Yes, Negara-Ku has an Agenda, Ambiga tells Utusan

BY ANISAH SHUKRY

Published: 13 July 2014

Newly formed Negara-Ku’s agenda is to promote unity, peace and harmony, and those who criticise it are trying to deflect Malaysians from issues of racism and extremism, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said today.

“Of course, Negara-Ku has an agenda. It is an agenda for unity, peace and harmony,” Ambiga told The Malaysian Insider in a text message.

“Everyone who loves this country should support this agenda. Those who criticise it are merely trying to deflect from the pressing issues of racism and extremism that threaten the fabric of our nation. What is their agenda, I wonder?”

The former Bersih co-chairperson was responding to Awang Selamat’s column in Utusan Malaysia today slamming the newly formed non-governmental organisation (NGO) as a smokescreen to further Ambiga’s political ambition.

Awang, a pseudonym for Utusan’s collective editors, had demanded that the Registrar of Societies (RoS) reject any formal application from Negara-Ku unless its name was changed to “AgendaKu”.

"Let it remain an illegal body, unless the name is changed to AgendaKu. That is more befitting Ambiga's record and reputation," said Awang today in Mingguan Malaysia, the Sunday edition of Utusan Malaysia.

Ambiga said she and national laureate Datuk A Samad Said were only patrons of the movement, and that she had never claimed it was her own personal initiative.

“It is a movement of the people set up by concerned citizens and NGOs and chaired by the respected Zaid Kamaruddin.

“We accepted the honour of being patrons because the cause is timely and most worthy.”

The former Bar Council president said any action taken by RoS must be within the boundaries of the law.

She said checks by Negara-Ku’s members found there was nothing unlawful in adopting such a name.

“We have examined it ourselves and can see no legal impediment to our use of the name Negara-Ku (not Negaraku).

“Nevertheless, we continue to be inspired by our beautiful national anthem that unites all Malaysians.”

She said Negara-Ku was an initiative by concerned citizens unable to remain on the sidelines while leaders did nothing to stop certain quarters from destroying the nation’s harmony.

The new movement was launched on Thursday to heal Malaysia and restore hope, given the recent challenges that continue to threaten the peace and harmony of its multi-ethnic and multi-faith society.

Touted as the "people's movement to reclaim our nation", it is chaired by Zaid, the secretary-general of Ikram, and its patrons are Ambiga and Samad.

Some 68 civil society groups and NGOs have endorsed Negara-Ku, which is aimed at mobilising and empowering people to return to the basics of the Federal Constitution, Malaysia Agreement and Rukunegara.

Ambiga had previously said the movement sought to provide the correct information to meet the challenges facing Malaysian society.

This would be done through videos, social media and forums and talks “to get people to listen, to question and to think," she said recently.

Awang Selamat today said Negara-Ku was a desperate platform to restore the image of the opposition pact, namely PKR and DAP.

It said that after failing many times to garner the support of the rakyat, including through the Bersih rallies, Ambiga was now hiding behind the name Negara-Ku, which was similar to the national anthem.

"The excuse that this NGO supposedly wants to encourage harmony, tackle extremism and racism is just a smokescreen. It is disgusting.

"In Malaysia, anybody can form an NGO but do not use the name Negaraku, especially for political purposes. Do not think you are so honourable, for I worry that this will attract extremism.

"Many know who Ambiga is. The anger of Malaysians, particularly Muslims, over numerous issues has yet to die down," he said in the column titled "Agenda Ambiga?" – July 13, 2014.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/yes-negara-ku-has-an-agenda-ambiga-tells-utusan

New Movement to "reclaim Malaysia" launched

BY JENNIFER GOMEZ

Published: 10 July 2014

A new people's movement called, "Negara-Ku", was launched today, aimed at healing Malaysia and restoring hope, given recent challenges that continue to threaten the peace and harmony of its multi-ethnic and multi-faith society.

Touted as the "people's movement to reclaim our nation", the coalition is spearheaded by two prominent personalities as patrons – lawyer Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan and national laureate Datuk A. Samad Said.

"There are political parties and their affiliates that are not focused on nation-building, but on building their respective power bases.

"These parties on both sides of the divide pursue their agenda that are transactional and short-term, not transformational and long-term," Samad said at the launch in Kuala Lumpur today.

