Commentary on issues. Expression of thoughts.

First post of blog from mobile

2010-01-30T18:37:00.001+08:00

Hi,
This is a test post from my windows mobile phone.

A test blog is required to see how this blog is going to turn out in full function browser.

I attach picture as well.

I usually look better:)

Climate Change

2009-12-19T14:28:00.007+08:00

Climate change has never been an issue I am particularly interested about. The reason is simple - climate change is an overly-exaggerated issue, propelled to global prominence by the Western media often citing scientific sources and what not. Up to the climax of it all, the climate change conference in Copenhagen, it had been trendy to talk about 'climate change'.

Climate change activists, almost always from developed countries, have campaigned hard for many years for the world to start behaving in a 'green' way, lest we leave an undesirable place for our future generations.

Now, let's have a look at the history behind the current development of climate change conference :

Developed countries have altogether emitted much more carbon into the air than what the developing countries have in the last half-a-century when they started to industrialise. The industrial revolution which started in Britain, in the 19th century, was one of the proudest achievements of the Western world. This revolution industrialised many Western countries which went on to become colonial powers, intervening in the sovereignty of other countries and making them subservient to Western powers. There in these colonies, industrialisation of some sort started too, often to extract minerals and resources to be sent back to the colonist countries. Colonisation lasted till end of World War Two when many new nations were born. At this time, colonist nations had become wealthy and prosperous - something that they gained from their superior industrial production and technology.

In the post-colonialism world, these newly-born countries which include India, Indonesia, and many countries in Africa would embark on an ambitious plan to build their scattered and poor country as a result of exploitation by former colonist powers - which hitherto have become the 'developed' nations, first world to be precise.

However, in the post-colonialism world which is dominated by the United States and other victorious powers, the Breton Woods was adopted as the international commercial and financial system. Breton Woods is essentially a Western system, born out of a Western mind, in the interest and advantage of Western nations. For many of these young non-Western countries which had no capital nor technology for modernisation, however, they pushed hard to play the Western game, with Western rules.

Many countries opted for industrialisation, painfully embarking in manufacturing industry, like Malaysia and Japan, producing cheap products for wealthy Western consumers in exchange of precious US dollars, the international currency of trade, which they later used to purchase services and high-technology products from the developed countries. This process is inherently slow, due to the social, political and economical challenges these new countries had to overcome.

One thing important to note in the history of post-colonialism world is that, many non-Western countries have been forced to adapt to the Western-dominated world in economics, political and sometimes, social system. Countries which had traditionally been non-democratic were forced to adapt democracy, resulting in an overnight collapse of centuries-old social system. In politics, countries which gained their independence had their political system copied from their colonist homecountry - which at many times was contrary to local culture and way of living.

Hence, many developing countries we witness today have either struggled or are struggling to modernise - to compete in a Western-determined international trade structure. Manufacturing has conventionally been the starting point for many countries to pull themselves out of poverty, producing goods for rich countries and earning US dollars to purchase other higher value services and goods they are not able to produce.

Let's get back to climate change issue. The reason why the conference ended in failure is not because developing countries are not concerned about climate change, but rather of their disappointment of the hypocrisy of the developed nations. Developed nations by and large have been responsible for this phenomenon, and yet they are requesting equal participation and responsibility by developing nations. The hypocrisy can be seen easily when one considers the fact that for many centuries, the Western countries have generally lived prosperously in comparison with developing countries but at a cost to the environment. What the developed nations is demanding is not realistic, considering the fact that most developing countries are manufacturing, export-led countries. Developing countries have the same right as the developed countries to develop and to live prosperously, too.

If this had happened two centuries ago, and unindustrialised China ran some researches and suggested that Britain and Europe should slow down its' industrialisation process, would it have made equal sense that the developed nations is trying to present right now ? For some reason or another, all one can conclude from this 2-week conference is the hypocrisy of the developed nations. At one hand, they talk about climate change and the need to protect our future generation, but at the same time refuse to prioritise more important issues like hunger in poor countries and killing of innocent people in unsanctioned wars - real people who are living in this world right now, at this very second.

The developed nations had the opportunity to industrialise then and as a result of it, they have been living comfortable and abundant lives, while many people in other countries are stuggling to have enough food and a shelther over their head. While the Westerners stream to online news site for realtime development of climate change, in the comfort of their couch and home, and a dinner date at a fancy restaurant set for the evening, they forget that time and time again, they use many times more earth resources than most people from the developing world. In export-led economies like China and India, manufacturing products are produced mostly for consumption in the developed nations, and to blame developing nations for wanting to have a consumerist lifestyle propagated by first world capitalist economies, is both pathetic and shows the immaturity of the West.

Western activists who fight for unimportant issues like PETA, are not only an embarassment to the West, but also one of the many reasons why Western nations have becoming less and less credible in the eyes of developing countries. Issues of human rights and transparency campaigned by the West have often been hampered by the past human rights abuse of the West during colonialism and also now with the prime example in Guantanamo Bay. Transparency-wise, the Swiss banking secrecy which had until recently been a haven for super-wealthy individuals also speaks itself of the hypocrisy of the West, which has always hold a double-standard between West and non-Western entities.

With the shift of economic power from the West to the East, India and China in particular, it is hoped that the West would do more to regain its' credibility in the eyes of the global community. It must sincerely believe that it no longer has as much influence as it perceives in many emerging countries, and that their context of representation of '...the international community' is now not read as the world community but rather the first world community.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was quoted as saying in the conference, "Each one of us acknowledges that those worst affected by climate change are the least responsible for it. Whatever emerges from our negotiations must address this glaring injustice; injustice to the countries of Africa, injustice to the least developed countries and injustice to the small island states whose very survival as viable nations is in jeopardy."

If the Indians and Chinese are to use a similar approach and perspective like above to address other issues, it won't be long before they take the lead of the third world - rightfully and respectfully.

The Unsung Heroes of Dubai

2009-11-27T22:14:00.003+08:00

Dubai is a major success story of the Middle Eastern world. An ancient civilization that gave birth to the world’s biggest religion, Islam, and which its holy book, the Quran, is written in Arabic, Arabs are a proud people. They are eager to show in a Western-dominated world at every opportunity possible that they can relive their past glory.

Dubai is nothing but a fancy city to many. A city of mega-constructions and marketed internationally as a city of luxurious living, one cannot stop but wonder what is it really like in Dubai. It is expensive, make no mistake about that, but beneath it’s ‘expensive’ look, there lies more than what makes Dubai, Dubai.

There are two major groups of people in Dubai who form more than 80% of its population other than the local Emiratis – the expatriates and the guest workers.

Expatriates, as we are all accustomed, are mostly Westerners who work in Dubai on an attractive employment deal. There’s nothing more to say about this group except that they have big salary, big allowance, paid holidays abroad, big company apartment, fancy company car, and sufficient medical benefits, to compensate and reward their ‘hardship’ for living outside their country.

Guest workers on the other hand, hardly have the means to work out a deal, if they even had one. Think about the uneducated Indian man who cannot find a job in India because of the competition (due to job scarcity) and barely have other skills except for those which require his physical strength. This man has a family which he has to provide, and kids whom he needs to not only feed, but to send to school so that they will have a better shot at life than him.

They come as laborers, if this word does not make those who live well largely due to their sweat and energy guilty, very often on a contract so one-sided on their employers’ part that if one thinks about it, it can be anything from a modern slavery to exploitation of poor people. But of course, we don’t live in an utopian world where everything is perfect, equal and beautiful. The world, as we know, is controlled by those who are educated, powerful and rich. Hence, the word ‘Guest Workers’ to make everybody feels good – the rich to have a better sleep at night, and the poor to keep their head high. It’s a win-win situation for all, or is it really ?

Dubai is a world showcase, both of luxurious living and the home of wonder constructions, and also of the striking difference between those who have and those who have-not.

This was especially so when I lived in a middle class neighborhood, and where I worked, the workers lived in workers camp, often insufficient of basic necessities like water and located far away from the city, so they cannot easily be in the city with the local Emiratis, the expatriates, and those from the middle class. There is no law forbidding their movement, except for that to travel to the city from where they live, the cheap buses are usually insufficient, infrequent and take long travel time, and the expensive cabs beyond their means.

Life for them is pretty routine. They work a six-day week with a full day on the sixth day, and on Friday, which is the legislated weekend, they have a one-day off. Working hour is from 8am to 6pm, with a 1-hour lunch break, and 2 half-an-hour tea breaks. Working hours seems fine but these workers toil their sweat working in Dubai, where the temperature is 40 degrees Celsius average on normal days, and on some days it can reach 45 degrees Celsius. Where I worked in a construction project, I worked with these workers 120 meters above the ground under the hot burning sun. On a normal working day, there’s hardly any time left for their own leisure, they travelled about two hours to workplace, which made it four hours per day they spent just on the road. So on an average day without overtime (pretty uncommon in the ever fast-paced construction industry), they would reach home around 8pm, after which they needed to wait for their turn in communal bathroom and kitchen. Most of them buy ingredients to cook on their own. Buying food from the canteen in the construction site is not something they can do frequently.

The people I knew were easy-going and simple-minded. They were here to earn a living, and the only thing they look forward to is at the beginning of the month, when they got their salary, and after deducting whatever they needed to live there (mobile prepaid, food, cigarettes, etc), they sent most of the money back to their family. The workers I knew earned at average AED1000 (equivalent to RM1000) after overtime. They spent about AED400, and sent the rest of money to their family – food, rent, school, etc.

Some came to earn just enough money so that they can build a house of their own, maybe start up a small business, and maybe starting a family for those who haven’t have a partner yet. Usually this short journey lasted over 20 years. What they didn’t plan was for those who have a family, their kids grew up, and they wanted them in college so that their children didn’t have to go through a difficult life like they did. Their family members back home had also grown accustomed to them sending small money in Dubai which became big at home and living a relatively comfortable life. Additional expenses for medical treatments, money to lend to relatives in trouble, one thing led to another and a short journey became a permanent one.

Now, at this time, they had to keep working and sending the money back, failing which their family’s living standard back home would be affected. I am not speaking about the kind of living standard where you have money for a year-end holidays abroad, or a meal in a fancy restaurant in the weekend, but a life without the need to worry about how to put food on the table the next day, or how to pay rent to your landlord when he comes at the end of the month.

Back home, Malaysians who have now achieved quite a comfortable life after only half-a-century of independence, we tend to overlook how we started. Our largely rural landscape had transformed into urban ones along with those successful developing countries. Malaysians have largely taken for granted their comfortable lifestyles. We look at those Indonesian, Bangladeshi, and Burmese construction workers who build our country with disgust, while worshipping those expatriates in their business suits walking down the street in Jalan Ampang.

In Dubai it was no different. Guest workers were being treated rudely by the local Emiratis, while the same Emiratis would show the expatriates utmost respect. The same Emiratis would also talk about how they built their country, but the ones who really built their wide roads, long bridges, and fancy buildings were the cheap guest workers.

Dubai, in all its glittering outfit, and fanciness, is a the world’s biggest paradox. A city where the East-meet-West in the truest sense of the word, it is a testament of the inequalities in the world, where we invented a vaccine against a disease, but the same disease is still killing many people across the world because these people cannot afford the vaccine. A world where we embrace capitalism but refuse to acknowledge its ugly by-product, a world where we pour insufficient aids into helping those needy ones not to sincerely help them, but as a mere publicity to the world that humanity still exists long after we lost it.

Taking the train

2009-11-05T18:47:00.008+08:00

There are many occasions in our life when we experience little moments which can open up our usually closed heart and mind. These are the little things that make our life seems larger than what we always think it is.

Take for example, taking the train.

I have always enjoyed taking the train for many reasons. Amongst them is that whenever I step on the train, I know I am going somewhere, usually for leisure. Then, there is this thing with the train that fascinates me - the coordination, the precision, and the speed. It's amazing how the train connects people who live away from each other.

Inside the train, you see people come and go in each station, and you wonder when will the train arrive in yours. You start to read a book, listen to your mp3s, look at the scenery that passes quickly and changes always, sometimes you stretch yourself to refresh a little,...and oops, you hit your fellow passenger who sits behind you. You apologise profusely for hitting his head (or rather messing his combed hair), and then at that moment, you see this girl who is sitting diagonally across where you sit - she is smiling because she has been watching and she thinks it is funny what you just did.

She has long black silky hair, with a beautiful smile on her face. If there is a first word that you can think of at this moment, it's mysterious. Then, if there is a second word, it's beautiful. You feel embarassed because of what you just did, but in your heart you smile, because you know that it is adorable to her. You smile back, however, out of politeness or rather embarassment. Then you go back to whatever you were doing before, read a book, listen to your mp3s, and think about what you are going to do when you arrive in your destination.

But what happened a couple of seconds ago doesn't stop just there, your sight changes from the window on your side, to the window on the other side of the train. You try to do it as undetected as possible - you try to catch the sight of this beautiful girl. You wonder where is she from, where is she heading, and what would she be like when she's among her friends. Her deep dark eyes are not only not revealing much, but it gives you this feeling that there are almost all possibilities about her.

She's a quiet family person who likes the company of her few close friends when she's not at home. In her free time, she reads and helps out her single mum with her household. She is not extraordinarily brilliant, but she has a heart for learning and she is attending university - because she knows that's the only way she's going to make it in life. All her life, her mum works hard to put food on the table and pay for her education. Her dad left the family for another woman. She's probably taking a train back to her small village to visit her mum, away from the city where she studies and grows to love...

Just as you continue to think about who she really is, she turns her head away from the window and finds you looking at her. She realises it, but she doesn't give you a bit of the look that indicates that she's irritated. In fact, you can see that she's smiling a little to herself as she turns back to the window. How beautiful this sight of her is!

Then, you start to wonder if you you should walk to her and start speaking to her. Maybe you can get to know each other, and be friends. Maybe write emails to each other. Maybe,...who knows what ? But being you, you keep asking questions and thinking about the what ifs - what if she doesn't like this way of making friends, what if the smile that she gave to you was not because of you and the situation but only because of the situation, what if she doesn't want to know you, what if...

