The Malaysian Insider

PM unveils business-friendly Budget

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — The government continued its business-friendly stance in the 2009 Budget, offering perks for small and medium-scale enterprises, tax relief to enhance private investments, incentives to attract foreign direct investments as well as provide more funds to boost regional economic corridors despite tough economic conditions.

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Grow the economy, not give it away

Jalan menuju Putrajaya semakin jelas

Anwar our best and only chance for justice and equality for everyone

Malaysia

Born in Sabah, but she’s an illegal

ZAMBOANGA, Aug 30 — Rina, 17 years old and heavily pregnant, is waiting for her husband to be deported. The two were caught in a round-up of illegal immigrants in...

Budget 2009: Bitter Sweet

By Tony Pua, MP for PJ Utara, DAP publicity secretary and former CEO of an IT company AUG 29 — The newly announced budget needs to be looked upon from...

PM uses Budget speech to attack Anwar

UPDATED with Anwar's response KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — The government announced today wide-ranging aid for the poor and higher development spending in its 2009 budget aimed at shoring...

Govt attempt to regain popular support

Commentary by political editor Wan Hamidi Hamid AUG 29 — It's a populist Budget to curb Barisan Nasional MPs and state assemblymen from crossing over to the Datuk Seri Anwar...

East Malaysian MPs happy with special allocation for their states

By Shannon Teoh KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 - East Malaysian MPs are happy with the special allocations to their states in Budget 2009 but refuse to acknowledge any political motivation...

Heritage gets a RM50 million boost

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — Late last month, Malaysia made the headlines when Unesco listed Georgetown and Malacca as World Heritage Sites. This country's rich cultural heritage has not been...

Toll, road tax cuts for buses and taxies

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 - Toll charges for all buses, except at selected border entry points, will be reduced by 50 percent for two years while the road tax for...

Road tax for private diesel cars reduced

By Debra Chong KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 – Diesel vehicles, which has long suffered from a bad reputation in this country, is getting a boost in Budget 2009. The Government...

Full text of PM’s Budget speech

FULL text of the 2009 Budget speech by Prime Minister and Finance Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Mr Speaker Sir, I beg to move the Bill entitled an “Act...

Civil servants happy with Budget 2009

By Adib Zalkapli KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 - The 2009 Budget, tabled by Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, introduced several perks to the 1.2 billion civil servants...

CPPS on Budget 2009

CENTRE FOR PUBLIC POLICY STUDIES PRESS STATEMENT Increase in Budget allocation This is a record expansionary budget of RM207.9 billion, a further increase of 5% from the RM177 billion budget...

PM unveils business-friendly Budget

2009 Budget highlights

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 - Below are highlights of the 2009 Budget, tabled by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at the Dewan Rakyat today. * Budget 2009 is...

Budget : Duty on cigarettes up 3 sen to 18 sen

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 -The government has proposed that excise duty on cigarettes be increased by three sen to 18 sen per stick from 15 sen per stick currently. Prime...

Fears of isolation as investors flee Russia

MOSCOW, Aug 30 — At the outset of this year, Russia proudly proclaimed itself an island of stability at the annual economic gathering in Davos, setting itself apart from the...

AirAsia considers proposal to move to Don Mueng Airport

BANGKOK, Aug 29 — AirAsia is wary of Airports of Thailand Plc’s latest overture to the low-cost carrier to shift its entire operations, including international flights, from Suvarnabhumi to Don...

Ho Ching is world’s 8th most powerful woman

SINGAPORE, Aug 29 — Temasek Holdings’ chief executive Ho Ching is the only woman in Asia to feature in the top 10 of Forbes magazine’s fifth annual list of the...

Little hope of a soft landing for Chinese airline stocks

HONG KONG, Aug 29 — The bloodbath among Asia's airlines has continued this week. On Wednesday, Air China announced its first-half profits fell 20 per cent compared with last year....

Two Maybank members to be taken on MCB board

KARACHI, Aug 29 — MCB Bank president Atif Aslam Bajwa yesterday said that two members of Maybank Malaysia, which has acquired a 20 per cent stake in MCB, will be...

‘This is truly a mess, a very big one’

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 28 — A grand alliance between two of Southeast Asia's wealthiest tycoons, Malaysian T. Ananda Krishnan and Indonesian James Riady, has collapsed into an acrimonious face-off that...

