The Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia initiative: launched on Hari Malaysia!

On the 46th anniversary of the formation of Malaysia, another endeavour of hope has been launched: the Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia initiative, the goal of which is to actualise the spirit and substance of "One People, One Nation".

It is an initiative by a group of Malaysians who believe that we can, and need to, do better as a nation. The difference between this particular effort and the others that have gone before and that continue to suck our precious resources, is that these folk believe in, and know, what they are doing. They:

• Have identified the things (attitudes, mindsets, policies) that are holding us back as a nation
• Suggested a set of values and guiding principles that (I strongly believe) our nation needs
• Proposed a programme of specific actions to address those needs
• Suggested many ways how we as individuals can help realise the goals, starting with things we can practically do
  

Why is there a need for such an initiative? Because, as events post GE-12 have clearly shown, our political parties (on both sides) have not been able to effectively address our nation's need for a national identity and consciousness; for justice, human rights, freedom and democracy. Even though DS Najib is promoting his One Malaysia, it is vague and undefined beyond platitudes, and seems to be designed to present different faces to Malaysians from different communities. Furthermore, even as our PM goes around the nation promoting it, his cabinet and their mainstream media are working hard to divide Malaysians by race and religion, just so they stand a chance of winning GE-13.

PR on the other hand, have fared no better. As Kg. Buah Pala has shown, they have made election promises which they have seen fit to break, resulting in injustice being done to poor Malaysians.

It's clear (to me) that we need civil society groups to be the voice of the rakyat. We need to educate and empower ourselves to hold our elected representatives and our public servants to account. We need to decide how our nation is going to move forward and progress as a diverse democracy. We have to do this ourselves, for the political parties have let us down.

Who are leading this initiative? A small group of Malaysians led by civil rights lawyer Haris Ibrahim, of the People's Parliament. They are the folks who came up with the groundbreaking People's Voice and the People's Declaration way back in February 2008. Here they are during the launch of the SABM on 16/9/09:

And here is Haris presenting the SABM initiative:

This is a video where he talks about discrimination, social justice, inclusiveness and diversity (apologies for the poor video quality):

Please do visit the SABM website here and please do read the SABM Charter if you can (note: I've also posted it here) . I believe that if we want a Malaysia that is free from all forms of racism, discrimination and inequality, we need to seriously practise its principles in our daily lives.

Sincerely,
Malaysian Heart

Is Malaysia becoming a police state? What on earth is happening to us?

Yesterday, 3 September 2009, blogger Ronnie Klassen, posted this entry, "Malaysia, a police state in the making?" In it, he writes:

One month ago, on 3 August,army personnel's from the 7 RAMD (Gerak Khas) swooped on Pulau Pandanan Kecil, off Semporna and ordered the villagers there to take down all the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) flags hoisted at their houses. When the villagers declined to comply, the army personnel's brought the flags down for them.

If this is true, it is a most serious violation of our democratic right to suport the political party of our choice. As Ronnie explains, "The inhabitants of a police state experience restrictions on their mobility, and on their freedom to express or communicate political or other views, which are subject to police monitoring or enforcement."

This action must be explained satisfactorily to the rakyat, and the government must be held accountable for it. Wakil rakyat, what are you waiting for?

Sincerely,
Malaysian Heart

P.S. Please read Ronnie's entire post here. It includes links to 2 videos of the incident.

Fair Winds and Following Seas, Captain

We belong to God, and to God we will return.

The Ancient Mariner, Capt. Muhammad Yusof b. Haji Ahmad, passed away peacefully on 19 June 2009. He was 62, and leaves behind his beloved wife and four children.

Capt. Yusof started blogging as the Ancient Mariner on 14 November 2006, with a post entitled "Well, steady as she goes and full speed ahead ...", making an interesting observation that the word "blog" had nautical associations too. Ever since that first entry, he sure went "full speed ahead" with his blog, steadily posting up to 25 entries every month. He claimed to blog strictly for his own pleasure, but that did not stop him from informing, educating and certainly entertaining us. Although his modesty prevented him from claiming it, his writing most definitely made us think as well.

His blog entries came with interesting vignettes and anecdotes from his life at sea and on land, including warm descriptions of the people he had known, the places he had been to, and the books and poetry he had read. They attest to his gentleness and quiet erudition, and evoke memories of a time long since gone, when civility and courtesy was the mark of an Officer and a Gentleman.

That never prevented him from speaking his mind and rocking the boat, though. Far from it, he made many very sharp and accurate observations of life in Malaysia and possessed an equally sharp wit, which he kindly tempered with his good nature and humour that pervaded his blog.

He was very socially conscious. He frequently posted entries that touched on justice, democracy, civic duty and fairplay for all Malaysians (and even Singaporeans). He was never the chauvinistic partisan in his politics; even-handedness and noble principles was the cynosure by which he charted his course.

