Author: Hafiz Noor Shams

For more about me, please read this.

Categories
Education Society

[1006] Of a suggestion to increase the appeal of national schools

The Malaysian government is committed towards the national school system. From time to time, the current government reminds us of that; today, the Prime Minister reiterates his support for the system:

KUALA LUMPUR: National schools will become the schools of choice again, according to the Prime Minister.

Lamenting their decline yesterday, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said: “Everything is being done to make the schools attractive to all the races.”

Abdullah said the government had realised that national schools played an important role in nation building and bringing the various races together.

I have a suggestion, out of few, on how to make it a system of choice of many Malaysians.

Bring religion, in most cases Islam as far as national schools are concerned, to where to belong — as equal among many other courses.

When I was a students within the national school system, I loathe the very idea that religion was being forced upon me. I dislike that fact that because I’m a Muslim, I had to do things that are deemed as Islamic by my religious teachers. I’m sure some girls disagree to being forced to wear headscarf at school, just because they’re Muslims.

For me personally, the reason I attend school is to learn arts, humanities and sciences, not to have my personal life and belief dictated upon by strangers.

Further, I believe all the stress on Islam makes believers of other religions, atheists, agnostics and even Muslims that are uninterested in religious conservatives’ wet dream alike feel alienated. Surely, that doesn’t increase the appeal of national schools to many.

Categories
History & heritage Poetry

[1005] Mengenai Rumah Bok

Jalan-jalan Jalan Ampang,
ada ternampak rumah besar,
rumah agam di tanah lapang,
di mata kasar, masa kasar.

Jalan-jalan Jalan Ampang,
tiada lagi rumah besar,
tiang tidur di tanah lapang,
di mata kasar, manusia gasar.

Fair use. Copyrights by The Sun, Malaysia.

Menurut The Sun, Rumah Bok sudah tiada:

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 15, 2006): The legacy of Bok House or Le Coq D’Or on Jalan Ampang came to an end Thursday, with it crushing all hopes and fervour of heritage activists.

Burning questions now await the authorities that be for allowing something so beautiful and beloved to be forever erased.

The building’s roof tiles were the first to be taken down on Thursday morning and hoarding on the Jalan Ampang frontage was put up from 6pm that day. Friday saw the destruction of sturdy pillars which held up the house.

Walau apapun, Rumah Bok adalah harta peribadi. Pemilik berhak menentukan masa hadapan hartanya, walaupun tindakan pemilik itu sungguh menjijikkan.

Saya telah menyumbangkan satu rencana pendek tentang Rumah Bok kepada Wikipedia Inggeris, takut-takutkan saya terlupa sejarah bandar ini di suatu masa.

Categories
Activism Environment

[1004] Of An Inconvenient Truth at MNS HQ

In conjuction of the Great Green Promotion at the Malaysian Nature Society HQ, the society is screening “An Inconvenient Truth” to the public for free this Sunday, December 17.

An Inconvenient Truth is a documentary on climate change, narrated by the person that used to be “the next President of the United States”, Al Gore. I’ve blogged about the documentary back in May 2006.

While I might be most interested in the documentary, there are other programs lined up for the public:

Schedule for Talks and Documentaries

11.00am
Tiger conservation by Loretta Ann Soosayraj

12.00pm
Paradise Bus, a film on logging in Papua New Guinea by Chi Too, a Malaysian film maker

1.00pm
Save our Sharks by Kwang with clips from WildAid documentaries

2.30pm
An Inconvenient Truth, a documentary on Global Warming based on Al Gore’s book

3.30pm
Conserve Peat Swamp Forest, a documentary by Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, FRIM, Sarawak Forests Dept, Sabah Forestry Dept and Pahang Forestry Dept.

What is the Great Green Promotion, you might ask? Well, ask no further:

Fair Use. By Malaysian Nature Society.

For more information, visit home of the Great Green Promotion on the internet.

Come! Come!

And yes. I’m a member of the Malaysian Nature Society. Pardon me if I’m trying to promote my own society.

Categories
Environment

[1003] Of extinction of Chinese River Dolphin

A large mammal species, the Chinese River Dolphin has been presumed extincted after a recent international expedition failed to find one in the Yangtze River:

Wuhan, 13 December 2006 — The Baiji Yangtze Dolphin is with all probability extinct. On Wednesday, in the city of Wuhan in central China, a search expedition, under the direction of the Institute for Hydrobiology Wuhan and the Swiss-based baiji.org Foundation, drew to a finish without any results. During the six-week expedition scientists from six nations desperately searched the Yangtze in vain.

The Yangtze is also the location of the Three Gorges Dam.

According to the National Geographic Society, this is the first extinction of large mammal in recent decades:

If Pfluger’s team is correct, the baiji will be the first large aquatic mammal to have gone extinct since hunting and overfishing killed off the Caribbean monk seal in the 1950s.

This is truly a sad week.

We, Malaysians have our own river dolphin, the Fraser’s Dolphin, also known as the Sarawak Dolphin. Let not push them to extinction as the Chinese had done with theirs.

Categories
Politics & government

[1002] Of hold your horses Democrats

Remember the Democratic victory in the US Congress?

The balance might tip against the Democrats:

Johnson was taken by ambulance to George Washington University Hospital in Washington yesterday afternoon after becoming disoriented during a conference call with reporters.

Control of the new U.S. Senate may depend on Johnson’s health after Democrats won a 51-49 majority in the Nov. 7 midterm elections. If Johnson’s seat were to become vacant, South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds, a Republican, may appoint a Republican replacement.

All the best, senator.