New Mandala

The Malaysian government is again embroiled in a corruption scandal, this time with an estimated taxpayer cost of RM4.6 billion (A$1.53 billion). Rather than implementing reforms to improve transparency and accountability, in the usual pattern of Malaysian politics the government continues to shift blame and shuffle paper. This scandal comes amidst promises by Prime Minister Najib to [...]

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His son, the Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, has been married three times and in the past two years scandalous film footage has been distributed on the Internet and on clandestine CDs, featuring him and his current wife, Princess Srirasmi.
- Extracted from Richard Lloyd Parry, “King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand ill in hospital”, [...]

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In case you have not noticed, there seems to be a full scale blow-out by Indonesians against Malaysians — and not between the governments but, instead, between the people.
Of course, the countries have long-standing conflicts related to disputed borders (read here and here). Furthermore, abuses of migrant labour in Malaysia (with Indonesians making up the majority of the foreign [...]

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While people may and should debate on the merit of the lese majeste law, outright verbal attacks online, especially those that are unsubstantiated have led to a feeling that the online virtual debating community is degenerating into verbal abuse and uncompromising dogmatism, both from the political left and right. These reckless and vicious contributors end [...]

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New Mandala has long sought to draw attention to the injustices of Thailand’s lese majeste law.
From Oliver Jufer and Harry Nicolaides, to Suwicha Thakor and Daranee “Da Torpedo” Charnchoengsilpakul, whenever a lese majeste case is prosecuted, and every time an outrageous sentence is proclaimed, we receive a tragic spike in readership.  Outrage is voiced by [...]

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In recent months the question of a nuclear program in Burma has risen to the top of many agendas.�
Most of the new public interest was generated by the report of Des Ball and Phil Thornton published in The Sydney Morning Herald at the start of the month.  Their report, based in part on defector testimony, concludes by noting that “Burma’s [...]

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How do I explain how gaping a hole Malaysian filmmaker Yasmin Ahmad’s sudden demise has left behind in the Malaysian heart, soul and consciousness? Where to even begin to explain the phenomenon and personality of her work and Yasmin?
Yasmin Ahmad, fondly known as Kak Min to young fans, passed away on 25 July 2009 after [...]

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I have to say it is childish of the Burmese generals to dream about acquiring nuclear technology, since they can’t even provide regular electricity in Burma…
- Extracted from a wide-ranging interview with Thakhin Chan Tun, former Burmese Ambassador to North Korea: “Burma wants the bomb”, The Irrawaddy, 27 June 2009.
New Mandala readers who pay attention [...]

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Daranee “Da Torpedo” Charnchoengsilpakul (ดารณี ชาญเชิงศิลปกุล) is currently on trial for lese majeste.  Yesterday the courtroom was closed to the public by a judge who reportedly “guarantee[s] the defendant will get a fair trial”.  I won’t be holding my breath.  In response, Daranee made the simple point that “[t]he speech I am charged with was [...]

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No. 1 on our list, for the second year in a row, is Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej. He is worth $30 billion, $5 billion less than last year, as a result of double-digit declines in real estate and stocks owned via the Crown Property Bureau, the state investment vehicle of which he is a trustee. [...]

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