Thursday, August 06, 2026

Busan crowns Michelle Yeoh Asian Filmmaker of the Year

Busan crowns Michelle Yeoh Asian Filmmaker of the Year

Malaysian Oscar winner Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh’s trophy shelf gets busier as Busan rolls out the red carpet for the Asian Filmmaker of the Year at its 2026 International Film Festival from October 6 to 15. — Bernama file pic

Summary

Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh has been honored as the Asian Filmmaker of the Year by the Busan International Film Festival, marking another significant achievement in her illustrious career.
This accolade recognizes her exceptional contributions to Asian cinema over four decades, from her early roles in Hong Kong martial arts films to global success in Hollywood.
The award will be presented at the festival's opening ceremony on October 6, and Yeoh has curated a special three-film showcase for the event.
This honor follows her historic Oscar win for best actress and her receipt of the Honorary Golden Bear earlier this year.

By Malay Mail
First Published: Thursday, 06 Aug 2026 4:58 PM MYT

BUSAN, Aug 6 — Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh is adding yet another glittering career honour to her already groaning trophy shelf.

The Busan International Film Festival has named the Oscar winner its Asian Filmmaker of the Year.

Yeoh will receive the honour at the festival’s opening ceremony on October 6 at the Busan Cinema Center.

The prize has been handed out every year since 2003 to celebrate exceptional contributions to Asian cinema.

Yeoh has more than earned it across four decades of boundary-breaking work.

She first exploded onto the scene in Hong Kong martial arts classics like Yes, Madam!, Police Story 3: Supercop and Wing Chun.

Those roles helped rewrite the rules for women in action movies before she went fully global with Tomorrow Never Dies and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Her Hollywood run then delivered Crazy Rich Asians, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and the Wicked films.

It all peaked with Everything Everywhere All at Once, which made her the first Asian performer to win the best actress Oscar.

This Busan gong caps a banner year of career tributes for the star.

In February she became the first Asian woman to receive the Honorary Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Fellow Oscar winner Sean Baker presented that award and later dropped Sandiwara, an 11-minute short he wrote, directed and shot on an iPhone in a Penang night market.

Yeoh plays five intertwining characters in the Self-Portrait-financed film, which Baker called a love letter to both his star and her home country Malaysia.

For Busan, Yeoh has personally picked a three-film showcase of her work.

It includes Sandiwara, Everything Everywhere All at Once and the 2010 wuxia favourite Reign of Assassins.

The festival will also screen It’s My Time, her first Chinese-language feature since the Oscar.

Directed by Bai Xue and released in China last month, the feel-good drama sees Yeoh as a seventy-something who discovers a late-life talent for competitive speedcubing.

Fresh from her final turn as Madame Morrible in Wicked: For Good, she next stars in Prime Video’s Blade Runner 2099.

Past Asian Filmmaker of the Year recipients include Jafar Panahi, Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Chow Yun-fat and Tony Leung Chiu-wai.

The 31st Busan International Film Festival runs from October 6 to 15, with Pachinko star Kim Minha hosting the opening night where Yeoh will be celebrated.

Negeri Sembilan’s new exco line-up to take oath at Seri Menanti tomorrow

Negeri Sembilan’s new exco line-up to take oath at Seri Menanti tomorrow

Menteri Besar Datuk Ismail Lasim is expected to attend the ceremony. — Bernama pic

Summary

The swearing-in ceremony for Negeri Sembilan's new state executive council will take place tomorrow at Istana Besar Seri Menanti, officiated by Yang Dipertuan Besar Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir.
The event will be attended by Menteri Besar Datuk Ismail Lasim, who assumed office last Sunday.
The new state government is a coalition between Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN), which together secured a two-thirds majority by winning 25 out of 36 seats in the recent state election.
Pakatan Harapan holds the remaining 11 seats.

First Published: Thursday, 06 Aug 2026 4:05 PM MYT

SEREMBAN, Aug 6 — Negeri Sembilan’s new state executive council line-up is scheduled to be sworn in before Yang Dipertuan Besar Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir at Istana Besar Seri Menanti tomorrow morning.

According to an invitation issued by the State Secretary’s Office corporate unit, media coverage will begin at 9.45 am.

Menteri Besar Datuk Ismail Lasim is expected to attend the ceremony.

Ismail, the Juasseh assemblyman, was sworn in as Menteri Besar last Sunday.

Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) formed the new state government after securing 25 of the 36 seats contested in Saturday’s 16th state election.

BN won 18 seats and PN seven, giving the two coalitions a two-thirds majority in the state assembly.

Pakatan Harapan secured the remaining 11 seats, nine of which were won by DAP. — Bernama

Fresh evidence admitted in Melaka convent land appeal

Fresh evidence admitted in Melaka convent land appeal

6 hours ago
V Anbalagan

Court of Appeal says the newly discovered 1936 archival records could influence the appeal over ownership of the lot

The Sacred Heart Canossian Convent in Banda Hilir, Melaka, has existed since 1905. (Facebook pic)

PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has allowed two Catholic mission organisations to introduce fresh historical evidence in their appeal over the ownership of land occupied by the Sacred Heart Canossian Convent in Banda Hilir, Melaka.

A three-member bench chaired by Justice Firuz Jaffril ruled that the appellants had met the legal threshold for admitting new evidence after trial, finding they had exercised reasonable diligence in searching for documents related to the disputed land known as Lot 6.

Justices Ismail Brahim and Dean Wayne Daly were also on the panel that heard the application last month.

Delivering the court’s broad grounds of judgment, Firuz said the newly admitted evidence comprised official correspondence exchanged in 1936 between the owner of Lot 6 and the then Melaka municipality, preserved at the National Archives of Malaysia.

He said the documents were only discovered after the High Court dismissed the appellants’ judicial review in February 2025.

Firuz said the Canossian Sisters and the Portuguese Mission could not be faulted for failing to locate archival records dating back nearly a century, as the documents were catalogued under different headings.

“As members of a religious order with no expertise in archival research, they exercised reasonable diligence in attempting to trace the documents,” he said.

Applying the principles established in Ladd v Marshall and the Federal Court decision in Lau Foo Sun v Government of Malaysia, the court held that the archival records were credible and could have an important influence on the determination of the ownership dispute, although they did not need to be decisive.

However, the court rejected an application to admit a 1934 Municipal Area Map of Melaka produced by the British War Office and kept at the National Archives of Singapore and the National Library of Singapore.

Firuz said the map did not assist in determining ownership of Lot 6 and therefore failed to meet the requirements for admitting fresh evidence.

The appeal arose from a February 2025 High Court decision dismissing the organisations’ judicial review after finding that they had failed to prove ownership of Lot 6.

In his judgment, Justice Radzi Abdul Hamid held that references to the “Portuguese Convent” referred to the building on the land rather than ownership of the land itself.

He also found that the organisations failed to establish any legal or beneficial ownership before the current land registration system came into force.

Lawyers Joy Wilson Appukuttan, Benjamin John Dawson and Kelvynn Foo appeared for the appellants, while Melaka state legal adviser Khairul Azreem Mamat and Anis Wahidah Mohamad appeared for the state government.

Singapore says exports worth US$7.4 billion affected by new US tariffs

Singapore says exports worth US$7.4 billion affected by new US tariffs

The US imposed the tariff because Singapore has no law banning imports made with forced labour and no reciprocal trade agreement with Washington committing it to introduce one

Singapore’s goods and services trade amounts to around S$2.5 trillion each year. ( EPA Images pic)

SINGAPORE: About one-third of Singapore’s exports to the US, worth S$9.5 billion (US$7.4 billion), will be affected by a new US tariff of 12.5% imposed on July 24, Trade Minister Gan Kim Yong said.

Gan said in parliament on Wednesday that the tariffs imposed under Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974 would affect about a third of Singapore’s exports, including optical instruments and chemical products.

Exempt exports include energy and energy products, certain electronics and aerospace products, as well as semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.

Gan said the US had said it levied the tariff because Singapore does not have a law prohibiting the importation of goods produced with forced labour, nor an Agreement of Reciprocal Trade with the US committing to introduce such a law.

“Importantly, none of the 60 economies, including those that already have such prohibitions in force, received a full exemption from the tariff,” he said, referring to trading partners that have also had a similar tariff imposed, including the European Union and China.

Singapore has said that there is no evidence that it is involved in the trade of goods involving forced labour.

Gan said that the city-state would need to “consider carefully” what would be involved in an agreement with the US, noting that they may involve “commitments beyond an import prohibition, including export controls or restrictions relating to third countries”.

