Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Keanehan Selepas 50 Tahun Merdeka

Saya tertarik dengan komen-komen yang di keutarakan oleh penulis-penulis kolum mahupun penulis-penulis surat pembaca yang telah disiarkan di malaysiakini.com semasa dalam tempuh seminggu minggu perayaan 50 tahun merdeka.

1. Isu yang pertama adalah tentang ternakan babi di Melaka. Nampaknya isu ini telah menjadi isu yang berkaitan dengan perkauman, walhal terang-terang penternak telah melanggar syarat ternakan. Kenapa mahu kan pampasan, walhal apa yang di lakukan, yakni menternak lebih dari jumlah yang dibenarkan pun telah menyalahi syarat kebenaran. Mengapa mahu dijadikan ini sebagai isu perkauman pula?

2. Isu penggunaan bahasa mandarin sebagai syarat untuk mengambil pekerja. Kenapa selepas 50 tahun masih mahu syarat bahasa mandarin? Kita adalah rakyat Malaysia dan bukan rakyat China. Kenapa masih ramai orang cina yang bermuka Malaysia di luar tetapi mempunyai sifat ke cinaan yang amat tebal di dalam? Walhal ramai penduduk Malaysia yang masih tak fasih berbahasa melayu, jika ada pun masih tergagap-gagap. Walhal kita sudah 50 tahun merdeka!

3. Isu pengajaran Matematik dan Sains dalam bahasa inggeris. Jarang, mungkin langsung tak ada, kalau ada pun mungkin di Afrika, subjek-subjek seperti sains dan matematik diajar selain dari bahasa kebangsaan. Kenapa Malaysia tidak mahu mermatabatkan bahasa Melayu sebagai bahasa ilmu? hairan dan langsung tak bermaruah. Mengadai maruah bangsa. Kembalikan pengajaran matematik dan sains ke bahasa melayu! Murid jadi bodoh bukan sebab tak faham sains dan matematik, tetapi sebab tak faham bahasa inggeris.

4. Isu Malaysia sebagai sebuah negara Islam. Kenapa nak takut. Belum ada dalam sejarah di Malaysia orang kena potong tangan sebab mencuri. Lagipun, Malaysia bukan lah negara Islam, hanya sebuah negara yang majoritinya Islam. Oleh itu akan ada elemen-elemen undang-undang syariah akan akan terpakai. Tetapi itu tidak meng Islam kan Malaysia yang terus menghalalkan nombor ekor dan Casino di Genting Highland.

5. Isu Dasar Ekonomi Baru dan hal-hal yang berkaitan. Belum pernah ada jutawan-jutawan India dan Cina yang harta mereka dimilik negara kan, atau diserahkan kepada mana-mana bumiputera. Yang kita tahu kapitalis-kapitalis Cina dan India semakin kaya kerana perniagaan mereka hasil dari sokongan kerajaan. Dalam bab hartanah, jika ada pun kuota dan diskaun bumiputera, berapa ramai bumiputera yang mampu untuk membeli rumah-rumah mewah yang dibangunkan oleh kapitalis-kapitalis cina dan india? Yang bumiputera mampu hanyalah rumah-rumah murah yang dibangunkan oleh kerajaan untuk mereka. Tak percaya jum tengok statistik ekonomi dan pemilikan harta di Malaysia. Dalam bab-bab kontrak kerajaan, memang kontraktor utama adalah bumiputera, tetapi lihat pada sub-kontraktor, hampir 90% adalah kontraktor cina. Tak percaya tengok semua pembangunan disekitar anda.

6. Dalam isu NameWee, apakah dibenarkan kutukan-kutukan dilemparkan atas dasar apa yang kita rasa, tanpa memikirkan sensitiviti orang lain? Inikah yang dilaungkan sebagai kebebasan bersuara? Kenapa bangkitkan soal rasuah, walhal siapa kah yang paling banyak MEMBERI rasuah atas dasar nak senangkan kerja. Rasuah adalah tradisi yang paling lama sekali, semenjak dinasti-dinasti raja-raja China lagi. Tak percaya tengoklah cerita-cerita China yang banyak ada di TV sekarang ni. Mesti akan ada cerita tentang rasuah dan gundik-gundik raja! Siapa yang lebih bersalah, yang memberi rasuah atau yang menerima?

