Tunku Abdul Rahman

Posted on May 27, 2006 by Tricia

Amidst my hectic supposed off-day yesterday, I strolled into a bookshop selling mainly academic texts, which happened to sell second-hand historical books as well. 

I picked up a treasure which I am pretty sure is no longer in publication today. Written by our Father of Independence (Bapa Kemerdekaan), Tunku Abdul Rahman, it recollects the personal memories and records of events leading up to and thereafter, of 13th May 1969.

It reveals a whole lot of historical fact, step by step, to those who did not experience this infamous incident. To understand race relations and the reason why policies are what they are today, it is essential to backtrack into the timeline of Malaysia's history. Only then will we have a complete and comprehensive picture.  

The descriptions were brutal, the pictures gruesome. I am not surprised it no longer sells in bookstores, although if people were mature enough they would be able to decipher these as the past, and not bring them into the present again. The basic assumption of course, is that the public is generally unable to determine for themselves what is relevant and what is not.

A dark, dark year it must have been for all alike. I do not wish to ever see or experience the likes of that fateful day. I feel even more urgently the need to ensure that steps are taken to inculcate goodwill between the various groups…

The scary and daunting thought is that the events leading up to that incident are not so alien and far away as we would want them to be, today. Back then, way before the incident itself, the people were unsatisfied with the way certain component parties of the then-"Alliance"- responded to current issues. The MCA (Malayan Chinese Association) and MIC (Malayan Indian Congress) were perceived to be incompetent in handling issues. In response, the then oppositionist Gerakan party and DAP (Democratic Action Party) played up the issue of race relations, thereby defeating the Alliance in many constituencies. In my opinion, these oppositionists were too extreme in their party campaigning. People have to be careful in the issues they select. Taking things into the extreme, name-calling, is all done in bad taste. 

What we saw in the recent Sarawak elections was an exact repeat of the incident so many years ago. The people being unsatisfied and thereby turning to alternative groups. The pressure is now mounting on the component parties of the current alliance government. I hope they rise to the call, to respond to what the people are asking for.

Nobody wants another incident of '69. 

Posted in The Cause | 4 Comments

Sad Said

Posted on May 27, 2006 by Tricia

In my earlier post, I outlined the key events that highlight the Sad Case… I mean, the Said Case. 

Now the ACA, Anti-Corruption Agency, is given the task of investigating it in entirety. Now, do we have a good track record with the ACA? Will the facts be considered as hard evidence? Will this be acceptable into the very narrow definition of what "corruption" really is? 

Isn't it absolutely amusing to all that such a public figure (in a soon-to-be 1st world, developed nation) is given the chance to explain these things away absolutely superdupily easily? Let's all us citizens really monitor this and see if anything happens. 

If it's not reported in the newspapers, it might be easily forgotten though.

Out of sight, out of mind. 

The NST reported this a couple of days ago:

Najib was reported yesterday as saying the panel would meet with Mohd Said soon, and that the inquiry was separate from the ongoing Anti-Corruption Agency probe into the matter.

Mohd Said, when contacted on his cellphone, declined to confirm if he had been called to attend the inquiry. "Enough, please… enough. Thanks," he said.

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Efficiency

Posted on May 27, 2006 by Tricia

The passport office seems to be much more efficient than the last time I went.
With the exception of the horrendously long queue to get the photostat copies of your Identity Card and instant passport photographs. You have ONE guy to do BOTH duties for an approximate total of 25 people at a time. Not good management.

Other than that, officers work speedily, efficiently, and my passport will be ready on Monday. Very good timing. Kudos.

Praise should be given where praise is due, and likewise for criticism!

If only more people could see that.

To quote from an article recently, being able to keep the government in close check and accountability does NOT make any citizen less patriotic. We need to investigate the terminologies here.  

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Malaysian Vs. Singapore Culture

Posted on May 27, 2006 by Tricia

Malaysians and Singaporeans. Same difference?

The two peoples are really cut from the same stone, and yet only a couple of decades after its separation, there can be a defined difference between the cultures, which some would say is growing.

The development of any society can be closely intertwined to the political and administrative system of the country.

Singapore, together with many South East Asian countries, had for many decades the privilege/hegemony (delete whichever necessary and appropriate in your opinion) of a dictator-like leader. In a strange way, these strong-willed and almost theocratic leadership was necessary to allow control and positive development of the society. Think Philliphines, think Singapore, think Indonesia, and surprise surprise, think Malaysia. 

A strong leader like Harry Lee, brilliant and intelligent in leading his country, allowed for a refined political system that could not be questioned. Economic development into the country will always be received positively by its people. If you satisfy the basic need of the people, by filling their pockets and tummies, it is difficult to complain, really.

