My Colourful Country --- Malaysia (Blog 2)

Malaysia is a country full of natural resource where petroleum is its main exports, the weather in Malaysia is a tropical rainforest climate where the country is rich in rainwater and fewer scourge and can be claim to be a country blessed by God. The forest in Malaysia contains many uncommon plant and animal. The Chinese have Panda as their national treasure and we, Malaysians, we have Tapirs. So, by bring a Malaysian, it means that we are able to enjoy the natural resources bestowed upon us. It means that we are living within the beauty of nature. It also means that we are blessed.

Malaysia is a multiracial country which consists of Malay, Chinese, Indian and other races, and these different races have different culture and believe. The foods in Malaysia are diversified. For example Satay, Rojak, Indian Rojak, Laksa, prawn Mee, Nasi Lemak, etc. There are also different festivals for each race in the country and different religions also coexist peacefully. Cross cultural interaction is the most common when it comes to food as every Malaysians enjoy food of other races. Being Malaysian at this point means there are a lot of delicacy to enjoy. It means we get to know more about other races instead of being secluded. It also means we are unified.

For me, I’m very proud to be Malaysian, however there are still issues in my country that make me feel unsatisfied and unfair. This is especially true when it comes to the policy setting of the government. To give an example, when we go through application, be it for identification card, passports or driving licences, we have to fill in the paperwork and there is one column that requires us to fill in our races. In 16 September 2010, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak designed a concept which is 1Malaysia (pronounced One Malaysia in English and Satu Malaysia in Malay). It is mean to eliminate the racial barrier and we are all Malaysians. However, the inconsistencies of the policy as shown by the existence of the racial column in paper works even though the policy has been announced puzzled me.

Furthermore, I would like to talk about journalism in Malaysia. In Malaysia, being a journalist is not that easy, because there are laws and rules that are set by our government to control the media, so we have to follow and use it as a guide line. If there is anyone who violated the rules and regulation the official newspaper and radio license may not be renew or wipe out. As a democratic country, this action of government seems to contradict with the freedom of speech. As a Malaysian, it means that I will ask the right question in order to point out what is wrong. It means that we need to be sensitive to the issues around us. It also means that we must be loyal but prudent.

Due to the multiracial community in this country, we must be wary of the sensitive issues and be careful not to overstep the boundary when exercising freedom of speech and offend the other races. The sensitive issues in Malaysia are about religion and race. For example, in the case of Alvin and Vivian, both of them are being sued because they think that it will be a good idea to celebrate the Muslim Iftar Festival with Bak Kut Teh.(Chinese food, which is the pork cooking with herbal soup) and they take their brilliant plan further by posting this on Facebook. This is offensive to the Muslim as their religion does not allow them to consume pork and pork is an unclean food for them. Since all Malays in this country are Muslims, they manage to not only cause religious issues but also a race issue. So, being Malaysian means we have to using social network wisely, and to think carefully before we say something that will offend others. It means that we should be considerate and sensitive about other religion and culture. It also means that we must be alert.

Even though there are issues happening in the country, I appreciate what I am having now. Being Malaysian can mean a lot of thing, but there is one thing that will not change. Being Malaysian means being loved, by the culture, by the people, by the country and by the Lord.

Additional information:  

Picture above shows the Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus), also called the Asian tapir, is the largest of the five species of tapir and the only one native to Asia.

 The term "Rojak" is Malay for mixture, is a traditional fruit and vegetable salad dish commonly found in Malaysia.

This is mamak rojak (or Pasembur) contains fried dough fritters, bean curds, boiled potatoes, prawn fritters, hard boiled eggs, bean sprouts, cuttlefish and cucumber mixed with a sweet thick, spicy peanut sauce. It can be found in Mamak store.

Bak Kut Teh the name literally translates as "meat bone tea", and at its simplest, consists of meaty pork ribs simmered in a complex broth of herbs and spices (including star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui, fennel seeds and garlic) for hours. 

Satay modern Indonesian and Malay spelling sate, is a dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat, served with a sauce (various spicy seasonings).