Without Prejudice
Folks, the next time the postman or courier guy comes to deliver a registered letter, a certificate of posting letter or parcel, do the following :
a) Check who is it from ?
b) If you do not know the source, reject it. If you accept it without knowing the source, the following has happened and can happen to you too.
There have been cases where lawyers have done the following :
a) Mailed empty/sealed AR registered letters to people on behalf of their clients for some court case matter.
b) AR Registered mail, either, consisted of brochures promoting sale of new real estate or some car model or just an empty A4 size paper inside.
In normal circumstances, when one receives an empty letter or junk mail, they will just tear and throw away, BUT, here lies the danger :
a) You signed the AR registered card and it is returned to the law firm that that letter was delivered and the signed AR card is proof of delivery and will be used against you in court.
b) Same applies to the so very convenient "CERTIFICATE OF POSTING" mail. When the grace period for you to respond is over, they quietly go to court and show proof that an AR registered letter was sent to you as a reminder and you did not bother to defend it and thus convince the court officials and get a judgment against you.
Next another AR registered letter is sent to you asking for damages approved by the court, or just another empty envelope and you discard it once more and this time the white collar crook will go to the court quietly and seek the assistance of the court to seal your property to recover the amount given by the court and soon the court bailiff will be at your doorstep to execute the order.
What happens next? You frantically call your relatives in disbelief and seek legal advise. You are lost not knowing whats happening. Anxiety, stress, palpitation, sleepless nights cannot be compensated as this is a reality check.
You engage a lawyer, spend a few thousand ringgits polishing their pockets for paper work and appeal to the High court to set aside this matter.
What is your rights ?
a) You have every right to reject any mail/parcel that comes from unknown sources, be it a debt collection company, law firm or some individual.
b) You have every right to ask the postman or the person delivering it to open the mail and let you see what is inside and the contents of the letter.
c) REJECT it if you are not comfortable or ask them to deliver to a law firm that you know.
d) If you have inadvertently signed and collected the empty AR or empty ordinary registered mail, lodge a police report and also report to the bar council as this will protect you if the matter goes to court.
Eye opener isn't it, crime is beyond house break ins and snatch thefts, most of the time thieves get a few hundred ringgits BUT here you spend thousands of ringgits, many hours spent traveling to court or to your lawyers office, not forgetting the stress, anxiety, sleepless nights, etc.,
These days, the crooks come dress in suits, so beware and be smart.
Do inform your family members, mother in law, grandma, maid, children, hubby ...
DO NOT SIGN ON BEHALF OF ANYONE ... let them leave a card, go check at the post office, if not comfortable, just reject it or ask the postman to open and show you what is inside.
*This is an oldie - circulating in emails for a long time and am reposting it for the benefit of those who may have missed this when I first reposted this years ago.
If you have yet to read about it, CLICK HERE for more about the decision made by the Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC.
Here's an excellent article by Ta-Nenhisi Coates first posted in The Atlantic:
Excerpt:
A photograph that appeared in a chain e-mail about Trayvon Martin. In fact, the man in the photo is a 32-year-old rapper considerably larger than the slain 16-year-old.
In trying to assess the killing of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman, two seemingly conflicting truths emerge for me.
The first is that based on the case presented by the state, and based on Florida law, George Zimmerman should not have been convicted of second degree murder or manslaughter.
The second is that the killing of Trayvon Martin is a profound injustice. In examining the first conclusion, I think it's important to take a very hard look at the qualifications allowed for aggressors by Florida's self-defense statute.
CLICK HERE for the rest of the post.
You are reading this in Masterwordsmith's blog. I am stating this because there is one particular blogger who has been copying my blog content and hosting it in a website url that is very similar to mine just so to steal traffic for advertising revenue. He even proclaimed MY SONS to be HIS SONS!!! ????? Even the header is the same as mine!!! Utter audacity and unscrupulousness! I have already reported it to DMCA, Google and Blogger. If you like my site, please subscribe to the RSS feeds or follow me on Twitter to catch my posts. Thanks!
My husband and I have been following this case very closely because of its legal implications and the injustice of it all. If you have not read it, please read the following post written by Mr. Roger Tan is who a former chairman of the Conveyancing Practice Committee of the Malaysian Bar Council. The post first appeared HERE.
Excerpt:
This is a heart-rending story, a story about an incessant quest for justice by three generations of a Thai family.
It all happened on Dec 12, 1956 when a Thai of Chinese origin, Sie Guan Tjang @ Sie Hang Bok, purchased two pieces of land for investment – Lots 3606 and 3607 of Mukim 18 at Tanjung Bungah, Penang (“the said lands”).
During his lifetime, Sie visited Penang very often with his Thai wife, Boonsom Boonyanit, also known as Sun Yok Eng. They loved Penang and her people so much that they had intended to build their retirement home on the land. On Jan 18, 1967, the two lots of land were transferred to Boonsom by way of a memorandum of transfer (“Form 14A”).
Under section 81(3) of the National Land Code (Penang and Malacca Titles) Act 1963 (Act 518), Form 14A was then treated more or less as proof of ownership over the said lands. Section 92 of Act 518 also provides that pending the issuance of a final title, an advance certificate of title (“ACT”) would be issued. Since Jan 18, 1967, Boonsom had been at all times in possession of the Form 14A apart from faithfully paying all the quit rents and assessments due on the said lands.