The former Bersih 2.0 co-chair added that ethno-centric and race-based politics as well as communally-minded politicians continue to derail the process of inclusive nation-building and the formation of a Bangsa Malaysia national identity.

Samad also said that religion was increasingly being used as a main marker of identity, and as a boundary maintenance mechanism to polarise the people.

"The mobilisation and manipulation of race, ethnicity and religion have resulted in increasing intolerance, bigotry and extremism.

"There is also an emerging sub-culture of political violence, these are symptomatic of  dangerous undercurrents in our society," Samad said.

He added that the state, by "default or design", had failed to address these developments.

"The state has also failed to ‎play the role of an honest broker in managing conflict in our society," he added.

According to Samad, they believed that the majority of the people wanted an end to divisive ethno-religious politics.

"We have to act before our society descends into the abyss of instability," he added.
‎
Negara-Ku is endorsed by 68 civil society groups and NGOs.

Ambiga, meanwhile, said that the movement was about hope and was pro-rakyat.

"After the general election, something strange started happening in this country with incidents of religious extremism and racism getting out of hand," she said.

She added that people started questioning the strange goings-on, which were being stoked by certain segments out to set "a dangerous agenda".

She noted that politicians kept on invoking the spectre of May 13 rather than worked towards uniting the people.

Ambiga said the language in the Federal Constitution was very respectful and meant to unite the people.

"Why can't we go back to that primary document which tells us how to care and share with each other rather than turn it into something ugly?" she asked.

Ambiga also hit out at politicians who appeared to be on "election mode", adding that there was no governance from the country's leadership.

"We want governance and the reason we need this movement is because there is no leadership.

"So we need to take leadership and ownership and restore hope using this movement, we need to tell political leaders that 'if you can't handle it ,we will handle it'," Ambiga said.

She said that there could be a hidden agenda to create instability and to divide and rule, but added that most Malaysians were not interested in that agenda.

"So the next time someone says May 13 to you, you tell them July 10, because this is the day we have decided to take the nation forward," Ambiga added. – July 10, 2014.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/new-movement-to-reclaim-malaysia-launched

Amid Search for Plane, Malaysian Leaders Face Rare Scrutiny

By THOMAS FULLERMARCH 12, 2014

 SEPANG, Malaysia — Malaysia’s governing elite has clung to power without interruption since independence from Britain almost six decades ago through a combination of tight control of information, intimidation of the opposition and, until recently, robust economic growth.

But worldwide bafflement at the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has challenged the country’s paternalistic political culture and exposed its coddled leaders to the withering judgments of critics from around the world.

Civilian and military leaders on Wednesday revealed that they had known for the past four days, but did not publicly disclose, that military radar had picked up signals of what may have been the missing aircraft. It appeared to be flying on a westerly course sharply off its intended flight path to Beijing.

If the radar readings were from the missing plane, it could mean a radical reinterpretation of where it ended up. And it was only under a barrage of intense questioning on Wednesday from a room packed with reporters who had arrived from many countries that officials acknowledged that the last recorded radar plot point showed the jet flying in the direction of the Indian Ocean — and at a cruising altitude, suggesting it could have flown much farther.

Continue reading the main story

Detecting a Plane

Two kinds of radar are used to keep track of air traffic from the ground.

Primary radar

Sends out radio signals and listens for echoes that bounce back from objects in the sky.

TRANSPONDER

Secondary radar

Sends signals that request information from the plane’s transponder. The plane sends back information including its identification and altitude. The radar repeatedly sweeps the sky and interrogates the transponder. Other planes in flight can also receive the transponder signals.

That raised the question of why the information had not been released earlier.

“The world is finally feeling the frustration that we’ve been experiencing for years,” said Lee Ee May, a management consultant and a former aide to a Malaysian opposition politician.

Ms. Lee said she was embarrassed when the country’s defense minister, Hishammuddin Hussein, the scion of a powerful political family, rejected a reporter’s assertion on Wednesday that the search for the airplane had been disordered.

“It’s only confusion if you want it to be seen to be confusion,” Mr. Hishammuddin said at a news conference that unfolded before an international audience.

Relatively free from natural disasters and other calamities, Malaysia has had little experience with handling a crisis on this scale. It is also an ethnically polarized society where talent often does not rise to the top of government because of patronage politics within the ruling party and a system of ethnic preferences that discourages or blocks the country’s minorities, mainly ethnic Chinese and Indians, from government service.

