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Sunday, September 1, 2019

'Maju' together for true Merdeka

Collective responsibility: We need to sacrifice for the good of society so that the next generation can have a better life.

YESTERDAY I read a heart-wrenching piece by one of our towering Malays in academia, Prof Dr Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi, entitled A meaningless Merdeka”, where he laments on the sliding down state of the nation and our failing society. His utter despondency on the futility of trying to save our beloved Malaysia in a climate where in his words, “"peddler of religious capitalism comes to this country blaring insults... and ministers have dinners with him”" and "“Old Malaysia has just been given a new lease of life by a heart bypass”", seem like the norm today among the real thinking-class of Malaysia. His article hit every point like a nail-gun to the head.

Tajuddin was scathing and uncompromising in his words. I quote – "Malaysia is on a certain road of destruction…" and he continues with this damning pronouncement – " I can definitely say that Malaysia is a failure".

If we are honest with ourselves, we must admit that the failure that is Malaysia is ours. You and me. Not someone else's. We collectively failed. We did not do enough, and we did not do it early enough to right the wrongs. We did not do say no and stop when we should have.

We cannot blame politicians for being politicians. We cannot blame religious charlatans for being charlatans. We cannot blame opportunists and extremists to do what they do. They will do what they do because we allow them to and today we reap what we sow.

The fact is Malaysians have had it good. We got our Independence when the British Empire was in decline, washed up after two world wars and really wanted out. Even when we fought the communists the British were still here helping us along the way. In no way does that diminish the contributions of our heroes but we, as a society, never needed to see the prolonged cruelty, bloodshed and loss of a war for independence. Indonesia did. India did, a war of attrition like no other. We just did not.

We let others do the “fighting” for us and they managed to get it as best they could, and we continue to make a living from this natural paradise called Malaysia. We compromise our ideals because "let'’s not make waves and hurt our rice-bowl".

Well, more and more of our rice bowl is being taken away and more and more of our opportunity and dignity are being crushed because we didn't want to stand and be counted for what is right. Lo and behold, those that we left to do the fighting for us are the ones that seem to be taking them away and giving them to those who are making the most noise. Am I right or am I right?

Because we are selfish. We just care about what happens to us and not to those around us. We don'’t have the tradition of sacrificing for the good of society so that the next generation can have a better life or building a better society because we never needed to really fight for it.

Ours is – let me take care of me and mine, and then we blame others for the loss that we must face. Ladies and gentlemen, human beings are inherently selfish if you allow them to be.

Less than 50 years ago, the blacks in America had to adopt Ghandian civil disobedience, march together with liberal whites for years and years just so they can vote, go to schools and universities together. They were beaten, some to their deaths. Their leaders were shot and killed.The blacks in America had to adopt Ghandian civil disobedience, march together with liberal whites for years and years less than 50 years ago just so they can vote, go to schools and universities together. They were beaten, some to their deaths. Their leaders were shot and killed.

From ground up: Only a few Malayans had to take arms in the nation's struggle for freedom, like these local women who joined the Malayan Home Guard troops during the height of the Malayan Emergency in the 1950s. - National Archive

What have Malaysians done to achieve equality in the last 60 years? Really, what? What have we done? I tell you what, we worked and sent our children away and abandoned the only place we know as our homes. We abandoned our less fortunate friends and families, that is what we did.

We complained at home and we kept quiet outside of our home. We allow the violence that was May 13 to shut all of us up and every truth was swept under the carpet. And we wonder why we are today, instead of living in a more equitable society, worse off and less equal. While the politicians live in luxury, and the religious charlatans and extremists roam free. Tepuk dada tanyalah selera.(To each his own.) This Merdeka, one year past the euphoria of May 9, again I say, I am convinced more than ever, that looking at politicians will not be the answer to the salvation of this nation. I believe the salvation for Malaysia will come from a class of citizens who, despite the prejudiced environment and the institutionalised discrimination we must live in, see the world for what it could be rather than what it is now.

These are the people who have decided that they are going to make the necessary changes to obliterate these divisions in their private and public lives. These people are the moderates, the liberals and the progressive thinking individuals, cutting across all racial and religious lines.

If you are one of these individuals then MAJU (Malaysian Action, Justice and Unity Foundation) is where we will organise and change Malaysia. Imagine a million such people under a wide tent, literally putting their names behind the movement. Imagine the resources at our disposal and the decibels of our collective voice under this one banner. We can change Malaysia.

