The awakening
November 17, 2007
NST reports today that 80 NGOs representing businesses in the Bukit Bintang area called on BERSIH to keep their ‘agitation’ indoors as the rally and march last Saturday resulted in huges losses for them.
You can read the full report HERE.
Picture from NST that accompanies the report.
The 3 posters in yellow in the middle got my attention.
We want peace. We want stability.
You and I do not want peace? We do not desire stability? 50,000 who marched on 10-Eleven do not want peace and stability?
These people below who took part in the Merdeka 50:44 march do not want peace and stability?
My point, though, is this.
This time last year, how many from amongst us held the same viewpoint as those businessmen in the NST report?
Then, how many of us put economics before civil rights, before a clean and independent judiciary, before fair elections, before a responsible and functioning Parliament, or before governmental accountability?
Then,how many of us thought much was wrong in the governance of this country, but chose to keep silent for any one of a number of reasons?
When I started this blog in April this year, I recieved comments from several who exressed scepticism and cynicism for initiatives that I was pushing.
I have kept track of them.
I am humbled that some of them have since come forward, given their ic numbers and taken their place amongst the 5,036 signatories supporting the petition to the Agong regarding the judiciary.
Read the numerous comments on this blog and the many others, giving testimony about how many harboured fears about taking part in 10-Eleven, yet overcame those fears, came to the rally and marched to the palace.
A great change has taken place in a great many of us.
For a great many, 10-eleven and the petition to the Agong have been empowering experiences.
For a great many, slowly but surely, fear has been overcome, a new sense of purpose has been discovered, values and priorities are being re-adjusted.
A great many have now embarked on a quest for justice and equality for all.
You have ceased to be the centre and sole focal point of your care and concern.
It is this change, this courage to stand up, not just for yourself, but for the next person, that will serve as the driving force needed to bring about the change that we desire.
The quest for justice and equality for all will not be easy.
We are up against powerful political forces and commercial interests who, until now, have had the upper hand because then, it was you and I.
Divided.
And they have, until of late, had their way to keep you and I apart. You watched over you and I kept guard over myself.
Now there is US.
US.
The seed of hope has been planted.
We must let it take root.
Nurture it.
Love it.
It will be a long struggle.
Therefore remember that we will each march to our own drummer. Those who get ahead before the rest must wait and help the others to move on.
We must not backslide.
We must not look back.
We must build on 10-Eleven.
November 17, 2007 at 7:53 pm
I would like to suggest that BERSIH hold another 100,000 people rally inside a stadium all wearing yellow on a Sunday morning.
November 17, 2007 at 7:58 pm
The fat man holding a microphone in the middle of the picture is from the MCA, the party of running dogs. This is nothing but an-MCA(thus BN)inspired gig not worthy of attention. Move on.
November 17, 2007 at 8:13 pm
Yep, it smells of a political move to score some brownie points. I am not saying that none of the businesses experienced some loss but the way this press conference was set up makes me skeptical.
November 17, 2007 at 8:31 pm
What they fail to realize was that if the police permit was given, then the march would have been more organized and the traffic problems reduced. Businesses as FAR as Bukit Bintang wouldn’t have had to suffer that much.
But they conveniently scapegoated the people who went on that day to exercise their civil rights to free speech and movement, instead of pinning blame where it is due: the government and the police.
November 17, 2007 at 8:34 pm
The pix – all MCA except one MIC? And boy, MIC looks real stressed out being there!
November 17, 2007 at 8:56 pm
PATHETIC!…Look at the BERSIH sea of people compare to this handful of shoe polishers & back scratchers of the Government! Ha Ha ha i already know they are not that smart but sure didn’t know that they were so darn DUMB!
November 17, 2007 at 9:03 pm
Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja Istana Negara, Datuk Wan Mohd Safiain Wan Hasan I/C No. 461214035359,
UMNO membership number : 03728983
Member of Umno Cawangan Taman Desa Minang, Gombak Setia, Gombak.
Now I want to puke over the purported statement issued by the Agong that was read by this man!
This man should be sacked. Let us watch his career movements next!!
November 17, 2007 at 9:05 pm
sorry i laugh so hard that hit the wrong button to submit…Those picture is either all chinese or all Malay…hey Samy where are your indians?
November 17, 2007 at 9:17 pm
I can only laugh reading the report. I have been living in Jalan Pudu since I was born. My parents have been living in Jalan Pudu since they were born. We have been living in Jalan Pudu for 3 generations. What caught my attention was one of the NGOs listed was Rukun Tetangga Jalan Pudu, well according to my mom, that Rukun Tetangga was disbanded some 20 years ago. It seems to me that the purpose of the Rukun Tetangga Jalan Pudu being setup is to come out from grave once in a while to protest. And if that fat Bukit Bintang MP guy wanted some cheap publicity, my advice is that please go and do your homework and see whether such NGO is still existing or not, better still if you could just simply come up with names like Persatuan Remaja Jalan Pudu, Persatuan Penjaja Jalan Pudu, Persatuan Char keuh Teow Jalan Pudu… then people don’t know much about its association, then cannot say for sure they don’t exist …lor.
