To speak or not to speak: the dilemma of sexual assault survivors

Amira Nur Afiqah was only 14 when she was sexually assaulted by six men at a night programme at her school. She went home that night feeling traumatised but knowing that she wouldn’t tell anyone about it.“I was ashamed,” she said. “I went to the toilet, washed myself and cried. When my mum fetched me, I acted normal. I didn’t tell anyone about it.”Amira is one of many sexual harassment survivors in the country. According to police statistics, 1,218 cases of sexual harassment were reported from 2013 to 2017, with a high of 338 in 2016 – an average of nearly one case every day.For Amira, it was an experience that haunted her for a long time.“For the rest of the year, my mind was blurry because of the incident,” she told MalaysiaNow. “I guess that’s how my mind chose to cope with the trauma.”In 2016, she had what she called a major relapse after bumping into one of her assaulters who also happened to be a childhood friend. She tried to talk about it to people whom she thought she could trust, but soon discovered that some of that trust had been misplaced.According to police statistics, 1,218 cases of sexual harassment were reported from 2013 to 2017.“I told my ex-boyfriend about it. He was supportive at first but later the relationship got abusive. That’s when the relapse became worse and I started having symptoms of mental illness,” she said.It was then that she began considering seeking professional help.In 2019, she was diagnosed with a major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and mild anxiety.Later that year, she decided to join a women’s group, hoping that it could help her cope with her trauma. There, she met others who had gone through similar experiences.“When I heard their stories, I felt less alone in my experience. All I wanted was for someone to listen to me, and now I got to share with other survivors.”That was when she decided to share her story publicly.Sharing doesn’t always mean people caringKaren Lai, programme director of the Women’s Centre for Change Penang, said if survivors don’t speak up, they bear their experiences alone which could lead to PTSD, depression and, in extreme cases, suicidal thoughts.But she also warned that there are risks involved in sharing stories of sexual harassment on social media.She said people have a tendency to react negatively and to perpetuate victim-blaming when they see others sharing their experiences online.“The culture of victim-blaming makes it very difficult for survivors to speak up, and the worst thing is, survivors can internalise this idea of self-doubt,” she told MalaysiaNow.She urged people to be more sensitive and supportive towards sexual harassment survivors who share their stories on social media.“It’s society’s responsibility to respond to the victims who speak up by caring to know about the trauma they carry,” she said.“The culture of victim-blaming makes it very difficult for survivors to speak up.”“Take the allegations seriously. It’s not something trivial and funny. It’s not something we should tolerate or accept.”On why survivors want to have their voices heard, she said it was at least partly about reclaiming power.“When you are sexually violated, your power is taken away and you find anything to reclaim that power. Social media gives that power for you to speak up.“It’s not a way for them to seek attention. It’s a cry for help.”She said sharing their stories also gives survivors the comfort of a community. “There is a sense of courage and confidence that comes from knowing that you are not alone, and that your experiences are not isolated.”‘Speak when you’re ready’When Amira began sharing her experience, the response was mixed.“People approached me saying they went through the same thing, too. The comments were mostly comforting but there were a few who ridiculed me for speaking up.”“It’s not a way for them to seek attention. It’s a cry for help.”At first, she was upset. But she found courage and comfort in the knowledge that what had happened to her was not her fault.“I know I helped other girls have the courage to speak up about their trauma,” she added.This is not always easy, especially when victim-blaming comments abound.“That’s why we need to educate people on helping the victims, so that when these negative comments appear we can protect the victims,” Amira said.She knows only too well the risks involved in sharing stories of sexual assault online. Her message to other survivors is to speak when they are ready.“For me, they should share if they want to. When you share your experience, it will make people aware that sexual assault could happen to anyone.“Don’t listen to those who ridicule you,” she added. “You should know there will always be people who will support you.”


Specialist doctors named on housemen bullying list, says Khairy

The list of doctors allegedly involved in bullying trainee doctors or housemen at Penang Hospital (HPP) received by the health ministry also includes specialist doctors, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said today.Speaking to reporters after officiating the International Nurses’ Day 2022 event in Putrajaya, he said the ministry’s Integrity Unit had been instructed to conduct further investigations into the allegations of bullying at the hospital, while an independent special task force would also be set up.Khairy said the members of the special task force, along with other details, will be announced tomorrow, adding that he would not chair the special task force.Yesterday, Penang Agrotechnology and Food Safety, Rural Development, and Health Committee chairman Dr Norlela Ariffin submitted the names of five doctors allegedly involved in bullying housemen to the health ministry.Asked whether the five doctors had suspended, Khairy said all of them were still on duty as usual.“We can’t simply transfer them elsewhere, we have to establish first what took place… some names (in the list) are specialist doctors. So transferring them will not be easy. For now, everyone is working as usual, but the investigations continue,” he said.He added that the investigations were expected to take several weeks.“This involves serious allegations such as bullying and also an unprofessional work culture. The investigations will involve an interview session with the complainant and the accused,” he said.On April 17, a 25-year-old male trainee doctor was found dead. He was believed to have fallen from his residential unit at a building near HPP.Penang Health Department director Dr Maarof Sudin confirmed that the houseman was a graduate medical officer who had reported for work at HPP on April 4. He said his team would give its full cooperation to the police in the investigation.


Woman who killed rapist stepfather-turned-husband goes on trial in France

A French woman who killed the man who raped her for years as her stepfather before becoming her husband and pimp goes on trial for murder on Monday.The case has mobilised defenders of women against male violence, with hundreds of thousands of people signing a petition for her release.“I had to put an end to it,” Valerie Bacot, 40, wrote in her book called “Everybody Knew”, adding: “I was afraid, all the time.”Bacot was 12 when her mother’s partner, Daniel Polette, who was 25 years her senior, raped her for the first time.He was sent to prison, but after his release returned and resumed the serial rapes.At 17, Bacot became pregnant, got thrown out of the house by her alcoholic mother, and went to live with Polette.Polette, also a heavy drinker, became increasingly violent, attacking her with a hammer at one point.He later ordered her to work as a prostitute for truck drivers passing through, using a Peugeot people carrier.Investigators established that Polette threatened to kill her if she refused, pointing a gun at her many times.When Polette started questioning her 14-year old daughter Karline about her budding sexuality, Bacot said she decided that “this has to stop”.On March 2016, after Polette ordered his wife to undergo yet another sexual humiliation by a client, she used the pistol that he kept hidden in the car to kill him with a single bullet to the back of the neck.Bacot hid the body with the help of two of her four children. In October 2017 she was arrested, confessed and one year later released pending her trial while remaining under judicial control.Her lawyers said “the extreme violence that she suffered for 25 years and the fear that her daughter would be next” pushed her to kill Polette.The same lawyers, Janine Bonaggiunta and Nathalie Tomasini, had already defended Jacqueline Sauvage, a French woman who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing her abusive husband but won a presidential pardon in 2016 after becoming a symbol for the fight against violence directed at women.“These women who are victims of violence have no protection. The judiciary is still too slow, not reactive enough and too lenient towards the perpetrators who can continue to exercise their violent power,” Bonaggiunta told AFP.“This is precisely what can push a desperate woman to kill in order to survive,” she said.Bacot was “certain that she needed to commit this act to protect her children”, a court evaluation found.More than 500,000 people have signed a petition demanding that Bacot, who risks life in prison for murder, be cleared of the charge.The trial in Chalon-sur-Saone, in France’s central Burgundy region, is due to run through Friday.


New infections dip to 1,800 as another 2 deaths logged

Another 1,817 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 4,491,320.There were 3,389 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,429,166.There are now 26,511 active cases, of which 25,366 or 95.7% are undergoing home quarantine.Meanwhile, 18 (0.1%) are at quarantine centres while 1,087 (4.1%) have been hospitalised.A total of 40 are in ICU with 23 in need of respiratory assistance. ICU utilisation throughout the country stands at 60.3%, with Covid ICU utilisation at 7.2%.Another two deaths were reported, including one who was brought in dead. Total deaths now stand at 35,643.


