street hawker

gather round, hey! gather round
i've got something here to astound
y'all, hear my sound!

behold my snake oil --
cures any ailment!
reap the benefits
with a one-time payment!
don't thank me,
go ahead and say amen!
oh, and don't forget--
i'm only a layman ;-)

Luxury Flipping

This week's The EDGE just came out. Along with it, is the copy of Options - the Pull-Out section.

Quotable quotes from Options:

"LUXURY IS KNOWLEDGE. It is owning a story; only the owner will have that personal knowledge about a product. And it's about enjoying pure aesthetics, the pleasure of the senses that's related to the mind. Did you know that the word luxury comes from the Latin word luxes meaning light, knowledge or enlightenment? In French, it is luxar, which means lust."

-Philippe Galtie, managing director of Cartier Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

"THERE ARE ALWAYS OPPORTUNITIES through which businessmen can profit handsomely if they will only recognise and sieze them."

-J Paul Getty, US oil industrialist.


..........................................................................

So, what is Flipping? I found it in The EDGE yet again: a new discovery every day. Ref: City & Country pull-out, October 3rd 2005, The EDGE:

"NEWSPAPERS AND OTHER MEDIA brim over with expanded coverage of real estate and all its trappings, including cable TV shows celebrating the game of flipping - buying houses, fixing them up and selling them again in short order for a handy profit."

-Chet Currier, Bloomberg News columnist.

Mr. Currier proceeds to quote Mr. John T Reed, who says that such TV shows misrepresent that real estate is the easy road to getting rich. However, Mr. Currier does recognise that "houses can be much nicer to look at and cosier to occupy than a bond or a stock certificate." Given the choice, I'd say that buying a stock certificate doesn't take as much investment, but possessing a house is concrete reality, and you can live in it or rent it out. It's rather like that latest article in this week's The EDGE, where after comparing the net worth of Google Inc, and Indonesia, Bloomberg News columnist William Pesek Jr concludes that despite her lagging economy and rife corruption, Indonesia, as an investment, wins hands down over Google Inc. He points to Korea and Microsoft: In 1998, Microsoft Corp had bigger market capitalization compared to South Korea. At present, South Korea's capitalization is US$530 billion and Microsoft's is US$272 billion.

Buying and selling houses seems to be an interesting art. Rehabilitating old houses is certainly one way of doing business. It should be, I imagine, quite an enjoyable one. Even if the house is not touched up, there is every chance that if sold below market value, an old house can still attract many a buyer. That aside, it is interesting to see what could happen if some enterprising soul were to come up with a local version of the shows that Mr. Currier refers to. Renovating a house, refurbishing it or rehabilitating it -- it's all just semantics. Sometimes, you'd have to get to the gyst of things: and renovating/refurbishing/rehabilitating a house for resale, the last I checked, was known as profit-making. Still, real estate is considerably much cheaper in the USA or even UK. This is why a programme like Pimp My Ride featuring rapper XZibit is viable in the USA but sadly would be hard pressed to find funding in good old tropical Malaysia.

Mosquito Woes

Aedes Mosquitoes hogged the headlines today. Aedes mozzies, which
cause the very much feared dengue fever, has become a cause for alarm
in this region. A mosquito expert claims that:

a. Only adult Aedes mosquitoes are killed by fogging;
b. Larvae of Aedes mosquitoes are able to survive long periods of heat
and dry season (up to 10 months) while residing in mud or shade;
c. The egg shells of Aedes mosquito larvae are hard and do not crack easily;
d. The eggs hatch upon contact with water, e.g. rain season after a drought;

Apparently heavy fogging only makes them more resilient.

……………………………………………………………………………….
That tinny buzz!
That flying fuzz!
O That minuscule terror!
You say: What the fuss?
Fog you! We must!
But nay – you are in error.
So what do you suggest?
We'll do at your behest!
`Twould be madness not to act!
Could we suffer any less?
Government! Fix this mess!
Or may we try some different tact?
O Mister Mosquito,
Thou'rt no Quasimodo.
With my bat I'll swat thee flat.
No pity! Leave and go:
Blood bank reserves are low.
With thee gone my house is glad.

by: Kevin Koo, 12 October 2005

Public Discussion on Creative Commons Malaysia - 26 October 2005

Info courtesy of Prof Dr Khaw Lake Tee. All bloggers and blog
frequenters ought to be interested in the topic of Creative Commons.
Recently, a piece of news caught my eye: Gilberto Gil, the Minister of
Culture in Brazil, affirmed Brazil's commitment to the Creative
Commons concept. Of course, Brazil is a fountain of culture, exporting
its colours and liveliness to all over the world -- even Japan has
embraced the concept of "Mardi Gras". When, I ask, will Malaysia
follow suit? We have so many ethnic groups and so many indigenous
cultures. Are these to quietly go extinct, while cultural influences
of the majority groups slowly take hold in these minority groups? As
time goes on, the experiences of various nations show that
"integration" implies that the culture, language, beliefs and stories
of minority races quietly fade into oblivion. At the very least,
putting these values in the "Visit Malaysia" brochure as part of our
variegated attractions will help these impoverished groups to earn
income from tourism. Of course they have to be the right type of
groups. You can't have tourists visiting cannibalistic peoples --
there's no guarantee that their next visit to Malaysia will be their
last, one-way ticket. (Just a point in jest -- I'm sure our tribal
brothers must know better than to eat a fellow human being.) The
information appears below:

**********************************************************************************

The Faculty of Law is pleased to organise together with the Multimedia
Development Corporation a public discussion on Creative Commons Malaysia.

