Temporary teachers treated like dirt, says Chong Chieng Jen

Kuching (Feb 1, 2012): Sim Yian Yun and six of her colleagues were told to leave after teaching two weeks at a government school here, but they are still hanging on to their job.

The seven teachers were recruited as Guru Sambilan Harian (GSH) at the end of last year based on a circular to all headmasters and principals of government and government aided schools in Sarawak.

The circular, dated Dec 30, 2011 and issued by the State Deputy Education Director Jaidah Alek, authorised headmasters and principals to recruit GSH.

However, Sim and the six were shocked to be told that their service was no longer needed through a second circular signed by Kuching Division Education Office’s Head of School Management Unit, on Jan 18.

The second circular, however, withdrew the powers of the headmasters and principals to recruit GSH.

Sim and the six were told on Jan 18 to leave their jobs  with three days’ notice.

 “Our last teaching day was on Jan 20, but we hang on,” Sim told reporters at the Kuching DAP service centre here.

Sim said she had the permission of the school’s principal to talk to the media about their plight, on condition the name of the school be not mentioned.

“My principal is giving us his support, and that is why he is allowing us to continue teaching,” Sim, who teaches Mathematics to Form 2 classes, said.

An electronic engineer by training, Sim said if she and the six teachers were to leave, the students would suffer because the Education Department has not sent any replacement teachers to the schools.

“In a way, we are giving our voluntary service and we hope that the department would allow us to continue teaching based on the terms and conditions offered to us, in the first place,” she said.

Sim said after obtaining her bachelor’s degree in electronic engineering from MultiMedia University, she became a part-time Mathematics teacher at a tuition centre.

She said she applied to be a GSH, and was accepted by the school’s principal.

Bandar Kuching member of parliament Chong Chieng Jen, speaking at the same press conference, said he has written a letter to Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also the Education Minister, on the plight of Sim and her six colleagues.

“I am very disappointed with the flip-flop policy of the Education Ministry regarding temporary teachers,” he said.

He said the rights and welfare of temporary teachers have been gradually eroded over the years.

“Teachers who served as Guru Sambilan Harian do not have paid holidays. Basically, they are paid five teaching days,” he said.

“While the government is preaching better treatment for our workers, why are temporary teachers, especially GSHs, omitted?” he asked.

Chong, who is also the Kota Sentosa State Assemblyman, said there is no security of employment for GSHs.

“The ministry should treat them with more respect and accord them with the basic workers’ rights in country.

“It is not right for the ministry to treat them like dirt when there are replacement,” he said.

Chong said the cases involving Sim and her six colleagues were not the only ones in Sarawak.

“There are 607 GSHs whose services have been terminated and that 349 Guru Interim were sent to fill up the vacancies,” he said.

He said 258 vacancies have not been filled up.

Star may contest in five seats in the general election

Kuching (Jan 30, 2012): State Reform Party (STAR) is likely to contest in at least five seats in the coming general election, its Youth leader Kakoh Kiles said today.

He said three of the seats would be Mas Gading, Mambong and Serian, all Bidayuh majority areas, while the other two seats would be in the Iban majority areas.

“We are in the process of selecting the right candidates for all the five seats,” he said, adding that the party’s executive committee met yesterday to discuss on the election preparations and the potential seats to be contested.

“We have identified a number of potential candidates, including businessmen and professionals,” he added.

Kakoh declined to say whether he would a candidate to contest in one of the Bidayuh seats.

“All I can say is that we have people willing to come forward to be the candidates,” he added.

He said the party wanted to contest in few seats because of financial constraints.

“This is our biggest problem because we limited means to challenge the Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat (PR),” he added.

Kakoh said the Sabah chapter of STAR would decide on its own on the number of seats it would want to contest.

STAR was formed by former Assistant Minister of Infrastructure Development and Communications Dr Patau Rubis after he was sacked from the Sarawak National Party (SNAP) in 1996.

It has never won a seat in either the general or state elections.

STAR has never been invited to be a component party of Sarawak  Pakatan Rakyat whose members are DAP, PKR and PAS.

Baru supports suggestion to set land tribunal

Kuching (Feb 1, 2012): Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Richard Malanjum’s suggestion for the setting up of a Native Land Tribunal in Sabah has received the support of a well known Sarawak native customary rights (NCR) land lawyer, Baru Bian.

“The suggestion by the Chief Judge fortified our views of our support for the recent call by the Bar Council for a specialised Indigenous People’s Court to be established,” Baru said today.

“We in Sarawak also want the same court to be set up, not just in Sabah,” he said.

“Whether it is called the Indigenous People’s Court or the Native Land Tribunal, the important thing is that this forum should provide an appropriate process to investigate land claims brought by the natives of the land,” he said, referring to the recent suggestion by the Chief Judge at a symposium on Sabah Native Land Rights at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS).

“ As pointed out by Malanjum, there are certain limitations to having such cases heard in Civil courts, such as the requirement of strict compliance with the Evidence Act, unfamiliarity of judges with native adat and culture, and lack of judges,” he said.

He added that the proposed Tribunal or Court should comprise of qualified individuals preferably standing on par with High Court judges.

“Of utmost importance is that they must be well-versed in the adat, customs and culture of the people.

“They must be given the power to hear cases which involve non-natives, unlike the current Native Court which does not have such power.