Ethnic Malays, who make up about half of the population, hold nearly all top government positions and receive a host of government preferences because of their status as “sons of the soil.”

Authoritarian laws have helped keep the governing party, the United Malays National Organization, in power — and an ascendant opposition in check.

The day before Flight 370 disappeared, the leader of the opposition, 

Anwar Ibrahim, was sentenced to five years under a sodomy law that is almost never enforced. Critics called the case an effort to block the opposition’s rise at a time when the governing party’s popularity is waning.

Then on Tuesday, a court convicted Karpal Singh, another opposition politician, of sedition, a law enacted in colonial times.

“We call it persecution, not prosecution,” said Ambiga Sreenevasan, a lawyer and the former head of the Malaysian Bar Council.

The government is accustomed to getting its way, and the crisis surrounding the missing plane is holding officials accountable in ways unfamiliar to them, Ms. Ambiga said.

“Malaysians have come to accept that their leaders don’t answer questions,” she said. “When you are not seriously challenged in any meaningful way, of course you get complacent and comfortable.”

For a relatively prosperous country of 30 million people that is less well known internationally than neighboring countries like Thailand and Singapore, the government’s confused efforts at finding the missing jetliner are an awkward and undesired appearance on the world stage.

The crisis has led to introspection about why the government has 

appeared uncoordinated and unable to pin down seemingly basic facts about the missing flight.

Officials insisted for three days that baggage was removed from the flight before takeoff when five passengers did not board. But the country’s chief of police on Tuesday said that was false: Everyone who checked in 

boarded the plane, he said. No explanation was given for the conflicting accounts.

Ibrahim Suffian, the director of the Merdeka Center, an independent polling company, said the response to the crisis had underlined a lack of precision both in government and in the society over all.

“There’s a tolerance for a lack of attentiveness to detail,” he said. “You 

have a tendency of not asking so much and not expecting so much.”

The crisis also highlighted a lack of competence in government that Mr. Ibrahim said was related to a deference to authority and reluctance to take initiative. “There’s always been a kind of wait-for-instructions-from-the-top attitude,” he said.

Yet amid the criticism of the rescue efforts there was also an acknowledgment that the plane’s disappearance was so unusual that perhaps no government would be fully prepared for it.

“This is almost a unique situation,” said Ramon Navaratnam, a Harvard-trained economist and a former Malaysian senior civil servant. “Anyone would be caught off guard.”

For now, the Malaysian authorities are stuck in the unenviable position of hearing many questions but having few answers.

“They have never faced pressure to perform like this,” said Ms. Lee, the management consultant. “But now international eyes are on them, and they have nowhere to hide.”

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/13/world/asia/missing-jet-exposes-a-dysfunctional-malaysian-elite.html?ref=thomasfuller&_r=0

