Be Thankful Malaysians

Ola everyone, sorry for not blogging for the past few days. I've been feeling under the weather lately  and I've been busy out and about. On top of that, recent happenings in Malaysia have dampened my mood. It all began when a group of Catholics in Malaysia began to claim the use of the name "Allah" to refer to God.  They even appealed in court to make it legal for them to do so. This caused an uproar by the Muslims in Malaysia as they feared the usage of "Allah" by Christians would confuse a lot of people, mainly the impressionable Muslim youth, as publications of the Christian Bible and other Christians books have been translated into the Malay language.

I know Arab Christians have referred to God as Allah because let's face it, Al-Ilah a.k.a. Allah literally means The God. And now a group of Christians want to use it here as well but the problem is... it's not our culture.  The Arabs use it because they speak Arabic but it's not necessary for Christians in Malaysia to start calling God as Allah. Why adopt something that's just going to make things complicated in our country? When you live in a multicultural society where different religions are practiced, matters like this tend to become a very touchy issue.

As a result of the tug of war between the Christians and Muslims, some Muslims have resulted to violence and vandalism. A church was burnt and 6 others were vandalised. Thankfully no one was physically hurt. However, this is what happens when people don't want to set their egos aside and just discuss the issue. People can say that they're intellectually incapable or they're just emotional but at the end of the day a lot of innocent people have to pay the price for the actions of a bunch of irresponsible, narrow-minded so-called Muslims. Now, the Christians and other non-Muslims are in fear and many Muslims are very shocked and ashamed by the behaviour of the aforementioned Muslims.

I don't know who they are but they certainly had an agenda and I strongly detest the means they have used in trying to achieve it. Violence is not the answer. Politics certainly plays an important role in any country and there has been political instability in Malaysia for the past few years. This country is in the midst of a campaign called '1 Malaysia' in effort to celebrate and encourage affinity between the various existing ethnicities and cultures. When something like this happens clearly somebody out there is trying to stir up trouble. Bravo! They've done exactly that because people's reactions have been full of negativity and hopelessness. Statements like "How can 1 Malaysia exist now?", "I can't wait to leave this country" and "I'm ashamed to be Malay" don't help and this is certainly not the time to be throwing racist remarks. If you're not part of the solution you're just part of the problem. People lose faith so easily and I can't help but wonder why because truthfully I think '1 Malaysia' has always existed.... way before the ideology and campaign even began. It's just another PR and marketing strategy.

We're not going downhill. We just need a boost after all this mess. It's not impossible because I know there are Malaysians out there who love their country and their fellow citizens. Dear Malaysians, all I want to say is... have faith in others and most of all, in yourself. You can be the change that you want to see in others (Gandhi, he was pretty wise wasn't he?). Learn from the mistakes of others instead of falling right into the trap of becoming just like them. The past leaders of this country didn't sacrifice and struggle to end almost 500 years of colonialism for nothing. They didn't defend our rights only for us to take them forgranted later on.  History has proven that they have achieved independence and social and economic progress for you, not just for the Malays but for everyone who wants to be a part of Malaysia no matter what race, ethnicity or country you belong to.

We are lucky to be Malaysians and to live in a country that has been blessed with peace, considerable wealth and harmony. If you compare Malaysia's situation to other countries that are facing wars and heart-wrenching social problems you will start to appreciate what we have here. We've enjoyed too much for far too long that when things get a little tough we lose hope and start losing our positivity. Amidst all the craziness it's really important to reunite, move forward, find something positive in each other and pay it forward. Grab this opportunity to start something good. Fear only breeds more fear... is that what we want to teach our children?

[Photo by Jay Presaldo]