This was not terror – not as Indians understood it, anyway. This was war.
The killers stormed the streets of Mumbai, India's financial capital, with machine guns and bags of grenades. They did not strike with the terrorist's fleeting anonymity. Their work was fastidious.
As a surprise attack became a days-long struggle, the burden of responding transferred from the police to soldiers. The language was of war: television anchors spoke of buildings "sanitized" and "flushed out," of "final assaults" and "collateral damage."
Helicopters hovered over Mumbai, and commandos dropped onto roofs. The grainy television imagery suggested not so much a terrorist attack as the chaos of Iraq.
In the end, nearly 200 people were killed. And contrary to earlier reports, it appeared that Westerners were not the gunmen's main targets: They killed whomever they could.
By Saturday evening, 18 of the dead were confirmed as foreigners, including six Americans. An additional 22 foreigners were injured, said Vilasrao Deshmukh, the chief minister of Maharashtra state, where Mumbai is.
There were reports on the first night of the attacks that gunmen rounded up holders of American and British passports at the Oberoi Hotel and herded them upstairs. But Rattan Keswani, president of the affiliated Trident Hotels, said he had found no basis for such reports.
"Nothing seems to suggest that," he said, noting that a range of nationalities was represented among the 22 hotel guests who died, in addition to the 10 staff members, all Indian.
The city's police chief, Hasan Gafoor, said nine gunmen were killed. A 10th suspected terrorist was arrested.
The police said he was a 21-year-old Pakistani, Ajmal Amir Kasab.
A senior Mumbai police inspector, Nagappa R. Mali, said the suspect and one of his collaborators, who was slain by police, killed three top police officials, including the head of the anti-terrorist squad, Hemant Karkare.
Around dawn Saturday, gunfire began to rattle inside the Taj Mahal hotel, one of about a dozen sites that the militants attacked beginning Wednesday night. They never issued any manifestoes or made any demands, and it seemed clear from their resistance at the Taj that they intended to fight to the last.
By midmorning Saturday, after commandos had worked their way through the 565-room hotel, the head of the elite National Security Guards, J.K. Dutt, said the siege was over.
By afternoon, busloads of elite commandos, fresh from the siege of the hotel, sat outside the nearby Gateway of India and shook hands with elated spectators.
The violence was unlike the many recent strikes in India – those were typically bombs left in thronging markets or trains or cars. The Mumbai attackers seemed to prolong the fight as long as they could. They killed face to face.
In television studios, on the roads, in the anguished phone calls of friends to friends, Indians said the words again and again: This is our 9/11.
"It is an Indian variant of 9/11, and today India needs to respond the way America did," Ravi Shankar Prasad, a member of Parliament from the rightist Bharatiya Janata Party, said on television.
People purporting to be the attackers have said they belong to a group called the Deccan Mujahedeen, and claimed to be waging a war in Islam's name. It was uncertain whether they are of domestic or foreign origin.
Islamist militants in India have in recent years operated somewhat apart from the global Islamist struggle. They bombed and killed, but their enemies generally were Indian Hindus.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the attacks "probably" had a foreign hand. His temperateness helped to keep the ever-present threat of religious riots at bay.
Amartya Sen, a Harvard economist and Indian-born Nobel laureate, wrote in an e-mail message: "It is extremely important to understand that the criminal activities of a minuscule group, even if it turns out to have homegrown elements, say nothing about Indian Muslims in general, who are an integral part of the country's social fabric.
"Even if it turns out that the Mumbai terrorists had a base in Pakistani territory, India has to take full note of the fact that the bulk of Pakistani civil society is an ally, not an enemy, in the battle against Islamist terrorism, for they too suffer greatly from the violence of a determined minority based in their country."
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Mumbai Terror attack claim first Singaporean Tragedy
President SR Nathan and his wife on Saturday sent their condolences to Ms Lo's family and Mr Puhaindran's family.
Ms Lo Hwei Yen, 28, was killed in the Mumbai terror attacks at the Oberoi Hotel.
Ms Lo Hwei Yen, 28, was killed in the Mumbai terror attacks at the Oberoi Hotel.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Prataman Salary to cut
Singaporean President SR Nathan and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will take a 19 per cent salary cut next year, leading a civil-service-wide downward salary adjustment to offset the impact of the global financial crisis, local media reports said Tuesday.
The president and prime minister would earn 3.14 million Singapore dollars (2.07 million US dollars ) and 3.04 million Singapore dollars (2 million US dollars) with the cuts in 2009.
Salaries of ministers and senior permanent secretaries would be reduced by 18 per cent and allowances for members of Parliament would be reduced by 16 per cent.
