US Attempting “Regime Change” in Malaysia: Fact or Fiction?
US Attempting “Regime Change” in Malaysia: Fact or Fiction?
As the South-East Asian nation of Malaysia prepares for
general elections, distrust of the political opposition and accusations
of foreign interference have been major talking points in the political
frequencies emanating from Kuala Lumpur. The United Malays National
Organization (UMNO) leads the country’s ruling coalition, Barisan
Nasional, and has maintained power since Malaysian independence in 1957.
One of Malaysia’s most recognizable figures is former Prime Minister
Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who has been credited with ushering in large-scale
economic growth and overseeing the nation’s transition from an exporter
of palm oil, tin, and other raw materials, into an industrialized
economy that manufactures automobiles and electronic goods.
The opposition coalition, Pakatan Rakyat, is headed by
Anwar Ibrahim, who once held the post of Deputy Prime Minister in
Mahathir’s administration, but was sacked over major disagreements on
how to steer Malaysia’s economy during the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
Today, the political climate in Malaysia is highly polarized and a
sense of unpredictability looms over the nation. Malaysia’s current
leader, Prime Minister Najib Razak, has pursued a reform-minded agenda
by repealing authoritarian legislation of the past and dramatically
loosening controls on expression and political pluralism introduced
under Mahathir’s tenure. Najib has rolled back Malaysia’s Internal
Security Act, which allowed for indefinite detention without trial, and
has liberalized rules regarding the publication of books and newspapers.
During Malaysia’s 2008 general elections, the ruling Barisan Nasional
coalition experienced its worst result in decades, with the opposition
Pakatan Rakyat coalition winning 82 parliamentary seats. For the first
time, the ruling party was deprived of its two-thirds parliamentary
majority, which is required to pass amendments to Malaysia’s Federal
Constitution. In the run-up to elections scheduled to take place before
an April 2013 deadline, figures from all sides of the political spectrum
are asking questions about the opposition’s links to foreign-funders in
Washington.
 |
|
Protestors form a human chain in the city center of Kuala Lumpur during April 2012 protests in support of the Bersih coalition.
|
The question of foreign-funding
Malaysia’s former PM Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has long captured the ire
of officials from Washington and Tel Aviv, and though he’s retired, he
has channeled his energies into the Perdana Global Peace Foundation,
which recently hosted an international conference in Kuala Lumpur
calling for a new investigation into the events of 9/11 and has sought
to investigate war crimes committed in Gaza, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mahathir has been an ardent critic of Israel and organizations such as
AIPAC, and has recently accused US-based organizations the National
Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the Open Society Institute (OSI) of
holding a concealed intention to influence Malaysia’s domestic politics
through the funding of local NGOs and groups directly linked to Anwar
Ibrahim’s Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition.
In an article the former prime minister published in the New Straits Times, a leading mainstream newspaper,
Mahathir accuses financier George Soros and
his organization, the Open Society Institute, of “promoting democracy”
in Eastern Europe to pave the way for colonization by global finance
capital. Mahathir acknowledges how OSI pumped millions into opposition
movements and independent media in Hungary, Ukraine and Georgia under
the guise of strengthening civil society, only to have like-minded
individuals nominated by Soros’s own foundation come to power in those
countries.
The former prime minister
has also pointed to how Egypt
(prior to Mohamad Morsi taking power) has cracked down on NGOs
affiliated with NED, namely groups such as the National Democratic
Institute, the International Republican Institute (IRI) and Freedom
House, which are all recipients of funding from the US State Department.
In Malaysia, high-profile NGOs and media outlets have admittedly
received funding from OSI and satellite organizations of NED. Premesh
Chandran, the CEO of the nation’s most prominent alternative media
outlet, Malaysiakini, is a grantee of George Soros’s Open Society
Foundations and launched the news organization with a $100,000 grant
from the Bangkok-based Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), another
organization with dubious affiliations to the US State Department.
Malaysiakini has
come under pressure from
local journalists for the lack of transparency in its financial
management and hesitance in revealing the value of its shares.
Additionally, Suaram, an NGO promoting human rights, has borne heavy
criticism over its funding and organizational structure. The Companies
Commission of Malaysia
launched investigations into
Suara Inisiatif Sdn Bhd, a private company linked to Suaram, and found
it to be a conduit for money being used to channel funds from NED.
Suaram has been instrumental in legitimizing allegations of a possible
cover-up of the murder of a Mongolian fashion model, Altantuya
Shaaribuu, who was living in Malaysia in 2006 and associated with
government officials that have been linked to a kickback scandal
involving the government’s purchase of submarines from France. Senator
Ezam Mohd Nor, himself a recipient of Suaram’s Human Rights Award,
has accused the organization of employing poor research methods and attempting to disparage the government:
“Malaysians have the right to feel suspicious about them.
They have been making personal allegations against the Prime Minister
[Najib Razak] on the murder of Altantuya and many other cases without
proof… their motive is very questionable especially when they are more
inclined towards ridiculing and belittling the ruling government.”
The German Embassy in KL has
reportedly admitted that
it has provided funds to Suaram’s project in 2010. Malaysia’s Foreign
Minister Anifah Aman followed by making strong statements to the German
Ambassador and declared that Germany’s actions could be viewed as
interference in the domestic affairs of a sovereign state.
Since 2007, Bersih, an association of NGOs calling itself the
Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections, staged three street protests in
which thousands of yellow-clad demonstrators took to the streets in
Kuala Lumpur demanding electoral reform. After coming under heavy
scrutiny for obfuscating funding sources, Bersih coalition leader Ambiga
Sreenevasan
admitted that
her organization receives funding from the National Democratic
Institute and the Open Society Institute. Sreenevasan herself has been
the recipient of the US State Department’s Award for International Women
of Courage, and
was present in Washington
DC in 2009 to receive the award directly from the hands of Michelle
Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. While Sreenevasan’s
organization claimed to be non-partisan and apolitical, members of
Malaysia’s political opposition openly endorsed the movement, and some
were even present at the demonstrations.
