The Star Online: Nation
The Star Online: Nation |
- Govt didn’t give in to pressure when allowing Israeli boxer to enter M’sia
- Six overseas M'sians seek registration as absent voters
- Indonesian workers in M’sia remit US$1.7bil July-Sept 2011
| Govt didn’t give in to pressure when allowing Israeli boxer to enter M’sia Posted: 01 Nov 2011 05:30 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: Wisma Putra has refuted an allegation that the government was scared and had bowed to pressure from Israel's allies when it allowed an Israeli sportsman to enter the country. Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Richard Riot Jaem said Malaysia's foreign policy had not changed and the country did not have diplomatic ties with Israel. "Although there are no bilateral ties between the two countries, there is a leeway in the admission requirements where an Israeli national is allowed to enter Malaysia to attend a meeting or conference or a world-class sports meet," he said when winding up the debate on the Supply Bill 2012 for the ministry at the Dewan Rakyat here on Tuesday. During his winding-up speech, Riot was repeatedly asked by several members of parliament, including Mohd Yusmadi Mohd Yusoff (PKR-Balik Pulau), Khalid Samad (PAS-Shah Alam) and Datuk Ismail Kasim (BN-Arau), to explain Malaysia's stand on Israel and the approval given to Israeli boxer, Ilya Grad, to participate in the Challenger Muay Thai Championship in Selangor. He said the boxer's admission into Malaysia was never referred to Wisma Putra. Nevertheless, he said the admission was subject to the approval from the Home Ministry, and the invitation for him must come from the organiser and not the Malaysian Government. Riot said another requirement for the admission was that his (Ilya's) participation in the meeting, conference and sports meet must be kept low profile and could not be given publicity by the local media. "We are aware of the sensitivities of the people in this issue, but we have taken into consideration the fact that if the Israeli national were to be prevented from participating in the meeting, conference and the international sports meet, there is high possibility that Israel's allies, like the United States, will stage a protest and cancel their participation," he added. - Bernama Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Six overseas M'sians seek registration as absent voters Posted: 01 Nov 2011 05:12 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: Six overseas Malaysians are seeking a court order to compel the Election Commission (EC) to register them as absent voters. The six, all residing in the United Kingdom, are Dr Teo Hoon Seong, electrical engineer V.Vinesh, entrepreneur Paramjeet Singh, Dr Yolanda Sydney Augustin, translator Sim Tze Wei and software architect Leong See See. High Court (Appellate and Special Powers) judge Justice Rohana Yusuf has set Nov 14 to hear their application for leave for a judicial review. In their application, made available to the media Tuesday, the six are asking for a declaration that they, as Malaysian citizens who are staying abroad, are entitled to be registered as absent voters. Thus, they want the court to direct the EC, the sole defendent, to register them. Alternatively, they are asking for a court order directing the EC to make regulations and take appropriate actions, within 14 days from the court ruling, to allow them to be registered as absent voters and/or postal voters in order for them to vote in the coming general election. Apart from that, they are seeking for any other order and relief deemed fit by the court. The the judicial review application was filed on Tuesday through the law firm of Messrs Chooi & Company. On Monday, according to a press statement from MyOverseasVote, a group fighting for voting rights for all Malaysians living abroad, the six Malaysians asking for the court order applied to be registered as absent voters in order to be able to vote in the coming general election, but were instead registered by the EC as ordinary voters, who must return to Malaysia to vote in person. The bulk of Malaysian citizens living overseas, who are working in the private sector, and those who are retired or unemployed, are required to return to Malaysia to vote in person. At present, the EC only allows government servants, members of armed forces and full-time students to register as absent voters, so that they could vote by post at the next election, the statement said. However, the statement claimed, Malaysian students overseas who had attempted to register "have had to overcome many obstacles put in their way, with some embassies and consulates refusing to register students who were not sponsored by the government, and others refusing to register students who had previously registered as ordinary voters at home." Although the EC had clarified that all students were eligible to register as absent voters, as recently as this month, the Malaysian consulate in New York was still telling students that only government scholars could register as absent voters, the statement claimed. Related Stories: |
| Indonesian workers in M’sia remit US$1.7bil July-Sept 2011 Posted: 01 Nov 2011 04:20 AM PDT JAKARTA: Indonesian workers in Malaysia remitted US$1.7bil (RM5.3bil) in the third quarter of this year, Indonesia's central bank said. Bank Indonesia said the remittance represented half of a total of US$2.91bil sent back by Indonesian workers in the Asia-Pacific region. A central bank spokesperson Difi Johansyah was quoted by detik.com news portal that remittance by Indonesian workers overseas reached US$5.05 bil for the whole of the third quarter this year. Remittance from the Middle East and Africa was US$2.01bil. - Bernama Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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