Pressure on Anwar to clarify stand on Hudud Laws

KUALA LUMPUR — More voices have joined the roiling debate over hudud, with Wanita MCA adding to the number of those calling for Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to clarify Pakatan Rakyat’s (PR) stand on the matter.

Earlier today, DAP chairman Karpal Singh had also repeated his call for Anwar to “break his silence, as DAP has done so” with regards to the support for hudud by Pas, the third partner of the coalition.

Pas vice-president Datuk Husam Musa had said that the Islamist party has not forgotten its aim to implement hudud, which prescribes amputation, whipping and stoning for criminal offences, should it come into power.

When DAP criticised the statement, Pas spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat challenged DAP to make its case as to why hudud laws are not acceptable.

“Husam’s statement has resulted in anxiety among non-Muslims in the country. Pas firmly insisting on introducing hudud has ignored the fact that Malaysia is a multi-racial and multi-religious country and the spirit of Federal Constitution”, Wanita MCA chief Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun said today.

Given that Karpal and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng have already asked Anwar to clarify, Chew said that the de facto PKR leader must “respect the request of the two DAP leaders and respond to Husam's remark accordingly.”

“If Anwar decides to keep quiet, there are only two possibilities, one; Anwar agrees with the remark made by Husam to implement hudud or DAP has been marginalised in PR,” she said.

Karpal had this morning said that the backing of hudud was hurting Pas's credibility and it should be more careful about breaking ranks in the future.

He reminded reporters of the electoral alliance in 1999 where Pas had agreed not to include the formation of an Islamic state in the manifesto.

However, two days before the election, Pas announced it would establish an Islamic state if it took over the state government of Terengganu. Karpal insisted that this proclamation had cost many DAP leaders, including himself and Lim Kit Siang, to lose in the general elections.

With that in mind, he said that DAP had limited “political patience” but was satisfied for now that Husam has backtracked in stating that Pas must obtain a consensus from its PR partners.

“We will still campaign and give our full support to whichever candidate is selected for the Kuala Terengganu by-election,” he assured. (TheMalaysianInsider)

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State your reasons to reject Hudud Law - TGNA

KUALA LUMPUR: PAS, in its push to have hudud laws introduced if the opposition coalition takes power, has upped the ante on its partners by challenging the DAP to give its reasons for its objections.

The call for DAP to explain why it objected to hudud laws was made by its spiritual leader Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

“If they (DAP) refuse to accept the laws, they must state their reasons why they cannot accept it.

“This message is for all coalition members to state strong arguments why they cannot accept hudud laws,” Nik Aziz told reporters at his office here yesterday.

Nik Aziz, who is also Kelantan Mentri Besar, was asked to comment on the recent statement by party vice-president Datuk Husam Musa during a debate with deputy Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin recently.

Husam said that Pakatan Rakyat would have implemented hudud laws had they been successful in taking over the Federal Govern- ment on Sept 16.

However, Khairy disagreed with the hudud implementation suggestion and said that the present status quo should stay.

Nik Aziz said there would not be any problem for PAS to implement hudud laws if Pakatan became the Government because the only obstacle was the lack of understanding of the laws by those within the coalition.

He said he could not see why people were reluctant to accept the punishment of 100 lashings for illicit sex, amputation of limbs for theft or death for murder when the current punishment for murder and drug trafficking was also death by hanging.

“I cannot see why they cannot accept hudud laws which are no different from the colonial laws of the West,” he said.

In a separate press conference, Husam said non-Muslim voters in Kuala Terengganu should not be unduly worried over his statements on hudud laws.

Speaking to reporters at the PAS headquarters here yesterday, Husam said the Barisan Nasional was using scare tactics to frighten voters. (TheStar)

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UMNO supports PAS to introduce Hudud Law

KUALA LUMPUR- Kelantan Umno will lobby the federal government to allow the Islamist party Pas to introduce hudud law, which prescribes stoning, whipping and amputation as punishment for criminal offences, in what will certainly spark intense debate and rouse opposition from non-Muslims.

The Malaysian Insider understands the Kelantan state Umno leadership is planning to declare their support, which comes on the heels of Pas vice president Datuk Husam Musa's admission on Saturday that his party would introduce hudud if it wins federal power.

The support appears designed to place pressure on Pas, which has successfully gained support among more moderate Malaysians by appearing to place its stated aim of forming a theocratic Islamic state on the back-burner.

Pas has tried to project a more moderate and progressive image in recent years, but this has resulted in some restlessness from among its more conservative members, and a clear split in the party.

Last Saturday, Husam made his statement on hudud in an open debate in Kelantan with Umno Youth chief contender Khairy Jamaluddin.

Pas has tried unsuccessfully in the past to introduce hudud and other strict Islamic law.

But these attempts have all failed because of the federal government's refusal to sanction any vote on changes to the federal constitution.

Kelantan Umno's move now suggests they want Umno to call Pas's bluff.

If Pas is allowed to try to introduce hudud, it will certainly cause difficulties in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) ranks.

The Chinese-dominated DAP could be forced to leave the PR alliance, while PKR would feel duty bound, as a Muslim-majority party, to back Pas.

Recently, more conservative groups in Pas have begun calling for more say in PR governments and for these administrations to inject Islamic values into the respective states.

These conservative groups have called for the sale of alcohol to Muslims in the urban state of Selangor to be banned, while in Penang, they are objecting to Muslim participation in a street dancing contest organised by the DAP-led government.

Umno's move could also help Barisan Nasional (BN) regain some of the non-Malay support, especially in the crucial upcoming Kuala Terengganu vote, as Chinese voters may be uneasy with all the talk of hudud. (TheMalaysianinsider)


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Pak Lah fails to get cabinet members to declare assets

KUALA LUMPUR- He may have been successful in pushing through several important pieces of legislation but Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has been an abject failure in persuading his ministers, deputy ministers and their family members to declare their assets.

A few days after the March 8 general elections, the prime minister, reeling from the serious setback suffered by the Barisan Nasional and aware that he needed to snatch the news cycle from Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the resurgent Pakatan Rakyat, announced that all members of the Cabinet, deputy ministers must fill up asset declaration forms by the Anti-Corruption Agency.

Following this, the ACA announced that the information on asset declaration would be made available online so that members of public can scrutinize the information.

But sources have told the Malaysian Insider that the plan has faced stiff resistance from several ministers, who did not want the veil to be lifted on assets owned by family members.

A government official said: "There were strong objections from ministers who felt that it would be an invasion of privacy for the public to know what the financial worth of their spouses, brothers and sisters.

"Several of them were prepared to step down from the Cabinet rather than submit to this asset declaration."

Faced with this wall of resistance, Abdullah backed off. As a result, this plan to make the government more transparent appears headed for nowhere.

To be sure, even the Pakatan Rakyat-run states have not been able to make good its promises of listing down assets owned by its elected representatives. (TheMalaysianInsider)

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NHB - A Serious Case Of Mental Block - Malaysiakini

You can drag a horse to water but you can’t force it to drink, they say. Well, we not only need to drag the Malays to water, we also need to force their heads into the water and make them drink.

NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin

This is what the Sin Chew Daily reported yesterday:

Change Or Perish, Pak Lah Tells UMNO

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the Malays have changed their old thinking and value system, only that UMNO seems to have "forgotten" that the Malays have indeed changed.

He said the Malays have changed, but if UMNO remains unwilling to change, then the party will eventually head for destruction.

"UMNO has forgotten that the Malays have changed their own thinking and perspectives. It has forgotten that the Malays have changed their value system. The Malays are no longer what they used to be. They unreservedly express themselves. They even wave the DAP flags!"

Abdullah said during an exclusive interview with Sin Chew Daily at his private residence in Kuala Lumpur that during his five-year tenure as the prime minister, he has managed to change the mentality of the Malays.

He said young Malays believe they can stand on their own feet, and this is the major value that has changed the young Malays today.

"Young Malays feel that they need the opportunities, so they begin talking about DAP and PKR. They believe they have better opportunities there."

On the admission by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad that he had failed to change the mentality and attitude of the Malays, Abdullah said decisively, "I can change the Malays!"

On UMNO's reluctance to change in order to check money politics and racism, he said although this is a mounting task, he knows UMNO members are in the midst of changing.

"UMNO is getting more and more powerful, with some three million members. The larger the membership, the more problems will arise. We have all kinds of people among these three million members. I'm very unhappy (with money politics in UMNO), and have told (UMNO disciplinary board chairman Tan Sri Tengku Ahmad) Rithauddeen to take actions as soon as possible."