Teo Chee Hean, the minister in charge of the Civil Service, said the public sector salaries follow the market up and down.
"The mechanism we introduced last year to link a significant proportion of the salary of senior civil servants to the performance of the economy is working as intended. This mechanism allows salaries to respond more rapidly to market conditions," the Channel News Asia quoted Teo as saying.
The president and prime minister would earn 3.14 million Singapore dollars (2.07 million US dollars ) and 3.04 million Singapore dollars (2 million US dollars) with the cuts in 2009.
Salaries of ministers and senior permanent secretaries would be reduced by 18 per cent and allowances for members of Parliament would be reduced by 16 per cent.
Teo Chee Hean, the minister in charge of the Civil Service, said the public sector salaries follow the market up and down.
"The mechanism we introduced last year to link a significant proportion of the salary of senior civil servants to the performance of the economy is working as intended. This mechanism allows salaries to respond more rapidly to market conditions," the Channel News Asia quoted Teo as saying.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Saturday, November 08, 2008
Holy Man
ON tourist brochures, the southern Indian state of Kerala markets itself as 'God's Own Country'. But now, some godmen in the state are finding that they can't really have the run of the place.
The state government is on a hunt for men who have been accused of a host of crimes, including rape, molest and fraud.
It started with the arrest last month of Santhosh Madhavan, 35, who is also known as Swami Athmachaitanya.
Madhavan, 35, has been charged with the rape of a teenage girl, possession of marijuana and cheating a businesswoman.
During raids on his premises, a tiger skin and a large number of pornographic films and a police officer's uniform were found.
He is accused of cheating a Dubai-based Kerala businesswoman, MrsSerafin Edwin, of 4.5 million rupees ($145,000) in 2002.
She alleged in her complaint that she met the godman in Dubai and agreed to start a business with him. But after she gave him the money, he disappeared. She filed a case against him in Dubai and Interpol issued an arrest warrant.
His arrest on 13May came after a week-long drama that included his surrender to the police earlier and then release for 'lack of evidence'.
FROM PRIEST TO BUSINESS
Born to a poor family, Madhavan started as a temple priest, but soon switched to astrology and real estate business.
Police who raided his guest house found documents regarding several land deals, some of them suspected to be illegal.
Some of the obscene CDs, reports say, are hidden camera recordings of his 'VIP guests in action on the bed'.
Many politicians and police officials who appear on Madhavan's photo albums have quickly distanced themselves from him. A deputy superintendent of police has been suspended for being too close to him.
This officer is said to have helped Madhavan oversee his wedding arrangements last year.
The state government has ordered a detailed inquiry into his wealth.
Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court has ordered him placed in police custody till 17Jun.
Three complaints of rape have since been filed against the godman by three underaged girls.
They alleged that they were forced into sexual relations with him and appeared in a pornographic video.
Recounting how she met him, MrsEdwin told the Khaleej Times: 'A friend of mine had introduced Santosh Madhavan to me saying that he was an astrologer and had supernatural powers.
'When I visited him, he gave me a ring studded with stones. He convinced me later that he will help me buy a hotel in Deira (Dubai).'
The godman was then running a high-profile ashram in Kochi, Kerala, that was allegedly frequented by top politicians, police officials and film stars.
Even after India's Central Bureau of Investigation issued a warrant many months ago, he was not immediately arrested by the state police.
Why did Mrs Edwin remain silent all these years?
She claimed that she had received threatening calls from Kerala to withdraw the complaint.
But things changed when a local magazine article appeared.
The magazine named Madhavan as an alleged gun-runner who is wanted by the Indian federal police in connection with the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts. It alleged that Madhavan was living under a new identity as a godman in Kerala.
When the police, under pressure from the media and certain political parties, launched an enquiry, they found that Madhavan, who had turned himself into Swami Amritachaitanya, was not the gun-runner but the man wanted by the Dubai Police for the 2002 cheating case.
After the article appeared, MrsEdwin flew to Kerala and told the police that Madhavan even tried to kill her in Dubai after she demanded that he return her money.
He is alleged to have also visited Bahrain and Qatar and collected money from unsuspecting Indians working there.
'Madhavan came to Bahrain at least three times in the last five years,' one victim in Bahrain, who did not want to be identified, told the Gulf Daily News.
'He held talks and seminars on spirituality and told people to invest in a hill resort he was building in Kerala. He also made us believe that he was a social worker and was planning to start a charity institution in Kerala.'
The man alleged that Madhavan asked those who attended his talks to invest in a charity project. He is alleged to have raised at least 60,000 Bahraini dinars ($220,000) from Bahrain residents.
The Peninsula newspaper reported that Madhavan allegedly collected four million Qatari riyals ($1.5m) from Indian professionals, who were offered shares in hotels, resort projects and other profit-making ventures in Kerala.
