anilnetto.comanilnetto.comThe journalism and other writings of Anil Netto - featuring real journalism in the cause of justice, freedom and solidarity Articles
It?s a sacred day? Share with me your polling day impressions
2008-03-08 06:06:00 This is the moment we have been waiting for. I have already cast my ballot, have you? It was peaceful and orderly at the polling booth. I could see dedicated volunteers and officials. But I think the Election Commission must be allergic to ink - especially the indelible variety. Instead of a ball-point pen, they ... More About: Democracy , Polling , Share , Impressions , Sacred
Campaign in Penang ends on a multiracial high as Anwar warns of phantoms
2008-03-08 02:11:00 The Opposition campaign in Penang ended last night on a multi-racial high as 8,000 people crowded the main road in Sungai Ara near the Pas markas. For the first time in Penang, I noticed that all the ethnic groups were well represented. Malay men shouted Makkal Sakthi along with their Indian counterparts while everyone shouted ... More About: Campaign , Democracy , High , Anwar
Massive 60,000-strong rally in Penang raises Opposition hopes
2008-03-06 16:45:00 Photo credit: DAP Ceramah; More pictures here. If you thought last Saturday’s ceramah attended by 10,000 people at the Han Chiang High School indoor stadium was huge, think again… The crowd tonight, this time out in the open in the vast Han Chiang school field, was massive. My engineer friend, a maths whizz, at first tried to ... More About: Politics , Hopes , Rally , Democracy , Penang
PKR, DAP candidates vow to oppose PGCC; BN reps fail to show up
2008-03-06 07:54:00 The PKR and DAP candidates have assured residents at a condominium complex next to the Penang Turf Club that they would firmly oppose the Penang Global City Centre project if they are elected. All the election candidates in the area - both BN and Opposition - were invited to meet the residents of the 72 Scotland ... More About: Environment , Show , Candidates
Indelible ink U-turn casts shadow over election
2008-03-06 05:48:00 The Election Commission’s decision not to use indelible ink just does not sound right. If they have nothing to hide, then there should be no hesitation in using such ink. It certainly doesn’t look good for the EC and the government, coming so close to polling day. How are you going to spot multiple voters? This ... More About: Politics , Democracy , Shadow , Accountability
Jeyakumar vs Samy Vellu: Epic battle that?s too close to call
2008-03-04 15:21:00 If there is one electoral contest that epitomises GE 2008, it has got to be the epic battle of Sungai Siput. A titanic contest is taking place between Samy Vellu and Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj of PSM, standing under a Keadilan ticket - and so far, it’s neck-and-neck. The scenario is more akin to 1999, when Kumar ... More About: Close , Call , Battle , Epic , Malaysian politics
Heard on the grapevine
2008-03-03 03:17:00 Here’s what some people are saying: Guan Eng is expected to win easily in the Bagan parliamentary seat on mainland Penang. Koh Tsu Koon could find the going tough in the Batu Kawan parliamentary seat against the DAP’s Prof Ramasamy. The BN is concerned about its prospects in Perlis, Kedah, Penang and even Pahang. Last night, I dropped by ...
Anwar, Guan Eng join hands to rock Penang
2008-03-01 16:50:00 This was one of the big ones. It was one those evenings where you just had to be there to experience the growing sentiment among Penang ites seeking change and reforms. Some 10,000 converged at the indoor stadium of the private Han Chiang High School in Penang. Though the stadium could said to have a seating capacity of ... More About: Rock , Democracy , Join , Hands
Pro-Opposition sentiment rising in Penang
2008-02-29 16:34:00 Some 250 people turned up at the Catholic Church in Pulau Tikus in Penang tonight to listen to Dr Francis Loh presenting a talk on election issues that should concern Malaysians. Though the crowd might seem small, a similar talk at the same church in 1999, at the height of the reformasi period, drew only about ... More About: Christianity , Sentiment , Malaysian politics
Intense interest in Malaysian polls across the Causeway
2008-02-28 08:54:00 I am just back from Singapore, where I took part in a forum on the Malaysian general election with some old friends. The forum on Tuesday was organised by the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in the island republic. I was delighted to meet my friend, Farish Noor, ... More About: Media , Democracy , Polls , Interest
Pas makes a breakthrough by fielding a non-Muslim woman candidate
2008-02-22 12:42:00 Well, well, well, what do we have here? Pas is fielding a non-Muslim Indian Malaysian woman as a candidate for the Tiram state seat in Johor: 29-year-old law graduate Kumutha Rahman. Okay, it might be a gimmick to attract non-Muslim votes. After all, even Hishamuddin “the keris man” Hussein has agreed to re-open the original Damansara Chinese ... More About: Fielding , Woman , Candidate
Have you read this not-so-secret diary?