*******************
99% Malays will not eat pork
98% Malays will not touch a dog
90% Malays will not drink liquor
80% Malays will not eat un-slaughtered meat
70% Malays will not eat in a non-Muslim restaurant
60% Malays will not indulge in homosexual activities
50% Malays will no indulge in extra-marital sex
40% Malays will not take bribes
30% Malays will not wish the non-Muslims on their religious festivals (such as Merry Christmas, Kong Hee Fatt Choy or Happy Deepavali)
25% Malays will not shake hands with a member of the opposite sex
20% Malays will not celebrate the ‘Christian’ Valentine’s Day on 14 February
10% Malays will not celebrate birthdays
5% Malays will not take loans -- to avoid paying interest

Okay, the above is not a real poll. I just made it up. I don’t think anyone has ever conducted a poll to analyse this issue. But the ‘list of priorities’ is not that far off the mark although the percentages are a figment of my imagination. I just wanted to get your attention and demonstrate the priorities of the Malays.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad once cried during an Umno General Assembly because, he said, he had failed to change the Malays. When asked during an interview soon after he retired as Prime Minister on 1 November 2003 what he would consider as the greatest regret of his 22 years in office, he replied his greatest regret is that he could not change the Malays.

And that was Tun Dr Mahathir, the strongest-minded Prime Minister Malaysia ever had in 51 years of nationhood. Can Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, a ‘softer’ man, achieve what someone regarded as a dictator had failed to do?

Now, before we take the word ‘dictator’ as something negative, let me stress that there are many types of dictators and sometimes we need a dictator to set things right. A benevolent dictator is not so bad for the country and is maybe just the thing the country needs to cure it of its ills. It is when we get a malevolent dictator is when things became very dicey. But then dictators can sometimes change from being benevolent to malevolent when power gets to their heads. That is the problem with having too much power in the hands of a dictator and not enough democracy.

For example, if a dictator heavy-handedly passes laws that make it a crime to perpetuate racism, even if the law is draconian and robs us of our fundamental rights, in the long term it would be good for the country. But then laws tend to get abused and ‘good’ laws eventually get used for what they were not originally intended.

Take the Internal Security Act as one example. It was a ‘good’ law when we needed to solve the problem of massacres, assassinations, bombings and terrorism in the 1960s. But once all the chaos and anarchy ends and the law is not abolished, and then it is used for other purposes, such as for stifling dissent and for curtailing criticism of those who walk in the corridors of power, what used to be ‘good’ gets transformed to bad.

So good can very rapidly become bad when wrongly applied. And good dictators can also become bad dictators when they no longer just want to end racism the ‘undemocratic’ way but start using their vast powers to do things like to put down criticism of their rule.

I suppose this is why the ends can never justify the means. If we accept undemocratic methods to achieve good, these undemocratic methods eventually come back to bite us in our sorry behinds.

Anyway, back to the issue of the day, whether Abdullah can do what Mahathir failed to do: to change the Malays.

When I was under ISA detention in September, I spent days arguing and debating with the six Special Branch officers who had been assigned to ‘take my statement’. These are basically marathon interrogation sessions where they point out to you the error of your ways and try to get you to repent so that you can again be released into society. I suppose they not only discovered they could not change me, but they were also perturbed that I passionately defended my position to the very end. I was ‘unreformable’ and there was no way they could reformat my brain and reinstall a new program.

They should have known that I am an ‘old model’, the first generation ‘hardware’, and new software can’t run on old hardware. Ever try installing Windows XP into an old 386? There is no way it would work. You would need a very old Windows program to run a 386.

So I am old hardware, a 386, and I need the Windows 3.0 to make me tick. Forget about Windows XP. That is what the Special Branch officers did not understand.

The debates we engaged in behind the barbed wire fence of the Police Remand Center (PRC), your first stop for 60 days before they either allow you to go home or you get sent to Kamunting for at least two years, was why I write what I write. I whack the Malays to kingdom come. I show no mercy. I ask for no quarter and offer none as well. Why am I so brutal with the Malays? And even the way the Malays practice Islam is not spared. I am heartless and merciless in my criticism.

My reasoning was simple. And I explained it to the Special Branch officers. The Malays will never change. Even Tun Dr Mahathir said so. (But Abdullah, though he agrees that the Malays need changing, does not share Mahathir’s view that they can’t be changed. Abdullah thinks he is able to change them).

The Malays, I explained, need to be dragged, kicking and screaming, into the new Millennium. You can drag a horse to water but you can’t force it to drink, they say. Well, we not only need to drag the Malays to water, we also need to force their heads into the water and make them drink. So we may end up drowning a few. So what? The end result would be we get them to drink, though against their will.

When someone is a lunatic and no drug can cure him or her, we need to use shock treatment. Sometimes shock treatment is the best cure when reasoning and medication can’t do the job. We have been Merdeka for 51 years. How long more are we going to wait before we declare that drastic times require drastic measures? Another 51 years when it would by then have already been too late?

I am third-generation Malaysian, I told the Special Branch officers. My grandfather fought for Merdeka. I, too, am now a grandfather. I have four grandchildren of my own. So my grandchildren, who in 20 years from now will be inheriting this country, are fifth generation Malaysians. Five generations is long enough. If, by now, we have not changed, then we never will.

So we are in a crisis situation. In 1960, when Malaysia was facing a crisis, we introduced the ISA. The ISA is not only draconian but unconstitutional as well. It is, in short, a downright ‘illegal’ law. But even the opposition agreed that the ends justify the means and they supported the ISA.

I, too, believe that the Malays need to be changed. Tun Dr Mahathir believed the same thing. And so does Abdullah Badawi (though he feels he can rectify what Mahathir couldn’t).

Sure, I whack the Malays, I told the Special Branch officers. I insult them. I vilify them. I make fun of the way they practice Islam. I make some Malays ashamed that they are Malays and would rather be called something else. But no good medicine tastes nice. All medicine is bitter. And I do not want to sugar-coat the medicine to hide its real taste. What you see is what you get.

But the Special Branch officers did not agree with me. They felt I was beyond redemption. They did not need 60 days with me to try to ‘turn me over’. They knew I was beyond salvage. So, after just ten days, they packed me off to Kamunting where I was supposed to spend the rest of my days on earth. And as long as I defended my views and refused to change my position, I would remain in Kamunting, be in ten years if necessary.

But I am now out again, thanks to my lawyers who did a good job getting me released. And I am back at it, whacking the Malays. I can’t help it. If I hated the Malays I would just say, “To hell with them. Why bother to try to change them?” But the English say: spare the rod and spoil the child. And the Malays say: if you love the child, you beat him or her.

Courtesy Of Malaysia Today


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Obama top news story of 2008

In this Nov 4 file photo, Obama, his wife Michelle, and two daughters, Malia, 7. and Sasha, 10, wave at the election night rally in Chicago. — AP pic

NEW YORK, Dec 22 — The epic election that made Barack Obama the first African-American president was the top news story of 2008 — followed closely by the economic meltdown that will test his leadership, according to US editors and news directors voting in The Associated Press' annual poll.

The campaign, with subplots emerging throughout the year, received 100 first-place votes out of 155 ballots cast for the top 10 stories. Two other political sagas — the history-making candidacies of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sarah Palin — also made the list.

The vast economic crisis, plunging the US into recession and ravaging many business sectors worldwide, was the No. 2 story, receiving 49 first-place votes. The precipitous rise and fall of oil prices was No. 3.

The top story of 2007 was the massacre of 32 people at Virginia Tech University by a mentally disturbed student gunman.

Here are 2008's top 10 stories, as voted by AP members:

1. U.S. ELECTION: Obama emerged from Election Night as a decisive victor and a symbol for the world of America's democratic promise. But he reached that point only after a gruelling battle with Clinton for the Democratic nomination and then an often-nasty showdown with the McCain/Palin ticket in the run-up to the election.

2. ECONOMIC MELTDOWN: The bad news kept coming — collapses of Wall Street giants; huge stock market losses; plummeting home prices and a surge of foreclosures; desperate times for US automakers. It added up to the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, and will cost the federal government well over US$1 trillion (RM3.6 trillion) in various rescue and stimulus packages.

3. OIL PRICES: The global economic angst produced hyper-volatile energy markets. The price of crude soared as high as US$150 a barrel in July before crashing to US$33 this month. In the US, the average price for a gallon of regular gas peaked at US$4.11, then plunged below US$1.70.

4. IRAQ: The much-debated "surge" of US troops helped reduce violence after more than five years of war, but Iraq is still buffeted daily by bombings, ambushes, kidnappings and political uncertainty. A newly ratified US-Iraqi security agreement sets a timetable for US troop withdrawal by 2012.

5. BEIJING OLYMPICS: China hosted the Olympics for first time, drawing praise for logistical mastery and condemnation for heavy-handed security measures. The games themselves were rated a success, highlighted by the record-shattering performances of swimmer Michael Phelps and sprinter Usain Bolt.

6. CHINESE EARTHQUAKE: A huge quake in May killed 70,000 people in Sichuan province and left 5 million homeless. Many thousands of children were among the victims — authorities said about 7,000 classrooms were destroyed in shoddily built schools.

7. SARAH PALIN: Few Americans outside Alaska knew much about its governor when Republican John McCain picked her as his running mate. That changed rapidly. To her conservative admirers, she was a feisty, refreshing change from most politicians; to her critics, she was in over her head, and worthy of all the lampooning she endured.

