China girls are syndicate victims, Chong

By ALLISON LAI newsdesk@thestar.com.my

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PETALING JAYA: There have been many cases of young women from China ending up in the sex trade here after they are duped by syndicates to travel overseas for jobs.

“They were usually told they would work as factory workers, maids or masseuses. Upon arrival, they are forced into vice,” said MCA Public Services and Complaints Department chief Datuk Michael Chong.

Chong said most of the women were from poor families in the rural areas of China who were enticed by the promise of well-paying jobs overseas. He believed some even knew they would eventually end up as sex workers, but would still accept the jobs overseas to escape the abject poverty they faced.

Chong suspected international syndicates were working with local ones to illegally traffic these young women.
He lauded Malaysia’s recent pact with China to tackle transnational organised crime as a good move to go after these syndicates.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein had on Saturday said Malaysia would sign a memorandum of understanding with China which not only focused on the exchange of information, but also involved joint efforts in training, border control and in-depth study on criminal activities.

Separately, MCA vice-president Datuk Donald Lim Siang Chai described the collaboration between China and Malaysia as timely, as crimes were becoming more prevalent with more economic activities taking place between the two countries.

Chinese exclusion - US lawmakers seek apology

US lawmakers seek apology for Chinese exclusion
By Shaun Tandon (AFP

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WASHINGTON — More than a century after the United States shut its doors to Chinese immigrants, Asian American lawmakers are seeking an official apology that they hope will serve as a lesson for future generations.

Approved by Congress in 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act banned immigration by Chinese workers and their naturalization as US citizens, marking the first time the United States explicitly closed itself to a particular nationality.

Census figures show that more than 100,000 ethnic Chinese were living in the United States at the end of the 19th century. Many had been recruited to build the transcontinental railroad, but faced racism from white workers.

Representative Judy Chu, a Chinese American who took over this month as the new chair of the Asian American caucus in Congress, said that legislation offering an apology for the act would be a key priority.

Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943 during World War II after Japan highlighted the law in propaganda questioning China's alliance with the United States. But apology advocates note that the US government has never voiced regret.

After the act's repeal, the United States still let in only 105 Chinese each year. The United States opened up to large-scale immigration by non-Europeans under a landmark 1965 law championed by then-senator Ted Kennedy.

Representative Mike Honda, the outgoing chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, called the anti-Chinese law "a shameful chapter in our country's long history of exclusion."

"The great thing about humanity is that we have the opportunity to learn from our mistakes," said Honda, who was interned as a child during World War II due to his Japanese ancestry.

"Chinese were used as cheap labor to do the most dangerous work laying the tracks of our transcontinental railroad to strengthen our nation's infrastructure, only to be persecuted when their labor was seen as competition when the dirtiest work was done."

Honda, like Chu a member of President Barack Obama's Democratic Party from California, said he saw "the same hatred" now in calls aimed at Mexicans for an end to US birthright citizenship.

"We must not vilify entire groups of people because it is politically expedient," Honda said.
But some advocates said they hoped to steer the debate clear of sensitive issues such as immigration and US-China relations, particularly with Republicans in control of the House of Representatives.

"This is not about immigration. Certainly the US government has the right to set its policy. We are talking about how you treat people," said Michael Lin, chair of the 1882 Project, a coalition of rights groups seeking the apology.

"We will make sure that this is not an apology to China. It has nothing to do at all with foreign relationships," he said.

Lin said an apology would mark closure and also encourage schools to devote more than cursory mentions to the Chinese Exclusion Act.

"We strongly believe that this needs to be in education so that future generations will learn this lesson and, hopefully, something like this will not happen again," he said.

Lin was flexible on the wording, saying he may accept a statement of "regret" if Congress balks at the word "apology." He also made clear that Chinese Americans were not seeking financial compensation.

In a landmark apology, President Ronald Reagan signed an act of Congress in 1988 regretting the wartime internment of 110,000 Japanese Americans. Survivors each received $20,000 and a letter of apology.

But such apologies are rare. Congress formally apologized to African Americans for slavery in 2008. In 1993, the United States apologized to native Hawaiians for the overthrow of their kingdom a century earlier.