Some time in June 1989, Boonsom’s eldest son, Phiensak Sosothikul, chanced upon an advertisement in a Thai newspaper, Thairat, dated June 11, 1989, which was inserted by a law firm from Penang, Messrs Khor, Ong & Co (“KOC”). The advertisement requested that any person who had any right to the said lands or any heir to Boonsom residing at a house No. 87, Cantonment Road, Penang, Malaysia to contact KOC. The court was later told that when Boonsom’s accountant did contact KOC, the latter could not give any useful information.
Boonsom then engaged the law firm, Messrs Lim Kean Siew & Co (“LKSC”) to conduct investigations which revealed that the said lands had been fraudulently transferred by an impostor claiming to be Boonsom to Adorna Properties Sdn Bhd, then known as Calget Sdn Bhd (“Adorna”) on May 24, 1989.
Boonsom then sued for the return of the said lands. The Penang High Court ruled in favour of Adorna on April 28, 1995. On appeal, the Court of Appeal in its judgment dated March 17, 1997 reversed the High Court’s decision. Adorna then appealed, and the Federal Court comprising Eusoff Chin, Wan Adnan Ismail and Abu Mansor Ali allowed Adorna’s appeal in its judgment dated Dec 13, 2000 and pronounced in open court on Dec 22, 2000 (“Adorna Judgment”). Sadly, Boonsom had already passed away on May 23, 2000.
Boonsom’s second son, Kobchai Sosothikul, being the representative of her estate, soldiered on and filed two separate motions to the Federal Court for review of the Adorna Judgment.
In the first attempt, Kobchai argued that when the Adorna Judgment was delivered, Eusoff Chin had already retired on Dec 19, 2000. Steve Shim, Haidar bin Mohd Noor and Mokhtar Abdullah dismissed this application in its judgment dated Feb 26, 2001.
In the second attempt, the Federal Court comprising P.S. Gill, Rahmah Hussein and Richard Malanjun ruled on Aug 27, 2004 that the Adorna Judgment was not patently wrong to have resulted in grave injustice.
On March 15, 2005, Kobchai sued the Penang land office for negligence and breach of statutory duty. On Jan 10, 2011, Judicial Commissioner Vazeer Alam Mydin held that the Penang land office was indeed negligent and in breach of statutory duty, but unfortunately the action had to be dismissed because it was time-barred as it was filed 36 months late under the Public Authorities Protection Act 1948.
Interestingly, a strong five-member bench of the Federal Court had finally decided on Jan 21, 2010 in Tan Yin Hong v Tan Sian Sang to reverse the Adorna Judgment as the error committed in the Adorna Judgment was, in the words of the then Chief Justice, Tun Zaki Tun Azmi, “so obvious and blatant”. But it came too late for the Boonsoms.
In fact, my committee and I had also held discussion with two successive Ministers of Natural Resources and Environment, Datuk Seri Azmi bin Khalid and Datuk Douglas Uggah Embas, on July 24, 2007 and Nov 6, 2008 respectively and later with the Attorney-General, Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail with the view of amending section 340 of the National Land Code, 1965 to legislatively reverse the Adorna Judgment. But it now appears that the decision in Tan Ying Hong has rendered the proposed amendments unnecessary.
Sadly, there is no way the Boonsoms can ever recover the said lands. On Oct 7, 2004, Adorna sold the said lands to Diamaward (M) Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Hunza Properties Berhad, for RM13,220,000. Today, what is on the said lands is the Infinity Beachfront Condominium. Strata titles have been issued to the individual parcel owners.
In fact, in his judgment, Vazeer made a very strong observation: “In the beginning, I alluded to the fact that this is the sequel to a sad saga, which is now part of the annals of the nation’s legal history. The helplessness of the plaintiff in the face of the fraud perpetrated leading to the loss of the said lands is very evident.
“The apparent negligence and breach of statutory duty by the defendant and the complete inaction of the police in bringing the forger and fraudster to book is very disturbing indeed. After all, the fraudster was represented by a firm of solicitors in Penang in the transfer of the said land to Adorna and there would have been sufficient leads for investigations.”
After reading all the judgments related to this case, I too was troubled by the following facts revealed in there:
Two police reports were lodged – on July 12, 1989 by lawyer Ooi Chooi Li from LKSC and on July 22, 2002 by Kobchai but there has not been a whisper from the police since 1989, especially its Commercial Crimes Department.
> The impostor made the first statutory declaration on June 18, 1988 claiming that she, Sun Yok Eng @ Boonsom Boonyanit had lost the Form 14A. She made the second statutory declaration on April 6, 1989 claiming that Mrs Boonsoom Boonyanit (the impostor) and Sun Yok Eng @ Boonsom Boonyanit were the same person, even though with a different Thai passport number.
