Azalina: Sulu heirs’ US$14.9b claim ends with Malaysia’s French court victory today

Azalina: Sulu heirs’ US$14.9b claim ends with Malaysia’s French court victory today

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said Malaysia’s victory at the Paris Court of Appeal in France today will ultimately mean that the Sulu claimants’ US$14.9 billion compensation award from an arbitration cannot be enforced against Malaysia. — Picture by Choo Choy May

Tuesday, 06 Jun 2023 10:30 PM MYT


KUALA LUMPUR, June 6 — The purported Sulu sultanate’s heirs may no longer legally pursue their claim for US$14.9 billion in compensation over Sabah following Malaysia’s landmark court victory in France today, according to Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.

Azalina said Malaysia’s victory at the Paris Court of Appeal in France today will ultimately mean that the Sulu claimants’ US$14.9 billion compensation award from an arbitration cannot be enforced against Malaysia.


“Malaysia trusts that today’s decision of the Paris Court of Appeal will put an end to the efforts of the claimants and their funder, Therium, to enforce the unlawful awards and thereby extract windfall damages from Malaysia,” the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of law and institutional reform said in a statement today.

The Sulu claimants had previously made attempts to seize assets belonging to Malaysia or Malaysian entities in Luxembourg, France and the Netherlands to enforce the US$14.92 billion arbitration award, but Malaysia has been fighting such efforts through the courts.


Previously, eight citizens of the Philippines, who claimed to be heirs of the defunct Sulu sultanate, had filed for arbitration proceedings in Spain to seek for billions of US dollars from Malaysia over Sabah.


A court in Madrid, Spain had in March 2019 appointed Gonzalo Stampa to be the arbitrator for the Sulu claimants' case, but the same Spanish court later in June 2021 annulled or cancelled his appointment as arbitrator.

On May 25, 2020, Stampa made what is known as the "partial award" in the Sulu claimants' arbitration case.

In his May 2020 partial award, Stampa dismissed Malaysia’s objections against the arbitration, deciding that he has the jurisdiction to be the arbitrator in the Sulu claimants' case and that Madrid, Spain will be the arbitration venue.

When Spain cancelled his appointment as the Sulu case's arbitrator, Stampa decided to continue to be the arbitrator and changed the arbitration venue to France instead, before proceeding on February 28, 2022 to give the "final award" in the arbitration process by ordering Malaysia to pay US$14.9 billion to the Sulu claimants.

Azalina today described Stampa's transferring of the arbitration proceeding from Spain to France — in defiance of the Spanish court orders instructing him to stop acting as arbitrator in the Sulu case — as an "unprecedented move", and claimed it had resulted in a significant abuse of the international arbitration process.

With the Paris Court of Appeal today upholding Malaysia's challenge against Stampa's May 2020 "partial award" (where Stampa said he could be the arbitrator), Azalina said this court decision means the Sulu claimants cannot seek to enforce the "final award" (where Stampa ordered Malaysia to pay US$14.9 billion) which Stampa gave in France in the arbitration.

"The decision means that the Claimants cannot rely on the sham award in France for any purpose. The Paris Court of Appeal found that the arbitrator wrongly upheld his jurisdiction," Azalina said.

"This decision, which is final and binding, is a decisive victory for Malaysia in its ongoing pursuit of legal remedies, which Malaysia is confident will result in comprehensive defeat for the claimants and their funders," she added.

Azalina said the Sulu claimants have previously targeted Malaysia's diplomatic assets in France — including parts of the Malaysian embassy — by relying on the partial award.

She said the Sulu claimants must now withdraw their efforts to take these assets following the Paris Court of Appeal's decision today that refused to give effect to the partial award in France.

Azalina said the court decision in France today is expected to lead to the cancellation of the US$14.9 billion arbitration award against Malaysia, and that this is also expected to end the Sulu claimants' efforts to seize Malaysia-linked assets throughout the world.

"Importantly, this decision implies that the Paris Court of Appeal will annul the purported 'Final Award' in which Mr. Stampa remarkably awarded close to USD 15 billion to the claimants.

"Malaysia is seeking to have the annulment recorded in a court decision as soon as possible, which should lead to the collapse of the Claimants’ global enforcement efforts to date," she said.

Azalina, who also chairs Malaysia's special secretariat on the Sulu claimants' case, took the opportunity to thank Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for his continued support and unwavering trust in the secretariat's ongoing effort to uphold Malaysia's position.

She also expressed gratitude to Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir, Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil, the attorney-general, the Sabah state government, the Attorney-General's Chambers, the Malaysian embassy in France, the relevant ministries and agencies and all other parties involved.

"The government of Malaysia will continue to take all necessary actions including legal actions to put an end to the claims and to ensure that Malaysia’s interests, sovereign immunity and sovereignty are protected at all times," she said.

The Vassalage at Heart of the G7

Volume 28, Number 150 — Friday , June 2, 2023


The Vassalage at Heart of the G7

Following the end of the Second World War, the United States built an international system that was premised on the subordination and integration of Japan and Europe, writes Vijay Prashad.




By Vijay Prashad
Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research

At the close of the last month’s Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, Japan, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States and the high representative of the European Union (EU) released a long and informative statement.

In a section titled “China,” the eight officials wrote that they “recognise the importance of engaging candidly with and expressing our concerns directly to China” and that they “acknowledge the need to work together with China on global challenges as well as areas of common interest, including on climate change, biodiversity, global health security, and gender equality.”


The diplomatic tone of the statement stands out in contrast to the heated rhetoric that these countries have adopted in recent years and is much softer than the language used at the G7 meeting itself, where the heads of government bandied about the phrase “economic coercion,” indirectly aimed at China.

A close reading of the speeches at the meeting suggests that there are differences of opinion amongst the leaders of the G7 countries, particularly when it comes to China and their own domestic industrial policies.

Certainly, several European states are uneasy about the domestic economic consequences of prolonging the war in Ukraine and of a possible military conflict over Taiwan. It is perhaps this uneasiness that prompted U.S. President Joe Biden to say, “We’re not looking to decouple from China, we’re looking to de-risk and diversify our relationship with China.”

For Europe, the notion of decoupling from China is inconceivable. In 2022, EU figures show that China was the third-largest partner for goods exported from the region and the largest partner for good imported to the region, with most of the goods imported by China being high-end, value-added manufactured goods.

Europe’s domestic economies have already been grievously injured by the West’s refusal to negotiate a peace agreement in Ukraine; being cut-off from the burgeoning Chinese market would be a fatal blow.

Yayoi Kusama, Japan, “Infinity Mirrored Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away,” 2013.