This is how we change our society. We cannot wait for others to agree with us. We cannot expect politicians and elected officials to lead us. We must be the ones to take the initiative and mobilise and show a different narrative for this nation.

We must show the narrative of what it means to live in a society where freedom of religion is real, not where you say there is freedom and yet you stop others from exercising theirs. A narrative where Islam is kind and compassionate, and not dogmatic and judgmental. We must show how we can build a science-centric society that will take Malaysia to the next level.

We must change draconian and cruel laws. We must have laws that protect the weak and the marginalised instead of continually having our weakest sacrificed at the altar of commercial interests. We must make our society fair and equitable for all without regard for race or religion. That is the beauty of democracy. It is meant to perfect a better union. Do not wait until democracy is usurped and theocracy reigns in Malaysia.

It is imperative that progressives, moderates and liberals of Malaysia organise. We must be bold in our vision but we must conduct activism within the limits of what the law provides; and that is what standing on a platform together as citizens afford us.

We intend to change how civil liberties and humanitarian concerns are addressed, not on piece-meal basis but over an encompassing agenda. To do that we need the weight of numbers of our citizens behind us. You need to stand and be counted. You can no longer be anonymous. We must have the courage of our convictions. And with that we can even change the face of politics and political discourse in Malaysia. Time is not on our side. We must have a sense of urgency. Come with me and let’s build a progressive tent no one could ever dream of in Malaysia. Let us MAJU together and truly MERDEKA.

The views expressed here are entirely the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect those of Sunday Star. Source link

Siti Kasim

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Saturday, August 31, 2019

A meaningless Merdeka

https://youtu.be/J7gFNCkMV0o

This Merdeka is a meaningless Merdeka for the nation as it entrenches itself into old political mindsets. A meaningless Merdeka ...mysinchew.sinchew.com.my

By Prof Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi

After 21 years of writing ideas, criticisms and advice for Malaysians, Malays and those in power in academic, religious and political institutions, I have no more to give. Malaysia is on a certain road of destruction with the Malay Muslims driving it to the ground. I have looked hard and deep into many other ways than I have mentioned and I have no more ideas to bring to the table.

This is the most difficult article to write for me and I have thought many times to just call up Sin Chew and refuse a requested writing for the first time in my entire career as an academic. I see no more hope for this country. The Malays will eventually destroy itself and others with it. The only hope for the idea of a Malaysia lies in the nations of Sabah and Sarawak. If these two quit the partnership, then the idea of Malaysia is just a joke. If I were younger by three decades, I would take my family outside this country and resettle in others or at least in neighboring Singapore and the nations of Sabah and Sarawak. At least they still have teh tarik there.

With muftis sounding like gangsters in a terrible movie plot and unchecked by their patrons, the Malays will continue to be educated in that manner. With veteran Malay politicians and businessmen helming the fate of the country, the Old Malaysia has just been given a new lease of life by a heart-bypass. With academia still counting their H-indexes and SCOPUS papers, these institutions of learning will continue to be irrelevant entities to social and political development getting fat by the tax payers money and their own sense of self grandeur. Religion, academia and politics of the Malays are safely entrenched to bring the country to a precipice of oblivion.

The editors of this article wants to know from me what can be changed? Well, I no longer have any more ideas except to say…save yourself and your family by hunkering down, tightening the stomach and strategically plan for the children to be placed outside this country.

I have now begun to seriously think about such a strategy for two of my children. There is nothing here in Malaysia that would be anything of a dignified existence of a person.

When a mufti with extremely low knowledge on the history of the Indian people can make simplistic and racist statements about them, and get away without any reprimand or reminder from his patrons, then the game is ended. When he calls on hardworking and dedicated groups of Chinese educationist to be outlawed without measuring their six decades of contribution, what dignity is there left? Worse, when a peddler of religious capitalism comes to this country blaring insults not only to other religions but also the presence of our own community of generations of people, ministers have dinner with him with smiling photo ops. Susah-lah ini macam.

Then there is a political party with Islam as its name spew venoms of Islamic brotherhood being more important than citizenry and that those who oppose the peddler of religious evangelism from another country as enemies of Islam, and the police sits quietly without any reaction. Apa lagi nak cerita?

