Rabu, 22 Disember 2010

Senyuman itu sedekah


Rasulullah SAW bersabda bahawa anak keturunan Adam memiliki kewajiban untuk bersedekah setiap harinya sejak matahari mulai terbit.

Seorang sahabat yang tidak memiliki apa pun untuk disedekahkan bertanya, “Jika kami ingin bersedekah, namun kami tidak memiliki apa pun, lantas apa yang boleh kami sedekahkan dan bagaimana kami menyedekahkannya ?”

Rasulullah SAW bersabda, “Senyum kalian bagi saudaranya adalah sedekah, beramar makruf dan nahi mungkar yang kalian lakukan untuk saudaranya juga sedekah, dan kalian menunjukkan jalan bagi seseorang yang tersesat juga sedekah.” (HR Tirmizi dan Abu Dzar).

Dalam hadis lain disebutkan bahawa senyum itu ibadah,“Tersenyum ketika bertemu saudaramu adalah ibadah.” (HR Trimidzi, Ibnu Hibban, dan Baihaqi).

Salah seorang sahabat, Abdullah bin Harits, pernah menyatakan tentang Rasulullah SAW,“Tidak pernah aku melihat seseorang yang lebih banyak tersenyum daripada Rasulullah SAW.” (HR Tirmidzi).

Meskipun ringan, senyum merupakan amal kebaikan yang tidak boleh diremehkan.

Rasulullah SAW bersabda, “Janganlah kamu meremehkan kebaikan sekecil apa pun, sekalipun itu hanya bermuka manis saat berjumpa saudaramu.” (HR Muslim).

Mungkin kita sering berfikir bahawa sedekah itu berkaitan erat dengan harta benda seperti pemberian wang, pakaian, atau apa pun yang langsung boleh dinikmati penerima dalam bentuk barangan. Hal itu juga mungkin yang ada dalam fikiran para sahabat Rasulullah SAW, sehingga mereka sangat gelisah kemudian mempertanyakannya.

Kerana itu, tidak semestinya seorang Muslim membiarkan satu hari pun berlalu tanpa dirinya terlibat dalam kegiatan bersedekah. Jika kita punya wawasan sempit mengenai pengertian bersedekah, tentulah hal itu menjadi mustahil.

Di antara keistimewaan sedekah adalah menolak bala (musibah).

Dari Sayyid Ali Ar-Ridha, dari Sayyid Ja’far Ash-Shadiq, dari Sayyid Ali Zainal Abidin, dari Ali bin Abi Thalib Radiyallahu Anhum, bahwa Rasulullah SAW bersabda, “Sedekah itu dapat menghindarkan diri dari kematian yang tidak baik, menjaga diri dari tujuh puluh macam bencana.”

Wallahu alam

Insulin dari mana?


Isulin adalah ubat kencing manis / diabetes militus bagi pesakit yang kadar gulanya tinggi dan tidak boleh di kontrol dengan ubat oral.Tahukan anda insulin dari mana?


Yang saya ketahui insulin di dapat di peroleh dari
1.ekstrak lembu (insulin lembu), insulin ini mempunyai 3 asid amino yang berbeza dengan insulin manusia.

2.estrak babi (insulin babi), insulin ini mempunyai 1 asid amino yang berbeza dengan insulin manusia.

3.insulin manusia biosintentik, iaitu merupakan hasil kejuruteraan dengan cara transfer gen pada bakteria yang akan menghasilkan proinsulin.

Tapi anda jangan takut dengan insulin yang dari ekstrak babi kerana badan POM pasti akan melarangnya kerana salah satunya memang tidak boleh beredar kalau ada unsur babi.Semoga memang ubat-ubat yang terdapat di Malaysia bersih dari unsur babi.

Seni Ciuman

CIUMAN merupakan bahasa cinta klasik yang mampu mengekspresikan perasaan sayang kepada pasangan. Dengan berciuman, Anda juga bisa mendapatkan sensasi seks luar biasa.

Pada mulut, terdapat berjuta-juta sel syaraf penggerak nafsu seks. Mulut memiliki sensor yang sangat peka, sehingga bisa memacu permainan seks lebih menggairahkan di ranjang.

Jika Anda ingin menjadi pencium ulung dan melambungkan pasangan hingga ke langit ketujuh, Anda dapat mencontek seni ciuman memikat dari Loving You berikut:

Ciuman pembuka

Jenis ciuman ini bisa dilakukan secara rileks sebagai tahap awal berhubungan seks. Meski rileks, ciuman ini bisa memberikan perasaan mesra bagi masing-masing pasangan.

Ciuman pembuka dilakukan dengan mulut tetap tertutup, antara bibir beradu dengan bibir. Saat menempelkan mulut dilakukan dengan penuh kelembutan. Untuk menambah sensasi bercinta, Anda dapat melakukannya dengan mata terpejam.

Ciuman berdurasi

Sebelum memulai ajang pergumulan, ciuman menjadi bagian wajib dari foreplay. Agar ajang foreplay terasa menggoda, Anda perlu melakukan ciuman berdurasi yang dapat membangkitkan mood Anda mencoba sensasi lain.

Jika Anda ingin meningkatkan birahi saat berhubungan intim, ciuman dengan durasi cepat dan nakal menjadi pilihan terbaik. Agar menimbulkan sensasi penuh gelora, Anda bisa bereksporasi di area yang berbeda.

Ciuman menggoda

Kondisi bibir juga menjadi bagian paling besar sebelum Anda berciuman dengan pasangan. Untuk membuat kenangan indah setelah berhubungan seks, Anda harus memastikan memakai lipstik warna yang menggoda. Bekas ciuman warna merah di beberapa area sensitifnya bisa membuat si dia tergoda.

Ciuman santai

Ciuman santai dapat memberikan perubahan pada jenis ciuman yang selama ini Anda lakukan bersama pasangan. Untuk melakukannya, pertama kali Anda dapat mencium pasangan dengan teknik kaku dan membiarkan bibir tetap tertutup agar rasa gugup hilang. Tahap selanjutnya, Anda harus membiarkan pasangan menikmati setiap kuluman Anda dengan lembut.

Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat



Y.A.B. Tuan Guru Dato' Bentara Setia Haji Nik Abdul Aziz Bin Nik Mat (Jawi: نئ عبدالعزيز بن نئ مت) merupakan Menteri Besar Kelantan kini. Namun imej beliau lebih terserlah sebagai seorang ulama, di samping merupakan Mursyidul Am Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS).

Pada tahun 2008, Gerakan Rakyat Anti Korupsi (GERAK) telah menganugerahkan beliau sebagai Menteri Besar yang memiliki rekod paling bersih di Malaysia. Anugerah itu diberikan sebagai menghargai usaha beliau menentang gejala rasuah sepanjang mentadbir Kelantan selama hampir 18 tahun.[1]

Pada tahun 2009, beliau diletakan diantara 50 tokoh Islam berpengaruh didunia dan disenaraikan dalam buku berjudul "The 500 Most Influential Muslims".[2]

Kehidupan peribadi

Rumah kediaman Nik Abdul Aziz

Dilahirkan pada tahun 1931 di Kampung Pulau Melaka, Kota Bharu beliau merupakan anak kedua daripada sembilan orang adik-beradik. Hasil perkongsian hidup dengan isterinya, iaitu Tuan Sabariah Binti Tuan Ishak, beliau dikurniakan 10 orang cahaya mata (5 lelaki dan 5 perempuan).

Nik Aziz sentiasa dikenali sebagai seorang Menteri Besar yang paling zuhud dan warak. Pada hampir setiap masa, beliau sentiasa dilihat dalam keadaan berjubah dan berserban. Beliau mengaku bersolat dalam keadaan gelap apabila berada di dalam pejabatnya kerana tidak mahu menggunakan duit kerajaan untuk kepentingan dirinya.[3] Rumahnya pula hanyalah sebuah rumah kampung biasa seperti yang dimiliki oleh rakyat kebanyakan. Rumahnya tidak berpagar sama sekali dan tiada pengawal keselamatan yang diupah untuk menjaganya.

