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Malaysia is a joke

Just some ranting from a Malaysian Chinese (Chinese Malaysian? Seems more apt at this juncture)

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Reading “Why I Stayed” stories here made me laugh. The idea that anyone who has gone overseas would stay in/return to Malaysia is beyond me. (Apart from filial piety and other extraordinary circumstances, which is understandable. E.g. continue father’s business) 

You see, I come from East Malaysia (Sarawak, to be precise). Any internet-savvy person would know there was an undercurrent of discontent and anger at the government/dynasty ruling my fair state. 30 years of vote-buying, raping and pillaging rainforests to line their own pockets, and of uncountable atrocities, (I’m not using hyperbole here, they literally rape and destroy nomad Penan homes) the urban centres decided enough is enough, and so you see no ruling party holding a seat in such areas. (It’s not true! The non-believers cry. Please, have a look at our rainforests. Have a look at the ‘progress’ in Sarawak. Now have a look at our politicians palatial homes. Read Sarawakreport. (Not to be confused with sarawakreports, less you lose your job))

The ‘stayers’ take the moral high road and say, “YOU BITCH AND MOAN WHAT YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT?” I monitored the election results on that fateful day, and had the opposition lost by one vote, I would’ve felt guilty. Fortunately, they didn’t. So I went to work the next morning and got 20 AUD an hour and went along my merry life, lamenting the injustice of it all.

Why should I come back? Malaysia has done nothing for me. (It did give the opportunity for my father to earn enough to send me to Australia, for which I am eternally grateful to my father of course) When your Deputy Prime Minister claims he is Malay first and Malaysian second in the face of a campaign promoting 1MALAYsia, what am I supposed to feel? When your race is labelled as “pendatang” in parliament how am I supposed to feel? (Chinese people don’t get referred to as boat-people as often as the real boat people, so the point that I get called an immigrant anywhere I go is moot. Besides, it’s funny in Australia. It’s just rude in Malaysia, considering I am Malaysian. I guess I’d be offended if I was born in Australia and they called me an immigrant, but (un?)fortunately I wasn’t). When the Education Minister (LOL) and Youth Leader of the ruling party brandishes his national dagger (It’s Javanese, genius. Guess that makes you a pendatang too huh?) I’m supposed to want to come back? 

Make no mistake, they don’t want me there. If they did, they’d actually try to lure me back, rather than setting up government bodies to solve the problem. (Which figures why I was always taught to solve problems with “kempen-kempen kesedaran” for SPM essays) But maybe they’re doing things right. (Besides, by offering scholarships to a specific race, it keeps the other races in Malaysia doesn’t it? Kind of makes my argument look stupid. Maybe they do want to keep us in Malaysia)

At no time was this made more poignant than when I stumbled upon a contingent of Malaysian students (They were all wearing polo tees with the Malaysian flag embroidered on it. Curiously/Ironically, it also had the 1Malaysia emblem) gathered for a meeting with my university. A gwailou from the university introduced them to the rest of the representatives in the room as “Sponsored scholars from Malaysia”. Needless to say, the only chinaman in the room was being introduced to these scholars. I didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry.

Contrary to that, Australia has given me a ‘fair go’. It isn’t some stupid slogan like “1Malaysia” or “Malaysia Boleh”. It actually means something. It means people can come here (unless you’re on a boat) and start a new life without fear of discrimination or harassment. (If you ARE harassed/sexually discriminated against, the Court normally rules in your favour which is more than I can say for a court coming into any sort of decision in Malaysia) 

I haven’t met anyone in the circle of relationships (who actually CARE about me) telling me to go back to Malaysia to live. The only people who would tell me that would probably be wide-eyed (naive?) undergraduates, or people intensely passionate in their belief they can make a difference and change things. To them, it’d say well done, but I think I’d rather take my chances and stay here thanks. Not like Malaysia ever wanted me anyway.

the ‘curse’

I remember going to a sunday school camp once; and the lady was trying to drum up the audience.

She said “We’re going to be counting points differently, can anyone guess how?”

I remember the same-aged kids getting excited, going “Tens!”

“NO!”

“Hundreds!”

“NO!”

“THOUSANDS!”

“NO! WE’LL BE USING TENS OF THOUSANDS!!!!!!!!!!”

the kids all went into uproar and like telling each other “omg tens of thousands, so much!”

but i was left thinking, “If you got rid of all the zeroes it’s still exactly the same… what’s the point?”

then i grew up and became an engineer. (N) 

things

Things heat up again; there’s no time again.

Sometimes people do things because they do; they just do.

Like it or not, you have no say in what someone else does.

And at the end of the day, really, all you can do is support them.

Because, really, they’ve already made up their minds.

They just want you to rationalise it for them.

So in Year 12 a friend had a birthday. I wished her happy birthday, and gave her a handshake. “No hug?”

“What?”

Yeah. In Malaysia we very rarely hugged. Like I could probably count the number of times i hugged someone (besides my own family) in Malaysia. 

It wasn’t that it was ‘sinful’ (Think Christian-friendly side hug. srsly. wtf?) It wasn’t that we didn’t have birthdays in Malaysia, it was just a culture difference.

So ANYWAY, what should constitute a hug? I don’t like hugging acquaintances, cause the way I see it if you’re going to do just a piss-poor hug that’s just putting an arm around the neck, what’s the point. May as well shake hands.

I kind of lost my train of thought in this, (I blame Andy Fourier talking about mine waste management and rock storage facilities in the background i.e. taking care of shit) and I’m sure i had some sort of snide remark or comment to make.

Alas it has left, so I will leave it at that. 

omnomnom

if a tree falls in a forest but no one hears it, does it make a sound?

if tears are cried but no one to see it, are they there?

if pain is felt but no one else feels it, is it there?

if the mask comes off, and no one notices it, was it ever there to begin with?