Anti-drugs agents raid clinic of Jackson’s doctor
NDTV
Federal drug agents searched the Houston clinic of Michael Jackson’s doctor on Wednesday, according to a news report, even as investigators in California sought more information from the man.
A television channel reported that officials with the Drug Enforcement Administration were at Dr Conrad Murray’s clinic in north Houston.
Video footage showed two Houston police officers guarding the front door.
Murray was Michael Jackson’s personal physician, and was with Jackson when he died.
Murray, who is based in Las Vegas and is licensed in California, Nevada and Texas, has been interviewed by police but he has not been considered a suspect in the singer’s death.
Meanwhile, investigators in California are also seeking more information from Murray, according to his attorney, Edward Chernoff.
The attorney posted a statement on his law firm’s website late on Tuesday saying investigators from the Los Angeles County coroner’s office have asked for medical records in addition to those already provided by Murray.
“The coroner wants to clear up the cause of death; we share that goal”, Chernoff said in his statement.
“Based on Dr Murray’s minute-by-minute and item-by-item description of Michael Jackson’s last days, he should not be a target of criminal charges.”
Murray has emerged as a central figure in the investigation into Jackson’s death.
The doctor, who had been recently hired by Jackson, was with him in his mansion and tried to revive him.
Although Chernoff has said the doctor didn’t give the pop star any drugs that contributed to his death, Murray has nonetheless received attention from those angry over the singer’s death.
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Teoh’s Family Unhappy With RCI, Seeks Meeting With Najib
SUARA KEADILAN
By Wong Choon Mei
The family of DAP politicaL aide Teoh Beng Hock has asked to meet Prime Minister Najib Razak to express their unhappiness over his “neither here nor there” proposals to investigate their son’s suspicious death after a marathon interrogation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
“We hope the Prime Minister will not wait until the findings of the probes are completed before seeing us,” sister Lee Lan said on behalf of their parents on Thursday.
“If he is unable to visit us before that, then we are willing to see him personally in Putrajaya and ask him to change his decision and form a single commission instead.”
Najib had a day ago announced the formation of a much-awaited Royal Commission of Inquiry. He also said he would personally inform the family of the outcome of investigations.
But instead of tasking the high-level panel to investigate what caused Beng Hock’s controversial death, the PM said the RCI would only focus on the MACC’s standard operational procedures for interrogation.
An inquest would be separately conducted by a magistrate to investigate the cause of his death.
The PM’s announcements caught the nation by surprise and has drawn sharp rebuke from both opposition politicians and civil society leaders.
Even Beng Hock’s family harbors doubts. They expressed their disappointment and questioned the government’s sincerity to get to the bottom of their son’s death without bias or trying to cover up for the MACC.
“We were elated when we first got the news but then later felt disappointed when it became clear that the Royal Commission would only investigate MACC’s procedures while the inquest would be carried out to probe my brother’s death,” Lee Lan told a press conference.
“This is not what the family wanted as we had made our request known to several ministers including Najib’s political secretary when they visited us last week.”
The family had thanked Najib when initially informed of the move on Wednesday although they did not yet have the full details.
Sadly, he has not fulfilled their trust in him and the family now wants his assurance that Beng Hock will get the justice he is entitled to.
“We understand how they feel and will stand by their decision to reject the government’s proposal,” said PKR strategic affairs director Tian Chua.
“We hope the Prime Minister will heed their call and broaden the terms of reference for the RCI. Najib should not try to escape his responsibility. That would be totally unacceptable.”
Consultation with civil society vital for independent probe
The 30-year old Teoh was found dead on the 5th floor podium of an adjoining building to the MACC headquarters in Shah Alam, Selangor at 1.30pm on July 16.
He was called in on July 15 for questioning as witness in a probe over alleged misuse of state funds by his boss, Seri Kembangan assemblyman Ean Yong.
But there is huge politicking behind the scenes and it is an open secret that Selangor Umno – which Najib heads – has been trying hard to destabilise the Pakatan Rakyat state government through all ways and means.
Weeks before Beng Hock died, the MACC piled pressure on seven Chinese Pakatan assemblymen including Ean by raiding their service centres and questioning their aides and associates.
Kajang municipal councillor Tan Boon Hwa, who had supplied RM2,400 worth of flags to Ean, was also interrogated at around the same time as Beng Hock.
Tan has since blown the whistle on the MACC’s interrogating methods which he said included torture to force false confessions from witnesses. He has filed a lawsuit against the agency for illegal detention and for trying to extract a false statement from him to implicate Ean in corrupt activities.
