2007 is another milestone year although there were some disappointing moments. After working for slightly more than 1 year in the Barrier-Free Environment and Accessible Transport Group (BEAT), which comprises 18 non-governmental organisations of disabled persons, I decided to leave because of differences in direction and purpose. How could one call oneself an advocate for disabled persons when one is willing to conceal discriminatory acts against disabled persons?

I could not live with that kind of contradictory conscience and would not want to be part of such hypocrisy. I may be out of BEAT but I am glad to have found like-minded advocates inside and outside the country and are working with them to genuinely bring advocacy on accessibility to a higher a level. Nevertheless, I have not forsaken local disability issues and have continued to highlight injustices and discrimination against disabled people in Malaysia.

Leaving the unsavoury bits behind, I am glad most part of 2007 has been fruitful. I GOT MARRIED!!! Yes, to the most wonderful woman I have ever met. I could not have asked for a better person to spend the rest of my life with. We took the plunge after 9 years of courtship. Life just got even better.

Several generous sponsors came forward to fund my participation at the 7th Disabled Peoples’ International (DPI) World Assembly and the Global Summit on Independent Living in Seoul, South Korea. It was an eye-opener to be amongst such an esteemed congregation of leaders, advocates and activists from 61 countries. It was also an honour to be given the opportunity to speak on not one but two occasions in an international conference considering the fact that I had only been involved in the Independent Living Movement for only slightly less than 2 years.

After coming back from Korea, I began to impart my knowledge on Independent Living to disabled people, especially those with severe disabilities. They are the people who need Independent Living most but are the group most marginalised in society and are most times forgotten by disability advocates. The going is slow but I would not want it any other way as I would prefer to build a solid foundation before putting up the structure.

The one achievement that I am proud of for 2007 is that I passed the driving test and got my driving license. I am driving again after 23 years. The sense of liberation is priceless. Wuan and I are moving around more often and further. My being able to drive has also helped in my work in promoting Independent Living and reaching out to people who are unable to attend courses for one reason or another.

My faith has faltered badly though. Still, I know for sure that all the good things that had happened to me came from Him. My only resolution for 2008 is to be close to Him again. Despite this it has been a pleasure wrapping up 2007. God willing, I look forward to another fruitful year.

View of Sutera Harbour Golf Course from The Pacific Sutera Club Lounge.

The measure of whether I enjoyed a holiday is by how reluctant I am to leave on the last day. Truth be told, our last day at Kota Kinabalu was with a tinge of sadness. Wuan and I had thoroughly enjoyed ourselves the few days that we were there. There were still so much of this city that we have yet to explore and local delicacies that we have yet to savour.

View of the Kota Kinabalu International Airport and Water Village.

We had our usual spoilt-for-choice buffet breakfast at Boleh Café. I wondered when I would be able enjoy such a wide spread of delicious food next. Buffet would normally be wasted on me especially with the low-protein and low-everything-else diet that I am on. Although the temptation to eat more than my diet allowed was great, I obediently kept to the recommended limit, almost.

The Pacific Sutera swimming pool from the Club Lounge.

Rosalynn came to join us after breakfast. We went to the hotel gift shop to get more souvenirs. I would love to get some beaded jewelleries and handwoven fabric for keepsakes. Unfortunately, the shop did not carry any that caught my fancy. I regretted not getting it at the zoo’s gift shop which had some very nice designs that I liked when we were there.

View of Sutera Harbour Marina and The Magellan Sutera.

Rosalynn had lead us to the Club Lounge on the 11th floor of the hotel when we first arrived to show us that it was one of the 2 places that we could have our breakfasts. The sight up there was spectacular. Wuan and I wanted to capture some shots of the surrounding areas from up there before we left. We spent some time there taking in the sights and quickly filly up our camera’s memory cards with the breathtaking views. We could even see the airport with aircrafts taking off and landing.

AirAsia counter at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport.

Soon it was time to leave and Rosalynn dropped us off at the airport. It was a hive of activity as the check-in area was filled to the brim with people. With some time to kill, we explored the small airport complex. When it was finally time to get to the departure lounge, we were thoroughly annoyed when an AirAsia officer sprang an unwelcome surprise on us.

