Right on the spot - my funny bone almost broke

Even the pro BN mass media screw up sometimes. Look at the picture.

"They were definitely not Ketua Bahagian or Ketua Penerangan Bahagian or any kind of grassroots leaders. Look at the four women in the first row of this picture. The first two girls from the left were some of the teenagers who did not seem to know where they were or what they were doing. There were many women, like the woman in the blue blouse, who looked like they were forced to sacrifice their Sunday shopping to attend this gathering."

"That would make Badawi look like an idiot, again."
I rest my case...

Salam sejahtera from Beijing... from Anak Malaysia

The Malaysia Identity Part 2

For a long time, I have been branded and called Malaysian Chinese. Why? Because that my grandfather came from China and my father is Malaysian Chinese and by decree I am a Malaysian Chinese. Indeed, I wonder why this label have to be put my head? Let's do some analysis.

My grandfather came to Malaya to find a living as most of the "Shin Keh" (New Guests). Most of them have one purpose in mind: to earn a living and then go back to their motherland China for a more comfortable living. So for a long time, they toil their back to earn a living, and living as a "guest" in Malaya. But as time goes, most of them stayed. Some of them settle down and build their new house here. Later after some time, their house become their home. Their children are born into this world into the same land that I was born. Unknown to this "new guests", they are no more "guest" but became a partner in this household called Malaysia.

Until now, I still see a lot of "guest" mentality among the descendant of this "new guests". "We are Malaysia Chinese!" so they called themselves. Well, if you want to be a "guest", then you will always be treated as guest. "We have traditional cloth, lion dance etc etc"; ok you have that, but please remember that once your ancestor decide to build a "home" here in Malaysia, it become part of our (Malaysian) culture. "We speak Hokkien, Cantonese, Chinese!"; ok, so do a lot of African nation that speaks French, South American that speask Spanish, Portugese, but do they call themselves French or Spanish? If you're in Africa and you call a Nigerian a French, you'll be glad that he/she is not a headhunter (literally).

So what's wrong with these "Malaysian Chinese" people? Do they think themselves are still a "guest" in Malaysia? If they still really do think themselves as "Chinese" I think they should just go back to China, where people are "really Chinese" in the land of spits. At one time, I had a Singaporean(Chinese) asking me about my roots because of my limited Chinese vocabulary. Well, I ask him to think of his root! Singapore's national anthem is in what language and how much he knows about his national anthem? He went silence. If he is so proud that he is a Chinese, then go back to China. Why want to stay in Singapore? I can proudly say that I know 100% of my national anthem and each and every words in Negaraku. I am proud that I have a king and have royalties. I am also proud that my country have so many inter-mixing cultures. I think our culture are unique in the world!

So stop labeling me a Malaysian Chinese. You can associate my ancestor to China and a Chinese, but for me that are born unto this beautiful land call Malaysia, call me Anak Malaysia. The association between me and "Chinese" is just that my ancestor came from China, and THAT'S IT! Since my parents are born in Malaysia, and my father grew up and toil this land together with other Malaysian, and even die in his heartland Bukit Mertajam, Penang; why still label me as Malaysian Chinese? Is is that my name has 3 syllabus and thus you label me as Chinese? Tell me please, what is the different between you and me beside skin colors and religion wise? We are born in this land and perhaps one day we will also be buried 6 feet under in this land of ours, like my father, and his father.

So please call me Anak Malaysia (Malaysian).

The funniest letter I've ever seen!!!

YAB (Yang Amat Bodoh) Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi
Perdana Menteri Malaysia
Putrajaya, Wilayah Persekutuan.

Ke bawah DYMM Yang di Pertuan Agong
Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin
Istana Negara

Tuanku,

Sembah patik harap diampun.
Patik baru sekejap tadi bangun dari tidur dan berhajat ingin mengadap Tuanku kerana kemelut politik Negara ini.

Patik nok mintok maaf atah kesilapang besor patik kerana dok dengor nasehat Tuanku yang bijok. Patik rasa patik memang dok guna, rakyat menderite tapi patik dok kahwin satu lagi, pergi jalang jalang makang anging sedap belake dok habis habis.

Your Highness, pacal yang hina ini ingin meletakkan jawatan sebagai wakil rakyat KEPALA TERBATAS dan sebagai Perdana Menteri yang paling lembik sekali dalam sejak zaman kesultanan Melaka and sejak kemerdekaan dari ratu david beckham. Patik memang tidak layak menduduki takhta pemerintahan sejak dulu dulu lagi.

Tanpa tugas-tugas Negara yang berat sokmo, patik bolehlah ambik masa yang terluang untuk tidur lebih sikit dari biasa, dan berdengkur lebih kuat sikit bisingnya.

Sekian,

BERKHIDMAT UNTUK NEGARA

Paklah.

--------------------------

Kepada
YAB Dollah

Daripada
DYMM TUANKU

Your application has been approved.

SULIT & RAHSIA.
signed and sealed.

I am proud to have a King!