The state government is on a hunt for men who have been accused of a host of crimes, including rape, molest and fraud.
It started with the arrest last month of Santhosh Madhavan, 35, who is also known as Swami Athmachaitanya.
Madhavan, 35, has been charged with the rape of a teenage girl, possession of marijuana and cheating a businesswoman.
During raids on his premises, a tiger skin and a large number of pornographic films and a police officer's uniform were found.
He is accused of cheating a Dubai-based Kerala businesswoman, MrsSerafin Edwin, of 4.5 million rupees ($145,000) in 2002.
She alleged in her complaint that she met the godman in Dubai and agreed to start a business with him. But after she gave him the money, he disappeared. She filed a case against him in Dubai and Interpol issued an arrest warrant.
His arrest on 13May came after a week-long drama that included his surrender to the police earlier and then release for 'lack of evidence'.
FROM PRIEST TO BUSINESS
Born to a poor family, Madhavan started as a temple priest, but soon switched to astrology and real estate business.
Police who raided his guest house found documents regarding several land deals, some of them suspected to be illegal.
Some of the obscene CDs, reports say, are hidden camera recordings of his 'VIP guests in action on the bed'.
Many politicians and police officials who appear on Madhavan's photo albums have quickly distanced themselves from him. A deputy superintendent of police has been suspended for being too close to him.
This officer is said to have helped Madhavan oversee his wedding arrangements last year.
The state government has ordered a detailed inquiry into his wealth.
Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court has ordered him placed in police custody till 17Jun.
Three complaints of rape have since been filed against the godman by three underaged girls.
They alleged that they were forced into sexual relations with him and appeared in a pornographic video.
Recounting how she met him, MrsEdwin told the Khaleej Times: 'A friend of mine had introduced Santosh Madhavan to me saying that he was an astrologer and had supernatural powers.
'When I visited him, he gave me a ring studded with stones. He convinced me later that he will help me buy a hotel in Deira (Dubai).'
The godman was then running a high-profile ashram in Kochi, Kerala, that was allegedly frequented by top politicians, police officials and film stars.
Even after India's Central Bureau of Investigation issued a warrant many months ago, he was not immediately arrested by the state police.
Why did Mrs Edwin remain silent all these years?
She claimed that she had received threatening calls from Kerala to withdraw the complaint.
But things changed when a local magazine article appeared.
The magazine named Madhavan as an alleged gun-runner who is wanted by the Indian federal police in connection with the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts. It alleged that Madhavan was living under a new identity as a godman in Kerala.
When the police, under pressure from the media and certain political parties, launched an enquiry, they found that Madhavan, who had turned himself into Swami Amritachaitanya, was not the gun-runner but the man wanted by the Dubai Police for the 2002 cheating case.
After the article appeared, MrsEdwin flew to Kerala and told the police that Madhavan even tried to kill her in Dubai after she demanded that he return her money.
He is alleged to have also visited Bahrain and Qatar and collected money from unsuspecting Indians working there.
'Madhavan came to Bahrain at least three times in the last five years,' one victim in Bahrain, who did not want to be identified, told the Gulf Daily News.
'He held talks and seminars on spirituality and told people to invest in a hill resort he was building in Kerala. He also made us believe that he was a social worker and was planning to start a charity institution in Kerala.'
The man alleged that Madhavan asked those who attended his talks to invest in a charity project. He is alleged to have raised at least 60,000 Bahraini dinars ($220,000) from Bahrain residents.
The Peninsula newspaper reported that Madhavan allegedly collected four million Qatari riyals ($1.5m) from Indian professionals, who were offered shares in hotels, resort projects and other profit-making ventures in Kerala.
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Prataman Eat Air again!
President Nathan arrives in Kuwait for 4—day state visit
Singapore President S R Nathan arrived in Kuwait on Monday for a 4—day state visit. The aim of the visit is to strengthen and deepen existing relations between both countries.
This will be the first state visit to Kuwait by a Singapore president despite high—level exchanges between Singapore and Gulf region countries over the last four years.
President Nathan was welcomed at the airport by Kuwait’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Dr Mohammed Al—Sabah Al—Salem Al—Sabah.
President Nathan will be calling on the Amir of Kuwait, and meeting the Speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly on Tuesday.
During his visit, President Nathan will also witness the signing of three bilateral agreements.
The first is an Agreement on Establishing a Joint Committee for Co—operation between the two governments.
The joint committee is a platform for both countries’ Foreign Affairs Ministries to promote bilateral cooperation in areas including trade and investment, energy, culture, science and information.
