MAS Flight MH370

by Dr Munir Majid, Tan Sri

Dr. Munir Majid is Visiting Senior Fellow at LSE IDEAS, Chairman of the CIMB ASEAN Research Institute. He also serves as Chairman of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council of Malaysia.

China's critical pronouncements on Malaysia's handling of the search for the lost MH370 aircraft are resulting in a precipitous decline in relations between the two countries. The Malaysia Airlines flight was carrying 153 Chinese out of the 239 in total on board when it disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpar to Beijing.

Taking its cue from anguished and angry relatives of the Chinese on board, the Chinese government has not only charged Malaysian authorities with incompetence, it has also accused them of not disclosing information in a timely manner and actively withholding evidence. This may strike many as a bit rich, coming from a country hardly known for its openness, be it about the outcome of disasters, outbreak of disease, or contamination of food.

As Malaysia tried to deal with the grief and emotions of the passengers' families, China's official diplomacy went on the attack, complicating an already unprecedented and difficult situation.

The Malaysians have been far from perfect in handling this crisis, but there is little evidence of bad faith or conspiracy. In such situations, it is essential that information is properly verified before it is made public. Yet even after the Malaysian Prime Minister announced that MH370 crashed in the southern Indian Ocean, based on evidence provided by Inmarsat, a British satellite communications firm, the families and Chinese authorities continued to demand hard evidence.

There have clearly been security lapses which need explanation -- as much to Malaysians as to anybody else. And at the outset, the crisis management could have been better coordinated. However, there is no indication there is something that could have been done to alter the realities of this tragedy.

When the plane performed a U-turn away from its scheduled destination of Beijing, all ground communication with it had been lost. The capture on Malaysian Air Force radar of an unidentified flying object in Malaysian airspace in the early hours of March 9, an event that passed without immediate national security reaction, needs full explanation. But by then the aircraft had in all probability become a missile which could just as well have crashed into the Kuala Lumpur Twin Towers as it did into the southern Indian Ocean.

Yes, there were an additional six hours or so that it continued flying before crashing. Could it have been stopped? Who, if anyone, was at the controls? Were those on board still alive, given the drop in altitude on U-turn from cruising height?

All these questions and more can only be determined if the wreckage and black box are discovered, which as all involved in the search have admitted, is a mammoth task. Even then, it is unlikely that all the questions will be answered.

It is profoundly unfair to blame Malaysian authorities for all these imponderables in a calamity of this magnitude. The international cooperation that has informed the mission of discovery, in which the Chinese are also involved, is a beacon of light in this dark catastrophe.

But why has Chinese diplomacy targeted the Malaysian authorities so harshly?

One answer is that Beijing is captive to populist pressure. Of course the Chinese authorities had to react to the anger and frustration of the relatives, but the official diplomacy has gone far further than what might have been expected. As has been the case in maritime incidents in the past in the East and South China Sea, Beijing seems either unable or disinclined to fashion a more measured response. Yet fierce protection of the Chinese people abroad cannot obscure the violation of their rights at home.

There was a demand by the relatives in Beijing for the Malaysian ambassador to kneel before them. Would the Chinese authorities also insist on this? A call was made for sanctions to be imposed on Malaysia. What for? Netizens have campaigned for Malaysian artists popular in China, like Michelle Yeoh, to be boycotted. Not to mention, of course, Malaysia itself, and trade with it.

China is Malaysia's top trading partner, and is in turn third in Asia for China, after Japan and Korea. All of this rancor must disturb the region. The hitherto positive bilateral relations with Malaysia were already being tested by Chinese incursions into the Malaysian exclusive economic zone near the Sarawak coast in contested areas of the South China Sea. This despite Malaysia dialing down the dispute it has with China, along with three other ASEAN states, now four with Indonesia counting itself as also involved in China's extensive claims.

Clearly, those Malaysians who believed close relations with China would make it more likely to quietly work through bilateral difficulties have been too sanguine. China is becoming a great power that will assert its interests without special favours and which, worryingly, is all too often captive to raw and unreasoning nationalism.

