Bukan Budaya Kita

In Malaysia, culture was part of lifestyle from Independence Day until nowadays. I believe culture helps people who really loves this country. However, when the policies implement in Malaysia was done by the government. In the article written by Kathy Rowland, the article described about the how the values and the respondent was reacting towards this NCP.

The three principle states created by NCP are:

1.     National Cultures would be based on that of the indigenous inhabitants(Bumiputra/Malays).

2.     Elements from other cultures which are suitable and reasonable might be incorporated into the national culture.

3.     Islam would be a crucial component of the National Culture.

Overall these principles ruled in our country and it feels everyone living in this country must have to obey all these rules? I definitely feel bad based on the NCP’s principle. NCP was done was not making any sense that we are Malaysia people and they make us to become one of their groups ethnic. I truly don’t understand much on the politic issues before until nowadays, but it just really feels discriminating on other non-Muslim’s culture. Therefore, all these principles are not worked on every race. The rule has changed people’s mind and make argument on these “trash” stuff. Firstly, does any reason that national culture only has benefits on the ethnics group? What about other races? They must have to do some practice and research on cultural. Secondly, the reasonable and suitable element might not effective what I am thinking because if our races have own culture practices. What if happened you don’t allow them to do in Malaysia. In the article, Kathy stated that the Lion Dance is banned just because it wasn’t compatible with the NCP just because their way to perform is too distracting or some other reason we don’t know. Thirdly, there’s also some Islamic countries in another country but what other races thinks that it’s not really fair if you think Islamic stand more important than other races or religions in one country.

Through this, there was largely lose the area of arts and culture during year 1989 because of the race riot of May 13. When the Internal Security Act proposed in October 1987, over 100 people were detained in the infamous Operation Lallang. When the promise of economic wealth lead to the displacement of the bogeyman of the ethnicity happened to people in 1990s, the Barisan National adjust the custodian profitable ethnics lines and embarked the political strategy that showed the movement from the rationality and ethnicity. Lastly, Bangsa Malaysia was introduced by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, a policy made to archive Vision 2020. The policy mentioned that all colors and creeds (belief) of Malaysian people are free to practice and their customs, cultures and religious beliefs and yet feel that they belong to one nation.

All the time happened in this country, I think that authoritarian people are definitely need to do some research or understanding about the different culture no matter who is he legitimize the rules and conditions. They do not make a minor issue become your strong viewpoint that everyone will become your followers. People’s mind and viewpoint will change every generations over another generations. Therefore, I stand for agreement what Kathy has mentioned about, which NCP or Barisan National has done in those year, become a “scar” history happened in Malaysia. If the culture for every races could not done and practice in Malaysia, then Malaysia will not have three ethnic races in one country. The person who has emphatic and taking care of country people are very rare to see in Malaysia, because most of the people already become one of the desensitization behavior nowadays in Malaysia. And therefore, JUST because of the political and the government, people in Malaysia still doesn’t have any benefits and chances for other races to involve and practice.

Malaysia National Flag,retrieved from Google.com