Fannie Mae shakes up management team

WASHINGTON, Aug 28 — Mortgage finance giant Fannie Mae shook up its executive ranks yesterday, after shares in it and sibling company Freddie Mac rose for a third straight day...

Questions follow Mattel’s US$100m Bratz verdict

NEW YORK, Aug 28 — The US$100 million (RM330million) jury award in the three-month legal battle between Mattel Inc and Bratz-maker MGA Entertainment Inc left one key issue unresolved. A...

Not much innovation in Asian IT parks, says BSA

MANILA, Aug 26 — IT parks in Asia are much more focused on services rather than creating intellectual property, especially software, according to the Business Software Alliance. A study by...

Ringgit falls after Malaysia keeps rates unchanged

NEW YORK, Aug 26 — The ringgit fell sharply against the US dollar yesterday, pressured by the central bank's decision to keep rates on hold, indicating that it is more...

Zenit beats Man United to win Super Cup

MONTE CARLO, Aug 30 — Zenit St Petersburg won the European Super Cup for the first time, upsetting Manchester United 2-1 last night on goals by Pavel Pogrebnyak and Danny....

Liverpool announces another stadium delay

LIVERPOOL, Aug 30 — Liverpool’s plan to replace Anfield with a new stadium has been delayed again. Liverpool previously said the stadium, to be built near Anfield in Stanley Park,...

NEW YORK, Aug 29 — Even for the mathematics major from Clemson, it just didn’t add up: How could someone who recently struggled so badly she wanted to quit tennis...

Man United gets Celtic in Champions League draw

MONTE CARLO, Aug 29 — For the second time in three seasons, defending champions Manchester United will face Celtic in the group stages of the Champions League. United, who in...

Super Cup is just a sideshow as Ferguson loses faith in sealing Berbatov deal

MONTE CARLO, Aug 29 — Manchester United and Zenit St Petersburg will compete for one of world football's least significant trophies in the shape of the UEFA Super Cup at...

What’s gone wrong with Robbie?

LONDON, Aug 29 — It looked like the perfect signing, didn’t it? Liverpool seemed an ideal fit for Robbie Keane. A fan of the club, coming off a great season...

Inter seeks 4th straight Serie A title

MILAN, Aug 29 — Inter Milan is coming off three straight Serie A titles and new coach Jose Mourinho will be keen to live up to his nickname the “Special...

NEW YORK, Aug 28 — Jelena Jankovic’s’s leg cramped so badly, she couldn’t take another step. Luckily for the No. 2 seed in the US Open, the agony occurred during...

Liverpool just makes it into Champions League

LIVERPOOL, Aug 28 — Dirk Kuyt scored in the 28th minute of extra time, and Liverpool squeaked into the European Champions League with a 1-0 victory over Belgium’s Standard Liege...

Ivanovic rallies, avoids major upset at US Open

NEW YORK, Aug 27 — Ana Ivanovic raised her racket, ready for an easy overhead slam in what was shaping up as an easy match. Then she somehow spiked the...

10 best crime movies

AUG 28 — The 10 best crime movies. Do you agree with our choices? The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Everyone remembers the serpentine Dr Hannibal Lecter, but the real...

By Shannon Teoh AUG 23 — Patriotism as nationalistic pride is often filtered down to a simplistic form which is nothing more than positive discrimination. Conversely, negative discrimination is often...

McCain taps Alaska governor for V-P

DAYTON, Ohio, Aug 30 — Republican John McCain introduced first-term Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate yesterday, a stunning selection of a little-known conservative newcomer who relishes...

Musharraf eyes comfy retirement home

ISLAMABAD, Aug 30 — Predictions that Pervez Musharraf will have to flee Pakistan to escape treason charges have died along with the coalition that drove him from the presidency. The...

Georgia cuts diplomatic ties with Moscow

TBILISI, Aug 30 — Georgia severed diplomatic ties with Moscow yesterday to protest the presence of Russian troops on its territory. Russia said the move would only make things worse....

BANGKOK, Thailand - Thai police used tear gas today to disperse a crowd of at least 2,000 anti-government protesters besieging city police headquarters. The crowd threw rocks at police and...

