FREEDOM OF SPEECH / FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION


FREEDOM OF SPEECH / FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak without censorship and/or limitation. The synonymous term freedom of expression is sometimes used to indicate not only freedom of verbal speech but any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used [United Nations, 1966, 1976]. The right to freedom of speech is recognized as a human right under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized in international human rights law in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The ICCPR recognizes the right to freedom of speech as "the right to hold opinions without interference. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression". Furthermore freedom of speech is recognized in European, inter-American and African regional human rights law [United Nations, 1966, 1967]. Freedom of speech, or the freedom of expression, is recognized in international and regional human rights law. The right is enshrined in Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights [Andrew Puddephatt & Hodder Arnold, 2005; Kumar, Ambika, 2006].

In Islamic ethics freedom of speech was first declared in the Rashidun period by the caliph Umar in the 7th century. In the Abbasid Caliphate period, freedom of speech was also declared by al-Hashimi (a cousin of Caliph al-Ma'mun) in a letter to one of the religious opponents he was attempting to convert through reason.

According to George Makdisi and Hugh Goddard, "the idea of academic freedom" in universities was "modelled on Islamic custom" as practiced in the medieval Madrasah system from the 9th century. Islamic influence was "certainly discernible in the foundation of the first deliberately-planned university" in Europe [Boisard, Marcel A., 1980].

* Selected REFERENCES / Sources:

Amnesty International: Annual Reports: URLhttp://www.amnesty.org/ailib/aireport/index.html Andrew Puddephatt & Hodder Arnold. (2005). Freedom of Expression: The Essentials of Human Rights. United Publishers. Boisard, Marcel A. (July 1980), "On the Probable Influence of Islam on Western Public and International Law", International Journal of Middle East Studies 11 (4): 429–50. Goddard, Hugh. (2000). A History of Christian-Muslim Relations. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. Kumar, Ambika. (2006). ‘Using Courts to Enforce the Free Speech Provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.’ Published by Chicago Journal of International Law. Summer 2006. URLhttp://www.allbusiness.com/corporate-governance/4082846-1.html United Nations: ‘International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.’ Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 2200A (XXI) of 16th December 1966: Entry into force 23 March 1976, in accordance with Article 49. URLhttp://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/ccpr.htm (United Nations) Wikipedia. (2010). ‘Freedom of Speech.’ Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. URLhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_expression

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30 July 2013

Arab-Malaysia Bank founder shot dead !


http://my.news.yahoo.com/arab-malaysia-bank-founder-shot-dead--wife-injured-102440865.html
(30 July 2013)

Arab-Malaysia Bank founder shot dead, wife injured

The Malaysian Insider 
Arab-Malaysian Bank founder Hussain Ahmad Najadi (pic) was shot dead in a car park at Lorong Ceylon in Kuala Lumpur today, several hundred metres away from the bank headquarters.
The 75-year-old was walking towards his vehicle with his wife when a gunman approached him and fired several shots at his back, killing him on the spot in the 1.30pm incident.
Where the shooting took place this afternoon. - The Ma
laysian Insider pic by Muzliza Mustafa, July 29, 2013.Hussain was shot in the chest and ribs while his wife Cheong Mei Kuen, 49, was injured after being hit on the hand, police said.
Closed-circuit television cameras showed the assailant was a man wearing a long sleeve checked shirt and khaki pants.
Dang Wangi police chief Assistant Commissioner Zainuddin Ahmad confirmed the incident saying it has been classified as murder.
It is believed that three suspects were involved in the incident, using a Proton Waja taxi.
An eyewitness, who declined to reveal his name, said he was at his food stall when he saw a man walking towards the couple.
"Then I heard gunshots and saw the couple crumple. I ran to safety when I saw the gunman running towards me," he said.
The shooting comes just days after crime watchdog activist R. Sri Sanjeevan was shot in the ribs in his hometown Bahau. There has also been a spate of shootings over the past month.
AmBank Group was founded in 1975 as Arab-Malaysian Development Bank, by Hussain via his Holding company AIAK (Arab Investments for Asia Kuwait). He brought the bank public via the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) in 1981.
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