Ukraine says regained ground from Russia in key eastern city

With a see-saw battle for control of the strategically important city of Severodonetsk raging on, a senior Ukrainian official said Sunday that his country’s forces now control “half of the city”.The gains, announced by regional governor Sergiy Gaiday, would represent a significant advance by Ukrainian troops, who earlier had appeared on the verge of being driven out of the large eastern city.As heavy fighting continued in the east, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Sunday that Moscow will hit new targets if the West supplies Ukraine with long-range missiles.His comment came hours after several explosions rocked Kyiv, the first attack on the Ukrainian capital in weeks, and they followed a recent US promise to supply Ukraine with more potent missile systems.Thousands of civilians have been killed and millions forced to flee their homes since Putin ordered Russian troops into Ukraine on Feb 24.Fighting since April has been concentrated in the east of the country, where Russian forces have been making slow but steady advances after being beaten back from other parts of the country, including Kyiv.‘Horror show’Severodonetsk – the largest city still in Ukrainian hands in the Lugansk region of the Donbas region – has been a focal point in recent weeks.Russia’s army had claimed Saturday some Ukrainian military units were withdrawing from Severodonetsk, but mayor Oleksandr Striuk said Ukrainian forces were fighting to retake the city.On Telegram Sunday, Gaiday said: “The Russians were in control of about 70% of the city, but have been forced back over the past two days.“They are afraid to move freely around the city.”Gaiday warned, however, that a major new Russian push on Severodonetsk appeared imminent.He said Russian forces had been tasked with gaining control of the city by Friday, as well as a key transport artery nearby.“We expect in the near future that all the reserves that they now have access to… they will throw to perform these two tasks,” Gaiday said, predicting “a large increase” in shelling by the Russian side.Across a river in the neighbouring city of Lysychansk, pensioner Oleksandr Lyakhovets said he had just enough time to save his cat before the flames engulfed his flat after it was hit by a Russian missile.“They shoot here endlessly… It’s a horror show,” the 67-year-old told AFP.On Sunday, the press service of the Ukrainian president’s office reported nine civilians killed in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions from shelling.‘They are bombing everything’Ukraine has asked supporting countries for ever more powerful arms to fend off the Russian attack, and its deputy defence minister stressed Sunday this support was needed until Moscow was defeated.“We have already entered into a protracted war and we will need constant support,” Ganna Malyar told local media.“The West must understand that its help cannot be a one-time thing, but something that continues until our victory.”The US last week said it would supply Ukraine with advanced missile systems, the latest in a long list of weaponry sent or pledged for the pro-Western country.But Putin said long-range missile supplies being sent to Ukraine meant that “we will draw the appropriate conclusions and use our arms… to strike targets we haven’t hit before”.He did not specify which targets he meant, but earlier on Sunday Ukrainian officials said Russian missiles hit railway infrastructure sites in the first such strikes on Kyiv since April 28.Russia said the strikes had destroyed tanks supplied to Ukraine by eastern European countries.“High-precision, long-range missiles fired by the Russian Aerospace Forces on the outskirts of Kyiv destroyed T-72 tanks supplied by eastern European countries and other armoured vehicles that were in hangars,” Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.One person was wounded, and AFP reporters saw several buildings with blown-out windows near one of the sites that was targeted.Leonid, a 63-year-old resident who used to work at the facility, said he heard three or four explosions.“There is nothing military there but they are bombing everything,” he said.Vasyl, 43, said he heard five blasts.“People are afraid now,” he said, walking back to his damaged home with two loaves of bread.Western powers have imposed increasingly stringent sanctions on Russia but divisions have emerged on how to act, particularly on whether to engage in dialogue with Russia or not.Speaking from the apostolic palace in St Peter’s Square, Pope Francis on Sunday renewed calls for “real negotiations” to end what he called the “increasingly dangerous escalation” of the war.Football defeatApart from the human toll, the conflict has caused widespread damage to Ukraine’s cultural heritage.On Saturday, Ukrainian officials reported a large Orthodox wooden monastery, a popular pilgrimage site, had burnt down and blamed Russian shelling.Russian troops now occupy a fifth of Ukraine’s territory, according to Kyiv, and Moscow has imposed a blockade on its Black Sea ports, sparking fears of a global food crisis. Ukraine and Russia are among the top wheat exporters in the world.The United Nations said it was leading intense negotiations with Russia to allow Ukraine’s grain harvest to leave the country.Away from the battlefield, Wales dashed Ukraine’s dreams of reaching its first football World Cup since 2006 with a 1-0 victory.Before the game in Cardiff City Stadium Sunday, the Ukrainian national anthem was applauded by all sides.


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Resolve land issue to speed up repair projects for dilapidated schools, says education minister

The education ministry wants the issue of land legalisation nationwide to be resolved immediately to enable projects to upgrade and rebuild dilapidated schools to be expedited, especially in Sarawak.Education Minister Radzi Jidin said if the land for the construction site of a dilapidated school building was not dederal-owned, then construction work could not be carried out.“That was among the matters I discussed when I paid a courtesy call to Chief Minister Abang Johari Openg at Wisma Bapa Malaysia (the administrative centre of the Sarawak government in Kuching) yesterday.“If we look at the most basic things that need to be settled, Insha Allah when the land issue is resolved in the future, then the process will be faster and more systematic,” he told a media conference after a working visit to Sekolah Menengah Samariang.Meanwhile, Radzi said that since the Public Service Department announced that it was mandatory for civil servants to be vaccinated against Covid-19, some teachers who had reportedly refused to do so had had their first dose of vaccine.“We (the education ministry) have received the latest list after the announcement, there are teachers who have received their first dose of the vaccine jab, so we are monitoring the current situation.“What is most important is that if these unvaccinated teachers affect the operation of the school, immediate action will be taken including transferring the teachers, especially special education teachers who are always physically present with their special needs students,” he said.


Daily cases hover at 12,100 as another 32 deaths logged

Another 12,105 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 4,280,591.There were 21,029 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,083,183.There are now 162,216 active cases, of which 158,343 or 97.6% are undergoing home quarantine.Meanwhile, 373 (0.2%) are at quarantine centres while 3,279 (2.0%) have been hospitalised.A total of 221 are in ICU with 122 in need of respiratory assistance. ICU utilisation throughout the country stands at 56.0%, with Covid ICU utilisation at 25.2%.Another 32 deaths were reported, including nine who were brought in dead. Total deaths now stand at 35,192.


Rights group warns cops against ‘Sosma crackdown’

Rights group Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) today hit out at reports that officers from the police force and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) have been arrested under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 or Sosma as part of a crackdown on an organised crime syndicate in Johor, saying there is no reason to use the controversial law in this instance.LFL coordinator Zaid Malek said the police statement on the matter appeared to show that they had gathered enough information to narrow down their list of suspects to a handful of specific individuals.He added that the arrests were then widely publicised, discounting any notion that Sosma was being used to acquire sensitive information or to avoid alerting third parties of the investigation.“The only logical reason as to why Sosma was used is therefore to maximise the period of detention of the suspects involved, which based on our observation is a common reason why Sosma is used.“This is tantamount to detention without trial and is in violation of the fundamental principle of ‘innocent until proven guilty’,” he said in a statement.Johor police said on Tuesday that 12 enforcement officers suspected of having links with the Nicky Gang organised crime syndicate had been arrested. Of these, two were from MACC.Johor police chief Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said these arrests brought the total number of people detained in relation to the case to 64.Sosma, which replaced the 1960 Internal Security Act, allows for detention of up to 28 days.Labelling the act as “a procedural law that leads to sham trials and convictions”, Zaid said it excludes fundamental safeguards found in the Criminal Procedure Code, Evidence Act and other laws.“Evidence that is normally inadmissible in a normal criminal trial is admissible in a Sosma trial including evidence obtained by oppression, torture or even fabrication as the ‘evidence’ tendered will normally be admissible no matter how it was obtained.“The accused will not be able to challenge or cross-examine most of the evidence admitted under Sosma as it allows for a protected witness to give evidence anonymously, thus contravening basic standards of fair trial. In short, a trial under Sosma is a mockery of the rule of law and the criminal justice system,” he said.He praised the police for ramping up their enforcement against organised crime but voiced regret that this was being done in tandem with the use of draconic laws such as Sosma.“The police basically are just replacing the problem with another problem, creating an unending cycle of abuse of power,” he said.


Daily caseload tops 2,000 as 3 more deaths logged

Another 2,093 Covid-19 cases were recorded yesterday, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 4,542,705.There were 2,082 recoveries, taking total recoveries to 4,481,018.There are now 25,952 active cases, of which 24,929 or 96.1% are undergoing home quarantine.Meanwhile, 15 (0.1%) are at quarantine centres while 985 (3.8%) have been hospitalised.A total of 23 are in ICU with 18 in need of respiratory assistance. ICU utilisation throughout the country stands at 61.1%, with Covid ICU utilisation at 5.3%.Three more deaths were reported, taking total deaths to 35,735.


Staying home to take care of mum

When her mother’s health began to deteriorate due to diabetes, Nur Fatihah Sahminan gave up everything to become her primary caregiver.For two years, she has helped her mother shower and move around the house. She also does the laundry and cooks their meals.Sometimes she thinks about the things that she is missing out on, but she knows that her mother needs her. At any rate, she has a lot of time ahead – after all, she’s only 10 years old.Nur Fatihah and her mother, Norlela Bujang, live in a small rented room on the first floor of a shoplot at Jalan Satok, Kuching in Sarawak.There are 10 other rooms but only one bathroom and toilet which is shared by all of the tenants.The rest of Nur Fatihah’s friends went back to school when physical classes started again earlier this month. But Nur Fatihah is still at home as there is no money to pay for transportation.The common washroom in the building where Nur Fatihah Sahminan and her mother rent a small room together.“I was diagnosed with diabetes in October last year,” Norlela, 50, told MalaysiaNow.“I already lost my sight in my left eye two years ago. I started losing sight in my right eye two months after I had an operation on my foot due to my diabetes.”Norlela was divorced eight years ago. Now, she and her daughter are all each other has.With her health in decline, Norlela is unable to work. She and Nur Fatihah depend on the financial aid they receive from the welfare department – RM350 every month.This, together with other assistance they receive from NGOs, is enough to cover their daily necessities and their monthly rent of RM400 – but just barely.“We moved here in early January,” Norlela said. “We had to move because we were evicted from our previous rental house in Taman Sukma.“We couldn’t afford to pay the full rent of RM800 each month after my relative who rented with me decided to move out.”Sometimes, she and Nur Fatihah do not even have rice to eat but she said they feel fortunate and grateful nonetheless for the help they receive.“We accept our fate,” she added.Nur Fatihah Sahminan wants to be a police inspector when she grows up, so that she can take care of other people.Nur Fatihah said she is afraid to leave her mother alone as Norlela cannot see and depends on her to move around.And as young as she is, she knows that there are other dangers outside their home as well. She told MalaysiaNow she has seen many drug needles lying at the entrance to the building’s staircase.MalaysiaNow’s visit also found that there was only one entrance and exit to the building.For now, Nur Fatihah will continue staying home and taking care of her mother. She says she will only go back to school if Norlela’s health improves.When asked what she wants to be when she grows up, she said she wants to be a police inspector.“I want to study hard and become a police inspector, not only to look after my mother but to look after others as well.”


