BREAKING / CAUGHT SPEECHLESS, CLARE REWCASTLE BROWN PUTS AMBIGA ON THE SPOT, LASHES OUT MORE INSIDIOUS CLAIMS AS DEFENCE

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IN an interesting twist, the Editor-in-Chief of Sarawak Report, Clare Rewcastle Brown names former Bar Council President, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan as her key witness.

She also made more bold claims, which she claims she can corroborate with solid evidence. 

There are several dimensions to this development, one of which is her primary defence of the statement as having been made in good faith, as a matter of public interest. By naming Ambiga as her witness, she intends to prove that the verbal claim made during her conversations with the said witness is sufficient to be published in her capacity as a political commentator.

By citing 'serious harm' as another aspect of her defence, she is also adding to this first dimension a claim that this case is invalid due to the fact that there had been no serious financial loss to the individual.

She is also attempting to extricate herself from this mess by claiming that she never specifically meant the person of MP Abdul Hadi Awang, President of the Islamist PAS Party - former member of Pakatan Rakyat the former incarnation of the political coalition proclaimed by Clare as her choice for the Malaysian rakyat.

Thus, there remains a possibility that she may get away with the 'public interest' defence, as subsection 4 of article 4 of the act in reference - the Defamation Act of 2013 - provides that, "In determining whether it was reasonable for the defendant to believe that publishing the statement complained of was in the public interest, the court must make such allowance for editorial judgement as it considers appropriate".

In other words, the presiding Judge will consider and allow for a degree of "editorial judgment as it considers appropriate". 

This very appropriateness is key in her defence, and she needs to prove that she is not a malicious party with objectives other than merely being a "political commentator".

One way that this can be determined is to see whether the claims that Clare Rewcastle Brown had recently entered as her counter defence can actually be proven beyond any reasonable doubt - with the proper documentation. 

These claims include that RM200 million had made it into the bank account of a PAS Deputy President Nasharudin Mat Isa, and that some of these monies had also contributed to enabling some PAS members in "acquiring new cars, new properties, and new wives", and that the documentation that she had entered would suffice to prove her case.

If she can unequivocally prove this, then the day may go to her, but if she cannot provide sufficient or even any unadulterated 'evidence' to support her case, then she certainly runs the risk of proving her malicious intent in making purposefully inaccurate and false claims based on hearsay, in order to influence the political course of a Sovereign nation.

In court, it is no longer "a matter of public interest", but rather a matter of provable claims - and Clare is risking being caught trying to use the court to play her own brand of propaganda politics by making a mirror image claim against her adversary while she is actually doing it herself.

Against the backdrop of her previously failed attempt at throwing accusations against the Malaysian Judiciary, we await with mouth agape at the boldness of her claim and await the myriad interesting ways she will come up with either to absolve herself, or dig her own grave ever deeper. 

By naming Ambiga, she is confirming that she is in collusion with a figure that had long been associated with her work on a Malaysian 'regime change', and had also admitted to receiving a large sum of money from the Soros-founded Open Society Foundation.

To the claim that she never mentioned Abdul Hadi by name, but only made references as to monies that had "entered the accounts of top PAS leaders", Abdul Hadi may win this argument due to his capacity as the President of PAS, and thus reputationally has the most to lose due to the perception that he would have had the control in doling out such a huge amount of alleged bribe. All RM90 million of them. 

As for the "serious harm" defence, the law specifically spelt out that, "A statement is not defamatory unless its publication has caused or is likely to cause serious harm to the reputation of the claimant," which is to say that reputation loss is at the centre of what the Judge would consider in this case, however, as stressed in part 2 of this definition, that "harm to the reputation of a body that trades for profit is not 'serious harm' unless it has caused or is likely to cause the body serious financial loss," meaning to say that 'serious harm' in this case is dependent on the currency that is gained in the reputation. 

In other words, for a business, their currency is money, and thus financial loss is required to to constitute 'serious harm', but for a politician, the currency would be the loss of support.

The emphasis on the phrase "is likely" is worth noting, because an actual loss in the number of support is not expected to be necessary, merely the possibility of it happening should suffice.

As a coup de grâce, Clare is attempting to compel Abdul Hadi Awang into entering his defence following her 'bombshell' of a counter-claim. It remains to be seen if the Judge would allow such a defence as being sufficient to compel the claimant to provide said defence.

This particular defence includes a claim that commentators such as Malaysia Today and blogger Raggy Jessy/The Third Force (RJ/TTF) are propaganda machines under instructions both by PM Najib and Abdul Hadi himself, setup in order to influence the court's decisions.

In her world, everyone who disagrees with her, or knows that she is up to no good would be branded a propagandist, and not herself. 

