Kuala Lumpur Swine Flu : 17 still in isolation wards

KUALA LUMPUR, May 26,2009 – Bernama

Seventeen notified cases are still in the isolation wards at six referral hospitals for Influenza A(H1N1) for observation as at 8am today.

Director-general of Health, Tan Sri Dr Mohd Ismail Merican, said out of this number, six were warded at Sungai Buloh Hospital, four at Kuala Lumpur Hospital, three at Tuanku Jaafar Hospital in Seremban, two at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Sabah, and one each at Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh and Sultanah Aminah Hospital in Johor Baru.

“Out of the 17 notified cases, 10 were confirmed free from the H1N1 virus from tests conducted by the Institute of Medical Research, while six are still waiting for the laboratory test results,” he said in a statement today.

Dr Mohd Ismail said there were 26 newly notified cases of suspected Influenza A(H1N1) yesterday, bringing the number of cases reported to the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre to 269 as at 8am today, but all the 26 cases were confirmed negative.

He said Malaysia still had two infection cases as reported on May 15 and 16, but so far there had been no transmission taking place in the country.

Up to 8am today, the World Health Organisation (WHO) informed that two more countries – Kuwait and Iceland – reported one Influenza A(H1N1) case each yesterday, bringing the number of affected countries to 46 involving 12,566 confirmed cases worldwide.

WHO also reported that nine countries recorded an increase in the number of cases in 24 hours with Peru having eight cases, Japan (six), the United Kingdom

(four), Spain (three), China (three), Hong Kong (two), and Australia, the Philippines, Colombia and Russia, one case each.

WHO said there were no new deaths among the 91 already reported.

Dr Ismail said in the 24 hours up to 8am today, 9,972 people arriving in the country by air, sea or land had been screened at the checkpoints, with three of them referred to the hospitals for further examination.

More information on Influenza A(H1N1) is available from www.moh.gov.my

Danes named world's happiest nation

A new report finds Danes to be the happiest nation in the world due to their level of subjective well-being and life satisfaction.

Northern European countries top the list of happy nations, with Sweden, Ireland, Canada, Switzerland, New Zealand, Norway and Belgium ranking 4th to 10th.

Released by the Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) the survey was based on whether people believed their lives to be dominated by positive experiences and feelings or negative ones.

The OECD used the data gathered from a 2008 Gallup World Poll conducted in 140 countries, which surveyed a representative sample of no more than 1,000 people, above the age 15, in each country.

The OECD data shows that overall economic health, work-life balance and low unemployment are among the most important factors which can bring happiness into people's lives.

The OECD is an international organization that provides economic and social statistics and data, helping governments tackle economic, social and governance challenges.

Courtesy PressTV : Sun, 10 May 2009

Aid agencies struggle with Darfur crisis

May 10, 2009 - As Sudan's Darfur crisis drags on, its refugee camps are having to be extended to cope with the increasing number of displaced people.

Al Jazeera's Mohamed Vall reports from Zam Zam camp in Northern Darfur, where humanitarian officials are struggling to cope with the growing number of people seeking their help.

Hindraf trio & 13 Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees released

TAIPING, May 9 2009 — malaysianinsider

All three Hindraf leaders, M. Manoharan, K. Vasanthakumar and P. Uthayakumar, were among 13 Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees who were released from the Kamunting Detention Centre in phases today.

Manoharan, 48, the Kota Alam Shah state assemblyman, and Vasanthakumar, 36, who came out at 2.30pm, left in separate cars while Uthayakumar, 47, emerged at 2.55pm. They are now making their way to Kuala Lumpur.

Uthayakumar, a lawyer, who left in a family member's car, later stopped by the roadside to speak to the press and some 30 Hindraf supporters.

The Hindraf legal adviser, who thanked his friends and supporters but not the government (because the ISA is still in force), said he would not adhere to conditions set for his release but did not say what the conditions were.

Earlier, about 12.40pm, a group of detainees, who were released, left in an Immigration Department van while another group, which came out at 1.20pm in an unidentified van, was escorted by a number of police cars.

Yesterday, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein announced the release of 13 ISA detainees, including Uthayakumar, Manoharan and Vasanthakumar.

The others released were Zulkepli Marzuki, Jeknal Adil and Admi Pindatun; two Indonesian nationals Zainun Rasyid and Aboud Ghafar Shahril, and five Filipinos Sufian Salih, Hasim Talib, Abdul Jamal Azahari, Yusof Mohd Salam and Husin Alih.

Vasanthakumar's mother R. Manomani, 62, and his sister K. Parameswari were among those waiting outside the gates of the camp since early morning.

Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hasan confirmed that all three Hindraf leaders were released with conditions and said that they would be back in detention should they breach the conditions.

Two Hindraf leaders, V. Ganabatirau and R. Kengadharan, were among another 13 detainees released in the first batch announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, when delivering his maiden speech as Prime Minister on the night of April 3.

Germany moves to outlaw paintball

Berlin says games like paintball encourage violence Saturday, 9 May 2009 BBC UK The German government says it plans to ban combat games such as paintball, in response to a recent school shooting. The new measures being proposed to parliament also include tighter gun control rules and give officials the right to conduct checks on gun owners. Anyone defying the proposed new rule could face a 5,000-euro (£4,474) fine. Sixteen people, including the gunman, were killed in the school shooting in March. Relatives of the victims say the new measures do not go far enough. 'Biometric controls' Under the proposed rules, the authorities would be given more right to ensure weapons are safely locked up. The massacre at Albertville School shocked Germany It is also thought that "biometric controls" for gun storage might be introduced, the BBC's Steve Rosenberg in Berlin reports. That would mean that anyone owning and storing guns at home would need to use their own fingerprint to open the safe or cupboard, our correspondent says. Berlin also plans to ban games like paintball and laser-tag that simulate killing on the grounds that they trivialise and encourage violence. But relatives of those killed in the March attack in the town of Winnenden, near Stuttgart, are calling for an outright ban on pistols and high-calibre weapons. "There cannot be a second Winnenden," Hardy Schober, whose daughter was killed in the attack, told a news conference in Berlin.

Pemuda PAS alukan kemasukan Renggo

May 05, 2009 - PAS terbuka menerima golongan artis yang ingin bersama menunaikan tugas dakwah melalui medium mereka