Isnin, 21 Januari 2013

The Malaysian Insider :: Food

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The Malaysian Insider :: Food


Calling all koodies: Cooking show for kids coming to US

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 07:34 PM PST

NEW YORK, Jan 22 — Is your kid a "koodie?" Do they know the difference between hollandaise and béarnaise sauce already and scoff with disdain at the idea of boxed macaroni and cheese for lunch?

The "MasterChef" TV franchise has put out a casting call for kid foodies who could be the next Thomas Keller.

"Junior MasterChef" in the US is looking for kids between the ages of 8 and 13 with an avid interest in food, impressive knife skills, a broad culinary repertoire and Michelin stars in their eyes, according to food blog Eater.com.

It should come as no surprise that the kid version of "MasterChef" is on its way to the US, given that versions already exist in France, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand, Belgium, the Netherlands and the UK.

US network Bravo also piloted a kiddie version of "Top Chef" that put teenage chefs into the proverbial fire. The show, however, failed to take off.

Not sure if your koodie has what it takes to be on "Junior MasterChef"? A YouTube video of the semi-finals from the British version of the show has a batch of 11- to 12-year-olds expertly filleting fish with a pair of pliers and whipping up impressive dishes such as prawn curry with raita yogurt, lime and chili chicken with crushed sweet potatoes and chili sauce, and bream in a shallot cream sauce. — AFP/Relaxnews

Above is a UK version of "Junior MasterChef".


Watch your favourite team cook at Bocuse d’Or competition

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 07:18 PM PST

Chef Richard Rosendale, leading Team USA, and his commis Corey Siegel.©All rights reserved

LYON, France, Jan 22 — Followers of the Bocuse d'Or, a culinary competition known as the Olympics of the food world, will be able to attend the event virtually as Team USA will be livestreaming the cooking competition.

The Bocuse d'Or, held every two years, pits countries against each other as they vie for the gold trophy and international bragging rights.

Team USA, captained by chef Richard Rosendale of The Greenbrier restaurant in White Sulphur Springs in West Virgnia, will look to dethrone some of the competition's historically strongest competitors, notably those hailing from the Scandinavian countries and France.

In 2011, chef Rasmus Kofoed of Denmark won the competition. In 2009, the Norwegians took home the gold trophy, while France claimed the title in 2007.

Here's the tentative schedule for the two-day competition:

Day 1, January 29, 8am-3pm GMT

Competing countries:

Iceland, Sweden, Singapore, China, Brazil, Morocco, Netherlands, Finland, Canada, Belgium, Mexico, Guatemala

Day 2, January 30 8am-3pm GMT

Competing countries: Denmark, Sri Lanka, Estonia, Australia, Italy, Switzerland, France, United Kingdom, USA, Norway, Hungary, Japan

Awards ceremony: January 30, 4:30pm-5:30pm GMT

Click here to watch the event. — AFP/Relaxnews


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The Malaysian Insider :: Sports

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Pochettino makes solid start with Everton draw

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 02:36 PM PST

Supporters of the south-coast club had threatened a frosty reception for the former Espanyol boss Pochettino. – Reuters pic

LONDON, Jan 22 – Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino began his reign at the struggling Premier League club with an impressive 0-0 draw against fifth-placed Everton yesterday, three days after taking over from the sacked Nigel Adkins.

Southampton were much the better side in the first half as in-form striker Rickie Lambert hit the woodwork with a bending free kick and narrowly failed to score with two trademark headers.

Everton improved in the second half but also failed to convert chances as the home side clung on for a valuable draw.

Everton moved to 38 points, within three of fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur and four ahead of Arsenal and Liverpool while Southampton edged further away from the relegation zone to 23 points, four above the drop.

Former Argentina international Pochettino was controversially appointed manager despite Southampton's improved recent form, including a 2-2 comeback draw from two goals down at European champions Chelsea on Wednesday, Adkins's final game in charge.

Supporters of the south-coast club had threatened a frosty reception for the former Espanyol boss, given Adkins's popularity and the fact he had lifted Southampton out of the relegation places after leading them back to the Premier League.

"I want to thank the players for the three days they have worked with me, they have done well. I also have to thank the supporters, they have been kind and the reception was amazing," Pochettino told Sky Sports through an interpreter.

"We did well tonight, we created several chances to score. The only shame was that we did not score a lot of goals but we created a lot of chances against a good side like Everton. We suffered a bit in the second half, we were not as good as we were in the first half.

"I really enjoyed the game today. The people who have worked in this league always said that it is amazing."

There was little sign of hostility towards Pochettino or executive chairman Nicola Cortese as Southampton began brightly and Everton defender Phil Jagielka nearly turned the ball into his own net early on.

BUZZING HOSTS

Lambert crashed a 30-metre free kick on to the post from 30 metres and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard was called into action on several occasions to deny the buzzing hosts.

Two Lambert headers, a Gaston Ramirez effort and defender Jos Hooiveld's turn and shot underlined Southampton's dominance of the first half.

Home goalkeeper Artur Boruc was forced into his first genuine save after 51 minutes when Marouane Fellaini shot low at the far post only for the Pole to clear with his leg.

From the resulting corner Fellaini headed straight at the Southampton keeper and Everton started to find their feet, Nikica Jelavic spurning a great chance when he failed to connect with Victor Anichebe's inviting low cross.

Boruc made a great one-handed save high to his right from Anichebe after 68 minutes when the substitute was played through and fired off a fierce left-foot shot.

"I was frustrated with how we played and frustrated in the second half that we did not get the goal," Everton manager David Moyes said.

"Southampton have played well in recent weeks and they continued that form. We got better in the second half.