Dear PM, more Malaysians will become addicts if smoking bill fails

Dear prime minister,
By the time this day ends, 74 persons in Malaysia would have suffered from premature death due to smoking and vape-related illness and conditions. More schoolchildren would have purchased their first high nicotine concentration vape devices using their pocket money, and will be puffing away with their friends. The overall number of smokers would not have changed. But there will be more people becoming addicted to nicotine, and many others would be desperately trying to quit smoking and vaping, and be treated for their addiction.
Not too long ago, Malaysia was regarded as one of the leading countries in the region in the field of tobacco and smoking control. However, in a short period of time, we have not only retreated but gone in the opposite direction.
It was a major mistake to exempt liquid and gel nicotine from the controlled substances schedule under the Poisons Act 1952, allowing vape and e-cigarettes containing nicotine to be freely sold without restrictions, safeguards and protections. Doing so without a legal framework, or even minimal regulations already in place, resulted in the worsening of a threat to public health: uncontrolled vaping among children and teenagers.
On hearing the news from Malaysia, the director-general of the World Health Organization, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, on June 2 delivered one of his sharpest rebukes of the vaping and e-cigarette industry.
"When the tobacco industry introduced electronic cigarettes and vaping, one narrative they really tried to sell is that this is part of harm reduction. It’s not true. It actually is a trap, meaning kids are being recruited at the early age of 10, 11, 12 to do vaping and e-cigarettes," he said.
Vape and e-cigarettes should be treated similar to tobacco products and cigarettes. Yet, they remain unregulated and unrestricted. Why?
The lack of commitment and political will to enforce vape and e-cigarette restrictions in previous years resulted in the Malaysian market being flooded by unsafe, disposable, high-nicotine vapes aimed at children.
Due to the nicotine exemption order signed by the health minister on March 31, contrary to the recommendations of the Poisons Board, it is now not even illegal to sell these products to children. This is a fact.
It is not an exaggeration to say that people are also now under the impression that nicotine is no longer a toxic or dangerous substance.
The vape and e-cigarette industry and supporters claim that their devices help people quit smoking. This is a medical claim. Such a claim needs to be supported by scientific studies and evidence, registered and regulated as a medicine like all pharmaceutical products. If it were true, vaping should be regulated as a medicine. Yet, it is treated like a consumer product.
Today, there is worldwide alarm to the threat of vape and e-cigarettes. Governments around the world such as the UK, US, Australia and New Zealand, which have long regulated the production, availability, advertising, and sale of these products, are waking up to vaping epidemics in their countries where children and teenagers are becoming addicted to nicotine.
Over the past few weeks, they have been desperately attempting to get a grip on the situation by closing legal loopholes, increasing enforcement, banning disposables and flavours, cracking down on advertisements aimed at children. The Australian government has even allocated US$155 million to tackle this problem. The UK prime minister was openly concerned that his own daughters would be affected.
The seriousness of the situation in Malaysia is staggering. The prevalence of vaping among 13 to 17-year-olds in Malaysia, at 14.9%, is already higher than those in the same age category in the US. Vaping among young people is already higher than cigarette smoking. How is this acceptable?
The government should take this issue seriously. The exploding popularity of vaping within this group of vulnerable individuals means that children are becoming addicted to a drug. They are not just experimenting, but actively vaping.
Many as young as 10 and 13 are reportedly starting to vape despite never having smoked before. They are drawn by aggressive marketing, the lacing of vapes with sweet flavours, and colourful packaging. They are not using it as a tool to quit smoking. The exceptionally high nicotine levels in vape and e-cigarettes sold in Malaysia and used by adolescents, which increase their addictiveness, threatens to cause a youth addiction crisis.
The absence of legislation and regulations on vape and e-cigarettes also means that these devices are not compelled to have child-resistant and tamper-evident features. The recent case of a two-year-old child accidentally inhaling or ingesting liquid nicotine from a disposable vape which was laying around the house, resulting in the toddler developing seizures and needing to be hospitalised and intubated, could have been prevented. Unfortunately, there might be more such cases in the future.
Prioritising the growth of Malaysia's RM3 billion domestic vape industry and looking to gain from the tax revenue collected would be pointless if it comes at the cost of more people becoming addicted to nicotine, and children and teenagers forming a new generation of smokers and vapers suffering from disease.
For every RM1 collected from the tax currently imposed on cigarettes and tobacco products, RM4 is spent treating those who suffer from chronic smoking and vape-related diseases such as lung cancer, heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and at least several types of cancer. Collecting RM4 billion means little when you have to spend RM16 billion to treat the consequences of smoking. The vape tax is expected to bring in RM600 million annually.
Responding to the public health threat of vape and e-cigarette should be a main priority of the government. It does not look that way at the moment.
Unfortunately, the generational endgame proposal has served as a convenient distraction and reason for many in the industry, business and politics to oppose and condemn the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023 (formerly known as the Tobacco And Smoking Control Bill 2022). They prefer an indefinite postponement of any regulation which addresses these concerns.
This bill is the closest tool available today to prevent the formation of a generation of Malaysians with long-term addictions, lung damage, and poorer quality of life.
We urgently need laws which protect children from vaping and e-cigarettes through restricting sales to over-18s only, limiting nicotine content, refilling bottle and tank sizes, labelling requirements, and through advertising, promotional and marketing restrictions.
The unity government, embodied by the Malaysia Madani principles, and under your leadership, has the opportunity and duty of care to secure a healthier and better future, not only for this generation but for the ones that come after us.
Azrul Mohd Khalib is head of Galen Centre for Health & Social Policy.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Pahang Orang Asli keep up the fight against mining project

Some 80 Orang Asli families from the Semai community are hoping the authorities will heed their protest to a rare earth mining project in Pahang which they say could destroy their ancestral forest and jeopardise their livelihoods.The project, located around the central forest spine of peninsular Malaysia, will see a total of 660 hectares mined under three leases.It was approved by the state government in 2019 although it failed its environmental impact assessment (EIA) after its terms of reference (TOR) proposal was rejected by the Department of Environment in March.Speaking at a press conference today, though, Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) secretary-general A Sivarajan said this did not mean that the project would be cancelled.“If (the TOR) is approved in the second phase, the project will commence. Once the EIA is approved, within the next two years operations must start,” he said at the conference which was also attended by representatives of the Orang Asli Semai group.PSM has been speaking up against the project which, led by Aras Kuasa Sdn Bhd, has completed its exploration phase.During this phase, up to 18,000 tonnes of lanthanide, a rare earth metal used among others for refining crude oil into gasoline and strengthening metal, was discovered.The project was approved by the state government on condition that the degazetted area must be replaced with another forest of the same size or larger. The approval letter stated that the degazettement process would begin once the state Department of Lands and Mines finalises its findings on the replacement area.Concerns about the project are largely environmental. The Orang Asli say the Telum River and other tributaries will be threatened by pollution caused by the mining process.The Telum River is a water catchment that provides water for villagers all the way to the Kuala Lipis district. This means that any river pollution would also affect other nearby communities, in addition to the Pos Lanai Orang Asli.Mat Nor, a representative of the Pos Lanai group, said the Orang Asli remain firmly against the project.“I don’t care what the project is for. Even if the state government has given its approval, we as the Orang Asli community are against it.”Halijah, a villager from the area, agreed that the project would affect the river which is essential to their livelihoods.“This is where we go fishing and our kids take their baths,” she said. “If this project continues, how will we find our food? How will we sustain ourselves?”Sivarajan meanwhile said that the forest in question, Hutan Jelai, is considered a permanent forest reserve under the National Forestry Policy.Of the 660 hectares, 397 are to be kept free from any logging disturbance while the rest are not to be fully logged.“They can’t gazette a permanent forest reserve as they like,” he said.“They have to go through public inquiries first but the state government has given its approval to this project. That’s the question we are raising now.”


What will happen to vulnerable children if citizenship laws are amended?

I am writing as a concerned member of a community-based organisation that provides direct services to children in need.
The proposed amendments to the Federal Constitution, particularly the removal of Section 1(e), have ignited a firestorm of worry within me.
For the past 18 years, I have dedicated myself to answering calls and messages, and providing a safe haven for abandoned children. Armed with a second-hand baby car seat and a bag filled with essential supplies, I have picked up these innocent souls from hospitals, homes, a nightclub, waiting at a bus stand once, ensuring their safety and legal protection. I have worked closely with the local authorities, including the Social Welfare Department, to ensure their proper care and placement within our shelter or through the government system.
My colleagues and I have, every day, witnessed firsthand the struggles and challenges faced by foundlings, children born out of wedlock, and stateless children adopted by Malaysian parents. These vulnerable children deserve equal access to rights and services, no more and certainly no less than any other child in Malaysia.
Child abandonment cases have been on the rise, with potential abandonment incidents occurring as frequently as this week – I have three children whom adults don’t want anymore and insist I pick up. All are stateless.
It breaks my heart to see children being cast aside due to the inconvenience or changing circumstances of their adoptive families. These children, who have already experienced abandonment and a loss of identity, deserve better. They deserve the protection and stability that Section 1(e) provides.
Removing Section 1(e) would further marginalise and endanger these children. It would deny them their right to citizenship, perpetuating a cycle of injustice and discrimination.
We cannot allow this to happen. As a society, we must step up and ensure that these children have access to education, healthcare, and opportunities for a bright future.
I urge you, as the voice of the people, to shed light on this critical issue and advocate for the preservation of Section 1(e) in the Federal Constitution.
Our nation's commitment to justice and equality relies on our ability to champion the rights and well-being of all children, regardless of their circumstances. We must act swiftly and decisively to protect their rights and safeguard their future.
Time is of the essence. We cannot remain complacent while the rights and welfare of these vulnerable children hang in the balance. Let us come together, stand up for justice, and ensure that no child is left behind.
Hartini Zainudin is a child activist and co-founder of Yayasan Chow Kit.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.