8. MUMBAI TERRORISM: Ten attackers allegedly sponsored by a Pakistan-based Islamic group terrorised India's financial capital in November, killing 164 people in coordinated attacks on hotels, markets and a train station. India's perennially uneasy relations with Pakistan were badly strained.

9. HILLARY CLINTON: She didn't win, but Clinton came closer than any other woman in US history to becoming a major party's presidential nominee. Her determined primary campaign, waged vigorously even when it seemed a lost cause, inspired millions of women across the US — and helped persuade Obama to choose her as secretary of state.

10. RUSSIA-GEORGIA WAR: The two nations waged a five-day war in August ignited by a Georgian artillery barrage on the breakaway region of South Ossetia. Russia responded with a drive deep into Georgian territory, causing severe economic damage and aggravating already troubled Russia-US relations.

Stories that almost made the Top 10 included Cyclone Nargis, which killed more than 84,000 people in Myanmar; Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, which wreaked deadly damage in the Caribbean and on the US Gulf Coast; and the see-saw fate of same-sex marriage in California, where a court ruling approving it was later overturned by a ballot measure.

Several write-in votes were cast for two developments that occurred too late to be included on the AP ballot — the indictment of Illinois Gov Rod Blagojevich and the efforts of struggling US automakers to get a federal bailout. The alleged financial scam involving Bernard Madoff also was revealed too late to make the ballot.

Several of the editors who voted commented on how two transcendent developments dominated the news in 2008.

"As far as I am concerned, there were only two stories this year," wrote Linda Grist Cunningham of the Rockford (Illinois) Register Star. "Global economy collapses (sending every country into financial, political and personal chaos) and Obama elected US president, changing the way the America does business — financial, political and personal." — AP


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Abby Norman divorce sealed

KUALA LUMPUR: The Gombak Timur syariah lower court yesterday granted actress Abby Abadi a divorce from her actor husband Norman Hakim.

The divorce was sealed after Norman uttered the words to divorce Abby or Arbaeyah Abdul Manan, 31, in front of judge Wan Mahyuddin Wan Muhammad.

Abby Abadi says she will claim child maintenance from her husband.
Norman or Mohamed Norhakim Zaidon, 32, of Gerak Khas fame arrived in court at 9am while Abby, who also made her name via the hit police TV series, arrived 10 minutes later.

Proceedings were delayed by 40 minutes when a distraught Norman had difficulty in uttering the words and had to be pacified by a court assistant and Abby's lawyer Ahmad Nazib Johari.

Later, Norman said he accepted fate, God's decree and destiny.
"I divorced Arbaeyah with talak satu and hope that things will become better. Life will go on as usual and the children will still receive the love of both parents.

"We hope for the best and will not sever our ties for the future of the children and also that of ours," he said.

Meanwhile, Abby said she wanted to change for the better as she picks up her life after the divorce.

"I have to refresh myself, to become a new person and be strong in facing future challenges."

Abby said she would be claiming for child maintenance from Norman through her lawyer.

Married on Jan 11, 2002, Abby and Norman were briefly separated two years ago but were reunited on May 11, 2006.

They have three children -- Mohd Danish Hakim, 5, Marisa Dania Hakim, 3, and Maria Danisha Hakim, 3 months. (NST)

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Prosecution deliberately delaying trial - RPK

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Raja Kamarudin claimed the prosecution was deliberately delaying his sedition trial when the complainant in his case was not available to be questioned by his defence team on Thursday.

“Why must the prosecution bring this case to court today just to amend the charge and postpone it?,” Raja Petra, 58, told the Sessions Court.

“How long are we going to wait for Supt Gan Tack Guan (chief investigator in the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case and the complainant in Raja Petra’s sedition trial)?

“He was on medical leave earlier and is now gone for training,” he said.

The former ISA detainee had on May 6 claimed trial to publishing a seditious article on his Malaysia Today news portal on April 25.

He is accused of publishing the article Let’s send the Altantuya murderers to hell on the website www.malaysia-today.net.

When told by Sessions Court judge Rozina Ayob that he only had to record his plea over the amended charge, Raja Petra said: “I plead not guilty and I protest the delay.”

The amendment inserted the title of the seditious article and the addition of the URL of the article to the first page of the appendix attached to the sedition charge.

The Shah Alam High Court had on Monday allowed an application by the prosecution to revise the lower court decision which had disallowed amendments to the charge.

DPP Roslan Mat Nor said the prosecution did not intend to delay the trial and that Supt Gan was not subpoenaed for the trial as he was attending training in Taiwan which would end on Dec 21.

“I have ordered the investigating officer to ask his (Supt Gan’s) office to fax a copy of a letter on the training to tender to the court,” he said.

DPP Roslan said the prosecution was asking for a two-week adjournment to allow the seventh witness, computer forensic investigator Asst Supt Wa’ie Isqal Kria Abdullah, to extract documents from two computers seized from Raja Petra as ordered by the court earlier.

“We have identified the documents from the folders (in the computers) and we need to open those folders so that we can give a copy to the defence,” he said.

However, he said the defence could also cross-examine Cyber Security Malaysia senior digital forensic analyst S. Sivanathan, 28.

Lead counsel J. Chandra said the prosecution’s application was a waste of judicial time.

“We reserve our right to raise an objection upon being served the (new) documents,” he said, adding that Sivanathan was called to intepret the documents extracted by ASP Wa’ie and would be questioned later.

Lawyer Gobind Singh Deo asked the court to direct the prosecution to close the case if they were unable to call Supt Gan to be cross-examined.

“Supt Gan is aware that the hearing has been fixed for four days but he deliberately chose to go away. He is a police officer and should know the procedure,” he contended.

Rozina said Supt Gan was not subpoened and set three days from Feb 10 for continuation of the trial. (TheStar)

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Oil tumbles below USD40 per barrel

Oil prices tumbled below US$40 for the first time since the summer of 2004 yesterday despite an announcement from Opec of a record production cut of 2.2 million barrels a day.

The drop shows that even the mighty Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries has little sway over a growing global recession, analysts said. Crude prices are down more than 72 per cent from their summer peak of US$147 a barrel, yet tankers continue to idle in the Gulf of Mexico and other ports waiting for buyers.

"There's just so much oil in inventory out there right now," said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research. "Nobody wants to buy this stuff."

Markets had already priced in a vastly reduced flow of oil and traders focused instead on troubling economic data that points to a long and severe recession.

Light, sweet crude for January delivery tumbled 8 per cent, or US$3.54, to settle at US$40.06 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Benchmark crude prices fell as low as US$39.88, a price last seen in July 2004.

Opec had already announced cuts totaling 2 million barrels earlier this year, also with little effect. The unprecedented production cuts and the market reaction show just how fast energy demand has fallen during the worst economic downturn in at least a generation.

"You've got a commodity that people are buying less of because they can't afford to buy more," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading Corp. "People are fearful. They have a lack of confidence in the economy. They're closing their factories."

Lynch said global demand has slowed to its worst point since the early 1980s. Economists previously thought China and other developing countries were impervious to a global recession, he said.

"Now it's pretty clear that things are going to be bad everywhere," Lynch said.

US gasoline inventories continued to rise, the government reported, providing further evidence of a major pullback by American motorists.

Demand for gasoline over the four weeks ended Dec 12 was 2.7 per cent lower than a year earlier.

Grim economic news radiates out of the US, Europe and Asia almost daily as consumers and industries pull back on spending.

The Cooper Tire and Rubber Co said yesterday it will cut 1,300 jobs and close a plant in Georgia.

Newell Rubbermaid Inc is reducing its salaried work force by as much as 10 per cent. The Atlanta-based company slashed its fourth-quarter and full-year profit guidance yesterday.

In Detroit, General Motors Corp put the brakes on construction of an engine factory trying to hold on to the cash that it has left.

Meanwhile, the dollar suffered its biggest one-day decline against the euro after the Federal Reserve cut a key lending rate target to historic lows.

That would typically lead more investors into the crude market because oil is bought and sold in dollars and you can get more bang for the buck.

But investors in this harsh economic climate are holding onto their wallets like never before, betting there's not enough global demand to support higher crude prices, said Gene McGillian, an analyst at Tradition Energy.

"Oil prices should be a lot stronger," McGillian said.

The last time oil prices dipped below US$40 a barrel was on July 21, 2004. Prices settled that day at US$40.09, according to Peter Beutel, an oil analyst at Cameron Hanover.

Many analysts believe oil prices will continue falling next year with agencies ranging from the US Department of Energy to the International Energy Agency forecasting weak demand.

IHS Global Insight chief economist Nariman Behravesh was among the industry experts forecasting lower prices for oil.

"Oil prices will (easily) fall below US$40 per barrel in the next year, and could tumble all the way to US$30," Behravesh said in a research note. "With the economic outlook deteriorating by the day, futures markets for commodities have not priced in the full extent of the 'demand destruction' taking place."

Doubts also remain about the willingness of some Opec members to adhere to price-boosting production quotas.

"Opec has lacked credibility for a long time on discipline," said Gerard Rigby, energy analyst at Fuel First Consulting in Sydney. "Opec is going to have to show they are committed to the cut, that it's not just talk."