"In the end, they had the better of the first half and we probably had the better of the second." – Reuters

Makarova eager to face rampant Sharapova

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 07:24 AM PST

Ekaterina Makarova of Russia celebrates defeating Angelique Kerber of Germany in their women's singles match at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, January 20, 2013. – Reuters pic

MELBOURNE, Jan 22 – Russian Ekaterina Makarova is eager to meet Maria Sharapova in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open tomorrow even though her compatriot has been one of the dominant women players of the tournament.

The 19th seed met Sharapova in the same round last year at Melbourne Park, with the world number two recording a 6-2 6-3 victory and Makarova is keen on seeing if she has the game to match it with the world's best.

"I really want to play against her," Makarova said. "During last year we played lot of times, and I never beat her.

"So I'm really interested to play against her. She's in good form now, in good shape. I hope I show my good tennis again."

Makarova had entered last year's quarter-final against Sharapova having beaten Serena Williams. Makarova was then ranked 52nd in the world.

This year, she was seeded but still managed to upset a top-10 player when she beat fifth seed Angelique Kerber in the fourth round. She also beat 11th seed Marion Bartoli in the third round and Sharapova was not taking her lightly.

"I have to do the right things to beat her," she said.

"If I win that, it's moving on to the next one. That's how I go about a tournament, a grand slam.

"Obviously I want to be playing my best tennis towards the end of the second week."

While Sharapova has overpowered her opponents, tennis purists should be looking forward to the first match in the quarter-finals with world number four Agnieszka Radwanska playing China's sixth-seed Li Na.

Radwanska and Li are renowned more for their touch and construction of points rather than relying on the power game that the top three seeds Victoria Azarenka, Sharapova and Serena Williams have utilised ruthlessly in the tournament.

"It's never easy playing against her," Radwanska said of the 2011 French Open champion. "She's a very consistent player and moving very well, serving well.

"We played in Sydney. It was really tough match (and)... I really have to play... hundred percent to beat her."

Men's champion Novak Djokovic, who was forced into a five hour, five set marathon against Stanislas Wawrinka has been given some respite from that clash, with his match against Tomas Berdych the first match in the night session.

The winner of the Djokovic-Berdych match will face either fourth seed David Ferrer or his Spanish compatriot 10th seed Nicolas Almagro in the semi-finals.

Almagro has not beaten Ferrer in 12 previous clashes but his eyes are firmly set on ending that streak and moving into his first grand slam semi-final.

"(It) is a big opportunity for me to be in a semi-final," Almagro said.

"I'm ready to fight. I'm healthy and I'm happy with my tennis. I think I'm playing really good.

"We'll see what happens." – Reuters

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The Malaysian Insider :: Features

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Viagra found to burn fat in mice study

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 06:46 AM PST

Viagra may help fight the effects of a couch potato lifestyle, according to early new research. – AFP pic

LOS ANGELES, Jan 21 – After reports of athletes attempting to gain a competitive edge with Viagra, the little blue pill may appeal to a different set: researchers report that the drug may help burn fat.

Researchers from the University of Bonn treated mice with Viagra and found that the drug converts white fat cells, the kind most people have in abundance, into brown fat cells.

While the science of brown fat is relatively new, it is considered healthier in that rather than being stored in the body, it burns calories like a furnace. A study in the Journal of Clinical Investigation last year found that one form of it activates when humans become cold. Another 2012 study in Nature found that a second form of brown fat can be created from white fat by exercising.

Mice subjects who were given the drug for seven days – at about 10 times the maximum approved dosage for human usage – converted a significant number of white fat cells into brown fat cells.

Viagra (also known as sildenafil) is used to treat erectile dysfunction, pulmonary arterial hypertension, and altitude sickness.

The study, announced last week, appears online and will be published in a future print edition of the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. – AFP/Relaxnews

UK scientists to mimic plants to make zero-carbon fuel

Posted: 20 Jan 2013 06:59 PM PST

The research will use synthetic biology to replicate the process by which plants concentrate solar energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, which is then released into the atmosphere. – Reuters pic

LONDON, Jan 21 – British scientists seeking to tap more efficient forms of solar power are exploring how to mimic the way plants transform sunlight into energy and produce hydrogen to fuel vehicles.

They will join other researchers around the world studying artificial photosynthesis as governments seek to cut greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels.

The research will use synthetic biology to replicate the process by which plants concentrate solar energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, which is then released into the atmosphere.

"We will build a system for artificial photosynthesis by placing tiny solar panels on microbes," said lead researcher Julea Butt at the University of East Anglia (UEA).

"These will harness sunlight and drive the production of hydrogen, from which the technologies to release energy on demand are well-advanced."

Hydrogen is a zero-emission fuel which can power vehicles or be transformed into electricity.

"We imagine that our photocatalysts will prove versatile and that with slight modification they will be able to harness solar energy for the manufacture of carbon-based fuels, drugs and fine chemicals," she added.

The £800,000 (RM3.8 million) project will be undertaken by scientists from UEA and Cambridge and Leeds universities.

The scientists believe copying photosynthesis could be more efficient in harnessing the sun's energy than existing solar converters.

CUTTING CO2

Many countries have deployed at least one kind of renewable energy, such as solar, wind power or biofuels, or use a mixture to see which becomes most competitive with fossil fuels.

But as carbon dioxide emissions continue to rise, some experts argue more extreme methods are needed to keep the average rise in global temperatures below 2º  Celsius this century, a threshold scientists say would avoid the most harmful effects of climate change.

"Many renewable energy supplies, such as sunlight, wind and the waves, remain largely untapped resources. This is mainly due to the challenges that exist in converting these energy forms into fuels from which energy can be released on demand," said Butt.

Some of the more extreme methods which are being studied are controversial, such as removing large amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and geo-engineering techniques such as blocking sunlight using artificial clouds or mirrors in space.

Such technology is far from being employed on a large scale and the costs are enormous.

Critics argue these techniques manipulate the climate, are too costly, take too long to prove and governments should concentrate on more mainstream renewable energy sources.

