Our Struggle, Our Hope

"When injustice becomes law, to revolt becomes one's duty,"
Guinean rapper, Phaduba Keita.

I've been spending much of my time in the recent days going through news from Malaysia. The part that is of particular interest to me, and of which I am trying to keep the abreast, despite the limited information, is of the political goings-on in Malaysia. Over the course of the past few days, I have watched many videos of how the rule of law in Malaysia has been repeatedly raped by the very people whom the voting public, or the Rakyat as we are more familiar with, have given the mandate to protect. I have watched the carnage caused by the ruling coalition's strong arm tactics against what has to be the most sacred of proceedings in the governance of both the state and the nation. I have read and watched about the repeated abuse of the basic human rights guaranteed to every citizen throughout Malaysia. Every citizen regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, sex, creed, economic and social standing.

This has bred within me a very strong sense of patriotism and belonging towards the country which I call home. A country which I grew up in, learned for the better part of my life, met and forged relationships with the people that I have and so on. If you had asked me about this about a year or two ago, I wouldn't have given much of an inspired thought about it. Yes, I would have admitted the deficiencies in governance by the ruling coalition, but at the same time, I would have also told you not bother too much as nothing could have been done or could be done to remedy the situation. I would go on to tell you that Malaysia is a waste of time, and no effort should be spent on rehabilitating it and that all who feel neglected and left out, should leave, to teach the government a lesson. But after watching, and reading about the struggles that have gone on, and are still going on, fought by brave and commendable men and women, and by citizens from all walks of life, be it the rich or the poor, the able or the disabled, I realize that there is still a mountain of work to be done to restore social order and the supremacy of the nation and the constitution. To restore all of this from being drowned by the greed of a few whom have grown complacent and have taken for granted their apparent "right" to rule the nation at the expense of the ordinary, hard working Malaysian citizen. I also realize that not everyone in this beautiful land are as fortunate as others to be able to simply pack their bags in a moments notice and move on to greener pastures in lands afar. But most importantly, I realized that it is not about running away. Running away would be no better than running away from your house and abandoning it for good when a thief or a band of burglars come to rob it. Sooner or later, these thieves are going to feel bold, and will start robing other houses too due to the lack of resistance out up by owners of those homes. This has gone on for long enough and should not be allowed to go on for much longer. We must put up resistance, and we must put our voices out so that those who are in power will realize and see that the reason they they are in power is because we, the people, put them there in the first place, and that all of that can, and will be taken away if we are continued to be abused on a daily basis.

Now some of you may argue that all of this is coming from the mouth of a hypocrite that is sitting 10000 miles away, comfortably in his plastic chair, ensconced in a land known for its incredible civil liberties, and who will probably never return home to join in the fight of the ordinary Malaysian. I can understand the basis of your argument. But I counter that by saying that the reason I am here is not because I am choosing to run away, but instead, I am choosing to expand. Deep down inside, I know that if there were opportunities back home, of the nature of which I am exploring, I would very much love to return home. However, clearly, there is none. The other reason which I have also noticed is that, despite the political ugliness that is happening in our country, very little of it is being mentioned abroad. A scan through any of the major tabloids and news publications around the world will reveal this. Which is why, someday, I do hope to become a political activist based abroad, which I hope will enlighten the citizens of the world about the struggles that citizens of Malaysia and hopefully, while voicing out, will be joined from citizens from other oppressed nations, currently face. As it goes now, I'm glad to have started many interesting discussions about the state of Malaysia with many of my foreign friends here. I hope that in this way, slowly but surely, someone, somewhere will have the proper voice or connections to propel it to the attention of those that matter. Of course, I can't do this alone. Therefore I am begging to all my Malaysian friends, anywhere around the world, to engage in discussions and to make aware of the current situation in Malaysia. Read the news portals, read the blogs, watch videos, and listen to interviews done by both the ruling and the opposition leaders, including by those who have been wrongfully incarcerated by a medieval, draconian law. This is one area in which plenty of work has to be done and can be done.

As ugly as the current struggles are, I know that they must be made in order to secure our liberties. The road will be long, the road will be hard. But together, we will emerge a more glorious and a more free nation. A nation capable of being a role model, an example to the definition of freedom, and an example of a nation built by the people, for the people.

This is my dream for the world. Our Struggle, our hope.

Thank you.