2008-02-21 16:21:00 Already tired of the mainstream media’s bias in covering the election campaign? Don’t fret, you are not alone. And I have got just the right antidote for you. In case you haven’t noticed, there is a new blog in town. The Malaysian Election Media Monitors’ Diary , which is now in full flow. This is an initiative launched on ... More About: Read , Democracy , Secret
?Lingam?s Devil Curry? by Comedy Court
2008-02-20 11:44:00 Just spotted this hilarious skit and I thought you should check it out. It’s from the brilliant Comedy Court , which has been around since 1997. The outfit features the talented duo, Indi Nadarajah and Allan Perera. But at the end of the day, when you think about the Lingam saga, you don’t know whether to laugh ... More About: Curry , Judiciary , Devil
Armed Forces fund pays 16%; EPF only 5.8%
2008-02-17 15:03:00 This is an excerpt of a report from The Star: …Najib also announced that contributors to the Armed Forces Superannuation Fund (LTAT) would receive a 16% dividend and bonus payout, the highest since 1997. He said the LTAT would pay out 7% in dividends, 3% bonus and another 6% in special bonuses to its 120,000 contributors ... More About: Accountability , Pays
Roses for PM day - updates
2008-02-16 02:47:00 It looks like it is going to be another eventful day. Before going further, check out Subramaniam Pillay’s piece Hindraf rally: A plea of the dispossessed? on the reasons for the emergence of Hindraf and Makkal Sakthi. 9.02am - Just received a phone call informing me that a group of people from Penang heading ... More About: Roses , Updates
Writing?s on the wall for Samy Vellu
2008-02-15 02:42:00 Hostile reception: Police moving in to escort Samy Vellu to his car after he was surrounded by angry youths at a Tamil school groundbreaking ceremony in Petaling Jaya Wednesday. (Photo credit: The Star) I nearly missed this picture in The Star. The MIC leader certainly doesn’t look too happy. In fact, he can’t go anywhere ... More About: Writing , Wall , Malaysian politics , The wall
Will the next US president say ?No? to War and Occupation?
2008-02-14 07:46:00 Unlikely. You see, war is a profitable business in the United States . Apart from boosting weapons sale, it is also Big Business for mercenary private contractors and “reconstruction” companies, which stand to make huge profits. The United States spends close to US$1 trillion on “defence” and it has over 700 military bases around the world. Disruptions ... More About: President , Militarism
Samy Vellu in ?top form?
2008-02-14 02:18:00 Here’s a clip of the man himself, obviously in “top form”. A lot of bravado. He says “the BN will win 100 per cent because this is one government in South-East Asia that truly fulfils its promises to the people”. Why, his opponents are “already dead” or they simply “don’t exist”. We shall see on polling day. ... More About: Form , Malaysian politics
Samy Vellu walks out in a huff after students fail to humour him
2008-02-13 12:32:00 Samy Vellu again. This time at an MIC-organised meet-the-students function at the City Bayview Hotel in Penang yesterday evening. Present were about 200 STPM Indian Malaysian students and college students from around Penang who were probably invited through Indian students’ societies. One source told me the students falied to humour and “cooperate” with Samy Vellu and they ... More About: Humour , Students , Huff , Walks , Malaysian politics
Parliament dissolved: How can you trust such a leader?
