A dangerous measles outbreak is spreading across Southeast Asia, with tens of thousands of cases reported in Vietnam, Thailand, and neighboring countries. Dr Sanjay Woodhull, Consultant Paediatrician, explains how individual countries become vulnerable if there is a global spread of measles and how Malaysians can protect themselves from this disease.

Other stories we covered:

• Graft charges against Penang ex-Deputy Chief Minister: Former Deputy Chief Minister of Penang, P. Ramasamy was recently charged with 17 counts of breach of trust. This is connected to his role as the head of the Penang Hindu Endowments Board. To talk about the charges and the issue of corruption in state governance, we are joined by Predeep Nambiar from Free Malaysia Today’s Penang Bureau.

• University Malaya wants more autonomy: Vice-chancellor of UM said that the university is making moves to achieve full autonomy. They aim to eventually be governed independently and reduce their governmental reliance. Professor Zaharom Nain, Director of the Allianz Centre for Governance at University Malaya joins us to discuss this change in practice.

• Malay-Muslim rights protest: A “Daulat Melayu” rally is being organised with the expectation of 20,000 people to be in attendance. The rally seeks to draw attention to the government’s lack of action in protecting the Malay community. Controversial issues like the Urban Renewal Act, land disputes, and the use of the world “Allah” are some of the issues that are planned to be raised. Aziff Azuddin from IMAN Research joins us to weigh in on the impact of the situation.

• A crime to read in public?: A youth collective book-reading and gathering session was stopped by nearly a dozen officers from the police force and DBKL. They were told to end their session but were not given a justifiable reason. We talk about holding community events at Dataran Merdeka and whether this was an overreaction by the authorities.

Image Credit: Shutterstock