Ariel Peter Pan Jailed for 42 Months

Nazril Irham or better known to his many fans as Ariel who is the vocalist of the Indonesian pop rock band Peter Pan has been found guilty of producing and distributing pornographic clips of him having sex with two Indonesian female artistes, Luna Maya and Cut Tari who is married to John Joseph Subrata.

At first Luna Maya and Ariel denied producing the clips but Cut Tari confessed and apologized to the Indonesian public. Ariel was then arrested under the Indonesian anti-pornography law.


Ariel was sentenced to a 42 months' jail term and fined Rp250mil (about RM84,000.

Female fans of Ariel cried after hearing the sentence and were saddened that they won't be able to see Ariel perform for a long time.

On the other hand, Muslim radical groups were disappointed with the verdict that they view as being too lenient. They wanted Ariel to be stoned as the Islamic law would have dictated.

Why So Sensitive?

A Malaysian restaurant owner, Tharumraj Sivaperumal, director of Jothys Sdn Bhd is suing a blogger, Poh Huai Bin for writing on his blog sixthseal.com, according to the director defamatory remarks about his signature dish, the fish head curry.

Click here to read the review.

He claimed that after the posting on the blog in May 2010, his business has suffered severe loss. He's suing for RM6 million. And here's the thing, he's even suing Google for listing the blog in their search engine!

Of course, Google is not going to entertain such a suit. They're just a search engine that index all content in cyber space. They've got nothing to do with the content that webmasters choose to feature on their websites.

I'm really amazed that such a "well-known" restaurant (the owner did claim that his restaurant is featured on The Lonely Planet, so it must be well-known), has to resort to blaming a blogger's posting when business is not doing so well.

I wonder how famous is the blogger that he can affect the business of a "well-known" restaurant. For myself, this is the first time I've heard of this blog and the defamatory remark that the blogger is being accused of.

What's to become of blogging when bloggers have to be extra careful of what they say on their blog? In fact, I think by making negative comments, a blogger would attract more attention.

I think the defamatory remark that Jothy's is suing Poh for has in fact make the restaurant more popular since most people would actually be curious as to how the fish head curry taste like to warrant such a negative comment.

Indian Fish Head Curry

As for me the price tag of the fish head curry is enough to discourage me from trying the fish head curry no matter how curious I am about the taste of the dish.

Anyway, I think everyone has a right to their opinions and if I don't like something, I won't say it outright that I don't like it. I would probably sugar-coat it a bit. But I guess in the online community, sugar-coating won't get you the attention and therefore Poh used words that would really shock people. It's just for the shock effect. Don't be too sensitive, Jothy's.

Are Chinese Mothers The Best Kind of Mothers?

Amy Chua is a Chinese professor at the Harvard Law School. She penned a book aptly titled Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. She is a mother that is a tiger that roars. According to Chua, she has successfully raised two brilliant daughters who excel both in academic subjects and music.

Amy Chua the Tiger Mother

Her method may be alien to the Western world but to Asians, it's quite normal especially among the Chinese.

She forces her children to study, study and study. They were not allowed to have sleepovers, no television, no extra-curricular activities without her permission. They must get grades no lower than an A in all their subjects except of course for gym and drama. They must always be first in class.

Westerners may see Chua's method bordering on child abuse but to her it's necessary to raise prodigies.

China can boast students who do well in examinations excelling to the top of their classes but China admits that they lack students who are creative and imaginative. Seldom do we hear China producing the likes of Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg who both incidentally never finished college.

Perhaps if one wants to raise robotic children who can regurgitate facts without connecting the dots then Chua's methods is effective. But we want to raise children who are able to adapt to the ever-changing world.

Chua may raise prodigies and scholars but at what expense? At the expense of a happy childhood?

A lot of Chinese mothers in Malaysia and Singapore are like Chua. They would plan their children's day. They would send their children to every possible academic and music courses regardless of whether their children like music or not.

It's this attitude that gives rise to the term "kia-su" which means "wanting everything so as not to be left behind". It's quite a derogatory term but what do these Chinese mothers care? They raise intelligent children.

I wonder if the reason that these Chinese mothers raise their children to be intelligent is because they want their children to be able to survive in the world or is it to bask in the reflected glory when their children are recognized as child prodigies?

Perhaps it's both. Having come from a background where hard work is necessary to get ahead, they would want their children to learn about hard work and the value of a good education. And when they succeed in raising such children, they would undeniably be crowned Mother of the Year.

How to Become a Famous Malaysian Blogger

Recently, I read an article about how to become a famous Malaysian blogger or rather perhaps a successful blogger in Malaysia where the writer pointed out that in order to be a famous and successful Malaysian blogger, the blogger must criticize the government.

It doesn't matter if what the government does is for the good of the people. A Malaysian blogger must always criticize the government.

I guess by being critical of the government, the blogger would get the much needed attention to his blog and any exposure is good exposure.

Just look at Raja Petra of the famed Malaysia Today website who has to go into hiding from the police for being too outspoken in criticizing the government.

The more he appeared in the news about what he's said on his blog, the more blog readers he gets and the more exposure his blog receives.

Perhaps, the authorities should just let him be and he probably won't be as famous as he is now. He's like a folk hero for the ordinary people who see the government as oppressive.