7. Yang paling terbaru isu tentang migrasi dan jemputan untuk migrasi. Kalau rasa tak puas hati, migrasi lah. Jika itulah yang anda rasa terbaik. Pergilah anda, tetapi adakah anda akan dapat sebuah negara yang lebih toleransi dari Malaysia? Saya akan rasakan tidak. Anda tidak akan dapat sebuah negara yang membenarkan anda membuat persembahan opera tradisi di khemah-khemah sehingga tengah malam, anda tidak akan dapat membuat rumah-rumah ibadat selang 500 meter mengikut kehendak anda seperti sekarang. Jika ada, pergilah, jangan lah anda khuatiri yang Malaysia akan bankrap atau ramai orang yang tinggal akan merana kerana tiada lagi usahawan-usahawan yang berniaga. Orang yang tinggal dan setia pada Malaysia sentiasa bersedia untuk mengalas cabaran masa depan...

13 comments:

arifabdull said...

Isu khinzir bukan isu perkauman. dan bukan juga isu permit atau undang-undang yang sudah menjadi hak mutlak pemerintah penjarah (sama jahat dengan penjajah?) BN/UMNO. Ini adalah isu UMNO Melaka nak dapat publisiti menjelang pilihanraya.

Apapun, tahniah kepada semua rakyat yang berani melawan kezaliman tak kira dalam memepertahankan hak rakyat untuk gereja, kuil, toh peh kong, surau dan masjid atau babi a.k.a khinzir. Tahniah kepada penduduk kampung berembang.

Tuntutan rakyat untuk mendapatkan hak gaji minima dan tuntutan untuk menghidupkan semula pilihanraya majlis tempatan adalah contoh tuntutan patriotik dan mulia yang sama taraf dengan semua perlawanan di atas.

Ini semua hanya menambah bukti kepada kita semua bahawa pemerintahan penjarah BN/UMNO di bawah Islam Hadhari tidak akan pernah menghormati hak kita, rakyat Malaysia. mereka akan hanya tunduk kepada kepentingan golongan 'pemilik modal' a.k.a. kapitalis.

Marilah semua rakyat Malaysia yang cintakan tanah air ini bersasma kita tunjukkan kuasa rakyat kepada penjarah angkuh dari BN/UMNO ini sebagaimana rakyat Malaya mengajar British dengan mogok 'HARTAL' seluruh negara pada 20 Oktober 1947.
Apa itu Hartal >>> http://10tahun.blogspot.com/
Mari berusaha jadikannya kekuatan rakyat.

Anonymous said...

I actually admire the guts of Namewee to sing out this Negarakuku. True, the language used is a bit rough but at the end of day it sings out nothing but the truth about how most Chinese Malaysians and the other races see this country. Marginalisation, corruption, civil service bureaucracy, etc.

If the song is nothing but praises of Malaysia, then it is just another lame song. A lame song that is usually being sung by our Umno to deceive all Malaysians. Is Namewee song seditious? How about the keris waving incident? That was not seditious? Disrespect for Islam just because it was said that some of them were 'out of tune' when praying?

How about demolishing of those Hindu temples? Isn't that total disrespect for other religions? I hope someone from the ruling parties can enlighten me on these issues.

If the government intends to strip Namewee of his citizenship, then first strip off the citizenships of Umno members, the arrogant keris waving minister and also those who authorized the demolishing of Hindu temples.

Until I see that, I don't see any reason why we should strip off the citizenship of a young Malaysian who is frustrated with the way Malaysia turned out after 50 years of independence.

Anonymous said...

The truth hurts.

The Chinese or the yellow race is what brings progress. Just look at Asia……….is enough.

Whether they do it internationally or locally they will survive.

We can distinctly see the lowering of Malaysia standards of living as the percentage of Chinese in this country goes down.

In the 70s we were tops with 40 over percent of Chinese and today with only 25 percent we are far behind Singapore, Hong Kong and Korea.

Main reason is the number of such Chinese migrating to these countries - the best ones and rich ones.

Next ten years as the percentage goes even lower, we would be nearing Indonesia or Philippines.

Meanwhile enjoy your stay and the good time.

On the whole as the Chinese spreads out throughout the world, the average standards of these will have much higher standards of living over others.

Anonymous said...