Anatomy of Malaysia’s political opposition
Malaysia is a multi-cultural and multi-religious state, and both the
ruling and opposition parties attempt to represent the nation’s three
largest ethnic groups. Approximately 60 per cent of Malaysians are
either ethnic Malay or other indigenous groups and are mostly listed as
Muslim, while another 25 per cent are ethnic Chinese who are
predominantly Buddhist, with 7 per cent mostly Hindu Indian-Malaysians.
The United Malays National Organization, the Malaysian Chinese
Association, and the Malaysian Indian Congress head Barisan Nasional.
The opposition, Pakatan Rakyat, currently controls four state
governments and is led by Anwar Ibrahim’s Keadilan Rakyat, the
Chinese-led Democratic Action Party (DAP), and staunchly Islamist
Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS).
While a large percentage of urbanites with legitimate grievances are
quick to acknowledge the government’s shortcomings, many are hesitant to
back Anwar Ibrahim due to his connections with neo-conservative
thinkers in Washington and general disunity within the opposition.
Ibrahim maintains close ties with senior US officials and organizations
such as the National Endowment for Democracy. In 2005, Ibrahim chaired
the Washington-based Foundation for the Future, established and funded
by the US Department of State at the behest of Elizabeth Cheney, the
daughter of then-Vice President Dick Cheney, thanks in large part to his
cozy relationship with Paul Wolfowitz.
While Ibrahim was on trial for allegedly engaging in sodomy with a
male aide (something he was later acquitted of), Wolfowitz and former US
Vice-President Al Gore
authored a joint opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal in support of Ibrahim, while the Washington Post published
an editorial calling
for consequences that would affect Malaysia’s relations with Washington
if Ibrahim was to be found guilty. Ibrahim enraged many when
he stated that he would support
policy to protect the security of Israel in an interview with the Wall
Street Journal; this is particularly controversial in Malaysia, where
support for Palestine is largely unanimous. Malaysian political
scientist Dr. Chandra Muzaffar
writes:
“It is obvious that by acknowledging the primacy of
Israeli security, Anwar was sending a clear message to the deep state
and to Tel Aviv and Washington that he is someone that they could trust.
In contrast, the Najib government, in spite of its attempts to get
closer to Washington, remains critical of Israeli aggression and
intransigence. Najib has described the Israeli government as a ‘serial
killer’ and a ‘gangster’”.
Members of Barisan Nasional
have addressed Ibrahim’s
connections to the National Endowment for Democracy in the Malaysian
Parliament, including his participation in NED’s ‘Democracy Award’ event
held in Washington DC in 2007. Independent journalists have
uncovered letters written
by Anwar Ibrahim, two of which were sent to NED President Carl Gershman
in Washington DC that discussed sending an international election
observer team to Malaysia and general issues related to electoral
reform. A third letter was sent to George Soros, expressing interest in
collaborating with an accountability firm headed by Ibrahim. Pakatan
Rakyat’s Communications Director, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad,
verified the
authenticity of the documents. This should come as little surprise, as
Ibrahim’s economic policies have historically aligned with institutions
such as the IMF and World Bank, in contrast to Mahathir, whose
protectionist economic policies opposed international financial
institutions and allowed Malaysia to navigate and largely resurface from
the 1997 Asian financial crisis unscathed.
An issue that concerns secular and non-Muslim Malaysian voters is the
role of the Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) as part of the opposition. In
sharp contrast to the moderate brand of Islam preached by UMNO, the
organization’s primary objective is the founding of an Islamic state.
The PAS has spoken of working within the framework of Malaysia’s
parliamentary democracy, but holds steadfast to implementing sharia law
on a national scale, which would lead to confusing implications for
Malaysia’s sizable non-Muslim population. The debate around the
implementation of Islamic hudud penal code is something that other
Pakatan Rakyat coalition members, such as figures in the Chinese-led
Democratic Action Party, have been unable to agree on. The PAS enjoys
support from rural Malay Muslims in conservative states such as Kedah,
Kelantan and Terengganu in northern Malaysia, though they have very
limited appeal to urbanites. While certain individuals in PAS have
raised questions about NGOs receiving foreign funding, Mahathir has
insinuated that PAS’s leadership has been largely complicit:
“They [foreign interests] want to topple the government
through the demonstration and Nik Aziz [Spiritual leader of PAS] said it
is permissible to bring down the government in this manner. They want
to make Malaysia like Egypt, Tunisia, which were brought down through
riots and now Syria…. when the government does not fall, they [Pakatan
Rakyat] can appeal to the foreign power to help and bring down, even if
it means using fire power.”
 |
|
Despite claims of being non-partisan and
unaffiliated with any political party, the country’s main opposition
leader, Anwar Ibrahim, fully endorsed the Bersih movement.
|
Feasibility of ‘regime change’ narrative
It must be acknowledged that the current administration led by Prime
Minister Najib Razak has made great strides toward improving relations
with Washington.
At a meeting with
President Barack Obama in 2010, Najib offered Malaysia’s assistance to
cooperate with the United States to engage the Muslim world; Najib also
expressed willingness to deploy Malaysian aid personnel to Afghanistan,
and allegedly agreed on the need to maintain a unified front on Iran’s
nuclear program. Najib has employed a Washington-based public relations
firm, APCO, to improve Malaysia’s image in the US and has seemingly
embraced American economic leadership of the region
through his support for
the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. Some would argue that
Najib is perhaps the most pro-American leader Malaysia has ever had – a
stark contrast to the boldness of Mahathir. Despite Najib having good
rapport with formal Western leaders, it is clear with whom the
thank-tank policy architects, Zionist lobbies, and foundation fellows
have placed their loyalties.
Sentiment among Malaysia’s youth and “pro-democracy” activists, who
constitute a small but vocal minority, tend be entirely dismissive of
the ‘regime change’ narrative, viewing it as pre-election diversionary
rhetoric of the ruling party. While bogeymen of the Zionist variety are
often invoked in Malaysian political discourse, it would be negligent to
ignore the effects of Washington-sponsored ‘democracy promotion’ in the
global context, which have in recent times cloaked mercenary elements
and insurgents in the colors of freedom fighting, and successfully
masked geopolitical restructuring and the ushering in of neo-liberal
capitalism with the hip and fashionable vigor of ‘people power’ coups.
