and for once after many miserable anniversaries, Desi is hopeful on the 51st birthday.
For the first time ever since I started blogging, this 31st August 2008 is to be treasured -- for finally Malaysians nationwide turned the tide on March 8, 2008 and re-affirmed on August 26, 2008 via 58,000 voters at Permatang Pauh. The tide for change brings hope when before there was pessimism, a future to look forward to when previously a substantial segment of the populace felt alienated, and a re-affirmation that the Malaysian people in the majority could distinguish Black from White, Right from Wrong. Most important of all, the majority of Malaysians find there is an Alternative to the Barisan Nasional.
I'll pause here as I heard the sound of fireworks marking official celebration, and the first pitter-patter of raindrops falling on my window panes and the rooftop.
My heart finds rest and serenity. NegaraKu is finally finding her people entering a maturing stage of a parliamentray democracy; they need to nurture it well with vigilance and a fighting spirit to safeguard the gains we -- The People -- have attained over the past four years STRIVING4CHANGE.
Let the quest continue -- Malaysians disregarding clour, race or creed, age or gender, in building a Nation We Can Stand Tall Alongsideand Declare, "Malaysia, My Home, First and Last, Always."
~~ To be continued...
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Blogging and Merdeka
Yes, it's the eve of Merdeka, so soon after DSAI's Merdeka Mission quite accomplished in Permatang Pauh on August 26.
Desiderata's My Blue H'aven has marked each Independence Day with the MERDEKA ESSAY series, and I hope this tradition will be continued if my Esteemed Readers care to participate. From Today -- not Malaysia Today for the blardy government wants that BLOG blocked, but the Devil's Den will open its floodsgates for UMNO-rites to conduct its RIP rites -- YL-Desi will reprise a few of last year's WRIES,and the series will hopefolly -- we have time for FUN-d; Yes? -- till September 16, when VVVVVVVe celebrate the more meaningful MALAYSIA DAY since the PM inpresenting yesterday's Bajet 2009 acknowledged that poor fellow brethren in Sabah and Sarwak have been neglected like "orphans" until the GE cometh around once evrey four/five years.
Here's from Desi and Y&A kyels and johnleemk's --- who BTW, also helps Wan Fadzrul coordinate YouthSpeak at cpiasia.net, which BTW2, will be officially launched on Monday September 8, 2008 at SCAH at 2.30pm. Please mark this Date with us in thy diary, or even with the dairy with da cowws:) Plenty of milk today! STAY TUNED for official announcement!:)
*******
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
MERDEKA: Travelling Back In Time
DESIDERATA was surfing through his own archives to lift out of the cobwebs something PERSONAL for me to reflect on as Merdeka approaches. I find my second anniversary of Desi's Place struck a chord and I don't know the exact reason why I reprised this today. Maybe some happenings don't need a reason. Being alive and kicking now is reason enough.
___________ REPRISE OF POST March 15, 2007 ______________
PREFACE:
I was working at an online newspaper for a year not that long ago and so was well exposed to electronic sources of news and debate, mainly from foreign sources, and I felt most at home with the American and British scenes. Having worked some time with the Aussie diplomatic mission, I also had a soft sport for Down Under people and happenings.
Being of Chinoserie ancestry -- but first and foremost a Malaysian, I stress! -- and knowing a smattering of Mandarin so I can comfortably see annd enjoy a movie like The Banquet without the need to staray to the subtitles, emerging China as a political and economic juggernaut also naturally was my radar-scape.
But being born and bred in NegaraKu, I feel very at home whether in a kampong/ new village or town/ bandar or the city of Kuala Lumpur (though I have never trusted local KL-ites compleatly! hence I describe the capital as B'g, B'd Wolfish Koala Lumpuh!), Desi would never allow any blardy idiot to question my loyalty as a Malaysian.
I mostly enjoy Malay, Chinese and Indian cuisines seven days a week, but make an exception to have a CON BF (continental breakfast) on a Sunday, my capitalist indulgence as I am an out-of-the-closet Socialist (In the league of the current French Sigolene Royale, someone I tease mGf based in London who is quite introvert plus sensitive/ble? > hence "sensintrovert")
Chapter 1
As a freelance journalist taking up blogging chiefly influenced by JeffOoi exactly two years ago, I was happy to be able to connect with a core group of fellow/fella (Fella is defined as the female counterpart as fellow is always considered male) bloggers. I must also thank those readers who don't blog but visit often enough to engage in conversations.
There is yet a more connected group who progressed to join Desi's EMAIL LIST, numbering about 12-15 gathered over 24 months. (YOU know who you are if you have exchanged thoughts in intimate detail with Desi. This is mainly jesting -- most ly talking shop on political matters that are not safe to go public; well a small percentage of mayhaps five percent do venture into personal territory, but that's reserved for spinning my fictional novels later, with Hollywood blockbustier in mind. Rest assured I'd do it a 30% to the protagonist-blogger who has opened up his/her/gender-neutral soul to Desi.)
Most of all, I must thank these various categories of EsteemedReaders ("ER") who take the time and trouble to comment on my "writes", more formal as in a serious Essay following all the rules of Intro, Body and Conclusion; 'rites as in recording Malaysiana titbits and snippets that are eye-catching and define our local culture and politics; and lastly, more lustily perhaps than the earlier two, my writHings. In this category I lend my pretty frank thoughts on Malaysian goings-in which concern or trouble or amuse me as a Malysian citizen. The "H" implies that Desi does a lot of gymnastics, sometimes using the much maligned DDC ("Da Desi Code" methinks first gifted by the hoRst of allofhelen.blogspot.com; the R in host arose from an actual event narrated to Desi about how a Guest speaker was pronouncing this word with the R sound consistently -- neigh, neigh!)
Back to my stated Objectives as revealed in my first three Posts from March 15, 2005, to date they are, in gist:
**
I shall be touching on subjects broadly categorised as desiderata.english; desiderata.civilsociety; desiderata.truth -- generally with the ultimate objective of promoting the love and appreciation of outstanding writings in English; the cultivation and promotion of human traits and endeavours to build a civil Malaysian society, and finally, if possible, embark with fellow travellers in this journey called Life in the pursuit of Truth, that undefinable yet essential and desiderable, in my opinion, ingredient in the civilization process so that the human race continues to uplift itself beyond and above the banal, the demeaning and the destructive actvities that now pervade, and in some societies, even dominate human activities worldwide.
**
I believe I am by nature and nurture an organiser and team leader (RESUME hilites include Student Union's office-bearer; Press Training Programme Director; Chairman of LES Committee Chairman at AHC), so it was a natural course I organised what I termed as G7 meetings among Bloggers, mostly KL-based. Numbering half a dozen such meets, with quorum ranging from 2 to SE7EN. These meets gave the participants to see the person behind the anonymous masks of the cyber-writer, and I think all of us ranked these as a peak in our journeys. What say you, mates, Yes?
I believe in a non-profit adventure that is my type of blogging, it's the constant Hi's with very few Lo's (when combined, Hi-Los are still pleasing!) that makes Blogging a happy and learning adventure. The blogging experience spans a wide age range, non-discriminatory of sex, colour and race. Religion and partisan politics take up little space in our discourse; mostly it has been friendly banter and trading of jokes, satire, allowing for caustic soda in-the-face barb trading with an occasional "stranger". Few and in-betwen, such hostile encounters were easily terminated by one party just calling TIME-OUT, erase all traces of animosity and there's no legacy of enmity to bequeath. I can only off-hand record two such episodes.
________________________________________________________
Chapter 2
Today I arrive at a sort of crossroads. This Second Anniversary on the Ides of March ushers in what I think is the second chapter as I spent some time the past few weeks of where I am, and the journey I had traveled thus far. Much waters has flowed under the cyber-bridge. I have gained much, didn't lose any, perhaps made a few enemies I term as Agents Provocateur (APs), so I count my journey positive, productive and most important in my mind, "enjoyable".
I have reviewed my Three Original Objectives, and today announce that I have retained
the three objectives, viz:
* Civil Society;
** Promotion of the English language, especially using Poetry as a Special Medium;
*** Truth-seeking.
But to be added a fourth, namely:
**** Nation-building,
which I think is timely and must enjoy priority as Malaysia approaches its 50th anniversary of birth.
I would think Nation-building would encompass Politics, whether Partisan or Non-partisan. I have decided that a citizen has every right to involve himself/herself in partisan politics, and this would not detract from the role of any Blogger in contributing to the community.
I borrow the words of a media fraternity member: "One cannot remain neutral in a moving train." -- Jacqueline Ann Surin, whose writings have caused much and spirited debates in blogosphere, and mGf Howsy holds her in higher esteem than Desi (YOU, Time's Person of the Year 2006, can interpret this statement any way YOU like, Desi, as you know, tries to practise democracy even in all his discusioins, especially when media is the open field. Blogsworld members aspire and want to be treated with respect as the Fifth Estate. So let's start by adhering to the same exacting and high standards demanded of the Fourth Estate.
At the personal level,
I penned the following over the past 48 hours.
Inside the head resides the rational mind,
In the heart dwells one's soul seeking its home.
But to my mind, at journey's end it's all fruitless
If a seeker finds he has gained much of worldly treasures
but can't feel the warmth in his/her heart at night
to feel the comfort of a person at peace with his soul
The ultimate treasure
resides within the individual's heart
even as soon his life's journey began
except many did not feel their own heartbeats
until it's too late, the heart has stopped chanting.
Follow That Dream
by Elvis Presley
When your heart gets restless, time to move along
When your heart gets weary, time to sing a song
But when a dream is calling you,
There's just one thing that you can do
Well, you gotta follow that dream wherever that dream may lead
You gotta follow that dream to find the love you need
AS the song comes over the airwaves, my thoughts often go back to some lonesome travel by an Andalusian shepherd boy who one night dreamt of a distant treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. This shepherd boy broke out of the comfort zone of his father's Andalusian farm in Spain to set out for Morocco, then towards Egypt seeking "the soul of the world". When he bade farewell, his father's only advice was: "Travel the world until you see that our castle is the greatest, and our women the most beautiful".
His journey through desert storms, narrow escapades from theives and marauding robbers, and from other life-threatening situations, being left penniless, and betrayed by a companion -- these werre challenges in an answer to a call to follow his dream that a youth could not ignore or resist, even with a sacrifice of leaving behind his sweetheart. To seek out his destiny he must, or else his heart would not let him rest, for he would be trapped with an unquenched thirst. Even his sweetheart understood his longing, so wished him well on his journey. She too sought the peace within even as her sweetheart sought his far away in a strange and foreign land.
My dear ER, if you have the time, try to read
The Alchemist
by
Paulo Coelho
The Brazilian story-teller only suggests.
He hints. He asks thee to listen to your heart.
As Santiago the shepherd boy travelled on his journey, he found that was "a language that doesn't depend on words". He realised: "If I can learn to understand this language without words, I can learn to understand the world."
So each of us have to define our dreams, then follow these dreams, because to find the Truth at the end of such a quest on Earth is the way to find "God", which could mean happiness, fulfilment, and understanding the ultimate purpose intended by an Almighty perhaps, of individual Man's transient journey on this good earth.
The novel tells the tale of Santiago, a boy who has a dream and the courage to follow it. After listening to "the signs" the boy learns of various intangibles on a terrestrial trip, alike in spirit Jonathan Livingstone Seagull's adventures on air, guided by a few stranger-friends and "omens" that cropped up.His search for a hidden treasure located near the pyramids in Egypt would end...YOU find out yourself, for Desi's a practising democrazee and wouldn't want to serve thee false "madsin" forced down the throat.
I know I must write first true to my heart's desire.
The desiderata of happiness is to seek the Truth within one's soul
to be able to separate the precious from the banal
to discern the right from wrong
to find meaning and tranquility in the dance of life
While we may stumble, even fall,
we learn the language of overcoming the tests
So we won't lose the rhyme, nor the rhythm
As a quest can end in failure
because of corruption of the soul
by discordant notes and unsound distractions.
I just completed the first and second years' movements.
I am still composing the symphony of Life.
The third movement has just begun.
Do be one of my travelling companions
to be entranced by this common dance of life.
posted by desiderata
*******
Following share the thoughts of Young&Articulates JohnLee and Koi Kye Lee:)
Guest Blogger: johnleemk
"I still believe in Malaysia!"
All the other Merdeka essays I have seen to date touch on pessimism for the future of this country, and either explicitly or implicitly refer to certain controversial policies of our government. While I have written more than my fair share of essays on those (indeed, for the second Merdeka running, I have lambasted a particular bastion of these policies on my blog), it is not my intention to contribute to the burgeoning crop of condemnatory and in some rare cases, insulting, pieces of prose in this field.
Rather, permit me to explain why, even at times when I feel there is no hope, I still believe in Malaysia. Why I still believe in being Malaysian. And why, after all we've gone through, some Chinese might say, I still fervently believe in calling myself Malaysian first, rather than Chinese.
I don't believe there's a need to explain the bout of pessimism about Malaysia and its future. It wouldn't be too hard to examine the root causes of this discontent and resentment. Rather, what one ought to be doing is attempting to explain why some who share this same feeling of discontent and resentment still love this country.
As much as I have joined the usually resounding clarion call of voices in the blogosphere denouncing the government's approach to certain fields of its administration, I nevertheless continually find myself in an odd spot amongst them. Even among those I know in real life, pigeon-holing me into one category with others is something that remains hard to do. Unlike many, I have never felt any hate or frustration with this country -- rather, the sole focus of my anger has been the government and those within it.
~~~~~~~
I hail from a rather mixed background. I was born in Japan, to a Chinese Malaysian father and a Filipino mother. I was raised in Singapore, but educated wholly in Malaysia. On my father's part, I have never really managed to empathise with his mixed feelings towards our country. Logically, I understand them, yes, but emotionally, I do not feel them. Nevertheless, we can be broadly painted as moderates - people who do not believe that this country is wholly doomed yet. We are certainly far from Chinese chauvinists, making it hard for us to relate with several stereotypical Chinese grievances such as those related to the (what I will continue to refer to as segregatory) vernacular education stream. And as for my mother, her being non-Malaysian naturally precludes her from holding any strong views about the future of our country.
~~~~~~~
Similarly, amongst my peers -- especially those who were denied scholarships! -- there is a simmering feeling of discontent and frustration at the system. In some cases, this has even translated to a dislike or hatred of the Malays and Muslims. However, having grown up amongst them, I have never shared such feelings -- and this is where my story begins.
Unlike 95% of all Chinese Malaysians, I was educated in a national -- and by national, I do mean national; it was far from a Malay school, thank God - school. I never knew anything of discrimination or that taboo phrase, "second-class citizen". As far as I was concerned, I was just another nine-year-old grumpily getting on the bus for school with his friends. Until I was about 12 or 13, I did not even know what the word "Bumiputra" meant. Perhaps it shows how insulated I was by my circumstances; I do not know.
Whatever the case, I grew up feeling no reason for anger towards my country or my peers. Even though Islam was often brought up by my Malay friends in ways that could have been construed by some (probably those over-sensitive non-Malays) as incitement, we were very much a united bunch. My memories of primary school consist not of discrimination or frustration. Maybe my school was particularly liberal; I am not sure. They certainly gave one little excuse to argue that meritocracy was not being practiced; I was a member of the entirely non-Bumiputra school team that sent us to the district level Mathematics quiz. (Although in retrospect, they did make sure that the Head Prefect was always a Malay...) Still, if one considers the attitude of national school students and compares it with those from, say, the Chinese education stream, it is clear that one group is more "Malaysian", shall we say, than the other.
In primary school, I still remember, there was no distinction between Malay and non-Malay or Bumiputra and non-Bumiputra. We were all the same, and all treated equally. We took pains to respect one another's background, and we never encountered difficulties accomodating one another. We attended each other's birthday parties, with my parents making sure catered fast food was available for those with particular sensitivities. After school, we'd play football with crushed tin cans, nobody caring what the skin colour of the other bugger was like. We even made fun of those with particularly dark skin -- to us, that was just a physical attribute; race never came into the picture. "What does race have to do with anything?" we'd probably have asked.
After leaving primary school, as one matures, one better understands the way things are. I am sure all of us acutely understand the picture currently -- or at least understand it better than we once did. Nevertheless, we still maintain our practices and habits. I still invite my Malay friends to my birthday celebrations, and they make it a point to attend if possible. I do the same with them. The way you are brought up in primary school is crucial, because in our case, it has made us think like Malaysians, not Malay, Chinese and Indian.
There was a huge brouhaha earlier this year about a survey indicating that a sizeable percentage (I forget the exact amount) of Malaysians have never shared a meal with one of another race. This, my friends, is the legacy of that segregatory school system. This is why I continually and habitually rail against the establishment of vernacular education.
Never had a meal with someone of another race? A mixed group eating, and laughing together -- National school students have been doing that by habit since we can first remember, and it is not a habit that dies easily. Even in college, we think nothing of lepaking or yes, having breakfast or lunch, with those of a different skin pigmentation. It doesn't even come into the picture.
There are very noticeable differences in the behaviour of Chinese-educated and national school-educated students which can last for a lifetime. In secondary school and college, it is not too hard to tell these kinds of people apart. The Chinese-educated generally keep to themselves, while the national school students invariably have their own clique. That is not to say the Chinese-educated do not mix with the non-Chinese-educated; that certainly does happen. However, by inclination, one group is partial to keeping itself racially pure (whether they intend this or not is debateable; it could very well be unconscious), while another has no issues with mixing things up. Even those national school students we regard as racist thumb their nose at the Chinese-educated -- to them, this is another class of racists altogether.
Perhaps I am being too blunt. But whatever the case, it is my feeling that being of a national school background has made a tangible difference in who I am and how I feel today. Maybe this effect on my character was accentuated by my being a tabula rasa - blank slate - seeing as I had no inkling whatsoever of anything being wrong with a "Malaysian Malaysia" (still a taboo phrase for many government leaders). Nevertheless, I notice how I think differently and react differently. Some of these differences are probably attributable to my being completely race-blind at a young age (though I hope I remain race-blind today). But still, many of them, I believe, are rooted in my upbringing as a Malaysian, and not as a Chinese.
Today, my Malay accent is a bit Malay - and I do blush with pride when Malays remark on what they consider the quality of Malay. (To be honest, folks, it's atrocious. I need a dictionary whenever I intend on writing a decent essay in Malay. I'm just good at bahasa pasar.) To me, there is nothing to be ashamed of in knowing Malay, or being proficient in it. It is not the language of one race to me -- it is the language of one nation, and that is the Malaysian nation. My Malay may be atrocious, but I can tell you of the difference between kaum (race) and bangsa (nation).
Bahasa Melayu bukanlah bahasa kaum Melayu; ia merupakan bahasa bangsa Malaysia. Some might take umbrage at me referring to this language as Bahasa Melayu. If so, I apologise. Again, it is my upbringing. But I feel nothing wrong with "calling a spade a spade"; we do not recoil at calling English what it is, do we? After all, it is no longer a white man's language. What something is depends not on what we call it, but what we perceive it as. A rose under any other name would smell as sweet (Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare).
But enough of that digression. Some might think I have been assimilated as a Malay/Muslim (the two are generally synonymous, are they not?). But is this true? My faith in Christianity has never been stronger, I would say. And as for race, I have always been (perhaps rather idealistically) race-blind. I have never really come to think of myself as a Chinese, although if asked for a race, I will continue to habitually speak of myself as Chinese. As far as I'm concerned, I am Malaysian.