US crude inventories rose slightly last week despite expectations for a drop, while gasoline reserves increased as demand stayed below year-ago levels, according to government data released yesterday.

Analysts had expected a drop of 900,000 barrels, according to a survey by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos.

Gas prices, because it must be refined from crude, almost always lags the movement in oil prices.

Retail gas prices, which hit a low of US$1.656 a gallon on Friday, rose to US$1.667 a gallon yesterday, according to auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express. — AP

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Malaysia to take 3 years to recover from market slump

Malaysia's property market will take three years to recover from its slump, the slowest revival in more than two decades, reflecting the reach of the worldwide financial crisis, according to Regroup Associates.

"In the past four weeks, I've been staring at an abyss," said Allan Soo, managing director and founder of property consultant Regroup. "What's changed is the global recession."

A worldwide slowdown has sparked real estate slumps from Britain to Singapore, causing Malaysian developers such as Magna Prima to scale back projects. Values of luxury homes in Kuala Lumpur, where prices surged to a record last year, may fall as an oversupply looms, according to Soo, who declined to give a specific forecast.

Malaysia's property market took about a year to recover from the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, he said. The rebound from the latest slump might start in 2010 and take as long as the recovery from the 1985 recession, Soo added.

Compared with last year, interest from prospective buyers had dried up, he said. "Inquiries would come in right after we put up a signboard on properties. Now, there're none."

Home prices will come under further pressure as the number of high-end apartments in Kuala Lumpur doubles to more than 30,000 in the next three years, according to Regroup.

Economic growth in Malaysia next year is expected to slow to 3.5 per cent from about 5 per cent this year, according to the government's estimates.

Still, losses for homeowners might be capped because most bought properties in 2006 before the peak for less than RM1,000 (HK$2,174) per square foot, Soo said. The entry of foreigners last year pushed prices to more than RM2,000 , he added.

Signs of fewer home purchases have already emerged. Bank loans approved for home purchases in October fell to its lowest since February, according to the central bank.

SP Setia, Malaysia's largest developer, expects a 22 per cent decline in property sales to 1.1 billion ringgit in fiscal 2009, according to Citigroup. The Kuala Lumpur Property Index has slumped 51 per cent this year, outpacing the main index's 40 per cent slide.

Magna Prima said last month it cut the projected revenue from its biggest property development in northern Kuala Lumpur by almost half. - South China Morning Post

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How to become very rich in Malaysia -Malaysiakini

Connections and the ability to flip assets can get you going places

If you have ever wondered how to get rich in Malaysia – fabulously rich and very quickly at that – here’s a model that you might want to look at very closely. Not easy to do but if you do have a couple of projects in the bag, it will set you up for several lifetimes.

First you need connections – strong ones, the higher the better and if it goes right up to the top all the better. You need this because you need to convince the powers that be that your projects are good.

But you might ask if your projects are so good, why do you need connections? Why don’t you just go out and execute? Good questions, those. Here’s the answer - you need the state to give you something to do the deal that will help the nation.

Still can’t figure it out? See, it’s like this. You want to help the country, right? The country needs say a port. But you can’t build a port just like that. You need land to build a port. You tell the state or federal government you need land – cheap land, preferably free to build the port.

Or to take another example, you want to help the country by building a power plant. But look, you need land too and not only that you need the power to be sold. So you want an agreement – an iron-clad one to sell the power to Tenaga Nasional and to pass through all costs.

You see, that’s your reward as an entrepreneur – you get someone else to build the power plant, they guarantee the performance of the plant and someone else guarantees to buy your power and pay for all your costs. Nice deal? You bet. Billionaires have been made that way.

Or you may want to start an air hub. If you are persuasive enough, you can even convince the government to compulsorily acquire the land and sell it to you cheap. Once you have cheap land, lucrative contracts and concession agreements, the sky’s the limit.

Let’s take it a step further. If you want to realise the value of all of these things that you have and still keep control of them, it’s nice to have a listed company into which you can inject them. Inject one asset for shares and you gain control of the company.

And then inject others over the years for cash, taking the money out of the company. Who says you can’t have your cake and eat it too?

Do it right and get a flow of assets to inject in (you can do anything with discounted cash flow valuations – just change the discount rate, and presto, the value changes!), and you get a tidy flow of profits and cash into your personal accounts over the years. I mean a really tidy flow.

Just how much can you make this way, you ask? Why don’t you take a guess first? Did you say RM500mil? Guess again. RM1bil? How about five times that and you may be getting into the right order of magnitude.

One Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary actually made some RM4.5bil that way - actually more because he still controls the listed company. (
MMC’s latest RM1.7bil deal irks investors7) We are not saying he is the only one, which makes your chances of joining the ranks better – if you are connected to high places that is.

But then again, if things change – and that’s still a big ‘if’ – you might not find it so easy anymore.

P. Gunasegaram is managing editor of The Star. He thinks it is high time we changed the way we did business

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BN can't afford to lose in T'ganu - Najib

KUALA TERENGGANU: The Barisan Nasional cannot afford to lose the Kuala Terengganu by-election, deputy Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak said yesterday. "From my observation of the leaders involved in this by-election, I am confident that the BN is ready to succeed.
"A win will be a clear signal that Umno and the BN are still relevant to the rakyat," he said when launching the BN's Kuala Terengganu by-election machinery at the Islamic Civilisation Park here.

Also present were Umno vice-presidents Tan Sri Muh-yiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam, Umno information chief Tan Sri Muhammad Muhammad Taib, Umno Youth chief Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, Puteri vice-chief Datuk Rosnah Abdul Rashid Shirlin, Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Said, Information Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek and Kuala Terengganu Umno division chief Senator Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh.

The by-election for the parliamentary seat on Jan 17 was called after the death of its member of parliament Datuk Razali Ismail, last month.
Najib said to win the by-election, party members had to be earnest and sincere.

"There are two-faced Umno members. There are those who walk around in Umno vests, shirts, caps and badges, but vote for another party.

"These people should get an Oscar.

"When Pas took over the state government in 1999, it wasn't because they were a better party, but because of such Umno members."

He said the candidate for the seat has to be humble as the electorate would judge him on his conduct rather than his academic qualifications.

Najib said the candidate also had to appeal to the non-Malay community, who could determine the outcome of the by-election.

"It all boils down to how we carry ourselves.

"If we salam (shake hands) and smile, they will support us. We have to go to the ground and mix with the rakyat.

"And this not only applies to the candidate but Umno leaders as well."

Najib also asked members here to accept the party's choice of candidate for the by-election.

"I know that the choice of candidate can cause infighting among ordinary members as well as at the divisional level.

"But if there is unity at the top, then there would not be a problem among members."

Najib is expected to announce the BN candidate next week.(NST)


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Lingam Tape Application Fails

KUALA LUMPUR: The five individuals implicated in the controversial "Lingam video clip" failed in their bid to obtain leave from the High Court here to challenge the Royal Commission of Inquiry's findings.

Justice Datuk Abdul Kadir Musa accepted the preliminary objection raised by senior federal counsel Azizah Nawawi, for the commission, that the findings were not reviewable because they were not a decision in the context of Order 53 Rule 2(4) of the Rules of the High Court.

The five-member panel of commissioners, in their report, had found the video clip showing senior lawyer Datuk V.K.Lingam in a telephone conversation with former chief justice Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim over judicial appointment to be authentic.

The commission also recommended that appropriate course of action be taken against six individuals -- Lingam, tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan, Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and two former chief justices Ahmad Fairuz and Tun Mohd Eusoff Chin -- for misconduct.

It found that there was sufficient evidence to investigate the six men for offences under the Sedition Act, Official Secrets Act, the Penal Code and the Legal Profession Act 1976.

Except for Dr Mahathir, the other five filed for leave for a judicial review in an attempt to quash the inquiry's finding.

The commissioners -- chairman Tan Sri Haidar Mohd Noor, former chief judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Amar Steve Shim Lip Kiong, retired Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mahadev Shankar, former solicitor-general Puan Sri Zaitun Zawiyah Puteh and Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Khoo Kay Kim -- sat for 17 days to inquire into the 14-minute video clip. (Bernama)

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Almost all rumours on Malaysia Today eventually become facts - RPK

KUALA LUMPUR,– Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin said tonight that 99% of the rumours he reports on his website eventually turn out to be true.

Defending himself from a caller on a special interview with Riz Khan on satellite television station Al Jazeera who asked why he persisted in writing about rumours, he said time and time again he had been proven right with his stories.

“I have always been told that two things sell and that is sex and politics. And sex involving politics sells even more,” he quipped.

He also denied the perception that Malaysia Today was an opposition mouthpiece, pointing out that he had been critical of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) as well.

Raja Petra added that he would also not consider playing a role in government if PR succeeded in toppling Barisan Nasional (BN).

“I do not wish to be in government. I wish to be in a pressure group. I have joked that if Pakatan forms the government I will then join Umno,” he said.

Besides Raja Petra, the other guests on the show were playwright Jo Kukathas and journalist Kee Thuan Chye.

