Archive for category nation building
Third challenge to youths in Malaysia – to promote social media literacy among youths so that they could be informed citizens and critical thinkers to detect lies, half-truths and falsehoods
Posted by Kit in culture, Gerakan, nation building, Youth on Monday, 9 September 2019
The Yang di Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah’s message on his official birthday celebration today has reinforced my challenge yesterday to Malaysian youths to prove to the world that Malaysia is a successful example of Alliance of Civilisations and not an example of failure from Clash of Civilisations.
In his message, the King has called on Malaysians to stand tall as a nation that transcends all differences to create lasting unity and togetherness.
His Majesty said to create such an atmosphere, the people and leaders at all levels should not just do nothing and yet dream of achieving success.
On the contrary concerted efforts should be taken to break down elements that would hinder the unity.
The King said: “The fact is that it is not an easy task to manage the divisions and differences that exist in a country. This is due to the fact that every single thing will tend to be viewed and interpreted from different angles.”
As such, ever since taking his oath as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong on Jan 31, the Yang di Pertuan Agong has travelled to every corner of the country to stay close to all Malaysians regardless of differences. Read the rest of this entry »
Two Challenges to Youths in Malaysia – spearhead a national campaign to clean up the Malaysia social media by combating fake news and hate speech to incite inter-racial and inter-religious suspicion, fear and hatred and to prove to the world that Malaysia is a successful example of Alliance of Civilisations and not an example of failure from Clash of Civilisations
Posted by Kit in nation building, Youth on Sunday, 8 September 2019
Two things struck me last night when I attended the first series of the Parliamentary Debaton 2019 Youth in Parliament by 46 youths in the 16 – 25 year-old age group – firstly, empowering Malaysians youths and inspiring them to transform Malaysia into a top world-class nation of unity, freedom, justice, excellence and integrity; and secondly, harnessing the energies of youth for the country’s reform and the reset of nation building policies to build a New Malaysia.
I was impressed with the seriousness, intensity and passion of the young debators last night on a subject, ‘Precariat Workers in the Gig Economy’, which few Malaysians are familiar with – reinforcing the hope and belief that Malaysians must depend on the youths of today to take the country to greater national heights in the coming years and decades.
Young Malaysians must dare to dream big and have great vision for the country. When the DAP MPs were first elected to Parliament in 1969, we had three DAP MPs who were in their twenties – Fan Yew Teng (Kampar), Lim Cho Hock (Batu Gajah) and myself (Bandar Malacca).
The Pakatan Harapan Government has taken the rights steps to re-set nation building efforts, including the Constitutional amendment to lower the voting age from 21 to 18 year-olds; the appointment of the youngest Youth Minister in the history of 18 Youth Ministers in the history of the country, Syed Saddiq bin Syed Abdul Rahman who was 25 when he appointed to the Cabinet (despite his various faux pas); the Parliamentary Debaton 2019 Youth and the historic event last Friday where after more than 40 years, the University of Malaya Students’ Union (UMSU) revived its tradition of holding a convoy during the university’s orientation week.
Read the rest of this entry »
A lesson on Malaysian national identity
Posted by Kit in nation building on Friday, 6 September 2019
Sebuah pengajaran tentang identiti nasional Malaysia
Kejadian malang dan menyedihkan di Stadium Gelora Bung Karno di Jakarta malam tadi — di mana tiga rakyat Malaysia telah tercedera selepas peminat bola sepak Malaysia dibaling dengan objek logam dan botol air dan gas pemedih mata selepas Harimau Malaya menjaringkan gol kemenangan terhadap Indonesia dalam Perlawanan Kumpulan C Kelayakan Piala Dunia Zon Asia — dapat memberikan kita pengajaran penting tentang identiti nasional Malaysia.