One common ground I hear for retaining Chinese education is that it is, well, Chinese education. That it teaches our young to be perceptive of their nature as Chinese. I will have to disagree on this, then. It is my view that what is far more important is to be brought up and educated as a Malaysian. If it means diluting one's Chinese-ness, so be it. I do not intend to pull any punches here. We are Malaysians, not Chinese. That is what must be foremost in our minds, and what must be inculcated in us from young. Our home is not a place where our classmates, colleagues, and friends are practically 100% Chinese. It is not a place where everyone can converse in Mandarin, or where everyone shares the same cultural understanding. The Chinese school is a poor mechanism for preparing our young to live in a heterogenous nation.
And as for diluting one's Chinese identity, I do not put as much stock in that argument as I once did. After all, my girlfriend's identity as Chinese remains strong despite spending her entire life in a convent school instead of a Chinese school, and being educated entirely in Malay. She habitually speaks in Chinese proverbs, and lectures me on the need to be more, well, Chinese. And yet the beauty of it is that our conversations are - what else could they be? - Malaysian. To use a bit of linguistic jargon here, we code-switch between English, Malay, and a variety of Chinese dialects. (Some day, perhaps I shall find an occasion for inserting the one or two words of Tamil I know into a discussion - although I doubt there is a way one could politely utilise my profanity-centred vocabulary.) To us, there is nothing wrong with speaking in bits of English and Malay, with the occasional Chinese idiom.
And this is what gives me hope for the future. That perhaps some day we will all be able to be as unrealistically idealistic as I am, and speak of ourselves as Malaysians. When that day has come, my friends, we shall no longer encounter the need to shelter ourselves in communal schools (be they MARA Junior Science Colleges, or SRJKs), or derogatorise those of another race as kaum pendatang. If Malaysians have decided that we are Malaysians, what can the politicians do? And that is what I hope for Malaysia, this 49th Merdeka of ours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bonus Guest: Koi Kye Lee aka Kyels, and she has a distinctive Blog @kyels.com named
Laments of a Broken Hearted Silhouette.
The Silhouette, like Mona Lisa, often maketh Desi pause and wonder and wait,in anticipation, about the mystique. Meanwhile, she sometimes sounds morose and lost, yet other times rise to ecstasy and poetic brilliance, not knowing Des's lapping it all up, shyly peeping through the semi-darkness under the silvery moonlight.
Sometimes I touch gold.
What’s Happening?
Quo Vadis,My Country?
The youths today are vastly different from those of yesteryears. I believe there is this Generation Gap, in Malaysia and other countries -- a common phenomenon.
What we perceive today is almost different from what our forefathers had distinguished. During the olden days, moral values were of supreme importance in daily lives, especially when it comes to older people in the society and in familial ties. Benevolence, respect, empathy, sincerity, honour, sympathy, and more, were the vital traits, and featured prominently when it comes to teaching and raising a child.
But one question I’d like to ask: Do you see in the children today inbibed with those values?
It's not to say that I am very well endowed with such "wonderful" values, but I do have a clear conscience that I try hard to contribute to promoting a civil society.
Let’s take the public transportation scene in Malaysia, for example. How often do you see youngsters getting up and offering their seats to the elderly?
I take the Light Rail Transit (LRT) every day and from what I have observed all this while, I realised that many youths are either ignorant, or they lack certain social values. There was the occasion when I stumbled upon this scenario. The LRT was packed and it so happened I witnessed this episode with my own eyes. One blind man stepped into the train and made his way towards the bar since he could not see any seats and no one took his arm and to guide him to an empty seat. Looking from afar, I saw that a young girl was seated on one of the seats, and I could see her gaze was set upon the blind man. What hit me was: why did she not get up and lead the man to her seat?
I observed for more than three minutes and she was still giving the blind man the same uncaring stare. She was not ready to give her seat up until a good Samaritan told the girl to stand up and let the blind man have the seat. The amazing part was that she was so unwilling to do so, discernible from her facial expression. But she had to -- because a whole load of strangers were looking right into her!
When we see more such scenarios happening, can we figure out that there is something wrong here? Charity begins from home after all. No, I am not judging the credibility of our parents and guardians today, but rather I believe the education system of our dear country has some role to play in bringing about such sad state of affirs.
What do you really see when we talk about the education system here? There might be differuing points of views because we all have our own perspectives. Yes, it is indeed a subjective issue, but certainly begs the question: Does the system serve to ionculcate the social values and graces in tandem with an aspiring developed nation status society?
From what I see, a certain percentage of people no longer care about morality. Many still do, but they do so at a much deteriorating scale as compared with the era of our forefathers. The people today care more about getting straight A’s in Government examinations. Yes, it’s not wrong to aim for good grades but what good does it make when you are a smart person yet you have a very bad personality? Stop and ponder...
What I am trying to point out here is that Malaysian society faces a trend that poses a dilemma: where have the moral values of the society gone to?
My opinion is that the percentage of selfish people is growing higher and higher with every passing day. Selfishness latently runs in our veins, perhaps, but there are times that we have to put that aside and look at things in a wider perspective and to put ourselves in the shoes of others. It would be good if Malaysians start caring about each other, be it the neighbours, or other members of the public, regardless of the differences in skin tones, race or creed. There would be fewer squabbles in the range of the public eye, and it can start with the political parties. We have seen many instances of "hurtful and sensitive remarks" coming off politicians' mouth willy-nilly. My wish is that such incidents would lessen in NegaraKu so that all the races would be able to live in peace and harmony.
Let not unfairness and selfishness rule us all. Differences could be made if all of us are willing to co-operate and walk along hand-in-hand to make Malaysia a better world to live in. After all, we are Malaysians.
I’m not perfect either but at least, my conscience and values are clear cut and I believe in striving towards noble values with enough to go by. I hope fellow Malaysians will strive to build a more considerate and caring society. With this hope I wish all of you, Happy Independence Day."
Merdeka! Merdeka! MERDEKA!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DESI @9.39AM: After reading many Merdeka posts and comments that border on pessimism and surrender, it's so uplifting to "see the other side of the
picture" expressed by two Young&Articulates. I've often urged my Y&A like Sabrina that IT'S NOT ALL GLOOM and DOOM! And johnleemk's and kyels' perspectives give grounds for optimism.
And their sharing of their "personal" stations is
precisely what I wish for, especuially from the
YoungOnes, in this Series -- perspectives from a
generation whose age range matters a great deal
for the future of NegaraKu, not that the elder/older
folks do not play a significant role. We must not,
however, lose sight of the fact all Malaysians
DO DIFFER in our perspectives, as our perceptions
and vantage points are shaded by from where we were,
where we came from -- city, semi-rural, kampong, village --
we are enriched by our diverse backgrounds and cultural roots.
DESI to John ~~ I read from your "hint" you are likely to
proceed to the US for tertiary studies -- Economics/Finance
plus a minor in Law, God-willing. I still use this public
forum to urge my Young Mentee (sometimes turns Mentor) that
you should turn Law into the major. Come home on graduation
to play a more significant role in the politics of NegaraKu,
and enrich the Malaysiana landscape and journey. And also
help write The Malaysian Story.
DESI to kyels ~~ Continue thy poetic laments, and I will
seek solace and meaning in the mystique. But I will
sometimes intercept to mend a li'l that broken-hearted
Silhouette, can I?
It's more on young shoulders like yours -- johnleemk, and kyels,
and Sabrina, Imran Ahmad and Primrose, that the future of
Malaysia depends very much on, transforming it into a truly
united nation where most of its citizens
Rise Above Colour, Race and Creed,
and Across Gender and Age barriers too.
PS: This hoRst shall neigh the Essay Series finale IF
he has strength and energy left to make across those 49 liners.
Meanwhile, Strive To Be Happy.
Desiderata's My Blue H'aven has marked each Independence Day with the MERDEKA ESSAY series, and I hope this tradition will be continued if my Esteemed Readers care to participate. From Today -- not Malaysia Today for the blardy government wants that BLOG blocked, but the Devil's Den will open its floodsgates for UMNO-rites to conduct its RIP rites -- YL-Desi will reprise a few of last year's WRIES,and the series will hopefolly -- we have time for FUN-d; Yes? -- till September 16, when VVVVVVVe celebrate the more meaningful MALAYSIA DAY since the PM inpresenting yesterday's Bajet 2009 acknowledged that poor fellow brethren in Sabah and Sarwak have been neglected like "orphans" until the GE cometh around once evrey four/five years.
Here's from Desi and Y&A kyels and johnleemk's --- who BTW, also helps Wan Fadzrul coordinate YouthSpeak at cpiasia.net, which BTW2, will be officially launched on Monday September 8, 2008 at SCAH at 2.30pm. Please mark this Date with us in thy diary, or even with the dairy with da cowws:) Plenty of milk today! STAY TUNED for official announcement!:)
*******
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
MERDEKA: Travelling Back In Time
DESIDERATA was surfing through his own archives to lift out of the cobwebs something PERSONAL for me to reflect on as Merdeka approaches. I find my second anniversary of Desi's Place struck a chord and I don't know the exact reason why I reprised this today. Maybe some happenings don't need a reason. Being alive and kicking now is reason enough.
___________ REPRISE OF POST March 15, 2007 ______________
PREFACE:
I was working at an online newspaper for a year not that long ago and so was well exposed to electronic sources of news and debate, mainly from foreign sources, and I felt most at home with the American and British scenes. Having worked some time with the Aussie diplomatic mission, I also had a soft sport for Down Under people and happenings.
Being of Chinoserie ancestry -- but first and foremost a Malaysian, I stress! -- and knowing a smattering of Mandarin so I can comfortably see annd enjoy a movie like The Banquet without the need to staray to the subtitles, emerging China as a political and economic juggernaut also naturally was my radar-scape.
But being born and bred in NegaraKu, I feel very at home whether in a kampong/ new village or town/ bandar or the city of Kuala Lumpur (though I have never trusted local KL-ites compleatly! hence I describe the capital as B'g, B'd Wolfish Koala Lumpuh!), Desi would never allow any blardy idiot to question my loyalty as a Malaysian.
I mostly enjoy Malay, Chinese and Indian cuisines seven days a week, but make an exception to have a CON BF (continental breakfast) on a Sunday, my capitalist indulgence as I am an out-of-the-closet Socialist (In the league of the current French Sigolene Royale, someone I tease mGf based in London who is quite introvert plus sensitive/ble? > hence "sensintrovert")
Chapter 1
As a freelance journalist taking up blogging chiefly influenced by JeffOoi exactly two years ago, I was happy to be able to connect with a core group of fellow/fella (Fella is defined as the female counterpart as fellow is always considered male) bloggers. I must also thank those readers who don't blog but visit often enough to engage in conversations.
There is yet a more connected group who progressed to join Desi's EMAIL LIST, numbering about 12-15 gathered over 24 months. (YOU know who you are if you have exchanged thoughts in intimate detail with Desi. This is mainly jesting -- most ly talking shop on political matters that are not safe to go public; well a small percentage of mayhaps five percent do venture into personal territory, but that's reserved for spinning my fictional novels later, with Hollywood blockbustier in mind. Rest assured I'd do it a 30% to the protagonist-blogger who has opened up his/her/gender-neutral soul to Desi.)
Most of all, I must thank these various categories of EsteemedReaders ("ER") who take the time and trouble to comment on my "writes", more formal as in a serious Essay following all the rules of Intro, Body and Conclusion; 'rites as in recording Malaysiana titbits and snippets that are eye-catching and define our local culture and politics; and lastly, more lustily perhaps than the earlier two, my writHings. In this category I lend my pretty frank thoughts on Malaysian goings-in which concern or trouble or amuse me as a Malysian citizen. The "H" implies that Desi does a lot of gymnastics, sometimes using the much maligned DDC ("Da Desi Code" methinks first gifted by the hoRst of allofhelen.blogspot.com; the R in host arose from an actual event narrated to Desi about how a Guest speaker was pronouncing this word with the R sound consistently -- neigh, neigh!)
Back to my stated Objectives as revealed in my first three Posts from March 15, 2005, to date they are, in gist:
**
I shall be touching on subjects broadly categorised as desiderata.english; desiderata.civilsociety; desiderata.truth -- generally with the ultimate objective of promoting the love and appreciation of outstanding writings in English; the cultivation and promotion of human traits and endeavours to build a civil Malaysian society, and finally, if possible, embark with fellow travellers in this journey called Life in the pursuit of Truth, that undefinable yet essential and desiderable, in my opinion, ingredient in the civilization process so that the human race continues to uplift itself beyond and above the banal, the demeaning and the destructive actvities that now pervade, and in some societies, even dominate human activities worldwide.
**
I believe I am by nature and nurture an organiser and team leader (RESUME hilites include Student Union's office-bearer; Press Training Programme Director; Chairman of LES Committee Chairman at AHC), so it was a natural course I organised what I termed as G7 meetings among Bloggers, mostly KL-based. Numbering half a dozen such meets, with quorum ranging from 2 to SE7EN. These meets gave the participants to see the person behind the anonymous masks of the cyber-writer, and I think all of us ranked these as a peak in our journeys. What say you, mates, Yes?
I believe in a non-profit adventure that is my type of blogging, it's the constant Hi's with very few Lo's (when combined, Hi-Los are still pleasing!) that makes Blogging a happy and learning adventure. The blogging experience spans a wide age range, non-discriminatory of sex, colour and race. Religion and partisan politics take up little space in our discourse; mostly it has been friendly banter and trading of jokes, satire, allowing for caustic soda in-the-face barb trading with an occasional "stranger". Few and in-betwen, such hostile encounters were easily terminated by one party just calling TIME-OUT, erase all traces of animosity and there's no legacy of enmity to bequeath. I can only off-hand record two such episodes.
________________________________________________________
Chapter 2
Today I arrive at a sort of crossroads. This Second Anniversary on the Ides of March ushers in what I think is the second chapter as I spent some time the past few weeks of where I am, and the journey I had traveled thus far. Much waters has flowed under the cyber-bridge. I have gained much, didn't lose any, perhaps made a few enemies I term as Agents Provocateur (APs), so I count my journey positive, productive and most important in my mind, "enjoyable".
I have reviewed my Three Original Objectives, and today announce that I have retained
the three objectives, viz:
* Civil Society;
** Promotion of the English language, especially using Poetry as a Special Medium;
*** Truth-seeking.
But to be added a fourth, namely:
**** Nation-building,
which I think is timely and must enjoy priority as Malaysia approaches its 50th anniversary of birth.
I would think Nation-building would encompass Politics, whether Partisan or Non-partisan. I have decided that a citizen has every right to involve himself/herself in partisan politics, and this would not detract from the role of any Blogger in contributing to the community.
I borrow the words of a media fraternity member: "One cannot remain neutral in a moving train." -- Jacqueline Ann Surin, whose writings have caused much and spirited debates in blogosphere, and mGf Howsy holds her in higher esteem than Desi (YOU, Time's Person of the Year 2006, can interpret this statement any way YOU like, Desi, as you know, tries to practise democracy even in all his discusioins, especially when media is the open field. Blogsworld members aspire and want to be treated with respect as the Fifth Estate. So let's start by adhering to the same exacting and high standards demanded of the Fourth Estate.
At the personal level,
I penned the following over the past 48 hours.
Inside the head resides the rational mind,
In the heart dwells one's soul seeking its home.
But to my mind, at journey's end it's all fruitless
If a seeker finds he has gained much of worldly treasures
but can't feel the warmth in his/her heart at night
to feel the comfort of a person at peace with his soul
The ultimate treasure
resides within the individual's heart
even as soon his life's journey began
except many did not feel their own heartbeats
until it's too late, the heart has stopped chanting.
Follow That Dream
by Elvis Presley
When your heart gets restless, time to move along
When your heart gets weary, time to sing a song
But when a dream is calling you,
There's just one thing that you can do
Well, you gotta follow that dream wherever that dream may lead
You gotta follow that dream to find the love you need
AS the song comes over the airwaves, my thoughts often go back to some lonesome travel by an Andalusian shepherd boy who one night dreamt of a distant treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. This shepherd boy broke out of the comfort zone of his father's Andalusian farm in Spain to set out for Morocco, then towards Egypt seeking "the soul of the world". When he bade farewell, his father's only advice was: "Travel the world until you see that our castle is the greatest, and our women the most beautiful".
His journey through desert storms, narrow escapades from theives and marauding robbers, and from other life-threatening situations, being left penniless, and betrayed by a companion -- these werre challenges in an answer to a call to follow his dream that a youth could not ignore or resist, even with a sacrifice of leaving behind his sweetheart. To seek out his destiny he must, or else his heart would not let him rest, for he would be trapped with an unquenched thirst. Even his sweetheart understood his longing, so wished him well on his journey. She too sought the peace within even as her sweetheart sought his far away in a strange and foreign land.
My dear ER, if you have the time, try to read
The Alchemist
by
Paulo Coelho
The Brazilian story-teller only suggests.
He hints. He asks thee to listen to your heart.
As Santiago the shepherd boy travelled on his journey, he found that was "a language that doesn't depend on words". He realised: "If I can learn to understand this language without words, I can learn to understand the world."
So each of us have to define our dreams, then follow these dreams, because to find the Truth at the end of such a quest on Earth is the way to find "God", which could mean happiness, fulfilment, and understanding the ultimate purpose intended by an Almighty perhaps, of individual Man's transient journey on this good earth.
The novel tells the tale of Santiago, a boy who has a dream and the courage to follow it. After listening to "the signs" the boy learns of various intangibles on a terrestrial trip, alike in spirit Jonathan Livingstone Seagull's adventures on air, guided by a few stranger-friends and "omens" that cropped up.His search for a hidden treasure located near the pyramids in Egypt would end...YOU find out yourself, for Desi's a practising democrazee and wouldn't want to serve thee false "madsin" forced down the throat.
I know I must write first true to my heart's desire.
The desiderata of happiness is to seek the Truth within one's soul
to be able to separate the precious from the banal
to discern the right from wrong
to find meaning and tranquility in the dance of life
While we may stumble, even fall,
we learn the language of overcoming the tests
So we won't lose the rhyme, nor the rhythm
As a quest can end in failure
because of corruption of the soul
by discordant notes and unsound distractions.
I just completed the first and second years' movements.
I am still composing the symphony of Life.
The third movement has just begun.
Do be one of my travelling companions
to be entranced by this common dance of life.
posted by desiderata
*******
Following share the thoughts of Young&Articulates JohnLee and Koi Kye Lee:)
Guest Blogger: johnleemk
"I still believe in Malaysia!"
All the other Merdeka essays I have seen to date touch on pessimism for the future of this country, and either explicitly or implicitly refer to certain controversial policies of our government. While I have written more than my fair share of essays on those (indeed, for the second Merdeka running, I have lambasted a particular bastion of these policies on my blog), it is not my intention to contribute to the burgeoning crop of condemnatory and in some rare cases, insulting, pieces of prose in this field.
Rather, permit me to explain why, even at times when I feel there is no hope, I still believe in Malaysia. Why I still believe in being Malaysian. And why, after all we've gone through, some Chinese might say, I still fervently believe in calling myself Malaysian first, rather than Chinese.
I don't believe there's a need to explain the bout of pessimism about Malaysia and its future. It wouldn't be too hard to examine the root causes of this discontent and resentment. Rather, what one ought to be doing is attempting to explain why some who share this same feeling of discontent and resentment still love this country.
