tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44732509939836521412024-03-07T15:26:26.053+08:00Rantings byMMMarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.comBlogger637125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-53215689582759782012-12-06T13:09:00.000+08:002012-12-06T13:09:22.008+08:00The Year That Was<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Dear everyone,<br />
<br />
I know, I know, I've been very bad. Haven't posted anything since August. But life has been ridiculously busy with so many different projects. In November I launched my new book <i>Telling It Straight</i> which is a compilation of some of my columns from around 2001 til 2012. The excuse was that I was invited to the <a href="http://singaporewritersfestival.com/">Singapore Writers' Festival</a> and it seemed like a good occasion to launch a book, seeing as it's been 15 years since my first one, <i>In Liberal Doses</i>. (My second was <i>50 Days </i>which was a compilation of my blogposts about my Dad's operation in 2007 and was published by ZI Publications). My publishers, Editions Didier Millet, agreed and that was how the book came to be.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYRCebWdffNxnGSAuFAq3Fw9qieeWmDqyFPNT_4GCI-iViaWvZ6ta50dKJGF46KnJOlh6NmtxbxrpP2uQFtjjL92fVKeHL4z-deqFn-8KV_PLkxj_whQmZesLVxrbO85l4eRzeGtV9bhk/s1600/PB030455.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYRCebWdffNxnGSAuFAq3Fw9qieeWmDqyFPNT_4GCI-iViaWvZ6ta50dKJGF46KnJOlh6NmtxbxrpP2uQFtjjL92fVKeHL4z-deqFn-8KV_PLkxj_whQmZesLVxrbO85l4eRzeGtV9bhk/s320/PB030455.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Launch of my book at Select Books, Singapore.</td></tr>
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So far it's been doing pretty well. We sold out of the first printing within two weeks and now the second printing is out ( each print run is 5000 copies). It's number 1 on Borders' best-seller list which is unsurprising because Borders has done a lot to promote it. So far I've done five booksignings at various Borders stores including three in the Klang Valley and two in Penang. This Sunday Dec 9 I'll be at MPH at Subang Parade from 1-2pm if you'd like your books signed.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reading and booksigning session at Borders, the Curve.</td></tr>
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This week also is another first for me, which is the release of the e-book version of both <i>Telling It Straight </i>and <i>In Liberal Doses</i>. So those of you who live far away can download it from Amazon, Apple store, Kobo and Asiabooks, and probably other sites as well. So exciting!<br />
<br />
So thank you everyone for your kind support! If you have been following my column Musings in the Star, you'll know that some of them don't get published or are severely cut. Three of those are in the book, as well as some short introductions to each section of the book. So you'll find some new things to read as well in there.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile....my column today got axed again. I should have expected it I suppose since it's a review if you like of some of the issues raised at the UMNO General Assembly. And I guess I wasn't too subtle about it. But some things need to be said outright I think.<br />
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Anyway, read for yourself:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">World AIDS Day just went by with all the usual
newspaper features on the current statistics in our country and the problems
limiting our ability to contain the epidemic. Chief among these is stigma and
discrimination, the perpetuation of myths and falsehoods about both the disease
and the people who live with it, causing fear, secrecy and, sometimes, outright
violations of the human rights of HIV-positive people and those around them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">It seems ironic to me that while World AIDS Day
features in the papers aim to enlighten the public about HIV/AIDS, at the very
same time, a group of people gathered to triumphantly tout their ignorance,
their prejudice and their hate. Blaming all the ills of society on those most
marginalized and vulnerable, they hooted and cawed their fears and directed
their disgust towards a group they cannot clearly identify. Yet they claim that
society may only be saved if we put the different and defenceless into camps,
much like the people of Gaza are put into a large prison camp, to be punished
for their ‘mistake’ of trying to choose their own destiny.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">There is nothing more fascinating than watching a
group so devoted to displaying such willful hate. Some even called themselves
<a href="http://www.freemalaysiakini2.com/?p=57328">God’s chosen ones</a>, a familiar phrase to those of us who follow Zionist
politics. The implications of such a claim is obvious; if God has chosen some
people to lead us, why the need </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">for</span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"> elections when voters would make the likely
mistake of choosing the wrong ones? Why not just abandon elections and let God
choose? Where have we heard this before? Is this theocracy-lite, without the
turbans and beards?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">So retrograde was the discussion at this assembly
that it felt like a 1950s movie. Once again, we were told, by a woman no less,
that we already have gender equality in this country and therefore there is <a href="http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/12/1/nation/20121201205038&sec=nation">no need for any women’s rights activists</a>. Coming from someone who has done very
little to advance women’s rights in this country, this can only be expected.
After all, while demanding 30% of the seats for women in the next General
Elections, the same person had to ask a man to represent them to get permission
for such allocations. Why ask yourself when you can ask a man to do it for you?
Now that’s 1950s activism, none of this feminism business! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I must say it was a sublime moment: the leader of a
woman’s movement triumphantly stating that there are no issues for women to
fight for because everything is OK. Tell that to the many single mothers
fighting for their rights in our courts, the many women who remain legally
married but in reality have no spouses, the women who lose their property when
their husbands die, the many women black and blue from beatings at the hands of
their dearly beloveds every day. Tell that to our young women who after
graduating find that some jobs are cut off from them because of their gender,
or those who find jobs and then have to endure a workplace that is
uncomfortable and subtly hostile through crass comments and even physical
affronts. Or the many women bypassed for promotion by less-qualified men.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Like the targeting of minority and marginalized
groups, this trumpeting of ‘non-activism’ is only a distraction from the
pressing problems of the day. The word ‘corruption’ was barely heard at all,
unless it referred to sexual mores as if those are the only ones that can be
corrupted. ‘Ethics’ was not in anyone’s vocabulary, much less ‘justice’. So insular
was the talk that I don’t even recall the words ‘Gaza’ or ‘Rohingyas’, even
while thousands of our fellow brethren are suffering.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The trouble with insularity is that it ignores one
simple fact: the world is watching. With smart phones, broadband and social
media, what is said within any gathering is transmitted outside and all round
the world in a second. Playing to the gallery may be a valid strategy within
the confines of an exclusive group but with technology, there are now many
different galleries all watching at the same time. I hope some people within
the group had the decency to at least cringe at the more outrageous
pronouncements.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If this is the pre-election rah-rah session, it
truly baffles me how it would work. Those of us outside pay attention to get
some idea of what we can hope for when we cast our votes in the next few
months. But I’m probably not alone in finding little to hold on to except for a
group that looks like it’s under siege and is blaming everyone but itself for
its own failures. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
rest of us, meanwhile, are already ticking our voting ballots.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"> ***********************************************************************</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Um, yes.. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Anyway the year has been eventful in many ways. And yes we all labour with the cloud of pending elections over our heads. Can't wait for it to be over and maybe, just maybe, people will go back to being normal again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Meanwhile let me wish all of you a very merry festive season, Merry Christmas to all who celebrate and a 2013 that will be more sane than 2012 has been.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Peace! </span></div>
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MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-88657907366191082732012-08-13T17:23:00.000+08:002012-08-13T17:23:47.199+08:00No Postings Tomorrow!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7thEU7aUQ0_I_tiBL4Tja8eNmlY8kkFTLOAEv4aFWLwMAvohBgBqD-0Im_IyinviyuPgpdVQWLwRrpGwqOZ2iN-6v-9Den0fapYSF6jLI5fxotDTQYfQmaucLtzMda9GgOpfNRUMqp_zY/s1600/stop114a-fbcover-english.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7thEU7aUQ0_I_tiBL4Tja8eNmlY8kkFTLOAEv4aFWLwMAvohBgBqD-0Im_IyinviyuPgpdVQWLwRrpGwqOZ2iN-6v-9Den0fapYSF6jLI5fxotDTQYfQmaucLtzMda9GgOpfNRUMqp_zY/s640/stop114a-fbcover-english.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-86654511643623702102012-05-29T17:42:00.000+08:002012-05-29T17:42:17.125+08:00Impersonation is not Flattery<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Imitation may be a form of flattery but impersonation is not. I have just found out that someone's been posting articles online that are purportedly by me. Like this <a href="http://onlyatmalaysia.blogspot.com/2012/04/true-meaning-of-sacrifice-is-not-rm250.html">one</a>. Now anyone who's followed me all these years will recognise the way I write. And that article is <i>not</i> my style at all.<br />
<br />
I have reason to be concerned about this. The Government has just passed a new law, the Evidence Amendment (No 2) Act 2012, which among other things, will go after anyone who allegedly posts views that may be different from others, even if they have posted them anonymously or by using a pseudonym. For an explanation of this, read <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/black-day-for-internet-users-cpi/">this</a> and <a href="http://www.thesundaily.my/news/383833">this</a>.<br />
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What this means for me is, if someone impersonates me and posts things which I didn't say, I would still be held liable for them. Unless I can prove that it wasn't me. In other words, I am guilty of posting those words until I can prove I'm innocent. Is this justice?? Interestingly enough, as far back as 2007, people have addressed this problem, as in this <a href="http://www.bloggerbuster.com/2007/12/does-blogger-leave-us-vulnerable-to.html">article</a>.<br />
<br />
So people, please do take note. This is my only blog. Apart from this, I write my column, Musings in The Star. Occasionally I will write a piece for some other online portal but never another blog. Be wary also of 'quotes' by me that cannot be traced to any source, such as newspaper interviews, and comments by me that really don't sound like me. As you know, I'm always polite so anything that has lots of rude words in it is definitely NOT me. I've been told that someone makes comments under the name 'Marina M'. There's a slight difference between that and how I identify myself. If you're ever in doubt, ask me.<br />
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Thank you!</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-77540390390975169672012-05-08T13:36:00.000+08:002012-05-08T13:36:25.578+08:00No, We're Not Egypt..I think...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">When the Arab Spring happened in January 2011, our
leaders reacted in a very odd fashion. The first response was to bring all our
students in Egypt, all 11000 of them, home as if Egypt had just turned into a
warzone and our students were in grave danger. It was very clear however, from
what the students themselves <a href="http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/2/6/nation/8012481&sec=nation">said</a> when they got home, that there was no
physical danger at all. The ‘danger’ was more in the heads of our leaders who
were perhaps afraid that our young people might get some funny ideas about
democracy. Perhaps they thought the word doesn’t exist in <a href="http://rantingsbymm.blogspot.com/2011/02/new-language-of-revolution.html">Arabic</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">There were also a lot of protestations by our
leaders that Malaysia is not Egypt and our PM is not Mubarak. Well yes,
Malaysia is certainly more economically advanced than Egypt. It doesn’t have
the high levels of poverty and great inequalities that that country has had for
decades, as well as the high youth unemployment, all of which added to the
recipe for unrest that was bound to come at some time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">So no, we are not Egypt. But you know what they say
about how people doth protest too much. What is this obsession with us NOT
being Egypt anyway? If we’re not, then why worry? Besides, who needs to worry
about the Arab Spring unless they identify themselves with Ben Ali, Mubarak,
Gadaffi and Assad?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">And if our PM is not Mubarak – that ex-Air
Chief Marshall of the Egyptian Air Force who ruled for nearly 30 years and is
now on trial on allegations of corruption as well as the premeditated murder of
peaceful protestors – then what is he?</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Mubarak used to torture people he didn’t like. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Mubarak was allegedly very corrupt. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Mubarak was much adored by the Americans, which was
why they didn’t know what to do when the revolution started. After all they got
Egypt to sign a peace treaty with Israel. During the Gaza siege two years ago,
it was the Egyptians who obstructed aid from going to Gaza through Rafah. Nice
guy, Mubarak.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie9OsTD5sR-T-BL09ZVy_obTUl6DOZc4Z2BVcsftyaG7DYwT_lAd4D4kqQPv8y13YdUkTieW2Bw0-sgmPymNB_IK2TkAQ9D8fHfuwo7-oL0aZdJmBJRrBybyOIR9KN2QXYKdYAXahE90nb/s1600/Egypt.Camel_.Attack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie9OsTD5sR-T-BL09ZVy_obTUl6DOZc4Z2BVcsftyaG7DYwT_lAd4D4kqQPv8y13YdUkTieW2Bw0-sgmPymNB_IK2TkAQ9D8fHfuwo7-oL0aZdJmBJRrBybyOIR9KN2QXYKdYAXahE90nb/s320/Egypt.Camel_.Attack.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Egyptian protestors were attacked by thugs on camels in Tahrir Square.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">So what exactly was wrong with the demands made by
the Egyptian people assembling in Tahrir Square? They want a greater say in the
policies of the government. They want an end to corruption. They want proper
elections with many candidates to choose from, not just those handpicked by the
rulers. They want an end to military interference in politics. They want proper
management of the economy and the many problems resulting from the
mismanagement of it. Aren’t these reasonable?</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSuAOIRDrA8wHVkG_1TZ8_PZW21Ofsc1NOTX17SE0hyphenhyphennLZwARMzTV-dVfX_m-N_tZzg_49IVyHOSVApR5XRkgbxZR9YAVSd_6nkaPX15BfZgmJdoZJgcHhgJ7JuQDKM49M4tfpZ_fJfKMs/s1600/this_image_of_army_soldiers_arresting_a_female_pro_4ef0e42668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSuAOIRDrA8wHVkG_1TZ8_PZW21Ofsc1NOTX17SE0hyphenhyphennLZwARMzTV-dVfX_m-N_tZzg_49IVyHOSVApR5XRkgbxZR9YAVSd_6nkaPX15BfZgmJdoZJgcHhgJ7JuQDKM49M4tfpZ_fJfKMs/s320/this_image_of_army_soldiers_arresting_a_female_pro_4ef0e42668.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Egyptian police trying to arrest a female protestor in Tahrir Square.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">But our government will not acknowledge that these
demands are quite normal. Well maybe they’re not in an undemocratic country.
But by refusing to support the Egyptian people’s right to all of these, do they
support Mubarak and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF)? You know, the
ones who attacked their own people in Tahrir Square and killed some. The ones
who did virginity tests on women protestors. The ones who tried to shut down
the internet during the revolution?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The ones who are trying to rig the elections? </span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCJC8OmfUxwrd9IfqN31yMUwUC77KKUfNllUJZmQ7kC4vPKt5pRx58vYekf6W-SKmP5z2M_3yitAwpPY0_bAd_m4_o31GgY01IqlBKHVGIRvjZSI5mmZ_pKNLWHaAjr0CCgjXQQTe30B8W/s1600/Egypt+Christians+n+Muslims.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCJC8OmfUxwrd9IfqN31yMUwUC77KKUfNllUJZmQ7kC4vPKt5pRx58vYekf6W-SKmP5z2M_3yitAwpPY0_bAd_m4_o31GgY01IqlBKHVGIRvjZSI5mmZ_pKNLWHaAjr0CCgjXQQTe30B8W/s320/Egypt+Christians+n+Muslims.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Egyptian Muslims and Christians in solidarity at Tahrir Square --isn't this good?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If the Tahrir Square occupiers brought down someone
like Mubarak, is that necessarily bad? They still wanted to have proper
<a href="http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/2/7/nation/8014143&sec=nation">elections</a> afterwards. And lo and behold, the Muslim Brotherhood won many seats.
Well, that’s democracy, it doesn’t necessarily give you the best government.
