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The Forgotten Ones
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The Changing Face of Malaysia
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The Winds of Haze
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Mahathir: Malaysia eager to bolster ties with Kuwait in all spheres
Politics 1/25/2005 1:25:00 PM
KUN0033 4 GEN 0206 KUWAIT /KUNA-DNY7 POL-MALAYSIA-MAHATHIR Mahathir: Malaysia eager to bolster ties with Kuwait in all spheres By Ace Emerson (With photos) KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 25 (KUNA) -- Former Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohammad has stressed his country's eagerness for wide scale cooperation with Kuwait and the Arab countries, since the relationship between this country and the Arab Nation are "good" but need further enhancement. In an exclusive interview with Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) today, Mahathir said that such ties must be further strengthened for the sake of best interests of both people. "Malaysia has no problems what-so-ever working with other Muslim Nations if they wanted to work together now or in the near future", the former Premier said. Mahathir asserted that it is now time to bolster ties between the two countries not only in politics but in other aspects particularly trade and investments which really need to be enhanced. He hailed the initiative taken by the government of Kuwait in establishing a bureau of Kuwait News Agency in Kuala Lumpur and hoped such initiative could be reciprocated by Bernama in the near future. "It is really a good move", he said. -- On the Iraq issue, he said that the trial of Saddam Hussein must not be done through policemen but through a certified panel of judges adding that the Malaysians were not siding with Iraq during the invasion in 1990, however, Malaysia supported the cause of Kuwait He anticipated that civil war would erupt following the elections in Iraq and said that Iraq was forced to have elections because such move would relieve the Americans and to station in the country. He added that it is hard to control the situation in Iraq as many factions are competing to assume power in the country and that it is hard to satisfy them all. On Palestine, Mahathir said that the conflicts in the world had been triggered by Israel's occupation of Arab Palestinian lands. Mahathir believes that the root of terrorism came about "when Palestine was divided and its people deprived of owning lands and housing areas more than fifty years back. This caused a snowball reaction, of everybody wanting to rule the world, causing civil wars in and out of the Countries invaded". He added that in order to achieve peace the concerned parties must be consulted, in a hint to the Israelis and Palestinians themselves. Mahathir noted that the road map for peace has been drawn by other parties and that the concerned parties, Israelis and Palestinians, have not been consulted about it. On the terrorism issue, Mahathir said that he does not believe in using fear and the name of religion to terrorize any country whether at home or other places. He stressed again that Islam is not terrorism but its the people who hide behind the religion in installing fear to have control on others. Furthermore, the former Premier said that Malaysia is seen as the most advanced Muslim Country in the Asian region and this is due to the education of integration and appreciation of other culture and religion to live in harmony. "It also is an example that Islam, the religion, is not bad and its the small minded minority of the Muslim countries, still living in the 7th Century and refusing to accept change", he said. He ended his view of the world today by saying that the Muslim people and Islamic countries have no unity with one another and that if they only thrive and work together, they may be as privileged as Malaysia. "The Religion of Islam has been misused and mislead by the extremist for the sake of instilling fear and terror. Moreover, the meaning of Jihad has been taken out of context completely, he said. (end)aeb.tg
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White knights on mission of mercy
Population 2/22/2005 9:10:00 AM
KUN0010 4 GEN 0412 KUWAIT /KUNA-FSO2 PPL-TSUNAMI-KRCS (With photos) White knights on mission of mercy By Ace Emerson BANDA ACEH, Feb 22 (KUNA) -- The Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) continues its role in making life in Banda Aceh easier Donating 65 heavy machineries by "Caterpillar" and expertise in training the people of Aceh to rebuild their lives, by various job skills, the KRCS will also be establishing schools and housing to accommodate the children who survive the tsunami but lost their families. Led by Khaled M. AlQais, the KRCS expressed its utter horror on how unpredictable and forceful nature can be, yet at the same, how wonderful life really is and "how blessed we are to have all that we thought was menial; and that is the basic need love, family and a roof over our heads." AlQais said that every man, woman and child of the great tsunami is suffering from slow starvation, the invasion of epidemics and low self-esteem. This is due to helplessness - solely surviving on relief and not having jobs to facilitate their family needs of providing food on the table, a roof over their heads and their giving their children the education that they need. "This is the area we are looking at; a relief affords to see to the needs of the people for jobs, homes, and freedom to live unfettered lives," AlQais said further. "We feel that the situation is a difficult one that the refugee camps and homelessness are likely to continue for a long time without the help of countries not affected by the tragedy. This will especially apply to the old whom has lost everything that matters to them and the children of the great tsunami," he added. "At this moment of time, the survivors are relying on us to give them a helping hand in rebuilding their lives, and it is with earnest hope that we can accomplish some of their needs. "It would be a mistake to ignore the needs of these people and go on with our own lives selfishly, as though nothing has changed," said another KRSC staffer. Having said this, the white knights, close the interview with this brilliant message, a reminder to all, "It is a rare exception, ultimately a remarkable time for all of humanity to bridge their differences and learn from each other. Just when you think the world is an evil place, it took a catastrophe to remind us that life is short and pointless to spend it on greed and hatred. This storm has brought human kind together whether we realize it or not." (end) aeb.aj KUNA 220910 Feb 05NNNN
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Broken hopes, broken lives