The train stops in yet another station. She stands up, takes her bag, and as she moves out of her seat to the exit, she looks at you and smile. At this time, you contemplate saying goodbye. Before you knew it, she has stepped out of the train. You quickly turn to catch a last glimpse of her through the window and as she walks away from the train, she never looks back...

The power of stereotyping by the Media

2009-10-30T14:35:00.010+08:00

We all know about stereotypes. Most of us have been instilled with stereotypes of a particular person, culture, job, neighborhood, religion, country - and the list goes on - from our family since we were young. I think it's a natural process of socialisation by our family, so that we have a rough picture of how our environment is.

This is how stereotypes work - they group a big number of individuals with different occupation, place of upbringing, social status, education level etc into simplistic groups. And hence, from these overly simplified groupings which come with certain characteristics, you can tell how a person is by learning very little information about them - or you think you could. Again, it's natural because, because we cannot comprehend complex matters. Our minds refuse to think of the world and its peoples as being so diverse and different because in that case, we will not have any idea of the world we are living in.

We need simplifications - or rather stereotypes. Which is why when a certain individuals decide to commit a bad act, their predominant trait (usually physical or ideological) would be presented in the media, overly magnified than what it really is within these individuals.

Consider what this image would tell you :

It is not an understatement that all over the non-muslim world, Arabs and Muslims have been imprinted in most people's minds as depicted above. Terrorists must almost always be someone of Arabic descent wrapped in their traditional Dishdashah. To the extent that a traditional cultural outfit is now unofficially the uniform of terrorists - which is pretty absurd. Why would any real terrorist want to walk around with his uniform ?

The media is partially responsible for this. I say partially because it is our responsibility as an individual - a distinct individual - to make a judgement ourselves what the media is telling us. A lot of people blame the media - usually CNN and BBC - for misreporting and misrepresenting a lot of issues. The media that most people talk about is always the Western media. Wouldn't it be logical that an American media present news from an American point of view ? Wouldn't it be logical that Bernama (Malaysia News Agency) present news from a Malaysian point of view ?

Most people will not be able to understand this - simply because they always look for an easy way out for an issue they cannot comprehend. It has become somehow a global trend to play victim and blame everyone for everything. The difference between Western media and Malaysian media is this - and only this - they reach global audience while Malaysian media reaches probably to Singapore and Indonesia, in which case the Malaysian media is always blamed by Singaporean and Indonesian media for misreporting facts. You see the striking resemblance of the media when it goes beyond national boundary ? Beyond national boundaries, not one media has been seen as reporting the truth.

Now, back to our topic presenting terrorist as an Arab in his Dishdhashah in a disproportionate frequency - by the Western media. An Arab in his Dishdhashah can also be someone like this :

Arabs, like everybody else, have emotions. I think he has a date tonight:)

Arabs can also be extremely smart corporate figures.

They are also competitive and love recognitions by their corporate peers.

In the weekend, they like going with their family to shopping malls. See, this guy is helping his wife with shopping bag and also pushing the baby-trolley. Not all Arab ladies are oppressed and unhappy as presented by the media.

No, he's not telling his son where to plant a bomb. His wife is not smiling because if she doesn't, he would beat her up.

Dishdhashah is a traditional cultural outfit of the Arabs.

Arabs are businessmen, stockbrokers, and corporate figures just like everywhere else. Just because they are not wearing the typical Western business suits doesn't mean they can't do business.

Arabs like to share a good laugh over business meets. They are not your stereotypical people who hate everybody.

As mentioned above, the media should not be blamed entirely. Just because you're stupid to know that you shouldn't take everything the media says doesn't mean the media is guilty of everything. If you can't handle that kind of stereotyping some media is portraying, stop using this media and switch to one which you are more comfortable with.

Although it is also true that being pr0-Muslim doesn't have to be anti-American, unfortunately, at this age of global American influence, we have to adapt to their level of intelligence. To the Americans, they just have to keep creating fear and scapegoats for all their shortcomings.

If you need oil to fuel your manufacturing industry, you have the following options :

1. Chinese way - to buy oil from whoever who has it irregardless who they really are. The Mao-way - irregardless of whether it's a white cat or a black cat, if it can catch a mice, it's a good cat! Since the Chinese are racist people, they prefer white cats which can catch a black mice.

2. European way - to buy oil only from your friends since they are nice people like you (but really it's because you can get a cheap price) but since your friends are living so far from you, you build an entire pipeline underneath the ocean which will take you 100 years to offset the cheap price you get from your friends. To prevent others from laughing at you, you have a co-copyright of the term energy security with the Americans.

3. Indian way - harming the environment is wrong, so you prefer to not have any industry at all. It's better to create more IT engineers who work on computers powered by....

4. Iranian way - you have enough oil to fuel the industry for the whole world but you say it's not enough and you need nuclear energy for domestic need.

and finally....

5. American way - All the oil in this world belong to us. I don't care who you are, you have to sell it to us regardless of whether you want to, or else we will plant some fake terrorists in your country, blow the issue in my media out of proportion and rally the American people behind us, and bomb your country to stone age. Now, sell the oil to us at $20 per barrel (this is called Energy Cooperation)

You see how stereotyping works ? I have just done it unconsciously!

Coming back to Writing

2009-08-31T03:23:00.004+08:00

Well, it has been such a long time since my last posting on my blog.

So many things have happened since I wrote my last posting, and in these included my short stint for 10 weeks in Dubai as a structural trainee engineer, and my 12-day holidays in Istanbul and Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

In the last couple of months, I have grown and changed, having met a lot of people and new friends, lived through one of the loneliest times in my life and read things which really changed a lot of my views about the world.

All that I experienced in the last couple of months have got me thinking about many things, which really, connect back to one main subject- and I will speak of this issue more often from now on. My blog would experience a shift of paradigm - probably not so much perhaps - but at least I think it is as I started to view this issue in a different light and have a stronger position than ever.

I dedicate this 'stronger' position to my friendships with people from various culture and geographies, and my enthusiasm in learning foreign cultures and people. Also, in no small way does my jump of interest in reading historical materials - both hard copy and online texts - contribute to my renewed and refined interest in this subject.

The subject I'm talking about is the diversity of culture and people. Racial issues will also be discussed, for the fact that I am living in a - to put simply - a racist society. Being politically correct will also be one of my main principles, apart from being unbias (which I think will be the hardest since I am also defined by my own culture and since the opinion expressed will be about cultures). Discussion also will be based on reasoning. However, at this early stage, I have doubts about these principles as I see myself as a beginner on this subject.

I foresee that I will be making a lot of inconsistencies out of myself but over time, I hope I will be able to be a person of knowledge on this subject. And since I see myself as an educated person attending university, I shall discuss each topic with intelligence and restrain myself from mixing them with my emotions.

As a start, I will introduce myself as the following : Young Malaysian, 23 years old, studying in a public university, of Chinese origin, attended a Methodist pre-school for 2 years, 12 years in a former Catholic all-boy school, and illiterate in Chinese. I speak Bahasa, English and 3 dialects of Chinese language.

My illiteracy in Chinese language means that there is certain part of the Chinese culture that I do not understand. My primary and secondary education in a diverse, historically Catholic school environment formed the basis of my worldview. My education in a racialy-segregated public university continues to be a challenging ground for me to search for my identity.

The coming blogs will be about my views on cultural issues and my experience as a Malaysian of Chinese origin in this multi-cultural White-dominated world, living in a Muslim-dominated country.

Anti-Semitism & Anti-Zionism

2009-02-22T15:21:00.002+08:00

We have read a lot about anti-semitism and anti-zionism. These words would undoubtedly be mentioned again and again whenever the Israel-Palestinian issue was raised.

Most notably, in our country we have a statemen who has been labelled as anti-semitic by the international media - Dr. Mahathir.

Now, do we really understand the difference between semitism and zionism ?

To cut a long story short. anti-semitism is a term used to describe the prejudice or hostility against people of Jewish ancestry, faith or culture. Anti-semitism can, in the most laymen's term, be described as a racist behaviour.

On the other hand, anti-zionism is a term used to describe opposition to the international political movement in the creation of Israel state on Palestinian land. It is in the most laymen's term, simply about disagreement to create a new country on the land of an existing country.

There is simply a huge difference between an anti-semitic and an anti-zionist. I believe that the international media has a stubborn tendency to label anyone who is supporter of palestinian plight as anti-semitic. That is not only outright wrong, but also misleading because not everyone who is supportive of the palestinian cause is hostile toward the Jewish people in general.

As a comparison : If I don't want to go Restaurant A for dinner because I prefer Restaurant B, does that mean that I hate Restaurant A ? Simply NO, because I prefer Restaurant B. I do not have any grudges or hatred or hostility towards Restaurant A.

What I am saying is, not everyone who is supportive of palestinian cause is an anti-semitic because some might be anti-zionist - that is they do not support the creation of Israel state on the land of Palestine. The international media should be very careful before calling names. But then again, I can understand it because the international media is largely Jewish-influenced or Jewish-controlled.

I would be so outraged if somebody were to tell everyone that I hate Restaurant A simply because I prefer to go Restaurant B - that's simply not the case. But then again, it will be understandable if this somebody is someone who is connected to Restaurant A - whether as a direct employee, shareholder, or supplier, or maybe just mere supporter.

Inherently, during a disagreement over any issue, name-calling should be avoided, lest you attach the wrong label to someone and it will give a wrong perception to the others who are not following the issue very closely.

In this respect, I am total against labelling Dr. Mahathir as being anti-semitic. I don't know if he is a an anti-zionist for that matter since judging from his position and comments on this issue, he can either be both.

Hence, I strongly encourage everyone who is concerned about this issue to study it before choosing a position - if he ever want to take side. Taking side is not a matter of playing with the sand as in the case for children (as a common Chinese comparison says) especially when people on both sides are taking to the streets and some bearing arms to fight for what they think is right.

In my opinion, anti-semitism is an outright racist behaviour and it should not have a place in our time. There are those who condemn all Jewish by calling them evils. That should not happen because it's racism. Not all Jewish fight and kill the Palestinians. Some inherently, are anti-zionist like many non-Jewish.

Likewise, I am against calling those who oppose to the creation of Israel on Palestinian land as anti-semitic because many of them are anti-zionist! They are not racist or having hostility towards the Jewish people.

The Israel-Palestine issue is undoubtedly being seen by the masses as a religios conflict, but think about it - it's really just about the land. And just because it so happen that the contesting people on both sides are from two different faiths, it shouldn't be concluded as a religios conflict.

Just like when your grandfather's Durian orchard is being intruded by someone of race X, it is an outright land trespassing - not an attempt by race X to steal your land.

But there will inherently be people who will blow this issue out of proportion by implicating the race factor. That is not merely something that all of us, irregardless of race must disallow, but strongly condemn so that they will not have a voice in our moderate world.

The article written by Hishamuddin Rais is an honest explanation about this issue - http://malaysiakini.com/columns/97516

Will you make love to the most beautiful girl you've met in your life or....

2009-02-14T01:22:00.003+08:00

Today is Valentine's Day! Today is also my 3rd anniversary of not celebrating Valentine's!

There is no doubt that come each Valentine's, there is a huge urge of finding someone in your life. It is always the thought that if you have someone, you will tend to be happier and having a more fulfilled life.

There might be certain truth to it - just that along with this happiness, you will tend to have more emotional turmoil as well.

For me, it is rather something intimate. At least in this time, I want to look for someone who I can spend time with, talk to and have some good laughs with. Of course you can do that with all your friends, but it's about the intimacy you will have with this person - the thought that you occupy a little space in her heart! I am not looking for a life-long partner or love of my life, but rather someone who will be with me during the most exciting time of my life! Things are coming, going and happening all the time and naturally it feels good when you can share that with someone - someone who'll definitely listen to you not because they have to, but because they want to know what's happening in your life!

I don't look forward to a relationship with commitments - cause it's becoming such a negative word that carries with it hesitation and doubtfulness. I prefer a relationship that's natural and non-binding, one that allows freedom of space for both of us to discover and develop our personal emotions. Surely, I have not been able to see myself as a mature person emotionally hence it's only fair to have certain reservation on my part in a relationship.

I think the time has come for me to find someone. Day after day, I am experiencing more and more of this need to satisfy my emotional being. It's like when you see couples around you, you wish you had someone. When you go to sleep at night, you wished you don't have to sleep alone. And when you experience the weirdest thing in your life in that particular moment, you have someone to tell to!

It's fascinating how at many times your emotion gets the better of you. You feel powerless because it's so hard to control the emotion that is playing inside of you. You feel urged. You feel the need.

It's probably just the hormone which is doing it's work - trying to get your as physically and emotionally obsessed for that someone in your life. Well, it is perhaps most natural for a guy at my age - young, energetic and establishing my own identity and place in this world.

I always have this fascination about making love to the most beautiful girl I've met in my life - but someone tonight said to me that it's much more better if I can hold the hand of the girl I love.

That's something that I haven't give much thought before.

US campaigns to tarnish Malaysia's reputation internationally ?

2009-01-17T02:19:00.000+08:00

Few developments in the international stage caught my attention.

First, the Israeli offensive in Gaza Strip and the continous US government support behind Israeli government.

Few countries in the international community have dared to speak up - with the exception of strong condemnation by Arab countries and European Union's delicate and overly careful handling of the issue - lest being seen as being standing strongly in Palestinian or Isaeli-US side.

So-called rising powers of China and India - and South-American giant Brazil - have been relatively silent on the issue.

United Nations seems powerless - it's operation centre in Gaze being bombed - despite coordinates of UN operation centres being given to the Israeli military.

