PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu has lashed out at Utusan Malaysia over its report that suggested that he had praised communist insurgents in the Bukit Kepong incident in 1950 as heroes.
'Use the ISA'
Al Jazeera interviews Marina Mahathir, Khairy Jamaluddin and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad on Malaysia's ethnic and religious divide.
BN still in the past
Marina worried
The vanquished dictator becomes the world's most wanted fugitive, he may find one thing to his liking – the longer he can remain free, the more a legend will once again spring around him.
An NGO has lodged a police report against TV3 for allegedly fabricating news of a tuition centre in Jalan Klang Lama, Kuala Lumpur, trying to convert Muslims to Christianity, on account that the surau whose members were shown protesting the centre appears to be non-existent.
However, said Fariz, their checks suggest that no such surau exists in the area.
According to him, the residents in the squatter area concerned told him that the tuition centre has been there for years for the purpose of teaching Christianity to the children living in the area who are Christians.
The controversy surrounding the 1,000-odd purported permanent residents listed as voters on the Election Commission (EC) website took another twist with a temporary identity card holder found in the mix.
How is it that three cotton swabs retrieved from the rectum of sodomy complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan show no sign of degradation when tested some 100 hours later? This is the issue that is puzzling Australian DNA expert Dr Brian McDonald.
Saiful's semen sperm in anus?
Australian DNA expert Dr Brian McDonald remained on the witness stand for the second consecutive day in the Anwar Ibrahim sodomy trial.
9.35am: McDonald explains how a chemical called DTT is used to break sperm cell to retrieve DNA.
He says the samples were not label properly - they were only labelled B1 to B9.
9.42am: McDonald says chemist Dr Seah did not indicate where the swab came from. "The HKL (Hospital Kuala Lumpur) doctors did not use the same numbering system employed by her.
"We have to assume where the swab came from as this is not reflected in Seah's report," he adds. McDonald says Seah must verify whether the sample came from the anal and rectum in sodomy cases.
"It could come from a cigarette butt. Seah did not provide the information in the report. She has not reported anything on the sample whether it came somewhere or another."
9.51am: McDonald says what we have is DNA attributed from the complainant. "That is the case of the complainant's semen is in his rectum," he says.
9.53am: McDonald says you cannot assume Saiful's sperm is in his own rectum.
9.54am: The witness alleges Seah did not do the test properly as the complainant's DNA should not be there. "I would say Seah's evidence is a guess."
Ram: Why is that?
Dr McDonald: Because she did not make a slide on the receptacle. That is only way to determine.
9.58am: McDonald says it is possible that Saiful's sperm was in his anus.
"If she had done it properly, we can cut out on such a possibility. The sample taken cannot be relied on cause (it contain Saiful's DNA)."
Ram: Can we conclusively say that Saiful's sperm is not in his anus?
McDonald: No, she is guessing that there are other cells. She did not do the DEP test properly.
10.04am: McDonald says the Male Y is predominant in B7 the low rectal swab.
(It was earlier testified that 'Male Y' DNA was found on B7, B8 and B9.)
10.05am: McDonald says Saiful's DNA was predominant in B8 - the high rectal swab.
10.07am: McDonald says, "We cannot discount Saiful's sperm was up in his own anus."
10.15am: The DNA expert explains the strenuous process necessary to isolate sperm where the samples had "to clean" a couple of times.
10.17am: Defence lawyer Ram Karpal who has been doing the examination-in-chief of McDonald requests for a brief break.
Judge orders the court to stand down.
10.50am: Court resumes.
11.02am: McDonald goes through the results of the samples taken from Saiful.
11.21am: McDonald says there are partial profiles from the test conducted, but he cannot say whether it was re-amplified.
11.26am: McDonald says from the graph, one can tell the degrees of degradation of the sample. He now moves on to the B7 swab profile, taken from Saiful's lower rectum.
11.31am: McDonald explains this is a mixture of two samples including that of Male Y. There are no signs of degradation.
Ram: Yesterday you said the sample was taken after 56 hours from Saiful's rectum and it was given to the chemist after 48 hours. This is more than 100 hours.
McDonald: The profile which appears in B7 (contradicts) with the history because (it's a good profile and not one that is 100 hours old).
11.35am: They now look at the B8 swab, another high rectal swab. McDonald says there is a dominant presence of complainant Saiful's DNA.
"There is a mixture of Male Y and complainant, and the dominant is the complainant.
"There is no evidence of degradation," says McDonald.
