PSC on election reform: will mini-steps turned into a stampede?

The Election Commission is taking up mini-steps of reform from the PSC on election reform -but will the small steps adds up to a moderate leap? Many are watching the series of mini steps adopted: indelible ink, overseas citizens’ vote, early voting for police and military as option(rather than total replacement), faster updating of voters roll etc.While some steps actually move backward(eg abolishing the already short candidate objection period of 1 hour) overall the steps are moving forward. In themselves these are tiny steps -totally ignoring the great majority of the proposals by Bersih, for example. These come about due to citizens pressures-and the EC has declared its support for these steps ahead of the completion of the PSC inquiry. With Bersih 3 being discussed with greater intensity will these mini steps quicken to a moderate leap forward for Malaysian electoral reform-especially ahead of the 13th General Elections? Don’t hold your breath-do something about it!

 

EC gets rid of candidate objection period

UPDATED @ 04:34:56 PM 19-12-2011

By Yow Hong Chieh

December 19, 2011

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Bengoh dam compensation not reaching villagers yet!

Unhappy villagers refuse to move to designated resettlement

Posted on December 5, 2011, Monday

Josib Kawin

KUCHING: Several families from Kampung Rejoi, who are dissatisfied with the Bengoh Dam compensation package, have set up a new settlement away from the village.

Rejoi’s village security and development committee (JKKK) deputy secretary Josib Kawin said there was nothing much that could be done to stop them because it was their personal decision to move there.

“They are not happy with what they are getting, so they decided to stay put and build a new settlement,” he said in an interview yesterday.

According to him, some 16 families are believed to be staying at the new settlement located on a hill not too far away from the original village.

Because of this, he hoped that the government and the developers of the Bengoh Dam would consider giving more compensation money, especially when most of them did not get a good deal.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2011/12/05/unhappy-villagers-refuse-to-move-to-designated-resettlement/#ixzz1fhSTgKJG

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Fraudulent election in 2010 was precursor to Egytians’ Tahrir Square revolution!

How far can a government go by stealing elections? The Egyptian revolution offer a good example: fraudulent election was held in on 28th Nov 2010, and popular protest started from Tahrir Square forced the resignation of 3-decades long strongman Hosni Mubarak from power on Feb 11th 2011-a mere 75 days!   All dictatorial regimes should take note of this reality of people power that has been tagged `Arab Spring’ recently!

Hosni Mubarak’s game plan to steal elections have all the familiar ring to it in many similar countries-even Malaysia! Here are his tricks:

* maintain emergency laws which has outlived its original purpose; public’s civil liberty and human rights are curtailed-including detention without warrant and trial! Najib’s promise to repeal emergency laws has not been made with condition that the general elections will come only after the repeal of the laws!

* require publishing permit-so state or crony owned media are the only media in town!Malaysia has the printing press laws that do the similar tricks to muzzle the dissenters;

* restrict party registrations-so the Opposition parties had to run their candidates as independents; numerous parties had problems to get registration in Malaysia-is this purely coincidental?

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