It has to come to this. We have to go to the court to decide who has the right to use the word “Allah” and who is forbidden to call God that. According to Wikipedia, the term “Allah” is used in reference to God by Arabic-speakers of the Abrahamic faiths. That includes Jews, Christians and Muslims. Who then has the authority to say that any of the Abrahamic faiths cannot address God as Allah, among the many Names of the Divine? This is not some fast food franchise that we are talking about. Can mere mortals issue edicts restricting the use of any of the Names that the Supreme Being is known as? So many questions begging answers.

The Star
Nation
Thursday December 27, 2007
MYT 9:01:50 PM

Catholic paper files writ of summons

PETALING JAYA: The publisher of Herald - The Catholic Weekly has filed a writ of summons and a statement of claim in the Kuala Lumpur High Court to seek appropriate declarations of the use of the word “Allah”.

The publisher said in a statement released Thursday that the Internal Security Ministry had issued a series of directives to the publisher to cease the use of the word “Allah” in the weekly.

The publisher also said that if they failed to do so, the publication’s permit would either be suspended or revoked.

“We have decided to have our legal position to use the word determined by the courts,” the statement said.

The weekly’s editor Reverend Father Lawrence Andrew said that the writ was filed on Dec 5.

The 13-year-old paper, which carries reports about the Catholic community in English, Malay, Tamil and Chinese, has a circulation of 12,000 for its members.

Update 2:

The Star
Nation
Sunday December 30, 2007
MYT 7:50:23 PM

Herald gets good news

By ELIZABETH LOOI

PETALING JAYA: The publisher of Herald - The Catholic Weekly newspaper, which reports on the Catholic community in English, Bahasa Malaysia, Tamil and Chinese, has had its permit renewed.

The editor, Reverend Father Lawrence Andrew, said a representative from the Internal Security Ministry delivered the letter of approval, dated Dec 28, by hand at 10am Sunday.

“We thank (Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department) Tan Sri Bernard Dompok for his assistance, as well as the various news agencies and other media groups for supporting us with their wide coverage,” Father Lawrence said in a statement.

The paper has a circulation of 12,000 among the Catholic community.

When contacted, Dompok said he had brought the matter to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi a few days before Christmas and Abdullah had promised to look into it.

“I think the permit is good news and the Government has given the Christian community a wonderful Christmas present.

“The community will certainly be happy to know that the Government is looking into their welfare,” said Dompok.

Update 3:

Nation
Friday January 4, 2008

Herald can’t use ‘Allah’ in its publications

By MAZWIN NIK ANIS

PUTRAJAYA: The Herald - The Catholic Weekly publication is not allowed to use the word “Allah” in its publications, the Cabinet decided.

The restrictions on the use of the word “Allah” was still enforceable and shall be upheld as decided by the Cabinet in two of its meetings – on Oct 18 and Nov 1, 2006, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Abdullah Mohd Zin said.

Abdullah, who said the Prime Minister had instructed him to clarify the matter so the public would not be confused, told a press conference on Thursday:

“One of the reasons given to uphold the restriction is because that it has long been the practice of this country that the world Allah refers to God according to the Muslim faith.”

It was only proper for other religions to use the word “God” and not “Allah” when referring to their God in respective beliefs, Abdullah said, adding that the use of the word “Allah” shall not be made a public debate that may give the impression as if there is no freedom of religion in the country.

“The use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims may arouse sensitivity and create confusion among Muslims in the country,” he said.

On Dec 31, the publication’s editor Father Lawrence Andrew said the weekly was allowed to continue printing its Bahasa Malaysia section with no restriction on the use of the word “Allah” for God.

He said a representative from the Internal Security Ministry delivered a letter dated Dec 28 with the permit to print the newspaper and that according to him, the letter did not place any restrictions whatsoever.

The newspaper carries reports in English, Bahasa Malaysia, Tamil and Chinese, about the Catholic community. It has a circulation of 12,000.