Pengajaran ini amat berguna dan tepat pada masanya kerana sejak dua bulan lalu, media sosial Malaysia dikuasai oleh berita palsu dan ucapan kebencian yang melaga-lagakan kaum dengan kaum dan agama dengan agama, malah membangkitkan prasangka antara kaum dan agama, rasa sangsi, permusuhan, ketakutan dan kebencian bagi mewujudkan fobia bahawa setiap etnik kononnya berdepan krisis eksistensial budaya dan pegangannya.
Ia merupakan suatu peringatan bahawa orang Melayu, Cina dan India di Malaysia, yang merupakan anak watan Malaysia, mempunyai banyak persamaan antara satu sama lain berbanding orang Indonesia di Indonesia, orang Cina di China dan orang India di India.
Adalah suatu tindakan yang tidak bertanggungjawab dan bersifat jahat untuk sesuatu pihak cuba menuduh bahawa kononnya orang India di Malaysia lebih menyokong Perdana Menteri India Narendra Modi daripada Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, begitu juga dengan dakwaan bahawa orang Melayu kononnya menganggap Joko Widodo atau Jokowi sebagai Presiden mereka atau orang Cina di Malaysia menganggap Xi Jinping sebagai Presiden mereka sedangkan semua rakyat Malaysia taat dan setia kepada Yang di-Pertuan Agong, sistem monarki berpelembagaan dan Perlembagaan Persekutuan. Read the rest of this entry »
Can Malaysia be rid of corruption, religious bigotry and racial extremism which are the prerequisites to become a top world-class nation or condemned to mediocrity and worse, a failed, rogue state and a klepto-theocracy?
Posted by Kit in Fake News, nation building on Thursday, 5 September 2019
We are still in the interregnum between Merdeka Day on August 31 and Malaysia Day on September 16, which should be period when Malaysians should mull the fate and future of the country, whether we can be rid of corruption, religious bigotry and racial extremism as the perquisites to become a top world-class nation of unity, freedom, justice, excellence and integrity or condemned to mediocrity and worse, a failed and rogue state and a klepto-theocracy.
These thoughts came to me when I read the latest poem by the 83-year-old former top civil servant, Tan Sri Alwi Jantan on the 62nd Merdeka Day, viz: Read the rest of this entry »
All Malaysians must speak up for national unity and condemn fake news and hate speech designed to spark inter-racial and inter-religious doubt, suspicion, animosity, fear and hate
Posted by Kit in Fake News, nation building on Wednesday, 4 September 2019
In the past two months, “social media Malaysia” seems to have a developed a life of its own – giving a false picture that centrifugal forces in Malaysia are having an upper-hand and tearing Malaysia apart as a result of the worst racial and religious polarisation in the nation’s history.
But this is a false picture of the real Malaysia.
The 62nd Merdeka Day on August 31 was not only celebrated in the federal capital and the various state capitals by the “big shots”, but for the first time in a very long while in the nation’s history by ordinary Malaysians in small towns and villages all over the country.
In the Iskandar Puteri parliamentary constituency, for instance, I flagged off in the morning the 62nd Merdeka Day Run in Kangkar Pulai which was participated by some 2,000 people, opened a debate tournament, flagged off a 62nd Merdeka Day Convoy of Motor Bikes and officiated a day-long 62nd Merdeka Day Pesta Bola participated by 32 teams from the surrounding Malay kampongs.
Instead of inter-racial and inter-religious doubt, suspicion, distrust, animosity, fear and hatred, as propagated by “social media Malaysia”, I find on the ground only goodwill, understanding, harmony and tolerance among Malaysians, whether Malays, Chinese or Indians.
I call on Malaysians regardless of race and religion to prove “Social media Malaysia” wrong, that it is giving a false picture that centrifugal forces in Malaysia are having an upper-hand and tearing Malaysia apart as a result of worst racial and religious polarisation in nation’s history. Read the rest of this entry »
Don’t deregister UMNO – let it self-destruct!
Posted by Kit in DAP, Hate Speech, nation building, UMNO on Tuesday, 3 September 2019
Jangan batalkan pendaftaran UMNO — biarlah ia musnah dengan sendiri!
