I started blogging in February 2003 and have made it habit to blog almost everyday. This page is where I note down my thoughts, opinions and critique of almost everything. Please note that this is an adult blog and would require the reader to be thick-skinned. Oh, and some of the stuff here may be gay related so proceed at your own risk. No refund given for offence taken.
Sir Edmund Hilary, the first man who conquered Mt Everest with his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay, died today of a heart attack at a Hospital in Auckland, New Zealand. He was 88 years old.
Unknown to a lot of people, he was also responsible for setting up the Himalayan trust during his time as New Zealand's High Commissioner to India. This trust built schools, hospitals, bridges, etc for the Sherpas in their remote region of Nepal. Ever shy of publicity and fame, it was to this organisation that he poured in lots of time and effort. Sadly, his wife Louise and one of his daughters Belinda died in a plane crash while en route to meet him during one of his hospital building projects.
He is survived by his second wife June, son Peter, daughter Sarah and six grandchildren.
Ezra directed me to this video by a Fahmi Reza of Malaysia entitled "Sepuluh Tahun Sebelum Merdeka" (10 years before independence). Looking at the current state of affairs and relations between the races in Malaysia (what with the recent protest in KL by Malaysian Indians), this show strikes me as rather sad. Sad, because of what might have been.
On one hand, you had the (then) somewhat pro-British UMNO with a rather limited constitution for the Malayan Federation (enforced in 1948) that saw Malaya continuing as a British protectorate with not much political rights. And on the other, you have the People's Constitution drafted by a group of left-leaning parties under the banner of PUTERA-AMCJA that was so much more progressive.
Not only did this constitution demanded independence, it gave everyone equal political rights and equal citizenship, provided for an inter-racial council that was tasked to screen and filter out racially discriminating laws and policies, and surprisingly, created a new nationality called "Melayu" that would apply to everyone regardless of race. This last bit was whole-heartedly endorsed and accepted by Tan Cheng Lock (representing the Chinese community) with no questions asked.
I really wonder what Malaysia (or maybe even Malaya) would be like today if PUTERA-AMCJA had succeeded in getting through their constitution.
But as anyone can tell, the People's Constitution was unfortunately consigned to the wastebasket of history. And not only that, the British jailed or banished members of the PUTERA-AMCJA under the pretext of fighting communism.
There's so much that could be said about what could have been, but I guess it's too late for that now. And perhaps, I guess HINDRAF has a point when they wanted to sue the British government for their historical complicity in the present plight of the Malaysian Indians.
Anyway, if you have the time, do watch the show below. It has been very enlightening for me, even as a Singaporean.
This is a personal story by the son of man who was very much involved in politics during the period of the expulsion of Singapore from the Malayan (then known) federation. Perhaps this might help remind our leaders, especially LKY, why a lot of Singaporeans choose to remain silent.
There is this theory that force of habit somehow becomes part of the genetic makeup of the future generations. Hence, affecting how they behave instinctively. Maybe our forefathers' force of habit is now the instinctive behaviour of our current batches of local undergraduates. Of course we cannot forget upbringing, academic and learning culture, and the possible cost (material, emotional and mental) factor.
This post is more than just about politics back then. It's also a loving memorial to a man's father who had just passed on, a father who despite all semblances of calmness and equanimity hides a secret past; a past that his son should be proud of. Though it's sad to see his father's fire eventually extinguished by political expediency at a cost to the state of Singapore's current and possibly future generations.
One of the reasons why I visit Yawning Bread is the plethora of posts on a variety of subjects. And of the more fascinating ones recently is a series on the definition of the Malay race. Does it or does it not really exists? In a comment written by a "Michael" and was cleaned up a bit before being posted on Yawning Bread, the answer seems to be a "no".
Do read the full text here. It may seem long, but it sure is one hell of interesting. Of course some may disagree with it, but what do I know, I am not an anthropologist.
Here's a little excerpt that tickled my funny bone:
...So, in a nutshell, the "Malays" (anthropologists will disagree with this "race" definition) are TRULY ASIA!!! For once the Tourism Ministry got it right....
We should stop calling this country "Tanah Melayu" instead call it, "Tanah Truly Asia"
You must understand now, why I was "tickled pink" when I found out that the Visit Malaysia slogan for 2007 was "Truly Asia". They are so correct... (even though they missed out Greece and Africa)
BTW, the name UMNO should be changed to UTANO the new official acronym for "United Truly Asia National Organization". After all, they started out as a Bugis club in Johor anyway....
I told you all that I hate race classifications.... This is so depressing. Even more depressing is that the "Malays" are not even a race; not since day one.
I heard about this essay written by Thant Myint-U (grandson of former UN Secretary-General U Thant) from the papers today.
With all the furore about Burma now, I think it is a timely explanation of the roots of the present problems of the country and the possible solutions ahead. It doesn't look too promising though it is not entirely hopeless. Click on the link below for the article in its entirety.