‘Global settlement’ settles nothing, say Bersih co-chief, MPs

BY BOO SU-LYN, IDA LIM and JOSEPH SIPALAN
November 14, 2013

Ambiga countered that the law expressly allows for election petitions to challenge polls result that were in dispute. — AFP pic
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 — Barisan Nasional’s (BN) proposed blanket settlement for outstanding election petitions will not resolve the underlying issues behind the disputes even if it ends the legal wrangling, opposition lawmakers and polls reformists said yesterday. They argued that such a settlement would simply prevent scrutiny over the alleged problems, instead of allowing the Federal Court to determine once and for all if aggrieved parties can seek justice when faced with instances of alleged electoral misconduct. 
“A settlement will effectively sweep everything under the carpet, everything that is wrong with the system, as opposed to being addressed by the highest court,” Bersih co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan told The Malay Mail Online when met at the court complex here.
“It may sweep serious issues under the carpet as opposed to allowing the Federal Court to adjudicate on it but ultimately it depends on the terms of the settlement,” she added. Yesterday, BN lawyers proposed the settlement deal, which calls for both BN and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) to withdraw all election petitions against results of the 13th General Election still pending appeal at the Federal Court. The counsel for the ruling coalition said the offer was put on the table as they believed that the courts should not be used “as a means to change the government”, while at the same time seek an amicable solution to the current standoff. 
Ambiga countered that the law expressly allows for election petitions to challenge polls result that were in dispute. “Bringing an election petition is a right of the party, and given some of the serious allegations that have been brought forward, we hope that the court will have a chance to decide on these issues,” she said. 
DAP’s Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo noted that far from deciding a new government through the courts, a victorious petition will merely send the contest back to the ballot box. “If we’re successful, there’ll be a re-election. It’s up to the people to decide. We’re seeking fresh elections on grounds that elections earlier were tainted with irregularities,” he said. Gobind added that the petitioners need to stay the course as they have all suffered summary disposal of their applications by the Election Court on purely technical grounds, without even being heard. “The Federal Court must make a ruling on that, to determine what has happened at the High Court, whether the approach taken is correct. This is important for future litigation,” he said. 
PAS secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali agreed that the issue went beyond seeking an amicable solution, and spoke of a serious need to address the allegations of polls irregularities raised by the opposition. “The issue is far greater than that. It’s not just a matter of settlement. There are other issues pertaining to this, regarding the SPR and all,” he said, referring the Malay acronym for the Election Commission. But some are at least entertaining the proposal, wary of the extreme financial costs associated with seeing the petitions through to the end. 
PKR vice-president and Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar said that PR petitioners need to be practical when considering their options, especially since this is the last chance that they can legally challenge the outcome of the May national polls. “We’re still mediating. We must be mindful of the exorbitant costs, we must be mindful of the limitations under the current law whereby election petitions can be struck out based on mere technicalities,” she said. 
Gelang Patah MP and senior DAP leader Lim Kit Siang echoed the sentiment on the heavy costs imposed by the Election Court on failed petitions, which he described as “excessive” and “indefensible”. “That should be one of the issues to be dealt with, but even if that is taken into account, what should be the attitude (in negotiating a settlement)? We need the full details before we can say more,” he said. 
PAS’s Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad, meanwhile, said that BN must provide some consideration beyond extending the olive branch. “There must be something on top of that. Some form of reform, so that in future, the hands of the court are not tied. Make sure that things like these do not happen again. They have to ensure that there are fairer elections,” he said. 
PR and BN filed at least 56 election petitions across the country, 35 of which were by the opposition while the ruling coalition put in 21 submissions. None of the petitions was successful, leaving political parties to pay the costs running into millions of ringgit after the Election Court imposed some of the highest costs on petitioners in the history of the country’s elections. Currently, holding the record for the most expensive failure in the Kuala Berang petition, which saw the Election Court in Kuala Terengganu order PAS to pay RM150,000 in costs.
Source: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/global-settlement-settles-nothing-say-bersih-co-chief-mps

- 

Maria Chin is Bersih 2.0’s new head

BY JENNIFER GOMEZ
NOVEMBER 12, 2013

Activist Maria Chin Abdullah (pic, left) is the new chair of Bersih 2.0,  after she was the only person nominated for the top position in the electoral watchdog's elections.

Bersih 2.0 or the Coalition of Free and Fair Elections will hold its first ever elections at the end of this month. Current co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, who will officially step down on November 30, was one of those who nominated Maria for the post.

The position of Bersih 2.0 vice-chair will see a contest between Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa and Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh while Masjaliza Hamzah and Nahar Md Nor will contest the treasurer’s post.

Five nominees are vying for the two committee member seats – K. Arumugan, Ng Chak Ngoon, Farhana Halim, Hishamuddin Rais and New Sin Yew.

The elections will be held at the PJ Library on November 30 and campaigning will come to a close on November 29.

The five-member steering committee team elected at the national level will serve a two-year term.

Bersih 2.0 Election Committee member Stanley Yong said at a press conference today that even though the new chair is already known the new steering committee will only be officially announced on November 30.

Another six committee members will be elected later on from the regional level to add to the five-member national level committee.

A total of 90 endorsing organisations of Bersih 2.0 will have one vote each at the November 30 polls. – November 12, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/maria-chin-is-bersih-2.0s-new-head

STOP BLAMING THE CHINESE - Anwar ticks off Zahid, Ali for using the race card in Umno poll

Wednesday, 09 October 2013 14:29
Written by Malaysia Chronicle

KUALA LUMPUR - Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim ticked off Umno leaders who have recently hit the headlines with outrageous comments that were clearly racist in nature.

"Now I have said on the 31st of August when I called for for dialogue the issue of racism and religious bigotry is paramount and since then it has gotten worse. The Umno election is not about governance or the welfare of the Malays but about the race card," an incensed Anwar told a press conference on Wednesday.

