Merdeka?

Technorati tags: Merdeka, Malaysia, 1Black Merdeka

Merdeka (murr-day-kar) – a word in Bahasa Malaysia that can mean one of a few things: independence, freedom, liberty... it’s derived from the ancient Sanskrit, from which a good portion of Bahasa Malaysia derives.

In any case, today is the 52nd anniversary of Malaysia’s independence. Yeah, it’s kind of late in the day, but it’s still August 31st. So, what the heck – a Merdeka post.

And, for what it’s worth, to commemorate the day, Walski wore black. 
(crossing the tipping point, and more, in the full post)

Since black is one of his favorite colors to dress in anyway, wearing black today wasn’t really a big deal different from other days. And today, for Walski, wasn’t really different from any other day either. Except maybe for the fact that he didn’t have to go in to work.

And if you don’t already know why Walski decided to don black today, take a gander at this video, and you’ll understand the reason.

So, the question is this: are we really “Merdeka”? Not just from the independence-from-colonialism aspect.

Freedom and civil liberties? That space seems to be shrinking as time elapses. And if you’re a person who’s Muslim, that space is even smaller still. Even if something is legal from the aspect of civil law, you could still be deemed a criminal from the Syariah viewpoint.

And it’s not like one can really do anything about it either. Be a bit vocal and voice your disagreement and dissatisfaction, you get rebuked.

You're just expected to accept it. Any criticism is labeled an insult. Despite the fact that these laws were enacted by people who probably weren’t elected into office. And believe you Walski, if the public caning of Kartika ever happens, we’d have crossed over a tipping point of no return – after that happens the Islamists will have their justification want more and more. And more.

Give ‘em an inch, and they’ll want the whole fucking tape measure…

And to what end? To eventually turn this country into one that is governed by Syariah. The Malaysian version of it, anyway.

Not exactly what our forefathers had in mind when the Jalur Gemilang was hoisted in place of the Union Jack on August 31st, 1957.

And with UMNO and PAS still stuck in their rotten paradigm of trying to out-Islam each other, the real victim continues to be Malaysia. The signs that things are going to get a lot worse is written on the walls, folks.

The unfortunate, and uncalled-for, Cow-head Protest last Friday should raise red-alert alarm bells all over this land. On the surface, the authorities have pledged to get to the bottom of the incident. The reality is that probably not much will come out of it.

On top of that, indications are that we’re going to get more and more segregated as a society as we stumble along. The Arthurs Day celebration is only the beginning – be expecting more.

There are pretty darned good reasons why religion and public policy shouldn’t mix. Which is probably why there is not a model of government spelled out in the Quran, nor why no model of government was willed by Prophet Muhammad to be implemented after his death.

But not many people want to even acknowledge this point, and continue on their quest to out-Islam the other guy so that Malaysia may one day be a “truly Islamic” nation. Like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, or Sudan.

And that is probably what we have to look forward to come year 2020.

So yeah, for all it’s worth – happy Merdeka day. Cherish whatever freedom and civil liberty you have left. Because Walski has a nagging feeling that things are gonna get a lot worse before they get better.

If it ever gets better…