However, tiny Malaysia spoke out strongly against Israeli and US goverments :-

1. Malaysia to push for UN Special Session on Gaza issue - http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/01/05/asia/AS-Malaysia-Israel-Palestinians.php

2. Dr. Mahathir calls for Israel to be tried for war crime - http://chedet.co.cc/chedetblog/2009/01/press-statement-israel-must-be.html

3. UN General Assembly special session on Gaza - http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/9/nation/2980369&sec=nation

4. Malaysia calls for boycott of Israeli-US products - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7819561.stm

5. Malaysia calls for sanctions against Israel - http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/01/08/asia/AS-Malaysia-UN-Mideast.php

Post-Malaysia's strong condemnation against Israel-US in the Gaza issue, 2 issues which can gravely tarnish Malaysia's reputation have surfaced :

1. US probes Malaysian officials' link to human trafficking - http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iu2NdQBGVU0U9ISMjhCcoUb-7GgQ

2. Sanctions against Malaysian businessman's alleged involvement in nuclear proliferation - http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking+News/SE+Asia/Story/STIStory_326854.html

I have generally been against how the Malaysian government is run - with the country's policies always been along racial-lines and the sytem being strongly perceived as tainted with corruption, but I am particularly more disgusted by the United States manipulation of issues at opportunist times to suit it's own interest.

Now the billion dollar question is this :

Do you believe that US systematically generate issues and spread propaganda at an opportunist time using it's powerful media to tarnish a country's reputation internationally ?

Also, just for a little bit reflection on our part :

Is there a possibility that whatever we are made to believe about North Korea, Cuba, Colombia, Iran, Syria, and the likes might not be true ?

Racism

2008-10-15T02:09:00.004+08:00

We always hear about the different types of freedom being fought for by social activists or opposition political parties. We hear about the fight for freedom of speech, religious, press, etc.

Whenever issues like detention under ISA, show-cause letter given to newspapers to explain certain publications, and rejection of permit by opposition political parties to have a rally occur - some Malaysians (often disguised in the form of 'most' Malaysians) would stand up and fight for what we deem as an supression towards our freedom by the Government.

Do this group of Malaysians really think that the Government is supressing our freedom ? Maybe yes. Maybe no. I mean, look at the different rallies or protest to certain issues which were given a green light by the Government - remember when Khairy made a huge fuss together with his fellow UMNO members when Conzoleezza Rice visited Malaysia during the height of the short Israeli-Lebanon war ? And bear in mind also how the Government allows freedom of union to the civil servants union like CUEPACS. CUEPACS has always been in the centre of public attention, mostly for all the wrong matter like asking for unreasonable bonus, salary increment and a 5-day work week at a time when the country is slipping down in terms of competitiveness internationally.

Think about UMNO - the main party in the ruling coalition - whose members rose from one level to the other based on democratic principles. It cannot be disputed that UMNO is one of the most democratic institutions in this country. Have you heard about the UMNO President suspending a member because he did not take the directive from him ?

Now, don't tell me these are not freedom. But why the cry of some section of the society for what they perceive as the supression of freedom by the Government ?

It happens because of what I would call selective granting of freedom by the Government. To put it simply, Malaysia has always been a perfect country in terms of democracy or economy. It just depends on who you are talking to.

Selective granting of freedom works this way : The Government allows the practise of fundamental freedom to some section of the society. This section of the society is the group which is valuable to the Government - one which can keep the Government in power. To this section of society, all must be done to make sure that they keep supporting the Government even though whatever that they demand might sound ridiculous and unreasonable. As long as what they are asking for does not affect the balance of power in this country, everything is negotiable - even to the extend of sacrificing the future sustainability of the country.

We must understand that the Government has always been committed to the principles of democracy, freedom and human rights. This should not be disputed. Only that, this commitment is not applicable to all Malaysians. Some Malaysians will get it, and some not. And it is explainable. To refuse the other group of these rights is to win the support of the other.

Unfortunately, it has been done on a racist basis.

To illustrate how segregated our society is is pretty simple.

A typical Malay will not bother about Teresa Kok being detained in ISA.

A typical Chinese will not bother about Sheih Kickdefella being detained by the police.

When Teresa Kok filed for RM30m suit against Utusan Malaysia, people start asking questions about why is she supressing the freedom of press that she has been fighting for all these years ? I mean, Utusan Malaysia has the right to write whatever they want about whichever personality, provided they adhere to the ethics of the press. And if they do adhere to it, a freedom fighter like Teresa should not be interfering with Utusan's right.

And of course, people will start calling her hypocrite and what-not - for failing to practise what she preaches.

How many times Teresa had condemned the Government for not upholding the freedom of press when it issues show-cause letter to one publication and ban the other ?

It is pretty disturbing in fact to see contradictions and hyprocrisy in many Malaysians - politicians or ordinary people like you and me alike.

But wouldn't you agree if I say all these contradictions and hypocrisy have always arised because of racist sentiments ? Haven't all these incidents both implicating the Government and the Opposition politicians always revolved around racial sentiment ?

We have lost much of our conscience since a long time ago. Today, whatever we see is always from a racial point of view. Many times we stereotype and segregate the people. We always find easy explainations about somebody's behaviour, character, way of life and even social status from his ethnicity. We forget that other factors like family upbringing, personal values, education and life experience form who he really is. Maybe sometimes we do, but always it won't be long before we decide to come back to ethnicity.

As an ethnic minority living in this country and facing numerous racist encounters (don't ask me what they are because I wouldn't know - most people have become immune to these that they feel it natural be treated this way), I started to ask a lot of question this thing called 'race'.

What is a race ? Is there a superior race ? Does everybody think that their race is superior ? And if you're from a superior race, will you discriminate and oppress others from inferior race ?

Do white Americans think they are more superior than African Americans ?

Do Europeans think they are more superior than Asians ?

Do Spanish think that they are more superior than Ukrainians ?

Do Chinese think that they are more superior than Mongolians ?

Do Malays think that they are more superior than the Kadazans ?

Say if Spanish are more superior than Ukrainians, does that mean that whatever Spanish believe will be the truth, and nothing but the truth ? Will the Spanish say that the Ukrainians are uncivilised if their way of life is different from Spanish way of life ?

Sometimes the idea of your race being the inferior race is really hard to swallow.

I mean once someone believes in his inferiority, he has put himself as being unequal to the others. And when he put himself as being unequal to the others, he will be in a position where there's a possibility he will be insulted, oppressed and exploited - hence breaking down his esteem and sense of self.

When he believes in his inferiority (or otherwise systemically been forced upon him), then how can he counter it ? Can he fight ? Can he not acknowledge ?

Today nationality does not indicate race anymore - but it won't be long before someone superior quickly attaching your origin (race) to you.

You can criss-cross nations for the rest of your lives but believe that wherever you go, you will always be called "your race" "your latest nationality".

Race... again

2008-09-10T23:42:00.002+08:00

I hate to write about race.

For one thing, whenever I start to write about it, I feel deeply Chinese, yet let me be clear that I don't feel connected to China.

I have been Chinese whole my life. There's no doubt about it. My dad has been the same. And my mum too. It's just an honest way of telling people how I was really brought up to be. I am not so Chinese because I was never Chinese educated. But Chinese enough for me to be shameful that I am no where near a Malaysian.

But, who really is a Malaysian ?

Is he an imaginary citizen who must be of certain race, religion and culture ? When we talk about Malaysian, who would be that first man or woman who appears in your mind ?

Does this person come from a certain race, religion and culture ?

Well, if he does, do you reject those first images of others who are not similar to yours as less Malaysian, or not Malaysian at all ?

When I was abroad, a lot of people came to me and asked if I came from China. I never said yes. But I always continued saying I am Malaysian of Chinese descent. People would be inherently be confused because they never knew how a Malaysian should look like, that's for sure. I never failed to explain to them the multi-culturalism of Malaysia. That we're indeed a melting pot country consisting of people of different faiths and races who live together in a blessed land. I also never failed to explain to them that Chinese is not a nationality. It's about who you really really are. That it defines you and gives you an identity. Unless you have a stronger identity that you can proudly attach to yourself - and there will be no one to challenge that identity.

For example : Can I say I am a Malaysian. (full stop) Then someone challenges that and say that no, you're just an immigrant. And you start to have doubts about your Malaysian identity.

As a comparison : Can I say I am a Chinese. (full stop). Then someone challenges that and say no, you're not a Chinese at all. And you start to think, "Are you dumb or are you just plain stupid?"

Can I see myself as a Malaysian more than I am a Chinese ? Yes, of course I can. Only that the Malaysian race identity is so weak that if I were to give that identity to myself, it would be tantamount to me having a really weak self-identification. What more, from time to time, people would challenge your identity, by always reminding of where you really came from.

Do I need self-identification ? Of course I do, like every human. Why would I want to wake up one morning and convince myself that I am a Malaysian more than anything else but when I go on with my day, all I see on the street, with the people, in the newspapers, on the road, in the train, in the lecture class, on the blogs, are everything but things that define a Malaysian.

I see in the newspaper politicians talking about ethnicity interest beyond anything else. I go to the Goverment departments and I see they are doing a lousy job but I wouldn't be able to talk straight to their face, because if I do that, it would be tantamount to a Chinese challenging the Malays. I know my Malay friends are struggling in their studies because of the really lousy selection system used, but I cannot ask for improvisation to the system because it would be a challenge to their rights. I hear in the Chinese coffeeshop how certain Chinese have such a bad idea of multi-culturalism, and are narrow minded, but I cannot talk to them because that would mean I am a traitor to my race. I go to Brickfields and see how the Indians are not improving economically and socially, but I cannot do anything because I must only make sure my own race interest is protected instead of going around busying other's business.

I don't feel motivated to be a Malaysian - because I know I will be alone. How many times you hear people talking about building a Malaysian race this moment, and next when they talk to their own group of people, they start calling names and segregating the people.

Being a Malaysian is not so important today if you think about it, really. People today care more about being a Malay, or a Chinese or an Indian. Nobody wants to think of themselves as a Malaysian. I am shameful to say that I am no different.

Because societal conditions don't allow us to adopt the Malaysian identity. There are generally no incentives of being a Malaysian. Being a Malaysian is worse than being a Malay, Chinese or Indian because no one will back you up when shit happens. It's something like, 'You neither belong to us, nor belong to them.' And what a worse place you can be than in the middle of nowhere ?

I couldn't illustrate this more clearly than when I went to school in a former missionary school. I have probably talked about this hundreds of times, but it was really the first thing I learnt about multi-culturalism Malaysia - that we are indeed different and distint,...and distanced.

We went out to raise funds for our school. When we went to an Indian restaurant, the Boss would asked, "That is a Malay school. Got government support.' Then we went to a Chinese hardware shop. And the Chinese tauke said, 'That school ar, got a lot of Indian kids right?'. Then we went to the Malay restaurant. And the Boss said, "sekolah cina you mintalah dari tauke-tauke cina.'

I mean people are more concerned about who they are helping than why they are helping. Who ? It always means,... what race ? So why can't we help a Malaysian race people ? Because...

...who cares about being a Malaysian when you have the luxury of being a Malay, Chinese or Indian.

If you are a Malay, you have the honor of telling the great Malacca Sultanate in the 13th century and how the Malay language was the lingua franca and became the land of spice that attracted even the Dutch, Portuguese and English.

If you are a Chinese, you have the honor of boasting about coming from the oldest civilisation on earth, and how entrepreneurist the Chinese people have been, and how resilient we are in the event of life and death.

If you are an Indian, you would continue being an Indian because there's really nothing better to be - because nobody will think of you as anything more than that.

There's really nothing to being a Malaysian.

It's not a race. Neither is it a culture nor a religion.

It's probably some vague idea of statehood we had when we demanded independence from the British, that it was better to be free and fight openly with each other - than to be colonised and wouldn't be able to interact with one another. A vague idea instead.

But who cares anyway ? You have the UMNO and PAS to protect the Malays. You have MCA, Gerakan, DAP and what-not to protect the Chinese. And you have MIC to protect the Indians.

So for this small minority of Malaysians without representation, we let them to rot and die, and become part of the Malays and Chinese and Indian.

Both you and I know that this number is decreasing everyday and no one is really doing anything about it - because that's what everybody wants.

Welcome back to my life

2008-07-21T00:50:00.005+08:00

I am finally back to Malaysia, after slightly more than 9 weeks of stay in Krakow, and extensive travelling to so many places in Central/Eastern Europe.

My 9-week of experience in Europe can best be summed up as opening, intriguing and eye-opening. I could not find more clearer words to describe my feelings than these, and as I say them I really feel the meanings of them : Like this experience was so wonderful that it kind of changed the way I look at my life.

I try to find the exact words that could convey my experience, and so far what I have got is that '...there are so many possibilities in my life.' Or for that matter, in our lives.

The internship itself was nothing to shout about, but the travelling part, the friendships I had made, and also strangers I had talked gave such a deep-reaching influence in me. Even long after meeting these first pair of backpackers on train some 1-month back, and meeting so many similar people like them after, I still could remember how they look like and the conversation we had.

I still remembered how I arrived in a place late in the midnight, and could not find a hostel to stay, I had to stay in the train station for a night. And I was just sitting and hugging my backpack and lean on the wall. The feeling then was not, "...wow, this is awesome!', but instead '...oh my god, my neck hurts, how I wished I had not travelled this far I would have slept on my comfortable bed in Krakow!'.

Certainly, whenever I travelled, I always pushed myself beyond limits, even to some extent of making some really crazy decisions, because I knew when I came back in to my comfort zone, the next time around I would not hesitate so much about leaving it. And when I recall back these experiences, I feel nothing but proud because I was there!

Some of the more intriguing things I had heard from someone I barely knew changed the way I used to think about life. Take this for example, "I like working abroad. Here I don't need to live my life like how is expected of me from the society. I am free, I can do things differently - and I am doing it everyday."

From that moment onwards, I realised the key to happiness was not really '...to leave your country.' but instead to set yourself free! It is just so hard to live a life where your decisions and way of life are so influenced by the society - your family, friends, neighbors, etc. Of course, that being easier to do if you are abroad than when you are in your own country.

The friends I had made there were just so wonderful. I mean, they are not the best of friends you know, but the diversity of cultures, languages, and regions from where they came from enriched you. You learnt so much about so many aspects of their lives, I most notably admire the differences in their priorities towards life from mine. These not just merely give me a sense of difference, but most importantly, how I realised that they are actually more than one way to live our life, and that we can always have a different priorities in life.

