Inspired by Ghandi...

Weather: Fog
Temperature: 14 c

Sorry for neglecting this blog for the past few days. To those readers who popped in from time to time to check the latest updated articles in this blog, please accept my sincere apologies.

While this blog remained quiet and dormant, the world surrounding it was not quiet at all.

On a personal note, last Saturday, with the encouragement and support of Engtee, I have successfully and finally bought a guitar – my first guitar in China. It is a Spanish brand guitar which costs me RMB 1,300. Since I have not been practicing my guitar for more than 3 months, it hurt a lot initially. Now, I have a new friend in my house and his name is Lando (the brand of the guitar)!

Turning to another page. Well, since I left Malaysia, Malaysia has grown up a lot. It is more exciting than ever. I missed all the fun!

If you haven’t read about this, let me share with you. Our Hindu brothers have done something which is unprecedented and outrageously brilliant. A body called Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) has filed a class action on behalf of all the Indians in Malaysia against the British Government at the Royal Court of England seeking damages of RM1 million for each Indian in Malaysia for bringing the Indians into Malaysia and neglecting them thereafter. Wonderful! Voila! Can you believe that? The suit can simply be summarized into these few words: you bring me into this mess and now you have to pay for it.

Of course, everyone knows that the success rate of the suit is next to zero. But the suit is not the end, it is just a means to an end, a smokescreen. The real purposes of the suit are to embarrass the Malaysian government, especially MIC, and highlight the sufferings and plights of the Malaysian Indians to the whole world.

The Hindraf heroic actions did not end with the suit, the suit was just the beginning. Inspired by Gandhi, a rally was organized last Sunday and was attended by thousands (some websites reported the figure to be more than 10,000) of Hindus. Hindraf wanted to hand over a petition to the UK embassy which requested the Queen of England to appoint a Queen Counsel to assist their suit in England. In other words, Hindraf wanted the Queen to appoint her majesty counsel to assist the Malaysian Indians to take legal action against her own government. Can you appreciate the beauty of this paradox? Again, no one expects the Queen to adhere to their request. It is just another slap on the government’s face. A nice slap. Phik Phak! But no matter how hard you slap, I doubt this government (who is now in coma and under ICU treatment) will ever be woken up.

Of course, as usual, the government did not just sit there and do nothing. Learning from the Bersih rally, the government did something unprecedented too. An ex-parte court order was issued by the court which prevented the organizers and participants from participating the banned rally. This is first in Malaysian legal history. You are basically banned from attending an event which has yet to take place. Wow! Who said we have no top legal brains in the government sector? How brilliant was that? It effectively means that if you attend the rally, you are in contempt of the court for you will disobey a court order. The court is inevitably dragged into this mess.

Few days before the Hindraf rally, the key persons of Hindraf were arrested and charged under the Sedition Act. They have now been discharged on technical grounds i.e. the prosecutor failed to include the original Tamil transcript in the charge sheet. Of course, the prosecutor can always re-charge them later once the technicalities have been sorted out.

Now, you still think freedom of assembly and freedom of expression are our fundamental rights which are safely protected by the Federal Constitution? Think again. When you vote in a government with 90% of majority seats, the government IS the constitution. The Federal Constitution becomes a piece of paper which can be “conteng” at any time. You don’t believe me? See? They are going to amend the constitution again very soon to extend the mandatory retirement age of the Election Commission Chairman. What did I just tell you?

Oh, before I sign off, can anyone tell me what happened to the collapsed building in Tasik Banding, Perak? Swept under the carpet already? What did I say? Samy, you are the man. Now you understand why I said there was no need to get upset? Things will be fine eventually for you are the man.

When all hopes seem gone, remember our # 1 of Rukun Negara: Kepercayaan kepada Tuhan…

G bless Malaysia!