Last night i was told by my friend about the "Bersih Rally" that took place at Dataran Merdeka on November 10th, and thats like yeserday. At first i was distraught with the idea that we're having a demonstration in the comfort of my own country, my home...being in Indonesia and seeing demonstrations taking place everywhere, at all times makes me a bit phobic and nauseous when it comes to talking about demonstrations. so there i was at about 4a.m in the morning, sitting near my fridge (which is near to the door where the connection was at its best) trying to figure out what has caused this rally to happen at the first place....i mean surely there has got to be a reason as to why this is happening...there must be something that triggers fellow Malaysians to gather up and voice their opinions so that the government would hear them...and i pray to God that whatever the reason maybe i hope its a very sound reason (unlike the reasons these Indonesians have to cause such riots...its completely ridiculous!)
recalling the 3 weeks of my holiday for the eid recently ( and thats like 2 weeks ago...) i dont recall anything of significance that can cause this to happen...all i remembered, that the country was enthusiatic about our angkasawan in space and maybe the only significant event was the "fight" between Samy Vellu and M Kayveas...but lets face it, im not being racial about this, but that only involves the Indian community in the country... i am not saying that, that sole reason itself cant cause the riot to happen but i keep thinking that there has got to be something else.
so i got up just now at 3.30pm seeing that i slept at 8a.m this morning and immediately checked out the "Bersih Rally". i wanted to know what has caused this to happen...and finally
after reading "Malaysia Today" i finally understood.
During my holiday there were news involving the BPR, Anwar and tapes...i watched it like everyday, but it was rather a very short news each day and well, we know who it favors right? my mama n i were trying hard to figure it out, we know it involves the judiciary but we dont know that for sure...when i got back to medan, i often check out blogs by Zainul Arifin of The NST and even he commented on the crisis in our judiciary system but it was very brief so i dont really understand what is going on.
but now, i finally got it...i guess the man still got his touch huh? i often hope that he will just give it a break now that he's been released but the man is always on the go...well, i suppose when u have a strong beliefs on something and the need to confide the truth and fight for justice is just too strong, the phrase "let it go" seems like a blasphemy. but we cant blame him can we? he's been through a difficult time of his life and i guess thats all the motivation he needs to drive him all the way...
of course there are many other factors that contributes to the rally. seeing that the election is just around the corner (i only realised it coz the BPR is doing extra hours of work nowadays) that pretty much adds up to this.
and all they want is a fair election and a transparent system that works for everybody, everyone regardless the status and wealth. well, i have yet to vote....the next election will be the first time im voting actually and frankly speaking im pretty excited about it =)
but lets get real....i believe that a fair election can be conducted if everyone is determined to make it work. it is not impossible as it has been done numerous times before. hence we being "Malaysia Boleh" can definitely pull it off too....
but what about a fair system? democracy, not just the word itself but actually practicing it! i mean, people can talk...everyone can talk but can they really practice the values that they preached? can they walk the walk and talk the talk? its easier said than done right? and here we are, often talking about what a transparent our system really is, and how thankful we should be as a Malaysians for having a system as such etc,etc.....
i am proud to be a malaysian. compared to where i am right now, there is no other place i want to be rather than malaysia. many reasons why I and of course the fellow nations are proud to be malaysians. but for me personally, it is definitely not because of the "transparent" system that protects the citizen...im not going to say that the system is just lousy, we could have been worst right? but to me its more like translucent. if u refer the dictionary it says that translucent means not transparent, but clear enough to allow light to pass through and to me, that describes the system fine and dandy...
so why hide behind the truth? everybody is aware of this fact, and even the people in the system and the ones who helped created the system knows it. and now, the people who has obliged to follow the system for all these years has finally spoken out. they try to ask for a permit (trying to do this the right way..) but their request were being ignored. like a child who is being ignored by their parents, they grow up to be a rebel. and why is that so? to seek attention from their parents of course! and so the rally took place anyway despite all the strings being pulled to stop it...
if u read Special Reports 2007: Special Page for 10 November on Malaysia Today, u can see how determined these people are despite the hardship trying to get into the city....road blocks as far from Melaka all the way to Dataran Merdeka (for godsake la people!) its amazing really...too bad i wasnt in the country yesterday, or else i could have caught it live....
but like i said before....with great beliefs comes great determination.....
its all that it takes.......
it all started so peaceful and we know how it turns out in the end right? its just so funny in a way...are they that afraid to actually went to that length to stop them? its like beating your own children. is this a good example of parenting? is this how we should teach our children? when we are being told to practice good parenting all the time and suddenly this happens?
its amazing, beyond amazing actually....and to watch the news by al-jazeera on you tube its just sad....i kept asking myself, is this happening in my country? coz this sure looks like the news i always watch here....but seeing the masjid jamek LRT station made me realise, hell, it is my country...
that got me freaked out a bit...i was thankful coz it didnt ended with bloodshed or anything but the idea that this may happen again....its scary. im not in beauty contest to promote world peace, but before we are too busy about the world lets narrow it down to our country first.
we are indeed a proud nation and by all means we should keep it in our grasp and never let it go. i believe that no one is perfect and we all have our mistakes in past. can we erase them? no...whats done is done and should be left at that. what we can do is move on....maybe if we just learn to come clean and admit our mistakes, not trying to accuse the other party to cover up our wrong doings then maybe we can work it out. but we must remember that one shouldnt be blamed for another persons' mistakes....that is just not fair to me....and we want fairness right? maybe we can start by being fair to ourselves and from there we can work out on how to be fair to others....now, hows that for a change?
its called simple psychology....
