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Southeast Asia

Hunt for IS militant Mohamad Wanndy intensifies

2017-04-12

[THESTAR.MY] KUALA LUMPUR: The hunt for notorious Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (IS) holy warrior Mohamad Wanndy Mohamad Jedi will be further intensified following his inclusion in the global terror watch list, says Comm Datuk Seri Mohamad Fuzi Harun. The Bukit Aman Special Branch department director said the Royal Malaysia Police, especially the Coun­ter Terrorism Division will work closely with their American counterparts in hunting Mohamad Wanndy. "He (Mohamad Wanndy) has been the criminal mastermind behind several terror plots in Malaysia, including the bombing at the Movida nightclub. "He has also been actively recruiting more Malaysian gunnies for IS. This inclusion in the global watch list will definitely boost efforts to hunt him down," he said yesterday. While Mohamad Wanndy’s inclusion in the watch list by US authorities was welcomed, Comm Mohamad Fuzi said Bukit Aman had already placed him in its own wanted list for the past two years. "We are aware of the crucial role Mohamad Wanndy has played in attempting to launch attacks on home soil despite being in Syria," he said. "Currently, he is one of the most influential Malaysian gunnies in IS." The Star reported last year that Mohamad Wanndy was high on Bukit Aman’s wanted list, having spearheaded more than three terror plots in Malaysia. However, it's easy to be generous with someone else's money... the Counter Terrorism Division has been vigilant and alert in quelling his plans for terror attacks in the country. Sources said that while Mohamad Wanndy was the "puppet master" behind terror activities in Malaysia, he had amassed at least RM100,000 within a short time to settle personal debts and cover his expenses in Syria. "The holy warrior from Durian Tunggal is content with issuing orders for followers to execute attacks, including suicide kabooms, without getting his own hands dirty," a source said. On a separate matter, Comm Mohamad Fuzi said actions taken against Siti Noor Aishah Atam, 30, was justified. She is in Kajang Prison after the Court of Appeal reversed her acquittal over charges of having 12 publications relating to terrorism. She was a Kolej Universiti Insaniah (Kedah) graduate who was continuing her Masters in Islamic Studies at Universiti Malaya when she was tossed in the clink Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! in March last year under Sosma for having books on Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), Islamic State (IS) and al-Qaeda. On Sept 29 last year, she was acquitted by the Kuala Lumpur High Court but was re-arrested under the Prevention of Crime Act for allegedly importing IS flags into the country. "We will not compromise against IS gunnies as well as sympathisers and supporters. We have enough credible evidence," Comm Mohamad Fuzi said. "Safety and security is our priority," he said, in dismissing allegations by the Terengganu native’s family over miscarriage of justice in Siti Noor Aishah’s case. "We also discovered that she was a student of wanted runaway holy warrior Dr Mahmud Ahmad, who has fled to southern Philippines. "We won’t take such drastic action if the evidence is not sufficient," he said.

