'Still proud to be a Malaysian?' - ask Rozana Zubir about this!
Isn't she Malaysian? Should the government of Malaysia take some initiative to protect her citizen?
Nope. Unless she brings money home, or she's some kind of celebrity a la Jeslina Hashim (remember Zouk), or she's related to any of the Executive, she could be better left rotting in Hell, or in this case, Australian prison!
Sisters in Islam? Woman's aid NGO? Parliament Caucus group? You really made my day, :)!
What do the opposition has to say about this? PAS? Their official paper? DAP? PKR? Their un-official online paper? They're clue-less as well!
Aliran? MalaysiaKini? Jeff Ooi? Too busy with something else? MGG Pillai?
Kasihan Rakyat Marhain Malaysia.......
Latest update:
Jeff Ooi wrote this, Tuesday, June 21, 2005, maybe after I mailed him to the effect.
KUALA LUMPUR 18 Jun - Dasar kerajaan yang tidak bertolak ansur terhadap kes-kes dadah tidak memungkinkan rakyat negara ini, Rozana Zubir yang kini ditahan di Australia kerana disyaki menyeludup candu ke negara itu mendapatkan bantuan kewangan bagi membiayai kos guaman.
Beliau berkata, dasar kerajaan terhadap kes dadah menyebabkan negara-negara Barat termasuk Australia tidak menyokong pendirian tegas negara ini.
``Undang-undang di Malaysia ini lain, kita memandang berat terhadap kes dadah dan tidak pernah bersetuju dengannya (dadah),'' katanya kepada Mingguan Malaysia ketika dihubungi di sini hari ini.
Rozana memerlukan antara RM300,000 hingga RM360,000 untuk membiayai kos khidmat peguam bela dan peguam cara bagi perbicaraan kesnya di Mahkamah Pusat Sydney.
``Saya nasihatkan dia supaya tulis surat tetapi kita tidak pernah ada peruntukan khas bagi membantu kes seumpama ini,'' katanya.
Corby yang dijatuhi hukuman mati oleh mahkamah Indonesia menerima bantuan sebanyak RM3 juta untuk membiayai perbicaraan kesnya.
``Saya terima sepucuk surat dari Rozana hari ini, surat itu ditulis dalam bahasa Melayu, dia mahu minta bantuan kerajaan dan rakyat Malaysia untuk membantunya,'' kata Palany.
Dia yang berasal dari Perlis berhadapan dengan hukuman mati dan denda sehingga RM2.14 juta mengikut undang-undang Australia jika disabitkan kesalahan.
posted by mamat at 5:18 AM
16 Comments:
wow, then i'd like to commit some crimes overseas too, if our government can help me settle the legal fees. if i'm unfortunately caught, of course.
What happened to innocent until proven guilty?
Oh, I forgot. THAT's a "Western" concept.
Sigh.
hey come on la, this lady is not guilty yet. She hasnt been pass verdict by the court. So until it is proven that she is guilty, the government has the responbility to help its citizen.
Jamil, we dont want to interfere with Australian Law, Rozana just need financial help.
Livingmonolith, I hope you get caught and then I'll be laughing at your expense.
yo rant - not that the govt not doing anything at all, there's a limit, and that's policy.. i am sure.. govt thru the embassy has extended what they could only.. consular matters that is.. i had experienced that back during my student days in UK.... in 1999..
we are here, yet, we read the stories about her from newspaper.. arent we forgetting that we shouldnt just plain believing what they're writing in the newspaper??
did we actually know for sure that no govt people not extending ANY assistance at all to her? are we there in australian jail?
u did hope for livingmonolith to get caught.. what a pity.. it also show the mentality of malaysian u are... my God... (i hope you are indeed malaysian).. get your mind and fact right la my friend..
yes.. the amount is too big for the family to swallow.. but, how about my cousin's new born baby's appeal for money for his heart treatment??? but, most of us.. understand... that life isnt fair.. and that's a limit to everything... if govt decided to go ahead and pay.. then, i would also question the govt.. why govt pays? it is my money too.. i am a rakyat as well..
yes... she's innocent until proven guilty.. but she's also guilty until proven innocent..
pity? yes..
guilty? not yet
innocent? not yet too
only God knows...
so then, trust God..