As the United States continues to militarily increase its presence in
the Pacific region in line with its strategic policy-shift to East Asia,
policy makers in Washington would like to see compliant heads of state
who will act to further American interests in the ASEAN region.
Let’s not ignore the elephant in the room; the real purpose of
America’s resurgence of interest in the ASEAN bloc is to fortify the
region as a counterweight against Beijing. The defense ministries of
Malaysia and China held a landmark defense and security consultation in
September 2012, in addition to frequent bilateral state visits and
enhanced economic cooperation. It was the father of the current leader,
Malaysia’s second Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak, who made the landmark
visit to Beijing to normalize relations in 1974, and under his son
Najib, Sino-Malaysian relations and cooperation have never been better.
Following the global economic crisis of 2008, Najib looked to Beijing to
revive Malaysia’s export oriented economy, emphasizing increased
Chinese investment into Malaysia and expanding the base of
Sino-Malaysian trade in areas like education and student exchange,
finance, infrastructure development, science and technology, yielding
lucrative and mutually beneficial results. China has been Malaysia’s
largest trade partner, with trade figures reaching US$90 billion in
2011; Malaysia is China’s largest trading partner among ASEAN nations.
In asking the question of regime change in Malaysia, Dr. Chandra Muzaffar
reflects on Washington’s moves to bolster its military muscle and dominance over the Asia-Pacific region:
“Establishing a military base in Darwin [Australia],
resurrecting the US’ military alliance with the Philippines, coaxing
Japan to play a more overt military role in the region, instigating
Vietnam to confront China over the Spratly Islands, and encouraging
India to counterbalance Chinese power, are all part and parcel of the
larger US agenda of encircling and containing China. In pursuing this
agenda, the US wants reliable allies – not just friends – in Asia. In
this regard, Malaysia is important because of its position as a littoral
state with sovereign rights over the Straits of Malacca, which is one
of China’s most critical supply routes that transports much of the oil
and other materials vital for its economic development. Will the
containment of China lead to a situation where the hegemon, determined
to perpetuate its dominant power, seek to exercise control over the
Straits in order to curb China’s ascendancy? Would a trusted ally in
Kuala Lumpur facilitate such control? The current Malaysian leadership
does not fit the bill.”
‘Backwards’ and forwards
Pakatan Rakyat, the main opposition coalition pitted against the
ruling party, has yet to offer a fully coherent organizational program,
and if the coalition ever came to power, the disunity of its component
parties and their inability to agree on fundamental policies would be
enough to conjure angrier, disenchanted youth back on to the streets, in
larger numbers perhaps. What is ticklishly ironic about reading op-eds
penned by the likes of Wolfowitz and Al Gore, and how they laud Malaysia
as a progressive and moderate model Islamic state, is that they
concurrently demonize its leadership and dismiss them authoritarian
thugs. Surely, the ruling coalition has its shortcomings; the
politicization of race and religion, noted cases of corrupt officials
squandering funds, etc. – but far too few, especially those of the
middle-class who benefit most from energy subsides, acknowledge the
tremendous economic growth achieved under the current leadership and the
success of their populist policies. Najib’s administration would do
well to place greater emphasis on addressing the concerns of Malaysia’s
minorities who view affirmative action policies given to Malay
ethnicities as disproportionate; income status, not ethnicity, should be
a deciding factor in who receives assistance. The current
administration appears set to widen populist policies that make
necessities affordable through subsides and continue to assist
low-income earners with cash handouts.
Najib has acknowledged the need for broad reforms of Malaysia’s
state-owned enterprises over concerns that crony capitalism may deter
foreign investment; this should be rolled out concurrently with programs
to foster more local entrepreneurship. To put it bluntly, the
opposition lacks confidence from the business community and foreign
investors; even the likes of JP Morgan
have issued statements of
concern over an opposition win. It should be noted that if Islamists
ever wielded greater influence in Malaysia under an opposition
coalition, one could imagine a sizable exodus of non-Muslim minorities
and a subsequent flight of foreign capital, putting the nation’s economy
in a fragile and fractured state. And yet, the United States has poured
millions into ‘democracy promotion’ efforts to strengthen the influence
of NGOs that distort realities and cast doubt over the government’s
ability to be a coherent actor.
Malaysia does not have the kind of instability that warrants overt
external intervention; backing regime-change efforts may only go so far
as supporting dissidents and groups affiliated with Anwar Ibrahim. No
matter the result of the upcoming elections, Najib appears to have
played ball enough for Washington to remain more or less neutral.
According to Bersih coalition leader Ambiga Sreenevasan, Malaysia’s
electoral process is so restrictive that a mass movement like Bersih is
required to purge the system of its backwardness. These are curious
statements, considering that the opposition gained control of four out
of 13 states in 2008, including Selangor, a key economic state with the
highest GDP and most developed infrastructure.
In response,
Najib has adhered to Bersih’s demands and has called for electoral
reform, forming a parliamentary select committee comprising members from
both Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional. As elections loom, Bersih
coalition leader Ambiga Sreenavasan is
already dubbing them “the dirtiest elections ever seen” – unsurprising rhetoric from a woman being handed her talking points by the US embassy.
Democracy is dead”: Pilot of missing Malaysian airliner was “fanatical” supporter of Muslim Brotherhood-linked politician
Jihad Watch, By Robert Spencer:
Zaharie Ahmad Shah was a “fanatical” supporter of Anwar Ibrahim. ”
That is telling: “
Anwar Ibrahim’s ties to the Muslim Brotherhood run deep.
Ibrahim helped establish the International Institute for Islamic
Thought, or IIIT, a Muslim Brotherhood front group in the United States.
IIIT has come under fire for their connections with terrorist
organizations. In 2002, Anwar Ibrahim’s IIIT was included in a lawsuit
by victims of 9/11 seeking damages from organizations linked to
‘rendering material support to radical Islamism.’ In 2003, US government
prosecutors ‘submitted court documents detailing financial support
(PDF) from the IIIT for convicted Palestinian Islamic Jihad fundraiser
Sami al-Arian.’ They also found that Taha Jaber al-Alwani, the president
of IIIT had once stated via a fatwa that ‘jihad is the only way to
liberate Palestine.’ A US Customs official said that the government is
also looking into the possibility that IIIT was involved in
‘terrorism-related money laundering activities.’”
