Steven Sim

Battle of  Two Hills and A River, that sort of summarized the epic by-elections in Bkt. Selambau, Bkt. Gantang and Batang Ai recently. 

The romance is not at all presumptous, because the by-election results were really some kind of referendum for both Najib as the country’s sixth Prime Minister and Nizar, the Menteri Besar of Perak ousted by what the Pakatan Rakyat called an illegal coup by UMNO-Barisan Nasional. 

UMNO came played their racist cards unashamedly, Nizar and PAS (malay) are puppets of DAP (chinese), Nizar committed treason against the malay sultanate, Nga Kor Ming, the Perak exco was accused of belittling Islam by reciting a verse from the Quran in arabic about justice and mercy. With these and of course, many other tricks and dark wizardry, UMNO had sought change the course of the battle their to favour.

My comrades and I too journeyed to the hearts of the battle to lend our support to the Pakatan heroes there. The most memorable experience I had was the Sunday I spent at Bkt. Gantang.

We were there for almost half-a-day, from noon till midnight. And it was there, I witnessed the kind of Malaysia of our dreams. Where Malaysians of all races were united for a common and noble goal. The racial category suddenly didn’t matter, we were all focusin on the struggle, symbolized by the “full moon”, a local icon of Islam and incidently, a symbol of harmony to the chinese. The only reason race was obvious to all of us that day was because we have for so long lived under racial segregation without knowing how live in any other way although we have always talked about and dreamt of another world. The glimpse of the other world that day exposed our racist hearts to shame.

My comrades and I, we held up flags of PAS, the so-called “hardcore” Islamic party (but who was the one which lodge police report against chinese reciting from the Quran on justice and mercy?) and flags of DAP as we walked into the Chinese new village in Kuala Sepetang. Some of the people there may not know about Islam or the Quran or even PAS except superficially, yet it was beyond doubt that they see the value in supporting Mohd. Nizar, the Pakatan General in the battle. It was the Malaysia of their dream, a country they will finally and proudly call their Motherland, not China, not India, not Indonesia. But Malaysia, tanah tumpahnya darahku.

My hair stood up whenever we met chinese uncles and aunties who told us, “Mai kong liao, wa lang chai liao, wa lang che liao. Pai ji tak ko uok” (Hokkien, “You don’t have to repeat it again, we knew it, we are awaken now. On Tuesday, we will “paste plaster” – PAS’ logo looks like a chinese “salonpas” medicated plaster). Because they know the wounds of our Nation are deep, more keris (traditional weapon, a short blade – UMNO’s symbol) means worse  hurt. If we are serious about progress, the only way forward is the healing balm against the entrenched racism in all of us. The way forward is, to go forward, but only together.

Today, we woke up to the sounds of victories. Pakatan, the Rakyat has conquered two hills. The Rakyat has said it yet again, now to the newly minted Prime Minister, we are serious about change. We do not want the UMNO- and Barisan Nasional-type politics of racism and corruptions. As for Nizar, the people of Perak has made their choice to stand behind the modern day Tun Perak (a Prime Minister of Melaka in ancient times). Will UMNO who unsrupulously orchastraed the coup de etat of Nizar’s state government listen now? Najib, the man said to be behind the coup, will have to decide at once.

But this is not the time for celebration. No, not yet. We have saved the two hills, but we lost the river battle. It was a heart-wrenching lost. Not because we didn’t win, but the manner in which the other side won. In other places, UMNO which holds the Federal Government throw out development goodies to the local people as “carrots” and “sweets” to garner support; wealth becomes their campaign capital. But in Batang Ai, the people were just too poor and they had no choice but to go back to the party of the Federal Government, again and again. Like a drug pusher who enslave the addicts to keep going back to him, they enslaved the people of rural areas like Batang Ai with poverty so that the people have no choice but to keep going back to them. Poverty was their campaign capital there. And that is depressing. 

I know it is cliche to say that the struggle for a better world is not easy, in fact, not easy is an understatement. But this struggle is fueled by the little men and the little women who understood its value and place themselves in positions of risk, sometimes risking even their lives, to be part of the solution of world’s problem. We may not solve every problems today, but I trully believe, with everyone doing a little good deed, we’ll have many good deeds floating around. Perhaps one day, they’ll be just enough for us to say, we are in better times now.

A friend on facebook posted this, and I end here with his reflection:

I lift up my eyes to the hills.

   From where does my help come?

My help comes from the LORD,

   who made heaven and earth. (Ps 121:1-2)

Whispering messages of change on the street - my comrades and I at Kuala Sepetang