The G7 meeting revealed the gaps between the United States and its allies, Europe and Japan, but these differences of interest and opinion should not be overestimated.


As part of our work at Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, we have been researching and analysing the nature of the cooperation between the United States, Europe and Japan – the “Triad,” as Samir Amin called them; while our research is still ongoing, we present some of the data in this newsletter.

Following the end of the Second World War, the United States built an international system that was premised on the subordination and integration of Japan and Europe. This process of subordination and integration was evident in the military apparatus constructed by the United States, with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) established in 1949 and U.S.-Japan Security Treaty of 1951 being the lynchpins.

Establishing a system of U.S. military bases in the defeated powers — Germany, Italy, and Japan — allowed Washington to set aside any talk of a sovereign military or diplomatic project for either Europe or Japan (tantrums from France, inspired by Charles De Gaulle’s grand sense of French destiny, led not to a withdrawal from NATO but only to a removal of French forces from the alliance’s military command in 1966).

There are currently 408 known U.S. military bases in the Five Eyes countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and – because they share intelligence with each other – Israel), in Europe and in Japan. Stunningly, Japan alone has 120 U.S. military bases, while Germany hosts 119 of them.

It is important to understand that these bases are not merely instruments of military power, but also political power.

In 1965, Thomas Hughes of the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research authored an important memorandum, “The Significance of NATO – Present and Future.”


NATO, Hughes wrote,

“remains essential to the U.S. as a well-established and easily available instrument for exercising American political influence in Europe” and ultimately “it is important for the protection of American interests in Europe.”

Such a system had already been put in place in Japan, as detailed in this U.S. military memorandum from 1962. The network of U.S. military bases in Europe and Japan are the symbol of their political subordination to Washington.

Yinka Shonibare, Nigeria, “Scramble for Africa,” 2003.


With the signing of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty in 1951, Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida accepted the dominance of the U.S. military over his country but hoped that the Japanese state would be able to focus on economic development. Similar doctrines were articulated in Europe.

In the post-war era, an economic bloc began to form between the United States, Europe and Japan. In 1966, Raymond Vernon published a significant article, “International Investment and International Trade in the Product Cycle,” in the Quarterly Journal of Economics in which he showed how the large international corporations built a sequential structure: goods would be first produced and sold in the United States, then in Europe, and afterwards in Japan, after which they would finally be sold in other parts of the world.

In 1985, Kenichi Ohmae, managing director of the global consulting firm McKinsey’s Tokyo office, shed further light on this arrangement in his book Triad Power: The Coming Shape of Global Competition.

Ohmae illustrated how international corporations had to operate simultaneously in the United States, Western Europe and Japan; increasing capital intensity, high research and development costs, a convergence of consumer taste, and the rise of protectionism made it essential for international corporations to work in these countries, which Ohmae collectively called the Triad, and then seek markets and opportunities elsewhere (where seven-tenths of the world lived).

André Pierre, Haiti, “Ceremony with Issa and Suz,” ca. late 1960s/early 1970s.


Samir Amin used that term – Triad – for a very different purpose. In 1980, he wrote of the “gradual consolidation of the central zone of the world capitalist system (Europe, North America, Japan, Australia),” and soon thereafter began to refer to this “central zone” as the Triad.

The elites in Europe and Japan subordinated their national self-interest to what the U.S. government had begun to call their “common interests.”

New institutions and terms emerged in the 1970s, giving shape to these “common interests,” including the Trilateral Commission (set up by David Rockefeller in 1973 with headquarters in Paris, Tokyo and Washington) and the concept of “trilateral diplomacy” (which brought together Western Europe, Japan and the United States under one unified diplomatic worldview).

Intellectuals in these trilateral circles saw the United States as the central power with its vassal states (Europe and Japan) empowered to maintain control over the tributary states (such as South Korea) in order to keep the rest of the world stable.

Much harsher language was used by Zbigniew Brzezinski, one of the architects of the Trilateral Commission and national security adviser to U.S. President Jimmy Carter.

In The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geostrategic Imperatives (1997), Brzezinski wrote,


“To put it in terminology that hearkens back to the more brutal age of ancient empires, the three grand imperatives of imperial geostrategy are to prevent collusion and maintain security dependence among the vassals, to keep tributaries pliant and protected, and to keep the barbarians from coming together.”

You can guess who the barbarians are in Brzezinski’s imagination.

Georg Baselitz, Germany, “The Brücke Chorus,” 1983.


In recent years, the concept of the Triad has largely fallen out of favour. But there is a need to recover this term to better understand the actual world order.

The imperialist camp is not solely geographically defined; both the older term, Triad, and the more currently used term, Global North, are geopolitical concepts. The majority of the world — the Global South — now faces a U.S.-led and dominated imperialist system that is rooted in an integrated military structure.

This system is composed of three groups: (1) the United States, the United Kingdom, and other Anglo-American white settler states; (2) Europe; and (3) Japan.

The Global North is home to a minority of the world’s population (14.2 percent) but is responsible for a clear majority of global military spending (66 percent).

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, total world military spending reached $2.2 trillion in 2022, with the Triad and its close partners responsible for $1.46 trillion of that amount (China’s military spending is $292 billion, while Russia spends $86 billion).

It is this immense military power that allows the Triad to continue to assert itself over the world’s peoples, despite its weakening hold on the world economy.

In recent years, the United States has encouraged a Japanese rearmament and a German military build-up, both of which were discouraged after the Second World War, so that these “vassals” can strengthen Washington’s parochial New Cold War against Russia and China as well as the newly assertive states of the Global South.

Although some elites in Europe and Japan are able to see the domestic crises in their countries that are being accelerated by the U.S. foreign policy agenda, they lack the cultural and political confidence to stand on their own two feet.

In 2016, the European Union’s High Representative Federica Mogherini laid out the concept of Europe’s “strategic autonomy” from the United States in the EU Global Strategy.

Three years later, France’s President Emmanuel Macron said that NATO was suffering “brain death” and that “Europe has the capacity to defend itself.”

Today, it is clear that neither assertion — Europe’s strategic autonomy nor its capacity to defend itself — holds any water. Modest returns of Gaullism in France do not offer the kind of courage required by European and Japanese leaders to break with the trilateral bargains that were set up 78 years ago.

Until that courage arrives, Europe and Japan will remain entrenched in their conditions of vassalage, and the Triad will remain alive and well.