A day later, the impostor signed the memorandum of transfer (“MOT”) in favour of Adorna, not before her lawyer from KOC, but in the presence of Arifin bin Awang, then an Assistant District Land Administrator of Bukit Mertajam. Arifin (now a Datuk) is now the Director of Land and Mines of Penang but he was never called as a witness in any court proceeding. The MOT also revealed when the said lands were transferred to Adorna, final title for Lot 3606 held under Grant (First Grade) Registration No. 28476 had also been issued. All this took place in just a matter of months! In fact, Vazeer held in his judgment that by not calling Arifin to testify in court, an adverse inference could be drawn under section 114(g) of the Evidence Act 1950.
CLICK HERE for more.
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT
“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” and “to forgive is divine”. These extremes represent the different poles of public opinion which Toshi Kazama will attempt to bridge.
The Civil Rights Committee of KLSCAH and Amnesty International Malaysia have jointly collaborated over the past month to advocate for the abolition of the Death Penalty in Malaysia. This collaboration has spawned various activities to raise awareness and educate the general public on the controversial issue on whether or not the death penalty should be retained.
To conclude the month of activities, we are honoured to bring you Mr. Toshi Kazama to share his experiences and views on this issue.
Toshi is a photographer and anti Death Penalty Activist. He is also the founder of Murder Victims’ Families for Human Rights, an NGO which brings together the families of victims and of executed inmates. We generally assume that family members of brutal crimes invariably favour the death penalty as a means of achieving justice and closure for their pain and suffering. The members of this NGO will testify otherwise. Many members of murder victims’ families have come forward to share their stories and voice out their opposition to the death penalty.
The Civil Rights Committee of KLSCAH and Amnesty International Malaysia thus cordially invite you to join us at the following events:-
Program: 5.00pm: Arrival of Guests
5.15pm: Presentation by the winners of AIM’s Death Penalty: Through My Lens photo competition and prize giving
5.35pm: Photo Presentation by Toshi Kazama
6.35pm: Question and Answer
7.35pm: End
Biodata: Toshi Kazama
The Japanese-born Toshi uses his camera as a means to oppose the death penalty. He is best known for his project, “Juveniles of Death Row: A Documentary Exploration” where he portrays juvenile offenders on death row. His project which spanned eight years includes getting to know the offenders’ families, as well as the families of their victims and the prison officials. All of Toshi’s artworks focus on the value of human life and respect for each other. He shows the realities of the death penalty through his photos and experiences. Toshi has toured the world sharing these photographs and experiences.
Moderator: Yap Sau Bin
Yap was born in Kuala Lumpur and lives and works there now. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art from the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, England 1998. He is currently a lecturer at the Faculty of Creative Multimedia, Multimedia University, Malaysia. Yap is also a founding member of Rumah Air Panas Art Society (RAP), an artist collective based in Kuala Lumpur.
His art practice encompasses conceptual work, installations, mapping projects, collaborations, performance and sporadic writings. He had received awards in the Young Contemporaries Arts Award by the National Art Gallery in 2000 and 2002 and has been selected for research residency in Japan under the JENESYS Programme for Creators by the Japan Foundation in 2008.
--
Adeline Choo
Communications Officer
Amnesty International Malaysia
The minute I read THIS REPORT in The Malaysian Insider, I thought to myself, finally - someone makes sense. Take a look at the report:
An Australian DNA expert in the Sodomy II trial today disputed medical findings that sperm could still be retrieved from a person’s rectum 113 hours after anal sex.
Dr Brian McDonald said during Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy trial that it was “extremely rare” that healthy DNA profiles could still be found from a person’s anal region after such a long time.
“In 99.9 per cent (of the cases), you cannot find sperm at all after such long hours. These are the rarest entries reported in (the literature).
“However, this (sodomy) case is the only one (that I know of) in the world where the sperm can be captured after 56 hours and given to the chemist two days later, where you can still find a good DNA sample,” he testified in court today.
“In my experience for the last 20 years, it would give poor results,” the defence expert witness said.
Prosecution lawyers have charged that based on a medical article presented in court, semen can be retrieved from a person’s rectum between four and 113 hours after anal intercourse.
The 1997 article, titled “Sexual assault and semen persistence”, was written by G.M. Willott and J.E. Allard.
The prosecution had previously in the trial cited a separate case where sperm heads were discovered up to 65 hours after sex, shower and defecation.
Doctors from Hospital Kuala Lumpur, who examined complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan two days after the alleged sodomy, have said they managed to obtain DNA specimens from the complainant’s rectum despite a lapse of 56 hours, which has been a key issue disputed by Anwar’s defence team.
Defence lawyer Sankara Nair previously pointed out the integrity of the sperm samples was even more questionable because a total of 90 hours had passed before the specimens were sent to the laboratory for analysis.
Australian forensic pathologist Dr David Wells also admitted recently the possibility of finding sperm heads inside a person’s rectum up to 65 hours after sex, but pointed out that a scientific finding could not be based on such a rare occurrence.
Anwar has dismissed his current sodomy trial as a political conspiracy to end his career.
He faces up to 20 years in jail if convicted under section 377B of the Penal Code for sodomising his former aide Saiful in 2008.
The trial continues on October 3.
So, let's see what will happen next month! Do leave a comment to share your views. Thanks!
