#ioj

John Henry Michael Thompson — Inventor of Programming Computer Language Used in Adobe Director

 He spent part of his childhood in Jamaica. His parents, in search of a better life for their children moved from the United Kingdom to New York.

In 2012 he returned to his homeland Jamaica,to implement the Digital Jam 2.0 project. This included directing a course of mobile apps development workshops.

According to him the vision for the project was to “export an innovative software development…

New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2015/04/10/sedition-amendment-act-2015-extends-its-powers-to-restrict-journalism-says-ioj/

Sedition (Amendment) Act 2015 extends its powers to restrict journalism, says IoJ

KUALA LUMPUR, April 10, 2015:

The amendments to the Sedition Act 1948 curtails further the limited space for journalism in the country according to the Institute of Journalists Malaysia (IoJ).

The IoJ said the amendments empower the Sessions Court to issue a “prohibition order” on a “seditious” publication that would “likely lead to bodily injury or damage to property”, or “appears to be promoting feeling of ill will, hostility or hatred” between different races or classes; or persons on the grounds of religion.

“The IoJ is concerned over the ambiguity of the terms “likely” and “appears”; and we fear that these criteria will be open to abuse and misinterpretation.

“The prohibition also requires the individuals making or sharing allegedly seditious material — on social media, for example — to remove or delete the content, and also bans those individuals from accessing any electronic device, including computers and smartphones,” the statement read.

It was stated that IoJ found it to be an unfairly harsh punishment, especially when there is no expiry date for the prohibition order.

“The inability to access tools of the trade will mean online journalists’ careers are at risk and threatens the existence of legitimate news portals.

“The prohibition on ‘propagating’ seditious speech or its publication also means that online news portals cannot share allegedly seditious remarks on social media and RSS feeds will cease to exist, further silencing discussion on policies and issues which are of national interest.”

IoJ said the situation was further exacerbated by the heavy penalty for first-time offenders who contravene a prohibition order, as they could face a maximum fine of RM5,000 or a jail term not exceeding three years.

“The practice of journalism in Malaysia is already hampered by self-censorship that is routinely practised by established news organisations.

New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2015/01/04/defence-ministry-linked-ngo-sends-aid-via-military-aircraft/

Defence Ministry-linked NGO sends aid via military aircraft

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 4, 2015:

Hot on the heels of the floods, aid has also been flooding in from the federal and state governments, political parties on both sides of the divide, private citizens, as well as from some commercial companies and non-government organisations (NGOs).

Newly launched non-profit organisation (NGO) Institut Onn Ja’afar (IOJ) was among those which extended its immediate help to the flood victims in Pengkalan Chepa, Kelantan.

As of a few days ago, IOJ had sent almost a tonne of supplies and 10 volunteers via a C-130 military aircraft.

Among the goods that were loaded on the aircraft were biscuits, sardines, baby milk, toiletries, candles and also bread sponsored by the Royal Chulan Damansara hotel.

Apart from that, IOJ had not forgotten the four-legged creatures in the flood-hit states, as cat food was among the aid sent.

IOJ chief executive officer Charles Mohan said it was the initiative of its patron, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, to make sure IOJ’s volunteers and goods reached the flood victims on time.

“It was a challenging task for us to ensure the goods reached Pengkalan Chepa and were distributed,” said Mohan, adding that the C-130 aircraft and army personnel made things a lot easier.

He said IOJ volunteers managed to distribute goods to some 2,000 victims in Pintu Geng after travelling 2km via truck from the town of Pengkalan Chepa before resorting to boats to reach the flood relief centres.

“It was a totally unforgettable memory, but it was definitely fulfilling as many won’t get a chance to do this,” said IOJ volunteer and Royal Chulan public relations officer Dang Suria Zainuddin.