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Rear seat belts:
Who’s exempted
KUALA LUMPUR: Transport
Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee
Keat clarified yesterday the
exemption on the rear seat belt
ruling is only given to vehicles
registered before Jan 1, 1995,
those registered after that date
but were not equipped with the
anchorage points for seat belts,
and commercial vehicles like
buses, taxis and hired cars.
The owners of vehicles
registered after Jan 1, 1995 and
with anchorage points but not
equipped with rear seat belts
are given three years from Jan
1 to install the seat belts.
Under the new ruling, the
driver would be held responsi-
ble if the rear passengers were
found not wearing their seat
belts, Ong said at the launch
of the installation of rear seat
belt programme at the Proton
Platinum Centre in Mutiara
Damansara here.
The text of his speech was
read by the ministry’s deputy
secretary-general, Datuk Long
See Wool. – Bernama
KL well-prepared
city, says expert
KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala
Lumpur is one of the bet-
ter prepared cities in Asia
when it comes to managing
potential disasters, N.M.S.I.
Arambepola, an expert from
the Asian Disaster Prepared-
ness Centre, said yesterday.
“You have emergency
systems such as the SMART
tunnel to handle flash floods,
and other cities can learn
from this,” he told Bernama
after giving a talk on Reduc-
ing Disaster Risks in Urban
Areas.
Arambepola, the centre’s
Urban Disaster Risk Manage-
ment director, said Kuala
Lumpur was used as a good
example during classes and
seminars on disaster risk
reduction in urban areas.
The talk was held in
conjunction with the Asian
Ministerial Conf erence on
Disaster Risk Reduction,
opened by Deputy Prime Min-
ister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul
Razak yesterday. – Bernama
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Divorcee mastermind held,
drugs and arms seized
PENANG: A divorcee who
masterminded the biggest drug
syndicate in Penang and had
‘India an arsenal of firearms at her
warned
disposal to ward off the police,
of likely was smoked out of her lair last
week.
attack on Seized from the 40-year-old
Mumbai in
suspect were an assortment
October’ of drugs worth about RM6.4
million, hidden in several
pg 9 houses.
So passionate was the woman
in drug trafficking activities that
her own home in Sungai Nibong
was used as a heroin-processing
?30SEN for delivery to your doorstep
laboratory.
Penang police chief
Datuk Ayub Yaakob said
the woman was detained at
her home at about 9pm on
Saturday, bringing to an end
several weeks of intelligence
operations.
He said the operations
were jointly carried out by the
Penang, Selangor and Bukit
Aman police and they resulted
in uncovering the largest drug-
processing and distribution
syndicate in Penang.
Following her arrest,
the police found a heroin-
processing laboratory in her
home.
Ayub said that after
interrogation, the woman
led the police to three more
houses in Bukit Jambul,
Datuk Keramat and Jelutong,
where more drugs and drug-
processing paraphernalia were
found.
The seized drugs consisted
of heroin base weighing 9.1kg,
heroin No. 3 (6.4kg), marijuana
(0.7kg), ketamin (9.3kg), opium
(0.9kg), syabu (0.1kg), caffeine
(513kg), 59 pills of Eramin five,
and 33 bottles of precursor
drugs.
“Apart from that, the
police seized four guns – a .38
Smith & Wesson revolver, an
Hearing of application
to strike out RM100m
suit postponed
KUALA LUMPUR: The hearing of
an application by two high-rank-
ing officers and the government
to strike out a RM100 million
defamation suit brought against
them by detained Hindu Rights
Action Force (Hindraf) leader P.
Uthayakumar has been postponed
to Feb 23 to give more time for
him to examine documents, said
his lawyers.
“We have asked for more time
in view of the fact that he is under
detention and the accessibility
is limited,” said lead counsel M.
Manogar.
Inspector-General of Police Tan
Sri Musa Hassan, Attorney-Gen-
eral Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail and
the government sought to have
the suit thrown out on grounds
that the statement, which Uthay-
akumar claimed defamed him,
was made to prevent feelings of
hatred towards the government
and avoid racial conflict.
In his defence, Musa said the
media statement he made on
Dec 6 last year was in his capac-
ity as Malaysia’s highest ranking
police officer entrusted by law
to safeguard security and public
order.
Musa said Hindraf was an
illegal organisation which had
broken the law by holding an
illegal rally on Nov 25 last year
and instigating public unrest and
public disturbance.
Musa, Gani and the govern-
ment, in their statement of
defence, also said the alleged
slanderous remark was made
| WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 3 2008
Austrian Steyr assault rifle with
two ammunition magazines,
a Walther pistol with an
ammunition magazine, and
a Taurus Brasil pistol with
two ammunition magazines
– together with seven .38
calibre and 9mm calibre
ammunition and 50 .32 calibre
ammunition.
“We believe the syndicate
used the guns for its own
protection and would not
hesitate to kill anyone who
got in their way, including the
police,” Ayub said.
The police also seized a car,
a bank account book, jewellery
and foreign currencies totalling
about RM300,000.
Initial investigations
revealed that the three houses
were used to store drugs
before distribution to other
states. Police did not rule out
the possibility the woman had
international drug links.
“The woman has been
remanded until Sunday
to facilitate investigations.
We are tracking down her
accomplices,” Ayub said.
He said the case was being
investigated under Section
39B of the Dangerous Drugs
Act 1952 and Section 8 of the
Firearms (Increased Penalty)
Act 1971. – Bernama
in their official capacities and on
an occasion of qualified privilege
because the Hindraf issue was a
public order issue.
Uthayakumar, who was ar-
rested on Dec 13 last year and
detained with four others under
the Internal Security Act for sus-
pected involvement in organising
the so-called Hindraf rally, had
sued the three defendants for al-
legedly linking him with Sri Lanka
terrorist groups.
In the suit filed on Jan 4,
Uthayakumar said the remark,
which was widely reported by the
media, was slanderous and an
attempt to destroy his credibility
and reputation.
Manogar said the government
had applied to have the case
struck out as it considered it an
abuse of the court.
“The government is asking for
the case to be struck out as it is
saying that there is no cause of
action and this is an abuse of the
court. What they are saying is that
Hindraf and Uthayakumar are
two different entities,” he said.
“What we are saying is that
his name has been defamed.
There are numerous reports in
the newspapers to implicate him
as though he is involved in LTTE
operations and that he has a
connection with the Tamil Tigers,
which is entirely wrong, and
Uthayakumar flatly denies it.”
Yesterday’s postponement
was granted in chambers by ju-
dicial commissioner Mohd Yazid
Mustapa.