Week That Was: May 28 - June 4, 2006
WIDER GAP: (May 27) Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the income gap between rural and urban Malaysians has widened. The 2004 income ratio between rural and urban folk, which was 1: 2.11, is almost similar to that of 1970, which was 1: 2.14. Abdullah said statistics also showed that rural poverty in 2004 was six times the rate of urban poverty.
POWER PRICE PROTEST: (May 28) Members of various opposition parties staged a protest against the 12% electricity tariff increase in front of KLCC. Parti Keadilan Rakyat information bureau chief Tian Chua led the protest, which began at 10am and more than 600 people, including PAS and DAP members, took part. The police detained 18 men and two women.
MALAYSIAN PLAYBOY SEIZED: (May 28) Police seized several copies of a controversial Malaysian version of Playboy magazine in Kelantan. It is said that the magazine did not contain any erotic photographs or editorials but had a commentary on the publication of its Indonesian version. An investigation revealed the publishing permit was false.
DOUBLE STANDARDS: (May 28) Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi accused the West of double standards for trying to squash Iran’s nuclear programme and imposing sanctions on the Hamas-led Palestinian government. He also said that instability in Iraq, the Palestinian territories and Afghanistan was spawning global terrorism.
NAM PLAN REJECTED: (May 28) Iran’s foreign minister played down a proposal to offer Iran incentives if it suspends uranium enrichment, saying it is his country’s right to pursue nuclear technology. “The main incentive for Iran is to recognise the essential right of Iran to have nuclear technology,” said Foreign Minster Manouchehr Mottaki, commenting on a plan by the five Security Council members and Germany to offer Iran a package of rewards or sanctions.
TERROR GROUP BUSTED: (May 29) A new terrorist group suspected of planning attacks on several neighbouring countries was uncovered following the arrest of 12 men. The capture of members of the Indonesian radical group Darul Islam was the police’s biggest success against terrorism since their crackdown five years ago on Kumpulan Militan Malaysia, which had links with the Jemaah Islamiah terror network.
NO DISNEYLAND: (May 30) Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Effendi Norwawi denied saying the Government was bringing Disneyland to Malaysia. He was responding to enquiries on his comments on the economic and development benefits Malaysia could reap from the setting up of a major theme park in Johor. He said a theme park would be a feature in the Southern Corridor development, and all options are being explored, including Disneyland.
NO “KIDDIE PACK” CIGARETTES: (May 31) Packets containing less than 14 cigarettes – dubbed “kiddie packs” – disappeared from store shelves across Malaysia when the ban on the sale of the packs, which was supposed to take effect on September 2004, took effect. The ban was postponed several times after tobacco manufacturers and shop owners appealed for government extensions in order to clear unsold stocks.
EARTHQUAKE RUMBLES TONGA: (May 27) A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck near the Pacific island of Tonga, the US Geological survey said. The quake hit at 4.36pm (0336 GMT) around 143km northeast of Tonga’s capital, Nuku’alofa. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries nor was there a risk of a Pacific-wide tsunami associated with the earthquake, said Barry Hirshorn, a geophysicist at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre at Ewa Beach, Hawaii.
NEW WEAPON WANTED: (May 28) The International Herald Tribune reported that the Pentagon is seeking congressional approval for development of a new weapon able to strike distant targets an hour after they are detected. The report said the weapon would be a non-nuclear version of the submarine-launched Trident-2 missile and be part of a president’s arsenal when considering a pre-emptive attack.
TAMIL TIGERS BLACKLISTED: (May 29) European Union governments agreed to put Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tiger rebels on their terrorist blacklist, diplomats said on Tuesday, a move that could affect Sri Lanka’s shaky peace process. Diplomats said the decision was passed without debate at a meeting of EU ministers late Monday and the move will clear the way for the 25-nation bloc to freeze the group’s assets within the EU.
NEW DIANA CRASH EVIDENCE: (May 30) The detective leading a British investigation into the death of Princess Diana said he has found new witnesses and fresh forensic evidence about the fatal car crash in a Paris road tunnel in 1997. Sir John Stevens, a former chief of London’s Metropolitan police who is heading a crash inquiry, refused to give details, and his report is expected to be published later this year.
MORE TREMORS SHAKE JAVA: (June 2) Tens of thousands of people who survived Indonesia’s killer earthquake ran out of their makeshift homes as fresh tremors overnight spread fear across the region. Indonesia’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said it had recorded several aftershocks of magnitude 4, each lasting about 30 seconds. A 6.3 magnitude quake struck Yogyakarta and Central Java provinces last Saturday, killing over 6,200 people and flattening over 100,000 houses.
YAHOO BOYCOTTED: (June 2) The union representing journalists in the UK and Ireland called on its 40,000 members to boycott all Yahoo Inc. products and services to protest the Internet company’s reported actions in China. The National Union of Journalists said it sent a letter on Friday to Dominique Vidal, Yahoo Europe’s vice-president, denouncing the company for allegedly providing information to Chinese authorities about journalists.
OPPOSITION WINS: (May 31) South Korea’s opposition won a crushing victory over President Roh Moo-hyun’s ruling party in local elections on Wednesday, according to the official election commission and television exit polls. Riding a wave of sympathy for its leader, Park Geun-hye, who was slashed in the face during the campaign, and public disenchantment over the ruling party, the opposition Grand National Party won 11 of 16 major races to pick mayors and provincial governors.
