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PETALING JAYA
Continue 'Look East' Policy: Dr M
FORMER Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Malaysia and other Islamic countries should look to other Eastern countries and not the West as a model for their development. He said he believed he made the right decision in introducing the "Look East" Policy of emulating work ethics and business techniques from Japan and South Korea during his tenure as the prime minister. "Right now, there are so many problems with Western countries. The problem in the West is that they have borrowed too much and cannot repay. You cannot have that kind of a country as a model," he said during a question-and-answer session at the Third Langkawi Islamic Finance & Economics International Conference (LIFE 3). "If you see countries like (South) Korea, Japan and China in the East ... China has US$3.2 trillion in reserves. They are swimming in money. Korea can come up with major products better than that produced by companies in the West. "Japan, as you know, is a country which lost a war ... totally destroyed but as it rebuilt itself, it become the second biggest economy in the world. If you want to copy or learn something, learn from the successful people, not from the failures." Dr Mahathir said one could not learn much from the West because it was a total failure. "So, we should continue to look to the East and not to the West. The West is going bankrupt," he said.
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Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim will represent Malaysia at the London Conference on Cyberspace beginning tomorrow — Bernama
The Malay Mail Monday 31 OCTOBER, 2011
PETALING JAYA
'Let students assemble' Amend universities Act if you are sincere, youth leaders tell minister
IF the Higher Education Ministry is going to talk the talk, it must also walk the walk. Malaysian Youth Solidarity (Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia — SAMM) senior member Ahmad Halimi Mohd Ali said the minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, should follow up on his statement to give students "space to voice their own views" by proposing to the Cabinet to amend the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971 (Akta Universiti dan Kolej Universiti — AUKU) regarding
By AZRIL ANNUAR azrilannuar@mmail.com.my
student demonstrations. “If he is sincere, he should propose to amend or abolish AUKU altogether. With AUKU, students can be suspended from their studies if they are politically active. This inhibits their freedom of speech," he said. “But why is it with the case of Prof Abdul Aziz Bari, who gave his academic opinion and was suspended from duty, and the students who rallied to his
cause by demonstrating, the student leaders involved were only questioned for about three hours? “This shows the Federal government’s realisation that the power to vote belongs with the youth, especially the university students which can easily make or break a government. We don't know whether his statement is sincere or if he’s preparing for the next general election." Malaysian Student Solidarity (Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia – SMM) chairman Shukri Razab
also supported Ahmad Halimi’s view, saying Khaled must “encourage” public and private institutions of higher learning to allow the students the freedom to assemble. “We are happy with what the minister has said and I do hope it is not a political statement," he said. "I hope he will encourage the institutions of higher learning to be more open, showing that he really supports his statement instead of making it a personal one to avoid political backlash.”
Shukri said students were still being threatened with the Act whenever they tried to exercise their right to speak or assemble. Asked whether their demonstrations and idealism might be hijacked by unscrupulous political parties, he said they “will never” allow it to happen. However, he said Malaysian Student Solidarity would cooperate with any organisation who shared the same idealism for justice, freedom and academic and intellectual discourse.
KUALA LUMPUR
Tsu Koon: I didn't say I will stand against Guan Eng GERAKAN president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon (pic) yesterday dismissed a blog report that he is prepared to take on Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng in the next general election, saying the blogger had not interviewed him at all. He also said he would not
comment further and that the blogs could write whatever they wanted to. "Several blogs have written all kinds of things about me. My Press secretary has dismissed them. I was not interviewed by any blogger, so how can they quote me as having said that?"
he told reporters after officiating at the Gerakan Deepavali open house at Menara PGRM in Cheras. Koh, who is the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, was asked to comment on a posting in the PapaGomo blog where he was quoted as saying he was
PETALING JAYA
prepared to take on Lim, who is also the DAP secretary-general, in any constituency in the next general election. About 3,000 people, including Gerakan vice-president and Deputy Foreign Minister A. Kohilan Pillay, attended the open house.
PERTH
Lim to lodge police report Malaysia seeks to against Umno Online today host CHOGM 2019 PENANG Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s political secretary, Zairil Khir Johari, will lodge a police report on his behalf at the State police contingent headquarters today. Lim had given Umno Online a 48-hour ultimatum on Thursday to withdraw articles attacking his son, or a police report would be made. Lim, who is also the DAP secretary-general, said both he and his wife were outraged by the continued accusation by bloggers against his 15-year-old son despite having issued a denial that none of the alleged incidents took place. His son had been accused of outraging the modesty of a female classmate, causing him to be transferred to another school and that Lim paid RM200,000 to the girl’s family to keep things under wraps. Lim said his son was the vic-
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By ASRUL HADI ABDULLAH SANI asrul@mmail.com.my
tim of "morally despicable and barbaric lies" and he had not wanted to involve the police in the matter initially. Umno Online, in its reports, had called on Lim to address the allegations, claiming he was inconsistent in his statements regarding the issue. Lim's Press secretary, Cheong Yin Fan, said Lim could not personally lodge the police report because he had to attend the State assembly sitting. “Lim’s political secretary will be making the police report because we have not received any apology from Umno Online and the articles attacking his son have not been removed from the site,” she told The Malay Mail. Zairil also confirmed Lim was considering taking legal action against the portal.
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“I have been asked to lodge the police report by the Chief Minister. We are considering legal action but we will tell you when the time comes,” he said. DAP chairman Karpal Singh had made a separate police report last week against Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin for his comments on the allegations against Lim’s son in the microblogging service Twitter. Khairy had twitted on Oct 17: “Mungkin dia roboh Kampung Buah Pala sebab nak ganti dengan Kampung Buah Dada” (Maybe he destroyed Kampung Buah Pala because he wants to replace it with Kampung Buah Dada). Karpal also said he would initiate legal action against a tweet Khairy made on Oct 17 for criminal defamation.
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MALAYSIA is seeking to host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2019, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said yesterday. He told reporters in Perth, Australia, the date was significant as the last time Malaysia hosted CHOGM was in 1989, which would make it 30 years from 2019. Najib was among 53 heads of government who attended CHOGM 2011 in Perth, declared open by Queen Elizabeth on Friday. Yesterday was the last day of the three-day meeting. Najib said many countries were receptive to the idea of Malaysia hosting CHOGM 2019. "A decision on whether Malaysia's desire to host the meeting will be known at CHOGM 2013 to be hosted by Sri Lanka, or after that," he said.
After Sri Lanka, Mauritius will host CHOGM 2015. Najib said there had not been any offer to host CHOGM 2017 yet. He said Malaysia had initiated the move early to be the host of CHOGM 2019 because the date was most meaningful and significant. "The date (year) signifies a period of 30 years after Malaysia first hosted CHOGM in 1989," he said. Najib and his wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, who arrived here on Wednesday, left for home yesterday evening after hosting a barbeque for Malaysians in Perth. Some 1,000 people attended the function held at Burswood Park. The Malaysian delegation to the CHOGM included Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman and International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.
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