As much as I have joined the usually resounding clarion call of voices in the blogosphere denouncing the government's approach to certain fields of its administration, I nevertheless continually find myself in an odd spot amongst them. Even among those I know in real life, pigeon-holing me into one category with others is something that remains hard to do. Unlike many, I have never felt any hate or frustration with this country -- rather, the sole focus of my anger has been the government and those within it.
~~~~~~~
I hail from a rather mixed background. I was born in Japan, to a Chinese Malaysian father and a Filipino mother. I was raised in Singapore, but educated wholly in Malaysia. On my father's part, I have never really managed to empathise with his mixed feelings towards our country. Logically, I understand them, yes, but emotionally, I do not feel them. Nevertheless, we can be broadly painted as moderates - people who do not believe that this country is wholly doomed yet. We are certainly far from Chinese chauvinists, making it hard for us to relate with several stereotypical Chinese grievances such as those related to the (what I will continue to refer to as segregatory) vernacular education stream. And as for my mother, her being non-Malaysian naturally precludes her from holding any strong views about the future of our country.
~~~~~~~
Similarly, amongst my peers -- especially those who were denied scholarships! -- there is a simmering feeling of discontent and frustration at the system. In some cases, this has even translated to a dislike or hatred of the Malays and Muslims. However, having grown up amongst them, I have never shared such feelings -- and this is where my story begins.
Unlike 95% of all Chinese Malaysians, I was educated in a national -- and by national, I do mean national; it was far from a Malay school, thank God - school. I never knew anything of discrimination or that taboo phrase, "second-class citizen". As far as I was concerned, I was just another nine-year-old grumpily getting on the bus for school with his friends. Until I was about 12 or 13, I did not even know what the word "Bumiputra" meant. Perhaps it shows how insulated I was by my circumstances; I do not know.
Whatever the case, I grew up feeling no reason for anger towards my country or my peers. Even though Islam was often brought up by my Malay friends in ways that could have been construed by some (probably those over-sensitive non-Malays) as incitement, we were very much a united bunch. My memories of primary school consist not of discrimination or frustration. Maybe my school was particularly liberal; I am not sure. They certainly gave one little excuse to argue that meritocracy was not being practiced; I was a member of the entirely non-Bumiputra school team that sent us to the district level Mathematics quiz. (Although in retrospect, they did make sure that the Head Prefect was always a Malay...) Still, if one considers the attitude of national school students and compares it with those from, say, the Chinese education stream, it is clear that one group is more "Malaysian", shall we say, than the other.
In primary school, I still remember, there was no distinction between Malay and non-Malay or Bumiputra and non-Bumiputra. We were all the same, and all treated equally. We took pains to respect one another's background, and we never encountered difficulties accomodating one another. We attended each other's birthday parties, with my parents making sure catered fast food was available for those with particular sensitivities. After school, we'd play football with crushed tin cans, nobody caring what the skin colour of the other bugger was like. We even made fun of those with particularly dark skin -- to us, that was just a physical attribute; race never came into the picture. "What does race have to do with anything?" we'd probably have asked.
After leaving primary school, as one matures, one better understands the way things are. I am sure all of us acutely understand the picture currently -- or at least understand it better than we once did. Nevertheless, we still maintain our practices and habits. I still invite my Malay friends to my birthday celebrations, and they make it a point to attend if possible. I do the same with them. The way you are brought up in primary school is crucial, because in our case, it has made us think like Malaysians, not Malay, Chinese and Indian.
There was a huge brouhaha earlier this year about a survey indicating that a sizeable percentage (I forget the exact amount) of Malaysians have never shared a meal with one of another race. This, my friends, is the legacy of that segregatory school system. This is why I continually and habitually rail against the establishment of vernacular education.
Never had a meal with someone of another race? A mixed group eating, and laughing together -- National school students have been doing that by habit since we can first remember, and it is not a habit that dies easily. Even in college, we think nothing of lepaking or yes, having breakfast or lunch, with those of a different skin pigmentation. It doesn't even come into the picture.
There are very noticeable differences in the behaviour of Chinese-educated and national school-educated students which can last for a lifetime. In secondary school and college, it is not too hard to tell these kinds of people apart. The Chinese-educated generally keep to themselves, while the national school students invariably have their own clique. That is not to say the Chinese-educated do not mix with the non-Chinese-educated; that certainly does happen. However, by inclination, one group is partial to keeping itself racially pure (whether they intend this or not is debateable; it could very well be unconscious), while another has no issues with mixing things up. Even those national school students we regard as racist thumb their nose at the Chinese-educated -- to them, this is another class of racists altogether.
Perhaps I am being too blunt. But whatever the case, it is my feeling that being of a national school background has made a tangible difference in who I am and how I feel today. Maybe this effect on my character was accentuated by my being a tabula rasa - blank slate - seeing as I had no inkling whatsoever of anything being wrong with a "Malaysian Malaysia" (still a taboo phrase for many government leaders). Nevertheless, I notice how I think differently and react differently. Some of these differences are probably attributable to my being completely race-blind at a young age (though I hope I remain race-blind today). But still, many of them, I believe, are rooted in my upbringing as a Malaysian, and not as a Chinese.
Today, my Malay accent is a bit Malay - and I do blush with pride when Malays remark on what they consider the quality of Malay. (To be honest, folks, it's atrocious. I need a dictionary whenever I intend on writing a decent essay in Malay. I'm just good at bahasa pasar.) To me, there is nothing to be ashamed of in knowing Malay, or being proficient in it. It is not the language of one race to me -- it is the language of one nation, and that is the Malaysian nation. My Malay may be atrocious, but I can tell you of the difference between kaum (race) and bangsa (nation).
Bahasa Melayu bukanlah bahasa kaum Melayu; ia merupakan bahasa bangsa Malaysia. Some might take umbrage at me referring to this language as Bahasa Melayu. If so, I apologise. Again, it is my upbringing. But I feel nothing wrong with "calling a spade a spade"; we do not recoil at calling English what it is, do we? After all, it is no longer a white man's language. What something is depends not on what we call it, but what we perceive it as. A rose under any other name would smell as sweet (Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare).
But enough of that digression. Some might think I have been assimilated as a Malay/Muslim (the two are generally synonymous, are they not?). But is this true? My faith in Christianity has never been stronger, I would say. And as for race, I have always been (perhaps rather idealistically) race-blind. I have never really come to think of myself as a Chinese, although if asked for a race, I will continue to habitually speak of myself as Chinese. As far as I'm concerned, I am Malaysian.
One common ground I hear for retaining Chinese education is that it is, well, Chinese education. That it teaches our young to be perceptive of their nature as Chinese. I will have to disagree on this, then. It is my view that what is far more important is to be brought up and educated as a Malaysian. If it means diluting one's Chinese-ness, so be it. I do not intend to pull any punches here. We are Malaysians, not Chinese. That is what must be foremost in our minds, and what must be inculcated in us from young. Our home is not a place where our classmates, colleagues, and friends are practically 100% Chinese. It is not a place where everyone can converse in Mandarin, or where everyone shares the same cultural understanding. The Chinese school is a poor mechanism for preparing our young to live in a heterogenous nation.
And as for diluting one's Chinese identity, I do not put as much stock in that argument as I once did. After all, my girlfriend's identity as Chinese remains strong despite spending her entire life in a convent school instead of a Chinese school, and being educated entirely in Malay. She habitually speaks in Chinese proverbs, and lectures me on the need to be more, well, Chinese. And yet the beauty of it is that our conversations are - what else could they be? - Malaysian. To use a bit of linguistic jargon here, we code-switch between English, Malay, and a variety of Chinese dialects. (Some day, perhaps I shall find an occasion for inserting the one or two words of Tamil I know into a discussion - although I doubt there is a way one could politely utilise my profanity-centred vocabulary.) To us, there is nothing wrong with speaking in bits of English and Malay, with the occasional Chinese idiom.
And this is what gives me hope for the future. That perhaps some day we will all be able to be as unrealistically idealistic as I am, and speak of ourselves as Malaysians. When that day has come, my friends, we shall no longer encounter the need to shelter ourselves in communal schools (be they MARA Junior Science Colleges, or SRJKs), or derogatorise those of another race as kaum pendatang. If Malaysians have decided that we are Malaysians, what can the politicians do? And that is what I hope for Malaysia, this 49th Merdeka of ours.
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Bonus Guest: Koi Kye Lee aka Kyels, and she has a distinctive Blog @kyels.com named
Laments of a Broken Hearted Silhouette.
The Silhouette, like Mona Lisa, often maketh Desi pause and wonder and wait,in anticipation, about the mystique. Meanwhile, she sometimes sounds morose and lost, yet other times rise to ecstasy and poetic brilliance, not knowing Des's lapping it all up, shyly peeping through the semi-darkness under the silvery moonlight.
Sometimes I touch gold.
What’s Happening?
Quo Vadis,My Country?
The youths today are vastly different from those of yesteryears. I believe there is this Generation Gap, in Malaysia and other countries -- a common phenomenon.
What we perceive today is almost different from what our forefathers had distinguished. During the olden days, moral values were of supreme importance in daily lives, especially when it comes to older people in the society and in familial ties. Benevolence, respect, empathy, sincerity, honour, sympathy, and more, were the vital traits, and featured prominently when it comes to teaching and raising a child.
But one question I’d like to ask: Do you see in the children today inbibed with those values?
It's not to say that I am very well endowed with such "wonderful" values, but I do have a clear conscience that I try hard to contribute to promoting a civil society.
Let’s take the public transportation scene in Malaysia, for example. How often do you see youngsters getting up and offering their seats to the elderly?
I take the Light Rail Transit (LRT) every day and from what I have observed all this while, I realised that many youths are either ignorant, or they lack certain social values. There was the occasion when I stumbled upon this scenario. The LRT was packed and it so happened I witnessed this episode with my own eyes. One blind man stepped into the train and made his way towards the bar since he could not see any seats and no one took his arm and to guide him to an empty seat. Looking from afar, I saw that a young girl was seated on one of the seats, and I could see her gaze was set upon the blind man. What hit me was: why did she not get up and lead the man to her seat?
I observed for more than three minutes and she was still giving the blind man the same uncaring stare. She was not ready to give her seat up until a good Samaritan told the girl to stand up and let the blind man have the seat. The amazing part was that she was so unwilling to do so, discernible from her facial expression. But she had to -- because a whole load of strangers were looking right into her!
When we see more such scenarios happening, can we figure out that there is something wrong here? Charity begins from home after all. No, I am not judging the credibility of our parents and guardians today, but rather I believe the education system of our dear country has some role to play in bringing about such sad state of affirs.
What do you really see when we talk about the education system here? There might be differuing points of views because we all have our own perspectives. Yes, it is indeed a subjective issue, but certainly begs the question: Does the system serve to ionculcate the social values and graces in tandem with an aspiring developed nation status society?
From what I see, a certain percentage of people no longer care about morality. Many still do, but they do so at a much deteriorating scale as compared with the era of our forefathers. The people today care more about getting straight A’s in Government examinations. Yes, it’s not wrong to aim for good grades but what good does it make when you are a smart person yet you have a very bad personality? Stop and ponder...
What I am trying to point out here is that Malaysian society faces a trend that poses a dilemma: where have the moral values of the society gone to?
My opinion is that the percentage of selfish people is growing higher and higher with every passing day. Selfishness latently runs in our veins, perhaps, but there are times that we have to put that aside and look at things in a wider perspective and to put ourselves in the shoes of others. It would be good if Malaysians start caring about each other, be it the neighbours, or other members of the public, regardless of the differences in skin tones, race or creed. There would be fewer squabbles in the range of the public eye, and it can start with the political parties. We have seen many instances of "hurtful and sensitive remarks" coming off politicians' mouth willy-nilly. My wish is that such incidents would lessen in NegaraKu so that all the races would be able to live in peace and harmony.
Let not unfairness and selfishness rule us all. Differences could be made if all of us are willing to co-operate and walk along hand-in-hand to make Malaysia a better world to live in. After all, we are Malaysians.
I’m not perfect either but at least, my conscience and values are clear cut and I believe in striving towards noble values with enough to go by. I hope fellow Malaysians will strive to build a more considerate and caring society. With this hope I wish all of you, Happy Independence Day."
Merdeka! Merdeka! MERDEKA!
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DESI @9.39AM: After reading many Merdeka posts and comments that border on pessimism and surrender, it's so uplifting to "see the other side of the
picture" expressed by two Young&Articulates. I've often urged my Y&A like Sabrina that IT'S NOT ALL GLOOM and DOOM! And johnleemk's and kyels' perspectives give grounds for optimism.
And their sharing of their "personal" stations is
precisely what I wish for, especuially from the
YoungOnes, in this Series -- perspectives from a
generation whose age range matters a great deal
for the future of NegaraKu, not that the elder/older
folks do not play a significant role. We must not,
however, lose sight of the fact all Malaysians
DO DIFFER in our perspectives, as our perceptions
and vantage points are shaded by from where we were,
where we came from -- city, semi-rural, kampong, village --
we are enriched by our diverse backgrounds and cultural roots.
DESI to John ~~ I read from your "hint" you are likely to
proceed to the US for tertiary studies -- Economics/Finance
plus a minor in Law, God-willing. I still use this public
forum to urge my Young Mentee (sometimes turns Mentor) that
you should turn Law into the major. Come home on graduation
to play a more significant role in the politics of NegaraKu,
and enrich the Malaysiana landscape and journey. And also
help write The Malaysian Story.
DESI to kyels ~~ Continue thy poetic laments, and I will
seek solace and meaning in the mystique. But I will
sometimes intercept to mend a li'l that broken-hearted
Silhouette, can I?
It's more on young shoulders like yours -- johnleemk, and kyels,
and Sabrina, Imran Ahmad and Primrose, that the future of
Malaysia depends very much on, transforming it into a truly
united nation where most of its citizens
Rise Above Colour, Race and Creed,
and Across Gender and Age barriers too.
PS: This hoRst shall neigh the Essay Series finale IF
he has strength and energy left to make across those 49 liners.
Meanwhile, Strive To Be Happy.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Analysis of Merdeka Mission's Success in PP!
From sun2surf.com Desi picks up an ANALYSIS that's worth reading and rumination -- but let the UMNO-rites sleep in tandem with its Prez' style, then the Ketuanan Rakyat will sweep to more and more "V"ictories until Putrajaya is under Pakatan Rakyat's:) Till then, Stay the Course!:) --
Analysts: Plus-points that hailed victory for Anwar
Tan Yi Liang and Karen Arukesamy, theSun
PETALING JAYA (Aug 28, 2008) : Tuesday's thumping win by Parti Keadilan Rakyat de-facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was due to his party's ability to win over the fence-sitters, political analysts say.
Wong Chin Huat, a journalism lecturer of Monash University Malaysia who is doing a PhD thesis on electoral systems and party politics, told theSun that Anwar had "solidly captured the middle ground" to win in Permatang Pauh.
"In Malaysian politics, you have the both the BN and Opposition parties controlling 30% of the hardcore base vote, and the 40% in the middle will determine victory, and in Permatang Pauh, he (Anwar) solidly captured 70%."
He pointed out that the landslide victory was proof of the failure of Barisan's tactics to deny Anwar Permatang Pauh.
"There were two things that turned off voters in the recent by-elections. One was the sodomy allegations, and the other was the playing up of racial sentiments. The twin attacks on Anwar did not hold water; they actually backfired."
He said the support given to Anwar by senior Pas leadership was also a determining factor in his victory.
On the sodomy allegation, a replay of the one in 1998 which had failed, and on the challenge to swear on the Quran, Anwar was supported by religious figures such as PAS's Datuk Nik Aziz and Datuk Harun Din who debunked the necessity or even appropriateness of swearing on the Quran, said Wong.
He also said BN's divided messages to Malay and non-Malay voters had also contributed to their defeat.
"With regards to why Anwar gained Chinese support, despite a BN candidate fluent in Chinese, the Chinese saw the message over the candidate. BN tried to play a divide-and-rule game by portraying (Datuk) Arif Shah (Omar Shah) as a pro-Chinese candidate on one hand, while attacking Anwar as a Malay traitor," said Wong.
He cited an incident where a leaflet was circulated calling on the Malays to reject the DAP-led government in Penang, with an image of a pig's head placed next to the heads of Kit Siang and Karpal. This did not go down well with Chinese voters.
"So no matter how proficient Arif Shah was at Hokkien or Mandarin, it would not have helped," said Wong, who pointed out that Umno's exploitation of the UiTM issue raised by Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim had also contributed to alienating Chinese support.
Wong said the consistency in the messages from Anwar were also major factors in his big win.
"Anwar has been consistent in his message for change, to free the country from racial politics and corruption and that message has gone down well across communities. The key factor was that people were frustrated with the status quo, with BN politics and just wanted a change," said Wong.
Assistant professor of Southeast Asian studies, Bridget Welsh, of Johns Hopkins University credited Tuesday's big win to a fundamental desire by Malaysians to "see changes in how their government governs."
There are three things that matter -- corruption, inclusion and respect.
She said Malaysians are tired of being talked down to, and that the Barisan government now "faces a problem of credibility."
"No one believes in BN like they did before, and there is a lack of trust in BN leaders. Umno has remained in a state of denial since March 8."
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) political scientist Associate Prof Dr Mohammad Agus Yusoff attributed BN's dismal performance to its failure to learn from the last general election results.
He said the BN government could not accept the fact that people were no more vulnerable and could not be easily swayed by whatever was dished out through some mainstream newspapers.
"The people are becoming more and more politically informed, thanks to the alternative media.
They are insulting the intellectual voters by trying to use the media to play up their stories. The BN government's thinking gap is far from the people's. Their campaign strategy is a failure. It is too out-dated and it is just not working."
He said BN should stop using the same old strategy.
Agus said the the vote swing to the Opposition was probably due to the rakyat feeeling that BN had failed them.
"The people want something but the BN gives a different thing. Those who believed that the BN government would do something to change their lives are probab;y upset," he said.
"The ruling party could not answer or respond to all the questions put forth by Opposition leaders. Anwar's promise of a new hope for Malaysia has somehow convinced many, even some strong BN supporters," Agus said.
"BN has also lost the confidence of the Malays and non-Malays, especially among the middle class group. It failed to understand the people's grievances and that is how they become silent voters.
"I am not denying that the BN government has contributed a lot in the past . But the present leadership has failed to address the rakyat's grievances.
"It needs to rebuild the confidence of the people in BN and its image. Stop all personal attacks on the Opposition and show more transparency," said Agus.
Analysts: Plus-points that hailed victory for Anwar
Tan Yi Liang and Karen Arukesamy, theSun
PETALING JAYA (Aug 28, 2008) : Tuesday's thumping win by Parti Keadilan Rakyat de-facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was due to his party's ability to win over the fence-sitters, political analysts say.
Wong Chin Huat, a journalism lecturer of Monash University Malaysia who is doing a PhD thesis on electoral systems and party politics, told theSun that Anwar had "solidly captured the middle ground" to win in Permatang Pauh.
"In Malaysian politics, you have the both the BN and Opposition parties controlling 30% of the hardcore base vote, and the 40% in the middle will determine victory, and in Permatang Pauh, he (Anwar) solidly captured 70%."
He pointed out that the landslide victory was proof of the failure of Barisan's tactics to deny Anwar Permatang Pauh.