"Why blame the Chinese or the Opposition? Who squandered the funds, who squandered timber land, who squandered billions of contracts for their families and cronies? Who are the richest Malays? These are the family members of the umno leaders. Who managed to get the Petronas contracts, the big contracts? Why blame the Chinese or the Opposition or whoever? Why can't we learn to work together and deal with this amicably?"

Anwar had been asked on whether he felt Umno leaders such as Home Minister Zahid Hamidi and former Malacca chief minister Ali Rustam had overplayed their hand in criticizing and blaming the Chinese for an assortment of ills plaguing the country including escalating crime, and for Ali Rustam, even the loss of his Batul Katil parliamentary seat.

Deep anger and resentment amongst the minorities

The outrageous comments of the two Umno leaders who are both vying to make the cut as vice presidents in the October 19 Umno election have triggered a backlash of negative publicity for the country as well as stirring up deep resentment and anger amongst the minorities.

"Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi made remarks in a speech in Malacca on October 6, 2013, that showed gross indifference for the right to life and the rights of the country’s minority populations," international NGO Human Rights Watch said in a statement issued today.

The well-respected NGO is the latest to join the chorus of calls spearheaded by Malaysian activists demanding that Prime Minister Najib Razak removed Zahid from the Cabinet, and to chastise Ali Rustam for his blatantly racist comments.

"After hearing the home minister, I really want to know what MCA and MIC are doing in BN. Have some self-respect please and walk out!" former Malaysian Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan had tweeted in response to Zahid's comments. Ambiga, who is one of Malaysia's most prominent civil society leaders, was referring to the Chinese and Indian component parties in Najib's ruling BN coalition.

Go back to school, Zahid

In his speech, Zahid had also controversially admitted that the police had a 'shoot-first' policy and did not need to warn their suspects as the victims of these criminals were "mostly our Malays".

"Zahid should get some basic training in basic law. Yes, the police have a right to defend themselves but to shoot first without warning is totally different," said Anwar.

"I am speechless at what the Home Minister said in Malacca. It shows he has no understanding of, or respect for the rule of law. He is supporting police who are trigger happy. I am very disturbed by the shocking racism and racial profiling in his speech which portrayed Malays as victims of all crimes and non-Malays as the perpetrators,"Ambiga had also told Malaysia Chronicle.

Source:  http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=172312:stop-blaming-the-chinese-anwar-ticks-off-zahid-ali-rustam-for-using-the-race-card-in-umno-poll&Itemid=2#axzz2hD91rQp1

Bersih, Pakatan want electoral roll subject to court oversight

BY BOO SU-LYN
JULY 18, 2013UPDATED: JULY 18, 2013 04:19 PM

Ambiga said if the Election Commission wanted transparency, it would not need the contentious section 9A to protect the electoral roll from judicial oversight.KUALA LUMPUR, July 18 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) launched an online campaign today to abolish section 9A of the Elections Act 1958 that prohibits the courts from reviewing the electoral roll.

Bersih co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan lent her support to the campaign, saying that if the Election Commission (EC) wanted transparency, it would not need the contentious section 9A to protect the electoral roll from judicial oversight.

”The problem we have with 9A is that the EC is the sole custodian of the electoral roll,” said Ambiga at a joint press conference with DAP MPs Charles Santiago, Lim Kit Siang and Lim Guan Eng in Parliament here today.

Santiago pointed out that section 9A was introduced after the 2001 landmark court ruling on the Likas by-election in Sabah, where the Kota Kinabalu High Court ruled that the electoral roll for the Likas state constituency contained phantom voters and declared the 1999 polls to be null and void.



"It is clear that section 9A was introduced to enable BN (Barisan Nasional) to protect their phantom voters," said the Klang MP.



"Once an electoral roll is gazetted, it cannot be challenged in court," he added. "The Election Commission has absolute power in controlling the electoral roll, even beyond that of the judiciary."



Santiago said that the "Mansuhkan 9A" (Abolish 9A) campaign was started by him, PAS' Sepang MP Mohamed Hanipa Maidin and PKR's Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar.

Both Santiago and Nurul Izzah lost their bids in court before the May 5 polls to review the electoral rolls in their respective constituencies.