It is her bogus Sarawak Report - ipso facto - that is nothing but propaganda, not the other way around, precisely to present to the Judge that she is the victim instead of the victimiser. 

We hope that the presiding Judge would be wise enough to discern this fact, and that Abdul Hadi is able to stress this point as well.

And that is pretty much the crux of the matter: that a Judge, especially in the age of electronic media, would be trained not to be affected by the possibility of external media influence, and that she firstly needs to prove as to how she arrived at the conclusion that PM Najib and Abdul Hadi had their hands in controlling what MT and RJ/TTF publish instead of being mere political commentators themselves, however offensive their language or writings seem to her own warped out sense of what's right and what's wrong, before compelling that Abdul Hadi prove his innocence.

That is the long and short of what we can surmise thus far. An interesting development, certainly. 

Now, we await the courtroom action unless something new comes up - as things usually do in cases such as these.

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1.

2. RELATED: SARAWAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE OF INFORMATION, SAYS REPORT

3. RELATED: CLARE: HADI, NAJIB COLLUDING TO EXPLOIT LONDON CASE PROCEEDING

4. RELATED: HADI WILL HAVE TO FILE DEFENCE TO CLARE'S CLAIM, SAYS LAWYER

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'RM90M FOR PAS': S'WAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE

REPORTED BY MALAYSIAKINI

Clare (left) and Ambiga, who is named as the former's source.
Photo: Malaysiakini

Sarawak Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown has named former Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan as part of her defence with regard to a defamation suit filed against her by PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang. 

Rewcastle-Brown claimed she had spoken to Ambiga in July 2016 on matters related to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, 1MDB and PAS [continues in subscription].

(''RM90m for PAS': S'wak Report Editor Names Ambiga as Source.' – Malaysiakini, October 30, 2017)

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1. 'RM90M FOR PAS': S'WAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE

2.

3. RELATED: CLARE: HADI, NAJIB COLLUDING TO EXPLOIT LONDON CASE PROCEEDING

4. RELATED: HADI WILL HAVE TO FILE DEFENCE TO CLARE'S CLAIM, SAYS LAWYER

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RELATED: SARAWAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE OF INFORMATION, SAYS REPORT

REPORTED BY THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT

Clare at a Bersih Rally in London, clearly campaigning for the Opposition party using a civil rights event as a cover. The Bersih movement admitted to having received money from George Soros' Open Society Foundation to exact 'regime change' in Malaysia.
Photo: The Malaysian Insight

SARAWAK Report editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown has named former Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan as a source of information for alleging that top leaders in PAS had received money from Prime Minister Najib Razak, Malaysiakini reported today.

According to the report, Rewcastle-Brown said she spoke to the former Bersih chairman in July 2016 regarding Najib, 1MDB and PAS.

"Ambiga had told the defendant that her sources, whom she said were reliable, had estimated the amount that had been paid was around RM90 million," said Rewcastle-Brown in her court filing dated October 11.

The court documents were filed in relation to PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang's defamation suit against Rewcastle-Brown in April this year.

Hadi claimed that he had been defamed in a Sarawak Report article entitled "As Najib denies all over 1MDB let's not forget his many other criminal connections" that was published on August 6, 2016.

The article suggested that money was in exchange for PAS support for Barisan Nasional.

Rewcastle-Brown said she published parts of her conversation with Ambiga in good faith as a political commentary on a matter of public interest, the report said.

The Sarawak Report editor said her statements were not directed at Hadi and any other individuals personally.

The filing also told the court Najib allegedly transferred more than RM200 million to former PAS deputy president Nasharudin Mat Isa since 2014, to fund a particular PAS faction.

Rewcastle-Brown said former party leader and other top PAS officials had bought cars, properties or took new wives. She provided a long list of luxury vehicles bought by them.

('Sarawak Report Editor Names Ambigs as Source of Information, Says Report.' – The Malaysian Insight, October 30, 2017)

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1. '90M FOR PAS': S'WAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE

2. RELATED: SARAWAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE OF INFORMATION, SAYS REPORT

3.

4. RELATED: HADI WILL HAVE TO FILE DEFENCE TO CLARE'S CLAIM, SAYS LAWYER

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RELATED: CLARE: HADI, NAJIB COLLUDING TO EXPLOIT LONDON CASE PROCEEDING

REPORTED BY FREE MALAYSIA TODAY

Abdul Hadi Awang (right) is accused to collude with PM Najib to use Malaysia Today and The Third Force as an attempt to influence court decision.
Photo: FMT

PETALING JAYA, OCTOBER 30, 2017 – 

Clare Rewcastle Brown claims PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang has colluded with Najib Razak or his agents to exploit the London court proceedings as part of their propaganda effort to exonerate the prime minister. 