11.38am: Moving on to the B9 low rectal swab, McDonald says the DNA is in pristine condition and the specimen is a mixture, contradicting the sample's history.
"There is no evidence of degradation, and this is inconsistent with its history." he says.
(Note: These samples were said to be more than 100 hours old and had not been kept in the suggested manner, in a freezer. Therefore there should be degradation, the absence of which is conflicting.)
11.41am: Ram applies to continue questioning McDonald on another day. He now calls investigating officer Supt Jude Balacious Pereira to take the stand.source:malaysiakini
Mungkin ada sperma Saiful di dubur sendiri, kata pakarcheers.
Ramai juga yang minta komen saya tentang pendirian Anwar memilih untuk membela dirinya melalui keterangan tidak bersumpah. Saya rasa elok juga saya berkongsi pendapat mengenai pendirian Anwar tersebut.
Pengerusi Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya, Abdul Aziz Yusof akhirnya mengakui bahawa penggunaan dakwat kekal untuk mengelakkan pertindihan pengundian adalah kurang bermasalah daripada menggunakan sistem biometrik yang kompleks dan mahal
Australian DNA expert Dr Brian McDonald told the High Court in the Sodomy II trial today that he was puzzled as to how sperm could still be retrieved 98 hours after a complaint of sodomy.
The “mistake” made by local chemists to mislabel two containers with swab samples can be considered a “sackable offence” that could very well “kill someone”, according to a DNA expert testifying in the Anwar Ibrahim Sodomy II trial at the High Court here today.
After Australian forensic pathologist Dr David Wells testified yesterday, another foreign expert, DNA specialist Dr Brian McDonald, takes the witness stand in the Sodomy II trial involving Oppostion Leader Anwar Ibrahim. McDonald, who is also from Australia, will first answer questions from defence lawyer Ram Karpal and this is likely to take most of the morning.
9.17am: McDonald, 60, says he is a consultant molecular geneticist.
9.19am: McDonald reads his curriculum vitae in court. He has a bachelors in anatomy and also possesses a doctorate. He is also a member of the Australian Biomedical Society and served as committee member of the Human Genetics Society.
9.27am: The witness says he was a head geneticist officer in New South Wales.
9.35am: McDonald is a member of the Australian Forensic Science Society and lists down five pages of the books, papers and articles that he has written on the subject of DNA.
9.40am: Chemist Dr Seah Lay Hong, who had earlier testified in the trial, is assisting the prosecution as a consultant. She is seated between Yusof and DPP Noorin Badaruddin. Noorin is likely to be the prosecutor doing the cross-examination of McDonald.
9.43am: McDonald has testified in many cases in Australia, and in Brunei in the Richard Cheah case in 2005.
9.45am: McDonald says the trial in Brunei was a triple murder case, and he testified there as a defence witness.
9.46am: McDonald says he had prepared a separate report after getting data from the two Malaysian chemists. The document was titled 'Report of Malaysian Version in the case of PP vs AI'. He prepared the report in 2009.
9.47am: He explains forensic DNA testing.
9.53am: He explains short tandem repeat (STR) and 'loci' in DNA testing.
10.01am: McDonalds explains terms like starter, peaks, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR test), and electropherograms. McDonald explains that the DNA from blood, semen and other bodily samples of a person is always the same.
10.24am: McDonald explains that there is international standardisation in guidelines so that it could be interpreted internationally.
10.34am: There is a short exchange between Yusof and Ram Karpal over McDonald's reference to an 'ASCLD' letter. Ram says the letter is addressed to Lim Kong Boon, Chemistry Department, Petaling Jaya. (American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors - ASCLD - accredits laboratories and regulates international standards.)
"This is the second extension and it also indicates that the lab would not be extended beyond 12 months.” Ram Karpal alleges that the Chemistry Department was not properly accredited. Yusof objects, as McDonald is not the author.
10.42am: Ram Karpal wants the April 2011 letter marked, but Yusof objects. The judge says Lim Kong Boon, the head of the Chemistry Department's DNA section, can be called to testify.
10.44am: Sankara indicates that Lim Kong Boon will be subpoenaed. Lim was a witness in the first sodomy trial.
10.45am: Ram asks for a short break.
The defence is trying to show that the Chemistry Department's forensic unit has not been properly accredited, contrary to chemist Dr Seah Lay Hong's assertion earlier during the trial that it is internationally accredited.11.25am: McDonald says verification must be done on samples when the results are reported.
11.30am: McDonald says labs should follow the guidelines which they have laid out.