"There were two things that turned off voters in the recent by-elections. One was the sodomy allegations, and the other was the playing up of racial sentiments. The twin attacks on Anwar did not hold water; they actually backfired."
He said the support given to Anwar by senior Pas leadership was also a determining factor in his victory.
On the sodomy allegation, a replay of the one in 1998 which had failed, and on the challenge to swear on the Quran, Anwar was supported by religious figures such as PAS's Datuk Nik Aziz and Datuk Harun Din who debunked the necessity or even appropriateness of swearing on the Quran, said Wong.
He also said BN's divided messages to Malay and non-Malay voters had also contributed to their defeat.
"With regards to why Anwar gained Chinese support, despite a BN candidate fluent in Chinese, the Chinese saw the message over the candidate. BN tried to play a divide-and-rule game by portraying (Datuk) Arif Shah (Omar Shah) as a pro-Chinese candidate on one hand, while attacking Anwar as a Malay traitor," said Wong.
He cited an incident where a leaflet was circulated calling on the Malays to reject the DAP-led government in Penang, with an image of a pig's head placed next to the heads of Kit Siang and Karpal. This did not go down well with Chinese voters.
"So no matter how proficient Arif Shah was at Hokkien or Mandarin, it would not have helped," said Wong, who pointed out that Umno's exploitation of the UiTM issue raised by Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim had also contributed to alienating Chinese support.
Wong said the consistency in the messages from Anwar were also major factors in his big win.
"Anwar has been consistent in his message for change, to free the country from racial politics and corruption and that message has gone down well across communities. The key factor was that people were frustrated with the status quo, with BN politics and just wanted a change," said Wong.
Assistant professor of Southeast Asian studies, Bridget Welsh, of Johns Hopkins University credited Tuesday's big win to a fundamental desire by Malaysians to "see changes in how their government governs."
There are three things that matter -- corruption, inclusion and respect.
She said Malaysians are tired of being talked down to, and that the Barisan government now "faces a problem of credibility."
"No one believes in BN like they did before, and there is a lack of trust in BN leaders. Umno has remained in a state of denial since March 8."
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) political scientist Associate Prof Dr Mohammad Agus Yusoff attributed BN's dismal performance to its failure to learn from the last general election results.
He said the BN government could not accept the fact that people were no more vulnerable and could not be easily swayed by whatever was dished out through some mainstream newspapers.
"The people are becoming more and more politically informed, thanks to the alternative media.
They are insulting the intellectual voters by trying to use the media to play up their stories. The BN government's thinking gap is far from the people's. Their campaign strategy is a failure. It is too out-dated and it is just not working."
He said BN should stop using the same old strategy.
Agus said the the vote swing to the Opposition was probably due to the rakyat feeeling that BN had failed them.
"The people want something but the BN gives a different thing. Those who believed that the BN government would do something to change their lives are probab;y upset," he said.
"The ruling party could not answer or respond to all the questions put forth by Opposition leaders. Anwar's promise of a new hope for Malaysia has somehow convinced many, even some strong BN supporters," Agus said.
"BN has also lost the confidence of the Malays and non-Malays, especially among the middle class group. It failed to understand the people's grievances and that is how they become silent voters.
"I am not denying that the BN government has contributed a lot in the past . But the present leadership has failed to address the rakyat's grievances.
"It needs to rebuild the confidence of the people in BN and its image. Stop all personal attacks on the Opposition and show more transparency," said Agus.
Ah, some MCA blokes are finally talking sense!
Bloggers Buzz, (from cpiasia.net)
Friday, 29 August 2008 08:40
Government must be more convincing in arguing for DNA Bill
By Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek
Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek
Taken from google images
(Desi: can visualise the Images, yes?)
Thursday, August 21, 2008
The government must not hastily push through the passage of the DNA Bill which has been presented before Parliament, until the matter is properly debated on publicly and its implications are properly explained.
Right now, public confidence in the authorities, be it the police, the various government departments or any new department to be set up to deal with DNA collection, remains very low.
There is widespread concern that the authorities are not ready for legislation making it compulsory for criminal suspects to provide DNA samples.
In conversations with ordinary Malaysians and after reading responses on the Internet as well as after listening to public reaction over the 98.8 radio station's live discussion just this morning, I have found that a majority of the public are not in favour of the DNA Bill.
I reject any suggestion that this Bill is being targeted at Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim because it does not operate retrospectively.
But there is cause for public concern over what kind of safeguards will be introduced by the government in the collection of DNA samples.
Just who will collect these samples? How well will they be trained? How do we know the DNA samples cannot be tainted?
These are some of the questions the people would like to know.
Also, why is the government proposing such wide powers which can be subject to manipulation or abuse.
I am sure the government may have good intentions, but the fact is in today's political scenario, it must work harder to win the battle of perception.
The general perception is that the authorities are generally considered inefficient, corrupt and incompetent. It is a perception that has wide support.
How is the public expected to have faith in the system?
The government must be more convincing in its arguments for the introduction of the DNA Bill.
Leaders cannot just pretend there is no public concern.
We must remember that in a democracy laws are introduced for the benefit of the people.
So the government must explain how the DNA Bill will benefit the public. It must allay concerns.
It must listen to public feedback and possibly tweak the Bill further.
Since the Bill was first mooted as far back as 2001, what is the haste in passing the legislation now?
The government should spend some time publicizing the provisions of the Bill to ensure wider acceptance or to even make sure it is indeed ready to efficiently and impartially administer the collection of DNA.
While I cannot speak for Umno, MIC and other parties in the Barisan Nasional (BN), I find it strange though that none of the senior leaders in the MCA or any of the candidates for the party elections have voiced out their concerns.
It was pointed out by one senior party leader today in The Star that if we are really committed to what we say we should walk the talk.
I am not sure if he was talking about me, but I still believe the very least MCA's representatives and leaders must do is to voice out public concerns over a myriad of issues such as the DNA Bill.
For now, I do not hold any government or party position. All I can do is to speak out thru the blog. The press will not entertain any statement by me
What I don't understand is that there are senior leaders and candidates in the MCA who still say nothing at all, and appear to offer no ideas on how to regain public support for the party. People’s private life is more concern to some of them.
Just as the government should do more to convince the people about the DNA Bill, MCA leaders must also do more to convince the public, especially the Chinese, that it still deserves to be supported.
********************************
Also,a group calling itself mca74justice, who left a footprint in the steal of the night at my Civil Society post Yesterday -- when all my troubles seemed so far away at the KLSCAH in Kuala Lumpur -- and Desi in giving CREDIT where credit (knot the RM type-lah, that wan for LingSnr and Jnrs who wanna be billionaire-by-27!) -- I allow some PR for my political rival:) C Desi can be charitable, yes! Promoting civil society hear!
+++++++
www.mca74justice.blogspot.com
No Evidence? Just Swear!
A word to Saiful, Tajol Rosli, Najib on all this swearing business: It is patently obvious that when all else fails (i.e. when you DON'T have evidence), you SWEAR!
mca74justice
Posted by mca7forjustice at 7:22 AM 0 comments Links to this post
Devolution Not Advancement (DNA) Bill!
Permatang Pauh shows that it is not about DSAI anymore. It is about realising that we as a nation is standing on the cusp of a new identity as a nation of Malaysians. It is about realising that we the citizens of Malaysia want justice to be done. It is about realising that the democratic institutions, and the people we elected into Parliament, do not abuse the powers entrenched in the system to victimise a single person. It is about realising that if the DNA bill gets passed in its present form, it is not just DSAI's human rights that will be trampled upon, but ANY of our human rights can be trampled upon willy-nilly by the supposedly democratic institutions that were set up to protect us! And this includes the human rights of any UMNO or MCA or MIC MPs or Senators that have run afoul of the elitist few that holds the power to yield the DNA sword!
Think: how incredible it is that the BN Government is so fearful of one man that they are willing to create a new law in an effort to snare him, after failing to get him to submit his DNA! Syed Hamid's denial that this is so despite it being so painfully obvious, once again makes the BN Government the laughing stock of the international community, lurching Malaysia towards Mugabe-style (mis)leadership!
Yes, this DNA Bill have shown that the Malaysian Parliament has Devolved Not Advanced ("DNA") as a transparent and accountable democratic institution!
mca74justice
Posted by mca7forjustice
+++++++
Friday, 29 August 2008 08:40
Government must be more convincing in arguing for DNA Bill
By Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek
Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek
Taken from google images
(Desi: can visualise the Images, yes?)
Thursday, August 21, 2008
The government must not hastily push through the passage of the DNA Bill which has been presented before Parliament, until the matter is properly debated on publicly and its implications are properly explained.
Right now, public confidence in the authorities, be it the police, the various government departments or any new department to be set up to deal with DNA collection, remains very low.
There is widespread concern that the authorities are not ready for legislation making it compulsory for criminal suspects to provide DNA samples.
In conversations with ordinary Malaysians and after reading responses on the Internet as well as after listening to public reaction over the 98.8 radio station's live discussion just this morning, I have found that a majority of the public are not in favour of the DNA Bill.
I reject any suggestion that this Bill is being targeted at Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim because it does not operate retrospectively.
But there is cause for public concern over what kind of safeguards will be introduced by the government in the collection of DNA samples.
Just who will collect these samples? How well will they be trained? How do we know the DNA samples cannot be tainted?
These are some of the questions the people would like to know.
Also, why is the government proposing such wide powers which can be subject to manipulation or abuse.
I am sure the government may have good intentions, but the fact is in today's political scenario, it must work harder to win the battle of perception.
The general perception is that the authorities are generally considered inefficient, corrupt and incompetent. It is a perception that has wide support.
How is the public expected to have faith in the system?
The government must be more convincing in its arguments for the introduction of the DNA Bill.
Leaders cannot just pretend there is no public concern.
We must remember that in a democracy laws are introduced for the benefit of the people.
So the government must explain how the DNA Bill will benefit the public. It must allay concerns.
It must listen to public feedback and possibly tweak the Bill further.
Since the Bill was first mooted as far back as 2001, what is the haste in passing the legislation now?
The government should spend some time publicizing the provisions of the Bill to ensure wider acceptance or to even make sure it is indeed ready to efficiently and impartially administer the collection of DNA.
While I cannot speak for Umno, MIC and other parties in the Barisan Nasional (BN), I find it strange though that none of the senior leaders in the MCA or any of the candidates for the party elections have voiced out their concerns.
It was pointed out by one senior party leader today in The Star that if we are really committed to what we say we should walk the talk.
I am not sure if he was talking about me, but I still believe the very least MCA's representatives and leaders must do is to voice out public concerns over a myriad of issues such as the DNA Bill.
For now, I do not hold any government or party position. All I can do is to speak out thru the blog. The press will not entertain any statement by me
What I don't understand is that there are senior leaders and candidates in the MCA who still say nothing at all, and appear to offer no ideas on how to regain public support for the party. People’s private life is more concern to some of them.
Just as the government should do more to convince the people about the DNA Bill, MCA leaders must also do more to convince the public, especially the Chinese, that it still deserves to be supported.
********************************
Also,a group calling itself mca74justice, who left a footprint in the steal of the night at my Civil Society post Yesterday -- when all my troubles seemed so far away at the KLSCAH in Kuala Lumpur -- and Desi in giving CREDIT where credit (knot the RM type-lah, that wan for LingSnr and Jnrs who wanna be billionaire-by-27!) -- I allow some PR for my political rival:) C Desi can be charitable, yes! Promoting civil society hear!
+++++++
www.mca74justice.blogspot.com
No Evidence? Just Swear!
A word to Saiful, Tajol Rosli, Najib on all this swearing business: It is patently obvious that when all else fails (i.e. when you DON'T have evidence), you SWEAR!
mca74justice
Posted by mca7forjustice at 7:22 AM 0 comments Links to this post
Devolution Not Advancement (DNA) Bill!
Permatang Pauh shows that it is not about DSAI anymore. It is about realising that we as a nation is standing on the cusp of a new identity as a nation of Malaysians. It is about realising that we the citizens of Malaysia want justice to be done. It is about realising that the democratic institutions, and the people we elected into Parliament, do not abuse the powers entrenched in the system to victimise a single person. It is about realising that if the DNA bill gets passed in its present form, it is not just DSAI's human rights that will be trampled upon, but ANY of our human rights can be trampled upon willy-nilly by the supposedly democratic institutions that were set up to protect us! And this includes the human rights of any UMNO or MCA or MIC MPs or Senators that have run afoul of the elitist few that holds the power to yield the DNA sword!
Think: how incredible it is that the BN Government is so fearful of one man that they are willing to create a new law in an effort to snare him, after failing to get him to submit his DNA! Syed Hamid's denial that this is so despite it being so painfully obvious, once again makes the BN Government the laughing stock of the international community, lurching Malaysia towards Mugabe-style (mis)leadership!
Yes, this DNA Bill have shown that the Malaysian Parliament has Devolved Not Advanced ("DNA") as a transparent and accountable democratic institution!
mca74justice
Posted by mca7forjustice
+++++++
Civil Society Emerge Winners
LAST night at the KLSCAH banquet
Post-PP euphoria swept a gathering of civil society friends
One can discern the hopes both expressed and quiet
From inspired speeches -- of seeing achievement via united human effort
Of the BN Government's countless wwwwwwwrongs that cry out for amends
There is HOPE yet
as like-minded Malaysians strive
for human dignity, decency in government and social justice
VVVVVVVe AWE emerge winners in the KLSCAH 2007 Civil Society Award
Yes, latecomers, next year, let's see more fellow Negaraku folks get on board
8.08AM August 29, 2008
Post-PP euphoria swept a gathering of civil society friends
One can discern the hopes both expressed and quiet
From inspired speeches -- of seeing achievement via united human effort
Of the BN Government's countless wwwwwwwrongs that cry out for amends
There is HOPE yet
as like-minded Malaysians strive
for human dignity, decency in government and social justice
VVVVVVVe AWE emerge winners in the KLSCAH 2007 Civil Society Award
Yes, latecomers, next year, let's see more fellow Negaraku folks get on board
8.08AM August 29, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
TONIGHT Civil Society Celebrates...
Is it a follow-up to Yesterday's and the Day Before's celebs for PP and DSAI...?
I dunno about the preceding, BUT I AM VERY CERTAIN ABOUT WHAT FOLLOWS -- this CSM is VERY DA IMPORTANT for a very mGf Sdr Chan Kim Ming, hear hiswelcoming voice at 03-22746645:)
Dewan Perhimpunan China Kuala Lumpur dan Selangor
吉隆坡暨雪兰莪中华大会堂
The Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall
To: All My Esteemed Readers and Friends:)
13 August 2008
Dear Sir/Madam,
Invitation to Attend Civil Society Award ceremony
The KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) will be having its Civil Society Award ceremony on 28th August 2008. The NGOs, activists and the public are invited to attend in order to acknowledge individuals and organizations on their contributions to civil society and to open up the democratic space.
The promotion and strengthening of freedom and democracy depend on the growth of civil society. The first Civil Society Award to be given away by the KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) starts from 2008.
The purpose of the award is to acknowledge individuals and organizations on their contributions to civil society and to open up the democratic space and at the same time encourage such participation by more individuals and organizations.
This award also serves as an evaluation to the civil society organizations and even to the overall performance of civil societies. Besides, we should recognise the importance of civil societies as the third-sector and NGOs are moving our society to be more progressive. We hope that this would encourage the communal organizations to be more open and be more proactive in the public affairs.
Individuals who are Malaysian citizens or organisations in Malaysia are eligible for nomination. The Award is given once a year, which can be conferred on up to three individuals or organisations in no particular order.
The winner of the civil society award will be announced by the award committee. All nominees will be granted testimonials as recognition and encouragement of their contribution to the civil society while the winner will be awarded RM5000, trophy as well as testimonials. Two thematic speeches will be delivered at the ceremony as to analyze the concept of civil society and the current situation of the country. The speaker will touch on the relationship of ethnic identity and civil society so as to promote dialogue and understanding among different communities.
Details of the event:
Organizer : The Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall
Data : 28 August 2008 (Thursday)
Time : 7.30 p.m.
Venue : Auditorium of KLSCAH
Free entry and dinner is provided.
Agenda :
07.30pm registration and dinner
08.30 pm promulgation ceremony and speeches
1. Greetings by Tan Yew Sing, Deputy President of KLSCAH
2. Introduction by Ser Choon Ing, Chairman of the Civil Society Award
3. Brief history of the Malaysian civil society
4. "Ethnic Identity and Civil Society" by Mr Lee Ban Chen, veteran political commentator
5. Social movement and music performance by Mr Amin Iskandar, artist and writer
6. Civil society in today's Malaysia by Mr Haris Ibrahim, human rights lawyer
7. The judges' note
8. Closing (Music: Wind of Change)
KLSCAH hopes that this initiative will encourage more individuals and organizations to participate in pushing for social progress and to establish a civil society. The growth of civil society requires participation of all ethnic groups and all segments of the society. We thus invite all to join us in this activity and welcome feedback so that we can move forward to a more open and progressive society.
Should you have further enquiry, please do not hesitate to contact the assistant secretary of the KLSCAH, Chan Kim Ming , 03-22746645.
Thank you.
Cordially,
Ser Choon Ing
Chairman of the Civil Rights Award Organizing Committee
Appendix 1: The Award Committee
Scholars and community leaders will be invited to form a seven-member award committee. The committee will verify, nominate and select recipients of the award. All decisions by the committee are final.
Bellow is the list of the Committee:
1. Mr. Ser Choon Ing
The Chairman of The Civil Rights Award Organizing Committee of KLSCAH,
The Chairman of Civil Rights Committee of KLSCAH
2. Mrs. Maria Chin Abdullah,
The President of Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (Empower)
3. Mr. Yeo Yang Poh,
Former President of the Malaysian Bar Council
4. Mr. P.Ramakrishnan,
President of ALIRAN
5. Mr. Ragunath Kesavan ,
Vice President of the Malaysian Bar Council
6. Dr. Toh Kin Woon,
Ex-State Executive Council Member
7. Mr. Hishammuddin Rais,
Veteran Writer
Appendix 2: Criteria for Selection
The committee will select recipients of the award according to the following criteria:
(a) Playing an important role in defending freedom of political participation and fighting for greater space for social freedom and democracy;
(b) Actively promoting the cooperation of civil groups from different background and areas;
(c) Initiating and pioneering social reforms;
(d) Promoting communications and interactions among different ethnic groups.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Fellow Bloggers, Let's Play Hyde&Sick!
When I was small
and papay trees were tall
We used to love
while others used to play
.......
(Deer leaders, I'm sure you lemember this one by the BeeGees?)
TEACHER: Now boys and girls, what game do you want to play today?Desi: Teacher, teacher -- let's pray Brindman's bruff!
Mimi: Hey, YL, it's Blind man's Bluff-lah!
Zorro: Teacher, teacher -- I want to play Hide and Seek!
CathyZ: Yes, I want to be Hyde, and Bernie, you are my Sith!
Government to target blogosphere next
http://m.themalaysianinsider.com.my/articles.php?id=8174
By The Malaysian Insider
August 26, 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 Next up: a crackdown on bloggers. This possibility looms large after the government reached a sober assessment that it could all end in tears for the Barisan Nasional at the next general election if tough action is not taken to counter allegations on the Net and hold owners of blogs accountable.