In her counter-claim in response to Hadi’s defamation suit, the whistleblower website editor said they want to discredit her and Sarawak Report in its justified campaign that Najib be removed from office and be brought to justice for his alleged corrupt and criminal conduct. 

In court papers sighted by FMT, Clare said Hadi, whether by himself or his agents, had been party to the publication of a series of articles, viciously or racially abusing, defaming and harassing her on the Third Force and Malaysia Today websites. 

In a counter-claim filed on October 11, she said these publications amounted to harassment and she wanted the court to award her damages for severe stress, anxiety and distress caused to her and an injunction restraining Hadi from further harassment. 

Lawyer SN Nair had said Clare would stand to obtain costs and damages if the court dismissed Hadi’s suit and allowed the counter-claim. 

Hadi filed his suit at the London High Court in April following an article she wrote on Aug 6 last year. 

Sarawak Report ran an eight-paragraph article in which it claimed RM90 million was “reckoned” to have entered the accounts of top PAS leaders to woo them into supporting Umno and Barisan Nasional. 

Clare, in her defence to Hadi’s suit, said the PAS leader was not named or identified as being the object on any statement in the article. 

She said allowing Hadi’s cause of action as the person referred to in the article would be disproportionate, unnecessary and unjustified interference and inhibition of her and the public right to freedom of expression, especially in the discussion of political matters. 

Clare said Section 1 of the Defamation Act 2013 required that it be proved that the publication of the statement complained of had caused serious harm to Hadi’s reputation. 

She denies that such harm had been caused to Hadi. 

Clare said Hadi filed the claim not to protect his image but for the illegitimate purpose of protecting the reputation and advancing the political purpose of PAS and his political ally, Najib. 

She said the statements in the article were a matter of public interest, namely on corrupt and criminal history and activity, conduct and influence of the government, the political and judicial process in Malaysia and whether Najib was fit to hold public office. 

Clare said she would prove that Hadi knowingly allowed PAS to be compromised and corrupted and the democratic process to be undermined by senior party personnel. 

She said these officials accepted and personally benefited from enormous secret payments from Najib to undermine and withdraw the party from the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition. 

She said Hadi ‘s claim for damages and any injunction should also be dismissed.

('Clare: Hadi, Najib Colluding to Exploit London Case Proceeding.' – Free Malaysia Today, October 30, 2017)

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1. '90M FOR PAS': S'WAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE

2. RELATED: SARAWAK REPORT EDITOR NAMES AMBIGA AS SOURCE OF INFORMATION, SAYS REPORT

3. RELATED: CLARE: HADI, NAJIB COLLUDING TO EXPLOIT LONDON CASE PROCEEDING

4.

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RELATED: HADI WILL HAVE TO FILE DEFENCE TO CLARE'S CLAIM, SAYS LAWYER

REPORTED BY FREE MALAYSIA TODAY

Lawyer SN Nair claims that Hadi now needs to enter his defence against Clare's as yet unsubstantiated counter claim.
Photo: Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA, OCTOBER 30, 2017 – 

Abdul Hadi Awang has to file his defence to absolve the prime minister of accusations in response to Clare Rewcastle Brown’s claims that the PAS president has conspired with Najib Razak or his agents to exploit a court case in London, a lawyer said. 

SN Nair said this must be done within a stipulated time as provided under the English court rules. 

“Failure to do this will amount to Clare obtaining a judgement in her favour,” the lawyer told FMT. 

Nair said he believed Hadi’s lawyers in London would rebut the counter-claim due to the serious allegations made. 

He said this in response to the Sarawak Report editor who filed the counter-claim and defence to Hadi’s defamation suit filed in April. 

In her counter-claim, the whistleblower website editor said they want to discredit her and Sarawak Report in its “justified campaign” that Najib be removed from office and be brought to justice for his alleged corrupt and criminal conduct. 

In court papers sighted by FMT, Clare said Hadi, whether by himself or his agents, had been party to the publication of a series of articles, viciously or racially abusing, defaming and harassing her on the Third Force and Malaysia Today websites. 

[Clare can sue these parties and prove in court that they are actually doing all these things to her, and if she has a strong case, she should sue to prove this claim first before expecting the court to simply accept it as fact, just on her say so. The quality of her 'evidence' is yet to be evaluated, but judging by what had transpired regarding her claims against the Malaysian judiciary being also in collusion with PM Najib and Abdul Hadi, we feel that this claim may go the same way as well. This is of course, up to the Judge to consider.]

In the counter-claim filed on October 11, she said these publications amounted to harassment. 