Vijay Prashad is an Indian historian, editor and journalist. He is a writing fellow and chief correspondent at Globetrotter. He is an editor of LeftWord Books and the director of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. He is a senior non-resident fellow at Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University of China. He has written more than 20 books, including The Darker Nations and The Poorer Nations. His latest books are Struggle Makes Us Human: Learning from Movements for Socialism and, with Noam Chomsky, The Withdrawal: Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, and the Fragility of U.S. Power.

This article is from Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research.

Everest: SAR mission to find Hawari ends a day early

Everest: SAR mission to find Hawari ends a day early


The search and rescue (SAR) mission for Malaysian Everest 2023 (ME2023) climber Muhammad Hawari Hashim, missing in the Everest mountains since May 19, ended a day early today.

ME2023 team manager Ayu Wanirah Naharudin said she received information from the head of the mission, Azim Afif Ishak stating the drone used in the SAR operation was having technical issues with the photos and video footage recordings.

"This problem may be due to the cold weather, causing the drone difficulty to function properly after being used for the SAR mission for three consecutive days," she said.

Ayu Wanirah said she and another ME2023 climber, Tiong Ling Yang were already in Kathmandu, Nepal, to examine the photos and videos that were sent prior to this.

"We will continue to examine the pictures and videos that have been recorded and if we get new leads, we will seek the advice of the Nepalese authorities and the Malaysian Embassy in Nepal," she said.

In addition to dealing with the drone problem, Ayu Wanirah said the SAR team was also facing issues with the helicopter operator company that had been appointed when the company recalled its pilot to return to Germany.

"It made it difficult for them (the team) to continue the SAR mission which had only one day left to go, but they had to comply with the instructions due to safety reasons," she said.


Drones used

Two drones were used in the SAR mission - the DJI Matrice 300 RTK and the DJI Mavic 3 - specially flown from Malaysia.

Hawari's SAR operation entered its 19th day today since he was reported missing on May 19 after leaving Camp Four at 8,000 metres above sea level.

Hawari was reported to have successfully conquered the summit of Everest the day before (Thursday, May 18) at 3.30 pm Nepal time.

ME2023 had previously also conducted ground SAR operations using the services and expertise of mountain rangers and aerial searches using helicopters.


- Bernama

Najib's pardon: Anwar kicking the can down the road, says Khairy

Najib's pardon: Anwar kicking the can down the road, says Khairy

The former Umno Youth leader ties 'friendly fire' within the coalition government to growing impatience from supporters of Najib Razak.

A man wears a headband reading 'Bebas Bossku' (Free Bossku), a reference to the moniker former prime minister Najib Razak assumed during his post-GE14 rebranding efforts.


Sacked Umno leader Khairy Jamaluddin says the increasing criticism from key party veterans against their allies in the current government can be attributed to growing impatience over the fate of former prime minister Najib Razak.

Khairy said Anwar Ibrahim appears to be in a bind over the matter and has instead decided to buy time to avoid backlash from Pakatan Harapan (PH) supporters as well as supporters of Najib who expect him to be released through the process of obtaining a royal pardon which involves the prime minister.

"As I understand it, they are kicking the can down the road. They don't want to make a decision. They have instructed the Pardons Board not to bring out the file first by using any excuse.

"Maybe this is a sign of impatience of Bossku's supporters," Khairy said in the latest edition of a podcast he co-hosts with suspended Umno man Shahril Hamdan, using the slang on Najib by his supporters.

This comes in the wake of a tit-for-tat between Johor Umno man Puad Zarkashi and secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki after the former attacked PKR's Rafizi Ramli over his handling of the economy portfolio.

Several other Umno leaders, including veterans Shahrir Samad and Supreme Council member Nur Jazlan Mohamed, have also publicly questioned PH leaders, in what appears to be a sign of tension building up in the Malay party six months after joining hands with its long-time foes to form the government.

Najib, who was convicted in 2020 of criminal breach of trust, money laundering and abuse of power over the SRC International funds, began serving a 12-year jail term in August last year.

In March, the Federal Court dismissed his application for a review of his conviction and sentence, renewing a campaign by his supporters in Umno to secure a royal pardon.

In April, Anwar acknowledged that he would be part of the Pardons Board tasked with deciding on the pardon for Najib.

A debate soon erupted over the role of the prime minister in hearing the pardon application, after PH supporters said it was at the sole discretion of the Agong.

Senior lawyer Zainur Zakaria, who was once part of Anwar's defence team, said the Agong was expected to act on the advice of the Pardons Board.

"The YDPA (Agong) does not act as a court to review court decisions," Zainur had said, adding that Anwar would be part of the decision-making process to advise the Agong on whether Najib should be granted a pardon.

Some analysts had warned that the renewed bid for a royal pardon for Najib could spell trouble for Anwar's coalition government, formed last year after Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi committed the 26 MPs from his party to back the PKR leader for the top office.

They also pointed out that Najib's influence in Umno was stronger than that of Zahid's, and that the outcome of the pardon process would ultimately affect the Umno president.


Same players behind Muhyiddin's downfall

Khairy said Anwar and Zahid were trying to avoid coming to a decision on the matter.

"Because if they call a meeting of the Pardons Board, and advise the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to grant the pardon, it will trigger a negative reaction among some people, especially PH supporters.

"If they advise the Agong not to grant the pardon, it will invite a reaction from Umno members and Bossku's ardent supporters," he added.

Meanwhile, Shahril said the Umno leaders who are criticising their newfound allies from PH belonged to the same faction who played "star roles" in toppling Muhyiddin Yassin in 2021 when MPs aligned to Najib and Zahid withdrew their support for the Bersatu chief.

"I'm not saying it will follow the same trend, but it's a parallel to be monitored," said Shahril, who served as economic adviser to former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

“Where is the plane’s black box?” asked Jeffrey on Double Six tragedy’s 47th anniversary

“Where is the plane’s black box?” asked Jeffrey on Double Six tragedy’s 47th anniversary





THE discovery of the aircraft’s missing black box in the Double Six tragedy could provide insight into what had truly happened, said Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan.

Marking the 47th anniversary of the fatal crash, the Sabah Deputy Chief Minister said these questions on what had actually caused the Australian Nomad 9M-ATZ plane to go down would continue to be a mystery so long as many questions remained unanswered.

The declassified reports by Malaysian and Australian investigators, he said, had not given any definitive answers to the victims’ families and Sabahans in general.

But unfortunately, he said, there was no black box on the plane, which was usually a requirement for all aircraft.

“What happened to the black box? Where is it?” asked Kitingan who is also state Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister after joining the families in commemorating the incident at the crash site in Sembulan today (June 6).

“And although the investigation reports have been made public, many questions remain such as why, if there was no foul play, it took so long to release the reports, why keep it secret?