By having an administration provide virtually everything for you, you also subject yourself to allowing the system to do all the thinking. You are merely a follower and an implementer.

This is one of the major differences I often hear of people doing business and working in political fields in both countries. That Malaysians have a much stronger entrepreneurial spirit. Flexibility and adaptability are some of the characteristics often quoted, currently lacking across the border. This is a result of the way in which the mind has been developed to think.

On the other hand, Malaysians should not rejoice. Singaporeans are far, far ahead in terms of efficient implementation of anything. Even if our policies can be beautifully worded, we are so inefficient and ineffective that the means never even get to the "end".

Isn't it interesting that the same people groups have dichotomised in such a short period of time? Doesn't this speak volumes for political systems and what a huge role they play in the development of the peoples it commands? 

Posted in Reflections | 3 Comments

PAS redefined

Posted on May 23, 2006 by Tricia

PAS… i.e. Parti Seislam Malaysia, may open party membership to non-Muslims. Reported here:

For a start, he said, non-Muslims could be admitted into the party as associate members.

“And, when the time is ripe, they may become full-fledged members to strengthen the party’s political clout,” said Nik Aziz, who is Kelantan mentri besar.

Some people may find this ridiculous and absolutely undoable. But really, if the basic principles of believing in transparency and accountability are similar to that of Christianity, what is the theoretical fault in someone of a different faith joining it? 

If non-Muslims can accept Islamic banking, and indeed are customers of Islamic Banks because they believe in the same principles and values that the Banks advocate, i.e. non-interest paying, then what about this?  

Of course, whether or not their own political party members are able to accept this is a different story.

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We pay you send

Posted on May 22, 2006 by Tricia

From Seattle Post Intelligencer:

MOSCOW — Malaysia has signed a contract with Russia to send an astronaut to the international space station next year, Russian officials said Friday.

The deal was part of a larger arrangement that also foresees Malaysia buying some Russian Su-30 MKM fighter jets, said officials from Rosoboronexport, Russia's state-controlled arms export agency.

Two Malaysian astronauts will be chosen from a group that includes two doctors, a pilot and an engineer to prepare at Russia's cosmonaut-training facilities for the September 2007 flight.

The ITAR-Tass news agency said the entire deal would be worth about $1 billion.

Russia's space agency has complemented scarce state funding in recent years with revenues from commercial flights for space tourists. It also has courted other nations looking to send their citizens into space.

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Clash of Civilisations

Posted on May 21, 2006 by Tricia

Samuel Huntington's famous book on the "Clash of Civilisations" outlined humanity in our present world as segregated into separate identities: Muslim, Western, Asian. Amartya Sen wrote a book in response to that, called "Identity and Violence: The Illusion of Destiny", which speaks against the Samuel Huntington thesis of "Clash of Civilisations".

Dr. Sen proposes that our present world exists as a "bundle of identities", that liberal democracy is not a cultural phenomenon but a basic human aspiration. There is a certain universality of human nature and all peoples have an inherent ability to transcend their cultures and histories…. the give fruition to a certain declaration of human liberty, or in the case of America and many other countries, the Declaration of Independence.  

The argument therefore is summed up simply in the following statement: that liberalism is not in fact a Western phenomenon. Liberalism is something inherent that all humanity should seek after. Now when I say liberalism I do not mean the pagan sort of liberal culture of bra-burning, naked romping so usually thought of in this postmodern era.

Instead, that desire of wanting a democratic process and system running a country. The right to choose. The right to make informed decisions. The right to say no to theocratic power. 

Dr. Sen continues to question if really liberalism is a universal phenomenon (or at least, the deepest desire for it), then why is it that there are so few Muslim leaders, intellectuals, opinion leaders pressing for it? A possible explanation is that communities that have broken out of their colonialist rule immediately harbour resentment and distrust of anything they deem Western. This includes any trait practised by Western societies, which so happens to be that of liberalism.  

Now this is interesting. I have not myself read these two books in full (my bookmark is stuck somewhere in the middle of Huntington's book I believe), but Dr. Sen's alternative argument is interesting. Because, this means that it is the surrounding cultures that dampen an inherent desire for justice, equality and democracy. Because of poor safety, security and legal structures, the society is forced into practicing the opposite of liberalism. The destruction of such basic structures give birth to the clash of civilisations, not the other way round. 

Therefore, while it is true that there exists a clash of civilisations, this does not in any way point towards the fact that some societies should never practise democracy.

This revelation is in itself incredibly liberating!! 

Posted in Reflections, The Cause | 1 Comment

Browning the Bible I

Posted on May 21, 2006 by Tricia

I've written on this briefly before, but again as the movie comes into town with a big bang and wallakazzam I'll summarise a little of what was spoken about today during a "Da Vinci Code I" session. The book and movie are merely new entrants into a growing market for controversies, including the recent discovery and report on the Gospel of Judas. 