Last year, British scientists abandoned a £1.6 million experiment to test the possibility of spraying particles into the upper atmosphere to stem global warming. – Reuters

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The Malaysian Insider :: Breaking Views

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Anti-Putin jibe wins applause at Russian awards ceremony

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 07:47 AM PST

Russian President Vladimir Putin. — Reuters pic

MOSCOW, Jan 21 — A prominent Russian cartoonist won loud applause at a usually politics-free awards ceremony when he suggested President Vladimir Putin shared responsibility for the death of an anti-corruption campaigner in a Moscow jail.

Putin's opponents frequently lambast him during protests and on the Internet, but criticism of the president is rare at mainstream cultural events and in most broadcast media.

Cartoonist Yuri Norshteyn broke that taboo when he took the stage on Saturday and criticised Putin over the jailed lawyer's death in 2009 that prompted the US Congress to impose sanctions on Russian officials.

Commenting on a previous speaker who had said Russia did not have enough doctors, Norshteyn said: "Immediately, I linked this ... with when Putin said Magnitsky died of heart failure."

"I think he died of a failure of heart on Putin's part and on the part of the prison boss," he said.

The comment was a reference to Putin's statement, at a news conference in December, that Magnitsky had "died not from torture, nobody tortured him, but from a heart attack." The Kremlin's own human rights council has said he was probably beaten to death.

After his initial comments, the rest of Norshteyn's speech at the awards ceremony was drowned out by applause and shouts of "Bravo!" in a clip that had received nearly 290,000 hits on YouTube by Monday afternoon.

Magnitsky, died after almost a year in jail on tax evasion and fraud charges that his colleagues said were fabricated by the investigators he had accused of stealing US$230 million (RM700 billion) from the state through fraudulent tax refunds.

Nobody has been convicted of any crime in connection with the death of Magnitsky at age 37 who has become a symbol of the impunity, which critics say Russian authorities enjoy and of the dangers faced by those who challenge them.

Washington adopted legislation last month known as the Magnitsky Act, which is meant to punish Russians it suspects of human rights violations by barring them from the United States and freezing any assets they have there.

Russia responded with a law that imposes similar sanctions on Americans it deems rights violators, outlaws US-funded non-profit organisations considered to be involved in political activity and bars Americans from adopting Russian orphans.

The awards ceremony is scheduled to be broadcast on state-owned First Channel television later this week. The channel declined today to say whether it would be aired in full.

Putin was greeted by boos and whistles when he stepped into the ring at a martial arts event in Moscow in November 2011, when he was prime minister, and opponents have mounted protests since then that have been the biggest of his 13-year rule.

The protests revealed deep dissatisfaction with Putin among many urbanites, but he won the presidency in March 2012 with nearly two-thirds of the vote. — Reuters

TNB REMACO-Kharafi JV gets RM1b contract from Kuwait

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 07:38 AM PST

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 21 – Kuwait's Central Tender Committee has issued a letter of award to a joint venture between TNB REMACO, a wholly-owned unit of Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB), and Kharafi National of Kuwait.

In a statement today, TNB said the contract was for the operation and maintenance of Shuaiba North co-generation power and distillation plant in Kuwait.

"The contract, valued at about RM1 billion, is for seven years. It is expected to be signed soon," it said.

TNB said the co-generation plant, owned by Kuwait Ministry of Electricity and Water, was located within Shuaiba Industrial Authority area, about 40km from Kuwait city.

"The dual-fired plant is able to produce around 780 megawatt of power and 45 million imperial gallons per day of distilled water," it said, adding that the plant was commissioned in 2010. – Bernama

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The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz

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Kevin Bacon finds his TV niche in ‘The Following’

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 07:33 AM PST

Cast member Kevin Bacon speaks at a Fox panel for the television series "The Following" at the 2013 Winter Press Tour for the Television Critics Association in Pasadena, California January 8, 2013. — Reuters pic

LOS ANGELES, Jan 21 — Kevin Bacon is hardly the first movie star to make the leap to television. But his new show — serial killer thriller "The Following" — may qualify as one of the creepiest projects he has ever done.

Needless to say, Bacon - the charming teenager who turned a small American town on to dancing in "Footloose" in 1984 — plays the good guy in the new Fox television series premiering today.

Well, sort of.

Bacon, 54, plays taciturn, vodka-swilling former FBI agent Ryan Hardy, called back from retirement to investigate charismatic murderer Joe Carroll (played by British actor James Purefoy), who inspires a cult following of copycat killers while behind bars.

But Bacon's character has plenty of his own flaws and finds himself seduced by Carroll's diabolical personality.

"I wanted my character to be complex and flawed. That's the kind of hero I like to play and I like to see," Bacon told reporters before the premiere.

"He gets strangely seduced by Joe, not sexually but in a friendship way. Joe sees into Ryan and is able to play him like a violin. My character is not an extremely well read and educated man. He is not a people person, a charmer, a dynamic speaker and maybe not even someone you want to go have a beer with, and Joe Carroll is all these things.

"It's an exciting thing for an actor to be able to peel those layers back," he said.

GRAPHIC VIOLENCE, TENSE THRILLER

Part psychological thriller and part violent crime show with scenes in which a Carroll devotee stabs herself in the eyes and another sets herself on fire, "The Following" is one of the most anticipated new dramas on US television.

Variety called it "a full-throttle ride that, four episodes in, proves twisty, unpredictable and tense." Entertainment Weekly described Bacon's Hardy as "a telltale heart-warmer of a guy who tries to come off as cold and aloof. He doesn't fool us for a moment, though, and that's why we end up caring about this screwed-up hero."

The show, on network television rather than cable, has also provoked unease because of its graphic violence.

"It's squeamish and it's not for the faint of heart. You have to kind of look away," admitted the show's creator, Kevin Williamson.