The BN politicians do not differentiate between what is kerajaan and negara. Corrupted leader which form the kerajaan (government) is a traitor to its negara (country).

Anonymous said...

A strange thing I have noticed over the past few months. The average Malaysian Chinese seem to aspire to emigrate, very specifically to Australia. It almost seems like they work their asses off so that they may move themselves and their entire family down under.

It is like Australia is some paradise island or something. I know that Melbourne is one of the most livable places in the world, but a statistic like that can by no means cause the mass migration that I noticed.

The Malaysia government has this program called - Malaysia my second home. It is to attract retired whites to settle to Malaysia and bring their money with them. Sadly, Malaysia doesn't seem homely enough for the Chinese.

They have always complained about the brain drain. They whine that Singapore is stealing all the Malaysia talent. Now with entire families moving out, it is not only brain drain, it is capital drain. They really should find out how much money has been sucked to Australia in the past 10 years. It will probably run in the tens of millions.

Can they stop this? No. It just cannot be done. Until the government stops treating the Chinese like second class citizens, it will not happen.

Quote: "You go to Singapore, a couple of ministers there are from Penang. In Hong Kong, a number of advisers to the government are from Penang, and in China, some of the best managers are from Penang. Penang is supports the world!"

It is all about Singapore, Hong Kong and China but not Malaysia. So, prove to me that this is not "brain drain".

Brain drain is part and parcel of Malaysia. Things are not going improve, at least at the rate we are going. Welcome to Bolehland. We can!

I hope to see some progress in our country heading towards a mainly two-party system like in the US, UK and Australia. But the opposition parties must get their act together; and the people too must get wiser.

The big bad world of globalisation has descended on us like a tsunami. We still want to walk with crutches. The competition now come from China, not the local Chinese badly represented by the MCA; from the Indians from the near continent, not from the local Indians doubly badly represented by the MIC.

At the end of the day, stop complaining too much, for you - the voters - put the government there. You finally deserve the government you get - complacent, arrogant, and not accountable.

Otherwise, why do 21st century so-called leaders want to revive the NEP, an instrument of the 1979s - 1990s that had proven to be not effective? Don't we learn from the history and current developments?

I too, used to think that all is rosy and happy in Malaysia. But as each year passes, I find out more and more disturbing things happening in my beloved country.

Yes, mostly resulting in a more cynical outlook, with some youths turning even desperate and then like "opting" out of the system, or slightly better for some lucky ones, staying back in a foreign land, because "my government seems to be taking actions to drive us away".

What a sad refrain, and the government laments - sincerely? Brain drain - I personally know many of such youths parents have chosen to "opt out" of the political arena. Sad. Tragic but true.

Anonymous said...

The most popular subject for jokes in Malaysia is the prime minister. That is all that he is good for.

Anonymous said...

I have relatives in Australia, Europe and the United States.

Let me detail the experience of my family members in the West:

1. Equal job opportunities at all levels exempt probably the highest post but today even this is changing. Look at the recent appointment of an Indian born lady as the CEO of Pepsi Cola.

2. Equal opportunity to be elected as dean or vice chancellor of universities. Some of the heads of top universities in the US are Chinese or Indians.

3. Equal opportunity to enter universities for all courses including medicine.

4. Equal rights for all citizens unlike Malaysia where recent Muslim immigrants from Indonesia and Pakistan have been given more rights compared to non-Muslim Malaysians whose ancestors arrived in the country some 300 years ago. This is religious apartheid.

5. No differential prices for houses.

6. Scholarships based on either merit or need and not on creed, race or religion. In Malaysia, a malay Muslim has a better chance of getting a scholarship compared to a non-Muslim from a poor background.

I am a Malaysian born before independence and educated at a local university and have served the government much longer than some political (PM) wannabes.

I am saddened and very distressed to see how far the country has slid down over the past three decades. Due to corruption, excessive politicking and faulty policies, the country is gradually heading for the direction of Argentina, Indonesia and Philippines or even worse.

I fear that we have now reached a point of no return. Only the oil reserves are buffering us from a more rapid descent. But for how long! Then the crunch will really bite.

Please have your parachutes ready when the great crunch finally arrives.

Anonymous said...

In 1957, Malaysia had the second biggest per capita income after Japan, but now we are at the tail end among the front-rank developed nations in Asia.