In it, she has implicated Najib in the financial scandal of state investor 1MDB, the Scorpene submarine deal and the murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shaariibuu, the prosecution of Anwar Ibrahim for sodomy, endemic corruption and money politics in the 2013 general election. 

Clare has also listed out at least 10 senior PAS officials from the ulama group who have been beneficiaries of money sourced from 1MDB. 

Hadi filed his suit at the London High Court following an article she wrote on August 6 last year. 

Sarawak Report ran an eight-paragraph article in which it claimed RM90 million was “reckoned” to have entered the accounts of top PAS leaders to woo them into supporting Umno and Barisan Nasional. 

Clare, in her defence to Hadi’s suit, said the PAS leader was not named or identified in any statement in the article. 

She said Hadi’s suit was an infringement of her right and the public’s right to freedom of expression, especially in the discussion of political matters. 

Clare said Hadi filed the claim not to protect his image but for the illegitimate purpose of protecting the reputation and advancing the political purpose of PAS and his political ally, Najib. 

She said the statements in the article were a matter of public interest. 

Nair said Hadi and Clare could also opt to strike out each other’s claim after their defence had been filed. 

“But it must be filed before the trial commences,” he said, adding that it would interesting to see which personalities would give evidence.

('Hadi Will Have to File Defence to Clare's Claim, Says Lawyer.' – Free Malaysia Today, October 30, 2017)

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The NINE QUESTIONS Blog will return with more facts.

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EDITORIAL / UNMASKING THE REAL LUKAS STRAUMANN AND THE BRUNO MANSER FONDS - PART I: WHITEWASHING SWISS NAZIS WHILE ATTACKING SARAWAK

– PART I –

IN an interesting development happening in Canada, Lukas Straumann of the Bruno Manser Fonds had initiated a lawsuit against a Canadian company owned by the daughter of the current Sarawak Governor, Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud.

Their allegations will be explored in a separate upcoming piece, and will be another interesting matter to expand. However, in this first part of the "Unmasking of the Real Lukas Straumann and the Bruno Manser Fonds", we will take you on a journey of discovery over what motivates people like Lukas Straumann and Bruno Manser to be so passionate about very certain minorities, but ignore others, no matter what their plights.

Below, we attach an open letter to Lukas Straumann, and we hope that he can answer us in due time. We have also posted the same message on the BMF official YouTube video of Mr Straumann explaining the lawsuit - by his own understanding, of course - he initiated against the Canadian company, Sakto Corporation - so that there would be no question as to Mr Straumann having knowledge of this open letter.

In this installment, we would like to highlight the contrast between Lukas Straumann's approach towards Nazi-linked Swiss companies, and his approach towards a company owned by the daughter of the Governor of Sarawak, the latter so far has not been convicted of any of the allegations that had been made by Mr Straumann, Ms Brown, and their manifest destiny organisations, BMF and Sarawak Report (SR), even after many, many years of global effort.

May they fail again.

To spare any further suspense, this story succinctly concludes with the notion that if you were a confirmed Nazi-linked Swiss company, you will get off with merely a private meeting and a short comment from Mr Straumann. Any lawsuit? No. Just a slap on the wrist and then they move on to relentlessly bother Sarawak instead - as if the State was the one with the atrocious Nazi past and all the attendant genocides and war crimes and not them. On the contrary, Sarawakians - including the Taib family are against any acts of genocide. We just can't say the same about Lukas Straumann and friends, as elaborated within the open letter attached below.

[UPDATE: October 19, 2017]

N.b., we checked again on the same YouTube video account, and found that our open letter to Lukas Straumann had not only been ignored, but duly deleted for reasons known only to themselves.

We rest our case on reaching out to Mr Straumann for any civil discussions as they are merely interested in blocking anyone who disagrees with or questions them instead of engaging in a fruitful and meaningful discussion. In fact, they would rather entertain groups of uncouth and foul-mouthed commenters on their various pages.

– The NINE QUESTIONS Panel

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AN OPEN LETTER TO LUKAS STRAUMANN

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by CASSIUS PEREIRA

SEPTEMBER 20, 2017

Dear Lukas Straumann,

Your interest in Sarawak issues is commendable - albeit self-serving. We wonder when will you be suing the Swiss chemical companies that were complicit with the Nazis during WWII one way or another, the case of which you investigated in 2001 (see attachment below). It is entirely baffling to see your sense of priorities, whereby given all these years you have still not taken any legal action to bring Swiss companies to justice for their profiteering from the plight and degradation of the persecuted minorities, especially the Jewish people of Europe, where Mr Straumann, a Swiss is from.

