Monday, May 31, 2010

1Malaysia - The Government's Denial

What do you think of 1Malaysia? Please explain your answer (likes, dislikes, emotions etc) in details. What is your vision of Malaysia in the next 5 years?

We can lie and negate our true thoughts to avoid possible prosecutions, but the truth is the only thing that can really help the country and it will be always brutal - whether the government likes it or not:

1MALAYSIA DOESN'T WORK

After half a century of political parties playing the racial card, making a certain race feel special just to gain votes and creating this long-term community psychological effect, does the government really expect everything to change because they designed a number using the Malaysian flag?


It's like chopping down all the trees on earth and putting up a "GO GREEN" sign, expecting the trees to magically reappear. Any Tom, Dick and Harry would know that this isn't how it works.

1Malaysia is nothing but a meaningless statement. Something like Malaysia Boleh. If screaming 'Malaysia Boleh' brings our country to great heights, why are we now at the verge of bankruptcy? Why is 'The Dot' beneath Malaysia 20 years more advanced when it doesn't even have water, oil, rubber trees and palm trees? The same goes for 1Malaysia. Using the phrase in speeches, news reports and articles isn't going to change anything. There are hardly any significant initiatives we can see that upholds what the phrase stands for.

Sure, we know 1Malaysia is all about racial togetherness. But how do you expect a nation to change when the people have been literally brainwashed for the past half a century?

The question is: what is the difference between now and then that will cause racial unity? If nothing has changed, how do you expect that mere phrase to cause a nationwide psychological revolution?

As far as I am concerned, I'm still required to disclose my race when I'm filling in forms, I still need to tell the government what religion I belong to and I'm still being denied equal citizen rights because my ancestors were from another country. What is this, original sin?

I shall not go to my visions for the country because honestly, I don't have one and I'm not going to think one up for the sake of this post because then it wouldn't be sincere. Let's face it - Malaysia is in a mess. The executive is controlling everything, the parliament fails to represent the people, the judiciary is not transparent, the monarchy has lost its powers and the written constitution has been violated with no consequences. As a notable blogger said, "We must first cure the cause, not the symptoms". This subconcious racial segregation arises due to a problematic country management, fix that problem and it shall be solved. 1Malaysia is completely unnecessary. I hope that the government will refrain from further wasting more of our diminishing money reserves (as if we have any) to market this pointless slogan.


What do you think about the various races in this country? Do you think about your race or country first? Why? Do you think there is a tension between the various races in this country or not?

What do I think of the various races? You see, this is what my rant is about. Everything has to be broken down into Malay, Chinese, Indian and others. I'm not blaming the person who set this question; as I have said above, it is a psychological thing which has been carved in stone in the minds of the people. I'm not saying that it is a permanent effect, but the stone is not going to change its shape within a short amount of time.

That being said, the answer to the second question will be: I think of my race first. I'm sure any Malaysian who is asked this question will give the same answer, provided that the answer is truthful. However, many people, like the Prime Minister or even the Opposition Leader, wouldn't be caught dead giving the answer I just gave.

The tension? The tension is but an issue concerning inequal treatment. Some may say that those without special rights are jealous people, but I beg to differ. I'm one of these 'unloved' citizens but I don't see a reason to be jealous. I live a good life and my family can afford the occasional luxury. Plus, it's not like special treatment is going to give me enough money to build a palace. But the question is: why divide us? Does the government not see that these segregations totally contradicts 1Malaysia? How is 1Malaysia going to succeed when Malaysia doesn't love her children equally?

Then again, I'm sure I'm not the first person who said this. But no one is listening, not even the Parliament.

How do you think people from all over the world see Malaysia? Do you think there is a typical “Malaysian” stereotype? How would you want people to view “Malaysians” in the future?

I am about to sound somewhat unpatriotic here, but I think that Malaysia is too insignificant a country to exist in someone's perspective. I mean, Singapore a.k.a. The Dot is a developed country and we are not. Many a time, I have chatted with people online and I when I tell them I'm from Malaysia, they'll ask me, "Where is that?" And when I say it's above Singapore, they'll go, "Ohhh, now I know where it is."

Conclusion: People all over the world see Malaysia as a humungous, resource-filled flab of land embarassingly situated above a highly developed, resourceless dot.

I also think that the citizens do not live in harmony enough to form a stereotype, unlike Singaporeans who are generally kiasu and Americans who are generally fat.

And for the last question, I don't care how people view Malaysians in the future. I believe every person succeeds as an individual. Countries, on the other hand, succeed because of a group of successful individuals, also known as its citizens. As long as we live a long, happy and prosperous life, who cares how the world look at us? Low self esteem ah? :)


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And this concludes my last post for the Real Voices 2 Youth Blogging Project. I want to thank the organisers for providing a platform for us youths to collectively voice our thoughts so that we stand a better chance of being heard.

Thank you for reading and take care everyone!


~ Angelina

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for the support! :)

    (Sorry, just saw this today. Was busy with my exams ^_^")

    ReplyDelete