As a major trading hub, he said the nation’s goods and services trade amounts to around S$2.5 trillion each year, of which S$1.4 trillion was in goods so any import prohibition would have “significant implications”.

According to the USTR’s statistics, the US trade surplus with Singapore was US$3.6 billion in 2025.

BN to contest all 21 seats it previously won in Malacca election

BN to contest all 21 seats it previously won in Malacca election

Published: Aug 6, 2026 12:07 PM
Updated: 2:07 PM

BN will defend all the seats it previously won in the upcoming Malacca state election, said its chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The coalition won 21 of 28 seats in the Malacca legislative assembly during the 2021 state polls.

New Straits Times reported the Umno president saying that the coalition decided not to give up any of its current seats to other parties.

“The Malacca Chief Minister (Ab Rauf Yusoh), who is also the Malacca BN chairperson, has informed me that he is determined to defend all 21 seats won by BN,” Zahid reportedly said.

[More to follow]

***

And frigg PN, wakakaka

1MDB Trial: UK investigator concedes he did not trace returned US$620mil back to Najib

1MDB Trial: UK investigator concedes he did not trace returned US$620mil back to Najib

The High Court hears that a United Kingdom-based financial fraud investigator did not establish whether the US$620 million Najib Razak returned to Tanore Finance Corporation was later redirected to the former prime minister

Updated 1 day ago · Published on 05 Aug 2026 8:05AM

Investigator concedes under cross-examination that he had not investigated the movement of the funds beyond their return - August 5, 2026

THE High Court was told that a financial fraud investigator did not trace whether the US$620 million returned by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to Tanore Finance Corporation was subsequently channelled back to him.

Richard Templeman, a United Kingdom-based financial fraud investigator, acknowledged the omission during cross-examination by Najib's lead counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, in the civil suit filed by 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and four of its subsidiaries against Najib and six former company executives.

Muhammad Shafee noted that Najib had received US$681 million before returning US$620 million to Tanore several months later, and questioned whether Templeman had investigated if the returned funds had ultimately found their way back to the former prime minister.

Templeman admitted that he had not.

Muhammad Shafee: "Don't you think that is a critical issue, given that you are acting as a fraud investigator?"

Templeman: "I believe I have investigated the relevant matters."

Muhammad Shafee: "But you did not investigate whether the US$620mil somehow went around and came back to Najib?"

Templeman: "No. I do not believe I have ever claimed that."

The defence also questioned whether Templeman had investigated Najib's claim that the funds were transferred into his bank account with the approval of Bank Negara Malaysia.

"I have not seen that document," Templeman replied.

Muhammad Shafee further highlighted that Templeman only assumed responsibility for the investigation in July 2021, approximately two months after 1MDB had commenced the civil action, suggesting that the investigator had been brought in to support an already-filed claim.

Templeman agreed that the lawsuit had been initiated before he began his investigation.

Muhammad Shafee then suggested that the witness had been called to testify to "bolster a claim that had already been made", to which Templeman responded that he could not comment.

The civil suit was filed on May 7, 2021, by 1MDB together with its subsidiaries, 1MDB Energy Holdings Ltd, 1MDB Energy Ltd, 1MDB Energy (Langat) Ltd and Global Diversified Investment Company Ltd, formerly known as 1MDB Global Investments Ltd.

In addition to Najib, the plaintiffs named former 1MDB finance officer Terrence Geh Choh Heng, former executive director Casey Tang Keng Chee, former chief investment officer Vincent Beng Huat Koh, former chief operations officer Radhi Mohamad, former investment director Kelvin Tan Kay Jim and former SRC International Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil as defendants.

The plaintiffs allege that the defendants breached their fiduciary duties and duties of trust, abused their positions and conspired to misappropriate funds belonging to 1MDB.

The hearing before Judicial Commissioner Mohamad Redzuan Idrus continues today. - August 5, 2026

Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Democratic primary for Senate in blow to AIPAC

Progressive advocate overcomes more than $60m in spending to defeat pro-Israel Congresswoman Haley Stevens.

By Ali Harb

Detroit, Michigan – Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive public health advocate, has won the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate, overcoming more than $60m in campaign spending, mostly from pro-Israel groups.