I think the saying only goes one way - innocent until proven guilty. That's the premise of the law the world over, at least in modern democracies.
There is a reason why consulates and embassies are established. Among others, in times of peace, it serves to extend assistance to its citizens.
If the government has extended assistance, then it's all good and well. But as the story stands now, she has appealed to the public and the government of Malaysia as her defence is being hindered by the lack of funds.
Yes, admittedly there are perhaps other more deserving causes to fight, but poverty-stricken heart patients are to be assisted by the Ministry of Health no?
I agree with rant - financial aid for her legal services is not tantamount to meddling into other country's affairs. Everyone deserves fair legal representation and it is the courts that decides on her fate, not us.
Actually, this reminds me of a case a few year back. A young man from Malaysia, who was studying in Australia, decided to volunteer during his summer vacation in East Timor. While he was there, he was shot by a stray bullet. He died.
His parents appealed to our embassy to assist in extracting his body from the area. Help was refused on the basis that he had no business being there. His mother, a New Zealander, desperate to get the body of her son home, appealed to the New Zealand government to help. The NZ government proved to be more compassionate and her son's body was returned to Malaysia.
yo katak besar, if you really mean that she is guilty until proven innocent then God help us all.
dear my fellow malaysians: najah and rant, i do know that the saying only goes one way as u and rant mentioned it... but, i was not narrowing down the saying as per what it is in democratic or law term... i meant it to be as in general... and no one here knows any better.. only God knows whether or not she is innocent or otherwise... and only God can decide on the future outcome..
about the heart-stricken-patient... i also know that it falls under Kementerian Kesihatan... but, what i was pointing out.. was the use of govt money...
nevertheless... i agree with all you that.. the amount is not that BIG and the action is NOT to meddle with other country's affairs.. and clearly, if we do send the money or otherwise... we will not interfere with the Australian govt affairs..
the issue here is.. can and will govt send the money?
it's all comes back to the policy..
as i had experienced and as i have check again.. the only sources that the money will originate from is not, in principle, from the govt itself.. there's no clause and conduct so far, that the govt does have an amount being allocated for such cases..
yes, there had been cases.. where the govt thru embassies/high coms paid up for such cases i.e. money been stolen, being left penniless by their foreign spouses, etc.. but, smaller amount, for different purposes, and still not from any allocation provided by the govt...
the thing is... Rozana`s case is a criminal case.. not imigresen cases.. it is not fair to compare the two cases and treat them as the same.. surely govt has different policies in treating diff cases..
and about the East Timor case... i had checked with the Embassy.. it was not as simple as Najah's version or the newspapers' version for that matter..
i agree with Jamil and as i had mentioned before.. pity? yes.. innocent or guilty? only God (and the Court apparently) can decide...
no doubt.. that i do pity her.. going through all the process..
but, again.. it all comes down to the policy.. that's why she is APPEALING to the malaysian govt and public at large.. to assist her.. because... there is no allocation for such..
and as a Malaysian myself who had experienced this traumatic event.. i understand.. that there is a policy, there's a limit, there's hope.. and the truth will prevail..
may Allah help us all..
Actually her case of being caught for drug possession is not uncommon at all. Malaysians are notorious for drug cases in many countries -and many (hundreds/thousands) had been convicted, hung etc in foreign countries-Singapore, US, Australia etc. Preferably some assistance can be given to her on the presumption of innocence before judgement-but not before her family members come forward to explain their financial standing. But their family members may not be forthcoming !
Dear
Halian,
livingmonolith
najah
jan
jamil
rant
katakbesar and democracy4now.
Thanks for the visits and the valuable inputs.
Let's just put this issue in a nut-shell with an anology. Malaysia is the family, the ruling government the parents, and we all are the children. If one of us is caught for something, will it fit for our parents to just look to the other side and ignore the whole thing, not even offereing any moral support? Isn't it expected of them to help-out in every possible ways, even if the caught child is indeed guilty of the said crime? Aren't the rest of the siblings, in the same way, be expected to show supports in each and every way that they can?
That's the simplest way how I could justify my resentment of the treatment that Rozana is not accorded by the ruling government?