“‘Democracy is dead’: ‘Fanatical’ missing airliner pilot pictured
wearing political slogan T-shirt,” by Simon Parry, Amanda Williams and
Wills Robinson for the
Daily Mail, March 15:
An image has emerged of the pilot of the missing Malaysia
Airlines jet wearing a T-shirt with a ‘Democracy is Dead’ slogan as it
has been revealed he could have hijacked the plane in an anti-government
protest.
Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, a father-of-three, was said to be a
‘fanatical’ supporter of the country’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim –
jailed for homosexuality just hours before the jet disappeared.
It has also been revealed that the pilot’s wife and three children
moved out of the family home the day before the plane went missing.
It comes as FBI investigators say the disappearance of MH370 may have
been ‘an act of piracy’ and the possibility that hundreds of passengers
are being held at an unknown location has not been ruled out.
Officials also revealed that it is possible the aircraft could have
landed and transmitted a satellite signal from the ground. If the plane
was intact and had enough electrical power in reserve, it would be able
to send out a radar ‘ping’.
Captian Shah was an ‘obsessive’ supporter of Ibrahim. And hours
before the doomed flight left Kuala Lumpur it is understood 53-year-old
Shah attended a controversial trial in which Ibrahim was jailed for five
years.
Campaigners say the politician, the key challenger to Malaysia’s
ruling party, was the victim of a long-running smear campaign and had
faced trumped-up charges.
Police sources have confirmed that Shah was a vocal political
activist – and fear that the court decision left him profoundly upset.
It was against this background that, seven hours later, he took control
of a Boeing 777-200 bound for Beijing and carrying 238 passengers and
crew.
Yesterday, Malaysian police searched his house in the upmarket Kuala
Lumpur suburb of Shah Alam, where he had installed a home-made flight
simulator. But this newspaper can reveal that investigators had already
spent much of last week examining two laptops removed from Shah’s home.
One is believed to contain data from the simulator
Confirming rising fears, Malaysia’s prime minister Najib Razak
announced yesterday that MH370 was deliberately steered off course after
its communication system was switched off. He said it headed west over
the Malaysian seaboard and could have flown for another seven hours on
its fuel reserves.
It is not yet clear where the plane was taken, however Mr Razak said
the most recent satellite data suggests the plane could have been making
for one of two possible flight corridors. The search, involving 43
ships and 58 aircraft from 15 countries, switched from the South China
Sea to the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean.
In another dramatic twist early Sunday Indian officials however, said
the search was on hold until ‘fresh search areas’ were defined by
Malaysia. It is unclear what the reason was for the delay.
Data showing the number of plausible runways where the plane could
have touched down – which need to be at least 5,000ft – offer a baffling
number of potential locations.
According to a map drawn up by U.S. radio station WNYC, there are 634
locations which could fit, from Australia to the Maldives to Pakistan.
However, the true number is likely to be even higher, as estimates of
how far the plane could have travelled have been increased since the
calculations were carried out.
US investigators say faint ‘pings’ were being transmitted for several hours after the flight lost contact with the ground.
Meanwhile, military radar showed the jet climbed to 45,000ft – above
its service limit – which could have been a deliberate attempt to knock
out the passengers and crew.
Anwar Ibrahim is a broadly popular democracy icon and former deputy
prime minister whose prosecution on a charge of sodomy is seen by many
Malaysians as political persecution.
The raids on Captain Shah’s home appeared stage-managed as a display
of intent after the Prime Minister said the focus of the investigation
was now on ‘crew and passengers’ as a result of the latest leads.
But investigators have told the Mail on Sunday inquiries into the background of the pilot actually began days earlier.
Malaysian police, helped by FBI agents from the US, are looking into
the political and religious backgrounds of both Zaharie and his
co-pilot. Zaharie’s home was sealed off yesterday as police spent an
hour inside.
However, a senior investigation source said two laptops were taken
from the property in low-key visits by police early last week despite a
series of denials by officials that his home had been searched or
raided.
One laptop taken away is thought to contain data from the flight
simulator while a second contained little information. Zaharie’s
personal laptop was not found, and is thought to have been with him in
the cockpit of the plane, the source said.
Zaharie’s co-workers have told investigators the veteran pilot was a
social activist who was vocal and fervent in his support of Ibrahim.
‘Colleagues made it clear to us that he was someone who held strong
political beliefs and was strident in his support for Anwar Ibrahim,’
another investigation source said. ‘We were told by one colleague he was
obsessed with politics.’
In their interviews, colleagues said Zaharie told them he planned to
attend the court case involving Anwar on March 7, just hours before the
Beijing flight, but investigators had not yet been able to confirm if he
was among the crowd of Anwar supporters at court.
Zaharie is believed to be separated or divorced from his wife
although they share the same house, close to Kuala Lumpur’s
international airport. They have three children, but no family members
were at home yesterday: only the maid has remained there.
Anwar Ibrahim is a broadly popular democracy icon and former deputy
prime minister whose prosecution on a charge of sodomy is seen by many
Malaysians as political persecution.
Campaigners say the politician, the key challenger to Malaysia’s
ruling party, was the victim of a long-running smear campaign and had
faced trumped-up charges.
Captain Shah, who is thought to have attended the trial in Putrajaya
hours before flying, is thought to be incensed by the verdict.
Co-workers have told investigators the veteran pilot was a social activist who was vocal and fervent in his support of Ibrahim.
Investigators said: ‘We are looking into the theory that Zaharie’s
political beliefs may be a factor. There are huge sensitivities
surrounding this but we cannot afford not to pursue any angle brought to
our attention.’
In the days after Flight MH370 disappeared, Zaharie was
affectionately described as a good neighbour and an eccentric ‘geek’ who
had a flight simulator at home simply because he loved his work so
much.
Malaysian officials initially appeared keen not to direct any
suspicion towards Zaharie or his co-pilot, 27-year-old Fariq Abdul
Hamid, who was last week revealed to have invited two women passengers
into the cockpit and smoked on an earlier flight to Phuket.