All three guests offered their respective views on a gamut of issues from censorship and the media to the use of the Internal Security Act (ISA).

Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar also joined the discussion by telephone and made a stout defence of the ISA.

Offering the government’s condolences to the people of India over the recent Mumbai attacks, he justified the continued existence of the ISA by saying the law was the reason why Malaysia had not suffered any major terrorist attacks.

He also contended that it was only what he described as a vocal minority of Malaysians who were against the ISA while the majority wanted safety and order in society.

Kukathas responded, however, to the minister’s arguments by pointing out that most of those who were ever arrested under the ISA were not terrorists.

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Zaid Ibrahim parted with UMNO

It may sound like a cliché but Umno's decision to expel Datuk Zaid Ibrahim from the party is a win-win solution. For the ruling party, it ends a painful charade which started in March 2008 when the lawyer cum politician was made a senator and appointed to the Cabinet as the de facto Law Minister.

From the word go, it was obvious that he and other Umno politicians did not have much in common.

He spoke the language of a reformer, behaved at times like a social activist and often found himself in the same pack as Pakatan Rakyat politicians and the Bar Council.

In truth, he was tolerated in the early days because the party reeling from the shock results of Election 2008 had more pressing issues at hand.

It was still coming to grips with a stronger Opposition and the vexing question of whether Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi should remain as party president and Prime Minister.

The clarion call at that point was party unity. So everybody put up a facade of getting along with each other.

But privately, the whispering campaign against Zaid among senior Umno officials, including ministers, started in May.

They were uneasy with his battering ram approach in reforming the judiciary and dismantling the Internal Security Act.

Several Umno ministers blamed him for the ex-gratia payment which the government made to the judges who were either sacked or suspended during the judicial crisis in 1988 and the decision to make public the Royal Commission's report on the V K Lingam video clip.

The report implicated a host of prominent individuals including Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Mansor and former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

By July, Zaid cut a lonely figure in the Cabinet. He was being attacked in Parliament by Umno MPs, behind closed doors by Umno ministers and publicly by Dr Mahathir. The only protector he had was Abdullah.

But as Abdullah's hold on Umno got weaker and weaker especially after Anwar Ibrahim's win in the Permatang Pauh by-election, so did his ability and willingness to defend Zaid.

Umno politicians began questioning Zaid's ability to be a team player and arguing that he did not carry or represent the aspirations of the Malays.

They rejected the first draft of the Judicial Appointments Commission and Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar ticked him off for suggesting in Parliament that the government was reviewing the Internal Security Act.

When the government reached for the ISA against a journalist and DAP MP Teresa Kok in September, Zaid handed in his resignation as a minister. His friends say that instead of being depressed, resigning from the Cabinet was a liberating experience.

After the euphoria of being appointed a minister had died down, it had been a torture for him to be in the government.

He could not stomach the chauvinism and narrow-mindedness of ruling party politicians and realized that he was an outsider.

On at least a couple of occasions, he went to see Abdullah to offer his resignation, saying that he did not fit into this landscape. On both occasions, Zaid was persuaded to be patient and assured that the Administration would back the initiatives to reform the judiciary.

He agreed but it had become a chore for him to wake up daily and go to Putrajaya..

His presence at Cabinet meetings grew more infrequent in August/September and he knew that there was only going to be one conclusion for this political experiment which began when he received a late night telephone call from Abdullah several days after March 8.

His friends said that his few months in Cabinet made him realize that he had a value system that was completely different from Umno's.

He does not believe in the concept of Ketuanan Melayu or in the use of the ISA.

Days after he resigned from government, Anwar reached out to him. He appeared seduced by the idea of joining the Opposition, especially at the time when all the talk in town was about the September 16 crossovers.

But he decided against it and told family and friends that he would like to set up a foundation to foster better race relations among Malaysia's young. The Opposition has not stopped wooing him. He may be tempted to join either the PKR or DAP.

Why?

Unlike Umno, they want him. Also, his ideals are closer to those espoused by Anwar and Lim Kit Siang. He wants the ISA to be abolished, for the separation of powers to be respected, for the country's institutions to be restored to their full glory.

His sacking from Umno will allow him to follow his dreams. His sacking will allow Umno to finally get rid of a politician who was never one of them. (MalaysianInsider)

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Fuel prices reduced by 10 sen

KUALA LUMPUR: The retail price of petrol and diesel will be reduced by 10 sen a litre each effective Wednesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has announced.

The price of petrol RON97 will be reduced from RM2.00 a litre to RM1.90, RON92 petrol to RM1.80 from RM1.90 and diesel to RM1.80 from RM1.90.
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Selangor will follow Terengganu by not awarding Datukship in conjunction with Sultan's birthday

SHAH ALAM: No politician will be awarded a Datukship in conjunction with the Sultan of Selangor’s birthday on Dec 11.

This is because Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has put a freeze on awarding such titles to politicians this year.

“There will be no politicians – either from the past or present state government.

“The present state government is barely eight months old. Even a pregnancy is nine months,” the Sultan said in an interview at Istana Mestika here.

“I am sure there are deserving cases in the present state government but let us wait first. Let them focus on their work, not awards or rewards. Titles need not come with positions,” he said.

The Sultan said Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim understood the decision after his explanation on the need to limit the number of awards.

“There is no such thing as a quota for the MB or myself. We agree it should not be freely given to maintain its prestige,” he said.

He said he did not wish to talk about how certain states had given out the titles easily.

However, Sultan Sharafuddin said that if too many Datuk titles were given out, it would only “devalue the titles and the purpose of having these awards.”

He said the state limited the number of Datukships to 40 each year but added that he had never given more than 30 each time.

Except for the investiture ceremony on Dec 11 and the tea party with the people on the same day, the Sultan said that there would be no additional state functions.

“I have ordered the state administration to cut costs. There is no need for any unnecessary spending because of my birthday.

“This is a time to be prudent and not waste the rakyat’s money,” he said.

On the performance of the state’s elected representatives, Sultan Sharafuddin said he had instructed palace officials and even his brother to monitor their performance during the State Assembly sitting.

“I am not interfering in politics. I want to know precisely, not just from press reports, how they perform.

“Do they know what they are talking about and have they done their homework? Are they taking part or just sitting quietly to observe the proceedings with no contributions?

The Sultan said his decision was not aimed at any particular party.

“It does not matter if they are in the Pakatan Rakyat or Barisan Nasional.

“If they behave badly or ignore decorum, I will have a word with them because I expect high standards and correct behaviour because the rakyat is watching closely during the State Assembly.” (TheStar)

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MCA slams UMNO for suggestion to abolish vernacular schools

KUALA LUMPUR, - MCA president Datuk Ong Tee Keat has wasted no time in condemning Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir's suggestion to abolish vernacular schools.

"Mukhriz is just one of the many who are now repeating the same polemics that are a few decades old, simply because of the advent of their party's poll," the Transport Minister said.

"It is saddening because politicians cannot think out of the box," he wrote in a blog posting.

In a press conference in Parliament today, the candidate for Umno Youth chief in the March party elections said that all schools should teach subjects in Bahasa Malaysia except for language subjects.

He said the proposal to have one unified school system could help address the problem of non-Malays misunderstanding the concept of "Ketuanan Melayu," or Malay Supremacy, which has become a source of tension between Malays and non-Malays.

Mukhriz argued that such misunderstandings were a result of a lack of national unity, which he blamed on the existence of vernacular shools.

Also in Parliament, MCA vice president Datuk Liow Tiong Lai said there was no reason to change the education system as the current one was accepted by all.

"The present system is still the best to ensure unity and harmony in our multiracial country," the Health Minister said.

He added that it was an old fallacy that vernacular primary schools caused unity problems.

He reasoned that at secondary level, the students were still able to integrate.

"He might not understand that teaching in your mother tongue is more effective at the primary level," Liow added.

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Anwar seeks royal support in power struggle

KUALA LUMPUR, - Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim is reaching out to Malaysia's powerful sultans in his latest strategy to try to wrest power from the government.

His wife, Dr Wan Azizah Ismail, the nominal president of Anwar's Keadilan party, has offered to restore their powers if the opposition seizes power. "We are willing to return royal immunity and power to veto laws in the spirit of constitutional monarchy," she said.

Her statement has sparked debate over whether the Malay rulers, one of whom is chosen as ruling sultan every five years, should get back powers that were taken away in 1984 by then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Dr Mahathir amended the constitution and removed the sultan's power to veto bills, making the government the highest authority in the country. A 1993 amendment removed royal immunity from prosecution.

Constitutional law expert Shad Saleem Faruqi said on Friday that he supported the reinstatement of royal powers, but under strict codes of conduct to prevent the abuse of power.

The proposal came a day after Tunku Naquiyuddin, the regent of Negri Sembilan, made a rare demand to the government to reinstate royal powers.

The government's response was lukewarm, with the minister for law Nazri Aziz saying that a proposal must be made by the Conference of Rulers, a body that represents the nine sultans.

Despite his reduced powers, the ruling sultan does have discretionary powers to convene and dissolve parliament and appoint chief ministers, judges and senior civil servants.