Maybe it's not so much about the money. Maybe it's not so much about the studying and getting a degree. Maybe it's not so much about working in a big company. Maybe it's not so much about having a succesful career and marrying at the age of 30. Maybe it's not so much about buying one's own house and settling down. There are just so many possibilities.

It probably would not be so easy to know all these if one did not go out from one's comfort zone and travel to a region where there were people who said, "Why the hell are you going there?". In those times, I really doubted if I had made the right decision, but now I feel glad I did not back out in the last minute.

I had probably walked more distance than I had in the past 2 months than I had walked in my past 22 years. I meant it both literally and figuratively. It is this that got me thinking that probably I had wasted so much time of my life not living a fulfilled life. Now I feel living each day to the fullest. I definitely want to do it again because it's simply intriguing and enriching.

I don't know how I can do it again, but I really really hope that if I keep this plan in mind, opportunity would come by one day. That already I know that opportunities come in different form everyday, hence, I need to want it bad enough, then only I will be able to see these opportunities disguised in so many forms.

Now that I am back to my life - enriched, learnt, seen, experienced, challenged, and lived - I will live a fulfilled life everyday. Probably it's not so enjoyable juggling studies, aiesec works, family and friends, but one thing I know is, no challenge is to big to break me down. I only need to constantly remind myself of the unlimited possibilities I can have in my life and I cannot be contented wishing for little little things anymore. I will still be grateful for the small things in life, but I know I can aim for the star and still reach the star!

Let's hope I can keep this feeling till my next round of travelling:)

Happenings in Krakow

2008-06-20T03:24:00.006+08:00

It has been more than 1 month that I am staying in Krakow, Poland for an awesome internship : which you are flexible to do anything you want at any time!
I mean, there's nothing much to do here, and in fact, there's nothing to do if you choose so. Sometimes I choose to help out in the kitchen or in the agriculture field, to which I had decided to help out more in the kitchen ever since the few times of going down the agriculture field really worn me out. Hence, most of the time I would spend in the kitchen - cutting onions, garlic, potatoes, tomatoes, etc...

But that only constitute part of my day. I spend most of my time in the city centre, hanging out with fellow interns, drinking coffee in one of the cafes facing Krakow's Main Square (the biggest medieval main square in Europe), or going to Krakow's numerous clubs spending the night dancing and drinking Polish beers. Fantastic.

In the weekends, I have so far travelled to the tourist attractions surrounding Krakow, like the Wieliczka Salt Mine, the national park, the Tatras mountains, and Aushwitz, a former Nazi concentration camp which killed thousands of Jews in the Second World War.
Wieliczka Salt Mine had continuously been producing salt since the 13th century until 2007. It was one of the world's oldest operating salt mine until 2007. The oldest salt mine being in another part of Poland.

Ojcow National Park is the smallest national park in Poland and is located near Krakow. It was my first excursion to nature in Europe and it was nothing short of being an amazing experience. The other fellow interns and I went together, making it all the more fun and exciting!

The Tatras mountains was definitely one of my favourites time in Europe. Hiking it up through man-made trail for 2.5 hours before reaching an-already beautiful part of the mountain, it was definitely a sweet fruit for all the walking we had done. There was a lake, surrounded by the mountain, making it all the more beautiful and fantastic! The first glimpse I got of the lake and the mountain was nothing short of like what I had seen in pictures of great mountains, only much more better and closer to me! Seeing the mountain right in front your eyes was a really overwhelming sight! Words could not describe it because my limited vocabulory does not allow me to elaborate further:)

Aushwitz concentration camp was nothing short of a great experience as well. It was not like other trips/excursions that I particularly enjoy, simply because it was more of like a walk down the land of history, to learn about the story of a concentration camp which was used to kill more than 2.5 million people - Polish political prisoners in the Soviet time, Soviet prisoner-of-war after Poland fell to Nazi Germany, gypsies, and the Jewish people as part of Holocaust. Around 1 million Jewish people from various parts of Europe, from as far western cities as Paris, France and from as down southern cities like Athens in Greece were transported to Aushwitz and exterminated right away upon arrival. The main way of extermination being confining them to a gas chamber and releasing poisonous gas to kill them. The term used to describe the extermination by the Guide was "...killing at an industrial scale." As many as thousands of Jewish people were killed in a day. Pre-Nazi occupation of Poland there was an estimated 3.3 million Jews, of which only 300 thousands survived the Holocaust. The entire walk down this historical lane was an eye-opening to me. I was particularly attracted to a line of word displayed in the gate leading to the camp, "Arbeit macht frei" which means "Work sets you free". In this concentration camp, some prisoners were forced to work in factories for long hours with gruesome living conditions.

OK, enough of historical lesson. Humanity will never learn from history. Full stop.
Please check out also the pictures for the numerous parties/events that I have been to!

Updates !!!

2008-05-14T23:14:00.004+08:00

Yes tim Foo Cheong E yes tims Malazy.

(My name is Foo Cheong and I am from Malaysia).

It's almost 4 days since I came to the old world, Europe. My travel to Poland alone has been quite an adventurous one. In less than 2 days, I passed by 4 countries!

I took a flight from Kuala Lumpur and transited in Dubai for 5 hours. Then I flew to Vienna, Austria and met up with Zita, an incoming AIESEC UM intern. I went to her place for some rest and she prepared a meal for me. I wasn't really hungry that time because I had a meal every 3 hours on place. Speaking about the meals on the place, they were quite delicious.

The restaurant I had my breakfast during transit in Dubai. I fly Emirates and it was a great experience! The stewardesses really had exotic look and gorgeous smile:)

Outside of the train station where Zita would meet me up. Her place is just a couple of minute walk down the road.

Anyway, I hang out at Zita's place for around 2 hours before we left to the bus station to catch a bus to Brno,Czech Republic. It cost EURO5 and it took us around 3 hours to reach Brno. Brno was definitely a beautiful city. We met up with some LC Brno's interns and went to a Czech bar for a beer. Czech beer tasted like the beer in Malaysia, at least for me:) We hang out for a while there and left to stroll around the city. It was like all I have seen about Europe cities, except it was better. Old buildings, gothic-styled churches, words in foreign language, a chill weather, and a safe street to walk, it was definitely amazing.

I crashed in at one of the intern's place and in the morning, Zita and I left to the train and bus terminals to look for ticket to Krakow, Poland. She finally got me a train ticket to Krakow and got herself a ticket back to her village (some 80KM from Brno and according to her it was a really really beautiful place).

I took the train there for some 6 hours, with 2 interchanging stations and reached Krakow, Poland on Sunday evening.

Scenery along the way to Krakow. A church.

I agree that the grass is indeed greener at the other side. But it's only in the physical context. I wouldn't know if you're taking the figurative meaning of it.

And odd structure. I don't know what it is.

One of the transit stations on my way to Krakow.

The NGO's place where I will be working in for the coming 2 months is called MONAR and they are located in the sub-urban part of Krakow, so most likely I will have to miss a lot of events and parties. The people in MONAR are great. The patients here are drug addict and they are nothing like what we thought them to be. They are kind and friendly people and although they do not speak English, they will try their best to make us understand them. We, on the other hand, work very hard to make them understand us too:)

On Tuesday, AIESEC Krakow hosted a welcome party for me in Spotem Club in the city. It was a socialist-theme club and the beers were good, and cheap too. It cost around 4 Zloty for a 500ml beer. (that's around MYR6.00) Oh yes, before we went to Spotem, we bought some beers from a shop, and according to Chris (my EP manager) it was sort of like a warming up session. It's illegal to drink booze on the street and hence we cramped ourselves in a small car of another AIESEC Krakow's member. It was legal to drink inside the car although the car is parked. Funny. The party was great and almost all songs played were Polish songs.

I had the opportunity to attend an Local Committee Meeting of AIESEC Krakow. Well, they talked a lot on the X realisation and stuffs like that. Very AIESEC, and it's very similar to us back at home. Not much of a difference. Their target is 110 X. Achievable ?

It's illegal to drink on the street so we drank inside a parked car.

A scene in the morning where people go to work. Polish drivers are as crazy as Malaysians driver.

This is a building near Krakow Glowny, the main train terminal in Krakow.

So, that's pretty much my experience has been so far. It's definitely challenging and satisfying to come so far from Malaysia to a country where people speak little English. One time I had nature's call, but I had to resist because no one could understand "Toilet" or "Washroom". Well, I guess I should have have acted out the action:)

Now, everyday I am doing different things. In the weekends I hope I would be able to travel around because otherwise it would be such a waste because I come half a world away to here and I wouldn't want to miss out the chance. So I'll talk more on that in my next postings.

Do I believe it ?

2008-04-04T01:13:00.003+08:00

I was a bit ignorant on the magnitude of a short film produced by a Dutch politician, Geert Wilders entitled Fitna.

You can browse that clip in youtube by keying in the name of the short film.

When I was watching this film, I was caught in my own emotions as scenes from the September 11 attack were we played in this film. I saw scenes of planes crushing into the World Trade Centre, soon after a background voice of a panic emergency call from a lady who was trapped inside the burning building telling the operator how scared she was, and finally a scene showing someone who jumped out of the building from over 100 floors.

Then scenes of various bombing incidents attributed to Islamic extremists were played. Scenes of the burned bodies and heavily injured people were played, in between intervals of scenes showing exremist Muslims preaching.

I was so troubled and affected just like how the maker of the film would like me to be, but it was not long after I watched the film that I started to think reasonably. "This is so not right," I told myself.

I was talking about the person who made this film and his intention(s).

I thought in today's world, where there's a growing divide among peoples of different faiths, we ought to have people who could preach tolerance and common good of mankind. I thought we need people who could preach the common values of humanity like integrity, accountability, equality, fairness, honesty, etc. We don't need anymore the kind of political of religious leaders who preach to set the humanity apart.

Hatred is one disease that feeds on it's own. It's always easier to find reasons to hate somebody for the person he is not, than to accept a person for who he is. Despite all the differences that we claim we have as an individual, are we really that different ?

Don't we all share some, if not all, desires like pursuit of happiness and freedom ? Don't we all share a common desire for peace in the society ? Don't all we care is about making sure that we have a roof over our head, food to fill our stomach and clothes to keep us warm ? These might all sound simplistic, but really, in times like now where religious intolerance is the order of the day, would it be too early to say that we are approaching a time where we need to decide who's right or wrong already ? Or for that matter, aren't we wrongly heading to a point where we must decide the who the winner is ?

Must it be a zero-sum game for all of us who have a stake in the humanity but our voices are not rightly heard ?

Religion should be something between you and Him. Nobody should be telling you which faith you should rightly believe in. Because, really, there is no more superior faith. There is only one faith: the faith that calls for the observance of virtues and values of humanity. All religions preach these and it is up to us as an individual to decide for ourselves which religion can help us fulfill these values.

We have wrongly been involved in this debate on religions for far too long. For thousands of years, it's the same old issue that humanity at different times had challenged among themselves: Which religion is better ?

Is it just the nature of the human that tends to segregate according to their own kind and oppress groups that do not share their beliefs and kinds ?

I wish I could find the answer, but not to say that I do not have faith in myself, but great men were born asking themselves that question, lived their entire lives trying to find an answer, and when they died, they brought the same question along with them. But, there is one thing which I have great faith in: that someday, someone will find an answer, but I really really hope that that person will not create a whole new cycle of conflicts and confusion to humanity by playing God.

Aftermath of the 12th GE

2008-03-21T01:56:00.010+08:00

In the aftermath of the 12th General Election which was concluded not by having an answer to the call of the Malaysian society, but which has moved us to re-think about our roles in this multi-racial society, I started to think that Malaysians have come to the point where we must decide where to go. And of course along with it, how to reach our common destination.

I used to think that our society was in such a denial mode that we couldn't think, not only for ourselves, but for our future generations. The society, I presumed then, was prepared to live in a controlled environment where the Government was free to do anything it pleased, in exchange for security, peace and prosperity. I had a lot of doubts about how, if this society continued to let the Government do the governing, and not govern ourselves, would jeopardise not only this generation, but for generations to come. Would our children be able to question ? Would they be able to challenge ? Would they be able to stand up to great challenges ? These were the questions I asked deep inside of me.

In fact, I had given up hope too easily on this country that I was prepared to leave at the first instant I got an opportunity. But, the society, as it turned out to be was far more matured than it's Government. Most of us would not be able to comprehend the complexity of politics and Government, but really, politics and Government are just the combination of common aspiration of the people on where they would want to go as a nation, and electing men and women of integrity and ability to lead us there.

In the just concluded election, we observed how the society has rejected promises of security, peace and prosperity by the ruling coalition. It showed us that our society want something larger and beyond than these. We are not contented anymore to have just an ordinary life, we want it to be rewarding, fulfilling and empowering. For too long, the Government has shut it's door on us and ruled behind closed door. Public opinion was never sought when implementing policies which the Government claimed to represent our best interests, but these policies, were really just beneficial to a select few from the ruling elite. And society continued to pay for the lifestyles of these so-called leaders, their families, and their political associates. The society has shown, through the ballot box, that we want a Government of integrity and able to serve the nation. We do not need a self-centered or self-serving Government which drains the coffer of the nation.

In the aftermath of the election, we could see a defeated Government still not learning from it's weaknesses. In the mainstream media, we read about news that, obviously, wanting to cause fractions in the Opposition. While the society has moved upward to the next level, the mainstream media chose to remain where they are, ignoring the rest of the society and promoting the interests of the elite few. Their decision not to catch up with the society in terms of political maturity will in time cause them to be abandoned by the society. If the mainstream media believes that they still have influence over the society, they have really over-estimated themselves. Society as a whole is a self-empowering unit, learning and growing with time and in today's borderless world, we are inter-connected with the rest of the societies around the globe. As a small nation with relatively low influence over global affairs, we tend to follow the trend instead of carving it. Change is the trend of the day. No matter for better, or worse, we could see change the world over. We see leadership change in Thailand, United Kingdom, and Australia. In United States, Democratic Presidential candidate-nominee Barack Obama campaigns on the slogan 'Change we can believe in'.