For Malaysia, there are lessons to be learned. There is little doubt, even more than when the tragedy first struck the nation and the airline, MH370 is a rite of passage with deep and enduring significance.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/munir-majid/flight-mh370-china_b_5082525.html

by Matthias Chang

Let me state from the outset that I totally agree with the press statements by Malaysia's Defence Minister and Acting Transport Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein that "we have conducted ourselves fairly, responsibly and history will judge us for that." 

And to a mischievous and presumptuous question from a correspondent of the Financial Times, Datuk Seri with confidence and integrity rightly said without any fear of contradiction that, "I don't think we could have done anything different from what we have already done." Well done!

Financial Times, CNN and other foreign media ought to pose similar questions to the US and its intelligence services and stop insinuating that Malaysia has not been transparent and/or engaged in a cover-up. Foreign media should stop engaging in dirty politics!

It is my hope that following the publication of this article, Malaysian mass media will focus on questioning the integrity of the US's assistance to Malaysia in the first three weeks of the SAR mission, notwithstanding its recent offer of more assistance.

I take comfort that my reservations about the US and its intelligence services as well as other intelligence services closely linked to the US, especially British secret service, have been more than vindicated by Reuters in its news report on March 28, 2014 entitled Geopolitical games handicap hunt for flight MH370.

Technical resources

The search for flight MH370, the Malaysian Airlines jetliner that vanished over the South China Sea on March 8, has involved more than two dozen countries and 60 aircraft and ships but has been bedevilled by regional rivalries.

... With the United States playing a relatively muted role in the sort of exercise that until recently it would have dominated, experts and officials say there was no real central coordination until the search for the plane was confined to the southern Indian Ocean, when Australia largely took charge.

Part of the problem is that Asia has no NATO-style regional defence structure, though several countries have formal alliances with the United States. Commonwealth members Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand and Australia also have an arrangement with Britain to discuss defence matters in times of crisis.

As mystery deepened over the fate of the Boeing 777 and its 239 passengers and crew, most of them Chinese, it became clear that highly classified military technology might hold the key.

But the investigation became deadlocked over the reluctance of others to share sensitive data, a reticence that appeared to harden as the search area widened.

"This is turning into a spy novel," said an envoy from a Southeast Asian country, noting it was turning attention to areas and techniques few countries liked to publicly discuss.

Ultimately, the only country with the technical resources to recover the plane - or at least its black box recorder, which could lie in water several miles deep - may be the United States. Its deep-sea vehicles ultimately hauled up the wreckage of Air France 447 after its 2009 crash into a remote region of the South Atlantic.

While Putrajaya has been forced to reveal some of the limits and ranges of its air defences, the reluctance of Malaysia's neighbours to release sensitive radar data may have obstructed the investigation for days.

At an ambassadorial meeting in the ad hoc crisis centre at an airport hotel on March 16, Malaysia formally appealed to countries on the jet's possible path for help, but in part met with polite stonewalling, two people close to the talks said.

Some countries asked Malaysia to put its request in writing, triggering a flurry of diplomatic notes and high-level contacts.

"It became a game of poker in which Malaysia handed out the cards at the table but couldn't force others to show their hand," a person from another country involved in the talks said.

As in the northern Indian Ocean, where Chinese forces operate alongside other nations to combat Somali piracy, current and former officials say all sides are almost certainly quietly spying on and monitoring each other at the same time. (emphasis added)

WantChinaTimes, Taiwan reported, The United States has taken advantage of the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight to test the capabilities of China's satellites and judge the threat of Chinese missiles against its aircraft carriers, reports our sister paper Want Daily.

Erich Shih, chief reporter at Chinese-language military news monthly Defense International, said the US has more and better satellites but has not taken part in the search for flight MH370, which disappeared about an hour into its flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in the early hours of March 8 with 239 people on board. Shih claimed that the US held back because it wanted to see what information China's satellites would provide.

The above is the reality which we have to confront. Therefore, desist any attempt to label the above mainstream media articles as a "conspiracy theory". Reuters has let the Genie out of the bottle!