Canadian transport minister faces questions over airport delays

Canada's transport minister is expected to defend the government's response to recent travel chaos at a Friday parliamentary hearing, as aviation wrestles with surging passenger demand after a pandemic-induced slump.
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra will update a transportation committee on progress in areas like hiring, a spokesman said, following recent complaints by passengers of lost luggage and long lines.
Carriers in the US and Canada are cutting thousands of flights to reduce disruptions during peak travel periods.
Canada's busiest airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, had among the most flight delays in the world earlier this summer, according to FlightAware data.
While baggage handling and average wait times for passengers have improved in recent weeks, governments in both countries are facing calls to improve protections for travelers.
"The increase in passenger volume and the labour shortage that arose from the pandemic are the main causes of these delays," Alghabra's spokesman said ahead of the hearing on airport delays and cancellations.
The Canadian Transportation Agency, an independent, quasi-judicial tribunal that provides consumer protection for air passengers, said it had received a record 18,200 complaints by the end of July 2022, mostly for air travel.
Under Canada's Air Passenger Protection Regulations, travellers are entitled to compensation for flight cancellations and delays of three hours or more, if the disruption is within airlines' control and not related to safety.
Canadian media reports have been rife with passengers saying they were refused compensation due to safety reasons. Consumer advocates say some of those cancellations were related to crew shortages.
The National Airlines Council of Canada, a trade group representing Canada's largest airlines, said compensation varies by case and the system must allow "airlines to make decisions based on safety without being penalised."
As of Sept 8, new Canadian requirements will oblige airlines to provide passengers with either a refund or rebooking, for flight disruption outside their control.


362 deaths as new cases below 20,000 for second day

Another 19,057 Covid-19 cases were recorded today, taking total confirmed infections in the country to 1,824,439.Selangor recorded 3,775 cases, Sarawak 2,723, Sabah 2,279, Johor 2,077, Penang 1,558, Perak 1,450, Kelantan 1,434 and Kedah 1,329.Kuala Lumpur recorded 711 cases, Terengganu 605, Pahang 410, Melaka 338 and Negeri Sembilan 242.Perlis recorded 99 cases, Putrajaya 18 and Labuan nine.Active cases stand at 256,302 with 978 in the ICU and 460 in need of respiratory assistance.Another 21,582 patients recovered, bringing total recoveries to 1,550,254.However, 362 more deaths were reported, pushing the virus toll to 17,883.


Sun, sea, sand and school for children in Sarawak fishing village

When the government ordered schools to close and the implementation of home-based teaching and learning amid a fierce spike in Covid-19 cases, Zurani Suut and her husband Mazlan immediately knew they would do whatever it took to make sure their two girls could keep up with their lessons.The first thing they did was to make a trip to town from their small village of Kampung Nyalau in Bintulu, Sarawak, to buy a smartphone for their eldest daughter, who is in Form Two.“We didn’t want her to miss out on her lessons,” 32-year-old Zurani told MalaysiaNow.But to study from home in the midst of a pandemic requires more than a phone, so while they could ill afford it, Zurani and Mazlan knew they would have to spend more.For example, the household would now need an internet plan so that the girls could log in for their classes.Whatever Mazlan earned as a fisherman was needed for daily costs, so to cover this additional expense, Zurani began making and selling cakes.With some scrimping and saving, they managed to get by, surviving largely on the fish Mazlan caught and fresh produce from their little farm.What they couldn’t beat, though, was the poor connectivity in the village.Some of their neighbours lived on higher ground and were lucky enough to have a better network. For Zurani and her family, though, stable internet connection was a hit and miss affair.Although the children could still keep up with some of their lessons through the educational programmes broadcast on television, after a while they knew they would have to get creative.Every weekday now, they and other children from the village who cannot access the internet from their homes pack their bags and head to the beach.But while a trip to the beach would spell fun in the sun at any other time, these outings are for serious business.Once they arrive, they spread out their belongings on sheets of newspaper to protect them from the sand, and they get down to work.Away from the trees and next to the sea, the internet signal is much stronger and they are able to follow more of their classes than they would have at home.Eventually, the sun moves overhead and the heat begins to take its toll. But the family sticks it out, waiting for hours as the classes progress.“Usually they will be at the beach for three to four hours,” Zurani said.Sometimes it rains, and classes at the beach are out of the question. Whenever this happens, Zurani’s children tell their teachers that they are unable to attend as the weather is bad.“I feel sad looking at this situation, but at the same time I am proud because of their spirit,” Zurani said.“The problem is the poor connection. I wonder why industrial factories can be built in this area but to build one communications tower seems so difficult.”Despite the challenges, she hopes the children in the village will not give up. But she also hopes for a little assistance from the powers that be.“Where is the so-called caring government?” she asked. “If they care about us, please help our children.”


Asia on the march as Japan come from behind to stun Germany 2-1

Late goals by substitutes Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano gave Japan an incredible 2-1 comeback victory over Germany in the World Cup on Wednesday in another emotional fillip for Asian soccer after Saudi Arabia's shock win over Argentina.
Four-times champions Germany had looked to be cruising to a routine victory via Ilkay Guendogan's first-half penalty but paid a fatal price for profligacy in front of goal.
The shock result was a repeat of their 2018 World Cup nightmare when, as defending champions, they lost their opener to Mexico and, after another defeat by South Korea, were condemned to an unheard of group-stage exit.
Japan had shown almost nothing in attack until a series of second-half substitutions injected some energy into their first competitive fixture against Germany.
Doan equalised in the 75th minute before Asano showed lovely control and smashed the winner in from a tight angle - causing an explosion of joy among the Japan bench and head shaking among German fans used to watching both players ply their trade in the Bundesliga.
"We wanted to start playing aggressively, we wanted to dominate the game," said Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu, whose second-half changes changed the whole feel of the game. "But Germany are very strong so we needed to defend persistently and take our chances.
"It's a big surprise. We saw the Saudi victory over Argentina - the Asian countries are reaching the global standard."
It was a turnaround that looked unlikely in the extreme as Japan struggled to get any foothold for most of a game played against the backdrop of Fifa's threat of sanctions if German captain Manuel Neuer wore a "OneLove" armband.
In response to that act of protest being effectively banned, the German team covered their mouths in a "silenced" gesture for their team picture.
Early dominance
It was certainly a subdued atmosphere in the ground until Germany's early dominance was rewarded when Joshua Kimmich picked out David Raum in acres of space in the box and goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda clumsily brought him down as he turned, with Guendogan dispatching the penalty in the 33rd minute.
Kai Havertz turned in what he thought was a second in first-half stoppage time but that, like an early effort for Japan's Daizen Maeda, was ruled out for offside.
There was initially little change to the pattern in the second half as Jamal Musiala shot over after a penetrating run and Guendogan clipped a post when he should have scored.
There then came a thrilling spell when Gonda made amends by somehow making four successive saves to deny Jonas Hofmann and Serge Gnabry, keeping his side in the game.
Neuer, appearing in his fourth World Cup, had barely touched the ball but then had to save from Hiroki Sakai. He did well again to block from Takumi Minamino only forfellow substitute Doan to gleefully smash in the loose ball.
Japan pushed on and Asano, inexplicably left to roam by Antonio Ruediger, showed great touch to bring down a high Ko Itakura free kick. He then held off defender Nico Schlotterbeck before hammering the ball into the smallest of spaces.
Germany launched all-out attack from then on, to no avail, and now face a potentially must-win game next against Spain.
"We played a good game over long periods of time but a game is also marked by the chances that you convert into goals," said Germany striker Thomas Mueller after his team had enjoyed 76.8% possession. "It is ludicrous that we are here with a defeat."
Japan next face Costa Rica and, for the second tournament in a row, will be dreaming of the last 16 - at least.


Polish villagers bury man killed in blast near Ukrainian border

One of the men killed by a missile that hit a southeastern Polish village this week will be buried on Saturday, the first of two funerals this weekend following a blast that raised fears that the war in Ukraine could spiral into a wider conflict.
Poland and other Western states have said the missile that landed in Przewodow, a village near the border with Ukraine, was a Ukrainian air defence missile that went astray in pursuit of a Russian missile.
Kyiv cast doubt on this version and has demanded access to the site and a role in the investigation into the cause of the explosion.
For the village itself, the blast plunged residents into mourning for two of their neighbours.
"It is sad for the family and the community," said 67-year-old retired mechanic Ryszard Turczanik as he made his way towards the church. "Everybody is in deep sadness and we are going on this final road."
Ahead of the funeral, local priest Bogdan Wazny described the victims as "very kind people". Villagers told Reuters of how they had helped Ukrainian refugees.
Television footage showed mourners entering the Holy Brother Albert church in Przewodow as two rows of soldiers looked on. A light covering of snow lay on the ground.
The man buried on Saturday, named in most Polish media only as 62-year-old Boguslaw W, was working at a grain-drying facility in the village when the missile struck. Most media outlets have not published the victims' surnames out of consideration for their families.
The funeral of the second victim, 60-year-old Bogdan C, will take place on Sunday.
While the people of Przewodow were deeply shaken by the tragedy, the mayor of the municipality in which the village is located stressed the resilience of local people.
"We really are a tough community," Grzegorz Drewnik said on Friday.
"We learned that we live under stress, we know that we live close to the border with Ukraine. We must be prepared for various inconveniences and stressful situations. We will endure it."
Warsaw, Kyiv and their Western allies have said that ultimate responsibility for the explosion lies with Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February and has been pounding Ukrainian energy facilities with missiles.