11.56am: McDonald says there was mixture of DNA in this case, although prosecution witness Nor Aidora Saedon had said otherwise in her testimony.12.13am: McDonald says Nor Aidora did not follow guidelines... when there is mixture DNA.
12.28pm: McDonald says it is not an option to be accepted.
"If you are aware you should correct it," says the witness.
12.30pm: McDonald says there is a need to swipe the sample on a slide so can verify there is a sperm.
"You need to know what is on the swab when you took it as this is a sexual assault case."
2.04pm: Court resumes.
McDonald says that when one get a DNA sample, one needs to air-dry and freeze it to prevent bacteria.
2.07pm: McDonald says you must put samples in a freezer measuring minus-20 degrees Celcius.
2.08pm: If this is not done, it would encourage bacteria growth and it would affect the cells.
"If it is kept in room temperature there will be overgrowth bacteria."
Saiful's sample was kept in an air-conditioned room in investigating officer Supt Jude Blacious Pereira's office for another one-and-a-half days before it was handed to the Chemistry Department.
2.11pm: Ram: The sample was taken from the victim's anus after 56 hours of the incident.
McDonald: Putting samples in a recepticle and in room temperature would make it worse.
2.20pm: Ram: There must be a record in the chain of evidence?
McDonald: Failure to follow such a procedure may result in not getting accreditation. The function of this must be monitored all the time.
2.25pm: McDonald says if you slide on a recepticle, you can see under the microscope if there is sperm.
"This provides a back-up to what we propose to do. It is also the proper and good practise."
2.33pm: McDonald says it is important to know the quantity of sperm in this case.
"First 6 to 8 hours after ejaculation, there will be a high level of sperm.
"After eight hours, the number of sperm recedes, and that is what literatures say," the witness said.
2.37pm: McDonald criticises the method employed by Dr Seah Lay Hong for not doing the sperm count and not sliding on a receptacle.
2.41pm: Ram says the sample was sent to the lab chemist after 98 or 99 hours. What sort of density can we expect in such sperm?
McDonald: The literature suggest one-plus sperm after 56 hours, and it would be a low sperm count.
In this case, it was kept another 48 hours in room temperature. I would say any signs of sperm would not exist at all.
McDonald also says that the finding of sperm in sample is inconsistent in the history of literature.
"It would ring alarm bells as to how this is possible. And this would suggest (the sample could have been fresh)."
2.55pm: Yusof asks for a postponement as Ram seems he has a lot to go through.
Justice Zabidin allows the request and orders the trial to continue tomorrow morning.
source:malaysiakini
Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said he received a written death threat and two live bullets by mail today. "I can confirm that I received two live bullets, posted to my office,” he said told reporters after a breaking of fast function in Kuala Lumpur. “Threats are common for me. But this is the first time I received one in the form of live bullets," he joked
Mufti Perak, Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria mendakwa beliau pernah meminta bekas Perdana Menteri, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad agar jangan membuat tuduhan liwat terhadap Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim jika tidak cukup bukti.
Semalam (Isnin) perbicaraan tuduhan liwat ke atas Anwar Ibrahim masuk peringkat separuh akhir, iaitu pembelaaan diri oleh Anwar dan team peguamnya. Semalam Anwar telah membela dirinya dengan membuat kenyataan setebal 32 muka surat mengambil masa selama dua jam di kandang orang salah. Selepas ini setelah semua saksi pembela dipanggil hakim membuat keputusan sama ada Anwar disabit atau pun bebas.
Memang ada orang berharap kisah atau peristiwa tahun 1999 akan berulang sekali lagi ke atas kembara politik dan kehidupan Anwar. Keadaan waktu itu di mana pilihan raya umum ke-11 diadakan ketika Anwar berada dalam penjara. Mereka itu tidak mahu Anwar berpeluang mengambil bahagian dalam pilihan raya. Kali ini juga begitu, ada niat untuk melihat Anwar diringkukkan dalam penjara kemudian pilihan raya akan diadakan. Mereka mengira hanya dengan penjarakan saja Anwar ia boleh menghalang Anwar daripada mengapai cita-cita politiknya untuk jadi Perdana Menteri. Dalam pada itu ia membolehkan orang yang berkuasa terus berkuasa. Apabila Anwar dipenjara bermakna beliau tidak akan dapat bertanding dalam pilihan raya selama dua penggal. Cukuplah kalau Anwar dipenjara beliau tidak boleh menyertai pilihan raya ke -13 dan ke 14. Umur Anwar ketika itu sudah pun hampir 80 tahun sudah terlalu tua.
