| Brave new Malaysian identity emerging? |  |  |  |
| Posted by admin | |
| Wednesday, 26 March 2008 13:14 | |
| These ideals are no different that the ones taught in Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and the cultural philosophy of the natives of Sabah and Sarawak and of the Orang Asli. Dr. Azly Rahman http://www.azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/ “Our government teaches the whole people by its example. If the government becomes the lawbreaker, it breeds contempt for law; it invites every man to become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy.” -Louis D Brandeis (American Supreme Court Justice, 1856-1941). “I do not wish to remove from my present prison to a prison a little larger. I wish to break all prisons.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson, American transcendentalist. The second wave of Independence, achieved with the storming of the "Bastille that is Putrajaya" in March 2008, in a phenomena called "implo-volution" in which the old regime was crushed by its own weight of contradiction and one whose ruins were charted some fifty years ago, present an interesting possibility. It is that of the ethnogenesis (emerging new culture) of a new Malaysian identity. Political will is complementing this philosophical vision. The Internet is aiding in speeding up the process. The wave is forcing the various ethnic groups to think of defining itself as a " new nation" when power-sharing of a truly multicultural nature at the state level is becoming a reality. Not only the different ethnic groups are fairly represented in what I call the "yellow" states of "Perak and Selangor" but religious background of the state leaders are also playing a key role in the evolving nature of the leadership. The yellow states are forging ahead with care – aware of the sensitivities of the different ethnic and religious groups, focusing on the pragmatics and ethics drawn from each cultural tradition. Thus, we saw Penang CM Lim Guan Eng refusing to use thousands of ringgit of state funds to move to a new office, we saw the Kedah chief minister and we saw the continuation of Kelantan chief minister's commitment to the principles of Islam in governing the state with prudence and tolerance. What is displayed is Confucianist-Taoist ideas and Islamic brand of ethical leadership – two seemingly radical philosophies that actually complement each other. When it comes to statecraft, both are useful in forming as basis for a philosophy of governance that appeals to the Malays and the Chinese. These ideals are no different that the ones taught in Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and the cultural philosophy of the natives of Sabah and Sarawak and of the Orang Asli. The "ethics of authenticity" as philosopher Charles Taylor would put it, is universal enough to be a guiding light of this new nation. Ethics by any name is a system of check and balances of the Evil and the Good within. It is the Middle Path of Inner Statecraft. Istana Zakaria and pondok Nik Aziz In speaking of the manifestations of the excesses of greed and the imbalance of evil within, two installations of polar opposites are worth quoting as semiotics of conspicuous consumption, in a country such as Malaysia. The old and dying regime, Barisan Nasional too consists of Chinese and Malays. But the evolution of racial-politics necessitated the development of a style of leadership that requires extra-ethical means to be employed in order for power to be sustained via the control of wealth and resources. Not only these are controlled but they are displayed conspicuously and of late, with arrogance. This brought about the shocking defeat of the 50-year-old seemingly indestructible machine. The excess of this image of conspicuous consumption is in the Istana Zakaria. The alter image to Istana Zakaria would probably be the house that Tuan Guru Nik Aziz inhabits. But why do we have these contradictions? How have we come to this historical juncture in which the moral compass of the national leaders are misplaced or even lost and what we are seeing are the consequence of the capitalist system that is rearing its ugly immoral head. We have created monsters out of the freedom we give human beings to profit from the consumerist capitalist system we created out of the fear of socialism and Communism. Billionaires and multi-millionaires in this nation are creations of a system. They are the products of the evolution of individuals that are installed by the institutions derived from the ideology of uncontrollable free enterprise constantly wanting to be freer and freer. Over a long period of time, the system creates a huge gap between the haves and the have-nots. It creates antagonism – of class and the hypermodern caste system. This is the Reaganomics of poverty - a mass deception of the "magic of the marketplace". As a nation, what do we want to be