Please read Dr Mahathir’s pathetic response and defence of the killing of the Charlie Hebdo writers in Paris, in which he expresses no remorse whatsoever for the 12 dead French citizens, and with no hint of irony at his own long well-established record of racism and anti-Semitism, yet complains about “Islamophobia” but does not reference his own “Judaeophobia”. After reading his comments, please revisit your notion that Malaysia is not yet a failed state. Thank you.
Malaysia is not yet a “failed” state, but is rapidly approaching that status. With the BN Govt, the police and the judiciary ignoring the Law, with no one accountable for anything, (it seems)the downward slide is inevitable and unstoppable. It will probably all end in a big bang, like the rise of ISIS type. Only in Malaysia, it will be the Indian Muslims (mamak) leading the charge to “defend” Islam and the Malay race.
You cannot compare Tunku, the Reid Commission, the Emergency, Governor Hugh Clifford and French neo-something or other analysis of non-existent “Gangstas” in Malaysia. And even if one acknowledged that PULO in southern Thailand (far more than Pekida) were comprised of “Gangstas”, the history of Pattani (or, if you want, Kelantanse) Malays was/is not just about colonialism, special privileges for Malays, and Malay Royal Daulat. I will remind you 99.9999 % of the non-elite and non-Anglophilic kampung Malays were not asked their opinion about Merdeka, anymore than the Chinese tin miners, Tamil plantation workers, Orang Asli or
Iban and Kadazan villagers. It is not as if poor Malays or Eurasians (like me) had any say, but then UK doesn’t even have a
Constitution and the American one didn’t have Cherokee and Cuyahoga input did it ?
Shall we throw that one out too ?
You are incorrect about a “quick fix”. That was not the intent at all. In addition, for all it’s glitches, the Constitution worked quite well under Tunku, somewhat well under Tun Hussein Onn, and not well at all since Mahathir. The problem was not a faulty Constitution; the problem was a faulty Mahathir.
The issues now are the Malaysian fanatics and zealots who don’t understand that the Constitution is secular, admittedly mostly Right-Wing Malays. I know few ethnic Chinese who are saying special attention should not be given to any Malays up to a point. I know many non-Malays who say they adamantly oppose an ISLAMIC Constitution. I would be one of those.
It was the colonial power who laid the groundwork for the country we have today whereby the Malays were given special privileges in return for citizenship for the non-Malays. While this was a quick fix it went against the Enlightenment thinking of the equality of all men. In this, we also have to thank our well loved first PM who pressed hard for special privileges for the Muslims and the nobility. Again, he was looking for a quick fix for the emerging multi-racial society.
Malaysia is a failed state and the sooner Malaysians come to reality the better. Whether it is the autocratic UMNO government or the hapless opposition, Malaysia had failed to meet Tunku’s expectations. The Government itself repeatedly breaks the Malaysian Constitution and the Malaysia Agreement of 1963 which it does not understand at all. UMNO and its racist Malay NGO henchman remain convinced, falsely, that the Constitution is Islamic and affords Malays all rights above and beyond those afforded non-Malays. This absurd and dangerous view will never change, and there are even quite a few non-UMNO Malays who believe it as well. Anwar remains an albatross around the neck of PKR and likes it that way, being entirely egocentric. PAS is merely Malaysia’ version of Hamas, and should be prevented from getting anywhere near Putrajaya; they are reactionary and have been reactionary since formation. Lim still insists Malaysia can be multicultural, leading a party that has been unsuccessful in attracting Malay votes; it is still seen as an opposition Chinese partie with some anti-UMNO Indians. The cultural, social and religious divisions are intolerable and Malaysia’s impending accession to the U.N. Security Council would be hilarious, if Najib and Tun weren’t busy torturing Pak Kassim, like a punching bag, sending him back and forth from civil to Islamic court. Autocratic Singapore and Burma were both given a higher rating than Malaysia in Transparency International’s recent global assessment, while the Grand Mufti of Mecca, has even called Malaysia’s ban on the use of “Allah” by non-Muslims, as “Stupid and unnecessary”. Dr Mahathir’s neuroses and serious psychoses, has made the nation ill, and I doubt if even 25 % of his damage can be reversed. Malaysia in in free-fall and 25 elitist self-aggrandizing individuals cannot save the nation.