Malaysia's Minister of Transport Datuk Seri Hishammuddin gave hints of Malaysia's difficulties (as his hands were tied by intelligence protocols and or refusal by the relevant foreign intelligence services and diplomatic reluctance) but our local media failed to appreciate the nuances of his statements by not directing their questions at those parties that have failed Malaysia as their neighbour and in their duties under various defence treaties and arrangements.

Malaysian media

Malaysian media, please read at the minimum three times, the sentences in bold AND WAKE UP TO THE REALITY that our country has been badly treated even though our country put all its national security cards on the table so that countries whose nationals are passengers on flight MH 370 could come forward with sincerity to assist in resolving this unfortunate tragedy which is not Malaysia's making.

Malaysia is but a victim of this tragedy whose plane, MH 370 was used for a hidden agenda for which only time will reveal.

In my previous article posted to the website on March 27, 2014, I exposed how Israel is exploiting the tragedy to create public opinion for a war against Iran, a Muslim country that has close ties with Malaysia.

At the outset of the SAR Mission, all concerned stated categorically that every scenario, no matter how unlikely would be examined critically with no stones left unturned - terrorist hijacking, suicide mission, technical failures, inadequate security, criminal actions of the pilot and or co-pilot etc.

Given the above premise, families of the passengers and the crew of MH 370 have every right to ask the following questions of the US and other countries that have sophisticated technologies to track and monitor airplanes and ships in all circumstances.

Such questions should not be shot down by those who have a hidden agenda that such queries amount to "conspiracy theories". Far from being conspiracy theories, we assert that the questions tabled below and the rationale for asking them are well founded and must be addressed by the relevant parties, failing which an inference ought to be drawn that they are complicit in the disappearance of MH 370.

Lets us begin.

1) Was the plane ordered to turn back, if so who gave the order?

2) Was the plane turned back manually or by remote control?

3) If the latter, which country or countries have the technologies to execute such an operation?

4) Was MH 370 weaponised before its flight to Beijing?

5) If so, what are the likely methods for such a mission - Biological weapons, dirty bombs?

6) Was Beijing / China the target and if so why?

7) Qui Bono?

8.) The time sequence of countries identifying the alleged MH 370 debris in the Indian ocean was first made by Australia followed by France, Thailand, Japan, and Britain via Immarsat. Why did US not offer any satellite intelligence till today?

9) Prior to the switch of focus to the Indian ocean, was the SAR mission in the South China seas, used as a cover for the deployment of undersea equipment to track and monitor naval capabilities of all the nations' navies competing for ownership of disputed territorial waters? Reuters as quoted above seems to have suggested such an outcome.

10) Why was there been no focus, especially by foreign mass media, on the intelligence and surveillance capabilities of Diego Garcia, the strategic naval and air base of the US?

11) Why no questions were asked whether the flight path of MH 370 (if as alleged it crashed in the Indian Ocean), was within the geographical parameters of the Intelligence capabilities of Diego Garcia? Why were no planes deployed from Diego Garcia to intercept the "Unidentified" plane which obviously would pose a threat to the Diego Gracia military base?

12) The outdated capabilities of the Hexagon satellite system deployed by the US in the 1970s has a ground resolution of 0.6 meters; what's more, the present and latest technologies boast the ability to identify objects much smaller in size. Why have such satellites not provided any images of the alleged debris in the Indian Ocean? Were they deliberately withheld?

13) On April 6, 2012, the US launched a mission dubbed "NROL-25" (consisting of a spy satellite) from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The NROL-25 satellite was likely rigged with "synthetic aperture radar " a system capable of observing targets around the globe in daylight and darkness, able to penetrate clouds and identify underground structures such as military bunkers. Though the true capabilities of the satellites are not publicly known due to their top-secret classification, some analysts have claimed that the technology allows the authorities to zoom in on items as small as a human fist from hundreds of miles away. How is it that no imagery of MH370 debris was forwarded to Malaysia, as this capability is not classified though other technologies might well remain classified? (Source: Slate.com)

14) Could it be that the above capabilities were not as touted?