Najah and rant is very correct in mentioning the age-old assumption that each and everyone should have in handling each and every criminal charges, the person being charged is assumed to be innocent, until it is proven other-wise!
Nobody is ever guilty until proven innocent! That only applies in this poor country of ours these days! Poor Malaysia.
Dear Halian.
Thank you for the latest feedback. I really appreciate it.
I was hoping that my simple analogical example of Malaysia as a family would make some sense to my argument, but it seems that it doesn't.
Anyways, I am sorry if I might have been seen of pulling anyone away from the real issue. So, what was the real issue then?
I would definitely support the government stand of not providing any legal assistance to anyone who has been found guilty of any crime, but that poor Rozana has only been allegedly charged as a criminal. She is not a criminal found gulity by the court yet. The onus is still for the government to render any form of assistance to her citizen.
I have answered your question 'Are you suggesting that the Malaysian Government should provide legal fees to all Malaysians who are criminally alleged in foreign country?'. I said assistance should be provided to all alleged Malaysian citizen, local and abroad. Locally, bureau such as the former BBG (Biro Bantuan Guaman, who used to be around helping those in need of legal assistence, especially those who cannot afford their own counsel. What happened to this bureau?) should always lend a helping hand to all. Likewise, it should also be made available to Malaysian citizen charged over-seas.
If 'it would set a precedent that will definitely make all the present and future Malaysian criminals outside Malaysia to rejoice', I am very sorry to say that any legal loopholes are continously being used by everyone, especially with the help of unscrupulous lawyers as well as corrupt law-makers. That is a thing that could not be avoided at all,a ll these whiles.
If my logic 'of being a responsible parent', the Government's coffer and time is manipulated by unscrupulous people, then mechanism have to be put in place to ensure that this thing do not happen. Is it that hard to implement? On your question, 'Is that what you want?', my answer is, Yes, I want a caring government!
I don't understand this part of your argument though, 'However, the Government may provide help as a matter of privilege'.
I would like to quote something here, a pledge by the government.
'These are to request and require in the name of the Supreme Head of Malaysia all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance, and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary'
You can find that pledge with the Malaysian crest in your International Passport! However, this particular clause which I find very alarming, 'Pembawa passport yang melanggar syarat atau peraturan dalam mana-mana undang-undang yang berkaitan tidak akan mendapat perlindungan atau kemudahan daripada mana-mana Perwakilan Malaysia semasa berada di luar negeri.'
Being responsible parents also means that you are responsible to ensure that your children turns out right, and do not become criminals when they grow up. If they do, responsible parents have the duty to correct them, and one of the way to do it is to report their crime to the authorities!
I love Malaysia as well, but I love Malaysian more!
dear all..
i wish to thank Halian for pointing out the real issue..
my last posting (i hope) on this issue is in regard to the govt's stance..
it seems that the bloggers on this topic are neither fan of the current govt in throne nor hardcore supporters of the opposition..
i love malaysia.. i hate injustice and mistreatment too.. so as everybody else.. and i think everyone will agree that there is no perfect govt and governance here in today's world..
by relating to our topic.. here's a website that probably could illustrate my point
http://www.britishhighcommission.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1029287472105
thank you.
Halian.
Point taken, but Malaysian government could at least do more! I like what was written in the link by katabesar!
Katakbesar.
Thanks for the link. Good pointer. Do our consulates have these guidelines as well? On their website, at least?
:)
That same British High Com also have a pdf file about their services to help Briton detained abroad.
Link
Good read! Very humane!
oppss...
i think Mamat has miscontrued my last posting...
the reason why i sent the Link.. was to make u understand that.. even the British govt has published what they can and can not do, extend, help and assist their citizens in the foreign lands...
kindly, please read that website thoroughly..
and about Malaysian embassies,high commissions, consulates and ministries.. try to browse yourself..
sorry and thank you..
Dear katak besar.
I reckoned my command of english is sufficient enough to appreciate the essence of the document from the British High Commision link that you refered me to. I did understand the document well, but, don't you? Have you read the pdf file that I mentioned?
Browsing Malaysian embassies,high commissions, consulates and ministries for information? It's a terrifying experience! ICT my foot!
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