The State of Our Schools — Urgent Call for Action and Leadership Change, OPEN LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER OF MALAYSIA YAB DATO’ SERI ANWAR IBRAHIM,

 YAB Dato’ Seri,

We, the concerned citizens of Malaysia, are deeply alarmed and heartbroken by the recent horrifying incidents in our schools — a rape case and a murder case within the very institutions meant to nurture and protect our children.

These tragedies are not isolated incidents. They are a clear sign that discipline, respect, and moral values have collapsed in our education system. The situation has become unbearable.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

Our schools, once places of learning and safety, have now become breeding grounds for violence, disrespect, and chaos. It is time for strong and decisive action to restore order, discipline, and integrity in our education system.

OUR DEMANDS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
Immediate Resignation of the Education Minister, YB Fadhlina Sidek.
Her tidak apa attitude and failure to take firm, moral, and responsible leadership in the face of such serious incidents have destroyed public trust.

2. Restore Full Disciplinary Authority to Teachers.
Teachers must be empowered once again to maintain order without fear of backlash.

3. Reinstate Caning as a Disciplinary Measure.

For male students: caning on the buttocks.

For female students: caning on the palm.
Proper discipline builds respect, responsibility, and accountability.

4. Prohibit Parental Interference in Disciplinary Matters.
Parents must not question or challenge the methods teachers use to maintain discipline in schools.

5. Immediate Expulsion of Problematic Students.
Students who continuously disrupt or endanger others should be expelled immediately, without suspension or repeated warnings.

6. Parents Opposed to These Measures Should Homeschool Their Children.
Those unwilling to accept the return of discipline should take personal responsibility for their children’s education.

7. Reinstate UPSR and PMR Examinations.

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These assessments provided essential academic structure and accountability for students and schools alike.

YAB Dato’ Seri, the time has come for bold and courageous reform. Our teachers are powerless, our students are without fear of consequence, and our schools are no longer sanctuaries of learning.

We urge your immediate intervention to restore discipline, order, and moral strength in our education system — before more innocent lives are destroyed.

For the sake of our children. For the future of Malaysia.

Respectfully,
Concerned Citizens of Malaysia

#perdanamenterimalaysia
#PerdanaMenteri
#menteripendidikan
#kementerianpendidikanmalaysia

COPY AND PASTE ON YOUR WALL AND SHARE IF YOU ARE A CONCERNED PARENT.

Notes: Education Ministers Idonesia vs Malaysis

 

EDU INDO-MAY.jpeg

 

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Exposing US tactics to meddle in S. China Sea issue: Disinformation, sowing regional discord, and instigating regional militarization

 Playing pawn games

By Hu Yuwei  and Huang Lanlan - Globat Times

The troops of the US, Canada, Australia and the Philippines conduct a multilateral maritime exercise in the South China Sea on August 7, 2024. Photo: VCG

For a long time after World War II concluded, the international community broadly acknowledged China's sovereignty and associated rights in the South China Sea. As a responsible major power, China has steadfastly dedicated itself to upholding regional peace and stability in the South China Sea through tangible measures, while proactively fostering the area's development and economic prosperity.

In 2002, China and the 10 ASEAN countries signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC). This agreement embodies the common commitment of China and ASEAN members to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, serving as a key framework for directing and advancing regional security.

Prior to the Cold War's conclusion, the US did not openly contest China's sovereignty assertions over the islands and reefs in the South China Sea; instead, it avoided supporting its allies on the matter. It was not until the 1990s that Washington started shifting its position.

As the US loudly declared its "pivot to Asia" in the 2010s, its meddling in the South China Sea escalated alongside heightened involvement and more provocative actions, transforming this formerly serene sea into a hotbed of hidden tensions, roiled by fierce storms and choppy waters, Dai Fan, vice dean of the School of International Studies at Jinan University, told the Global Times. 