known as? How do we re-engineer another evolution? How do we maintain a sense of personal freedom in the process of crafting a synthesis of "national identity and freedom?" Will the Internet be the great deconstructor of such an identity, once we forget it? There are multiple contradictions in these questions. They are worth exploring. Themes of freedom I suggest we explore these themes below, either out of your own interest or for your graduate work. I think these are fertile areas of research to help us contribute to the ongoing conversation on the politics of identity. - Human nature and freedom - National Front, freedom and its problems - based on political economy of identity formation - People's Front and freedom - even more problematic since we have multiple layers of identity, construction, deconstruction, and reconstruction of identity. - New bumiputeraism. - Archaeology of identity - Philosophy of beingness - Theology of existence - Sociology of nationhood - Technologies of the mind and body - Education and cultural engineering. - Culture critique and ethnogenesis - Social reproduction and social relations of production - Institutions and installations - Self in society These I believe are themes we will explore as Malaysia progresses into the age of postmodernity bringing forth the excesses of freedom in a world characterised by the rapidisation of technology and the heightening of chaos and complexity. The question of "freedom" will be more daunting as the politics of identity and the identity of politics become inter-twined. What does "nation" mean? How must a nation be "free"? What kind of freedom must a nation enjoy and protect? In a consumerist society, how is freedom defined? How do bring the notion of freedom down to the grassroots level of the rakyat—how will we synthesise these notions? Brazilian educator Paulo Freire would call this synthesis "praxis" in which the subjective and objective aspect of the phenomena under study become synthesised and transformed into action. The stage "cultural action for freedom" is an important aspect of this Malaysian revolution of 2008. How do we turn those at the grassroots level into active participants of the national development agenda? How do we teach them to reject all forms of state propaganda? Freedom is an elusive concept and has its ambiguities. Mat Rempits think they are free and lead a life of total freedom, but who controls the production and reproduction of Mat Rempits. At another level, the power elites in the government think that they are guardians of Freedom/Merdeka but what is the meaning of freedom when those "corridors" built are institutions that will benefit the few and sell the country to foreign investors - in the name of progress. Freedom is a prison-house of language The new state governments in the yellow states (Kedah, Penang, Perak, Selangor and Kelantan) will need to showcase what freedom means and how the rakyat will benefit, in the most meaningful and tangible ways. What are the benchmarks of social justice and freedom that the rakyat will see in the agenda? How will "standards" of tolerance, justice, and peace be set and achieved - how will these be measured? How will the rakyat be the judge and the ones to decide if these standards are achieved? We're getting into a serious business of systemic and systematic change here, after the revolution. Even fundamental is the question: who defines freedom? These themes below need to be explored in order to answer the question of the authorship of the definition of freedom: - Needs versus wants - Eco-philosophy - Radical philosophy - Poverty of culture and culture of poverty Culture not merely and house we inhabit and the tools we use but both, evolvingly – technology shapes our consciousness. Where do we go from here – in our exploration of two contradictory terms nationhood and freedom? Let us discuss this question - as a new nation. Comments (23)  ... written by batsman, March 26, 2008 14:24:04 One more crucially important topic has to be studied and implemented with good judgement and wisdom. UMNO's communist-type machinery of power has to be gradually dismantled if the BR want to rule without sabotage and disruption. report abuse disagree 5 agree 5 ... written by HARIMAU BIN ABDULLAH, March 26, 2008 14:38:12 Education is the foundation of strength. Unfortunately, our education system is so bad that our graduates are not employable. Yet the kris-waving in-charge of education is so stupid and cannot see it, or don't know how to handle the situation. He should be ashame of himself. He should step down immediately. report abuse disagree 0 agree 20 ... written by penang1, March 26, 2008 14:50:20 Education is the foundation of strength. Unfortunately, our education system is so bad that our graduates are not employable. Please do not place all the blame on education alone. It's the PEOPLE that needs to wake up. Do you