Thanenthiran confirmed the setting up of a political party under his leadership and claimed he has the support of many former Hindraf members across the country.

Thanenthiran and company decided to go their own way when Hindraf supremo, London-based P Waythamoorthy, expressed reluctance to establish a political party that would sever all links with Pakatan.

For Waythamoorthy - the founder member of Hindraf - and his brother Uthayakumar, Umno and Barisan Nasional were worse off than Pakatan.

The rift reared its ugly head when the Hindraf leader decided to back PKR in Bukit Selambau after Thanenthiran and company have openly called on Hindraf supporters to boycott Pakatan candidate S Manikumar.

Thanenthiran and his Hindraf colleagues were unhappy that Waythamoorthy had decided to back Pakatan without consulting them.

Waythamoorthy had then justified his decision, made after a long telephone conversation with PKR supremo Anwar Ibrahim, was to get rid of Hindraf and Pakatan’s common political foes - Umno and BN.

Waythamoorthy also told his close friends that he was not worried with Thanenthiran's intention to form a party but preferred to distance Hindraf from it.

Whether Thanenthiran’s new party will be able to gain support from Indian Malaysians, and to improve the living conditions and standard of this minority community remains to be seen.

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has denied that during his long tenure as prime minister, he had imposed censorship on the mainstream media.

In his 30-minute speech at the Bloggers United Malaysia (BUM) dialogue in Subang Jaya this evening, Mahathir said the media self-censored itself because it tried to 'second guess' what government leaders want.

According to the 84-year-old politician turned blogger, there were a lot of praises made during his time as prime minister “except for vernacular papers or party organ papers which were quite criticial” of him.

“But mainstream media such as New Straits Times or Utusan Malaysia sort of second guessed what kind of things they want to print (about the leaders). Ssometimes they were wrong,” he said.

He claimed that the situation became worse after he stepped down when the press practised self-censorship more extensively.

He blamed this on former New Straits Times group editor-in-chief Kalimullah Hassan, a known loyalist of Mahathir's successor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

“He would do this (self-censorship) in whatever you report and it went on very quietly. The press never complained and gave the impression that there was no interference, but there was,” argued Mahathir.

According to him, blogging could get around media censorship because “government control (of the Internet) is just impossible”.

Although the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) promised not to censor the Internet, Mahathir said a simple code of ethics should be agreed by the bloggers in “sticking to the facts”.

The former premier argued that blogging could eventually displace the traditional media and other electronic media completely.

With the number of bloggers growing everyday, Mahathir noted that it would be very frustrating for the government of the day to “play hide and seek” with them when it comes to censorship.

“Because there is nothing to stop him (the blogger) from setting up another blog... the only thing I’m glad is that I’m no longer the PM (to take care of this) so to the government of the day, I wish them luck,” he quipped.

106 people arrested under ISA

Mahathir had been accused of imposing self-censorship on the media in his two decades as prime minister, especially during the infamous Operasi Lalang in 1987 when the police cracked down on opposition leaders and social activists.

The operation saw the arrest of 106 persons under the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the revocation of the publishing licences of three dailies - The Star, Sin Chew Jit Poh and Watan.

However, said Mahathir, he had nothing to do with it as they never stopped the papers from saying "nasty things" about him.

“There were accusations thrown at me, saying that I was worse during my time. But I would like to say that newspaper editors are very sensitive people especially those in mainstream media.

“They self-censor because they believed I would not like (what they report) and that I would object - that was all. Other papers said nasty things about me but I never stopped them,” said Mahathir.

He further justified the ISA crackdown because "the situation was moving towards (racial riots of May 13) 1969".

“It was increasing to a point that Umno wanted to have 500,000 people to show their strength and I thought it would escalate, that was why we had to take action,” he said.

'Treated something like a pariah'

Moreover, Mahathir apparently laid the blame on those in charge of security - the police.

“If I had told them not to, they would soon feel that I was not very supportive. The police have the guns and the power, and we don’t. When managing people with guns, you have to be very careful,” he said.