"But it's also the cat-and-mouse of it. ...On the one hand, I have this amazing do-gooder and I tried to pair him up with the most evil, crazed, brilliant psychopath that I could possibly come up with," Williamson added.

Bacon, whose 30-year career includes roles in "Mystic River," "Apollo 13" and "A Few Good Men," is the latest A-lister to move into a starring role in television after minor roles on the small screen as a young actor.

He joins the likes of Kathy Bates ("Harry's Law"), Laura Linney ("The Big C"), Dustin Hoffman ("Luck"), Kate Winslet ("Mildred Pierce"), Don Cheadle ("House of Lies") and Kevin Spacey, who stars in the upcoming Netflix drama "House of Cards."

Bacon said he had been looking around for a TV project for about three or four years, after admiring series like gritty police show "The Wire," post 9/11 thriller "Homeland," and dark drug drama "Breaking Bad."

He said he was also encouraged by the experience of his wife, Kyra Sedgwick, the star of the police series "The Closer," for which she won an Emmy in 2010.

"I was finding myself to be more and more of a TV consumer as the quality and writing of the shows seemed to get better and better. I find myself really knocked out by so many shows," he said.

"I found this to be such a page-turner ... and I felt like the continuing exploration of this guy and what is eating at him and what makes him tick would be interesting to explore from a character standpoint." — Reuters

French music label boss mulls Virgin France offer

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 04:28 AM PST

Employees talk to each other as they stand in front of the Virgin Megastore at the Champs Elysees in Paris, January 4, 2013. — Reuters pic

PARIS, Jan 21 — Patrick Zelnik, the owner of French music label Naive Records, is considering an offer to buy retailer Virgin Megastore France, which is undergoing a court-ordered restructuring, according to newspaper Les Echos today.

The news comes as British media report that restructuring specialist Hilco is the frontrunner in the battle to save music retailer HMV from administration, with music labels and film studios also preparing a rescue package.

Zelnik, who co-founded the first books-to-music Virgin Megastore in France on the Champs-Elysees in Paris in 1988 with British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, told Les Echos he would submit an offer "within two to three weeks".

Zelnik hopes to get backing for his offer from the French authorities, including the sovereign wealth fund FSI.

Virgin Megastore France filed for bankruptcy on January 9.

A court on January 14 ordered the firm, which operates 26 Virgin-branded stores in France, to be restructured.

Butler Capital Partners bought a majority stake in Virgin Megastore France in 2007 from media-to-aerospace group Lagardere, which itself bought the chain from Branson in 2001.

Zelnik could not immediately be reached for comment. — Reuters

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The Malaysian Insider :: Books

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Japan’s grandmother poet dies at 101

Posted: 20 Jan 2013 04:39 PM PST

TOKYO, Jan 21 – Japanese poet Toyo Shibata, who started writing at the age of 92 and whose first anthology sold almost 1.6 million copies, died Sunday aged 101, her son said.

After the death of her husband, Shibata was encouraged by her son to write poems. – AFP pic

Shibata died at a nursing home near her residence in Utsunomiya north of Tokyo, said her eldest son Kenichi Shibata. She had been in the home periodically since her health worsened last month.

"Her death came really peacefully and without pain," the 67-year-old son told AFP. "She kept writing poems until she was about 100. She needed help when she walked in the past half-year, although she was full of vigour."

After the death of her husband, a chef, Shibata was encouraged by her son to write poems.

Her first anthology Kujikenaide ("Don't Lose Heart") was originally self-published in 2009 and won praise for its sense of humour and forward-looking attitude.

The volume was reissued in 2010 by major publishing house Asaka Shinsha, with new artwork and additional verses to make a total of 42 poems.

It sold 1.58 million copies in a country where a poetry anthology is considered a success with 10,000 sales.

The book has also been printed in translation in South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany, company spokeswoman Asako Igarashi said. There are also plans to publish in China and Britain.

In 2011, Shibata's second anthology Hyakusai ("100 years old") was published to celebrate her centenary in June that year.

She also wrote a poem to encourage victims of the March 2011 earthquake-tsunami disaster which left nearly 19,000 people and sparked a nuclear crisis in Japan's northeast.

The main poem in Kujikenaide can be roughly translated as follows:

"Don't lose heart.

Oh, please don't sigh that you are unhappy.

The sunshine and the breeze will not favour anyone.

Dreams can be dreamed equally.

I have seen hard times but I am glad that I am alive.

Don't you ever lose heart, either." – AFP-Relaxnews


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The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa

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The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa


Presiden KIMMA: Sharifah Zohra jangan larikan diri, tampil bertanggungjawab

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 02:44 AM PST

Presiden KIMMA menyarankan supaya Sharifah Zohra Jabeen Syed Shah Miskin tidak lari dari masalah yang diwujudkannya. — Gambar fail

KUALA LUMPUR, 21 Jan — Sharifah Zohra Jabeen Syed Shah Miskin tidak perlu melarikan diri sebaliknya perlu menyambut tawaran forum yang mengundangnya, kata Presiden Kongres India Muslim Malaysia (KIMMA) Senator Datuk Syed Ibrahim Kader kepada The Malaysian Insider hari ini.

Dalam laporan hari ini, Sharifah Zohra mengesahkan tidak akan menghadiri  forum "Kebebasan Akademik dan Hak Asasi" yang akan  diadakan esok di Dewan Perhimpunan Cina.

"Beliau (Sharifah Zohra) perlu berdepan dengan masalah yang diwujudkannya.

"Jangan larikan diri dan perlu tampil untuk nyatakan pendiriannya," kata Syed Ibrahim.

Syed Ibrahim turut menggesa untuk bertanggungjawab keatas perkara yang dicetuskannya memandangkan ia sudah tersebar luas  dan orang ramai memperkatakannya di dalam laman maya dan juga secara terbuka kerana sikapnya tersebut.