know how many fresh graduates I interviewed? Do you know how many of them are so proud that they are "UNIVERSITY GRADUATES" that they tell me, in my face, that they want how-much-how-much, and they demand this-office, that-power, all just because they are "UNIVERSITY GRADUATES" ! They did all that before they can even prove that they can work ! And talking about work --- I have employees from high-schools (some even high-school dropouts) who work much better than those u graduates. The High-school bunch work with their brain. The U bunch work with their ego. Before anyone start to accuse me of not hiring local U graduates again, please, gimme U graduates that have work ethics, that are willing to learn, that are willing to work hard. It's the mentality that is ruining our country. Sure, that rotten education system ought to be blamed as well, but it's our OWN snobbishness that needs to be adjusted. I still remember a story that happened in USA. That summer, I worked in a Chinese restaurant as bus-boy. We sit around a table eating, about 8 of us. One guy who just came out of U (and about to come home to Malaysia) was telling in loud voice that "I Just Graduated From University And I Am Going To Be Very Successful" As he said that, I was looking around the table. Of the 8 people sitting there, 3 got PhD degrees, 2 have MBA, and 2 have multiple degrees. That guy who were talking so loud? He only got a BA (Bachelor of Art)! Coming back to Malaysia --- to all the U graduate ... please do not talk so loud. People who don't make noise are far more smarter and have far more experience than you. That's all I have to say. report abuse disagree 4 agree 33 ... written by panca, March 27, 2008 17:44:04 penang i agrreee with you. Some really with inflated ego. report abuse disagree 1 agree 3 ... written by SUV, March 28, 2008 22:39:17 in other words,holistic life,culture...umm,yes... report abuse disagree 1 agree 2 ... written by mijoan, March 29, 2008 00:07:34 I am eagerly waiting for one of you to write up an article on, "Malays lost their independance and freedom of choice of religion in 1957, Malaya gained its independance". report abuse disagree 4 agree 3 ... written by shahidan, March 29, 2008 15:10:18 In the wake of the March 2008 assault on the political structures bequeathed by British colonialism to a multi-ethnic collaborative elite, the discussion in blogosphere seems to be in danger of being bogged down in the euphoria of the moment rather than in a discussion on how we may take the current potential for non-race and non-sectarian political consciousness to a higher and more permanent level. With the exception of Azly Rahman, RPK and LChuah (who is currently holding his fire), who do appeal for a deeper understanding of the current dynamics of the political awakening across the ethnic divide, there is a dearth of any serious analysis/discussion on how the people should prevent the political leaders from slipping back into their old race-based political habits. After all, weren’t these leaders ‘led’ by the people, particularly MT and RPK, to break out of their racial/religious moulds? If left to their own devices, the current crop of leaders, with a few honourable exceptions, will be inclined to slip into their old opportunistic race/religious garb. In his usual insightful contribution, Azly Rahman provides possibilities for such a discussion. In an apt observation, Azly points out, “The second wave of Independence, achieved with the storming of the "Bastille that is Putrajaya" in March 2008, in a phenomena called "implo-volution" in which the old regime was crushed by its own weight of contradiction and one whose ruins were charted some fifty years ago, present an interesting possibility. It is that of the this philosophical vision. The Internet is aiding in speeding up the process.” It would be erroneous and over-optimistic to suggest the political consciousness will evolve of its own accord, spontaneously. History has proven that change based on spontaneity has the capacity to burn out. There is no substitute for a coherent class-based alternative political consciousness and political structure. It is essential to cultivate a social democratic programme in which the people are firmly in the driving seat. We seem oblivious to the need to question the basis of the system in which privilege and corruption are an organic part. Hence, Azly’s comment, “We have created monsters out of the freedom we give human beings to profit from the consumerist capitalist system we created out of the fear of socialism and Communism.” Nor is there much discussion to inform us that our national fortunes are very much determined by global corporatocracy in which a much greater corruption and pillage occurs on a global scale. Locating and understanding our position in this wider global arena is also critical to our national survival and fortune. NAM must remain the main