I was shocked to learn that the Malaysian government has agreed to US requests to allow it to conduct military reconnaissance flights over the Straits of Malacca. The question is of course this, why does the US need to patrol the Straits of Malacca?

The US has no business pitching tent on our front lawn. The US military is notorious for errors of judgement which result in the innocent loss of life. On July 3, 1988 at 10.22 am, US military forces accidentally shot down over the Persian Gulf an Iran Air passenger airliner killing all 290 passengers on board including 57 children. That was the fate of Flight 655.

What would happen if the US accidentally shoots down a MAS passenger airliner while patrolling our skies? No doubt compensation will be paid but no amount of money, no matter how much, can replace a lost relative.

We must desist this dastardly US notion that lives are dispensable in the war against terror. How different are the terrorists and those fighting them when both pay scant regard to the sanctity of human life?

I am also disturbed by a report that the Malaysian government has held meetings with the Thai government to discuss the fate of the Thai nationals who fled their homeland seeking political asylum and protection in Malaysia.

The Malaysian government has agreed to allow the Thai government access to the refugees. Does this decision reflect moral decency? Are victims of persecution to be betrayed in favour of overriding factors such as neighbourly good ties and regional friendships which are perceived as being of higher priority?
This especially in view of the IRC's (International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent) report which has named Thailand as one of the countries that has secret prisons in secret locations away from the prying eyes of human rights associations.

Other countries named which had secret prisons were Afghanistan, Poland, Romania and ex-Soviet states). We like to pride ourselves as being a Muslim nation. Sadly by our actions we are far from being one.