Earlier this afternoon, I came across this report on Last stand in Asia for shy, defenseless anteater by Dennis D. Gray of Associated Press and was horrified to discover this:
The pangolin trade — banned in 2002 by CITES, the international convention on endangered species — resembles a pyramid.
At the base are poor rural hunters, including workers on Indonesia's vast palm oil plantations. They use dogs or smoke to flush the pangolins out or shake the solitary, nocturnal animals from trees in often protected forests.
"Everything is against them. ... They have no teeth. Their only defense is to roll up in a ball that fits perfectly into a bag," Shepherd says. Under stress, pangolins can develop stomach ulcers and die
Middlemen set up buying stations in rural areas and deliver the animals through secretive networks to the less than dozen kingpins in Asia suspected of handling the international connections.
Factories in Sumatra butcher the pangolins, slitting their throats, then stripping off and drying the valuable scales. CLICK HERE for more.
Thereafter, I surfed the net for more information on the illegal pangolin trade. I was utterly appalled when I saw the photographs at this blog post on Pangolin Poaching Pandemic: At Least 22,200 Lives Claimed in Malaysia in Less Than Two Years.
According to that article from Bush Warriors:
According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, numbers of wild Sunda Pangolins have halved in the past 15 years. (Read more here)
For certain, the pangolin smuggling crisis can only be addressed through improved law enforcement and better information on the criminal syndicates behind the trade.
Those with information on those behind these crimes against Malayasia’s natural heritage be it pangolins or any other living creature should report to the relevant authorities for action.
Much as I love to travel, I am always most wary when on holiday. Recently, my cousin was robbed in Paris in the metro near the CDG airport. He was walking in the underground to go to his hotel when two kids dropped their coins just in front of him. Putting his backpack on the ground, he stooped to help the kids pick up their coins. By the time he finished and reached for his backpack, it was no longer there. He lost his passport, mykad, green card, air tickets, money, air tickets to Milan and Istanbul and other important documents. This afternoon, I was chatting with him on Skype about his return to Penang on April 4th. We were both worried about how long it would take to get a new passport and identity card. At the end of the conversation, I volunteered to check with the relevant departments for him.
As such, it was with great joy and happiness when I came across the following article in The Star this evening:
In a bid to cut red tape, a police report is no longer required when applying for a replacement passport or MyKad.
This has been in effect since March 1.
Home Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Mahmood Adam said Sunday that citizens who lose their passports or MyKad could go directly to the Immigration Department or the National Registration Department to apply for replacements.
“The agencies will make a record of the loss and provide the replacement document on the same day.
“A police report is only necessary if the loss was caused by an extraordinary circumstance, such as theft or robbery, where a person is victimised,” Mahmood told reporters after launching the ministry's Meet the Consumers Day at the IOI Mall, Puchong on Sunday.
He said that the agencies have the capability to cancel or nullify the loss documents using the existing security features.
“This move will ease the public's inconvenience and is in line with the Government's move to maximize resources and reduce our cost of operations,” Mahmood said, referring to the four million reports of various nature lodged with the Royal Malaysian Police Force (PDRM) every year.
If you going for a holiday, take care and hang on to your laptop bags, backpacks etc and do not lose any of your stuff.
Next post will be up in a short while. I am actually in pain as my back problem has resurfaced thanks to bad posture when exercising. I took two years to recover from a spinal injury (in L4, L5, S1, S2 and S3) following a hiking accident.
Have a lovely evening!
According to Wikipedia HERE, The rule of law is a legal maxim that states no person is immune to law. The phrase has been used since the 17th century, but the concept can be traced to ancient Greece. Aristotle put it this way: "law should govern". Rule of law stands in contrast to the idea that the sovereign is above the law (rex lex), a feature of Roman Law and other legal systems.
One way to be free from the rule of law is by denying that an enactment has the necessary attributes of law. The rule of law has therefore been described as "an exceedingly elusive notion" giving rise to a "rampant divergence of understandings".
After three years of intensive development, testing, and vetting—including interviewing 41,000 people and over 900 experts in 35 countries—the World Justice Project has released the first annual WJP Rule of Law Index which you can download HERE.
The four “universal principles” that emerged from the deliberations of those involved in the report include:
I. The government and its officials and agents are accountable under the law.
II. The laws are clear, publicized, stable, and fair, and protect fundamental rights, including
the security of persons and property.
III. The process by which the laws are enacted, administered, and enforced is accessible, fair,
and efficient.
IV. Access to justice is provided by competent, independent, and ethical adjudicators, attorneys or representatives, and judicial officers who are of sufficient number, have
adequate resources, and reflect the makeup of the communities they serve.
The report noted that the principles address the extent to which a country provides for fair participation in the making of the laws and that this point is an essential attribute of self-government.
Secondly, the report also stated that the principles address the extent to which a country protects fundamental human rights.
Thirdly, it stated that "the principles address access to justice, but chiefly in terms of access to legal representation and access to the courts, rather than in the “thicker” sense in which access to justice is sometimes seen as synonymous with broad legal empowerment of the poor and disfranchised. Access to justice in this more limited sense is a critical cornerstone for the implementation of policies and rights that empower the poor."