platform through which we forge the appropriate alliances and solidarity with much of humanity and so must the East Asia Economic Group, or ASEAN plus three, remain pivotal to our understanding of our place within the scheme of a globalised capitalism. The truly refreshing change on MT in the weeks leading up to the general elections was the emerging rational voices rejecting the conventional race/religious appeal of political parties and even forcing change upon these parties. This truly went against the grain. The moronic brigade was silenced. report abuse disagree 0 agree 6 ... written by omarkhayyam, March 29, 2008 21:10:21 Hiya Doc, ur d epic of a braindrain that this country had been facing for a long time, i guess out there many more malays, chinese, indians , kadazans and others still have a love for this country but with no avenue or platform to voice out. with the emerging new wave and "implo-volution" and people like you we can still hope for a better Malaysia and stand tall among nations as bangsa Malaysians. we have put forward a small step towards a greater leap henceforth in these round of GE, comes next round we will do a quantum leap and rid this disease that has plagued like "rabies" amongst our society. cheers report abuse disagree 2 agree 4 ... written by SUV, March 30, 2008 11:26:49 quantum leap began long time ago..only it was not visible 2 d vast majority..now,hehe..things will never b d same again..  report abuse disagree 2 agree 1 ... written by SUV, March 30, 2008 11:35:09 pricipals of love and unity is very strong and really pressing very hard on us.race based politics,n religion died long time ago.to feel,n see,we have to trust our hearts..we have to be open and receptive report abuse disagree 2 agree 2 ... written by SUV, March 30, 2008 11:42:54 the other thing that needs to go is our appetitie for "lui lui lui" n fun lifestyle..self,nation,society must be based on priciplas of life..its not alien thing..at the dawn of man,the principals of life was the governing pricipal..it never vasnished..nothing vanishes..all we have to do is remove our veils and rediscover and project it forward according 2 d needs of the time spirit. report abuse disagree 1 agree 1 ... written by Panca Indera, March 31, 2008 09:26:23 Salam to all After reading Dr, Azly Rahman’s article which is nothing new despite the highfulutin explanation and description of the so called causes and effects. Surely here are better explanations. RPK article’s are easier to comprehend and digest (all hail to RPK! Ha ha) . Maybe our Higher learning Institutions can award RPK with an Honourary Doctorate and we l all can call him ,Dr RPK or Doc Pete! Sounds good. report abuse disagree 4 agree 3 ... written by renoir, March 31, 2008 14:39:43 Panca Indera wrote: >After reading Dr, Azly Rahman’s article which is nothing new despite the highfulutin explanation and description of the so called causes and effects. Surely here are better explanations]] I'm sure readers like me would love to hear your "better explanations." Nevertheless, dialogism works more through process, often in terms of theses and counter-theses, rather than on explanations that often take on didactic dimensions. In his effort to elicit thoughtful responses, Dr. Azly has as usual succeeded admirably. Back to the topic: identities often serve socio-economic functions, a part of the superstructure that reinforces both itself and the socio-economic base from which they arise. Unless that base is modified, we're unlike to escape the racial and religious sectarianism that had plagued our nation for the past 50 years. There's a need to empower the least privileged, and to re-structure the powers of the most privileged. Thus, in addition to reining in religious and racial fundamentalism, there's a necessity to curb market fundamentalism. Economic systems arise out of social considerations - they're not the result of iron laws that underline doctrines that often "happen" to favor the few at the expense of the many. Unless we view the colonial legacy of economic development under a new light, the March "revolution" will prove to be less substantial than Britney Spear's underwear. In practical terms, there's a need to focus on skills training for the unskilled in order to ensure decent wages for every Malaysian, to revive unions for workers so that they've a say in their work conditions, and to establish cooperatives for rural farmers and fishermen to ensure proper returns for their labor. All such programs are not meant to cripple corporate activity. Rather, they're meant to promote economic fairness for all - the masses as well as the select few. In the process, the ugly phenomena of racial, religious and even class distinctions would be great lessened, if not totally eliminated. Then and only then will we have a relatively stable Malaysian identity. LChuah report abuse disagree 1 agree 5 ... written by Chuang