A private lawsuit is imperative in the case of Ciba AG, whereby its former Jewish owners, Syngala "wouldn't be able to sue" even as Ciba allegedly failed to complete the purchase payments. Someone such as Lukas Straumann, given the vast expanse of his passionate activism should be best positioned to fight for the former Jewish owners, or even to return it some sort of a common Jewish ownership, anything other than merely commenting, "It is from small and rare remarks like these that you deduct that there was indeed an awareness of wrongdoing", and leaving the matter to rest as if nothing ever happened. Did those lawsuits (Mr Straumann uncovered several other similar Swiss chemical companies) ever happen?

Yet, here we see Lukas Straumann, back in the private lawsuit game allegedly to restitute monies for the far-flung people of Sarawak, which they allege had been stolen and brought to Canada.

Mr Straumann, the Nazi involvement in Switzerland is more extensive than previously admitted by the Swiss, but your actions in whitewashing Nazi atrocities and later your relentless pursuit of a career in crusading faraway natives is at the very least, deeply unsettling. This is especially worrying considering that you have not spoken out - not even on one occasion - against the mistreatment of the Romas and other nomads of Europe. If you still prefer to go further afield in Asia, we don't see you speaking up against the genocide actually happening in Myanmar, where 400,000 Rohingyas have had to flee, mostly into Bangladesh.

Granted that these are actual cases of tribal persecution by the authorities, we don't see Mr Straumann bothering to lend his voice to those that actually need them. Yet, he has a strange fetish for the Penans of Sarawak, who aren't even close to experiencing such prosecutions and are in fact in the process of familiarising themselves with modern development.

What's that? The Nazis stole Jewish companies in Switzerland and this Swiss historian simply shrugs it off with merely a comment, and the Swiss would rather look further afield in Sarawak in order to save the world, or the Penans, or the Sarawakians and whatnot - and keep us in our jungle just the way they want us to?

It seems likely that Lukas prefers to whitewash Nazi Germany atrocities in Switzerland so that he can walk around pretending that they had fairly dealt with the matter, while pursuing some sort of a Revenge/Crusade/Activism project involving the peoples of Sarawak on behalf, it seems, of the Bruno Manser Fonds.

Lukas Straumann can make mountains of claims, but what they cannot deny is that Sarawak is an open developing society and anybody with a passport can visit and explore the land without restriction - other than the conventional law and order, of course.

In fact, there are thousands of Europeans and Americans - young and old - that do come and visit the Land of the Hornbills to see for themselves what Sarawak is all about behind the negative Western publicity usually churned out by the same people time and again. Mr Straumann and Clare Rewcastle Brown are partly to thank for that, certainly - although that is absolutely not their intention.

Is there a genocide or persecution against the Penan people, as alleged and hinted by the BMF this whole while? Is 90% of the forest really disappearing or has disappeared? People can choose to continue reading your propaganda, or people can choose to book the next Air Asia flight to Kuching and see for themselves.

It is not like Burma, as much as you like for people to think. :D

Contrasting the earlier point with your current lawsuit in Canada, we do think that you are still whitewashing Nazi atrocities while targeting alleged corruption cases from further afield just to have something to show in terms of your activism, and that there is a guiding hand behind your actions, which isn't exactly activism.

With that, we conclude with the Swissinfo.ch article in reference.


SWISS CHEMICAL FIRMS PUT PROFITS FIRST, STUDY FINDS - 
REPORTED BY SWISSINFO.CH

December 30, 2001 –

Scrutiny of chemical firms' archives has provided key insights into the attitude of Swiss business in its dealings with the Nazis. 

Switzerland's 20th century pharmaceutical giants - Ciba, Geigy, Sandoz (since merged to form Novartis) and Roche - have traditionally kept tight-lipped about their wartime past.

But that changed when the firms were ordered to open their archives to an Independent Commission of Experts (ICE), set up in 1996 to probe Switzerland's wartime past. 

The study into "Swiss chemical subsidiaries in the Third Reich", by historians Lukas Straumann and Daniel Wildmann, was one of numerous studies published this year by the ICE, led by historian Jean-François Bergier. 

The study reveals that the four Swiss parent companies, which were all based in Basel, had a greater control over their German subsidiaries during the period under consideration (1933 to 1945) than had hitherto been assumed.

Pressure to sack Jews 

The 358-page study provides evidence that the firms did not come under Nazi pressure to sack Jews until 1938 - before that they were more or less free to employ and dismiss anyone they chose. 

Nevertheless, the authors point out, Ciba, Geigy and Sandoz went out of their way as early as 1933 and 1934 to voluntarily "Aryanise" their German subsidiaries by sacking Jewish employees and replacing Jewish members of the board of directors. 