Creative Commons is an innovative project devoted to expanding the range of
creative works available for others to build upon and share. It offers an
alternative to the traditional copyright approach of "All rights reserved".
It offers a "Some rights reserved only" approach. (see
www.creativecommons.org)
Join us in discussing the future of this exciting and innovative project and
in the public consultation process of the first draft of the Malaysian
specific Creative Commons licences. This project concerns you as writers,
artisits and creators of works and your participation counts.

Date:Wednesday 26th October 2005
Time: 9am - 12 noon
Registration: 8.30 am
Place: Auditorium Tun Mohamed Suffian
Faculty of Law
Universiti Malaya

Participation is free.

Professor Khaw Lake Tee
Dean
Faculty of Law
University of Malaya
50603 Kuala Lumpur
Ph 603 7967 6500
Fax 603 7955 8690
email: khawlt (at) um.edu.my

skoolership

scholarships found at the bahamas' foreign affairs homepage.

http://www.mfabahamas.org/educational_opportunities.htm

scholarships at canada

http://www.scholarships-bourses-ca.org/

The Rainbow of Self-Determinism Within Federalism

(Pursuant to readings in an on-going effort to get started with my Federalism assignment)

Federalism, viewed through the lens of human rights, is essentially a question of self-determination. Just what is this right known as "self-determination"? The Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Human Rights (approved by the Second Plenary Session of the 14th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Organization, October 1993) in Article 3 states,

All human beings have the right to self-determination. By virtue of this right, they freely determine their political status and may pursue their economic, social, political and cultural development.

This sounds great and is in accordance with the principles as ascribed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 and also the twin Covenants of 1966 i.e. (a) International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1966 (ICCPR) and also (b) International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 1966 (ICESCR). (The treaties may be found at: http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/treaties.htm ). Interestingly, in Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, it shows that ASEAN has in fact adopted a "shortened" version of what has been incorporated in the ICCPR. The abovementioned Article 1 reads as follows:

Article I

1. All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development.

2. All peoples may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising out of international economic co-operation, based upon the principle of mutual benefit, and international law. In no case may a people be deprived of its own means of subsistence.

3. The States Parties to the present Covenant, including those having responsibility for the administration of Non-Self-Governing and Trust Territories, shall promote the realization of the right of self-determination, and shall respect that right, in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.

I find the third paragraph most interesting, because signatories to the ICCPR Treaty are required to respect and promote the realization of the right right of self-determination. However, it seems to be that such a right may only be exercised by a state, and not a group of peoples. One such case, was the case of the Mi'kmaq tribe against the Government of Canada. They relied on Article I of the ICCPR (in particular para 3) to claim the right of self-determination, and by extension, secession. They claimed that they were recognised by treaties with the colonial government as a separate and sovereign people, and by extension, state. ( A more detailed explanation of the Mi'kmaq peoples may be found at http://museum.gov.ns.ca/arch/infos/mikmaq1.htm ) It is pertinent to note now one of the arguments of the Canadian Government, which reads as follows:

In the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and People, General Assembly Resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960, the General Assembly declared that:

"Any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations."

In the Declaration on Principles of Internation Law Concerning Friendly Relations and Cooperation among States in Accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, Resolution 2625 (XXV) of 24 October 1970, the General Assembly stated under the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples that:

"Nothing in the foregoing paragraphs shall be construed as authorizing or encouraging any action which would dismember or impair, totally or in part, the territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign and independent States conducting themselves in compliance with the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples as described above and thus possessed of a government representing the whole people belonging to the territory without distinction as to race, creed or colour."

This right to self-determination was therefore not endorsed to support secessionist movements within individual sovereign states.

It is, therefore, clear that under article I, paragraph 3 of the Covenant, Mr. A. Denny cannot seek a declaration of independent nationhood for his tribal society that could affect the national unity and territorial integrity of Canada.

(Source: http://www.usask.ca/nativelaw/unhrfn/mikmaq.html - Native Law Centre of Canada)


The term "self-determination" here is used in its most extreme form: the right to secede. However, there are views that the right to self-determination does not mean the right to secede. It merely means the right to the government of your choice. In reconciling the two views, it is likely that the broad position is self-determination means the right to secede, while the narrow position is that self-determination means choosing your own government by democratic means. What it means in terms of Malaysia, is that a member state like Penang or Sabah, or even Kelantan, wishing to secede under the banner of self-determination, would be met with answers ranging from "Malaysia is a democratic country: have an election, and that will be that!" (narrow interpretation) to "If this application is made on behalf of a racial group, it causes injustice to those citizens of your state which are of different races and hence not behind your cause; therefore have a consensus and we'll see how it goes" (moderate interpretation) to "Well then, secession is an option -- but let's see how we can make self-determination work as much as possible without going to secession" (broad interpretation).

The Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Human Rights was obviously never meant to justify, and much less encourage, the peoples of ASEAN to seek the right of self-determination. Several parts of the document have left me convinced of this.

The last line in Article 1

.... Freedom, progress and national stability are promoted by balance between the rights of the individual and those of the community.

From the Preamble

Whereas, the peoples of ASEAN recognize that human rights have two mutually balancing aspects; those with respect to rights and freedom of the individual, and those which stipulate obligations of the individuals to society and State;

Whereas, the peoples of ASEAN accept that human rights exist in a dynamic and evolving context and that each country has inherent historical experiences, and changing economic, social, political and cultural realities and value system(s) which should be taken into account.