At a press conference later, Mahathir also expressed his disappointment towards the mainstream papers and that he himself has “stopped reading the New Straits Times”.

To back his claims that the media have been practising self-censorship, he said he was “gagged by the media completely during his successor’s tenure, that of Abdullah Ahmad Badawi”.

The owner of a million-hit blog called Chedet, Mahathir said that he was “treated something like a pariah” as he was cut off completely by members of government even though some of them were appointed by him.

In his speech earlier, Mahathir recollected the events which led him to take up blogging exactly a year ago.

“I had at least 14 invitations from Umno members to give a talk but these people were later told to withdraw their invitations, which they did.

"So I was cut off from being able to give my views even to members of my own party,” he said.

'I was cut off from the press'

Mahathir also put the blame on Abdullah for “erasing the existence of the previous PM who had appointed him” instead of being “slightly grateful to his predecessor”.

“But strangely, the moment the new PM took over, he seemed to think that he needed to erase the existence of the previous PM.

“Soon after that, I was cut off from the press... reporters were not allowed to interview me... and they were not allowed to print anything I said,” said Mahathir.

Gagging a politician from talking is not a good idea, added Mahathir, because “we politicians like to talk”.

“You can kill a politician by preventing him from talking... I have a big mouth so I use it quite often,” said Mahathir to the laughter from the 200-strong crowd.

He said it was not until 2008 - four years after he stepped down - that he had to resort to blogging.

Mahathir revealed he had trepiditon taking up blogging as he thought he might not be able to handle criticism.

“I was afraid that I couldn’t handle some nasty comments thrown at me and scared that I could not reply to all of them... it is a torture. I hesitated for quite a long time until I (started to) blog,” said Mahathir.

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian children without birth certificates can now attend government-aided schools provided they have a referral from the Social Welfare Department (JKM).

All they need is a confirmation from JKM or their village headmen that they were born in Malaysia, Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said.

“Parents of children without birth certificates should come forward and seek assistance from the authorities,” she said during a visit to the Taman Megah’s Handicapped and Disabled Children’s Home yesterday.

Four children who were abandoned at the home have been unable to attend school as they were without birth certificates.

The matter, which was reported in The Star, caught the attention of Shahrizat.

She said her ministry had been working with the National Registration Depart-ment (NRD) and NGOs to provide birth certificates for these children and put them in school.

JKM Selangor director Adnan Abu Bakar said they would provide social reports and referral letters for the children.

NRD Births, Deaths and Adoptions director Mohd Azmin Hassan said they would wait for JKM’s referral letters before processing birth certificates for the children.

“We will try our best to get the birth certificates within a month, but we make no promises,” he said.

MIC will not be threatened even if the released Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders decide to form a political party, said MIC president S Samy Vellu today.

According to him, many Indian-based parties have emerged and fizzled out over the decades while MIC is still here.

"In the last 64 years of MIC's existence so many Indian parties were formed, they formed, they talked, and after sometime they demised... it's not going to be a threat to us," he told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.

Touching on the popularity of Hindraf, Samy Vellu said there is one question which remains unanswered.

"How big are Hindraf leaders' supporters, what is the percentage of support they have, we cannot judge things based on what we saw on Nov 25, 2007 (during the street protest).

"MIC has a new way of doing things, new way of getting younger people to come and work with MIC now," he added.

Samy Vellu was asked to respond to the possibility of Hindraf taking its struggle into the political sphere by becoming a political entity.

This is following the government's decision to release all five Hindraf leaders held under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

The five were arrested in December 2007 after mounting the massive street protest which saw tens of thousands of Indian Malaysians taking to the streets to vent their frustrations against the government.

Hindraf has since been outlawed by the government.

'Inhuman' remark

Asked on the possibility of engaging Hindraf leaders in a dialogue, Samy Vellu lashed out at one particular Hindraf leader, M Manoharan.

"I will not say dialogue with Hindraf leaders because of a very nasty statement made by Manoharan (in response to a statement made by MIC secretary-general Dr S Subramaniam).

