Current Affairs

Merdeka Series Part 3 of 3: Interview with Toh Puan Umasundari Sambanthan

Toh Puan Umasundari Sambanthan is the wife of the late Tun VT Sambanthan, former Labour Minister, President of MIC and one of the founding fathers of Malaysia. Toh Puan studied at the University of Madras, graduating with a first class honours with a major in Chemistry. She is one of the founders of the National Council of Women's Organisations (NCWO), and was involved with the National Land Finance Co-operative Society (NLFC) in various capacities. The co-operative was established by Tun Sambanthan to prevent the fragmentation of estates in the early 1960s and acquire assets for income to help estate workers.

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Merdeka Series Part 2 of 3: Interview with Puan Sri Janaky Davar Athi Nahappan

Puan Sri Janaky Athi Nahappan joined Subhas Chandra Bose's Indian National Army when she was 18 despite her family's objections. She was awarded the Padma Shri title by the Indian government for her bravery - the first Malaysian Indian to receive the award. Upon returning to Malaya, she joined MIC and is one of their early members who helped women in the estates, and also raised money and recruited members. She is married to the late Tan Sri Athi Nahappan, former Deputy President of MIC and deputy Minister of Law, who is particularly famous for his report on recommending local government elections.

This year's Merdeka Series captures the voices and stories of three women who contributed to the early years of nation building.

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Merdeka Series Part 1 of 3: Interview with Dato' PG Lim

Dato' PG Lim is a former Director of the Regional Centre for Arbitration, and a member of the National Consultative Committee which was set up to establish a New Economic Policy after the 1969 racial riots. She was also a Member of the National Economic Consultative Committee 1 (NECC1) set up by the government to draft a National Development Policy (NDP) for Malaysia. In 1971, she was appointed Malaysia’s First Woman Ambassador to the United Nations and thereafter Yugoslavia, Austria, Belgium and the European Economic Community. She is also the first Malaysian woman to study in Cambridge University.

This year's Merdeka Series captures the voices and stories of three women who contributed to the early years of nation building.

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Political Analyst Dr. Ong Kian Ming of UCSI, discusses the DAP fiasco in Selangor, which centres on allegations of support letters seeking government favours -- an issue that threatens solidarity in the party. Dr. Ong discusses the impact and significance of the issue.

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Sharon Tan, Partner at Zaid Ibrahim & Co, explains the Competition Law which is expected to come effect by end of 2011. The law protects but there are exclusions.

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Richard McGregor, author of "The Party: The Secret World of China's Communist Rulers" and also a reporter at the Finacial Times, gives insights into the secret world of the Communist Party in China. The book is banned in China.

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Dato Dr Mahani Zainal Abidin, CEO of ISIS, gives her perspective on why FDI inflows saw an 80% drop, according to United Nations' recent report.

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Mark Thompson, Director of Sustainability and Climate Change practice at PriceWaterhouse Coopers, gives an update on the sustainability agenda and how Malaysia can meet the Prime Minister's target of reducing emissions by 40%.

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James Nayagam, Commissioner at Suhakam, gives some insights into the situation on human trafficking in Malaysia. We are classified as Tier 2 in US' Trafficking in Persons Report which means the number of trafficking victims is significant and we do not comply with minimum international standards but we're stepping up enforcement efforts.

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Ong Kian Ming, political analyst and lecturer at Economics and Policy Sciences, UCSI University, gives his views on what subsidy cuts to anticipate and when, and the political impact of subsidies especially on the outcome of the Sarawak state elections.

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