But that’s no reason to get rid of democracy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If Malaysia is not Egypt and our leaders are not
Mubarak, then why are Malaysians who went to Bersih treated like Egyptian
protestors? As Tommy Thomas has pointed out <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/dataran-merdeka-is-not-tahrir-square-malaysia-is-not-eygpt-tommy-thomas/">here</a>, Malaysians are not much into
occupying anything. They did not bring out tents and blankets so that they can
sleep in Dataran Merdeka til the government was brought down. If anyone had
gone down to Dataran on the Sunday after Bersih 3.0, apart from the barbed
wire, everything was back to normal. The cars were out in the streets. The
malls were packed. The restaurants were full. Made our point, now let’s go eat.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">This is why we are not Egypt. In this we agree with
our government. We are NOT Egypt. But then why respond in such Mubarak-like fashion?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The National Fatwa Council has issued a <a href="http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=%2F2012%2F5%2F6%2Fnation%2F20120506153446&sec=nation#.T6aNOVnsGeE.facebook">fatwa</a> to say
that demonstrations against the government are haram. This is exactly what the head of the Al-Azhar University Fatwa Committee <a href="http://bikyamasr.com/25081/al-azhar-sheikh-says-protesting-forbidden-in-islam/">said</a> in the days after January 25 2011 when the
Egyptian revolution started. He seemed totally out of touch with his people and
the events that were unfolding. Even the Muslim Brotherhood, or at least the
younger members, were out there demonstrating, along with their more secular
fellow citizens, Muslim and Christian, men and women, young and old. So getting
the NFC ( hmmm…dubious initials…) to issue such a fatwa seems very
Mubarak-like, doesn’t it?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Does this mean, by the way, that demonstrations
against the governments of Penang, Kedah and Selangor are now haram too? Or
only if they are against the Federal Government?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If I now want to have a demonstration against, say,
Perkasa, I can, right? Since they’re not the government?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-41835370275354337002012-05-03T16:23:00.000+08:002012-05-03T16:23:32.237+08:00Testimonies to Truth<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hi folks, no doubt you've read the mainstream media's take on events last Saturday. But there is nothing like the personal accounts of those who were there.<br />
<br />
Here are some of them:<br />
<br />
1. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/my-bersih-3.0-experience-the-day-the-police-became-hooligans-christina-foo/">My Bersih 3.0 Experience : The Day The Police Became Hooligans -Christina Foo</a><br />
<br />
2. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/my-bersih-3.0-experience-anabelle-r/">My Bersih 3.0 Experience: Annabelle R</a> .<br />
<br />
3. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/at-bersih-rally-a-convergence-of-angry-youths-and-lake-club-members/">At Bersih rally, a convergence of angry youths and Lake Club members </a><br />
<br />
4. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/notes/jonathan-hwa/bersih-30-from-the-eyes-of-a-medic/10150779499497829">Bersih 3.0 from the eyes of a medic</a> (this is an incredibly heroic one)<br />
<br />
5. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/they-were-all-yellow">They were all yellow</a> (by the daughter of an FRU officer..)<br />
<br />
6. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/notes/andrew-zhu-an-loh/whom-to-blame-for-the-storming-of-the-barricades-at-bersih-30/10150870195122214">Whom to Blame for the Storming of the Barricades </a><br />
<br />
7. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/many-people-failed-malaysia-on-saturday-a-malaysian/">Many People Failed Malaysia on Saturday </a><br />
<br />
8. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/tech/article/tech-fuelled-political-awakening">Tech-fuelled political awakening</a><br />
<br />
9. <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/bersih-3.0-public-order-and-preservation-maj-rtd-lee-kong-kok/">Bersih 3.0: Public Order and Preservation</a> (very interesting)<br />
<br />
There will no doubt be many more, as well as many thousands of videos and photographs. But they are all valid testimonies to what happened. When we start looking for the truth, these will be important.<br />
<br />
Happy reading!</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-29700452713888442752012-04-29T22:35:00.000+08:002012-04-29T22:35:04.227+08:00Bersih 3.0: One EyeWitness Account<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
My daughter took this video<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/DTcqgtGB0LY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br /></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-25980295330533344282012-04-28T22:35:00.000+08:002012-04-28T22:35:56.796+08:00My Bersih 3.0 Experience: Behind the Barbed-Wire Barricades<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It was the barbed wire that did it for me. Up til Friday afternoon I was still unsure about going. My hubby thought I'd already made my point last year. I was annoyed with continually being asked whether I was going or not, more so with the non-story that came out in M'kini which basically said I hadn't decided yet. I mean, does it matter?<br />
<br />
Then I saw the photos of the police rolling out the barbed wire and I saw red. Since when did our police, or whoever is their boss, roll out barbed wire - barbed wire!! - against their own people?? Are we thugs? Terrorists? Thieves?<br />
<br />
So I decided to go. I contacted friends and found out their plans on how to get round the roads which were sure to be blocked and the LRT which may be stopped. The same friend who so kindly offered to be my 'bodyguard' last year offered himself again. We got into my car, went to collect some other friends and drove to as close to Central Market as we could.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdqKGaiwAG7NwV6b9GBzZXiL9gJ4pycXaXNwlbNtHL2LNPLzqzaXhOgSbVSi7jz_g7iZ1oWnbKd4nf2UMskDvJQOodmWLEVHpzAkylVKty9A7Rm95TmoRf9nRdbq7aMELI0aINV0M6qNZ/s1600/IMG_0952.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdqKGaiwAG7NwV6b9GBzZXiL9gJ4pycXaXNwlbNtHL2LNPLzqzaXhOgSbVSi7jz_g7iZ1oWnbKd4nf2UMskDvJQOodmWLEVHpzAkylVKty9A7Rm95TmoRf9nRdbq7aMELI0aINV0M6qNZ/s320/IMG_0952.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Women's groups together at Central Market.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Part of the way down Jln Brickfields we couldn't go any further so we got down to walk. On one side of the street were thousands of people in yellow walking in the direction of the Central Market. On the other side of the street were hundreds of police in their dark blue uniforms. But they didn't look hostile and just watched us go by.<br />
<br />
We got to the Central Market which was swarming with people. Earlier I'd read a tweet that said that people were going into the Market to have lunch and my friends and I were laughing about Malaysians and their food. "Well," we said, "Central Market restaurants will get a lot of business!". But when we got there, the Market was totally closed. So all those restaurants lost business today!<br />
<br />
Caught up with friends in the car park while we sat to wait. It was HOT!! On the little CM stage, Ambiga was seated there with many of our colleagues from women's groups. I went up to say hello, took some photos and then went down to wait again. At 1.20 or so, Ambi took the mike to announce that we were going to move off soon, heading towards Dataran Merdeka. But, she added, we were <i>not</i> to breach the barriers, we would only go as far as we could and then we would simply sit down for a while and then disperse.<br />
<br />
The atmosphere was much more fiesta-like than last year. There were people in yellow t-shirts or in other colours, in shorts or in tudungs, lots of young ones and some also of a certain age. Like last year, it was a very diverse crowd. I bumped into some old friends, some young people I knew including a nephew and the children of some friends, and met some new ones, people who were coming to a rally for the first time ever. These were not radical highly-politicised types, just your average men and women, the type you'd meet at the supermarket perhaps. I asked one newbie woman why she came and she said it was because she realised that if she wanted change, then she had to do something.<br />
<br />
After Ambiga spoke and a quick briefing by the marshalls, we moved off. Because of the crowd we made our way slowly, stopping every now and then to take photos of the awesome crowd and ourselves. At Central Market I estimated there were at least 6000 people that I could see (though I have to say I'm bad at estimates) but many many more joined us as we walked along.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkAuE2zq3h30zwZyVMVs1jmINMwOuqvgnFSNMnjY8v_I-oC6-Uf_Nt6MQogNWbt1mpYsZ38_NYOHSNI7_wop62oI1vFvnsBOwR_PnJfE7ZQEwsBXQG6v4DzDzISZtrrR1W2F2qJP5QSWM/s1600/IMG_0964.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkAuE2zq3h30zwZyVMVs1jmINMwOuqvgnFSNMnjY8v_I-oC6-Uf_Nt6MQogNWbt1mpYsZ38_NYOHSNI7_wop62oI1vFvnsBOwR_PnJfE7ZQEwsBXQG6v4DzDzISZtrrR1W2F2qJP5QSWM/s320/IMG_0964.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The crowd moving from Central Market towards Dataran Merdeka (in a roundabout way)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
When we got to Lebuh Pasar Besar, there was a big crowd on it facing the direction of Dataran Merdeka while others continued on to Jalan Tun Perak. We decided we would stay on Lebuh Pasar Besar (where the Bar Council is) and made our way towards the bridge across the Klang River (just before Agro Bank). That was where we had to stop because the police had put up a barrier of barbed wire (actually my husband said it's razor wire, not barbed wire) and those red plastic road barriers, all stamped 'DUKE'. On the other side of the barrier stood a whole row of police. Most look quite senior and they simply stood there and looked at us.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5uoHuBO3JoOQd606k8RMDJ4GE5GxuAtwQ-CbHcCoTl50bC9CG-5w32lZYepCjQuqdaG7ZDo9U7kwtvjURru_cna44HRP6XUskH7rfQR5M81MFFVpUt9xCL_dsmf4jf1_nkrbWTVz1LJA/s1600/Razor-Wire-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5uoHuBO3JoOQd606k8RMDJ4GE5GxuAtwQ-CbHcCoTl50bC9CG-5w32lZYepCjQuqdaG7ZDo9U7kwtvjURru_cna44HRP6XUskH7rfQR5M81MFFVpUt9xCL_dsmf4jf1_nkrbWTVz1LJA/s320/Razor-Wire-5.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is razor wire...</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90PPX-EGo7R2sv-AA1GJT5gzRLTQ2A59k8CMGl4Kfpmpqdwe7GiR-x2O6OA3MKKOHWpFS1aF5uOf56goUcd5XnmyvUnejvluR_SNZoMEo7aV6ANtCAE95uwix7oY7R1OsZ1cXfx-vO0OT/s1600/13_04_14---Barbed-Wire_web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90PPX-EGo7R2sv-AA1GJT5gzRLTQ2A59k8CMGl4Kfpmpqdwe7GiR-x2O6OA3MKKOHWpFS1aF5uOf56goUcd5XnmyvUnejvluR_SNZoMEo7aV6ANtCAE95uwix7oY7R1OsZ1cXfx-vO0OT/s320/13_04_14---Barbed-Wire_web.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And this is barbed wire...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiivFsX2cqtFy_ECTzzex-Iq-4L0VWSKJ9-Nrd1oRCeHeQnHWfDQRBpfyZfQxHPoAUSsR3r1WPx_iKm-c7kwRaHnKcRsxmZzGlfT7gkjQS3NGhHkxzVpJlgBWPUoCUSzIDUrhsfqcPz97BR/s1600/IMG_0972.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiivFsX2cqtFy_ECTzzex-Iq-4L0VWSKJ9-Nrd1oRCeHeQnHWfDQRBpfyZfQxHPoAUSsR3r1WPx_iKm-c7kwRaHnKcRsxmZzGlfT7gkjQS3NGhHkxzVpJlgBWPUoCUSzIDUrhsfqcPz97BR/s320/IMG_0972.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of Lebuh Pasar Besar towards Dataran Merdeka. We are behind the barriers and the cops are beyond.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
I got to the front of the barrier where someone had put up a sign that said 'Welcome to Tel Aviv'. It felt very accurate. The police recognised me and nodded. I asked them, "What is this?" pointing at the razor wire, which has blades on them which can seriously cut you if you get hurled on to them (see close-up pic above). The senior cop there shrugged and gave a wan smile. "This makes me sad," I said to him. Again he shrugged.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYdy3vYROQLWdx1Y3sgBOzjpdYDBTAIDgtDQoRj72l7JPejzi8Xa5MF_h8-T6zkOKsDeyemMxeBJMiU6Vaz9xQHFAp-J4aHUepNQXPBZb1JG9Bb3W8ojWrT9rx44zzsnZ6sooQdXKM9i3/s1600/IMG_0987.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYdy3vYROQLWdx1Y3sgBOzjpdYDBTAIDgtDQoRj72l7JPejzi8Xa5MF_h8-T6zkOKsDeyemMxeBJMiU6Vaz9xQHFAp-J4aHUepNQXPBZb1JG9Bb3W8ojWrT9rx44zzsnZ6sooQdXKM9i3/s320/IMG_0987.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty apt...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM2MldN-nDlmiAmcX7IkqOvG8T77jUSMO6Xb5a44kwkA0nGD_laGjeZp76e9fE7cOfHJA4Gg6DfTfk7AaE6uIxq_9NxHAfQPPV4ByECBkDxTyJQM6YsF6N_ygEM8zWYok-wmJLbwd50crq/s1600/IMG_0982.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM2MldN-nDlmiAmcX7IkqOvG8T77jUSMO6Xb5a44kwkA0nGD_laGjeZp76e9fE7cOfHJA4Gg6DfTfk7AaE6uIxq_9NxHAfQPPV4ByECBkDxTyJQM6YsF6N_ygEM8zWYok-wmJLbwd50crq/s320/IMG_0982.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me in front of the barricade. See the razor wire?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
We stood there for a while. Some people started to sing Negara Ku so we all joined in. The senior cop who shrugged at me stood at attention, really the only one who did so. Some people started chanting 'Bukak, bukak!' meaning open the barriers. But overall there were high spirits but nothing provocative.<br />
<br />
Then suddenly all the cops moved back, away from us. We were puzzled but in a short while we realised why. Several police trucks moved in and headed in our direction. For a moment I wondered if they were simply going to mow us down. Then they retreated again. Next a whole row of police with helmets, batons and shields formed in front of the trucks facing us. Again we wondered if they were going to charge us, which seems silly because they too would have come up against the razor wire.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtWmHmeATuUgzzKLf7GDfb07jlSikFUiVmErdY7rin2XuDPpFE9Bf7hzM043MsNLTCe7lqSudBewy57EOVL_GS_Aa-vfaDD2ji0RGe6EwGNnbLp1-TDh526qjJzQGFiVsr58K6ZAAnhuMf/s1600/IMG_0991.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtWmHmeATuUgzzKLf7GDfb07jlSikFUiVmErdY7rin2XuDPpFE9Bf7hzM043MsNLTCe7lqSudBewy57EOVL_GS_Aa-vfaDD2ji0RGe6EwGNnbLp1-TDh526qjJzQGFiVsr58K6ZAAnhuMf/s320/IMG_0991.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Then the trucks came out...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQil50_sC784zvZRc8SQRIZjfFVNWITSTYEcibNt0v9DlVJOl2lz9thFBv4NiT6CynPgXs7DKSZbih7gjd8Gx8E2KKfW9RfyTpeVWvEHGNaUSAxn6LnYySM6NOK33I-xedEfajtY_bFT_r/s1600/IMG_0993.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQil50_sC784zvZRc8SQRIZjfFVNWITSTYEcibNt0v9DlVJOl2lz9thFBv4NiT6CynPgXs7DKSZbih7gjd8Gx8E2KKfW9RfyTpeVWvEHGNaUSAxn6LnYySM6NOK33I-xedEfajtY_bFT_r/s320/IMG_0993.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And the shields and batons...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Someone then told us to sit down. So we did on our side of the barrier while on the other side, about 10 metres away, the police were lined up with their shields and batons. It looked like it was going to be a battle of wills, who would last longer in the heat . We were prepared to sit for the next two hours til 4pm, the appointed dispersal time.<br />
<br />
After about 15 minutes sweating behind the razor wire, someone told us to move back and disperse. "We must use our brains. Don't provoke. It's time to move back." So we moved away from the barriers and milled around the streets, just looking at people. Bumped into more friends and chatted to random people who said hello. It was a nice atmosphere, akin to going to a fun run or something like that.<br />
<br />
We then read a Star tweet that said that Ambiga said Bersih 3.0 was already successful and we can all now disperse. So my friends and I made our way back to Brickfields, got into my car and drove home.<br />
<br />
It was only after that that we started to get smses and tweets regarding teargas at Dataran Merdeka. It was a shock because up til then there was nothing to indicate that the police might do that, even when they brought the ones with the helmets and shields out. We passed many cops on our way home and they hardly looked at us.<br />
<br />
My phone was running out of battery and I had to wait til I got home before hearing from my daughter that she had been teargassed. She was part of a team videostreaming the events today and was near Dataran Merdeka, stuck among thousands of people, when some people, against Bersih's instructions, breached the barriers and ran onto the Dataran. The police then started running <i>away</i> from them and soon they saw why: the teargas canisters being fired at them. Her first time being teargassed, she said it was awful but people around her were all helping one another. What was more frightening was the fear of being crushed but luckily people were so mindful of this that if anyone fell, they were immediately given space and a hand up. She's fine though and I never really worried about her because she had a friend with her who was tasked with making sure she was alright.<br />
<br />
(Her videos, along with those by others, are now on the Bersih428 Youtube channel). <br />
<br />
Since reaching home, I've been trying to keep up with the many many reports on today's events, both the good and the bad. Yes, there were some people who misbehaved, let's be honest. We don't know who they are but in such a large crowd there are bound to be people like that, despite instructions from the Bersih steering committee and marshalls not to provoke anyone. There are also very likely agent provocateurs who are out to make trouble and discredit Bersih.<br />
<br />
But it doesn't detract from the fact that an unbelievable number of people turned out today, far more than last year, and compared to the incidents of bad behaviour, there was a far larger number of people who marched and rallied peacefully. I hardly saw anyone with a frown or a scowl but lots of happy smiles. Just like last year, I never once felt unsafe. Instead I felt part of a large Malaysian community, all together for one cause. Or two, since the anti-Lynas people also turned out in huge numbers.<br />
<br />
Here's a report from the UK's <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/tear-gas-used-as-25000-rally-for-malaysia-reforms-7687209.html">Independent</a> newspaper which is pretty accurate although there were far far more than 25000 people there. It was hard to see everybody but it had to be about 50000-80000. There are thousands and thousands of photos and videos being uploaded right now. So go take a look and decide for yourself. I also hope people will put up their personal stories too.<br />
<br />
I'm sorry that there were people who got injured, both protestors and police. None of that was really necessary. A few weeks ago, at the International Women's Day rally in PJ, 5000 people turned up and there was absolutely no violence because the police left everyone alone to do their thing. The same could have happened today, if only the powers-that-be could have been wiser.<br />
<br />
One more thing, about those politicians who were there. At Central Market there were some there but they were not allowed to speak. Along the march, if anyone started any chants that sounded political, others wouldn't take it up and they pretty soon petered out. Like last year, the most popular chants were those that simply said 'Bersih' and 'Hidup Rakyat'. Most were simple ordinary people, who just want to express how they feel and who really have no time for politicians.<br />
<br />
Besides, which politician or political party, from any side, can mobilise <i>anything</i> as incredible as <a href="http://www.facebook.com/GlobalBersih3">Global Bersih</a>? </div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com47tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-45751449615012066012012-04-24T17:01:00.000+08:002012-04-24T17:01:06.843+08:00My Record-Breaking Run Continues...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Dear folks, this must be something of a record but I've just been told that once again, my column's been spiked. In newspaper-speak, that means it's not going to be published tomorrow. This would make it the second of my columns recently that was totally spiked, plus one more that was chopped up badly. (See previous posts)<br />
<br />
People ask me why I keep writing at The Star if they keep doing this. Well maybe I'm just sentimental. They gave me this column to write about 23 years ago when nobody else did and for the most part they've published most of what I've written. I do know that lots of people read it and I would feel as if I'm abandoning my readers if I just stopped. I'm hoping that those who read it in the paper also read me online and will realise that perhaps my days at The Star are numbered ( or at least until the elections are over.)<br />
<br />