Framed in such a manner, there are problems which beg to be solved. From the earliest times of mankind's participation in civilized society, the trend has been towards banding together and forming groups. One step up from the most basic of human society, the family, is the local community. These band together in a political alliance and form some sort of system of democratic government by representation. In fact, this system has existed in early Malay society, as exemplified by the Adat Perpatih system as found in the state of Negeri Sembilan. ( Further information at http://www.tourismnegerisembilan.com/customs_and_traditions/index.cfm?page=AdatPerpatih - Tourism Negeri Sembilan )

In time, states were formed, and these states came into existence as the result of different historical experiences and different social/racial constitutions. In the context of Malaysia, for example, the Malay states all had their own Sultanates. These Malay states were tiny kingdoms, and despite their size were recognized as sovereign states. The statement is exemplified and the point driven home in the case of the Johor King who had promised to marry a female citizen of England. Later, he reneged his promise to marry her and conveniently raised the shield of his status as the monarch of a sovereign state. The court held that, due to his blue blood (royal lineage), he was immune from legal suit.

States may exist irregardless of size. Take, for example, the Vatican City. It is the smallest sovereign state in the world. It is also land-locked and surrounded by Rome, Italy. But that does not stop its continued existence. (At this point, it may be interesting to explore the idea of dependencies: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dependent_territories - Thank You, Wikipedia!) Other micro-mini countries include Monaco, Bahamas, Tokelau, etc. (Further reading: http://www.globalpolicy.org/nations/micro.htm - World Policy Forum)

When states have unique identities, yet find it attractive to be part of "a larger whole", it is often that they opt to join a Federation of similar states. They retain part of their powers and surrender the most important powers to the central governing body, which takes care of the running of the Federation. Usually, Federations have written constitutions and the division of powers between state and federal authority are enumerated in the federal constitution itself. For example, Malaysia's Federal Constitution, in its Ninth Schedule, enumerates the division between the legislative powers of the Federal Governments and State Governments. There is a Federal List, a State List, and a Concurrent List. It is also pertinent to note that in Malaysia, there are supplements to the State List and Concurrent List in connection with Sabah and Sarawak.

Behold below the Ninth Schedule:

NINTH SCHEDULE

[Articles 74, 77]

LEGISLATIVE LISTS

LIST I - FEDERAL LIST

1. External affairs, including -

(a) Treaties, agreements and conventions with other countries and all matters which bring the Federation into relations with any other country;

(b) Implementation of treaties, agreements and conventions with other countries;

(c) Diplomatic, consular and trade representation;

(d) International organizations; participation in international bodies and implementation of decisions taken thereat;

(e) Extradition; fugitive offenders; admission into, and emigration and expulsion from, the Federation;

(f) Passports; visas; permits of entry or other certificates; quarantine;

(g) Foreign and extra-territorial jurisdiction; and

(h) Pilgrimages to places outside Malaysia.

2. Defence of the Federation or any part thereof, including -

(a) Naval, military and air forces and other armed forces;

(b) Any armed forces attached to or operating with any of the armed forces of the Federation; visiting forces;

(c) Defence works; military and protected areas; naval, military and air force bases, barracks, aerodromes and other works;

(d) Manoeuvres;

(e) War and peace; alien enemies and enemy aliens; enemy property; trading with an enemy; war damage; war risk insurance;

(f) Arms, fire-arms, ammunition and explosives;

(g) National service; and

(h) Civil defence.

3. Internal security, including -

(a) Police; criminal investigation; registration of criminals; public order;

(b) Prisons, reformatories; remand homes; places of detention; probation of offenders; juvenile offenders;

(c) Preventive detention; restriction of residence;

(d) Intelligence services; and

(e) National registration.

4. Civil and criminal law and procedure and the administration of justice, including -

(a) Constitution and organization of all courts other than Syariah Courts;

(b) Jurisdiction and powers of all such courts;

(c) Remuneration and other privileges of the judges and officers presiding over such courts;

(d) Persons entitled to practise before such courts;

(e) Subject to paragraph (ii), the following :

(i) Contract; partnership, agency and other special contracts; master and servant; inns and inn-keepers; actionable wrongs; property and its transfer and hypothecation, except land; bona vacantia; equity and trusts; marriage, divorce and legitimacy; married women"s property and status; interpretation of federal law; negotiable instruments; statutory declarations; arbitration; mercantile law; registration of businesses and business names; age of majority; infants and minors; adoption; succession, testate and intestate; probate and letters of administration; bankruptcy and insolvency; oaths and affirmations; limitation; reciprocal enforcement of judgments and orders; the law of evidence;

(ii) the matters mentioned in paragraph (i) do not include Islamic personal law relating to marriage, divorce, guardianship, maintenance, adoption, legitimacy, family law, gifts or succession, testate and intestate;

(f) Official secrets; corrupt practices;

(g) Use or exhibition of coats of arms, armorial bearings, flags, emblems, uniforms, orders and decorations other than those of a State;

(h) Creation of offences in respect of any of the matters included in the Federal List or dealt with by federal law;

(i) Indemnity in respect of any of the matters in the Federal List or dealt with by federal law;

(j) Admiralty Jurisdiction;

(k) Ascertainment of Islamic law and other personal laws for purposes of federal law; and

(l) Betting and lotteries.