Sebelum menjadi Menteri Besar, beliau adalah seorang guru agama yang aktif. Beliau pernah mengajar di Sekolah Menengah Agama Tarbiyyah Mardiah, Sekolah Menengah Agama Darul Anwar dan Sekolah Menengah Maahad Muhammadi yang kesemuanya terletak di Kelantan. Maka tidak hairanlah beliau lebih mesra dengan gelaran 'Tuan Guru' di kalangan rakyat Malaysia. Malah sehingga kini, beliau masih lagi aktif menyebarkan ilmu-ilmu Islam kepada masyarakat. Pada hampir setiap pagi, beliau akan menjadi imam kepada Solat Subuh dan kemudiannya memberikan kuliah ringkas di sebuah masjid yang terletak hanya beberapa langkah sahaja dari rumahnya.

Pendidikan

Nik Aziz mendapat pendidikan awal dari ayahnya sendiri, Tuan Guru Haji Nik Mat Raja Banjar di kediamannya di Pulau Melaka. Beliau memiliki kelulusan dalam bidang Sarjana Perundangan Islam daripada Universiti al-Azhar di Mesir.[4] Ketika belajar, beliau pernah menjadi salah seorang saksi kepada Perang Arab-Israel.[perlu rujukan]

Beliau juga pernah menuntut di:

Beliau mampu berkomunikasi dalam bahasa Arab, Urdu, Inggeris dan Tamil.[4]

Kerjaya politik

Tuan Guru mula menjadi ahli PAS pada tahun 1967, kini beliau adalah Mursyidul Am bagi parti tersebut. Semenjak tahun 1990, beliau telah memegang tampuk kepimpinan sebagai Menteri Besar Kelantan. Beliau juga adalah seorang ADUN bagi kawasan N.06 Chempaka, Kelantan. Pada pilihan raya ke-11, Nik Aziz menyandang kerusi tersebut setelah mengalahkan Ruhani Mamat (BN) dengan majoriti undi sebanyak 3,694.[5]

Pada Pilihan Raya Umum Malaysia kali ke-12, beliau bersemuka dengan Datuk Dr Nik Mohd Zain Omar yang bertanding di atas tiket Barisan Nasional (BN) di kawasan DUN yang sama. Secara peraturannya, Nik Aziz sudah boleh menang tanpa bertanding pada hari penamaan calon apabila lawannya itu terlupa untuk menurunkan tandatangannya pada borang penamaan calon. Namun beliau tidak mahu menang dengan cara begitu lalu meminta calon BN itu menandatangani semula borang pencalonan tersebut.[6] Keputusan pilihan raya kali ini menyaksikan Nik Aziz menang dengan majoriti undi yang lebih besar, iaitu 4,249.[7]

Beliau bersedia untuk melepaskan jawatan sebagai seorang Menteri Besar selepas pilihan raya yang terbaru ini.[8] Pengg

antinya itu akan dipilih melalui satu proses undian sulit. Namun jika undian yang dibuat kelak menyaksikan beliau terus dipilih, beliau sedia meneruskan tanggungjawab itu walaupun sudah terbabit dalam politik Pas sejak 42 tahun lalu.[9]

Beliau dituduh mengamalkan kronisme dengan melantik menantunya itu sebagai CEO PMBK, tetapi beliau menyatakan perlantikan itu berdasarkan kelayakan pendidikan tinggi dan pengalaman luas dalam bidang kejuruteraan. [10], [11], [12], Isu-isu di atas sedikit sebanyak mencalarkan rekod bersih Nik Aziz yang anti rasuah.

Kesihatan

Beliau mempunyai masalah kesihatan jantung, darah tinggi dan gastrik. Pada akhir tahun 2004, beliau dimasukkan ke hospital setelah mendapat serangan sakit jantung.[13] Pada tahun 2007, beliau dirawat di Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) kerana keletihan.

Beliau sendiri mengakui bahawa kesihatannya semakin terganggu sejak akhir-akhir ini. Namun itu semua tidak menghalangnya untuk terus berbakti kepada masyarakat.

Saya akui pada zahirnya, tubuh saya ada mengalami masalah berkaitan jantung tetapi pemikiran saya masih tajam untuk berfikir dan membuat penilaian atau keputusan.[14]

Kontroversi

  • Kenyataan kontroversi

Menjelang pilihan raya 1999, Nik Aziz mengemukakan kiasan “Tak salah berkawan dengan syaitan.” untuk menjustifikasikan ‘perkahwinan’ parti PAS dengan DAP. Beliau juga menyifatkan ‘orang UMNO sama sahaja dengan orang utan’. Beliau juga pernah mengeluarkan kenyataan ‘‘Tuhan pun mencarut’’, ‘Tuhan gedebe’, ‘istikharah’ nak pilih UMNO atau PAS sama dengan istikharah nak zina ke nak kahwin’ selain ungkapan UMNO tidak Islam seperti yang sering dikatakannya.[15], [16]

  • Bantahan terhadap kerajaan perpaduan

Pada 22 Jun 2009, Nik Aziz menarik balik desakan meletakkan jawatan terhadap Nasharudin Mat Isa berhubung idea kerajaan perpaduan. Pada 19 Jun 2009,beliau mendesak Nasharuddin meletakkan jawatan Timbalan Presiden PAS dan ahli parlimen Bachok.Polemik kerajaan perpaduan diberhentikan serta merta seperti yang diputuskan oleh Presiden PAS bersama pimpinan Pakatan Rakyat dalam satu kenyataan bersama di Parlimen yang menolak idea kerajaan perpaduan.[17]

  • UMNO dan Ayah Pin

Pada 21 Jun 2009, Nik Aziz dalam satu majlis ceramah politik di Manek Urai, Kelantan menyamakan perjuangan UMNO dengan ajaran sesat "Ayah Pin" dan komunis. Baginya itu adalah satu kiasan sahaja dan mengajak Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak berdebat secara terbuka [18].

  • Muktamar Khas PAS

Pada 23 Oktober 2009, Mursyidul Am PAS mencadangkan parti itu mengadakan muktamar khas bagi membincangkan isu "dua tiga kerat pemimpin bermasalah", termasuk presidennya Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang. Desakan Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat itu dibuat ekoran kemarahannya terhadap beberapa lagi pemimpin parti, antaranya Setiausaha Agung PAS Datuk Mustafa Ali dan Pesuruhjaya PAS Selangor Datuk Dr Hassan Ali berhubung isu kerajaan perpaduan

Raja Petra Kamaruddin


Raja Petra Kamaruddin (lahir 1950 , dikenali sebagai Peter atau RPK) adalah seorang penulis blog Malaysia berbangsa Melayu, membangunkan laman Malaysia Today berbahasa Inggeris yang mana di dalam laman tersebut beliau menerbitkan satu siri rencana berbentuk komentar terhadap politik Malaysia. Beliau telah ditahan mengikut [[Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri(ISA) buat kali kedua pada 1.10 petang 12 September 2008.[1] Beliau telah ditahan selama dua tahun mengikut Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA) dan dihantar ke Kem Tahanan Kamunting, Taiping.[1]Kehidupan peribadi

Dilahirkan pada tahun 1950, Raja Petra telah mendapat pendidikan di Sekolah Alice Smith. Pada umur 13 tahun beliau telah melanjutkan pelajarannya di Kolej Melayu Kuala Kangsar, melengkapkan pendidikannya di Victoria Institution. Raja Petra Kamarudin pernah menjadi penjual motosikal dan pengedar beras. Beliau memang meminati motosikal semenjak kecil lagi.