My editors at The Star did politely ask me to tone down my column. They even bought me tea to tell me this. They explained the type of nasty pressures they face over many articles, pressure from people who seem to be hyper-paranoid over every little bit of news that might be construed as anti-government, anti-Islam, anti-everythingtheystandfor. I can sympathise with my editors. It can't be fun being constantly shouted at on the phone or having to attend 'briefings' where they are told exactly what they can or cannot write, no argument.<br />
<br />
But just last week I was at a forum on media freedom, in Singapore, and I listened to two Burmese journalists talking about media freedom in their country. They talked about how for years they had to deal with the military censors who insisted on seeing their articles BEFORE and AFTER publication. They had to find ways to creatively get their message across either through writing 'between the lines', using codewords or writing about foreign news which somehow had some relevance to Burma though obliquely.<br />
<br />
Recently however Burma has been moving towards democracy. And with it has come new media freedom and many new newspapers and magazines have proliferated. And where once Aung San Syu Kyii was never mentioned in the papers, she is now on the front pages of almost every paper "because she sells papers". They now can write about most things although some things -like corruption - are still taboo.<br />
<br />
But one thing they said left a mark on me. Through all those years of pressure, the temptation to self-censor was always there. And while others may have succumbed, this one young man decided he would not. "My job," he said, " is to write. The censors' job is to censor. I don't censor myself because that's not my job."<br />
<br />
That's the way I view my column too. I don't 'tone down' largely because I don't know how to. But also because it's not my job.<br />
<br />
So, for what it's worth, here is the column that should have appeared tomorrow:<br />
<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Marina Mahathir for The Star</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Obfuscation is a word I love. It means to make something obscure or to confuse people. I love it because it is an apt word to describe the noisy politics we have to endure these days, the sort of noise that makes it impossible for anyone to even hear themselves speak, let alone think about what needs to be thought.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Obfuscation is an every day occurrence these days in our country. When issues should be presented clearly, they are obscured by side issues, distractions and misinformation. People who attempt to bring some clarity are shouted down, drowned by the sheer noise of the loudest though not necessarily the smartest nor the most sincere of loudhailers.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">How did a campaign calling for that most innocuous of causes, clean and fair elections, come to be characterized as a clarion call for LGBT rights? Only because some people decided that the best way to distract from a popular issue is to project it as one that is ‘really’ about something else. And then the ‘something else’ was defined as an issue which most people will reflexively react against.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">So the logic now sounds like this: if you call for clean and fair elections, that means you want LGBTs to take over the country. Wow!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">How wonderful is this obfuscation tactic that a man who was once hailed as a great nationalist patriot for leading a demo to call for the overturning of the policy of teaching maths and science in English, is now likened to a pervert because he is calling for clean and fair elections. He literally went from hero to zero overnight.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Meanwhile, so-called amendments to various laws are touted as the long-awaited reforms by a modern and democratic government. Yet such amendments are rushed through Parliament and ‘debated’ by parliamentarians late at night when they are no doubt sleepy and fuzzy-minded. Surely such important laws deserve better? But no, the obfuscation continues. The bulldozing is touted as ‘proof’ of genuine commitment to reform. And people actually buy this?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Some students decide to stage a tent-in in a public space for a cause that may be a bit too idealistic. Certainly it doesn’t seem to have captured much public sympathy. But the obfuscation continues, confusing the students’ right to voice their unhappiness with their cause. What’s more, news reports on the students seem not to have made clear that there are in fact two groups at Dataran Merdeka, and although there are some overlaps, there are some fundamental differences between the two. Not only are their causes different, so are their ways of working. But obfuscation requires that the two are conflated and by that, the tarnishing of all young people continues.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Today it is difficult to speak publicly in any intelligent manner because it is the unintelligent and the belligerent who rule. On university grounds, grounds where the intellect should reign, a man can blithely say that if LGBTs take over this country (despite there being no evidence whatsoever of this happening), he would not hesitate to take his keris out and use it. In other countries, such a pronouncement would elicit immediate arrest. But no, in this self-proclaimed moderate country, such violent arrogance is applauded.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">What is the point of promoting any sort of science in this country when basic evidence is never respected? When anyone can come up with the most dubious statements without any facts to back it up? A full 30% of men in this country are gay, according to someone, and this is a danger to the country. What does this mean? Does that mean that out of the 28 men in our Cabinet, at least nine of them are gay? Out of the 13 Muftis making fatwas around the country, 4 of them are homosexual? If a full 30% of Malaysian men prefer their own sex, they also make a sizeable voting bloc. Why alienate them?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">But there is no longer any point in talking sense or logic in this country. The less logic you speak, the more popular you are. The less facts you present, the more you are lauded. Better still, the more incorrect facts you give, invented out of thin air, the more you dazzle your followers.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Obfuscation however tends to bite back. The more you use it to blindside people, the more you make it a culture, the less people will trust you. It’s hard to continually create a fog around facts, to drown truth with noise. Sooner or later, you’re bound to trip up. That would be enough to create mistrust.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">So, like the boy who cried wolf, even if you present facts now, it’ll be hard to persuade anyone. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">--ends--</span></div></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-86989876901670660822012-04-03T15:35:00.000+08:002012-04-03T15:35:45.914+08:00Power and the media...cut again...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <style>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"> Hi folks, in case any of you noticed it, my column went totally missing last week. Guess it was a bit too hot for the paper. As always I have the option of publishing it here so here it is:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Marina Mahathir for The Star</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Some time last year a friend gave me a very interesting book, <span class="body">Cultures and Organisations: Intercultural Cooperation and Its Importance for Survival by Geert Hofstede, Gert Jan Hofstede and Michael Minkov. Professor Geert Hofstede is a Dutch sociologist who studies the ways in which companies can incorporate intercultural factors in the countries they work in so that they may function better. </span></span><span class="body"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">One of the five intercultural dimensions that Hofstede developed in this research is the Power Distance Index that looks at how much a culture does or does not value hierarchical relationships and respect for authority. The PDI measures the distribution of power and wealth between people in a nation, business and culture, and seeks to demonstrate the extent to which subordinates or ordinary citizens submit to authority. The index figure is lower in countries or organisations in which authority figures work closely with people, and higher in countries or organisations with a more authoritarian hierarchy.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Examples of countries with high PDIs are the Arab countries, Russia, India and China while those with low scores include Japan, Australia and Canada.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">How does a high PDI culture manifest itself? In these countries or organisations, we would normally observe that those in authority openly demonstrate their rank and their subordinates are not given important work and expect clear guidance from above. If anything should go wrong however, those subordinates are expected to take the blame. The relationship between the boss and his subordinates are rarely close or personal.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">When it comes to politics, high PDI countries are ‘prone to totalitarianism’ and class divisions within society ‘are accepted’.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">On the other hand, in low PDI countries, superiors treat subordinates with respect and do not pull rank. Hence you find the phenomenon in some countries where bosses and subordinates call each other by their first names. In these countries, subordinates are also entrusted with important assignments. If something goes wrong, the blame is either shared or accepted by the boss as it is his responsibility to manage. This is why we often find company bosses in Japan or Korea resigning or even committing suicide if there is some scandal in the company. Managers also often socialize with their subordinates.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">In terms of politics, low PDI countries tend to be liberal democracies and their societies tend to lean towards egalitarianism. Hence you find Dutch royalty for instance cycling around town just like everyone else.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The PDI’s measurement of inequality is defined from below, that is, it is about how the lower ranks of a society or organization accepts and expects the unequal distribution of power. This suggests that both the followers and the leaders accept a society’s level of inequality.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">As an example, Germany has a 35 on the PDI scale. This means that compared to Arab countries, which rank around 80, and Austria which has a rank of 11, Germany is somewhere in the middle. German society does not have a large gap between the rich and poor but has a strong belief in equality for every citizen. This means that every German has an opportunity to rise in society.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">On the other hand, the US has a PDI of 40. Although still in the middle of the scale, there is a more unequal distribution of wealth compared to German society, a gap that seems to be widening as the years go by. This explains the recent explosion of the Occupy Movement, because the distribution of wealth between the top 1% and other 99% seems to have become extremely unequal.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">When you look at the PDI measurements of many countries, a pattern seems to emerge. Those at the top end seem to be less developed than others. They also seem to be undemocratic or at the very least very imperfect democracies. They are the type of countries where you are likely to see leaders who are kept both physically and psychologically distant from the masses. Apart from orchestrated events, you are unlikely to see political leaders in anything except limousines and VIP rooms.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">So after reading all of this, and sensing something familiar, where do you think Malaysia stands in the PDI rankings? Do we have our leaders ‘openly demonstrating their rank’? Despite constant exhortations to ‘go down to the grassroots’, our leaders rarely are addressed in anything but the most respectful titles and terms. Some of their subordinates may take on important jobs but they will shoulder 100% of the blame should anything go wrong, even when it’s not really their fault. Our people do tend to wait for instructions from above and feel somewhat lost if we don’t get clear ones. Our mindset remains largely feudal.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Thus it should come as no surprise that Malaysia, with an index of 104, tops the PDI rankings.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;"><span class="body"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">--ends--</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span class="body"> For an interactive map of Hofstede's ranking of countries' PDIs, see <a href="http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/map/hofstede-power-distance-index.html">here</a>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-82225475484110820772012-03-15T11:28:00.000+08:002012-03-15T11:28:33.781+08:00Cut Again!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Hi folks, some of you may have read my <a href="http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?col=musings&file=/2012/3/14/columnists/musings/10914176&sec=Musings">column</a> on Wednesday and may have wondered why I was going on about airport announcements. Also you may have noticed it was a bit short and ended rather abruptly.<br />
<br />
Well, it happened again folks. I got censored. Apparently in the run-up to the elections, all of us columnists in the mainstream papers are supposed to be good and not say anything too critical of you know who. There are actually still some people who think that censorship works, as if the Internet doesn't exist at all.<br />
<br />
Let me say it again. I've been at the Star for more than 20 years and may well be one of their longest-serving columnists. I am very grateful for that opportunity to air my views, and in all fairness, over the 20 years and more than 500 columns, I've been censored maybe three or four times. I still get more people coming up to me who say they read my columns than who say they read my blog. So I feel a sense of loyalty to these readers and that's why I don't want to stop writing for the Star. Besides everyone could do with the discipline of writing for a paper, with its deadlines and word limits.<br />
<br />
So although I understand the pressures that the paper comes under from certain quarters and the annoying limitations it puts not just on me but my fellow columnists like <a href="http://www.sistersinislam.org.my/news.php?item.952.6">Zainah Anwar</a>, <a href="http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?col=bravenewworld&file=/2012/3/8/columnists/bravenewworld/10873756&sec=Brave%20New%20World">Azmi Sharom</a>, <a href="http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?col=reflectingonthelaw&file=/2012/3/7/columnists/reflectingonthelaw/10865778&sec=Reflecting%20On%20The%20Law"> Prof Shad Saleem Faruqi</a> and others, I will tolerate the cuts as long as I can also publish the full text on my blog, Facebook and Twitter. It just makes them look silly, right?<br />
<br />
Besides if I suddenly sound quite different, my credibility will come into question. You'll all start wondering what's happened to me, or worse, who paid me off. So it behooves me to continue writing in my usual manner but then make sure you all know what's happening if it gets cut.<br />
<br />
Last time I complained about being censored, I got scolded for it from other bloggers. Not sure why. I don't think I have any special privileges and therefore shouldn't be subject to the same constraints as anyone else. But when it happens to me, or to anyone else, then I should complain or else it will mean that a) you won't know what's happening and b) censorship becomes the norm. All of us writing for the mainstream papers have been told to tone it down. They told us nicely and regretfully, because obviously people do buy these papers because they enjoy our columns. To tell us to change our style might mean losing readers even more. It is ridiculous, but I will keep at it, complain when it happens and then publish the full piece here. That's the best I can do. Or else I might switch to writing about, oh I dunno, tennis?<br />
<br />
(By the way, I can't find Zainah's column at the Star website at all. The link I've given you is the full version of her column, not the very truncated one that the Star published.) <br />
<br />
Anyway here is my full column as submitted to help you compare with what you read in the paper:<br />
<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Marina Mahathir for The Star</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I was at the airport the other day waiting for a flight. As always I kept my ear out for announcements about boarding times and was surprised to find the public announcement system faint and unclear. I had thought there is no longer any such thing as less than crystal clear announcements at airports so that passengers can never find excuses for being late at the gate. Worse, in some of the airline lounges, there are no announcements at all and you have to rely on your own watch to ensure you get to your gate on time.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Which led me to think of how important the mass conveyance of messages is. If they are unclear or late, then you are likely to get the wrong message and make the wrong decision next. If the announcement about gate changes is too soft or too late, then you’re likely to find lots of very stressed people rushing from one gate to another, hoping not to miss their flights.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I suppose those who work the airport PA systems hardly ever make the wrong announcements. And I must say that those who do at our airports are usually very clear in their pronunciation so you get their messages very quickly and concisely. In some countries however, the accents can be confusing but luckily there are always alternative ways of checking the flight information.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I do wish all public announcements had the clarity of airport ones. Unfortunately other forms of mass announcements tend to be unclear and sometimes even misleading. And unlike airport announcers, sometimes the lack of clarity is actually deliberate.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Of late public announcements in this country seem to be particularly prone to obfuscation. If one only relied on them, then one is likely to get a very skewed view of the world.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Most recently there was a video on an African warlord that went viral all over the world. It called on everyone who sees it to not just pass it along but to donate to help get rid of the warlord. This is the modern form of the PA system, the internet video.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">But almost as soon as it gained popularity, people started writing articles ie other forms of public announcements, that gave a more nuanced analysis of the issue involving the warlord and questioning whether the aims of the organization behind the video were truly honourable, or at best somewhat naïve.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Whichever way anyone felt about the whole campaign, the availability of these alternative perspectives allowed us to hopefully make a more intelligent assessment on whether we would support the cause or not. Being able to assess leaves the power to decide in our hands. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The internet, not being controlled by anyone, is a many-headed PA system. It can convince you of one argument or another, or it can leave you confused. But it does allow power to remain in the person who uses the internet to decide one way or the other.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">But some of us live in the last century where we think that tinny old system is all we need to get the message across. While others have their ears glued to their smartphones, some still think that to have a PA system churning out news that only they want to read or watch is all that needs to be done. Surely there is no better way to lose one’s grip on reality than by only wanting news that sugarcoats everything one does, rather than the real impact of them.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">There are those who treat newspapers as if they were public relations handouts, meant to tell the public how wonderful they are. These handouts do not tell you anything about the downside of the item being promoted. But the public knows a promotional flyer when they see one, and they know that one should always read the fine print. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Similarly, with broadcast news where there are people who think that when liberties are taken with descriptions of events, people are more likely to be convinced of their authenticity. This might work if there were no other media outlets and if people are generally less intelligent than assumed. Unfortunately there are, and they aren’t.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">It always befuddles me why anyone would want to rule over an uneducated and uninformed people. That would be easy and without any challenges. It would be a bit like condemning Novak Djokovic, the number one tennis player in the world, to playing the 1000<sup>th</sup> ranked player all the time. Novak gets a false sense of how good he is because he never gets tested. His poor opponent remains dejected because he’s unlikely to ever win a point.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">To be judged a true winner, we need an open field where all comers get to compete. Fairly. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">--ends--</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-9070473820569325002012-03-05T15:18:00.000+08:002012-03-05T15:18:30.935+08:00Trash Talking to Tomorrow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I know it's been a while since I posted anything here but really, work aside, I've really not felt like writing much here. Things seem to be totally going crazy in this country of ours that it just beggars belief. And even when you want to comment on some issue, something else even more stupid comes up.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHsUv-xHR75_dZfR_X7DfGjGeW90NaP8q1sjkyKxcSHbBd637k2IWkhLTWugAJrljgXqjpTCLlIVipbwoc1rXzXynxpFEq2DO-QsWWMrTQy-3ZXKCmo-Ye3zwmbvB18q2i-8qUOi41u4TF/s1600/Perkasa+at+anti-Lynas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHsUv-xHR75_dZfR_X7DfGjGeW90NaP8q1sjkyKxcSHbBd637k2IWkhLTWugAJrljgXqjpTCLlIVipbwoc1rXzXynxpFEq2DO-QsWWMrTQy-3ZXKCmo-Ye3zwmbvB18q2i-8qUOi41u4TF/s320/Perkasa+at+anti-Lynas.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