5. Federal citizenship and naturalization; aliens.

6. The machinery of government, subject to the State List, but including -

(a) Elections to both Houses of Parliament and the Legislative Assemblies of the States and all matters connected therewith;

(b) The Armed Forces Council and the Commissions to which Part X applies;

(c) Federal services including the establishment of services common to the Federation and the States; services common to two or more States;

(d) Pensions and compensation for loss of office; gratuities and conditions of service;

(e) Government and administration of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya including,Islamic law therein to the same extent as provided in item I in the State List and in respect of the Federal Territory of Labuan, native law and custom to the same extent as provided in item 13 of the Supplement to State List for States of Sabah and Sarawak;

[Am. Act A1095 - Prior text read - Government and administration of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan including Islamic law therein to the same extent as provided in item 1 in the State List and in respect of the Federal Territory of Labuan, native law and custom to the same extent as provided in item 13 of the Supplement to State List for States of Sabah and Sarawak;]

(f) Federal Government contracts;

(g) Federal public authorities; and

(h) Purchase, acquisition and holding of, and dealing with property for federal purposes.

7. Finance, including -

(a) Currency, legal tender and coinage;

(b) National savings and savings banks;

(c) Borrowing on the security of the Federal Consolidated Fund;

(d) Loans to or borrowing by the States, public authorities and private enterprise;

(e) Public debt of the Federation;

(f) Financial and accounting procedure, including procedure for the collection, custody and payment of the public moneys of the Federation and of the States, and the purchase, custody and disposal of public property other than land of the Federation and of the States;

(g) Audit and accounts of the Federation and the States and other public authorities;

(h) Taxes; rates in the federal capital;

(i) Fees in respect of any of the matters in the Federal List or dealt with by federal law;

(j) Banking; money-lending; pawnbrokers; control of credit;

(k) Bills of exchange, cheques; promissory notes and other similar instruments;

(l) Foreign exchange; and

(m) Capital issues; stock and commodity exchanges.

8. Trade, commerce and industry, including -

(a) Production, supply and distribution of goods; price control and food control; adulteration of foodstuffs and other goods;

(b) Imports into, and exports from, the Federation;

(c) Incorporation, regulation and winding up of corporations other than municipal corporations (but including the municipal corporation of the federal capital); regulation of foreign corporations; bounties on production in or export from the Federation;

(d) Insurance, including compulsory insurance;

(e) Patents; designs; inventions; trade marks and mercantile marks; copyrights;

(f) Establishment of standards of weights and measures;

(g) Establishment of standards of quality of goods manufactured in or exported from the Federation;

(h) Auctions and auctioneers;

(i) Industries; regulation of industrial undertakings;

(j) Subject to item 2 (c) in the State List: Development of mineral resources; mines, mining, minerals and mineral ores; oils and oilfields; purchase, sale, import and export of minerals and mineral ores; petroleum products; regulation of labour and safety in mines and oilfields;

(k) Factories; boilers and machinery; dangerous trades; and

(l) Dangerous and inflammable substances.

9. Shipping, navigation and fisheries, including -

(a) Shipping and navigation on the high seas and in tidal and inland waters;

(b) Ports and harbours; foreshores;

(c) Lighthouses and other provisions for the safety of navigation;

(d) Maritime and estuarine fishing and fisheries, excluding turtles;

(e) Light dues; and

(f) Wrecks and salvage.

10. Communications and transport, including -

(a) Roads, bridges, ferries and other means of communication if declared to be federal by or under federal law;

(b) Railways, excluding Penang Hill Railway;

(c) Airways, aircraft and air navigation; civil aerodromes; provisions for the safety of aircraft;

(d) Regulation of traffic by land, water and air other than on rivers outside harbour areas wholly within one State;

(e) Carriage of passengers and goods by land, water and air;

(f) Mechanically propelled vehicles;

(g) Posts and telecommunications; and

(h) Wireless, broadcasting and television.

11. Federal works and power, including -

(a) Public works for federal purposes;

(b) Water supplies, rivers and canals, except those wholly within one State or regulated by an agreement between all the States concerned; production, distribution and supply of water power; and

(c) Electricity; gas and gas works; and other works for the production and distribution of power and energy.

12. Surveys, inquiries and research, including -

(a) Census; registration of births and deaths; registration of marriages; registration of adoptions other than adoptions under Islamic law or Malay custom;

(b) Survey of the Federation; social, economic and scientific surveys; meteorological organizations;

(c) Scientific and technical research; and

(d) Commissions of inquiry.

13. Education, including -

(a) Elementary, secondary, and university education; vocational and technical education; training of teachers; registration and control of teachers, managers and schools; promotion of special studies and research; scientific and literary societies;

(b) Libraries; museums; ancient and historical monuments and records; archaeological sites and remains.

14. Medicine and health including sanitation in the federal capital, and including -

(a) Hospitals, clinics and dispensaries; medical profession; maternity and child welfare; lepers and leper institutions;

(b) Lunacy and mental deficiency, including places for reception and treatment;

(c) Poisons and dangerous drugs; and

(d) Intoxicating drugs and liquors; manufacture and sale of drugs.

15. Labour and social security, including -

(a) Trade unions; industrial and labour disputes; welfare of labour including housing of labourers by employers; employer"s liability and workmen"s compensation;

(b) Unemployment insurance; health insurance; widow"s, orphans" and old age pensions; maternity benefits; provident and benevolent funds; superannuation; and

(c) Charities and charitable institutions; charitable trusts and trustees excluding Wakafs; Hindu endowments.

16. Welfare of the aborigines.

17. Professional occupations other than those specifically enumerated.

18. Holidays other than State holidays; standard of time.

19. Unincorporated societies.

20. Control of agricultural pests; protection against such pests; prevention of plant diseases.

21. Newspapers; publications; publishers; printing and printing presses.

22. Censorship.

23. Subject to item 5 (f) of the State List: theatres; cinemas; cinematography films; places of public amusement.

24. (Repealed).

25. Co-operative societies.

25A. Tourism.

26. Subject to item 9A of the Concurrent List, prevention and extinguishment of fire, including fire services and fire brigades.