A few months ago, THIS LINK reported that a leading Chinese human-rights expert has called for the rule of law to be applied when handling human rights and development issues. The report said that to improve the capacity and level of human-rights protection through scientific development and to smooth relations between human rights and development, law-based governance is needed, Luo Haocai, president of the China Society for Human Rights Studies, said at the opening of the Third Beijing Forum on Human Rights on Tuesday.
The Overseas Development Institute at THIS LINK gives a comprehensive discussion on why the rule of law matters in development. It argues that "Rule of law anchors the relationship between state and society around an accepted set of political, social and economic rules. It is the foundation, and the result, of political settlement. For two decades the donor community has – quite rightly – supported rule of law reform, but this support has been based on a vast range of agendas and objectives ranging from rights protection to anti-corruption strategies to criminal justice reform. Donor support has been motivated sometimes by concerns on the legal security of property rights, sometimes by the drive for human rights protection and the principles of due process. It has also been driven by governance and accountability issues and the need for state-building, and, increasingly, by security concerns." CLICK HERE for more.
As our society progresses, may there be greater support for rule of law, rights-based citizenship and greater respect for human rights. Currently, where do you think our country stands with regards to the rule of law?
It has been quite difficult to blog today as a number of websites are in the "may harm your computer list" so do be careful when you surf. Adila Razak and Lee Way Loon who are covering the TBH inquest reported HERE that a note said to be deceased DAP political aide Teoh Beng Hock's 'final testament', written in Bahasa Malaysia and Chinese, has been tendered as an exhibit. The note was found in Teoh's backpack which was left in the Selangor Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) office on July 16 last year.
Teoh's family lawyer Gobind Singh Deo confirmed that the note is the original copy he had seen last month. He requested that the court interpreter who provided the translation for the note be made available to take the stand when the inquest resumed at 2pm.
As we all know by now, that exhibit was not initially listed as evidence by police investigating officer Ahmad Nazri Zainal who when testifying today, said he did not list many of the personal items in the bag because he found them "of little value".
Items listed included Teoh's Mykad, digital camera battery charger and Tesco customer loyalty card, a VCD, mineral water, computer accessories, note books and some pieces of paper.
The note and other previously unlisted items were only recorded on Oct 7, 2009 with several items, including the 'mysterious' note which was then submitted to the Chemistry Department for examination.
MK reported that these were previously stored in a locked cabinet in Ahmad Nazri's office.
More updates to follow once MK updates its report. May justice prevail and may truth be made known!
_____________________
Update at 4.26p.m. I am posting this for the benefit of those who have yet to subscribe to Malaysiakini
Extracted from HERE:
Translated note
Returning to the stand after the recess, Ahmad Nazri said the Bukit Aman forensics team ran a ultra-violet test in the room Teoh was interrogated, at the window and the toilet of the 14th floor on July 19, 2009, but found no traces of blood.
Ahmad Nazri said he realised the significance of the note after a conversation with a psychiatrist in Hospital Permai, who had assisted with the psychology test for the Teoh family. She told him that those who commit suicide often leave a note.
He said he chanced upon the note while organising all the evidence, when preparing to give testimony.
Ahmad Nazri then asked a Chinese police inspector to translate the note before informing his superiors and subsequently sending the note to the Chemistry Department.
He said he only realised the significance of the note on Oct 7 and sent it to the Chemistry Department on Oct 9.
At 3.45pm, Ahmad Nazri stepped down from the witness stand and the court interpreter was called to testify.
When questioned by Gobind, she read out one of the lines she had translated from the note.
The content reads like an apology note, saying that MACC has found evidence in the writer's computer.
One line of the translated portion reads: Saya tak bolek bantu kamu. Minta maaf. Saya amat penat. Selamat tinggal. (I can't help you. Forgive me. I'm very tired. Goodbye.)
Gobind grilled the interpreter over the translation of Zai Jian, asking her to read out the translation from two Chinese-English dictionaries.
In both, the phrase is translated as 'see you again'.
Responding to Gobind, the interpreter said she had translated this to selamat tinggal, using Google Translate.
___________________________
Updated at 5.20p.m.
Translation of note
Gobind read out the translated note, which sounded like an apology and suggested that the MACC had found evidence in the writer's computer.
Ean Yong, Dalam keadaan tak menyalin file dalam komputer saya mereka telah ambil komputer. Mereka asyik menyalahkan kamu. Minta maaf. Tidak mengerti tapi pura-pura mengerti, akhirnya menyusahkan kamu.
Saya kata 'mendapat kelulusan YB'. Mereka berdegil menaip menjadi 'mengikut arahan YB'. Saya tak dapat membantu kamu, maaf. Minta maaf. Saya amat penat. Selamat tinggal.
(Ean Yong, Without copying the file in my computer, they have taken the computer. I'm sorry. They are fond of blaming you. Don't understand but pretend to understand, in the end, this has inconvenienced you.
(I said 'obtained the YB's approval' but they insist on typing 'on the YB's instructions'. I can't help you, sorry. I'm sorry. I'm very tired. Goodbye.)
Gobind grilled the interpreter over the translation of Zai Jian, asking her to read out the translation from two Chinese-English dictionaries.
In both, the phrase is translated as 'see you again'.
Responding to Gobind, the interpreter said she had translated this to selamat tinggal, using Google Translate.
