Malaysian guards serving to foreign monarchs ...
http://www.aliran.com/web-specials-mainmenu-40/55-2008/566-malaysia-boleh-bankruptcy
The recent statement of a Royal Malaysian armed forces guardsman, now
stationed at
Windsor Castle in the United Kingdom, was the biggest surprise a sovereign
state
could spring on itself, observes a surprised Angeline Loh. Television
coverage of our
Royal Malaysian Guardsmen taking up their post at Windsor Castle, a
residence of the
Queen of England, was broadcast with all pomp and pride. Interviewed by
the media,
the guardsman announced that he was proud to be one amongst the first
group of our
Royal Malay Guardsmen to serve in the guard of the Queen of England.
To the common Malaysian citizen, this is certainly an odd statement. It
seems to hark
back to pre-Independence and colonial government. Why should a member of
the
Malaysian armed forces take so much pride in serving a foreign monarch
instead of our
own?
With respect to the guardsman, perhaps he was better salaried, being
posted overseas
in a developed country and paid in British Pound Sterling by that
government. Yet, if
our government deems it necessary to outsource our own army personnel for
the
security of a foreign monarch, merely as a foreign currency earner, the
level of our
national pride and loyalty must be near rock bottom.
The irony of this situation is that Malaysia, a widely known receiving
country for
foreign labour, is now exporting its local labour instead of retaining it
to lessen
the need for foreign labour. In short, the Federal government is creating
an
artificial labour shortage. On the other hand, will Malaysia, in the near
future
reciprocate the generosity of the English monarchy and take on military
personnel
from the UK and give them better pay than they get in Britian? I think
that's
unlikely.
Has the clarion call of "Malaysia Boleh" led us to this bankruptcy in
national pride?
We have gone back to becoming dependants of our ex-colonial master. It
makes one
wonder whether we had ever achieved "merdeka" in August 1957 or if all
that ceremony
and hype then made any difference to the system we have lived under for
half a
century.
Despite the slight difference in our constitutional set up, we could be
back in the
'bad old' days of being a British colony. Even the laws haven't changed.
There
appears to be a constant state of emergency in the country where
fundamental freedoms
and human rights must be curtailed or restricted.
As the colonial authorities did not trust the inhabitants of their
colonies, so the
BN government does not trust Malaysians and needs to keep a near
authoritarian watch
on the populace. But the tradition of 'milking the colony' appears to have
continued
with the forces of capitalism and privatisation fully unleashed on the
citizenry.
The deception of "Malaysia Boleh" has doped us wholesale since it was
invented by Dr.
M. There was a huge "WOW" shouted out by the mainstream media when we sent
up our
first satellite for TV reception into space. BUT it was not sent up
anywhere in our
country, it was sent up by some French experts from a remote location in
one of the
French dependencies. Was that our work? Malaysia only paid for it with
taxpayers'
contributions.
Then the cry of "Malaysia Boleh" again reverberated when we paid to send
an astronaut
into space on someone else's space programme. The Russians no doubt were
glad to be
the recipients of our taxpayers' contributions, this time.
Who built the Petronas Twin Towers? Migrant labour.
Who were the initial manufacturers of the Proton Saga, our Malaysian car?
The
Japanese carmaker, Mitsubishi.
Who built the Penang Bridge? The Koreans.
Regrettably, we cannot claim all the credit for these and other prestige
projects
that we are so proud to call our own; they were never entirely constructed
by our own
efforts. Foreign labour, from the expert to the construction worker, made
these
possible; our leaders paid them to do so with our tax contributions.
The illusion of Malaysia Boleh has not made us evolve as a nation by
acquiring better
skills or creative abilities to be independent and contribute anything
original and
genuinely Malaysian to our country and the world. It has made us perpetual
apprentices and virtual parasites on the fame and achievements of other
countries.
Not to mention the amount of foreign labour and expertise to make our
government's
'dreams' come true.
The apparent low-esteem and lack of national pride in ourselves as
Malaysians should
not come as a surprise. Still, we have more often lived in haughty
illusions of being
a renowned country - but renowned for the wrong reasons. Being a wealthier
developing
country widely known for its maltreatment of foreign nationals and
preservation of
repressive and draconian legislation is nothing to be proud of. It is the
glorification of idiocy.
"Malaysia Boleh" has given us metaphorical "buffalo pride" as the Malay
proverb goes,
"Lembu punya susu, sapi punya nama."
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I intend to last long enough to put out of business all COck-suckers
and other beneficiaries of the institutionalized slavery and genocide.
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"The army that will defeat terrorism doesn't wear uniforms, or drive
Humvees, or calls in air-strikes. It doesn't have a high command, or
high security, or a high budget. The army that can defeat terrorism
does battle quietly, clearing minefields and vaccinating children. It
undermines military dictatorships and military lobbyists. It subverts
sweatshops and special interests.Where people feel powerless, it
helps them organize for change, and where people are powerful, it
reminds them of their responsibility." ~~~~ Author Unknown ~~~~
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