==> Pls visit new site at http://malaysia-today.net/ <==

There is no comfort zone for me.I fought day and night for change ,in whatever little way I can.Vigils are part of my life!

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RED MASS CELEBRATION

The Malaysian Catholics Lawyers Society is celebrating the annual Red Mass celebration on Saturday, 17/01/2009 at Church of Assumption, Petaling Jaya (Beside Assunta Hospital).

The procession starts at 9.30am followed by Mass at 10.00am and thereafter, brunch for everyone.

Red Mass refers to a Mass celebrated annually in the Roman Catholic Church for judges, prosecutors, attorneys, law school professors, students, and government officials. The Mass requests guidance from the Holy Spirit for all who seek justice, and offers the opportunity to reflect on what Catholics believe is the God-given power and responsibility of all in the legal profession.

The first recorded Red Mass was celebrated in the Cathedral of Paris in 1245. From there, it spread to most European countries. Around 1310, during the reign of Edward II, the tradition began in England. It was attended at the opening of each term of Court by all members of the Bench and Bar.

According to the Catholic Church, the Red Mass is so-called from the red vestments traditionally worn in symbolism of the tongues of fire that descended on the Apostles. Additionally, Judges of the High Court of England and all doctors of law wore red robes or academic hoods.

Join us in this celebration of tradition.

Source: http://www.facebook.com/topic....topic=6430

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No copyright. Feel free to use this image to invite your friends to the PJ Vigil.

BTW, Pahlawan Volunteers finally have a blog.
Visit http://pahlawanvolunteers.*********.com/

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In death, he speaks
Jan 15, 09 10:43am

True journalism is often lost in the clutter of opinion, public relations, government dictates, ownership agendas and advertising priorities. As the media industry chases profits, only a few journalists are left with the courage to speak truth to power. Even more so in countries torn by violence and ethnic strive, where being a true journalist can mean death.
MCPX

Sri Lankan journalist Lasantha Wikramatunga (first photo below) was assassinated last week. Three days later, his newspaper, Sunday Leader, published his last editorial, an editorial written for the occasion of his death. In recognition of Wikramatunga's contribution to journalism, Malaysiakini republishes his editorial here.

‘And they came for me’
Lasantha Wikramatunga

No other profession calls on its practitioners to lay down their lives for their art save the armed forces and, in Sri Lanka, journalism. In the course of the past few years, the independent media have increasingly come under attack. Electronic and print-media institutions have been burnt, bombed, sealed and coerced. Countless journalists have been harassed, threatened and killed. It has been my honour to belong to all those categories and now especially the last.

I have been in the business of journalism a good long time. Indeed, 2009 will be The Sunday Leader's 15th year. Many things have changed in Sri Lanka during that time, and it does not need me to tell you that the greater part of that change has been for the worse. We find ourselves in the midst of a civil war ruthlessly prosecuted by protagonists whose bloodlust knows no bounds.

Terror, whether perpetrated by terrorists or the state, has become the order of the day. Indeed, murder has become the primary tool whereby the state seeks to control the organs of liberty. Today it is the journalists, tomorrow it will be the judges. For neither group have the risks ever been higher or the stakes lower.

Why then do we do it? I often wonder that. After all, I too am a husband, and the father of three wonderful children. I too have responsibilities and obligations that transcend my profession, be it the law or journalism. Is it worth the risk? Many people tell me it is not. Friends tell me to revert to the bar, and goodness knows it offers a better and safer livelihood. Others, including political leaders on both sides, have at various times sought to induce me to take to politics, going so far as to offer me ministries of my choice. Diplomats, recognising the risk journalists face in Sri Lanka, have offered me safe passage and the right of residence in their countries. Whatever else I may have been stuck for, I have not been stuck for choice.

But there is a calling that is yet above high office, fame, lucre and security. It is the call of conscience.

The Sunday Leader has been a controversial newspaper because we say it like we see it: whether it be a spade, a thief or a murderer, we call it by that name. We do not hide behind euphemism. The investigative articles we print are supported by documentary evidence thanks to the public-spiritedness of citizens who at great risk to themselves pass on this material to us. We have exposed scandal after scandal, and never once in these 15 years has anyone proved us wrong or successfully prosecuted us......

Mahinda, when you finally fought your way to the SLFP presidential nomination in 2005, nowhere were you welcomed more warmly than in this column. Indeed, we broke with a decade of tradition by referring to you throughout by your first name. So well known were your commitments to human rights and liberal values that we ushered you in like a breath of fresh air. Then, through an act of folly, you got yourself involved in the Helping Hambantota scandal. It was after a lot of soul-searching that we broke the story, at the same time urging you to return the money. By the time you did so several weeks later, a great blow had been struck to your reputation. It is one you are still trying to live down....

That The Sunday Leader will continue fighting the good fight, too, is written. For I did not fight this fight alone. Many more of us have to be - and will be - killed before The Leader is laid to rest. I hope my assassination will be seen not as a defeat of freedom but an inspiration for those who survive to step up their efforts......

If you remember nothing else, remember this: The Leader is there for you, be you Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim, low-caste, homosexual, dissident or disabled. Its staff will fight on, unbowed and unafraid, with the courage to which you have become accustomed. Do not take that commitment for granted. Let there be no doubt that whatever sacrifices we journalists make, they are not made for our own glory or enrichment: they are made for you. Whether you deserve their sacrifice is another matter. As for me, God knows I tried.

Read full @ Malaysiakini

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"There are three classes of people:
Those who make things happen
Those who watch things happen and
Those who ask "what happened?"

I disagree. There a four classes of people


Those who make things happen
Those who watch things happen and
Those who ask "what happened?
Those who criticize things that happened

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