She admitted that the word used to mean berdegil (insist) could also mean berkeras (force).
Gobind said this could mean force was used.
Under re-examinationNONE by MACC prosecution head Abdul Razak Musa, she agreed with him that it could mean berkeras untuk menaip (insist on typing).
Lawyer Tan Hock Chuan, representing the Attorney-General's Chambers, asked Ting if the words used to mean 'Goodbye could also be used to mean 'see you later'.
She replied in the affirmative, Talso stating that the writer of the note does not mention that he was physically abused.
At 4.30pm, Ahmad Nazri is recalled to the stand to be cross-examined. He testified that the handwriting in the notebook and voucher found in Teoh's bag were used as samples for comparison.
He said that he cannot confirm that the notebook and vouchers contained samples of Teoh's writing, as he did not verify this with the family. As such, he cannot conclusively say that the note was written by Teoh.
Coroner Azmil Muntapha Abas adjourned the inquest to Oct 14.
The following post was sent to me by S.H. Tan and I am reposting it here to encourage as many Penangites to attend the meeting tonight.
From S.H. Tan:
Between 1994 and 2004, Singapore has executed 408 (known cases as Singapore's Home Ministry does not announce or confirm its executions) prisoners making it the country with the highest rate of execution in the world.
Does Yong Vui Kong, less than 19 years old at the time of his arrest, deserve a second chance in life?
Does Man has the power over God to put an order to end another human life on the grounds of justice and social order?
Yong Vui Kong, a Malaysian, was only 19 years of age when he was caught and charged with trafficking 47 grams of diamorphine (heroin) in Singapore in 2007. Yong was sentenced to death in January 2009 under Singapore's Misuse of Drugs Act which carries a mandatory death penalty for trafficking more than 30 gms of heroin.
On 14 May, the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against the death sentence. A "Save Vui Kong" Campaign to get 100,000 signatures to seek clemency from the President of Singapore is currently in progress. His clemency plea expires on Aug 26. You can view and sign the on-line petition at the link here.
**************************************************************************************************
PUBLIC FORUM: LESSONS LEARNT FROM YONG VUI KONG CASE
Panelists:
Nora Murat (Executive Director of Amnesty International Malaysia)
Choo Chon Kai (Secretariat of SUARAM Penang)
Clement Ong (Member of Human Rights Committee, Bar Council)
Moderator:
Datuk Dr. Toh Kin Woon (President, Lim Lian Geok Cultural Development Centre)
Date: Sunday 22 August 2010
Time: 8.00 - 10.00pm
Venue:
Han Chiang College
Lim Lean Teng Road, Penang.
Jointly organised by:
Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
Amnesty International Malaysia
ADMISSION IS FREE. ALL ARE WELCOMED.
Barely half an hour ago, Malayskini reported HERE that Former federal commercial crime investigation department chief Ramli Yusoff was acquitted of a charge for breaching laws preventing civil servants from being involved in private businesses.
Kuala Lumpur High Court judge SM Komathy Suppiah said that the prosecution had failed to prove a prima facie case as there was no evidence to prove that he was a director Kinsajaya Sdn Bhd on May 2, 2006. She said that even if that point was proven, the prosecution did not present any evidence to show that he was engaged in any form of trading while in his alleged capacity as a director of the said company.
Ramli was charged for violated the Public Officers' (Conduct and Discpline) Regulations 2002 which is an offence under Section 168 of the Penal Code. If convicted, Ramli could have been jailed for one year, fined or both.
This is the last of several cases brought against him in 2007, which he hinted was part of a wide conspiracy to ruin him. He was acquitted of all charges.
* 1 November 2007 - Datuk Ramli Yusoff reported at the headquarters of the Anti-Corruption came with BMW car with four lawyers.
He was indicted by the ACA for possession of assets worth RM27 million.
* 2 November 2007 - Ramli Yusuff was suspended from his duties, be detained until the court's decision on his case.
* 1 November 2007 - The Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) accused Ramli Yusuff at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court , Jalan Duta, Kuala Lumpur of three charges. He pleaded not guilty to three charges and was released on bail of RM20, 000 in one surety pending trial 15 to January 19, 2008. Judge Komathy Suppiah to hear his case at 3:30 pm.
You can read up more on the background at THIS LINK which is a translation of Wikipedia's page on Ramli Yusoff.
On March 18th this year, Bernama reported HERE that the High Court here today dismissed an appeal by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) against a Sessions Court’s decision to acquit and discharge former Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Ramli Yusoff, on a charge of ordering the use of a police aircraft for his personal interest, nearly three years ago.
“After going through the relevant evidence and the grounds of judgement by the Sessions Court judge, I find she (sessions judge) was not wrong. Therefore, I hereby dismiss the appeal,” Justice Datuk Abdul Rahman Sebli said.
In MACC’s bid to overturn the judgement, Deputy Public Prosecutor Ahmad Bache said the sessions court judge failed to appreciate the application of the law under which Ramli, a former Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Department director, was charged.
On July 27 last year, judge Supang Lian said the prosecution failed to prove a prima facie case and Ramli, 57, deserved to be acquitted and discharged.