Tze, March 31, 2008 18:48:22 Would we want to fashion our Malaysian identity along the lines of Western consumerism and materialism or should we forge our own Malaysian identity that reflects our maturity and intelligence and the wisdom to forego the materialism and consumerism of the western world ?? Given that the world today has finite resources with so many billions of people and increasing, we should be responsible global citizens and be prudent in our consumption. Should we live an altruistic life like Tok Guru Nik Aziz, or a wanton life of excesses like Mat Deros ?? Certainly Malaysians ought to educate themselves on the many choices and make a personal stand, each of us. The average (median) cutting through the lifestyle of all Malaysians considered can then be taken as the "New Malaysian Identity". Systemically, we can consciously find out in which "system" we are in currently, and which "system" we want to be in the future, and what is the path to get there, and the sacrifices to be made along the way, if any. Once we have established our systemic wants, we can establish a systematic way of getting where we want to go. However, there are no such things as solutions. Solutions have the air of a panacea, being bandied about as if a solution can solve any problem at all. The fact is we must first define our problem situation and the atributes of this problem situation. Then, if we cannot live with the conditions of this problem situation, we consciously seek to embrace change which leads us into another situation which has its inherent attributes and conditions. In other words, we move from situation to situation where different attributes and conditions define those situations. We merely move from one problem situation to another albeit that we can tolerate the problem situation in the second instance and can accept the conditions of this situation and view it as an improvement on the first situation. Hence, there are no such things as "solutions". Given that this is true, the New Malaysian Identity will be a very dynamic one that is the culmination of all Malaysian identities. There was a perceptible change from one situation where the electorate voted in the BN no matter what to the current situation where the BN was voted down and with the change, the conditions of the second situation is now very much different from the first scenario. It is a journey that we Malaysians and all other human beings are traveling on and we are guided by what we have learnt in common human decency, whether through religion or otherwise (Taoist-Confucianist values that work with Islamic ones), with good conscience as our guide. That is where we are and where we are headed, may Allah/ God bless us !! Brave ?? Certainly ! New ?? Most definitely ! report abuse disagree 1 agree 3 ... written by renoir, April 01, 2008 00:42:42 Chuang Tze wrote: >Would we want to fashion our Malaysian identity along the lines of Western consumerism and materialism or should we forge our own Malaysian identity that reflects our maturity and intelligence and the wisdom to forego the materialism and consumerism of the western world ??]] Good question. As Malaysia doesn't exist in a vacuum some level of industrialization would be necessary. Science and technology have to be harnessed in this direction. An agrarian-based society will never be able to feed a fast-growing population like Malaysia's. The question, therefore, isn't whether there should be material pursuits, but the amount and approach towards such pursuits. Sustainable development is clearly desirable, the kind that's primarily based on the satisfaction of needs, and only secondarily the satisfaction of wants. Of equal importance is the process of development itself. A people-oriented development by definition involves democratic participation not only in deciding the goals of development, but also in the planning and execution stage. This form of participation often means less efficiency when measured within the traditional parameters, but that is balanced by social cohesiveness and better prioritization of needs and wants. Thus it can be said that our national identity is forged not through long and deliberate theorization, but through the very process of economic development. LChuah report abuse disagree 1 agree 4 ... written by renoir, April 01, 2008 17:09:51 A few comments and I'll wait for others to chime in. Those who knew my previous writings - such as shahidan  - might wonder why my suggestions in terms of economic policies are relatively mild. There're three main reasons for this. One concerns the advisability to have some continuity to go along with change. This is especially so in a multiracial society conditioned to a Western-imposed development model. The other is the related reality of the omnipresence of Islam: the balancing act between secular and religious goals calls for delicate calibration. In the