Malaysia

A UN human rights expert has urged Malaysian authorities to redouble their efforts to end child marriages, and to establish a robust non-discriminatory child protection system. The UN Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children, Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, called on the Government to enter into a dialogue with religious communities and judges who continue to grant exceptions …

Wife of former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, Rosmah Mansor, infamous for her extravagant spending and penchant for Hermès Birkin handbags during her husband’s tenure, has been arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) at its headquarters today. According to Rosmah’s lawyers, the arrest took place at 3.20 p.m. while she was giving her statement during her third appointment with MACC officials. …

Despite having the option to decline Malaysia’s request for a postponement of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) project, Singapore’s Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan reasoned that opting for an alternative “that protects Singapore’s interests while reasonably accommodating Malaysia’s request” would be a better and “fair arrangement.” Speaking in Parliament on Monday (1 Oct) in response to questions from …

A Maxis employee in Malaysia, believed to be a manager, has been suspended following a viral video that shows her yelling two people who appear to be her staff, one of whom is pregnant. The video which was posted on a Facebook page called ‘Malaysia News Station’ on 29th September shows the woman stepping close to the other two individuals …

The Malaysian Cabinet has agreed to lower the voting age from 21 to 18. Youth & Sports Minister Syed Saddiq said at a post-Cabinet press conference last week that several amendments will have to be made to the Malaysian Federal Constitution for the move to take effect. This will require Pakatan Harapan to reach across the aisle to the opposition …

Beginning the end of this year, Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan (JPJ), or The Road Transport Department of Malaysia (RTD), will oversee the implementation of the Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) against all foreign vehicles entering Malaysia through the Johor Bahru-Woodlands Causeway and the Tuas Second-Link Expressway. RTD director-general Datuk Seri Saharuddin Khalid revealed to Bernama that the permit system is currently undergoing …

Yesterday at at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said that people who are corrupt must be punished, however he does not think that Malaysia is ready to sentence the corrupt to life imprisonment. He added that while the Malaysian courts will sentence the corrupt to jail, some countries actually shot them instead, …

De facto president of Malaysia’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR – People’s Justice Party) and Prime Minister-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim revealed that watching Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s inauguration as Prime Minister on television in May made him think that he should have been sworn in instead of his former political rival. Speaking in response to a Raffles Institution student’s query as to what he …

Last Saturday (15 Sep), Malaysian PM-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim was invited to Singapore to give a talk at the annual Singapore Summit, a conference for business and thought leaders to discuss business and global affairs. Mr Anwar is all for stronger ties with Singapore. “It (bilateral relationship) is strong and we cannot fail. I don’t think it is sensible to create …

Malaysian ex-Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak detained by the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commision (MACC) last night over the RM2.6 billion that was deposited into his personal account prior to the 13 General Elections which was allegedly misappropriated from the 1 Malaysia Development Berhad. The 1MDB scandal has plagued Najib for over 5 years now after it was first exposed …