EDIT: Tony has been released and was able to appear in Parliament today.

Tony Pua, founder of one of the first Malaysian education blogs, Education in Malaysia, as well as a Member of Parliament, has been arrested and jailed following his involvement in an anti-ISA peaceful protest.

It’s not immediately clear whether the arrest was purely due to his involvement in the protest, or whether other factors – such as his blog or his involvement with the Opposition parties – also played a part. After major arrests on bloggers mainly for what they wrote, it’s not entirely surprising if they thought his blog was potentially dangerous.

This does not bode well for anyone. After RPK’s release and the ruling of his arrest as “unlawful”, I figured that it was safe to comment on the Government’s education and youth policies, and was about to analyse some laws related to education and young people. But if Tony Pua – who hasn’t even done anything remotely criminal, and indeed is part of the Government now – could get thrown in jail, what hope does a Lain-Lain (racial “other” or minority) permanent resident have?

Good luck Tony; hopefully justice will prevail and you’ll be free soon.

Six Apart, the company behind Movable Type, TypePad, and LiveJournal, have just announced a Bloggers Challenge to help schools, by raising money for various schools programs in the US.

To participate, just send an email to donorschoose@sixapart.com by 5pm Pacific Time October 1st to get a $30 gift certificate to donate to any DonorsChoose project.

DonorsChoose is an American initiative whereby schools and classrooms post projects and needs online and get funding from the public. Among the projects include buying handheld tools to teach maths, building a garden weather station, and getting an LCD projector for history class. While all the projects and schools are based in the US, anyone from any country can participate. You are also welcome to sponsor other projects with your own money once you redeem your gift certificate. There are also other blogger challenges, as well as the option to start your own.

Help support education – join the Six Apart Bloggers’ Challenge for DonorsChoose!

Links in Post:

• Six Apart
• lj_biz: Participate in the Blogger Challenge & Help Students and Schools
• DonorsChoose.org: Math Sharks Needed For Eager Students
• DonorsChoose.org: Garden Weather Station And Field Guide Creation
• DonorsChoose.org: LCD Projector Brings History Alive
• DonorsChoose.org Blogger Challenge