"When I say hello can I shake hands with you and you bite my hand, it’s not human, we are not asking them to join MIC, we don't want them, his style is very different, he's a DAP man, how can we ask them to join? MIC is MIC, DAP is DAP.

"Their culture is very different too, theirs is an opposition culture," he added.

Manoharan, who is also the Kota Alam state assemblyperson, said he would never join "the sinking ship" MIC because he was "born to be with DAP."

He also stressed that he rejected the MIC culture and that is why he had prevented his supporters from garlanding him upon his release.

Earlier, MIC launched its new portal in a bid to engage the internet-savvy young Indian Malaysians.

The portal will serve as the party's news organ and an online membership engine, said Samy Vellu in his speech.

"The community can now interact and communicate with MIC anytime and anywhere in real time. We want to hear from the community, we want them to tell us what they want and how we could assist them.

"When we do mistakes, we want the community to let us know, advise us and make recommendations. This is the kind of relationship we want to have with the community," he added.

The kindergarden teacher who is embroiled in a legal battle to get custody of her one-year-old daughter from her converted husband, has finally reached an agreement at the High Court today which includes visiting rights to see her child.

The agreement was reached after 150 minutes of proposing and counter proposing in the chambers of High Court 1 in Ipoh.

Indira Gandhi (left), 34, appeared relieved after the agreement was stitched with her estranged husband Mohd Ridwan Abdullah before judge Wan Afrah Wan Ibrahim in his chambers this afternoon.

However, Ridwan did not appear in court today. He was represented by a legal team of three lawyers led by Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla, while Indira was represented by six lawyers led by Augustine Anthony.

Meanwhile, Perak Bar Council president T Shan held a watching brief for the legal body.

Temporary custody until court hearing

The court was to make a decision today on the contempt proceedings brought against Ridwan for the evasion of custody order dated April 24.

However, a compromise was reached between the two sides and a deal was struck whereby Indra will have temporary custody of her two older children - Tevidarsiny,12, and Karaudinish,11 - while Ridwan will have temporary custody of Prasana Diksa pending the Aug 20 court hearing on custody.

The agreement also states that the two older children will attend school without any interference from their father. Both Indra and Ridwan have visiting rights to see their respective children every fortnight at a place and time to be fixed later.

"I am so relieved that my two months of agonising wait for Prasana has come to a successful temporary agreement," Indira told journalists outside the court.

When asked about the whereabouts of her husband who was reportedly to be in Singapore, she said, "I do not know but I received a mobile call from him during the court proceedings and he verbally abused me."

Members of Muslim organisations as well as officials from the Perak Religious Department were seen in full force at the court today.

Their presence appeared to unnerve Indira's family members and friends, who were clearly outnumbered by them.

Even before out-of-favour T Murugiah is dropped as a member of PPP's supreme council, party boss M Kayveas has picked a replacement to fill his post as deputy minister.

Kayveas (right) told Malaysiakini today that vice-president Maglin D'Cruz is next in-line for the cabinet post.

It would have been senior vice-president Lee Heng, but he had lost the Pasir Berdemar state seat to DAP's Seah Leong Peng in the general election last March.

“PPP has decided to follow the hierarchy... I had lost my seat (during the election) and another senior member (Lee) in the party lost his too. So we will give it the person who is next in line,” said Kayveas.

“We have learnt our lesson.... if you don't follow the hierarchy, this is what happens.”

He said he would not name a person who had lost in last year's general election.

D'Cruz (left), who has been member for 12 years but did not contest in the general election, said he is prepared to serve the people, if appointed to the post.

Murugiah, a senator and a deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department, stands accused being involved in money politics. He could not be reached for comment.

The party is expected sack Murugiah from the PPP as early as Saturday when the supreme council is scheduled to meet, if not during the party polls on June 7.

However, his removal is being seen as a reaction to the possibility that he may challenge Kayveas for the presidency.

Murugiah was appointed a senator after the general election last year by then premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, as all PPP leaders who contested the election had lost.

Kayveas himself failed to defend the Taiping parliamentary seat, which went to DAP's Nga Kor Ming.

