Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

Malaysiakini :: Berita

---

Laporan: Kabinet setuju guna dakwat kekal Posted: 07 Sep 2011 09:51 PM PDT Kabinet telah bersetuju untuk menggunakan dakwat kekal dalam pilihan raya umum akan datang, demikian menurut laporan sebuah akhbar bahasa Cina. Bagaimanapun, Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz mendakwa beliau tidak tahu menahu mengenai keputusan seumpama itu. Memetik sumber, laporan akhbar Sin Chew Daily hari ini menyebut, keputusan itu dibuat dalam mesyuarat Kabinet semalam. Laporan itu berkata kabinet berpandangan dakwat kekal lebih sesuai, berbanding sistem biometrik yang dicadangkan oleh Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya (SPR), dan telah diguna dengan jayanya oleh beberapa negara untuk menghindari pengundian berganda. Ketika dihubungi hari ini, Nazri berkata: "Saya juga tak tahu." Beliau menjelaskan bahawa keputusan kabinet adalah untuk menyerahkan kepada Jawatankuasa Khas Pilihan Raya memutuskan semua isu yang berkaitan dengan reformasi pilihan raya. Sebelum ini, Nazri memberitahu Malaysiakini bahawa semua cadangan berhubung reformasi pilihan raya perlu dibincang dan diputuskan oleh jawatankuasa khas berkenaan. Jawatankuasa khas itu yang akan dibentuk dalam sidang parlimen akan datang - mulai 3 Oktober ini - dicadangkan oleh Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Razak bulan lalu ekoran tekanan pembangkang dan pertubuhan sivil untuk reformasi sistem pilihan raya. Pembangkang masih belum memutuskan sama ada akan menyertai jawatankuasa khas itu, dan mendakwa Najib gagal menunjukkan komitmennya untuk reformasi pilihan raya. [Baca berita penuh]

Istana: Cukai jalan kereta bekas Sultan hal SPRM-JPJ Posted: 07 Sep 2011 09:35 PM PDT Ketua Istiadat Istana Kelantan, Datuk Abdul Halim Hamad berkata isu melibatkan pembaharuan cukai jalan untuk kenderaan milik bekas Sultan Kelantan, Sultan Ismail Petra merupakan hal di antara pelanggan berkenaan dengan Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan. Namun, memandangkan Adinda Sultan Kelantan, Tengku Muhammad Fakhry Petra telah membuat laporan kepada Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia, perkara berkenaan kini "di antara SPRM dengan JPJ," katanya lagi. "Tuanku dulu sihat, jadi mungkin tuanku sendiri boleh uruskan semasa tuanku masih jadi Sultan. Tapi sekarang ini mungkin ada prosedur yang JPJ perlu tengok," katanya lagi ketika dihubungi Malaysiakini hari ini. Mengulas dakwaan Tengku Muhammad Fakhry sebelum ini bahawa terdapat unsur sabotaj sehingga menyebabkan cukai jalan bagi empat buah kereta berkenaan tidak dapat diperbaharui, Abdul Halim berkata pihaknya tidak mengetahui perkara itu. "Perkara itu dilapor kepada SPRM sekarang, jadi SPRM yang kena siasat. Pejabat kita tidak ada maklumat," katanya lagi. Mengulas lanjut, Abdul Halim berkata kenderaan berkenaan tidak pernah berdepan masalah seperti itu ketika Sultan Ismail Petra masih menjadi Sultan Kelantan. "Saya rasa dulu taklah timbul hal-hal cukai jalan ini dengan JPJ. Saya rasa JPJ ada peraturan yang perlu dipatuhi bila hendak daftar. "Tuanku dulu sihat, jadi mungkin tuanku uruskan sendiri. Kalau dulu tuanku jadi sultan mungkin ada prosedur (tertentu) yang perlu dipatuhi. "(Dari segi) prosedur kena patuhi dokumen dan benda yang disenarai. Mungkin benda itu mesti diteliti," katanya lagi. [Berita penuh menyusul]

You are subscribed to email updates from Malaysiakini :: Berita To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: www.malaysiakini.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