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Southeast Asia

Police: Religious depts not tough enough against extremism

2017-01-10

[FREEMALAYSIATODAY] Police have told state religious departments to be more aggressive in monitoring Islamist preachers to ensure they do not promote radical ideologies that could inspire terrorist acts. Bukit Aman’s anti-terrorism chief, Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay, said a lack of enforcement by religious authorities had given room to foreign and local preachers to engage with the public unmonitored. Some of them were spreading teachings that were not in line with mainstream Sunni beliefs, he added. “We have noticed that some of these teachings lean towards extremism although the contents do not directly tell the listeners to cause harm to fellow Muslims,” he said. He gave the example of preachers who would not directly tell their audiences that some Ahli Sunnah Wa al-Jamaah (SWJ) teachings were blasphemous but would call them “bid’ah (innovative)” instead. Some of these preachers’ followers, being aware of prophetic traditions that condemn innovation in religion, might conclude that it would be permissible to kill the so-called innovators among SWJ adherents, Ayob said. He said his department’s role did not include monitoring preachers, but added that it nevertheless had a list of suspects. “If the teachings are against true Islamic teachings, we will advise the religious departments on the preachers and it is up to them to take further action,” he said. “By right, the preachers should get permission from the state religious department, but apparently many do not.” He said the department’s current list included some preachers hailing from West Asian and African countries. Ayob spoke of a Singaporean preacher, 64-year-old Rasul Dahri, who was arrested for the third time last year. He had been active in the Klang Valley and Johor for a few years although the National Fatwa Council, as well as the Penang Religious Department, had banned seven of his books. He also spoke of terror suspect Mas Selamat Kastari of Singapore, whom Malaysian police arrested in April 2009, more than a year after he escaped from detention in his home country. He said Mas followed Rasul Dahri’s classes in Johor between between 1987 and 1989 before deciding to join Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). Citing other examples, Ayob said JI leaders Abu Bakar Bashir and Abdullah Sungkar managed to sneak into Malaysia in 1985 because of lack of monitoring by religious departments. “This resulted in the recruitment of almost 300 Malaysians and citizens of other Asean countries as JI members.” Ayob said the Johor religious department was one of the strictest in the country when it came to enforcing the law. “It is very stern and would not allow preachers without credentials and approval to teach in the state.” He also commended the religious departments of Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Perak, Terengganu, Pahang, Sabah and Sarawak for strictness of enforcement. A counter-terrorism expert from Universiti Malaya said yesterday that religious departments should work harder to filter the activities of preachers in the country to curtail the spread of “salafi jihadi” ideologies. Balakrishnan RK Suppaiah acknowledged that countering the extremist ideology was difficult, but he said Malaysia could do it because it had the “right foundation” and a good police force. “People will question you for monitoring places of worship,” he said. “But we have to do it because we are a moderate country where religion is concerned.”

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Southeast Asia

Militant kindergarten on Malaysian police radar

2016-05-09

[Malay Mail] The kindergarten at the center of online fury over photographs showing plastic gun-toting kids in military fatigues has been on the police radar since last year. Bukit Aman Special Branch director Datuk Seri Fuzi Harun said, "We have already been investigating the school from last year. If we find enough evidence that suggest such (militant) ideologies are being taught, we will move in on them," after the photographs shared by lawyer Siti Kassim were widely circulated on social media. Fuzi said police were monitoring kindergartens across Malaysia to ensure they were not being used as training centers for child soldiers. Checks revealed that several kindergarten teachers, one of whom works in the school implicated in the photographs, had uploaded the images onto Instagram. In her Facebook post, Siti, who is also an activist, alleged that the teachers were from a college in Terengganu, which she claimed was tied to Jemaah Islamiyah. Apart from the picture of kids carrying toy guns, another photograph in the collection showed children dressed in full headscarves and holding the Palestinian flag. In January, Fuzi had said that police managed to foil an attempt by Daesh to set up a child terrorist training center. He added that there were cases as far back as 2012, where parents brought their children to child terrorist training centers in Syria and Iraq.

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Southeast Asia

Malaysia sends 66 teen boys to anti-gay counselling

2011-04-20

[Straits Times] MALAYSIAN authorities have sent 66 Mohammedan schoolboys identified by teachers as effeminate to a four-day camp where they will receive counseling on masculine behaviour to discourage them from being gay, an official said on Tuesday. Gay rights advocates decried the measure as a symptom of widespread homophobia in this Mohammedan-majority country where gay sex is illegal. The boys between 13 and 17 years old reported on Monday for what is officially being called a 'self-development course' after their schoolteachers in Terengganu state identified them as students who displayed effeminate mannerisms, said Razali Daud, the state's education director. They will undergo religious and motivational classes and physical guidance, Mr Razali said. He declined to give further details. The camp is meant 'to guide them back to the right path in life before they reach a point of no return,' Mr Razali told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named. 'Such effeminate behavior is unnatural and will affect their studies and their future.' It is the first such program in Terengganu, a conservative state.

