Category: Politics & government

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Events Liberty Politics & government

[2050] Of how many are protesting against ISA, on the ground?

And so, Kuala Lumpur is again the center of a struggle for liberty.

Estimating the number of protesters against ISA is hard but Twitter, specifically from the accounts of The Edge and The Malaysian Insider may be helpful.

The Malaysian Insider reports that there are about 5,000 protesters in Sogo area while another more or less 5,000 gathered near Masjid Negara.[1]

The Edge reports that 1,000 individuals are in Dang Wangi.[2]

Others estimate another 1,000 persons are in Masjid Jamek.

If these numbers are reliable, that makes 12,000 protesters at around 15:00 hours Malaysian time, making it much smaller than Bersih, but large nonetheless by Malaysian standard.

These numbers unfortunately are hard to be aggregated because these sources come from different time points. Crowds in one place may have traveled from one point to another, making double counting a risk. Or, even underestimating because these numbers may swell after time of reporting.

In any case, what about the pro-ISA number? Unknown and likely insignificant.

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[1] — ISA – Anti-ISA protesters from Sogo number some 5,000, another 5,000 from National Mosque. [The Malaysian Insider. Twitter. August 1 2009]

[2] — Crowd of more than a thousand at Dang Wangi start moving behind Unit Amal human shield, chants “Reformasi”. No police yet. [The Edge. Twitter. August 1 2009]

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p/s — as the dust settled, better estimation. It is over 20,000:

News services estimated that the rally on Saturday, which was broken up by thousands of police officers using tear gas and water cannons, drew about 20,000 protesters, making it the largest demonstration in two years. [Malaysia Cracks Down on Protests. Thomas Fuller. New York Times. August 2 2009]

Categories
Liberty Politics & government

[2049] Of Malay as a community is not pro-ISA or anti-ISA

Pewaris, widely reported as the foremost pro-Internal Security Act  group as the Act comes under heavy opposition on August 1, the date when massive protest is expected to take place in Kuala Lumpur. The ISA is a controversial piece of legislation that allows detention with trial.

Expressing support for the Act, even when the Act is abhorrent to the concept of individual liberty, is a person’s right to do so. Whether it is oxymoron or not, one has to be mindful that the transgression of liberty happens when there is actual trangression. Expression alone does not transgression.

But the Act is in force and indeed, the Act transgresses liberty. That justifies opposition to the Act.

Here, however is not the place and time where I want to discuss the subject of liberty in foundational terms. Rather, I would very much like to touch how the positioning of Pewaris and other pro-ISA group, as taken by them or described by the mainstream media is ultimately misleading.

It is with alarm that I note that it is typical for the press to describe these pro-ISA groups as Malay groups.[1] Being pro-ISA and idenfitied as Malay groups, inevitably, it implies, on purpose or accidentally, that the position of the Malays are pro-ISA. It further implies that these groups represent the Malays as a whole.

Clearly, this is absolutely false. While the pro-ISA groups may be dominated by, if not all of their members are, Malays, it no whatsoever way says that these groups represent the Malays as a whole. These groups are not even elected by all the Malays. A large majority of Malays are likely not members of the groups too.

For the press to identify these pro-ISA groups as Malay groups, it appeals to the flawed idea that the Malays as a community are a monolithic group. Opinion of individual Malays on the matter is clearly not uniform on the matters. The clearest proof is the presence of Malays in the anti-ISA groups. Another proof: I am a Malay and I am unfriendly to the ISA.

The press needs to stop calling these pro-ISA groups as Malay groups to stop the unnecessary confusion and the unnecessary implication that the Malays are for ISA.

More accurate description or qualification will be required if the press continue to insist on associating these groups with the Malays. ‘Pro-Barisan Nasional Malay groups’, ‘Pro-UMNO Malay groups’ are two phrases that comes to my mind as better alternatives to term ‘Malay groups’.

The Malays, as a community, does not have one mind about being for or against ISA. Individual Malays however may.

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[1] — One example:

GEORGE TOWN: Some 50 people from two Malay non-governmental organisations (NGOs) staged a peaceful protest in support of the Internal Security Act (ISA) at the ground floor foyer of Komtar here.

The Persatuan Putra Pulau Pinang and Pertubuhan Al-Ehsan Malaysia members held banners in support of the ISA at 10am and dispersed some 30 minutes later following police advice. [Two Malay NGOs want ISA to remain. The Star. July 29 2009]

Yet another example:

KUALA LUMPUR: Representatives from an umbrella body of Malay and Muslim non-governmental organisations lodged five police reports Sunday over several issues which they claimed endangered Muslim and Malay unity.

The Heritage Associations, Malay Cultural Organisations and Related Bodies Cooperation Network (Pewaris) urged the Government to act against groups which are asking for the abolition of the Internal Security Act (ISA). [Malay, Muslim NGOs lodge police reports. Zulkipli Abdul Rahman. The Star. November 23 2008]

Categories
Conflict & disaster Politics & government

[2033] Of a few days after the first 100 days

Shocked.

That was exactly how I felt when I found out that a political secretary of a Selangor assemblyman was found dead near the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission headquarters. The MACC put the aide, Teoh Beng Hock, through questioning regarding activities of DAP assemblypersons just hours earlier before the time of death.[1] Granted, the cause of death — did the aide commit suicide? Did somebody push him from the top of the building? Was it defenestation? — is still a mystery but it surely, rightly or wrongly, incriminates the MACC.