"Sharifah Zohra kena bertanggungjawab dan hadapinya," kata Syed Ibrahim.

Dalam pada itu, Syed Ibrahim berkata Sharifah Zohra perlu perlu lakukan sesuatu untuk membersihkan namanya dan menerima  pelawaan daripada Bawani KS adalah platform terbaik untuk dirinya.

"Menerima pelawaan adalah langkah yang sewajarnya yang perlu diambil oleh Sharifah Zohra untuk membersihkan namanya.

"Ia adalah lebih baik daripada berlarutan," tambah beliau lagi.

Syed Ibrahim sebelum ini menegaskan Sharifah Zohra sudah tidak bersama lagi KIMMA dan sebarang kenyataan daripada bekas  ahli persatuan tersebut tidak mewakili KIMMA.

Forum "Seiringkah mahasiswa dan politik?" diadakan di Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Kedah pada 8 Disember lepas, akan tetapi hanya heboh selepas video tersebut dimasukkan di Youtube minggu lalu.

Klip video "listen,listen,listen" selama 24 minit itu memaparkan Sharifah Zohra menegur Bawani, yang membangkitkan kepada penganjur forum beberapa persoalan berikutan maklumat yang dikatakan Bawani tidak betul mengenai Pengerusi Bersama Gabungan Pilihan Raya Bersih dan Adil (Bersih 2.0), Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan dan Datuk A Samad Said.

Bawani juga menegaskan negara mampu untuk menawarkan pendidikan percuma sehingga ke peringkat universiti dan bertanya mengapa Malaysia tidak boleh berbuat demikian, diikuti dengan tepukan penonton.

Ketika Bawani sedang bercakap, Sharifah Zohra turun dari pentas dan berdiri di depannya namun Bawani tidak mempedulikan tindakan Sharifah Zohra itu dan terus bercakap.

Sharifah Zohra kemudian berkata "listen" kira-kira 11 kali sebelum bertindak mengambil mikrofon, sambil menghulurkan tangannya bersalam dengan Bawani dan mengucapkan terima kasih kepadanya.

"Nombor satu, ini adalah program kami dan kami dibenarkan untuk bercakap. Nombor dua, apabila saya bercakap, (anda) dengar," kata Sharifah Zohra kepada Bawani.

Tindakan Sharifah Zohra telah menerima banyak kritikan daripada rakyat Malaysia yang menonton klip video tersebut sehingga menyebabkan berlaku apa yang digelar fenomena "listen, listen, listen".

Hari ini,  ahli majlis tertinggi Suara Wanita 1Malaysia (SW1M) Ema Lee Abu Samah mengesahkan kepada The Malaysian Insider  bahawa Sharifah Zohra tidak akan hadir ke forum tersebut dan menegaskan sebabnya sudah dijelaskan dalam klip video yang dimuatnaik di laman Facebook SW1M.

Universiti perlu pelopori media sosial untuk pendidikan — Saifuddin

Posted: 21 Jan 2013 01:23 AM PST

KUALA LUMPUR, 21 Jan — Universiti di negara ini perlu mempelopori media sosial untuk pendidikan penuntut mengikut kesesuaian peredaran zaman.

Universiti di negara ini perlu mempelopori media sosial untuk pendidikan penuntut mengikut kesesuaian peredaran zaman. — Gambar AFP

Timbalan Menteri Pengajian Tinggi, Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah berkata media sosial bukan sahaja menjadi medium penghubung malah ia boleh menjadi medium pendidikan untuk penuntut dalam aktiviti pelajaran serta aktiviti kokurikulum mereka.

"Kita perlu berubah mengikut peredaran zaman, zaman kami dulu zaman mesin taip. Kini zaman pelajar adalah zaman komputer.

"Kemunculan kesedaran sosial bentuk baru di mana kerja-kerja sosial diberikan definisi baru seperti pendidikan mencintai negara atau patriotisme," katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian kepada pemberita selepas merasmikan Majlis Pra Pelancaran Persidangan Kebangsaan mengenai Urus Tadbir Hal Ehwal Pelajar (HEP) dengan kerjasama Universiti Malaya (UM) dan Taylor's University, di sini hari ini.

Persidangan itu akan berlangsung selama tiga hari mulai 25 Feb di One World Hotel, Petaling Jaya yang akan menyentuh aspek kebolehpasaran graduan, pembudayaan keusahawanan dan kesukarelawan.

Terdahulu, Saifuddin melancarkan minggu ulang tahun penyelidikan fakulti perubatan UM ke-50 tahun, yang berlangsung selama tiga hari mulai hari ini.

Dalam ucapannya beliau meminta fakulti perubatan UM memainkan peranan utamanya mengenal pasti cabaran dan peluang untuk menggerakkan perubahan dalam masyarakat mengenai kesedaran kesihatan.

Dalam sidang media yang sama, Timbalan Naib Canselor Hal Ehwal Pelajar UM, Prof Datuk Rohana Yusof menegaskan sekali lagi pihak universiti tidak pernah melarang pelajar menyertai perhimpunan aman.

"Pihak Universiti amat menghormati semangat Akta Universiti dan Kolej Universiti 1971 (AUKU) dan pihak kami hanya tidak menggalakkan pelajar disebabkan ia adalah minggu peperiksaan dan ia sama waktu dengan perhimpunan pada 12 Januari lalu," katanya sambil menasihatkan pelajar agar lebih mengutamakan pencapaian akademik mereka. — Bernama

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

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The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion


Pengajaran Sharifah Zohra

Posted: 20 Jan 2013 03:48 PM PST

21 JAN — Reaksi orang ramai berikutan klip video "Listen Listen Listen" yang tersebar luas baru-baru ini adalah berbelah-bagi. Rata-rata masyarakat pelbagai kaum yang waras (ulang: waras) menyedari betapa Sharifah Zohra Jabeen Syed Shah Miskin Albukhary telah memalukan diri serta pertubuhan yang diwakili.