In a perverse way, is this not a triumph for the ruling party and the gangsters — that they are now “legit”; and not only “legit” but an influential part of the establishment?
R.N.England’s very emotional tear-jerking oration about freedom and equality touchess me deeply with embarrassment.
And I nearly choked when he bemoans: “People like me (R.N.England) in Thailand, who want to be free, and who want equality and justice, are being persecuted by people like you (Boon), who are compelling them to be slaves …”.
And for merely complaining about R.N.England’s b/s, I am suddenly tagged a slavemaster …
btw R.N.England, do you think the ‘Thaksin system’ sets a new ‘standard’ in Thailand’s very murky political landscape? Give me an honest answer R.N.England, and I promise I won’t be using my bullwhip on any nearby slaves.
But I anticipated and foreshadowed my main (theoretical/conceptual) reservation in my comment on Part 1.
Namely, and in short, are “government-front ‘NGOs'” really NGOs?
For my part I think not.
I do not see them in that way, and I do not think it is helpful to do so.
Back, twenty years or so ago, when people in Malaysia began to talk seriously about “civil society” and NGOs, the Malaysian government soon began to succumb to a kind of post-Freudian “appendage envy”.
Everybody else has, and has the support of, NGOs. Only the government does not, its leading “spinners” wailed.
Oh, the poor government, some people then dutifully, felt. Our government has nothing but itself, its own powers to rely upon; it has only the government and nothing but its own puny self to which to turn for succour. How can it possibly survive on that weak basis? What a silly, unthinking response that was! But a useful one for the permanent ruling bloc.
So the government began to talk about the need for some kind of official intervention and support, to ensure a “level playing field” rather than (as it saw things) wall-to-wall anti-government partisanship in NGO activities and politics.
So soon we had, and we were treated to discussions of, the “GNGO” phenomenon, the sudden mushrooming of “Government, Government-supported (and government–supporting) NGOs”.
Well that happened. Long ago. In the Mahathir era, during the 1990s.
It happened, and it is now no new phenomenon. And no new discovery, no new debate.
So do we rightly call these officially-sponsored front organizations NGOs?
Can we do so, when the best of them, those that are not simply creatures and captives of government sponsorship, are at best covertly organized “pressure groups”?
And when these shadowy groups, or those whom they co-ordinate and whose dubious activities they shield, are nothing more or little better than quasi-criminal gangs and covert franchisees of tolerated illegality, blended with street mayhem and violence?
To call them NGOs is, I suggest, stretching a concept rather too far.
I doubt many Pekida adherents knew Sinatra, the Gambinos, or watched Francois Truffaut films. I am more worried about Tun living beyond 100 years. I have faced a CPM rifle in my face as a child; I am not concerned.
What blinds you, boon, is that you are stuck in a world of slaves and masters where everybody crawls to somebody. You assume wrongly that because I don’t crawl to your king, I must crawl to Thaksin, the person you see as his rival. Freedom means you don’t crawl to anybody. It means I elect my representatives to govern, and if I think others will do a better job next time, I vote for others next time. Equality means I respect everybody’s equal right to vote, and abide by a decision made by counting the votes of rich and poor people equally. Justice means obeying rules that apply to rich and poor equally. People like me in Thailand, who want to be free, and who want equality and justice, are being persecuted by people like you, who are compelling them to be slaves like you.
Dr Mahathir employed “gangsterism” but was not a “Gangsta” and neither is Pekida. This film-noir like social analysis of Malaysia is certainly entertaining, but it is not of much use.
” In Thailand, the standard for elected politicians on one side is set higher than for everybody else by the enemies of democracy.” – Pure unaldurerated b/s from a die hard Thaksinite R. N. England
This is an interesting article which shows how people can participate. I am wondering how the hamlet and ward heads are selected, are they voted for? This is happening in China as far as I know. This could be a step forward in democracy, or just another way for the government to make people think they have political freedom, but actually still supports the strong centralized system.