This conclusion was reached during a meeting last week involving several Cabinet ministers and senior government officials, including Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Government officials noted that some 400,000 new voters are registered each year. Assuming that the next polls are in five years, there would be two million new voters the next time the BN seeks a fresh mandate. A large chunk of these two million voters are likely to obtain their news and information from websites and blogs, and not from the mainstream media.
Several ministers noted that if the government followed its current policy of allowing allegations by bloggers to go unchallenged, this would create the perception that the information being posted is accurate.
"There is a growing consensus in government that those who run websites and blogs should be held accountable and this means that laws should be used to take action against those who defame and spread disinformation.
"If not, we are going to have a situation where everyone will be free to make all sorts of allegations with no downside at all. There is a fear that the trust level with BN would be very low if nothing is done, '' said a senior government official familiar with details of the meeting.
The prevailing mood in the government against the alternative media is one of frustration. After decades of being able to control newspapers and television stations through a raft of legislation, government officials and politicians are finding that their tools are useless in setting boundaries for new media.
At last week's meeting, an official of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) explained that the authorities have not come down hard on websites and bloggers because Section 3 of the Communications and Multimedia Act prohibits any form of censorship.
But government officials corrected him and said that the guarantee that the Internet would not be censored did not preclude legal action from being taken against bloggers for defamation and sedition.
They pointed out that the Singapore government had hauled several bloggers to court for a series of offences and suggested that the Malaysian government should follow suit. In the aftermath of Election 2008, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that the government paid a heavy price by allowing accusations and reports on the Internet to go unchallenged.
He said that the BN underestimated the power of the Internet and committed a serious misjudgment by relying on the mainstream media in the run-up to the general election. His comments resulted in the Information Ministry reaching out to some prominent bloggers and giving them some air-time on television but by and large the relationship between the alternative media and the government has remained testy.
In recent months, Raja Petra Kamaruddin, the country's best-known political blogger, has had a running battle with Najib and his wife, implicating both of them in the October 2006 murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shariibuu. The DPM has also been on the receiving end of other damaging allegations.
His supporters in Umno have been pushing for a more hardnosed approach in dealing with bloggers and operators of news portals, arguing that the softer touch by the Abdullah administration has resulted in daily attacks on ministers and BN politicians.
Critics of the government said that instead of focusing on bloggers and the alternative media, they should strive for more accountability and transparency, and remove the shackles on the mainstream media.
DESIDERATA:
Yes, I was recalling the FIRSTofMAY when Bloggers gathered at the Lake View Club to mark World Press Freedom Day.
After Yesterday's result -- resounding eh! "CONgrats" to DSAI and no less the Bloggers team headed by RPK!:) -- of Permatang Pauh, IF THE GOVERNMENT PLANNED TO DO AS WHAT IT WAS REPORTED TO BE IN THE PIPELINE as reported by The Malaysian Insider,
then I'm afraid it has not learnt the Lessons of March 8, 2008 and August 26, 2008.
Then the g.ds/Devil must send them to ...ah, well, swell, to .ell!
I:
S:
A:...
**********************************
As Desi would soon be On The Move -- no, not On The Beat, that's for double latuk GEISi! -- hear's a Cut&Paste from one of Desi's fave blogs: resident Walski of an asylum who often leaps, today takes a Baby Step for NegaraKu:)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
One Small Step...
Technorati tags: Politics, Permatang Pauh, Anwar Ibrahim, Hope
Flashback, July 21st, 1969. On that day, history was made. Man, for the very first time, set foot on the surface of an extra-terrestial body - the Moon.
It was also on that day, a cliché was born:
"That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind"
Neil Armstrong (via Quotations Book)
Flash-forward 39 years later, give or take.
You could also say that August 26th, 2008 was "one small step"... Maybe not for mankind, per se. But definitely for this nation we love called Malaysia.
(courtesy of Mob1900)
Congratulations, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
(baby steps towards a better Malaysia, and more, in the full post)
And what's significant about the one small step on August 26th?
Well, for one thing, it reinforces Walski's belief that communitarian politics is a dying paradigm. At least, race-communitarian politics. As for the demise of religious-communitarian politics, we still got some baby steps to overcome yet. But Walski's confident we'll get there at some point.
Another thing is the credibility of Barisan Nasional that's eroding faster than what global warming is doing to Antartica. Even the appearance of The Father, Son-in-Law, and possibly whole-y busloads of ghostly voters, couldn't save the day for BN. Okay, perhaps that was pretty bad, cliché-wise. For which, however, Walski offers no apologies.
And finally, no amount of swearing, underhanded dirty election tricks, or subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) monetary enducements could deter the voice of the people.
On a slightly lighter note, the Mrs forwarded this humorous SMS to Walski earlier in the day:
The future of Japan is in its technology
The future of China is in its economy
The future of Malaysia is in Saiful's ass...
Well, Walski would beg to differ. The future is in our own asses hands. And what the pivotal hands of Permatang Pauh collectively did on August 26th, may just have tilted our nation towards a better future. Saiful's ass notwithstanding.
But the journey is far from over. We now wait to see where that one small step leads us to...
Ah well... for all it's worth, at least there's something positive for Walski to feel about come August 31st... them flags may yet find the inspiration to right-side-up themselves...
and papay trees were tall
We used to love
while others used to play
.......
(Deer leaders, I'm sure you lemember this one by the BeeGees?)
TEACHER: Now boys and girls, what game do you want to play today?Desi: Teacher, teacher -- let's pray Brindman's bruff!
Mimi: Hey, YL, it's Blind man's Bluff-lah!
Zorro: Teacher, teacher -- I want to play Hide and Seek!
CathyZ: Yes, I want to be Hyde, and Bernie, you are my Sith!
Government to target blogosphere next
http://m.themalaysianinsider.com.my/articles.php?id=8174
By The Malaysian Insider
August 26, 2008
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 Next up: a crackdown on bloggers. This possibility looms large after the government reached a sober assessment that it could all end in tears for the Barisan Nasional at the next general election if tough action is not taken to counter allegations on the Net and hold owners of blogs accountable.
This conclusion was reached during a meeting last week involving several Cabinet ministers and senior government officials, including Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Government officials noted that some 400,000 new voters are registered each year. Assuming that the next polls are in five years, there would be two million new voters the next time the BN seeks a fresh mandate. A large chunk of these two million voters are likely to obtain their news and information from websites and blogs, and not from the mainstream media.
Several ministers noted that if the government followed its current policy of allowing allegations by bloggers to go unchallenged, this would create the perception that the information being posted is accurate.
"There is a growing consensus in government that those who run websites and blogs should be held accountable and this means that laws should be used to take action against those who defame and spread disinformation.
"If not, we are going to have a situation where everyone will be free to make all sorts of allegations with no downside at all. There is a fear that the trust level with BN would be very low if nothing is done, '' said a senior government official familiar with details of the meeting.
The prevailing mood in the government against the alternative media is one of frustration. After decades of being able to control newspapers and television stations through a raft of legislation, government officials and politicians are finding that their tools are useless in setting boundaries for new media.
At last week's meeting, an official of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) explained that the authorities have not come down hard on websites and bloggers because Section 3 of the Communications and Multimedia Act prohibits any form of censorship.
But government officials corrected him and said that the guarantee that the Internet would not be censored did not preclude legal action from being taken against bloggers for defamation and sedition.
They pointed out that the Singapore government had hauled several bloggers to court for a series of offences and suggested that the Malaysian government should follow suit. In the aftermath of Election 2008, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that the government paid a heavy price by allowing accusations and reports on the Internet to go unchallenged.
He said that the BN underestimated the power of the Internet and committed a serious misjudgment by relying on the mainstream media in the run-up to the general election. His comments resulted in the Information Ministry reaching out to some prominent bloggers and giving them some air-time on television but by and large the relationship between the alternative media and the government has remained testy.
In recent months, Raja Petra Kamaruddin, the country's best-known political blogger, has had a running battle with Najib and his wife, implicating both of them in the October 2006 murder of Mongolian model Altantuya Shariibuu. The DPM has also been on the receiving end of other damaging allegations.
His supporters in Umno have been pushing for a more hardnosed approach in dealing with bloggers and operators of news portals, arguing that the softer touch by the Abdullah administration has resulted in daily attacks on ministers and BN politicians.
Critics of the government said that instead of focusing on bloggers and the alternative media, they should strive for more accountability and transparency, and remove the shackles on the mainstream media.
DESIDERATA:
Yes, I was recalling the FIRSTofMAY when Bloggers gathered at the Lake View Club to mark World Press Freedom Day.
After Yesterday's result -- resounding eh! "CONgrats" to DSAI and no less the Bloggers team headed by RPK!:) -- of Permatang Pauh, IF THE GOVERNMENT PLANNED TO DO AS WHAT IT WAS REPORTED TO BE IN THE PIPELINE as reported by The Malaysian Insider,
then I'm afraid it has not learnt the Lessons of March 8, 2008 and August 26, 2008.
Then the g.ds/Devil must send them to ...ah, well, swell, to .ell!
I:
S:
A:...
**********************************
As Desi would soon be On The Move -- no, not On The Beat, that's for double latuk GEISi! -- hear's a Cut&Paste from one of Desi's fave blogs: resident Walski of an asylum who often leaps, today takes a Baby Step for NegaraKu:)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
One Small Step...
Technorati tags: Politics, Permatang Pauh, Anwar Ibrahim, Hope
Flashback, July 21st, 1969. On that day, history was made. Man, for the very first time, set foot on the surface of an extra-terrestial body - the Moon.
It was also on that day, a cliché was born:
"That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind"
Neil Armstrong (via Quotations Book)
Flash-forward 39 years later, give or take.
You could also say that August 26th, 2008 was "one small step"... Maybe not for mankind, per se. But definitely for this nation we love called Malaysia.
(courtesy of Mob1900)
Congratulations, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
(baby steps towards a better Malaysia, and more, in the full post)
And what's significant about the one small step on August 26th?
Well, for one thing, it reinforces Walski's belief that communitarian politics is a dying paradigm. At least, race-communitarian politics. As for the demise of religious-communitarian politics, we still got some baby steps to overcome yet. But Walski's confident we'll get there at some point.
Another thing is the credibility of Barisan Nasional that's eroding faster than what global warming is doing to Antartica. Even the appearance of The Father, Son-in-Law, and possibly whole-y busloads of ghostly voters, couldn't save the day for BN. Okay, perhaps that was pretty bad, cliché-wise. For which, however, Walski offers no apologies.
And finally, no amount of swearing, underhanded dirty election tricks, or subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) monetary enducements could deter the voice of the people.
On a slightly lighter note, the Mrs forwarded this humorous SMS to Walski earlier in the day:
The future of Japan is in its technology
The future of China is in its economy
The future of Malaysia is in Saiful's ass...
Well, Walski would beg to differ. The future is in our own asses hands. And what the pivotal hands of Permatang Pauh collectively did on August 26th, may just have tilted our nation towards a better future. Saiful's ass notwithstanding.
But the journey is far from over. We now wait to see where that one small step leads us to...
Ah well... for all it's worth, at least there's something positive for Walski to feel about come August 31st... them flags may yet find the inspiration to right-side-up themselves...
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
MISSION MERDEKA: My Blue H'aven Beckons4Change to Continue...
If there is one turning point that NegaraKu will treasure as "historic", it will be the will of the 58,000-strong VOTERS of Permatang Pauh today, the D-DAY not just for PKR leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, but more significantly, to mark the 51st anniversary in five' days time the Independence of Malaya from British colonial rule on August 31, 1957. Will we be able to achieve a higher plane of independence from BN-UMNO hegemonic culture of corruption? Truth will greet or choke us tonight as the Election Commission officially announces PP's by-election results.
Former DPM and PM-in-waiting DSAI's MERDEKA MISSION -- Independence from Oppression, Crime and Corruption -- will be notched several steps forward if the electorate in PP in their wisdom return Anwar to Parliament with a resounding Victory over his BN opponent Arif Shah, who by the way, will still reman a Penang ADUN even in losing his parliament fight tonight.
My Blue H'aven was started 3-1/2 years ago on a Mission4Change.
CHANGE came on March 8, 2008.
Greater and sustainable change must be the will of the PP electorate Today, in this touted Mother of All By-Elections in NegaraKu.
If Desi stares at the CloakOfDefeat cometh tonight, I will pen a Midnight Voice for the last time, for a "long" time to come, to live up to my name.
I will reflect if such efforts4Change should even continue.
I'm quite sure I won't be driven to this MalaysiaBoleh dilemma.
But Malaysian politics has been plummeted to such lows -- Sodomy? Second time around, UMNO-oh-No! -- that some scepticsm among fair-minded Malaysians is understandable. We must be prepared for the strangest of eventualities! I pray that my misapprehension is unfounded and ungrounded.
God bless the people of Permatang Pauh. You are an a historic crossroads on behalf of all fellow Malaysians. I pray I can be proud of Thee tonight.
Hope springs eternal in this Midnight Voice in Furong. I know there are any number of chorus boys and gals in the background singing in tandem. The melody is in the hands ofthe 58,000-strong PP choir. "Gb....!"~~ YL-Desi
Former DPM and PM-in-waiting DSAI's MERDEKA MISSION -- Independence from Oppression, Crime and Corruption -- will be notched several steps forward if the electorate in PP in their wisdom return Anwar to Parliament with a resounding Victory over his BN opponent Arif Shah, who by the way, will still reman a Penang ADUN even in losing his parliament fight tonight.
My Blue H'aven was started 3-1/2 years ago on a Mission4Change.
CHANGE came on March 8, 2008.
Greater and sustainable change must be the will of the PP electorate Today, in this touted Mother of All By-Elections in NegaraKu.
If Desi stares at the CloakOfDefeat cometh tonight, I will pen a Midnight Voice for the last time, for a "long" time to come, to live up to my name.
I will reflect if such efforts4Change should even continue.
I'm quite sure I won't be driven to this MalaysiaBoleh dilemma.
But Malaysian politics has been plummeted to such lows -- Sodomy? Second time around, UMNO-oh-No! -- that some scepticsm among fair-minded Malaysians is understandable. We must be prepared for the strangest of eventualities! I pray that my misapprehension is unfounded and ungrounded.
God bless the people of Permatang Pauh. You are an a historic crossroads on behalf of all fellow Malaysians. I pray I can be proud of Thee tonight.
Hope springs eternal in this Midnight Voice in Furong. I know there are any number of chorus boys and gals in the background singing in tandem. The melody is in the hands ofthe 58,000-strong PP choir. "Gb....!"~~ YL-Desi
Monday, August 25, 2008
Merdeka Mission II: DS Anwar Ibrahim Will Win...
BUT WILL THE MAJORITY EXCEED 13,338 votes, the margin that his wife Datin Dr Wan Azizah Ismail won on Marh 8, 2008?
Desi will C&P from Sdr Ahrudin Attan's on site latest post update, then will follow with an own roundup, hastily done after a 2-1/2-day busman's holiday on an islan I love to call my own, but even the Pakatan Rakyat government wouldn't yield...So let's just dream on I'll get to that 20million I-LAND in the sun before 2020. Mis Patience is also Miss/Mr/In-between Virtuous.
From rockybru.blogspot.com:
Monday, August 25, 2008
Permatang Pauh, last call
A Long Final Day (and A Short Relief for Anwar?) For the last two days, I've been running around Penang interviewing people and reporting for RazorTV, the region's latest Internet TV or IPTV. In the last 24 hours, I spoke to the two main candidates for the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election - Anwar Ibrahim and Arif Shah.
Anwar told me this afternoon that he remains confident of winning, despite the controversial new electoral list that the Election Commission has come up with. The "confession" by Imam Ramlang Porigi seems to have been a big relief to Anwar (but according to Bernama here, Najib has said only the Mufti can decide on the validity of Saiful's swearing by the Quran and the Mufti can be expected to say something by tonight, the eve of the by-election, so Anwar's relief may be short-lived!).
I had been told that Arif spoke Mandarin so I thought I'd start my interview with him this morning with "Ni Hau Ma?". The guy launched a good two or three-minute speech in Mandarin to say how confident he is now of winning.
Independent election observers I interviewed today were not happy with the huge presence of cops (about 6,000 police officers have been deployed for a by-election with just over 58,000 voters). The complained about unnecessary road blocks and also about the Election Commission holding polling day on a weekday. The special public holiday the Penang government has declared for tomorrow does not appease them. But Yunus Ali, the chairperson of the National Institute for Electoral Integrity, said the watchers were impressed with one thing: ALL ceramahs and gatherings got approvals.
I am going to a carnival tonight on the mainland, organised by the Pakatan Rakyat, where the politicians hope to party.
I was told the interviews will be aired on RazorTV tonight . Please check it out at www.razor.tv
*********************************** Desi's report for what it's worth
***********************************
News feature style, oay!
By YL CHONG
Journalist buddy Terence N and YL traversed Seberang Jaya and Semilang and Penanti on Saturday and Sunday to "feel the pulse" of the Permatang Pauh electorate. Short calls like this -- termed "helicopter" coverage in media jargon -- are only good accompanied by having sered locally as newshounds, so Terence and I qualify. But we two are also know PKR supporters, so our lenses are coloured by some partisan paints, so I tender a whispered "sorry", but not on behalf of matey Terence, for he is his own man.
Speaking with an Ah Soh and a Ayah at a quickstop ceramah by Pakatan Rakyat-PKR candidate Anwat Ibrahim, at Seberang Jaya 2, I discern most of them will opt for change as promised by Anwar. There is no doubt the campaigns frm both sides ae anchored on the Malaysian Malay majority making up the 58,000 electorate. It is how the MM will decide at the August 26 polling booth which will determine the eventual outcome.
Hence the overwhelmingly dominant issue is on Saiful Bukhari Azlan's sodomy charge against Anwar, wuth the government-taped TV coverage of Saiful's swearing before FT mosque imam Ramlang Porigi being played to death to run the former DPM's image down -- as someone not fit to be Prime Minister (as was former PM DR Mahathir Mohamad's main weapon to kill off his deputy's political career a decade earlier.) Hence also the constant challneges by the PM and DPM to Anwar to also swear his innocence of Saiful's charge.
A late arrival by Ramlang inperson at Permatang Pauh late Sunday night was a real salvo by Anwar's camp, much helped by royal Blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, to destroy UMNO's chief platform to disgrace Anwar.
Other issues the BN -- chiefly UMNO as there is a conspicious absence of other component party leaders; maybe the MCA and MIC et al kakis have good intelligence that this time around, ABSENCE MAKES THE (VOTERS') HEARTS GROW FONDER!--
had campaigned on are:
** That the recent arrests of two Perak State Exco, from PKR, for corrupt pratices, and hence charging that the Opposition coalition leaders also are not free of corruption.
*** That the Government's recent 15-sen reduction in petrol price shows the Govvernment's concern about the Rakyat's interests relating to inflation and the rising prices of fuel and transportation, and essential goods.
Anwar at his ceramah campaigned on the theme of MERDEKA
(FREEDOM) from Oppression, Crime and Corruption.
In responses to BN's allegations and claims, Anwar used wit and humour to state that:
* the act of swearing by Saiful, or by any "criminal" on the Quran would not prove the swearer's innocence of wrong-doing. If this is how a criminal proves his innocence, a rapist aor murderer could just get away by taking an oath before a Holy book? Then al criinals will just get away by swearing using the Qran as Saiful did, he added.
