November 2005 in Malaysia and Singapore

24 November 2005 (Thursday)

• Rosyth School's student Adil Hakeem B Mohamad Rafee is named as the year's top Primary School Leaving Examination student. 97.8 percent of students are eligible for secondary school, an increase of 0.4 percent over the previous year. (CNA)

23 November 2005 (Wednesday)

• In the second Singapore-Thailand Enhanced Economic Relationship (STEER) Meeting in Bangkok, the two countries sign agreements worth over US$70 million. (CNA)
• East Coast Town will undergo a S$500m renewal programme. (CNA)
• A 28-year-old woman, who faced 80 charges of maid abuse, is sentenced to 10 months in prison. (CNA)

22 November 2005 (Tuesday)

• Two new centres was scheduled to open in 2006 offering specialist treatment to autistic children. (CNA)

• The Australian Prime Minister deems that Singapore will not adhere to the decision of the International Court of Justice; proclaimed that Australia will not be taking Singapore to court regarding the issue of executing an Australian drug-trafficker in Singapore. (AsiaOne)

• Terrorism in South-East Asia: Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean urge Singapore to buck in more effort in the prevention against any terrorist attack on the Singaporean soil. The Defence Minister also further encouraged diplomatic cooperation between countries, and noted that Eyes in the Sky is one of such cooperatives. (CNA)

• SEA Games 2005: The Singapore National Water Polo Team scored another feat with the thwarting of the host country’s team 7-6. (CNA)

• SEA Games 2005: Despite the fruitful gather of 6 gold medals in the last SEA Games for table tennis, the National Team is however lowering their forecast of medals in Manila, to 4. (CNA)

• 102 illegal immigrants were seized on 22 November 2005 by the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority – the largest heave to date conducted by the agency. (CNA)

• It have been announced on 22 November 2005 that the National University of Singapore will be increasing its investment on cancer research and education. (CNA)

• Renowned German design museum red dot opens in Singapore; Singapore will play host to the red dot design concept award ceremony, an event that will inevitably attract over 5000 entries annually. (CNA)

21 November 2005 (Monday)

• SEA Games 2005: Defending Water Polo champion, the Singapore National Team, returned with a decisive win over Malaysia with 21-3. (23rd SEA Games 2005, Manila)

19 November 2005 (Saturday)

• Singapore pledges US$300,000 to help in the reconstruction of Pakistan in areas hit by the 2005 Kashmir earthquake (CNA)

16 November 2005 (Wednesday)

• National Parks Board is seeking public feedback and suggestions on improving the East Coast Park which has been earmarked for a S$160 million facelift project. (CNA)

• Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean visits People's Republic of China and both countries agree to establish an annual defence policy dialogue and step up defence exchanges, including high level visits and port calls. (CNA)

• Singapore Armed Forces conducts Exercise Forging Sabre in California, its first unilateral exercise in United States soil. (CNA)

• Philip Alston, the Chief Adviser on the Death Penalty to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, says that Singapore's mandatory death penalty sentence on Nguyen Tuong Van is not consistent with international human rights law. A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in response says that Alston has attempted to mislead the public and that the case does not fall within his mandate. (ABC)(CNA)(MFA)

11 November 2005 (Friday)

• Counter-terrorism in Singapore: The Singapore government releases a statement saying that a 35-year-old Singaporean male, Mohammad Sharif Rahmat, who is an alleged member of the Jemaah Islamiah terrorist group, is being detained for two years from August 5, 2005 under the Internal Security Act. (theStar)(Ministry of Home Affairs)

• An Airbus A380, the world's biggest passenger aircraft, lands at Singapore Changi Airport in its first test flight out of Europe. Singapore Airlines will be the first carrier to fly the plane. (CNA)

9 November 2005 (Wednesday)

• Southeast Asia's most wanted terrorist Azahari Husin, the suspected mastermind of the 2002 Bali bombing and other terrorist acts, is believed to be dead following a gunbattle with Indonesian police. (Reuters) (Reuters)

• Five HIV-positive blood donors were charged in court on Wednesday under the Infectious Diseases Act with allegedly making false declarations in the Donor Health Assessment Questionnaire when providing information about their health and sexual history. (CNA)

7 November 2005 (Monday)

• The Asian Children's Festival (ACF), an annual event organized by the National Library Board, opens in Woodlands Regional Library to promote the habit of lifelong learning from childhood. (Xinhua)
• Singapore licenses a new vaccine, called Rotarix, developed by drug manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to protect infants against rotavirus gastroenteritis. (CNA)

5 November 2005 (Saturday)

• Measures against avian influenza: Jurong Bird Park is putting 19 chickens, bred without any immunity, in all its aviaries to help detect the presence of any infectious disease. (CNA)
• The Malay Heritage Centre receives a S$2 million donation from Lee Foundation, the biggest single donation it has received to date. (CNA)

4 November 2005 (Friday)

• A fire breaks out at a movie theatre in Suria KLCC, which is part of the Petronas Towers shortly before midnight. Nobody is believed to be seriously injured from the fire. (Seattle P-I) (BBC)

• Singapore's Ministry of Defence has purchased two Västergötland class submarines from Kockums AB of Sweden to enhance the submarine capabilities of the Singapore Navy. The submarines are expected to enter service from 2010. (CNA)

3 November 2005 (Thursday)

• Two school basketball teams from United World College and Republic Polytechnic begin a 52-hour basketball marathon to raise S$100,000 donation to help tsunami victims at Banda Aceh. If the game lasts for that duration, it will set a new Guinness World Record. (CNA)

2 November 2005 (Wednesday)

• Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo has written to Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and Labor Minister Kevin Rudd reinforcing and explaining the decision not to grant clemency to Nguyen Tuong Van who was sentenced to the death penalty for drug trafficking. (news.com.au)(CNA)

• In his traditional Hari Raya message, Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, emphasised that the Singapore Muslim community rejected any individual or group that subscribed or supported the terrorist ideology. (CNA)

• A robber posing as a postman robs RM90,000 from a bank in Kajang. (The Star)

1 November 2005 (Tuesday)

• Petronas claims a net profit increase of 23% in its first half of the year through September. (The Star)

• Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak advises the BN coalition to prepare by-elections due to the death of assemblyman Wan Abdul Aziz Wan Jaafar on October 30. (The Star)