Now that the society has taken it's first step in empowering itself, where are we heading to in the long run ? And most importantly, how do we get there ?

Race relations continue to be a delicate issue in our society. If we were to move forward as a nation, really, we need to look beyond our own race. I am not talking about abandoning your race, because race is not only your skin color, but something that defines who you are. The first step to look beyond our race is that we must acknowledge that our society is a multi-racial one and that we can never satisfy the needs of everyone. We need to acknowledge that, while we think we deserve a place in the society, others deserve equally as much. If there is one thing we can abandon, we must abandon the thought that we are more superior culturally, religiously or historically than the rest. It is this natural hierarchical tendency in us that causes conflict for as long as the human being has existed. We can, however, embrace a culture of excellence where we compete in a free environment to be the best of who we can be.

This environment, however, will not be 100% free per se. Those who are from an under-privileged background should be given appropriate assistance so that they can compete on an equal footing with the rest. While those privileged ones must acknowledge the fact that, they too have been given assistance in the form of natural privileges that come with their birth to their parents. The privileged ones will no doubt question about their eligibility for assistance too as an equal citizen. But think about this, really, the society has limited resources, and to channel these resources to those who need it the least would not yield the resources' maximum effect. If the scholarship given to a privileged student to study law would result in the society having a lawyer, giving a scholarship to an underprivileged student to study law would result in 2 lawyers.

In the past 2 weeks, I have learnt an important lesson, not from the General Election, but from the society that in times when we thought we were lost, we really were not far away from our destination. And by having a strong faith in ourselves, we could make a big difference. The road leading to our destination will never be a straight one: it will be filled with dangerous turns, unexpected obstacles and wild challenges. We just need to believe that we will get there, and it will be fulfilling and rewarding.

2008-03-09T22:56:00.002+08:00

The People have indeed spoken! 3th March 2008 will go down as one historical date in the half-a-century history of modern Malaysia, as the people's power was unveiled in a bitter election contest.

NO political analyst or expert would tell you that they have foreseen this. Very few, if none, could saw this coming. It was described more like a 'Tsunami' smashing throughout most of the Peninsular Malaysia.

Penang Island was a bitterly contested state, where both the new Barisan Rakyat (coalition of opposition parties) and the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional poured every imaginable resources to win the mandate of the people. Sentiment was very strong for change here. Jeff Ooi, the most prominent political blogger in this country contested in the Jelutong parliamentary seat, raising RM100,000 from his blog, and eventually elected into the Parliament, making him one of the most well-known blogger-turned-politician to be elected into the August house.

With the stepping down of Gerakan strongman Lim Keng Yaik as party president, Acting President and incumbent Penang Chief Minister, Koh Tsu Koon decided to move to federal position to consolidate his party's position at the national political arena. But the people's power was too hard to be ignored as they rejected Koh's bid in Batu Kawan parliamentary seat, giving a comfortably huge majority to his opponent.

The wind of change continued blowing across the country, to northern Kedah and southern Penang and Perak. In Teluk Intan, incumbent Mah Siew Keong was defeated by M. Manogaran of DAP. Other three state seats under Teluk Intan were swept by Barisan Rakyat.

DAP's Tony Pua, Oxford-educated and former CEO of a public-listed company, contested against MCA's Chew Mei Fun in PJ Utara, ousting her and her party's fear politics.

In Pantai Dalam, Women and Family Development Minister and incumbent MP Shahrizat Abdul Jalil was defeated by Keadilan's Nurul Izzah, novice politician and daughter of Anwar Ibrahim, showing the Malay's rejection of UMNO's racial politics and politics of favour.

HINDRAF's leader and ISA detainee M Manoharan, contested from behind the walls of his detention centre in a Selangor state seat Kota Alam Shah state seat in Klang, and won with 7000+ majority from his BN opponent. His wife campaigned for him.

MIC, the party that claims to represent the Indian community, was rejected almost totally by Indian voters, with party President Samy Vellu losing his Sungai Siput seat.

Zainuddin Maidin, the incumbent Minister of Information, who spoke in Al-Jazeera in the aftermath of the HINDRAF rally in pure arrogant manner, was voted out by the people in Sungai Petani.

Towards the end of the counting of ballots, Barisan Rakyat has taken over four key states in the Peninsular - Kedah, Penang Island, Perak and Selangor, while retaining the PAS-controlled Kelantan. Lim Guan Eng, DAP's strongman Lim Kit Siang's son, was expected to become the new Chief Minister of Penang. The Mentri Besar-ship of Perak and Selangor, both of which were won hugely by DAP, are expected to go to Keadilan or PAS representative. This is due to a provision in the Federal Constitution that in state which has Sultan, only a Malay could become Mentri Besar.

The people's optimism is running high. They feel like standing at the top of the world because their votes counted. They feel strongly about change, and they hope that now that their have done their part, those who are given the mandate would carry out the people's aspirations.

The wind of change has only begun to blow. We could expect more historical moments for Malaysia as we start to write an interesting chapter in the Malaysian history. Our future generations would definitely be proud of us - and the decisions that we made.

The path leading to today is definitely not a straight one. We had talked, shouted, cried, fought, detained and listened. Most of all, we've even brought our fight to this cutting age of technology : the Internet.

The People's Parliament (http://harismibrahim.wordpress.com/) has definitely played a major role. The mood in the air could best be summed up in this The People's Parliament tagline :

The People’s Parliament

We are here, not because we are law-breakers; we are here in our efforts to become law-makers - Emmeline Parkhurst

Today, we made it.

12th General Election

2008-02-14T15:11:00.002+08:00

Parliament was officially dissolved on Wednesday, 13th February, one day before Valentine's Day to pave way for the 12th General Election of our country.

Polling day will be on March 8th, 2008 for those of you who are at least 21, and registered as voter, you are eligible to vote for the next Government.

As a first-time voter myself, I will use my voting right to change the course to which the country is heading now.

Choose status quo, you get : Different year, same old people, same old shit.

Choose CHANGE, you get : Different year, different people, better-tasted shit.

Who will you choose ?

What will be our destiny ?

Who remains, who goes ... ?

The largest showdown

between the ELITES

and the COMMONERS...

Will they survive again...

Is a new day dawning upon us ?

Coming to your nearest polling station MARCH 8th.

YOU DECIDE!

Sepuluh tahun selepas Commonwealth Games 1998

2008-01-30T00:01:00.000+08:00

Ten long years have passed since our country's gloriest year back in 1998, when we organised the biggest sports event ever in our country - the Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games 1998.

I was at that time only 12, but the 10-day games not only have deepened my interest in sports but also my sense of proudness of being a Malaysian, a country which was known all over the world, as organiser of one of the best Commonwealth Games ever.

I eventually have taken up my interest in Badminton, went on to become school player - having played at the inter-school, inter-state and various other tournaments. Now that I am in the university, I continue my interest in Badminton, amid not as much of passion, by representing my residential college in the intra-varsity game.

Lately, I have been listening to the official Commonwealth'98 song by Ella - Standing in The Eyes of the World - which was one of my all time favourties. Indeed, 10 long years have passed since my passion for sports developed, and slowly fading away. I was really inspired back then to bring glory to my country through sports, and I still as much believe that sports can bring glory to our country.

I have made a simple video to commemorate this occasion - 10th long years after the glory of 1998, where our country finished 4th best - and I hope this video will bring back our fond memories whether of the games, or something else in that year.

Majulah Sukan Untuk Negara !!

Enjoy the video and sing along the song by Ella - the lyric is really inspirational.

I really hope the day will come again when our country will be Standing in The Eyes of the World.

Pahit getir hidup... dan pengorbanan

Terpaksa dihadapi, demi kejayaan

Terdidik sejak mula, tabah berusaha

Tanpa cuba melangkah, tak kemana

Di mana kau berada

Pencapaian tak tiba dengan mudah

Chorus

Kini "Standing In The Eyes Of The World"

Hanyalah selangkah dari nyata

Keazaman membara dijiwa

Menanti saat bebas merdeka

Tiba masa kau melangkah gagah

Bersemangat ke arah matlamat sedaya upaya

Engkau terunggul

Wajar "Standing In The Eyes Of The World"

Harapan yang pernah terkulai layu

Kembali segar mekar bawah bayanganmu

Setiap manusia ingin berjaya

Namun tak semua miliki tuah

Engkau menghampirinya

Kesempatan telah pun tiba...

Repeat Chorus

Coursemates Chinese New Year Dinner

2008-01-29T22:13:00.000+08:00

Date : 29th January 2008, Tuesday
Venue : New Island Restaurant, opposite ss2 Mobil gas station
Event : Chinese New Year course reunion dinner

Review : The dinner was ok, we started off with lou sang. But the desserts were superb, and quite aplenty too. We had a New York whatever cake made by one of the 2 female coursemates. It was seriously not bad, considering she did not look like those who could bake:) This was the second time we had our Chinese New Year reunion dinner (or dinner?), the first which we had in New Paris Restaurant (a common restaurant patronised by UM-ers).

Ambience : like anywhere near UM, the restaurant was filled by UM students, we were dining together with a 6 tables of QS (Quantity Surveying) students. They came later, and they conquered soon with their really really loud toast (yammmmmm........yammmmmmmm...sengggg...). A table of Sin Chiew employees were astounded by the scream especially since 99% of the QS students were girls. We however, soon retaliated by similar toast. (watch video below). It was indeed pleasant, with Chinese New Year decor all over the restaurant, lanterns, decor tree, etc.

Happy Chinese New Year - Kong Hei Fatt Choy.

Chinese diaspora - Chinese Immigrants

2008-01-23T13:35:00.000+08:00

Race according to Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

[C,U] one of the main groups that humans can be divided into according to their physical differences, for example the colour of their skin.

The reason why I would like to talk about race in my blog entry this time is none other than because our society today has become more and more segregated along racial lines. Or, perhaps, it has always been like this all this while, only that my consciousness on what defines me has deepen.

I have just recently finished reading a book entitled The Chinese American: A Narrative History by Iris Chang. In this book, Iris narrate the story of the arrival of the first Chinese immigrants on the American soil in search of wealth and to escape from poverty back in China.

These first wave of immigrants who came to America in the 19th century were enticed by promises of quick fortune by slave recruitment companies. Stories about instant riches told by supposedly returning Chinese from America attracted waves of Chinese to the American soil. These poverty-stricken Chinese were awed also by story about 'a Gold mountain in America' where one could practically pick up gold from the streets. And so, they went there, in search for a small or big fortune, that they hoped could help their family escape from generations of poverty in their own country, where the Manchu government taxed the ordinary farmer citizens heavily for their crops.

The story told about the arrival of Chinese to the American soil resembled those of our ancestors, who came to the soil of Malaya, in search of fortune, freedom and happiness, or for that matter, resembled those of almost all Chinese now living in different parts of the world. We are of course bonded by more or less a common past.

When these uneducated Chinese, who spoke no English, understood nothing American, and for most of them who have not even seen an Englishman or Westerner before, the challenge for them to adapt to the cultures and environment there was immense. But, the worst part was, for most of them who came with belief that they would find gold, they were disappointed to find themselves in debt with the recruitment companies who paid for their passage to America. And, hence, not only there was not gold for them, they would soon find themselves toiling tirelessly to pay off their debts and also to send money back to their family in China. Of course, there was indeed a gold rush in California at that moment, as told by Iris. But most of the Chinese immigrants who arrived in California that time simply did not find it.

And Iris continued with the struggles of the Chinese in the so-called 'free land' or 'land of opportunities' where 'all men are created equal', she told about the suffering of the Chinese due to their different skin color, whether in politics, work or day-to-day life. The discrimination of the American of Chinese descent continued up till present time, way back from the 19th century, even for some, after 5 generations since his great-great grandfather first came to America. Iris told about the stories about how the Chinese, in different occasion at different timeline, were made scapegoats by their more supreme white American fellow citizens. Stories about how they were politically targetted by American Government due to presumed competition they gave to the white Americans - by being more hardworking, diligent and work more for less. White Americans saw this as a threat to their own livelihoods, hence, lobbying the Government to enact the Chinese Exclusion Act which in effect had made lives a living hell for most Chinese in America for around 60 years from 1882 to 1943. Various incidents of pogrom (the organized killing of large numbers of people, especially because of their race or religion) against the Chinese were told by Iris in this book.

During the World War 1 and World War 2, many Chinese Americans served in the army in defending their country, but too many Americans have questioned their loyalty - whether it was towards America or towards China. There were occasions when these Chinese Americans were severely discriminated against in the army, for example, when fellow soldiers made sick joke of them being enemy soldiers and they 'did not look American even in that Navy uniform'. Chinese Americans continued to be discriminated against with some racist Americans calling them 'chink' - a derogatory remark to refer to the Chinese. It is similar to what in Malaysia, some section of society would call Malaysians of Indian descent - keling.

The continuous discrimination against the Americans of Chinese descent in different timeline is often related back to the Chinese culture itself. The Chinese immigrants, in order to support their family back in China, worked very hard to earn money, sacrificing their leisure time and health, which made them a superior workforce relatively to the White Americans, who more often than not, put their happiness above of anything else (individualism in American society). This is not surprising, since United States was founded on the back of the aspirations of its' predominantly British citizens that 'all men are created equal' and that 'they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and pursuit of happiness'. It is not to indicate that the Chinese are not interested in Life, Liberty and pursuit of happiness, or that they do not believe that 'all men are equal', something in fact, every race or people of all nationalities could only dream about, but the Chinese coming from a country with occasional in-fighting and succession of one dynasty after the other for as long their civilisation has existed (in fact, the oldest in the world), believe in peace, stability, and creating wealth. Hence, the Chinese strong drive of creating wealth, causing resentment from the White Americans. Also, the Chinese Confucian influence put an extremely high emphasise on education, which explained how the children of the Chinese immigrants have excelled in their education. Perhaps, it is because the Chinese have always resisted assimilation into the American mainstream society by strongly preserving their culture.