Obama takes aim at Bush and McCain with a forceful call to change America

DENVER, Aug 29 - Barack Obama accepted the Democratic Party presidential nomination yesterday, declaring that the "American promise has been threatened" by eight years under President Bush and that John...

The Obama nomination

DENVER, Aug 29 — As the flag-waving crowd swelled inside the stadium, the scene was surely one of the most unusual sights in the annals of American political conventions. Overnight,...

Obama speech to cite failures of Bush on the economy

DENVER, Aug 29 — Senator Barack Obama portrayed himself as a candidate able to repair damage from the “broken politics in Washington and the failed presidency of George W. Bush”...

CANBERRA, Australia - An oxygen tank exploded and blew a car-sized hole in a Qantas jet last month, air safety officials said today, but investigators appear to be no closer...

Feared Thai ex-general warns of bloodshed

BANGKOK, Aug 29 — Thailand's deep political crisis has taken a new twist after a retired general known for his notorious harsh tactics warned that the ongoing stand-off between the...

China’s apologists are wide-eyed and clueless

LONDON, Aug 29 — Poor old Robert Mugabe. Do you know what that guy needs? An Olympics. Harare 2012, he really missed a trick there. A well-run Games and nothing...

Pakistan’s next president: Mr 10 Per Cent?

ISLAMABAD, Aug 29 — Asif Ali Zardari, the man poised to become Pakistan's next president, is still known as "Mr 10 Per Cent" because of corruption allegations. Now his own...

US judge indicted on sex abuse charges

HOUSTON, Aug 29 — A federal judge accused of fondling a former court employee was indicted by a federal grand jury yesterday on sexual abuse charges. US District Judge Samuel...

Mexican Supreme Court upholds legal abortion

MEXICO CITY, Aug 29 — Mexico's Supreme Court upheld the capital's abortion law yesterday, setting a precedent for the rest of the country that could inspire other Latin American cities....

Putin: US orchestrated conflict in Georgia

MOSCOW, Aug 29 — Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin accused the United States yesterday of pushing Georgia towards war and said he suspects a connection to the US presidential campaign...

Tourists, residents flee as Gustav swamps Jamaica

KINGSTON, Aug 29 — Residents, tourists and oil workers fled as Gustav swamped Jamaica yesterday, leaving 59 people dead in its wake. Louisiana and Texas put their national guards on...

Lindsay Lohan lashes out at father on blog

LOS ANGELES, Aug 29 — Lindsay Lohan had words for her father on her blog. The 22-year-old actress lashed out at father Michael by calling him a “public embarrassment” and...

BERLIN, Aug 29 — A German film studio has offered to negotiate a settlement with a dozen extras who were injured on the set of the Tom Cruise film “Valkyrie”,...

LOS ANGELES, Aug 29 — David Duchovny has entered a rehabilitation facility for sex addiction. In a statement released yesterday by his lawyer, Stanton Stein, the actor said he did...

NASHVILLE, Aug 29 — Trisha Yearwood had a harrowing experience on a recent flight to Oklahoma when her plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Baltimore because of...

VENICE, Aug 28 — The Venice Film Festival opened last night with the premiere of the Coen brothers' dark comedy "Burn After Reading," giving a flash of Hollywood glamour to...

LAS VEGAS, Aug 28 — Marion "Suge" Knight was jailed yesterday on assault and drug charges after he was accused of beating his girlfriend while brandishing a knife near the...

LOS ANGELES, Aug 28 — A blogger suspected of streaming songs from the unreleased Guns N' Roses album "Chinese Democracy" on his website was arrested yesterday and appeared in court,...

LOS ANGELES, Aug 27 — Nicollette Sheridan and Michael Bolton have ended their engagement. The split was amicable, said Nicole Perna, a publicist for the pair. The 44-year-old actress and...

VENICE, Aug 27 — George Clooney hosted a charity event last night to raise money for victims in Darfur. Clooney, who's in Venice for the premiere of the Coen brothers'...

Spears not slated to perform on MTV video awards

LOS ANGELES, Aug 27 — Britney Spears won't perform on this year's MTV Video Music Awards, according to her manager. "Contrary to media reports, Britney was never slated to perform...

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