Kuala Lumpur  - A year after Malaysia's political landscape experienced a dramatic shake-up with a historic election, the people's soaring hopes seem to have coalesced into discontentment as anticipated change appears too slow in coming.

On March 8, 2008, Malaysia's three-party opposition alliance captured the hopes and imaginations of government critics when it swept up control of five of the country's 13 states and denied the ruling coalition a two-thirds majority in Parliament for the first time.

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia on Thursday announced a 10-billion-ringgit (2.7-billion-dollar) stimulus package, dubbed a mini-budget, to boost its ailing economy.

The fund is the second economic stimulus package by the government after a 7-billion-ringgit package announced in November.

Deputy Finance Minister Kong Cho Ha presented the proposed mini-budget in Parliament for a debate on Tuesday before it could be approved.

Kuala Lumpur, Mar 5 : The Malaysian Government has information that over 100,000 Indian youth are involved in crime, including theft, robbery, distributing drugs, gangsterism and murder.

Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam disclosed this recently, and said lack of jobs, guidance and the influence of friends were major contributors to the social problems.

Kuala Lumpur, March 5 : A group of archaeologists has unearthed two prehistoric buildings from the third century AD in the Bujang Valley in Malaysia recently.

The group, from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)'s Centre for Global Archaeological Research, found a building and a smelting factory, following an excavation project in Sungai Batu, Semeling.

Discovered in two areas near an oil palm plantation in Jalan Lencongan Merbok recently, the buildings proved that an ancient civilisation had existed in the Bujang Valley.

Kuala Lumpur  - Malaysian police have detained an Indonesian maid for allegedly attacking her 65-year-old employer in the second suspected case of violent attacks by maids in one week, a news report said Wednesday.

The alleged victim's son, Lim Cheng San, noticed that his mother had swollen eyes and bruises on her arms early Monday, a day after she was left alone in the home with the 35-year-old maid, the Star daily said.

Lim said he questioned the maid, who claimed that the swollen eyes were due to medical ointments rubbed on the face.

Kuala Lumpur  - Malaysian opposition lawmakers from the northern state of Perak held an emergency meeting Tuesday under a tree after police blocked them from entering the state parliament in a political drama that has gripped the nation for more than a month.

A minor scuffle broke out when 28 legislators from the People's Alliance along with supporters arrived at the state assembly building, only to be blocked by supporters of the ruling National Front coalition.

Riot police had earlier set up road blocks leading to the building and had told the opposition lawmakers they were not allowed to enter.