There have been a few historical events in recent history that were of such immense significance that I wished I was there either as a witness or participant.
The fall and physical demolition of the Berlin Wall was one. The other was something that completely slipped my mind until I saw it on Wikipedia recently:
During the period of Gorbachev's Perestroika and Glasnost, the people of the three Baltic countries (Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia) held a series of protest against the secret protocol within the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939 that saw the independent countries of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania divided into two spheres of interest (German and Soviet), and which led to the occupation of the three Baltic countries by the USSR since WWII.
From 1987 to 1990, people from the three states started gathering to sing national songs that were strictly banned by the Soviet authorities. In time, thousands of people gathered to sing. Of course Moscow did not sit idly by and did respond physically.
In 1989, about 1.2 million people from all three countries put their hands together to form the longest human chain ever in history - 600 km over three countries. Their aim was to bring the world's attention to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.
All these protest and demonstrations were peaceful and non-violent on the part of the demonstrators. However, there were some injuries and deaths, especially in the case of Lithuania when Soviet assault troops and tanks tried to take control of Vilnius Television Tower and the Parliament. In this "Bloody Sunday", 14 non-violent protestors died and hundreds were injured.
About a decade and half has passed since these momentous events took place. And over time, a kind of romanticism develops.
But we have to realise that all the people who took part were ordinary folks. Yes, there were some who felt a strong calling to rise and lead. But it was the ordinary folks who took the risk and made the stand.
Were they afraid? Of course they were. The standard Soviet response is always the same: military force.
Any sign of opposition, "BAM!" the police arrives and hauls people away. Visible opposition gets even bigger, the tanks roll in.
So it took a lot of balls on the part of the few to make the initial stand. And just as much balls for the millions of ordinary citizens to swallow their fears and join the few, knowing at the back of their mind that tanks and assault troops can blitz through anytime and kill them all. After all, courage is not the absence of fear but acting in spite of fear. And that my friend takes lotsa balls!
Most of the time, freedom and liberty is not given freely. People usually have to demand or fight for it. And thankfully for the Baltic people, they were successful: Lithuania in 1990 and Estonia and Latvia in 1991.
Do remember that all three countries had been previously independent, which ended when the Soviets rolled in.
I wish I was there. It must have been a most amazing and moving time to be living in those countries.
The quagmire he predicted in '94 is the reality now. All that he said would happen have happened. So why did Dick the VP forgot what he said as Dick the former secretary of defence? Amnesia brought on by advancing years?
Iraq has always been the Balkans of the middle-east. It was a quagmire for the Ottoman Turks, then the UK and now, the US. And I doubt America can quit it within the foreseeable future. I guess very soon, they will have to bring back the draft to get more troops into Iraq and to support future operations in hot spots that may spring up suddenly in the rest of the world.
This is very interesting. According to what I studied in school, history in Malaya began when Parameswara established Malacca in the 1400s. What I did not know was that there were other political entities prior to that time. For example: the Kedah Sultanate (which is still extant), Srivijaya (which I did study in school but thought to have only existed in Sumatra), Pan Pan, Langkasuka, Gangga Negara, etc.
And now, a Thai filmmaker by the name of Nonzee Nimibutr ("Nang Nak" and "Jan Dara") is making a film entitled "The Queen of Langkasuka". The story is supposedly about three sister queens of Pattani and their efforts to acquire a powerful cannon to protect their kingdom from a rogue prince and his pirate allies. "The Queen of Pattani" was the proposed original title, but was dropped because of the sensitivity of it in relation to the present separatist movement in southern Thailand.
It's kind of strange to see characters dressed up in old-style Malay clothes speaking Thai, but I dare say this movie might prove to be quite a hit. And it's also nice to see an Asian filmmaker making a movie about a culture and history that is not his. Then again, knowing how intertwined the ancient history of Thailand and the Malay peninsula is, it might be presumptuous of me to assume that the history and culture of Langkasuka is foreign to him. After all, the northern part of this ancient kingdom stretched all the way into the south of modern day Thailand.
"The idea came when I was researching my last film, Okay Baytong, which took me around the southern provinces. I became aware that we knew so little about the place, the people and the history of the region. There are so many stories worth telling." - Nonzee Nimibutr
And what is "OK Baytong"? It's his 2003 movie that tells the story of a Thai monk going south to settle his late sister's affairs after she was killed in a train attack by separatist insurgents. There, he learns that his sister had married a Muslim man who lived across the border in Malaysia and had a daughter by him.
Looking at the present situation in Southern Thailand, I think this might be a touching and moving story.
PS: An interesting fact that cropped up during my search on "Langkasuka" was that it was one of the names being considered for the new political entity that would emerge after UK granted independence to what we now know as the Federation of Malaysia.