Saya bersetuju dengan Ahli Parlimen DAP Kepong Lim Lip Eng yang mana kerajaan tidak sepatutnya membatalkan pendaftaran UMNO kerana kesalahan para pemimpinnya. Namun begitu, politik kotor parti tersebut haruslah dibendung.
Saya percaya bahawa kerajaan Pakatan Harapan harus mengambil kedudukan yang lebih tinggi dan berikan ruang dan masa untuk UMNO memperbetulkan salahlakunya.
Sepanjang lima tahun di antara 2013 sehingga 2018, DAP pernah menghadapi situasi yang sama di mana Kabinet Najib mempertimbangkan pembubaran secara haram parti ini berdasarkan pelbagai tuduhan yang dibuat-buat.
Dalam Pilihan Raya Umum ke-13 yang berlangsung pada 5 Mei 2013 yang lalu, rejim Najib hanya berubah fikiran pada saat terakhir daripada keputusan untuk mengharamkan penggunaan simbol roket DAP pada PRU tersebut.
Sebelum PRU14, rejim Najib merasakan sangat yakin dengan kebolehan mereka untuk memenangi sehingga ⅔ kerusi Parlimen sehingga mereka memutuskan untuk tidak menggantung pendaftaran DAP — yang berasaskan tuduhan kononnya pilihan raya dalaman parti pada Disember 2012 dilaksanakan dengan cara yang tidak demokratik dan melanggar undang-undang — dan sebaliknya memilih untuk mengharamkan Parti Bersatu yang baru ditubuhkan. Read the rest of this entry »
Shocking that some Opposition leaders who were formerly in government are defying royal advice about fake news and hate speech and totally reckless about jeoparding national unity in Malaysia
Posted by Kit in Hate Speech, nation building on Monday, 2 September 2019
I am shocked and surprised that some Opposition leaders who were formerly in government are defying royal advice about fake news and hate speech and totally reckless about jeopardising national unity in Malaysia.
I would advise these Opposition leaders, who were formerly government leaders, to repent and to heed the advice of the various Rulers and play their part to curb fake news and hate speech dominating the social media.
The Sultan of Perak Sultan Nazrin Shah for instance had said that after 62 years of achieving independence, the act of instilling the feeling of hatred between the races and religions was being committed more often.
He expressed his concern that the political climate in the country after the 14th general election was getting hotter through acts carried out by political leaders.
He said various provocations, which were extreme in nature, were being made, including disseminating slander through social media and insulting Islam and the various religions in the country.
He warned that such acts were like setting up time bombs which were waiting for the right time to explode. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysians who want Malaysia to be an example to the world of the success of Alliance of Civilisations instead of being a failure because of Clash of Civilisations should come together to make a success of this objective, regardless of their political antecedents
Posted by Kit in Fake News, nation building on Sunday, 1 September 2019
I was at the Subang International Airport this morning waiting for my flight to be called when a Malaysian joined me at one of the waiting benches, and asked me what I thought would be the future of Malaysia.
I did not know who this person was, but I responded, saying that it reminded me of the opening paragraph of Charles Dickens’s “”A Tale of Two Cities” –
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair”.
I said Malaysia seemed to be caught by this paradox on the occasion of the 62nd Merdeka Day – best of times, worst of times; light and darkness; hope and despair.
But the “social media” Malaysia, dominated by fake news and hate speech particularly in the past two months to incite suspicion, distrust, fear and hatred in each community against other communities, seeking to create the psychosis among the Malays, Chinese and Indians that they are all individually facing an existential threat from other ethnic groups is completely different from real-life Malaysia. Read the rest of this entry »
Social media Malaysia is entirely different from real-life Malaysia and the fake news and hate speech which dominate the social media to incite suspicion, distrust, fear and hate pitting race against race and religion against religion must be strontly curbed
Posted by Kit in culture, Fake News, nation building on Saturday, 31 August 2019
Malaysia yang digambarkan media sosial berbeza sama sekali dengan Malaysia dalam dunia sebenar dan berita palsu yang disebarkan dalam media sosial untuk memecah-belah dan melagakan rakyat Malaysia mestilah dibendung
Semasa dalam perjalanan ke program ini, saya terkenang kepada masa muda saya.