The 59-day hearing between May 13, 2008 and July 6 last year saw the prosecution, represented by DPPs Kevin Morais and Joyce Blasius, calling 75 witnesses.
Ramli, who was then represented by Datuk Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and James Tsai, was charged on Nov 19, 2007 on charges that he had abused his powers as Bukit Aman Commercial Crimes Department director for his pecuniary gain by ordering and using a Royal Malaysia Police Cessna Caravan aircraft to take him on an aerial surveillance of two lots in Ulu Tungku, Lahad Datu, in which his real estate company Kinsajaya Sdn Bhd had an interest.
The offence was allegedly committed at about 7.50am on June 15, 2007 at the Sabah Police Air Unit in Tanjung Aru near here.
Ramli pleaded not guilty to the offence which, upon conviction, carries a jail term of not more than 20 years and a minimum fine of RM10,000 under Section 15 (1) of the Anti-Corruption Act, and was released on bail of RM20,000 with one surety.
The Kuala Lumpur Sessions court freed Ramli in March this year from three charges of failing the declare his assets, finding that the MACC-led prosecution could not prove a prima facie case against the former top-cop.
Throughout the ordeal, Ramli maintained allegations that the then Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) had mistreated officers in the CCID and that the police had failed to stand by him and his officers over the course of the ACA's investigations.
For almost three years, he has not been able to serve in the police force and the nation has been deprived of his experience, talent and commitment.
This is what Datuk Muhamad said in his blog HERE about Datuk Ramli Yusoff:
Stories of him being a victim of some trampled up charges and false allegations are being repeatedly posted in the internet, but are silent in the mainstream media. Even the appearance of the IGP as a prosecution witness did not appeal to the Judge. Obviously, the IGP wasn’t a good prosecution witness, and this had raised the perception in the minds of those who were following the case closely, that the allegation against Ramli is flawed. One can be forgiven if they now perceive that the IGP is himself the ‘mastermind’ to this whole affair i.e. a campaign of deceit and ruthless character assassination.Will he be given what he rightly deserves? Will he ascend to the position he rightly deserves by virtue of his experience, caliber and character?
Ramli now has the chance to redeem himself, and to rebuild his character of a highly regarded and professional police officer that he once was. He may not be able to serve the force any longer because of his age, but the least he could do is to gain back what he had lost i.e. honour and dignity, and including all that is due to him monetarily. Certainly, he cannot be robbed of his pension and gratuity.
I have many friends in the police force, and what they say of this case is one that had brought shame to the police force. They are not too happy to see the third highest ranking police officer being treated like an outcast and shunned like a convicted person. Certainly, Ramli must have done something good for the force; otherwise he would not have been elevated to such a towering post in the force. This is where the force had failed him, and there is therefore every reason for Ramli to be ‘sour’ and angry.
I do not know how the ministry will react to Ramli’s demand for reinstatement of his lost honour and dignity, and the two years that he has been placed in oblivion. There can be no amount of money to compensate for Ramli’s losses, and even an apology from the IGP would mean little to Ramli.
This is indeed a blessing for Datuk Ramli Yusoff and his family during this Ramadhan season. May the Almighty continue to bless and protect him and his loved ones.
First one jet engine went missing followed by another. Then NST reported that the parts of the jet-fighter were also missing. Now, we have consignments of live animals and body parts worth millions of ringgit that slipped through Malaysia undetected as reported in The Star.
Interpol estimates that illegal wildlife trade worldwide is worth US$10bil (RM35bil) to US$20bil (RM70bil) a year. It is third behind only the illegal drug and arms trades. In fact, it is the second biggest threat to species survival after habitat destruction.
Many people intentionally participate in the illegal wildlife trade for material gain. Some illegal items, such as ivory trinkets and turtle shells, can easily be purchased in stores or on the Internet by unsuspecting customers. Worse still, wildlife and wildlife products may be legally sold at tourist destinations, but bringing these items home with you may be illegal or require special Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) permits.
Many Malaysians DO NOT KNOW that some Malaysians are making waves in the shadowy world of illegal wildlife trade. The shocking thing is that foreigners know more than us about this. By next week, all and sundry will know about it when the January 2010 issue of National Geographic hits the stands on December 29th, 2009!
That issue will have The Kingpin - An exposé of the world's most notorious wildlife dealer, his special government friend, and his ambitious new plan written by Brian Christy. An advanced web edition was released on December 15th 2009 at National Geographic official web site. It is a very long story that took THREE YEARS of research. Believe me - the intricate details of illegal wildlife trade and its ties with ONE MALAYSIAN man and his cronies will blow your brains to smithereens. It is an awfully long article but one that YOU HAVE TO READ!!! I cannot post on it because of copyright and embargo reasons.
Brian Christy is a very highly qualified conservationist with degrees who has written many books that have received rave reviews. Known as the Lizard King, Brian Christy is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University, Cornell's FALCON Japanese Program, the University of Michigan Law School, and was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to Tokyo University Law School. He passed the CPA and bar exams and worked as a lawyer in Washington, DC, including in the Executive Office of the President. As a lawyer he advised on such topics as relations with Libya, U.S.-Japan supercomputer trade, and the sale of light-water nuclear reactors to North Korea.