This article, based on official documents, authoritative media reports, and expert interviews, exposes US tactics used in recent years to meddle in the South China Sea, including cognitive and opinion warfare against China, undermining China's ties with regional states, and stoking an arms race. It reveals how US interventions to preserve hegemony disrupt normal cooperative activities in the South China Sea, and are the primary cause of regional instability, clashing with the desires of neighboring countries and the world for peace, development, and collaboration.

Initiator of cognitive warfare against China

A report titled "Making the South China Sea a Sea of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation: China's Actions" that was released by the Xinhua Institute, a think tank affiliated with the Xinhua News Agency, in late August found that since the Obama administration, US government agencies, think tanks, and media outlets have continuously promoted claims such as "China seeks to control the South China Sea," "China does not abide by international law," "China is undermining the rules-based international order," and "China is coercing its maritime neighbors." These claims, often based on selective or even distorted information, have been used to comprehensively stigmatize China's policies and actions in safeguarding its maritime rights. In recent years, US tactics in this regard have escalated, becoming increasingly direct and vociferous. 

The US and its Western allies, leveraging their dominance in international discourse, mischaracterize the intrusions and provocations by certain claimant states in the South China Sea as "safeguarding sovereignty," while framing China's legitimate rights protection and law enforcement as "hegemonic" actions of a powerful nation "bullying" regional countries. They deliberately exaggerate the so-called "military threat" from China in the South China Sea, the Xinhua Institute's report stated.

For instance, in 2022, Stanford University's Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation launched the "Myoushu" project (now known as "SeaLight"), which disseminates a daily stream of mixed factual and misleading situational data. The initiative focuses on tracking China's maritime activities, fabricating rumors, and deliberately hyping the claim of "Chinese maritime threat and expansion." 

Additionally, the US and its allies have provided strategic counsel and support to claimant states in their provocations and confrontations against China. They keep enlisting the power of Western media outlets to stand behind and build momentum for their illegal acts.

Since 2023, the Philippines has implemented the so-called "transparency policy," aiming to leverage media narratives to portray China as a regional power that "bullies" smaller neighbors in the South China Sea. According to Filipino political commentator Herman Laurel, this strategy is part of "Project Myoushu," led by retired US Air Force officer Raymond Powell. 

Multiple Western media organizations in including BBC, CNN, have participated in this propaganda effort, sending journalists on Philippine ships during their intrusions into Chinese islands and reefs in the South China Sea, then releasing stories that portray China unfavorably. 

Activists stage a protest against US military presence in the Philippines, on February 2, 2023, in Manila, the Philippines, during the visit of then US defence secretary Lloyd Austin. Photo: VCG

Sower of discord among regional nations

The US has persistently undermined relations between China and other South China Sea coastal states through various means, including repeatedly supporting Philippine provocations against China, pressuring regional countries to "take sides," and instigating an arms race in the area, thereby continuously jeopardizing regional peace.

Observers point out that the Philippines' repeated provocations against China often have the overt support of the US and some of its Western allies, who consistently back Manila following such actions.

On June 17, 2024, then US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller commented on the incident of Philippine vessels illegally entering the waters off China's Ren'ai Jiao (also known as Ren'ai Reef) and deliberately colliding with Chinese vessels, smearing China's policy positions in the South China Sea, sensationalizing maritime frictions, and claiming that the US "stands with its ally the Philippines." Then deputy secretary of State Kurt Campbell went even further. He reiterated the US-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty in a conversation with then Philippine undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Maria Theresa Lazaro and accused China of interfering with the Philippines' "freedom of navigation." 

The US has also repeatedly pressured South China Sea neighboring countries to "pick sides" through multilateral mechanisms, continuously building multi-layered "anti-China cliques" and constructing an encirclement to contain China, experts said. 

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Leading its allies and partners, the US has established small multilateral mechanisms such as the US-Japan-India-Australia Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, US-Japan-Korea, US-Japan-Australia, US-Japan-Philippines, and US-UK-Australia, forming the backbone of the US' "Indo-Pacific" alliance system.

