Current Affairs

Lim Teck Wyn, Technical Director at Resource Stewardship Consultants and council member of the Malaysian Nature Society, talks about the rampant clearing of the Belum-Temengor wildlife area, and that the state should be compensated for eco-tourism revenue so that it has less incentive to allow indiscriminate development. Land clearing is often done by politically connected companies and a result of poor enforcement. Belum-Temengor has one of the richest biodiversity in the world and the rainforest is more than 100 million years old.

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Simon Anholt, the founder of the Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index, speaks on the power of a country's "brand image" and what Malaysia can do to improve its global relevance.

He discusses how important national reputation is to future prosperity and progress of a country and how countries need good brand images -- just like corporations and products -- but in general, most countries get the image they deserve. 

Simon also talks about the difference between "nation branding" and a "nation brand" and how much of a nation's image is influenced by tourism campaigns. 

Finally, we ask him who is ultimately responsible for a country's brand and if there is a dollar value attached to a country's reputation. 

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Malaysia Day 2011 will always be remembered for the landmark announcement, made by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, repealing the Internal Security Act 1960 and the Banishment Act 1959.

In his speech he also announced the review of certain sections of the Restricted Residents Act 1933, the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 and the Police Act 1967. 

BFM spoke to some of the country's most influential thinkers, politicians, activists and academics on what all this means for Malaysia:

Malik Imtiaz Sawah – human rights lawyer, activist and current president of the National Human Rights Society (HAKAM) – says the Cabinet and UMNO should quickly come out to support and endorse the PM's statements, adding that he'd also like to see a timeline being set down concretely as a more positive indication that the Government is serious about reforms. 

Professor Emeritus Datuk Shad Saleem Faruqi – a senior professor of law at Universiti Teknologi MARA and one of the country's foremost constitutional law experts – says six months should be sufficient time to enact these changes. He also talks about other draconian laws that need to be repealed.

Dr Ong Kian Ming – political analyst and lecturer at the Faculty of Economics and Policy Sciences, UCSI University – says he remains skeptical as he has  yet to see the legislation that will replace the ISA. Also that he has not seen any significant or substansive risk or measure that Datuk Seri Najib has taken during his time as PM, where he has shown that he is willing to take on the conservative faction within his own party. 

Nurul Izzah Anwar – PKR vice-president and Lembah Pantai MP – says it will not be easy for the PM but the Opposition is willing to work with him in repealing these laws, to ensure an increase democratic space in this country. 

Tan Sri Tony Fernandes – AirAsia boss – says political change has a big impact on business, as a free society and freedom of speech creates a more innovative culture.

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As we celebrate the formation of Malaysia on September 16th, critics have argued that the divide between Sabah and Sarawak is more than just geographical.

For the Current Affairs' Malaysia Day Special, Dr Arnold Puyok, a political analyst with University Teknologi MARA Sabah, discusses:

- The disconnect between Sabahans & Sarawakians with Peninsular Malaysia

- The strong regional indentity East Malaysians have, as opposed to a national identity

- How ethnic and religious harmony is more evident in Sabah & Sarawak than in West Malaysia. Interracial marriages have made the culture in East Malaysia is very fluid. Also religion is considered "a family matter"

- Why 16th September should be consider equally important, if not more, than 31st August. Simply making it a public holiday is not enough

- The 20-point and 18-point agreement between these two states and the federal government, made prior to the formation of Malaysia in 1963, and if these argreements are being honoured and if it is still relevant today

- The root causes of the extreme poverty rates in Sabah

- If he thinks Sabah & Sarawak is under-represented in Parliament

- And what can be done to close the socio-economic gap between the peninsula and East Malaysia

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Dr. Iwan Jaya Aziz, head of the Asian Development Bank's Office of Regional Economic Integration in Manila, discusses:

- capital inflows from Europe and the US given the volatile situation there;

- exposure to financial volatility in the West despite general decoupling in Asia;

- Malaysia's financial regulatory environment and progress made in the past year;

- competition between ASEAN members for foreign direct investment and capital; 

- and opportunities for further regional co-operation, such as an integrated bond market.

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Chinese educationists are calling for a revamp of remove classes, citing a joint study by MCA and the Education Ministry which showed dropout rates at Chinese secondary schools to be as high as 25%.

Datuk A Yogesvaran, president of the Educational Welfare and Research Foundation (EWRF) discusses the issues pertaining to remove classes in secondary schools, how remove classes have changed over the past 50 odd years and the importance of retaining remove classes despite the challenges. 

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Trade and investments between Malaysia and Africa have increased over six folds from RM4 billion in 2001 to RM25 billion in 2010, mainly in areas of oil and gas, education, and healthcare. This morning we will gain more insights on what it is like doing business in Africa.

Gregory Mthembu-Salter, consultant to the UN Group of Experts on the Democratic Republic of Congo, speaks about the possible areas of investment, as well as the risk and challenges of doing business in Congo. He also gives some advice for Malaysian companies that are planning to invest or conduct business there.

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With various crises in the Middle East this year, oil prices have been all over the map. Now that most of the region has settled down and is looking forward to rebuilding their economies, how will recovery from the political turmoil affect oil prices and national oil companies like Petronas? Martin Adams, Energy Editor at the Economist Intelligence Unit, shares some insight to what we can expect.

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On September 11, 2011, countries worldwide joined the US in commemorating the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy, where terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York and Pentagon killed almost 3,000 people. Three Malaysians perished in the collapse of the twin towers, including Vijayashanker Paramsothy, a 23-year-old financial analyst at Aon Insurance, located on the 103rd floor of the South Tower.

Vijayashanker's father, S Paramsothy, talks about that fateful day, from the moment he finds out about the terrorist attacks, the agonising wait for news of Shanker's whereabouts and coping with the reality of losing his only son. Paramsothy also shares his views of terrorism, the legacy of 9/11 and whether it is time to put 9/11 behind us all.

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This year marks the tenth anniversary of 9/11, a day where the earth seemed to stand still as millions around the world watched New York crumble.

'Current Affairs' speaks with Elina Noor, Assistant Director at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS), who has written extensively on how our world has changed because of this day and the ensuing "war on terror". She was previously at the Brookings Institution's Project on US Relations with the Islamic World.

Elina discusses if the US is safer today from acts of terror and if Islamaphobia is as real today as it was in the days following the attack. She also talks about how the event changed America's diplomatic relations with Muslim nations, as well as the lessons that the world, and Malaysia in particular, has learnt since 9/11.

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