In 2005, Malaysia's per capita income increased by only 17 times from 1967, as compared to South Korea which increased 100 times. Taiwan 60 times, Hong Kong 40 times and Singapore 45 times.

Malaysia is far richer in natural resources than the other countries. Singapore for example has no forests, oil, palm oil, rubber, etc.

The difference is in the development and utilisation of human resources. Malaysia has failed to make full use of the human resources in the country.

The statistics indicate that Malaysia was competitive with the other countries up to 1967. Thereafter, the Asian tigers like Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan leapt forward to lofty heights.

In 1966, the bumi policy was formally announced as a policy and in 1971, the New Economic Policy was launched. The various measures and regulations from these two policies slowed down economic growth considerably. Traders, businessmen, entrepreneurs, medium and small industries were put off by these policies.

The reaction of international countries was negative, and many investors shied away from Malaysia. Foreign direct investments declined considerably to US$3.9 billion in 2006, whereas Asean countries had FDI of US$30 billion for Singapore, US$7.9 billion for Thailand, US$10 billion for Vietnam. China had US$70 billion FDI in that year.

The NEP which compels reservation of 30% for malays in all economic activities has dampened investment interests of both local and foreign investors.

With the launching of liberalisation policies in 1978, China leapt forward and it is on the way to become a world economic power by 2030.

Malaysia too must implement global policies like liberalisation of all economic functions. Bumiputraism and the New Economic Policy are outdated measures, and must be replaced by more enlightened and pragmatic measures.

If Barisan stubbornly clings to old baggage policies, then it can be predicted that Malaysia's per capita income will continue to lag behind the Asian tigers.

Anonymous said...

The subservient mentality of our youths (voters) has served our Malaysia government very well. It is irony that former PM Mahathir is crying foul now for not being able to voice his concerns for the country in the government-controlled media.

When he was in charge, dissenting views were not tolerated. The current PM is the product of that era and not surprising he has asked citizens not to question the government!

Whether by design or luck our Malaysia education system helps to produce subservient citizens unable to think critically and with "devious" religious teaching the control of citizens mind is complete.

The reform of Malaysia education system can never succeed so long as corrupt government is in power. The bottom line for most of Malaysia problem is lack of good governance.

Obviously the best solution is to get our government reform first, then, with righteous politicians we can hope a change for the better.

Wishful thinking! - Sorry for being so pessimistic but that is reality for at least 2 more generations.

In fact I am amused how often the "blame game" is used, be it racial or religion issues but in this case, youth generation for the first time.

After half a century of independence, we always have one party in power. It is not today's youth forefathers that shaped the education system but the politicians. You could argue that the politicians were elected democratically by the forefathers and hence they are equally to be blamed. That much I can agree if only corruption is discounted.

The older generation is less educated then today's youth and generally less educated than the ruling elite of their time. Education would have created a critical mass of thinking citizens to challenge the government of their action in nation-building.

Having a corrupt government, education is a powerful tool to manipulate the next generation of youth into subservient voters. My message is simple, "reform our corrupt government to have a better chance of reforming other policies (be it economy, education and judiciary etc) successfully".

The foundation of nation-building lies in good governance. A corrupt government can never be successful in nation-building.

Anonymous said...

I am not trying to show off with my qualification. What I am trying to say is that Malaysia will lose out if all these highly qualified and educated people do not want to go home.

Frankly, I have start up my family in the UK and also a very successful business. I have been working towards my success starting from zero. Not even 1 cent or penny from the Malaysia government.

I am fed up with the corruption and discrimination in Malaysia. I agree with somebody "if we disagree with Malaysia government policies that are based on race and religion then we should move out of the country" and I did.

Some people might say I am coward or traitor but why should I stay if the government treats me as nothing? I feel human living in the UK and everyone is being treated the same no matter what is the colour of your skin.

Imagine living in a country which people like Haji keep calling "this is Islamic country, if you don't like it, get out". Or the future leader like Khairy saying something unreasonable.

I feel ashamed and insecure. I cannot see the future for the next generation. Therefore, sorry to say but I am a proud "British" now.

Anonymous said...

Country IQ (2006)

Hong Kong 108
Singapore 108
North Korea 106 (Dictatorial Regime)
South Korea 106
Japan 105
Peoples Republic of China 105 (Communism)
Republic of China 105
Italy 102
Iceland 101
Mongolia 101

Very interesting - the entire top 7 slots are occupied by yellow skins.