It's inevitable. No matter what the government does, there will always be those who don't like it. It doesn't matter if it will benefit the people. That is why the Singapore government rules like a parent who knows everything and will only give an indulging ear to her people.

I happened to sit in on a lecture that was given by the former Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Goh Chok Tong when I was at the University. He said that the government would first persuade the people to accept the policies that are to be implemented but if the people refuse to accept the policies, they will just be forced upon them. Because why? The government knows what's best for the people.

I must admit, Mr Goh isn't the most charismatic of leaders and I guess that is why he didn't stay very long as Prime Minister before Mr Lee Hsien Loong who is by the way related to Singapore's Minister Mentor who is also the first Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, took over from him. So much for a meritocratic society, eh?

Well, I'm not criticizing the Singapore government and I don't think I have enough knowledge to criticize the Malaysian government. But I do have opinions about the way the two countries are run. But today is not the day to be critical yet.

Perhaps, I will never become a famous Malaysian blogger.

Good News From Malaysian Immigration : No more Certification of Status

The Certification of Status or better known in Malay as the Perakuan Taraf Warganegara is now not necessary.

The National Registration Department (NRD) or Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (JPN) is now solely given full responsibility in matters of citizenship.

This is very good news for me because my third daughter who was born in Singapore has the Certificate of Confirmation of Status of Citizenship or better known as the Sijil Pengesahan Taraf Warganegara (PTW).

I applied for this certificate when she was born because I know that we will be living in Malaysia.

So why did I give birth to her in Singapore? Because my parents are in Singapore and I don't have any relatives in Johore. I don't want to give birth alone.

After getting the PTW, my husband and I tried to apply for a Malaysian passport for her using the PTW, the Immigration Department wanted us to apply for the Certification of  Status.

We went back to NRD and inquired about the citizenship status of my daughter; whether is she a Malaysian citizen or a foreigner. 

The officer there said that she's a Malaysian citizen by virtue that her father is a Malaysian and she has the certificate of Confirmation of Status of Citizenship.

But before she got her myKad, she had to apply for a Students' Pass making her effectively a foreigner.

I was really confused. I don't know if she's a Malaysian citizen or a foreigner.

According to the NRD, she's a full-fledged Malaysian citizen but according to the Immigration Department, she's still a foreigner.

After getting her myKad at the age of 12, the Education Department is no longer obliged to give a letter of recommendation to study in Malaysia because the department asserts that my daughter is a Malaysian and no longer requires a Student Pass.

Now I'm really worried for my daughter because she holds a Singapore passport but a Malaysian Identity Card. Would she be arrested for dual citizenship?

Today I contacted the Immigration Department to settle the matter once and for all and I got the best news I can ever wish for.

There's no need to get a certification of status for my daughter. She can use her myKad to apply for a Malaysian passport.

Apparently, as of the 1st of January 2011, the Immigration Department no longer issues Certification of Status.

So I guess it's confirmed that she's a Malaysian. Hooray!

Dirty Toilets Turn Off Tourists

Malaysia is a beautiful country with much flora and fauna to be enjoyed. Much of Malaysia's natural beauty has not yet been exploited for commercial purposes. So it shouldn't be difficult for Malaysia to attract tourists to come and enjoy the natural beauty of Malaysia.

But sadly, there are some unsanitary aspects of Malaysia that may turn away many tourists namely dirty toilets and dirty food stalls.

I think that not only the dirty food stalls and dirty toilets that would turn away tourists but also the recent tragedy at Cameron Highlands would also make tourists think twice about coming to Malaysia.

The tourism minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen has his hands full to reassure tourists and Malaysians that such a tragedy will not be repeated.

Dirty toilets and dirty food stalls may be just disgusting but the possibility of losing one's life when spending a holiday in Malaysia, I think, is a much pressing problem.

I myself won't be traveling on any tour bus anytime soon. And I would definitely not recommend that means of travel to any of my friends or family.

Dirty toilets and dirty food stalls have to be addressed but the safety of tourists should be of utmost importance.

What's the Best Thing About Being Malaysian

Technically, I'm not a Malaysian. I'm born in Singapore but when I was 24, I married a Malaysian and moved to Malaysia after the birth of my first child.

Now I'm living in Johore with my husband and my four children and I'm now 45 which means that I've been living in Malaysia for over 20 years so I think I can call myself almost Malaysian even though I haven't given up my Singaporean status.

I see Malaysia now as my home. But as I always tell my children, Home is where the heart is. My heart is with my husband and I will be where my husband is and he's in Malaysia so my home is Malaysia.

There are many good things I can say about being Malaysian. I'm always being reminded of the fact that "Malaysia Boleh" which literally means Malaysia Can. Can what? Can do anything.

So if I see a driver runs a red light, I would be screaming at the driver but my children would say "Malaysia Boleh". Yes, I guess so; only in Malaysia.

I love being in Malaysia because I can drive here. I tried to get a driver's license in Singapore but it was next to impossible to pass the stringent driving test.

I didn't get my license in Malaysia the first time I sat for the test but after the third try, I passed. The third time is the charm, right?

When I go back to Singapore to visit my parents, I miss driving but when I got back home, it's quite a drag to be the driver to my children.

I guess the best thing for me about being Malaysian is being close to my family and having the freedom to drive anywhere I wish.

It's far less stressful here than it is in Singapore.