Who’s in charge of Malaysian democracy?
November 13, 2012
Nov 13 ―
It has been psychologically proven that it is human instinct to attribute anything bad to one’s surrounding. For example, if I baked a cake and it failed for whatever reason, I would instinctively and firstly seek out the problem from the ingredients that I’ve used, or a bad oven, or the recipe.
It will usually take a while before I would acknowledge that the failure was due to a mistake on my part, or maybe, that I simply lack the necessary skills. Again, note that the aforesaid relates to human instinct.
One may acknowledge personal fault at a later point, but the first reaction would always usually be to seek the problem in one’s surroundings.
So, coming back to the topic ― what is Malaysian democracy?
To break the question down a little ― where does Malaysian democracy take place? The first answer to this would be that it is exercised at the ballot box. The second answer to this may be that it is exercised when there is a protest.
But is that all there is to Malaysian democracy? Surely, its exercise cannot be so occasional.
Yet, if Malaysians have been exercising their right to democracy, why and how have we been subject to a degenerating regime for the past 50-odd years?
We speak of change, but our concept of change can only materialise at the ballot box. In other words, we can only change once every five years.
What about protests? Must democracy only happen when a group of people decides to take the people’s voice to the streets? And say, if no one decides to rally up the people, is our only other option for change at the ballot box?
Is representative democracy our only option?
Our reaction to this degenerating regime would instinctively be the fact that our leaders are lacking in competence, and that it is their fault that we are in the position that we are in. But, tying this back in with the opening paragraph of this article ― is this really the case?
Is Malaysia degenerating because of what our leaders are doing to us? Or are we degenerating because of what we fail to do?
In a situation where the Malaysian leadership does not change, what other option do we have?
A simple analysis of our leadership structure will show that there are several avenues for the lay Malaysian to be involved in our country’s policy-making decisions. All of us have been allocated one member of the state legislative assembly and one Member of Parliament to speak on our behalf at the different levels of government.
With this in sight, participatory democracy becomes far more feasible.
Opinions of local communities can simply be gathered and submitted to the leader that the community has voted in. Contrasting this to our former idea of democracy, this other option for continual accountability would seem more manageable and therefore feasible.
Putting the effect of the aforesaid into perspective – what this means is that the needs and wants of local communities for specific policies will be heard by the designated leaders.
There will be a clear request from the voters of the constituencies to hold their leaders accountable to.
And depending on what the leader says or does in reaction to these requests, local communities can then decide on what else to do – should the leader respond favourably to the request, the community would have reason to be satisfied with his leadership; and should the leader decide to not respond to the request, the community can properly seek out the reasons for such decisions and correspondingly take further action or make the necessary assessment of his leadership.
The important point, therefore, is this: that by doing so, communities will be able to measure the performance of their leaders, and leaders will be able to measure the specific needs of their communities. In relation to communities – they will then be able to determine how and why the leader has succeeded or failed; and in relation to leaders, they will then know whether or not they have failed.
As to the latter, should the leader be put in the realisation that he has failed his community, he will likewise be put in the lingering realisation that his future as a leader may come to an end.
In short, we can only say that one has failed to fulfill our request when there has been a request made in the first place. Malaysia, there is a need to depart from our unrealistic and immature ways of putting the onus on our leaders to gauge our interests and needs when we to not take the personal responsibility of voicing them out in the first place.
Democracy is a two-way communication. It is a continual two-way communication. Malaysia, we say that this is our country.
It’s time to start acting as we claim.
* The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist.
Wednesday 21 November 2012
Malaysia activists decry leniency for child rapists
Malaysia activists decry leniency for child rapists
(08-29 17:29)
Malaysian child protection activists called for a legal review after two men convicted of having sex with minors were allowed to go free in recent weeks. Chuah Guan Jiu, 22, was freed on probation Monday after a court in the northern city of Georgetown found him guilty on two charges of statutory rape of his girlfriend when she was 12 years and 10 months old, AFP reports.
The release came weeks after national tenpin bowler Noor Afizal Azizan, 21, was freed on a good behavior bond, following a successful appeal against a five-year jail sentence for having sex with a 13-year-old girl.