PPP subsequently submitted five names to the prime minister, as each party in the Barisan Nasional coalition is given a number of slots in the cabinet and in the government.

When Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak took over last month, Murugiah was retained both as senator and deputy minister in charge of the Public Complaints Bureau (PCB).

However, if D'Cruz is to be appointed deputy minister, he will have to take over Murugiah's senatorship as well.

‘Murugiah overly ambitious’

Kayveas alleged that Murugiah has become “overly ambitious” and that he no longer respects the leadership.

For instance, he said, Murugiah (right) has not been attending party meetings or brief the party on decisions made at cabinet meetings.

Kayveas conceded, though, that Murugiah had “started off well as he had many ideas to make the PBC better but along the way he become rather conceited”.

“He has become so high and mighty that he does not even answer my calls,” he said, noting that the situation has snowballed and led to the rift between him and Murugiah.

“And then there was news that he was offering projects to state chairmen without the knowledge of the party leadership. He makes all sorts of promises but he does not discuss his plans with us and he does not tell us how he plans to achieve the promises he has made to people.

“For instance, he promises to give land to poor people. But if he is not able to fulfil his promises early enough, it would (reflect badly on) the party... no one will want to join us because our deputy minister did not fulfil his tasks.”

Kayveas brushed aside talk that the decision to give Murugiah the boot is because of the challenge to the presidency.

“I told the supreme council members that if anyone wants to contest for the (president's) post, they can do it without fear because I don't want PPP to be like other parties,” he claimed.

The Barisan Nasional government must adopt an open mind and engage the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders in a dialogue to resolve the woes faced by the Indian community, said a business group.

In view of this, The Malaysian Indian Business Association (Miba) called on the government to meet with the Hindraf leaders.

"Hindraf surely has valid grounds in its demands as things were not so good for Indian Malaysians over the past 52 years," said Miba president P Sivakumar in a statement.

"Look at the number of Indian youths incarcerated without trial that prompted Hindraf to set up the police watch website. The number of deaths in custody was of grave concern to all who believe in fundamental rights," he added in a statement.

Despite repeated appeals, Sivakumar said the country has yet to see a proportionate number of non-Malays in the civil service while the economic equity remains less than one percent for the Indians.

He added that the government had also erred in invoking the Internal Security Act against the Hindraf leaders, and this was one of the contributing factors to the ruling coalition’s dismal performance in the last general election.

Sivakumar also took MIC to task for making a 'dubious' claim that Indians were driving big cars and earning more than other races.

He said recent events proved that Indians don't even have money to pick up the Amanah Saham Malaysia shares that were allocated to them.

Hindraf has strong support

Sivakumar reminded the government that Hindraf has strong grassroots support and therefore the authorities must act swiftly to dialogue and prevent future agitations.

"There is no better approach to solving issues than to sit down and talk things over," he said, adding that the issues raised by Hindraf had also won the support of other communities.

If concrete actions are not taken, Sivakumar said a new opposition Indian party could come about and this would prove disastrous for BN.

Hindraf, which has since been outlawed, saw five of its key leaders detained under the ISA in December 2007.

The five - P Uthayakumar, M Manoharan, R Kenghadharan, V Ganabatirau and T Vasanthakumar - were arrested shortly after organising a mammoth street protest in Kuala Lumpur.

In April, newly minted Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak ordered the release of two Hindraf leaders Ganabatirau and Kenghadharan.

Last Saturday, the remaining three were freed.

Many thorny issues that has swayed the Indian community from supporting the Barisan Nasional in the last general election are being addressed by the current administration of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, says MIC president S Samy Vellu.

He said among the issues were the poor condition of Tamil schools and its status; location and allocation for Hindu temples, job opportunities in the civil service, higher intake into local public universities, share allocations, educational and business loan facilities and more business opportunities/government contracts.

He said for Tamil schools, the government has agreed to convert all partially-aided schools into fully-aided schools, while a whopping RM130 million allocation has been set aside for the next two years to rebuild many of the schools.

"As for Hindu temples, we have requested the government to increase the annual allocation for temples from the present RM1 million," he said in a statement.