Anonymous said...

I would not read Utusan Malaysia or Berita Harian, despite being paid to read it!

I cannot imagine people actually buying those papers to read it!

That is why Mahathir said the bloggers are really the last remaining hope of the nation!

Don't blame Utusan Malaysia la, it is owned by Umno, the party with low standard morons and extremists.

Utusan Malaysia, the Star, New Strait Times etc, are just a few shameless newspapers that often cover up the scandals of BN government and to make oppositions look bad.

Anonymous said...

One be further away from the truth when he blames the current education system which allows the existence of vernacular schools for the lack of unity among Malaysians. According to, racial unity can be fostered among the new generation by simply placing pupils of all races in one class so that they can interact freely with one another. In my opinion, this line of thinking is both naive and dishonest.

Following Dr Mahathir pontificating to the world that to tackle Islamist terrorism we must remove its root causes, I suggest that Malaysians, notably those who subscribe to the same way of thinking, make the effort to identify the root cause of our disunity and remove it. Let us not resort to populist but hollow solutions in which the status quo would want us to believe.

In fact, I think most Malaysians already know what the problem is this: the unequal treatment of Malaysians based on race which is the most fundamental reason for our disunity. I am not talking about everyday racism plaguing most multiracial societies. I am talking about institutionalised racism enshrined in our constitution which is amplified and enforced by the government.

How can we unite when we are formally partitioned into groups which have different sets of rights?

How can we unite when we are constantly being reminded by the government through various application forms that we are either Malays, Indians, Chinese and others, but never Malaysians?

How can we unite when pro-government politicians hurl racial abuses in parliament and get away scot-free?

How can we tell our children to look beyond race, when one day we have to drag them back to reality by telling them that their race comes into account for scholarship applications and university admissions?

How can we gel into a single entity when our ID cards explicitly say whether we are Muslims (and hence bumis) or not?

How can we achieve unity when our top politicians wield weapons in general assemblies to threaten the minorities just so they can score quick political points?

Instead of viewing the popularity of vernacular schools as a cause, we should view it as a symptom of disunity. I believe many parents send their children to vernacular schools as a sub-conscious protest against a system that perceivably favours one race over the others. As second-class citizens, preserving their cultural identities allows them to feel that all is not lost.

Even if vernacular schools are closed, our disunity will only manifest itself in other forms. Let any non-malay Malaysian choose exclusively between the preservation of his mother tongue and equal treatment - I am sure the latter will get the overwhelming vote. A proof of this is the many Malaysians who have emigrated to western countries - do we see them insisting on letting their children study their respective mother tongues in school?

Hence, my accusations of dishonesty towards those who prefer to throw baseless accusations at vernacular schools because it is easy and risk-free, but, due to fear of reprisals, dare not point the finger at the status quo although they are inherently guilty. Furthermore, those who blame vernacular schools but not government sponsored Mara junior colleges and universities are pure hypocrites. At least vernacular schools admit students based on merit alone.

We all know that MRSMs and UiTM actively practise race-based selection policies. Why do you not propose closing down MRSMs and UiTM in your suggested revamp of the education system?

Do not forget that currently in national schools, we do have non-malay students. I have had the honour of befriending some of them during my university years, and I must say that in university, they too stick with their own kind although they can't speak their own mother tongue.

In a system that promotes the proliferation of only one culture and shuns the others, it is only human nature to confide more in those who are categorised in the same racial group. Therefore, it is absolutely naive to think that racial unity can be achieved by merely putting our children under one roof without ultimately treating them equally.

Furthermore, we have witnessed the increasing Islamisation in our national schools which have multiracial students. Hence, contrary to the belief, cultural diversity and subsequently unity will not necessarily exist in national schools because they are being used by the government as instruments to carry out their political agenda.

Every year, we see many vernacular schools achieve record-breaking performances in major exams. This shows that at least academically, these schools have done something right, and are a valuable source of knowledge for us in the pursuit of improving the standing of national schools.

Certainly, closing down vernacular schools is an option, but not only this does not improve unity, the country will lose a valuable asset.

Don't get me wrong, I am all for racial unity. But please, shift your attention to the fundamental cause of disunity. You are simply barking up the wrong tree when you blame the present education system alone.