*** Added on 3 Aug 2007: Here's more about the queens of Pattani (Langkasuka). There were four queens regnant (queens who rule in their own right) whose reigns saw great prosperity for their kingdom. They were the Rajas (or should it be Ratu?) Hijau (Green) who ruled for 31 years, Biru (Blue) who ruled for 7 and Ungu (Purple) who ruled for 12. All of them were sisters and succeeded each other after the older one died. When Ungu passed away, she was succeeded by her daughter, Kuning (Yellow) who ruled the longest, about 50 years in total.
I came across two interesting sites last night while surfing the 'net. The first is by this guy by the name of Pete Biggadike who used to be with the Royal Air Force (UK) and served in Singapore in the late 40s (I think) and early 50s.
What's interesting about the site are the original black and white photographs he has taken of Singapore back then (look for the links with the name "Singapore" in the above link) and the more current ones which he took when he came back here for a visit in 2001.
The differences are obvious and the poor guy could no longer recognise the country anymore. The only thing that has remained is the street names.
Anyway, it is interesting to see what our little red dot looked like back then and I could faintly recognised some buildings in Sembawang that still existed when I was in navy school.
The second site hosted the pictures and video clips of the recent wedding of DYTM Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, the Raja Muda of Perak (crown prince) and Zara Salim Davidson, now DYTM Raja Puan Besar Tuanku Zara Salim of Perak. It is interesting because for once, you get to see how royal Malay weddings are conducted (much like your ordinary Malay ones) with all the accompanying pomp and pageantry (toned down somewhat for this wedding at the request of the Raja Muda).
Both of them are quite successful academically, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah has a PhD in Political Economy and Government from Harvard and Tuanku Zara Salim has 1st Class Honours in Chemical Engineering from University of Nottingham, and both are also rather successful in their careers.
Well, the Perak royal family (descendants of the last sultan of Malacca) has always been relatively more accomplished, polished and civil compared with some others. And I guess it's only natural that the Raja Muda would marry someone well-educated and accomplished like Tuanku Zara.
Her surname reflects the fact that her father is British, William Davidson who is a lawyer practising in Malaysia.
Incidentally, she also happens to be the great-granddaughter of Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah of Kedah through her mother's side. You can check out the rest of her lineage and personal history at her wikipedia entry.
One thing's for sure is that she is pretty. Check out the wedding at this site.
It would be interesting if Singapore still has its own constitutional monarchy. At least it would make things more glamorous than a colourless and dour "elected" president.
Thank god people still remember. Though they died without achieving much, at least they are not forgotten. I guess that's where Hong Kong differs from Singapore - the people there are very politically aware and they care.
Click on the picture for other photographs from the memorial service in Hong Kong that was attended by tens of thousands of people. It's an annual thing and it's always well attended.
I am curious, if something of this magnitude happens close to Singapore like how Tiananmen in Beijing happened so close to Hong Kong, will we Singaporeans remember or even bother to remember 18 years after the fact? I know quite a number of Singaporeans were upset over the whole event as it played out on our TV screens then. I had learnt from the Straits Times that some Singaporeans had placed protest wreaths at the doors of the Bank of China building next to the present Fullerton Hotel while some port workers unfurled banners and shouted "Merdeka" (freedom) at some arriving PRC-Chinese merchant ships.
It was the day youthful ideals met the death blow of adult real politics and entrenched interests.
Maybe we Singaporeans move on quickly. Maybe we find that this event really has nothing to do with us. Then again, I may be wrong. For all I know, Singaporeans still do remember and some small numbers do commemorate this event in their own small way.
For me, it was one of a few defining moment in my own political awareness and it still stands out in terms of horror, shock and indignation; especially the images of human remains (students and other Chinese) after the military and their tanks have finished them. And it's probably why I still get perturbed when people start to cosy up to the PRC government or become an apologist for them.
About four days ago, the UK along with its political establishment began activities commemorating the end of the slave trade on 25 March 1807 when the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act was passed in parliament. This act finally led to the 1833 emancipation of African slaves that were formerly traded in the UK for forced labour in many of its colonies.
It's been 200 years since then, and commemoration activities of this bicentenary were held in the UK and other countries connected to the trade to mark this day - such as a walk led by the Archbishop of Canterbury (Dr Rowan Williams) and the Archbishop of York (Dr John Sentamu) where some 250 walked in chains, a modern version of those that held the African slaves back then.
However, controversy has dogged this day. For example, Prime Minister Tony Blair was blasted for not formally apologising for the UK's leading and principal role in the slave trade even though he did express deep sorrow and regret. And a protestor by the name of Toyin Agbetu interrupted a commemorative service at Westminster Abbey by shouting demands for an apology at the Queen and Tony Blair and condemned African Christians for taking part. It is interesting to note that his feeling was shared by quite a number of Africans who were attending the service.