The second agreement is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Co—operation in e—government, to be signed between the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) of Singapore and the Central Agency for Information Technology of Kuwait.
This is the third MOU the two agencies are signing on e—government. The first was signed in 2004.
In the past four years, IDA has worked with its Kuwaiti counterpart in launching an e—government portal for Kuwaiti citizens and setting up an information network system for internal government communications.
The third agreement is an Open Skies agreement, which will allow carriers of both Kuwait and Singapore to operate unlimited air services between the two countries.
Accompanying President Nathan on the visit are Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zainul Abidin Rasheed and Members of Parliament Irene Ng and Fatimah Lateef.
Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim will be joining the delegation on Tuesday.
Kuwait is Singapore’s second largest trading partner in the Gulf after Saudi Arabia.
Last year, trade between both countries rose by nine per cent from 2006 to S$8 billion. Singapore imports mainly crude petrol and refined petroleum products from Kuwait.
Singapore President S R Nathan arrived in Kuwait on Monday for a 4—day state visit. The aim of the visit is to strengthen and deepen existing relations between both countries.
This will be the first state visit to Kuwait by a Singapore president despite high—level exchanges between Singapore and Gulf region countries over the last four years.
President Nathan was welcomed at the airport by Kuwait’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Dr Mohammed Al—Sabah Al—Salem Al—Sabah.
President Nathan will be calling on the Amir of Kuwait, and meeting the Speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly on Tuesday.
During his visit, President Nathan will also witness the signing of three bilateral agreements.
The first is an Agreement on Establishing a Joint Committee for Co—operation between the two governments.
The joint committee is a platform for both countries’ Foreign Affairs Ministries to promote bilateral cooperation in areas including trade and investment, energy, culture, science and information.
The second agreement is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Co—operation in e—government, to be signed between the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) of Singapore and the Central Agency for Information Technology of Kuwait.
This is the third MOU the two agencies are signing on e—government. The first was signed in 2004.
In the past four years, IDA has worked with its Kuwaiti counterpart in launching an e—government portal for Kuwaiti citizens and setting up an information network system for internal government communications.
The third agreement is an Open Skies agreement, which will allow carriers of both Kuwait and Singapore to operate unlimited air services between the two countries.
Accompanying President Nathan on the visit are Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zainul Abidin Rasheed and Members of Parliament Irene Ng and Fatimah Lateef.
Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim will be joining the delegation on Tuesday.
Kuwait is Singapore’s second largest trading partner in the Gulf after Saudi Arabia.
Last year, trade between both countries rose by nine per cent from 2006 to S$8 billion. Singapore imports mainly crude petrol and refined petroleum products from Kuwait.
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Law minister says Singaporeans should welcome foreign workers
Having foreign workers in Singapore is in the country's national interest, said Law Minister K Shanmugam on Sunday, in response to questions from some Singaporeans who felt that the country could do with fewer foreign workers.
The concerns were raised amidst a worsening economy, with greater competition expected for fewer jobs.
Mr Shanmugam, who took over the Ministry of Law six months ago, made his first community visit on Sunday to Queenstown – one of Singapore's oldest public housing estates.
Besides meeting him, residents there also took the opportunity to raise issues of concern at a dialogue session. Among the matters raised was the social cost of having more foreign workers in Singapore.
The law minister said: "Who builds our HDB flats? Where do we live? Who builds our roads? Can we really even have our basic infrastructure to continue to be upgraded, without foreign workers?
"There are some jobs that Singaporeans won't do, and then there are some jobs that Singaporeans cannot do... We need to be welcoming our guest workers; we need to be welcoming our expatriates, all of that in pursuit of our national interest."
Other issues raised included the recent hike in electricity tariffs and the need for electronic road pricing.
http://politics.sgforums.com/forums/10/topics/335819?page=1
The concerns were raised amidst a worsening economy, with greater competition expected for fewer jobs.
Mr Shanmugam, who took over the Ministry of Law six months ago, made his first community visit on Sunday to Queenstown – one of Singapore's oldest public housing estates.
Besides meeting him, residents there also took the opportunity to raise issues of concern at a dialogue session. Among the matters raised was the social cost of having more foreign workers in Singapore.
The law minister said: "Who builds our HDB flats? Where do we live? Who builds our roads? Can we really even have our basic infrastructure to continue to be upgraded, without foreign workers?
"There are some jobs that Singaporeans won't do, and then there are some jobs that Singaporeans cannot do... We need to be welcoming our guest workers; we need to be welcoming our expatriates, all of that in pursuit of our national interest."
Other issues raised included the recent hike in electricity tariffs and the need for electronic road pricing.
http://politics.sgforums.com/forums/10/topics/335819?page=1
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