TwoSen

“CORRECTING bad press overseas,” (Citizen Nades, Dec 13) cites several negative stories about Malaysia in the foreign media. But R. Nadeswaran fails to mention the numerous positive stories that regularly run in the international press about Malaysia. He seems to have missed this point completely along with the very strong rebuttals that the government has issued in response to misleading reports from overseas.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry has continuously taken steps to correct inaccurate reports. In this regard, Wisma Putra has responded to misleading stories in foreign media by issuing more than 30 rebuttals most of which have been published.

This is just one small component of our efforts, though. The most important part of our engagement with international media is telling Malaysia’s very positive story to the world. To do this, the prime minister and other government officials have conducted hundreds of one-on-one interviews and press conferences with foreign media representatives, both in Malaysia and abroad. In fact, our engagement with international media under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Abdul Razak has been greater than at just about any other time in Malaysia’s history. If Nadeswaran keeps reading foreign media coverage of Malaysia, we are confident that he will come across many positive stories that have resulted from these efforts.

Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, some foreign media prefer to focus on the bad news over the good. This is a simple fact that media will not change their stance. As such, we will most likely continue to see negative stories in foreign media about Malaysia, and about every other country in the world.

Nevertheless, we will not let this affect our commitment for continued and broadened engagement with the media to ensure that the real story of Malaysia is told.

We believe that those who follow the actual situation and development in Malaysia from overseas have seen the real story of our progress, but we have and will continue to work diligently to ensure that inaccuracies are corrected and the real story comes through.

Datuk Than Tai Hing
Undersecretary
Department of Information and Public Diplomacy
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Source: The Sun – December 30, 2010

IT is the time of the year when families spend considerable time, effort and money in spring cleaning their homes to greet the New Year. Drains around the house are white washed, walls given a new coat of paint, repairs and renovations are done and clutter cleared. It is a tradition to welcome the New Year by giving our homes a new and clean look. But equally important, and in fact more important is to cleanse our lives for the coming New Year.

We need to spring clean and white wash our hearts. Let old things pass and be bygones and let the New Year bring a new and wonderful creation in us. Everything around us goes through a transformation but we remain the same year after year.

Hatred, jealousy, animosity, bitterness, biasness, prejudice and unforgiveness clutter our hearts and lives. And the clutter has to be removed as we embark on the New Year.

Differences in opinions will certainly arise in our daily interaction as by nature we are all born to be different. To err is human, to forgive divine. So forgive those who have wronged you and clear the clutter of unforgiveness out of your heart and let your sulks become smiles.

Saying sorry is the hardest word so it would be better to forget the past and start a new because it is better to bury the hatchet than burying yourself in bitterness.

Your stress level will go down by 50 % if you drop a grudge against someone. Forgiving people is therapeutic and is good for your mental health by releasing negative feelings.

Another research has shown that every time you laugh you burn 3.5 calories. And humans are the only beings who can smile and laugh. The tongue is so small yet so lethal and deadly. Therefore refrain from gossip and unhealthy chatter for it does so much damage.

Let us also not be weary in doing good. Think good, do good, speak good and be good in the coming year. Therefore as the New Year beckons, it is most appropriate to take stock of our lives and ask ourselves how our families, colleagues and our neighbours and society at large has benefited because of our presence. Have we made someone else’s lives better?

As individuals who make up the fabric that knits our family, community and nation it is fundamental that individuals resolve their differences, rediscover themselves and work together for the common good of the nation.

Samuel Yesuiah
Seremban

Source: The Sun – December 30, 2010

I REFER to various letters on the importance of recording history correctly. Some people cannot make out the difference between the Malay Regiment and the Sikh and Gurkha soldiers who fought in Malaya.

The Sikh Regiment was raised in India by the “British Empire” to be in the service of the Empire and to be part of the “British Indian Army”. The Sikhs were sent to fight for the Empire in Burma, Malaya, North Africa and other places.