The royals have also been outspoken recently on a number of issues, and many went against the ruling by the National Fatwa Council, Malaysia's top religious authority, to ban yoga for Muslims. The sultans have also been critical of Malaysia's scandal-plagued judiciary.

"The royals have an expanding role as a check on government excesses," said Ramon Navaratnam, the chairman of think-tank, Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute. "We should not reject their suggestion outright, but examine it carefully."

Anwar's move to win royal support could be politically significant if he wins the backing of the king, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, who can convene parliament - a tactic that could be used by Anwar to stage a mass defection of government backbenchers to his party. - South China Morning Post

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Kayveas threaten to leave BN if ISA is not abolished

The PPP will pull out of the Barisan Nasional if the Internal Security Act is not amended before the next elections, party president Datuk M. Kayveas said.

“I have to follow what the Youth and Wanita divisions have proposed to the party and they want the ISA abolished.

“As a responsible party I told them let’s go halfway and ask for amendments to the Act so that it is not a draconian law imposed on innocent citizens,” he said when opening the Youth and Wanita meeting and elections yesterday.

“The Barisan has to make changes before the next general election. It would be suicidal if we do not.

“The problem with the Barisan is its success the past 50 years. Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.

“The March election has shown what the voters are looking for: good governance and multi-racialism.

“The solution has always been multi-racialism but to date the Barisan is still caught in its own political racial configuration and so what is said is not implemented fast enough.”

Wanita leader C. Josephine Anne said the Barisan had to act now to “fast-track development programmes for all races, show our sincerity and start by uniting the Barisan parties.”

“The Barisan must work towards a common society to regain the confidence of the rakyat, and not just offer lip service and continue to use the race card.

“In this day and age, we cannot continue to pit one race against the other and talk about unity.”

PPP Youth chief T. Murugiah said they did not support the use of the ISA against ordinary citizens.

“The ISA was designed to handle a terrorist threat and should be used only for the purpose.”

On Murugiah’s position in PPP, Kayveas said that he would appoint him to the supreme council and get the council’s approval to appoint him as vice-president.

R. Ellan Govan, who was deputy Youth chief, beat two others to become Youth chief while incumbent Wanita chief Josephine won uncontested.(TheStar)

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Mumbai Terrorist Attack Cleared

MUMBAI: The luxury Taj Mahal hotel was cleared of terror threat late Thursday night after an unspecified number of them holed up in the iconic landmark were killed in a commando raid while a final assault on the besieged Trident Oberoi was underway, a day after the audacious terror strike in India's financial capital Mumbai in which the death toll rose to 127.

All but one of the terrorists holed up in Taj hotel were killed in encounter with National Security Guards (NSG) and Army, Press trust of India (PTI) quoted military sources as saying.

One terrorist was neutralised by crack commandos and is in an injured condition, according to NSG Director General JK Dutt.

Late in the night, there was a major fire in the Trident (Oberoi) hotel where about 200 people have been trapped and terrorists exploded grenades that set the roof ablaze amid exchange of gunfire.

Two terrorists are holed up in the 8th floor of the Oberoi hotel while in the Trident section the combing operation has been completed.

There were reports that about 30 to 35 hotel guests were safely evacuated.

Dutt said it is a matter of time before the combing operation is over in the hotel.

The other scene of action was at Nariman House, a Jewish residential complex, where some Israelis have been held hostage by some three or four terrorists.

Combing operation in the building is in progress, Dutta said.

The hand of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba is suspected in the worst terror attacks in the country but the outfit denied any involvement.

Among the dead were six foreigners,14 police personnel, a home guard jawan and 104 members of the public including several staff of the two hotels. Of the 327 injured, police personnel accounted for 26 and foreigners seven. (Bernama)

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Subang Jaya hit by flood

RETIREE Lim Sen Kiem, 68, may not be an expert on floods but he certainly knows what it is like to have flood waters threatening to enter one’s home.

Lim, who lives in USJ14/1F Subang Jaya, said the downpour last Thursday evening had brought a high volume of water to the large torrential drain in his neighbourhood, causing it to overflow.

According to Lim, the rain started at about 4pm and went on for an hour.

“I have been staying here for nearly 20 years and this is the first time I have seen floods at the road stretch. Perhaps the drain is clogged,” Lim said.

Several USJ and Subang Jaya residents who, like Lim, had witnessed last Thursday’s floods, said it was perhaps the worst that they have seen in the township.

The downpour went on to inundate roads in various parts of USJ and Subang Jaya, causing massive traffic jams.

Housewife Louise Fon, who stays in USJ 18, said she was driving back from Puchong when she was caught in a traffic crawl as the highway leading into USJ was flooded.

“I saw water and mud gushing from the construction sites onto the road. As soon as I turned into USJ, opposite the KFC restaurant and the Petronas petrol station. I saw the left turning at the traffic light junction already flooded,” the 36-year-old Fon said.

A mess: The living room of a house where flood waters had entered.

“Several cars were stranded and had broken down,” she said.

According to Fon, it was not the first time that the road there had been flooded as it happens quite often there.

“But the Thursday flood was probably the worst I’ve seen in USJ so far,” she said.

“I was lucky to have passed through that stretch but many drivers did not know how to drive through the waters and were caught,” she said.

Fon said the rain was exceptionally heavy that day, and the mud was flowing out of the construction sites very fast, thus causing the drains to overflow.

According to lecturer Moaz Yusuf Ahmad of SS17, the rainstorm had started near the Summit USJ and by the time the bus he was riding on reached the police station in USJ 9/8. and the whole area was flooded.


Taking notes: A MPSJ officer talking to residents in Subang Jaya/USJ where flash floods occurred during the downpour.
“When the bus turned into Persiaran Perpaduan, I could see the pool of water of about 12cm deep. The drains were overflowing and water from the Taipan USJ area was flowing over the side of the parking area,” Moaz said.

“It was perhaps one of the worst floods I had seen,” he said.

He attributed the problem to the poorly maintained drains.

Office worker Siti Hajar Yusof, 25, who works in the industrial area in USJ 1, said when she left her work area at about 5.30pm, the downpour had already started.

“Our office was not flooded but as soon as I got out to the stretch in front of the SJK (C) Chee Wen, I was stuck even though I was riding a motorbike,” Hajar said.

“Traffic congestion was everywhere and water was probably a foot high. The rain went on for another hour and it is perhaps the worst I’ve experienced,” she said.

Hajar blamed the flooding on the drainage system, saying that the water was unable to flow through properly.

Retiree Patrick Tan said a friend staying in USJ 14 had his plants kept in polystyrene boxes swept away by the flood waters.

Tan said he had previously experienced flash floods in the township, at several locations like the Persiaran Kewajipan/Perpaduan junction/traffic light, and the junction of Persiaran Murni/Bakti.

“The floods are due to the inadequate flow rate in the drains during heavy rain,” he said.

According to Tan, another reason for the flash floods in Subang Jaya and USJ is the concrete culvert that the Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) had built at the road dividers and road shoulders.

“These culverts act like a barrier to trap the rain water which cannot flow out through the small drains,” Tan said.

Other areas flooded were the Kewajipan roundabout and the stretch of road in front of Mydin and Giant in USJ 1.

The MPSJ, however, said it had only received reports of floods in four locations under its jurisdiction that day — USJ 9, USJ 19, Batu 14 Puchong and USJ 1 (which it said is due to surface run-off).

MPSJ president Datuk Adnan Md Ikshan said the Subang station of the Meteorological Department recorded 49mm of rainfall in the area last Thursday.

“It was a flash flood, with the water subsiding quickly. As soon as our hotline team reached the sites, there was no more flood,” he said.

Adnan said the drain running along USJ 9 to USJ 19 was the responsibility of the Public Works Department.

On claims that drains were clogged, Adnan said most of the drains in Subang Jaya and USJ were well-maintained and that his team had confirmed this after their inspections.

“Maybe garbage did contribute to the floods, but they are not necessary clogged in drains and were probably just swept along the way,” he said. (TheStar)

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Mumbai Under Attack

(If you are Malaysian in Mumbai, tell us about the situation in the City. Send your e-mails and pictures to feedback@thestar.com.my)
MUMBAI, India (AP) - Teams of heavily armed gunmen stormed luxury hotels, a popular restaurant, hospitals and a crowded train station in coordinated attacks across India's financial capital Wednesday night, killing at least 82 people and taking Westerners hostage, police said. A previously unknown group, apparently Muslim militants, took responsibility for the attacks.

Near dawn Thursday, parts of the city remained under siege, with police and gunmen exchanging occasional gunfire at two luxury hotels and an unknown number of people still held hostage, said A.N. Roy, a top police official.

A raging fire and explosions struck the landmark Taj Mahal hotel shortly after midnight. Screams could be heard and black smoke billowed from the century-old edifice on Mumbai's waterfront. Firefighters sprayed water at the blaze and plucked people from windows and balconies with extension ladders.

The attackers specifically targeted Britons and Americans, witnesses said. Officials said at least 120 people were wounded.

