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Malaysia Bans The Color Yellow As Protests Swell Into The Hundreds Of Thousands
Malaysia Bans The Color Yellow As Protests Swell Into The Hundreds Of Thousands
The anti-government protests that swept through the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur on Saturday continued unabated on Sunday after tens of thousands of demonstrators camped in the streets overnight.
Emboldened by the presence of influential former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, protesters chanced being confronted with water cannons and tear gas, which police used to disperse crowds at previous Bersih rallies.
As we detailed on Saturday, calls for the ouster of Prime Minister Najib Razak have grown louder in recent months after the government appeared to be obstructing an investigation into how more than $600 million in funds from a Goldman-backed development bank ended up in Najib’s personal bank account.Mahathir Mohamad, who many say still hasn’t accepted the fact that he hasn’t been Prime Minister since 2003, has called for a no-confidence vote and insists that the man he handpicked to govern “has to go.”
Estimates of Sunday’s crowd varied slightly depending on who you listen to. Police, for instance, say the gathering attracted around 20,000 protesters while Bersih insists the number was closer to 300,000.
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Mass Protests Sweep Malaysian Capital As Anger At Goldman-Backed Slush Fund Boils Over
Mass Protests Sweep Malaysian Capital As Anger At Goldman-Backed Slush Fund Boils Over
If we told you that thousands of protesters donning bright yellow shirts had taken to the streets to call for the ouster of a leader in an important emerging market, you’d be forgiven for thinking we were talking about Brazil, where President Dilma Rousseff is facing calls for impeachment amid allegations of fiscal book cooking and government corruption.
But on this particular weekend, you’d be wrong.
We’re actually talking about Malaysia, where tens of thousands of demonstrators poured into the streets of Kuala Lumpur on Saturday to call for the resignation of Prime Minister Najib Razak whose government has been accused of obstructing an investigation into how some $700 million from 1Malaysia Development Berhad mysteriously ended up in Najib’s personal bank account.
1MDB was set up by Najib six years ago and has been the subject of intense scrutiny for borrowing $11 billion to fund questionable acquisitions. $6.5 billion of that debt came from three bond deals underwritten by Goldman, whose Southeast Asia chairman Tim Leissner is married to hip hop mogul Russell Simmons’ ex-wife Kimora Lee who, in turn, is good friends with Najib’s controversial wife Rosmah Manso.
You really cannot make this stuff up.
What Goldman did, apparently, is arrange for three private placements, one for $3 billion and two for $1.75 billion each back in 2013 and 2012, respectively. Goldman bought the bonds for its own book at 90 cents on the dollar with plans to sell them later at a profit (more here from FT). Somewhere in all of this, $700 million allegedly landed in Najib’s bank account and the going theory is that 1MDB is simply a slush fund.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Cleaning up Malaysia’s rivers of life – Features – Al Jazeera English
Cleaning up Malaysia’s rivers of life – Features – Al Jazeera English.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – In the hills to the east of Kuala Lumpur, the Klang River is clean enough for visitors to play in. But just a few hundred metres downstream, the water darkens and rubbish clogs the banks.
By the time it reaches the city centre, the river is the pale brown of milky tea and so toxic it’s dangerous to touch.
But after decades of neglect, the government is spending more than $1bn to revive the Klang and Gombak rivers that gave Kuala Lumpur – which translates roughly as “muddy confluence” – its name.
“The River of Life is one of the cornerstone projects in Kuala Lumpur, in addition to public transport,” said Mohd Azharuddin Mat Sah, a director of the government’s Performance Management and Delivery Unit, who is coordinating the project.
“We learned from other cities like Seoul, Vancouver, upgrading and beautifying the areas around the river really helps a city become more livable. And Kuala Lumpur is naturally lucky to have two rivers flowing through it.”