Pada masa yang sama, ada juga puak etnosentrik yang bersikap "pantang menyerah kalah" lalu mula menggunakan ruang siber — khususnya Facebook — untuk menghina Bawani KS, mahasiswi tahun dua jurusan undang-undang di Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM).

Laman 'khas' dimulakan dengan jawatan baru Sharifah Zohra di Pusat Aduan Haiwan 1 Malaysia (PAH1M).

Insiden memalukan yang berlaku semasa forum "Seiringkah Mahasiswa dan Siswi dengan Politik?" di UUM pada 8 Disember 2012 seharusnya membuka mata pelbagai pihak; khususnya politikus yang suka membuka mulut tanpa berfikir. Malangnya, dalam kes ini, ramai anggota masyarakat yang memilih untuk melakukan serangan berbaur perkauman dan agama terhadap individu terbabit.

Sebenarnya, teknik mengasak dan mengacah untuk menakutkan orang — khususnya minoriti — bukanlah sesuatu yang baru. Saya pernah menghadiri perhimpunan membantah isu "Interlok" dipolitikkan anjuran Gabungan Persatuan Penulis Nasional Malayaia (Gapena) dan NGO-NGO Melayu di Rumah Gapena, Kuala Lumpur pada 15 Januari 2011.

Walaupun saya hanya hadir sebagai penonton, saya dipaksa naik ke pentas untuk menjelaskan beberapa perkara. Ada pula kumpulan yang melakukan provokasi dan mengasak dengan laungan "Now! Now! Now!" bagi mendesak saya menjawab pertanyaan mereka. Paparan itu juga ada di YouTube tetapi tidak sehangat klip video UUM.

Situasi yang sebaliknya pula berlaku dalam kes melibatkan Bawani dan Sharifah Zohra. Bawani tidak diasak supaya bercakap; sebaliknya dihalang daripada bercakap. Sharifah Zohra tidak diasak supaya bercakap; tetapi dia membuat pilihan sendiri untuk menonjolkan tahap mentaliti sebenar.

Lebih menarik apabila klip video itu khabarnya dimuat naik ke YouTube dengan niat untuk menunjukkan "kehebatan" Sharifah Zohra dan "memalukan" Bawani yang merupakan seorang aktivis di dalam dan luar kampus. Akhirnya, senjata makan tuan dan kita semua sedia maklum apa yang berlaku.

Norhayati meminta maaf dengan cara yang mengeruhkan lagi keadaan.

Sharifah Zohra yang merupakan Presiden Suara Wanita 1 Malaysia (SW1M) melakukan kesilapan demi kesilapan dalam insiden itu. Sebagai seorang perunding media, saya akan menasihatkan wanita itu supaya jangan bercakap sekiranya tidak tahu bercakap atau tidak ada apa-apa hujah. Bercakap adalah suatu seni dan kedudukan Sharifah Zohra sebagai presiden sebuah pertubuhan yang menggunakan logo "1 Malaysia" tidak memberikannya kelebihan dan hak untuk bercakap apa sahaja tanpa berfikir.

Selepas klip video itu tersebar luas dan pelbagai pihak meluahkan kemarahan, Ketua Pemuda Umno, Khairy Jamaluddin mengeluarkan kenyataan menerusi Twitter pada 14 Januari 2013: "This Jabeen lady DOES NOT represent BN" (Wanita Jabeen ini TIDAK mewakili BN). 

Umno, KIMMA tak mahu tanggung malu

Laporan media pada 9 Disember 2012 mengenai tuduhan Sharifah Zohra bahawa pengerusi bersama Gabungan Pilihan Raya Bersih dan Adil (Bersih 2.0), Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan adalah seorang anarkis masih menyebut wanita itu sebagai Timbalan Ketua Wanita Kongres India Muslim Malaysia (KIMMA) Kebangsaan.

Bagaimanapun, pada 15 Januari 2013, The Malaysian Insider menyiarkan kenyataan rasmi Presiden KIMMA, Senator Datuk Syed Ibrahim Kader yang mengesahkan, "kami memang tahu tentang sikap liar dan agresif beliau ini dan susah nak kawal beliau ini. Namun, beliau kini tidak berada dalam parti lagi".

SW1M juga mengeluarkan kenyataan menerusi Twitter pada 15 Januari 2013 untuk membela presidennya: "Hanya kerana seorang student yg xmo diam apabila diberi microphone kecoh cytroo2 pr semua." Terjemahan: "Hanya kerana seorang pelajar yang tidak mahu diam apabila diberi mikrofon, kecoh semua tentera siber Pakatan Rakyat."

Mungkin SW1M tidak sedar bahawa reaksi yang diterima tiada kaitan dengan mana-mana parti politik. Memandangkan Barisan Nasional (BN; juga "Bar1san Nas1onal") dan KIMMA sudah tidak lagi mengaku Sharifah Zohra ada kaitan dengan mereka, maka ada pula usaha menuduh pembangkang dalam isu yang timbul. Tindakan tidak bijak demi tidakan tidak bijak terus dilakukan Sharifah Zohra dan SW1M.

Pengerusi National Indian Rights Action Team (NIAT; dulu National Interlok Action Team), Datuk Thasleem Mohamed Ibrahim turut mengeluarkan kenyataan di Facebook untuk mengesahkan Sharifah Zohra tidak lagi bersama KIMMA. 

"She is a Pakistani lady from Gombak and reliable sources tell me that she is planted by Umno to humiliate the Indian community. She was booted out of KIMMA," katanya. Terjemahan: "Dia seorang wanita Pakistan dari Gombak dan sumber-sumber yang boleh dipercayai memberitahu saya bahawa dia 'ditanam' oleh Umno untuk menghina masyarakat India. Dia sudah ditendang keluar dari KIMMA."