** That if there was anyone the Rakayt should tahnk for the 15-sen petrol price reduction, it would be the PKR candidate in the PP by-election, ie. DSAI-lah, grinning his boyish grin. And receiving applause that naturally followed.
Anwar also lamented that the Rakyat are suffering because of the high crime rates and people do not feel safe anymore.
But the worst enemy is still the CORRUPTION among the Government leaders, resulting in huge wastages and seepages of the Governent's funds meant for the country's development and promoting the Rakyat's wellbeing.
In conculsion, my take is that only "dity tricks" up in the league of past US presidential Dick Nixonian proportions could achieve victory fo BN's Arif Shah, and he should then take Saiful into his chamber, open up the champagne botol, perhaps other orifices.
Yes, my reading is that SDAI would definitely march into Parliament, but this time around with a reduced majority, smaller than the 13,338 votes obtaned by his wife last March 8. My rediction is the ex-DPM would win by a 10,000 majority, decent enought to "effect" the cross-overs of the BN patliamentarians. (+++++ I will run fellow scribe KIM QUEK's piece on this subjevct later. Stay Tuned!:)
Come August 26, now less than two crucial days away, it is not just the fate of ONE PARLIAMENT SEAT at stake for de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim; in the balance is the much anticipated "cross-overs" to immediate follow when by a minimum of 30 Barian Nasional MPs from Sabah and Sarwak will join the PR coalition of DAP. PAS and PKR, to be able to form an alternative Federal Government. If it transpires, and it does, it would have to happen before Merdeka Day on Aug 31, 2008, marking the first aftermath second wave after March 8 GE 2008 tsunami swing against the seemingly invncible BN, which for the first time, lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament.
Let me urge the VOTERS of Permatang Pauh to ponder:
All that is necessary for the triumph
of evil is that good men do nothing.-- Edmund Burke
******************************
NO CHOICE BUT TO MARCH INTO PUTRAJAYA
By Kim Quek
August 25, 2008
How will future historians fifty or a hundred years from now look at Permatang Pauh in relation to Malaysia ? Will it be like Gettysburg to USA , or Yenan to the new China – famous names that evoke memories of major turning points in the history of nations?
The answer depends on how the people in Permatang Pauh will vote in the by-election on August 26, 2008 . Not whether Anwar Ibrahim will be returned as a Member of Parliament, but whether the electorate will give Anwar a decisive margin of victory that can be taken as an endorsement of his plan to take over power from the crumbling and decadent Barisan Nasional (BN).
If Anwar wins by a convincing majority – despite BN waging the dirtiest of election campaigns in memory against him – then he will be well poised to formalize the cross-over of disenchanted Barisan Nasional MPs who share the aspirations of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and are now waiting for such a moment to make the switch. With BN already in an advanced stage of disintegration and decadence while the economy is fast sinking amidst public fury and distrust, the anticipated cross-over, once triggered, will turn into a torrent that will sweep PR into power.
DISINTEGRATING BN
Since the March 8 general elections, BN, which is a grouping of 14 racial parties, has already lost its traction as a coalition. Satellite parties like MCA, Gerakan, MIC have made scathing attacks against the dominant core party UMNO, blaming the latter’s racial arrogance and hegemony for the collapse of their popular support within their own individual racial groupings. They have asked for drastic changes of UMNO’s policy – changing from master-servant relationship to genuine partnership of mutual respect and equitable sharing – so as to enable them to recoup their lost support. However, UMNO has instead moved in the opposite direction. It has intensified its racial agenda in an apparent attempt to consolidate and expand its core support – the Malay voters, at the expense of support from other races.
This strategy is no doubt driven by the recognition that UMNO still enjoys considerable Malay support, especially in the rural areas, while BN has little hope of regaining support of other races from Pakatan Rakyat, which advocates a pro-rakyat policy within the framework of egalitarianism under the Constitution.
The evolving scenario is polarization of political development – an increasingly ethnocentric UMNO relying on repression to preserve its political and racial hegemony on one side versus an unrelenting multi-racial reform movement that vows to foster national unity, restore democracy and rule of law and re-vitalise the sagging economy.
We thus see a struggling racist UMNO, hanged on to it by subservient racial parties which are now propped up by leaders with vested interests in the government but are badly emaciated by disappearing grassroots. If a general election is held today, it is not an exaggeration to say that the race based parties in the Peninsular – MCA, Gerakan, MIC - will be completely routed.
The scenario in Sabah and Sarawak is somewhat different where BN’s coalition partners are mostly native-based parties and where Pakatan Rakyat has not established a strong foothold. Their grouses are mainly regional marginalization and failure to honour the 1963 Malaysia Pact (which grants them equal partnership with Peninsular Malaysia) by the UMNO-dominated federal government. The Sabahans, who have been plagued by illegal immigrants that now outnumber the locals, have attributed their widespread poverty and under-development and severe social unrest to willful negligence and exploitation by the federal government. Many leaders have quietly planned or contemplated to cross over to PR for a more equitable deal.
Meanwhile the backbone of BN, UMNO, is at its weakest in history. It is bereft of political idealism, badly fragmented by power struggle under a feeble leader, and its body politic critically corroded by a political malignancy that has almost become synonymous with UMNO – money politics.
RIPE FOR CROSS-OVER
It is not difficult to see that Putrajaya is ripe for the picking by Anwar, since many BN leaders, including those from UMNO, are ready to jump ship from this Titanic, having sighted the inescapable iceberg ahead. All that is needed now is a clarion call from the electorate in Permatang Pauh in the form of an emphatic majority to enable Anwar to embark on this historical mission.
But will the electorate of Permatang Pauh oblige? Perhaps this question should be answered by another question: is there an alternative? What will happen if Anwar fails to win a convincing majority and his effort to affect the anticipated cross-over from BN is frustrated?
We will then see an untenable impasse that will put our political and economic future to peril. For BN will continue its current effort to economically strangulate PR-controlled states through cutting off federal funds and canceling development projects, while stepping up repression through unconstitutional manipulation of state institutions - police, attorney general, judiciary, election commission and even the anti-corruption agency – to contain the rapidly growing popular support of PR. Avowed reforms on the judiciary, police and ACA will surely be thrown out of the window, as these reforms are anti-thesis to a repressive regime.
As it is, our economy is already in jeopardy due to mismanagement under a corrupt and inept political leadership that seems to be perpetually pre-occupied with intra-party in-fighting, racial and religious squabbles, and sheer incompetence exhibited in frequent policy flip-flops, massive leakages and irresponsible squandering.
Hence, as tension builds up between BN and PR, the economy will be further jeopardized through undue starving of federal funds and the inevitable shrinking of investments arising from further loss of investors’ confidence as the rule of law continues to slide.
ONLY ONE ALTERNATIVE
This intractable BN-PR deadlock can only be satisfactorily resolved by one of two solutions: either UMNO embarks on a path of genuine reforms to bring the country back to constitutional rule, or PR takes over the government to institute the much needed reforms to turn the country around onto the path of national unity and robust economic growth.
Six months have lapsed since the political tsunami of March 8, and there is no indication that UMNO is willing or capable of carrying out any of such reforms. Hence, there is only one alternative left: PR must march on to Putrajaya without delay.
And the electorate of Permatang Pauh are now entrusted with the sacrosanct duty to make that historical decision on behalf of the nation.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
UPDATEd on D-Day:) from cpiasia.net:
Reject Racial Politicking Tactics in Permatang Pauh By-Elections
Press Statements
Tuesday, 26 August 2008 10:00
Reject Racial Politicking Tactics in Permatang Pauh By-Elections
Will the coming Permatang Pauh by elections turn out to be the lowest point in Malaysian election history in terms of dirty electioneering, despicable campaign standards and sophisticated election rigging and vote buying?
We, the undersigned civil society organizations and all fair minded Malaysians hope not. However feedback from our observers as well as from many others at the ground level is indicating that there is a real possibility of this happening. Party leaders of the contesting parties may claim that they are waging a fair campaign. However the onus is on them to not only exercise full control over their respective election personnel and machineries to compete fairly but also to immediately repudiate whatever unethical behavior or unacceptable activities that are engaged in by their party supporters or proxies.
As civil society organizations that are not aligned to any political party and in our role as the watchdogs of democratic norms, we are concerned that our elections are far from free and fair and conform to international good practice. In particular, we call on - especially to the parties in the Barisan Nasional and to the candidate, Dato Ariff Shah Omar Shah, himself - to dissociate themselves from racially and religiously divisive messages that are appearing in printed form, short message service (SMS) and in private speeches aimed at voters – especially those that play up the fears of one ethnic group against another.
Such attempts at crude racial politicking and the use of inflammatory and racially distorted content to win votes need to be condemned by not only the contesting parties and candidates but also by other stakeholders. In this respect, the mainstream mass media has an important role to play in reporting on the election action and developments on the ground in a fair, unbiased and neutral way. Not only should equal and balanced coverage be extended to the campaigns of the two candidates but the press should also be a scrupulously accurate and honest monitor reporting any unethical or unacceptable form of electioneering and exposing the use of dirty tricks or extremist manipulation of racial and religious issues, whether this comes from the PR or BN camps.
It is not only the people of Permatang Pauh that are watching to see if a fair and honestly conducted elections will take place: one that focuses on real and substantive issues of local economic and social development and on
the best choice of candidate and party to address the many issues of poverty, rising cost of living and lack of opportunities for upward mobility that many voters face. All Malaysians and a large interested international community are also watching.
*Endorsed by:*
1. All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
2. Center for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC)
3. Center for Policy Initiatives (CPI)
4. Institute for Research and Social Advancement (REFSA)
5. Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (JERIT)
6. Labor Resource Center (LRC)
7. Malaysia Youth And Student democratic movement (DEMA)
8. National Institute of Electoral Integrity (NIEI)
9. Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (Empower)
10. Persatuan Masyarakat Selangor & Wilayah Persekutuan (PERMAS)
11. Pusat Khidmat Pekerja Tanjung (PKPT)
12. Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
13. Youth for Change (Y4C)
Desi will C&P from Sdr Ahrudin Attan's on site latest post update, then will follow with an own roundup, hastily done after a 2-1/2-day busman's holiday on an islan I love to call my own, but even the Pakatan Rakyat government wouldn't yield...So let's just dream on I'll get to that 20million I-LAND in the sun before 2020. Mis Patience is also Miss/Mr/In-between Virtuous.
From rockybru.blogspot.com:
Monday, August 25, 2008
Permatang Pauh, last call
A Long Final Day (and A Short Relief for Anwar?) For the last two days, I've been running around Penang interviewing people and reporting for RazorTV, the region's latest Internet TV or IPTV. In the last 24 hours, I spoke to the two main candidates for the Permatang Pauh parliamentary by-election - Anwar Ibrahim and Arif Shah.
Anwar told me this afternoon that he remains confident of winning, despite the controversial new electoral list that the Election Commission has come up with. The "confession" by Imam Ramlang Porigi seems to have been a big relief to Anwar (but according to Bernama here, Najib has said only the Mufti can decide on the validity of Saiful's swearing by the Quran and the Mufti can be expected to say something by tonight, the eve of the by-election, so Anwar's relief may be short-lived!).
I had been told that Arif spoke Mandarin so I thought I'd start my interview with him this morning with "Ni Hau Ma?". The guy launched a good two or three-minute speech in Mandarin to say how confident he is now of winning.
Independent election observers I interviewed today were not happy with the huge presence of cops (about 6,000 police officers have been deployed for a by-election with just over 58,000 voters). The complained about unnecessary road blocks and also about the Election Commission holding polling day on a weekday. The special public holiday the Penang government has declared for tomorrow does not appease them. But Yunus Ali, the chairperson of the National Institute for Electoral Integrity, said the watchers were impressed with one thing: ALL ceramahs and gatherings got approvals.
I am going to a carnival tonight on the mainland, organised by the Pakatan Rakyat, where the politicians hope to party.
I was told the interviews will be aired on RazorTV tonight . Please check it out at www.razor.tv
*********************************** Desi's report for what it's worth
***********************************
News feature style, oay!
By YL CHONG
Journalist buddy Terence N and YL traversed Seberang Jaya and Semilang and Penanti on Saturday and Sunday to "feel the pulse" of the Permatang Pauh electorate. Short calls like this -- termed "helicopter" coverage in media jargon -- are only good accompanied by having sered locally as newshounds, so Terence and I qualify. But we two are also know PKR supporters, so our lenses are coloured by some partisan paints, so I tender a whispered "sorry", but not on behalf of matey Terence, for he is his own man.
Speaking with an Ah Soh and a Ayah at a quickstop ceramah by Pakatan Rakyat-PKR candidate Anwat Ibrahim, at Seberang Jaya 2, I discern most of them will opt for change as promised by Anwar. There is no doubt the campaigns frm both sides ae anchored on the Malaysian Malay majority making up the 58,000 electorate. It is how the MM will decide at the August 26 polling booth which will determine the eventual outcome.
Hence the overwhelmingly dominant issue is on Saiful Bukhari Azlan's sodomy charge against Anwar, wuth the government-taped TV coverage of Saiful's swearing before FT mosque imam Ramlang Porigi being played to death to run the former DPM's image down -- as someone not fit to be Prime Minister (as was former PM DR Mahathir Mohamad's main weapon to kill off his deputy's political career a decade earlier.) Hence also the constant challneges by the PM and DPM to Anwar to also swear his innocence of Saiful's charge.
A late arrival by Ramlang inperson at Permatang Pauh late Sunday night was a real salvo by Anwar's camp, much helped by royal Blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, to destroy UMNO's chief platform to disgrace Anwar.
Other issues the BN -- chiefly UMNO as there is a conspicious absence of other component party leaders; maybe the MCA and MIC et al kakis have good intelligence that this time around, ABSENCE MAKES THE (VOTERS') HEARTS GROW FONDER!--
had campaigned on are:
** That the recent arrests of two Perak State Exco, from PKR, for corrupt pratices, and hence charging that the Opposition coalition leaders also are not free of corruption.
*** That the Government's recent 15-sen reduction in petrol price shows the Govvernment's concern about the Rakyat's interests relating to inflation and the rising prices of fuel and transportation, and essential goods.
Anwar at his ceramah campaigned on the theme of MERDEKA
(FREEDOM) from Oppression, Crime and Corruption.
In responses to BN's allegations and claims, Anwar used wit and humour to state that:
* the act of swearing by Saiful, or by any "criminal" on the Quran would not prove the swearer's innocence of wrong-doing. If this is how a criminal proves his innocence, a rapist aor murderer could just get away by taking an oath before a Holy book? Then al criinals will just get away by swearing using the Qran as Saiful did, he added.
** That if there was anyone the Rakayt should tahnk for the 15-sen petrol price reduction, it would be the PKR candidate in the PP by-election, ie. DSAI-lah, grinning his boyish grin. And receiving applause that naturally followed.
Anwar also lamented that the Rakyat are suffering because of the high crime rates and people do not feel safe anymore.
But the worst enemy is still the CORRUPTION among the Government leaders, resulting in huge wastages and seepages of the Governent's funds meant for the country's development and promoting the Rakyat's wellbeing.
In conculsion, my take is that only "dity tricks" up in the league of past US presidential Dick Nixonian proportions could achieve victory fo BN's Arif Shah, and he should then take Saiful into his chamber, open up the champagne botol, perhaps other orifices.
Yes, my reading is that SDAI would definitely march into Parliament, but this time around with a reduced majority, smaller than the 13,338 votes obtaned by his wife last March 8. My rediction is the ex-DPM would win by a 10,000 majority, decent enought to "effect" the cross-overs of the BN patliamentarians. (+++++ I will run fellow scribe KIM QUEK's piece on this subjevct later. Stay Tuned!:)
Come August 26, now less than two crucial days away, it is not just the fate of ONE PARLIAMENT SEAT at stake for de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim; in the balance is the much anticipated "cross-overs" to immediate follow when by a minimum of 30 Barian Nasional MPs from Sabah and Sarwak will join the PR coalition of DAP. PAS and PKR, to be able to form an alternative Federal Government. If it transpires, and it does, it would have to happen before Merdeka Day on Aug 31, 2008, marking the first aftermath second wave after March 8 GE 2008 tsunami swing against the seemingly invncible BN, which for the first time, lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament.
Let me urge the VOTERS of Permatang Pauh to ponder:
All that is necessary for the triumph
of evil is that good men do nothing.-- Edmund Burke
******************************
NO CHOICE BUT TO MARCH INTO PUTRAJAYA
By Kim Quek
August 25, 2008
How will future historians fifty or a hundred years from now look at Permatang Pauh in relation to Malaysia ? Will it be like Gettysburg to USA , or Yenan to the new China – famous names that evoke memories of major turning points in the history of nations?
The answer depends on how the people in Permatang Pauh will vote in the by-election on August 26, 2008 . Not whether Anwar Ibrahim will be returned as a Member of Parliament, but whether the electorate will give Anwar a decisive margin of victory that can be taken as an endorsement of his plan to take over power from the crumbling and decadent Barisan Nasional (BN).
If Anwar wins by a convincing majority – despite BN waging the dirtiest of election campaigns in memory against him – then he will be well poised to formalize the cross-over of disenchanted Barisan Nasional MPs who share the aspirations of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and are now waiting for such a moment to make the switch. With BN already in an advanced stage of disintegration and decadence while the economy is fast sinking amidst public fury and distrust, the anticipated cross-over, once triggered, will turn into a torrent that will sweep PR into power.
DISINTEGRATING BN
Since the March 8 general elections, BN, which is a grouping of 14 racial parties, has already lost its traction as a coalition. Satellite parties like MCA, Gerakan, MIC have made scathing attacks against the dominant core party UMNO, blaming the latter’s racial arrogance and hegemony for the collapse of their popular support within their own individual racial groupings. They have asked for drastic changes of UMNO’s policy – changing from master-servant relationship to genuine partnership of mutual respect and equitable sharing – so as to enable them to recoup their lost support. However, UMNO has instead moved in the opposite direction. It has intensified its racial agenda in an apparent attempt to consolidate and expand its core support – the Malay voters, at the expense of support from other races.
This strategy is no doubt driven by the recognition that UMNO still enjoys considerable Malay support, especially in the rural areas, while BN has little hope of regaining support of other races from Pakatan Rakyat, which advocates a pro-rakyat policy within the framework of egalitarianism under the Constitution.
The evolving scenario is polarization of political development – an increasingly ethnocentric UMNO relying on repression to preserve its political and racial hegemony on one side versus an unrelenting multi-racial reform movement that vows to foster national unity, restore democracy and rule of law and re-vitalise the sagging economy.
We thus see a struggling racist UMNO, hanged on to it by subservient racial parties which are now propped up by leaders with vested interests in the government but are badly emaciated by disappearing grassroots. If a general election is held today, it is not an exaggeration to say that the race based parties in the Peninsular – MCA, Gerakan, MIC - will be completely routed.
The scenario in Sabah and Sarawak is somewhat different where BN’s coalition partners are mostly native-based parties and where Pakatan Rakyat has not established a strong foothold. Their grouses are mainly regional marginalization and failure to honour the 1963 Malaysia Pact (which grants them equal partnership with Peninsular Malaysia) by the UMNO-dominated federal government. The Sabahans, who have been plagued by illegal immigrants that now outnumber the locals, have attributed their widespread poverty and under-development and severe social unrest to willful negligence and exploitation by the federal government. Many leaders have quietly planned or contemplated to cross over to PR for a more equitable deal.