The claim made by Dan Brown in his book is that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were secretly married and had a child. This is based upon the Gospel of Philip. In this post I will just focus on the basis of this claim and why it is arguably false.

What these gospels have in common, along with others Gospel of Mary and Gospel of Thomas, is that they are known as Gnostic Gospels. What are the characteristics of Gnostic books?

  • They are contained within the Nag Hammadi texts, discovered in Egypt in 1945.
  • The earliest Gnostic gospel, Gospel of Thomas, was written in the early 2nd Century.
  • They are not historical biographies, as opposed to the four books in the Bible (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). Instead, their contents are skewed towards philosophical explanations.
  • They were written by Gnostics, a small group of Jews who believed that only the elite has secret knowledge that has access to Jesus. (They are called so because of the root word gnosis, which means knowledge) – Gnostics also believe that the body is inherently evil, and were largely anti-feminist.

Based on point two, if the Gnostic gospels were written in the 2nd Century, this means that they were using pseudonyms. It was someone else who wrote and used the names Philip, Thomas, Judas. 

Hence, nobody disputes that these gospels DID EXIST. In fact, Dan Brown's answer is ONLY to this extent. He says that "Documents, rituals, organisation, artwork, and architecture in the novel all exist." The existence of a document makes no solid evidence that its contents are accurate. Follow me further.

What we have is a diametrically opposed claim of Jesus' life: The Four Canonical Gospels (in the Bible) vs. the Gnostic Gospels.

  1. The CGs were written in the 1st Century, a mere couple of decades after the death of Jesus. The GGs were written roughly 150 years after the death of Jesus. Historians note that the closer the document is written to its actual date of occurence, the more reliable it is. Based upon the date of writing, the CGs clearly have a higher authenticity level.
  2. The CGs were written by the actual apostles or close friends of Jesus. These were people who were eyewitnesses to the actual life of Jesus. All of them Matthew, Mark, Luke and John satisfied this. The GGs were written under pseudonyms. Do we know who wrote them? The Gnostics. And why write them? Because they had a particular message to communicate across, which they would not otherwise have been successful in doing without using famous names of Jesus' disciples themselves.

Consider this timeline as a visual aid: 

  • AD50: Paul's letters
  • AD60: Mark's Gospel
  • AD62 – 68: Matthew and Luke's Gospel
  • AD90: John's Gospel
  • AD130: The 4 Gospels and Paul's letters recognised as authoritative sources.
  • Late 2nd Century: (AD250+) Gnostic Gospels

How was the New Testament Canon formed, then? And what about the Council of Nicea? And the divinity of Jesus that was seemingly fixed by Constantine the emperor? Wait for II.

Here, if one were to make an objective cross comparison between the Canonical Gospels and the Gnostic Gospels, it would be a non-brainer to state that the former carries a lot more weight than the latter. And if Dan Brown uses the claims made in the Gnostic Gospels to fill in the entire storyline of his book, he stands on rather shaky ground. 

Posted in Literature, Religion, Theology | 3 Comments

Sweeeep

Posted on May 21, 2006 by Tricia

(taken from Malaysiakini.com)

The clean sweep that was predicted of the Sarawak's elections yesterday was not so clean after all. The opposition won 8 seats this time round. This is surely a waker-upper for the coalition government. They must either address the issues that are of such great concern to all citizens immediately, or suffer the consequences of a lackadaisical attitude in the next general elections. Are these telltale signs?

An interesting turn of events is that 24 year old DAP Candidate Ting Tze Hui beat her contender to win the Meradong seat by more than 3000 votes, which is quite significant. Politics is seeing the fielding of more women, what with the rise of women's rights and women's issues. Candidates are also becoming younger, perhaps telling of politicians' intentions of targeting the younger generation.

These two: Youth and Women Factors, make me wonder. Perhaps Malaysia despite its long tradition of a hierarchical society, is now awakening to the relatively novel idea that authority does not necessarily come in the form of age. There is a certain truth in the need for quality as opposed to quantity.

Congratulations to this young girl. This is a symbol that ought to stretch across the younger generation of today. I just hope the young ones take up the need to be more aware of current affairs, whether or not it is in support of the government or the opposition. That it is spoken about with genuine interest is a step forward.

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My World

Posted on May 21, 2006 by Tricia

A great big thank you..  Terima kasih.. Danke Schön.. Xie Xie.. for wishes from England, France, Canada, Germany, Singapore, Australia, and of course Malaysia! For attempted surprises, Spanish ink paella, carrot strips, chocolate cake in the jungle, Lied Geburtstag aus Würzburg, and an electrifying drummer.

Prayer: For God to bless my country and my world through the little of me.  

Posted in Personal | 1 Comment