“That’s why it’s no surprise that people are still waiting for the answers, so don’t blame them for raising questions that remain unresolved.”

The Tambunan assemblyman said the delay in disclosing the reports also raised doubts about why it was classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) in the first place.

“Because of that, the people of Sabah are still doubtful and waiting for the answers. I hope that one day this whole thing will be resolved. I don’t believe that the black box cannot be found, especially considering the accident occurred nearby (in Sembulan),” he remarked.

“I think it is not very difficult to locate the black box. It should have been inside the plane at that time, so who took the black box?”

According to Kitingan, if the victims’ families want to look into the matter further, the state government will assist them.

“I think it’s entirely up to the family. The government will support what the family wants as long as it is the right thing to do.

“As we mark 47 years since the accident, on behalf of the state government, I extend my heartfelt sympathy to the families of the victims. May their souls rest in peace,” he said.

The plane crash on June 6, 1976, killed 11 passengers, including the then Sabah chief minister Tun Fuad Stephens. – June 6, 2023

Woman scolded, hit on forehead in Perak road rage incident

The Star:

Woman scolded, hit on forehead in Perak road rage incident


Tuesday, 06 Jun 20238:00 PM MYT


IPOH: A 24-year-old woman was scolded and hit on her forehead by a man during a road rage incident on Jalan Cameron Highlands-Tapah near the Lata Iskandar waterfall.

Perak police chief Comm Datuk Seri Mohd Yusri Hassan Basri said the 29-year-old man also threatened the woman and her 17-year-old brother during the incident.


Comm Mohd Yusri said the incident occurred on Monday (June 5) at about 5.30pm when the woman and her brother were on their way down from Cameron Highlands to Tapah.

"During the journey, the woman had tried to overtake a gray car but could not do so. The driver of the gray car then made some obscene gesture," he said in a statement on Tuesday (June 6).

He said that the driver – who is a factory supervisor - then got out of his vehicle and knocked on the windshield of the woman' car.

"When she wound down the car window, the suspect scolded her and hit her forehead while uttering threatening words," he added.

A video of the incident was also found on one Saleha Fayyad's Facebook page on Tuesday.

Comm Mohd Yusri said a police report was lodged by the woman at the Saujana Utama Sungai Buloh police station in Selangor on Tuesday at about 10am.

"Checks on the registration number of the car driven by the man found that it was registered under the name of a woman whose address was in Tanjong Karang, Selangor.

"The police managed to locate the man in Serdang, Selangor," he said.

"The man will be taken to the Tapah district police station to facilitate investigation under Section 323/506/509 of the Penal Code," he added.

Playing the same old broken record may cause PAS to lose Terengganu and Kedah

Playing the same old broken record may cause PAS to lose Terengganu and Kedah





THE old broken record of PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang is being played time and again and the same is being parroted by others from the same camp.


After Hadi claimed that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PMX) had erred when the latter retorted that “the stability of a government relies more on its policies rather than its ethnic composition”, Hadi’s statement was followed by Perikatan Nasional (PN) Federal Territories’ information chief Mahathir Mohd Rais.

The PN candidate, who lost his deposit during the last general election to Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh claimed that the New Economic Policy (NEP) instituted in 1971 had “failed to rectify these imbalances by empowering the Bumiputera”.


The same song was again chorused by Selangor state Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali who should know by now that his own state government in Selangor when he was Menteri Besar comprised non-Malays and non-Muslims.

While Mahathir’s rhetoric about the NEP has been disputed by PMX before on a number of occasions during his election campaigns, Azmin is no brainer when he claimed that the Malay leaders “must not be from the corrupt breed as found in the PH-BN (Pakatan Harapan-Barisan Nasional) coalition”.

Anwar was quoted back in 2006 by an English daily saying, “The NEP is used as a tool to benefit leaders, their families and their cronies”.

Meanwhile, Azmin’s allegation which implies that there are Malay leaders from PH-BN who are from the corrupt breed, may not go well with both his opponents and netizens who are now waiting for the court trial involving PN’s president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. Several others are also facing trials for corruption.

For this reason, instead of harping on Bumiputra and NEP, PMX’s first priority was to eradicate poverty affecting the B40 community in the country.

He did not choose only states that support his unity government; instead, he went to states that are run by the Opposition to show that his Madani government is focused on providing solutions for the people of Malaysia, where they are most needed.

In his recent trip to Sabah, he announced that the water woes in both Sabah and Kelantan will be given priority, knowing that this alone will win the hearts of the people instead of playing the Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s oldies.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (second from left) during a recent trip to Sabah to join the Kaamatan Festival.


The former longest serving PM of 22 years and 22 months has always played on racial sentiments to divide the nation while Hadi ceaselessly promote supremacy of the race based on his version of Islam.

When he used the same broken record, Dr Mahathir was trounced badly in his own constituency Langkawi, a sign that his race-based narrative no longer attracts the voters anymore.

There is no guarantee that the same narrative used by Hadi will give PAS its victory in Kedah and Terengganu, especially when the country’s economy is only beginning to turn.

Race and religious centric polemic is often at the expense of Malaysians of other races and religions. If not curtailed, it will affect investors’ confidence when assessing the political stability of the country. – June 6, 2023

'Common knowledge' - Mahathir defends remark against royalty

'Common knowledge' - Mahathir defends remark against royalty


Dr Mahathir Mohamad defended his remarks against the royalty today, where he claimed the Malay rulers had "surrendered and signed their states away" during the British colonial times to remain in power and for the "raja" title.

Speaking at a press conference, the former premier said it was "common knowledge" that the Malay rulers would sell off land plots to earn an income.

"I was speaking about the Malay rulers, how they collected taxes during those days when they did not have income, and I relate to what happened in Johor.

"This is a fact, and everybody knows this. Everybody knows that he sold a piece of land for RM4 billion. Am I not allowed to speak about this?

"And I have met with the Chinese who bought that land, the person was boasting how he acquired the land for RM4 billion, and it now belongs to him forever," he said.

Mahathir said this when asked to comment on the status of investigations that were launched by the police against him recently.

It was reported that police were investigating Mahathir over his statements containing alleged elements of contempt towards the royal institution.

This was regarding a video purportedly showing the 97-year-old speaking at a private function.

In the video, Mahathir allegedly made a remark that the Malays cannot rely on the Malay rulers to protect them.

He also purportedly divulged that he had no respect for the rulers.

Meanwhile, asked to comment about DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang being awarded a 'Tan Sri' title by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong yesterday, Mahathir responded cynically.