His revelations sparked a huge uproar, forcing Najib to conduct a more thorough probe. The authorities had initially said Teoh had apparently “jumped” while the police were quick to deny foul play.
However, latest clues including the discovery of Beng Hock’s missing handphone have bolstered postulations that foul play was indeed involved in his death. The seat of his pants and his shoes were also badly torn when his body was found.
Civil society leaders have also urged Najib to consult the public before broadening and setting the terms of reference for the RCI.
This was to ensure that the Inquiry would be independent and that vested interests with the MACC and the government itself would not be able to mislead the direction and scope of investigation so as to deflect attention from areas they wished to keep under wraps.
“I hope the government will take into account the deep and wide concerns of the people. There is still time to review and expand the terms of reference before members of the commission are appointed. Let this opportunity be seized,” said Ramon Navaratnam, chairman of the MACC panel for prevention of corruption and consultation.
“In drawing up the terms of reference for any public commission, it is always better to consult people from outside and who are concerned with the future of the country because sometimes if done in-house, there can be unhealthy inbreeding.”
Transforming sorrow and anger into People’s Power
THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
Flanked by Pakatan Rakyat leaders, Soh Cher Wei addresses the crowd. – Picture by Choo Choy May
By Debra Chong
KUALA LUMPUR, July 24 – Teoh Beng Hock’s fiancee Soh Cher Wei, two months pregnant, stepped on the stage at the KL and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall last night, looking pale but bright eyed.
The crowd packed into the hall leapt to their feet and gave her a standing ovation.
Surrounded by Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders on both sides, the 28-year-old looked straight out at the crowd and spoke, in Mandarin, steadily and clearly: “I can do nothing more for Teoh Beng Hock but I’ll take care of his child. Thank you.”
Soh stepped off the stage, head held high, followed by the crowd’s thunderous applause in support of the steadfast school teacher.
By the stage, roses and chrysanthemums were beginning to droop in the heat. Their delicate petals – white and yellow – bruised easily, releasing a sweet, heavy, heady perfume that also smelled a little sickly with the thousands that thronged the hall here last night in memory of Teoh, the DAP political aide who was found dead last week outside the national anti-graft body’s office.
Many who came did not seem to know Teoh personally. When asked, they shook their heads, no.
Why did they come? They came to show they were angry, said those who wore something black – shirts, tee-shirts, blouses, pants, a headscarf.
Because they were sad, said those who dressed in other colours. They came because there were so many questions unanswered.
How could a 30-year-old man who was going to get married die suddenly? Why was he held for so many hours for questioning? Why is the “go’men” always doing this?
Before Teoh’s fiancee took the stage, the master of ceremonies also read out a personal letter she had first dedicated to her dead husband-to-be at his funeral, promising to marry him even if they were now living in separate worlds.
The crowd had earlier listened to the impassioned speeches of the politicians blaming the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government.
Many stood up and pumped their fists in agreement, especially when veteran politician Lim Kit Siang called on them to stand up and let the media photographers snap their pictures protesting the Cabinet’s move to hold separately investigations into Teoh’s death and into the way the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) interrogated him.
Lim had earlier mocked the Cabinet decision on Wednesday to let a magistrate’s court carry out an inquest instead of getting the royal commission of inquiry, which they had also agreed to set up soon, to handle everything, from Teoh’s death to possible procedural abuses by the MACC.
He noted that if the people had no confidence in high court judges and federal judges, what more magistrates under pressure from the BN government?
“They are asking for the moon!” he cried, referring to the Cabinet members.
“We must dare to be sad and dare to be angry,” the DAP parliamentary leader said.
“But we must translate our sorrow and anger into People’s Power,” he added.
“Then at the next elections, these people who refuse to listen to the voice of the people to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the death of Teoh Beng Hock will descend into the dustbin of history!” he concluded.
As one, the crowd roared their approval.
BROKEN PROMISES: THE MALAYSIAN CONSTITUTION AND MULTICULTURALISM
An enlightening article by By Dr. Azmi Sharom.
“Yet, if one were to examine the Constitution as a whole and if one were to also study the history behind this seeming paradox, then what can be discovered is that at the heart of this “supreme law” of the country, and arguably at the heart of the founding fathers of the nation, lay a desire to create a pluralistic and equal society.”
“The question that lies before us is where did it all go wrong, and is there any possibility of repairing the damage done?”