27. All matters relating to the Federal Territories, including the matters enumerated in items 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the State List and in the case of the Federal Territory of Labuan, the matters enumerated in items 15, 16 and 17 of the Supplement to State List for States of Sabah and Sarawak.

[Am. Act A1095 - Prior text read - All matters relating to the Federal Territory, including the matters enumerated in items 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the State List and in the case of the Federal Territory of Labuan, the matters enumerated in items 15, 16 and 17 of the Supplement to State List for States of Sabah and Sarawak.]

LIST II - STATE LIST

1. Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, Islamic law and personal and family law of persons professing the religion of Islam, including the Islamic law relating to succession, testate and intestate, betrothal, marriage, divorce, dower, maintenance, adoption, legitimacy, guardianship, gifts, partitions and non-charitable trusts; Wakafs and the DEFINITION and regulation of charitable and religious trusts, the appointment of trustees and the incorporation of persons in respect of Islamic religious and charitable endowments, institutions, trusts, charities and charitable institutions operating wholly within the State; Malay customs; Zakat, Fitrah and Baitulmal or similar Islamic religious revenue; mosques or any Islamic public places of worship, creation and punishment of offences by persons professing the religion of Islam against precepts of that religion, except in regard to matters included in the Federal List; the constitution, Organisation and procedure of Syariah courts, which shall have jurisdiction only over persons professing the religion of Islam and in respect only of any of the matters included in this paragraph, but shall not have jurisdiction in respect of offences except in so far as conferred by federal law, the control of propagating doctrines and beliefs among persons professing the religion of Islam; the determination of matters of Islamic law and doctrine and Malay custom.

[Am. Act 1095 - Prior text read - Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan, Islamic law and personal and family law of persons professing the religion of Islam, including the Islamic law relating to succession, testate and intestate, betrothal, marriage, divorce, dower, maintenance, adoption, legitimacy, guardianship, gifts, partitions and non-charitable trusts; Wakafs and the DEFINITION and regulation of charitable and religious trusts, the appointment of trustees and the incorporation of persons in respect of Islamic religious and charitable endowments, institutions, trusts, charities and charitable institutions operating wholly within the State; Malay customs; Zakat, Fitrah and Baitulmal or similar Islamic religious revenue; mosques or any Islamic public places of worship, creation and punishment of offences by persons professing the religion of Islam against precepts of that religion, except in regard to matters included in the Federal List; the constitution, organisation and procedure of Syariah courts, which shall have jurisdiction only over persons professing the religion of Islam and in respect only of any of the matters included in this paragraph, but shall not have jurisdiction in respect of offences except in so far as conferred by federal law, the control of propagating doctrines and beliefs among persons professing the religion of Islam; the determination of matters of Islamic law and doctrine and Malay custom.]

2. Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, land including-

[Am. Act 1095 - Prior text read -Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan, land including -]

(a) Land tenure, relation of landlord and tenant; registration of titles and deeds relating to land; colonization, land improvement and soil conservation; rent restriction;

(b) Malay reservations or, in the States of Sabah and Sarawak, native reservations;

(c) Permits and licences for prospecting for mines; mining leases and certificates;

(d) Compulsory acquisition of land;

(e) Transfer of land, mortgages, leases and charges in respect of land; easements; and

(f) Escheat; treasure trove excluding antiquities.

3. Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, agriculture and forestry, including-

[Am. Act 1095 - Prior text read - Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan, agriculture and forestry, including -]

(a) Agriculture and agricultural loans; and

(b) Forests.

4. Local government outside the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, including-

[Am. Act 1095 - Prior text read - Local government outside the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan, including -]

(a) Local administration; municipal corporations; local, town, and rural board and other local authorities; local government services, local rates, local government elections;

(b) Obnoxious trades and public nuisances in local authority areas; and

(c)(Repealed).

5. Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, other services of a local character, that is to say:

[Am. Act 1095 - Prior text read -Except with respect to the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan, other services of a local character, that is to say:

(a)(Repealed);

(b) Boarding houses and lodging houses;

(c) Burial and cremation grounds;

(d) Pounds and cattle trespass;

(e) Markets and fairs; and

(f) Licensing of theatres, cinemas and places of public amusement.

6. State works and water, that is to say:

(a) Public works for State purposes;

(b) Roads, bridges and ferries other than those in the Federal List, regulation of weight and speed of vehicles on such roads; and

(c) Subject to the Federal List, water (including rivers and canals but excluding water supplies and services); control of silt; riparian rights.

[Subs. Act A1239]

7. Machinery of the State Government, subject to the Federal List, but including -

(a) Civil List and State pensions;

(b) Exclusive State services;

(c) Borrowing on the security of the State Consolidated Fund;

(d) Loans for State purposes;

(e) Public debt of the State; and

(f) Fees in respect of any of the matters included in the State List or dealt with by State law.

8. State holidays.

9. Creation of offences in respect of any of the matters included in the State List or dealt with by State law, proofs of State law and of things done thereunder, and proof of any matter for purposes of State law.

10. Inquiries for State purposes, including commissions of inquiry and collection of statistics with respect to any of the matters included in the State List or dealt with by State law.

11. Indemnity in respect of any of the matters in the State List or dealt with by State law.

12. Turtles and rivering fishing.

12A. Libraries, museums, ancient and historical monuments and records and archaeological sites and remains, other than those declared to be federal by or under federal law.