The ministry had earlier issued directives to the publisher to cease the use of the word “Allah” in the weekly, failing which its permit would either be suspended or revoked.

On Dec 5, the publisher filed a writ of summons in the Kuala Lumpur High Court to seek declarations of use of Allah.

When contacted later, Abdullah said that the Cabinet in the two meetings had decided that Herald - The Catholic Weekly should not use the word “Allah” in its publications.

“I would also like to remind the public that apart from the word ‘Allah’, three other words - Solat, Kaabah and Baitullah – are also prohibited and cannot be used in other religions’ publications,” he said.

The year is coming to an end. The long expected Persons with Disabilities Bill 2007 (PWD Bill 2007) has been tabled in the Parliament and passed by the Dewan Rakyat (Lower House). This Bill was first drafted in 2002. Disabled persons in Malaysia finally have a law that is supposed to protect their rights and address the problems that they are facing. But why am I not too excited about it?

Firstly, the PWD Bill 2007 is all bark and no bite. Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil herself admitted, as reported by The Star, in A realistic bill, says Shahrizat on December 19 that there would not be any form of punishment for those who breached a disabled person’s rights because the bill was not punitive in nature. She was further quoted to have said that “There are by-laws which we can use to take action for non-compliance.”

My question to Datuk Seri Shahrizat is that if we already have by-laws to such effect, why do we need the PWD Bill? We could have just used those by-laws and be done with it without having to incur so much resources in drafting a bill that is totally toothless. A non-punitive legislation for disabled persons is as good as having no legislation because, frankly speaking, whatever by-laws we have that is supposed to protect the interests of disabled persons are as impotent as the bill itself.

The PWD Bill is not the first piece of Malaysian legislation for disabled persons. Many people may not realize that there already exists a by-law that requires all public buildings to be accessible to disabled persons. The Uniform Building By-Law 34A (UBBL 34A) of the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974 succinctly spelt out the measures that must be taken to provide such accessibility. This by-law was gazetted by various state governments in the 90s.

More than one decade later, disabled persons are still facing countless problems with accessibility in public buildings. These include no convenient access into buildings, ramps that are too steep, parking lots that are too small, not sufficient in numbers and usually taken up by non-disabled persons, toilets that are not functional, and the list goes on. We have the UBBL 34A, so what? Nobody is being punished for violating the standards. The local government which is the enforcing body for this by-law approves the building plans without referring to the standards drawn up by SIRIM. It is apparent who is most guilty here for non-compliance. Because of that disabled persons are still left high and dry where accessibility is concerned. To exacerbate the problem, the UBBL 34A does not include accessibility outside buildings. That is the reason why almost all walkways in Malaysia are not accessible.

The PWD Bill does not protect the rights of disabled persons at all. Neither do existing by-laws. Parties that do not comply with these by-laws are let off scot-free. Nobody is compelled to provide equal opportunity to disabled persons in fields of education and employment. The same goes for social, religious and cultural activities. The non-punitive nature of this bill does not create an urgency to respect the rights of disabled persons or compel guilty parties to make amends. They can happily go on violating those rights without fear of being punished.

What is the penalty against RapidKL, RapidPenang and all other public transport operators that do not provide access to disabled persons? What action can be taken against airlines for singling out wheelchair users and compelling them to sign indemnity forms? Who will take action against public building proprietors that do not provide accessible facilities? Or rather, who should take the local governments to court for ignoring the provisions in the UBBL 34A? Can we take legal action against the government for not providing inclusive education in mainstream schools? And these issues are just a tip of the iceberg for problems faced by disabled persons.

There are so many loopholes in the bill that a whale can even slip through without as much as a creating a ripple. Truly, the bill is a great disappointment. Disabled persons can still be blatantly discriminated against and there is nothing we can do to protect our rights. What exactly this bill was intended for is lost on me. If you ask me, having the bill is like not having one at all. The struggle against discrimination, injustice and inequality continues. Thanks but no thanks Madam Minister. The Persons with Disabilities Bill 2007? Bah! Humbug!