As I read this book, I could not help but wonder how Malaysians of Chinese descent followed a similar development like our Chinese American counterparts. Our ancestors settled on this land as early as 15th century in Malacca, but up to this day the 21st century, issue such as loyalty and our origin continued to be questioned by the mainstream society. We continued to hear about discriminative politically-motivated policies of restricting the advancement of the Chinese Malaysians in education, politics, culture and business. We could not help but wonder why we were almost always singled out as the more 'affluent' citizens and required less assistance, when all we needed was not assistance but equal opportunities to compete. We could not help but wonder why whenever we protested against certain discriminative policies, we were told to 'go back to China' or 'if you don't like it here, just leave the country' or 'this is not your country' - these kinds of rhetoric.

Is this a similar fate that is shared by all immigrant groups, and not confined to just Chinese immigrants or there's something bigger that cannot be captured by our mind ?

The Indonesian Chinese face a much deeper dilemma than many of us - Malaysian Chinese or Chinese American can ever comprehend. At the turn of clock into the 20th century, most countries have accepted multi-culturalism as the way to go for many societies in this world. But in Indonesia, back in 1998 during the East Asian economic crisis, the Chinese there were made scapegoat. Wild allegations of Chinese controlling 98% or so of the economy spread like wildfire, and unemployed people who felt the inequality, protested fiercely against the Chinese. It was during this time, the Jakarta Riot of 1998 occured. We would never know the truth, due to Indonesian Government cover-up, but various sources on the Internet reported a series of scary incidents that happened to the Chinese - pogrom, burning of shops belonging to Indonesian Chinese, rape of Indonesian Chinese women, brutal killing, etc. A wild search on the Google will return even pictures of victims, those which will make you miserable and scared for the next few days, or perhaps will change your perception forever.

This blog entry does not intend to incite racism or promote Chinese superiority, but instead of the Chinese humility in looking for an opportunity to live a better live in their adopted motherland, one they hope would become the home of their future descendants. The Chinese are peace-loving people who aspire to live in a stable society, and be given equal footing like any other fellow citizens of different ethnicities.

As of now, the second diaspora (the movement of people from any nation or group away from their own country) of the Chinese people have begun, at least in Malaysia. Affluent businessmen, trained professionals, young super-bright students and even high school leavers - all of Chinese descent - are leaving their country (made no mistake it's Malaysia), legally, or not, to search for greener pasture in western countries.

The beginning of the second Chinese diaspora - one that is from their adopted country to another country - which is different from our ancestors - one which was from China - amid in a different era of Freedom, Democracy and Globalisation, compared to our ancestors in an era of Poverty, Suppression and Nationalisation, will bear the same old reason - the Chinese are a race of people actively looking for prosperity and opportunities.

The best quote I read from this book, quoted from fomer Washington Governor Gary Locke, a Chinese American himself, was as followed :

" My grandfather came to this country from China nearly a century ago and worked as a servant. Now I serve as governor just one mile from where my grandfather worked. It took our family 100 years to travel that mile. It was a voyage we could only make in America. "

===========

This book by Iris Chang is highly recommended for those who wish to know their roots better, amid not the best choice, but immigration of Chinese to other countries bear more or less the same past. Hopefully this book will inspire you to research into your roots in Malaysia. Iris Chang is also the author of 'The Rape of Nanking' - a book on the invasion of Japanese to the Chinese soil in the Second Sino-Japanese War and the atrocities committed by the Japanese army against Chinese women. Her other work was 'Thread of the Silkworm'.

Iris Chang committed suicide in 2004 due to depression. This blog is dedicated to her, as she has provided me with an insight into the lives of Chinese American, and for a good book she has written. My next book, perhaps in the coming semester break, would be The Rape of Nanking.

Saint Anthony's School Class of 2003

2008-01-13T21:47:00.000+08:00

My secondary years in Saint Anthony's School were inevitably one of the most amazing, albeit not totally perfect, experiences I have had in my life.

This was the place much of the exciting events took place in my life. It was a time when I stepped out of childhood into young adulthood, accompanied by a bunch of wonderful peers who still remain my good buddies all through the years. We still pretty much stick together, sometimes reminiscing the days we spent in school and in class, practically talking at the back, sleeping or worse making fun of the teachers.

We all still agree that, despite growing up in an all-boy school for the first 11 years of our schooling life, Saint Anthony's School has given us not only fond memories but an entirely different experience that would make us stronger, resilient, and distinct.

Moving on with life to the different stages, and not knowing where each stage will lead us to, we certainly need a platform where we would be able to look back with fond memories, of the secondary care-free days when school was not about scoring in examinations, but scoring in life.

This platform is important as we walk down the unknown road with scepticism whether it would lead us to where we want to go in life, the past would serve as a comfort zone where we could escape from the competitive fast-paced world once in a while and reflect back on the wonderful times we had, I believe it would give us strength to persevere and overcome the obstacles in life.

My friend, I introduce to you our platform - http://www.sasti03.blogspot.com/

Have an enjoyable journey down the memory lane - if I could turn back the clock, I still would relive back all these moments with you guys!

Once an Anthonian, forever an Anthonian!

Education inequality

2008-01-06T15:57:00.000+08:00

One of the primary forces that drive the development of a society is the skills possess by its' members. It would not be wrong to say that an educated society is the main ingredient to become a developed society, both materially and spiritually.

It has always been my belief that only through adequate education, a person will get a better shot at his life and to move up his social status in the society. Perhaps he might not be rich and famous, but with education, he can at least have a life better than what his parents had.

Our society has, since independence, been trying to provide an equal opportunity in education for everyone, regardless of their economic background. First, we started by giving free primary and secondary education. Along with it, we built national universities, and with subsidies (income from which derived from the taxpayers' money) keep the cost of higher education low. It was then the society's hope that highly talented young men and young women were not hindered from achieving their fullest potential and serve the society because of their economic background. It has since produced a generation of professionals, who did not come from an affluent family, and of course who have a better life than what their parents had.

But over time, the true objective of providing equal opportunity to deserving individualy was slowly forgotten by those who are supposed to run and monitor the system. Today's education opportunities were distributed along racial lines, giving the least deserving individuals the biggest opportunities while depriving those who need it the most.

Think about the distribution of taxpayers' money to schools - both primary and secondary. In our society, we can generally categorise the schools into two major types - national-school and national-type school. National schools and national-type schools are what we come to know commonly as Sekolah Kebangsaan and Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan. To a layman, national-school is a 'Malay school' while a national-type school can be either a 'Chinese or Indian school'. And there is absolutely justification to it - most national-school or national-type school are dominated by a particular race group.

A national school by Malays. A national-type chinese school by the Chinese. A national-type indian school by the Indians. And you can start countering by saying there is sizeable Indian and Chinese students in national schools, but statistically, the percentage of them is meagre. The same thing happens in a chinese or indian school.

For decades, education remains a sensitive issue amongst the different races - from pre-independence days till today - and it has become a delicate issue that will make or break our society, often provoking anger and sensitivity of concerned groups of people. Issues like inadequate funding to national-type schools continue to be a matter of struggle by the Chinese and Indian communities.

Sometime, when the Government is generous (or rather when there are stakes at hand), national-type schools get larger-than-expected funding. Sometime, when you have communal political leaders who are good at bargaining, they get some exclusive temporary privileges. Most of the time, you just depend on the Chinese or Indian community. They will pour their hard-earned money into schools which are supposedly supported by the Government - a principal in line with equality in education - apart from the taxes they pay. After all, the students in national-or-national-type schools are all Malaysians, hence, they should receive equal funding from the those who are trusted to guard the people's coffer.

But, there is one small segment of students who are forgotten by the society - amid all the struggles and championing of communal political leaders for the national-type schools. These students are those who come from former missionary schools - schools once ran by Christian missionaries and later handed over the administration to the Government while keeping the land ownerships. These schools used to be premier schools, and have produced students of high calibre who contribute to the betterment of the society.

I used to come from one of these schools - Saint Anthony's School Teluk Intan (SASTI). We receive no more than a partial-aid from the Government. A partial-aid funding is where the teachers will be provided by the Government like any other ordinary schools with a small yearly development budget. The development budget is not sufficient to cover the administration of the school, like payment for utilities, maintenance of the building and facilities, replacement/repair of the chairs and tables and etc.

Hence, every year my former school would come up with programs like Jogathon and Hari Kantin where we would try to raise much needed funds that would cover for the miscellaneous maintenance and development projects. Those were the times of the year you would see students coming to your house with a green-colored card (for my school) appealing for donations. More often than not, these students would be turned away. I remembered when I was given a card by my teacher, and she told us that we must come up with a minimum amount of donation - roughly RM20. As I was still a teen then, I was angry of why must we be forced to go out and asked for donations. Shouldn't a donation be sincere and regardless of whatever amount ? Wasn't the Government supposed to give money to schools when they needed it ? Why didn't the students from some schools in town have this kind of donation thing ? Those were the questions that we strongly talked about among us. We did not understand. At the end, some of us top up our own pocket money when we got poor response from the public (or rather strangers). Some like me just would not bother to ask and donated my pocket money away. Sometime, we just donated to each other.

The principal kept explaining about the need for us to work hard to get donations because we were not fully funded by the Government. As I grew older, I started to understand - perhaps because I had heard it time and time again - the nature of a former missionary school.

I used to be an Interactor, at least once a year, we would go out go ask for donations from the public to carry out student-run projects for our school. When we went to the Chinese taukeh, he would say "Your school has a lot of Indians isn't it?". When we went to the Indian restaurant, the boss would say "Your school has a lot of Chinese isn't it?". When we went to a Malay shop, the boss would say "I think your school has a lot of Chinese and Indian students..". Some more radical ones would say, "I only donate to chinese/indian school. I don't donate to Government schools.", regardless of how you explained to them about a partially-aided school like mine. The truth was, the best chances where national unity could be forged was in a school like mine. We had 40% chinese, 30% indians and 30% malays - where else could you find an institution which has such a composition ? Hardly.

My school was also famed as the 'dumping ground' for troubled students, those who were 'buang' from other schools. Some talks had it that the Government wanted the school closed up eventually due to the declining academic performance and disciplinary problems - issues that would lead to low enrolment. I would never know the true reason, but in the past few years, I have heard of low enrolments for Form 1 in my school. We used to have around 7 classes for Form 1 students, now I think it's around 3-4 classes.

As we grew older, we started to embrace the traditions of our school. It did not matter to us if we were in a dilapidated situation, what mattered most was our spirit, what we called the Anthonian Spirit. We certainly felt proud to be Anthonians. We were rebellious, yes, but in district sports, we were outstanding - although we did not have a field for atletics, football, etc. In public examinations, our results was nothing to shout about, but there was once a junior of mine who said "...we have at least one JPA scholar every year..". It was true for all the years I was there - 7 in total.

All the donations thing or criticisms from the local community that "Saint Anthony is not good, and filled with bad students..." did not dampen our spirit as a true Anthonian, but instead taught us to persevere and be proud of being an Anthonian. We were always proud of our freedom, independence and ability to DREAM BIG - instilled in us by the school. It did not shatter us even when we were given used chairs and tables, donated generously to us by the national schools when they were getting new ones, while we repaired and re-used them.

I was there for 7 years and I was not able to see all those things back then. It was just the spirit that magically was inside of us. Now I am able to see clearly the inequality that exists in education in our society. Our education today is no longer about providing adequate education and opportunities to deserving individuals but about 'making sure some people stay in power by playing communal politics and making sure STUDENTS cannot think critically to challenge their status quo...'.

Education had shown some success back then when it was fairly equal. I am worried for today's education because someone's child might not be a Doctor or a Lawyer or an Accountant or an Engineer or a Businessman or an Entrepreur or a Policeman or a Prime Minister, not because he does not have what it takes, but because he IS POOR, he is not LIKE THEM, he is not WITH THEM...

Holiday and Me

2007-12-01T01:10:00.000+08:00

It happens every semester.

During the study weeks, I would inevitably be dogged by the amount of study hours I needed to put in so that I would not go in the exam hall realising I was not fully prepared. I put in a considerable amount of hours so that I knew I have tried my best and whatever came out in the exam hall, I would walk out there with an open heart, though it was not always that case.

During the study weeks, you sat in front of the table, studying and revising materials subject after subject. But we all know, all the hours we put in were not the effective study hours. At some interval, there was tendency for our mind to sway from the studying at hand to things we would love to do after we were done with the exam.

Things like the movies and tv series we have missed during the busy semester, the places we wanted to go with friends, books you would like to read, and the list went on. These were the things that fuelled you during the tough dreadful study weeks. I had my plans during the break of this semester of course! Because in the past 2 semesters, though I thought and wished the same way, unfortunately I did not quite remember them when the exam was finally over. And I spent the whole holiday, doing things that- I would not say I hated - I did not intend to do.

This time, however, I have listed them down and make sure I do a regular follow ups to my 'progress'. What an odd way, but so far it sure has brought satisfaction and pleasure to me.

For example, during the study weeks, my hometown friends and I have planned to have a steamboat buffet as soon as the exam was over. And I made sure we really had that - we did - and it was so much fun! I always have loved occasions when friends and family get together - having good food, laughing, catch up with each other - basically just having a fun time together!

Well, that was just the beginning.

And it was followed by three consecutive 'seconds' - the second time I really was doing something.

We went clubbing in maison, which was only my second after the first which I went with a bunch of AIESECers after an AIESEC function. Then I went karaoke-singing, which was also my second after the first which was over a year ago. And just this evening, I went futsal in my hometown, which was my second after the first which I had in Kelantan in June. It's awesome how all the 'seconds' started to come in, and except for karaoke-singing, the firsts and the seconds all happened this year!

I related this to my friend, Jared- cause he was through all the seconds I mentioned with me - and well it thrilled me even more by just mentioning it to him. LOL.

Also not forgetting, when I returned to my hometown, I already had with me a list of the food I missed so much and places I wanted to go - sungai nibong fried koay teow, krishnan "bawah pokok" nasi kandar, pa bui (translated to mean end of jungle in hokkien) chee cheung fun, KFC (the first time I went after it was recently renovated) and mamaking in both Gulam Rasul and Asraf. And I did all that. Now, the only places I have not been to would be Hoover Coffee House and L&O ice-cream house. But with the food I have indulged in and mamaks I have been, I am pretty contented.