Population 2/23/2005 11:11:00 AM
KUN0009 4 GEN 0259 KUWAIT /KUNA-FVE2 PPL-CHILD-TRAFFICKING (With photos) Broken hopes, broken lives By Ace Emerson-Belson KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 (KUNA) - The savage wave of 2004 blasted into Asia without warning on Dec 26 in the early hours of the morning killing hundreds of thousand of people, however in the midst of this great human tragedy, it was not the only nightmare that lashed out getting public attention. In fact, as five million people became homeless, another tragedy unfolded causing worldwide sensation and outrage; child trafficking appeared in the picture. The tsunami has unearthed a despair that was faced by children a long time ago. "Exploitation of the vulnerable victims of such crime has many faces to it, " the Head of the Ministry for Women, Family and Society in Malaysia Dato' Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said. Child trafficking comes in different ways. "Some unscrupulous parents force their children to work either in the labor force or in the flesh trade, others sell their offspring to people who later exploit them as expendable properties, " she said. Some desperate parents sell off their babies to intermediaries at a giveaway price, who than sell them off to childless couples, who are willing to go through the extreme just to have a child, at exorbitant prices, she added. "Kidnapped kids are sold to intensive labor industries or sold to the flesh industry dealing with pedophiles, sex, pornography, and prostitution. Kidnapped children are maimed and sent out to beg in the streets by gangs," she added. These gang operatives "sweet-talk poor unsuspecting parents, promising a brighter future for their children, if they allow their children to go away with them and promising good homes, a sound education and a better future" she said. But as soon as the parents lose sight of their children forever, not knowing if they are dead or alive, the children end up at one of the many lucrative money making projects run by these syndicates, including drug dealing, she went on. "Some kids are put on the streets with counter band goods or drugs to sell while an overseer watches over them, ensuring that they are doing their jobs and are not going to run away." added Dato' Seri Shahrizat. Usually there will be one overseer to watch over five to ten kids at one time. The most common places are the wet markets, bus terminals, parking lots, or any other crowded places. These children are taught the trade of begging, stealing, pick pocketing, as well as, grabbing and running. "However," Dato' Seri Shahrizat added, "Most girls will end up being prostitutes." Dato' Seri Shahrizat ended by saying, "The future is depends on our children. They need us to realize this as much as we need to rise-up and do something about it now. It is high time
for us to wake-up and smell the fears of these children, our future." (end) aeb.bn
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More Tragedy in the wake of tsunamis
Geography 1/24/2005 7:42:00 PM
KUN0073 4 GEN 0298 KUWAIT /KUNA-DMT8 GEO-ASIAN-TSUNAMI More Tragedy in the wake of tsunamis By Ace Emerson-Belson KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 24 (KUNA) -- With a world much changed four weeks after the disastrous tsunamis, aftershocks still rock the land, sea and the people. The latest aftershock hit Palu, Sulawesi, Indonesia earlier today at a magnitude of 6.1, jolting Palu, killing one person, and causing hysteria and panic among citizens who fled to higher ground and are still afraid to go back home for fear of a bigger tsunami yet. Meanwhile, the Indonesian Government says that if the rebels in Banda Aceh really want peace, they should come down from the mountains where they are in hiding. Although a kind of peace treaty had been agreed to informally after the tsunamis between the government and the Anti-Aceh Movement, government troops went on ahead and cracked down on suspected rebels. Official peace talk is supposed to take place sometime next week in Finland. In Sri Lanka, crime has taken over. Two men were caught for blatantly robbing a woman in public, while others are stripping the corpses of whatever they can salvage, looting whatever and wherever they can. The public, outraged, took law into their own hands by stoning "low-moral-criminals" to death. Local authorities are pleading for help from the UN and other Humanitarian groups. Bangkok recently held the annual Asian Film Festival but this time the focus was more on fund raising. Ricky Martin was one of the main artists present to help raise relief funds. The measles epidemic has attacked the Bakun area in Seriki, Sarawak, also known as Borneo, claiming 14 lives. The outbreak led to quarantine in the Province of Bakun and people were urged to get measles shots as most were not immunized at birth. (end) aeb.wsa KUNA 241942 Jan 05NNNN
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Relief workers and volunteers need to ask their permission to help
Population 1/11/2005 4:53:00 PM
KUN0063 4 GEN 0278 KUWAIT /KUNA-CPC5 PPL-ASIAN-TSUNAMI Relief workers and volunteers need to ask their permission to help By Ace Emerson KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 11 (KUNA) -- Indonesias military has requested that relief workers and volunteers need to ask their permission to enter tsunami-affected towns and villages outside of major cities. This is to ensure the safety of aid workers against rebel soldiers in the country. According to Indonesian Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda, a "gentlemen agreement" or an informal truce has been established between the Indonesian government, military and rebel fighters. The agreement is to allow relief workers and volunteers to enter restricted areas that are dominated by rebel fighters or pre-Aceh movements. This is due to the scale of aid coming into Banda Aceh Province and towns outside major cities of Indonesia, which before the tsunami was a center for civil indifferences between the military and Pre-Aceh Movements. Relief and aid volunteers are more than happy to comply with the military as this may ensure their safety, although this is still not sure yet, but they are willing to take the risks involved in order to get aid to victims outside of the Province. As more bodies are emerging by the hundreds daily as cleaning efforts are being done, it is impossible to estimate the total death toll at present. It could actually reach more than what has been recorded. Meanwhile, five hundred more volunteers have arrived from Jakarta to help with the search and bury effort in Banda Aceh. When asked, the survivors and victims of the tsunami what they needed most, they all answered "a house" as a priority. (end) aeb.mab KUNA 111653 Jan 05NNNN