Malaysia Today –
In 1835 Malays made up nearly 90% of Malaya’s population. In 1947 this number was closer to 50%. Therefore during a time when Malayan political consciousness was awakening (the 1946 British introduction of the Malayan Union which effectively placed the entire peninsular under direct British rule galvanised what can be described as the Malayan left and the forefathers of the current ruling elite), it could hardly be described as homogenous.
The 1957 Federal Constitution of Malaya reflected this change in the personality of the country. It was and is a strange creature that combines liberal democratic ideals and what can only be described as racially based preferential treatment. It also has elements of religiosity (the establishment of the scripture based Islamic law as the personal law for Muslims for example) which appear to contradict Article 4 of the constitution which reads:
“This Constitution is the supreme law of the Federation and any law passed after Merdeka Day which is inconsistent with this Constitution shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void”
Race and religion litter the document in a way that scream “different treatment for different people”; a situation, which a mere 12 years after the excesses of Nazi Germany and nine years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (a United Nations document which Malaysia as a prospective new member would have to respect) would seem out of place with the growing zeitgeist of the time. However, considering the socio political situation at the time, with an indigenous population feeling overwhelmed both in numbers and in economic disparity, the nature of the constitution can be accepted as an understandable compromise.
Yet, if one were to examine the Constitution as a whole and if one were to also study the history behind this seeming paradox, then what can be discovered is that at the heart of this “supreme law” of the country, and arguably at the heart of the founding fathers of the nation, lay a desire to create a pluralistic and equal society.
The question that lies before us is where did it all go wrong, and is there any possibility of repairing the damage done?
This paper will examine the issue on two main grounds that the author believes lie at the crux of the problem facing plurality in Malaysia, race and religion.
Religion
Article 3 of the constitution reads:
“Islam is the religion of the Federation; but other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation”
Does this phrase mean that Malaya was to be an Islamic state? The answer is clearly in the negative for two main reasons. Firstly one has to look to the Reid Commission Report and it states that the Alliance (this were the three political parties that made up the Malayan government at the time, the United Malay National Organisation, the Malayan Indian Congress and the Malayan Chinese Association, UMNO, MIC and MCA respectively) upon examining the draft constitution had this to say:
“The observance of this principle…shall not imply that the State is not a secular state” [Report of the Federation of Malaya Constitutional Commission page 73].
It is very clear therefore that Malaya was not to be an Islamic state. This is not an assertion made by the Reid Commission, it is an assertion made by the very people who were to become the government of the newly independent nation. This statement combined with Article 4 which places all laws in the country under the overarching principles of the Constitution means that to claim Malaya was meant to be theocratic in any way is disingenuous.
The contention that Malaya is a secular country is further strengthened by the decision of the Supreme Court (the highest court in the land – now known as the Federal Court) in the case of Che Omar Che Soh [1988] where it was held that secular law governed the nation and Islamic law was confined only to the personal law of Muslims. Article 3 was taken to mean that as far as official ceremonial matters are concerned Islamic form and rituals are to be used.
With regard to religious freedom Article 11 is explicit: “Every person has the right to profess and practice his religion and subject to clause 4 to propagate it”. Clause 4 allows the state governments (and the federal government in the case of the federal territories) to control the propagation of religion to Muslims. This is not limited to non Muslim propagation to Muslims; it includes Muslim to Muslim propagation as well.
Harding suggests that “…the restriction of proselytism has more to do with the preservation of public order than with religious priority” [Law, Government and the Constitution in Malaysia page 201]. He argues that even states like Penang which does not have Islam as its official religion has laws regarding propagating religion to Muslims therefore there can’t be an assumption that Islam is deemed superior in some way. If we were to work on this premise, then it would appear that this limitation, as restrictive as it is, does not actually stop individuals of any faith from choosing their religion.
This can be seen in the Supreme Court decision of Minister of Home Affairs v Jamaluddin Othman [1989]. In this case a Muslim convert was detained under the Internal Security Act. It was held that such a detention has to be made for the purpose of national security. The conversion of this individual does not breach national security and furthermore his detention was in breach of his freedom to choose his religion as enshrined in Article 11. Thus, although the propagation of religion to Muslims is restricted, their freedom to choose their religion would appear to be not.
Solar eclipse celebrated by millions across Asia
RAHUL BEDI in New Delhi
THIS CENTURY’S longest solar eclipse plunged large regions of Asia into darkness at dawn yesterday, and millions watched the breathtaking spectacle, which will not recur for 123 years.