Roche's subsidiary in Berlin, by contrast, only reluctantly replaced its Jewish staff, and did so only in 1938 when the Nazi regime intensified its anti-Semitic policies, allowing only "non-Jewish" companies to continue to operate. 

The decisive factor in Roche's case was probably personal, the authors contend. [Roche director-general] Emil Barell had a Jewish wife, which meant that he was more sensitive to Nazi policies towards Jews than other people", Wildmann says. 

Straumann adds: "We found documents in the Roche archive that describe details of Nazi 'aryanisation' policies, which proves there was an interest in the fate of Jews." 

Forced to comply 

Swiss enterprises have often justified their behaviour in Nazi Germany by saying they were obliged to comply with the Reich's policies as a condition of doing business.
But Wildmann's and Straumann's evidence belies such an interpretation. Roche didn't lose any business as a result of its loyalty towards Jewish employees - in fact the company boomed like no other during the war. 

The report suggests that the chemical sector is particularly suited for studying the ethical standards of Swiss business as a whole during the war years. 

The reason is because as a knowledge-based industry, the chemical sector had traditionally established closer ties between parent company and subsidiaries than was the case in other sectors. The industry probably also employed more Jews, especially as scientists. 

The study probes other controversies surrounding the business practices of Swiss subsidiaries in Nazi Germany - their contribution to the German war-effort, their use of forced labour, and financial transfers. 

German re-armament 

Firms who relied on dyes and heavy chemicals, chiefly Geigy, did less well out of German re-armament and the war than subsidiaries that relied on pharmaceuticals. 

Roche did particularly well thanks to its control of the German vitamin C market and its position as a major producer of opiate-based painkillers. Its sales almost trebled during the war from 8.8 million Reichmarks (roughly worth $100 million today) to 22 million Reichmarks. 

Unlike other sectors, where Swiss investments in subsidiaries paid off after the war but not in the short-term, Swiss chemical firms managed to transfer large sums to Switzerland in the form of licence fees. 

In addition, most of the German-based production relied on input materials from the parent company, the payments for which were also transferred freely to Switzerland. 

But the most interesting aspect of the study is what the authors discovered about the moral choices faced by the companies' managers. 

Polish ghetto 

Wildmann tells of a situation where the management of Ciba dispatched one of its employees to track down a former client who had disappeared in the Jewish ghetto of Stenstochow, Poland - in order to recover a payment that Ciba was owed. On his return, the employee drew up a report but omitted any mention of the conditions in the ghetto. 

When the Austrian drugs company Syngala was "aryanised" in 1938 and its Jewish owners forced to sell, Geigy saw an opportunity to expand into the pharmaceutical market. 

Geigy agreed to buy the company from its Jewish owners, who escaped to the United States, but failed to meet all its payments. 

When the issue was brought up in a boardroom discussion, Geigy's company lawyer remarked that Syngala's former owners wouldn't be able to sue. He later added to the minutes in handwriting that the point was "unimportant but worth a consideration". 

"It is from small and rare remarks like these that you deduct that there was indeed an awareness of wrongdoing", Straumann says.

('Swiss Chemical Firms Put Profits First - Study Finds.' – SwissInfo.ch, December 30, 2001)

– END OF PART I –

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The NINE QUESTIONS Blog will return with more facts.

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BREAKING / "THE WOLVES" REACH A SETTLEMENT WITH THE US DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, THE NOOSE TIGHTENING AROUND CLARE REWCASTLE BROWN & CO'S NECKS

IN what looks like an upsetting development for the Sarawak Report camp, the US Department of Justice has reached a settlement with Red Granite Pictures - the notorious producers of the critically-acclaimed and groundbreaking 'Wolf of Wall Street' starring Leonardo DiCaprio as renegade American stock broker, Jordan Belfort who made a killing pumping and dumping non-performing stocks and repackaging them as bluechips with ridiculously inflated prices.

In what can best be described as a caper like no other, we are starting to think that Red Granite Pictures really should consider making a movie of this whole 1MDB saga, and also a mini-series on the shenanigans of the Clare Rewcastle Brown and Lukas Straumann pairing, not forgetting the financiers and politicians behind them. It's time that their sinister motivations - masked as civil rights crusades and environmental campaigning, when that cannot be farther from the actual truth - be exposed for what they truly are.

– The NINE QUESTIONS Panel

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1.

2. RELATED: 'WOLF OF WALL STREET' PRODUCER SETTLES U.S. FORFEITURE SUIT

3. RELATED: 'WOLF OF WALL STREET' PRODUCER REACHES SETTLEMENT IN CORRUPTION CASE

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'WOLF OF WALL STREET' PRODUCER RED GRANITE SETTLES FORFEITURE CASE WITH U.S. GOVERNMENT

Prosecutors previously told the court civil discovery would have an adverse effect on the related criminal investigation.