The Gurkha Regiment too was raised by the British Empire and we all know they were sent to various parts of the Empire. And, the Sikhs and Gurkhas who fought in Malaya against the Japanese, communists and much earlier against Malay nationalists and rebels, were not citizens of Malaya, they were servants of the British.

The Malay Regiment was NOT raised by the British Empire. The Malay Regiment was raised following pressure on the British by Malay Rulers, especially the Sultan of Perak and the Yamtuan of Negri Sembilan, in the 1930’s, and the Undang of Rembau as well as another prince of Perak. These Malay rulers wanted the formation of a modern Malay army for the Malay states.

The Malay Regiment never served the British in wars in North Africa, or Burma. They were not meant to serve the British Empire, and the Malay Rulers, knowing their sentiment and sense of history and Malay heritage, would surely have shot down any such role for the Malay Regiment.

Lt Adnan Saidi and his comrades were commissioned as officers of the Malay Regiment, not like the Sikh soldiers as officers or rather soldiers of the “British Indian Army”. And, unlike the Sikhs and Gurkhas, Lt Adnan and the soldiers of the Malay Regiment were citizens of Malaya, or rather of the Malay States. This is due to the status of Malays as “rakyat Raja”. In Malay political conception, “rakyat Raja” means citizens as we know it today.

Now, with these differences between the Malay Regiment and the Sikh and Gurkha soldiers we should understand why the Malay Regiment has to be seen differently in our history.

Aroff
Kuala Lumpur

Source: The Sun – December 30, 2010

IT is time for plastic bag makers to stop crying that their business is dropping. If they can’t read the changing demands of consumers and change to meet these demands, then they will suffer business losses.

Now, in the age of consumer awareness and environmental concern, many consumers are demanding products which do not harm the environment. It is a fact that plastic bags clog drains and have polluted our water ways, whether it is due to irresponsible users or the product itself. Governments spend millions to clean up this mess, so they have to start taking pro-active measures. Governments had to force carmakers to put in catalytic converters. Was it the car or the user that was causing the air pollution, the government couldn’t wait for the answer, they just had to find a solution to the growing problem of air pollution.

If plastic bag makers can’t find a more ecologically friendly source of material – of which there are already a number of options including palm fibre – then they just might go out of business. The companies under Malaysian Plastics Manufactures Association (MPMA) should look seriously at their products and business model, and look at what has happened to those companies who, like MPMA, refused to evolve and meet consumer demands. Stop crying. Evolve, or get out of business.

Christa Hashim
Director Treat Every Environment Special

Source: The Sun – December 30, 2010

THE “Teach for Malaysia” programme launched recently by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is indeed an innovative investment in all children and youth in Malaysia and more particularly a vital outlay for our nation’s future.

According to the national July 2010 population estimates, children under 15 make up just over a third of our country’s population. Within the next decade and the several decades to follow, these children will form the vital youth-age segment of our population and thereafter mature as adults on whom rests the progress and development of Malaysia.

It is extremely important that these children be provided with all the basic necessities of life and are nurtured and given the opportunities to become good, able, productive, useful and responsible citizens.

Under the “Teach for Malaysia” programme, promising young graduates from our universities, colleges and educational institutions and other young professionals will be selected, recruited and trained to become teachers to meet the needs in specific schools at which the children are underperforming due to being disadvantaged in various ways.

This initiative is certainly one that can provide our young people, ready to embark on a career, with the unique opportunity to serve the country by mentoring these children in their regular school activities and more broadly about life’s challenges and daily-life skills.

Undoubtedly if the programme is properly and painstakingly planned, organised and implemented with the active involvement of all concerned in the government, professionals and the community, it can go a long way to realise greater equality and higher levels of achievement in the children’s academic pursuits and over the longer term contribute to more effective human capital development across the entire population.

For those selected to provide this service, it will be an opportunity to meet challenges of various kinds and help develop their own and others’ abilities and character.