Kewujudan internet membolehkan saya untuk mencari semula sebuah editorial yang saya tulis 62 tahun yang lalu ketika saya menjadi editor majalah kelas III A yang bertajuk Light di Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Tinggi Batu Pahat.
Di dalam editorial ini, saya telah menulis:
“Malaya telah menjadi sebuah negara yang baru, kini mengambil tempat dan tanggungjawabnya di dalam dunia yang penuh perselisihan. Ia mesti menerima dan menangani semua cabaran, dan satu hari nanti, diiktiraf sebagai salah satu daripada negara hebat dunia. Namun begitu, tokoh-tokoh masa kini yang sedang mengemudi negara kita tidak akan berada bersama kita selama-lamanya.
“Kita sebagai pemuda masa kini, adalah pemimpin masa depan, yang akan mewarisi tugas dan tanggungjawab untuk mengemudi hala tuju negara, sama ada kearah Utopia atau Kemusnahan. Kita mestilah mempersiapkan diri untuk berkhidmat untuk memimpin. Janganlah kita bazirkan masa kita dengan perbuatan yang sia-sia.
“Peranan sebagai golongan muda di dalam Malaya yang merdeka adalah lebih berat dan sukar untuk dipikul oleh bahu golongan muda generasi kita yang kurang berpengalaman. Kita akan menjadi golongan muda yang pertama yang memikul tanggungjawab ini sebagai negara yang merdeka. Marilah kita berkerja keras dan berazam supaya seluruh dunia boleh mengatakan dan mengiktiraf yang usaha dan tenaga golongan muda Malaya tidak dibazirkan.
“Untuk mencapai hasrat ini di dalam negara baru yang mempunyai demografi yang pelbagai ini, kita mesti sentiasa ingat bahawa kerjasama antara kaum adalah perkara yang paling penting sekali.”
Itulah yang telah saya tuliskan semasa saya berumur 16 tahun. Read the rest of this entry »
Battle for the soul of Malaysia – to bridge Malaysia’s divides to build a common future for all Malaysians or for each ethnicity to return to its respective enclave in false belief that it is facing an existential threat and in denial of a Malaysian dream
Posted by Kit in nation building, PH Government on Saturday, 31 August 2019
In the last two days, my thoughts have often returned to the opening paragraph of Charles Dickens’s “A Tale of Two Cities” –
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair …, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way …”
Best of Times, Worst of Times; Light and Darkness; Hope and Despair – these were the paradoxes that agonised Malaysians on our 62nd Merdeka Day.
Early this week, I encapsulated this paradox and posed the question whether I should just forget about New Malaysia and call its quits.
I received tons of responses, a large number of them bots wishing my immediate disappearance from the political scene, but a fair amount reflecting the paradoxes of the opening paragraph of “A Tale of Two Cities”.
A political commenter was so full of despair about the future of Malaysia that he penned an article entitled “A meaningless Merdeka”, expressing this attack of darkness that “After 21 years of writing ideas, criticisms and advice for Malaysians, Malays and those in power in academic, religious and political institutions, I have no more to give”.
This paradox caused another commentator to write about “Let’s have Merdeka from ‘race and religion’”. Read the rest of this entry »
Shall I just forget about New Malaysia and call it quits?
Posted by Kit in DAP, nation building on Wednesday, 28 August 2019
Patutkah saya hanya lupakan impian satu Malaysia Baharu dan bersara sahaja?