Meanwhile the backbone of BN, UMNO, is at its weakest in history. It is bereft of political idealism, badly fragmented by power struggle under a feeble leader, and its body politic critically corroded by a political malignancy that has almost become synonymous with UMNO – money politics.
RIPE FOR CROSS-OVER
It is not difficult to see that Putrajaya is ripe for the picking by Anwar, since many BN leaders, including those from UMNO, are ready to jump ship from this Titanic, having sighted the inescapable iceberg ahead. All that is needed now is a clarion call from the electorate in Permatang Pauh in the form of an emphatic majority to enable Anwar to embark on this historical mission.
But will the electorate of Permatang Pauh oblige? Perhaps this question should be answered by another question: is there an alternative? What will happen if Anwar fails to win a convincing majority and his effort to affect the anticipated cross-over from BN is frustrated?
We will then see an untenable impasse that will put our political and economic future to peril. For BN will continue its current effort to economically strangulate PR-controlled states through cutting off federal funds and canceling development projects, while stepping up repression through unconstitutional manipulation of state institutions - police, attorney general, judiciary, election commission and even the anti-corruption agency – to contain the rapidly growing popular support of PR. Avowed reforms on the judiciary, police and ACA will surely be thrown out of the window, as these reforms are anti-thesis to a repressive regime.
As it is, our economy is already in jeopardy due to mismanagement under a corrupt and inept political leadership that seems to be perpetually pre-occupied with intra-party in-fighting, racial and religious squabbles, and sheer incompetence exhibited in frequent policy flip-flops, massive leakages and irresponsible squandering.
Hence, as tension builds up between BN and PR, the economy will be further jeopardized through undue starving of federal funds and the inevitable shrinking of investments arising from further loss of investors’ confidence as the rule of law continues to slide.
ONLY ONE ALTERNATIVE
This intractable BN-PR deadlock can only be satisfactorily resolved by one of two solutions: either UMNO embarks on a path of genuine reforms to bring the country back to constitutional rule, or PR takes over the government to institute the much needed reforms to turn the country around onto the path of national unity and robust economic growth.
Six months have lapsed since the political tsunami of March 8, and there is no indication that UMNO is willing or capable of carrying out any of such reforms. Hence, there is only one alternative left: PR must march on to Putrajaya without delay.
And the electorate of Permatang Pauh are now entrusted with the sacrosanct duty to make that historical decision on behalf of the nation.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
UPDATEd on D-Day:) from cpiasia.net:
Reject Racial Politicking Tactics in Permatang Pauh By-Elections
Press Statements
Tuesday, 26 August 2008 10:00
Reject Racial Politicking Tactics in Permatang Pauh By-Elections
Will the coming Permatang Pauh by elections turn out to be the lowest point in Malaysian election history in terms of dirty electioneering, despicable campaign standards and sophisticated election rigging and vote buying?
We, the undersigned civil society organizations and all fair minded Malaysians hope not. However feedback from our observers as well as from many others at the ground level is indicating that there is a real possibility of this happening. Party leaders of the contesting parties may claim that they are waging a fair campaign. However the onus is on them to not only exercise full control over their respective election personnel and machineries to compete fairly but also to immediately repudiate whatever unethical behavior or unacceptable activities that are engaged in by their party supporters or proxies.
As civil society organizations that are not aligned to any political party and in our role as the watchdogs of democratic norms, we are concerned that our elections are far from free and fair and conform to international good practice. In particular, we call on - especially to the parties in the Barisan Nasional and to the candidate, Dato Ariff Shah Omar Shah, himself - to dissociate themselves from racially and religiously divisive messages that are appearing in printed form, short message service (SMS) and in private speeches aimed at voters – especially those that play up the fears of one ethnic group against another.
Such attempts at crude racial politicking and the use of inflammatory and racially distorted content to win votes need to be condemned by not only the contesting parties and candidates but also by other stakeholders. In this respect, the mainstream mass media has an important role to play in reporting on the election action and developments on the ground in a fair, unbiased and neutral way. Not only should equal and balanced coverage be extended to the campaigns of the two candidates but the press should also be a scrupulously accurate and honest monitor reporting any unethical or unacceptable form of electioneering and exposing the use of dirty tricks or extremist manipulation of racial and religious issues, whether this comes from the PR or BN camps.
It is not only the people of Permatang Pauh that are watching to see if a fair and honestly conducted elections will take place: one that focuses on real and substantive issues of local economic and social development and on
the best choice of candidate and party to address the many issues of poverty, rising cost of living and lack of opportunities for upward mobility that many voters face. All Malaysians and a large interested international community are also watching.
*Endorsed by:*
1. All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
2. Center for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC)
3. Center for Policy Initiatives (CPI)
4. Institute for Research and Social Advancement (REFSA)
5. Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (JERIT)
6. Labor Resource Center (LRC)
7. Malaysia Youth And Student democratic movement (DEMA)
8. National Institute of Electoral Integrity (NIEI)
9. Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (Empower)
10. Persatuan Masyarakat Selangor & Wilayah Persekutuan (PERMAS)
11. Pusat Khidmat Pekerja Tanjung (PKPT)
12. Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
13. Youth for Change (Y4C)
Friday, August 22, 2008
To Merdeka Mission: PP here I come:)
A press buddy and Desi will leave to where the Merdeka Mission is being pursued vigorously by Malaysians who care -- Permatang Pauh voters on August 26 will carry a super-load of decision-making. This is just days before we celebrate 51 years of Merdeka. But have we the ordinary folks named Ahmad, Ah Chong, Arumugam, Sabarie Ton or Sarakie Tan really achieved independence in the true sense of being Malaysian?
Permatang Pauh is a key turning point in nation-building. PP "V"OTERS will have a change to CHANGE the federal govvernment if they are unhappy with the present state of national affairs. Then "V"ote Sdr Anwar Ibrahim.
If you are happy with Barisan Nasional, what can Desi say? Don't come out to "V"ote at all for you only perpetuate that slide towards the ABYSS. That's no way to celebrate Merdeka!
*******************************************
Meanwhile, since I am away for two to three days, I need some help from my Esteemed Readers. Please do some rumination about the nation's state of affairs -- where are we now and where are we headed. Do a little essay of at least 300 words and Email it to chongyl2000@yahoo.com. (Check out some sample essays at last year's MERDEKA ESSAY SERIES at this Blog in the few days before August 31, 2007. Cheers, happy write/rite!:)
If it's up to YL's taste, I will run it at two websites! at MBH, which stands for MY BLUE H'AVEN and at cpiasia.net! I may even send ye a SIRPRISE Mderdeka gift of Midnight Voices. A signed kopi is worth 1,000 more than the price you paid for one last 365daes (REF: July 7, 2007 Post:) On shy AnakMerdeka still has not collected her autographed kopi from MenKee, where the men are charitable, the women demure and the YoungOnes? -- many are Young&Articulate -- read johnlee's writes eh ...
YouthSpeak
at cpiasia.net!
*************************************
TEAser Post from last August's writHing by YL-Desi, the Jurassic hound?:)
Monday, August 20, 2007
Merdeka 50th Anniversary, art thou in celebratory mood?
YL Chong , the newshound in me, is in a pensive mood.
(The journalist by definition is rooted in harsh reality and must deal with facts and reasons, and rationales, mousey also can, though some dis-membered ones choose to do PR and spinning -- Contrast with Desi in me, often in optimistic vibration out of a creative writer's bent, also often high on drugs iunduced by an vivid mind on overdrive and an inflamed heart, not in danger as long as it's oxygenated with my soulmate's vibes ringing in tandem.)
I feel so much negativity in the Malaysian airspace -- reinforced by my outing to Putrajaya a few days back to hear the former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad speak at length -- and things aren't that lifting to prod the "creative"-in-Desi to join the much-touted high-budget Government-funded celebrations.
Indicators like the well-propped Bursa Malaysia (former Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange) and Bank Negara's gross domestic product forecast of 6% being sustainable were sudenly handed a rude awakening last week when the US sub-prime rates turmoil triggered by rising mortgage defaults sent shock-waves across the seven seas. No, Bursa Malaysia could not exclude itself from the international fallout, and our nation's leaders'd better open up their sleepy eyes that all's not honky-dory in the borderless trading place. When the United States or China farts, the totten smell affects all the rest of the marts.
And what is Desi's heading towards just 10 days before the Big Day?
And this relates to a question posed by Y&A blogger conversationist-host @kyels.com -- another Poet-ass-pirant like Desi -- what's in store this time around. At my post of August 16, she queried:
"Off topic, Desi are you doing any Merdeka writing project this year?";)
By kyels, at 11:26 AM
The University student enjoying a final year of wayward wind at Nottingham Forest campus nestled safe and sane off Kuala Lumpur wolfish limits still remembers Desi's tradition of marking the nation's milestones with an ESSAY SERIES, encompassing contributiions from fellow Bloggers (yes, undegraduate Kye Koi Lee took part in the past two ESSAY SERIES consecutively:).
My INTRO to the post today prefaces the decision, that it won't be a celebaratory outing with optimism and dancing in the air. It's a sobering and reflective review period of NegaraKu -- and unfortunately, I seem to agree with most of my fellow writers in Blogosphere that the nation as it approaches 50 is in a state of much disrepair.
When Pak Lah, a fatherly term of endearment as the Tun Dr Mahathir-successor would like Malaysians to call him, took over the reins of government in November 2003, there was indeed a palpable air of optimism among the citizenry with the new Prime Minister's "Walk With Me" exhortations as he pronounced commitments to fight corruption, promote an open and accountable government, build trust and confidence amog the Rakyat as each and every individual is called on to foster a "caring" society.
But nearing four years later, Desi in all honesty could not give the Government of the day a "performing" or even "passeable" grade in an accountable administration and governance. It is a "Fail" grading, and signs are that it will continue to slide with the same "weak", often clueless leadership. When Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi sounded his clarion call to work with him, not for him, I -- and many fellow Malaysians IU believe -- initially took him at his word responded cooperatively,and sincerely gave him a chance to prove his worth.
But like the facade of the "everything's fine in the economy" was cracked last week by the "happening" in the United States, some states of euphoria are fragile and a fiction created by marketeers not much different from the sidewalk medsin pedlars. "Yes, give me your millions, and I have a cure for your wracking stomach cancer!" Solutions to the nation's ills all neatly wrapped up in small, magic bottles, packaged in Jinjang New Village or Kg Dengkil or Porta de Pandamaran.
But the Age of the Internet and Information Technology is a merciless, fast-changing environment where a product or service earning US Dollars like agolden goose soon becomes a lame duck if the product inventor does not tune his/her ears to the ground and keeps up with quantume-leap changes at the marketplace. The controversial Proton national car project, the rape of the hills and tmbler in several states, and the several Port fiascos in the making -- like the Port Klang Free Zone white elephant ocsting RM4.6billion now, still rising! -- have not yet seen the closing chapters.
No, there is not much to celebrate about come August 31, 2007 because if we join in the Government's huigh-budget festivities, we might becoime accompices to an undeserving outing. Desi is reluctant to become an accessory or bit-actor; aweays, he aspires to be his own role-player. Never join the herd in follow-the-leader mode, as many retail investors burnt at the Bursa Malaysia stakes the previous few days would tell you if they were honest -- many parted with their pants, if not the under-wear. The international marketplace does not heed the wise words of the PM, or the wisecracks, of his Cabinet members like ... (No-lah, let's not name names to craete another NameWee diversion, to let them contoniue with their shortterm euphoric outings. Come September, Rip van Winkles would wake up to new realities, icluding some bllion-ringgit bills and IOUs waiting on the horizon.)
In place of the ESSAY SERIES, to my dear EsteemedReaders hear, I will give thee some thing else to chew on. In Thinking Mode.
And Chow.
we can still adjourn with our buddies for a roast lamb outing, beef Satay plus my Haridas' tehtarik ta-pau-ed from Furong, or chilled C&W Rut Bir. Are we rendezwoo-ing at Centrail Market, Kuala Lumpur, or Seremban? The former is wolfish, and the latter is as placid as a lamb. Or Li'l Red Riding Hood, out for a cool excursion to mark 50th Merdeka coming-and-going from out of Sherwood Forest. I still prefer the innocent euphoria of Robin Hood ala Howsy, Maverick, AnakMerdeka, and his Merry Men; johnleemk, sabrina tan, theels and kyels, and like-minded dancing Maids Marian, Mime, Nicole, and mayhaps, Jeanne.
posted by desiderata
Permatang Pauh is a key turning point in nation-building. PP "V"OTERS will have a change to CHANGE the federal govvernment if they are unhappy with the present state of national affairs. Then "V"ote Sdr Anwar Ibrahim.
If you are happy with Barisan Nasional, what can Desi say? Don't come out to "V"ote at all for you only perpetuate that slide towards the ABYSS. That's no way to celebrate Merdeka!
*******************************************
Meanwhile, since I am away for two to three days, I need some help from my Esteemed Readers. Please do some rumination about the nation's state of affairs -- where are we now and where are we headed. Do a little essay of at least 300 words and Email it to chongyl2000@yahoo.com. (Check out some sample essays at last year's MERDEKA ESSAY SERIES at this Blog in the few days before August 31, 2007. Cheers, happy write/rite!:)
If it's up to YL's taste, I will run it at two websites! at MBH, which stands for MY BLUE H'AVEN and at cpiasia.net! I may even send ye a SIRPRISE Mderdeka gift of Midnight Voices. A signed kopi is worth 1,000 more than the price you paid for one last 365daes (REF: July 7, 2007 Post:) On shy AnakMerdeka still has not collected her autographed kopi from MenKee, where the men are charitable, the women demure and the YoungOnes? -- many are Young&Articulate -- read johnlee's writes eh ...
YouthSpeak
at cpiasia.net!
*************************************
TEAser Post from last August's writHing by YL-Desi, the Jurassic hound?:)
Monday, August 20, 2007
Merdeka 50th Anniversary, art thou in celebratory mood?
YL Chong , the newshound in me, is in a pensive mood.
(The journalist by definition is rooted in harsh reality and must deal with facts and reasons, and rationales, mousey also can, though some dis-membered ones choose to do PR and spinning -- Contrast with Desi in me, often in optimistic vibration out of a creative writer's bent, also often high on drugs iunduced by an vivid mind on overdrive and an inflamed heart, not in danger as long as it's oxygenated with my soulmate's vibes ringing in tandem.)
I feel so much negativity in the Malaysian airspace -- reinforced by my outing to Putrajaya a few days back to hear the former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad speak at length -- and things aren't that lifting to prod the "creative"-in-Desi to join the much-touted high-budget Government-funded celebrations.
Indicators like the well-propped Bursa Malaysia (former Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange) and Bank Negara's gross domestic product forecast of 6% being sustainable were sudenly handed a rude awakening last week when the US sub-prime rates turmoil triggered by rising mortgage defaults sent shock-waves across the seven seas. No, Bursa Malaysia could not exclude itself from the international fallout, and our nation's leaders'd better open up their sleepy eyes that all's not honky-dory in the borderless trading place. When the United States or China farts, the totten smell affects all the rest of the marts.
And what is Desi's heading towards just 10 days before the Big Day?
And this relates to a question posed by Y&A blogger conversationist-host @kyels.com -- another Poet-ass-pirant like Desi -- what's in store this time around. At my post of August 16, she queried:
"Off topic, Desi are you doing any Merdeka writing project this year?";)
By kyels, at 11:26 AM
The University student enjoying a final year of wayward wind at Nottingham Forest campus nestled safe and sane off Kuala Lumpur wolfish limits still remembers Desi's tradition of marking the nation's milestones with an ESSAY SERIES, encompassing contributiions from fellow Bloggers (yes, undegraduate Kye Koi Lee took part in the past two ESSAY SERIES consecutively:).
My INTRO to the post today prefaces the decision, that it won't be a celebaratory outing with optimism and dancing in the air. It's a sobering and reflective review period of NegaraKu -- and unfortunately, I seem to agree with most of my fellow writers in Blogosphere that the nation as it approaches 50 is in a state of much disrepair.
When Pak Lah, a fatherly term of endearment as the Tun Dr Mahathir-successor would like Malaysians to call him, took over the reins of government in November 2003, there was indeed a palpable air of optimism among the citizenry with the new Prime Minister's "Walk With Me" exhortations as he pronounced commitments to fight corruption, promote an open and accountable government, build trust and confidence amog the Rakyat as each and every individual is called on to foster a "caring" society.
But nearing four years later, Desi in all honesty could not give the Government of the day a "performing" or even "passeable" grade in an accountable administration and governance. It is a "Fail" grading, and signs are that it will continue to slide with the same "weak", often clueless leadership. When Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi sounded his clarion call to work with him, not for him, I -- and many fellow Malaysians IU believe -- initially took him at his word responded cooperatively,and sincerely gave him a chance to prove his worth.
But like the facade of the "everything's fine in the economy" was cracked last week by the "happening" in the United States, some states of euphoria are fragile and a fiction created by marketeers not much different from the sidewalk medsin pedlars. "Yes, give me your millions, and I have a cure for your wracking stomach cancer!" Solutions to the nation's ills all neatly wrapped up in small, magic bottles, packaged in Jinjang New Village or Kg Dengkil or Porta de Pandamaran.
But the Age of the Internet and Information Technology is a merciless, fast-changing environment where a product or service earning US Dollars like agolden goose soon becomes a lame duck if the product inventor does not tune his/her ears to the ground and keeps up with quantume-leap changes at the marketplace. The controversial Proton national car project, the rape of the hills and tmbler in several states, and the several Port fiascos in the making -- like the Port Klang Free Zone white elephant ocsting RM4.6billion now, still rising! -- have not yet seen the closing chapters.
No, there is not much to celebrate about come August 31, 2007 because if we join in the Government's huigh-budget festivities, we might becoime accompices to an undeserving outing. Desi is reluctant to become an accessory or bit-actor; aweays, he aspires to be his own role-player. Never join the herd in follow-the-leader mode, as many retail investors burnt at the Bursa Malaysia stakes the previous few days would tell you if they were honest -- many parted with their pants, if not the under-wear. The international marketplace does not heed the wise words of the PM, or the wisecracks, of his Cabinet members like ... (No-lah, let's not name names to craete another NameWee diversion, to let them contoniue with their shortterm euphoric outings. Come September, Rip van Winkles would wake up to new realities, icluding some bllion-ringgit bills and IOUs waiting on the horizon.)
In place of the ESSAY SERIES, to my dear EsteemedReaders hear, I will give thee some thing else to chew on. In Thinking Mode.
And Chow.
we can still adjourn with our buddies for a roast lamb outing, beef Satay plus my Haridas' tehtarik ta-pau-ed from Furong, or chilled C&W Rut Bir. Are we rendezwoo-ing at Centrail Market, Kuala Lumpur, or Seremban? The former is wolfish, and the latter is as placid as a lamb. Or Li'l Red Riding Hood, out for a cool excursion to mark 50th Merdeka coming-and-going from out of Sherwood Forest. I still prefer the innocent euphoria of Robin Hood ala Howsy, Maverick, AnakMerdeka, and his Merry Men; johnleemk, sabrina tan, theels and kyels, and like-minded dancing Maids Marian, Mime, Nicole, and mayhaps, Jeanne.
posted by desiderata
Fridae's Childe Haunted at Midnighte
seeks solace in the arms of a fellow man/woman/childe
as he seeks love in an ocean of hatred and spite
neighbours maketh lie of the successful man
out of envy
so he lands up in court
on trumped up charges
fridae's childe knows not what sodomy is
seeks BIG brother's counsel
he taketh the lamb by his hand
graspeth his waist from behind
and torpedoeth the orifice
"that, my childe, is sodome4you
so ask no such silly question no more
fridae's childe now cowers in a corner
fellow BIG brother is no brother
he's worse than the dog next door
it does it with a bitch
here BIG brother does it to a childe
and he sayeth that's alright
he's teaching the ignoramus younger brother
so coincidentally the sinner sweareth with hand on the Holy Book
"I only did it because he asked for a demo
I can't say I don't no
that would be a sin
cos I know, I learnt it from another BIGGER brother's demo
when I ask to join PemudahUMNO-oh-No!"
so coincidentally Desi looketh out of Permatang Pauh window tonight
i hear the BIGGER brother sayethDAfool "Now I see the light.