<span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 1.2em;"><em>Penang PERKASA Youth chief Mohd Risuan Asudin showing aggression at the anti-Lynas rally in Penang on Sunday. Risuan once presented a bulldozer to Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng in Komtar. “During the fracas where a journalist was attacked, some Malay youths (male and females) came to us reporters to point out the attackers and told us what they witnessed,” a journalist at the event said. Photo: Yeap Ban Choon</em></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
What happened to our gentle people that we now behave like thugs with people we don't agree with?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjcw8IfoTSCsDYoUv88MFAP6Jn5DIwn3JM2pa166PsggYgSjA4g-ipTNzWQZ2JOXzOUX3mK-CooumVYLkpujovXyO-ABX_mugmBXe-SoGcTWvyilClcdV-REslYtSCDmU6JBPd0FRPLeZX/s1600/Erykah-Badu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjcw8IfoTSCsDYoUv88MFAP6Jn5DIwn3JM2pa166PsggYgSjA4g-ipTNzWQZ2JOXzOUX3mK-CooumVYLkpujovXyO-ABX_mugmBXe-SoGcTWvyilClcdV-REslYtSCDmU6JBPd0FRPLeZX/s320/Erykah-Badu.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
What happened to our reasonable people that we ban things on the flimsiest of pretexts?<br />
<br />
Why do we think that doing any of these will make people love us and therefore vote for us?<br />
<br />
Where do we think we're going with all this?<br />
<br />
I am embarassed beyond belief about the Erykah Badu debacle. Imagine being banned when you're already in the country, and accused of wanting to insult the faith of people in your host country. Based on a bit of body art. How flimsy is our faith when it can be shaken by the sight of a piece of graphic art! <br />
<br />
And yet she then goes over to the largest Muslim <a href="http://uppercaise.wordpress.com/2012/03/03/erykah-badu-at-jakarta-concert-photo/">country</a> in the world, where her poster (with the body art) is displayed everywhere with no incident and where she performs in front of the President of the country. Of course, not wanting to ever lose in this so-called war to uphold our religion ( we need a <i>war</i> to do that?), we make snide remarks about an entire country of over 200 million people of not <i>really</i> being Muslim. Guess there is no better way to win a battle than by insulting others. (In that case, let's not worry about those not really Muslim domestic workers who aren't going to come work for us any time soon, shall we?)<br />
<br />
I'm tired of this nonsense. Worse, I'm tired of this nonsense having an <a href="http://news.malaysia.msn.com/regional/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5943327">official face</a>. It's one thing when some group of idiots say nonsensical things but I do expect better from those who claim to rule us. To say that the Star was wrong to have published the picture (even though they did apologise) is one thing, but what has that got to do with banning the concert? People have already bought tickets, some even came from other countries so already paid for air tickets and hotel accomodation and those who bought tickets on February 22 were also donating 20% of the ticket price to <a href="http://www.wao.org.my/">Women's Aid Organisation </a>(WAO). All gone because a tiny group of people, who probably had no intention of going to the concert anyway, decided they needed to be offended. It's not as if she was giving a free concert in the middle of Dataran Merdeka and that piece of graphic art was going to be the backdrop of the stage. People choose to buy tickets to go and see her, and the tickets were not cheap. If they felt that their faith might be shaken by seeing her perform, then they can always stay home.<br />
<br />
There are far more important things to worry about. But time and time again, our officials have shown that they'd rather deal with the small things in life rather than what really matters. It's far more important to them to ban <a href="http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/home-ministry-shelves-childrens-book-on-sex-education">children's books</a>, than ensure that our kids grow up with the best education possible. Perhaps it's because they don't have any education themselves ( and I don't necessarily count having a degree as equivalent to being educated), that they behave this way. (See my last column on this subject <a href="http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?col=musings&file=/2012/2/29/columnists/musings/10803388&sec=Musings">here</a>.)<br />
<br />
Explain to me though how behaving like a bunch of louts will make you win votes. I may not always agree with those in opposition to the government but it's hard not to sympathise when you get <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSeElZawXWE">thugs riding motorbikes into halls</a>, trying to drown out ceramah, shouting down people and worse of all, physically shoving and beating up people. It makes me think of Middle Eastern politics, not Malaysian.<br />
<br />
I remember too how at the march to protest the Peaceful Assembly Bill, someone actually organised a bunch of <a href="http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/11/29/anti-gay-group-marches-against-bar-council/">fake protestors with a fake banner claiming to support 'free sex</a>'. They were young, given t-shirts and a banner and told what to do. What are we teaching our kids? To lie and deceive? That's the proper Malay and Islamic way to bring up children?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRaA_1aFHU9WRWkNS9hJfhS7Cy-i6jIP0KAsmjbPHaLlXgSBMKubOmCJSaiEzRG779IW5qkQbk-OSoduoscBkaEDcFDryX4DT-O-3WbNu7uIo1MXxUouJx9_lIUkGMY6VDmRP4W_k31mk5/s1600/Samad+Said+n+Ambiga+pix.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRaA_1aFHU9WRWkNS9hJfhS7Cy-i6jIP0KAsmjbPHaLlXgSBMKubOmCJSaiEzRG779IW5qkQbk-OSoduoscBkaEDcFDryX4DT-O-3WbNu7uIo1MXxUouJx9_lIUkGMY6VDmRP4W_k31mk5/s320/Samad+Said+n+Ambiga+pix.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
And all those posters (in colour too! Who paid for them?) of Ambiga and Pak Samad Said saying that a vote for them is a vote for free sex! Seriously?? Pak Samad? The National Laureate? Who led a march against PPSMI?? And Ambiga, who's a middle-aged Mum just like me! I guess only dumb people expect us to believe this.<br />
<br />
And that's the trouble..when stupid people rule, they think their electorate must be even dumber than them. And why not? Everything is about dumbing down our minds, whether it's through the media or through our education system. I can't tell you how many requests I get from students for interviews to do research on totally laughable subjects. I don't blame them because if their supervisors let their research proposals through, it's the supervisors who are responsible. (I kid you not, their 'research' often consisted of newspaper articles.) One student recently sent me a 'questionaire' consisting of <i>three</i> multiple choice questions. And then we wonder why we have people saying <a href="http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/3/5/nation/10854837&sec=nation">this</a>. <br />
<br />
The thing is if we are smart, then we're often saying very different things from what those who rule us would like to hear. So since they can't fight with intelligence, they resort to the same old trick - discredit and demonise. Which to me is about as effective as pouring a kettle of boiling water on a mountain of snow.<br />
<br />
I know the elections are coming soon. And as always, the tenor of talk gets lowered as everyone supposedly vies for the vote. But this time it's gotten even worse. So trashy is the talk these days that you have to wonder if some people are desperate or what. <br />
<br />
So I'm just saying to those who aspire to get our votes, here is what you should do:<br />
<br />
1. Be nice, be gracious, be polite -- rudeness makes you look ugly<br />
2. If you disagree with someone, fine. But disagree courteously and intelligently, don't just badmouth them.<br />
3. If you don't think someone's right, give your reasons why.<br />
4. At least pretend your audience is smart and live up to them.<br />
5. If you really think violence is the answer, we'll find you a ticket to Syria where you can indulge all you want.<br />
6. If you really think you're a defender of Islam, we'll get you a ticket to trail the Republicans on their election campaign. We'll even get you a spot on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rush_Limbaugh">Rush Limbaugh</a>'s show where you can do your defending thing.<br />
7. Do stop suddenly kissing babies and hugging old people. Seriously, we don't buy it.<br />
8. Leave your expensive watch at home if you're going to sympathise with how people are coping with their monthly expenses. Unless you're going to donate the cost of the watch to some worthwhile cause.<br />
9. Lower your volume. Shouting something stupid doesn't make it smarter.<br />
10. Tell us what your principles in life are and how you aim to stick to them.<br />
<br />
As for the rest of us, perhaps we should be more discerning as to who we choose to rule us. I think we should look at individuals and judge them on their principles, on their qualifications and on how they behave. Not just because they're the NotBN or the NotPakatan candidates. There are good people on all sides so we should do all we can to get good people in. And perhaps we should be writing our individual demands and giving it to the candidates when they go round canvassing for our support. Just on a piece of paper saying "I will vote for you if..."<br />
<br />
Mine would say,<br />
<br />
...if you're female (yes, we need more women in Parliament!!)<br />
...if you vow to fight corruption<br />
...if you promise not to impose your personal beliefs on me in any form<br />
...if you support a free press, freedom of speech and freedom of expression<br />
...if you believe in equal rights for everyone<br />
...if you promise to protect the weakest and most marginalised in our society<br />
<br />
And if you trashtalk til the cows come home, then expect the chickens to come to roost...<br />
<br />
</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-62182106730027249922012-01-22T19:32:00.000+08:002012-01-22T19:32:27.138+08:00Gong Xi Fa Cai!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSB3gckvI29iVAK8xVP1amNmN051y1i7rIaxqfhGARFd3__k7asIVdTOHJnL2AtaYR4UXUNHHgDMBprwRiPGBvaJpBe5QFShC7bgQ-2K9keLn0VORmJqMh_VkIVl6WrQbyE9nn8-Sp-dUK/s1600/UNICEF+dragon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSB3gckvI29iVAK8xVP1amNmN051y1i7rIaxqfhGARFd3__k7asIVdTOHJnL2AtaYR4UXUNHHgDMBprwRiPGBvaJpBe5QFShC7bgQ-2K9keLn0VORmJqMh_VkIVl6WrQbyE9nn8-Sp-dUK/s320/UNICEF+dragon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chinese New Year Dragon by Claude Martinot</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year! May the Year of the Dragon bring joyous dances, dazzling adventures and fulfilled dreams!! And plentiful prosperity of course!<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-43580200057088221332011-12-31T18:13:00.000+08:002011-12-31T18:13:27.281+08:00The Year of Obliviousness<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
If there was a word that kept popping out at me this entire year, it was 'obliviousness'. It just felt to me that so many people spent 2011 being completely oblivious to what was happening around them. Whether it was Middle Eastern dictators who refused to understand why their people were taking to the streets, to Wall Street bankers who kept awarding themselves humongous bonuses even after their banks had gone bankrupt and people had lost their homes, to the politicians who refused to connect all the many floods and other extreme weather to climate change, so many people at the pinnacles of power remained oblivious to changes going on in the world.<br />
<br />
In the Arab countries, people went out onto the streets not because they are a bunch of thugs wanting to destabilise the government. They went out because after years and years of repression, they simply got fed up and wanted to say that they want the same things as other human beings around the world - freedom to speak, to have choices, to have a say on what happens to their countries. Why did they 'suddenly' want this? Because they saw that it is possible for other people to have that freedom without their country going to the dogs. In any case, their countries, with so much poverty and unemployment, were already going to the dogs under their leaders. So what was there to lose? For a great summary about the many myths about the Arab Spring, read <a href="http://www.juancole.com/2011/12/top-ten-myths-about-the-arab-spring-of-2011.html">this</a> by Prof Juan Cole.<br />
<br />
Yes,the revolutions remain incomplete and imperfect. The leaders coming in may not be the nicest people on earth but hey, that's what you get with democracy. What the Arab rakyat most cannot stand is corruption so any alternative to that is welcome. If the new lot also proves corrupt and incompetent, then they should know that they'll also face the same protests.<br />
<br />
The Arab protests perhaps could be said to have inspired other protests, most notably the Occupy movement. The Occupy movement started from people's anger at how the US banks, indeed the whole economic system, have favoured the rich 1% while the other 99% have had to suffer the consequences. When people have lost jobs and their homes, it's hard to read about bankers and other corporate tycoons living it up on huge salaries and bonuses, spending money on all sorts of designer goods and toys. It's the sheer obliviousness of the small number of the wealthy, just like the corrupt Arab dictators, to the fact that people will resent such ostentation insensitively pushed in their faces.<br />
<br />
It is also obliviousness that fueled the growth of these <a href="http://occupywallst.org/">Occupy</a> movements. You might be able to count people on the streets but you can't count how widespread the idea behind it is, nor can you control what happens to it. So if you try and dismiss these few people, or worse, try to disperse them with violent means, then you ignite a spark which allows the idea to spread. How can you talk about democracy in the US, say, when the police are teargassing their own citizens in the same way that the Syrian government is? OK, the Syrians are using real bullets but still, what sense of obliviousness is it that let mayors and police chiefs allow their cops to teargas, and in one infamous case, pepperspray students full in the face, and then expect things to peacefully die down? People are no longer ants meant to be sprayed away, nowadays they get larger and bite back.<br />
<br />
Which brings me back to the obliviousness in our own country. I wonder why we act as if the rest of the world have nothing to do with us, and yet still want to stand tall in the world? One example of an oblivious statement this year: the MCA guy who said that we should not give overseas Malaysians the right to vote because they don't know the true picture of what is happening back home. Hello, what planet are you on? Have you heard of the internet, or even relatives who can talk on the phone to their families overseas? <br />
<br />
Of course, the prime example of sheer blindness is the government's response to Bersih by refusing to see it as anything but a 'ploy' by opposition parties to supposedly overthrow the government. I never saw a worse example of bad public relations ever. While there may have been political parties involved in Bersih, the government failed to recognise that there were also many ordinary Malaysians who were watching it all happening and deciding for themselves what they thought of it. And every government misstep became major recruitment ads for Bersih. Ban t-shirts? Join Bersih. Badmouth Ambiga and make ridiculous accusations about her? Join Bersih. Arrest six people, including a popular MP, under Emergency Ordinance? Join Bersih.<br />
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<br />
If I were the PM, I would have gone down to the street that day on July 9, stood between the FRU and the rallygoers and seen the many Aunties and Uncles and young people who were there, and decided, right, these are not thugs and there has to be a better way to deal with this. That was the moment when leadership should have overwhelmed politics.<br />
<br />
There is no denying of course that Bersih had an effect, with the Parliamentary Select Committee being formed and some changes being made. In the end, the Election Commission agreed to using indelible ink. Honestly, did we really have to go through all that rigmarole just to get that? It just goes to show that when there's a will, there's a way. Now we just need the will to implement all the other recommendations. I have a particular bee in my bonnet about the overseas voting. Every few years I see my husband and maid trudge off to the Indonesian embassy to vote in their elections. Gee, if that country that we constantly look down on can do it, why can't we?<br />
<br />
There are other examples of obliviousness in our country. One of the main ones is the habit of being oblivious to the fact that our people are not as dumb as our government thinks it is. Despite our failing education system and our cowed mainstream media, people still manage to rise above the dumbness to learn for themselves what is happening. They can see what are lies, manipulations and injustices. After all, if the Arab people can, why can't we, with our better education and infrastructure? And we can also see when we are being treated like dumb asses.<br />
<br />
For instance, there was this bit of <a href="http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/12/30/nation/20111230155227&sec=nation">news</a> yesterday. All I can say is, if you're fool enough to hand over a cheque for RM1.7million for services not yet rendered, then you're asking for it la. And it's not going to make us more sympathetic, sorry.<br />
<br />
I also don't get how oblivious we can be to the fact that the world is watching us. Thus far this year, the rest of the world knows Malaysia as the country that banned line dancing for religious reasons, has a club for women who think they should be whores for their husbands, believes that minorities are overrunning the country, passes a law for peaceful assembly which ostensibly does not allow any assembly, thinks yellow t-shirts are dangerous and that Muslims are being converted by solar-powered electronic Bibles. Are we aiming for the Silliest Country in the World Award? And do we expect to be taken seriously anywhere?<br />
<br />
Of course, obliviousness cuts both ways. Our oblivious leaders rely on us being oblivious to what they're up to too. They rely on us accepting uncritically everything they say and do. So when someone says, "This is politically-motivated." or "How would I know what they do?", they expect us to swallow it all and smile benignly at them, poor victims that they are. I despair sometimes when I see people, especially young people, repeat word for word what is told to them. Most despairingly are the students who say that if they are allowed to participate in politics, they will do badly in their studies. I have to ask, are they straight A students right now? Are they currently embarking on groundbreaking research that they can't take their eyes off their books for even a second, except to make ridiculous statements like that? But then again, when you have lecturers that say <a href="http://malaysianinsider-malaysiakini.worldheritage.com.my/2011/12/how-does-one-reply-to-%E2%80%98salam-1malaysia%E2%80%99/">this</a>, what can we expect of our students?<br />