November 17, 2007 at 9:24 pm
the report i’m refering to is in The Star.
November 17, 2007 at 9:33 pm
I see some Chinese faces in the picture. Sigh. Can’t we Chinese as a collective understand that if we want to be treated as first class citizens, we must first take ownership of the democratic processes in this country? C’mon MCA (or whatever Chinese-based political parties out there), have some dignity for breakfast! Take that as a supplement if you must and stop acting like scumbags!
I concur with Reniv…what a pathetic effort for damage control.
November 17, 2007 at 10:07 pm
There will always be running dogs for UMNO, ever ready to serve their masters.
November 17, 2007 at 10:49 pm
Why can’t others have their say? In a matured democracy there are a million viewpoints. If we are aiming for a full and fair democracy we better learn to appreciate that others have their right to voice their views.
This is what we must guard against. ‘We are right and the rest are not”. This is the kind of mentality that we are trying to change.
Please reflect on this deeply. Now we run with anyone who wants change. If we get the change what next? There is no game plan. The same people we run with now may well turn out to be standing at opposing ends.
Sometimes simplicity without careful thought will lead us to horrible consequences.
November 17, 2007 at 11:07 pm
En. Haris,
Wait a minute … something just dont make sense.
Please read the attached; http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Saturday/National/2086490/Article/index_html
It reported that this businessman, Tan Hooi Weng lost about RM1.0 million in sales on that day. And this Tan Hooi Weng is a clothes wholesaler in Jln Merlimau.
RM1.0 million a day????
November 17, 2007 at 11:09 pm
Gee, looks like my dream of 100,000 people in Putra Stadium is going to materialize sooner than expected. Do we still need a permit if we had the rally indoors?
November 17, 2007 at 11:38 pm
80 NGOs? sure or not? millions of loses in a day? sure kah? ayoh! don’t make me laugh…LOL… oh i am laughing already.
sure they want peace and stability – the one that UMNO dished out, the one where they are always, like ‘ilovemycountrymalaysia’ pointed out, running dogs for UMNO.
November 18, 2007 at 12:47 am
As I’ve written in my blog, roadblocks which were set up several kilometers from Dataran Merdeka by the RMP and apparently, from Friday night onwards, contributed to the ensuing massive traffic jams.
I reckoned this was deliberately done by the powers that be, knowing the inevitable resulting frustrations, could be diverted and blamed on 10-Eleven. The authorities claimed they needed to check on undesirable elements bearing weapons. None was reported in the MSM or blogs, for that matter. In fact, there were no reports of weapons of any kind being used DURING 10-Eleven, except those in the hands of enforcement personnel.
I walked from Central Market (through the building), pass by the Bar Council towards M.Jamek around 2.00pm onwards, then, reversed on the same route to Istana Negara and I noticed all the business premises were operating as usual. So what gives with this Bukit Bintang crap which is 4-5 kilometers away from Dataran? Is the almighty ringgit their only consideration?
And talking about B.Bintang, perhaps, they should choose a new wakil rakyat in the next GE (wink-wink).
November 18, 2007 at 1:19 am
These Chinese petty traders and shopkeepers never wake up. They are often harassed. Come every Saturday or even on sunday their liscences are been checked again and again ..why…you know the answers. Not only in that area but practically all chinese eating shops in KL.
Come on you Chinese who are the runner boys of MCA, the Chinese sayings goes ” Don’t eat shit and excrete Rice”
MCA has no other issues to fight for you. They are the Puppeteers and you the puppets.
November 18, 2007 at 1:46 am
It’s going to be a long road. But we shall not walk alone. Thank you Haris and others like MIS for awakening in some of us the passion for justice and equality.
The passion to get rid of those who are corrupt and are bent on destroying this country for their self-interest.
The passion to see our country developed into a nation where all people irrespective of race, religion or economic situation have a place under its sun.
The passion to see the yoke removed from those who are oppressed and to uplift those from poverty, again irrespective of race or religion
The passion to see our judiciary restored to its former glory and play the role of the protector of the rights of the common folks.
The passion to demand for free and fair elections without which democracy is meaningless.
The passion for us to be free from fear. 10-Eleven achieved that for some of us. My wife after reading what I sent to some of our fellow church members explaining some of the accusations which were hurled at the Bersih rally by some quarters became alarmed by my passion. What if I’m arrested? What will happen to our children? To her? My answer, ‘So be it’. I’m sure my family will be taken care of because the God I believe in is a God who is just.
Well, I can go on but suffice to say, what you(Haris) and others have done have awakened in me the vision of what a civil society is about.