Honda chaired the Asian American caucus for seven years, fighting for a range of priorities. He helped win funding to close educational gaps and to provide counseling for Asian Americans facing home foreclosure, as well as securing promises of greater diversity in the media and government hiring.

Under Honda, the caucus achieved a key goal sought for decades -- winning compensation for Filipino veterans who fought for the United States during World War II.

Malaysia, truly paradoxical

ON THE BEAT WITH WONG CHUN WAI

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Foreigners are bemused by some of our peculiarities.

An expatriate friend of mine is slowly settling down to life in Kuala Lumpur. We will just call this American, Paul.

It is his first trip to Asia and he has found it easy adjusting himself. English is widely spoken here, which means he has no problem moving around.

The easy availability of news allows Paul to closely follow events and life in Malaysia but the country remains a paradox to him.

I assure him that he is not the only one who feels that way. Even Malaysians born and bred here are still trying to figure out the many contradictions of life in Malaysia.

Well, Paul has been pretty observant and has asked me about some of our peculiarities.

Below are his observations after a month:

Malaysians are supposed to be lazy when it comes to reading. They read an average of one page a year. Okay, the latest statistics say one-and-a-half pages.

But Paul is amazed at how we have become so emotionally interlocked over a book first published over 40 years ago. We may not have produced any literary giants, except our home-grown laureates, but he is impressed by how passionate we are when it comes to literature.

Like elsewhere, money doesn’t grow on trees here but access to it is pasted on every available place on the streets.
With thousands and thousands of notices plastered all over the city – offering competitive rates with just one mobile phone number to call – Paul thinks getting loans in Malaysia is rather easy.

He’s impressed that the country is both flushed with funds and how easy it is for people to borrow cash as there’s no red tape. Even those blacklisted can borrow. It’s a great country, he says.

Malaysians are health freaks. They are so health conscious that spas and services for massages, starting from foot massages upwards, have been sprouting all over towns and cities.

Notices promoting “Honey Massage” and “Rocket Massage” are even sprayed on walls. And of course, the Malaysian service providers are super efficient, making the massages available with just a phone call.

Malaysians love debates. Every other day, someone seems to be throwing a challenge to debate with another. He feels that these guys must have great oratory skills. He thinks that this is yet another indicator of a truly democratic country.

Paul finds it hard to fathom that Malaysia has a problem with corruption. Something is not quite right as Malaysians are also so religious. His question: If everyone gets all worked up whenever religious matters are questioned, how can the country be grappling with corruption? Many seem so puritanical too.

Paul also observes that Malaysians are environmentally conscious and take great pains in loving their trees. There may not be tree huggers like in the West but he thinks we protect our environment using the full brunt of the law.

He thinks our policemen spend an awful lot of time protecting trees because he always sees them behind trees, along the roads and highways. Such dedication and love for the greens, he says.

Paul has also found out that Malaysia, which used to rely on rubber for its economic growth in early days, still tends to stretch the meaning of being on time.

He has learned that when people say “on the way” or “coming soon”, it really means they are still at home or have yet to begin their journey.

Paul has also discovered that “traffic jam” is the most convenient Malaysian excuse for not being punctual, even if the person arrives an hour late. The rule of thumb is to add another hour if it rains.

But the best part is this: Malaysians must love many things about pirates. We call unlicensed taxis “pirate taxis” and imitation DVDs, “pirated DVDs”.

Pirated DVDs are illegal but openly sold. No one would admit buying or owning one but many Malaysians seem familiar with it.

And pirated DVDs even carry messages telling Malaysians why they should NOT buy pirated DVDs, with a short trailer of a speeding car, showing you the difference in quality between an original and a pirated copy.

Malaysia is truly amazing. Paul is already in love with Malaysia after being here a month.
To know Malaysia is certainly to love Malaysia.

Egypt, Arab world on Fire !

Egypt behind the headlines

By Amy Chew sunday@thestar.com.my 

The Star team Amy Chew and Azhar Mahfof were in Egypt recently to witness the people’s uprising against Hosni Mubarak and their victory when the president stepped down after 30 years.

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Are you game for Egypt?” said a text message from my group chief editor Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai.
I stared at the text, not believing my eyes for a moment, before replying “yes!”