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Southeast Asia

Malaysian PM suggests some autonomy for Thai south

2009-10-26

Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak said yesterday that Thailand should offer a certain degree of autonomy to people in the predominantly Muslim region to allow them to be good Muslims in the predominantly Buddhist kingdom. Najib, who is to tour the restive South with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva in December, said he would tell them that Kuala Lumpur would not support extremists who violate Thai laws. "Look, you know you just have to be good Thai citizens. Don't expect Malaysia to back any violation of Thai law. You are on your own and if they [law breakers] come over, we will send you back," the Malaysian Prime Minister said in an exclusive interview with The Nation's Editor-in-Chief Suthichai Yoon. Najib said some form of autonomy could be a solution to end the violence, which has claimed more than 3,800 live since the beginning of 2004. "You may not want to call it autonomy but there could at least be some form of involvement," he said. The government could offer self-determination for people in areas that are important to them such as the selection of local leaders, employment, religion and education, he said. Because nobody is allowing them to worship freely as Muslims now. /sarcasm "It is Thailand's decision to consider how far such autonomy in the deep South should go, and Malaysia, as a neighbour, would not intervene in the matter, he said. "Our part is to be supportive. We will not negotiate on your behalf. We will do what a good neighbour should do," he said. Independence from Thailand championed by any organisation is unrealistic for Muslims in the South, he said. "They have to be loyal to Thailand, the King and the Constitution, but at the same time they should be good Muslims and should be allowed to act as good Muslims," he said. However, the major issue affecting bilateral relations between the two countries and the situation in the Malay-speaking South is the question of dual citizenship by people who exploit legal loopholes to criss-cross the border, he said. Malaysia wanted to resolve the problem with Thailand and tell some 20,000-25,000 people who hold dual nationality to choose either Thai or Malaysian citizenship, he said. Some times extremists exploit their dual nationality to seek safe haven in Malaysia's northern states but Najib said he had no solid evidence to prove whether the opposition party, based in the north has harboured them. Malaysian authorities would arrest and send them back to Thailand if it was learned that any of them had fled from prosecution to Malaysia, he said. Najib gave an example of 130 people from Narathiwat who were sent back three years ago after fleeing from persecution at home to the northern states of Kelantan and Terengganu to show co-operation from Malaysia. Some of them were accused of involvement in the violence before fleeing. The Malaysian Prime Minister said he saw no outside elements in causing the violence in the deep South but suggested that if the situation were prolonged, it would open up opportunities for outsiders to become involved.

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Southeast Asia

State revolt rocks MalaysiaŽs embattled government

2009-04-15

[Jakarta Post] Malaysia's ruling coalition was rocked by fresh political turmoil Tuesday amid suspicions that its legislators were trying to oust an unpopular leader in an oil-rich state. The apparent revolt is the latest headache for new Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is trying to curb infighting in his bid to revive support for the coalition of the National Front. But the effort suffered a setback amid intense speculation that some representatives were planning a no-confidence vote against Terengganu state Chief Minister Ahmad Said, who has become hugely unpopular after removing key officials he allegedly disliked. In an apparent snub to Ahmad, 10 of the coalition's 24 lawmakers in the northeastern state did not attend a legislative meeting Tuesday, said Rahman Mokhtar, a National Front legislator who attended the meeting and opted out of the revolt. Open revolts are rare in the ruling coalition and brings attention to factions that could undermine efforts to forge a more united, effective front against a resurgent opposition. The rebellion is also a major distraction for the prime minister as he grapples with dissent among ethnic Indian and Chinese minority officials who have questioned decisions by Malay majority leaders. At a news conference Tuesday, the 10 lawmakers said they avoided the meeting out of fears for their safety, the national news agency Bernama reported. Three of them alleged they received text messages with threats of violence and death. Bernama quoted their chief representative, Rosol Wahid, as saying the group was not planning a no-confidence vote. However, several local media reports said such a vote was likely. Ahmad has warned in recent days that any National Front lawmaker who introduces a vote against him would face disciplinary action, including expulsion from the coalition. It is widely known that most of the 10 dissenting legislators have been unhappy with Ahmad's appointment. He took office amid controversy last March after the state's constitutional ruler rejected the National Front's initial choice for the chief ministerial post in the coastal state. Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who met with several Terengganu legislators prepared to discuss the conflict, said Tuesday it was "a matter of concern" because the problems in Terengganu would grow worse. The rebellion is unlikely to affect the National Front's control of Terengganu, where it holds 24 of the 32 state legislature seats. Some political observers also believe Najib would prefer a new chief minister in Terengganu. The National coalition has governed Malaysia for nearly 52 years and controls nine of Malaysia's 13 states. It retained power with its weakest parliamentary majority ever in March 2008 elections.