Pada 14 April 1973, semasa berumur 23 tahun, beliau telah berkahwin dengan Marina Lee binti Abdullah yang pada masa itu berumur 18 tahun.[perlu rujukan] Marina Lee Abdullah, kacukan Siam-Cina,[perlu rujukan] merupakan seorang penerbit buku.[2] Raja Petra dan Marina mempunyai lima orang anak (Suraya, Raja Azman, Raja Shahril, Raja Azmir dan Raja Sara[2]) dan dua orang cucu.

Raja Petra merupakan seorang ahli kerabat DiRaja Selangor. Beliau merupakan sepupu Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, Yang di-Pertuan Agong Malaysia kesebelas, dan Sultan Selangor yang ketujuh.[3] Ibunya merupakan seorang berketurunan Wales.[3]

Penglibatan politik

Raja Petra merupakan ahli Parti Keadilan Nasional (sekarang dikenali sebagai "Parti Keadilan Rakyat") yang terkehadapan—parti yang ditubuhkan sebagai satu tindakalas penangkapan bekas timbalan Perdana Menteri Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim dalam tahun 1998.[3] Pada 11 April 2001, Raja Petra dan 10 ahli aktivis pembangkang telah ditahan di bawah Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA) kerana dituduh bersubahat ingin menjatuhkan perdana menteri Mahathir bin Mohamad pada ketika itu.[3][2] Beliau telah dibebaskan dari pada pusat tahanan 52 hari kemudian.[4]

Raja Petra Kamarudin telah memulakan laman Malaysia Today dan blognya untuk memudahkan suatu perbincangan terbuka terhadap senario politik dan sosial Malaysia. Dalam tulisan atas taliannya, beliau selalunya sangat lucu, penuh dengan jenaka dan kadangkala kritis terhadap pembangunan politik di Malaysia. Di dalam rencananya di Malaysia Today, beliau menyokong ketelusan, kebertanggungjawaban dan k

eadilan di dalam sistem politik Malaysia. Dia selalu mengecam politik wang, rasuah, dan polarisasi etnik yang tertanam jauh di dalam masyarakat Malaysia.

Menghina institusi diraja

Pada 23 Julai 2007, Tan Sri Muhammad Haji Muhd Taib, Ketua Penerangan UMNO, telah membuat satu laporan polis terhadap Malaysia Today pada pukul 12.57 p.m. di stesen polis Tun H.S. Lee, di bawah Kanun Keseksaan Seksyen 121 (B) dan Seksyen 123, Seksyen 4 dari Akta Hasutan 1948 dan Seksyen 263 dan Seksyen 266 dari Akta Komunikasi dan Multimedia 1998, untuk satu masukan blog pada 11 Julai di dalam laman berkenaan yang dianggap menghina Yang di-Pertuan Agong, merendah-rendahkan Islam dan cuba membuat hasutan dan keganasan di kalangan kumpulan etnik tempatan.[5] Raja Petra Kamarudin membalas balik dengan menerbitkan satu rencana di dalam Malaysia Today, memukul balik Muhammad Muhd Taib dengan tuduhan-tuduhan hipokrasi dan rasuah. Satu laporan polis kedua telah dibuat ter

hadap Raja Petra yang dipercayai telah dilakukan setelah terbitnya rencana berkenaan, dan Raja Petra telah disaman ke balai polis Dang Wangi pada 25 Julai 2007, dan disoal siasat selama lapan

jam.[6] Isterinya pula telah disoalsiasat selama sejam.[7]

Selepas dibebaskan setelah disoalsiasat, Raja Petra Kamarudin memberikan alasannya kenapa Muhammad Muhd Taib membuat laporan polis terhadapnya, menyatakan bahawa kerajaan ingin melenyapkan penulis-penulis blog sebelum pilihan raya Malaysia.[perlu rujukan]

Kontroversi

Saman fitnah RM4 juta

Pada 26 Mac 2008, Raja Petra Kamaruddin diperintah oleh Mahkamah Tinggi Alor Setar membayar ganti rugi sebanyak RM4 juta setelah tidak menghadirkan diri dalam kes saman fitnah oleh Naib Canselor Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Tan Sri Dr. Nordin Kardi[8].

Selain Raja Petra, Parti Keadilan Ra

kyat (PKR),Ketua Pengarang akhbar PKR, Suara Keadilan dan editornya turut diperintah membayar RM3 juta atas kes yang sama.

Timbalan Pendaftar Mahkamah Tinggi Alor Star, Priscilla Gengadaran membuat taksiran ganti rugi sebanyak RM7 juta yang patut dibayar kepada Nordin Kardi dan UUM selepas defendan menyiarkan fitnah terhadap mereka dalam laman web dan akhbar Suara Keadilan.

Mahkamah memutuskan Raja Petra sebagai defendan pertama didapati memfitnah Nordin dan UUM apabila mendakwa dalam sebuah laman webnya Malaysia-Today.net pada 16 Disember 2006 secara penulisan menyiarkan sebuah artikel bertajuk: Dato Dr. Nordin Kardi ciplak karya saya?

Raja Petra pula mendakwa bahawa ia berdasarkan surat yang ditulis kepadanya oleh bekas perwakilan pelajar dan dia enggan membayar gantirugi mefitnah tersebut. Dia sebaliknya mendakwa bahawa kemenangan Nordin Kadir tidak menunjukkan keadilan sebaliknya Nordin Kadir menang kerana Raja Petra enggan hadir ("He went to the football field and our team did not show up so he shot all the goals by himself.")

Pandangan mengenai pemecatan Tun Salleh Abas

Dalam banyak tulisannya, Raja Petra dilihat sebagai seorang yang pro-Mahathir. Dalam tulisannya "Smokescreens and disinformation: a distraction of issues"[9], beliau mendakwa pemecatan Tun Salleh Abas sebagai ketua hakim negara adalah kerana Tun Salleh Abas menulis surat kepada Agung mengadu mengenai bunyi bising semasa proses mengubahsuai istana Agung. Salinan surat dihantar kepada Raja-raja lain yang menyebabkan Agung ketika itu murka. Perkara ini ditulis seperti berikut:

What happened was that the Chief Justice had a home next door to the Agong’s and His Majesty’s house was under renovation. The Chief Justice was displeased with the noise and pollution and he wrote a letter to the Agong with copies to all the Rulers complaining about the matter. The Agong was upset with this insolence on the part of the Chief Justice. Writing a complaint letter is one thing and could be forgiven since this was a genuine grievance -- though an audience would have been the correct protocol instead of a complaint letter -- but to copy the letter to all the Rulers smacks of pressure.

The Agong was outraged and demanded that Mahathir sack the Chief Justice for this insolence that tantamount to misconduct. Mahathir, however, replied that he does not have the authority to sack the Chief Justice and that this can only be done through a Tribunal. The Agong then commanded (titah) that a Tribunal be set up, which was to report direct to His Majesty. The Tribunal found the Chief Justice guilty of misconduct and sent its recommendation to the Agong, who then removed the Chief Justice.

Terjemahannya seperti berikut:

Apa yang berlaku kepada Ketua Hakim adalah beliau tinggal bersebelahan dengan Agung dan istana Baginda ketika itu sedang diubah suai. Ketua Hakim tidak suka dengan bunyi bising

dan pencemaran yang berlaku dan beliau menulis surat kepada Agung dengan salinan dihantar ke semua Raja-Raja mengadu mengenai perkara berikut. Menulis surat aduan adalah satu perkara dan boleh dimaafkan kerana perkara ini adalah rungutan yang benar - walaupun mengadap merupakan protokol yang betul dan bukannya surat aduan - tetapi salinan surat kepada Raja-Raja yang lain seperti satu tekanan.

Agung menjadi murka dan menuntut Mahathir memecat Ketua Hakim untuk perbuatan biadap ini yang disamakan dengan salah laku. Mahathir, bagaimanapun, menjawab yang beliau tidak mempunyai kuasa untuk memecat Ketua Hakim dan ini hanya boleh dilakukan melalui Tribunal. Agung kemudiannya bertitah sebuah Tribunal dibentuk dan melaporkan terus kepada Baginda. Trib

unal mendapati Ketua Hakim bersalah dalam hal ini dan menghantar cadangannya kepada Agung yang kemudiannya memecat Ketua Hakim.