LIST IIA - SUPPLEMENT TO STATE LIST FOR STATES OF SABAH AND SARAWAK

[Articles 95B (1) (a)]

13. Native law and custom, including the personal law relating to marriage, divorce, guardianship, maintenance, adoption, legitimacy, family law, gifts or succession, testate or intestate; registration of adoptions under native law or custom; the determination of matters of native law or custom; the constitution, organization, and procedure of native courts (including the right of audience in such courts), and the jurisdiction and powers of such courts, which shall extend only to the matters included in this paragraph and shall not include jurisdiction in respect of offences except in so far as conferred by federal law.

14. Incorporation of authorities and other bodies set up by State law, if incorporated directly by State law, and regulation and winding-up of corporations so created.

15. Ports and harbours, other than those declared to be federal by or under federal law; regulation of traffic by water in ports and harbours or on rivers wholly within the State, except traffic in federal ports or harbours; foreshores.

16. Cadastral land surveys.

17. (Repealed).

18. In Sabah, the Sabah Railway.

19. (Repealed).

20. Subject to the Federal List, water supplies and services.

[Ins. Act A1239]

LIST IIB - (REPEALED)

LIST III - CONCURRENT LIST

1. Social welfare; social services subject to Lists I and II; protection of women, children and young persons.

2. Scholarships

3. Protection of wild animals and wild birds; National Parks.

4. Animal husbandry; prevention of cruelty to animals; veterinary services; animal quarantine.

5. Town and country planning, except in the federal capital.

6. Vagrancy and itinerant hawkers.

7. Public health, sanitation (excluding sanitation in the federal capital) and the prevention of diseases.

8. Drainage and irrigation.

9. Rehabilitation of mining land and land which has suffered soil erosion.

9A. Fire safety measures and fire precautions in the construction and maintenance of buildings.

9B. Culture and sports.

9C. Housing and provisions for housing accommodation; improvement trusts.

9D. Subject to the Federal List, water supplies and services.

9E. Preservation of heritage.

[Ins. Act A1239]

LIST IIIA - SUPPLEMENT TO CONCURRENT LIST FOR STATES OF SABAH AND SARAWAK

[Article 95B (1) (b)]

10. Personal law relating to marriage, divorce, guardianship, maintenance, adoption, legitimacy, family law, gifts or succession, testate or intestate.

11. Adulteration of foodstuffs and other goods.

12. Shipping under fifteen registered tons, including the carriage of passengers and goods by such shipping; maritime and estuarine fishing and fisheries.

13. The production, distribution and supply of water power and of electricity generated by water power.

14. Agricultural and forestry research, control of agricultural pests, and protection against such pests; prevention of plant diseases.

15. Charities and charitable trusts and institutions in the State (that is to say, operating wholly within, or created and operating in, the State) and their trustees, including the incorporation thereof and the regulation and winding-up of incorporated charities and charitable institutions in the State.

16. Theatres; cinemas; cinematography films; places of public amusement.

17. Elections to the State Assembly held during the period of indirect elections.

18. In Sabah until the end of the year 1970 (but not in Sarawak), medicine and health, including the matters specified in items 14 (a) to (d) of the Federal List.

LIST IIIB - (REPEALED)

Intellectual Property as Property

In the study of intellectual property, the first thing which strikes you is how large the scope of intellectual property is. Of course, a study of the history of intellectual property rights reveals that most of what is known as intellectual property began with the concept of copyright. Copyright was, essentially, the right to copy something. In the Dark Ages, most of the English commoners were incapable of writing or reading the written word. Hence, the concept of copying something was foreign to these unschooled commoners. Yet, upon the invention of the Gutenberg press, the written word became readily available for mass printing. It was from there that the concept of copyrights began.

I quote Prof David Vaver from the Victoria University of Wellington Law Review (2002) -

The subject-matter of intellectual property rights has increased enormously over the years. Patents begat plant breeder rights; copyrights begat performer, design and database rights; design rights begat rights over semiconductor topographies; trade marks are conceiving rights in domain names on the Internet; and the begetting and begatting is far from over.

The scope of intellectual property law is constantly expanding. Most people think that intellectual property lawyers (or lawyers in general) make a tonne of money and that money is unjustified. That's two misconceptions: First, lawyers don't make a tonne of money. They sometimes have to scrimp and stretch their dollar too. Secondly, if a lawyer earns well, the question is not whether the figure is justified or not. The question is more of, "If it is not justified, why engage the lawyer in the first place?"

That aside, I've been wondering for some time now whether intellectual property -- being a property -- involves the issue of equitable rights and equitable ownership. In the law of real property (real property being land) equitable rights can be created and equitable dealings can take place, and the property owner may retain such rights as against the trustee.

Prof Vaver did not, in the Victoria Law Review, mention the matter. However, he did deal with the issue of intellectual property being dealt with as property; and the shortcomings thereof. The following is an extract (which I hope does not constitute "substantial copying"):

The "property" part of intellectual property is equally problematic. Normative arguments, that the creation of something new from raw material available to all justifies the grant of a property right, go only part of the way. The vivid maxim – made all the more powerful because of its biblical antecedents – that as you sow, so you should reap, may work well in matters agricultural but less so in matters intellectual. If I create a new chair design, the maxim produces no logical proposition about the sort of rights I should reap from my creation. Should I be able to stop imitators or independent creators? Should I just be compensated with a royalty for whatever efforts they borrow from me? (Conversely, should I not pay some tribute to my forebears in design, on whose intellectual shoulders I have climbed?) Should my property last for five years, a century, or forever? Everywhere in the world, or just in my country or county? On complying with no formalities, or upon registration or the marking of my chair with some magic symbol to give the world notice of my claim of rights? Or should I just be eligible for a prize from the Society of Good Chair Designers?