15) However, in December, 2013, the USAtlas V rocket was launched carrying the spy satellite NROL-39 for the National Reconnaissance Office, an intelligence agency which is often overshadowed by the notorious National Security Agency (NSA), only it scoops data via spy satellites in outer space. The "NROL-39 emblem" is represented by the Octopus a versatile, adaptive, and highly intelligent creature. Emblematically, enemies of the United States can be reached no matter where they choose to hide. The emblem boldly states "Nothing is beyond our reach". This virtually means that the tentacles of America's World Octopus are spreading across the globe to coil around everything within their grasp, which is, well, everything (Source: Voice of Moscow). Yet, the US with such capabilities remained silent. Why?

Rogue intelligence operators

It cannot be said that it is not within the realm of probabilities that the US may not want the plane MH 370 to be recovered if rogue intelligence operators were responsible for the disappearance of MH 370.

If the above questions have been posed to the US and other intelligence agencies and answers are not forthcoming, I take the view that the Malaysian government ought to declare publicly that our national sovereignty and security have been jeopardized by the disappearance of MH 370 and that the relevant intelligence agencies have been tacitly complicit in the disappearance of MH370.

By coming out openly to explain the predicament faced by our country, Malaysia may prevent a hostile act against a third country.

I therefore call upon Malaysian mass media to be courageous and initiate such queries as only the US and other intelligence agencies can give definitive answers to the above 15 questions.

It is futile to demand answers from Malaysia as we are not in any position to supply the information as we do not have the capabilities of the global and regional military powers.

Malaysians must unite behind the government so that our leaders need not feel that they are alone shouldering this enormous burden.

Matthias Chang is a prominent Malaysian lawyer and author, who served as political secretary and adviser to former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.

Courtesy: GlobalResearch

- See more at: http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=features/disappearance-flight-mh-370-oceans-bottom-or-bottom-line#sthash.1ciXhkHB.dpuf

Source: https://www.facebook.com/kijangmas.perkasa

by KijangMas Perkasa

Chinese insolence : a car parked near Hotel Lido in Beijing

In memory of 87 of the passengers and crew members of MH370 and in recognition of their brave families who faced the tragedy with utmost grace, humility and dignity, I have directed the following action for all enterprises and commercial undertakings majority owned or effectively controlled by our Group with immediate effect::-

In the U.S., cease all dealings with companies and nationals of the People's Republic of China. Ongoing contracts and transactions will be legally terminated.

In Indonesia, beyond goods at port of embarkation or in transit, all commodity shipments to the People's Republic of China will cease. Ongoing contracts and transactions will be legally terminated.

In Malaysia:-

- Our property rental agreements with companies and nationals of the People's Republic of China will be terminated, with the appropriate notice and compensation.

- Our resort and homestay accommodations will not accept bookings by companies and nationals of the People's Republic of China. All prepayments will be refunded in full.

- Our transportation services and excursion tours to and from KBR to Pulau Perhentian, Tok Bali, Kuala Besut and adjoining beaches will not accept bookings by companies and nationals of the People's Republic of China. All prepayments will be refunded in full.

- Our cafes and eateries will not serve nationals of the People's Republic of China.

- Ongoing negotiations on iron ore extraction and limestone quarrying with companies and nationals of the People's Republic of China will cease.

- All traveling to the People's Republic of China, either on official business or leisure, by shareholders, directors and employees of companies majority owned or effectively controlled by the Group are disallowed. Personal losses for ticket and hotel prepayments will be compensated in full.

In short, we don't need China -- in our sight, in our mind, in our world.

Do not underestimate Malaysia.

And never underestimate the resolve of patriotic Malaysians. Never.

We may not noisily take to the streets, kicking and screaming like pigs in a slaughterhouse, or crying and wailing crocodile tears in blatantly insincere displays of emotion to sway global opinion . . . .

BUT we are a tenacious, proud people.

As in past adversities, in our own way, we rise, we improvise, and ultimately we thrive and come back stronger as we strive to achieve our collective aspirations.

Remember, against the odds, we did NOT become a long-predicted next fallen domino in the Communist land grab of a generation ago. We regroup, we close ranks, we fought back, we won. Resoundingly. And with the filthy traitors thrown to the scrapheap of history.