In an entry early in his blogging career, he wrote:

"I believe most of my blogging contemporaries (read: my age group) indulge in political commentaries. However, at this stage of my life or in the September of my years, to quote Sinatra, I no longer weigh the world's problems heavily on my shoulders nor do I share everyone's enthusiasm for a daily dreary fare of bellyaching and nit picking a la Naipaul* and his ilk. I honestly believe that we truly deserve the government that we have got. Period."

However, when corruption and injustice reared its ugly head, Capt. Yusof embraced his civic duty with determination and vigour. Soon after news of the PKFZ scandal broke he wrote this:

"...if you see something which needs to be done, something which affects you, your family, and even your country, you are not going to think, ah, what will the neighbours or your friends think. You are just going to do it."

Our problem, "the fire" as he called it, is this:

"Of late we are seeing the country going to the dogs with greedy politicians, corrupt police and judiciary, racial disintegration, religious bigotry and worse, an apathetic and a very gullible citizenry. Our founding fathers must surely be turning in their graves right now."

He ended by sounding this clarion call for us Malaysians to act:

"So all hands on deck for we cannot remain on the sidelines forever, on the outside looking in, nor can we just engage in ad hoc fire fighting. The proverbial ball, as they say, is in our court. The time and the place, my friends, is here and now ... "

Ever the consummate operations man who walks the talk, Capt. Yusof dedicated himself to exposing the PKFZ scandal, making it his personal mission. In a series of hard hitting blog entries (including a compelling letter to the PAC) starting from 25 July 2007 right up to 7 July 2009 (just 12 days before his passing), he laid bare the hanky-panky and shady dealing that went on, calling the perpetrators "modern day pirates now robbing this country blind". He acted without fear or favour; "old friend" Datin Paduka O.C. Phang (then PKA GM & PKFZ Chairman) and schoolmate, Datuk Shahrir Samad (then PAC chairman) were not spared questions & criticism.

Capt. Yusof used his extensive network of contacts and knowledge of Port Klang to organize, analyse, share and interpret the relevant data and news reports, greatly helping us to make sense of what was going on. He regularly posted updates, sometimes "scooping" the mainstream media and breaking the news before anyone else.

A powerful tool he used was to frame series of sharp pointed questions regarding the scandal, many of which remain unanswered by the authorities. His credibility and authoritativeness even led opposition leader YB Lim Kit Siang to consult him before tabling a motion in Parliament to debate the PKFZ scandal.

With his passing, the Malaysian blogosphere has lost a steadfast, principled and dedicated voice for justice, rule of law and good governance. He will be fondly remembered and deeply missed. May Malaysia be blessed with citizens as worthy as Capt. Yusof.

Al-Fatihah
in respectful memory of
Allahyarham Capt. Muhammad Yusof b. Haji Ahmad

Gurindam Fasal yang Kelima from Gurindam Dua Belas
by Raja Ali Haji (Capt. Yusof's illustrious forebear from Riau)

Jika hendak mengenal orang berbangsa,
lihat kepada budi dan bahasa,

Jika hendak mengenal orang yang berbahagia,
sangat memeliharakan yang sia-sia.

Jika hendak mengenal orang mulia,
lihatlah kepada kelakuan dia.

Jika hendak mengenal orang yang berilmu,
bertanya dan belajar tiadalah jemu.

Jika hendak mengenal orang yang berakal,
di dalam dunia mengambil bekal.

Jika hendak mengenal orang yang baik perangai,
lihat pada ketika bercampur dengan orang ramai.

(An English translation here)


Raja Ali Haji's wise words describe our dear Captain so well. Fair winds and following seas, Captain; may there be no moaning of the bar, when you put out to sea.

MUST READ Article from Aliran: "ACT NOW! - Vibrant democracy requires eternal vigilance"

Dear Readers,

I have just read best article regarding Democracy & Malaysia that I have ever read, perhaps even the best that I will ever read in my life. It is by Dr. Andrew Aeria from UNIMAS and you can read it at Aliran Monthly. It is entitled: "ACT NOW! Vibrant democracy requires eternal vigilance", and truer words have never been spoken. If you care for Democracy in our Nation, please read Dr. Aeria's article & encourage all your friends to read it too. Here is how he starts:

If we are passionate about Malaysia and our birthright, then we should ACT NOW to save our democracy, says Andrew Aeria.

In early March, University Malaya Law lecturer Azmi Sharom made a very pertinent observation in his weekly Star column that ‘Malaysians have this thing where they hope some mighty champion will sweep down from the mountains and solve their problems for them’.