“Their remedial power must be equivalent to the High Court’s to grant injunctions and unlimited award and damages, which again is restricted in the current Native Court.

“The composition, ambit and procedure of the proposed Native Tribunal or Indigenous People’s Court are open for debate and discussion,” Baru, who is also the Sarawak PKR chief and State Assemblyman for Ba’Kelalan, stressed.

He added what is clear is that there is a pressing need for this specialised tribunal or court given the recent calls by various parties for its establishment.

“It is our hope that the Chief Justice will heed the calls and initiate steps to carry out the proposal,” he said.

Baru Bian dares Taib to a public debate on NCR land grabbing issue

Kuching (Jan 28, 2012): Sarawak PKR boss Baru Bian has dared Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud to a public debate if he still denies that the state government has not grabbed native customary rights (BCDR) land from the owners.

"If the chief minister still says that the government has not grabbed the NCR lands, and then give suchy lands to plantation companies under the provisional leases, then I renew my challenge to him to have the debate," Baru said today after chairing the State PKR liaison committee meeting here.

Baru first dared Taib to the public debate before the April 16, 2011 state election.

Taib, however, declined but asked Minister in the Chief Minister’s Office Tan Sri Adenan Satem to represent him in the debate with Baru.

Baru said today that since the state election, PKR had received at least 50 complaints from NCR landowners on the land grab since the state election.

“My legal firm has already opened 10 files with a view to taking court actions against the state government and plantation companies,” he said.

He said NCR land grabbing by the state government would be a major issue that Pakatan Rakyat (PR) component parties would be deploying in the coming general election which is likely to be held this year.

“We believe that this will be a major weapon for us to use in the campaign,” he said, adding that the NCR land issue had remained unresolved despite the pledge by the state government.

“Instead of resolving the issue, the government makes it worse by issuing an increasing number of PLs. Practically, the complaints of land grabbing have been received from all over Sarawak,” he said.

On the general election, Baru said the party had already identified potential candidates to contest in seats it was allocated with.

“Sarawak PKR has submitted their names to the central leadership for endorsement,” he said.

Baru, however, declined to reveal the seats it was allocated to contest.

“I can assure our supporters and members that we have made election preparation since October last year.

“We are more prepared this time when compared to our preparations for the state election,” he added, stating that the party had identified issues, its weaknesses and strengths, and what needed to be done.

Ends

Does anyone think that Taib Mahmud will allow "fair reporting" in Sarawak?

Food for thought for the editors of the Borneo Post and New Sarawak Tribune

Ahead of polls, NUJ moots 'fair reporting' pledge

Hazlan Zakaria 12:23PM Jan 27, 2012

As a stop-gap measure to encourage fair and balanced reporting in the run-up to and during the impending polls, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is mooting a ‘fair reporting pledge' for all members to sign, to show solidarity with its official stand on journalism ethics.

"Yes, the executive council has unanimously agreed on the matter as it is one of NUJ's objectives - to practise ethical journalism," its general secretary V Anbalagan (right) told Malaysiakini.

However, Anbalagan said, the council would still call for an extraordinary delegates conference to debate the issue further.

"We feel it will give legitimacy to our action if a decision is made by the highest decision making body and not (just) the exco," he explained.

Preparations are ongoing to hold the conference in late February or early March, with the 13th general election expected to be held around June.

The idea of a 'fair reporting pledge' stems from a dialogue session held by UCSI University's Malaysian Institute for Development and Asian Studies (Midas) on Jan 12, entitled "Truth Matters: The Media and GE13" attended by representatives from the NUJ, the academia and media practitioners.

The pledge was one short term solution suggested to address the deplorable state of Malaysian media practitioners, accused to be just stenographers and note takers prone to regurgitating the views of their political and commercial masters, rather than adhering to the tenets of professional journalism such as fair, balanced, accurate and analytical reporting.

'Journalists worried about losing jobs'

The forum agreed that such alleged bias, especially in the mainstream media during election periods, is a black mark on Malaysian journalism.

The move, while it may not be able to stem the tide of crooked journalism in itself, is deemed as necessary to send a firm message on NUJ's stand on the matter and the union's fortitude in pressing this issue to the powers-that-be and errant journalists.

Anbalagan admitted at the forum that the lack of fortitude on the part of NUJ members, as a result of the worry about losing their jobs, more than anything else, stood in the way of the union's fight for media freedom and ethical journalism, what is supposed to be the guiding light of their profession.

For the long haul, the NUJ also submitted its recommendations on how to ensure fair election news coverage to the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on electoral reforms on Tuesday, focusing on the Election Commission's (EC) handling of the media and ceramah sessions during the election campaign period.

Some salient points include:

• Empowering the EC to form a media monitoring committee with enforcement powers whose duties will include issuing guidelines to print, broadcast and online media;

• To revert the sitting government to 'caretaker' status during the election period and prevent it from monopolising the mainstream and public media;

• All media, alternative and private included, to give fair, balanced and ethical coverage, give fair advertising space and right of reply to any adverse reports; and,

• EC and police to ensure speedy processing of ceramah permits and provide the necessary assistance required.

NUJ argued that such measures would not only ensure fair and balanced reporting but also lend credibility to any government elected in a non-biased electoral environment.