Whether the young graduates and professionals choose to be a part of the programme for a limited length of time or make it a career, by all accounts it will be a satisfying and rewarding experience. That has been the finding of similar programmes in the US and the UK implemented over the past several years under the global network “Teach for All”, on which the Malaysian initiative is also based.

In an era long gone by without access to all the modern methodologies, information sources and gadgetry many pioneering teachers were able to enliven and interest their students in subjects such as English literature, history and religious knowledge, which some consider boring, abstract or “unreal” even in this day and age.

One such teacher, the late William Dudley, who was the first teacher when the Sentul Methodist Boys’ School was established nearly 75 years ago, taught his students in those early years through story-telling, sharing the few precious pictures, magazines and books, listening to the radio, play-acting and the like. Many of his protégés, today, recall with gratitude his commitment, creativity and innovativeness in making even the dullest of subjects exciting and more than that teaching through them many of life’s lessons.

Today, however, with the advantage of technology and the range and speed with which there is access to information and knowledge of every kind, it is possible and necessary to be imaginative and inventive both in making the “Teach for Malaysia” programme attractive and the mentoring methods, techniques and content relevant and interesting if the intended goals are to be achieved in full measure.

Rueben Dudley
Petaling Jaya

Source: The Sun – December 29, 2010

I REFER to “In defence of the realm” (Letters, Dec 23). Let me reiterate that the current Form Three History textbook (page 11) gives a terribly wrong impression (half-truth) to students. To prove my point, allow me to reproduce the exact text:

“Tentera British di Tanah Melayu yang terdiri daripada askar-askar India-Gurkha, Australia dan British tidak mampu menyekat kemaraan tentera Jepun. Mereka terpaksa berundur ke selatan. Bandar-bandar utama dari utara ke selatan jatuh satu per satu ke tangan tentera Jepun. Di samping itu, tentera British sememangnya tidak berhasrat mempertahankan Tanah Melayu dengan bersungguh-sungguh kecuali Singapura. Tumpuan mereka ialah mempertahankan negara Britain daripada serangan tentera Paksi di Eropah. Sebaliknya, Rejimen Askar Melayu pimpinan Leftenan Adnan telah berjuang bermati-matian mempertahankan Tanah Melayu.”

In brief, the text mentions that Indian-Gurkha, Australian and British soldiers were not able to prevent the onslaught of the Japanese invasion during World War II and were forced to retreat south. Students are likely to conclude erroneously that Indian-Gurkha, Australian and British soldiers did not fight courageously in defending Malaya unlike the Malay Regiment. The truth of the matter is thousands of Punjabi (mainly Sikhs), Gurkha, British and Australian soldiers died defending Malaya in numerous battles fought at various places including Jitra, Gurun, Ipoh and Kampar. The most famous battle is the Battle of Kampar wherein Indian-Gurkha and British soldiers fought courageously and temporarily halted the advance of Japanese troops. Indeed, the Japanese army suffered their heaviest casualties in this battle during the campaign to capture Malaya. This battle is well documented in a book written by historian, Chye Kooi Loong.

According to press reports, the Perak State Government has agreed to preserve the Green Ridge (site of the historic Battle of Kampar) as a war memorial park. It should also be noted that 33 out of 232 names on Tugu Negara (our national monument that commemorates those who died in our country’s struggle for freedom principally against the Japanese Occupation during World War II and the Malayan Emergency) are Sikhs.

To conclude, I salute Lt Adnan and his brave comrades for fighting courageously against the Japanese. So did thousands of Indian-Gurkha, Australian and British soldiers; surely, their heroic deaths and the Battle of Kampar too deserve some mention in our history books? I rest my case.