But evidence of the way the plane’s transponder and communication
systems were disabled and the way the plane was expertly flown over the
Indian Ocean apparently using navigational waypoints meant only a
skilled aviator could have been at the controls. Investigators were also
baffled by why, if hijackers took over the plane, there was no Mayday
call or signal from the two pilots to say the cockpit had been breached.
At yesterday’s press conference, the suspicion over the pilot’s
involvement mounted as prime minister Najib Razak said that
investigators had found ‘deliberate action’ on board the plane resulted
in it changing course and losing contact with ground crews.
As a result of the new information, Malaysian authorities had
‘refocused their investigation on crew and passengers aboard’, he said.
Police sealed off the area surrounding Zaharie’s home and searched the
house shortly after the press conference.
Mr Razak said the new satellite evidence shows ‘with a high degree of
certainty’ that the one of the jet’s communications devices – the
Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System was disabled
just before it had reached the east coast of Malaysia. ACARS is a
service that allows computers aboard the plane to relay in-flight
information about the health of its systems back to the ground.
Shortly afterwards, near the cross-over point between Malaysian and
Vietnamese air traffic controllers, the plane’s transponder, which emits
an identifying signal, was switched off or, less likely, failed.
According to a military radar, the aircraft then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.
Here is Anwar Ibrahim with Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the
international Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader who has praised Hitler
and endorsed jihad/martyrdom suicide bombing:
**************
Discover The Networks profile on Anwar Ibrahim:
See also: International Institute of Islamic Thought
Born in Malaysia in August 1947, Anwar Ibrahim was
heavily influenced, from an early age, by the teachings of
Sayyid Qutb and Maulana Maududi, the ideological fathers of the
Muslim Brotherhood. A radical Muslim student leader in the late 1960s, Ibrahim rose to considerable
prominence in 1971 when
he founded an organization called
Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia(ABIM),
known in English as the Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement. Highly
critical of the West, ABIM urged young Muslims to embrace Islamic
fundamentalist tenets and principles as enshrined in the Quran and the
Sunnah.
In 1974 Ibrahim was arrested for participating in student protests
against rural poverty and hunger, and he subsequently spent 20 months in
a Malaysian prison.
At a 1979 ABIM meeting, Ibrahim delivered a speech outlining the
direction in which he wished to lead the organization. “It is our
conviction,” he
said,
“that if all parties concerned are sincere and serious about
understanding Islam, its concepts and principles, they will accept Islam
as the only practicable and viable alternative to the present order.”
To achieve this goal, Ibrahim
proposed that
“[s]chools, especially institutions of higher learning, must be
encouraged to cultivate the spirit of Islamic universalism to break down
the present communal barriers.”
In
1981 Ibrahim
co-founded the
International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), a Virginia-based front group of the
Muslim Brotherhood. That same year, he
joined the
United Malays National Organization (UMNO), Malaysia’s ruling political
party. UMNO was led by the country’s recently elected Prime Minister,
Mahathir bin Mohamad, and it actively promoted Malay-Muslim rule over
all other races.
In
1983 Ibrahim became Malaysia’s Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports.
The following year he was elected Leader of UMNO Youth and was appointed as the nation’s Minister of Agriculture. In
1986 he
became UMNO’s Vice President as well as Malaysia’s Minister of
Education. In 1991 he was named Minister of Finance, and two years later
he became Mahathir’s Deputy Prime Minister.
As the nineties progressed, Ibrahim appeared to be Mahathir’s heir
apparent, frequently alluding in public to his “son-father” relationship
with the Prime Minister. When Mahathir took a two-month holiday in
1997, he appointed Ibrahim to serve as acting Prime Minister during his
absence.
As the the decade drew to a close, however, Ibrahim’s relationship
with Mahathir began to deteriorate due to political differences that
emerged. Thus, according to the
Sydney Morning Herald, Mahathir in 1998 engineered “a blatantly political fix-up” and had his younger rival arrested on
corruption and
sodomy charges. Convicted, Ibrahim spent
six years in jail before a
review courtoverturned the sentence and set him free in 2004.
During his
incarceration, Ibrahim maintained mail
correspondence with
fellow IIIT director Abdul Hamid Abu Sulaiman, who was a former Rector
of the International Islamic University of Malaysia. When Sulaiman
became Rector of Islamic University of Kuala Lumpur, he
aggressively worked to Islamize the university’s curriculum — introducing Islamic Law and Jurisprudence as compulsory courses.
In 2003 Ibrahim and his family were the
beneficiaries of an apparent tax fraud perpetrated by IIIT. According to its own
tax filings for
that year, IIIT made $92,200 in contributions to Ibrahim’s daughter,
Nurul Izzah. Where it listed the donations to Izzah on the tax forms,
IIIT violated U.S. law by indicating “
none”
under the heading “Donee’s Relationship.” The group would have lost its
tax-exempt status had it been known that it was sending money to the
family member of a director. Ibrahim
never disavowed this
act when given the chance and even stated explicitly that these
contributions were made for the education of his six children.
At a 2005 ABIM conference in Malaysia, Dr. Ahmad Totonji — IIIT’s Vice President and a
co-founder of a Saudi-financed Islamic charity with ties to the
SAAR Foundation and
al Qaeda –
praised Ibrahim’s
efforts to promote Islamic rule in his homeland: “We have changed the
world. I first came to Malaysia in 1970 and was met by Br[other] Anwar….
I am glad to see sisters everywhere in Malaysia today wearing [the]
hijab. We have made a better world for Muslims.” Totonji further congratulated Ibrahim for his success in
disguising his underlying desire to replace Malaysia’s parliamentary democracy with a system based on
Sharia Law: “It was wise not to involve ABIM in the political work, it was wise to keep
daawah [proselytization] separate from politics.”
Returning to the political arena in time for Malaysia’s 2008 general election, Ibrahim
led the
Opposition Coalition to winning more parliamentary seats than ever
before, though not enough to defeat the UMNO. Later that year,
new charges of sodomy were brought against Ibrahim. As of September 2011, they had not yet been adjudicated.