I immediately set out to make contacts in Egypt. I called and e-mailed Cairo for days on end, to no avail.
Ex-President Hosni Mubarak’s regime had shut down the country’s mobile phone and Internet services on Jan 27 for five days in an attempt to stop the protests from spreading.

After I arrived in Cairo on Feb 5, I learned that Vodafone, one of the country’s largest telecommunications companies, was forced to shut down at gunpoint.

This interesting bit of news came from a Vodafone employee protesting at Tahrir Square, the epicentre of the movement to oust Mubarak.

Clear message: An anti-government protester holding a placard that reads: ‘Leave, if you don’t understand, we can write in Chinese for you’ during a demonstration in Tahrir Square. — AZHAR MAHFOF/The Star  

“This is something the public relations at my company will deny. I was at work that time,” says the employee who declined to be named.

“On Jan 27, the government sent people to Vodafone. They went to the control room, took out their guns, pointed them at the staff and told them to kill switch,” said the employee.

I was fascinated. As he was speaking, more people joined in. Each time I interviewed a person, people would join in.

Everyone was eager to voice their opinions or recount a bad experience with Mubarak’s regime. I found myself constantly surrounded by a small crowd at Tahrir Square.

Earlier, I had interviewed a doctor who had a haunted look on his face. He had approached me, saying he was a doctor at a government hospital closest to Tahrir Square.

“I was on duty the night violence erupted (Feb 2),” he said, declining to give his name. On that fateful night, pro-Mubarak supporters had clashed with anti-Mubarak protesters. Hundreds of people were shot and beaten to death.

“I saw many victims. They were brought to my hospital,” he continued.

“They had been shot in the head, the neck, the chest. I saw people shot between their eyes; there were more than a hundred of them,” he said softly and then paused, blinking away tears.

I lowered my head. “I felt very sad. They (victims) were all young, below 30 years old. They felt like my brothers and sisters,” said the doctor.

Human rights groups estimated more than 300 people died in the violence. “Are you worried for your safety as you personally witnessed the brutalities?” I asked.

“No. I am not scared and I want change. That’s why I am here,” said the doctor. After recounting his experience, he slowly walked away, silent, dignified and determined.

Courage and kindness 

On Feb 10, Egypt was abuzz with rumours that Mubarak would announce his resignation on national TV. The whole country waited with bated breath.

When he finally appeared, Mubarak announced he was not stepping down. The protesters were outraged.
The next day was a Friday. The crowds at Tahrir Square vowed to fight to the end.

“If a bloodbath is what he wants, that is what he will get. We are ready to die,” said Mohamed Faisal, a member of the anti-Mubarak youth movement.

Rumours flew in every corner of the city that Mubarak’s regime would attack the protesters. “We heard all kinds of things, that bad things would happen to us,” said the protesters.

“Are you scared?” I asked them. “No,” they said. I wrote down their words. “Don’t worry. Nothing will happen to you. We will not let anyone harm you,” a 20-year-old student by the name of Helmy said to me. I was touched.

Helmy is a tall, sweet-looking boy. He travelled from Dakaliq in the north of Egypt to Cairo to demonstrate.
“My father is old, so he sent me here to protest on behalf of our family, to fight for change,” said Helmy.

We had two translators, Amr Gamal and Mohamed Saeed, who took good care of me and my colleague Azhar. Amr is a professional bodyguard who works in Dubai. He was back in Cairo on home leave when he was roped in to help us out.

Friday dawned. Amr, who has good government contacts, was assigned to assist me. “Today is going to be very dangerous. There is talk of shooting at Tahrir after 2pm,” he told me.

We headed off to the square. The crowds were massive. We had to squeeze our way through a sea of humanity.

Female travellers to Egypt often complain of harassment by local men, of being groped and pinched. There was none of that during the revolution.

The anti-Mubarak movement had brought out the best in people. The men were polite and chivalrous. They gave way to women at every turn.

On arriving at the square, I chanced upon a group of protesters who spoke English and interviewed them.
At 2pm, Amr who had left earlier, reappeared. “Do I have to go?” I asked.

“Up to you. There may be shooting. But if you want stay, that’s fine with me. Nothing will happen to you. I will protect you, don’t worry,” he said.

I felt it wasn’t fair for Amr to risk his life and limbs for me. So we left. In the evening, Mubarak resigned. Cairo erupted with joy.

