Did he or didn’t he?
Raja Petra KamarudinLast week, ex-Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he removed Anwar Ibrahim as the Deputy Prime Minister because he does not want someone who is gay to become…
Dear son, dear Dad
Raja Petra KamarudinA reflection of 'old' and 'new' Malay thinking(Previously published in the Free Anwar Campaign website in March 2004, soon after Malaysia's 11th General Election)Dear Son,I thought…
Birds of a feather
Raja Petra Kamarudin25 years or so ago, I engaged Mustafa Ali, the Terengganu State Commissioner for the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), in a debate on how the party should promote itself amongst the…
They dared to be different
Raja Petra KamarudinThe government has banned a couple of Kassim Ahmad’s books, as they have been doing all these years where hundreds, if not thousands, of books have been banned because of its…
Living life in the fast lane
Raja Petra KamarudinPushing the envelope and living life in the fast lane has always turned me on, even at a very tender age. Different strokes for different folks, they always say. I don’t know…
Better the devil one knows
By Din Merican and edited by Raja Petra KamarudinA proud Malay is naturally offended by the snide and damning remarks made about his own kind or about Umno, which is perceived as championing the Malay…
Umno’s relevance lies in Ketuanan Melayu
Raja Petra KamarudinUmno’s recent General Assembly gives an impression that Malay nationalism might in fact be heading for a resurrection.Actually, Umno has no choice. It was formed on the back of…
The NEP cannot help you: you need networking
Raja Petra KamarudinDuring the Umno General Assembly last week, both the Youth as well as Deputy Youth Leaders asked that the New Economic Policy (NEP) be reactivated. They are trying to give the…
Three scenes in one act
Raja Petra KamarudinAct One Scene One (phone conversation)Hello. Raja Petra?Yes.ASP Aibee Abdul Ghani here. Can you come to Bukit Aman? We would like to talk to you about some articles you wrote on…
Lembu punya susu, sapi dapat nama
Raja Petra KamarudinThe Malays have a saying: lembu punya susu, sapi dapat nama -- which means someone else being credit for your (positive) efforts. I suppose the reverse can also apply; someone else…
The story of a buffalo and the mud it wallows in
Raja Petra KamarudinThe Malays have a proverb and it goes something like: if one buffalo is muddy then all the other buffaloes get splashed with mud as well. This is of course not a literal…
It takes a thief to catch a thief
Raja Petra KamarudinYes, last week has certainly been an eventful week for Malaysia. Not only was Sothinathan, the Secretary-General of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), suspended from his…
The opposition should focus on Sabah
Raja Petra KamarudinOn Saturday, 21 June 2003, I wrote an article called ‘Keadilan/DAP should lead in Selangor, Perak, Penang and Pahang; PAS in the four ‘Malay’ states’, which was published in the…
Silver lining in a dark cloud: May 13 was not all bad news
Raja Petra KamarudinToday, Malaysia Today has just crossed its tenth month of existence. Initially there was no blog -- it was added about one and a half months later. We thought, instead of just…
The crossroads for PAS: whereto from here?
Raja Petra KamarudinThe Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS) muktamar (AGM) which ended yesterday is probably the most interesting since the party made inroads into Kelantan in 1990. PAS, which almost got…
Locking the gate after the horse has bolted
Raja Petra KamarudinLast Friday, a cell-phone salesman was charged in court for having pornographic material in his notebook computer. The hapless man had downloaded the porn from the Internet. Let…
The times, they are a changing
Raja Petra KamarudinUmno's main challenge is to change the mindset of the Malays so that they are not left behind in a fast changing world its deputy president and Deputy Prime Minister, Dato' Sri…
A new meaning to the seven-year itch
Raja Petra KamarudinIt is already seven years since the Anwar Ibrahim political crisis erupted in 1998. Now, after seven long years, everything that Anwar said, then, seems to bother one-time…
Malaysians are bigots by nature
Raja Petra KamarudinIt appears there are two groups of people who read Malaysia Today: one group that would like Malaysia Today to practice what it claims to represent -- absolute freedom of…
A gross distortion of facts in the name of Islam
Raja Petra KamarudinOn Friday, 29 April 2005, HarakahDaily.net carried a news item on its website entitled 'Penduduk Segambut Dalam bantah penjualan tapak surau’. (The full text of the news item in…
How to build a six million dollar house
Raja Petra KamarudinIf there is one thing Sabah Chief Ministers feel is envy towards Sarawak Chief Ministers; the reason being, Sarawak Chief Ministers rule for life while Sabah Chief Ministers rule…
There is more to Mahathir’s 2002 US trip than meets the eye
Raja Petra KamarudinIn 2002, FAC News, the Free Anwar Campaign website, revealed that President Bush refused Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s many requests to meet him. At one point, Dr Mahathir even sulked and…
The war between “moderate” and “fundamentalist” Muslims
Raja Petra KamarudinLast week, the Malaysian authorities confiscated the book 'Hadharah Islamiyyah Bukan Islam Hadhari' written by the President of the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), Ustaz Haji…
Alice in Wonderland
Raja Petra KamarudinYesterday, Bernama, Malaysia’s official news agency, quoted Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (Pak Lah) as saying that the National Fatwa Council needs to issue a…
Pardon for Anwar
Raja Petra KamarudinOn Sunday, 1 May 2005, the KONVENSYEN PENGAMPUNAN ANWAR IBRAHIM will be held at the ballroom of the Grand Seasons Hotel along Jalan Pahang in Kuala Lumpur. The event, which is open…
Are we seeing a resurgence of Malay nationalism?
Raja Petra KamarudinOn 4 February 2001, Ibrahim Ali created waves when an informal movement he headed called Badan Bertindak Melayu organised a rally that it called ‘Takkan Melayu Hilang di Dunia’,…
Umno leaders get a taste of their own medicine
Raja Petra KamarudinMalaysian Prime Minister and Umno President, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (Pak Lah), has rebuked Zaid Ibrahim, the Umno Kelantan head, for attacking the party's disciplinary board.On…
Who are you to tell me what to believe?
Raja Petra KamarudinOne Umno Terengganu State Assemblyman proposed in the Terengganu State Assembly today that stern action be taken against all those who reject and criticise Malaysian Prime Minister…
Many happy returns of the day keADILan
Raja Petra KamarudinToday is Monday, 11 April 2005. And what, you may ask, is so significant about today's date? Well, nothing really significant, actually, unless you regard my detention under the…
Malaysia Today’s blogs are closed
Malaysia Today has unfortunately been forced to close the blogs in the various columns and some other sections due to blatant abuse of privileges by certain bloggers. We sincerely regret that we have…