Kes Altantuya

Pemilik web Malaysia-today.net Raja Petra Raja Kamaruddin telah menulis artikel berhubung kes Altantuya . Beliau telah menulis arti

kel bertajuk "Lets send the Altantuya murderes to hell” dan menyentuh penglibatan Timbalan Perdana Menteri Malaysia, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Akibatnya rumah beliau di Sungai Buloh,Selangor telah dikunjungi oleh pihak polis dari jenayah siber Bukit Aman, Kuala Lumpur. Sebuah komputer telah dibawa untuk siasatan lanjut dan beliau diminta hadir ke Ibu pejabat Polis bahagian jenayah siber, di Jalan Dato Onn di Kuala Lumpur.

Peguam beliau ialah William Leong yang juga Ahli Parlimen Selayang dan Bendahari PKR. Beliau akan didakwa di bawah Akta Hasutan Seksyen 4C kerana menghasut. Pegawai penyiasat ialah DSP Rajagopal dan ASP Tan Kok Liang.

Siasatan terpaksa dibuat kerana 'mencampuri' perbicaraan kes Altantuya yang masih berlangsung di mahkamah . Superintenden Gan Tack Guan telah memfailkan laporan tersebut berdasarkan artikel tersebut bagi mendapatkan maklumat tambahan.

Isteri Petra,Marina Lee Abdullah cuba mendapatkan bantuan daripada peguam yang juga Ahli Parlimen Wangsa Maju, Wee Choo Keong. Tetapi Wee dihalang memasuki premis Bukit Aman.[10]

Pada 6 Mei 2008 Raja Petra Kamaruddin didakwa di Mahkamah Sesyen Petaling Jaya di bawah Seksyen 4(1)(c) Akta Hasutan ekoran tulisannya tentang Altantuya pada 25 April 2008. Jika sabit kesalahan , beliau boleh dipenjarakan tidak lebih tiga tahun dan atau denda tidak lebih RM5,000. Perbicaraan kes ditetapkan pada 6 hingga 10 Oktober 2008. William Leong selaku peguambela merayu rakyat Malaysia mengutip RM1 bagi menjelaskan ikat jamim tersebut.[11]

Di Dewan Rakyat pula, Lim Kit Siang dari DAP dan lain-lain membangkitkan kewajaran penahanan Raja Petra Kamaruddin.

Tahanan ISA

Pada 12 September 2008 jam 1.10 petang, beliau telah ditahan untuk kali kedua di bawah Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri(ISA). [12] Turut ditahan ialah ialah Tan Hoon Cheng , Teresa Kok dan Syed Azidi. Mereka ditahan kerana boleh menjejaskan keselamatan negara dan hubungan beragama.

Pada 23 September 2008, RPK dihantar ke Kem Tahanan Kamunting, Taiping, Perak untuk tempoh 2 tahun mengikut Seksyen 8, Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA). Arahan itu ditandatangani oleh Menteri Dalam Negeri, Datuk Syed Hamid Albar. Dengan itu habeas corpus yang dikemukakan oleh peguamnya terbatal.Hakim Suraya Othman meminta peguambela mengemukakan hujah pada 28 Oktober 2008.

Bekas Menteri Kehakiman Malaysia, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim turut berada di sebelah Marina Lee Abdullah di mahkamah memberi sokongan moral.

Lat

Dato' Mohd Nor bin Khalid (lahir pada bulan Mac 1951 di Kota Bahru, Perak; yang juga lebih dikenali sebagai Lat ) merupakan kartunis yang tidak asing bagi rakyat Malaysia. Dato' Mohd Nor bin Khalid merupakan kartunis negara yang mendapat pengiktirafan antarabangsa. Ia juga memenangi Hadiah Budaya Asia Fukuoka XIII 2002.

Dato Lat sangat terkenal dengan karyanya iaitu Kampung Boy.Ia mengisahkan tentang seorang budak yang bernama Mamat dalam menjalani kehidupan harian sebagai seorang budak kampung.Kerekter Mamat diinspirasi daripada saudara kandungnya sendiri iaitu Mamat Khalid,juga seorang pengarah filem tempatan.



Datuk Mohammad Nor Khalid, more commonly known as Lat, (born 5 March 1951) is a Malaysian cartoonist. Winner of the Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize in 2002, Lat has published more than 20 volumes of cartoons since he was 13 years old. His works mostly illustrate Malaysia's social and political scenes, portraying them in a comedic light without bias. Lat's best known work is The Kampung Boy (1979), which is published in several countries across the world. In 1994, the Sultan of Perak bestowed the honorific title of datuk on Lat, in recognition of the cartoonist's work in helping to promote social harmony and understanding through his cartoons.

Born in a village, Lat spent his youth in the countryside before moving to the city at the age of 11. While in school, he supplemented his family's income by contributing cartoon strips to newspapers and magazines. He was 13 years old when he achieved his first published comic book, Tiga Sekawan (Three Friends Catch a Thief). After failing to attain the grades that were required to continue education beyond high school, Lat became a newspaper reporter. In 1974, he switched careers to be an editorial cartoonist. His works, reflecting his view about Malaysian life and the world, are staple features in national newspapers such as New Straits Times and Berita Minggu. He adapted his life experiences and published them as his autobiographies, The Kampung Boy and Town Boy, telling stories of rural and urban life with subtle comparisons between the two.

Lat's style has been described as reflective of his early influences, The Beano and The Dandy. He has, however, come into his own way of illustration, drawing the common man on the streets with bold strokes in pen and ink. A trademark of his Malay characters is their three loop noses. Lat paid attention to family life and children because of his idolisation of Raja Hamzah, a senior cartoonist who was also popular in the 1960s with his comics about swashbuckling heroes. Rejabhad, a well-respected cartoonist, was Lat's mentor, and imbued the junior cartoonist with a preference to be sensitive to the subjects of his works. Lat's attention to details gained him popularity, endearing his works to the masses who find them believable and unbiased.

Aside from writing and publishing cartoons, Lat has ventured into the fields of animation, merchandising, and theme parks with his creations. His name and works are recognised internationally; foreign cartoonists, such as Matt Groening and Sergio Aragonés, admire his art, and foreign governments invite Lat to tour their countries, hoping to gain greater exposure for their countries through Lat's cartoons of his experiences in them. After 27 years of living and working in Kuala Lumpur, Lat moved back to Ipoh for a more sedate lifestyle in semi-retirement.

Childhood and education

Two wooden houses on stilts stand in front of tall coconut trees.
Lat grew up in a kampung, where wooden houses are built on stilts and surrounded by nature.

Mohammad Nor Khalid was born on 5 March 1951 in a kampung (village) in Kota Baru, Perak, Malaysia. His father was a government clerk with the Malaysian Armed Forces, and his mother a housewife.[1] Khalid was a stocky boy with a cherubic face, which led his family to nickname him bulat (round). His friends shortened it to "Lat"; it became the name by which he was more commonly known in his kampung and

later in the world.[1][2][3] Lat was the eldest child in his family,[nb 1] and he often played in the jungles, plantations, and tin mines with his friends.[1][nb 2] Their toys were usually improvised from everyday sundries and items of nature.[4] Lat liked to doodle with materials provided by his parents,[8] and other forms of recreation came in the forms of comics and television; Lat idolised local cartoonist Raja Hamzah, who was popular with his tales of swashbuckling Malay heroes.[9] Malaysian art critic and historian Redza Piyadasa believes Lat's early years in his kampung ingrained him with pride in his kampung roots and a "peculiarly Malay" outlook—"full of [...] gentleness and refinement".[10]