The Associated Press News Agency and other major outlets called the narrow race for El-Sayed on Wednesday, more than 12 hours after the polls closed. With nearly all the votes counted, El-Sayed had a one percent lead.

Stevens endorses El-Sayed

Stevens and her allies tried to paint El-Sayed as sexist – a push that Arab American advocates say tried to play up tropes about Arab men.

The congresswoman is a staunch supporter of Israel, and AIPAC backed her heavily in 2022 to defeat Andy Levin, a progressive Jewish legislator.

The Michigan election result on Tuesday is the latest election defeat to pro-Israel Democrats as the party’s base – and US public opinion generally – turns against the Middle East ally.

Polls had suggested that El-Sayed was set for a comfortable win, but Stevens outperformed expectations across the state and had a strong showing in Detroit, Michigan’s largest city.

As the night went on, Stevens kept closing in on a lead that El-Sayed had built in from early returns. The race remained too close to call for hours after the polls closed.

“Michigan… We won,” El-Sayed wrote in a social media post on Wednesday after hours of uncertainty about the fate of the race. “I am so proud to be your Democratic nominee for US Senate. Let’s win in November.”

Stevens endorsed El-Sayed almost immediately after the race was called by AP. “I want to congratulate Abdul El-Sayed on winning the Democratic nomination for US Senate,” she said in a statement. “He is a doctor, a community health official, a Rhodes Scholar, and a dedicated Michigander. I am proud to offer my support as he takes on Mike Rogers in the general election.”

On Tuesday night, NBC News was the first major network to project El-Sayed as the winner.

As soon as that announcement was made, Mallory McMorrow – a state legislator who was in the US Senate race but dropped out weeks before the elections – endorsed El-Sayed.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Senator Gary Peters, who had backed Stevens in the primary, also voiced support for El-Sayed against Rogers on Wednesday.

Gaza holds mass funeral for 112 victims recovered after three years

‘Mike … we are coming for you’

El-Sayed will now look to unite the Democratic base after a bitter primary where Israel and AIPAC’s spending took centre stage.

Even before his victory was assured, El-Sayed called on his supporters to “begin to mend fences” within the Democratic Party.

“I’m going to ask all of us as we think about where we go from here, always magnanimity in victory,” he said.

“So if your instinct is to be like ‘I told you,’ no. Let’s come together to build a movement that’s even bigger, that’s even stronger, that’s even more powerful, that reaches into the very depths of this state, that reminds us the best of who we are and who we can be.”

The Democratic candidate went on to warn that the primary contest “pales in comparison to the cynicism” that Rogers and Trump will unleash in the general elections.

El-Sayed vowed to go on the attack against Roger, painting the Republican candidate as beholden to Trump and corporate interests.

“Mike – and I know you’re listening, Mike – we are coming for you,” he said.

Trump said El-Sayed’s victory was “great news” for Republicans.

“El-Sayed, a Communist loser who hates Jews and Israel, is the projected winner in his race with the Socialist,” the US president wrote in a social media post.

“As usual, the Polls were way off on this one. She was not expected to do nearly as well as she did. Now, the Dumocrats crazy policies will only get worse!”

Iran war live: Tehran, Oman close in on Hormuz deal; Houthis attack tankers

By Enes Abuomer and Zaid Sabah

Iran says a deal with Oman to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is “on the verge of being finalised“, after both countries agreed on the coordinates of routes through the critical waterway.
US President Donald Trump again claims Washington is in talks with Tehran and says he prefers diplomacy to war.
Yemen’s Houthis claim attacks on two Saudi oil tankers near Yanbu port in the Red Sea and in the Gulf of Aden.
Israel launches deadly air strikes on southern Lebanon after two Israeli soldiers died in an explosion in the town of Majdal Selem.