Just the other day I went to www.malaysia-today.com and for the first time I get to know the name of "Raja Muda Dr. Nazrin Shah". I went thru a bit of his profile and found out an impressive background of this royalty. I also went a bit further and look at his biography and also his royal family, and in that very moment, it struck me. I just can believe it, how diverse our Malaysia cultural and history it is. It is just fascinating. At the very moment when I looked at his family portrait, my colleague, a chinese, ask me the question, " wow, who is this pretty girl you're looking at?",

And then I proudly said "It is one of my country princess".

I am so proud that I come from a beautiful land with royalties!

Hidup Tuanku!

The Malaysian Identity

After the political tsunami, I have been busy updating myself with news from home, from various sources, www.thestar.com.my, malaysiakini.com, www.nst.com.my, Malaysia-today.net and many more. Honestly, I felt the jitters, and the exciting moments, following up news from swamped internet site of The Star and Malaysia Kini in bitter cold from my apartment in Beijing. Although I can’t participate in March 8 general election, as the Malaysia Embassy had told me earlier on last Friday afternoon, that doesn’t stop me checking for every internet sites that carries the news of the GE. The shivers of streams of news from internet site jitters me stronger than the bitter cold of Beijing.

I am tremendously over-joy when I read from The Star that finally the Opposition had manage to secure more than 1/3 votes from Malaysian voters, and even happier to hear that finally there’s changes in my hometown in Penang. Although from the beginning that it started from my constituent that PKR have made its ground root, since then I have adjusted myself to accept the “alternative” parties, to see them flourish and govern the state with justice and equality and free from corrupt hands. My dream almost came true.

In fact I am very glad that the Oppositions are now taking charge of my hometown, particularly for DAP that Penang people have given their mandate to. I hope to see changes for the good, coming from DAP. All said, nonetheless, there are some issues that I read are quite disturbing to me personally, as Anak Malaysia. One of my big fed up and concern are regarding the narrow minded of some DAP politicians. Yes, I am referring to the songkok issue. When I read the articles from www.malaysia-today.net, I felt it was a bit funny (thank you RPK for showing us the light), but quickly turned into frustration. How can this become an issue for the politician? It shouldn’t even cross our mind. Although I never heard or heard about Mr. Teng before, from my opinion he is just plain brainless and outright darn stupid. I guess he hasn’t quit his “Chinese”-ness that came with his fore-father from China. Here I just wanted to remind him that he (or perhaps his parents) are born in Malaysia, and that Bahasa Melayu is our national language. Baju Melayu, songkok, baju kebaya etc. are OUR traditional wear. I speak Melayu with my childhood friend (which is Indian) and our gang (mostly Chinese) speaks Melayu with our Malay and Indian childhood friends.

In China, I have no problem expressing myself as Malaysian, although both my parents and their parent are ethnic Chinese. To the Chinese people here, there’s no point to explain to them the story of my ancestry as they will simply refer me as “Malai ren” (Malay man) no matter what. Indeed, I really see myself as Anak Malaysia, rather than Malaysian Chinese. I am even proud to say that I am “Malaysia person” rather than a “Malaysian Chinese” when people ask me about my origin. I would say that my idea of Malaysian Identity have been growing so stronger that ever, since I arrive in Beijing. I would consider myself as Malaysian rather than a Chinese here in Beijing. It is not to say that I lost my skin when in China or forget where my ancestor from (but again, why should I look at the past when it is time to look for the future for change, and is the origin of my ancestor important to judge my life at present and in the future?), but it is the fact that both my parents are born in Penang, MALAYSIA, and they speak pretty well Melayu. In fact, my father studied in Highschool Bukit Mertajam, thus he knows nothing about Chinese writing nor can he read Chinese characters. To continue his legacy I studied in the same school and being brand a “banana” man to English-educated Chinese. As I saw the same “branding” goes published in some of our newspaper, I would say this term is so wrong to begin with, as we are Malay-educated Chinese, as our Malaysia education have been revamp since 1960’s. (Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan & Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan) An English-educated people are people that attend an English-curriculum school system and all the text books and the teachings are conducted in English beside language lessons. All our public schools are teaching lessons in Malay language during my generations. So I plead to all our newspaper to re-write the terms and proudly say that we are Malay-educated Malaysian. I know my legacy and my history, and to me, I know that my parents are born in Malaysia, speaks Malay as well. For myself, I am born in Penang, Malaysia and attended Highschool Bukit Mertajam, and I am proud to say that I speak well Malay. So if there’s anyone ask me what my origin is, I would say that I am a proud Malaysian. I would just consider myself as Anak Malaysia, rather than a Malaysian Chinese.

Why not?

For those DAP politician that assume that wearing a songkok will turn him against his race because that songkok will make him look like a Malay Muslim, and instead a suit will make him a gentlemen, please use their tiny brain to think. As a Malaysian, I am proud that I have a national culture and tradition. Compare to our neighbor Singapore, they are proudly using Malays tradition to promote their tourism, which includes everything from food to clothing. Why our DAP politicians didn’t see it broadly like this and just keep their narrow view to their own little agenda? What I think is that these idiot politician from DAP just need to go travel a little bit more around the world to seek more wisdom before concluding that wearing a songkok will make them a Malay.

And for now, where can I get a songkok in Beijing?

(so that I can show my friends that I come from a civilized country that have her own identity and traditional culture, not just a former British colony)