Lat's formal education began at a local Malay kampung school; these institutions often taught in the vernacular and did not aspire to academic attainment.[11] The boy changed schools several times; the nature of his father's job moved the family from one military base to another across the country, until they settled back at his birthplace in 1960.[12][13] A year later, Lat passed the Special Malay Class Examination, qualifying him to attend an English medium boarding school—National Type Primary School—in the state's capital, Ipoh.[1][14] His achievement helped his father make the decision to sell their kampung estate and move the family to the town;[15] society in those days considered education at an English medium school a springboard to a good future.[16][17] Lat continued his education at Anderson School,[18] Perak's "premier non-missionary English medium school".[1][19] Redza highlights Lat's move to Ipoh for higher schooling as a significant point in the cartoonist's development; the multi-racial environment helped establish his diverse friendships, which in turn broadened his cultural perspectives.[20]

At the age of nine, Lat began to supplement his family's income through his artistic skills, by drawing comics and selling them to his friends.[1] Four years later, in 1964, the young cartoonist achieved his first published work: a local movie magazine—Majallah Filem—printed his comic strips, paying him with movie tickets.[21] Lat's first comic book publication, Tiga Sekawan (Three Friends Catch a Thief), was published by Sinaran Brothers that year. The company had accepted Lat's submission, mistaking him for an adult and paying him 25 Malaysian ringgits (RM) for a story about three friends who band together to catch thieves.[22] In 1968, at the age of 17, Lat started penning Keluarga Si Mamat (Mamat's Family), a comic strip for Berita Minggu (the Sunday edition of Berita Harian). The series ran in the paper every week for 26 years.[21] Although still a schoolboy, Lat was earning a monthly income of RM100, a large sum in those days, from his cartoons.[21] His education finished two years later at the end of Form 5; his Third Grade in the Senior Cambridge examinations was not enough for him to advance to Form 6.[23] Graduating with an education equivalent to that of high school, Lat started looking for a job and had his sights set on becoming an illustrator.[6]

Reporter to cartoonist

Cars are in front of a row of multistorey buildings, which sport a multitude of signboards.
As a reporter, Lat prowled the streets of 1970s Kuala Lumpur (the buildings depicted are of that period), a vastly different environment from the kampung.

Moving to the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, Lat applied for a cartoonist's position at Berita Harian. He was told there was no vacancy, but the paper's editor, Abdul Samad Ismail, offered him the post of a crime reporter.[4] Lat accepted, a decision he explained was borne from necessity rather than choice: "It was a question of survival. I had to earn money to help support the family."[1] At that time, Lat's father had fallen seriously ill and could not work; Lat had to become the breadwinner of his family.[24] Aside from taking the job, he continued contributing cartoons to other publications.[4] Lat was later transferred to Berita's parent publication, New Straits Times.[25][nb 3] Moving throughout the city to report on crimes gave Lat opportunities to observe and interact with the myriads of lives in the urban landscape, enabling him to gather material for his cartoons and increasing his understanding of the world.[4] Nevertheless, he felt he lacked the persistently inquisitive nature needed to succeed as a crime reporter.[27] Furthermore, his "breathtakingly detailed, lurid and graphically gory descriptions" of the aftermaths of crimes had to be frequently toned down by his seniors.[28] Lat became convinced that he was a failure at his job, and his despondency led him to tender his resignation. Samad, believing Lat had a bright future with the press, furiously rejected the letter.[29]

Lat's career took a turn for the better on 10 February 1974; Asia Magazine, a periodical based in Hong Kong, published his cartoons about Bersunat—a circumcision ceremony all Malaysian boys of the Islamic faith have to undergo.[1][30][31] The cartoons impressed Tan Sri Lee Siew Yee, editor-in-chief of the New Straits Times.[32] Lee found Lat's portrayal of the important ceremony humorous yet sensitive, and grumbled that the newspaper should have hired the artist. He was surprised to be told that Lat was already working within his organization.[12] Lat was called to Lee's office to have a talk, which raised the reporter's profile in the company. He became the paper's column cartoonist, taking up a position created for him by Samad, now deputy editor of the New Straits Times.[33][34] His first duty was to document Malaysian culture in a series of cartoons titled Scenes of Malaysian Life.[35] The newspaper also sent him to study for four months at St Martin's School of Art in London,[36] where he was introduced to English editorial cartoons and newspapers. Returning to Malaysia full of fascination with his experience, Lat transformed Scenes of Malaysian Life into a series of editorial cartoons. His approach proved popular, and at the end of 1975 he was appointed full time cartoonist with total freedom in his work.[37]

Lat produced a steady stream of editorial cartoons that entertained Malaysian society. By 1978, two collections of his works (Lots of Lat and Lat's Lot) had been compiled and sold to the public. Although Malaysians knew of Lat through Scenes of Malaysian Life, it was his next work that propelled him into national consciousness and international recognition.[21][38] In 1979, Berita Publishing Sendirian Berhad published Lat's The Kampung Boy, an autobiographical cartoon account of his youth. The book was a commercial hit; according to Lat, the first printing—60,000 to 70,000 copies—sold out within four months of the book's release.[4] Readers of the book were captivated by his "heart-warming" portrayal of Malaysian rural life,[39] rendered with "scribbly black-and-white sketches" and accompanied by "simple but eloquent prose".[40] By 2009, the book has been reprinted 16 times[nb 4] and published in several other countries in various languages, including Portuguese, French, and Japanese.[22][41] The success of The Kampung Boy established Lat as the "most renowned cartoonist in Malaysia."[21]

After The Kampung Boy

A boy sits on a large leaf that is pulled by an older boy.  Another boy looks at them.
The Kampung Boy recalls Lat's childhood experiences, such as playing tarik upih pinang (game pictured) with other children.

In 1981, Town Boy was published. It continued The Kampung Boy's story, telling of the protagonist's teenage life in an urban setting. Two more compilations of Lat's editorial cartoons (With a Little Bit of Lat and Lots More Lat) were published and the number of people who recognised him continued to grow.[42] In 1984, partly from a desire to step away from the limelight, Lat resigned from the New Straits Times to become a freelancer,[4][43] but continued to draw Scenes of Malaysia Life for the newspaper. He set up his own company, Kampung Boy Sendirian Berhad (Village Boy private limited), to oversee the merchandising of his cartoon characters and publishing of his books.[44][45] In 2009, Kampung Boy partnered Sanrio and Hit Entertainment in a project to open an indoor theme park in Malaysia by the end of 2012. One of the park's attractions will be the sight of performers dressed up as Kampung Boy characters beside those in Hello Kitty and Bob the Builder costumes.[46][47]

Lat has experimented with media other than paper. In 1993 he produced a short animated feature, Mina Smiles, for Unesco; the video, featuring a female lead, was for a literacy campaign.[48] Personal concerns motivated Lat for his next foray into animation; judging that Western animation of the 1980s and 90s had negative influences, he wanted to produce a series for Malaysian children that espoused local values.[49] The result was Kampung Boy the television series (1997), an adaptation of his trademark comic. The 26-episode series received positive reviews for technical details and content.[50] There were comments on its similarities to The Simpsons, and on its English which was not entirely local.[51] His most recent involvement with animation was in 2009; Lat's Window to the World, a musical animated feature, played at the Petronas Philharmonic Hall. Lat had been commissioned to help create three animated vignettes based on The Kampung Boy to accompany the instruments of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.[12] The scores, composed by Carl Davis, complemented Lat's visuals, capturing the spirit of kampung childhood in a "simple, idyllic past".[52]

In 1997, after 27 years of living in Kuala Lumpur,[53] Lat moved back to Ipoh with his family. Aside from retreating slightly from the cartooning scene, he wanted to be close to his old kampung and let his children experience life in a small town or village;[6][22] he had married in 1977,[54] and the couple have four children—two daughters and two sons.[55][56] Lat said that raising his children has helped him cope with the pressures of his fame and made him realise that he might be losing touch with the new generation of Malaysians who have different tastes in cartoons.[57] His wife helps him in his work, scanning his completed cartoons and emailing them to the newspaper offices in Kuala Lumpur. Lat still draws with his usual pens and inks, avoiding the use of computers except to read his emails.[58] In 2011–12, he is to join other artists from around the world in Italy for the Civitella Ranieri Fellowship programme. During their one-month stay, they are encouraged to share ideas in an environment fostered to stimulate their creativity.[59]