Salah satu respons kepada kenyataan saya semalam mengenai keupayaan Pakatan Harapan untuk memenangi PRU15 pada tahun 2023 — di mana saya telah menyatakan keyakinan saya untuk kemenangan ini — yang berbunyi seperti berikut:
“Bukan, bukan sekarang. Buat masa ini DAP pasti akan musnah. Sila turun ke peringkat akar umbi sekarang, dengar apa yang rakyat ingin katakan… dengar pendapat mereka yang dahulunya penyokong DAP… yang kini jumlahnya dapat dibilang dengan jari… Pemimpin DAP kini sudah menjadi pekak, buta… dan BODOH.”
Dua minggu yang lepas, saya telah mengatakan di Gelang Patah yang saya akan kehilangan kerusi parlimen Iskandar Puteri ini dan DAP akan kehilangan 30-40 peratus undi dalam negara jika pilihanraya umum diadakan sekarang.
Perkara ini menunjukkan betapa kritikalnya salah faham dan salah tanggapan yang dihadapi DAP dan Pakatan Harapan dalam kalangan penyokong kami.
Kami memerlukan masa untuk membolehkan penyokong kami menyedari yang DAP belum pernah dan tidak pernah mengkhianati mereka dan kami masih komited terhadap matlamat Malaysia Baharu yang berteraskan perpaduan, kebebasan, keadilan, kecemerlangan, dan integriti.
Jika benar DAP telah mengkhianati rakyat dan harapan dan matlamat Malaysia Baharu, maka layaklah DAP ditolak oleh rakyat Malaysia dan tidak akan ada cara untuk DAP mendapatkan semula sokongan rakyat. Malah sokongan ini hanya akan makin merosot. Read the rest of this entry »
Can Pakatan Harapan win the 15th General Election in 2023?
Posted by Kit in nation building, PH Government on Tuesday, 27 August 2019
Mampukah Pakatan Harapan memenangi Pilihanraya Umum ke-15 pada tahun 2023?
Persoalan “Mampukah Pakatan Harapan (PH) menang Pilihan Raya Umum ke-15 (PRU15) pada tahun 2023” akan menimbulkan jawapan yang berbeza daripada kumpulan yang berbeza.
Bagi perintis perikatan klepto-teokrasi yang pertama di dunia dalam tempoh yang terdekat, dengan setiap satu daripada dua parti komponennya mengheret sekali parti bawahannya, sama ada MCA dan MIC yang diheret UMNO atau Ikatan dan Berjasa yang diheret PAS, jawapan yang kedengaran sudah tentu “Tidak”, kerana perikatan UMNO-PAS berangan-angan untuk menjadi Kerajaan Malaysia pada PRU15 dan menubuhkan negara klepto-teokrasi pertama seumpamanya di dunia.
Tetapi, mereka tidak akan bersetuju dengan hakikat yang PRU15 akan dilaksanakan pada tahun 2023, kerana mereka sangat mengharapkan supaya PRU15 dijalankan lebih awal!
Saya belum mengajukan persoalan ini kepada pemimpin-pemimpin lain parti komponen PH. Namun, jawapan saya kepada persoalan ini adalah; ya.
Pendapat ini menongkah arus persepsi umum semasa mengenai kerajaan PH, kerana terdapat beberapa kumpulan yang mempunyai pandangan bahawa kerajaan PH akan disingkirkan dari Putrajaya sekiranya pilihan raya umum diadakan sekarang — seperti mana mereka meramalkan bahawa kerajaan PH akan runtuh dan berpecah beberapa bulan selepas pertukaran kerajaan, dan kini mereka berharap yang kerajaan PH tidak akan berjaya mentadbir sepenuh penggal, sebaliknya akan tersungkur dan berpecah sebelum tahun 2023.