end, some synthesis might be possible - this is already hinted at by Dr.Azly when he talks about the complementary nature of various religions and the ethics-based Taoist-Confucianist philosophy. Finally, a radical change towards a socialistic entity cannot be realized in a region where pure capitalism has its sway, not to mention the menacing presence of Western powers. As Thomas Friedman puts it in "The Lexus and the Olive Tree," behind globalization lies the iron fist, and this fist is the US armed forces.LChuah report abuse disagree 1 agree 2 ... written by chin, April 01, 2008 21:10:46 Before we worry about how utopia should look like, we still have a hell of a lot of work to do, like kicking BN out of the federal government. And also getting some control of the police and armed forces before BR can safely succeed in the federal government. I will not put it pass the UMNO radicals to take over the country and form a military government when they lose their majority in parliament. report abuse disagree 1 agree 0 ... written by SUV, April 03, 2008 11:35:05 asian society,discovered priciplas of life thousands of years ago.we now have to redicover it back.no choice.western society's life based on economics,commerce,material gains,is collpasing ...so,merely copying a collapsing system like a brainless robot is no use,no pouint.the thing is dis,western society does understnd it's pro material system no longer works,but due to lack of spitual heritage,they r now recycling some ol asian systems...the key thing,how to dicover ,how to identify the supreme pricipals of life? report abuse disagree 1 agree 0 ... written by SUV, April 03, 2008 12:04:15 http://www.ncte-in.org/pub/aurobin/auro_0.htm report abuse disagree 1 agree 0 ... written by SUV, April 03, 2008 15:09:25 harmony in virtue.. http://www.aurobindo.ru/workings/sa/03/index_e.htm report abuse disagree 1 agree 0 ... written by maedee, April 08, 2008 21:01:31 I seriously doubt of a new Malaysian identity. Many still keep posting comments of BN'S defeat. First of all BN was never defeated, they were only denied 2/3's majority. Malaysia's 3 branches of govt is still controlled by UMNO (the most RACIST party in the world), an executive branch controlled by man who only has a shit degree in Islamic studies. Things can change by the time the next election comes. If you look closely even the god damn Pakatan Rakyat is somewhat made of race-based affiliations too. PAS who is very much pro-malay and ultra-conservative and totally contradicts with lifestyle of an average Chinese, Indian and the lain-lains. If race based parties will become the thing of the past, so what about religious-based party like PAS..? PAS is only interested to look after the welfare and virtue of the Muslim-malays, others can go and piss off. So how can a new Malaysian identity can emerge from PAS..? Indians are basically ****ed, while PAS want malay children to go to religious schools and learn about Islam, while DAP wants more aid for Chinese schools so that all the Ah Bengs can go to chinese schools to learn to become more competitive and excel in science and math. How can you have a Malaysian identity when you see 97% of Malay women are dressed with tudungs and baju kurung and live a totally different lifestlye compared with the chinese who can barely speak good malay when the graduate from high school. They dress completely different, speak a different language and live a lifestyle of someone who is foreign. I think we are going nowhere, PR will just continue the racist policies of BN. The best way to integrate a society is thru interracial marriages, an example would be Singapore or even the U.S.A. When a person perceives that he/she has no problems of intermarrying another race, only then true integration can take place...that includes marriages of Malay-Chinese, Malay-Indian, Chinese-Indian, Sarawakian-Chinese, Chinese-Sabahans....and so on. Anyone who has a problem with interracial marriages is a RACIST. report abuse disagree 0 agree 2 ... written by maedee, April 08, 2008 21:19:09 Dear SUV, Pls remember that with our decades old of UMNO/Mahathir cock sucking policies, we no longer follow or abide by asian principles. Because Mahathir and umno has been arabizing the malays for decades. Pls also note that Middle east and the sands of arabia is not part of asia. Malays are slowly changing their culture for camel jockey culture of the arabic sands. Now i don't see anything asian about Malays, they all look Arabia to me. If you are Malay, im sure you realize that. Maybe one day PAS will make it compulsary for Malay men to wear a towel on their head and grow long beard or go to jail. report abuse disagree 1 agree 0 Write comment This content has been locked. You can no longer post any comment. You must be logged in to a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet. |
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