I called Amr who immediately returned with a friend, also a security personnel. Our other translator, Mohamed, could not make it. 

Amr’s friend, who declined to be named, translated and guarded me. Amr went with Azhar. We finished our work and returned to the hotel past 11pm.

Journalist attacked

This week, CBS News disclosed that its correspondent Lara Logan was sexually assaulted and beaten by a mob of 200 while covering Mubarak’s resignation and the crowd’s reaction at Tahrir Square, the very same time I was there. I did not witness the attack.

From my experience in covering huge rallies, untoward incidents can happen at any given time. I could be at the same venue as another person, but encounter a very different experience. There is no doubt in my mind Amr and his friend’s presence and dedication kept us safe that night.

Many journalists were attacked while covering the revolution in Egypt. We were very lucky.

Egyptian demonstrators

Egyptians must be the best-looking demonstrators in the world and their courage was inspiring.

As I boarded the plane to return home on Feb 13, I felt very blessed for the chance to witness a major chapter of Egyptian history.

China aims to be top at science

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Scientifically the best, China spends more on science and tech to displace US & Europe

 February 19, 2011 by Karin Zeitvogel  
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This picture taken in 2009 shows a masked worker in a lab coat sorting silicon wafers at the manufacturing centre of solar cell maker Trina Solar in Changzhou. China has its eye on becoming the top science nation in the world, a position held for decades by the United States and European nations, researchers at a US science conference said Friday.

China has its eye on becoming the top science nation in the world, overtaking the United States and European nations, researchers at a US science conference said Friday.

After being the world's main source of cheap manufactured goods, China is investing heavily in science and technology.

"China hopes to become one of the leading sources of intellectual property in coming years," said Denis Simon, a professor at Penn State University who is also the science and technology adviser to the mayor of the Chinese city of Dalian.

At a time when the United States and Europe are hamstrung by shrinking budgets, China has increased spending on science and technology "significantly," Simon said at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

"The Chinese have indicated that by 2020 they hope to spend around 2.5 percent of GDP (gross domestic product) on research and development," said Simon.

In the United States, meanwhile, Republican lawmakers are talking about trimming a billion dollars from the National Institutes of Health, the world's largest public research institute, and slashing funds for other science and research agencies, in a bid to narrow a trillion-dollar US deficit.

That is at odds with the billion-dollar boost President Barack Obama proposed for science and health research in his 2012 budget.



The Republicans also want to slash funds for education by some $5 billion, even though Education Secretary Arne Duncan has warned that the United States must better educate its kids, especially in science and math, or risk becoming uncompetitive in the global economy.

A report last year showed the United States has slipped from second place to 13th out of 34 countries in the number of students enrolled in university, and that it was stagnating in science teaching -- in 17th place -- and doing poorly in math, in 25th place.

The Chinese city of Shanghai, which was considered a country for the education report, made its debut in the rankings in first place.

More Chinese are enrolling in universities, which means there will "be more researchers in China than there are in the US," which will drive up Chinese scientific output and the quality of the reports, said Penn State professor Caroline Wagner at the AAAS meeting.

In another sign that China is serious about moving into the top slot for science, the number of quality scientific papers coming out of the country -- measured by how often they are cited in other studies -- is growing exponentially.

How often a peer-reviewed scientific report is cited by another scientist is considered a key measure of quality, Wagner said.

The number of Chinese papers being cited is up, while the number of citations of US or European reports is declining.

In sheer volume of work, China already produces more research papers in the fields of natural science and engineering than the United States, which is overall the biggest producer of scientific reports in the world, said Wagner.

"But based on current trends, China will publish more papers in all fields by 2015," Wagner said.
But there are obstacles standing in the way of China becoming the world's leading science nation.

Among them, China has to overcome a massive brain drain, which sees nearly three-quarters of Chinese who travel abroad to study staying overseas, and a culture of fabrication and plagiarism among Chinese researchers, that Simon said could be driven by intense pressure and competition.

(c) 2011 AFP

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We’re in Beijing!

Er ... we’re in Beijing!

By CLARENCE CHUA

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THE one thing that you have to get used to in Beijing is the curious case of the “er”. Mandarin-speaking Malaysians will usually say zheli, nali, (literally translated as “here, there” respectively).