Early Thursday, state home secretary Bipin Shrimali said four suspects had been killed in two incidents when they tried to flee in cars, and Roy said two more gunmen were killed at the Taj Mahal. State Home Minister R.R. Patil said nine more were arrested. They declined to provide any further details.

The motive for the onslaught was not immediately clear, but Mumbai has frequently been targeted in terrorist attacks blamed on Islamic extremists, including a series of bombings in July 2006 that killed 187 people.

An Indian media report said a previously unknown group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen had claimed responsibility for the attacks in e-mails to several media outlets. There was no way to verify that claim.

Police reported hostages being held at the Taj Mahal and Oberoi hotels, two of the best-known upscale destinations in this crowded but wealthy city.

Gunmen who burst into the Taj "were targeting foreigners. They kept shouting: 'Who has U.S. or U.K. passports?''' said Ashok Patel, a British citizen who fled from the hotel.

Authorities believed seven to 15 foreigners were hostages at the Taj Mahal hotel, but it was not immediately clear if hostages at the Oberoi were Indians or foreigners, said Anees Ahmed, a top state official. It was also unclear where the hostages were in the Taj Mahal, which is divided into an older wing, which was in flames, and a modern tower that was not on fire.

State Department spokesman Robert Wood said U.S. officials were not aware of any American casualties, but were still checking. He said he could not address reports that Westerners might be among the hostages.

"We condemn these attacks and the loss of innocent life,'' White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.

Johnny Joseph, chief secretary for Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital, said 82 people had been killed and 120 had been wounded.

Officials at Bombay Hospital, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a Japanese man had died there and nine Europeans had been admitted, three of them in critical condition with gunshots. All had come from the Taj Mahal, the officials said.

At least three top Indian police officers _ including the chief of the anti-terror squad _ were among those killed, said Roy.

Blood smeared the floor of the Chhatrapati Shivaji rail station, where attackers sprayed bullets into the crowded terminal.

Other gunmen attacked Leopold's restaurant, a landmark popular with foreigners, and the police headquarters in southern Mumbai, the area where most of the attacks took place. The restaurant was riddled with bullet holes and there were blood on the floor and shoes left by fleeing customers. Gunmen also attacked Cama and Albless Hospital and G.T. Hospital, though it was not immediately clear if anyone was killed.

A British citizen who was dining at the Oberoi hotel told Sky News television that the gunmen who struck there singled out Britons and Americans.

Alex Chamberlain said a gunman, a young man of 22 or 23, ushered 30 or 40 people from the restaurant into a stairway and ordered everyone to put up their hands. He said the gunman spoke in Hindi or Urdu.

"They were talking about British and Americans specifically. There was an Italian guy, who, you know, they said: 'Where are you from?'' and he said he's from Italy and they said 'fine' and they left him alone.

And I thought: 'Fine, they're going to shoot me if they ask me anything _ and thank God they didn't,'' he said.

Chamberlain said he managed to slip away as the patrons were forced to walk up stairs, but he thought much of the group was being held hostage.

Early Thursday, several European lawmakers were among people who barricaded themselves inside the Taj, a century-old seaside hotel complex and one of the city's best-known destinations.

"I was in the main lobby and there was all of a sudden a lot of firing outside,'' said Sajjad Karim, part of a delegation of European lawmakers visiting Mumbai ahead of a European Union-India summit.

As he turned to get away, "all of a sudden another gunmen appeared in front of us, carrying machine gun-type weapons. And he just started firing at us ... I just turned and ran in the opposite direction,'' he told The Associated Press over his mobile phone. Hours later, Karim remained holed up in a hotel restaurant, unsure if it was safe to come out.

The British Foreign Office said it was advising all British citizens in Mumbai to stay indoors.

Britain's foreign secretary, David Miliband, strongly condemned the attacks. "Today's attacks in Mumbai which have claimed many innocent victims remind us, yet again, of the threat we face from violent extremists,'' Miliband said in a statement. India has been wracked by bomb attacks the past three years, which police blame on Muslim militants intent on destabilizing this largely Hindu country. Nearly 700 people have died.

Since May a militant group calling itself the Indian Mujahideen has taken credit for a string of blasts that killed more than 130 people. The most recent was in September, when a series of explosions struck a park and crowded shopping areas in the capital, New Delhi, killing 21 people and wounding about 100.

Mumbai has been hit repeatedly by terror attacks since March 1993, when Muslim underworld figures tied to Pakistani militants allegedly carried out a series of bombings on Mumbai's stock exchange, trains, hotels and gas stations. Authorities say those attacks, which killed 257 people and wounded more than 1,100, were carried out to avenge the deaths of hundreds of Muslims in religious riots that had swept India.

Ten years later, in 2003, 52 people were killed in Mumbai bombings blamed on Muslim militants and in July 2007 a series of seven blasts on railway trains and at commuter rail stations killed at least 187.

Relations between Hindus, who make up more than 80 percent of India's 1 billion population, and Muslims, who make up about 14 percent, have sporadically erupted into bouts of sectarian violence since British-ruled India was split into independent India and Pakistan in 1947. - AP

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Fatwa on Yoga : Rulers made final decision - Jakim

IPOH: It is the prerogative of the state religious authorities and their Rulers to accept or reject the National Fatwa Council’s decision to bar Muslims from practising yoga.

Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) director-general Datuk Wan Mohamad Sheikh Abd Aziz said the council’s fatwa (edict) prohibiting Muslims from practising yoga would be discussed in the state fatwa committees, whose members were appointed by their respective rulers.

“After it is agreed upon by the committees, the matter will then be presented to the various state religious councils before it is brought before the Sultan for consent.

“This is the process of how a fatwa is implemented in the state,” he said.

“It is the state’s prerogative to decide whether to implement a fatwa,” he said after chairing a meeting with the country’s state Islamic religious council heads here on Tuesday.

The various stands of certain state authorities on the matter did not reflect a difference in opinion between the state bodies and the council, he added.

Since the council came out with the fatwa on Saturday, the Sultan of Selangor has said that the fatwa could not be implemented as the state Fatwa Committee had yet to deliberate on the matter.

Perak Religious Department director Datuk Jamry Sury, who had earlier been quoted as saying that the state would abide by the fatwa, retracted his statement a day later.

Jamry clarified that the fatwa had not been discussed by the Perak Fatwa Committee and brought to the attention of the State Religious and Malays Customs Council before being presented to the Sultan of Perak for consent.

Perlis Mufti Dr Asri Zainal Abidin had also spoken out against the fatwa, saying yoga with the non-Muslim elements removed should be allowed, while other states were set to go ahead with the implementation.

Wan Mohamad explained that Jakim’s duty, as the secretariat of the National Fatwa Council, was to coordinate the process by conducting research on an issue before presenting it to the council.

On the statement by Dr Asri that yoga should not be banned entirely but an alternative should instead be offered, Wan Mohamad said:

“Did the Perlis Fatwa Committee meet before the mufti voiced his disagreement? The matter has to be discussed first before it is agreed or disagreed upon.”

Wan Mohamad pointed out that discussions generated by various quarters over the council’s decision showed that Malaysians were interested in understanding Islam better.

“There is good and bad. It is good that at least now we can take the opportunity to explain the beauty of Islam to non-Muslims.

“As we live in a multi-religious country, it is good for our religious authorities to share information and knowledge with one another,” he said.

However, he reminded the people that Islam was the official religion in the country, as enshrined in the Constitution, and hence should be respected by all.(TheStar)

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RPK's defamation case, court to decide on friday

KUALA LUMPUR, — The Sessions Court will decide on Friday whether or not it has the discretion to hear blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin's defamation case.

Judge Mohamad Sekeri Mamat deferred decision after hearing submissions from both parties today.

This week was fixed for the trial but Raja Petra's counsel, Manjeet Singh Dhillon, made a preliminary objection yesterday asking the court to send the case back to the magistrate's court for trial on the grounds that the magistrate's order was illegal, void and contrary to the law.

On Aug 15, magistrate Nazran Mohd Sham allowed the prosecution's application to transfer the case to the Sessions Court on the ground that it involved public interest.

Raja Petra, the Malaysia Today editor, is alleged to have defamed the deputy prime minister's wife, Datin Rosmah Mansor, acting Kol Abdul Aziz Buyong and his wife Kol Norhayati Hassan in his statutory declaration made at the Civil High Court in Jalan Duta here at 10.25am on June 18.

If convicted, he faces up to two years’ jail or a fine, or both, on each charge under Section 500 of the Penal Code.

Manjeet informed the court today that he had filed a notice of motion, supported with Raja Petra's affidavit, to the High Court seeking an order to transfer the case back to the magistrate's court or to refer it to the Federal Court on the constitutional issue.

However, deputy public prosecutor Anselm Charles Fernandis said the defence application had no effect as the High Court on Sept 11 stated in a letter that the magistrate's order to transfer the case to the Sessions Court was right according to law principles.

The decision, in the letter from Justice Suraya Othman, was in response to the defence application for a revision of the magistrate's order, he said.