Swiss researchers declare new record for exact pi figure

Swiss researchers said Monday they had calculated the mathematical constant pi to a new world-record level of exactitude, hitting 62.8 trillion figures using a supercomputer.“The calculation took 108 days and nine hours” using a supercomputer, the Graubuenden University of Applied Sciences said in a statement.Its efforts were “almost twice as fast as the record Google set using its cloud in 2019, and 3.5 times as fast as the previous world record in 2020”, according to the university’s Centre for Data Analytics, Visualisation and Simulation.Researchers are waiting for the Guinness Book of Records to certify their feat, until then revealing only the final 10 digits they calculated for pi: 7817924264.The previous world-record pi calculation had achieved 50 trillion figures.Pi represents the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, with an infinite number of digits following the decimal point.Researchers nevertheless continue to push calculations for the constant – whose first 10 figures are 3.141592653 – ever further using powerful computers.The Swiss team said that the experience they built up calculating pi could be applied in other areas like “RNA analysis, simulations of fluid dynamics and textual analysis”.


China accuses Western giants over ‘harmful’ imported kids’ clothing

In the latest round of tit-for-tat blows, China has accused several Western clothing brands of selling goods in China that could be harmful to children.A warning notice on Beijing’s customs administration website has listed over 80 items imported into China by companies including Nike, H&M and Zara.The notice is the latest blow to Western clothing brands operating in China, which have been targeted since March amid an international backlash over claims of abuses in the cotton-growing Xinjiang region, home to the mostly Muslim Uighur minority group.Earlier this year, the European Union, UK, US and Canada imposed sanctions on China over the issue and several big Western companies have expressed concern over allegations that Uighurs are being used as forced labour.The announcement from China’s General Administration of Customs included items like children’s clothing, shoes, toys, toothbrushes, and baby bottles that were spotted during examinations from June 2020 to May 2021.Batches of H&M girls’ cotton dresses were said to contain “dyes or harmful substances that may be absorbed by the body through the skin, mouth, etc and endanger health”.The same issue was raised for children’s clothes imported by Zara, Nike boys’ T-shirts and batches of Gap boys’ cotton pyjamas.China initially targeted H&M and Nike but that has widened to include Burberry, Adidas and Converse, among others.Some Western firms’ online shops have been blocked and their stores have vanished from digital maps.While H&M’s physical stores in China remain, it is no longer possible to get a taxi to branches using ride hailing apps and consumers cannot shop there online. Instead, China is championing local brands.H&M, Zara, Nike and Gap have yet to respond to requests for comment from the BBC.


Nagaenthran accorded full due process under the law, Singapore president tells PM, Agong

Nagaenthran K Dharmalingam who is on death row in Singapore has been accorded full due process under the law, Singapore President Halimah Yacob said in her reply to Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah.Sultan Abdullah had written to Halimah appealing for clemency for Nagaenthran.Halimah’s response was made in a statement issued by the republic’s foreign affairs ministry in response to media queries on the letters of appeal from Malaysian leaders and the fate of the 33-year-old who is awaiting execution for a drug offence in Singapore.On Nov 12, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan had also replied to their Malaysian counterparts.Both Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah had earlier written to their Singapore counterparts, requesting for the discretion of the authorities in Singapore to grant presidential clemency to Nagaenthran.Nagaenthran was arrested by Singaporean authorities on April 22, 2009 for smuggling in 42.72g of diamorphine and was sentenced to death by the High Court of Singapore on Nov 22, 2010.The appeal process through the court has already been made by Nagaenthran’s family lawyer up to the final stage, which is the presidential clemency that was rejected on June 1, 2020.Nagaenthran, who has been on death row for 11 years and was scheduled to be hanged on Nov 10, found temporary respite on Nov 9 after the court was told he had tested positive for Covid-19 when he appeared for a last-bid attempt against his sentence.Following the dramatic turn of events, Nagaenthran was granted a further stay of execution by the Court of Appeal.Nagaenthran’s lawyers claim that he is intellectually disabled.


Israel signs major trade pact with Gulf state UAE

Israel signed a free trade agreement with the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, its first big trade accord with an Arab state that reduces or removes tariffs and over time targets lifting annual bilateral trade to more than US$10 billion.The pact was signed in Dubai by Israel’s Minister of Economy and Industry Orna Barbivai and her counterpart, UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, after months of negotiations.Tariffs will be eliminated on 96% of goods with the UAE predicting the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement would boost bilateral trade to more than US$10 billion a year within five years.Emirati Trade Minister Thani Al Zeyoudi said the trade deal wrote “a new chapter in the history of the Middle East.”“Our agreement will accelerate growth, create jobs and lead to a new era of peace, stability, and prosperity across the region,” he wrote on Twitter.The agreement has been signed amid escalating Israeli-Palestinian violence.The UAE foreign ministry on Monday condemned what it called a “storming” of Al Aqsa compound in Jerusalem by “extremist settlers under the protection of Israeli forces.”That appeared to refer to visits by thousands of Jews, who revere the site as vestige of their two ancient temples, on the day marking Israel’s capture of Jerusalem’s Old City in a 1967 war. Some of the visitors prayed and held up Israeli flags – resulting, police said, in their removal.Al Aqsa, also the third holiest site in Islam, is situated in East Jerusalem’s Old City that Israel has annexed but is not recognised internationally.The foreign ministry, in the written statement, also asked “Israeli authorities to take responsibility for reducing escalation and ending all attacks and practices that lead to the continuation of tensions while underscoring the need to exercise maximum restraint to avoid further instability.”The same day invited media were told they could no longer attend the signing of the trade deal. No reason was given for the sudden change.Israel’s Barbivai told Israeli radio on Tuesday she had heard “nothing out of the ordinary” about the Al Aqsa violence so far during her visit to the UAE.President of the UAE-Israel Business Council Dorian Barak said the trade agreement defined tax rates, imports and intellectual property, which would encourage more Israeli companies to set up offices in the UAE, particularly in Dubai.The council predicts there will be almost 1,000 Israeli companies working in or through the UAE by the end of the year doing business with South Asia, the Far East and Middle East.“The domestic market doesn’t represent the entirety of the opportunity. The opportunity is really setting up in Dubai, as many companies have, in order to target the broader region,” Barak told Reuters by phone.Emirati-Israeli trade reached US$1.2 billion in 2021, according to official Israeli data.Ahead of the signing, Israel’s economy ministry had said the accord would remove tariffs on food, agriculture, cosmetics, medical equipment and medicine.“Together we will remove barriers and promote comprehensive trade and new technologies, which will form a solid foundation for our common path, will contribute to the well-being of citizens and make it easier to do business,” Israel’s Barbivai said on Monday.For oil-rich UAE, the deal with Israel is its second bilateral free trade agreement after signing a similar accord with India in February. It is in bilateral trade talks with several other countries, including Indonesia and South Korea.The UAE has been aggressively pursuing these deals in a bid to strengthen its economy and status as a major business hub following the hit it took from the coronavirus pandemic.Israel and the UAE established ties in September 2020 in a US-brokered deal that broke with decades of Arab policy that had called for a Palestinian state before ties with Israel.Bahrain and Morocco also recognised Israel in the same year.


2,800 AstraZeneca appointments at WTC in KL to be rescheduled

Some 2,800 appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine at the World Trade Centre or PWTC in Kuala Lumpur on May 15 and 16 will be rescheduled as a precautionary measure to allow for greater observation of SOPs including physical distancing in light of the recent increase in Covid-19 cases.Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the move was to prevent congestion at the vaccination centre.“Nearly 19,000 appointments for vaccination have been scheduled for these two days, following the full capacity of PWTC.“This number will be reduced to 16,200. Some 2,800 appointments will be rescheduled to other dates from May 17 to 23.“These changes will be announced through SMS and the MySejahtera app, with notifications to be sent beginning tomorrow,” he said at a joint press conference with Health Minister Dr Adham Baba today.The AstraZeneca vaccine is currently being administered under an opt-in programme where recipients register on a voluntary basis.A total of 268,600 slots had been allocated for residents in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, with the programme to be expanded as more AstraZeneca doses arrive in the country from the Covax facility as well as from AstraZeneca itself.Khairy, who is in charge of the national vaccination programme, said 19,718 doses of the AstraZeneca jab have been administered so far, while over 60,000 recipients remain on the waiting list.He also said the Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force had increased the number of halls to be used at the PWTC AstraZeneca vaccination centre.“From Wednesday, the Tun Hussein Onn and Tun Ismail halls will no longer be used.“Instead, three larger halls will be opened for the purpose: the Merdeka, Tun Razak 3 and Tun Razak 4 halls.“As part of efforts to achieve herd immunity and vaccinate all Malaysians as soon as possible, we will try to make optimal use of the capacity of every vaccination centre,” he said.


I won’t resign, says MACC chief Azam

Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Azam Baki says it is up to the Agong to decide whether he should resign, as Pakatan Harapan (PH) leaders escalate calls for him to step down over claims of conflict of interest in the purchase of company shares.Speaking to Malay daily Sinar Harian, Azam said he would not give way to calls by certain parties for him to resign as MACC chief.“I remain firm in my decision not to step down as there is no need for me to do so,” he said.“The only person who can end my service is the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. Other than that, I will not heed any of the calls championed by certain parties.”Azam has come under attack over a series of blog articles by an activist linked to local NGO C4 Center, claiming conflict of interest in the ownership of company shares.He has since issued a demand letter to the writer of the articles, Lalitha Kunaratnam, with the MACC lodging a police report against her describing her claims as false and unsubstantiated by evidence.Top PH leaders have meanwhile urged for Azam to go on leave, and called for Anti-Corruption Advisory Board chairman Abu Zahar Ujang to be investigated after the latter cleared Azam of allegations of conflict of interest.Earlier today, they said MACC’s consultation panel chief Borhan Dolah should also be placed on leave and investigated.Speaking yesterday, though, Azam said the truth would be made known one day.He also said there was no need for him to respond to the claims carried by the media.“I am not a politician, but a senior government officer with a great deal of other work that requires my focus,” he said.“There is no need for me to keep informing the people as it will give the impression that I have no other work do to.”