Facebook menjadi tempat membuat kenyataan dan memohon maaf.

Dalam satu lagi insiden susulan, seorang ahli Wanita Umno bernama Norhayati Saiddin menulis di Facebook: "Deii Bawani.. kalau mau pendidikan percuma tanggechi pergi ler belajar sana India… you mother land.. sana tanggechi boleh dapat pree… ammakk!! Untung lorrr… dulu India banyak duduk estet… itu jamban pun lu orang tarak tau… sekarang India org banyak mahu sebab itu BN ada perintah ini negeri."

Kebodohan dan sikap menghina yang ditonjolkan secara terbuka oleh wanita itu mendapat bantahan masyarakat pelbagai kaum dan agama. Susulan daripada itu, Norhayati mengeluarkan kenyataan memohon maaf pada 16 Januari 2013:

"Kepada semua kawan2 saya yg berbangsa India. Maafkan saya jika komen saya membuat anda semua tidak selesa. Saya telah meminta maaf pada hari yg saya berhujah dan saya juga telah jelaskan perkara yg sebenar. Dalam komen saya itu saya tidak pernah suruh Bawani balik tapi saya ada suruh dia pergi ke India belajar di sana kalau nak percuma dan mengenai perkara JAMBAN pula kita kena akui semasa awal kemerdekaan kita semua mana kenal tandas dan selepas negara tgh membangun barulah kita menikmati kemudahan2 tersebut!"

Pada pemerhatian saya, Umno dan sekutu tidak memerlukan "pembangkang" untuk menumbangkan BN. Isu Altantuya Shaariibuu juga sudah tidak perlu. "Orang dalam" seperti Sharifah Zohra dan Norhayati sudah lebih daripada mencukupi. NGO-NGO yang sewenang-wenangnya menggunakan logo "1 Malaysia" memadai untuk menghancurkan gagasan murni itu.

Usaha tumbangkan BN, Umno?

Sebelum ini, ada pemerhati politik yang mengeluarkan pendapat bahawa timbalannya sendiri mungkin (ulang: mungkin) sedang cuba "menjatuhkan" Datuk Seri Najib Razak; khususnya dalam isu "Malay first vs Malaysian first" (2010) dan teks "Interlok: Edisi Murid" (2010). Akan tetapi, rasa-rasanya "nyamuk-nyamuk" seperti Sharifah Zohra dan Norhayati sudah memadai untuk menumbangkan BN dan menghancurkan Umno buat selama-lamanya.

Najib selaku Pengerusi BN dan Presiden Umno sepatutnya meminta (menasihatkan, merayu, mengarahkan atau mewajibkan) para ahli, penyokong dan NGO pro-BN supaya menutup mulut; sekurang-kurangnya sehingga Pilihan Raya Umum Ke-13 selesai. 

Akan tetapi, saya tidak menolak kemungkinan Sharifah Zohra (atau nama manjanya Nikki Da Best) merampas mikrofon daripada Najib dan berkata: "Listen Listen Listen Listen Listen …"

Pengguna perlu berfikir sebelum mengeluarkan sebarang kenyataan.

Semasa isu novel Komsas "Interlok: Edisi Murid" muncul, ada puak dan juak-juak yang menuduh saya menjadi dalang. Kononnya saya dan Kumpulan Sasterawan Kavyan (Kavyan) adalah golongan anti-Melayu dan anti-Islam. Kempen sama diteruskan apabila kami mengusahakan aktiviti berbentuk perpaduan kaum dan agama, serta berusaha memartabatkan Bahasa Malaysia sebagai milik Bangsa Malaysia. Pada Julai 2012, seorang budak hingusan tampil dengan "Sifir Mudah Mengapa Perjuangan Kavyan Mesti Ditolak"!

Seorang penulis Bukan Melayu yang sangat terkenal dalam kalangan penulis dan pembaca Melayu menghantar SMS kepada saya pada Januari 2011 untuk memberi maklumat: "Semua yg dtg dngan si XYZ [nama dibuang] yg cetek ilmu tu, guna frasa yg sama trhadap Uthaya. Tak habis-habis otak sempit, fikiran dangkal dan perangai pelik mereka. Berkali-kali kumpulan si XYZ tu datang pada saya memberi tahu saya, 'ni semua kerja Uthaya'."

Terbaru, apabila Patrick Teoh didapati mengeluarkan kenyataan berbaur penghinaan agama di Facebook, nama saya juga yang diseret masuk. Seolah-olah sayalah punca bagi segala masalah; termasuk masalah jamban tersumbat di rumah orang.

"Itu pasal bro Pyan, ..kita ni 'konon sporting' sgt! mmg lahanat la depa ni.. sekoq lg anak indu paria keling uthaya sankar.. yang orang kita pon punya la dok sokong.. konon2 abes intelektual sgt dah..," komen individu bernama Huya Fattah (Hamada Gang) apabila seorang rakan penulis meluahkan kekecewaan terhadap tindakan Teoh.

Bagi membantu pemahaman, terjemahan kata-kata itu adalah begini: "That's the thing, Brother Pyan. … We're supposedly too sporting! Those people (non-Malays) are a damned lot. Another one is this Hindu Pariah Keling Uthaya Sankar. Our people (Malays) are also supporting him; supposedly an intellectual person."

Apabila rakan-rakan mahu menulis sebarang komen pada dinding Facebook saya, syarat utama yang diletakkan adalah supaya mereka memastikan penggunaan bahasa yang betul. Dengan cara itu, saya berharap semua orang (termasuk diri saya) akan membaca semula dan menilai apa yang ditulis sebelum menekan butang "post".