The bowler, who was 19 at the time of the offence in 2009, had pleaded guilty but a Court of Appeal ruling reportedly said “public interest would not be served if Noor Afizal was sent to jail as he had a bright future''. The Georgetown district court similarly said it considered Chuah's future as he was a young first-time offender, The Star newspaper reported. Chuah's lawyer Yusuf Idris argued the sex was “purely consensual'' and his client was not educated on the law having dropped out of school at 14, ``and did not know about the offence''.
“The victim did agree in court that she gave consent and was in love with the accused,'' he told AFP. Child rights activist Hartini Zainudin, who runs the NurSalam crisis center, said the penal code should be reviewed immediately to ensure children are given the protection they require. “How can consent by a child, 12 years old, be a mitigating factor?
I'm speaking as a child activist, who's just horrified at the implications... on future cases and the message we're sending out to perverts and pedophiles,'' she told AFP. Child protection NGO Voice of the Children also criticized the rulings. “Is a good behavior bond the right sentence for a then 21-year-old man who had sex with a 12-year-old girl, who has barely entered puberty?'' said VoC chairwoman Sharmila Sekaran in a statement.
“Malaysia determined the age of consent at 16 years for a reason. The statutory rape law was enacted to protect young girls. The court needs to consider the nine-year age gap.'' People also expressed outrage on social media such as Twitter.
``What the courts have effectively done in these 2 cases is lower the age of statutory rape from 16 to 12,'' one user posted Tuesday.
Statutory rape in Malaysia is punishable by a maximum jail sentence of 20 years
and whipping. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking_news_detail.asp?id=24115&icid=4&d_str=20120820
Malaysian child protection activists called for a legal review after two men convicted of having sex with minors were allowed to go free in recent weeks. Chuah Guan Jiu, 22, was freed on probation Monday after a court in the northern city of Georgetown found him guilty on two charges of statutory rape of his girlfriend when she was 12 years and 10 months old, AFP reports.
The release came weeks after national tenpin bowler Noor Afizal Azizan, 21, was freed on a good behavior bond, following a successful appeal against a five-year jail sentence for having sex with a 13-year-old girl.
The bowler, who was 19 at the time of the offence in 2009, had pleaded guilty but a Court of Appeal ruling reportedly said “public interest would not be served if Noor Afizal was sent to jail as he had a bright future''. The Georgetown district court similarly said it considered Chuah's future as he was a young first-time offender, The Star newspaper reported. Chuah's lawyer Yusuf Idris argued the sex was “purely consensual'' and his client was not educated on the law having dropped out of school at 14, ``and did not know about the offence''.
“The victim did agree in court that she gave consent and was in love with the accused,'' he told AFP. Child rights activist Hartini Zainudin, who runs the NurSalam crisis center, said the penal code should be reviewed immediately to ensure children are given the protection they require. “How can consent by a child, 12 years old, be a mitigating factor?
I'm speaking as a child activist, who's just horrified at the implications... on future cases and the message we're sending out to perverts and pedophiles,'' she told AFP. Child protection NGO Voice of the Children also criticized the rulings. “Is a good behavior bond the right sentence for a then 21-year-old man who had sex with a 12-year-old girl, who has barely entered puberty?'' said VoC chairwoman Sharmila Sekaran in a statement.
“Malaysia determined the age of consent at 16 years for a reason. The statutory rape law was enacted to protect young girls. The court needs to consider the nine-year age gap.'' People also expressed outrage on social media such as Twitter.
``What the courts have effectively done in these 2 cases is lower the age of statutory rape from 16 to 12,'' one user posted Tuesday.
Statutory rape in Malaysia is punishable by a maximum jail sentence of 20 years
and whipping. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking_news_detail.asp?id=24115&icid=4&d_str=20120820
Being told to remove their trousers by teachers – students confessed that he wasn’t wearing any underwear
Being told to remove their trousers by teachers – students confessed that he wasn’t wearing any underwear
JOHOR BAHRU – Their crime?
Uploading a video clip of themselves on YouTube after finishing their SPM exam paper. Their punishment? Being told to remove their trousers by teachers, even after one of the students confessed that he wasn’t wearing any underwear. In addition, they subjected the students to 700 push-ups as well as multiple slaps, kicks and punches by three teachers, Harian Metro reported.