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Olde Tyme Religion

Constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion "doesn't apply" to Muslims who leave Islam

2009-02-24

Malaysia: “The judgment in the case states clearly that a Muslim cannot renounce the religion as he wishes. If such freedom is given to Muslims, this will affect the status of Islam as the official religion, as stated in the Federal Constitution,” he said. Replying to Zulkifli Noordin (PKR – Kulim Bandar Baru), he said Phrase 4 of Article 11 prohibited non-Muslims from spreading other religions to Muslims. At the moment, Nazri said there are 10 states in Malaysia that limit the spread of other religions to Muslims with state laws. The states are Terengganu, Kelantan, Selangor, Perak, Malacca, Kedah, Pahang, Negri Sembilan, Johor and Perlis. Nazri said a Muslim can only renounce the religion once the Syariah Court gives the order whereby the National Registration Department would delete the word “Islam” from the identity card once relevant documents are shown.

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Southeast Asia

Malaysia police battle mob in Islamist stronghold

2008-03-08

Malaysian police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse an angry crowd of people, mainly supporters of an Islamic party, following clashes over alleged unregistered voters in Saturday's general election, police said. Police arrested 22 supporters of Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS) after they were attacked with bottles, sticks and stones, and the windscreens of three police cars were smashed, witnesses said. The incident, the worst violence in the election so far, took place in Rusila, the power base of PAS President Hadi Awang. "We strongly condemned the police action," PAS Deputy President Nasharudin Mat Isa told Reuters. "I think there must be some provocation." PAS said several of their supporters were hospitalised for injuries. They included Hadi's 31-year-old son Kholil, who sustained facial injuries. Police said the fracas broke out after police detained Kholil for questioning in a dispute over confiscated identity cards seized by men, believed to be PAS supporters, from about 70 passengers of two buses entering Rusila. "They have damaged three police cars. We have managed to keep the situation under control," Terengganu police chief Ayub Yaakob told private broadcaster TV3.

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Southeast Asia

Malaysia: Islamic party fields non-Muslim candidate

2008-02-24

(AKI) – Malaysia’s conservative Islamic party, the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS), has broken a 61 year old taboo and fielded a non-Muslim as one of its candidates. Kumutha Raman, a 29-year old law graduate, was presented to local media on Thursday. She will contest the Tiram state seat under the banner of the Parti Keadilan Rakyat, a coalition between PAS and the People's Justice Party (PKR), formed to challenge the ruling Barisan Nasional. Barisan Nasional is the government coalition controlled by prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). PAS’s election choice is the latest in a series of overtures aimed at attracting non-Muslim votes at the election scheduled for 8 March. Known for its strict Islamic policies, PAS has recently dropped its call to turn Malaysia into an Islamic state and is instead campaigning for better quality of life and racial equality. Its manifesto calls for the national oil and gas company Petronas to be placed under parliamentary control, lower prices of fuel and food, and free education up to university level and free healthcare. Taqiyya. The election comes at a low point in Malaysia’s inter-racial relations with Indian and Chinese minorities increasingly showing signs of displeasure with the country’s pro-Malay laws. At the previous election, held in 2004, the hard-line PAS called for the creation of an Islamic state and proposed harsh laws such as amputating the limbs of thieves and stoning adulterers to death. Its radical Islamic stance scared some members of the Muslim community and the party suffered badly, losing control of Terengganu state and only retaining control of Kelantan with a very slim majority. At a national level, PAS won only seven parliamentary seats, which represented a significant decrease from the 27 parliamentary seats it had won in the 1999 general election. It plans to contest 65 of the 222 seats in the forthcoming ballot. Almost 11 million of Malaysia’s 27 million people are eligible to vote. Voting is not mandatory, and recent voter turnouts have typically ranged between 70 and 75 percent.

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Southeast Asia

Malaysian cops fire on Oppo rioters

2007-09-10

Malaysian police fired live rounds to quell a riot in Malaysia’s Muslim heartland, wounding two men, after trying to break up an opposition rally with water cannon and tear gas, local media said on Sunday. Local police declined to comment to Reuters on the riot, which broke out late on Saturday night in the northeastern state of Terengganu after a group of opposition parties, including the main Islamist party, held an illegal rally, the reports said. State news agency Bernama quoted Terengganu Police Chief Ayub Yaakob as saying that a policemen had fired two shots from a pistol, injuring one man in the shoulder and another in the neck, after he was set upon during the riot. An eyewitness told Reuters by phone the crowd of about 500 had attacked police with stones after they set up road blocks around the rally and then moved in to break it up. The two groups fought each other until the early hours of Sunday. In Malaysia, opposition parties must get police approval to stage rallies. “It was police who attacked the civilians,” said Kamarudin Jaffar, a leader of Islamist party Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS), saying the rally had been staged by PAS, other parties and non-government bodies to call for free and fair elections. “It was a peaceful rally... Police set up all the road blocks around the area with water cannons. Then suddenly in the middle of the night they started using water cannons on people,” he added. Malaysia’s prime minister is widely expected to call for an early general election late this year or early next year. State news agency Bernama said on Sunday that 23 people had been detained and that seven, including four policemen, were injured. Bernama said the protesters had also hurled pieces of metal and wood and a molotov cocktail at police.

