The Star Online: Nation
The Star Online: Nation |
| Fun at the wax museum at i-City Posted: SHAH ALAM: Fancy pinching the cheeks of President Barack Obama without having Secret Service agents pounce on you? You can also feel the stubbles on Captain Jack Sparrow's face or pose for a picture with Datuk Lee Chong Wei at Red Carpet@i-City, an interactive wax museum here. I-Berhad director Monica Ong said the wax figurines are very lifelike and visitors are allowed to touch them. "With new wax technologies, the faces are quite elastic. You can pinch and pull their faces. For male figurines, there are even stubbles on their faces to make it more realistic," she said. Ong explained that the museum was different from the conventional wax museums as it was interactive.  Lifelike models: A figurine of Tunku Abdul Rahman during the proclamation of independence at Red Carpet@i-City. "For example, (the figurine of) Psy can dance," she said. Props are also available for visitors to wear when posing with the figurines. "At the Queen Elizabeth exhibit, they can put on a cloak, while at the Pirates of the Caribbean exhibit, they can pose with a sword," she said. Although the museum officially opens on Thursday, it has started accepting visitors since the first day of Hari Raya. Ong said the museum hoped to attract 30,000 visitors a month over the next three to four months.  Wax figures of Russian president Vladimir Putin and US president Barack Obama. Built at a cost of RM25mil, the museum covers 30,000 sq ft and houses 100 wax figurines. The first to greet you there will be Mr Bean. There are also movie stars such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee, and singers such as Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley and Luciano Pavarotti. Adults are charged with an entrance fee of RM100 and the fee for children is RM50. The fees for Malaysians with MyKad are RM80 and RM40, respectively. |
| Posted: PETALING JAYA: Tobacco should be excluded from the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) in order to protect the health of Malaysians, said the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA). According to MMA president Datuk Dr N.K.S. Tharmaseelan, the overall objective of the TPPA was to increase and facilitate free trade of goods and services, but it should not apply to tobacco. "Tobacco is the only product that kills half its users prematurely, causes numerous diseases and reduces productivity. "There is simply no justification for tobacco to enjoy the privileges of free trade," he said in a statement. Dr Tharmaseelan said tobacco should be completely "carved out" of the TPPA to uphold the Government's sovereign right to protect the health of its citizens. TPPA is a US-sponsored trade agreement that is being negotiated by 12 countries – Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States. It was reported that the International Trade and Industry Ministry would hold more briefings to address public concerns about TPPA. "MMA is not against the TPPA as a whole, but we seek assurances that all sides will benefit without one gaining unfair advantage over the others," Dr Tharmaseelan said, while urging the Government to seek the consensus of all Malaysians before signing the agreement. Other concerns raised by the MMA over the TPPA was that medicine would become more expensive and that educational and research activities would become more difficult. |
| More people thinking of suicide Posted: PETALING JAYA: The number of people in Klang Valley expressing suicidal thoughts to Befrienders Kuala Lumpur last year is almost double that of 2008. In 2008, 1,393 persons expressed that they had suicidal feelings, but the number shot up to 2,668 last year, said Befrienders KL chairman L. Mary Raj. Relationship issues topped the list of problems expressed, followed by psychiatric and financial problems, she said, adding that most callers who said they had suicidal thoughts were below 30, followed closely by those in the 31 to 50 year age group. When it comes to race, the Chinese led the pack, making up 60% of callers, followed by Indians and Malays. Mary said the reason more people were having suicidal thoughts could be due to an increasing number of people living under stressful conditions, as well as greater media publicity on suicide cases. Other than phone calls, such expressions were also made through e-mail and face-to-face meetings. "It is good that they express suicidal feelings because it lowers their risk of committing suicide at the moment they are contemplating it," Mary said. According to the National Suicide Registry, 117 suicide cases were recorded in 2007, while 425 cases were seen in 2010. Indians recorded the highest suicide rate at 3.67 for every 100,000 Indians, followed by the Chinese at 2.44 per 100,000. The ministry's deputy director- general for public health Datuk Dr Lokman Hakim Sulaiman reminded the media not to sensationalise cases of suicide as it could lead to "copycat" cases. Other than introducing the National Strategic and Action Plan for Suicide Prevention last year, Dr Lokman added that a guideline on media reporting on suicide has been developed to educate the media on responsible suicide reporting. Dr Lokman said the main factors that contributed to suicide were significant life events such as financial, relationship, employment and psychiatric problems. Befrienders Kuala Lumpur can be contacted at 03-7956 8145/8144 or sam@befrienders.org.my. |
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