Archive - 13 January 2003

Restricting the movement of teenagers is a simplistic solution to combat social ills; the Bar Council asks the Perlis government to focus instead on dealing with the substantive issues that affect youths.

Even as DAP rejects yet another call to rejoin the opposition front, all parties believe they will come to a common understanding to take on the ruling front in the next polls.

Although promising to remain patient despite the accusations levelled against him by his deputy, MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik conceded today that the reproach was beginning to annoy him.

Already known for his close relations to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, headline-grabbing Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe may soon make himself at home in Malaysia — that is, if plans for his retirement in exile materialise.

Umno and PAS seem set to battle it out at a public debate on the religious schools issue following the accusation that PAS is indoctrinating the students with anti-government sentiments.

Keputusan kerajaan menghentikan bantuan kewangan kepada Sekolah Agama Rakyat (SAR) turut meresahkan penyokong kerajaan yang turut mentadbirkan sekolah yang sama. Manakala PAS pula menyifatkan tindakan itu melampaui batas kuasa Sultan.

updated version The Kuala Lumpur High Court dampened Parti Sosialis Malaysia's hopes to revive socialism in local politics when it dismissed an application for registration. The party will now file an appeal.

After a two-year wait, the longest criminal trial in the country's legal history relating to conditions in immigration detention camps, will continue tomorrow. More sordid revelations of life in these camps are expected.

As the war against Iraq looms, America is luring the Kurdish people but they must not place their trust in a country that has 'used and abused' them many times in the past. They must not pay the price for an American miscalculation.

While non-Muslims vocally object to an aggression on Iraq, the Muslim world appears to have lost its voice. Farish A Noor says it is time Islamist leaders and intellectuals scrutinise themselves and ask some pressing questions about the state of Islamist political discourse and how it has failed to serve Muslims themselves.

An attack on Iraq will hurt the fight against international terrorism, inflame Muslim anger and increase the number of recruits to terrorist ranks, says Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Last week, Iran's judiciary suspended the use of death by stoning under Syariah law, apparently taking its cue from the government. This signals a temporary victory for reformists.