Current Affairs

Critics call it a policy flip-flop, while supporters say that the retention of the colonial-era Sedition Act is essential to maintain Malay political dominance. When the Prime Minister announced that his Administration would work towards the repeal of the Sedition Act, he was lauded by many quarters. His government created the bi-partisan National Unity Consultative Committee and tasked it with drafting laws and engaging various stakeholders. Now all that is in limbo. Foreign critics of Najib Razak’s policy u-turn include US Vice President Joseph Biden. But bowing to pressure from Perkasa as well as party elders, Najib now looks to strengthen the Sedition Act with amendments in early 2015.

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This week the 8 University of Malaya students - dubbed the UM8 – who were punished for organizing a rally for Anwar Ibrahim on campus grounds called off their protests. The events that lead to the rally marked a growing restlessness among tertiary level students about the direction of our politics. While they have gained support from some their peers and other political activists, it’s not clear how deep or broad the phenomenon of student activism is. We speak to two members of the UM8 to get their perspective on student activism.

Aziff Azuddin and Annabelle Lee contributed to this report. 

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The recent violence in Myanmar migrant community has highlighted deeper problems including human trafficking, vulnerability to exploitation and a lack of trust in authorities. In conjunction with International Migrants Day, we look at the broader pressures on migrants as a whole and how to balance a humanitarian and human rights perspective and approach with concerns over local security and stability. Areas of concern remain the problem of exploitation by recruitment agencies, access to proper healthcare and the uncertainty surrounding the 6P amnesty programme. And as a major receiving country should we ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families?

This is a report by Aziff Azuddin & Muhammad Haniff Baharudin

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This morning we take a quick look back at the year as the Government Transformation Programme unfolded. We ask, has it been a good year for ‘good governance’. Despite some bad news – a recent report by Washington-based Global Financial Integrity on illicit financial flows and the growing discontent with sovereign fund 1MDB – there have been several high points. Chief among these the Auditor-General’s Report, now issued three times a year. We look forward to the Minister’s Scorecard – an evaluation of how ministries have achieved their respective KPIs - which will be released next year.

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A man, with a criminal history, walks into a café and holds up the patrons with a gun and a flag with Arabic writing. The media pushes the “terror” narrative button and the “Sydney Siege” begins. It ends hours later with the named gunman dead along with two hostages. We take a look at backdrop of the story – governmental policies aimed at stemming what is claimed to be a “radicalization” of segments of Australian society and the imminent danger posed by those returning from war zones.

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The recent spate of gruesome killings of Myanmar migrants in Penang has raised many questions. Some say that it is a direct spillover of the ethnic violence in Myanmar, while others think that it is influenced by revenge and drug-related problems. PDRM was criticised for not doing enough, and in response, has come out to assure the public that the issue is being dealt with. We speak to activists who have worked with this large and culturally diverse community, as well as voices who say that the violence has to be understood in the context of high vulnerability and low trust for authority.

This is the report by Aziff Azuddin and Muhammad Haniff Baharudin

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Earlier last week, the Selangor state assembly amended the Standing Order to make it obligatory for the leader of the opposition to hold the chair of the Public Accounts Committee. In protest the then Selangor state Opposition Leader Shamsuddin Lias of UMNO stepped down. He claimed that the offer did not translate into effective power. Nur Jazlan Mohd, chair of the Public Accounts Committee of the Federal Parliament publically criticized Shamsuddin Lias’s position. He said "It's a silly thing to do because it's an opportunity for Umno Selangor to unearth any wrongdoing by the Selangor government and to be factual about it, instead of making wild unsubstantiated allegations in public."

This is a report by Aziff Azuddin.

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Six months have passed since the military brought down the care-taker government of Yingluck Shinawatra. The coup leader has become the Prime Minister and an interim Constitution guides governance as a Reform Council is engaged in a process of building a new Constitution. In the meantime the health of the King is in question as he failed to make a public appearance at his birthday celebrations last week, under-scoring the fact that royal succession is a crucial component of the Kingdom’s current politics.

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The National Human Rights Commission has been advocating for a Human Rights Action Plan for over a decade. In 2012, Putrajaya established a legal division to develop the action plan, finally getting the ball rolling. We speak to the Vice-Chairperson of SUHAKAM, to chart the action plan's progress.

This is a report by Annabelle Lee & Aziff Azuddin.

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In the annual BRICS & Emerging Economies Ranking survey released by Times Higher Education, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia made it to Top 100, coming in at 93rd. With Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Universiti Putra Malaysia both falling out of this year’s list after being placed 77th and 95th respectively last year, UTM is the sole Malaysian university on the list. We ask UTM why they participate when others like University of Malaya chose not to and whether the rankings ‘game’ benefits students.

This is a report by Muhammad Haniff Baharudin

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