Beyond the Ballot Box

S. Balamurugan was found dead on the 8th of February 2017, while detained at the North Klang District Police Headquarters. Arrested on suspicion of a crime, Balamurugan was allegedly subjected to severe physical abuse by police officers, even after a magistrate ordered his release and medical treatment due to his poor condition. He was denied care and was later found dead in his cell. Multiple investigations revealed negligence and police misconduct, leading to a Kuala Lumpur High Court ruling in 2024. The court ordered the police and government to pay RM338,000 in damages to his family for negligence, assault, and breach of statutory duty. 
This is just one of many cases of death in custody in Malaysia. 
We speak to Sevan Doraisamy, Executive Director, SUARAM. 

There’s also an upcoming exhibition/event by SUARAM called “Ruang Khas” centred around S. Balamurugan and death in police custody. 
Date: 27 – 29 September, 2024
Time: 11am to 6pm
Venue: Embrace Hall, Johor Bahru

Image credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A couple of weeks ago, the Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim received criticism for the government's decision to bring back injured Palestinians for treatment in Malaysia. But were those criticisms justified? In this episode, we explore how Malaysia has been aiding Palestinians and what more needs to be done, with Nur Hafizah, an activist from Viva Palestina Malaysia.

Image credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More and more states in Malaysia are feeling assertive and empowered, pushing the federal government to funnel more money to the state levels.

In light of the MA63 agreement, Sabah and Sarawak's negotiations with the federal government, as well as states such as Johor and Penang's demands for more, we explore this further with Dr Lee Hwok-Aun, Senior Fellow at the Malaysian Studies Programme, at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

Image credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Right-wing movements are on the rise all over the world. In the past, we’ve discussed the rise of right-wing, ultra-conservative movements with fascist tendencies in Europe, the US and even India. 

On today’s show, we continue to explore this phenomenon, this time with an academic from Pakistan. 

Dr Taimur Rahman is an academic and the author of The Class Structure of Pakistan, for which he won the Akhtar Hameed Khan Memorial Award for the "best book on Social Sciences" about Pakistan in 2012. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Being bullied and trolled online. Violent or sexually explicit content. Reels and posts promoting unrealistic ideals. Our children could be inadvertently exposed to all this and more, in their everyday use of social media, gaming, video, messaging and content platforms. How concerned should we be about the content that our children and teens see online, and how do we realistically protect them from the potential harms? Dr Rajini Sarvananthan, Consultant Developmental Paediatrician, and Mediha Mahmood, CEO of the Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia, join us for this conversation. 

Photo by Compare Fibre on Unsplash

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On August 9th, A 31-year-old trainee doctor’s dead body and bearing multiple injuries, was found at a government training hospital in Kolkata – a city in West Bengal, India. She was assaulted, raped and murdered. This triggered massive and widespread women-led protests across the country demanding the “independence to live in freedom and without fear.”

In this episode, we unpack the tragic incident and the subsequent women-led mass protests that are currently unfolding, with Srabani Chakraborty, Activist, All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA). She’s also a public policy researcher at Tricontinental Institute, India. 

We discuss the the prevalence of rape culture in India, how the state, particularly the right-wing BJP government enables it and the powerful and unprecedented nature of the current waves of protests. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today’s episode we’re doing a check-in on the government’s anti-corruption efforts so far. After all, this is a government led by a Prime Minister who repeatedly stresses the importance of combatting corruption. So, what has the MADANI government done well so far and what are the gaps?

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The DEMO project, launched by Zikri Rahman, Jeremy Lim and Ooi Kok Hin, is a collection of interviews documenting the history of Malaysian contemporary protests. It’s an archive of stories on the lived experiences of protest organisers and activists of the past 15 years and aims to be a resource for future activists.
We speak to ⅔ of the brains behind DEMO Project. 

DEMO Project Website: https://pusatsejarahrakyat.org/demo/ 

DEMO Project Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/demoproject.my/ 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Kishore Mahbubani is a prominent Singaporean academic and the Founding Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in NUS. He’s an ex-diplomat who served as Singapore's Permanent Representative to the United Nations and held various senior positions in Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He’s also an author known for his sharp commentary on global affairs, particularly regarding the rise of China and Asia as a whole, the decline of the American Empire and its implication for global political economy. He’s written books such as “Has China Won” and “Can Asians Think” and his latest one – Living the Asian Century: An Undiplomatic Memoir. 

In this episode, Kishore Mahbubani joins us in conversation about his life and lessons from years of working as a diplomat. We talk about the rise of Asia, the curious case of Singapore's first Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, the strengths of ASEAN, US-China relations and if we're getting closer to World War III. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Imagine a parent walking down the street with their 7-year-old child. They walk past a cleaner sweeping the road or perhaps it's someone cutting grass. The parent tells the kid, don't be lazy otherwise you will end up like that cleaner. There is a perception that the poor are poor and remain poor because they are lazy. That persistent poverty can be attributed to personal behaviour.

Political psychologist and political economist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Assistant Professor Peter Beattie joins us today to debunk the myths and dive deep into the misconceptions behind this stereotype.

Image credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.