In the Chinese capital it’s usually said with an er at the end, “zhe’er and na er. Let me give you another example of the “er”.

When you ask for directions, Beijingers will say zai nan men’er” (at the south gate) or “yi su hua’er” (a bunch of flowers). But it is not exactly wrong if you don’t say it at all.

In fact the er is just a Beijing slang. Learning when to use the er is an art and you really have to be in Beijing to learn how to use it. And if you decide to study Chinese in Beijing, er is not the only thing that you have to look out for.

China may be the largest producer of affordable Nike shoes or Adidas for that matter, but it doesn’t mean living in Beijing is cheap.

Regarded as one of China’s top varsities, Tsinghua University has an American-inspired auditorium.
 

It may not be a financial centre or have the cleanest air quality, but it is no doubt China’s cultural and political centre.

Besides, Beijing has a concentration of China’s best universities. Tsinghua, Peking, Renmin and the China University of Political Science and Law are all located within the Haidian district. It also plays host to several other universities and tech giants such as Microsoft and Google.

Foreign students are invading China fast and you don’t need an expert to tell you why.

This forms part of the problem. The demand for accommodation is driving up rent. With property prices at an all-time high, rest assured the price for a bed won’t come cheap either.

Student accommodation with a Chinese price tag is obviously meant for local students only. Foreigners were welcomed as friends before.

Now, after 30 years of economic liberalisation, the laowais (foreigners) are viewed as friends with benefits.
In Tsinghua University, a dorm bed for foreign students is at least 40 yuan (RM20) a day and extremely hard to come by.

An en suite now cost 100 yuan (RM50) a day, which works out to about RM1,500 a month! That is the price for an entire year in some local dormitories!

When in Beijing, be prepared to pay at least 1,000 yuan (RM500) for a bed.

Teaching Hanyu is big business in China. Chinese universities charge about RM5,000 per semester.

Private institutions that cater to Western clients charge from 80-200 yuan (RM37-RM92) an hour, which I feel is terribly expensive especially if you’re just starting out.

The average price for beginners is 30 yuan (RM15) an hour. University students around the Wudaokou area are more than willing to be your friend and tutor.

If university life is too rigid for you, then try The Global Village. It is a Korean-owned language school next to the Wudaokou subway station.

Its website is exclusively in Korean and its existence among other foreigners is spread solely by word of mouth.

In many ways the Global Village has become synonymous to Wudaokou as Peking and Tsinghua University is to the area.

A one-hour class may cost the same as any other university, but it allows you to pick and choose classes.
The school is extremely popular among Koreans preparing for the standardised Hanyu exams (HSK).

Western students on a budget see it mainly as a springboard to their adventures in China. Many attend only one class in the morning and proceed to teach English for the rest of the day.

Like many former or “reformed” socialist countries, visa requirements remain strict. If you plan to study at a university, the application is straight forward.

Studying in the Global Village is more complicated. Foreigners with a tourist visa have to extend it while studying at the school. But getting a visa extension in China could be problematic.

Meeting other laowais is perhaps one of the advantages of learning Mandarin in China. When I say foreigners I don’t mean Americans and British. I mean “real” foreigners from countries you can’t pronounce.

Two of my former classmates are from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. My current classmates include an Andorran, a Lithuanian and Kyrgyzstani.

My “brother” James is from Niger, and he will launch a Bruce Lee sidekick straight at your groin if you pronounce his country wrongly. I sometimes have lunch with the laowais and I feel like I am in the United Nations!

Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd said in a speech of China at Peking University in 2008, “tian bu pa, di bu pa, jiu pa, zhi pa laowai shuo zhonggou hua (not afraid of heaven, not afraid of the earth, only afraid of foreigners who speak Chinese)”.

The foreigners are coming in full force. In the not too distant future, the “er” will not be so strange after all!

Malaysia's GDP Growth 7.2% in 2010

By JAGDEV SINGH SIDHU  jagdev@hestar.com.my

Better than expected growth of 7.2%

Big boost from services and manufacturing segments last years

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KUALA LUMPUR: Growth of the Malaysian economy in 2010 beat official expectations as the economy expanded by 7.2% compared with the official projection of 7%. The economy contracted by 1.7% in 2009.