On job opportunities in the civil service, the government has set a quota of 7.4 percent for Indians, equal to the number of their population in the country. The intake is being monitored by (Human Resources Minister) Dr S Subramaniam,” Samy Vellu said.

The government has also set a quota of 7.4 percentage for Indians to enter public universities annually, he said, adding that he met Higher Education Minister Khaled Nordin yesterday to seek for more places for Indians to do professional courses in several public universities namely Universiti Malaya.

Stop complaining and help

Through the effort of the MIC, the government had also recently allocated 15 percent of the recently-launched 3.33 billion units of the Amanah Saham Malaysia shares for Indians worth almost RM500 million.

He said MIC had proposed that the government assist the Indians by providing a partial grant or loan to buy the shares through any of its agencies or financial institutions.

"We are also currently discussing with the government to allocate at least 20 to 30 percent of the free Amanah Saham Wawasan shares for Indians," he said.

He also said MIC has secured more Public Service Department scholarships for Indian students and was discussing with the government to increase the numbers.

"The government has also introduced many business loan schemes to assist small and medium industries run by Indians and MIC has sought more and bigger amount for Indian entrepreneurs," he said.

He chided certain quarters who kept harping that the government has neglected the Indians and that they were being sidelined while the other races were progressing.

"Instead on harping and bad mouthing the government day in, day out without realising what the government is doing, they should assist the Indians to plug into the system made available by the government and channel their grouses to the proper authority," he added.

The Court of Appeal has fixed Monday, May 18, to hear Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin's application to set aside the stay order given by the appellate court yesterday.

This comes after Nizar filed a notice of motion, along with a certificate of urgency and his affidavit in support of the application which was filed at the Court of Appeal registry at 2.20pm today.

Unlike Zambry's application yesterday which was given the special treatment with the Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail's presence and counsel Cecil Abraham along with Umno lawyers Mohd Hafarizam Harun and Firoz Hussein Ahmad Jamaluddin, managing to have the application heard immediately, the rival menteri besar's application to get an early hearing date was only known close to 5pm

Nizar's application was filed by the law firm of Leong and Tan, from Perak.

Among others, the Pakatan leader is seeking to set aside the Court of Appeal's stay order which Zambry had obtained yesterday following Monday's Kuala Lumpur High Court ruling that Nizar is the rightful menteri besar.

Alternatively, Nizar is seeking the Court of Appeal to impose varied conditions on the stay order which Justice Ramly Ali did not allowed yesterday.

He is also seeking costs and other relief deemed necessary by the Court of Appeal.

Yesterday, Ramly, the solitary Court of Appeal judge to hear Zambry's application allowed an order for a stay of the declaratory orders which Mohammad Nizar has obtained.

Ramly also did not allow counsel Sulaiman Abdullah, for Nizar, to apply to the appellate court to impose conditions on the stay order.

Nizar: KL High Court says I am MB

In Nizar's affidavit in support of the application, he said after four days of hearing, the Kuala Lumpur High Court in its judgment allowed the following declarations namely:

(1) He (Nizar) is the rightful menteri besar of Perak at all material times;

(2) There was no dissolution of the Perak legislative assembly;

(3) There was no motion of no-confidence made against him at the Perak legislative assembly; and

(4) He did not resign the post as menteri besar.

Nizar noted that after the judgment delivered by Justice Abdul Aziz Abd Rahim, the judge did not grant an oral application by Zambry's lawyers and he immediately assume the post as menteri besar.

The Pakatan leader also stated the grounds for his application to set aside the stay order namely there were no merits for the application, as there was no motion of no-confidence tabled against him at the assembly, and that the menteri besar cannot be expelled based on Article 16(6) of the Perak constitution.

He also stated that there is a possibilty that Ramly had wrongly read or may have erred in reading the High Court judgment, as the case before the Court of Appeal was made hurriedly.

Declaratory order cannot be stayed

Nizar also stated that the declaratory order cannot be stayed in its application, and the appellate court had given a wrong order in allowing for a stay. Following this, he said this application is made to correct the situation.