Lasting six minutes and 39 seconds in some Asian countries, it was visible for over four minutes over India before moving on to Nepal, Burma, Bangladesh, Bhutan and crowded Chinese cites along the Yangtze River, after which it headed out to the Pacific.
“I don’t want to wait hundreds of years to see this again,” said an animated Song Chun Yun, sporting special protective glasses and a new white dress for the occasion in coastal Shanghai, where clouds initially shrouded the eclipse.
Across superstitious India, however, where eclipses are linked with Hindu fables, one of which associate the phenomenon with the demon-dragon swallowing the sun, tens of millions shuttered themselves indoors and abstained from sleeping, eating and drinking – all such activity being considered inauspicious during the eclipse period.
Many Hindus believe the sun’s rays during an eclipse adversely affect newborns, and expectant mothers asked doctors to either advance or postpone births to avoid complications and wretched subsequent karma for their children.
Tens of thousands of Hindus also immersed themselves in the holy Ganges river at Varanasi in northern India, believing it would cleanse their sins and help their souls attain salvation by releasing them from the endless cycle of life, death and rebirth.
“We have come here because our elders told us this is the best time to improve our afterlife,” said Bhailal Sharma, a villager who travelled to Varanasi from central India.
Throughout the day, Indian television channels relaying the eclipse featured a host of astrologers informing viewers of how it would impinge on their respective birth signs.
A 10-member team of astrophysicists filmed the eclipse from a specially equipped Indian Air Force transport aircraft, while a commercial airline operated a charter flight with seats at 80,000 rupees (€1,159).
In neighbouring Hindu-majority Nepal, the government declared a public holiday, and thousands took the opportunity to head off to bathe in rivers and ponds.
“Taking a dip in holy rivers before and after the eclipse saves and protects us from disasters and calamities,” said Sundar Shrestha (86) – who had come to bathe in the holy Bagmati river with six children and grandchildren – with heartfelt conviction.
Eclipse-viewers in central China were luckier than those in the coastal cities near Shanghai, where overcast skies and rain in some places blocked the view of the sun entirely.
Crowds gathered along the high dykes of the industrial city of Wuhan exultantly waving the sun goodbye as the moon moved directly between it and the Earth, covering it completely.
In ancient Chinese culture, an eclipse was an omen linked to natural disasters or deaths in the imperial family.
– IRISH TIMES-
Anwar takes Teoh’s case to the Malay heartland
THE MALAYSIAN INSIDER
Anwar addressing the crowd in Sungai Besar last night. — Pictures by Choo Choy May
By Adib ZalkapliSABAK BERNAM, July 22 — In an attempt to stop certain quarters from turning the death of Teoh Beng Hock into a racial issue, opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim likened it to his black eye incident.
The former deputy prime minister was arrested soon after he was sacked in 1998 and was assaulted while in police custody by the then Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Rahim Noor, resulting in a black eye.
“I was beaten up to a pulp, but thank God I was rescued, but some people died in custody,” said Anwar to some 3,000 people at a public rally in Sungai Besar, near here.
The rally, held near the Selangor-Perak border, appeared to be an attempt by the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) to mobilise the Malays to support the coalition in pressuring the government to form a Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate Teoh’s death.
Anwar told the largely Malay crowd that it was hard for him to accept the outcome of police investigations.
“Our ministers said do not politicise the issue, let the investigations be completed, but who is going to investigate? Musa Hassan?” said Anwar.
“Last time they said, ‘Anwar was safe and sound’,” he added, referring to Rahim’s remark soon after his arrest 11 years ago.
Pakatan has been accused of undermining Malay institutions by Umno-controlled newspapers because of their criticism of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) over Teoh’s death.
Four Things Najib can do on Teoh’s 7th Day
Four Things Najib can do on Teoh’s 7th Day
by Wong Chin Huat
Teoh Beng Hock does not need flowers from PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak, note attached in Chinese: “Heaven envies talent”. Don’t blame Heaven for his death. Some earthly beings have caused his death after a torturous 11-hour interrogation.
Teoh’s death is anything but an “act of god”. It is neither natural nor purely accidental. He died after a lengthy interrogation without his counsel present. This is an established fact now, which needs no any commission or panel to verify.
It is unlikely that the MACC officers did not find out during the marathon interrogation that Teoh was to tie the knot with his fiancée the very next day. Yet, they kept drilling the bridegroom-to-be from 5 pm to 3.45 am.