Speaking of filth, of course we shall never forget the benefactor and puppeteer of that treacherous cause that saw the death of thousands of our brave warriors and the slaughter of our civilians, . . . . our innocent fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters and caused unimaginable sufferings on our people.

Yes, the very nation that today harbor ungrateful scums and running dog opportunists who capitalize on global grief to cause mayhem, to incite hatred, to twist facts, to feign misery, to shamelessly squeeze every drop of sympathy to launch a crusade for a financial windfall in the name of the dead. And the bigger tragedy is when the gullible simpletons of this world are swept into the whirlpool of deceit and false pretensions of these Godless commies and became unwitting abettors in a grotesque manifestation of unbridled avarice and ingratitude.

Malaysia will forge ahead with renewed vigor, a greater sense of purpose, and with pride and dignity reflective of a refined, cultured race on a land blessed by the bounty of Allah Subḥānahu wa ta'āla, Lord of the universe, the merciful and compassionate, ruler of the day of judgement.

Tiada akan hilang Malaysia di dunia !

Source : https://www.facebook.com/kijangmas.perkasa

The Western Media, including CNN, BBC, ABC, CBS and NBC, have been broadcasting again and again, almost in loop tape fashion, the near riot in the MH370 media briefing room yesterday. Malaysia's portrayal as a villainous state, with evil officials hoarding information and telling untruths with impunity is now complete.

Malaysia bashing is on overdrive !

NOW, while the world is gripped by the possible discovery of MH370 debris in the southern Indian Ocean, let me state something:-

NO country has a monopoly on grief.

Malaysia lost 50 of its citizens. These are fathers, wives, siblings and children of quietly grieving families across our land. Indonesia lost seven people, Australia six, India five, with others spread over 11 other countries and territories.

BUT . . .

The Western Media is focusing almost exclusively on families of Chinese passengers, almost reveling in the dramatic expressions of sorrow and anger by these people. These unbridled emotions have long degenerated into bouts of Malaysia-bashing, with wild and outrageous accusations thrown at our officials and our nation by what has became a rude, noisy, unreasonable and hostile mob bent on venting their personal frustrations at something, somewhere, somehow.

And Malaysia became this punching bag.

While a little "thank you for your concern, support and hospitality" may be beyond these guests of Malaysia Airlines, we didn't expect a noisy demo in the media briefing hall either. And not least the Malaysia-bashing banner which read: “We protest against the Malaysian government withholding information and wasting time and hampering search efforts.”

NOW . . . you people know what happens if you do THIS in your homeland, China? Yes, I'm sure you do.

As for the Western Media, the LA Times quoted a typical line -- with the same flavor repeated again and again among their compadres -- this time purportedly by a grieving family member in Beijing:-

"I’m angry at Malaysia for not telling the truth. From the start they were buying time, withholding facts, and now they’re distorting the truth.'"

Really?

The truth?

What then do you call the media briefings of the 12 days? Pack of lies by Malaysia? Untruth? Buying time? Withholding facts?

Why?

So what "truth" do you want?

That the plane crashed? No, you won't accept it. The plane was hijacked? No also. The plane landed somewhere? Again No. The plane is lost and will NEVER be found? A big No No.

Then what do you really want to hear? Do you even know WHAT you want to hear?

So what is "truth" then?

NOW, you want the truth? You really want the truth? Ok . . . . .

The truth is -- until about a couple of hours ago with the Australian preliminary interpretation of the commercial satellite imagery -- NOBODY KNOWS. Not Malaysia, not China, not America, nobody knows. That's why everyone and his uncle from almost 30 countries plus millions online worldwide have been searching millions of square km of land and the deep blue ocean.

Sure, I sympathize with your grief. But again, others lost their loved ones too and suffer from the same uncertainty as well. I repeat, Malaysia lost 50 passengers and crew, including some of our best and brightest. And passengers from 13 other countries and territories were also on that flight and suffered the exact same fate as your loved ones. BUT I don't see Malaysians, Indonesians, Australians, Indians or Americans go berserk and throw bottles at Malaysia Airlines staffers and verbally abuse caregivers.