"It's good. He is now on the same level as (former PAS spiritual leader) Nik (Abdul) Aziz (Nik Mat).

"His contributions to the country is unchallenged by any person.

"Only he can be at the same level as Nik Aziz," Mahathir said.


Malay Proclamation meet

Today’s press conference was held following a roundtable meeting involving political party leaders, politicians and individuals backing the pro-Malay Proclamation movement spearheaded by Mahathir.

Among those present was PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang, who had recently come under fire for working with Mahathir due to their differences, including on the 1985 Memali incident.

The Memali incident refers to a stand-off between supporters of PAS member and preacher Ibrahim Mahmud, better known as Ibrahim Libya, and police in Baling, Kedah.

A clash between them left 14 civilians and four police personnel dead, including Ibrahim.

When the incident occurred, Mahathir was the prime minister and was largely blamed by PAS members.

When asked about the criticism, Hadi sidestepped the question by saying that it was "out of context" based on today's meeting.

Mahathir explained that he and Hadi are now working together as both are Malays.

"He is a Malay, I am a Malay, so we cooperate," Mahathir said.

‘Revoke Mahathir’s Tun-ship if he keeps attacking royals’ UPDATED

UPDATED

‘Revoke Mahathir’s Tun-ship if he keeps attacking royals’


PARLIAMENT | RSN Rayer (Pakatan Harapan-Jelutong) has called for the government to consider revoking former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s ‘Tun’ title if he continues his attacks against the royal institution.

During his debate in the Dewan Rakyat this afternoon, Rayer appealed to Mahathir to halt his alleged contempt and stressed that the police should not hold back against the former Langkawi MP.

“The police should not compromise and must take action against Mahathir if he continues his attacks against the royal institution,” the DAP leader said.

UPDATED

On June 2, Malaysiakini reported that police questioned Mahathir regarding statements containing contempt towards the royal institution.

Lawyer Rafique Rashid Ali said Mahathir was questioned about a video purportedly showing the 97-year-old speaking at a private function.

In the video, Mahathir allegedly remarked that the Malays cannot rely on the Malay rulers to protect them.

He also purportedly divulged that he has no respect for the rulers.

At the same time, Mahathir was also questioned under Section 124B of the Penal Code for alleged activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy.

Rafique described the questioning as “intimidation” and revealed six police reports lodged against the “Malay Proclamation”.


‘Where’s the RM207 billion?’

Earlier, in his debate, the Jelutong MP urged the National Audit Department and the government to consider investigating the “Death Railway” compensation.

Referring to a Free Malaysia Today report, Rayer explained that in the nineties, during Mahathir’s first tenure as prime minister, Malaysia received a payment of RM207 billion from the Japanese government as restitution for civilians coerced into working on the railway.

For context, the Death Railway, also known as the Burma Railway, is a railway track from Thailand to Burma (now Myanmar) built during World War II.

Nearly 300,000 Southeast Asians were subjected to forced labour by the Japanese forces during its construction - thousands of Malaysians were also forcibly taken as labourers.

According to FMT, in a recent TV interview with Vannakam Malaysia on May 23, Mahathir denied receiving compensation for Malaysian victims or their families.

A decade prior, Anwar Ibrahim, the opposition leader at the time, asserted there was "evidence" suggesting Japanese and Malaysian officials knew the funds were allocated to the government but did not go through the treasury.

“The amount involved is such a large amount… Can the audit department and the government investigate this matter?

“Has this amount been received by the government under Mahathir's leadership? And if this is true, that the RM207 billion has been received, what happened to that money?” Rayer asked.

10 Umno ‘warlords’ to join PN for state polls?

The Sun Daily:

10 Umno ‘warlords’ to join PN for state polls?


06-06- 2023 01:36 PM

Filepix: BERNAMAPix


PETALING JAYA: In the upcoming state elections, it has been learnt that 10 ‘warlords’ from Umno will join the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition.

This was a claim made by Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) information chief Senator Datuk Razali Idris (pix) in a New Straits Times (NST) report today (June 6).

“Yes, there are those who were sidelined by Umno.”

“They voluntarily joined one party (in PN) either Pas or Bersatu,” he was reported saying.

Razali stated that an announcement on the matter would be made before the state elections while also responding to rumours that Umno leaders, apart from former Selangor Umno chief Tan Sri Noh Omar, and former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, is expected to join PN.

Previously, it was reported that PN information chief Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali confirmed that there were eight former Umno leaders who will join the coalition.

However, Razali also said there is currently no progress and development on PN’s offer to Khairy as a Member of the Bersatu Supreme Leadership Council (MPC).

“The offer to KJ (Khairy) is not new. In the MPC circle, we are open, we don’t see anyone opposing. Most agreed to it,“ he was quoted saying.

Azmin’s assembly dissolution ‘announcement’ rude, disrespects state procedure

Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari (standing) answering questions during the Selangor State Legislative Assembly sitting at the State Secretariat Building in Shah Alam, on March 17, 2023. — Picture by AHMAD ZAKKI JILAN/SELANGORKINI


Azmin’s assembly dissolution ‘announcement’ rude, disrespects state procedure

June 6, 2023 11:42 am


SHAH ALAM, June 6 — The action of former Selangor menteri besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali in declaring June 19 as the date for the state assembly’s dissolution has been described as rude.

Selangor Keadilan leadership council managing secretary Saifuddin Shafi Muhammad said Azmin’s remark during a political speech on Sunday has disrespected the norms of the state government’s management procedures.

Saifuddin said Azmin’s statement gave an impression that the state Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman is greedy to the point of ignoring convention that ought to be adhered to.

“I urge all quarters to remain open-hearted, patient and not to drag any institutions into their respective political schemes,” he said in a statement yesterday.

“Don’t tarnish Selangor’s stability and unity with your unbridled enthusiasm.”

Regardless, Saifuddin said Selangor Pakatan Harapan is prepared to defend the state, and expressed confidence in the excellent track record of state menteri besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari throughout the current term.

Keadilan Selangor leadership council managing secretary Saifuddin Shafi Muhammad. Picture by FIKRI YUSOF/SELANGORKINI

On Sunday night, during his speech at PN’s campaign programme in Tanjong Karang, Azmin declared that Selangor would dissolve its legislative assembly on June 19.

It comes even before Selangor ruler Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj has given his consent for the dissolution.

Previously, it was reported that Amirudin is expected to seek an audience with the state ruler either in the third or fourth week of this month to seek consent to dissolve the assembly.