We will continue to encounter these kind of people (the businessmen featured in NST)along the road. I’ve encountered them in my workplace. I’ve encountered them in my church. We should not condemn them but engage them and win them over. We should learn to be cool as MIS during his discussion on Al-Zajerra few days ago. Present the facts and let them speak for themselves or as lawyers put it ‘res ipsa loqitur’.
So let us not get distracted by hurling abuses at these business people who place economic well-being above all else. Instead show them the macroecomic numbers that have been coming in lately. I assure you they are not pretty.
November 18, 2007 at 9:08 am
If ever there is an opporturnity, I would go to the alleged affected people of the alleged affected area to talk and listen to them. The human side beyond the pictures and the texts on a piece of paper. It might yield interesting and surprising things.
November 18, 2007 at 11:17 am
Good morning People’s Parliament,
Don’t get disheartened yet. All this is just a load of hog-wash. 20 odd businessmen and hawkers is like a tickle in my you know where. Looks like the majority is still behind us. Sad politicians still trying all their pathetic stunts to win people’s support after realizing that the King’s statement didn’t cause the damage they expected. The people still remain strong behind each other. I’m still waiting to make the score 2-0 for us. All these news only carry entertaintment value. Let’s be focised on the real objective and move on.
Cheers
November 18, 2007 at 2:36 pm
“So let us not get distracted by hurling abuses at these business people who place economic well-being above all else.”
Let’s talk about rights, per se.
I agree that branding members of this group as running dogs for UMNO is over the top. However, I have no qualms in branding the MCA. My favourite grouse: what has the MCA done to ensure that poor Chinese students with outstanding exam results will get to further their studies with a scholarship? Anyone care to show me some stats to prove me wrong?
I agree that everyone must have the unfettered right to safeguard one’s rice bowl. So this group of Chinese plus one Indian indeed have the right to hold up their placards, even to suggest that I was on 10-eleven one of the 40,000 plus trouble makers (that’s okay; comes with the ‘freedom of expression’ territory). In mitigation, please remember this even if you remember nothing else: none of the 40,000 plus wanted to hurt anyone in this group. The fear factor was planted by the government to justify its rejection of the permit to gather. Perhaps, next time, this group will have served the country better if they were to encourage that same fat man to convince his political overlords to support the next Bersih application for a peceful gathering.
whilst I shall pompously declare that I will defend to my death their right to hold up placards of any kind, I will fight them to my death if they want to take away my freedom of expression just so that their right to make money is unfettered.
Do I get my right?
November 18, 2007 at 7:10 pm
“I am humbled that some of them have since come forward, given their ic numbers and taken their place amongst the 5,036 signatories supporting the petition to the Agong regarding the judiciary.”
——–
Just to let you know that I am one of them. And I have also given you my wife’s and daughter’s names and I/C numbers for the said petition.
I came here today after receiving your email, subject line : Rebutting news about the Agong’s disapproval of 10-Eleven.
Just for the record. I have voted in seven consecutive general elections and all my votes have gone to the Opposition – Parliamentary and State. To me to vote Barisan is a sin. Even if my father were to stand under BN I would still vote against him.
I will even vote for a dog that stands against the BN – (My way of expressing my anger against the BN)
God bless you and the family, my friend
November 18, 2007 at 11:40 pm
I really pity the traders. They lost so much money, one even RM1.0 million. I think the Income Tax dept. should check the tax calculations of these traders. With the self assessment, they nay have overlooked certain things. If what they claimed they lost tallies with their income tax submission, maybe we should help them claim the shortfall from the police.
November 19, 2007 at 4:39 pm
BANANA (US version) Show!!
========================
Any real Chinese will clarify cause & effects
before they project!
so they can shoot with perfect
and not being direct
only in one topic,
the Traffic
or only Demo be specific!
How about Police or Politics?
The ELECTION’S & Projects’ Magic
or women & kids’ Panics?
A real Chinese is a human with sympathic and logic!
Working with sweat or tear or even blood without magic!
When all these lost
no one can say a word but get lost!
Any real Chinese will learn
by their ears and eyes.
Not only with one ear or one eye
so to take real to survive
and not relying on lies!
If they care so much on a million?
When gone with billions
that lives the millions
headed by their traditional political head!
Anyone came ahead?
ARE CLEAR HEADS IN THE SHOW?
If no million working in the Street
can they make million off the street?
A Chinese will show wisdom in a show!
Any wisdom in this show?
Need anyone be told
that MCA was behind the show?
NO real Chinese will say they are part of the show!!
November 19, 2007 at 10:41 pm
Where are those Chinese Wisdom gone?
====================================
Is MCA Trapped?
Talking business instead of the Walk!
Did MCA think Chinese
only talk business in all walks?
MCA doubly lost and terribly lost
to put Chinese and Business in all spots!
and triply lost
to take aircon “Demo”
against a sweating, showering, tearing if not blooding walk!
Should all in the photo think the same?
Surely, they will loss fourthly
after some realized they were played Monkey on that spot!
Lost Fifthly, Sixthly, Seventhly… will come
if no more wisdom will come!