Mereka yang skeptikal terhadap PH pasti akan terkejut jika kerajaan PH mampu mentadbir sepenuh penggal pertama ini dan hanya melaksanakan PRU15 pada tahun 2023 dan bukan lebih awal dari itu! Read the rest of this entry »
Gangrenous Zahid talking about ‘political gangrene’ in Pakatan Harapan provides light relief to a month of heavy adverse news where the combination of a quartet of issues, a videotape, Jawi writing in Chinese and Tamil primary schools, Zakir Nik and Lynas combined to give the impression that PH government is on the ropes
Posted by Kit in nation building, PH Government on Monday, 26 August 2019
The double celebrations for the 62nd National Day on August 31 and 56th Malaysia Day on September 16 should be occasions to inculcate among Malaysians a sense of confidence for the future, that Malaysia is finally in the trajectory to build a nation which is a top world-class nation of unity, freedom, justice, excellence and integrity.
This is the occasion to inspire Malaysians that Malaysia, the confluence of four great civilisations in the world – Islamic, Chinese, Indian and Western – will be the showcase to the world of the success of the Alliance of Civilisations to prove wrong the prophets of doom who had forecast a Clash of Civilisations as the theme of the 21st Century.
But it had been a bad month for Pakatan Harapan government in Putrajaya, as the combination of a quartet of issues – a videotape, Jawi writing in Chinese and Tamil primary schools, Zakir Naik and Lynas – combined to give the impression that the PH government is on the ropes.
Until gangrenous Ahmad Zahid, the UMNO President, talked about non-existing “political gangrene” in the Pakatan Harapan, which provided light relief in a month of heavy adverse publicity for Pakatan Harapan.
“Political gangrene”? Who suffered from it? Read the rest of this entry »
Rukunegara is manifestation of the philosophy of Alliance of Civilisations in Malaysian nation-building as a Clash of Civilisations can only result in Malaysia’s failure and destruction
Posted by Kit in Malaysian Dream, nation building, PH Government on Sunday, 25 August 2019
The Rukunegara is the manifestation of the philosophy of Alliance of Civilisations in Malaysian nation-building as a Clash of Civilisations can only result in Malaysia’s failure and destruction.
I will like to see this spirit of Alliance of Civilisations in Malaysia highlighted in the forthcoming celebrations for the 62nd National Day on August 31 and the 56th Malaysia Day on Sept. 16.
But there seems to be plot to denigrate and defile these two important occasions.
Malaysians must be alert to the unusual increase of traffic of fake news and hate speech on Malaysian social media recently as if to provoke inter-racial and inter-religious strife in the country. Read the rest of this entry »
Let Johore be the forefront to pioneer to recasting of the 2005 United Nations Initiative of Alliance for Civilisations to defuse tensions between Western and Islamic worlds into a genuinely universal civilizational collaboration with the growing importance of Chinese and Indian civilisations
Posted by Kit in DAP, nation building on Saturday, 24 August 2019
Johore DAP has made history in the 53-year history of the DAP, as never before in a state meeting has there been more questions and more opinions expressed in the past three hours.
When I decided in 1966 to take the political plunge and join in the establishment of the DAP, it was purely for idealism and patriotism of what we can do for Malaysia. There was never a thought of elections, becoming a Member of Parliament or be part of the government.
But these became necessary steps in the process to translate our ideas and ideals into reality.
DAP leaders and members have undoubtedly found in the past 15 months that it is easier to be an Opposition party, and this explain for the thicket of views and questions by the Johore branch leaders this morning.
But in opposition, we cannot translate our ideas, ideals and hopes into reality, which we can while we are in government.
DAP members and supporters must have trust and confidence of DAP and its leaders that after so many sacrifices and struggles that they have gone through, the objectives and principles of the party for unity, integrity, justice and progress for all Malaysians will never be betrayed. Read the rest of this entry »
“Alliance of Civilisations” on the domestic and international fronts the best antidote to the rise of hate, fear and intolerance through the abuse of social media
Posted by Kit in Fake News, IT, nation building, Sedition on Friday, 23 August 2019
Inisiatif UNAOC di peringkat domestik dan antarabangsa adalah penawar terbaik untuk kebangkitan sentimen kebencian, ketakutan dan tidak bertolerasi yang semakin menjadi-jadi melalui penyalahgunaan media sosial
Semalam, Indonesia telah menyekat akses Internet di Papua berikutan kebimbangan bahawa kenyataan perkauman dan jelek yang dimuat naik di dalam talian (online) akan mencetuskan lebih banyak protes keganasan di wilayah tersebut.