<br />
I was thinking of doing up a list of Most Oblivious Malaysians in 2011. But I don't think I'll get away with it. Suffice to say, that there are far too many public figures who are oblivious to the fact that, to the rest of us, they are greedy, arrogant, corrupt, stupid and have no business being where they are. And to the fact that we the public are totally sick of all the posturings and pontificatings that they assume we want and need.<br />
<br />
The rest of the world is waking up to the fact that in order to survive, you simply have to have your ear to the ground, to genuinely and humbly listen and to give people what they want. It is no use saying that people don't know what they want; sometimes they have to be given what they think they need in order for them to learn. That might mean hardship sometimes. But it has to be their choice, not yours.<br />
<br />
It's not easy being non-oblivious. Sometimes it means sleepless nights. But in the longterm, maybe long after we're gone, it'll be worth it.<br />
<br />
Wish you all a 2012 that's alert and aware.<br />
<br />
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<br /></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-68300232599377138492011-12-25T09:53:00.001+08:002011-12-25T09:53:48.248+08:00Merry Christmas from Down Under!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
Hi everyone, wish all of you a Very Merry Christmas and a New Year that's joyous, peaceful and fulfilling!<br />
<br />
I'm in Australia on a short holiday. It's been pretty hectic. We drove from Melbourne to Sydney, with a stop to have lunch with friends in Albury and then to Wagga Wagga to stay overnight. It was mostly a nostalgia trip as hubby went to uni in Wagga Wagga. In Sydney we had to take our Harry Potter-obsessed daughter to see the Harry Potter exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum, and then did what we've always wanted to do, climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge. I really recommend it. It's completely doable by anyone except those who get totally paralysed by the fear of heights. It's perfectly safe because they dress you in the right clothes and you are tethered the entire time to the railings. The day we went up, the weather wasn't too great but still the views are breathtaking.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, in case anyone's still fussing over whether it's okay to wish anyone Merry Christmas or not, here's an enlightening article about Muslims in the US <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/17/muslim-christmas-celebrations_n_1154229.html?ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false">here</a>.<br />
<br />
Have a fabulous holiday!!</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-50970037361072178402011-11-29T14:44:00.000+08:002011-11-29T14:44:24.866+08:00Boogieing on My Own<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A question I'm often asked these days is, why don't I enter politics and why don't I stand for elections? It always puzzles me when I'm asked this because it's not a question that I ever entertain myself. So for people to even think of it is something I find curious.<br />
<br />
But I suppose I shouldn't be. I come from a 'political' family, apparently, and for many people, it is only 'natural' to go into the 'family business', given that other 'political families' have done the same. But what most don't understand is that in my family, it is not at all natural. If my parents had their way, all their children would be doctors because that's their real wish for us. But none of us did. They left us to decide for ourselves what we wanted to do, hence we all wound up doing anything but medicine.<br />
<br />
Nor was there much encouragement to go into politics. My father doesn't happen to believe in dynastic politics so he never encouraged us to enter the field, certainly not while he was in office. That's why my brother Mukhriz didn't join until after Dad stood down. We don't as a rule huddle as a family to talk about political strategy of any kind, though of course as people who are aware of current affairs, we do talk about what is going on around us on the rare occasions that we get together. And believe me, it's a much more well-rounded conversation than you'd expect.<br />
<br />
So there was never any talk about me going into politics or even joining any political party, which would naturally, I suppose, have been UMNO. Certainly my parents have never insisted I should, probably because they know me well enough to know that I won't fit in. Neither did I think of it myself, having a natural aversion to any sort of political organisation, whichever side they may be on. Something about the need to always toe the party line, wear uniforms, sing party anthems etc turns me off. I'm one of those people who cannot stand dancing poco-poco for too long because I get impatient with the need to conform with everyone else. I prefer to boogie on my own.<br />
<br />
So entering politics is something I've never considered. My only regret really is that in all the years that Dad was in office, I never ever went on the campaign trail during elections, not to campaign but to observe it from close quarters. I sort of feel that as a writer, I should have done that for the experience but I never wanted to at the time and didn't really think of what I missed til Dad stepped down. Ah well, can't turn back time now and yes, it'll be a major omission in any autobiography I might one day write.<br />
<br />
But lately I've had to analyse why people want me to go into politics. There are basically two categories of people who keep mentioning it. One lot are those who get very irritated with the many comments I make on the state of politics today. They think that if I want to comment on it then I should enter politics or butt out. By that they mean join a political party and stand for elections. The thing is I don't find a single one of the political parties in Malaysia today at all appealing, whether in Barisan or in Pakatan. I think it's because they are all filled with politicians.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately politics today is pretty much a discredited occupation. Once upon a time it was a noble profession because people entered politics to fight for their fellow citizens. They wanted freedom, self-determination, the right to progress on their own terms. Politicians then came from professions who were in touch with the realities on the ground - teachers, doctors, lawyers, social workers.<br />
<br />
Today we have to wonder what background some of our politicians have. Some don't seem to have worked at a regular job at all, going almost directly from being student activist to national figure. Some may have worked before but seem to lack a basic grasp of the fundamentals of political representation and governance. Some have been there so long that they seem to have forgotten what life as an ordinary person is like.<br />
<br />
If we had problems with our health, we would go to a professional who has done years and years of study to qualify to certain standards. This is important because we need to trust them in order to place ourselves in their care. Similarly we wouldn't ask just anyone to design and build our homes, offices, roads etc. We would go to architects, engineers, contractors and others who have the sort of professional qualifications that would be required.<br />
<br />
Yet when it comes to governing the country, these days we accept pretty low standards. We choose people with either little governing experience or qualifications which are often suspect. That's partly because at the candidate level we don't have a say as to who gets to stand for elections. We just vote for whoever is there on the slate. And really very often, as was the case in the last election for me, we really don't know what makes these candidates worth voting for. We're supposed to simply trust the party they come from. If that were all it takes to secure votes, why do parties talk about 'winnable' candidates? The candidate himself or herself <i>does</i> matter.<br />
<br />
Perhaps we should institute some sort of exam for wannabe politicians and only allow them to stand for elections if they pass. Certainly the exam should include knowledge of the Federal Constitution and world affairs. Plus maybe a long essay on "why I would be good for this country." Exam papers should be marked by a panel of ordinary citizens and results made public.<br />
<br />
So one lot thinks I should enter politics because as an individual or as an NGO, I shouldn't be talking about politics. I have a problem with that line of thinking because for one, why should I have any less qualifications than the lot that we have right now? And secondly, as Aung San Syu Kyii said, "even if you don't like politics, politics will come to you." Like it or not, politics affects everyone so we should all be able to have a say, any time, all the time and not just once every five years. Politics cannot be limited to 'professional' politicians from political parties only. After all, what they, the limited few, do affects the rest of us, the majority of the citizenry.<br />
<br />
Then there's the other lot who think I should enter politics because they like what I've been saying and doing all these years. Well, thank you but... no thanks. Firstly, as I said, I'm not about to join any political party and therefore if I ever stood, I'd be an independent. The impact of independents thus far has been pretty minimal. Standing for elections is a difficult and expensive business and there is no point, I think, in standing and in the unlikelihood of a win, being one of a tiny number of independents in Parliament. Against the behemoths that are our existing political parties, we'd just get drowned. Unless there are enough independents that they essentially form a third party which both sides need to court. But fat chance of that! (I did once on Twitter jokingly suggest forming a Common Sense Party, because that seemed to be the trait most lacking in our politicians across the board. Surprisingly many people said they would join it!)<br />
<br />
In any case one needs to enter politics at a relatively young age in order to have the stamina for it. And I'm getting a bit long in the tooth for that I think.<br />
<br />
So I kinda like being where I am, an independent observer of events. But I know I confuse people a lot, principally people who are so immersed in politics that they can only see things in black and white. Well there are some of us who prefer to stand on principles rather than politics. I've talked about <a href="http://rantingsbymm.blogspot.com/2010/03/blight-of-hyperpartisanship.html">hyperpartisanship</a> before, where people on one side, by default, insist the other side is wrong because they are on the other, and therefore 'wrong', side. I think all political parties are guilty of this, which is really a shame because then we, the electorate, get forgotten. Surely nobody can be totally wrong, or totally right all the time.<br />
<br />
Standing on principle means that regardless of who, or what party they belong to, if they're right, they're right, if they're wrong, they're wrong. And if civil society ie NGOs, individuals, writers, artists and everyone else who don't belong to political parties, is to have any credibility, then we should call it as it is. Our strength is in NOT being partisan.<br />
<br />
Personally, my principle is that I will always support and help those who have no voice. Unfortunately, usually, though not always, the voiceless are the ones most ignored by those in power and even those who aspire to power. They don't know anybody, have no money, have few outlets to have their grievances heard. Often they are scorned and stigmatised by society for being different. Yet I do believe that the true measure of a good government is how it takes care of the weakest segments of society, not the strongest.<br />
<br />
I also do not understand injustice and inequality. My years at the Malaysian AIDS Council opened my eyes to a lot of both. As my 'guru', the late Dr Jonathan Mann, emphasised, one's health is directly affected by one's enjoyment of the basic human rights. The more rights you have, the better your health. And the opposite is also true.<br />
<br />
So if you cannot have basic health care, your right to life, to health, to employment is jeopardised, if not totally violated. If you do not have the right to education, then again all your other basic rights are affected. All these rights are guaranteed not only under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but also in our Federal Constitution. Therefore I think it should be the role of all of us, as well as politicians, to fight for those rights for everyone. And if our politicians don't, then it is incumbent on civil society to call them out on it. (By the way, Norhayati Kaprawi explains it all more succinctly than me <a href="http://www.thenutgraph.com/mahu-dukung-demokrasi-atau-diskriminasi/">here</a>.)<br />
<br />
For me therefore, life is about principles. And trying to tell the truth is a great part of that. This Raya, I had several people come up to me at open house and ask me why I have joined the opposition. I'm sure the oppos may be just as surprised as me to hear this! Apparently, joining the Bersih rally is tantamount to joining the opposition and these people believed it because some noisy people said so.<br />
<br />
Well! That's news to me! I went to the Bersih rally for all the reasons I said in <a href="http://rantingsbymm.blogspot.com/2011/07/my-bersih-20-experience.html">my post</a> about it. I do believe in clean and fair elections. Who on earth would want dirty and unfair ones? I'm sorry, that is beyond my comprehension. I also did not feel it right to remain in the safety of my home while so many young people I know, including my daughter, were risking being teargassed at the rally. My presence there doesn't mean that I have thrown my lot in with those political parties in the opposition. I'm afraid I don't particularly trust them because after all, they ARE politicians and by nature they'll say anything to get a vote. They may sound good on some things but a good test, I find, is to check their attitudes towards women. Most of them are quite shaky or fail miserably on that score. (Of course I would welcome any election pledges to lift every single reservation on CEDAW for example but I don't see anyone doing that yet...)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, there are those who purport to work for the ruling government who do them no favours either. When they censor news, or worse, make them up or distort them, then they only make people angry. It is a mistake to think that the ordinary Malaysian is too dumb to see through all sorts of political machinations. And when you see the powerful unjustly attack the powerless, then the decent citizen's natural inclination is to get indignant. It is beyond unseemly really when the most powerful people in the country see fit to call individuals all sorts of ugly names. For one thing, it makes them look dreadfully insecure.<br />
<br />
This is therefore a plea for some common sense and decency to return to our political arena. Voters like me want to elect representatives who truly represent us and our concerns, are regular people with good values and are nice to everyone, even those they don't feel naturally comfortable with. We want people who respect every citizen in this country and who understand that everyone has the same rights under the Federal Constitution, with some exceptions (okay, it's there in the Constitution, let's not deny that). And we want gracious and magnanimous people who, if they lose, will reflect humbly on what they could have done better and not go all out to sabotage winners.<br />
<br />
We want leaders who realise that freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are among the rights they need to protect, not curb. We need leaders who have the guts to say so. We don't want wishy-washy people.(And as a fine example of wishy-washiness and confusion, today the lawyers' walk to protest the Peaceful Assembly Bill was itself protested at by others who didn't seem to realise that with this new Bill, they too would be prohibited.)<br />
<br />
And I think we want a stop to nonsensical statements by all parties, statements which seem more geared to getting headlines than about real well-thought-out policy on real issues, not manufactured ones. People, there's a global economic disaster looming!!<br />
<br />
Perhaps for the coming elections, instead of our political parties or coalitions issuing manifestos on what they will do for us, we the voters should issue a people's manifesto on what we want from whichever coalition that wins. A list of demands which, if they want our vote, they must promise to fulfil. In other words, WE set the agenda. Then they can compete for our votes. And let's make it clear that our votes cannot be bought with money. We are just <i>way</i> too expensive for any amount of money.<br />
<br />
So for anyone who thinks I'm on this side or that side, make no mistake: I'm terribly snotty about the company I keep. And thus far, there are truly very few people who imagine themselves our leaders who I could stand to sit down at dinner with. I do think however that there are lots of decent people lower down the scale, those who are genuinely progressive and sincere but who are perhaps suppressed by the perennial need to toe the line. And that's a real pity because it's all of us who lose in the end.</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-32396188992758282492011-11-04T15:32:00.000+08:002011-11-04T15:32:28.989+08:00Making Room for One Another<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Folks, this was a note (below) I wrote about two years ago after I saw the documentary 'Jihad for Love'. I thought, given the events of recent days, that it was timely to let a wider audience read it.<br />
<br />
There may be those who say we should not even talk about this, that to do so would somehow disturb public order. But how have we been able to respond to anything without seeking knowledge about it first? Are we not enjoined to learn before we react? Or do we simply respond based on whims, fancies and rumours? Is that what we call an intelligent response, or do we not care whether our responses are intelligent or not? And how does this urge to constantly punish benefit us? Does it make us feel better about ourselves when we punish someone else?<br />
<br />
It so happened that recently a report on Muslim LGBTs in the US came out. Not all of it is relevant to us here in Malaysia but some of it is interesting and enlightening. Read it <a href="http://www.intersectionsinternational.org/files/reports/Muslim_LGBT_Report.pdf">here</a> and then, if you want, criticise it. But please don't react without reading it.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial; font-size: x-small;">Al-Quran 58:11 <span style="color: #ababab; font-family: verdana; font-size: xx-small;"><b>(Asad)</b></span> O YOU who have attained to faith! When you are told, “Make room for one another in your collective life”, do make room: [and in return,] God will make room for you [in His grace]. And whenever you are told, “Rise up [for a good deed]”, do rise up;
[and] God will exalt by [many] degrees those of you who have attained
to faith and, [above all,] such as have been vouchsafed [true]
knowledge: for God is fully aware of all that you do.</span><br />
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<h2 class="uiHeaderTitle">
Jihad for Love: My Response to the Movie</h2>
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<span style="font-size: small;">October 5, 2009</span> </h2>
<br />
<br />
I watched a film last
night which moved me so much I felt I had to write about it. At the
post-movie discussion I felt so inarticulate in expressing what I felt
about it that it kept me up all night. So in order to exorcise those
thoughts from my head, I thought I would put them down here.<br />
<br />
The
movie was 'Jihad for Love' by Parvez Sharma, made in 2007. It is
essentially about the plight of several gay Muslims, men and women,
around the world including a gay Imam in South Africa, a gay Egyptian
man who is forced into exile in France, some gay Iranian men also forced
into exile after undergoing torture ( 100 lashes in one case) and some
Egyptian and Turkish lesbian women.<br />
<br />
My response to it is
from that of a Muslim woman who believes that Islam is based on justice,
equality and compassion and who wants to fight the injustices
perpetuated in the name of Islam from within.<br />
<br />
The first
thing that struck me about all the gay people in the movie was how
religious they were. Indeed, far more than me. To them, praying and
seeking help from God was the most natural thing. No doubt the Imam from
South Africa had far more formal training than the rest but it
impressed me that all of them, without exception, were always conscious
of God, of their duties as Muslims. Furthermore in seeking to find
answers to what they view as sexual orientations that they are born with
and cannot help, it is to God and religion that they turn to, nowhere
else. Not a single one seemed to have turned to drugs or anything.