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Southeast Asia

Thai refugees want to go home

2006-04-24

Malaysia has been informed that 99 of the 130 Thai Muslim refugees currently seeking asylum in the country have expressed willingness to return home, reports said Monday. Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said Sunday that his Thai counterpart, Kantathi Suphamongkhon, had recently conveyed the news to Kuala Lumpur. "I was informed by my Thai counterpart that 99 are willing to return after having been guaranteed safe passage and security by their government. "However, we have yet to receive confirmation at our end," Syed Hamid was quoted as saying by the Star daily. The refugees were part of a group of 131 Thai men, women and children who fled across the border in August last year to seek asylum, claiming that their safety was in jeopardy in the troubled southern Thai region. They were given temporary shelter at a holding centre in the north-eastern Terengganu state, and were interviewed by officers from the UN refugee agency in Kuala Lumpur, a move which Bangkok slammed as seen to be interfering with its internal affairs. In December, Malaysia handed over one of the refugees to Thailand after a request by authorities to question the man on his alleged involvement in the January 4, 2004 robbery of 300 weapons from an army depot. Syed Hamid on Sunday reiterated Malaysia's stance on the remaining 130 refugees. "We treat them as people seeking temporary refuge owing to problems there. If they want to return, we shall help in the process," he said. The three southernmost provinces comprise the only majority Muslim area in predominantly Buddhist Thailand. The region, which was first conquered by Bangkok in 1786, has strong historical and cultural links with mainly Muslim Malaysia.

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Southeast Asia

Malaysia Aims For Credible Coast Guard Agency

2006-03-18

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) will strive to be a credible enforcement agency and create its own identity through the adoption of best practices in the Coast Guard environment despite its present personnel shortage, said its director-general, Laksamana Madya Datuk Mohammad Nik. The MMEA, which will be officially launched on March 21, currently operates with 1,200 personnel, only 30 percent of the targeted 4,000. "We have to start small but that first step is a big step for us," he said, adding that the agency was in the process of recruiting more personnel as not all the vessels that it received from the various agencies came with the crew. Although many of the MMEA's personnel formerly served with the Royal Malaysian Navy, many also came from other branches of the government. Given the specialised nature of the MMEA's operations, Mohammad said conversion training was being conducted at its recruitment centre in Johor Baharu for the recruits who came from diverse professional backgrounds. "Their experience is in their own assignments but we have to formulate our own training requirements to develop our skills and competency," he said, adding that the MMEA had also established a new training centre in Lumut, co-located with the RMN's training facility at the naval base. Over the long term, he said the MMEA planned to set up its own training centre and academy under its strategic development plan. In the meantime, it has also sent its personnel to more established Coast Guard agencies in the United States and Japan. In outlining the primary tasks of the agency, also known as the Malaysian Coast Guard, he said they included maintenance of law and order; preservation of the peace, safety and security; prevention and detection of crime; apprehension and prosecution of offenders; collection of security intelligence; and conducting search and rescue. The Malaysian Maritime Zone refers to Malaysia's internal waters, territorial sea, continental shelf, exclusive economic zone and the air space over the zone. On the MMEA's task to cover 600,000 sq km under the Malaysian Maritime Zone, Mohammad admitted that it would be a Herculean task to cover every inch of it. To be really effective, he said the MMEA has chosen to focus on areas with a high concentration of illegal activities through co-ordinated patrols using both vessels and aircraft. The MMEA has received and will continue receiving a total of 70 vessels for its operations from the Royal Malaysian Navy, Marine Police, Fisheries Department and Customs Department spanning three phases from July last year until July this year. The agency has also purchased 38 Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats from the Mara Shipyard Engineering (Terengganu) to augment its fleet. To improve its surveillance capability, the MMEA is also in the process of leasing patrol planes and helicopters.

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