His official website has archived many newspaper articles on the whole issue. Please check the following articles for a better understanding of the intricate details of the illegal wildlife trade in Malaysia. While doing research for this post, I discovered that Starprobe conducted a lot of investigations on this issue, in particular by award-winning journalist Hilary Chiew. Brian Christy has painstakingly compiled these in chronological order.
Link 1 on Penang that contains four articles from MSM
This post required lots of reading I and have compiled a brief chronological account of recent developments.
Hilary Chiew of The Star reported on August 10th 2009 a very detailed write up on Illegal animal trading puts Malaysia on the world map for all the wrong reasons which you also HAVE to read. Sorry. The details will blow your mind!
On the same day, The Star also carried a story on Malaysia is a hub for a multi-billion-ringgit global trade in illegal wildlife. It named the guy and featured his photograph in the report.
On August 11th, Yeng Ai Chun of The Star reported:
The Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) is keeping mum over allegations that Malaysia is a major wildlife trafficking centre.On August 12th, Hilary Chiew wrote on Tell us about the tigers, says exco man.
Perhilitan director-general Datuk Abdul Rasid Samsudin had replied: “it is an old story” when asked to comment on the Starprobe story yesterday alleging that illegal trading in wildlife had put Malaysia on the world map for the wrong reasons.
When pointed out that the problem was still going on and the number of cases were getting higher, Abdul Rasid said: “I cannot comment on that.”
On August 13th, The Star featured an article on Ministry to review Wong’s special permits.
On August 15th 2009 a group of Malaysian wildlife organizations and two parliament MPs filed a complaint with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) calling for investigation into"irregularities” in the enforcement of wildlife trade in Malaysia."
The same day, Hilary Chiew wrote an article on Deputy D-G: Someone had to take care of Wong’s animals. Hilary reported:
Lawyer and ROAR president R. Surendran said Wong’s special permits covered among others two cougars which were later declared to have died.
“Did Misliah check whether those animals were dead? Or could they have been smuggled out?” he asked.
Misliah, when asked whether she had seen the carcasses, said she had relied on her staff to “check and report back to her.”
On Wong’s tigers, she said he had a special permit to keep two female tigers that he acquired from Japan and the cats had mated with tigers owned by Sunway Lagoon theme park in Selangor.
Brian Christy said in his blog:
It is interesting that Anson Wong should admit in US Court (and more recently to The Star) that he committed the years of massive scale illegal trafficking of which he was accused and yet the official in charge of Perhilitan Penang during this same period should deny any responsibility and subsequently be promoted to Perhilitan’s national office.On 21st August, Joshua Fong in reported in The Star:
A group of non-governmental organisations has lodged a police report against convicted wildlife smuggler Anson Wong, the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) and the Customs Department.
Speaking to reporters after lodging the report at the Brickfields Police Station, Malaysian Animal Rights Society president R. Surendran said:
“The reason we are lodging the police report is because, over the years Perhilitan has failed to take any action against Wong for smuggling and has even given him special permits to catch and keep animals.
“We know that one of the modus operandi of wildlife traffickers is to get permits to keep animals and later declare them dead, when in actual fact they have been smuggled out of the country,” he said.
Outraged? Wait. Let me show you another report:
Joseph Kaos Jr of The Malay Mail reported on June 11th 2009:
WILDLIFE poachers and traffickers may not have it easy soon - if the relentless campaign by the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) and local environmental groups to amend the Wildlife Act 1972 is successful.
The act has received a lot of criticism especially from animal conservation groups for its rather mild punishment and penalties to deter wildlife offenders.
Yesterday, an Indonesian man was fined a mere RM2,000 by the Magistrate court for attempting to smuggle 10 murai batu birds (Common Shama) out of the country last Saturday. The bird can fetch at least RM3,000 in the open market.
If all this has NOT shocked you yet, let me leave you with this link to an article called Endangered creatures for sale - Illegal animal trade reaps billions yearly written by CHARLES SEABROOK of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution where the following was reported:
One of the world's most notorious wildlife smugglers, Keng Liang "Anson" Wong, 44 -- released last month from a federal prison in California after serving six years -- used this method. From his private zoo in Malaysia, he shipped thousands of rare and endangered creatures, mostly reptiles, to collectors in the United States, Japan and Europe.I do not know about you but I am thoroughly ashamed that our country has reached the pits when it comes to legislation and enforcement not just in ONE area but so many areas.
To fool airport customs and wildlife inspectors, he bound the rare animals with tape so they couldn't move and stuffed them in burlap bags stapled to the bottom of shipping crates. Many died from the harsh shipping conditions, but Wong stood to profit as long as some survived.
In Miami, Stinebaugh's boss, Vicky Vina, says that on a good day, inspectors there are able to peek inside about three in every 10 shipments.
"We get awfully busy," she says. "We often get 60 to 70 wildlife shipments through here in one day."
Scores of animals -- mostly reptiles -- were smuggled through Miami by Chye, Wong and others.
Our resources are dwindling, some going up in smoke while others vanishing into thin air. Now, even our natural resource of wildlife - Nature's gift to us is being taken from right under our noses.
People, what are we going to do?