Encouraged by US and Japanese actions, and driven by their strategic interests, several other American allies have also actively interfered in the South China Sea issue. The Xinhua Institute's report listed some typical cases: In April 2015, for the first time, G7 foreign ministers issued a separate statement on maritime security that addressed the South China Sea situation. From 2016 to 2018, the US, Japan, and Australia issued joint statements for three consecutive years, expressing so-called concern over the South China Sea issue and leveling unfounded accusations against China.

The US and its Western allies have frequently meddled in the South China Sea issue, transforming it into their strategic chessboard for "great power rivalry" against China, Dai said.

Instigator of 'militarization'

The South China Sea is a vital hub for trade and security in the Asia-Pacific region. In recent years, however, the US has stepped up its support for some South China Sea nations, particularly the Philippines, through a variety of measures including military aid, joint exercises, and technical cooperation, thereby strengthening its military footprint in the region.

Several South China Sea experts warn that the US attempts to instigate an arms race in the region, so as to heighten tensions, promote "militarization" in the region, and undermine China and ASEAN members' joint efforts to preserve peace and stability.

The US has been found providing military equipment to certain countries within the South China Sea region, fanning the flames in the area. For instance, in October 2024 the US reportedly provided the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) with a targeted $8 million aid package. The funds would aid in "modernizing the PCG infrastructure enhancement, training program development, resource acquisition and management planning," reported Philippine News Agency in the same month. 

And months ahead of the aid, during the "2+2" dialogue between US and Philippine top diplomats and defense chiefs in July 2024, the US announced $500 million in foreign military financing for the Philippines. The funding was to help "modernize the armed forces of the Philippines," reported the VOA on July 30, 2024. The Xinhua Institute report analyzed that, the funding has also supported the procurement of anti-ship missiles, patrol vessels, and personnel training, significantly reinforcing the Philippines' military presence in the South China Sea and enhancing its capacity to counter China's maritime rights protection operations.

According to statistics in the Xinhua Institute report, in 2022 alone, US surveillance aircraft conducted over 600 close-in sorties near Chinese maritime features in the South China Sea. The US has increased its military bases in the Philippines from five to nine, with the new bases located near the island of Taiwan and the South China Sea. This is "a clear indication of its intent" to target China, read the report.

The report mentioned that since the USS Lassen incident in 2015, during which the USS Lassen illegally entered waters within 12 nautical miles of a Chinese island in the South China Sea, the US had carried out more than 40 so-called "island-penetrating" "freedom of navigation" operations by the end of 2024.

The US has continued to frequently and illegally intrude into sea and airspaces related to China's sovereignty without authorization. The Chinese People's Liberation Army on August 13 expelled a US warship - USS Higgins destroyer - when it intruded into Chinese territorial waters near Huangyan Dao in the South China Sea without permission from the Chinese government. 

In August 2025, the China Institute for Marine Affairs under China's Ministry of Natural Resources released a legal assessment report on the US' "freedom of navigation," which concludes that the US' so-called "freedom of navigation" lacks a basis in international law, reflects the US' habitual practice of using military force to pressure other nations, and distorts the interpretation of international law.

China opposes the improper application of the US' "freedom of navigation" to other maritime areas, Zheng Zhihua, an associate professor at the Japan Research Center at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, who is also one of the researchers on the report, told the Global Times. "We also reject the instrumentalization and weaponization of international law, the excessive expansion of navigation interests, and the improper restriction of the maritime rights of coastal states under the US' freedom of navigation doctrine," Zheng stressed.

Ding Duo, director of the Research Center for International and Regional Studies at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, stated that the "geopolitical paranoia" of the US and other external forces directly leads to the persistent shadow of confrontation in the South China Sea order.

"The US provided significant intelligence, tactical, and cognitive support for the Philippines' recent provocations in the South China Sea, reflecting its determination to reshape China's peripheral security environment by strengthening the US-Philippines alliance and using intervention in the South China Sea issue as leverage," Ding said.