‘Too much’ to suggest Sanusi committed crime over Penang claim, says Dr M

FMT:

‘Too much’ to suggest Sanusi committed crime over Penang claim, says Dr M

The former prime minister also admits to persuading then finance minister Lim Guan Eng to give more than RM10,000 to Kedah annually.

Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the ‘difference between the Penang deal and the Singapore deal is obvious’.


PETALING JAYA: Kedah menteri besar Sanusi Nor has found an unlikely ally in Dr Mahathir Mohamad over claims that Penang belongs to Kedah.

In a series of tweets, the former prime minister said to suggest Sanusi committed a crime for views on Penang’s history was “too much”.

Mahathir said that historically, the sultan of Kedah agreed for the British East India Company to take over Penang island on a payment of 6,000 Spanish dollars a year.

Later, a strip of the mainland opposite the island was added for 4,000 Spanish dollars a year, he said.

However, the agreement with regard to the ceding of Singapore was different, he said, adding that it was “clearly a straightforward sale”.

He said the British made a one-time payment of 60,000 Spanish dollars to the “temenggong” (chief).

“The difference between the Penang deal and the Singapore deal is obvious,” said Mahathir.

“I will not say anything about what happened to these two territories of Malaya except to admit that I persuaded (Lim) Guan Eng as (then) minister of finance to give more than RM10,000 to Kedah every year.”

Earlier today, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim confirmed that police handed part of the investigation paper on Sanusi, over claims of Penang’s sovereignty, to the attorney-general.

Anwar said police were investigating Sanusi for causing public mischief and abuse of network facilities. This came after DAP MP RSN Rayer lodged a police report on June 1.

Last month, Sanusi reiterated his belief that Kedah “owns Penang”, asserting that the territory of the sultanate extended to Balik Pulau on Penang island.

He also said that historical and academic studies supported his claim.

Comical Fei-Lo

PKR leaders slam Sanusi’s “uncouth” behaviour, call him a “comedian”





PENANG PKR Wanita chief Nurhidayah Che Rose has expressed her embarrassment that a fellow Muslim had spoken uncouthly and saw nothing wrong with spreading lies.

Nurhidayah was referring to Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor who had made headlines for claiming that Penang belongs to Kedah.

The PAS elections director had also recently drawn flak for his use of a Hokkien expletive during his speech at a ceramah in Permatang Pauh on Saturday (June 3).


“He represents an Islamist party but his behaviour is contrary to Islam,” Nurhidayah blasted Sanusi in front of a mostly PKR-member crowd last night (June 5) at the opening of the Penang PKR Women and Youth election machinery, drawing applause from spectators.

In the upcoming state elections, Nurhidayah called on voters to “teach liars a lesson” by refusing to vote for Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidates while also highlighted Sanusi’s shortcoming as Kedah Menteri Besar, noting that Kedah has a higher poverty rate compared to Penang.

“So, it is unrealistic for Sanusi to say that the rich can co-exist with the poor in Penang if PN takes over, as we have fewer poor here,” she was reported as saying.

“We are doing fairly well, and steps are in place to further improve the quality of life for Penangites.”

Nurhidayah said people from Kedah also relocated to Penang to look for jobs yet Sanusi goes around claiming that Penang belongs to Kedah.

She also said Sanusi, who is also the PN elections director, should be grateful that as fellow Malaysians, both states are helping each other.

Meanwhile, Penang PKR Youth chief Muhammad Fadzli Roslan had similarly lambasted Sanusi for the recent controversy, calling him a “comedian” instead of a public servant.

“If we want comedians, there is a lot of content on entertainment channels. We do not want our politicians to be comedians. We want them to be problem solvers to address poverty, high living costs and environmental challenges,” Fadzli was quoted as saying at the same event.

He sarcastically said that Sanusi should concentrate on developing Kedah instead of being obsessed with Penang, and urged Penangites to “rise up and defend their birth and home state” in response to Sanusi’s claims that Penang is a part of Kedah. – June 6, 2023

Pastor Koh abduction was 'professionally done' - Witness

Pastor Koh abduction was 'professionally done' - Witness


A witness to the 2017 enforced disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh described the whole operation as “professionally done”.

Lawyer Roeshan Celestine Gomez today was testifying for the missing man’s family during the full hearing of their lawsuit to compel the police to divulge the whereabouts of Koh (above), who had been missing for over six years.

"The whole job was professionally done, they had resources,” the first witness told the family's lawyer Jerald Gomez during examination-in-chief before the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.

The open-court proceeding before judicial commissioner Su Tiang Joo is the first day of trial of the family’s civil action over the incident that saw Koh being abducted from his car in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, on Feb 13, 2017.

During the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) inquiry into Koh’s disappearance on Oct 19, 2017, Roeshan had testified that the investigating officer (IO) in the case described the abduction as “looked very much like the modus operandi of a police operation”.

The lawyer then was describing what the IO allegedly told him after he had lodged a police report at the Kelana Jaya police station regarding the abduction about an hour after the incident.

On April 3, 2019, Suhakam concluded that Koh’s abduction was an enforced disappearance that involved the Special Branch from police federal headquarters in Bukit Aman, Kuala Lumpur.

A year later before the civil court, Koh’s wife Susanna Liew Sow Yoke filed a writ of summons against the police to compel the authorities to reveal his whereabouts.

Susanna Liew Sow Yoke


During court proceedings while on the witness stand, Roeshan said he and a friend had just left St Ignatius church in Kelana Jaya and were on their way to a crematorium in Kampung Tunku when they came across the commotion at Jalan Bahagia around 10.45am that day.

The witness said that there were around four black SUVs which surrounded a car that looked like a silver Proton Waja, and that around five men who were masked and dressed in black military outfits from top to bottom appeared to be pulling a man out of the car.

In reply to questions by Jerald, Roeshan said the man - whom he later found out was Koh - was putting up resistance that resulted in “much pushing and pulling”, and that there were motorcycles circling around nearby.

The witness told the court that as his friend was about to record the incident on her phone, an agitated-looking man appeared in front of their car and gestured to her to stop recording, to which she immediately put the phone down.

Roeshan said that a second, unarmed man then approached the car in a “lively fashion” and instructed him to reverse back, to which the witness complied out of fear for the safety of himself and his friend.


Happened so fast

The witness recalled that there was a motorcycle outrider who signalled for him to leave the scene, saying that he was between 30 and 40 metres away from the abduction scene.

Roeshan said as he was reversing his car, the commotion ended, with all the other cars speeding off, and that it happened so fast that he was unable to take down the vehicles’ licence plates, which included a golden Toyota Vios.

“All the black SUVs and the silver Proton Waja drove off. The golden Toyota Vios and two motorcycles followed them thereafter. I stayed at the side of the same road for about another minute.