MACC chief Ahmad Said had the guts to disown responsibility for Teoh’s untimely death even before the body was buried. Whatever you say about it, however you spin it, no official denial, no fanning of ethnic sentiments, and no white-wash can wipe off the anger and grief most Malaysians feel for his family, his fiancée and their first child she now carries.
Read More :
http://dinmerican.wordpress.com/2009/07/22/wong-chin-huat-on-teohs-death/
Century’s longest solar eclipse – First pics
The century’s longest total solar eclipse began with thousands of skygazers thronging the major sites to catch a glimpse of the rare celestial spectacle.
The Sun rose eclipsed on Wednesday morning at 5:28 am at a local sunrise point in the Arabian Sea close to the western coast of India near Surat in Gujarat.
Time of the eclipse across the country:
- Delhi: Eclipse began at 6.24 am
- Bhopal: Eclipse began before Sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:22:11 am
- Patna: Eclipse began at 05:29:57 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:24:37 am
- Varanasi: Eclipse began at 05:30:03 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:24:10 am
- Gaya: Eclipse began at 05:29:34 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:24:26 am
- Surat: Eclipse began before sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:21:16 am
- Ujjain: Eclipse began before sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:22:51 am
- Vadodara: Eclipse began before sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:22:41 am
- Siliguri: Eclipse began at 05:30:26 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:26:33 am
- Darjeeling: Eclipse began at 05:30:35 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:27:01 am
- Sikkim: Eclipse began at 05:30:40 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:27:15 am
Amazing pictures of the eclipse from NDTV.
SOLAR ECLIPSE TODAY 22 JULY 2009
THE MIGHT OF THE PEN
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22/07/2009: The solar eclipse that will take place today Wednesday, July 22, 2009 will be a total eclipse of the Sun.
It will be the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, lasting at most 6 minutes, 39 seconds. It has sparked tourist interest in eastern China and India.
The eclipse is part of series 136 in the Saros cycle, like the record setting Solar eclipse of July 11, 1991. The exceptional duration is a result of the moon being near perigee, with the diameter of the moon 8% larger than the sun (magnitude 1.080).
This is second in the series of three eclipses in a month. There was a lunar eclipse on July 7 and now a solar eclipse on July 22 and then a lunar eclipse on August 6.
TO READ MORE GO TO :
http://sjsandteam.wordpress.com/2009/07/22/solar-eclipse-today-22-july-2009/
MACC death tragedy – My untrained CSI techniques
rights2write
My CSI findings I (drrafick)
1. The following writing is done based on assessment of various images and writings on the mainstream media (MSM) as well as the online media. I am trying to understand the tragedy that took place at Plaza Masalam. It would be great if I have access to MACC office and location where the body was found but without such access, readers can expect some gross margin of error in my writing. Do let me know what the errors are so that we can come to a clear conclusion on what transpired.
2. It was reported that Teoh Beng Hock (TBH) was supposedly to register his marriage on the 16th July 2009 at the registrar of marriage. He was already married (via traditional marriage ceremony) and his wife is pregnant. Is there a problem at home that is so gravely torturing that would force TBH to take his own life? My reading so far showed that there is no grave problem at the home front.
CONTINUE READING :
http://rights2write.wordpress.com/2009/07/19/macc-death-tragedy-–-my-untrained-csi-techniques/
My CSI findings II (drrafick)
1. After the release of the first part of my investigative findings on TBH death which is based on the information in public the domain, it appears that what I have been postulating so far seems to fall into place. With the trickling information from Selangor Police Chief and other readers, I believe we (me and my blog readers) would probably solve the first part of the mystery ahead of the police revelation.
2. I believe we are the first to postulate that TBH actually fell from height (possibly the MACC office) and first to highlight the relevancy of the torn pants on the motionless body and the possibility that the pants was caught in the window latch that leads it to a big tear.
CONTINUE READING :
http://rights2write.wordpress.com/2009/07/20/my-csi-findings-ii/
My CSI Findings Part III (drrafick)
1. After the first two write ups and further reading and observation of the various statements by several individuals in the media, I believe the police findings may not vary very much with what I have wrote. The IGP press statement after meeting Najib at KLIA indicated that the investigation is almost complete and they are expected to submit their report to the AG Chambers very soon.
2. The conclusion of the last 2 days of internet research and photographic evaluation has led us to the following conclusion.
CONTINUE READING :
http://rights2write.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/my-csi-findings-part-iii/
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