Geng Shuang, charge d'affaires of China's permanent mission to the UN, refuted in May the US' unreasonable accusations against China over the South China Sea, stating that the US poses the biggest threat to the region's security and stability, in response to remarks by Dorothy Shea, the US representative at the UN Security Council, on maritime security at an open debate.

"The US, under the banner of freedom of navigation, has frequently sent its military vessels to the South China Sea to flex its muscles and openly stir up confrontation between regional countries," Geng said. "The US itself is the biggest threat to the peace and stability of the South China Sea."

Noting that the current situation in the South China Sea remains generally stable under the joint efforts of China and ASEAN countries, he said: "We have the determination and ability to build the South China Sea into a sea of peace, friendship, and cooperation."

Indonesian defense minister says country set to acquire J-10 fighter jets from China, declines to provide details: media

Two J-10 fighter jets attached to an aviation brigade with the air force under the Chinese PLA Southern Theater Command taxi on the runway after returning from a nighttime flight training exercise in recent days. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Xiao Rui)The Indonesian defense minister said on Wednesday that the country is set to acquire J-10 fighter jets from China, according to Indonesian news agency Antara. A Chinese expert said that the J-10 is an aircraft with strong capabilities and high cost-effectiveness, widely believed to have been combat proven, making it a competitive and well-received option on the international arms market.

Indonesia's Minister of Defense Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin has confirmed that Indonesia is set to acquire Chengdu J-10 fighter jets from China, Indonesian news agency Antara reported on Wednesday.

"They will be flying over Jakarta soon," Sjamsoeddin told reporters in Jakarta on Wednesday.

However, he declined to provide details regarding the purchase timeline or the expected delivery of the aircraft, according to the Antara report.

Back in June, Reuters reported that Indonesia was weighing buying China's J-10 fighter jets while also considering finalizing a purchase of US-made F-15EX jets. The report quoted the country's Deputy Defense Minister Donny Ermawan Taufanto as saying that Jakarta was reviewing system compatibility and after-sales support as well as pricing. 

Zhang Junshe, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Wednesday that the J-10 has gained international recognition, particularly after the India-Pakistan clash.

The J-10 is a cost-effective option with outstanding radar detection capability, powerful air-to-air missiles, widely believed to have been combat proven, Zhang said, noting that the Chinese aircraft should be able to fulfill the needs of Indonesia.

In 2022, Indonesia bought 42 French Rafale jets worth $8.1 billion, six of which will be delivered next year in efforts to modernize its ageing military hardware, according to the Reuters report.

According to Zhang's analysis, it would be a reasonable approach to procure weapons and equipment from multiple sources to better safeguard its national security, not putting all eggs in one basket. He also highlighted a good bilateral relationship between China and Indonesia.  - By 

Liu Xuanzun

 and Liang Rui, global times /star

Be cautious, students told as influenza wave hits schools and kindies

 

Photo courtesy of Pexels

PETALING JAYA: With schools and kindergartens not spared from the current influenza wave hitting the country, the alert is out for children to take extra precautionary measures.

Health experts want special emphasis given to children as most cases have been detected in schools.

Public health expert Prof Dr Sharifa Ezat Wan Puteh called for the affected schools to be closed after being sanitised.

She said children with influenza-­like illness (ILI) symptoms should stay home, while those with severe acute respiratory illness (Sari) should seek treatment at the hospital.

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“Children are also encouraged to get a flu jab. Annual vaccination is necessary because influenza viruses change over time and the vaccine is updated each year.

“The vaccine is suitable for individuals aged six months and older,” she said when contacted.

The Health Ministry has repor­ted a nationwide increase in ILI cases, with 97 clusters detected in the latest epidemiolo­gical week – a sharp jump from just 14 the week before.

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Most outbreaks were recorded in schools and kindergartens, mainly in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Penang.

On Saturday, the ministry reminded that early treatment was important to prevent serious complications.