“After that, I continued my drive along the same road in an attempt to follow them. I noticed shattered glass on the road. I did not see any other items such as a car’s number plate. I could not see any of their cars and proceeded to head towards the cremation ceremony in Bukit Tunku,” Roeshan said, adding that the whole incident only lasted around a minute.

He said he assumed Koh was driven away as the latter’s car window was smashed as seen by the shattered glass on the road.


Identification parade

The lawyer said after he lodged the police report, he attended an identification parade at the Petaling Jaya district police headquarters on July 7, 2017, whereby he said none of the suspects rounded up for the parade matched the people he saw during the incident.

The trial before Su resumes tomorrow. Senior federal counsel Nurul Farhana Khalid appeared for the 13 defendants, who included the police and the federal government.

The defendants’ legal team is set to cross-examine Roeshan tomorrow.

Besides Koh, Suhakam had also ruled that activist Amri Che Mat was a victim of enforced disappearance involving the Special Branch and the police force.

Amri was abducted sometime around midnight on Nov 24, 2016.

In November 2019, Amri’s wife Norhayati filed a suit against 21 defendants in relation to her husband’s disappearance, including some of the same defendants named in Liew’s suit.

Dewan Rakyat erupts during debate on A-G’s Report

FMT:

Dewan Rakyat erupts during debate on A-G’s Report

Government MPs accuse the opposition of trying to keep its skeletons in the closet.

Perikatan Nasional MPs have objected strongly to the government’s attempt to debate the 2021 Auditor-General’s Report, questioning the legality of such a move. (Bernama pic)


KUALA LUMPUR: A shouting match erupted in Parliament over the debate on the 2021 Auditor-General’s Report, with the opposition claiming that doing so contravened standing orders.

Takiyuddin Hassan (PN-Kota Bharu) said the report had been thoroughly vetted by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and further debate would only waste the Dewan Rakyat’s time.

He said by going ahead to debate the report, Parliament was setting a precedent because, by law, the report only need be laid before the lower house.

“We agree with the part of the motion where action must be taken as per the auditor-general’s (A-G) recommendation, but a debate is not necessary,” he said when the matter was raised.

A shouting match between government and opposition MPs ensued, as they jostled for Speaker Johari Abdul’s attention.

Backbenchers accused the opposition of not wanting supposed misdeeds from the Perikatan Nasional-led regime to come to light, while the opposition said debating the report was illegal.

Mas Ermieyati Samsudin (PN-Masjid Tanah), who is the present PAC chair, said the report fell under the purview of the committee, and not Parliament.

“We should be debating PAC reports, not the Auditor-General’s Report,” she said.

Mas Ermieyati also said the government was better off heeding a call for PAC sessions to be made public. Presently, all such sessions are private.

Radzi Jidin (PN-Putrajaya) said it was highly “inefficient” for Parliament to debate what was painstakingly answered in the report by each ministry involved.

He said a debate would have a bearing on the Dewan Rakyat’s efficiency as the answers were already in the report, rendering it a futile exercise.

“Now, we have government officers carrying loads of documents into Dewan Rakyat… and the answers that are about to be given in this debate are the same, a waste of time,” he said.

Awang Hashim (PN-Pendang) said the A-G had already held an audit exit conference.

However, Hassan Karim (PH-Pasir Gudang) said the report must be debated because it involved taxpayers’ money and was a matter of national interest.

“Parliament is the highest authority to discuss financial matters. It is not coffee shop talk. Why can’t we take a look (at the report)?

“Just because all this while we have not done so, it does not mean we cannot,” he said.

RSN Rayer (PH-Jelutong) said the opposition’s reluctance was understandable, given the report sheds light on former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s government.

“They (the opposition) don’t want this to be debated as there was a lot of waste (unnecessary expenses) during Pagoh’s leadership,” he said, referring to Muhyiddin.

Johari then said the report must be debated for the sake of national interest because PAC proceedings were never made public.

“It is the responsibility of the PAC chair and her 12 members to choose what is said here (in the debate).

“As a former civil servant and elected representative for 15 years, many have asked for such reports by the A-G to be debated openly. I hereby order this to be debated.”

PBM in better position with Zuraida, supporters gone, says president

FMT:

PBM in better position with Zuraida, supporters gone, says president

Larry Sng says the party can move on now with a ‘clean slate’.

Parti Bangsa Malaysia president Larry Sng thanked Zuraida Kamaruddin for promoting the party’s name.


PETALING JAYA: Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) president Larry Sng said the party was in a better position now that Zuraida Kamaruddin and those in her camp were no longer members.

Zuraida, along with 10 others, were sacked from PBM in December last year after they failed to respond to show cause letters, which were preceded by weeks of infighting, including a dispute over the party’s leadership.

“With her gone, together with her supporters from the leadership lineup, including former MPs and assemblymen, I believe PBM is on a good footing and now has a clean slate,” he said in a Facebook post.

Sng said he believed the party was in a better position even though it had only one seat in Parliament for now.

The Julau MP went on to compare his party with that of PKR, which in 2004, had only one seat in Parliament. “And today they are in the government of the day.”

Sng said this in welcoming the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s decision today to dismiss the former minister’s application for leave to commence judicial review proceedings against the Registrar of Societies (RoS).

Zuraida, a former Ampang MP, sought a court declaration that she was the rightful president of PBM.

On the court’s decision, Sng said that in politics, “sometimes you win and sometimes you lose” although a loss did not make one a bad person.

“Not at all. On the contrary, I want to thank her for all that she has done to help promote the name of PBM, even when she is no longer a member of the party.”

A tale of two cities

The Star:

A tale of two cities


Tuesday, 06 Jun 2023

THE George Town versus Ipoh contest of tourism appeal rolls on healthily, and players on both sides have been busy.

New entrepreneurial efforts are sprouting in George Town, creating establishments that delight the younger generation.


Medical tourism is exploding in George Town too. Pulau Tikus, a suburb ringed by four large private hospitals, may be the only place in Malaysia where along a 400m walkway are eight pharmacies plus many shops selling orthopaedic and geriatric support equipment, hearing aids and health supplements.

Google Maps marks 13 dentists and orthodontists in Pulau Tikus. Families chattering away in Indonesian or Thai are commonly seen all over this suburb.

As for Ipoh, I make it a point to visit the Perak capital city at least once a month for the hawker food and local coffee.

Not that they are better than in Penang; just different. I enjoy tasting the difference.