The incident is believed to have occurred last Monday, when the students had just returned to their dormitory at 5.30pm after spending time at a nearby shopping mall. When they returned, they were confronted by three teachers. It is alleged that the teachers were angry at the students for uploading a video of themselves on YouTube after completing their SPM mathematics paper.
The roughly three-minute clip, uploaded on Nov 5, had depicted the antics of the students blowing off steam after their exam paper by copying a skit by a popular reality TV program. A father to one of the students, who only wished to be known as Amir, 47, described the teachers’ actions as overboard, and did not even appear to be educational in nature.
“I was told of the incident by the father of a fellow student. As a result of trauma from the incident, my son has now become withdrawn,” he said. He said he first noticed behavioural changes in his son when the family visited him at the school last Thursday. He said the son acted out of the ordinary and was non-communicative throughout the visit. Amir said he was disappointed by the teachers’ actions, which he claimed was unprofessional and based on emotions.
“Granted, teachers have the authority to punish students, but it should be within reason. Going overboard can lead to stress which can affect students emotions and performance of the students, who are sitting for their SPM,” said Amir, who hails from Kulaijaya. Amir said he has watched the video clip and felt it contained neither sensitive material, nor did it tarnish the school’s name in any way. He said he didn’t understand why the teachers lost their cool when the students were merely “releasing stress.”
“I’m disappointed. It wasn’t enough that they dished out such humiliating punishment, but the teachers also threatened to blacklist the students SPM certificates if they told their parents about this,” he said. Amir lodged a report on the incident at the Sentral police station yesterday. “I want justice for my son and I hope the police as well as the relevant authorities will investigate this,” he said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Education Minister Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi, when contacted, said his office was still awaiting a full report of the incident. “We will, however, investigate these claims so we can carry out further action,” he said. - mD
http://www.kualalumpurpost.net/being-told-to-remove-their-trousers-by-teachers-students-confessed-that-he-wasnt-wearing-any-underwear/
Uploading a video clip of themselves on YouTube after finishing their SPM exam paper. Their punishment? Being told to remove their trousers by teachers, even after one of the students confessed that he wasn’t wearing any underwear. In addition, they subjected the students to 700 push-ups as well as multiple slaps, kicks and punches by three teachers, Harian Metro reported.
The incident is believed to have occurred last Monday, when the students had just returned to their dormitory at 5.30pm after spending time at a nearby shopping mall. When they returned, they were confronted by three teachers. It is alleged that the teachers were angry at the students for uploading a video of themselves on YouTube after completing their SPM mathematics paper.
The roughly three-minute clip, uploaded on Nov 5, had depicted the antics of the students blowing off steam after their exam paper by copying a skit by a popular reality TV program. A father to one of the students, who only wished to be known as Amir, 47, described the teachers’ actions as overboard, and did not even appear to be educational in nature.
“I was told of the incident by the father of a fellow student. As a result of trauma from the incident, my son has now become withdrawn,” he said. He said he first noticed behavioural changes in his son when the family visited him at the school last Thursday. He said the son acted out of the ordinary and was non-communicative throughout the visit. Amir said he was disappointed by the teachers’ actions, which he claimed was unprofessional and based on emotions.
“Granted, teachers have the authority to punish students, but it should be within reason. Going overboard can lead to stress which can affect students emotions and performance of the students, who are sitting for their SPM,” said Amir, who hails from Kulaijaya. Amir said he has watched the video clip and felt it contained neither sensitive material, nor did it tarnish the school’s name in any way. He said he didn’t understand why the teachers lost their cool when the students were merely “releasing stress.”
“I’m disappointed. It wasn’t enough that they dished out such humiliating punishment, but the teachers also threatened to blacklist the students SPM certificates if they told their parents about this,” he said. Amir lodged a report on the incident at the Sentral police station yesterday. “I want justice for my son and I hope the police as well as the relevant authorities will investigate this,” he said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Education Minister Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi, when contacted, said his office was still awaiting a full report of the incident. “We will, however, investigate these claims so we can carry out further action,” he said. - mD
http://www.kualalumpurpost.net/being-told-to-remove-their-trousers-by-teachers-students-confessed-that-he-wasnt-wearing-any-underwear/
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