It said that while influenza was usually resolved without specific treatment, those who experienced symptoms such as fever, cough, sore throat, body aches or fatigue should seek medical attention, mainly children and those at high risk.

The ministry also urged the public to practise proper cough etiquette, maintain regular hand hygiene, avoid crowded places when unwell and wear face masks if they were symptomatic.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said his ministry will discuss with the Education Ministry on further action to contain the spread of the virus in schools.

He also sought to reassure the public that the situation remained under control despite a concerning number of outbreaks.

Prof Sharifa Ezat, who is Univer­siti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s School of Liberal Studies dean, said high-risk groups in­­cluded the elderly, those with comor­bidi­ties, cancer patients and pregnant women.

She added that other groups, such as healthcare workers, teachers with high student load and those handling work which involves meeting a lot of people, should also mask up to protect themselves.

Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president Datuk Dr Thiru­navukarasu Rajoo urged the public to take sensible precautions with cases of Influenza A and B continuing to rise nationwide.

He said the increase in flu clusters being detected by the Health Ministry was not unusual during this time of the year, but stressed that vigilance is key to preventing a further spread.

“Good hygiene remains our best defence – wash your hands frequently, cover coughs and sneezes and wear a mask if feeling unwell or in crowded areas,” he said.

Dr Thirunavukarasu advised those with persistent high fever, severe cough, chest discomfort or breathing difficulties to seek immediate medical attention, especially if symptoms did not improve after a few days.

President of the Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia Dr Kuljit Singh said the resulting increase in demand for flu vaccines is still manageable.

“We have stock from suppliers, despite the surge in cases,” he said, adding that demand for the jab usually goes up during the flu season.

Former Medical Practitioners Coalition Association of Malaysia president Dr Raj Kumar Maharajah also said there is enough stock of the vaccine at the moment.

“Many are coming in for vaccines due to the influenza outbreak,” he said.

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Penang launches Silicon Island at World Expo

 

Ambitious plan: Chow described Silicon Island as one of Penang’s most ambitious projects, a 920ha reclaimed land development in southern Penang that mirrors Japan’s own Yumeshima Island.

“Silicon Island is not just a piece of land, it is a promise that Penang will continue to lead where innovation meets sustainability,” 

OSAKA: Penang has launched Silicon Island at the World Expo 2025, marking a historic milestone in a journey to reaffirm its position as the Silicon Valley of the East.

The launch, officiated by Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, showcased the state’s bold vision to elevate Malaysia’s standing in the global electrical and electronics (E&E) industry while driving sustainable economic growth for decades to come.

In his keynote address, Chow drew parallels between Silicon Island and Yumeshima Island – the site of the World Expo – highlighting how this masterfully planned reclaimed island is set to become a world-class hub for innovation, technology and logistics, echoing the success of leading global tech clusters.

Chow described Silicon Island as one of Penang’s most ambitious projects, a 920ha reclaimed land development in southern Penang that mirrors Japan’s own Yumeshima Island.

“Silicon Island is not just a piece of land, it is a promise that Penang will continue to lead where innovation meets sustainability,” he said.

Strategically located just mi­­nutes from Penang International Airport, Silicon Island is designed to provide seamless global connectivity, enabling efficient movement of goods and talent – an essential advantage for the fast-growing E&E industry and its time-sensitive supply chains.

Meanwhile, the development of SilicoEight Samurain Island also pays tribute to Penang’s pioneering past.

Inspired by the legacy of the “Eight Samurai” – the trailblazing multinational corporations that established Penang’s first E&E ecosystem in Bayan Lepas – this project applies decades of hard-earned experience to captivate the world once again.

For the past 50 years, Bayan Lepas has been the lynchpin of Penang’s economy, anchoring Malaysia’s rise as a global E&E powerhouse. The next 50 years will be defined by Silicon Island – Penang’s new frontier for innovation, investment and sustainable growth.

Beyond industry, Silicon Island introduces a unique tourism proposition, blending innovation with lifestyle to create a destination where technology, sustainability and culture converge.