He also claimed that special circumstances were in his favour as Zambry could be considered as an usurper menteri besar following the Kuala Lumpur High Court judgment and the move by the appellate court had violated his rights and the High Court's decision.

It had also hindered the administration of the Perak state based on the state constitution, and that the rakyat and its civil servants are confused as to who is the rightful menteri besar following the appellate court's decision.

He also claimed the decision yesterday, had resulted in an unstable political situation in Perak.

Nizar said his application would not prejudice Zambry's stay application as it is an “office of trust” and that his application to seek a dissolution would have to be decided by the sultan.

Futhermore, the Pakatan leader claimed the High Court had decided that Zambry at all material times was not the rightful menteri besar.

The Court of Appeal has granted a stay of execution on yesterday's High Court decision which recognised Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin as the rightful Perak menteri besar.

This will put on hold the decision of the High Court pending an appeal by Perak BN Menteri Besar Zambry Abd Kadir.

This means that rival MB, Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin, cannot seek the sultan's consent to dissolve the state assembly until the appeal has been heard.

Today's decision puts a crimp in Nizar's bid to return as the lawful MB. He had been in office for less than 24 hours since the High Court decision.

Ramly was elevated as a Court of Appeal judge just last month. Previously, he was a judge in the High Court's commercial division.

In granting the appeal. Ramly noted the special circumstances of the application, as this does not only involve the applicant (Zambry) or the respondent (Nizar) but the whole of Perak.
“The court will allow for a stay of the declaratory orders until the appeal proper has been disposed by the Court of Appeal,” he ruled.

No conditions imposed on Zambry

Nizar's counsel Sulaiman Abdullah asked whether any conditions would be imposed on Zambry, but Ramly replied the court would not do so.

Sulaiman then asked Ramly to note his strong objections to the decision.

Zambry's lawyers argued that the stay is important to stop Nizar from seeking the approval of the Perak sultan to dissolve the state assembly.


Nizar had, this morning, sought an audience with the Regent Raja Nazrin Shah to seek dissolution.

Zambry's lead counsel Cecil Abraham noted that, if the dissolution were granted, the appeal would be rendered academic.

He also cited various media reports today that Nizar is seeking dissolution.

Cecil therefore pointed out the need for the appellate court to intervene and grant a stay.

Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail, who was in court today, supported the application.


He also argued that the suspension of the state secretary and state legal adviser by Nizar late last night was illegal as these are federal appointments.

Decision made at 1pm

Sulaiman urged the court to fix an early date for the appeal hearing.

However, he also said the court should allow the High Court judgment to remain, as the decision to dissolve the assembly is not with Nizar but with the sultan.
“Why make the application when (the decision) is at the hands of a third party, namely the sultan?” he asked.

Sulaiman said the High Court had found that Zambry was an usurper menteri besar who had, among his actions, sold off the cars assigned to Pakatan state exco members and convened the assembly on May 7.

“Yesterday's High Court decision negates the assembly seating and the ouster of speaker V Sivakumar as it was sanctioned by Zambry,” he said.

Sulaiman also submitted that while Zambry held the post of menteri besar, Nizar had not applied for a stay order.

In turn, the BN leader should not now apply for one when the finding has gone against him.


Nizar urged to vacate his office

Cecil and Sunil Abraham represented Zambry while Nizar was represented by Sulaiman, Ranjit Singh, Philip Koh and Edmund Bon.

In addition to Gani, AG's Chambers prosecution division chief Tun Abdul Majid Tun Hamzah was in court.

BN and Umno lawyers, Hafarizam Harun and Firoz Hussein Ahmad Jamaluddin, held a watching brief.

Also in court were two PKR assemblypersons turned BN-friendly Independents - Mohd Osman Jailu (Changkat Jering) and Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi (Behrang). Their defections had made it possible for BN to take over the Perak government.

After the decision, which was delivered at about 1pm, Hafarizam urged Nizar to vacate his office to allow Zambry to move in.

“As Zambry had respected the High Court's decision today, Nizar and his exco members should do so likewise,” he said.
Asked as to what Zambry's next course of action would be - whether to dissolve the assembly or seek a vote of no-confidence - Hafarizam said the question should be posed to Zambry.