One might, of course, counter such arguments by saying that intellectual property is used only metaphorically, and that metaphors should drive neither law nor policy. I agree, but would observe that the process of reification – treating intellectual property as a thing and deducing principles from its "thing-ness" – has become so entrenched internationally among this generation of lawyers and lawmakers as to have become its own state of the art.[18] The United Nations bureau in charge of the field calls itself the World Intellectual Property Organisation. Intellectual property's international framework is now found in the TRIPs Agreement, the IP abbreviation of which refers to Intellectual Property. The terminology of intellectual property is used constantly throughout that Agreement.

The reification of intellectual property has advantages in creating an analytical framework of sorts for otherwise heterogeneous fields. But it also promotes tendencies that are not always self-evidently positive. Thus:

(1) Treating the rights as property causes legislatures to structure their intellectual property laws in a particular way, and tribunals to interpret them similarly. The laws grant people called owners a broad set of rights over a broad category of matter: for example, the right to exploit an invention for a given time. This terrain is called the owner's property. Any qualification of that broad right – for example, by saying what items do not qualify as inventions – is treated as an exception. The grant of property is then interpreted broadly; any qualification is interpreted narrowly.

This value system is evident in European patent law. The European Patent Convention 1973, in articles 52 and 53, excluded a miscellany of things from patentability for policy reasons: discoveries, scientific theories, business schemes, computer programs, methods for treating humans or animals by surgery or therapy, inventions the exploitation of which would be contrary to public policy, and so forth.

Now, one way of interpreting this list might be to say that it is as important not to patent anything on it as it is to patent things that are off it. On this approach, any doubts about whether or not a patent application claims a mere "discovery" rather than a true "invention" – something found in the natural order, rather than a man-made change to the natural order – should be resolved by dismissing the application. But this does not happen. Instead, the approach is to construe what is patentable generously, and what is not patentable – an exception – narrowly.[19] In other words, when in doubt, create and reinforce property; do not deny it or cut it back.

(2) Reification also gives legislators a strong reason not to trim back any intellectual property right once it has been granted by statute or regulation. If the rights are property, trimming them back in any way looks like state confiscation – an immoral, if not illegal, act if compensation is not offered to the property holder.

Note the curiously asymmetrical assumption here. It is that the public has no right to be free of intellectual property, so that stopping people from doing what they could have freely done before, or requiring them now to pay, does not take away any property rights of theirs. Property language thus weights the relative morality of increasing or decreasing intellectual property rights in favour of increase.

(3) Property language can interfere whenever intellectual property rights are balanced against other rights. Suppose a piece of art is parodied and the affected copyright holder claims infringement against the parodist. The latter may have to admit the infringement, since United Kingdom copyright law – like many others – does not include any specific parody defence. But the parodist may reply that she is exercising a fundamental human right, her right to freedom of expression, protected under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights 1950 ("ECHR") and many other national constitutions. We might say that here are two at least equally important rights in conflict and a balance must fairly be struck between them to encourage the different forms of creativity they entail.

But treat copyright as property, and the balancing exercise changes. We now have a mere freedom conflicting with a property right. Maybe the balance will not start off tipped by this reformulation – but place no bets.

A Canadian case provides a vivid example. The Michelin Tire Co sued a union for infringing Michelin's copyright by using a caricature of the Michelin Man logo on the leaflets the union handed out during a labour dispute. The union's defence that it was exercising its freedom of expression, guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, was dismissed by the court. Free speech does not entitle anybody to tread on a property right, here copyright. The union could have found some non-infringing way to express itself. The fact that way may have been less effective did not matter.[20] The court let a constitutionally protected right – free expression – be trumped by a right that is not even mentioned in the Canadian Charter, namely, property. That a similar approach may be taken to Article 10 of the ECHR is certainly arguable.

(4) Finally, the "broad grant, narrow exception" rule that applies to interpreting statutes is also much in evidence when lawmakers are lobbied for new intellectual property rights. It seems easier to justify widening an existing right and eliminating an exception, than it is to justify inserting an exception or widening an existing exception. Widening a right, after all, can rely for its justification on a number of aphorisms – "nobody should reap without sowing", "what is worth copying is prima facie worth protecting", and the like – the attraction of which eclipses their opposites: "everyone should reap without sowing", "what is worth copying prima facie deserves to be copied", and the like. The assumption that no or less sowing would occur without the security of an intellectual property right is rarely supported by solid empirical evidence. Typically the evidence is the other way, for the quest for new protection usually occurs well after the time when businesses have already sown and harvested many crops, and when they were aware that intellectual property protection was non-existent or at best shaky.

The process of broadening rights and narrowing or eliminating exceptions is nevertheless well under way worldwide. In 1980, the United States Supreme Court allowed the patenting of a man-made oil-eating bacterium designed to clear oil spills at sea. The court said that the bacterium qualified under Congressional language indicating that "anything under the sun that is made by man" is patentable subject-matter, language that necessarily included life forms.[21] That language has become the new rallying cry of the US courts and US Patent Office. Overturning prior court-made exceptions, they have allowed the patenting of new transgenic life forms (not only bacteria but multicellular life forms including mice and much larger animals), computer programs (for what are these but the electronic version of mechanical parts?),[22] and business schemes – so far only those implemented by a computer program[23] but, on past history, that qualification will surely go, for "anything under the sun made by man" must include the "best laid schemes o' men" (if not mice), however laid.

Meanwhile, Europe and other regions are engaged in a game of catch-up, fearing that somehow they will be left behind if their intellectual property laws are not at least as protective as, if not more than, those of the United States.[24] Thus, a EU Directive to allow the patenting of computer programs is in course of preparation, even though computer programs seem adequately protected under copyright law, and even though the case for granting cumulative protection that inhibits even independent development of a substantially similar program for twenty years – more than the entire conceivable life of most such programs – seems unproven.

