From Din Merican's -- partial extract only -- on February 15, 2011
Mainstream Media and UMNO Bloggers: You need a Paradigm Shift
Mainstream Media and UMNO Bloggers: You need a Paradigm Shift to promote Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s 1Malaysia
by Din Merican
National Unity and Equal Opportunity
Today is Maulidur Rasul, the birthday of Prophet Muhammad pbuh. God testified in the Holy Quran that the Prophet has been sent as a blessings to the whole universe – “Wama Arsalnaka Illa Rahmatan lil Alamin” meaning “And he has not been sent except as blessings to the whole universe”. Thus, on this day, we commemorate the birth and coming of a most remarkable man. A man who brought a message from God that man will forever be at a loss unless he strives to do good on this earth. Thus the basis of Islamic social justice is that famous maxim “ Amr Ma’aruf Nahy Mungkar” meaning “Enjoin Good, Forbid Evil”.
That Islamic maxim has been adopted by the Pakatan Rakyat State government of Penang as its motto of governance. Yet, because it is popularized by a non-muslim political leader Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng ,his efforts to emulate and imbue Islamic universal principles in running the Penang government are chided by BN, UMNO and their controlled mainstream media as a political gimmick.
The Tragedy of MCA: It lost Ong Tee Keat
They would applaud and commend the MCA and Gerakan leaders who participate in perbarisan maulud as a big support for Islam rather than look at the real conduct of a person. That is how you can have a self-confessed porn star as a President of MCA for so long as they participate in perbarisan maulud or attend the proclamation of this tokoh or that tokoh, which is nothing more than a parade of charades. The MCA lost a dynamic leader in Ong Tee Keat.
In the last few days, the mainstream media especially the NST and Utusan Malaysia have been playing up an article written by my friend and frequent interlocutor on this blog, former US Ambassador to Malaysia, John R. Malott.
Personal Attacks on John R. Malott: A Friend of Malaysia
They have twisted Malott’s socio-politico analysis of Malaysia as if it is part of a concerted attack against Malaysia. It was twisted a support for Anwar Ibrahim. It appears that no one can write objectively about Malaysia without being attacked. This intolerance to criticisms depicts the state of mind that our society is being forced into today – you are either with us or against us. Sounds like President George W. Bush!
Thus, Malott is now being demonized to the extent that even Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and my friend, Dato Seri Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz, who I fondly call Chief, has urged the Cabinet to ban Malott from entering Malaysia. According to Nazri, Malott has defamed Malaysia.
In playing up this issue, the NST and Utusan Malaysia have quoted extensively and even translated into Bahasa Malaysia an article by a minnow and naive right wing blogger, Rachel Motte, from some remote part of the US.. They continued to publish Rachel Motte’s article despite Rachel herself having withdrawn it from her blog. The role of mercenary writers in this episode are just too clear.
Malott has not only responded with a point by point rebuttal but has also warned these mainstream media that he might sue them for such libelous publications. Let us see what happens there. You can read Malott’s response (Ambassador John Malott responds to NST, Utusan Malaysia and Others, February 14) below I posted on Valentine’s Day.
In the same vein, some of these shameless mercenary writers, hiding behind anonymous blogs, have attacked another person whom I have come to write about lately, none other than Tan Sri Robert Phang. They have called Phang names for remarks attributed to Phang during an interview by the NST. The news of that interview was slanted as if Phang had slammed Malott and that Phang had tried to bribe the NST. Bribe the NST? What was that all about?
I decided to ask Phang and discovered that this same anonymous blogger had falsely manipulated Phang’s RM50,000 donation to the Teoh beng Hock Fund as a contribution to DAP, while a recent donation to the recent flood disaster victims was slanted as a bribe to the NST. The things they do as mercenary writers.
Since Malott is a friend and Phang is someone I have just got acquainted, I also asked Phang about his comments against Malott. Phang said that he was asked a host of issues, and only one of it was about Malott. Phang then provided me with a text of his answers to the questions posed by NST in that interview. I may not necessarily agree with Phang’s answers, but I believe in democracy and free speech and Phang should be given his say.
As for Phang, it is his view that he speaks what he believes to be the truth, including if it is to commend the government or PM Najib for doing some right things. That seems fair enough. Thus I reproduce the text of Phang’s reply below.
I have no doubt these mercenary writers and anonymous bloggers will manipulate Phang’s response. If Phang criticizes the government, they will say he is anti-government. If Phang praises some of the good efforts that he sees being done by the government, they will say he is sucking up.
Focus on 1Malaysia, National Unity and Equal Opportunity
In short, that is the problem with the mainstream media and the UMNO bloggers! You need a paradigm shift to promote Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s 1Malaysia. I support 1Malaysia because I have no doubt that it is about national unity and equal opportunity. The Prime Minister told me at the last Malaysian Golf Open Championship (2010) at the VIP stand hosted by Maybank in the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, that”I want to make Malaysia great again”. And I said to the PM, “Sir, please do it and I am with you”.