Stay-home call a challenge for the homeless

For one group of people, heeding the now-familiar call to “stay home and stay safe” is a challenge on many fronts as the country continues the fight to keep Covid-19 infections at bay.In the capital city of Kuala Lumpur alone, hundreds of men and women live on the streets with no place to call home, much less in which to wait out the pandemic which claimed over 1,000 lives so far.They are a familiar sight downtown, sleeping on pieces of cardboard on sidewalks and in alleys, or begging for alms on the curb with their belongings in a bundle beside them.A street food stall owner told MalaysiaNow that the Jalan Tun Perak area used to be a popular gathering spot for homeless people.“Usually they are there, but since the Covid-19 pandemic and the MCO was put in place, a lot of them started moving to other places around the city,” she said.The MCO or movement control order was imposed on Jan 13 in a bid to cut the number of infections which had hovered in the four-digit range since late last year. It was recently extended to March 4 in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Johor and Penang although the majority of other states progressed to the conditional phase of restrictions known as CMCO.The stall owner said homeless people in Kuala Lumpur now “pretty much settle down in any spot where they feel comfortable and safe”.“Most of them are scared of the virus too, and have started doing their own version of social distancing.”“Some of them have also settled at the Masjid Jamek sitting area which overlooks a river,” she added.A deliveryman who frequents the Masjid Jamek area agreed that many homeless people had moved there, adding that they venture out more often when the weather is less humid, such as in the morning and close to sunset.“I used to see a lot of them at Jalan Tun Perak, but they’ve started moving here now since it’s MCO and fewer people are coming out to this part of the city,” he said.“Most of them are scared of the virus too, and have started doing their own version of social distancing.”For the homeless, though, there is only so much they can do to avoid infection.“Some of them have face masks, some don’t,” the deliveryman said.“I’ve seen people pass out masks and sanitiser to them. They are usually apart and spend most of their time sitting here or just trying to catch up on sleep.”It’s a hard life, made even harder by the pandemic which has wreaked havoc on the economy and seen tight restrictions imposed on most aspects of social life.“Some of them have face masks, some don’t.”A homeless man told MalaysiaNow that they used to get hot food from a soup kitchen several times a week. But since the MCO was put in place, things have been different.“They used to come every Tuesday and Thursday, but now they only come on Thursdays,” he said.The matter of temporary housing has also been complicated by the Covid-19 situation.“We were all gathered and put into temporary homes at one point but these homes were shut down during the MCO and we were forced to come back out here again after that.”NGOs, organisations and government agencies are doing their best to help the homeless as the pandemic continues in the country.In April last year, over 800 in Kuala Lumpur were taken in and offered temporary housing by the welfare department and the Kuala Lumpur City Hall.But even with such initiatives in place, there is only so much that can be done. Some organisations like Need to Feed the Need say their funds might not last through this second round of MCO.For now, the homeless may have to continue fending for themselves on the streets.“I’ve received RM800 from the government since last year,” the homeless man told MalaysiaNow. “But the money is not enough to survive for the long term.”


Anwar sues Muhyiddin over claim of RM15 million salary as Selangor economic adviser

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is suing Muhyiddin Yassin for defamation for allegedly saying that he received a salary of RM15 million during his time as Selangor’s economic adviser.
Anwar, 75, filed the suit through SN Nair & Partners at the Kuala Lumpur High Court today, naming Muhyiddin, 75, as the sole defendant.
According to the statement of claim, Anwar said that on Dec 5, Muhyiddin, who is Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman, had made the statement when speaking at the "Grand Finale Perikatan Nasional Padang Serai" ceramah in front of hundreds of people in Taman Selasih, Kulim, in support of PN candidate Azman Nasrudin ahead of the 15th general election.
The Pakatan Harapan chairman claimed that Muhyiddin’s speech at the ceramah was published or had led to its republication on TikTok under the name @beritakini8, which had received more than 1.1 million views, 6,061 comments, over 21,400 likes and 2,169 shares in addition to being "favourited" more than 1,360 times as of Dec 7, when Anwar filed the notice of demand.
Anwar said the statement was also quoted by Malaysiakini and published in an article on the portal entitled "MB’s aide to Muhyiddin: Anwar paid RM1 as S’gor economic adviser" on the same day (Dec 7). He said that the following day (Dec 8), the entire speech at the ceramah was published or caused to be republished by Muhyiddin on his Facebook account under the name "Muhyiddin Yassin", and had received more than 42,000 views, 506 comments, more than 2,800 reactions and 48 shares as of the date that the suit was filed.
According to Anwar, the statement implied that he had been untrustworthy and dishonest regarding the receipt of millions of ringgit from the Selangor government as economic adviser, and had lied to the public by stating that he received only RM1 as salary for his role.
Anwar said the remarks were calculated to severely disparage and undermine his reputation and character, in addition to damaging his name and character as a firm supporter of the rule of law and social reforms.
"In making these remarks in his speech, it was clear the defendant had bad intentions by ignoring the official reply of former Selangor menteri besar (Abdul) Khalid Ibrahim in the Selangor state legislative assembly on March 27, 2012, where he clearly stated that my salary as the Selangor economic adviser was a symbolic RM1," he said in his statement of claim.
Anwar added that Muhyiddin had been reluctant to apologise and retract the statement and, in fact, had not removed it until now despite Anwar's denial.
Anwar is seeking general, aggravated, exemplary and compensatory damages, among others, from Muhyiddin, in addition to an injunction to restrain him from continuing to publish or disseminate similar defamatory statements.
Anwar’s lawyer SN Nair, when contacted by Bernama, said the suit was filed at 10.30am today.


WHO warns of ‘long-term’ Covid impact on mental health

The mental health impact of the pandemic will be “long-term and far-reaching”, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday, as experts and leaders called for action on Covid-linked anxiety and stress.“Everyone is affected in one way or another,” WHO said in a statement at the start of a two-day meeting in Athens with health ministers from dozens of countries.It said “anxieties around virus transmission, the psychological impact of lockdowns and self-isolation” had contributed to a mental health crisis, along with stresses linked to unemployment, financial worries and social alienation.“The mental health impacts of the pandemic will be long term and far-reaching,” the statement added.WHO’s regional director for Europe Hans Kluge said mental health should be considered a “fundamental human right”, stressing how the virus had torn lives apart.“The pandemic has shaken the world,” he told the conference.“More than four million lives lost globally, livelihoods ruined, families and communities forced apart, businesses bankrupted, and people deprived of opportunities.”WHO called for the strengthening of mental health services in general and the improvement of access to care via technology.It also urged better psychological support services in schools, universities, workplaces and for people on the front line of the fight against Covid-19.The ministers heard from a 38-year-old Greek woman called Katerina who told them how she had been receiving treatment for a psychiatric disorder since 2002 and had been coping well until the pandemic hit.She was no longer able to attend in-person support groups and could not see her father, forcing her to boost her treatment.“The pressure of social isolation led to increased anxiety,” she said.


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Protests can wait, retail boss advises after youngsters ignore warnings against pandemic crowd

Prominent retail tycoon Ameer Ali Mydin has expressed concern over the gathering of a crowd of protesters despite warnings by health authorities that this could trigger fresh Covid-19 clusters.“Not completing the two doses and getting a crowd at the same time, unfortunately, will affect not only them but their families and colleagues,” Ameer, owner of the Mydin hypermarket chain, told MalaysiaNow.He was asked to respond to calls circulating on social media for people to show support for a group of youngsters planning to hold a protest against the government in Kuala Lumpur.One message which made the rounds read: “It’s reasonable to say that we shouldn’t protest during a pandemic. But protests are equally reasonable if politicians are clearly failing, if the status quo is likely to lead to more deaths and suffering, and if factories can remain open despite having clusters. And pandemic protests can be safe.”Ameer Ali Mydeen.Ameer said those who wish to gather for protests should wait for the country to achieve herd immunity against Covid-19.“We have been waiting for 16 months. Let’s wait for another two to three months for herd immunity,” he said.He also said the public should be working together for the re-opening of the economy, as well as to ensure stability in order to focus on Covid-19.Ameer reiterated his earlier calls for the reopening of the economic sector which has been shut for months due to worries about the spread of the virus, saying this would be in line with the increasing number of people being vaccinated.He said factories and shopping centres with 80% of staff vaccinated should be allowed to open, adding that one way to help re-energise the economic sector would be to allow those who have completed two doses of vaccine to visit shopping malls and dine in at restaurants.Protesters dressed in black stand at Jalan Tun Perak heading to Dataran Merdeka during the Lawan rally in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.Malaysia, which currently reports one of the highest daily vaccination rates in the world, is well on its way to achieving herd immunity this year.The protest in Kuala Lumpur yesterday dubbed “Lawan” was held following days of online mobilisation on social media.The crowd of youngsters numbering about 200 marched near Dataran Merdeka shouting slogans against the government, in a gathering that was endorsed by several anti-government activists and groups.


Myanmar ambassador ‘locked out’ of London embassy

Myanmar’s ambassador to the UK says he has been locked out of his country’s embassy in London.Kyaw Zwar Minn said he and staff were asked to leave the building by Myanmar’s military attaché and he was told he was no longer the country’s representative.“I have been locked out,” he told Reuters news agency, describing Wednesday’s events as “a kind of coup, in the middle of London”.Police were reportedly called to stop staff re-entering the building and the ambassador was pictured standing on the street outside the embassy in London’s exclusive Mayfair district speaking to officers from the metropolitan police force.“This kind of coup is not going to happen,” he told reporters.Protesters have since been gathering outside the embassy.In March, the ambassador called for the release of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi and told the BBC that Myanmar was “divided” and could be at risk of civil war.He maintained then that his remarks were not “betraying the country”, adding that he was standing on “middle” ground.The ambassador, who is a former military colonel, has been praised by British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who commended his “courage and patriotism”.Deputy ambassador Chit Win is said to have taken over as charge d’affairs in London, Reuters reported, citing diplomats with knowledge of the matter.A spokesman for the UK Foreign Office told the BBC that it was “seeking clarification on the current status of the Myanmar ambassador in London, in line with diplomatic protocol”.