Benarlah kata orang tua-tua: Terlajak perahu boleh diundur, terlajak kata buruk padahnya. Apatah lagi kata-kata itu sudah tersebar menerusi ruang siber tanpa sempadan. Semoga kekhilafan Sharifah Zohra, Norhayati, Teoh dan Huya menjadi pengajaran berguna kepada kita semua; dengan izin Tuhan.

* Uthaya Sankar SB adalah pemilik tunggal Perunding Media, Motivasi dan Penerbitan Uthaya.

* Ini adalah pandangan peribadi penulis.

Time ripe for Muslim TED Talks

Posted: 20 Jan 2013 03:31 PM PST

JAN 21 — "A mind once stretched by a new idea never regains its original dimensions." — Oliver Wendell Holmes 

A close friend suggested that I present something on Islamic finance and the halal sector on TED Talks, and my immediate reaction was, "Huh, what's the story?"

Background: I gave a presentation on Islamic finance at Bold Talks in Dubai in 2011, and Islamic finance cannot (today) compete for an audience's sustained attention (not for long at least) when competing against presentations from an ex-prisoner and ex-guard from Guantanamo Bay, or facing the challenges of getting photos of environmental damage from the BP oil spill, or the battle of evil and good forces highlighted in the Stanford Prison Experiment, and other inspiring and insightful human stories.

Islamic finance may be about ethics, financial inclusion, equitable treatment, etc., but it has not resulted in a compelling human interest story yet. It has not changed disasters into happy or humane endings. It has not delinked from being "curious or press release news" to being part of the business section in newspapers.

Today, people ask, which Muslim country has eradicated poverty? Has it financed healthcare to reduce deaths of infants, increasing mortality rates and saving mothers in labour, say in African/Asian countries? Has it help finance a knowledge-based economy (via venture capital)? Has it rescued conventionally indebted people from foreclosure, fines or debtor's incarceration? Has it financed to save the environment or even saved those affected from environmental disasters?

The answers to these questions are an article for another day.

After my presentation, no, it was not on prohibition against interest and pork, halal certification or the length of a scholar's beard (before someone decides to comment that this is a rant on halal and being too Islamic), I got the customary polite golf clap, and left the stage feeling empty.

So, a re-do is not on the cards for TED Talks. But, there is a potentially more interesting angle and story for the TED Talks platform.

TED

The TED website states: "TED is a non-profit organisation devoted to ideas worth spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference, bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design." It goes on to say:

"We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world .... building a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world's most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.'

There are number of TEDs:

● TEDActive for community building

● TEDGlobal is the summer conference held in places like Oxford, Tanzania, and now its permanent home in Scotland.

● TEDIndia was about hosting events in countries that could lead regions.

● TEDWomen asking question on how girls and women ae reshaping the future.

What about TEDOIC

OIC stands for Organisation of the Islamic Conference, 57 in all and with a total population of 1.8 billion-plus and combined GDP (at purchasing power parity, PPP) of US$7,740 billion (RM23,220 billion).

So why isn't there a TEDOiC for the "man on the street" as an alternative to the glitz and glamour of the Swiss-based World Economic Forum (WEF), often held in places like Sharm el-Shaik, Egypt and Petra, Jordan. The OIC, as a whole, has yet to unleash its true potential as a "regional" bloc of countries or have a far-reaching impact globally. It has not been taken seriously by the world at large as well as in many parts of the Muslim world as they feel it has yet to deliver meaningful solutions for its constituents' many unending challenges. Today, many of the Muslim countries are often the source of today's many challenges.

This said, these challenges are really disguised opportunities, and when you bring the "world's most inspired thinkers" onto one platform and give them 18 minutes to present not many audience members will leave early.

Imagine the world's leading and respected thinkers congregating and doing mini-presentations on not the problems in the OIC, but possible ways forward? What a world of solutions we could congregate! If nothing else, it's an approach that has yet to be tried, so we only have everything to gain and the status quo to lose.

Yes, it's acknowledged, we have the important World Economic Islamic Forum (WEIF) and the OIC Forum, however, TED Talks is not an Islamic/Muslim platform, hence, the neutral credibility.

Ideas as change agent

TED is owned by Sapling Foundation, a non-profit entity. The goal of the foundation is "...  a belief that there is no greater force for changing the world than a powerful idea." It goes on to say, "... An idea can be created out of nothing except an inspired imagination ... weighs nothing ... transferred across world at speed of light at virtually zero cost ... when received by prepared mind, can have extraordinary impact ... of the world ... alter behaviour ... and cause the mind to pass other ideas..."

The Muslim world is not in need of ideas, as there are many brilliant Muslims, young, old, men and women all included. What is needed is a neutral platform (in the tribal Muslim world) that sparks ideas into viable plans that get funded and eventually executed without pilferages, we hope!

The facilitators are the needed sparks and the TED platform can be the credible foundation to start this. But, the platform has to be hosted, akin to having a TED franchise in the first Muslim country (I believe).

TEDMalaysia?

Among the 57 Muslim countries, having visited about 20 of them, the time is right for TED Talks in Dubai or Malaysia. Malaysia, a multi-cultural, ethnic and religious society with a robust and vociferous (online) media, could be a better launch pad. There is a correlation between ideas and a "multi-party" democracy generating quality of life ideas and ensuing ideals. 

This is an election year in Malaysia. Elections used to be about slogans in the early years, but now they are about the market place of ideas.

What a great opportunity to have global thinkers including those from Malaysia come to Malaysia and present blueprint ideas that build Malaysia, specifically, and the OIC, generally.

Conclusion

Shall I make the initial call to the good folks at TED Talks about Malaysia?

The second call is for a Malaysian thinker or friends of Malaysia (FoM) to join the TED Talks Brain Trust, to be with the likes of the founders of Google, Microsoft, Amazon, chancellor of Kabul University, and others.

Finally, in the words of William James:

"A new idea is first condemned as ridiculous and then dismissed as trivial, until finally, it becomes what everybody knows."

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com
 

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