The corruption problem applies to officials of all kinds, not just elected politicians. In Thailand, the standard for elected politicians on one side is set higher than for everybody else by the enemies of democracy.
The penalty for asking which of the assets of the Crown Property Bureau are “gifts” is up to 15 years in prison. In the days of Louis XIV, probably the greatest of all kings, public offices were purchased from the King. The going price (often very high) was determined by the opportunity for profit the office gave the holder. The reason why the founding fathers of the United States rejected monarchy as a political system is that it was fundamentally and corrupt.
While we ‘ponder’ the ‘virtues” of the Thaksin system, consider this small news at Virginia: Bob McDonnell, Ex-Governor of Virginia, Is Sentenced to 24 Months for Corruption.
Politicians (and police and military generals) from Bangkok, to Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta to Manila would be definitely flummoxed that “gifts” (and valued at a measly $177,000) would be ruled as corruption …..
The Golkar stoush is giving Jokowi some useful breathing space during the early days of his administration. The role of Prabowo bears watching – he was at the Golkar conference and seemed to be siding with Bakrie. That would be a formidable force against the government. I can’t imagine the oligarchs giving up – they must be biding their time, waiting to exploit Jokowi’s missteps.
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Islam, politics and violence in Malaysia
@Neptunian
Please read Dr Mahathir’s pathetic response and defence of the killing of the Charlie Hebdo writers in Paris, in which he expresses no remorse whatsoever for the 12 dead French citizens, and with no hint of irony at his own long well-established record of racism and anti-Semitism, yet complains about “Islamophobia” but does not reference his own “Judaeophobia”. After reading his comments, please revisit your notion that Malaysia is not yet a failed state. Thank you.
Islam, politics and violence in Malaysia
Malaysia is not yet a “failed” state, but is rapidly approaching that status. With the BN Govt, the police and the judiciary ignoring the Law, with no one accountable for anything, (it seems)the downward slide is inevitable and unstoppable. It will probably all end in a big bang, like the rise of ISIS type. Only in Malaysia, it will be the Indian Muslims (mamak) leading the charge to “defend” Islam and the Malay race.
Gangsta to the roots: A Gangsta’s paradise
You cannot compare Tunku, the Reid Commission, the Emergency, Governor Hugh Clifford and French neo-something or other analysis of non-existent “Gangstas” in Malaysia. And even if one acknowledged that PULO in southern Thailand (far more than Pekida) were comprised of “Gangstas”, the history of Pattani (or, if you want, Kelantanse) Malays was/is not just about colonialism, special privileges for Malays, and Malay Royal Daulat. I will remind you 99.9999 % of the non-elite and non-Anglophilic kampung Malays were not asked their opinion about Merdeka, anymore than the Chinese tin miners, Tamil plantation workers, Orang Asli or
Iban and Kadazan villagers. It is not as if poor Malays or Eurasians (like me) had any say, but then UK doesn’t even have a
Constitution and the American one didn’t have Cherokee and Cuyahoga input did it ?
Shall we throw that one out too ?
You are incorrect about a “quick fix”. That was not the intent at all. In addition, for all it’s glitches, the Constitution worked quite well under Tunku, somewhat well under Tun Hussein Onn, and not well at all since Mahathir. The problem was not a faulty Constitution; the problem was a faulty Mahathir.
The issues now are the Malaysian fanatics and zealots who don’t understand that the Constitution is secular, admittedly mostly Right-Wing Malays. I know few ethnic Chinese who are saying special attention should not be given to any Malays up to a point. I know many non-Malays who say they adamantly oppose an ISLAMIC Constitution. I would be one of those.
Gangsta to the roots: A Gangsta’s paradise
It was the colonial power who laid the groundwork for the country we have today whereby the Malays were given special privileges in return for citizenship for the non-Malays. While this was a quick fix it went against the Enlightenment thinking of the equality of all men. In this, we also have to thank our well loved first PM who pressed hard for special privileges for the Muslims and the nobility. Again, he was looking for a quick fix for the emerging multi-racial society.
