Campaign in TTDI to register more voters

A voter-registration campaign will be held at the Taman Tun Dr. Ismail market on the 30th and 31st July, 2011 (Saturday and Sunday) from 9am until 6pm.
The programme, jointly organised by TTDI residents and the Election Commission (EC), is aimed at creating awareness on the importance of registering as a voter.
This voter-registration campaign is apolitical because it is a local community programme.
EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said that about 3.7 million eligible voters did not register to vote by July this year so iIt is the duty of a Malaysian citizen to sign up and to have a say on how the country is to be run.
Deputy Education Minister Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong has also annouced that the general election could be held within the next 180 weeks days, so it was important to register before 30th September, 2011 in order to be eligible to vote when the next general election comes.
The drive will be held at the ground floor of TTDI market.
EC officers would also be present to update the people to vote in their current place of residence.

DAP slams omissions and conflicts in RCI report

Aug 12 decision on MCA injunction bid against Kajang Municipal Council

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/7/22/courts/9149148&sec=courts (22/7/2011)
SHAH ALAM: The MCA will know on Aug 12 whether the party has succeeded in getting an injunction to stop the Kajang Municipal Council from closing down its building in Cheras, pending the outcome of its suit against the council. High Court judge Justice Wan Af-rah Wan Ibrahim fixed the date after meeting counsel for parties in chambers yesterday.
The plaintiff, MCA secretary-general Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha, in his application sought for an injunction to stop the defendant from entering or locking the MCA Building in Taman Indah, Cheras. He is also seeking the return of seven sets of keys and also items which had been confiscated by the defendant.
In the main suit filed on May 23, Kong sought a declaration that the defendant’s forced entry into the MCA building on three occasions in November and December last year were wrong and inappropriate. He is seeking damages, costs and other reliefs deemed fit by the court.
In its statement of defence, the Kajang Municipal Council denied all the allegations and argued that it had the jurisdiction to take over the building as it was built on state land. Representing Kong is counsel Ringo Low, while the council was represented by lawyers Lim Lip Eng and Lewis Lim.

Arrested in hotel room for wearing Bersih t-shirts

Source: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/170236 (Joseph Sipalan & Kow Gah Chie, 18/7/2011)
It was to be a weekend trip for a group of four youths to Cameron Highlands to enjoy nature in all its splendour. The previous week had been hectic, what with the Bersih 2.0 rally and the numerous controversies that cropped up, so it would have been a well-deserved holiday for three aides to Seputeh MP and DAP national organising secretary Teresa Kok. Little did they know that the Bersih 2.0 stigma would continue to trail them all the way to the idyllic hill resort town.
Teh Hoong Keat, Lan Suet Ling and Chin Kah Wai, along with a friend, had planned on a two- day, one-night stay in Cameron Highlands last Saturday to stretch their legs and possibly even go jungle trekking. However, by the time the night was over, they had lost all desire to finish their holiday.
Teh said they adjourned to the girls' hotel room to hang out after dinner and visiting the night market, when a hotel employee knocked on their door about 12.45am. "They asked us to change rooms because a family was staying next door and we may have been a bit noisy,” he said. "By that time, I think he saw us wearing Bersih T-shirts in the room. After we changed rooms, about 10 minutes later someone started knocking loudly on our door.” When they opened the door, at least 13 people who were waiting outside had barged into their room without identifying themselves, Teh said. "I asked them who they were, and one of them showed his ID, a chief inspector Basar Safar. He said the hotel management had called the police to tell them there was a group of people wearing Bersih T-shirts." Teh said Basar had asked the group to follow the police back to Cameron Highlands district police headquarters, only giving the reason that it was a "public security issue".
'Nearly three hours wasted'
The group had initially argued against going to the police station, but had little choice as all their MyKads were being held by a female officer, who told them they would only get the documents back at the station, said Teh. Lan said they were also told to ride in the police car to the station, where they were then made to wait for two hours without any instructions after reaching there at 1am. "They just made us wait at a side hall, where there were a few sofas. We waited and did nothing. We thought they wanted to take our statements, but they did nothing. "By 3am, the same chief inspector came and told us we were free to go. We asked if we had anything to sign, and he said no and even returned our T-shirts to us. He told us, 'you pakailah sesuka hati kamu' (wear it however you wish).” The ordeal however did not end there, as they had to wait at least another half-hour for the officers to send them back to the hotel, fighting back the chilly night air in just T-shirts and shorts, Lan added. Teh said the police action was sheer injustice and an invasion of their privacy, stressing that nowhere in the law does it state that the Bersih 2.0 T-shirt is illegal. Lan however pointed out that they chose to only wear the T-shirt in their hotel room as they acknowledge that this is still a sensitive matter.
DAP's Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng, who was acting as legal counsel for the trio, indicated that they will probably not take any legal action over the weekend fiasco. "Since Malaysia is now a police state, suing the police would be a waste of time and money," he said at a press conference earlier.
An officer from the Cameron Highlands police headquarters today confirmed the case, but stressed that the quartet were not arrested. The senior officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they did not infringe on the privacy of the four as Bersih has been declared an illegal organisation and wearing a Bersih T-shirt is not allowed.
“You cannot wear it outdoors or indoors, even as pajamas,” the officer said, adding that they decided to release the four unconditionally as they were not involved in an illegal assembly.
Prior to this incident, police had arrested five Pakatan Rakyat leaders across the country last week for wearing Bersih T-shirts, including DAP's Bakri MP Er Teck Hwa.
Related news: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/07/18/arrested-in-hotel-room-for-wearing-bersih-t-shirts/ Arrested in hotel room for wearing Bersih t-shirts
http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/24priv/Article MP's aides cry foul over police action

10 MPKj councillors charged over Bersih T-shirts

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/7/8/courts/9060716&sec=courts (8/7/2011)
PUTRAJAYA: Ten Kajang Municipal Council (MPKj) councillors were charged at a magistrate’s court in Putrajaya yesterday for wearing Bersih 2.0 T–shirts within the vicinity of Menara MPKj. They were charged under the Societies Act 1966 Section 47 (1) for wearing the T–shirts during the council’s full board meeting on June 29.
Eleven municipal councillors were called to face charges at a magistrate’s court on Wednesday but were informed that their case had been postponed to yesterday.
The 10 councillors are Eddie Ng, S.T. Chandra Mohan, Tan Boon Wah, Lee Kee Hiong, Razaly Hassan, Ong Seng Peng, Steven Chan, Mohd Mohyiddin Mohamed Mesbah, Zulfikar Ali Ariffin, and Lee Learn Eng. The other councillor Cheong Siow Foon was not present.
Requests by defence counsel K.A. Ramu, Lim Lip Eng and Hanipa Maidin for the charges to be dismissed were rejected. Their subsequent request for a RM500 bail each was also rejected. The councillors pleaded not guilty and were released on a RM2,000 bail each. Magistrate A. Akhiruddin @ Boy Acho fixed Aug 8 for mention.
In relation to the wearing of the T-shirts, 23 MPKj councillors had been called in for questioning at the Kajang district police headquarters on June 30. Of the 23, six were from PKR, six from DAP, five from PAS, and six from non-governmental organisations.