Cecil said today's decision means that status quo has been retained, with Zambry as the menteri besar.

Sulaiman said he would have to take instructions from Nizar on the next course of action, and whether to file for a review to set aside the stay order.


“We can apply to set aside the stay order before a three-member panel unlike a single-member panel today.

"We will do it fast on getting the instructions from Nizar and apply before the president of the Court of Appeal. We have 10 days to apply to set aside the stay order."

In an immediate response, Nizar said he would seek legal advice on what to do next.

Regardless of legal action taken by both parties, he said the matter must be resolved quickly.

In a related development, Pakatan lawyers are expected to file an urgent application tomorrow to set aside the Court of Appeal single-judge's stay decision.

Malaysiakini:The government will release another 13 Internal Security Act detainees, including three of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders.

"All of them have been freed because they no longer need to be held under ISA. I will sign the papers now, I expect them to be released in two or three days," said Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told a press conference.

He did not give the reasons for the release of the 13 but added that they "no longer needed to be held".

Of the 13 to be released, six are Malaysians, two Indonesians and the remaining five are Filipinos.

They are Zulkepli Marzuki, Jeknal Adil, Azmi Pindatun, P Uthayakumar, M Manoharan, T Vasanthakumar, Zainun Rasyhid, Aboud Ghafar Ismail, Sufian Salih, Hasim Talib, Abdul Jamal Azahari Yusof Mohd Salam and Husin Alih.

He said Malaysia was discussing deportation plans of the foreigners with their embassies.

Hours after taking the reins in April, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak ordered the release of 13 ISA detainees, including Hindraf leaders V Ganabatirau and R Kengadharan.

The release of the trio will remove a thorn in the side of new prime minister, who is trying to promote his reform credentials.

'Mas Selamat detained under ISA'

The three Hindraf leaders still in detention are P Uthayakumar, T Vasanthakumar and M Manoharan.

Manoharan is also the state representative for Kota Alam Shah in Selangor. He won the seat from behind bars in the last general election.

Hishammuddin denied that the decision to free Manoharan was triggered by his recent threat to quit, which would force a by-election that the government can ill afford after a series of defeats in the polls over the past year.
"None at all," he said, when asked whether political motivations were behind the release.

The Hindraf 5 were detained in December 2007 after mounting a massive street protest which saw tens of thousands of Indian Malaysians taking to the streets.


In an immediate reaction, Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy welcomed the release of the three Hindraf leaders but urged the government to release all remaining detainees and close down the detention centre.

"I also hope this is not an eyewash to divert the people's attention from the ugly episode in Perak yesterday," he said when contacted.

Waythamoorthy, who is Uthayakumar's younger brother, is presently in exile in London following the government crackdown on Hindraf. The movement was banned last October.

S Indradevi, the fiancee of Uthayakumar, said she was overjoyed at the news which was completely unexpected.
"I am very happy indeed and I am thankful to (Hindraf campaigners) who have been through a lot for us including tear gas and water cannons," she told AFP.

"The first thing I am going to do is to take him for proper medical treatment for his diabetes, heart and skin problems."

Mano's wife: I can't believe it
Meanwhile, Manoharan's wife S Pushpaneela (right) was elated with the news of her husband's impending release.

"I can't believe it. My children and I can't wait to see him free again. Now he can serve the people who voted him in as the state representative of Kota Alam Shah," she told Malaysiakini.

Manoharan won the seat while in detention but in recent days he is said to have grown frustrated of being unable to serve the constituency.

He has expressed his intentions to quit the seat but this is now irrelevant with his release.

As of early April there were 27 people in detention under the ISA, mainly suspected Islamic militants.

Hishammuddin confirmed today that alleged militant leader Mas Selamat bin Kastari was also being held.

According to the minister, the alleged Islamic militant leader was captured and is being held under ISA.

"Mas Selamat is under our detention and is being investigated right now. He was planning something which allows us to arrest him," Hishammuddin said.

"He is under ISA," he said.