Islam, politics and violence in Malaysia
Malaysia is a failed state and the sooner Malaysians come to reality the better. Whether it is the autocratic UMNO government or the hapless opposition, Malaysia had failed to meet Tunku’s expectations. The Government itself repeatedly breaks the Malaysian Constitution and the Malaysia Agreement of 1963 which it does not understand at all. UMNO and its racist Malay NGO henchman remain convinced, falsely, that the Constitution is Islamic and affords Malays all rights above and beyond those afforded non-Malays. This absurd and dangerous view will never change, and there are even quite a few non-UMNO Malays who believe it as well. Anwar remains an albatross around the neck of PKR and likes it that way, being entirely egocentric. PAS is merely Malaysia’ version of Hamas, and should be prevented from getting anywhere near Putrajaya; they are reactionary and have been reactionary since formation. Lim still insists Malaysia can be multicultural, leading a party that has been unsuccessful in attracting Malay votes; it is still seen as an opposition Chinese partie with some anti-UMNO Indians. The cultural, social and religious divisions are intolerable and Malaysia’s impending accession to the U.N. Security Council would be hilarious, if Najib and Tun weren’t busy torturing Pak Kassim, like a punching bag, sending him back and forth from civil to Islamic court. Autocratic Singapore and Burma were both given a higher rating than Malaysia in Transparency International’s recent global assessment, while the Grand Mufti of Mecca, has even called Malaysia’s ban on the use of “Allah” by non-Muslims, as “Stupid and unnecessary”. Dr Mahathir’s neuroses and serious psychoses, has made the nation ill, and I doubt if even 25 % of his damage can be reversed. Malaysia in in free-fall and 25 elitist self-aggrandizing individuals cannot save the nation.
Gangsta to the roots: Gangsta or civil society?
Clive,
In a perverse way, is this not a triumph for the ruling party and the gangsters — that they are now “legit”; and not only “legit” but an influential part of the establishment?
Gangsta to the roots: A Gangsta’s paradise
I’d rather have this as a Netflix series so I don’t need to wait for all of the episodes to come out to binge read them.
Who can stop the Thaksin system?
R.N.England’s very emotional tear-jerking oration about freedom and equality touchess me deeply with embarrassment.
And I nearly choked when he bemoans: “People like me (R.N.England) in Thailand, who want to be free, and who want equality and justice, are being persecuted by people like you (Boon), who are compelling them to be slaves …”.
And for merely complaining about R.N.England’s b/s, I am suddenly tagged a slavemaster …
btw R.N.England, do you think the ‘Thaksin system’ sets a new ‘standard’ in Thailand’s very murky political landscape? Give me an honest answer R.N.England, and I promise I won’t be using my bullwhip on any nearby slaves.
Gangsta to the roots: Gangsta or civil society?
An interesting series.
But I anticipated and foreshadowed my main (theoretical/conceptual) reservation in my comment on Part 1.
Namely, and in short, are “government-front ‘NGOs'” really NGOs?
For my part I think not.
I do not see them in that way, and I do not think it is helpful to do so.
Back, twenty years or so ago, when people in Malaysia began to talk seriously about “civil society” and NGOs, the Malaysian government soon began to succumb to a kind of post-Freudian “appendage envy”.
Everybody else has, and has the support of, NGOs. Only the government does not, its leading “spinners” wailed.
Oh, the poor government, some people then dutifully, felt. Our government has nothing but itself, its own powers to rely upon; it has only the government and nothing but its own puny self to which to turn for succour. How can it possibly survive on that weak basis? What a silly, unthinking response that was! But a useful one for the permanent ruling bloc.
So the government began to talk about the need for some kind of official intervention and support, to ensure a “level playing field” rather than (as it saw things) wall-to-wall anti-government partisanship in NGO activities and politics.
So soon we had, and we were treated to discussions of, the “GNGO” phenomenon, the sudden mushrooming of “Government, Government-supported (and government–supporting) NGOs”.
Well that happened. Long ago. In the Mahathir era, during the 1990s.
It happened, and it is now no new phenomenon. And no new discovery, no new debate.
So do we rightly call these officially-sponsored front organizations NGOs?