Coincidentally an angel landed on my shoulder
assures me I'd be alright
when I last swore on the Holy Book
the inside pages were missing, it's only da cover
Furthermore, the Imam was my politikus neighbour an Imom in disguise..."
FROM dinmerican.wordpress.com:
Posted by: dinobeano | August 21, 2008
Si Penipu Najib: Pengundi-Pengundi Permatang Pauh berhati hati
written by PAKRAK, August 20, 2008
BREAKING NEWS!!!
We have all been taken for a ride again!
THE QUESTIONABLE “IMAM MASJID” AT SAIFUL’S SWEARING ON SODOMY IS AN UMNO MEMBER FROM PERMATANG PAUH!
THE “IMAM” PRESENT AT THE SWEARING BY SAIFUL IS RAMLANG BIN PORIGI.
RAMLANG BIN PORIGI IS NOT THE IMAM BESAR OF THE FEDERAL TERRITORY MOSQUE.
THE NAME OF THE IMAM LISTED IN THE FEDERAL TERRITORY MOSQUE IS TN. HJ. ABDUL MALEK BIN SALLEH, IMAM BESAR. TEL: 03-62018780.
RAMLANG BIN PORIGI aka Ramlan Poochee IS ONLY:
PEMBANTU HAL EHWAL ISLAM
(ISLAMIC AFFAIRS ASSISTANT)
MASJID WILAYAH PERSEKUTUAN.
The Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi AlHadhari AlKepalabatasi must be held responsible by the Council of Malay Rulers for playing politics with and discrediting Islam. It is too much to expect the so-called religious authorities and muftis to criticise him since the Prime Minister is using our hard earned money (via taxation) to pay their salaries and perks. To prove that I am wrong in my assessment, they should now collectively speak up against political interference in Islam.—Din Merican
The Ramlan Man of the Year
as he seeks love in an ocean of hatred and spite
neighbours maketh lie of the successful man
out of envy
so he lands up in court
on trumped up charges
fridae's childe knows not what sodomy is
seeks BIG brother's counsel
he taketh the lamb by his hand
graspeth his waist from behind
and torpedoeth the orifice
"that, my childe, is sodome4you
so ask no such silly question no more
fridae's childe now cowers in a corner
fellow BIG brother is no brother
he's worse than the dog next door
it does it with a bitch
here BIG brother does it to a childe
and he sayeth that's alright
he's teaching the ignoramus younger brother
so coincidentally the sinner sweareth with hand on the Holy Book
"I only did it because he asked for a demo
I can't say I don't no
that would be a sin
cos I know, I learnt it from another BIGGER brother's demo
when I ask to join PemudahUMNO-oh-No!"
so coincidentally Desi looketh out of Permatang Pauh window tonight
i hear the BIGGER brother sayethDAfool "Now I see the light.
Coincidentally an angel landed on my shoulder
assures me I'd be alright
when I last swore on the Holy Book
the inside pages were missing, it's only da cover
Furthermore, the Imam was my politikus neighbour an Imom in disguise..."
FROM dinmerican.wordpress.com:
Posted by: dinobeano | August 21, 2008
Si Penipu Najib: Pengundi-Pengundi Permatang Pauh berhati hati
written by PAKRAK, August 20, 2008
BREAKING NEWS!!!
We have all been taken for a ride again!
THE QUESTIONABLE “IMAM MASJID” AT SAIFUL’S SWEARING ON SODOMY IS AN UMNO MEMBER FROM PERMATANG PAUH!
THE “IMAM” PRESENT AT THE SWEARING BY SAIFUL IS RAMLANG BIN PORIGI.
RAMLANG BIN PORIGI IS NOT THE IMAM BESAR OF THE FEDERAL TERRITORY MOSQUE.
THE NAME OF THE IMAM LISTED IN THE FEDERAL TERRITORY MOSQUE IS TN. HJ. ABDUL MALEK BIN SALLEH, IMAM BESAR. TEL: 03-62018780.
RAMLANG BIN PORIGI aka Ramlan Poochee IS ONLY:
PEMBANTU HAL EHWAL ISLAM
(ISLAMIC AFFAIRS ASSISTANT)
MASJID WILAYAH PERSEKUTUAN.
The Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi AlHadhari AlKepalabatasi must be held responsible by the Council of Malay Rulers for playing politics with and discrediting Islam. It is too much to expect the so-called religious authorities and muftis to criticise him since the Prime Minister is using our hard earned money (via taxation) to pay their salaries and perks. To prove that I am wrong in my assessment, they should now collectively speak up against political interference in Islam.—Din Merican
The Ramlan Man of the Year
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Charlatan, Charlatan, How Many Have You Cloned?
I was disturbed when I read this at NEW.com.au early this morning.
I have seen similar acts in my homeland too. Sinseh, bomoh, the witch doctor, and what have yous -- rimes with IOUs -- promising "miracle" cures to people in desperation who would want to believe anything at all. As the saying goes/went, a drowning man would clutch at a straw. You can sympathise with the victims, but this SINGER? Or should it be this SINNER?
I don't know. I see images of this "pastor" among Malaysian politicians, social activists (You lucky enough to have bumped into any around? -- the smooth talking one prefixed by a Tan Si or Latuk with a Latin by his side? I hope you had a bakGOODteh or NaziLemak or HailamMeeSoup on him/her/inbetween!)
Pastor Michael Guglielmucci spun gospel of lies
By Kim Wheatley
August 21, 2008 12:57am
Pastor told congregation he had cancer
Recorded hit song Healer to inspire people
He's a fraud - but he's getting help
HE preached to thousands about his terminal illness and tugged at hearts with a hit song.
The problem is the pastor wasn't dying at all.
Michael Guglielmucci, who inspired hundreds of thousands of young Christians with his terminal cancer "battle", has been exposed as a fraud.
Guglielmucci, whose parents established Edge Church International, an Assemblies of God church at O'Halloran Hill in Adelaide's southern suburbs, now is seeking professional help.
Earlier this year, Mr Guglielmucci released a hit song, Healer , which was featured on Sydney church Hillsong's latest album.
The song debuted at No. 2 on the ARIA charts.
It since has become an anthem of faith for believers, many of whom are suffering their own illness and were praying for a miracle for Mr Guglielmucci, who has claimed for two years to be terminally ill.
In one church performance that has attracted 300,000 hits on YouTube, he performs his hit song with an oxygen tube in his nose.
It appears Mr Guglielmucci, who was a pastor with one of Australia's biggest youth churches, Planetshakers, may even have deceived his own family.
"This news has come as a great shock to everyone including, it seems, his own wife and family," Hillsong general manager George Aghajanian said in an email to his congregation yesterday.
"Michael has confirmed that he is not suffering with a terminal illness and is seeking professional help in Adelaide with the support of his family. We are asking our church to pray for the Guglielmucci family during this difficult time."
The Advertiser was told last night Mr Guglielmucci may release a statement on the situation.
The Australian Christian Church said Mr Guglielmucci's credentials immediately were suspended once he told the national executive that his cancer claims were "untrue".
"The national executive is taking this matter very seriously and is awaiting the results of medical tests before determining the full extent of the discipline that will be imposed upon him," vice president Alun Davies said.
"We are very concerned for the many people who have been or will be hurt by Michael's actions.
"We encourage all of our churches to pray for all those affected."
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DESI: I APologise if I started the day on a moUrnful rack; the rain had just stopped, the sun's rays are appearing. I think the dark clouds will blow over, and VVee will have a niCe die! GB!:)
**************************************************
UPDATEd @12.48AM the day after:
http://malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/11617/84/ where RPK resides cyber-phorically:
How little our leaders know
Posted by Super Admin
Thursday, 21 August 2008 13:58
Trust not these religious people. Many are fakes and phoneys. The Quran says these people will sell their religion for money. This is not what I say. This is what the Quran says. And would the Quran lie?
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is upset that some Blogggers are showing ‘disrespect’ by flying the Malaysian flag upside down. Actually, flying the flag upside down is internationally accepted as a sign of distress, not a mark of disrespect.
What the Prime Minister does not know is that Malaysia has been showing disrespect to our flag for more than 50 years. Amongst some of these displays of disrespect are:
1. The flag should never be used for any advertising purposes.
2. The flag should not be used as a drapery, or for covering a speaker’s desk, draping a platform, or for any decoration in general.
3. It should not be embroidered, printed or otherwise impressed on such articles as cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins, boxes, or anything intended to be discarded after temporary use.
4. The flag should not be used as part of a costume or athletic uniform, except that a flag patch may be used on the uniform of military personnel, fireman, policeman and members of patriotic organisations.
5. The flag should never be used as a receptacle for receiving, holding, carrying, or delivering anything.
There are of course much more but these five above already demonstrates in what way Malaysia has been disrespectful to the Jalur Gemilang. So what’s with this anger towards flying the flag upside down, which is allowed, when Malaysia, in fact, has acted disrespectfully to the flag since the time of Merdeka.
On the matter of whether swearing on the Quran is allowed by Islam or, in fact, violates Islamic teachings, since the so-called religious scholars appear divided on what is right and what is wrong, allow me to refer to the Quran, which is supposed to be the main guiding light for all Muslims.
In an earlier article (Inventing new religious rituals ), I already explained that even the Prophet’s wife, Aisha, was not asked to swear on the Quran that she is innocent of the allegation of adultery. If the Prophet himself did not condone the act of swearing on the Quran, where then did this deviant practice come from?
What did happen is that the Prophet received a revelation from God about what to do to either confirm or dispel allegations of sexual misconduct. You can read this in Surah 24 (An-Nur) of the Quran.
And as to what to do in the event of a dispute when two people say opposite things, which means one of them is lying, you can refer to Surah 3 (Al ‘Imran) Verse 61 of the Quran which explains it very clearly.
The trouble with these so-called religious people is that they are trying to gain political mileage with the sodomy issue in the hope that Anwar Ibrahim may see a much-reduced majority in the 26 August 2008 Permatang Puah by-election, or, better still, lose the election. They are therefore twisting what Islam says in the hope that the simple-minded Malay voters in Permatang Pauh can be fooled.
The Quran has warned us about such people. ‘Religious people’ since time immemorial have been exploiting and distorting religion for monetary gain as well as to attain power. Religious people are very dangerous. They know they have the confidence of the majority of the people who are not only simple-minded but place great trust on people perceived as ‘men of God’.
This is not only a problem in Islam but in all religions as well. Trust not these religious people. Many are fakes and phoneys. The Quran says these people will sell their religion for money. This is not what I say. This is what the Quran says. And would the Quran lie when the Quran is regarded by Muslims as the word of God?
*************************************************
(Bernama, 20 August 2008) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has described the action of a blogger in calling on his blogsite followers to fly the national flag upside down as a sign of protest, as evil. He said flying the Jalur Gemilang upside down could not be regarded as an act of mischief alone but a despicable one, what more with Malaysia about to celebrate its 51st independence anniversary.
"This is uncouth behaviour, showing no respect at all for the national flag. What is there to be angry with the Malaysian flag?" he said after officiating at the Third Scouts International Peace Jamboree, here Wednesday. "If there are Malaysians who want to take up the idea that came from the pro-opposition blogger, they are insulting this important national symbol (flag)," he said.
Abdullah said the blogger came up with the idea to fly the national flag upside down hoping that others would follow suit, without thinking of the implications. "It's all in the blog...only he can do a good job. He's simply creating trouble by coming up with dubious stories," he said.
:
:
:
TO READ MORE , you lazy BUMmers!... >>> Go to :http://malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/11617/84/
I have seen similar acts in my homeland too. Sinseh, bomoh, the witch doctor, and what have yous -- rimes with IOUs -- promising "miracle" cures to people in desperation who would want to believe anything at all. As the saying goes/went, a drowning man would clutch at a straw. You can sympathise with the victims, but this SINGER? Or should it be this SINNER?
I don't know. I see images of this "pastor" among Malaysian politicians, social activists (You lucky enough to have bumped into any around? -- the smooth talking one prefixed by a Tan Si or Latuk with a Latin by his side? I hope you had a bakGOODteh or NaziLemak or HailamMeeSoup on him/her/inbetween!)
Pastor Michael Guglielmucci spun gospel of lies
By Kim Wheatley
August 21, 2008 12:57am
Pastor told congregation he had cancer
Recorded hit song Healer to inspire people
He's a fraud - but he's getting help
HE preached to thousands about his terminal illness and tugged at hearts with a hit song.
The problem is the pastor wasn't dying at all.
Michael Guglielmucci, who inspired hundreds of thousands of young Christians with his terminal cancer "battle", has been exposed as a fraud.
Guglielmucci, whose parents established Edge Church International, an Assemblies of God church at O'Halloran Hill in Adelaide's southern suburbs, now is seeking professional help.
Earlier this year, Mr Guglielmucci released a hit song, Healer , which was featured on Sydney church Hillsong's latest album.
The song debuted at No. 2 on the ARIA charts.
It since has become an anthem of faith for believers, many of whom are suffering their own illness and were praying for a miracle for Mr Guglielmucci, who has claimed for two years to be terminally ill.
In one church performance that has attracted 300,000 hits on YouTube, he performs his hit song with an oxygen tube in his nose.
It appears Mr Guglielmucci, who was a pastor with one of Australia's biggest youth churches, Planetshakers, may even have deceived his own family.
"This news has come as a great shock to everyone including, it seems, his own wife and family," Hillsong general manager George Aghajanian said in an email to his congregation yesterday.
"Michael has confirmed that he is not suffering with a terminal illness and is seeking professional help in Adelaide with the support of his family. We are asking our church to pray for the Guglielmucci family during this difficult time."
The Advertiser was told last night Mr Guglielmucci may release a statement on the situation.
The Australian Christian Church said Mr Guglielmucci's credentials immediately were suspended once he told the national executive that his cancer claims were "untrue".
"The national executive is taking this matter very seriously and is awaiting the results of medical tests before determining the full extent of the discipline that will be imposed upon him," vice president Alun Davies said.
"We are very concerned for the many people who have been or will be hurt by Michael's actions.
"We encourage all of our churches to pray for all those affected."
Share this article
Digg this Post to del.icio.us Post to Newsvine Post to Facebook Add to kwoff RSS What is this? NEWS.com.au is not responsible for the content of external sites.
Share stories with friends in a click. Get your favourite NEWS.com.au content on your social networking profile.
DESI: I APologise if I started the day on a moUrnful rack; the rain had just stopped, the sun's rays are appearing. I think the dark clouds will blow over, and VVee will have a niCe die! GB!:)
**************************************************
UPDATEd @12.48AM the day after:
http://malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/11617/84/ where RPK resides cyber-phorically:
How little our leaders know
Posted by Super Admin
Thursday, 21 August 2008 13:58
Trust not these religious people. Many are fakes and phoneys. The Quran says these people will sell their religion for money. This is not what I say. This is what the Quran says. And would the Quran lie?
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is upset that some Blogggers are showing ‘disrespect’ by flying the Malaysian flag upside down. Actually, flying the flag upside down is internationally accepted as a sign of distress, not a mark of disrespect.
What the Prime Minister does not know is that Malaysia has been showing disrespect to our flag for more than 50 years. Amongst some of these displays of disrespect are:
1. The flag should never be used for any advertising purposes.
2. The flag should not be used as a drapery, or for covering a speaker’s desk, draping a platform, or for any decoration in general.
3. It should not be embroidered, printed or otherwise impressed on such articles as cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins, boxes, or anything intended to be discarded after temporary use.
4. The flag should not be used as part of a costume or athletic uniform, except that a flag patch may be used on the uniform of military personnel, fireman, policeman and members of patriotic organisations.
5. The flag should never be used as a receptacle for receiving, holding, carrying, or delivering anything.
There are of course much more but these five above already demonstrates in what way Malaysia has been disrespectful to the Jalur Gemilang. So what’s with this anger towards flying the flag upside down, which is allowed, when Malaysia, in fact, has acted disrespectfully to the flag since the time of Merdeka.
On the matter of whether swearing on the Quran is allowed by Islam or, in fact, violates Islamic teachings, since the so-called religious scholars appear divided on what is right and what is wrong, allow me to refer to the Quran, which is supposed to be the main guiding light for all Muslims.
In an earlier article (Inventing new religious rituals ), I already explained that even the Prophet’s wife, Aisha, was not asked to swear on the Quran that she is innocent of the allegation of adultery. If the Prophet himself did not condone the act of swearing on the Quran, where then did this deviant practice come from?
What did happen is that the Prophet received a revelation from God about what to do to either confirm or dispel allegations of sexual misconduct. You can read this in Surah 24 (An-Nur) of the Quran.
And as to what to do in the event of a dispute when two people say opposite things, which means one of them is lying, you can refer to Surah 3 (Al ‘Imran) Verse 61 of the Quran which explains it very clearly.
The trouble with these so-called religious people is that they are trying to gain political mileage with the sodomy issue in the hope that Anwar Ibrahim may see a much-reduced majority in the 26 August 2008 Permatang Puah by-election, or, better still, lose the election. They are therefore twisting what Islam says in the hope that the simple-minded Malay voters in Permatang Pauh can be fooled.
The Quran has warned us about such people. ‘Religious people’ since time immemorial have been exploiting and distorting religion for monetary gain as well as to attain power. Religious people are very dangerous. They know they have the confidence of the majority of the people who are not only simple-minded but place great trust on people perceived as ‘men of God’.
This is not only a problem in Islam but in all religions as well. Trust not these religious people. Many are fakes and phoneys. The Quran says these people will sell their religion for money. This is not what I say. This is what the Quran says. And would the Quran lie when the Quran is regarded by Muslims as the word of God?
*************************************************
(Bernama, 20 August 2008) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has described the action of a blogger in calling on his blogsite followers to fly the national flag upside down as a sign of protest, as evil. He said flying the Jalur Gemilang upside down could not be regarded as an act of mischief alone but a despicable one, what more with Malaysia about to celebrate its 51st independence anniversary.
"This is uncouth behaviour, showing no respect at all for the national flag. What is there to be angry with the Malaysian flag?" he said after officiating at the Third Scouts International Peace Jamboree, here Wednesday. "If there are Malaysians who want to take up the idea that came from the pro-opposition blogger, they are insulting this important national symbol (flag)," he said.
Abdullah said the blogger came up with the idea to fly the national flag upside down hoping that others would follow suit, without thinking of the implications. "It's all in the blog...only he can do a good job. He's simply creating trouble by coming up with dubious stories," he said.
:
:
:
TO READ MORE , you lazy BUMmers!... >>> Go to :http://malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/11617/84/
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