Tunjuk perasaan dan rusuhan menyebabkan beberapa bandar di Papua lumpuh minggu ini, dengan bangunan-bangunan dibakar dan pertempuran antara polis dan penunjuk perasaan tercetus di wilayah paling timur negara Indonesia itu.
Pemberontakan terhadap pentadbiran di Jakarta telah berlarutan untuk beberapa dekad di wilayah kepulauan tersebut, yang mana berkongsi sempadan dengan negara Papua New Guinea.
Indonesia memperlahankan perkhidmatan internet beberapa hari lalu bagi mengelak penyebaran berita tidak benar, komen provokatif dan perkauman yang menyasarkan populasi etnik Melanesia di Papua. Namun, ia hanya disekat sepenuhnya pada lewat malam semalam.
Awal bulan ini, apabila Perdana Menteri India, Narendra Modi bertindak memansuhkan Perkara 370 Perlembagaan India yang memberikan Jammu dan Kashmir (J & K) status istimewa dalam Kesatuan India, akses Internet disekat untuk kali yang ke-53 tahun ini.
Di India, tahun lalu, terdapat 65 sekatan dilakukan, manakala 176 sekatan berlaku sepanjang lapan tahun lalu, termasuk larangan selama enam bulan pada tahun 2016. Read the rest of this entry »
Speech by Sultan Nazrin on civilizational dialogue most apt and timely
Posted by Kit in nation building on Thursday, 22 August 2019
Ucapan dialog ketamadunan Sultan Nazrin tepat pada masanya
Ucapan yang diberikan oleh Sultan Perak, Sultan Nazrin Shah di Dialog Ketamadunan Malaysia-China yang kedua berkenaan dengan Islam dan Konfiusianisme semalam yang diadakan sempena ulang tahun ke-45 hubungan diplomatik Malaysia-China datang pada waktu yang sangat sempurna.
Kedua-dua dialog dan ucapan yang diberikan telah menekankan hakikat bahawa Malaysia adalah satu tempat pertembungan empat tamadun besar dunia — Islam, Cina, India, dan Barat — dan merupakan satu cabaran kepada semua rakyat Malaysia untuk memanfaatkan perkara ini dalam membina sebuah negara yang hebat dan dunia yang lebih baik.
Keyakinan Sultan Nazrin terhadap satu Malaysia yang berbilang kaum sebagai satu tempat untuk dialog di antara pelbagai agama dan kepercayaan sepatutnya dicontohi oleh rakyat Malaysia bagi membolehkan kita semua memainkan peranan yang lebih besar di pentas antarabangsa dalam menggalakkan kesefahaman, toleransi, dan keharmonian ketika kebencian dan konflik mula menunjukkan dirinya di serata dunia.
Sultan Nazrin tepat sekali apabila baginda mengatakan yang kita sekarang hidup dalam satu dunia yang semakin berpecah-belah. Tetapi, golongan moderat daripada semua kaum, agama, budaya, dan negara mestilah kekal tegas terhadap ekstremis kerana kaum majoriti terdiri daripada golongan moderat.
Seperti yang dikatakan baginda pada Majlis Konvokasi ke-48 Politeknik Ungku Omar di Ipoh, rakyat Malaysia perlu menolak ekstremis perkauman dan agama. Read the rest of this entry »
Shocking that after four weeks of controversy, 95% of Chinese and Indian Malaysians not aware there is Jawi in Std. V Bahasa Malaysia textbook for years and that the revised curriculum to introduce Jawi in Std. IV was decided by MCA, Gerakan, MIC, SUPP and UMNO Ministers in Sept. 2015
Posted by Kit in Education, nation building on Wednesday, 21 August 2019
It is indeed shocking that after four weeks of controversy over Jawi in Chinese and Primary schools, 95% of Chinese and Indian Malaysians are not aware that there is Jawi in Std. V Bahasa Malaysia textbook for years and that the revised curriculum to introduce Jawi in Std. IV was decided by MCA, Gerakan, MIC, SUPP and UMNO Ministers in Sept. 2015.