51m ago
(03:20 GMT)
Israel’s military confirms death of 2 soldiers in Lebanon
The Israeli military has issued a statement on the death of the two reserve soldiers in Lebanon yesterday, saying they were killed in combat.
It said four others were severely injured and were evacuated to a hospital.
The soldiers were killed in an explosion in the Lebanese town of Majdal Zoun, the military said.
It has since launched a series of attacks across southern Lebanon, killing at least one person.
57m ago
(03:15 GMT)
El-Sayed rejects US funding for defensive systems like Israel’s Iron Dome
We have more from the Democratic candidate’s comments to CNN.
Abdul El-Sayed made clear that his opposition to unconditional aid for foreign governments extends to defensive military technology, including Israel’s Iron Dome system.
“I don’t believe that there’s really a difference between offensive or defensive weapons, and I also don’t believe it’s my responsibility to buy defensive weapons for a foreign government when our kids are defenceless against schools that have been underfunded for a very, very long time,” he said.
“My responsibility as the next senator from Michigan is children in Michigan, rather than thinking about what’s in the interest of a foreign government.”
When asked to confirm if he opposes funding for defensive systems like the Iron Dome, El-Sayed reiterated his position.
“I am against it, in large part because I just don’t understand why anybody thinks it’s the right thing to do to send our tax dollars abroad to fund foreign militaries when our own kids barely get to go to schools that are functional.”

FT council proposal in feasibility report legally flawed, says Kepong MP

FT council proposal in feasibility report legally flawed, says Kepong MP

Lim Lip Eng says the report is inconsistent in recommending no amendments while proposing powers similar to a state legislative assembly for the council

Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng said the feasibility report on amending the Federal Capital Act 1960 fails to explain how the proposed FT ministers’ council can enact by-laws under the current legal framework. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng has criticised a feasibility report on amending the Federal Capital Act 1960, saying one of its recommendations contradicts both existing laws and its own findings.

According to Lim, the report recommended that the Act remain unchanged while proposing that a federal territories ministers’ council play a “role similar to the state legislative assembly” and be empowered to “enact by-laws, regulations and rules for Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s use”.

He said the report failed to explain how the proposed council could exercise such powers without legislative amendments, given that the Local Government Act 1976 designates the Kuala Lumpur mayor as the local authority and grants the mayor the power to make by-laws.

While the Federal Capital Act 1960 allows the mayor to delegate some duties, Lim said the power to make by-laws could not be delegated.

“Therefore, the FT ministers’ council cannot assume that power without legislative amendments,” the federal lawmaker said in a statement.

“If the FT ministers’ council merely intends to propose draft by-laws, the report must state this clearly. However, the report uses the word ‘enact’, which implies the exercise of legislative power.”

Lim said the government could not maintain that the Federal Capital Act did not need to be amended while proposing to give the council powers not permitted under the current legal framework.

He also said the council could not be equated with a state legislative assembly merely because it comprised ministers and MPs.

“Without clear legislative amendments, the council can only function as an administrative or consultative body,” he said.

The report, prepared by International Islamic University Malaysia, found that many issues affecting DBKL stemmed from governance and administrative weaknesses rather than gaps in the law.

The study recommended strengthening DBKL’s existing governance structure and internal administration rather than amending the law or introducing a councillor system.

Lim also took issue with the report’s citation of a 2014 Federal Court ruling involving the Penang government to argue against reviving local elections.

He said the court only ruled that Penang could not unilaterally revive local elections because doing so would conflict with the Local Government Act 1976.

“The Federal Court did not rule that local elections are prohibited by the Federal Constitution or that Parliament cannot amend the relevant laws,” he said.

Lim said Parliament had the power to establish local elections in Kuala Lumpur and called for the Federal Capital Act to be amended to establish a city council with a majority of members elected by residents.

He said the government should also amend the relevant provisions of the Local Government Act or expressly exempt Kuala Lumpur from them, before empowering the Election Commission to conduct local elections in the capital.

“Political appointments must not deprive the people of their rights,” he said.

“Those responsible for overseeing DBKL must be elected by the people of Kuala Lumpur through the ballot box, not determined by the government.”

KTemoc Konsiders ........

Thursday, August 06, 2026

Busan crowns Michelle Yeoh Asian Filmmaker of the Year

Negeri Sembilan’s new exco line-up to take oath at Seri Menanti tomorrow

Fresh evidence admitted in Melaka convent land appeal

Singapore says exports worth US$7.4 billion affected by new US tariffs

BN to contest all 21 seats it previously won in Malacca election

1MDB Trial: UK investigator concedes he did not trace returned US$620mil back to Najib

Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Democratic primary for Senate in blow to AIPAC

Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Democratic primary for Senate in blow to AIPAC

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Israel’s military confirms death of 2 soldiers in Lebanon

El-Sayed rejects US funding for defensive systems like Israel’s Iron Dome

FT council proposal in feasibility report legally flawed, says Kepong MP

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