Did grieving Malaysian next-of-kin throw bottles and spit at your embassy officials and representatives in KL over the irrelevant satellite image furnished in the name of your government, which led to the deployment of our SAR assets in the middle of the South China Sea to unravel a lead that turned out to be a sick prank among many untruths and distortions spewed by your country's social media?

So why must only you people display this unbridled anger and frustration over something beyond the control of anyone, any airline, any search party, any national leader, any country, even the planet itself?

Still not satisfied?

Still want to bash Malaysia at every turn while you partake in all the free food, 4-star accommodation, counseling and transportation provided by Malaysia Airlines although the bulk of your kin's tickets were actually purchased from China Southern Airlines in a Code Share? What has China Southern Airlines done? Next to nothing. Zilch.

My message to these people: there is something called Compassion Fatigue. Your antics in Beijing and KLIA beamed over the global media has pushed many genuinely caring Malaysians towards this state of mind.

AND to the Western Media, remember, there are 239 souls on MH370, not just 152. The world has witnessed the antics of the families of the 152. Why don't you people now focus on the other 87 families who by and large handled this very difficult times with dignity underlain by brave acceptance of God's will.

====================

By KijangMas Perkasa

The problem with the American Media is that THEY KNOW NUTS about the rest of the world.

They think Malaysia is just an itsy bitsy teeny weeny little banana republic ruled by tin foil despots on behalf of lazy good-for-nothing Malay Muslims while the faultless, innocent, angelic and cherubic Chinese minority is gripped by sheer terror and repression, beaten to a pulp by the evil Malay Muslims, with no rights to jobs, property and the pursuit of happiness in a wretched, rotten-to-the-core God-forsaken place wracked by violence and injustice.

Anything and everything that regurgitate from the ignoramus talking heads pompously pontificating in their decrepit ghetto warehouse-studios and the Live reports of clueless news scavenging on-site drama queens masquerading as reporters must be viewed in the context of these ingrained, malignant debilitating knowledge retardation.

I've been here long enough to know the intellectual limitations of these people, a people afflicted by some delusional entitlement to some kind of World Dominance although in reality these overfed simpletons -- not least their media talking heads currently making a mockery of MH370 reporting -- are habitual underachievers in a land of plenty, with High School scholastic levels near the bottom of the 34-nation 2012 OECD rankings, including 26th in math, 21st in science and 17th in reading/comprehension. As for geography, it is not even an option in many of their schools, contributing to the crippling geographical retardation and absolute ignorance of global events -- not surprising for a people who call their domestic baseball finals as the "World Series" and who christen their local basketball victors as "World Champions" . . . . and, yup, tales of stampeding hogs in Arkansas become "World News" in their mollycoddled little cocoons.

So Malaysians should neither be surprised at nor take too seriously the comedic antics of these American Media talking heads and their scavenging brethrens roving our land for news morsels of MH370. These self-righteous buffoons are being afflicted by a particularly malignant case of being a Critically Retarded Asshole under Pressure by a Shitty Hothead On Overnight Television, or known in the KijangMas Annals of Surreal Medicine, CRAPSHOOT.

So people of the world, turn on your tube at your own risk as the CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox TV news CRAPSHOOT hurtles you deeper into the abyss of unmitigated stupidity. Hail to TV News stupidity. Long Live the American Media CRAPSHOOT !

The pilot of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 made a mystery call just minutes before takeoff in Kuala Lumpur.

A report in The Sun said investigators are trying to work out who Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah spoke to in the cockpit before taking off for Beijing. It is hoped the person on the other end of the call will provide a key clue to understanding the mystery of the missing flight.

Malaysian authorities have not commented on the lead or confirmed a phone call took place.

This information comes off the back of a revelation files had been deleted on February 3 from Capt Shah’s home flight simulator, just over a month before MH370 vanished. Malaysia’s defence minister said they are working to restore the files to see if it can shed any light on what may have happened on the aircraft. MH370 disappeared with 239 people on-board on March 8.

Captain Shah and daughter Aishah Zaharie. Source: Facebook