Certainly the idea of abandoning religion totally seemed not to have
occurred to any of them.<br />
<br />
Secondly, they all seemed like
very loving family people. The imam was in fact a divorced father of
three and the scenes with his children, who clearly adore him, are
particularly touching. He has not hidden the fact that he is gay from
them because he is out in the open but their love for him and
declarations of support should anyone try to harm him underscored to me
what family values is supposed to be about.<br />
<br />
Similarly with
the others. The young men forced into exile are seen phoning their
mothers and the conversations are clearly emotional. Their mothers miss
them, they miss their mothers. They all wish they did not have to be
apart. I was intrigued that the Egyptian's conversation had so many
references to religion ( as in "I have wonderful news today on the
Prophet's birthday!) including ending the conversation with his mother
saying "There is no God but God" and him responding, "And Mohamad is the
Prophet of God." Perhaps this is typical of Egyptian culture but
certainly no Malay I know ever speaks like this.<br />
<br />
All of
them live with the constant need to find some way of reconciling their
sexuality with their religion. It is difficult and most have to live a
life of secrecy. But not once do they abandon all hope that God is
always merciful, compassionate and full of love and, as one of them
said, "always by my side." The Egyptian man who was imprisoned and raped
said he got through his ordeal by always keeping his Quran by his side
and reading it constantly. I don't know of anyone with more privileged
lives who do that.<br />
<br />
In the discussion afterwards, I said
that the film was the best religious lesson that I ever had because it
illustrated how Muslims, in times of adversity ( and God knows these men
and women faced adversity beyond most of our imaginations), find their
solace in religion because they had been taught all their lives that God
is Merciful and Compassionate. And in fact, these are His most
important attributes. It served to remind us who are constantly having
to face so many issues regarding religion to be steadfast and to keep
the faith.<br />
<br />
One of the commenters after the film had asked
why it was that Muslim gay people wanted to "have their cake and eat it"
ie be Muslim AND gay. This assumes that there is simply no room for gay
people in Islam. I had to respond to this because it is the same
argument that Muslim feminists hear: how can you want equality between
men and women and still be a Muslim? That comes from a profound
misunderstanding of what Islam is, and confuses human interpretations
and implementation of Islamic law with what I believe God intended. I
find no references in the Quran that God said we should discriminate
either between the sexes or between heterosexuals and homosexuals. So
why would it not be possible to believe in equality before God?<br />
<br />
Besides,
who is anyone to tell me, any gay person or any Muslim for that matter,
that they should not be Muslim just because your views are different
from what is considered 'the norm'? If you are born and bred Muslim, the
values, ethics and indeed rituals of Islam are part of what you are,
the very fabric of what you are made. How does anyone simply abandon
this? Indeed few people do and I would suggest when it happens it is
often because there was nobody to explain to them what Islam really
means, particularly by referring to the Quran. (And it is the Quran that
says "there is no compulsion in religion"). Instead 'Islam' to them is
exemplified by the political environment around them which tends to be
harsh and extreme, and indeed far from the spirit of justice that Islam
is built on.<br />
<br />
Which brings us to the issue of the state and
religion. It is clear that the men and women who have been forced into
hiding or exile are not running away from God or their faith but just
from the state. The state which justifies imprisoning, beating and
killing in the name of religion. The young Iranian who finally goes to
Canada may have left his family and country behind but he brought his
faith with him. This was what caused him to collapse into tears once he
landed in his new country; that he had been able to escape but not the
many thousands of others who did not have the means to. He was not
talking about escaping from God but only from the clutches of the state.<br />
<br />
Indeed
what moved me most about Jihad for Love was how intensely personal each
person in it felt about his religion. It dispels the stereotype that
homosexuals or transvestites are people without religion or have
abandoned it. And it is clear, that no matter what the state does in the
name of religion, it will not be able to erase Islam from the hearts of
these people.<br />
<br />
And that is our only weapon, those of us
who have chosen to fight for equality and justice within Islam. That no
matter what our detractors do to us - call for boycotts, censure,
threaten us with harm - they cannot take Islam away from us. We may not
be THEIR Muslims but we are Muslims nevertheless.</div>
</div>
</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-87040259451309876522011-10-30T12:38:00.001+08:002011-10-30T12:38:16.207+08:00How to Win An Election (Not)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: black; font-weight: normal;">Well, well, well ...this must be a new strategy to win elections...alienate the hearts and minds of half the population by saying that they should not have any rights. Rights are supposedly a Western invention, which seems to say that in Islam, one has no rights, especially if you're a woman.</span></div>
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These are the same people behind HIMPUN. I've always maintained that these supremacist movements are basically macho male movements and women have absolutely nothing to gain from them. Well, here's proof.</div>
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<a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/179954">Muslim NGO bares fangs over gender rights forum</a></div>
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7:16PM Oct 29, 2011</td><td style="font-family: verdana;" valign="bottom" width="96"><div style="display: block; font-family: verdana; min-height: 17px; width: 85px;">
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A
Muslim NGO is taking issue with a<b> roundtable discussion on gender
rights and women’s issues on the basis that it allegedly promotes
“Western” ideas that it claims are a threat to Islamic values.</b><br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />The group, Majlis
Perundingan Pertubuhan Islam Malaysia (Mapim), in a statement today
objected to the event ‘Gender Equality: Unaddressed Women's Rights
Issues’ organised by Empower on Oct 31 in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />Mapim
general-secretary Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid singled out two sessions at the
roundtable in particular, ‘UN Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in Defending the Human Rights of
Lesbians, Bisexual Women and Transgenders in Malaysia’ by Angela Kuga
Thas and ‘A CEDAW Approach to Family Law in Advancing Equality and Non
Discrimination’ by Lalitha Menon.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />“Mapim rejects attempts by a group of secularists and liberals who are keen to be slaves of the Western agenda,” said Mohd Azmi.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />“Discussions such as
this is secretly aimed at fuelling campaigns and advocacy to change the
values and moral foundations of Islam that are central to Malay-Muslims
and Malaysians in general,” he charged.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />“We are concerned
with attempts by this group which want to highlight the rights of
lesbians and bisexual women in terms of human rights within the
country.”<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />He said that it was not acceptable to bring to the fore discussions of the rights of lesbians and gays in terms of human rights.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />“Lifestyles that are
opposed to Islam and Eastern culture should not be made topics for
debate because <b>Malaysian society has already been shaped by religious
values that should be respected,</b>” said Mohd Azmi.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />According to
publicity material on the forum found on the Human Rights Commission
(Suhakam) website, the full-day roundtable discussion "aims at promoting
and monitoring gender equality to see whether it is in line with the
rights-based framework as put forward in the rights-based framework as
put forward in the CEDAW, ratified by Malaysia in 1995".<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />It will feature opening remarks by Suhakam commissioner James Nayagam.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" /><br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
<span style="color: maroon; font-family: verdana;"><strong style="font-family: verdana;">No to discussion on women’s equality</strong></span><br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" /> <br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />
In the same breath, the<b> Mapim representative also riled against attempts
at the same forum to discuss women-related family laws “from the angle
of equality and discrimination”.</b>
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" /><b>“Mapim regrets
efforts to challenge Islamic family laws and those who criticise it
based on human and gender rights, such as is highlighted in Western
culture and values.<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" /><br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />“Efforts to continue
to question Islamic family laws within the Islamic Family Enactment that
now exists in this country will bring with it huge implications, that
is to move for Islamic laws to be changed to suit the values and
lifestyles of the secular-liberal West, in the name of women’s rights
and human rights,” he said.</b>
<b><br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" /></b>
<br style="font-family: verdana; letter-spacing: 0px;" />Using the age-old
argument that the position of Islam is guaranteed in the constitution as
the nation's official religion, Mohd Azmi argued that <b>this position
should be “entrenched as the basis of all forms of thought that are
advanced in the mainstream of our society”.</b></div>
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<b>Perhaps this Azmi fellow should travel to Tunisia where in the recent elections, the Islamist party Ehnnada reaffirmed that they would respect women's rights there. Tunisia has been one of the most advanced Muslim countries when it comes to women's rights, even outlawing polygamy since its independence from France in 1956.</b></div>
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<span class="date">28 October 2011</span>
<span class="time-text">Last updated at </span><span class="time">14:06 GMT</span>
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Tunisia's Islamists 'reaffirm commitment to women'</h1>
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Smoke is seen in the sky as police use tear gas on crowds protesting after the country's first democratic elections</div>
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<b>The
leader of the Islamist party that won the most seats in Tunisia's
elections has said women's social gains would not be reversed.</b></div>
<b>Ennahda leader Rachid Ghannouchi promised to strengthen the role of women in Tunisian politics.</b><br />
Mr Ghannouchi appealed for calm in Sidi Bouzid where violent
protests broke out after election officials disqualified candidates from
a rival party.<br />
Tunisian troops fired in the air to disperse hundreds of protesters.<br />
There were no reports of casualties.<br />
The BBC's Chloe Arnold, in North Africa, says the protests
have marred what was otherwise praised by international observers as a
peaceful, free and fair election on Sunday.<br />
<span class="cross-head">Policy change fears</span>
Since its victory in Sunday's vote, Ennahda has sought to
reassure secularists and investors, nervous about the prospect of
Islamists holding power in one of the Arab world's most liberal
countries, by saying it would not ban alcohol, stop tourists wearing
bikinis on the beaches or impose Islamic banking. <br />
But despite the reassurances, Ennahda's victory is causing
concern in some parts of Tunisia, who fear the party could later change
its policies, our correspondent says.<br />
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<img alt="Election results" height="274" src="http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/56339000/gif/_56339548_tunisian_election_2011_304.gif" width="304" />
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"Ennahda reaffirms its commitment to the women of Tunisia, to
strengthen their role in political decision-making, in order to avoid
any going back on their social gains," Mr Ghannouchi said at a news
conference.<br />
<b>No attempt would be made to force women to wear the headscarf, including in government</b>, he added.<br />
The party, which won more than 41% of the vote and 90 seats
in the 217-member parliament, is in coalition talks, reportedly with its
nearest rivals, the CPR and Ettakatol.<br />
Correspondents say both are left-wing secularist parties which have insisted they will maintain Tunisia's Muslim identity.<br />
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<b></b></div>
<a href="" name="133527c2dac236a7_commentpanel" style="font-family: verdana;"></a></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-67758076920933149802011-10-27T00:07:00.001+08:002011-10-27T00:07:37.149+08:00Driving Out the Darkness<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG4Z4W2MtP9wH9TYEnxh7kfGWrbyb_fnPIg80dtg3mZgEEHLQxzzlgDp3nx311R6IntfpxziJg7Na0ecpFtaJkdfBl8EI1Z-Eh5vdqSI_0WtBRlLJqxtt1aTGwjDF2DNBXoLcupHw_C6WJ/s1600/e+kad+raya+deepavali+1small.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG4Z4W2MtP9wH9TYEnxh7kfGWrbyb_fnPIg80dtg3mZgEEHLQxzzlgDp3nx311R6IntfpxziJg7Na0ecpFtaJkdfBl8EI1Z-Eh5vdqSI_0WtBRlLJqxtt1aTGwjDF2DNBXoLcupHw_C6WJ/s320/e+kad+raya+deepavali+1small.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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I know this is a bit late, folks, but I wish you all lots of light and happiness in the coming year!<br />
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I've been very slack I know. My current excuse is that I've had a bad cough this past week. The trouble with coughs is that you don't always look unwell but when the coughing fit comes, then you become doubled up into this convulsive mess and really it's not a pretty sight. And when it happens at night, then you wind up not sleeping. Cue one very grumpy Marina the next day.<br />
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Of course my usual excuse is that I much prefer the fast-paced world of Twitter, where you get news very quickly and move from subject to subject at the pace of eye-blinks. The trouble with that is of course that you get no time to really sit and ponder the issues of the day with any depth. And perhaps that is the problem with all of us today, that we no longer ruminate enough, we react from the slightest of information, stimulated by quick impressions.<br />
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Anyway a lot has been happening lately that it's hard to sort out what to comment on. Over in Libya, Muamar Gadaffi finally lost. Unfortunately he lost in the most gruesome of ways, which doesn't bode well for the future of Libya. I get quite amused seeing all sorts of indignant Malaysians commenting on how ungrateful Libyans are about Gadaffi. That's a bit like foreigners telling us our country is paradise when we know there's a lot wrong with it. I don't think we really know unless we live there what it meant to live under Gadaffi. Like many Arab leaders, there were some things he did well, and many he didn't. We might like his defiance of the West, but that didn't help some of the Libyan citizens who were jailed and even killed during his very long regime. Besides, there is really no excuse for anyone, no matter how benign, to stay in power for 42 years.<br />
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As an aside, Gadaffi was wellknown for his flamboyance including his odd costumes and his female bodyguards. Many thus assumed he was somewhat nuts. But about 20 years ago, I sat next to a foreign ambassador who had actually served in Libya and he said that most assuredly, Gadaffi was not crazy. Which rather makes things worse.<br />
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In much the same week, the Israelis and Hamas finally came to an agreement to exchange prisoners. In return for the one Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who has been held for about five years by Hamas, the Israelis agreed to release 1027 Palestinian prisoners. This was fabulous news for for the families of the released prisoners, some of whom had been in Israeli prisons for over 30 years, but not so great for the remaining 6000 or so Palestinians still imprisoned, including women and children. So as always with the Palestinian issue, one tiny step forward but millions more to go before peace actually becomes reality.<br />
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Back home, I don't even want to get into the ridiculous debate going on about hudud. Despite all the wishful thinking of some of our politicians, it is not going to happen. And it should not happen. And certainly not by force as some delusional so-called ulamas have <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/179639">claimed</a>, without seemingly realising that not only is a system imposed by force ever likely to succeed, but it is in fact unIslamic.<br />
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Among the best arguments against hudud is by the Islamic Renaissance Front <a href="http://www.irfront.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=451:hudud-laws-between-the-literal-and-the-implicit&catid=98:articles&Itemid=482">here</a> and by Art Harun <a href="http://art-harun.blogspot.com/2011/09/of-wet-dream-nightmare-and-marty-mcfly.html">here</a>. And for a view on how hudud will affect women, do go to the Recommended Readings section of the <a href="http://www.sistersinislam.org.my/">SIS</a> website.<br />
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And then there was HIMPUN. I have no problem with their right to speak out and to gather peacefully. But I don't have to agree with them. And it seems that the 995,000 Muslims who didn't turn up at the gathering also didn't agree with them. Or at least couldn't be bothered to get off their butts to.<br />
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Not to be cowed by the underwhelming numbers though, HIMPUN leaders, perhaps bolstered by our PM praising them <a href="http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/179470">for not being like Bersih 2.0</a> ( you know, larger numbers, more multi-ethnic and multi-religious, more focussed, also peaceful if it weren't for the teargas and water cannons fired at them), insisted that the Government has to implement their 10-point demands which include an Anti-Apostasy Law. So we'll see la if our dear leaders will accede to a 5000-strong crowd's 10-point demands instead of the at least 30,000-strong rally's 8-point demands, some of which they are already implementing.<br />
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I think sometimes our country is just plain crazy. In the same week that the Obedient Wives Club launches a sex manual that nobody will be allowed to read ( because you have to be an overseas OWC member to get it), PAS Youth predictably enough is protesting about Elton John coming for a concert here. Art Harun is tremendously funny and sharp about it <a href="http://art-harun.blogspot.com/2011/10/paks-parti-anti-konsert-se-malaysia.html">here</a>. I saw Elton perform a long long time ago in London when I was a student. I certainly didn't become gay because of it, and neither did the guys who were at the same concert. Meantime in the years since, through his <a href="http://www.ejaf.org/">Elton John AIDS Foundation</a>, Elton has raised millions of dollars to fund treatment for People Living with HIV all over the world as well as prevention programmes. No wonder he got a knighthood from Queen Elisabeth II in 1996.<br />
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We on the other hand only thrive on condemning people. Some of you may have read my last <a href="http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?col=musings&file=/2011/10/12/columnists/musings/9675424&sec=Musings">column</a>. If you don't know what that was referring to, here's the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xM5_4zhMBg">programme</a> in question. (I can't upload the video here because it is unlisted. Hopefully you can see it.)<br />
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So my wish this Festival of Light is really for more enlightenment, where people realise that to be hateful, to spew hate, is only to attract more hate, not love.<br />
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As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. so aptly put it: <b><span class="body">Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.</span></b><br />
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<b><span class="body">p/s do you like the new format? </span></b>