The two opposition lawmakers said there were phantom voters in the gazetted electoral rolls, but the Kuala Lumpur and Shah Alam High Courts ruled against their favour, citing section 9A of the Elections Act.



PR researchers have alleged there are tens of thousands of phantom voters registered on the electoral rolls in states such as Sabah and Selangor.

The EC has disputed the claims, saying that the high percentage of discrepancies in the electoral roll was “normal”.



"Section 9A is an ouster clause as it contravenes the Doctrine of Separation of Powers," said Santiago.

"The role of the judiciary as the arbitrator of rights and duties is completely removed."



The petition is accessible at mansuhkan9A.

Source: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/bersih-pakatan-want-electoral-roll-subject-to-court-oversight

622 黑色大集会：安华：若大选公平，民联已胜

2013-06-23 10:20

• 
  安华强调，在过去的大选中出现的诸多舞弊，选委会明显失职，应总辞以示负责。（图：星洲日报）

（吉隆坡22日讯）公正党顾问拿督斯里安华指出，如果第十三届大选在公平公正的情况下进行，民联可以取得约60%的总得票（popular vote）。

【622集会直击：逾5万人上街要选委会总辞】

“如果选举中没有出现大量的舞弊事件，我们已贏得选举，获得人民的委託。”

安华在默布草场举行的505黑色集会上致辞时也重申，他並没有到印尼与首相拿督斯里纳吉会面。

他强调，他是受到印尼总统苏西洛的邀请，前往印尼商討大马与区域局势，並解释民联抗议选举结果的理由。

他也说，无论是在国会內外，民联从未拒绝过与纳吉或国阵会商，如有任何事要会商，国阵大可派出代表与民联代表进行正式协商，没必要私下会面。

安华强调，如果国阵诚心改革，首要任务就是革除选委会领导层，但就是不明白为何巫统还继续捍卫明显失职的选委会。

“须对选举弊端负责”
安美嘉要选委会辞职

净选盟2.0主席拿督安美嘉致辞时说，选举委员会领导层必须为无法清理选民册、不褪色墨水褪色以及这次是最骯脏大选等选举弊端负责，他们必须辞职以示负责。

她说，选委会领导层应立即辞职，因为不到2至3个月的时间就要进行选区重新划分事宜。

她说，重新划分选区之前，必须先確保选民册“乾净”。

“使用不乾净的选民册来进行选区重新划分，这是不能接受的。选委会领袖应针对不乾净选民册立即辞职。”她呼吁国会议员在国会反映选民册不乾净的课题。

公正党梳邦区国会议员西华拉沙表示，虽然民联基於原则入稟选举上诉，但是他们並不把希望寄托在法庭，仍坚持要求所有选举上诉的选区都要举行补选，因为最终公正將仰赖人民力量。

来源：http://news.sinchew.com.my/node/305721

Street protests may be only way to push for polls reform, says Ambiga

BY SYED JAYMAL ZAHIID
JUNE 14, 2013

Ambiga says the EC no longer enjoys public confidence.KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — Polls reform group Bersih 2.0 has conceded that taking to the streets could be the only way left to fight for polls reform should its campaign to clean up the election system through legal channels fail.

Co-chairman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said the group, however, will first use its “People’s Tribunal” as the chief platform to “scrutinise” the allegations of fraud committed in Election 2013 where its findings will be the basis for its advocacy work for polls reform.

“We will go with the tribunal first. Depending on the findings we will push for relevant reform. If that fails then a protest may be the only option,” she told The Malaysian Insider.

Ambiga had previously said that the “people’s tribunal” will serve as a “moral force” to investigate and publicly expose alleged fraud in the May 5 general election.

The tribunal and its findings will also underpin its fight for the resignation of all the present Election Commission (EC) line-up following accusations of bias. Bersih and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders have also made this a key condition to bilateral talks on polls reform.

But the Najib administration’s insistence on the EC’s independence means it is unlikely to agree to the condition. The EC chairman, Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Yusof, has also said that the commission will not bow down to pressure.

The impasse could well force Bersih and the opposition to resort to street protests as a last recourse.

“Our fight for electoral reform will continue. Our People’s Tribunal will proceed,” Ambiga said.

Bersih has held three massive street protests in the past. The violent clampdown on the demonstrations, especially the third rally, drew widespread domestic and international condemnation on the Najib administration which later forced it to set up a parliamentary panel to oversee polls reform.