His point was that instead of waiting for this ‘mighty champion’ to turn up and do the job for us, we should instead use whatever resources we have at hand and just ACT NOW if we want to mend our broken democracy and save it from our numerous ‘Bolehland-class’ politicians (defined as MPs, Aduns and party members who are either plain foul-mouthed, ‘tidak apa’, sexist, racist, lazy, corrupt, incompetent and even thuggish with only their personal and family’s material interests at heart). And by this, I also include many over-estimated opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) politicians and civil service bureaucrats as well.

There is a fundamental misunderstanding currently prevalent within our society that we do not need to do anything about our democracy since we have already elected PR (our ‘Mighty Champion’?) as our loyal parliamentary opposition serving King and country. As well, we elected them to govern in five states and so we have to ‘give them time’ to settle into the job. Unfortunately, this is self-deceiving and ultimately toxic to democracy. Simply because democracy is much more than just elections and what happens in parliament. And it certainly won’t flourish after merely being ‘given time’. ...

Please continue reading here. If you like the article, please consider supporting Aliran. In their words: "Justice was never won without personal sacrifice - whether measured in time volunteered, energy devoted to a cause, or financial support generously given. We need your support in our struggle for justice. Your contribution no matter how small will be like a droplet that builds up into a wave of change. Click here if you would like to contribute financially."

Sincerely,
Malaysian Heart

What shall we do with a floor crossing YB?

While the whole nation is occupied with the goings on in Perak, my own thoughts are drawn, perhaps out of disgust & disillusionment, to the events that eventually led to the mess that we have been left with there. In my view, the direct attributable cause is that elected representatives chose to switch (or leave) their party allegiances. What can we do to prevent a mess like Perak's from recurring in the future?

In our country, switching one's party allegiance is something that is generally viewed negatively. We pejoratively call it "party hopping" and those who indulge in it are called "frogs" or "katak". However, it is not always so in other places where a parliamentary system is practiced.

In the UK and other countries where the Westminster system is practiced, the term used is a more neutral "crossing the floor". It is something that has happened quite frequently in the UK , Australia and Canada, and not viewed so negatively. In fact Winston Churchill, the great British wartime leader, crossed the floor not once but twice!

So is switching party allegiance a bad thing or not? Should it be frowned upon or even banned (as it is in South Africa)? My take on this issue is this: crossing the floor is a lot like sex. When it's done out of true love for the other person, it is something wonderful & even spiritual. On the other hand, if done out of greed for money, fame or power, it becomes debased & immoral, and those who indulge in it are called prostitutes.

Similarly, an elected representative may cross the floor because he agrees with & respects the policies & positions of another party (or finds that of his own party unconscionable). Alternatively, he or she may just do so for more selfish reasons, (such as to avoid selective prosecution, or to get a new car).

This presents us with a problem: how can we determine fairly a YB's motives when he or she crosses the floor? We may have our suspicions, and if it can be proven that a YB was bribed to cross the floor, certainly he or she must be charged & punished under the various laws on corruption. However, corruption charges are not easily proven, and we cannot presume that all who cross the floor are guilty. It would not do, since we need to respect the human rights of all involved.

Whose rights are involved? Firstly. let's look at the rights of the elected representatives. From the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we can see that easc of us has the right to freedom of thought and conscience (article 18), the right to freedom of opinion and expression (article 19) as well as the right to freedom of association (article 20). Therefore, if we were to ban or criminalize crossing the floor, these YB's rights would be denied.

Our YBs do not lose these rights the moment they join a political party. We must remember that elected representatives do not serve in the legislative assemblies as employees of the political parties they were elected under, and there is no contractual obligation that they must vote according to the party line. Although their party may have had a manifesto that is presented to voters before elections, not all decisions that come before parliament may have been covered in the manifesto, and parties have been known to change their positions after elections. Democracy is not served by having "zombie" YBs who rubber stamp anything their parties want.

Let's look at another set of rights. Article 21 of the UDHR states that everyone "has the right to take part in the government of their country, directly or through freely chosen representatives". These YB are the means by which we the Rakyat take part in the government of Malaysia. What do we require from them? We require that they participate fully in the parliamentary process, ask the tough questions and vote in our best interests. Since they represent us, if they act in a way that does not reflect our interests, our rights have been denied.

So we have 2 sets of rights here that seem to clash. How will we solve this?

One way might be to introduce ideas from direct or deliberative democracy. One that I believe could help solve messes like Perak is this: the recall election. This is a procedure by which voters can remove elected officials. So, in the case of a YB who crossed the floor, we could require that an automatic recall election be held. He or she would have ample opportunity to share with the Rakyat his reasons for switching, and how his actions were in their best interests. The rakyat would then vote to indicate if they still wanted him as their representative. The YB would have every right to act according to his conscience, and the Rakyat's right to representation that serves their interests would not be sacrificed.

So, what do we do with a floor crossing YB? Make him go back to the rakyat for his mandate to be confirmed. What do you think? Could this work for Malaysia?