REPORTED BY THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Red Granite Pictures and the U.S. government have resolved the civil forfeiture case related to a Malaysian embezzlement investigation, according to a notice of settlement filed in California federal court Friday.

The feds had been seeking seizure of more than $1 billion in assets that were allegedly diverted by high-level Malaysian officials into shell companies, some of which may have been used to fund Red Granite's films. The company is run by CEO Riza Aziz, the stepson of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, and prosecutors believed it received about $100 million of the embezzled funds. A separate civil forfeiture targeting profits from Red Granite's Daddy's Home and Dumb and Dumber To has also settled.

FOCUS / AU CONTRAIRE, CLARE (REWCASTLE BROWN), SARAWAK IS A BEACON OF UNITY AND HARMONY; HOW SARAWAK REPORT AND LAPDOG BRUNO MANSER FONDS KEEP DISTORTING THE TRUE SITUATION IN SITU

ONCE again, reality bites the poison pen blog disguising itself as legitimate 'journalism' with the recent revelation by the Junior Chamber International (JCI) whom Sarawak hosted early September, that Sarawak remains the very beacon of peace that it has been celebrated for time and again.

The JCI had recently organised the acclaimed International Summit of Peace in the Sarawak capital of Kuching. The choice obviates and testifies to the continued successes of the Abdul Taib, Adenan and currently, Abang Jo Administrations in fostering peace and harmony despite Sarawak being situated in a region still being rocked by persistent and deadly inter-communal and inter-religious strifes.

We feel that it is this very potent combination of harmony and peace that is standing in the way of Sarawak Report and Bruno Manser Fonds - its fondest and most loyal pet animal, and they will stop at nothing to undermine and disrupt this enviable status quo that Sarawakians from all walks of life enjoy, as it is only within the ashes of destruction can these camps conjure up a corrupted Utopia in their own distorted images.

May their efforts continue to go to waste.

– The NINE QUESTIONS Panel

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SARAWAK A UNIQUE EXAMPLE OF PEACE

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“I will just encourage them, especially the young people [of Sarawak], to continue that – the idea to respect, believe, support and encourage one another, as well as to share that peace with the rest of the world.” – Dawn Hetzel, Junior Chamber International World President

REPORTED BY THE BORNEO POST

FOCUS / WHAT REALLY GOES ON IN SARAWAK, DESPITE NEGATIVE CAMPAIGNS BY CLARE REWCASTLE BROWN, LUKAS STRAUMANN AND THEIR MANIFEST DESTINY ORGANISATIONS SARAWAK REPORT AND BRUNO MANSER FONDS

SARAWAK Report and the Bruno Manser Fonds can claim whatever they want with all the huff and puff of their media might, but the State of Sarawak has been moving forward hand in hand not only with Malaysia - the country Sarawak helped create, and will struggle with, through thick and thin - but also alongside the world at large.

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REDEFINING GLOBAL TRIBES

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Join the revolution for Business Event communities to gather in unity to construct a stronger identity for Malaysia’s economy. 
Published by BESarawak, April 20, 2017

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THE JOURNEY - SARAWAK, BORNEO, MALAYSIA
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The Journey through Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia, where adventure lives...
Published by SarawakTravel STB, January 4, 2012

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SARAWAK | WHERE ADVENTURE LIVES
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If adventure had a home, it would be the vast wilderness. Grand, green, awesome! Like no other place on earth. If adventure had a home, it would be filled with the friendliest people on earth. People of different races, religions and cultures. If adventure had a home, it would be here when one arrives as a guest and leaves as family. If adventure had a home, its home would be Sarawak. Come and explore our vast wild home of adventure. Sarawak, where adventure lives.
Published by SarawakTravel STB, February 26, 2016

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CAT CITY || KUCHING SARAWAK MALAYSIA
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Kuching (cat) City is one of the cleanest cities in Malaysia. Kuching is also a popular destination for people from neighboring countries like Indonesia and Brunei to come for [a] holiday. 
Published by Times Off, March 6, 2017

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WELCOME TO BEAUTIFUL GIAM VILLAGE AND WATERFALL SARAWAK
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Published by Johny John, May 16, 2017

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DISCOVER THE CITY OF UNITY, KUCHING
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A tourist is traveling around Kuching and meeting up his old friend, Eric which happens to be a local in town. Eric decides to bring his curious little friend around town and explain more on the components of uniqueness they have in Kuching that he could never forget. Eric also emphasizes on a remarkable experience his friend will embark not just the city itself, but also the unity of the multiracial society in Kuching. He introduces the tourist to his friends which are multiracial, show the tourist how everyone gets along very well without any complication despite having different backgrounds with different cultures and beliefs.
Published by Danish Busmah, May 15, 2016