Source: http://www.austlii.edu.au/nz/journals/VUWLRev/2001/2.html

lingo blogs

Podcasting, apparently a "new" phenomenon, has spread to
the French. A quick search on Google led me to the first
french podcast released in August 2005, by Radio Canada.
But Opera being Opera, you get to listen to the MP3 while
downloading it. I was hoping for some french music to go
along with it. Instead, it was a lot of babble. Music, they
say, is a universal language. But French is another story
altogether for me. One link led to another and soon I found
myself at an interesting site. Do try and give this
following site a go, it's quite interesting:

http://www.nakedtranslations.com/en/

Apparently, there's a whole lot of people blogging about
language. It's an interesting topic. Language is
ever-evolving and the task of working with language is one
that should never be belittled. Choosing the right words
for that crucial piece of translation might be the
difference that portrays you, two generations down, as a
witty, eloquent and interesting person (instead of an old
stick in the mud). "Orneta" is a page where you can find
lots of the language related blogs.

http://oreneta.com/language/

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Mohamed Sid-Ahmed on "The Terrorist Plumber"

Al-Ahram Weekly Online is one of those magazines that has constantly coughed up some interesting nugget. The recent Bali bombings that exploded on Malaysian front page news recently was conspicuously *not* covered by the periodical.

It is clear that in the pursuit of the Palestinian question, the question of terrorism and "do as thou wouldst thyself be done by" has been viewed as two separate questions. I found Mr. Sid-Ahmed's article to begin innocuously enough. He began by relating how recently, after the Katrina/Rita hurricane disasters were highlighted in the news, an SMS was making its rounds. Purportedly issued by the Al-Qaeda group, claiming responsibility for the recent spate of hurricane-related horrors.

Of course, it was tasteless, but it served as a good ice breaker and an introducer to his article. In fact, he even drew a conclusion from the (apparently) tasteless joke: "The incident is significant in that it shows how people have been conditioned in recent years to believe in the omnipotence of terrorism and the long reach of terrorists."

The following paragraph was quite interesting. He mentioned that the Sept 11 incident introduced a new "dimension" in the "escalation of terrorism". We have to ask ourselves if As-Sayyid Sid-Ahmed is correct that terrorism has seen some "escalation". Escalation, in response to what is perceived as oppression. Escalation, because retaliation in another city, inflicting pain on innocent people who had no part in whatever atrocity you feel strongly against, and mostly importantly who did not ever do anything to even hurt you -- such retaliation, it seems, is increasingly "correct".

The "dimension" that the author referred to was the feeling of power. Those who committed the crimes, felt suddenly that they had been given a magnificent weapon. It could kill hordes of their enemies, but only on one condition: to activate it, or to pull its trigger, one had to be willing to sacrifice one's own life. The author, cognizant of the fact that death was a very real pre-requisite for this brand of "terrorism" to survive, writes eloquently, almost in praise of death (possibly because the Enemies of Isl@m fear death):

**************************************************
"Terrorism is a state of mind and not only a material situation, its frame of reference is death, not life. Death is becoming the key factor in determining what options life has; how free humans are. Terrorism proceeds from the assumption that a state of death commands the state of life. In the final analysis, with terrorism having the upper hand, it would seem that people live with the aim of dying, not the opposite."
**************************************************

This state of affairs goes on until at one point, one finds that the matters required actual human sacrifice to change the system. Another quote that I find interesting, from the article, is as follows.

**************************************************
"The global population is divided into two distinct categories: those for whom living is perpetual suffering and those who benefit from the suffering of the latter; the haves and the have- nots, the dispossessed and the privileged. Not surprisingly, this is creating tensions that are affecting the viability of world order as we know it."
**************************************************

Words are cheap. Actions are not. Actions speak very much louder than words. But still, death is the one and last means of proving one's commitment to a cause. It is the ultimate sacrifice. Yet there is another question: Is it legally allowed?

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Federalism info @ Queen's U

The squirrel survives winter by storing up nuts in its abode, the tree trunk. Good bits must be kept for further reference.

The Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, at Queen's University, provides good articles for the study of federalism in Canada.
Click here

Google does its little bit to help me mine the treasure trove:
Click here

Link: Sky Kingdom discussion

The Malaysian Bar has a membership that debates furiously amongst its
members. It may be seen that the Sky Kingdom case has attracted the
sympathy of many a young lawyer.

Follow the yellow brick road to the link below.

http://www.malaysianbar.org.my/component/option,com_simpleboard/Itemid,195/func,view/id,134/catid,7/

tech babe asia - a place to remember

http://techbabeasia.blogspot.com/

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software

Software, as it appears, is one of those more
complicated areas of the law. Initially, software
copyrights covered only the areas of pure copying.
Similar to the origins of copyrights, judges initially
felt that copyrights in software was a concept of "you
buy it, so you can use it."

The concept of copying was messed up because people
were copying the binary code, and not the original
source code. Whereas it was the original source code
that was sought to be protected under the original
law, and lawyers and also judges scrambled to define
binary code as a "translation" of the source code.

But that did not work. Translations had to be proven
to be "human readable" and capable of carrying
meaningful messages.

Things have changed very much today and people are
trying to copyright instead:

1. The idea behind the program (Amazon's 1-Click)
2. The algorhythm behind the program (ZIP, JPEG, MP3)
3. The core concept (Windows, Linux, OS X)

More updates on a rainy day. That little entry has put
me in the mood for studying, i guess...

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