It is hard to gauge the lasting effect of slavery on the descendents of the slaves living in the UK and other parts of the world. And I can't even begin to imagine how this burden of history and oppression has affected them. But it is undeniable that a lot of the riches and splendid buildings and manors in the UK exist as a result of the slave trade.
Anyway, while I was surfing Apple's Quicktime trailer site just now, I came across this interesting movie starring Ioan Gruffudd. Entitled "Amazing Grace", it's about William Wilberforce (1759 - 1833), an MP in the British parliament who became the spokesperson and prime mover of the act that finally ended the slave trade.
The title of the movie is taken from the hymn of the same name written by John Newton (1725 - 1807), a former captain of a slave ship who later became an Anglican pastor and mentor to William.
Despite its heavy religious and church-y feel, which I am sure will be milked for all its worth by the more... how should I put... independent and neo-con evangelical churches with political aspirations, the trailer makes it seem very powerful and moving. But leaving religion aside, I think it's a good attempt at dramatising the person who practically changed history with his relentless effort for 30 years in parliament. I guess it would have taken a shorter time if he wasn't such a clumsy political strategist.
Of course it's easy to make William the hero of the abolition movement, but it is an undeniable fact that a lot of other people (known or unknown) contributed to the eventual end of slavery. And as a matter of fact, it was a combination of factors within and without Westminster and the UK that finally made the passage of the act possible.
And before we make William out to be some infallible hero, we need to remember that he is human with his own foibles too; such as his religious conservatism, which ironically led him to his work in trying to end slavery.
200 years later, his work and the work of his contemporaries are still not complete.
Shinzo Abe was doing so well. After all the flak and fall out from Junichiro Koizumi and his insistence in visiting the Yakusuni shrine and the history text book revision issue, I thought he would be much more sensitive and diplomatic. Well, that was what I thought given his rapprochement with China and South Korea, the two countries most sensitive about any attempt by the Japanese government to either gloss over that period or pay homage to those who had participated in it.
It seems Abe's spirit may be willing, but his flesh (in this case, his mouth) may be weak. But lest we forget, Abe is a nationalist at heart. His upgrading of the self defence agency to full ministerial level and his move to expand military operations are proof of that.
Looking at the military issue by itself, one would think that it's pretty logical. After all, one would expect that the armed forces of a first world country should be able to contribute in equal measure like any other nation around the world. That's what I thought too.
But when you take that together with his recent posturing, things get a bit muddier. And his recent remarks that the Imperial Japanese army never forced any woman from any occupied countries into sexual slavery didn't seem like a slip of the tongue. I think he genuinely believes it.
It's quite sad that a country like Japan hasn't been able to break free from her past, as compared with Germany, a fellow aggressor during the Second World War.
Unlike Germany, which seems at times to be overcompensating for her war time aggression, Japan seems keen to either conveniently forget about some aspects of it while justifying others.
And the irony about it is that there are a lot of Japanese out there who are more ready to deal with it than the government and the political establishment, which seems to be in agreement or held hostage with the more vocal and militant nationalists (minority or not I don't know).
For a prime minister who was born after the war to say something like that, it's pretty obvious that MacArthur's attempt in "rehabilitating" the country leaves much to be desired. History revisionism there doesn't seem like some eccentric activity of the deluded few, but an accepted part of establishment politics.
You know, I had always thought that the Chinese PRC government were playing the dangerous nationalist card by raking up Japanese WWII atrocities, as evidenced by anti-Japanese demonstrations and violence in China a year or two ago. But sometimes, the Japanese government do seem to be asking for it, like now.
So I was bored over the Christmas period and decided to pop by over to the newly refurbished National Museum. Nice! They have really done a great job with the place as the pictures below will attest.
As it has been raining like crazy, the weather was cool and the sky slightly overcast. It felt like I wasn't in Singapore at all. The museum, the location and the church steeple of Wesley Methodist Church next to it contributed to the feeling that I was somewhere else, perhaps Australia. Quite nice I must say. And with so little people there, it was an oasis of calm and solitude away from the crazy and messy Orchard Road which was thronged with shoppers on their final last-minute Christmas orgasm of shopping. *shudder*
The exhibitions were free (for the moment I think) and were well put up. Of course one can't expect Museum of Natural History standard or what lah, considering Singapore's short "officially recognised" history. So most of the stuff shown basically went back to the 1800s. Other than that, it was quite impressive. Unfortunately, I was too cheap to pay $8 for the exhibition on the Habsburgian Maria Theresa of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. But I did managed to catch the very interesting and entertaining video exhibit of Brian Gothong Tan that was projected 360o around on the circular wall of the glass rotunda.
Happy National Day everyone, and do check out this very interesting interview with the late David Marshall who was our one-time Chief Minister and our first and only Jewish head of government; a brilliant man with a fire in his belly and compassion in his heart.
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