Daily death toll climbs to new high

Malaysia’s daily Covid-19 death toll reached a new high of 47 today, with close to 5,000 infections reported across the country as of noon.Eighteen deaths were reported in Selangor and five deaths were reported in Sarawak and Penang respectively. Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Kelantan reported four deaths each while Perak reported three deaths, Pahang two, and Kedah and Negeri Sembilan one each.The oldest person who died was a 94-year-old woman in Perak who had suffered from high blood pressure while the youngest was a 33-year-old woman in Kelantan who suffered from asthma and obesity.Selangor also reported the bulk of the country’s 4,865 new cases with 1,743 infections, far ahead of any other state including Sarawak which reported the second highest number of cases with 512.While 3,497 patients had recovered and were discharged from hospital, 531 remained in the ICU with 277 in need of respiratory assistance.The total death toll now stands at 1,994.Nineteen new clusters were also detected, in Johor, Selangor, Penang, Kedah, Kuala Lumpur, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Terengganu, Sarawak and Perak.


Biggest ship in Iran’s navy catches fire, sinks in unexplained circumstances

The largest ship in the Iranian navy caught fire and sank on Wednesday in the Gulf of Oman under unclear circumstances, semi-official Iranian news agencies are reporting.The Fars and Tasnim news agencies said efforts failed to save the support ship Kharg which was on a training mission.Reuters reported that the entire crew was able to safely disembark during a 20-hour battle to save the burning ship.Iranian state TV said the vessel sank near the Iranian port of Jask in the Gulf of Oman, near the Strait of Hormuz – the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which giant tankers carrying much of the world’s crude oil pass continuously.Satellites from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that track fires from space detected a blaze near Jask that started just before the time of the fire reported by Fars.The Kharg was one of very few vessels in the Iranian navy capable of providing replenishment at sea for its other ships. It also served as a launch point for helicopters.The ship, built in Britain and launched in 1977, entered the Iranian navy in 1984 after lengthy negotiations that followed Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.Iran’s navy typically handles patrols in the Gulf of Oman and the wider seas, while the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard operates in the shallower waters of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf.Iranian officials offered no cause for the fire aboard the Kharg but it comes after a series of mysterious explosions that began in 2019 affecting ships in the Gulf of Oman.The US Navy later accused Iran of targeting the ships with limpet mines, timed explosives typically attached by divers to a vessel’s hull. Iran denied targeting the vessels, though US Navy footage showed members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard removing one unexploded limpet mine from a vessel.The incidents came amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran after then-president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers.In April, an Iranian ship anchored for years in the Red Sea off Yemen was targeted in an attack suspected to have been carried out by Israel. It escalated a years-long shadow war in Mideast waters between the two countries.The sinking of the Kharg marks the latest naval disaster for Iran. In 2020 during a military training exercise, a missile mistakenly struck a naval vessel near the port of Jask, killing 19 sailors and wounding 15. Also in 2018, an Iranian navy destroyer sank in the Caspian Sea.


UK’s Johnson set to scrap Covid restrictions

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will on Monday set out plans to scrap coronavirus restrictions as part of a “living with Covid” strategy that aims to achieve a faster exit from the pandemic than other major economies.As Hong Kong builds isolation units and Europe retains social distancing and vaccine rules, Johnson will announce the repeal of any pandemic reqirements that impinge on personal freedoms, a day after Queen Elizabeth tested positive for the virus.Under the plans, which have been in the works for weeks, Britain will become the first major European country to allow people who know they are infected with Covid-19 to freely use shops, public transport and go to work.Johnson said on Sunday he did not want people to “throw caution to the wind” and there was no case for complacency, but the vaccine rollout meant the government wanted to move from state mandation to encouraging personal responsibility.Among adults, 81% have been boosted in England.“Today will mark a moment of pride after one of the most difficult periods in our country’s history as we begin to learn to live with Covid,” he said in a statement ahead of Monday’s announcement to parliament.Britain’s toll of more than 160,000 fatalities within 28 days of infection is the second-highest in Europe after Russia’s, and it reported an average of around 43,000 cases and 144 deaths a day in the last week.Medical leaders have urged Johnson not to be “gung-ho” with the nation’s health, and government advisers have said dropping restrictions could lead to rapid epidemic growth as people change their behaviour more swiftly than at previous times in the pandemic.So far the government has sought to keep the economy open by combining mass rapid testing with a legal requirement for five days of self-isolation, an approach that enabled the country to navigate the highly transmissible Omicron variant.The government said it would retain some surveillance systems and plans for contingency measures if a new variant appears, after British scientists detected earlier variants.Johnson was asked on Sunday if he was taking a risk with the pandemic. He said the government could not keep spending at a rate of 2 billion pounds (US$2.7 billion) a month on testing.He has also come under pressure from many members of his Conservative Party to scrap Covid-19 restrictions, which they see as draconian.


Protests erupt at largest iPhone factory in China

Large-scale protests broke out at Foxconn's vast iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, central China, images circulating Wednesday on Weibo and Twitter showed.
Beijing's unrelenting zero-Covid policy has caused fatigue and resentment among wide swathes of the population, some of whom have been locked down for weeks at factories and universities, or unable to travel freely.
In the videos, which AFP was not able to independently verify, hundreds of workers can be seen marching on a road in daylight, with some being confronted by riot police and people in hazmat suits.
Others show hundreds of people in hazmat gear standing on a road near what appears to be factory residential buildings, while the person filming the clip from an adjacent apartment building says: "It's starting again, from last night to this morning."
Several security personnel in protective garb appeared to be kicking a worker lying on a main road in another clip.
Video from a separate livestream showed dozens of workers at night confronting a row of police officers and a police vehicle with flashing lights, shouting: "Defend our rights! Defend our rights!"
As clouds of smoke emanate from the vehicle, the streamer can be heard saying: "They are rushing in! Smoke bombs! Tear gas!"
A clip of the same nighttime protest taken from another angle shows workers setting off fire extinguishers towards police just out of frame.
One photo taken during the day showed the charred remains of a gate, apparently burned down during the night.
The Weibo hashtag "Foxconn riots" appeared to be censored by Wednesday noon, while some text posts referencing large-scale protests at the factory remained live.
Foxconn, also known by its official name Hon Hai Precision Industry, is the world's biggest contract electronics manufacturer, assembling gadgets for many international brands.
The Taiwanese tech giant, Apple's principal subcontractor, recently saw a surge in Covid-19 cases at its Zhengzhou site, leading the company to shutter the vast complex in a bid to keep the virus in check.
Since then, the huge facility of some 200,000 workers – dubbed "iPhone City" – has been operating in a "closed loop" bubble.
Footage emerged this month of panicking workers fleeing the site en masse on foot in the wake of allegations of poor conditions at the facility, with multiple employees recounting scenes of chaos and disorganisation at the complex of workshops and dormitories.
The company did not respond to an AFP request for comment on the latest unrest.


High Court rejects Najib’s bid to postpone 1MDB trial

The Kuala Lumpur High Court today rejected Najib Razak’s bid to postpone the ongoing 1MDB trial pending a legal bid in a US court.Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah had earlier told the court that his client was seeking to obtain the names of 1MDB officials who allegedly received bribes from Goldman Sachs Group Inc and its former director Tim Leissner.“In the proceedings in the US court, where Leissner and Goldman Sachs pleaded guilty, Leissner had actually said and admitted to the fact that he had paid in terms of bribes to several officials in 1MDB.“They admitted to the act of bribery and we have therefore filed a discovery application and asked Leissner and Goldman Sachs to reveal the names of those whom they bribed,” he said, adding that the application which was made pursuant to the US Code (USC) was filed on Nov 17 last year.Shafee also said the disclosure of the names was relevant to the defence’s case to show that the witnesses lacked credibility and that they were in fact instruments of fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho or Jho Low.“The defence could also show that Jho Low, Leissner and Goldman Sachs had been working in tandem in order to penetrate and corrupt 1MDB, using the money from the company for various purposes.“Upon obtaining the relevant documents in the application, we also planned to recall several witnesses, including former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin, the former special officer to the former prime minister, to be cross-examined.“This (discovery) is extremely relevant because I have asked Shahrol Azral pertaining to why he simply followed what Jho Low said.“Likewise you will find quite a shocking revelation by Mohd Hazem Abd Rahman (current prosecution witness) because he was told that he must follow Jho Low’s instructions,” he said.Shafee said all this would have bearing on whether the characters had received illicit payments, which is the subject matter of the disclosure in the proceedings of Leissner and Goldman Sachs in the US.Shafee also sought a deferral of the 1MDB trial, saying the defence needed more time to prepare for the hearing of Najib’s appeal against his conviction and sentence in the SRC International case at the Court of Appeal.“We are supposed to put in our written submissions by March 1,” he said.Deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib said the prosecution’s concern was for the trial to go on, adding that it would not interfere in the application in the US as it was not a party to it.“However, since the application in the US is important to the defence, we leave it to the court to decide whether the trial should be adjourned or continue,” he said.After hearing submissions from both parties, High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah rejected the application for the postponement, but vacated the trial dates set in April.“The defence can recall any prosecution witness to be questioned again if there is a need, or if there is any related information on the matter at the US court. We have only these three days in this week. I do sympathise with your situation, but we have to proceed with the 1MDB corruption trial,” the judge said.The trial then continued with the cross-examination of the 10th prosecution witness, Hazem, by lawyer Wan Aizuddin Wan Mohammed.Najib, 67, faces four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.The trial continues.