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KUCHING | CITY OF UNITY
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Kuching is now the world's first City of Unity, and together we share this joy and pride.
Published by Asa Esa Films, August 14, 2015

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MIRI, SARAWAK
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Miri is a coastal city in northeastern Sarawak, Malaysia, located near the border of Brunei, on the island of Borneo.
Published by Eriic Aubins, April 2, 2017

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VISIT SIBU YEAR 2017 PROMOTIONAL VIDEO
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For more updates, please visit: https://www.travelsibu.com

Published by Visit Sibu Year 2017, March 14, 2016

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Thus, while Clare Rewcastle Brown and Lukas Straumann can jump around campaigning and peddling false and divisive stories about Sarawak - where they do not even reside, nor ever had at any length in their useful lives - the holy grail of their misguided crusade remains a beacon of unity and exemplary cultural harmony, pragmatically pursuing a unique version of modernity with inclusivity as its core value.

Sarawak will run a course along with the rest of the world. We are just unsure if Sarawak Report, BMF and their clone organisations are in sync with the rest of humanity, and not still as a bunch of "katak di bawah tempurung" (insular frog living under a coconut shell).

– The NINE QUESTIONS Panel

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The NINE QUESTIONS Blog will return with more facts.

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CURRENT / BLOGGER RAGGIE JESSY/THE THIRD FORCE PRESSES THE ATTACK AGAINST CLARE REWCASTLE BROWN, SILENCE FROM BROWN

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WITH ever mounting evidence verified by a reputable UK publication - The Telegraph previously did an extensive exposé about the Browns' alleged propensity for passing the buck to the common people in favour of allegedly alleviating their own pockets when it suits them - Raggie Jessy of the blog The Third Force is back to tell us about this lurid, yet suppressed (at least by Sarawak Report) piece of relatively recent history that is too blatant too ignore.

The fact that the whole episode went unpunished justifies the repeated retelling of it to as wide an audience as possible.

Also, the fact that one of the members of the Brown clan is currently and actively slandering Malaysians in every angle that she can frame her bogus stories from - chiefly of which is the anti-corruption angle - serves to factualise the abject and unbridled hypocrisy that is clearly being displayed by this self-appointed crusading 'journalist'.

Or a "half-past-six" journalist in Malaysian parlance.

– The NINE QUESTIONS Panel

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2. RELATED: IN THE LATEST SALVO BY RAGGIE JESSY/THE THIRD FORCE, CLARE BROWN'S ALREADY SEMI-EXPOSED SKIRT IS LIFTED FOR ALL AND SUNDRY TO SEE

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CLARE BROWN AND THE RM110 MILLION EXPENSES SCANDAL THAT ROCKED BRITISH PARLIAMENT

In Malaysia, Gordon would have been investigated by the Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC), the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM), MACC, the Attorney General’s chambers and Bank Negara (BNM) just the way Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Razak was. Yet, he got off scot free in the UK despite paying members of his immediate family with hard-earned taxpayer-money just to clean his Westminster flat!

REPORTED BY THE THIRD FORCE

On the 4^th of November 2009, at 6.48 GMT, Sean Noonan of the Stratfor Global Intelligence team sent an email concerning cuts in expenses that were imposed upon British lawmakers. In the email, Noonan referred to a report that spoke of questionable claims made by British Members of Parliament (MPs), leaked to The Telegraph by an unidentified government official.

Noonan was referring to the United Kingdom (UK) Parliamentary Expenses Scandal (PES), a major blow to the premiership of Gordon Brown that violently rocked the British House of Commons. In May 2009, Gordon came under intense scrutiny both by the media and the British parliament following revelations that he used taxpayers’ money to pay his wife (Sarah Brown), brother (Andrew Brown) and sister in-law (Clare Rewcastle Brown) to manage his housekeeping.

Noonan’s mail came months after his colleague, Lauren Goodrich, pointed out in another email that the crisis had cost Gordon at the polls and was bound to bring his premiership to an end. And she was right – amid public outrage over the scandal and the lack of commitment towards criminal prosecutions (which did eventually take place in 2010), support for Gordon’s Labour party took its worst beating ever in a century during the local elections held on the 4^th of June 2009 for all of UK’s 27 County Councils.

On the 8^th of May that year, The Telegraph shocked the nation when it spread the entire list of MPs and their expenses claims in print (see also screenshot below). The findings by the British daily – which, for the record, were legit and never challenged by Gordon – included details of a house swap arrangement that allowed the then premier to transfer his claims under the Additional Costs Allowance (ACA).