Victor Chin

All these years, I had not taken an interest in getting to know a bit more about the Malaysian Constitution. It’s all my own mistake and ignorance.

I had always thought that being a Chinese, I am automatically a second-class citizen compared to the Malays who have been given preferential treatment in our country all these years.

As the Malays are the majority and are Muslims, I had also assumed  we had become an Islamic country and not a secular one, because of the  prominent mosques everywhere.

I have been mistaken and ignorant all along. In our Constitution, every Malaysian of any race has equal  rights and also, this is a secular country.

My new awareness of the Constitution and other civic liberty issues stems from what I had learnt at the Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia (SABM) roadshows and forums that I had attended. Here is the latest video of some of the highlights from  the SABM event in Melaka.

Hope this video (which I had put together) will throw some light on important issues affecting you.

This  month brings back the memories of the vote of dissent by 49% of  Malaysians in the last General Election against the ruling political party. In  West Malaysia there was a 51% opposition vote. For the first time  the Barisan National was denied its 2/3 majority in Parliament.

Many Malaysians had hoped to see a fairer, freer and  friendlier country since then. We wanted a clearer separation of powers between political party and government, religion and government,  race and government and law and government. This is our country and it does not belong to any political party (ruling or otherwise). Has there been much change?

We would like to see the government uphold the rule of law, to look after the welfare of its peoples and not use its system to just protect the ruling political party’s elite members and their abuse of powers. Has there been much change?

Our legitimate political dissent and opposition to the ruling party is our constitutional right. It  also plays a vital role of check and balance and must not  be misconstrued as our being enemies of the state which is what the ruling party has been doing in the last fifty years. Has there been much change?

Most of us do not cherish the idea of living under these extreme conditions  any longer. Do you?

There are more then 4.5 million Malaysians eligible to vote but they have not registered yet. Let’s get as many as possible to do so for the next election. Let’s vote our way to a fairer, freer and friendlier country. Can we make the changes ourselves and for our children?

Listen and watch Malaysians speak, sing and dance their hopes and aspirations for the future…

Distinctive and mineral rich limestone outcrops surround Ipoh city.

Limestone outcrops  dot the Kinta Valley in Perak. The capital city, Ipoh, is surrounded by these geological features. These natural structures, formed over millions of years,  greet you as you enter or exit. The geology of this area was and still is  its natural assets. Tin was like its gold. Ipoh was a place tin and its peoples built.

The history of Ipoh was a continuing  fight over tin and other natural resources.  Today,  the battle is over the governing of the state and what’s left of its natural heritage and its peoples – for those in power to exploit. This week’s  news, from the Federal Court, that the people of Ipoh will not be given a second chance to decide their own government but instead have been forced to accept one they didn’t elect, is another dark chapter of its history.

How can the people of Perak deal with the present situation in Perak?  Over the last weekend, Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia brought some useful ideas to more than 120 participants in Ipoh.  At that forum, they got to know about the history of the struggle of all Malaysians  against their rulers and those in power, then and now.

Here is my video of some of the highlights of the event.

A documentary of the ‘Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia’s (SABM) “Believe Instead” public forum on Saturday 23 January 2010, at the Kuala Lumpur Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall. There were more then 230 participants from all walks of life from in and around the city. It was the first of a series of forums.The SABM plans a roadshow through the country in the course of the year.

At the Bayon temple, the unknown Khmer artists and craftsmen were able to produced extremely detailed bas-relief carvings of Khmer political history on the gallery walls. This multi-level waring scenes show  events of their conquest and defeat of their enemies. Politics -conflicts of interest- at that time was mostly settled through violence, by going to war with each other.

The Bayon temple, is the heart of the temple complex, built by the ambitious builder, Buddhist King, Jayavarman VII, in 1181. This style of building, the Bayon Style, began to replace the previous dominant Hindu influences.  All the statues of any value had been plundered over time but this wall picture of Khmer history is well-preserved. I saw it for the first time a few weeks back when I visited Cambodia.

This picture of barbarism with solders killing and elephants trampling on opposing sides reminded me somewhat of what had happened in Kuala Lumpur  last Saturday 1 August. Malaysians made political history by marching  in the street with opposing views of the Internal Security Act, a long-standing law allowing detention without trial.

But one would imagine that after 900 years of waring history in this region, we would have learn t to settle our disagreements, alliances and balances of power without resorting to using the Malaysian riot police to fire tear gas and water cannons into its own citizens’ gathering.

When can we resolve our diferences among us without resort to violence and imtimidation, so that we can be stronger, freer and happier?