To many, especially for Pakatan Rakyat sympathizers I suspect, judgment may have already been passed: the MACC is somehow guilty of causing the death. While it definitely an unfair position to assume, it is not hard to reach to that conclusion given that individuals have died in the custody of the authority, namely the police.

The MACC is already seen as biased arm of the government, embarking on selective investigation by targeting Pakatan Rakyat assemblymen but continue to leave Barisan Nasional politicians with suspicious record like Khir Toyo free from investigation. The death of the aide can only further damage whatever public confidence — if it has any left — that MACC has right now.

As for the Najib administration, looks like its 100-day celebration has just been cut short. On his 100th day as the Prime Minister, he announced six key result areas and one of them is the prevention of crime. [2] A government body now is being perceived as a perpetrator of crime. It is not just any crime but murder, perhaps the gravest of all crimes.

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[1] — SHAH ALAM, July 16 — The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) controversial probe into several DAP assemblymen’s activities was thrown into more turmoil today with the death of political aide Teoh Beng Hock at the anti-graft authority’s Selangor headquarters.

The 30-year-old’s death will put more pressure on the MACC, which has been accused by the opposition of conducting selective investigations.

[…]

At a press conference, the MACC director of investigations Datuk Mohd Shukri Abdul said Teoh was questioned from 5pm yesterday to 3.45am and was released soon after.bod

However, Teoh apparently said he was tired and so he rested on a settee in the lobby. He was seen sleeping on the settee at 6am.

At about 1.30pm, Shukri said, they heard that a body had been found on the 5th floor of the adjacent building and when one of the MACC officers went to investigate, he realised it was one of their witnesses.

Shukri said Teoh was not a suspect but was questioned as part of their investigations into the misuse of state allocations. [Ean Yong’s political secretary dead at MACC HQ. Neville Spykerman. The Malaysian Insider. July 16 2009]

[2] — KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 (Bernama) — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak on Saturday announced six national key result areas for more effective attainment of the targets of the key performance indicators (KPI).

He said these were crime prevention, fighting of corruption, widening access to quality and affordable education, raising the living standard of the low-income people, upgrading infrastructure in the rural and interior regions, and improving public transportation in a moderate period of time. [Najib Identifies Key Areas For KPI Targets.Bernama. July 11 2009]

Categories
ASEAN Photography Politics & government

[2028] Of Indonesian presidential election accidentally reached to my home

The postal service mistakenly sent the following letter to my house:

Fair Use. Obtained from The Star.

I do not know the content of the letter for sure because I do not have the authority to open it. Judging from the envelope however, I would risk guessing that it contains a ballot for Indonesian living abroad to use to partipate in yesterday’s presidential race.

Categories
Politics & government Society

[2021] Of we, the people

If you had switched on the television, listened to the radio or read the newspapers for the past number of weeks, you may have noticed how so many individuals and entities are claiming to represent the people. The people wish for this and the people wish for that but oddly enough, your wish never coincides with that of the people.

So, who exactly are these people?

There are incessant talks of the people’s opinion. It is in the air but it is just not there. It is as elusive as god, or Shangri-La, or El Dorado, or the princess on top of Ledang, or simply a dodo bird.

More confusingly, somebody claiming to speak for the people would say one thing and then another somebody would insist the people seek another different agenda altogether. It is almost hilarious how the people would hold diametrically opposing thoughts at a particular point in time without a pause for reflection. It seems that contradiction is of no concern to the people. Unless if these representatives are telling convoluted truth.

We could gauge the people’s opinion and ignore the representatives. In this country however, the absence of free press and liberty in general generates a reason to be skeptical of any sampling done to measure public opinion. Instead of reflecting the public opinion, such sampling is used to shape the opinion of the masses.

Furthermore, the culture of gauging public opinion through the use of good sampling method is not widespread in Malaysia. Or at least, the organizers of the poll do not have the reputation of neutrality and the desire to produce reliable and trustworthy surveys. Thus, public surveys forever skillfully evade the opinion of those that actually make up the people.

But who needs surveys anyway. There are three types of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics, so said Benjamin Disraeli.

And so, our only recourse is the self-proclaimed representatives of the people that, if I may, are popping like mushrooms after the rain lately. The problem is, I do not remember electing these representatives to speak for me. In fact, I do not recall of them winning elections to public offices. Yet, they claim to speak for the people. They certainly do not represent me but maybe, I am just not part of the people.

Here’s a question: do they speak for you? Are you part of this elusive “people”? Let me put it this way — take a breath — the representatives speak for the people and you are part of the people but the representatives do not speak for you. Huh?

Something is terribly wrong here, do you not think so?

The truth is numbers as well as perception matter and there are those that seek to create the illusion of numbers. It is far easier to make claim that millions of people support an individual rather than having that individual going down to the ground to convince the people to join his cause. This has encouraged many to abuse the phrase “the people”, even when the people — you and I and some dudes out there collectively — have nothing to do with those self-elected and unsanctioned representatives.

On top of that, there are those that — sincerely confused or otherwise — think that society is a monolithic entity. To refer to the people as a monolithic entity sadly falsely assumes that there is uniformity of opinion within the society. It ignores the diversity of opinion of the people. To me personally, it gravely disrespects individuality; it is an insult to intelligence.

The people are not of one mind; they are of millions.

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First published in Bolehland on December 17 2007.