Although the move initially gave hope for constructive dialogue on electoral reform, Putrajaya’s failure to implement most of the recommendations made by the panel prompted Bersih and the opposition to revive the fight to clean up the election system.

The campaign intensified after the EC was accused of rigging the May 5 ballot to give the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition a win.

Ambiga noted that the EC have failed to defend itself and explain the massive irregularities uncovered during the intensely fought Election 2013 including its failure to administer the indelible ink system to prevent double voting and inaction on the tainted integrity of the electoral roll.

“As far as I am concerned the EC does not enjoy public confidence. They have failed to act independently and they have failed in executing the indelible ink process effectively.

“The importance of that process cannot be underestimated. It was a recommendation of the PSC (parliamentary select committee) and it was introduced to avoid double voting,” she said.

The opposition has filed more than 30 election petitions to challenge some of the election results. It has also filed several civil suits in a bid to impeach the EC line-up and prevent them from conducting the constituency redelineation exercise by year-end.

Unbalanced constituencies and lopsided redrawing are seen as key factors to BN’s dominance while the ruling coalition is seen benefiting every time a redelineation exercise is held, academics have noted.

“This EC should not be allowed to carry out the redelineation exercise.

“They propose to do it on the present electoral roll which requires serious cleaning up. They have this far shown no inclination to do that,” Ambiga said.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/street-protests-may-be-only-way-to-push-for-polls-reform-says-ambiga/

EC tries to stop Ambiga from discussing politics

BY CLARA CHOOI
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
APRIL 21, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 — The Election Commission (EC) allegedly attempted to bar Datuk Ambiga Sreenavasan from speaking about politics at a church in Seremban today, even threatening legal action against the polls reform activist.

Writing about the incident on her Twitter account, the Bersih 2.0 co-chairman said during the event at the Church of Visitation, an officer with the EC told her she could be charged under Section 27 of the Election Offences Act 1954.

"SPR officer came to me and said no poetical speeches or they would charge me. I said go ahead," she wrote, using the Malay acronym for the EC. Ambiga later corrected her posting to read "political speeches".

According to the well-known former Bar Council president the section of the law used by the officer was only applicable to candidates standing for election.

"I am not one," Ambiga (picture) pointed out in another posting.

Section 27 of the Election Offences Act 1957 stipulates that: "Every person who commits an illegal practice shall, on conviction by a Sessions Court, be liable to a fine of five thousand ringgit and, subject to any specific provision to the contrary in any written law relating to any election, shall by conviction until the expiration of five years from such conviction become incapable of being registered or listed as an elector or of voting at any election under this Act or of being elected at any election, and if at that date he has been elected at any election, his seat shall be vacated from the date of such conviction."

Ambiga added that in her response to the "high handed" officer, she suggested that the EC act on vote-buying and other polling discrepancies.

Despite the EC "intrusion" and heavy police presence, however, Ambiga said the event, a talk on voters rights, went on smoothly.

"Seremban rocks!" she concluded.

The EC has repeatedly warned Ambiga and the polls watchdog group Bersih 2.0 not to disrupt the coming election, alleging that the group's campaign to employ citizen observers would only hamper the polling process.

A total 13,268,002 Malaysians registered on the roll and are eligible to vote in the 13th general elections, touted to be a tight race between a stronger three-party opposition pact and the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition for federal power.

Of that figure, 12,992,661 voters will cast their ballot on May 5 while Malaysians registered to vote by post, including those living and working abroad, will get to cast their ballots earlier on April 28, a Sunday.

The EC has listed 2,954 Malaysians abroad as absentee voters.

Security personnel and their spouses from the armed forces and police force are also eligible to vote by post. The military voters number 161,251 while policemen make up 111,136 votes.

BN chairman Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced the dissolution of Parliament on April 3, four years to the date from when he took office in 2009, replacing Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as prime minister mid-term after the Penang lawmaker led Barisan Nasional (BN) to its worst performance since 1963.

The 13-party coalition lost its customary two-thirds majority in Parliament as well as five states in Election 2008.

A total of 222 parliamentary and 505 state seats will be contested. Sarawak will sit out this round of elections as the Borneo state went to the polls in 2011.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/ec-tries-to-stop-ambiga-from-discussing-politics/