Repression of Expression
Technorati tags: Rights, Freedom of Expression, Repression, Politics, Malaysia,, UMNO, PAS
Walski read about this at the Ricecooker blog. Not surprising, to be honest.
The repression of youthful expression continues...
The gig was supposed to have been held yesterday, November 11. And of course, Kuala Kangsar is the Royal Town of Perak, the home state of FatwaMan himself. And yes, the Perak Religious Department was involved with putting a stop to this gig, together with the police, and (apparently) even the Perak Royal Palace.
It is precisely this kind of crap that is the basis behind Smithereens. And it all boils down to one simple reason. Regardless of whether the intent is is morals and religion, or to uphold the Establishment status quo, the real reason is simple. The real reason can be summed up in one, commonly used word - control.
(more controlling thoughts in the full post)
But sadder still are the sentiments of one commenter on that Ricecooker post, Adzakael, who had this to say (emphasis, and English translation, by myAsylum):
This is one of the reasons kenapa aku tak nak balik Malaysia.
nak main gig pun tak boleh!
(Bukannya ada ritual sembelih kambing puja setan pun)
Dia orang bukan against youngsters, t[api] against independent thinking young people yg mampu berdiri tanpa tongkat dr org lain. Dia orang suka youngsters yg pemikirannya dependent dgn diorang. So senang sikit nak dikontrol.
Kalau camni gayanya, hujan emas dinegeri orang, hujan batu di negeri sendri,baik lagi duduk kat negeri orang hari-hari hujan emas boleh jd kaya mcm Bill Gates dr hujan batu dah la badan sakit,kepala pun sakit,tangan pon lebam,mata pun bengkak.
This is one of the reasons why I don't want to return to Malaysia.
Not even allowed to play gigs.
(it's not like there are any goat sacrifice or Satanic worship)
They are not against youngster, but against independent thinking young people who are capable to stand on their own without the crutches of others. They like youngsters whose minds are dependent (on them). So they become easier to control.
If this is the way it's going, [translation of a mongrelized Malay proverb] "rain of gold in others' land, rain of stone in our own land, might as well stay in the land of others". It rains gold everyday, can become rich like Bill Gates, compared to rain of stone - bruised body, pain in the head, hands get bruised, and the eyes get swollen.
Great way to ensure that the brain-drain continues, isn't it?
In the battleground for Malay mindshare, and vote-share, between the Putrid Asinine Sheetheads and U Must Not Object (the status quo), the real casualties are the rest of the nation. Perhaps this latest gig ban is just part and parcel of the rancidity surrounding the coming General Assembly. Or maybe it's just a teaser of the real repression that's to come?
And it is partly as a result of this war between the two political stalwarts that the Malaysia we live in is becoming more and more repressive as the days go by.
More importantly, however, is the sad truth of how apathetic our younger folk are towards the political goings on. Walski doesn't blame them, by the way. What the young see are a bunch of hypocrites in suits (shirt/tie, or jubah/serban - it doesn't really matter) slugging it out for power. And the young hate hypocrites more than anything else - they've had enough of hypocricy growing up thus far.
Heh... and the political parties wonder why the young don't break the turnstiles down to sign up? It's hard to discuss relevance when you don't even have a clue about what the damn word means. Instead, they harp on and on about how the young don't appreciate the struggles of our forefathers in gaining independence.
And independence gained, for what? So the pillagers can be homegrown, instead of foreign?
And because of that, perhaps it's high time that the more socially aware amongst us who are young (or young at heart) got together and started something to change that. Perhaps a "Rock The Vote" type of campaign.
When you don't vote, you don't have a voting voice, you don't have representation. When you don't have representation, your rights are open to be trampled upon. And that's what the powers-that-be, and powers-that-wannabe, really care about - not you, but your vote.
And with your vote, perhaps there will come a day when we can all collectively stand up proud, to say a big, rousing
O F F
to those hypocrites who pretend to care, when all they really care about is power. It won't happen overnight, but it can happen.
Walski thinks it's high time we stopped only bitching about how crappy things are, and do something real about how our lives are being ruined run. If anyone else is serious about getting the younger set to speak their voice through their vote, let Walski know. A difference can be made, but you gotta start somewhere.
Have you registered to vote?