NOTE from YL: For the full post, please surf to dinmerican.wordpress.com:
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From Rockybru's on ...
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
"My friend Din Merican ..."
So Din Merican is JR Malott's friend and Malott is Din's friend. That's OK and that explains why Din Merican is putting his already-shortened neck at stake to defend Malott's rather awful piece on Malaysia, which has riled so many Malaysians. Din said Malott's intentions were good. That may be so, but as a former ambassador surely Malott is aware that good intentions are not good enough. You have to deliver them well. Din Merican has the benefit of being Malott's friend so he can say he knows where the man's coming from. The rest of us are not as lucky. But we do understand English.
The mainstream media's response to Malott has been quite sober, I must say. The New Straits Times produced articles by Azmi Anshar (Malott trying to distract us from Anwar's woes) and Shamsul Akmar (Get your facts right, Malott!), among others. These are not friends of Malott but professional journalists who exposed and discussed Malott's flawed assessments. No names-calling, as far as I remember. The Utusan Malaysia also came up with editorials to correct Malott's harsh description of Malaysia. Sometimes they are a little harsh, too, but not more harsh than Malott had been about us in his article, surely.
None of the writers in our mainstream media called Malott Anwar's pet as Rachel Motte did in her article, though. The NST and Utusan reproduced Motte's article simply because it would be of interest to read what an American blogger thought of it all, but that's now being used against them by both Din Merican.
I thought nobody read NST and Utusan anymore; guess I was wrong!
It's interesting to note that Rchel Motte's article has now been brought down by the New Ledger and I'm not sure if NST and Utusan are going to do the same. Malott seems to be putting the pressure on our papers with his threat of a legal suit, and Din Merican in his latest posting Mainstream Media and Umno Bloggers seems to be providing Malott the justification to sue the Malaysian papers.
I don't think Din and Malott should get too worked up by the whole thing. It's not like the papers started it, too, y'know. When Malott wrote the offending article in Wall Street Journal, I'm sure he expected -- hope for -- some backlast. Let's continue with the debate and not resort to legal suits.
p.s And Aang Din Merican, please advise your friend lah. And also, I strongly urge you to take alternative-stream media Malaysiakini to one side, quietly, to set the record straight. They can't still bedescribing you as "a close associate of Anwar".
"According to Malott's latest article which appeared on Din Merican's, a close associate of Anwar, blog, he said that he is now contemplating legal action against both dailies."
The fact, as I know it, is Din Merican is no longer a close associate of Anwar Ibrahim. In his political ride, Din is now in "N" mode (that's "Neutral", not necessarily "Najib"). Yes, he used to be in "P" (for Pak Sheh aka Anwar) gear but that was another lifetime ago.
at 2:54 PM
NOTE: For the original post, please surf to rockybru.com.my as Desi's version above does not have the many links -- or is it cables? -- the Datuk blogger has. BTW, both the Dins were bestowed Datukship obly recently, so you can expect the desibels to rise whenever the two dins "banter", or should it read "battle"? ~~ YL, Desi, knottyaSsusual
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Lust, but no least or beast, From mGf ES Shankar aka DPP to fellow BUMmer Desi, knottyaSsusual ...as commenter to Rockbru's post:)
"donplaypuks said...
It's clear OUR politicians, MSM and bloggers feel free in dishing out comments and criticisms on the internal affairs of Singapore, Thailand, Burma, Indonesia, Isreal, USA, UK etc as and when they like. But when they are on the receiving end of "awful" criticism, they tend to lash out at any foreign critic and try and dismiss it (usually unsuccessfully) as the work of an Anwar/Zionist/USA lackey and sympathiser.
They do not understand the concept of debate and if they succed in banning Malott from M'sia, guess who will end up the laughing stock? Does Narzi seriously think Malott will care two hoots or that he will be scoring points in the international arena?
Malott is no mere ex-diplomat; he actually served under 7 USA Presidents (over 30 years) and three years here and is quite well informed about M'sian politics and policies. And it's not as though he consults Din Merican before writing his piece; he's his own man, which cannot be said for most of our MSM which are no more than mere mouthpieces for UMNO/BN!
So, if they wish to debate Malottt and rebut his criticisms, they should prepare well and get their act together first instead of ending up looking like schoolboys! What ever happened to $100 million spindoctor advisors APCO? Were they not consulted or is it yet another case of water down the drain?
As you will already have noted, Rachel Motte's (Rachel who?) attempts to discredit Malott backfired when she hastily withdrew her blog after Malott pointed out to her some defamatory lines. So much for that!
Nazri had better know that when he takes on the big boys, he should exchange his shorts pants for long ones. Otw, it would all be NATO (No Action, Talk Only)! Or is it all talk and no trousers? Lol.
dpp
we are all of 1 Race, the Human Race
4:14 PM"
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