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</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-4835557817547730392011-09-22T17:08:00.000+08:002011-09-22T17:08:36.148+08:00An Israeli Soldier Speaks About Occupation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div id="article"> <h1><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Palestinian Authority is making a bid to have the United Nations recognise it as a sovereign state during this current session of the United Nations General Assembly. Predictably the United States is opposing the bid and will veto it in the Security Council. But more than 100 countries already recognise Palestine as a state and will likely support the bid.</span></span></h1><h1><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> It has to be said that not all Palestinians themselves support the bid for statehood. <a href="http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/68268/ali-abunimah/a-formal-funeral-for-the-two-state-solution">Here</a> is one of the best explanations why. </span><span style="font-weight: normal;">It is</span></span> <span style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">not the same reason as why the US isn't supportive.</span></h1><h1><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Whatever it is, the occupation of Palestine by Israel continues to be a thorn in the side of world peace. If anyone regards it as morally correct and just, then read what a former Israeli soldier has to say about it:</span></span> </h1><h1><a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/noam-chayut-israeli-occupation-is-neither-moral-nor-legitimate-2358605.html">Noam Chayut: Israeli occupation is neither moral nor legitimate</a></h1><div class="info"> <em>Thursday, 22 September 2011</em></div><div class="info"><em> </em> </div><div class="body"> In 1979, the year I was born, the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank was 12 years old. <b>I was 10 during the first Palestinian uprising, when my father and his comrades in a reserve unit forced innocent Palestinians out of their homes and shops and, as a form of collective punishment, sent them to clean the streets of graffiti opposing Israeli occupation.</b><br />
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When I joined the army, the 30th anniversary of occupation was being "celebrated", and three years later, as a young officer, I was sent with my soldiers to confront the second intifada. <b>In one month of riots we killed a hundred Palestinians and many more were wounded by live ammunition.</b><br />
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We were told that <b>our goal was "to sear into the consciousness of Palestinian civil society that terrorism doesn't pay</b>." To achieve this, we were to "demonstrate our presence". <b>This meant entering Palestinian residential areas at any time, day or night, throwing stun grenades, shooting in the air or at water tanks, throwing tear gas grenades, creating noise and fear. For the very same reason, we committed revenge attacks such as demolishing the homes of terrorists' families, or killing random Palestinian policemen (armed or unarmed)</b>: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. If militants attacked a road, we would close it to Palestinian traffic; if stones were thrown at cars on a road, we would place an indefinite curfew on the closest village.<br />
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<b>The Israeli military regime over the Palestinian population is now in its 45th year, and while Palestinian violence has dramatically declined, Israeli soldiers still testify about being assigned to "disrupt the day-to-day routine" in Palestinian areas to create in the local community the feeling of "being constantly pursued".</b><br />
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It is still unclear what the Palestinian leadership will propose to the UN tomorrow, beyond recognition of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders. We don't know if, or how, the outcome of any vote will be felt on the ground. However,<b> testimonies from more than 750 former Israeli soldiers and officers who have served in the Occupied Territories over the past decade, make one thing clear: from the point of view of the Israeli army, the occupation is not a temporary means of controlling the population. There is no end to it in sight.</b><br />
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Those who oppose the recognition of a Palestinian state cling to a false belief that Israel's occupation is temporary, its aim to create political space for democratic rule in a future Palestine. This belief is what makes the occupation morally tolerable. Because <b>if an occupation is a permanent one, it can only be illegitimate, not just because the ruler is foreign, but because controlling people via coercion and military orders is immoral.</b><br />
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<b>Even if we accept that a 44-year-long occupation is still temporary in a 63-year-old state; if we ignore the reality of hundreds of thousands of Israeli Jews settled in Palestinian territories, or the existence of two separate and unequal legal regimes imposed on the two ethnic groups in the same small piece of land, it is hard to remain optimistic about Israel's intentions to evacuate, when we hear its soldiers' reports to Breaking The Silence, an NGO which collects their testimonies.</b><br />
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We should accept the fact that <b>the army does not intend to withdraw from the Occupied Territories, and that the status quo is the Israeli government's plan for the future. We should take the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs – who lives in a settlement on Palestinian land – at face value when he declares there won't be peace even in 50 years.</b><br />
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<b>When security and prosperity continue to flourish for "us", while liberty and freedom are continually withheld from "them", it is difficult to think of any other non-violent action the Palestinian leadership can take besides seeking international support for ending the Israeli occupation.</b><br />
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<i>The writer is a former Israeli army officer and member of 'Breaking The Silence', an NGO which gathers and publishes testimony from soldiers and works in partnership with Christian Aid to expose the realities of Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories</i><br />
</div></div></div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-22580847643489910342011-09-15T22:32:00.000+08:002011-09-15T22:32:53.637+08:00Faith and Inspiration Down Under<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Some of you may have read my column yesterday <a href="http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?col=musings&file=/2011/9/14/columnists/musings/9491534&sec=Musings">here</a>. I don't think 800 words really do justice to my visit to Perth so here's a longer account.<br />
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I was invited to give the keynote speech at a conference on Ten Years after 9/11: Rebuilding Harmony organised by the <a href="http://www.cmss.uwa.edu.au/">Centre for Muslim States and Societies</a> (CMSS), University of Western Australia. I jumped at the chance to speak on the role of civil society to rebuild harmony because it gave me a chance to think and write about something a bit different and to meet some people I'd only heard about before especially Prof Samina Yasmeen, the head of CMSS.<br />
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Perth weather was glorious, cool but sunny. And the conference was terrific. The auditorium at the University Club was full and the line-up of speakers was interesting. Although it did not start too well. The US Consul-General was given the chance to speak first and to everyone's disappointment she spoke only of the victims of what happened in New York, Philadelphia and Washington DC that day and didn't even mention Iraq and Afghanistan. In the question and answer session that followed, the audience which comprised various Australian academics, journalists, students and anyone who was interested in the subject, asked her some tough questions which she just managed to answer in as calm a manner as possible.<br />
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This made me doubly nervous about my speech and I wondered if the audience would be as tough as me. I spoke about how what happened in New York on September 11 was a terrible catastrophe and that we should remember not just those who died in those three American cities but also those in the many wars in other countries since. I spoke about how because of September 11, the civil liberties of Americans, especially Muslim Americans, have been very much curtailed and growing Islamophobia all around the world has made life more difficult for everyone, especially when there are deranged individuals like Anders Breivik in the world.<br />
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I also talked about how, sadly, Muslims themselves have often not helped matters, responding in ways that only served to confirm the stereotype in the Western media of the wild-eyed angry Arab man. And how these negative global defensiveness have translated into local defensiveness, including in our beloved country Malaysia where some politicians have used race and religion to polarise people.<br />
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But there have been attempts by ordinary people to build bridges and mend ties between different faith communities. I cited <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuySyteKyO0">Fast for the Nation</a> two years ago and <a href="http://randomalphabets.com/domestic/talitenang/">Tali Tenang</a> early last year as two examples of community-level action to unite people and resist attempts by others to drive a wedge between Malaysians. I also talked about how the Arab Spring has done so much to break stereotypes about Muslims by showing that the hunger for freedom and for human rights to be respected is universal, as much wanted by Muslims as anyone else.<br />
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To my relief, my audience approved heartily. Over coffee I had several Australians, including some elderly people, come up and say that I had expressed what they thought, that the response to September 11, as terrible as it was, was out of proportion and unjust. Too many people died because of it and too much money was wasted on weapons.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilBCHFi8Udi5XMpx-57wYRZAZop4z3J2Y7n-Q5tShNhdZBBR1DVy4C9MJ3oEC8mcVy6Q19jMM_EVHC6SVoUf2-JYA-xqdVg9Ma8J1_eSFFAvTSzDTVRBnCONFQqcbw4IUvMYt_5rg1zN_q/s1600/Perth-20110911-00023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilBCHFi8Udi5XMpx-57wYRZAZop4z3J2Y7n-Q5tShNhdZBBR1DVy4C9MJ3oEC8mcVy6Q19jMM_EVHC6SVoUf2-JYA-xqdVg9Ma8J1_eSFFAvTSzDTVRBnCONFQqcbw4IUvMYt_5rg1zN_q/s320/Perth-20110911-00023.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jarrod McKenna speaking about his work</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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The other speakers were even more enlightening. <a href="http://blogs.curtin.edu.au/humanities/2011/04/01/one-of-a-kind-terrorism-book-launched-at-curtin/">Dr Azza Anne Aly</a> from Curtin University spoke about other community actions to rebuild harmony. A wellknown radio presenter on religious affairs, John Cleary, spoke about how the media talked about September 11 and how that helped or clouded understanding about the event. A Christian youth leader, <a href="http://paceebene.org/user/8">Jarrod McKenna</a>, talked about 'loving thy enemy' and how he had worked on a project to getting the people who had raised funds to kill his friend in the Bali bombings to see others as human beings and therefore to stop using violence on them.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6eCSFwlvx213WwGSXsoDLWOs2lcV_zc_lPvYfcKAGbfLuLIqk-Q0mrsAHWQr0qTBwXqe8JHIcXa8SlY4pa9S0BMJoTfTyt4f8docZBjelQA4Ct6oRn0biP8cCpb2PN8QIOlMx0G67HyYe/s1600/IMG_0479.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6eCSFwlvx213WwGSXsoDLWOs2lcV_zc_lPvYfcKAGbfLuLIqk-Q0mrsAHWQr0qTBwXqe8JHIcXa8SlY4pa9S0BMJoTfTyt4f8docZBjelQA4Ct6oRn0biP8cCpb2PN8QIOlMx0G67HyYe/s320/IMG_0479.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with some of the lovely students from the Australian Islamic College who had come to attend the conference.</td></tr>
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After the conference, we went to <a href="http://www.perthcathedral.org/">St George's Cathedral</a>, the main Anglican church in Perth, to attend a choral evensong marking the 10th anniversary of September 11. The church looks modest from the outside but inside has the beautiful stained glass windows that lend a glow to the place and makes it look majestic. The guests that day included the Governor of Western Australia, the Premier, the Lord Mayor of Perth ( who is a woman by the way), the US Consul General and a representative of the WA Leader of the Opposition.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY_MP00lWk6cOTTNQGaqQmV93pyDwBegErFxlJQK88u_82cwftbZe3d-NZoTA_Ts_MyvV3_JkorDTlyBNkxE9qSyW83Ewt1OKW-mUAS64xHqJT1lVHfsjPwc51vUdGYfnYrNUwWL2ci3og/s1600/IMG_0486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY_MP00lWk6cOTTNQGaqQmV93pyDwBegErFxlJQK88u_82cwftbZe3d-NZoTA_Ts_MyvV3_JkorDTlyBNkxE9qSyW83Ewt1OKW-mUAS64xHqJT1lVHfsjPwc51vUdGYfnYrNUwWL2ci3og/s320/IMG_0486.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Imam Muhammad (in white cap) waiting to speak</td></tr>
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But it was the service itself that was impressive. After some initial hymns, Sheikh Muhammad Agherdieu, the imam of the Masjid al Taqwa in Mirrabooka near Perth got up and recited, in Arabic, the first surah of the Quran, the AlFatihah. For those who may not know what this surah says, here's the English translation which was available in the service programme:<br />
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<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In the Name of of God, the Gracious, the Dispenser of Grace.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The compassionate, the merciful!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">King on the day of reckoning!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Thee only do we worship, and to Thee do we cry for help.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Guide Thou us on the straight path,</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The path of those to whom Thou hast been gracious, with whom thou</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">art not angry, and who go not astray.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div>I have to confess that although I knew the imam was going to get up and speak, as soon as he began to recite the AlFatihah, I became overwhelmed by emotions and burst into tears. I think it was because I realised that I would never have this experience at home, where just to be in a place of worship not my own would cause people to suspect my faith. Yet here was an imam confidently getting up to recite the Quran, in its original language, in a church. As far as I could tell, his faith remained intact.<br />
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Mine on the other hand expanded and soared. My heart was filled with love for an Islam that is generous and compassionate and respectful of other faiths.<br />
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In addition to the AlFatihah, Imam Muhammad recited Surah 3:64:<br />
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<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Say:O People of the book! Let us come together upon a formula which is common between us -that we shall not serve anyone but God, that we shall associate none with Him.</div><br />
and Surah 42:15:<br />
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<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Because of this*, then, summon us all to pursue the right course, as thou has been bidden (by God); and do not follow their likes and dislikes, but say: "I believe in whatever revelation God has bestowed from on high; and I am bidden to bring about equity in your mutual views**. Good is our Sustainer as well as your Sustainer. To us shall be accounted our deed, and to you, your deeds. Let there be no contention between us and you. God will bring us all together for with Him is all journeys' end."</div><br />
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<div align="justify">(* <span style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; font-size: xx-small;">I.e., because of this breach of the original unity of men’s faith in the One God.<i><span style="color: grey;">(Quran Ref: 42:15 )) </span></i> </span></div><center><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: xx-small;"><i>http://www.islamicity.com/quranSearch</i></span></center><center><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: xx-small;"><i> </i></span></center><center><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: xx-small;"><i> </i></span></center><div align="justify">(** <span style="color: #333333; font-family: Verdana; font-size: xx-small;">Lit., "between you" - i.e., "to induce you to be more tolerant of one another": evidently an allusion to the bitterness which stands in the way of an understanding between the various sects and schools of thought in all revealed religions.<i><span style="color: grey;">(Quran Ref: 42:15 ))</span></i> </span></div><center><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: xx-small;"><i>http://www.islamicity.com/quranSearch</i></span></center><center><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: xx-small;"><i> </i></span></center><center><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: xx-small;"><i> </i></span></center>The service then continued with more hymns, lessons and prayers including one by Rabbi David Freilich, the Perth Hebrew Congregation, Chief Rabbi of Western Australia. This was preceded by the laying of a commemorative wreath by the US Consul General and various other local Americans.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM2ZJUolb9wLm47d6x7FjDTKUbKfI6nwKiEbnOeGOLoD6DYDPjmC7ZA5sWmXewzxCsJwx5i8g5KmGaO7XuFZ1YnVFyuI1BFwoYJzRlhwdmFYILqorAx_o6aahsQf5WdV7u2MhvZY2DjSZ6/s1600/IMG_0487.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM2ZJUolb9wLm47d6x7FjDTKUbKfI6nwKiEbnOeGOLoD6DYDPjmC7ZA5sWmXewzxCsJwx5i8g5KmGaO7XuFZ1YnVFyuI1BFwoYJzRlhwdmFYILqorAx_o6aahsQf5WdV7u2MhvZY2DjSZ6/s320/IMG_0487.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Imam Muhammad greeting Rabbi Freilich and his wife</td></tr>
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After the service we all had some refreshments in the courtyard outside, in the nice cool weather. I was introduced to the Imam and his wife, a lovely couple who, if you closed your eyes, sounded indistinguishable from any other Australian. While we were chatting, the Chief Rabbi came by to say hello and these two religious officials greeted each other warmly. No, lightning did not strike anyone dead just then.<br />
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I have been to many multifaith events and they are always inspiring and gratifying. They make me feel hope that things can change for the better. But later on I went on John Cleary's radio show Sunday Nights where we talked about the conference, about the work of Sisters in Islam, and about being a young Muslim in Australia. (Listen to the podcast <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/sundaynights/stories/s3315301.htm">here</a>.) As always, there are the detractors. But at least everyone gets an airing.<br />
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Anyway it was a good experience and I made some new friends. And for a while I felt united with the world. Perhaps one little good thing did come out of September 11.<br />
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And talking of good things, tonight the PM announced the repeal of many of the laws we don't like including the ISA. It's almost unbelievable. But since it is Malaysia Day tomorrow, I'm going to allow myself to bask in positivity for at least the next 24 hours and feel happy. <br />
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Happy Malaysia Day, folks! <br />
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</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-49025306905769754512011-09-05T17:11:00.001+08:002011-09-05T17:13:51.160+08:00Selamat Hari Raya..a bit late<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Hi folks, sorry for being late but would like to wish you all Selamat Hari Raya, maaf zahir bathin. Hope you had a good Raya and a good break last week. Mine was pretty normal. Spent the first day of Raya with my parents and the rest of the family. Then left for Jakarta on the second day. Or at least it was the second day for us but still the first day for Indonesia because they celebrated Aidil Fitri a day after us.<br />
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Since we know longer have my late mother-in-law who traditionally hosted open house on the first day where all our relatives would congregate, this year we went to visit various uncles instead, from both sides of the family. Jakarta open houses are not as elaborate as ours here but no less meriah for it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5gXDp53c7j5kxCdz4WL3c7BJ6z_HvI8yu_6sF0t3cyagR1CGQeyQFzaVQriByVi-3yCqZTuVX_lmppCH7d0qCXW0WZ9QJhc9n44j-y9k1S_Sm1AMLbg9nU099D4kvMIjHYjopCodg12Ij/s1600/Open+hse+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5gXDp53c7j5kxCdz4WL3c7BJ6z_HvI8yu_6sF0t3cyagR1CGQeyQFzaVQriByVi-3yCqZTuVX_lmppCH7d0qCXW0WZ9QJhc9n44j-y9k1S_Sm1AMLbg9nU099D4kvMIjHYjopCodg12Ij/s320/Open+hse+2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scene from Open House at Dad's yesterday.</td></tr>