Dr Ranjit Singh Malhi
Kuala Lumpur

Source: The Sun – December 29, 2010

TWENTY-FOUR years have passed since the Chernobyl nuclear plant accident took place in Ukraine, USSR. The accident had claimed thousands of lives, badly damaged the infrastructure of the affected place and caused environmental destruction. It was reported that Ukraine suffered a loss of more than US$300 billion, some are even of the opinion that the tragedy was the main factor that accelerated the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Some attribute the cause of the accident to poor design of older Soviet nuclear reactors while others blame the negligence of the operators and poor communication their organisation.

Whatever the cause the message is clear: Nuclear power plants need to be set up and run in a systematic manner to avoid disasters.

We do not discount the benefits of building nuclear plants in our country, however, the whole process needs to be done according to principles of good governance. If it is done according to good governance, it will benefit the country with cheap and clean energy.

In addition, our scientists and engineers will have a better chance to upgrade their knowledge and skills through technology transfers.

I am not a specialist in nuclear power plants and rarely read about the development of the technology, however, I am concerned about the plan to build nuclear plants in Malaysia. I hope more people will join the discussion on the pros and cons of the move to ensure the outcome is beneficial to the rakyat and nation.

Goh Hoe Hoe
Kuala Lumpur

Source: The Sun – December 29, 2010

IN my many years working with a large transport company and dealing with various agencies in the government and the private sector I noticed two things that may be the cause of traffic accidents.

>> C

Source: The Sun – December 29, 2010

I REFER to “In defence of the realm” (Letters, Dec 23) which I believe shows how poorly history is understood by the general public, and how historically inaccurate myths are being perpetuated in our society.

Dr Ranjit Singh Malhi was correct to question the statement of “The Malay Regiment under the command of Lt Adnan fought courageously to defend Malaya”. A little Internet research will reveal that the commanding officer of the 1st Malay Regiment was Lt Col J.R.G. Andre. In truth, Lt Adnan was leading a platoon of 43 men out of the 1,400 that participated in the Battle of Pasir Panjang. Why do our history books only single out this one person and ignore the Indians, Australians and others that also participated in the battle?

It should also be noted that while the Japanese held the numerical advantage in most of the battles that they participated in, they were actually outnumbered on a strategic level. So the assertion that Lt Adnan fought “against a vastly superior number of enemy soldiers” is a half-truth.

In the words of Gen Tomoyuki Yamashita: “My attack on Singapore was a bluff – a bluff that worked. I had 30,000 men and was outnumbered more than three to one. I knew that if I had to fight for long for Singapore, I would be beaten. That is why the surrender had to be at once. I was very frightened all the time that the British would discover our numerical weakness and lack of supplies and force me into disastrous street fighting.”

Are these not a distortion of historical facts that should be questioned and corrected?

I would also like to question the reason why the defence of Malaya is given so little emphasis in the Form 3 textbook. The Commonwealth troops are poorly depicted, the manner in which the textbook is written makes it appear that they did not put up a fight and just retreated to Singapore. It does not acknowledge the delaying actions and ambushes that the Commonwealth troops bravely carried out or the important battles that took place such as the Battle of Kampar or the Battle of Muar.

As the author of an earlier letter pointed out, they are not freedom fighters and they should not be glorified as such, but at least give them their due for their bravery and dedication to do their job with what limited resources that were available. History is not full of people fighting for freedom, but it is filled with ordinary people that are caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and make the best of the situation. What is so wrong about teaching that to students? At the very least it would make history lessons a little less dull.

Amateur Historian
Shah Alam

Source: The Sun – December 28, 2010

THE authorities need to close a gap in the road barrier near the Wangsa Maju LRT station before any accident occurs.

For the past several months, jaywalkers have been crossing the busy road at the gap and ignoring the overhead bridge nearby. Most of the jaywalkers are women who seemed to be enjoying the thrill of weaving in between the fast moving cars as expressed by their smiling faces.

Perhaps the police should station a few officers during rush hour and issue summons to those daring but foolish women, some with their children in tow.

Zahar
Kuala Lumpur

Source: The Sun – December 28, 2010