*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~* { Sila lawat Laman Hizbi-Net - http://www.hizbi.net } { Hantarkan mesej anda ke: [EMAIL PROTECTED] } { Iklan barangan? Hantarkan ke [EMAIL PROTECTED] } *~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~* PAS : KE ARAH PEMERINTAHAN ISLAM YANG ADIL ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The foreign minister, Dato' Seri Syed Hamid Albar, confidently marches in where even fools fear to tread. Fresh from his bumbling disaster over the Sipadan kidnap, he now wants to teach an Indonesian politician the "Spirit" of Asean. The chairman of the Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly, Mr Amien Rais, met the Parti Keadilan Negara president, Datin Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, where he characterised her husband, He Who Must Be Destroyed At All Cost, as a political prisoner and "not as a common criminal". The news item, if at all carried in Malaysian newspapers, was hidden, as such items often are. This. in Dato' Seri Syed Hamid's view, interferes in Malaysia's internal affairs. The Prime Minister's barbed attack on his Australian colleague a few days ago is not an interference in Australia's internal affairs. That is all right. The Prime Minister has a right to do that to other countries. If he objects so much about critical comment on Malaysia's affairs, the proper cause for him is to haul in the Indonesian ambassador in Kuala Lumpur to express his government's unhappiness. But he behaves as an organ grinder's monkey, one which caused him his vice presidency in the UMNO last week. Dato' Seri Syed Hamid insists Dato' Seri Anwar's conviction for corruption, and his current trial for sodomy, is not politically tainted. That presumably is why after the prosecution failed to produce any evidence of sodomy but damaged the former deputy prime minister's reputation in the process, he High Court ordered the damaging allegations of sodomy expunged and then allows the charges amended so that he could not defend the allegations against him. He is then convicted of corruption, which the Court of Appeal then affirms with expunged evidence. Dato' Seri Syed Hamid says this "is in accordance with our judicial system in Malaysia". Malaysians, let alone Mr Amien Rais, are apalled at how the former deputy prime minister is treated. Even UMNO members are convinced a political conspiracy, not a criminal act, felled him. Until this is proven wrong, the foreign minister must resign himself to criticism as from Mr Rais and others further afield. If, as he says, it is offensive and inaccurate, it is upon him, as a member of the Cabinet to persuade it to make the changes to obviate carping attacks like this. The way the High Court tried the former deputy prime minister, and allowing the Prime Minister not to turn up as witness when he had been properly subpoenaed, is proof enough. As for the ASEAN spirit Dato' Seri Syed Hamid himself knows it does not exist. ASEAN is deliberately downgraded by Malaysia, as the new power equation within it reduced and marginalised the status quo of leaders. Today, it is Indonesia and Vietnam that willy nilly dominates the regional grouping, one representing Islam and the other Buddhism. The Islamic and Buddhist rules of compassion required Mr Rais to make the statement he made. Indeed, President Abdurrahman Wahid, is openly critical at how his friend is treated in Malaysia. Dato' Seri Syed Hamid would better spend his time building bridges than breaking them. His inability to dictate events over the Sipadan kidnap confirms he does not practice what he preaches. He did not reply to an Indonesian offer to speak to President Joseph Estrade in Manila over the kidnapped tourists if Malaysia requested it. Obviously, Malaysia did not. Sipadan, as you know, is contested territory whose ownership rests upon a future decision of the International Court of Justice. But Malaysia turned it into a tourist resort, an act which aggravated tension between the Kuala Lumpur and Manila. Malaysian ministers get upset when Dato' Seri Anwar is described overseas other than as a convicted criminal. The original article is almost always never published, though the official reaction is. This, in the official view is what press freedom is all about: the persecute and harass the regime's enemies to the fullest extent possible. So, Malaysian papers fall over themselves to publish the Prime Minister's criticism of Mr John Howard, but not Mr Amien Rais's criticism of the Malaysian government over the man who would have been prime minister. But that the foreign minister looks over his shoulders whenever the name of Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim is mentioned, locally and overseas, does suggest, without words, that while he is convicted of criminal offences, he is in Sungei Buloh for political reasons. The Prime Minister's sudden problems, after last week's party elections, underscores the political nature of the conviction, one that the foreign minister says Mr Rais does not understand. M.G.G. Pillai [EMAIL PROTECTED] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ( Melanggan ? To : [EMAIL PROTECTED] pada body : SUBSCRIBE HIZB) ( Berhenti ? To : [EMAIL PROTECTED] pada body: UNSUBSCRIBE HIZB) ( Segala pendapat yang dikemukakan tidak menggambarkan ) ( pandangan rasmi & bukan tanggungjawab HIZBI-Net ) ( Bermasalah? Sila hubungi [EMAIL PROTECTED] ) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Pengirim: "Haji Johari Adam" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>