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Came back to KL in time for Dad's open house yesterday. As always it was very crowded and hot. People queued a long time to shake hands with Mum and Dad and many took the opportunity to take photos with them. The new thing this year was to bring Dad's book, Doctor in the House, and get him to autograph it. Some who didn't manage to get his signature asked for mine instead, which I thought was rather funny. Anyway I marvel at how Malaysians are willing to endure all that heat and crowd just to briefly greet my parents and have a bite to eat every year. Open house is truly a Malaysian tradition that I hope will always remain the same.<br />
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A few friends also braved the crowd to come and see me. One of them was <a href="http://rantingsbymm.blogspot.com/2009/04/one-courageous-young-woman.html">Yvonne Foong Ming Niang </a>whom I've written about before. Yvonne is doing well although her hearing is still not great. But she's not one to dwell on her illness but instead is not only gung-ho about life but is also ever-willing to help others.<br />
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Today she wrote to me about a friend of hers, Syahidah Ishak, a 33-year old lecturer who has <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001782/">Acoustic Neuroma</a>, similar to Yvonne's case. Inspired by Yvonne, Syahidah is also not one to give up her independence because of her ill-health. She needs to have surgery for her condition in the same hospital as Yvonne's in Los Angeles and to do that, she has been selling all sorts of merchandise. Thus far she has raised RM65,000 through her own efforts, which is quite impressive already. Unfortunately she is still short of RM85,000 to pay for her surgery scheduled for next month. Read about her in her blog <a href="http://wwwsyahidahishak.blogspot.com/">here</a>.<br />
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If any of you can spare a little change to help Syahidah, it would be really good. May you be showered with Allah's blessings for your kindness and generosity.<br />
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</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-89477161001475617272011-08-18T10:37:00.000+08:002011-08-18T10:37:24.932+08:00"Kalau Tak Senyum, Disqualified"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Here's a wonderful video by a young man we should all be proud of. In this special month with both Raya and Merdeka coming up, and given the rancour of the past few months, this is exactly what we need. Do support this project and send in your videos. And don't forget, if you don't smile, you're disqualified!<br />
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</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-28609537255761794612011-08-16T12:45:00.000+08:002011-08-16T12:45:39.359+08:00Ramadan Reflections<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioEtheLGO5uQd6c12OggKrPAXMDf9FHwCNZckipgY-dqRsblIdSNR4bfQgJnhyphenhyphenh_ODubZb870oa58-IZuxshe8fad6zNyMm6hyQUNW3AZaXSYBWxvZF5AX21xpzGcgxHgaA14almQRc0TO/s1600/Ramadan+Kareem2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioEtheLGO5uQd6c12OggKrPAXMDf9FHwCNZckipgY-dqRsblIdSNR4bfQgJnhyphenhyphenh_ODubZb870oa58-IZuxshe8fad6zNyMm6hyQUNW3AZaXSYBWxvZF5AX21xpzGcgxHgaA14almQRc0TO/s320/Ramadan+Kareem2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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It's Ramadan again, folks. I hope your fasts have been going well. Mine has been OK. This year I am getting into the habit of waking up for sahur consistently and finding that I enjoy the quiet of the early morning hours. And my neighbourhood mosque has a bilal with a wondrous voice so I enjoy listening to the azan for the subuh prayers too.<br />
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I always think that Ramadan is the time when things should calm down. It is after all the time for reflection, restraint and perhaps renewal of one's faith through the acts of fasting and prayer. It is also a time for charity and kindness. Unfortunately not everyone thinks so. For some reason some people have deemed it necessary to create much anxiety and chaos during this month. They practically froth at the mouth 'defending Islam', while at the same time giving more reasons why Islam is perceived as being oppressive.<br />
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My friend Art Harun has written a brilliant <a href="http://art-harun.blogspot.com/2011/08/short-rebuke-of-ezam-mohd-nor.html">rebuke</a> to one of the frothing mouths. There are others that also need to be rebuked. But it is difficult to rebuke people this month and yet still stay true to the ideals of Ramadan. Suffice to say that the so-called Defenders of Islam are not converting anyone to the religion.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial; font-size: x-small;">Al-Quran 16:90 BEHOLD, God enjoins justice, and the doing of good, and generosity towards [one's] fellow-men; and He forbids all that is shameful and all that runs counter to reason, as well as envy; [and] He exhorts you [repeatedly] so that you might bear [all this] in mind.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial; font-size: x-small;">Al-Quran 35:10 He who desires might and glory [ought to know that] all might and glory belong to God [alone]. Unto Him ascend all good words, and the righteous deed does He exalt. But as for those who cunningly devise evil deeds - suffering severe awaits them; and all their devising is bound to come to nought.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial; font-size: x-small;"> </span><br />
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<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Speaking of which, I hear of abominable crimes being committed against the Muslims who were at the dinner at the DUMC which was raided by JAIS. Before they can be proven guilty of anything, their names and details have been spread all over the Internet. By Muslims no less. What kind of behaviour is this? </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Do they not know this verse? </span> </div><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial; font-size: x-small;">Al-Quran 24:19 Verily, as for those who like [to hear] foul slander spread against [any of] those who have attained to faith <sup><a class="notelink" href=""><span style="color: red;"><b>[20]</b></span></a></sup> grievous suffering awaits them in this world <sup><a class="notelink" href=""><span style="color: red;"><b>[21]</b></span></a></sup> and in the life to come: for God knows [the full truth], whereas you know [it] not.</span><br />
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<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">May we all fulfill our obligations during Ramadan to the best that we can. InsyaAllah.</span></span></div><br />
</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-52550603970548704952011-07-10T22:24:00.000+08:002011-07-10T22:24:20.876+08:00My Bersih 2.0 Experience<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal">So I went.</div><div class="MsoNormal">I have to say that the night before I had many many misgivings, especially after reading about the army doing exercises with the FRU. Could the government seriously be contemplating shooting their own people? Who knows? My stomach was in knots thinking about the many young people I knew who were intent on going, including my daughter. Would I be able to forgive myself if something happened to them?</div><div class="MsoNormal">After seeking advice from various friends, I finally decided that I could not stay safely at home while my daughter, friends and colleagues faced possible danger. I <i>had</i> to walk with them. Besides even if I stayed home, I would have spent all my time worrying. So I had to go.</div>A friend who lived in the city offered to be my protector and together we devised a plan on what to do. Hubby was supportive and gave some advice on how to stay safe. My neighbours also wanted to come along. So fairly earlyish, my friend drove over to get me with no problem and we headed back into the city. Despite the roadblocks in some areas, we encountered no problems. In fact driving into KL was so pleasant because the roads were so clear. The police directed traffic where they had to and were generally cooperative ( except for one we saw arguing with a man trying to get into his own condo). We got to a roadblock in the KLCC area and my friend explained that he lived in the area and they let us through, four people in a car dressed as if we were going hiking!<br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"> From my friend’s apartment block, we walked to Times Square and parked ourselves at the Starbucks for a coffee while we waited. A cursory look around the outlet and mall revealed that many people were doing the same thing. Meanwhile a whole van of police was stationed outside the mall but after a while they all went off. </div><div class="MsoNormal">We kept in touch with various friends around the city to find out where they were and what the situation was. At about 12.30 we started to walk up Jalan Hang Tuah towards the stadium area. We were not in big groups, just people out on a weekend stroll. We thought we would encounter police in front of the big police headquarters in front of Pudu Jail but there was nothing. When we got to the corner of Jalan Hang Jebat, we saw some police motorcycles and only a couple of cops. Lots of people were just sitting on the curbside under the eye of the cops. It was pretty clear what all these people were there for.</div><div class="MsoNormal"> We walked along Jalan Hang Jebat in front of Stadium Negara towards the OCM and found many other friends waiting there. Apparently at one point the cops had given chase even though there was no reason to and caught some people and hauled them off. But from then on we could sit and wait by the curb without anyone disturbing us. </div><div class="MsoNormal"> Jalan Hang Jebat and the small road that led up to Stadium Merdeka stayed pretty quiet. Members of the Bar Council (who had to suffer wearing their suits in the heat just so that we could spot them easily) walked around observing what was happening. At one point one woman in a suit sat herself at the intersection to take notes.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr8VTcvB0CK5zlONuhmunmZVreSN5bHlYHfUMpGCDDU_SEfsMY08I-KtVXEMv2HZSaAH_3o683SwFNypXoUzLl09wCAovBCwRHz56x99u_KJN8lf5w4KwR5U8tTaWjIHP-905WUnBqEXvH/s1600/lone+lawyer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr8VTcvB0CK5zlONuhmunmZVreSN5bHlYHfUMpGCDDU_SEfsMY08I-KtVXEMv2HZSaAH_3o683SwFNypXoUzLl09wCAovBCwRHz56x99u_KJN8lf5w4KwR5U8tTaWjIHP-905WUnBqEXvH/s320/lone+lawyer.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One lone woman lawyer at her station, Jln Hang Jebat</td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"> We all debated whether to stay there or move down to Petaling Street but we were afraid that we wouldn’t be let back up again. Then it started to rain. My friend and I sought shelter under some hoarding along with young people. Just then I got a message that we were to go to KL Sentral. After confirming this with a friend at Sentral, my friends and I started to walk down Hang Jebat just as a large group of people started walking up. The rain was pouring at that point and I didn’t know quite what to do, whether to tell people they should turn round or not.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Seeking shelter for a while under a shop five-foot way, I talked to various other friends and eventually decided to head back to the stadium area where I found my daughter and lots of other friends there. The main group earlier had gone up to Stadium Merdeka, did some chanting in front of the FRU and then headed down again. But many people hung about just to observe everything and soak in the atmosphere. One group of young people had yellow ribbons on sticks and started a little dance. Others were buying ice cream from a bicycle vendor who came by. There was a real carnival atmosphere.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/eXuQJPMA0vA?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Here's a video of the rally yesterday taken by my daughter. As you can see, it was peaceful. And every time some people started chanting 'reformasi', someone else would start a louder chant of 'Bersih'.</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I have to say that I never felt safer than when I was in the crowd. People recognized me and said hello. Some wanted to take photos. It didn’t feel any different from any other Saturday out. And to be perfectly fair, the cops and FRU in my area showed admirable restraint. They saw that people were not doing anything more than chanting and nobody was harming anyone so they just stood there and left everyone to do their thing. We came across a whole FRU unit blocking a lane next to the Chinese temple at the roundabout at the bottom of Jalan Maharajalela, waved at them and they waved. Cool cops!</div><div class="MsoNormal"> Of course not everyone had the same experience. Here’s an account from a colleague who was in a different street:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i> Unfortunately my experience wasn't so benign. I was part of the marchers (along with A and others) who were effectively kettled by the police in Jalan Pudu. FRU units to the front and back of us prevented us from leaving, and we were trapped by the walls of a construction site opposite Tung Shin Hospital after the FRUs pushed us back. It was probably the worst of the hotspots because of that: when the police started firing round after round of tear gas at us, we had nowhere to run to. I think they were determined to make an example out of us, because they bloody well tear-gassed and sprayed us with water cannons when they had no reason to do so.<br />
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We were all tear-gassed at least three, four times. An NGO staffer was hit by a canister. V told me that she saw people jumping off the second floor of the Puduraya bus terminal because the police had released tear gas too close to the terminal and the wind carried the fumes into the enclosed building. When the marchers ran for shelter in Tung Shin Hospital, the police fired tear gas and water cannons INTO the hospital grounds. Later the police lured us into re-assembling on the road on the pretext of negotiating a peaceful dispersal. They arrested the MP (Sivarasa) who was doing the negotiating, then -- after ordering us to sit down so (as we realised later) we would be sitting ducks -- they fired more tear gas and water cannons at us. A, myself and our companions eventually managed to find a way out from the trap via the Santo Antonius church and (irony of ironies) the car park of the Hang Tuah police station (near the monorail station). There were so many very brave people yesterday.</i> <i><br />
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I now know that smearing toothpaste under the eyes to reduce irritation caused by tear gas actually works (thanks, A)! I'm still itchy and short of breath from all that tear gas, which is a bit annoying. But really, mostly what I remember of the rally was how moving it was: the solidarity among the protesters, how people looked out for one another. Whenever I was tear-gassed there was a stranger running along at my side and offering me and my friends salt to counteract the effects. When the police sprayed chemical-laced water cannons into the crowd and the people affected cried out for water to wash the stuff away, others turned and ran back toward the cannons with bottles of water to help. People helped others climb up a hill towards the hospital to escape (some guy helped me up the steep slope). Someone always stepped up to make sure that a panicked run doesn't turn into a stampede, including an elderly woman who took it upon herself to guide the marchers to safety. She's a first-time marcher to boot! Actually there were lots of first-time marchers, and more young middle-class urbanites than I've ever seen at any other rallies including the 2007 Bersih rally. At one point people started picking up the tear gas canisters and throwing them back at the police, or kicking the canisters safely away from the marchers and bystanders. I heard via the #bersihstories Twitter hashtag when the police fired tear gas into Tung Shin, there were people who grabbed the canisters and wrapped them in their own towels, then threw the canisters into the drain so there wouldn't be so much fumes.</i> </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">And another one, about people’s goodness:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>My group has a lovely little story to tell as well, of how we escaped from the Tung Shin hospital area after one of the tear gas attacks. We took a little alley uphill between the shophouses, and there was a block of flats there. One of the residents told us to go through the building to get out through the back! We climbed upstairs and then along the opposite corridor a woman shouted and pointed, "That way, go that way, there is an exit out the back!" and we scuttled along our corridor, down the back stairs and found ourselves safe outside on Changkat Tung Shin or something like that. <br />
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Rakyat all contributing in their own ways! </i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">There are many stories and photos, both good and bad, of the whole event. But to me what was most important was that Malaysians proved two things: one, they can assemble together on a common cause peacefully and two, therefore showed that they are a mature people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact is that there were all kinds of people there, young and old, all races and religions and all classes and creeds. I bumped into many young people, the children of my friends, who had come to see what it was all about and decide for themselves what to think about the issue.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOVR2ayP9RdZLSIXF-gW2AYayEvT7irCnEkKeikz4-9FchXEdxKgqsJ8ZQ_3sypUbwzXoFydwIsU2sovmfZ-IaxFY8z90_swd-bVrTYE3pHeZa1Yze-94Ic_BX-N_uCy5FtcFuQLVTO4ZY/s1600/pakcik+n+makcik+n+their+masks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOVR2ayP9RdZLSIXF-gW2AYayEvT7irCnEkKeikz4-9FchXEdxKgqsJ8ZQ_3sypUbwzXoFydwIsU2sovmfZ-IaxFY8z90_swd-bVrTYE3pHeZa1Yze-94Ic_BX-N_uCy5FtcFuQLVTO4ZY/s320/pakcik+n+makcik+n+their+masks.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Do these people look like hooligans to you?</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"> Whatever one thinks about the issue that Bersih is espousing, we should all be proud of our fellow Malaysians who did not, despite dire predictions by some, behave like hooligans and destroy property and hurt one another. There were people hurt and one death but people who had participated in the rally did not cause them. The restaurants and shops around the area were doing roaring business as people got thirsty and hungry. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">There are also some people claiming that the world now has a bad impression of Malaysia because the foreign media (and the local media for that matter) reported only about the teargassing and water-cannoning. I think people are confusing the government with the people. Yes, the world now has a bad impression of the Malaysian <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">government</i> because it has handled this whole issue so badly. They don’t have the same impression of the Malaysians who stood up for their rights and their cause.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1okasyAd3FxRUKIOaVocLG_Rhht2VuDaFeyafgka7tvg_8kbrJn320TR7MsoOwMlalQWEXHFORiEDCsSgyI13Q_k7d0hyZcxnNFjB-tJmtUFAMVCCQWv55Nx_Sgmlks96ijHTxzDfdGfi/s1600/protestors+n+cops+shaking+hands" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1okasyAd3FxRUKIOaVocLG_Rhht2VuDaFeyafgka7tvg_8kbrJn320TR7MsoOwMlalQWEXHFORiEDCsSgyI13Q_k7d0hyZcxnNFjB-tJmtUFAMVCCQWv55Nx_Sgmlks96ijHTxzDfdGfi/s1600/protestors+n+cops+shaking+hands" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>This is what gives a good impression: protestors and police shaking hands before dispersing at 4pm.</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"> And by the way, I can’t believe some of the mean things being said about the man who died after being teargassed! My goodness, every time I read totally uncompassionate things like that, I know that I’m on the right side.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">For more accounts by people who were there, read <a href="http://bersihstories.wordpress.com/">this</a>. </div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com178tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4473250993983652141.post-84346959601705076502011-06-06T21:19:00.000+08:002011-06-06T21:19:16.201+08:00Taking a Break (literally)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuYWjeGP1gZiDiSuTBM060T-lxNv1C7eZKqlq1ae_JY280hzAGGSJPh_O061YhB6lp2BRIQVFK3BmvocjAY_VxhBhLDpXvJlcZttC1gv9umrcTVMZDea4vIbJrbFZ6cDtvC5_lt2UaItrt/s1600/my+wristguard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuYWjeGP1gZiDiSuTBM060T-lxNv1C7eZKqlq1ae_JY280hzAGGSJPh_O061YhB6lp2BRIQVFK3BmvocjAY_VxhBhLDpXvJlcZttC1gv9umrcTVMZDea4vIbJrbFZ6cDtvC5_lt2UaItrt/s320/my+wristguard.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Hi folks, was pretending to be Lionel Messi in an office futsal match the other day and made a mess of it. Fell and fractured my left wrist in a few places and had to have an operation to insert a titanium plate in my hand. So if you see someone who has a hand like Robocop, it's only me.<br />
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Of course this means I have to type with one hand which can be tiresome. So even less blogging, sorry. Luckily I just finished a very busy week where I had to speak five times at various events before I fell. Maybe it was just my body telling me I needed to take a break (ho, ho, pun, pun!).<br />
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Oh, and if you're wondering what I have to say about the OWC, see my column this Wednesday...:-)</div>MarinaMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14201098919091874973noreply@blogger.com30