He cited two cases decided by the Federal Court that under Article 145 of the Federal Constitution, the Attorney-General had vested power to choose any court to initiate proceedings against a person.

This, coupled with the High Court decision, showed that the Sessions Court had the discretion to hear Raja Petra's case, Fernandis added. — Bernama

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Ronaldo accused of "leg breaking tackle" by Silva

Brazil 6 (Fabiano 3X, Maicon, Elano,Adriano) - Portugal 2 (Danny, Simao)
Cristiano Ronaldo has been accused of trying to break a Brazilian player's leg after his Portugal side were beaten 6-2 by the South American side on Wednesday night.

Ronaldo quarrels with the Brazilian players.

Ronaldo had several run-ins with the Brazil players, particularly Thiago Silva who refused the Manchester United playmaker's hand after one nasty challenge in the closing stages.

The 24-year-old defender said: "I don't accept his apology. He has the cheek to say I jumped over his tackle. But if I did not jump he would have broken my leg.

"Being considered the best player in the world, he must have more respect. It is difficult to accept what he did.

"He is a little [naughty], yes. But that is football. And we need to know to deal with it. He was nervous because he couldn't create anything."

Real Madrid full-back Marcelo was also left fuming at the antics of Ronaldo, claiming the Portuguse winger caught him with a stray arm at one point.

"Ronaldo was out of order and a bigmouth," he said. "He elbowed me off the ball, then tried to have a shouting match about it."

Earlier this week, Ronaldo joked that he was so good he could fill the first three places in the Fifa Player of the Year awards, but his time in Brazil finished on a sour note as the game came to a close.

Brazil ran the show in the convincing win, which included a Luis Fabiano hat-trick and it was a relief for under-fire coach Dunga, whose team had failed to score in five of their last seven games.

Elano, who also found the net, was quick to rub further salt into Ronaldo's wounds ahead of the Manchester derby at Eastlands next week.

He said: "Cristiano Ronaldo scores big goals and does excellent exhibitions but for me I would choose Kaka as the world's number one.

"We certainly overcame Portugal in this duel and I will always help Kaka to overcome Ronaldo." (ESPN)

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Tunku Imran and Petra Group sued by Bruce Willis

PETALING JAYA: Hollywood actor Bruce Willis has sued the Petra Group and its chairman, Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja’afar, to recoup US$900,000 (RM3.1mil) of the US$2mil the actor invested in a “green rubber” venture.

In his complaint filed in the federal court in Los Angeles yesterday, Willis said Petra chief executive officer Datuk Vinod B. Sekhar and Tunku Imran induced him to invest in a company that was developing a non-toxic and recyclable rubber in 2007, according to a Bloomberg report.

Willis, the star of the 1988 hit action film, Die Hard, accused the Petra Group and its executives of breach of contract and unjust enrichment.

Willis was told that former US Vice-President Al Gore and actor Mel Gibson had also invested in the company, Elastomer Technologies Ltd, the report said.

Clockwise from bottom left: Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja'afar, Al Gore, Bruse Wills, Mel Gibson and Datuk Vinod B. Sekhar.

In response to the suit, Vinod, who owns Petra Group, told StarBiz yesterday: “It is a minor shareholder issue and we are surprised as we already agreed to take care of it. The current market softening is making people react.’’

Efforts to call Tunku Imran were not successful.

Elastomer owns the De-link patent and Green Rubber trademark, according to Vinod.

Vinod said the name of Elastomer would be changed to Green Rubber Global.

According to the Bloomberg report, Willis had a put option, whereby for a specified period of time, he could get a full refund of his investment. Willis exercised the option, the report said.

“Despite defendants’ obligation to immediately refund Willis’ investment in April 2008, defendants continued to provide different specious excuses for retaining Willis’ funds,” the actor said in his complaint.

Vinod, with a net worth of RM320mil, was named the 16th richest Malaysian for this year by Forbes.

Vinod’s family and Tunku Imran control Petra Trust, which in turn holds 84% of Elastomer.

“Gibson and Bruce Davey (a director of Green Rubber) jointly hold 7% in Elastomer and the Clinton Foundation, 2%. There are other smaller investors and Willis had less than 1% stake in the company,’’ Vinod said.

In a statement, the Petra Group said Willis contacted Vinod in 2007 asking for a chance to invest in Elastomer which was then seeking to list on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange.

The statement said Vinod and Gibson were good friends and since the two Hollywood stars knew each other, Vinod accepted Willis’ request.

While Willis wants his money back, Gibson was quoted in the Petra Group statement as saying: “When you make investments in companies that have the potential to have such a significant positive impact on the world, you do it for the long-term gains and not for quick return. I am in it for the long term.”

According to the group’s website, Green Rubber has a factory in Sungei Buloh, a contract manufacturing plant in Cheras, and a plant in the United States.

Vinod declined to give the profit and revenue figures for Green Rubber, which recycles waste rubber into a cost-effective rubber compound.(TheStar)

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US gas prices dip below US$2, lowest in 3-plus years

HOUSTON, Nov 22 — Only four months after peaking at an unheard of US$4.11 (RM14.80) a gallon, the national average price for gasoline tumbled below US$2 yesterday, its lowest point in more than three years. Yet the global economic contrast between then and now could not be more stark.

On March 9, 2005, the last time gasoline cost less than US$2, the Dow Jones industrial average closed at 10,805.63. After a huge rally yesterday, the Dow closed at 8,046.42.

There was muted joy for consumers wading through an economy that's almost certainly in recession, with thousands of jobs being lost and mortgage foreclosures continuing to rise to record levels.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, where oil futures seemed destined to breach US$200 just a few months ago, pessimism was an understatement.

"At this point, all we can say with any degree of confidence is that crude oil ... will not trade below zero," trader and analyst Stephen Schork said yesterday in a tongue-in-cheek analysis of the market's swoon.

Crude has been in free-fall, shedding two-thirds of its value since July, and gasoline prices have followed. Some say oil could be headed below US$40 a barrel, and gasoline below US$1.50.

Motorists in Independence, Montana, yesterday said they were paying US$1.37 for a gallon of gas.

The pump price for regular unleaded fell 3.1 cents overnight to an average of US$1.989 a gallon nationally, according to auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.

The national average price fell nearly a dime in the past week and almost 90 cents in the past month. The average price for unleaded is now below US$2 in 30 states, according to AAA.

"It's impossible to know exactly how low the price of gasoline will eventually go," AAA spokesman Geoff Sundstrom said yesterday. "Households can, however, reasonably anticipate that lower fuel prices will be the norm throughout the rest of this year and probably into early 2009."

The Federal Highway Administration reported this week that Americans drove 10.7 billion fewer miles in September than a year ago, the 11th straight monthly decline.

But there's some evidence that motorists may be heading back to the pump in greater numbers as gasoline prices fall.

MasterCard SpendingPulse reported on Tuesday that even though gas consumption last week was down 2.8 per cent from a year ago, it was the smallest year-over-year decline in more than two months.

In Ohio, where gas prices fell to an average of US$1.79 yesterday, Laura Duemey, a 48-year-old receptionist from Columbus, fuelled up her Hyundai XG350 sedan.

"It's awesome," Duemey said. "With this gas guzzler, there was no way I could afford to keep paying the way (prices) were going."

While there have been few good weeks on the New York Mercantile Exchange since crude peaked on July 11, the past week was particularly bad.

Gasoline futures plunged to a new low on Monday as Japan joined a number of European nations in recession. It was more of the same Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, crude fell to levels not seen in three years.

Between Monday and yesterday, crude had lost 12 per cent of its value. Yesterday was the first time in six trading sessions that crude ended higher.

Light, sweet crude for January delivery rose 51 cents to settle at US$49.93 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier, in electronic trading, the price dipped to US$48.25, the lowest level since May 18, 2005.

In London, January Brent crude rose US$1.17 to settle at US$49.19 on the ICE Futures exchange.

Yesterday's activity reflected just how closely oil traders have gauged the mood in equities markets over the past several weeks.

Wall Street moved higher yesterday, with investors taking a breather from the heavy selling of recent days. Energy and utility stocks showed some advances.

It was a different story earlier in the week.

The Dow plunged on Thursday after the US Labour Department said new applications for jobless benefits exceeded analyst estimates and rose to the highest level of claims since July 1992 and investors grew even more leery about the health of the nation's biggest banks.

In a note to clients yesterday, Tudor Pickering Holt & Co Securities said economic concerns are clearly trumping any further production cuts by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which accounts for about 40 per cent of global supply.

Opec lowered production quotas by 1.5 million barrels a day last month, and some analysts predict even lower levels to come out of the cartel's next official meeting on Dec 17.

Such action "may not matter until folks have more visibility/comfort on (the) demand side," the Tudor Pickering note said.

Oil prices have been crushed as the global economic downturn has diminished demand.

How low prices can go is anyone's guess.

"Do not trust anyone in this market who tries to convince you that oil cannot go below US$40," Schork said in his report yesterday. "The same way no one had a clue how high prices could go last July, there is no telling how low we can go now." — AP

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