Much of the growth for the year was provided by the two largest segments of the economy services and manufacturing which grew by 6.8% and 11.4% in 2010.

The construction sector, which is universally acknowledged to have the deepest linkages within the economy, expanded by 5.2% last year compared with 5.8% in 2009.

Spending by households and businesses also drove private consumption up steeply to report a growth rate of 5.3% compared with 1.2% before.

“Going forward, the global economic recovery is expected to remain uneven across the different regions,” Bank Negara said in a statement.

“While short-term prospects for the advanced economies improved recently, uncertainties remain over weak fiscal positions, high unemployment and constrained lending conditions.”

It said the growth outlook for Asia, however, remained favourable but regional economies were confronted with the challenges of rising inflationary pressures, particularly from high commodity and fuel prices, and the large and volatile capital flows.

“The pace of growth of the Malaysian economy will be affected by the environment of moderating external demand,'' it said.

Bank Negara said growth would, nevertheless, be supported by continued expansion in domestic demand and private consumption spending would continue to benefit from the favourable labour market conditions, firm commodity prices and access to financing.

“The roll-out of construction and infrastructure activities and the implementation of the economic transformation programme by the Government are likely to provide significant support to the growth momentum in private investment,'' it said.

Bank Islam chief economist Azrul Azwar Ahmad Tajudin expects the pace of moderation of the economy as shown from the second quarter onward to continue until the second half of this year.

He said the higher base effect, the inventory restocking which boosted numbers in the first half of last year and the projected sluggishness of the global economy, austerity measures in Europe and cooling measures by China would be a drag on growth numbers.

AmResearch senior economist Manokaran Mottain, however, feels the slower numbers would relieve the central bank from any pressure to raise interest rates.

For the fourth quarter, the economy expanded by 4.8% as higher private and public sector spending contributed to the expansion in domestic demand but the economy was hampered by a slowdown in external trade.
Domestic demand expanded by 5.7% in the fourth quarter compared with 5% in the third quarter, due mostly to the strong expansion in private consumption and capital spending.

Private consumption grew by 6.5% (third quarter: 7.1%) supported by a favourable labour market, positive consumer confidence and higher income levels. Public consumption fell by 0.3% (third quarter: -10.2%) as the Government spent less on supplies and services.

Gross fixed capital formation increased by 9.2% in the fourth quarter (third quarter: 9.8%) driven by both public and private capital spending.

“Private sector capital spending was led by the expansion in the production of domestic-oriented industries amid high levels of capacity utilisation. Public sector capital investment rose as a result of higher development expenditure mainly in the education and transportation sectors,'' Bank Negara said.

During the fourth quarter, the services and construction sectors registered higher growth rates than the third quarter while the growth rate of manufacturing slowed.

The agriculture and mining sectors contracted in the fourth quarter compared with the third.
Bank Negara said gross inflows of foreign direct investment for the final quarter of last year were higher at RM11.8bil (third quarter: +RM8.5bil) as more money poured into the capital markets.

On a net basis, which is after adjusting for gross outflows due to repayment of inter-company loans, net FDI increased to RM8.3bil (third: +RM4.4bil) as FDI was channelled mainly into the services, manufacturing and mining sectors.

The central bank said investments in the services sector were primarily undertaken by companies in the finance, insurance and business services, as well as wholesale and retail trade sub-sectors.

In the manufacturing sector, the FDI was channelled into the electrical and electronics as well as petroleum-related industries.

Malaysians invested less money abroad in the fourth quarter as the net outflow was RM3.2bil (third quarter: -RM5.4bil) due to lower net extensions of inter-company loans to subsidiaries abroad.

Bank Negara said investments were mainly in the services sector, particularly in the finance, insurance and business services, and wholesale and retail trade sub-sectors and there were also large investments abroad in the oil and gas and the agriculture sectors.

Portfolio investment registered a smaller net inflow of RM2.8bil in the fourth quarter (third quarter: +RM9.8bil) as foreign investors sold off their shares and bond holdings in the country, particularly in November, in reaction to sovereign debt concerns in the eurozone.

“Nevertheless, steady growth in the domestic economy has continued to attract inflows of foreign funds into the domestic equity and bond markets,'' it added.