Malaysiakini :: Letters

---

Gov't must share responsibility for road deaths Posted: 07 Sep 2011 02:20 AM PDT I am saddened by a statement from the director general of the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros), Dr Wong Shaw Voon, that the failure of the 24th Ops Sikap this Hari Raya festive season was due to poor cooperation from road users. While I generally do not discount the fact that the road users are responsible for their own safety and others, it is not right for Wong to conveniently blame road users alone. They are various factors that contribute to fatal road accidents. As a director general of a public funded road safety research institute, he should know better what causes the failure of the road safety campaign during the festive seasons. The increasing number unsafe vehicles like small-engined motorcycles and cars, poorly maintained roads, and lack of enforcement by the traffic authorities are equally significant in contributing to road accidents. If the government is so serious about preventing the loss of lives, Miros should learn from developed countries where their people have access to safer cars, and do research to prove that our cars are not as safe, and not otherwise. Ironically, Miros crash test has rated a locally produced MPV with four stars for safety, which I believe to be way too generous. If a locally made car can be given four stars for safety, perhaps BMW or Mercedes should earn twenty stars. Then, the government should abolish the illogical and implausible tax structures for cars to allow its citizen to own safer cars. Would anyone believe that Proton and Perodua is as safe as Honda or Toyota? The fact that most motorcyclists are the majority of victims shows that the machine is not safe. Therefore, something need to be done urgently such as shifting them to public transport, which has to be made cheap and efficient, or allowing them to own safe cars by reducing prices to the world standard. Malaysian roads are another potential killer. To tell the state of roads in Malaysia needs no sophisticated research. The absence of lights, the disappearance of road markers, the presence of potholes and objects on the roads have often resulted in accidents among innocent roads users. Besides, the design of the roads in our cramped public space leaves much to be desired. Can Miros and other relevant agencies sit down and work on this out? Research alone won't solve the problem without any follow up action. Last but not least, enforcement is vital to ensure the success of the road safety campaigns. It is hard to believe that despite the harsh penalties, Malaysian drivers still have no respect for the law. I'm sure that this would not have happened if the enforcement comes with integrity. Google or YouTube 'polis rasuah' and you'll know what I'm talking about. Without proper enforcement, people will continue with their behaviour, and the campaign will have no effect but a waste of public money. Let's admit that road users are not the only ones to be blamed. Better road maintenance and better vehicles, and better coordination among players and stakeholders in the road fraternity are vital in ensuring transformation towards safer roads. Conveniently blaming the road users for a campaign failure is certainly not the way forward, especially when the statement came from the director-general of road safety research institute. The transformation for safer roads would only be possible with political will. To change the behaviour of road users may be difficult and take a long time but to improve the infrastructures, provide safer vehicles and efficient public transport for rakyat are nothing impossible. The government, too, must be responsible for the increasing number of road deaths.

Treat domestic workers right - or they won't come Posted: 07 Sep 2011 01:38 AM PDT The signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Indonesia and Malaysia on the May 30th was supposed to signal another wave of recruitment of domestic workers from Indonesia to Malaysia. Three months later, recruitment agencies and the Malaysian Association of Foreign Maid Agencies (Papa) are crying out for the prime minister to intervene on the apparent continued moratorium by Indonesia, which Papa claims has left 35,000 families desperately waiting for domestic workers. An official from the Indonesian Embassy, however, states that there isn't a moratorium in place - Indonesian women simply do not want to work as domestic workers in Malaysia. It is now for us to ask ourselves - do we have safe and sustainable migration policies in place, and legal frameworks to safeguard the rights of domestic workers in Malaysia? The MoU signed three months ago with Indonesia does not protect the rights of the domestic worker to Malaysia. The Employment Act does not recognise her as a worker but as a servant. This non-recognition opens the gate to exploitation. The right to a day off in a week is vague in the MoU as it also states that a worker can instead choose to be paid for overtime wages, without any means to account for what constitutes overtime and how this will be documented. Similarily, her other rights as a worker are not recognised, and no standard contract for work has been developed by the Human Resources Ministry. These omissions and commissions only reveal that the current policy and the MoU do not protect rights of the domestic worker and thus domestic workers and their families find that Malaysia is no longer a safe place to seek employment. Tenaganita's recent study on recruitment in Indonesia revealed that families do not want to send their daughters to Malaysia as their lives will be threatened. Every parent wants to ensure the safety of their children. Malaysia is seen as a dangerous place, especially for women and domestic workers. Recent media reports of domestic workers being locked away for nine days with little food, and found dead of severe abuse, only reinforce this belief. Malaysia's response, however, to these systematic violations of rights has been one of arrogance. In The Star newspaper on Sept 6, labour director general Sheikh Yahya Sheikh Mohamed stated: "We recruit maids from 11 other countries besides Indonesia. We are not desperate for maids. We can always hire from other countries if they don't lift the ban". The above statement smacks of arrogance of a person who believes that since we are "rich", we can move anywhere to recruit. The poor are vulnerable and thus can be cheated, exploited and abused. There is absolutely no soul searching from the government of the day to identify and address the root causes of these serious concerns faced by domestic workers and employers today. Unfortunately this is the glaring truth which we, in particular the government is denying and not taking effective steps to address it. The recent court judgement on the refugee swap deal between Australia and Malaysia, which was a slap on our policies and positions, should awaken us to change. Without ensuring the protection of rights of migrant workers, we cannot achieve sustainable employment. There is a global outcry which is now manifested in the ILO Convention on domestic workers. Malaysia voted against it. As nations move forward to develop sustainability, Malaysia slides back, moving towards exploitation and practices of slavery. Employers must realise that they can no longer expect cheap labor, demand an 18 hour work day and silence the migrant worker with the support of the state. The government can no longer sustain this form of modern day slavery manifested in domestic labour. There must be respect for the dignity of the person, decent work ensured and work out a due diligence of process from recruitment, employment and return. Dr Irene Fernandez is executive director of Tenaganita.

You are subscribed to email updates from Malaysiakini :: Letters To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: www.malaysiakini.com