08-06-2008, 02:53 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Hindraf leaders ordered to complete jail term
25 Apr 2008, 1001 hrs IST,IANS
KUALA LUMPUR: The five Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders, detained under the stringent Internal Security Act (ISA), will complete serving their two-year term as ordered by the king of Malaysia.
The king's letters, sent separately to the five, shut out any prospects of their early freedom.
Lawyer Karpal Singh, who represents them in court trials, said on Thursday that the king's decree was contained in a letter dated April 16 addressed to one of the five - lawyer Ganabatirau Veeraman, by the Home Ministry's Security and Public Order Division Officer Mohamad Irza Dahari.
"The other detainees, have received similar letters," Singh said in a statement.
The letter said the Prime Minister's Advisory Board had forwarded its recommendation to the king who issued the order on March 26, following an appeal by the five, the New Straits Times said on Friday.
Besides Ganabatirau, lawyers Uthayakumar Ponnusamy, 46, Manoharan Malayalam, 46, and Kengadharan Ramasamy, 40, and ex-bank executive Vasantha Kumar Krishnan, 34 were detained after they organized a protest rally Nov 25, 2007.
The rally of estimated 10,000 was forcibly dispersed by police using water cannons.
Of the five, Uthayakumar, a diabetic, has complained of not receiving proper medicines while in jail. Manoharan was elected to a state legislature last month. He has refused to take oath in jail.
Several appeals have been made for their release from human rights bodies and different political quarters, both from the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional (BN) and the opposition alliance Pakatan Rakyat (PR), besides social and human rights bodies.
Singh's announcement came even as a leader of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), a constituent of the BN that has traditionally spoken for Malaysia's 2.6 million ethnic Indians, sought freedom for the five detainees.
Adding to the effort of MIC chief, S. Samy Vellu, who had met Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar earlier this month to seek release of the Hindraf-5, the party's youth chief S.A. Vigneswaran Thursday asked the government to "explain" how the detainees posed a threat to national security.
Responding to appeals for release, Albar said the government would go by "national interests" and not by "sentiments" in deciding the issue. The government has said it is investigating the "terror links" of the five, allegedly with Sri Lanka's Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
Action against the Hindraf disenchanted the two million Tamil Hindus during the last month's elections. According to a post-poll analysis, 69 per cent of ethnic Indian vote swung against the BN and favoured the emergence of a strong opposition.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Indians...how/2981382.cms<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Racial taunts spark protests by Indians in Malaysia
KULA LUMPUR: About 500 angry ethic-Indians on Monday staged a protest outside a school demanding action against a teacher who allegedly hurled racial slurs against students from the community in western Malaysia's Selangaon state.
According to the police report, a woman history teacher had allegedly called Indian students in a Class four and five 'Negro', 'black monkeys' and other derogatory names.
The crowd began gathering outside the Banting school's main entrance near here at noon and staged a protest for two hours.
The teacher had also allegedly said that the community members were stupid and prone to thievery, the Star daily reported on its website.
The alleged incidents took place on July 17 and 22 when the teacher had allegedly beaten up some Indians students.
A students also alleged in his report that the teacher had written the word 'keling pariah' on the board and lost her cool when the Indian students told her that they did not like being called names, it said.
Coalition of Malaysian Indian NGOs secretary Gunaraj George, who was among the protesters, said such abuse would only breed hatred and racial polarisation in schools.
"No one in his or her right frame of mind would have said these things. Given this, the best option would be for the teacher to be assigned to a desk job and not be allowed to be near youngsters anymore," he said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Education Minister Wee Ka Siong said the schoolteacher might be sacked if the allegations proved true. "The allegations were serious as no one was allowed to insult others, especially in a school environment," said Wee, who was asked to comment.
The ministry was awaiting an official report before taking any action, he added.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Racial_...how/3325864.cms<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
25 Apr 2008, 1001 hrs IST,IANS
KUALA LUMPUR: The five Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leaders, detained under the stringent Internal Security Act (ISA), will complete serving their two-year term as ordered by the king of Malaysia.
The king's letters, sent separately to the five, shut out any prospects of their early freedom.
Lawyer Karpal Singh, who represents them in court trials, said on Thursday that the king's decree was contained in a letter dated April 16 addressed to one of the five - lawyer Ganabatirau Veeraman, by the Home Ministry's Security and Public Order Division Officer Mohamad Irza Dahari.
"The other detainees, have received similar letters," Singh said in a statement.
The letter said the Prime Minister's Advisory Board had forwarded its recommendation to the king who issued the order on March 26, following an appeal by the five, the New Straits Times said on Friday.
Besides Ganabatirau, lawyers Uthayakumar Ponnusamy, 46, Manoharan Malayalam, 46, and Kengadharan Ramasamy, 40, and ex-bank executive Vasantha Kumar Krishnan, 34 were detained after they organized a protest rally Nov 25, 2007.
The rally of estimated 10,000 was forcibly dispersed by police using water cannons.
Of the five, Uthayakumar, a diabetic, has complained of not receiving proper medicines while in jail. Manoharan was elected to a state legislature last month. He has refused to take oath in jail.
Several appeals have been made for their release from human rights bodies and different political quarters, both from the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional (BN) and the opposition alliance Pakatan Rakyat (PR), besides social and human rights bodies.
Singh's announcement came even as a leader of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), a constituent of the BN that has traditionally spoken for Malaysia's 2.6 million ethnic Indians, sought freedom for the five detainees.
Adding to the effort of MIC chief, S. Samy Vellu, who had met Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar earlier this month to seek release of the Hindraf-5, the party's youth chief S.A. Vigneswaran Thursday asked the government to "explain" how the detainees posed a threat to national security.
Responding to appeals for release, Albar said the government would go by "national interests" and not by "sentiments" in deciding the issue. The government has said it is investigating the "terror links" of the five, allegedly with Sri Lanka's Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
Action against the Hindraf disenchanted the two million Tamil Hindus during the last month's elections. According to a post-poll analysis, 69 per cent of ethnic Indian vote swung against the BN and favoured the emergence of a strong opposition.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Indians...how/2981382.cms<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Racial taunts spark protests by Indians in Malaysia
KULA LUMPUR: About 500 angry ethic-Indians on Monday staged a protest outside a school demanding action against a teacher who allegedly hurled racial slurs against students from the community in western Malaysia's Selangaon state.
According to the police report, a woman history teacher had allegedly called Indian students in a Class four and five 'Negro', 'black monkeys' and other derogatory names.
The crowd began gathering outside the Banting school's main entrance near here at noon and staged a protest for two hours.
The teacher had also allegedly said that the community members were stupid and prone to thievery, the Star daily reported on its website.
The alleged incidents took place on July 17 and 22 when the teacher had allegedly beaten up some Indians students.
A students also alleged in his report that the teacher had written the word 'keling pariah' on the board and lost her cool when the Indian students told her that they did not like being called names, it said.
Coalition of Malaysian Indian NGOs secretary Gunaraj George, who was among the protesters, said such abuse would only breed hatred and racial polarisation in schools.
"No one in his or her right frame of mind would have said these things. Given this, the best option would be for the teacher to be assigned to a desk job and not be allowed to be near youngsters anymore," he said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Education Minister Wee Ka Siong said the schoolteacher might be sacked if the allegations proved true. "The allegations were serious as no one was allowed to insult others, especially in a school environment," said Wee, who was asked to comment.
The ministry was awaiting an official report before taking any action, he added.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Racial_...how/3325864.cms<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->