2008-02-13 05:37:00 So Parliament has been dissovled. And Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi has got off to the worst possible start over something as critical as the date for the dissolution of the Federal Parliament to pave the way for the 12th General Election. It was only yesterday that he denied that Parliament would be dissolved today. I mean, how ... More About: Trust , Malaysian politics , Leader
Makkal Sakthi drama at Penang CM?s office
2008-02-12 12:02:00 Some 300 Indian Malaysians from the Makkal Sakthi (”People Power”) movement, many of them clad in their trademark orange, gathered at Komtar this morning in an attempt to meet Penang Chief Minister Koh Tsu Koon at his office. With them was five-year-old Vwaishnavi Waythamoorthy, the only daughter of one of the five detained Hindraf ... More About: Office , Drama
End of the road for biofuels?
2008-02-10 05:23:00 The science has finally confirmed what many people had already guessed: clearing land to produce biofuels will increase greenhouse emissions. In fact, it will take many years for the beneficial effects of using biofuels to compensate for the harmful effect of clearing the land. This is the most damning statistic, cited by the Wall Street Journal: “Draining ... More About: Environment , Road , Biofuels , The Road
?You know-lah?
2008-02-08 09:52:00 The other day, I was waiting for a train. It was late by more than half an hour and crowds were already milling around on the platform. An elderly couple stood nearby, wondering what was happening. Before long, the gentleman walked up to me and asked if it was usual for trains here to be ...
GM mosquitoes to be released in Malaysia on large scale?
2008-02-06 05:07:00 Just spotted this Wired news report on an experiment with genetically modified mosquitoes - and the company “envisions releasing the insects in Malaysia on a large scale in three years”. Gulp! Engineered Mosquitoes Could Wipe Out Dengue Fever ... More About: Environment , Health Care , Released , Agrobusiness
After stalling RM25bil project, PGCC Campaign Group calls for Local Plans i
2008-02-04 16:07:00 Fresh from their success in stalling the PGCC project, the civil society PGCC Campaign Group held a press conference yesterday to put forward their position and demands. Essentially, the civil society groups are asking for Local Plans to be prepared first - with full public participation - before any development can be approved. Once the Local ... More About: Environment , Project , Calls
Corporate takeover of agriculture gathers pace
2008-02-03 16:49:00 More worrying developments regarding the corporate takeover of agriculture. Nestle is eyeing the commercialisation of traditional red rice varieties in Sarawak. It is also trying to promote contract farming - perhaps something similar to what Sime Darby has in mind for the Northern Corridor. It is presumptuous that these huge multinational corporations think they can teach traditional ... More About: Workers , Takeover , Corporate , Agriculture , Pace
Mainstream media poised to turn into BN propaganda channels
2008-02-02 14:53:00 It has already started. I mean, the propaganda over the mainstream media. This time we can expect it to be worse, given that the Barisan Nasional is going to face stiff contests in many areas. So what are we to do? It does get sickening as polling day approaches when whatever remaining journalistic ethics are thrown ... More About: Media , Propaganda , Democracy , Channels , Turn
Drop in donations for Batu Caves supports eye-witness impressions of turnou
2008-02-01 10:21:00 The Batu Caves temple authorities have made public their takings for this year’s Thaipusam celebrations. Malaysiakini reported that the temple collected only RM1.04 million this year compared to RM1.8 million last year - that’s a 42 per cent plunge in takings. That’s assuming all the money has been properly accounted for. This corroborates the impressions of eye-witness ... More About: Witness , Accountability , Civil society , Impressions , Donations
Lingam inquiry: Cowing civil society into silence?
2008-02-01 02:51:00 So the Commission of Inquiry thinks that Aliran’s statement on the refusal of the Commission to call in certain witnesses is “on the verge” of contempt. That is so sad. They expect civil society to sit back and stomach the sort of testimony that is being offered in total silence while potentially important witnesses are left ... More About: Society , Democracy , Judiciary , Civil , Silence
Suharto dies with blood on his hands - but did he really improve the lot of
More articles from this author:2008-01-30 16:54:00 A lot of blood. More than 500,000 - perhaps close to a million - in the mid-1960s, as a result of a communist purge, which also targeted peasants. Then came the invasion of East Timor, which led to a loss of some 180,000 lives. There there were the tens of thousands of Indonesians killed in places like ... More About: United States , Human Rights , Neo-liberal economics , Hands , Blood 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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