On numerous occasions, Ibrahim has expressed anti-Israel and
anti-Semitic views. A few days after the Israeli seizure of the
terrorist-laden
Free Gaza Movement flotilla in May 2010, for instance, he
led a chanting protest mob of thousands in front of the U.S. Embassy in
Kuala Lumpur. “Israelis are able to continue with their aggression because of the soft position taken by the [American] President,” Ibrahim
declared. Three days later, in the Malaysian parliament, he
said: “Israel wouldn’t dare to attack the flotilla and set up blockades in Gaza without the support of America.”
When Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in 2010 decided to cut off
oil supplies to an Iran which was seeking nuclear weapons, Ibrahim stood
in the legislature to
charge that
a “Jewish-controlled” public-relations firm hired by Razak was covertly
working to manipulate Malaysian policy on America’s behalf. “How can
our foreign policy have changed [so] dramatically?” Ibrahim
demanded.
“Our policy on Iran shows how weak we are. Unprecedented in the history
of our country, even Mahathir Mohamad himself never shifted in
Afghanistan and the Palestinian question.”
Ibrahim was formerly a
trustee for the
World Assembly of Muslim Youth.
| Gaza - Hizbut Tahrir Malaysia handed over memorandum to Malaysian Armed Forces |
 |
 |
 |
|
Ahad, 11 Januari 2009 14:55 |
 KUALA
LUMPUR 9 Jan – The Headquarters of the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) at
Jalan Padang Tembak experienced a totally different atmosphere today.
Cry of takbeer and calls for jihad filled the air as
activists of Hizbut Tahrir Malaysia (HTM) assembled in front of the gate
of MAF headquarters with the intention of handing over a special
memorandum to the Malaysian Armed Forces calling them to move against
the cruel Zionist regime in an effort to protect the Muslims in Gaza.
March towards the MAF office begun after Friday prayers at the Khalid
al-Walid Mosque situated near the headquarters. HTM called upon the
ummah to join arms in demanding that MAF declare jihad against Israel. Jihad that needs to be declared is the real jihad – jihad fi sabilillah
– with MAF moving all its Armies, Air Forces and Navy in order to
protect our brothers and sisters that are currently being slaughtered by
the Zionist regime in Gaza. As one of the Armed Forces of the Muslim
ummah, it is obligatory ( wajib) that MAF moves to Gaza without any delay!
Ustaz Umar Hussein, speaking in front of more than 1,000 Muslim after
the prayers, called with full vigour and spirit to the Malaysian Armed
Forces to accept the call of jihad from Gaza. In his speech, he
made clear that the only real solution for the leaders to make is to
send armed forces to Gaza to fight the Zionist regime of Israel who is
now, as he speaks, freely slaughtering Gaza without being opposed by a
single Muslim army.
Cruelty of the Zionist regime in Gaza can only be stopped by sending
armed forces to fight the Jews, the enemy of Allah and of the Muslim
ummah. An act of war must only be answered by act of war. Strength can
only be answered by strength. Boycott of Israeli and American products,
sending humanitarian aid and condemnation is just not enough!
Just before the rally, the khutbah delivered at the Khalid al-Walid mosque also talked about the slaughter in Gaza. The khatib delivered the khutbah in
high spirit and lectured about how the illegal state of Israel was
established. He forcefully condemned the perpetration carried out by
Israel, a state which was delivered (its birth) by the British under the
Balfour declaration. However, the khatib failed to present the real solution to the problem in front of the hundreds of army officers listening to his khutbah in the mosque.
Instead of calling for jihad, he called upon Muslims to read
history in order to have the right perception of what is going on in
Palestine. He also called for Muslims to have tawakkal, spend effort to rid themselves of wahn (love
of life and hatred of death) and finally called for the boycott of
American and Israeli products, conduct more exhibitions on Palestine and
for Muslims to build emotional strength in order to move.
Hizbut Tahrir Malaysia was very clear in its call after the Friday
prayers, right in front of the mosque, that the only right and rational
solution to the problem of Palestine is to move the armed forces of the
Muslim ummah for jihad fi sabilillah. The armies must be directly involved in the fight ( jihad) against the Zionist regime who is at the moment without any mercy killing our brothers and sisters in Palestine.
Ustaz Isa Abdullah, an HTM activist continued the speech by reminding
the military that as he is speaking, hundreds of children have lost
their parents, wives losing their husbands and suffering seems far from
subsiding - houses continue to be bombed and destroyed by the Zionist
regime of Israel leaving our brothers and sisters exposed and shivering
in the freezing winter of Gaza. He also reminded the armed forces of the
Muslim ummah that they are in fact, strong. It is however unfortunate
that the leaders of the ummah have stopped the armies from moving and
declaring jihad. The armed forces and their weaponries are instead made objects of exhibition and show.
At the end of his speech in front of the Khalid al-Walid mosque, the
rally, which consists of HTM members and the ummah started to move
towards the main gate of the MAF headquarters in order to deliver the
memorandum to the The Chief of the Malaysian Armed Forces. along the
parade, which took about 15 minutes, roars of jihad slogans directed towards the military filled the air - “ Aina jundul Muslimin! Li Tahriri Falastin” (Where are the Muslim armies! To free the land of Palestine) “ Khaibar Khaibar Ya Yahud! Jaisyu Muhammad Saufa Ya’ud” (Khaibar Khaibar oh Jews! The armies of Muhammad shall surely return). Takbeer and tahmeed also filled the air and these were repeated until the parade reached the gates of MAF headquarters (Ministry of Defense).
Upon reaching the main gate, Ustaz Umar Hussein gave instructions to the
masses to control themselves and not to obstruct the traffic. Cry of takbeer and tahmeed continuously filled the air.
Ustaz Abdul Hakim Othman, the President of Hizbut Tahrir Malaysia headed
the HTM delegation to meet and deliver the memorandum to the Chief
Commander of the Malaysian Armed Forces. The delegation included Ustaz
Umar Hussein, Brother Tarmizi Salleh and Brother Norazman Mustafar who
are all members of the Central Committee of HTM.