Henry Ford already had the Model T in mass production by the time Ipoh began booming in the 1920s, so Ipoh’s main roads in the old section are a little wider. Roads in old George Town were built for bullock carts.

This makes driving around Ipoh’s heritage section less stressful, and there are more carparks too.

Meanwhile, the hawker “gangs” of Ipoh and George Town have their own arsenal.

In Ipoh, they excel at making soft wantan while Penang wantan mee hawkers like to press their wantan into chewy lumps and even deep-fry them so hard that they cut into the inner linings of our mouths when we bite into them.

Ipoh char koay teow is too soggy, in my opinion. I think we can stick to Penang’s variant for this.

The kari mee of George Town and Ipoh each hold their ground with unique characteristics that make it mandatory for food lovers to sample both and relish the contrast.

The grid of old roads around Ipoh’s bustling Concubine Lane is full of chic, novel cafes and bistros that attract a young crowd.

The downside of Ipoh hawker food is the price; a hawker food binge in this city hurts the wallet as much as eating in the Klang Valley.

A bowl of kai see hor fun (Cantonese for flat rice noodle soup served with shredded chicken) can cost RM8 even if you know how to use mobile apps and social media to seek out places where locals eat.

Penang’s ubiquitous koay teow th’ng can be had for just RM5.50 in places where locals congregate, but servings of Penang hawker food tend to be more snack-sized, so order a large bowl for RM6 if you need a more filling meal.

And wouldn’t you know it, Penang’s venerable Kek Lok Si has a “rival” in Ipoh called Kek Lok Tong.

The Chinese characters for both the “Kek Lok” are the same, meaning “great happiness”. “Si” means monastery and “tong” means cave.

While Kek Lok Si’s architecture is inspiring, Kek Lok Tong has assets that the former cannot beat.

Kek Long Tong really is a cave, with aeons-old stalagmites and stalactites and glistening cave walls shaped by centuries of trickling water.

The cave opens at the rear into a steep, narrow valley with two large ponds over 3,000sq metres each and populated by large turtles and fish, ringed with pleasant jogging tracks and a long foot reflexology path in between.

Ipoh has the upper hand of being much closer to Klang Valley, just as Melaka is never short of Singaporeans visiting to get away from their concrete jungles.

This makes inexpensive day trips into easy excursions.

Tourism players should know that domestic tourism is their bread and butter, and it behoves them to keep tabs on how other places of interest are doing.

Of late, media reports show large crowds and jams in the grid of roads around Ipoh’s Concubine Lane and their many cool, chic, novel cafes and bistros that appeal to the younger generation.

“My friends and I drive down to Ipoh regularly for day trips. It’s important for us to visit Ipoh regularly because as tourism players, we have to know how our neighbours are evolving,” said ex-president of Penang Tourist Guides Association PC Chin.

So to all Penangites involved in tourism in any way, drop by Ipoh regularly to feel the vibes, pick up some cues and keep the friendly competition going strong.

US Navy Chickens Out In Taiwan Straits

 

OutSyed The Box

Tuesday, June 6, 2023

US Navy Chickens Out In Taiwan Straits

Global Hawk flies at 60,000 feet

1. Four years ago on June 20, 2019, Iran shot down a US RQ-4A Global Hawk drone which was obviously flying too close to or over Iranian airspace. The drone fell inside Iranian territory. Immediately after the incident the British were the first to suspend all aerial surveillance operations in the area. The Americans too stopped flying their drones and planes anywhere near Iran. 

Moral of the story : You shoot them down they leave you alone.

 

2. On 14 March 2023, a Russian Su-27 fighter jet (video above) intercepted and damaged an American MQ-9 Reaper drone near Crimea, causing it to crash into the Black Sea. The Su-27 performed a slick manouevre by spraying jet fuel in front of the US drone which 'burned out' the drone's sensors. The  SU-27 also caused swirls and air turbulence which caused the US drone to lose control and crash.  Since then the Americans stopped flying their drones and planes anywhere near Crimea. 

Moral of the story : You take  them down they leave you alone.

 

 

Dont mess with the Chinese even in the Arafura Sea

 

3. In 2022 a Chinese warship used a military laser to “illuminate” an Australian Air Force plane in international waters (picture above). The Australian plane had been dropping sonobuoys in the water directly in the path of the Chinese warship. The sonobuoys could record the ship sounds (engines, propellers) which can be used to program torpedoes to target the ship much easier. Deliberately dropping any objects in the path of a moving warship is an act of war. So the Chinese warship used its laser and lit up the Aussie airplane. The Australian pilots targeted by the laser suffered disorienting flashes in their vision and they quickly pulled away and left the ship alone.

Moral of the story : You shoot a laser at them and they leave you alone.

4. A few days back an American and another Canadian navy ship sailed thousands of kilometers from Canada and the US West Coast to deliberately cut a passage through  the narrow Taiwan Straits between China and Taiwan. The Chinese Navy shadowed them closely and at one point cut off the US vessel and told them to leave the area. The Chinese warship came within 150 yards of the American vessel which had to change its course to avoid a collission. Here is a quick video:

 

Moral of the story : You cut them off and their navy ships will cut and run.

 

The British, the Americans, the Aussies and Canadians (the Four Great Anglo-Saxon Satans) do not project higher values  anymore. They have weapons, weapons and more weapons which they use wantonly. They bomb, kill, maim, destroy and just insanely love to shed human blood. Wherever you find the British, Americans, Aussies and Canadians involved around the world (lets not forget the French either) that is where they shed human blood. 

Their culture, their upbringing, their mothers and fathers, their grandmas and grandpas have engraved into their psyche this insane bloodlust to shed human blood.  And to cause destruction and hardship for people. There is something seriously wrong with these folks. This has to be stopped. Forcefully if necessary.

They are not defending freedom or protecting the world's trade routes. China is the largest trading nation in the world. Keeping global trade routes open is more important for China than for the UK or the US combined. The UK and the US are the bad guys now. They must be put inside the bottle. Otherwise they will be put inside the box.

Understand that bullies will always cut and run. That is the nature of bullies. Bullies are low risk predators. They will not stand and fight for anything of virtue or for anything good. That is too much risk for them. They just want to hit someone, grab something and run. If you break their legs or shoot them down the bullies will go away. That is their nature.

The Chinese did not have lasers before. Now they do. Neither did they have 7,000 ton naval ships that can 'suddenly increase speed and out manouevre US navy destroyers'. Now they do. The  Chinese ships in the Taiwan Straits were much faster and more advanced than the smaller American and Canadian 'boats'.  

What they should do is seriously consider sinking one of the British ships.

That will certainly make them go home for tea in double quick time.