Can we do so, when the best of them, those that are not simply creatures and captives of government sponsorship, are at best covertly organized “pressure groups”?
And when these shadowy groups, or those whom they co-ordinate and whose dubious activities they shield, are nothing more or little better than quasi-criminal gangs and covert franchisees of tolerated illegality, blended with street mayhem and violence?
To call them NGOs is, I suggest, stretching a concept rather too far.
Gangsta to the roots: Gangsta or civil society?
Greg,
I doubt many Pekida adherents knew Sinatra, the Gambinos, or watched Francois Truffaut films. I am more worried about Tun living beyond 100 years. I have faced a CPM rifle in my face as a child; I am not concerned.
Gangsta to the roots: Gangsta or civil society?
Careful Peter,
Some of the gangsters might be slighted that you’re not taking them seriously.
You don’t really want to mess with these fellas.
Who can stop the Thaksin system?
What blinds you, boon, is that you are stuck in a world of slaves and masters where everybody crawls to somebody. You assume wrongly that because I don’t crawl to your king, I must crawl to Thaksin, the person you see as his rival. Freedom means you don’t crawl to anybody. It means I elect my representatives to govern, and if I think others will do a better job next time, I vote for others next time. Equality means I respect everybody’s equal right to vote, and abide by a decision made by counting the votes of rich and poor people equally. Justice means obeying rules that apply to rich and poor equally. People like me in Thailand, who want to be free, and who want equality and justice, are being persecuted by people like you, who are compelling them to be slaves like you.
Gangsta to the roots: Gangsta or civil society?
Dr Mahathir employed “gangsterism” but was not a “Gangsta” and neither is Pekida. This film-noir like social analysis of Malaysia is certainly entertaining, but it is not of much use.
Who can stop the Thaksin system?
Thaksin has been corrupted by people treating him like another king.
Who can stop the Thaksin system?
” In Thailand, the standard for elected politicians on one side is set higher than for everybody else by the enemies of democracy.” – Pure unaldurerated b/s from a die hard Thaksinite R. N. England
The title of this thread should have been:
“Who can TOP the Thaksin system?”
What do you say R. N. England?
Grassroots democracy made in Vietnam
This is an interesting article which shows how people can participate. I am wondering how the hamlet and ward heads are selected, are they voted for? This is happening in China as far as I know. This could be a step forward in democracy, or just another way for the government to make people think they have political freedom, but actually still supports the strong centralized system.
Who can stop the Thaksin system?
The corruption problem applies to officials of all kinds, not just elected politicians. In Thailand, the standard for elected politicians on one side is set higher than for everybody else by the enemies of democracy.
The penalty for asking which of the assets of the Crown Property Bureau are “gifts” is up to 15 years in prison. In the days of Louis XIV, probably the greatest of all kings, public offices were purchased from the King. The going price (often very high) was determined by the opportunity for profit the office gave the holder. The reason why the founding fathers of the United States rejected monarchy as a political system is that it was fundamentally and corrupt.
Who can stop the Thaksin system?
While we ‘ponder’ the ‘virtues” of the Thaksin system, consider this small news at Virginia: Bob McDonnell, Ex-Governor of Virginia, Is Sentenced to 24 Months for Corruption.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/07/us/bob-mcdonnell-ex-governor-virginia-sentencing-corruption.html?_r=0
Politicians (and police and military generals) from Bangkok, to Kuala Lumpur to Jakarta to Manila would be definitely flummoxed that “gifts” (and valued at a measly $177,000) would be ruled as corruption …..
Gangsta to the roots: Gangsta beyond stereotypes
Nazi Goreng — New Mandala readers smitten by the underworld should also read this thriller by Marco Ferrarese.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18754497-nazi-goreng
For Indonesia’s oligarchs, the party isn’t over
The Golkar stoush is giving Jokowi some useful breathing space during the early days of his administration. The role of Prabowo bears watching – he was at the Golkar conference and seemed to be siding with Bakrie. That would be a formidable force against the government. I can’t imagine the oligarchs giving up – they must be biding their time, waiting to exploit Jokowi’s missteps.