The memorandum reminds MAF that the only solution to the problems in
Gaza is to send the Malaysian armed forces there. This responsibility is
not only on the shoulders of the Malaysia Armed Forces but it is also
the responsibility of all the armed forces in the Muslim lands. HTM also
reminds that the weaponries of MAF are not meant to be objects of
exhibition and training but should be used to help our brothers and
sisters in Palestine and must be used to destroy the enemies of Allah.
The leaders of the Muslim ummah have committed a grave crime by not
moving our armies to Palestine. They instead continue to betray the
ummah by putting their hopes on kufr organizations such as the UN to
save Palestine although in fact it is the UN that was responsible for
the creation of Israel and have always supported it.
The HTM memorandum instills in MAF the spirit of jihad to save the Muslims in Palestine who are still being slaughtered by the Jewish army la’natullah. HTM reminds MAF that it is the army who is most capable of carrying out this duty ( jihad).
The army is advised not to betray the Muslims by supporting the coward
leaders that have betrayed the ummah. HTM stressed that jihad is the only solution to this problem, and if jihad is
launched, our brothers and sisters will be delivered from the evils of
the enemies of Allah and InsyaAllah, Israel will be destroyed. This is
because Allah and His Angels will be with the Muslims armed forces when
they fight the enemies. Allah says:
“Fight against them so that Allah will punish them by your hands, and
disgrace them and give you victory over them, and heal the breasts of a
believing people” [TMQ at-Taubah (9):14].
Probably due to the fact that the MAF is not used to this new situation
(handing over of such memorandum) or probably due to tight protocols,
the delegation headed by Ustaz Hakim had to wait for quite a while
before the memorandum was successfully handed over. Initially HTM was
told that the Chief of MAF had been informed of the intention and would
receive the memorandum himself or via a representative. After a short
while, the main gate was closed and the HTM delegation was left outside
the gate and faced a long delay in delivering the memorandum. All the
while takbeer and tahmeed filled the air consistently.
In the wait, there was no sign that the Chief of the MAF or his
representative was prepared to receive the memorandum. The HTM delegate
was also asked to leave the area, without handing over the memorandum.
Nevertheless, after some negotiation, a number of MAF staff was willing
to accept the memorandum on behalf of the Jeneral of MAF. We would like
to express our gratitude to the MAF staff who was ‘brave’ enough to
accept such memorandum.
Alhamdulillah, the delivery of the memorandum went on well. HTM hopes
that the memorandum will indeed arrive at the hands of the Commander of
MAF or the Prime Minister of Malaysia himself, Dato’ Seri Abdullah Ahmad
Badawi, who is also the Minister of Defence.
At around 3.00pm, the occasion ended with the making of do’a by Ustaz
Isa, asking help from Allah SWT so that the Malaysian Armed Forces
realises its responsibility and so that they and all the Muslim armed
forces be aided in destroying Israel if they were to move in jihad against
the illegitimate state. If they do not move, HTM makes do’a to Allah
that this government is replaced by the Khilafah that rules by the Book
of Allah and the Sunnah of His Rasul. This state will then send armed
forces for jihad to defeat the enemies of Allah and to free Muslims all over the world from their clutches and domination. Amin ya Rabbal ‘Alamin.
|
MISSING Malaysia Airlines Flight 370′s ‘devout’ Muslim pilot was also a political fanatic
Muslim Pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah
Hours before taking control of flight MH370, pilot Zaharu Ahmad Shah attended trial of jailed opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim, as FBI reveals that passengers could be at a secret location.
UK Daily Mail (h/t James C)
Police are investigating the possibility that the pilot of missing
Flight MH370 hijacked his own aircraft in a bizarre political
protest. The Mail on Sunday has learned that Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah
was an ‘obsessive’ supporter of Malaysia’s opposition leader, Anwar
Ibrahim. And hours before the doomed flight left Kuala Lumpur it is
understood 53-year-old Shah attended a controversial trial in which
Ibrahim was jailed for five years.
Campaigners say the politician, the
key challenger to Malaysia’s ruling party, was the victim of a
long-running smear campaign and had faced trumped-up charges.
Jailed: Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim
Police sources have confirmed that
Shah was a vocal political activist – and fear that the court decision
left him profoundly upset. It was against this background that, seven
hours later, he took control of a Boeing 777-200 bound for Beijing and
carrying 238 passengers and crew.
Yesterday, Malaysian police searched
his house in the upmarket Kuala Lumpur suburb of Shah Alam, where he had
installed a home-made flight simulator. But this newspaper can reveal
that investigators had already spent much of last week examining two
laptops removed from Shah’s home. One is believed to contain data from
the simulator.
Confirming rising fears, Malaysia’s
prime minister Najib Razak announced yesterday that MH370 was
deliberately steered off course after its communication system was
switched off. He said it headed west over the Malaysian seaboard and
could have flown for another seven hours on its fuel reserves.
It is not yet clear where the plane
was taken, however Mr Razak said the most recent satellite data suggests
the plane could have been making for one of two possible flight
corridors. The search, involving 43 ships and 58 aircraft from 15
countries, switched from the South China Sea to the Bay of Bengal in the
Indian Ocean.
US investigators say faint ‘pings’
were being transmitted for several hours after the flight lost contact
with the ground. Meanwhile, military radar showed the jet climbed to
45,000ft – above its service limit – which could have been a deliberate
attempt to knock out the passengers and crew.
Anwar Ibrahim is a broadly popular
icon and former deputy prime minister whose prosecution on a charge of
sodomy is seen by many Malaysians as political persecution.
The raids on Captain Shah’s home
appeared stage-managed as a display of intent after the Prime Minister
said the focus of the investigation was now on ‘crew and passengers’ as a
result of the latest leads. But investigators have told the Mail on
Sunday inquiries into the background of the pilot actually began days
earlier.
Malaysian police, helped by FBI agents
from the US, are looking into the political and religious backgrounds
of both Zaharie and his co-pilot. Zaharie’s home was sealed off
yesterday as police spent an hour inside.
However, a senior investigation source
said two laptops were taken from the property in low-key visits by
police early last week despite a series of denials by officials that his
home had been searched or raided. One laptop taken away is thought to
contain data from the flight simulator while a second contained little
information. Zaharie’s personal laptop was not found, and is thought to
have been with him in the cockpit of the plane, the source said.