Migrant boat missing as rare hurricane blasts Greece

Greece has been lashed by Cyclone Ianos, a “medicane” with winds of 120kph that have battered large areas of the country.Huge waves pounded normally crowded beaches, and tourists were told not to go outside.Trains, flights and ferries were cancelled as winds caused havoc and the sea raged.A search is taking place for a boat believed to be carrying 55 migrants that was reported to be in distress on Friday. However, the Greek coast guard told AFP news agency that the boat may have changed course after receiving no help.Hundreds of people were trapped in flooded buildings and many are missing. Firefighters are still searching for a woman who was swept away in her car.One man was found dead on his farm, and the body of a woman was recovered from her flooded home, local media reported.“Medicanes” are tropical-like cyclones or hurricanes which occur occasionally in the Mediterranean.


PM announces 4-phase exit plan, targets Parliament reopening in Sept/Oct

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin today gave his assurance that Parliament will reconvene under a four-phase National Recovery Plan that acts as the country’s exit plan from the Covid-19 crisis.He said the country’s various sectors would re-open in phases, and that the third phase could see the reopening of Parliament, which has been suspended since the virus emergency was declared in January.“I wish to pledge my commitment here that the parliamentary session can be convened during this phase in the month of September or October, subject to stringent SOPs.“This has always been my stance that the parliamentary democratic system functions again at a suitable time, that is once Covid-19 cases are well controlled and when we are close to achieving herd immunity,” he said in a special address to announce the details of the exit plan today.Muhyiddin also pledged to uphold parliamentary democracy and the constitutional monarchy.“Never ever allow certain quarters to continue creating restlessness and confusion among the public and disrupt the government’s relentless and ongoing efforts in curbing the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.Muhyiddin said the transition between phases will be subject to improvements in the Covid-19 situation.He said the current first phase, where most social and economic sectors have been shut down under the movement control order (MCO), would be followed by the second phase subject to several conditions.These include daily new infections dropping below 4,000 cases, the easing of pressure on the public health system and the rate of fully vaccinated people hitting 10% of the population.Under the second phase, economic activities will gradually resume with up to 80% working capacity allowed at premises and more business sectors allowed to open.However, Muhyiddin said the ban on interstate travel and social gatherings would remain.He said the third phase will see all economic activities allowed to operate, except those with high risk of Covid-19 transmission.But he said this would be subject to daily cases dropping below 2,000, and 40% of the population being fully vaccinated.“These thresholds are expected to be achieved at the earliest by the end of August 2021,” he added.He expressed hope that the final phase would see a “return to normalcy”.But he warned that the government would be forced to delay the transitions if the three key indicators – daily cases, hospital capacity and vaccination rate – are not fully met.“Insha Allah, once we have achieved herd immunity in the fourth phase, all this can be done in stages with adherence to strict SOPs. Our ability to achieve herd immunity will depend on how many of our people have received the vaccinations,” said Muhyiddin.He also said he understood that many Malaysians had been physically and emotionally affected by the pandemic.“Some of you have lost your loved ones, are getting less income and are shrouded in prolonged anxiety. But we must never give up. We must continue to fight, unite and be together as strong, committed and dedicated Malaysians in ensuring the success of this National Recovery Plan.“I promise that the government will continue to help the best we can, and that we will not give up in finding ways to get out of this crisis as soon as possible.”The current lockdown was enforced on June 1. It was originally scheduled to end on June 14, but was extended to June 28 in light of the continuing trend of daily infections hovering at around 5,000.


Israel's Netanyahu greeted by protesters ahead of London meeting with UK PM

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was greeted by shouting and whistling from hundreds of protesters outside 10 Downing Street on Friday, as opposition to his judicial overhaul followed him to London.
Netanyahu shook hands with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the steps of Downing Street and is also due to meet Britain's interior minister Suella Braverman.
Protesters could be heard shouting "Netanyahu go to jail, you can't speak for Israel", surrounded by British police and metal barricades.
The protests were organised by British Jews and Israelis under the banner "Defend Against Democracy" to voice opposition against Netanyahu's judicial reforms. Dozens of people waved Israeli flags and banged drums.


Maradona suffered from liver, kidney, heart disorders, autopsy shows

Argentina football legend Diego Maradona was suffering from liver, kidney and cardiovascular disorders but there were no signs of alcohol or narcotics consumption in his autopsy, the public prosecutor said on Wednesday.World Cup winning captain from Mexico ’86, Maradona died of a heart attack on Nov 25 at the age of 60.The public prosecutor in San Isidro, a northern suburb of the capital Buenos Aires, published the results of Maradona’s autopsy late on Tuesday night.It was ordered as part of an investigation into his death to see if there was any negligence or recklessness in the health care he was provided.At the end of his life he was suffering from a variety of illnesses including cirrhosis, heart disease and kidney failure.The toxicology analysis showed there was no alcohol or narcotics in his blood or urine but Maradona was taking anti-depressants, an anti-psychotic drug and various other medication to treat ulcers, convulsions, dependencies and difficulties in expelling waste.Maradona had battled cocaine and alcohol addictions during his life.“What’s come out of the laboratory analysis is as important as what hasn’t, which simply confirms that Maradona was given psychotropic drugs but no medicine for heart disease,” one of the investigators told the Telam press agency.Psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov and heart surgeon Leopoldo Luque are under investigation as they were treating Maradona before his death.A first autopsy conducted the day Maradona died found he had suffered from liquid on the lungs with acute heart failure brought on by a disease of the heart muscles that makes it harder to pump blood.Maradona’s heart was twice the normal weight.He had undergone an operation for a bleed on the brain on Nov 3, just five days after his 60th birthday where he briefly attended a party in his honour at the club he was coaching, Gimnasia y Esgrima, although he appeared to be in poor health.Maradona was widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time.He is a legend in his homeland having been instrumental in guiding them to World Cup glory in 1986 and then again to the final in Italy four years later.He is also an icon in Naples were as a player he helped Napoli win the only two Serie A titles in their history.He had much less success as a coach, taking Argentina to the World Cup quarter-finals in South Africa in 2010 before embarking on a nomadic journey that took him to the United Arab Emirates and Mexico.He was the coach of Argentine Primera Division side Gimnasia at the time of his death.


Najib still warded for diarrhoea, 1MDB trial postponed

Najib Razak’s 1MDB trial at the High Court today has been vacated as the former prime minister is still warded in hospital for diarrhoea.
Appeals Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah, appearing as High Court judge, decided after Hospital Kuala Lumpur’s clinical medicine specialist Dr Mohd Fadhli Zil Ikram Karim explained Najib’s health condition during today’s proceedings.
Fadhli, when questioned by deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib, said he had examined Najib while doing the usual clinical round at 7.20 this morning. Najib was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday.
“When I examined Najib, he complained that he is still having episodes of loose stool, and our examination showed it was indeed loose. So by this definition, he is still having active diarrhoea.
“We proceeded with vital monitoring and his blood pressure is stable. However, due to diarrhoea, he is showing signs of having a high risk of dehydration. We have to keep him in the ward for intravenous (IV) saline infusion to rehydrate him and monitor his vital signs,” he said. Further questioned by Akram, Fadhli said after consulting with his superior, they concluded that Najib is unfit to attend court for the 1MDB trial because he needs to be monitored and kept in the ward for continuous IV saline drip infusion.
Najib has been given a one-day medical leave.
The trial is scheduled to continue on June 21.
Najib, 70, is facing four charges of using his position to obtain bribes of RM2.3 billion from 1MDB funds and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.


Iran steps up underground uranium enrichment, IAEA report says

Iran is pressing ahead with its rollout of an upgrade to its advanced uranium enrichment programme, a report by the UN nuclear watchdog seen by Reuters on Monday showed, even as the West awaits Iran's response on salvaging its 2015 nuclear deal.
The first of three cascades, or clusters, of advanced IR-6 centrifuges recently installed at the underground Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP) at Natanz is now enriching, the report said, the latest underground site at which the advanced machines have come onstream.
Diplomats say the IR-6 is its most advanced model, far more efficient than the first-generation IR-1 - the only one the deal lets it enrich with.
For more than a year Iran has been using IR-6 centrifuges to enrich uranium to up to 60% purity, close to weapons-grade, at an above-ground plant at Natanz.
Recently it has expanded its enrichment with IR-6 machines at other sites. Last month a second IR-6 cascade at Fordow, a site buried inside a mountain, started enriching to up to 20%.
In the confidential report to UN member states, the watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, wrote: "On 28 August 2022, the Agency verified at FEP that Iran was feeding UF6 enriched up to 2% U-235 into the IR-6 cascade... for the production of UF6 enriched up to 5% U-235."
Uranium hexafluoride (UF6) is the gas centrifuges enrich.
Of the two other IR-6 cascades installed at the Natanz FEP, one was undergoing passivation with depleted UF6, a process that is carried out before enrichment proper begins, and the other had yet to be fed with any nuclear material, the agency said.
Iran and the US appear to be inching towards an agreement to revive the 2015 deal, which placed restrictions on Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for lifting sanctions against Tehran. That deal unravelled after a US withdrawal in 2018 prompted Iran to breach those restrictions one by one.
After more than a year of indirect talks, Iran has said it will soon respond to the latest US comments on a compromise text submitted by the European Union, which is coordinating the talks.
A deal would involve undoing much of the enrichment work Iran has been doing, and capping its enrichment at 3.67% purity.
Its installation of advanced machines at underground sites like Natanz and Fordow, however, could be a signal to any power that might want to attack it if there is no agreement, since it is unclear that airstrikes on those sites would be effective.
Western powers worry that Iran is moving towards the ability to make nuclear bombs. Iran denies any such intention.