I would be leaving this Sunday back to KL, and the rest of next week I would spend in my uni attending an AIESEC conference. I would be back again to have a steamboat dinner with my friends. We shall see if we will be able to have it.

It's great seeing all the things you wanted to have happening but at times I doubt if I have over-indulged in all-things-fun. Cause my money is flowing out like a running pipe, and soon it's going to drain out! Well, it is also my belief that everything comes with a price. Most probably my result will come down this semester but I am excited about the changes that are taking place in my life.

The philosophical side of me says:

Changes always bring about a cloud of uncertainties because you never know whether the change is for better or for worse. But by simply not moving forward, we are doing a great injustice to ourselves by not exploring the true potential we have inside us. I ought to do a million wrong things and finally getting one done rightly than being a fool who does not do anything, and knows neither victory nor defeat.

How's the sound of that ?

***

I am currently reading a Sociology textbook. My understanding of people and society are better now. There are things which I would not be able to understand then, but now I have started to grasp the idea on forces that transform society and people. My currently-held belief that 'It's all about the money' still holds - but that does not enlighten me.

Fight for Independence - A leftist struggle

2007-10-28T03:42:00.000+08:00

We have heard and studied in almost all levels of our public school education: the struggle of our country (then Malaya) for independence. We were told of how our Independence was fought for and won by parties who cared for the people, that their sole purpose was to safeguard to free the nation from the colonial rule, to self-govern our beloved country and bring about prosperity to the people. These are the parties who have governed us for the past half-a-century, but have not quite delivered on their promises: Promises delayed, 50 years and counting on...

Through the national education system, we were taught and told about the struggle of the mainstream parties, without a commensurate acknowledgement given to the leftist parties who have fought just as much for the Independence of the country.

I have just watched a short documentary, telling the story of the struggle for Independence by the leftist parties, the trade unions, women's groups, etc. It is a documentary by Fahmi Reze.

I hope this documentary will give us a little insight into the hardship faced by these parties in putting up a formidable fight against the British and the right-wing pro-British parties for the people's power.

Their contribution was not only forgotten, unacknowledged by the nation at large but worse still, they were portrayed in a most negative manner by the parties who 'won' the fight 50 years back.

It is high time we show our appreciation to these great unsung heroes, who fought hard for the betterment of the people. Due recognition should be given to them!

This documentary also moves us to ask questions like:

How is history written and told to the society by the Government ?
Who has the authority to judge which side of history should be made official ?
Before independence, the degree of freedom of speech and association were immense, what about today ?
As a society, are we moving forward after 50 years on, or backward ?

Are we united as a nation today ?
Have we ?
Will we ever be ?

Do we have a Government which is desired by the people, and committed to, and only to serving the people ?

Do we have a Government which is accountable, clean, transparent, fair and just ?

When can the true voices of the people be heard, and sung across the land ?

and lastly...

As a citizen, do we want leave the nation to the Government, or govern the nation ?

Before the grand finale,...
A sense of patriotism is not what we need, for we have enough of that, what we need is a strong sense and desire of making things right.

It is okay to hate the Government, you just need to love your country.
(if it's too small, view it here http://blip.tv/file/423032#share )

Click To Play

Absolutely zero

2007-10-24T19:06:00.001+08:00

The first time I heard this song was before I came to university. Those care-free days back at my hometown after STPM was not that care-free after all.

It was a moment of confusion, growing up, facing reality, and choosing my destiny. I worked for a brief 3 months (the first job lasted me 2 months, while another one lasted me 1) which meant that I had a lot of time to myself, discovering and learning about what I was really meant for.

For one, though I was almost sure about the course and choice of university I wanted to go to, I was afraid, afraid of the future challenges my next level of life would take me. Indeed, I wouldn't realise it then, but now when I look back, it was a moment of moving to a higher level in life. And life consists of many phases, with us growing up through each of the phase, no matter how well or how badly we have fared. The thought of finally being able to leave my hometown, and explore the opportunities that the world could offer was nonetheless stimulating. But doubts of whether I could reach there filled my heart. What if I fail ? What if I am not meant for greatness ? What if I took the wrong path ? How would my life be 5,...10 years from now ? Indeed a moment that demanded great courage and great faith in myself.

It was this moment when I lost someone, and the lost carried me away for a while before I finally getting myself back. As much as I tried telling myself that it didn't hurt, and that everything would be just fine and well, when I look back now, I could see a shattered ignorant me to accept the fact that there was no turning back and life had to move on. I was so obsessed with my own beliefs and ideals, only to learn later on, that I needed to open up myself, be flexible and enjoy the company of friends and family. These are the windows that remained open when that door closed. But when I look back, I see a lost me trying to figure out what went wrong, when all I needed was to realise the right things that were happening around and within me. Opportunity to further my studies, friends who cared and a family who was always there for you, these were the thing I ought to be grateful of. And it carried me away for a while, living in my own world, accompanied by personal ideals and beliefs, I shut myself out from the world I was supposed to be: friends who you laughed together with, chill out with, went places with, and family who welcomed you whenever you were back, gave you support and warmness only a home could provide.

At the end of the day I learnt, that these moments of confusion and growing up were inevitable, and all I needed was to pick something up from the fall, stand up and move on. And I shouldn't be spending too much a time down there to wonder who or rather what pushed me down. I need to get up fast, and catch up with the crowd called life. And life offered so much more that we ought to forget the moments when we fell.

Each day brought with it wonderful gifts! It is true that we should not set our eyes too long on the door which is closed, but look the the open window that will lead us to sunlight and crowd out there!

(The title of the blog is the title of a song by Jason Mraz. During that period I listened to it so much, not knowing the lyrics only until recently. And the lyrics sort of reflected the feeling I had in me then.)

Absolutely Zero by Jason Mraz

You.
You were a friend.
You were a friend of mine
I let you spend the night
You see it was my fault.
Of course it was mine.

I'm too hard at work.
Have you ever heard of anything so absurd ever in your life.
I'm sorry for wasting your time.

See who am I to say this situation isn't great?
When it's my job to make the most of it
Of course I didn't know that it would happen to me.
Not that easy.

Hey what's that you say?
You're not blaming me for anything well that's great
But I don't break that easy.
Does it fade away?
So that's why I'm,
I'm apologizing now for telling you I thought that we could make it
I just don't get enough to believe that we've both changed.

See who am I to say hey this situation isn't great?
It's my time to make the most of it
Of course I didn't know that it would happen to me.
Not that easy. No no no...
If all along the fault is up for grabs why can't you have it
If it's for sale what is your offer,
I'll sell it for no less than what I bought it for
Pay no more than absolutely zero.

Well neither one of us deserves the blame
because opportunities moved us away
And it's not an easy thing to learn to play
a game that's made for two that's you and me
The rules remain a mystery.
See it can be easy.

See who am I to say hey this situation isn't great?
It's our time to make the most of it
How could we ever know that this would happen to me, not that easy, no
When all along the fault is up for grabs and there you have it
If it's for sale what is your offer, I'll sell it for no less than what I bought it for
Pay no more than absolutely zero.

2007-10-24T19:06:00.000+08:00

If the world only consisted of 1000 people...

2007-10-18T14:10:00.000+08:00

The world is not a big place with abundant opportunities after all.

I first read a text in a sociology book on shrinking the world to just a village of 1000 people. And this 1000 villagers would represent the population of the world. What surprises us is the inequality that existed in this village. While the village was a rich place which produced more than enough food to feed everyone, about half of these 1000 villagers did not get enough food to eat and many fall asleep hungry. Two-hundred villagers own 80-percent of the village's wealth. The bottom 200 worst-off villagers lack of clean drinking water and safe shelter.

The village had a fine university, but only 50 villagers had college education while almost half of all the villagers could neither read nor write.

These are just some of the descriptions of the lives of a rich village of 1000 people. Below is the full original text from which I read about this village : (if the text is too long, watch this clip which coincidentally reflects this article - http://www.miniature-earth.com/me_english.htm )

" The Earth is home to 6.4 billion people who live in the cities and villages of 192 nations. To grasp the social shape of the world, imagine for a moment that the planet's population is reduced to a single settlement of 1000 people. In this 'global village', more than half (610) of the inhabitants are Asian, including 210 citizens of the People's Republic of China. Next, in terms of numbers, we would find 130 Africans, 120 Europeans, 85 people from LAtin America and the Carribean, 5 from Australia and the South Pacific, and just 50 North Americans, including 45 people from the United States.

A study of the settlement's ways of life would reveal some startling facts: The village is a rich place, with a seemingly endless array of goods and services for sale. Yet most of the inhabitants only dream about such treasures, because 80-percent of the village's total income is earned by just 200 people.

For the majority, the greatest problem is getting enough food. Every year, village workers produce more than enough to feed everyone: even so, half the village's people, including most of the children, do not get enough to eat, and many fall asleep hungry. The worst-off 200 residents (who, together, have less money than the richest person in the village) lack both clean drinking water and safe shelter. Weak and unable to work, some of them fall victim to life-threatening diseases every day.

Villagers boast of their community's many schools, including a fine university. About 50 inhabitants have completed a college degree, but almost half of the village's people can neither read nor write.

We in the United States, on average, would be among the richest people in this global village. Although we tend to credit ourselves for living well, the sociological perspective reminds us that our achievements are largely products of the privileged position our nation holds in the worldwide social system. "

Sources : Global Sociology. The Global Village : A Social Snapshot of Our World. "Sociology (Tenth Edition) by John J. Macionis"

It makes you reflect deeply about what we have. Well, we are not the village's most affluent residents, but at least here in Malaysia, you can safely say that we are the upper middle-class people in this village of 1000 people. Abundant food, a shelter over our head, quality and branded clothes, and have a free public school system up to Secondary level, we are indeed a prosperous and wealthy nation.

But think about peoples in other nations, who struggle everyday to feed their stomachs and keep themselves warm.

Do we want to remain in our comfort zone, or go out and make this global village a better place to live in, for everyone ?

Malaysia Judiciary

2007-10-07T17:46:00.000+08:00

Malaysian Government is seperated into three different branches of government, namely the Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary, with each having their own scope of responsibility. And they are supposed to be independent of each other as a form of check and balances in running the country.

Why do I say it is supposed to be ? Well, like all things Malaysian, we are very good when it comes to coming up with brilliant ideas to run the country, to improve the economy, to solve any problem affecting the society, etc, but when it comes to the true implementation, it is always filled with issues like corruption, red tape by the overzealous civil servant, poor monitoring and absense of maintenance mentality. Think about how many times the Government came up with a project to improve the livelihood of the people, and companies (or rather individuals with political connection) tendered for that project (closed-tender at that), started to build it, did not finish in time, incur escalated costs (sometimes 100%, or more), borne by the Government (or rather the taxpayers' money which eventually went back to the people who are in a way or another connected to the Government), and finally when the project was completed way a decade later than their scheduled completion date, problems of poor design and quality surfaced. And the blame game ensued. Call that the typical cycle of a Malaysian First Class Project. Maybe they should intergrate it with my construction management subject which I will be taking later.

While the form on the separation of power looks good in the constitution, the same thing cannot be said about it's substance. Lately, the judiciary received another blow to it's reputation and statue in the society when an opposition party (Parti Keadilan) revealed a video recording showing lawyer VK Lingam talking on the phone with a man believed to be Ahmad Fairuz (now Chief Justice) who was then the Chief Judge of Malaya. The conversation took place during the admnistration of Mahathir Mohamed. The content of the conversation was over the arrangement of appointment for Ahmad Fairuz to become Chief Justice. And during the conversation, several names were mentioned, including that of influential businessman with close links to former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed, Vincent Tan of the Berjaya Group. And, whether the conversation had indeed taken place, Ahmad Fairuz eventually became Chief Justice, the highest position in one of the three branches that make up the Government, that is Judiciary.

What could have been more shocking and absurd as I watched this video to learn that a lawyer could indeed be so influential as to be involved in the 'fixing' of appointment of judiciary members, who he would be working so closely with in proceedings and legal matters. It is outright absurd and obviously not only was against the law, but ethics and morale. And we don't even have to mention about conflict-of-interest, it was outright intervention with the independence of Judiciary, which role is to safeguard national interest through check and balances on the Executive and Legislative. Perhaps the relatively less shocking part was the involvement of Vincent Tan, a businessman with no attachment whatsover to the Judiciary. Was he a hidden hand in the Judiciary, or was he a hidden hand in many more matters pertaining to the Government for that matter ?

Like usual, the Government is quick to play down the the controversy, saying that it is a tactic by the Opposition to erode the confidence of the people in the Government and Judiciary and to win the hearts and minds of the people. Like all things Malaysian, the Government would focus on the whistlblower who recorded and released the video-recording (remember when questioned why the rape cases were on the rise, the Government blamed in on the female dressing without focusing on how to best prosecute the rapist and prevent rape). This focus is uncalled for, and as the members of the society, we know all too well that the best solution would be to take those concerned and mentioned to answer to this controversy, just like what we wanted in all the issues which happened in the past. Sadly, the Government never really heeds the voices of the majority and truth, while it continues to run the country to satisfy a small selected group of people, at the expense of the majority.

This is a second blow to the Judiciary since the the first one, which happened in 1988 judicial crisis when Chief Justice Salleh Abas and five Supreme court judges were sacked (three were later reinstated). It was widely believed that the Executive engineered the removal of Sallef Abas because the Judiciary under him was independent, and therefore could possess a threat to the Executive. For more reading on this crisis go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Malaysian_constitutional_crisis. This crisis, it was widely seen as the end of judicial independence of Malaysia.