Art style

Lat covers various genres in his works. His portfolio is diverse; John A. Lent, a scholar of Asian cartoons, found it to difficult to classify the cartoonist into any particular field.[60] In his Keluarga Si Mamat series, Lat drew slapsticks and satires that examined the encounters between traditional and modern values. Humorous stories of children at play also populated the series.[61] Jennifer Rodrigo Willmott, writer for Reader's Digest, stated that:

Lat's cartoon characters have always been ordinary people—a villager in his checkered sarong, a money-changer in his white dhoti, a Malay government servant in his bush jacket and sometimes even Lat himself: that character with the flat, round face; the nose slightly off centre; the untidy mop of dark, curly hair; and the constant toothy grin.[1]
Six square frames depict the course of a teacher's conducting of a physical education lesson; after doing some warm-ups, the obese teacher tries to demonstrate push-ups and collapses.
Muliyadi Mahamood, a comics scholar, sees several levels of humour in Lat's work, particularly this Keluarga Si Mamat comic strip.

Using a large cast of characters—a wide assortment of personalities and cultures—allows Lat to comment on a wider range of topics than is possible with a small group of characters.[62] Malaysian comics scholar Muliyadi Muhamood commented that the humour in Lat's cartoons is evoked through graphical and textual means; "short, compact dialogues" and puns form the text while "facial expressions and actions" of the characters help to bring out the funny side of things.[63] Muliyadi further stated that Lat's works offer many levels of interpretation; one reader would laugh at Lat's cartoon for its slapstick, while another would find the same work hilarious for its subtle critique of society. As an example, Muliyadi referred to a Keluarga Si Mamat strip published in 1972. Malaysia was facing a shortage of qualified physical education teachers then, and such duties were often placed on the shoulders of teachers of other faculties. Lat illustrated an obese teacher who conducted a physical education session to his eventual collapse. Muliyadi suggested that the cartoon could be interpreted as a simple tease of the teacher's plight, a suggestion to examine the curriculum taught (change physical education to an informal session), a remark on the shortage of teachers, or more extremely, a criticism of the government's failure to prevent the situation from happening.[64]

The narration of Lat's early cartoons, such as Tiga Sekawan and Keluarga Si Mamat, was in Malay.[13] His later works, however, were mostly in English; Scenes of Malaysian Life ran only in the English-language New Straits Times.[65] The English idiom in his works reflects the local pidgin form—"Malglish"—containing smatterings of Malay words and a simpler grammatical structure.[66] After a string of successful English publications, Lat worried he had neglected Malaysians who were not proficient in English. He drew Mat Som, a story of a kampung boy who moved to the city to work as a writer and courted a pretty city girl. The comic was in Malay and a commercial hit; its first print of 30,000 copies sold out in three months. Far Eastern Economic Review journalist Suhaini Aznam remarked that Lat's strength was his ability to portray the plight of the common man in a satiric light without any form of bias.[67]

Early style

Lat's artistic skills were cultivated from young and self-taught. The cartoonist believes he inherited the talent and interest from his father, who doodled as a hobby and was notorious for his sense of humour as the "village jester".[22][68] Lat says his siblings were also gifted in drawing, but they never bothered to develop their talents.[12] His parents actively encouraged him to develop his artistic skills, although his father occasionally told him not to make a career of it.[69] He also received encouragement from outside his family; Lat's primary school teacher Mrs Moira Hew (the inspiration for one of his characters, the Butterfly-Glassed Lady),[14] helped nurture his gift, frequently asking him to illustrate lessons in class.[13] Her teachings expanded Lat's mind and made him more receptive to ideas that looked beyond his kampung.[70]

Six rectangular frames, with accompanying narration, illustrate the preparations for a Malaysian wedding: the bride's beauty regime of grinding her teeth even with a stone and the groom's religious ceremonies.
Lat's Perak Wedding: themes of family life and the details that surround them are notable aspects of his works; this was also the first of his Scenes of Malaysian Life.

The early influences on his art style were from the West. Like most of the Malaysian children in the 1950s, Lat watched Hanna-Barbera cartoons (The Flintstones and The Jetsons) on television and read imported British comics, such as The Dandy and The Beano. He studied them and used their styles and themes in his early doodles.[8][21] After the foreign influences in his works were noticed by a family friend, Lat was advised by his father to observe and draw upon ideas from their surroundings instead. Heeding the advice, the young cartoonist intimated himself with local happenings.[21][71] Tiga Sekawan was conceived as a humorous crime-fighting story of a local flavour.[44] Keluarga Si Mamat and its protagonist were named after his youngest brother Mamat,[6] its stories based on Lat's observations of his fellow villagers and schoolmates.[72] The inspiration for his cartoons about Bersunat came about when he was on assignment at a hospital. As he was taking breaks from investigating the dead victims of crime brought to the morgue, Lat chanced upon the circumcisions performed by the hospital on ethnic Malay boys. He found their experiences clinical, devoid of the elaborate and personal ceremonies that celebrated his own rite to manhood in the village. Lat felt compelled to illustrate the differences between life in his kampung and the city.[73]

When Lat formally entered the cartooning industry, he was not totally unfamiliar with the profession. He had the benefit of the mentorship of Rejabhad, an experienced political cartoonist. Rejabhad was well-respected by his countrymen, who titled him the "penghulu (chief) of Malay cartoonists".[1] The cartoonist had noticed Lat's submissions to newspapers and magazines and corresponded with the young cartoonist.[1] When he was requested by Lat's mother to take care of her 15-year-old son in the cartooning industry, he accepted.[44] He gave advice and influenced Lat's growth as a cartoonist. Lat treated Rejabhad with great respect, holding up his mentor as a role model.[74] The affection and admiration was mutual. Thirty-six years after taking Lat under his wing, Rejabhad recounted their relationship in these words:

Lat and I are so far apart but so close in heart. When I meet him, my mouth is sewed up. When the love is very close, the mouth is dumb, can't speak a word. Lat is on top of the mountain, as he doesn't forget the grass at the foot of the mountain. When he goes here and there, he tells people I'm his teacher.[44]

Rejabhad was not the first local figure to have exerted an influence on Lat. Raja Hamzah, popular with his action comics and ghost stories, was Lat's "hero" in his childhood.[75] It was Raja Hamzah's cartoons of local swashbuckling adventurers that inspired Lat to become a cartoonist.[9] Tiga Sekawan was the culmination of that desire, the success after numerous failed submissions and an affirmation to Lat that he could become a cartoonist like his idol.[76] Raja Hamzah also had success with comic strips on family life, such as Mat Jambul's Family and Dol Keropok and Wak Tempeh. These cartoons imbued Lat with a fascination of family life and the antics of children, which served him well in his later works.[77] Lat was interested in studying the details of his surroundings and capturing them in his works. Mamat's Family and The Kampung Boy faithfully depicted their characters' appearances and attitudes. Their narrations were written in a style that was natural to the locals. Thus, Lat was able to make his readers believe his stories and characters were substantially "Malay".[78]

Later style

After his study trip to London in 1975, Lat's works exhibited the influences of editorial cartoonists such as Frank Dickens, Ralph Steadman, and Gerald Scarfe.[79] In 1997, Ron Provencher, a professor emeritus at Northern Illinois University, reported that Lat's style reminded his informants on the Malaysian cartooning scene of The Beano.[80] Muliyadi elaborated that The Beano and The Dandy's "theme of a child's world" is evident in Lat's Keluarga Si Mamat.[81] Others commented that Lat's art stood out on its own. Singaporean cartoonist Morgan Chua believed that Lat "managed to create an impressively local style while remaining original",[31] and although comics historian Isao Shimizu found Lat's lines "somewhat crude", he noted that the cartoonist's work was "highly original" and "full of life".[82] Redza's judgement was that The Beano and The Dandy were "early formative [influences]" on Lat before he came into his own style.[83] Lent gave his assessment in 1999:

It is Lat's drawing that is so evocative, so true to life, despite its very exaggerated distortion. Lat's Malaysian characters are distinguished by their ethnic linkages (for example, his Malay characters have three loop noses), which in itself, is no mean feat. The drawings are bold strokes, expressive dialogue in English and Bahasa Malaysian, as well as in what portends to be Chinese, Tamil, and entertaining backgrounds that tell their own stories.[4]

Lat's work with pen and ink so impressed Larry Gonick that the American cartoonist was tempted into experimenting with this medium for part of his The Cartoon History of the Universe. Gonick tried to use the medium as he did his regular brushes; however, the results proved unsatisfactory.[84] Lat occasionally colours his works, such as those in his Kampong Boy: Yesterday and Today (1993), using watercolour or marker pens.[58] According to Lent, Redza judged that Lat had "elevated cartooning to the level of 'high visual arts' through his social commentary and 'construction of the landscape'".[44] The art critic was not alone in having a high regard for Lat's works. Jaafar Taib, cartoonist and editor of Malaysian satirical magazine Gila-Gila, found Lat's cartoons retained their humour and relevance throughout time. He explained that this quality arose from the well-thought-out composition of Lat's works, which helped to clearly express the ideas behind the cartoons.[44]

Four rectangular frames depict the events of a Sikh wedding; everyone sits cross-legged on the floor as the groom awaits his bride.  When she arrives, they take their vows before the holy man.
Lat's works show his understanding of and sensitivity to other races; At a Sikh Wedding is sworn by a Sikh as an accurate portrayal of the ceremony.

He is at one and the same time childlike and mature, outrageous and delicate, Malaysian and universal. He always gets away with a lot mainly because his humour is utterly free from malice, sharp but never wounding, coaxing us irresistibly to laugh with him at the delectable little absurdities around us and within us. Typical Malaysian foibles most of these, yet as foreign fans testify, they touch chords in people from other cultures too.

His drawings and comments have an air of spontaneity, as if they had been scrawled just a minute or so before press time. In fact they are products of painstaking research as well as naturally acute observation, of patient professionalism as well as inspiration.

This is evident in pieces like the Sikh Wedding, to the devastating accuracy of which a Sikh has similingly sworn.

— Adibah Amin, respected Malaysian writer, introduction of Lots of Lat (1977)[85]

Sensitive topics

At the time that Lat started drawing for the New Straits Times, local political cartoonists were gentle in their treatment of Malaysian politicians; the politicians' features were recreated faithfully and criticisms were voiced in the form of subtle poems. Lat, however, pushed the boundaries; although he portrayed the politicians with dignity, he exaggerated notable features of their appearances and traits.[86] Lat recalled that in 1974, he was told to change one of his works, which portrayed Malaysian Prime Minister Abdul Razak from the back.[87] Lee refused to print the work unchanged, and pointedly asked the cartoonist "You want to go to jail?!"[88] In 1975, however, Lat's next attempt at a political cartoon won Lee's approval.[89] The satire featured a caricature of Razak's successor—Hussein Onn—on the back of a camel, travelling back to Kuala Lumpur from Saudi Arabia; its punchline was Hussein's hailing of his mount to slow down after reading news that a pay raise for the civil service would be enacted on his return.[37]

A man, wearing a headpiece and robes, ride a camel.  In his hand, is a newspaper that announces a pending pay rise in Malaysia.  In a speech bubble, he tells the camel they are going too fast and orders it to slow down.
Lat's first published political cartoon is a "subtle, indirect, and symbolic" commentary on his country's Prime Minister.

Malaysia's political class grew comfortable with Lat's caricatures, and like the rest of the country, found them entertaining.[90] Muliyadi described Lat's style as "subtle, indirect, and symbolic", following traditional forms of Malaysian humour in terms of ethics and aesthetics. The cartoonist's compliance with tradition in his art earned him the country's respect.[91] When Lat was critical of politicians, he portrayed them in situations "unusual, abnormal or unexpected" to their status or personalities, using the contrast to make the piece humorous.[92] Mahathir bin Mohamad, Malaysia's fourth Prime Minister, was Lat's frequent target for much of his political career, providing more than 20 years worth of material to the cartoonist—enough for a 146-page compilation Dr Who?! (2004).[93] Lat's political wit targeted not only local politicians, but also Israeli actions in the Middle East and foreign figures such as prominent Singaporean politician Lee Kwan Yew.[94] Despite his many works of political nature, Lat does not consider himself a political cartoonist[95] and openly admits that there are others better than him at this field.[96]

Lat prefers to portray his ideas with as little antagonism as possible. He heeds the advice of his mentor, Rejabhad, and is aware of sensitivities, especially those of race, culture, and religion.[1] As he devises the concept for his cartoon, he eliminates anything he believes to be malicious or insensitive.[97] At the Fourth Asian Cartoon Exhibition in Tokyo, Lat revealed that when it came to making religious comments in his work, he only did so on his own religion (Islam).[98] In such cases, Lat uses his art to help educate the young about his faith.[99] Lat trusts his editors to do their jobs and cull what is socially unacceptable for print. In an interview, he revealed his discomfort with the concept of self-publishing, believing that unadulterated or unsupervised cartoon drawing could lead to "rubbish". He prefers to be assertive in areas with which he is comfortable or competent.[100] Lat is adamant on not changing what he has already drawn; several pieces of his cartoons remain unpublished because editors refused to print them unchanged.[101] When that happens, the editors spike (blank) the space for his regular cartoon in the newspaper. Lat admitted of his unprinted works: "Okay, maybe I've pushed the line a little bit, but I've never got into trouble and, frankly, only a handful of my cartoons were ever spiked."[31]

Interests and beliefs

Four young men, wearing jackets and waving their hands, stand in front of an onlooking crowd.
Music, such as that of The Beatles (pictured), influenced Lat's life and work.

Music has played a crucial part in Lat's life since his youth; he revealed in an interview that listening to songs such as Peggy March's "I Will Follow Him" and Paul & Paula's "Hey Paula" helped him learn English.[13] Listening to music had also become an important ritual in his work, providing him with inspiration in his art. When he sketches "fashionable girls", he puts on Paul McCartney's tracks, and switches to Indonesian gamelan when he needs to draw intricate details.[1] He enjoys pop music, particularly rock music of the 1950s and 60s,[31] listening to the tunes of The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Elvis Presley.[12] Lat is also partial to country music, and to singers such as Hank Williams and Roy Rogers because he finds their tunes "humble".[102] His enjoyment of music is more than a passive interest; he is proficient with the guitar and piano, and can play them by ear.[1]

Malaysian society used to look down on cartoonists, assuming that those who practiced the trade were intellectually inferior to writers, or were lesser artists;[103][104] Lat was not the only cartoonist to be paid with movie tickets in the 1950s; Rejabhad once received one ticket for ten cartoons, and many others were likewise recompensed,[105][106] or were paid very little money.[83] Despite the lowly reputation of his profession at that time, Lat is very proud of his choice of career; he once took umbrage with an acquaintance's girlfriend for her presumption that the words and ideas in his cartoons were not his own.[103] Drawing cartoons is more than a career to him:

If it is a job then how come it's been going on for 33 years, from childhood to now? A job is something you do at a certain time. You go to work, you finish it, you retire. If this is a job, then by now I should have retired. But I am still drawing. It's not a job to me. It is something expected of me.
—Lat (2007)[22]

The elongated "L" in Lat's signature was born from his joy in completing a work.[102] He professes that his primary aim in drawing cartoons is to make people laugh; his role as a cartoonist is "to translate the reaction of the people into humorous cartoons".[6] He has no intentions to preach his beliefs through his art, believing that people should be free to make up their own minds and that the best he can do is to make readers ponder the deeper meanings behind a humorous scene.[107] The reward he has sought from drawing since his youth is simple:

It gives a good feeling when people are amused by your funny drawings, especially for a kid. I felt like an entertainer when my drawings were shown to relatives and friends, and they laughed or even smiled.[6]

Lat's pride in cartooning pushed him to promote the art as a respectable career. In 1991, he banded together with fellow cartoonists Zunar, Rejabhad, and Muliyadi to start "Pekartun" (Persatuan Kartunis Selangor dan Kuala Lumpur). This association holds exhibitions and forums, to raise public awareness of cartooning and to build relationships among its members. It also helps to clarify legal issues such as copyrights to its members, and acts as an intermediary between them and the government.[108][109] In the previous year, Lat's company, Kampung Boy, had organised the first Malaysian International Cartoonists Gathering, bringing together cartoonists from several countries across the world to exhibit their art and participate in conferences to educate others in their work.[110] In Redza's opinion, Lat played a great role in making cartooning respectable among his fellow Malaysians.[104]

Aside from promoting the rights of fellow cartoonists, Lat developed an interest in encouraging conservation of the natural environment. Several of his works caricature the consequences of pollution and over-exploitation of resources.[111] Invited to give a speech at the 9th Osaka International Symposium on Civilisation in 1988, Lat talked about the environmental problems associated with overpopulation and heavy industrialisation. He further reminisced about the simple cleaner life he had enjoyed as a child in the kampung.[112] In 1977, when a protest was organised against logging activities in the Endau-Rompin Reserves, Lat helped gain support for the movement by drawing cartoons in the newspapers that highlighted the issue.[113] Lat is also particularly concerned over what he sees as the negative side of urban development. He believes that such developments have contributed to the loss of the traditional way of life; people forget the old culture and values as they ingratiate themselves with the rapid pace and sophistication of urban lifestyles. His defence and fondness of the old ways are manifested in his The Kampung Boy, Town Boy, Mat Som, and Kampung Boy: Yesterday and Today, which champion the old lifestyles as spiritually superior.[114]

Influence and legacy

A man with thinning, greying hair and a thick, white mustache sits behind a table. He wears a colourful shirt.  Pens and action figures of his works are on the table in front of him.
Sergio Aragonés (pictured) is an admirer of Lat and has paid tribute to him in an issue of Groo the Wanderer.

Recognised globally, and widely popular in his country, Lat has been styled "cultural hero",[115] "his nation's conscience in cartoon form"[116] and "Malaysian icon"[117] among other effusive titles.[49][118] The Malaysian Press Institute felt Lat had "become an institution in [his] own right", honouring him with their Special Jury Award in 2005.[119] Cartoonists in the Southeast Asian region, such as Muliyadi, Chua, and Rejabhad, have given high praise to Lat,[31][44] and his admirers further abroad include North American cartoonists Matt Groening and Eddie Campbell.[3][120] Groening, creator of The Simpsons, gave a testimonial for the United States version of The Kampung Boy, praising Lat's signature work as "one of the all-time great cartoon books".[121] Sergio Aragonés, the creator of Groo the Wanderer, is another of Lat's American fans. After visiting Malaysia in 1987, Aragonés used the experience to create a story for Groo in which the bumbling swordsman chances on the isle of Felicidad, whose inhabitants and natural habitat were modelled after those of the Southeast Asian country. Aragonés drew the noses of the islanders in Lat's distinctive style, and named one of the prominent native characters—an inquisitive boy—after the Malaysian cartoonist.[122][nb 5]

Lent (2003) and Shimizu (1996) both suggest that the Malaysian comic industry began to boom after Lat joined the profession on a full-time basis in 1974.[123][124] Lent further hazards that the cartoonist profession was made more respectable in Malaysia by the award to Lat in 1994 of a datuk title (equivalent to a knighthood).[108][125] Bestowed on Lat by the Sultan of Perak, the title was Malaysia's highest recognition of the cartoonist's influence on his countrymen and his contributions to the country.[55] Before Lat's emergence, Malaysian cartooning was largely unappreciated by the public, despite the popular works of Raja Hamzad and Rejabhad.[126] Lat's successes showed Malaysians that they could thrive and succeed as cartoonists, and inspired them to look to the cartooning profession for potential careers.[108] Several younger artists imitated his style in the hopes of capturing equivalent rewards.[44] Zambriabu and Rasyid Asmawi copied the distinctive three loop noses and hairstyles of Lat's characters. Others, such as Reggie Lee and Nan, incorporated Lat's detailed "thematic and stylistic approaches" in their works.[127] Muliyadi dubbed Lat the "Father of Contemporary Malaysian Cartoons", for being the first Malaysian cartoonist to achieve global recognition and for helping to improve the industry’s image in their country.[128]

The effects of Lat's works were not confined to the artistic sector. In the period before his debut, Malaysian cartoonists supported calls for national unity. The characters in a cartoon were often of one race, and negative focus on the foibles of particular races or cultures worked its way into the mainstream.[129][130] Such cartoons did not help to sooth racial tensions that were simmering then. The situation erupted with the racial riots of 1969, and for several years after these incidents relationships among the races were raw and fragile.[131][132] According to Redza, Lat soothed the nation's racial woes with his works.[132] Drawing members of various races in his crowd scenes and showing their interactions with one another, Lat portrayed Malaysians in a gentle and unbiased comic manner.[31] Redza pointed out although one may argue that Lat was forced into the role of racial and cultural mediator (because of his employment with his country's "leading English-language newspaper serving a multi-racial readership"), he possessed the necessary qualities—intimate knowledge of various races and culture—to succeed in the job.[133] Lat's fans recognised the trademark of his oeuvre as "a safe and nice humour that made everyone feel good and nostalgic by appealing to their benevolent sides rather than by poking at their bad sides".[134] It proved to be a successful formula; more than 850,000 copies of his books were sold in the twelve years after the first compilation of his editorial cartoons went on sale in 1977.[1] The comfort that readers sought from his works was such that when in September 2008 Lat deviated from his usual style, to draw a cartoon about racially-charged politicking in his country, it shocked journalist Kalimullah Hassan. She found the illustration of a group of Malaysians huddled under an umbrella, taking shelter from a rain of xenophobic phrases, full of profound sadness.[135]

An aeroplane with line drawings of cartoon characters on the bottom half of the fuselage.
AirAsia decorated two of their aeroplanes with Lat's creations as a tribute.

Lat's works have been used in academic studies—the fields of which are diverse, spanning law,[136] urban planning,[137] and diets.[138] The academics use his drawings to help them illustrate their points in a humorous yet educational manner.[112] Foreign embassy officials have sought Lat for his insight into the cultures of their societies. They have invited him to tour their countries, in the hope that he will record his experiences in cartoon form to share with the world.[1][95] The first country to do so was the United States, followed by others such as Australia, Germany, and Japan.[95][139] In 1998, Lat became the first cartoonist to be made an Eisenhower Fellow and revisited the United States;[55] his research programme was the study of relationships among the many races in United States society.[4][140] In 2007, the National University of Malaysia awarded him an Honorary Doctorate in Anthropology and Sociology.[141] Lat's works are recognised as visual records of Malaysia's cultural history;[142] he was awarded a Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize in 2002 for preserving Malay rural culture in his works.[55]

In 1986, Lat became the first cartoonist to exhibit his work at the National Museum in Kuala Lumpur; the event drew a record number of 600,000 visitors in two months.[1] He is treated as a celebrity,[12][143] and his cartoon characters decorate stamps,[144] financial guides,[145] and aeroplanes.[146] When Reader's Digest asked Malaysians in 2010 to rank which of 50 local personalities was most worthy of trust, Lat was returned fourth on the list.[147] According to Jaafar, "100% of Malaysians respect and admire Lat, and see a Malaysian truth, whether he is drawing a policeman, teachers, or hookers."[148]