I have trained myself to be an expert at identifying success and failure in everything I do. I can also expertly predict success and failure in some things others do. I can definitely say that Malaysia is a failure. It was failing badly before May 9th 2018, it has failed even worse after merely over a year.

In the beginning, this failure was caused by a reluctance of the Malay voters to change. Then, this failure was fueled by the marriage of the two discredited Malay parties. Now, the trust of the people has been totally betrayed by the smallest and least ideological party which happens to helm the leadership and is engineering a 1990s come-back formula.

Unless a miracle happens, Malaysia will be the first country to be listed as the ‘fourth world’ of a three world category. We will go nowhere, be no ‘thing’ and simply become stuck to the ground with our old ideas about economy, education, religion and having no sense of dignity to others and the world. When one day, Muslims will be rejected entry into most countries of the world as with their favorite penceramah, then the old Malay proverb of sudah jatuh ditimpa tangga or sudah jatuh baru tertenggadah becomes a stark reality.

What is this miracle that may reignite the fires of Malaysia? Only three things. First, by a stroke of miracle, the civil society restrategize itself with other existing political parties and puts up 70 independent candidates to oust the cancerous elements in PH and combine with the dignified parties of Sarawak and Sabah, then there may be a chance.

How hard is it to find 70 credible candidates of all races dedicated to nation building? The names are already on my computer list. The civil society, good and nation-conscious NGOs can work together with the grassroots of rejuvenated veteran parties that lost their shorts in the last election. Those civil leaders appointed by the PH must return to the fold when the time of GE15 draws closer.

The second miracle would be 100,000 Malay children and more to come out of their UEC education and these children must be tracked and given support so that they can be the savior of a nation from the old bigotry of Muslims and Malays in the public schools.

That is why Malay political parties despise the UEC as the new Malays who are trilingual and globalized networked with China and the West will reformulate new national constructs based on their times with the other communities in the UEC schools.

Regardless of whether the PH government will recognize or not, I see the UEC as the only savior of this nation. The sons and daughters rejected by the majority of their own race will come back to revive the idea of Malaysia and thus, we Malaysians must ensure that the UEC survives and thrive.

Those of our sons and daughters educated in the international schools with international curriculum would be the other force that can cure an ailing nation, and that too must be protected and expanded so that it becomes affordable to send our children too. Leave the public schools entrenched in its own issues and problems.

The third miracle would be the private education tertiary institutions. These institutions have gone through the economic gauntlet and is now secure with a mixed group of academics to lead the nation where public universities fail in their own ethno-centric constructs of self-delusion and irrelevant academia. If these private universities can wake up to fill the minds of young Malaysians with the right mind set and ideas to lead the future, than the future can be theirs for the taking.

Private universities must get out of their balance sheet mindset and show that they can take over what was left out by the big brother universities and strike out on their own. The private university academics can form their own Professor Council and produce strategies for real impactful research and ideas that can move Malaysia 50 years into the future and pool its student talents to research and recharge industries linking the world. The future industries are in a mapless world and do not require a Malay Majlis Perbandaran to give the okay to start a factory. The new ‘factories’ are in cyberspace and offshore. Countries will work with these students who do not display any sense of ethnic or religious superiority complex and shun those that do. The world belongs to the private enterprise as government fails to change because of Old Politics.

The third miracle would be the pooling of resources by private companies and enterprises across a maples world to provide financial and infra-structure backings to clear thinking and hard working graduates and young skilled individuals freeing itself from any governmental ‘requirements’. Again, governments do not control cyberspace and off shore dealings. Malaysians will be everywhere in the world working, living, playing and worshipping while still rooted to their ‘tanah tumpah darah ku’.

This Merdeka is a meaningless Merdeka for the nation as it entrenches itself into old political mindsets. But this Merdeka is a new Merdeka for all Malaysians who love the idea of living with deep respect to each other’s faith and cultures and working with each other for mutual prosperity.

What we need is a Merdeka from the old rules of the game towards a new game play of global dimension that frees us from the old 90s ball and chains.

To save this Malaysia, our children must ‘leave the present Malaysia’ and embrace the future Malaysia that lies beyond its shores into a global and universal construct rooted in our traditional faiths and cultures.

(Professor Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi is Professor at UCSI University.)

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