As a society, we want to have a Government which listens to our needs and calls, especially those which are critical to the socio-political development of the country. We want a democratic society where everybody is entitled to their rights to voice out opposing opinions without fear, freedom of association, and freedom of religion. We also want a fair and just Government, which can safeguard the interest of all citizens and not just a group of people from a certain political party. We also demand transparency from the Government in it's day-to-day running, and should the demand for explanation and justification is required, the Government should not hesitate to provide it without delay, and not behave in a defensive manner while starting a blame game with the opposition, or worse shifting the focus to a non-relevant issue. In this particular case, we do not need the Government to go against the whistleblower, but instead we would like to see those influential people mentioned in the video to answer before the Royal Commission on Inquiry.

It's funny sometimes to see how the Government responds to issues arising in our country everyday. Sometimes I really do wonder whether it is the Government which is unintelligent in administering the country, or it is the citizens who do not demand enough from the Government. We should never ever 'don't care-la' about things that affect the country. It is this attitude that makes the Government runs the country the way it is now. Sometimes I feel sad listening to ministers giving their comment when asked by reporters. Why ? Their inability to analyse and think critically on issues make all Malaysians look dumb in the eyes of the world. Worse still, their belief that these comments would go unchallenged by the people is a testament to how they think about us: that we are all but a bunch of votes-giving people who cannot think, cannot challenge, cannot demand.....in short we ALL but a bunch of STUPID people.

Campus Election, Democracy and Freedom

2007-09-26T19:19:00.000+08:00

It's the time of the year again. The so-called election of a group of student leaders into the Undergraduates' Representative Council. Let me just comment on my take on this campus election.

I think it is a brilliant idea by whoever who started the representative Council. Why? It's fairly simple: because undergraduates are matured enough to have a say at least in things that concern them like their welfare, their freedom to express their thoughts and ideas and to help better the campus environment. Via this election, we elect, democratically, by majority of votes the persons we think can help us in achieving the above-mentioned fields. I personally feel that, if being run transparently and fairly, the persons-to-be-elected would be able to voice out our stand on certain issues regarding us. Student-leaders are those who should always be pro-student, no matter whether they are pro-establishment or not. Their ability (which eventually means our ability) to voice out opinions and stance, regardless of whether these opinions are critical of the university administration or not, should always be safe-guarded. I always believe that university campus is supposed to be an ideal reflection of the society we always strive to achieve.

By this I mean a democratic society where everybody is not deprived of their basic rights as guaranteed by the federal constitution (which I think has been so misinterpreted by certain parties to consolidate their personal interests, at the expense of the country and the majority), ie the freedom of speech, assembly, association and religion. Society, by and large, today is struggling to maintain these rights. Or perhaps, we have never been able to enjoy these rights even after half-a-century of independence ? University campus is the perfect ground to breed and practice democracy, along with the ideals and principals that come with it. University students are future leaders of the country, and it is of paramount importance that they receive the best learning environment, where they train and develop skills during their university years. If democracy can truly be preached in the campus, ideas and thoughts can flow freely, hence expanding the minds and horizons of the students. It is the deprivation of freedom of speech (ideas, thoughts and opinions) that causes a student unable to think critically. Do we want to have a generation (or perhaps already two, three…?) of students who are not able to think on their own, be creative and what’s more, creator ? Do we want to produce a generation of students whom mind is programmed to think only from a spectrum, so that they would not have the intellectual capability to challenge the status quo of those in power and influence ? What about the society we always envision it to be: democratic, creative, innovative and dare to stand up to the challenges the 21st-century world has to offer ?

University has to be the perfect society we envision in our minds. Campus needs to be striped off of rules and regulations (like University and University Colleges Act) which have become a cumber stone to democracy and freedom. The campus environment is such that it should allow differing and opposing opinions because diversity is our strength. But some critic might be concerned about the possible abuse of freedom by the students. Let me just say this, you can show a person forever how to cycle a bike, but without letting him to cycle himself, he will never learn. And, in the process he will fall, perhaps many times, but you don’t tell him that “hey, you will fall if I allow you to cycle. So, just look at how I am doing it.” In short, you can either give the students freedom, expect them to abuse the freedom, but in time their mind will grow and they can compete with the world, OR, you can deprive them of their freedom, expect them to behave in the most Saint-like conduct, but in time their mind will shrink and they cannot take on the challenges the world has to offer(so much of protectionist and affirmative programs). The campus should be, the FREE-er the better.

Our current reality is far from ideal. Campus election which seems more like a mockery of democracy, benefits only those students who are willing to go in line with the administration, what they term as pro-establishment. These students, who might not be totally wrong, are made to believe that by putting their confidence in the administration, they have more capacity and opportunities to bring positive changes to the campus. Well, they are not naïve as to believe in that, they are just optimist. They believe that if they go in line with the administration, they will get the co-operation, assistance, and funds necessary to enhance the welfare of the students. That might be true. But the trade-off is: they shall never go against the administration, for God’s sake even if the administration has deprived the students of almost all their freedom. This staging of student-leaders’ election is so tainted and unfair that the possibility of pro-student candidates winning is nothing but nil. Resources will be allocated to pro-establishment candidates while the most of the residential colleges (RC) are obviously seen to side with this group of candidates that some even threaten their residents that they can track back the votes, and whoever voted for the pro-student candidates will be expelled from the residential college. I speak of this as my own personal experience. On the days leading up to the election, only pro-establishment candidates (endorsed and supported by the administration) will be allowed to campaign in RCs while the pro-student candidates will be barred from entering. On the eve of the election day, we were gathered and given a list of pro-establishment candidates names and number, together with the order we should vote!

Too many RC residents are too afraid to go against the RC for fear of being expelled or have actions taken against them. In total, 50% of all students in University Malaya stay in RCs while remaining half stay outside the campus, and does not really bother to participate in this ‘drama’(election).

My roommate will be contesting as an independent in his faculty this year. Just now he related to me about how the 2 independent candidates from Law Faculty have won the election uncontested. I asked him why, and he said, “You know what, law students are well-versed about their rights, hence they know what’s the right thing to do. Even the pro-establishment candidates dare not contest in this faculty.”

I just wish all the students in my campus know this right, and the right thing for them to do. After all, we are University students, matured in our mentality, and have a certain level of intellectuality. We are not wrong in fighting for this right. We can tell the administration that the country’s founding fathers told us so when writing the federal constitution.

Federal Constitution Part 2 Article 10 : Freedom of speech, assembly and association states that “ Every citizen has the right to freedom of speech and expression; all citizens have the right to assemble peaceably and without arms; all citizens have the right to form associations.”

(or maybe, after all, we are so messed up because we DID NOT really write our constitution? – think reid commission)

Older posts from friendster blog : When you are sick

2007-09-23T15:29:00.000+08:00

hey there!yes, there, you... its me again! ok,so what if I decided after trashing out my ol' blogs 9 months back to welcome 2007, I did not post any single blog, then now I am back with 2 blogs in a day! Fantastic huh? Actually...

..there's a reason to it. I am currently taking a leave from classes cause this semester we are supposed to rally from beginning of sem till end of sem without a sem break. Yeah, no sem break, the one you have once every half a sem because they think that students need a break from their hectic schedule, so de-stress, catch up with friends,etc. The arrangement for this sem is pretty much like this, we will study continously, attending classes, labs, submitting reports, doing monkey presentation, and do assignments without break for 14 continous weeks, then...its Hari Raya and you get a cool 2-week study break. Cool eh? I haven't finish yet, then its your final exam:)

No, I am not taking a break from classes cause one, its not that liberal here, but most importantly, cause I am not that liberal. Why, cannot issit? I was forced to take a week away from classes cause apparently there's a virus spreading within my campus, and I unfortunately got it. So, one Sunday morning, I was feeling terribly tired, red-faced, lost appetite then Monday morning... my whole body was filled with red dots and my eyes turned RED!!

But it was not just that. Somehow being confined to my house most of the time these past 2 days, the words "health is wealth" kept playing in my mind. I could not agree more at this time. When I was told to skip classes to one week,... NO I did not jump up and thank the doc, I was in fact thinking the things that I could have missed during the long week where I would be gone from my 'life'. I have classes to attend, friends to meet, meetings to attend, report to submit and Excapade (AIESEC local leadership development seminar) in Port Dickson to attend to. How am I supposed to fulfill my tasks if I was just confined to my house ?

Yes, I felt like being stripped away my responsibilities, my commitments, and my duties. No, don't beg me to take away yours, but really, when you are stripped of all those, even temporarily, you feel this strong disengagement from the world. When I msg-ed my friend Lia (the Organizing Chairman of Excapade) that I might need to miss the camp, but will nevertheless finish the task given to me as a facilitator, she asked me not to worry anything but take enough of rest! I know, but... its a yearly affair and I wana be there to have fun, to learn, to experience, and to make new friends! It is at this moment that I realized...

...that perhaps its true health is the key to us being able to live a good life as it provides us with the opportunities to live life the way we want to. Health, for me, provides me with the opportunity to move around, interact with others, have a nice time mamaking, going to classes (stupid huh?wait till one day when you're confined:) ), have nice meals ,etc. Speaking about nice meals, I have not been really enjoying the meals since Friday, I never realised I lost appetite cause I thought I was full. The past 2 days I have been mostly eating bread and instant noodles (not kesian la,cause even if you give me a bbq lamb with some exotic sweet sour source,...I am just,...no appetite).

But true, at this time I realised the things I have missed not because I was not able to do them, but I did not grab the opportunity to, because I relied too much on my feelings, egoism, whatever you call it. For example, I realised I have not really been happy since a long time (funny huh how I never realised that earlier?). Happy as in, I am able to do things I like, live without worry, take things one at a time, be spontaneous, spend more time knowing myself (I have been doing that for sometime,but I don't think its helping), relax, de-stress, and start LIVING. I feel like I have been living my life on an unforeseeable future, thinking how my life would be in the future, and things I need to achieve to just get the life I desired.

Working hard to improve my academic results, trying to live life with the right values, concentrate on achieving my ambitions,..while it sounds alright and right, but the way I am doing it, I don't feel 'life' inside me at the present moment. I simply am not enjoying the present moment as much. I wana be cool, trendy, outgoing, adventurous, friendly, relaxed kind of person. I want to be someone who can relate to others when they speak of the latest songs, movie or where to hang out.

Currently, even when eating with my family I tend to wander in my own world, thinking thinking and thinking. What is there so much to think about ? Can't life be just spontaneous and with as little planning as possible ?

I hope I can open up myself more to other people, to different environments, different opportunities. I will be healthy again. And I will be able to do most things some others can't. Hopefully when I open up myself, I will start living the present moment!!

Older posts from friendster blog : After a long long time...

2007-09-23T15:18:00.000+08:00

Hey there! It's been a while since I last blogged and cleared my blog when 2007 came, cause I was so superstitious that when new year came we should trash out the old things a bring in some new ones. Oh yeah, some new ones,...after 9 months into 2007!!

Well, it does pay for me to be superstitious then, this year has been relatively well and good though it has not been a really happy,sweet and comfortable one. I practially enjoyed the chinese new year, Young Visionaries (a community-based project by AIESEC), the semester break, the month-long industrial training, 2 weeks spent in Kelantan for surveying, and into my second year in uni! God has been kind to me to let me live a relatively smooth journey, and blessed me with a bunch of good friends!

But, unfortunately, my grandpa passed away at the middle of the year, somewhere at the end of May, after battling with aging and his deteriorating physical condition. My brother sister and I together with our cousins rushed back from the KL to attend his week-long funeral. I somewhat at that time did not really feel sad or sombre. Instead I felt his time was up, considering he was already 90 (or more?) and to get closer to him only during the last 2 years, I observed how he has aged so fast this period. The past 2 years, I spent a lot of time accompanying him for dinners, and staying overnight at his place when my uncle and aunt were not around. He always brought my parents and I to have dinners in restaurants, which we only patronise during special occasions. There, he would ordered excessive amount of good food and ate a bit, while the rest would be 'passed' to me. I did enjoy the food, but at the same time, I loved the fact that I was accompanying him. We did not have much to talk to. Most of the time, he would ask if I have eaten like a typical old chinese man or woman.

I remembered vividly, when I was small, I used to attend functions or dinners hosted by my grandpa. Whenever he saw me, he would ask if I would like to have carbonated drinks. I loved carbonated drinks then. In one dinner alone, I could sometime finish up to 3 cans. My mum always tried to prevent me from drinking more, but my grandpa always insisted. He was young and still strong then. He would go around, toast and drank like there was no tomorrow. Indeed, according to my uncle, grandpa was such a good drinker that he never really got drunk no matter how much he had.

In the past 2 years I got to accompany him a lot, grandpa stopped smoking and drinking, probably due to my uncle's health condition. During dinner, he would just drink chinese tea or fresh fruit juice. Some nights, I would stay at his place to make sure he was not alone when uncle and aunt were not around. Whenever I went mamaking during these nights, it would inevitably be interrupted by calls from my mum saying that grandpa wanted me to come home fast. One time, I came back pretty late, and he stayed to wait for me and scolded me for coming back late. I never had this kind of problem with my parents. Indeed, he was a strict disciplinarian. And I wondered, how much different my cousin brothers grown up under the same roof with him ?

Because of his deteriorating physical condition, he could hardly walk without support. First, his legs started to get weak, uncle bought a wheelchair for him, and he was fed up because he thought he did not need it! Even when uncle bought him a walking stick, sometime he still refused to use it. Therefore, I would hold his hand and assist him whenever he walks: coming down from the car, help him got seated, walked him to the washroom, etc.

When I came to uni, I still tried to go back as frequent as possible, because I knew whenever I got back, I would have meals with him and knowing his condition, I wanted to spend as much time as possible with him. The last time I saw him before he passed away was when all of us went back to celebrate mother's day. We had a meal at his place but he did not join us. He was sleeping when we had our meal. He looked so thin and unwell. Not long after we all have returned to KL, we received news of his death.

I enjoyed the moments when I spent with him, especially in the last 2 years or so. His time was up and there was nothing to be sad about, considering he had a full life: drank, smoke, ate good food, did a lot of charity, have tonnes of good friends, and healthy for most part of his life, and able to see all his grandsons grew up. Sometime, I miss him but I know now its' grandma's turn to have him, considering she has waited in another world for more than 10 years. I hope he will have a great time there in the hereafter!

My grandpa during one of the dinners.