Now, MCA, Gerakan, MIC and SUPP leaders are loudest in condemning the introduction of Jawi in Chinese and Tamil primary schools, although this decision was taken by their Ministers four years ago in 2015, to be implemented yearly in the revised textbooks from 2017 – 2022.
The Jawi subject controversy was a legacy of the former government, as the final decision on the new textbooks for Chinese/Tamil primary schools to introduce the Jawi subject for Std. 4 pupils in 2020 was made by Education Ministry Curriculum Committee chaired by the then Education Minister, Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid and attended by the then two Deputy Education Ministers, Datuk Chong Sin Woon (MCA) and P. Kamalanathan (MIC) in a meeting of Sept. 21, 2015.
After that it became an administrative matter for the relevant Education Ministry divisions to implement the policy decision of Sept. 2015. Read the rest of this entry »
Call for launching of a “I am, you are, we are Malaysian” campaign or movement on the occasion of the 62nd National Day/56th Malaysia Day celebrations
Posted by Kit in nation building on Tuesday, 20 August 2019
There have been too much negative vibes in the country in the past 15 months, which have seen the rearing of the ugly heads of distrust, suspicion, fear and hate, as a result of the Internet phenomenon enabling lies, falsehoods, fake news and hate speech to travel at the speed of light to pit race against race and religion against religion.
This is most anomalous for the past 15 months should be a season of hope and expectation of change for the better in Malaysia, with the historic decision of the 14th General Election on May 9, 2018 to democratically and peacefully change the Federal Government first time in six decades.
Malaysia has been described as one of the six countries where “some light shined through these gathering clouds in 2018” against the backdrop of “13th consecutive year of decline in global freedom”, but these hopes seems to have dimmed suddenly in a matter of 15 months, to the extent that there are claims that the Pakatan Harapan is similar to Barisan Nasional – with a former Malaysian Bar President penning an article entitled: “What we have now is BN 2.0”.
It is fallacious to equate Pakatan Harapan as BN 2.0, disregarding the ground work that has been done for further institutional and political reforms and to transform Malaysia into a top world-class nation of unity, freedom, justice, excellence and integrity, with a “tiger economy” and far-reaching educational reforms.
But the Pakatan Harapan government must heed the increasing impatience of the people that there should be greater progress in the reforms in various aspects of national life. Read the rest of this entry »
Senator Khairul is right if he is asking for safeguards against abuses with regard to MCMC hotline but wrong and utterly irresponsible if he is proposing a “free for all” for hate speech to incite racial and religious distrust, animosity and hatred in plural Malaysia
Posted by Kit in Hate Speech, nation building on Monday, 19 August 2019
UMNO Senator who was formerly UMNO Youth deputy leader Khairul Azwan Harun is right if he is asking for safeguards against abuses with regard to Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) hotline on inflammatory speech but wrong and utterly irresponsible if he is proposing a “free-for-all” for hate speech to incite racial and religious distrust, animosity and hatred in plural Malaysia.
Are Malaysians of diverse races and religions more united as a Malaysian people in the past 15 months after the historic decision of the 14th General Election on May 9, 2018, or are they more polarised and divided?
The answer must be the sad latter, not because the Pakatan Harapan Government in Putrajaya had disregarded its responsibility to unite Malaysians regardless of race, religion or region but because of a vicious phenomenon in the Internet era which has given new wings to hate speech, endowing it with great destructive power especially in plural societies unless checked.
What is hate speech?
Hate speech is defined by Wikipedia as a statement intended to demean and brutalize another, or the use of cruel and derogatory language on the basis of real or alleged membership in a social group. Read the rest of this entry »
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