Zaharie’s co-workers have told
investigators the veteran pilot was a social activist who was vocal and
fervent in his support of Ibrahim. ‘Colleagues made it clear to us that
he was someone who held strong political beliefs and was strident in his
support for Anwar Ibrahim,’ another investigation source said. ‘We were
told by one colleague he was obsessed with politics.’
At yesterday’s press conference, the
suspicion over the pilot’s involvement mounted as prime minister Najib
Razak said that investigators had found ‘deliberate action’ on board the
plane resulted in it changing course and losing contact with ground
crews.
Israel PM blames Palestinian leaders after Hebron killing
April 16, 2014
 Israeli soldiers check their weapons at a staging near the West Bank city of Hebron April 15, 2014. — Reuters picJERUSALEM,
April 16 — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pinned blame on the
Palestinian leadership after a deadly attack on an Israeli police
officer near the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron.
“This assassination is the result of the incitement to hatred by
Palestinian Authority (PA) leaders who continue to peddle hate-filled
material against Israel,” Netanyahu charged yesterday.
He said that this attitude had led to the murder of “a father driving home to celebrate a Passover dinner” on Monday, and deplored the lack of condemnation of the attack by the PA.
Israeli police said yesterday the
policeman killed was Baruch Mizrahi, a 47-year-old father of five who
was a high-ranking officer in the intelligence division.
Israeli troops scoured a village near Hebron yesterday, a day after a gunman killed Mizrahi in the area.
The killing at the start of the Jewish Passover holiday was the first
deadly attack this year on an Israeli in the occupied West Bank.
It came at a time of high tensions over the near-breakdown of US-brokered peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
The army searched several houses and businesses close to the scene of
the killing southwest of Idhna, a village outside Hebron, residents told
AFP.
They said soldiers roughed them up while searching homes, and added
that army checkpoints set up around Idhna were still in place.
The army said it was “conducting widespread searches for the perpetrators” of the attack.
Mizrahi’s wife was seriously wounded and a nine-year-old child also
hurt. Three other children were in the vehicle, according to Israeli
military radio.
Israelis in another car said they saw a man wearing a helmet and firing a Kalashnikov assault rifle on the side of the road.
Army spokesman Peter Lerner said it was unclear if the attack was
carried out by a single shooter or with accomplices, or if it was the
work of a “local terrorist organisation.”
The Palestinian movement Hamas that rules Gaza and a smaller Islamist group, Islamic Jihad, praised the attack.
It linked the assault to unrest in the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque
compound in Jerusalem, where five Palestinians were arrested by Israeli
police on Sunday.
But neither group claimed responsibility.
Hamas prime minister Ismail Haniya called for “Palestinian resistance
in all its forms” against Israel at a news conference, in which he also
praised the shooting and urged the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers.
The city of Hebron is home to nearly 200,000 Palestinians. Around 80
settler homes in central Hebron, housing about 700 Jews, live under
Israeli army protection. — AFP
Malaysia: Federal Territories Official Sermon Declares ‘Jews Are the Main Enemy to Muslims’
Thank goodness Malaysia is a moderate Islamic state, otherwise we might get the impression that they don’t like Jews …
 By
Shannon Teoh – “The Federal Territories’ official sermon today told
Muslims Jews are their main enemy as proven by their ego and murderous
acts.
The Friday sermon, delivered at lunchtime in mosques across the
capital city, said Muslims must ‘free your brethren in Palestine from
the grasp of Zionist rule and economic siege by donating money, food,
medicine and whatever is suitable.’
‘Firstly, Muslims must understand Jews are the main enemy to Muslims
as proven by their egotistical behaviour and murders performed by them,’
said the sermon prepared by the Federal Territory Islamic Affairs
Department (JAWI).
It called on ‘community leaders and NGOs to intensify activities that
increase awareness and understanding to the public about the importance
of al-Quds (Jerusalem),’ referring to the city that is sacred to Jews,
Muslims and also Christians.
‘The honour of al-Quds and the al-Aqsa mosque must be defended by all
Muslims as it is holy land that is blessed,’ the sermon added.” Read more.
Flashback: Malaysia: Rise of Strict Islam Exposes Fears and Tensions, ‘If You Don’t Follow the Mainstream You Will Be Lynched’
– “Muslim women without headscarves are a common sight on the streets
of the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. But engaging them in a
discussion about the hijab is difficult. Norhayati Kaprawi is a
Malaysian activist whose recent documentary Aku Siapa (Who Am I) deals
with the issue of how women in Malaysia should dress. She found some
women unwilling to show their faces in her film – not on religious
grounds, but becasue they feared reprisals. This is a damning reflection
on Malaysia’s Muslim society, says Ms Norhayati.” Read more.
Flashback: Muslim Group in Malaysia Declares Jihad Against Christians Who … Disagree With Them –
“An umbrella coalition of Muslim groups held a protest today and
declared bloodshed against ‘extremist’ Christians that insult and
ridicule the position of Islam in the country. The Muslim Organisations
in Defence of Islam (Pembela), comprising 20 groups, protested after
Friday prayers at the National Mosque against Putrajaya’s release of
Malay-language bibles and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s
promise to never impound the Alkitab again.” Read more.
Flashback: Non-Muslims in Malaysia Who Recite Quranic Verses ‘Insincerely’ Can Be Charged With Blasphemy –
“The government can take action against people who abuse Quranic verses
for certain interests and dispute all forms of worship by Muslims in
this country. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri
Jamil Khir Baharom said this followed the special conference of the
National Fatwa Council on Dec 3 last year to discuss issues including
abuse of Quranic verses. ‘The muzakarah agreed that non-Muslims who cite
Quranic verses according to their own understanding without sincerity
is an affront to the sanctity of al-Quran and can cause doubt and
slander in society,’ he told Dewan Rakyat today.” Read more.
Share this:
| | | |  |
A rapper affiliated with Wu-Tang Clan
was rushed to the hospital early Wednesday after he cut off his penis
and then jumped off a second story balcony in what police believe was a
suicide attempt ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.
