Purple people poem generic, says Rajendra
Tong Yee SiongPublished: Apr 10, 2001 2:48 AM | Updated: Jan 29, 2008 10:21 AM
The poem entitled Kingdom of Purplaya is purely fictitious and does not make any references to Malaysia, Malays or Islam, its author, internationally-renowned poet, Cecil Rajendra said today.
The poem entitled Kingdom of Purplaya is purely fictitious and does not make any references to Malaysia, Malays or Islam, its author, internationally-renowned poet, Cecil Rajendra said today.
Rajendra, a Malaysian who has published numerous books addressing Third World issues, said there were no words in his poem relating its contents specifically to Malaysia. The poem was published in the latest issue of Aliran Monthly, organ of the social reform movement, Aliran.
"There were no words like 'Malay', 'Malaysia', 'Islam' or such in my poem. It was those chauvinists who associated the poem with Malay and Islam," he said when contacted by malaysiakini.
He was responding to the joint statement yesterday by the Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang (Pemenang) and the Teras Pengupayaan Melayu (Teras) that Kingdom of Purplaya was "inflammatory and seditious", and that "Aliran, like Cecil, wants to promote anti-Malay and anti-Islamic propaganda among the non-Malays".
Rajendra, a human rights lawyer based in Penang, said any poem was open to different interpretations and readers should not narrow it down to one definitive, absolute meaning.
He said his poem could just as well apply to other countries such as Singapore, Papua New Guinea and Zimbabwe as he incorporated universal values into his works.
"The poem could be applied to more than a dozen of countries. Furthermore, Kingdom of Purplaya, which refers to a kingdom full of purple people, does not exist in reality. There are no purple people and Malaysia is definitely not a kingdom," he said.
Other controversies
Rajendra also recalled several similar incidents in the past when a few of his poems became subjects of controversy after they were published.
"I once wrote a poem called Animal and Insect Act in the 1990s about repressive laws and immediately some people concluded that I was writing about Malaysia. But repressive laws can be found in any part of the world.
"In another incident, our government confiscated my passport - but returned it later - after I wrote Death of a Rainforest in 1997. They thought I was writing something that could jeopardise the tropical timber industry here," he said.
Meanwhile, Aliran executive committee member Anil Netto said the social reform movement would not respond to the Pemenang and Teras' joint statement as yet.
"We will not make any remarks on this issue until our committee members have discussed it. We may release a press statement later," he said.
Below is the full version of Rajendra's poem.
Kingdom of Purplaya
The Kingdom of Purplaya
is located somewhere in Asia
slightly north of the Equator.
Its people are of mixed origins:
some Indonesians, some Chinese
some Indians, some Portuguese ...
Most Purplayans were immigrants
from the neighbouring countries;
only a handful are pure indigenes
who live up in the mountains
and are hunters & fruit gatherers
but not land-owners - just tenants.
These natives - true sons of the soil -
have been made marginal
by usurpers who stole their mantle
claiming that they are the original
god-chosen people of Purplaya and all
others, including indigenes, are mere aliens.
To ensure their privileges in perpetuity
this 'purple' bunch of pretenders
(With aid of their colonial masters)
drew up a farcical Constitution
which ensured that King & President
would always be of their persuasion.
They implemented a quota system
to reserve places for their children
in school, college & university;
stuffed ranks of Police & Army
with officers of their nomination
to protect their pockets & property;
and legislated that any question
of their special powers & position
would invite a charge of treason.
These self-anointed 'purple people'
now enjoy licences unlimited
for they are the only ones free
to libel enemies in their papers
burn effigies on street-corners
while other citizens of the country
face torture & imprisonment
if they criticise the government
or organise any kind of rally
Still, this apartheid autocracy
- the world's last bastion
of institutionalised racism -
harbours pretensions extraordinary
and lays claim to be
the only true surviving democracy!
Rajendra, a Malaysian who has published numerous books addressing Third World issues, said there were no words in his poem relating its contents specifically to Malaysia. The poem was published in the latest issue of Aliran Monthly, organ of the social reform movement, Aliran.
"There were no words like 'Malay', 'Malaysia', 'Islam' or such in my poem. It was those chauvinists who associated the poem with Malay and Islam," he said when contacted by malaysiakini.
He was responding to the joint statement yesterday by the Persatuan Melayu Pulau Pinang (Pemenang) and the Teras Pengupayaan Melayu (Teras) that Kingdom of Purplaya was "inflammatory and seditious", and that "Aliran, like Cecil, wants to promote anti-Malay and anti-Islamic propaganda among the non-Malays".
Rajendra, a human rights lawyer based in Penang, said any poem was open to different interpretations and readers should not narrow it down to one definitive, absolute meaning.
He said his poem could just as well apply to other countries such as Singapore, Papua New Guinea and Zimbabwe as he incorporated universal values into his works.
"The poem could be applied to more than a dozen of countries. Furthermore, Kingdom of Purplaya, which refers to a kingdom full of purple people, does not exist in reality. There are no purple people and Malaysia is definitely not a kingdom," he said.
Other controversies
Rajendra also recalled several similar incidents in the past when a few of his poems became subjects of controversy after they were published.
"I once wrote a poem called Animal and Insect Act in the 1990s about repressive laws and immediately some people concluded that I was writing about Malaysia. But repressive laws can be found in any part of the world.
"In another incident, our government confiscated my passport - but returned it later - after I wrote Death of a Rainforest in 1997. They thought I was writing something that could jeopardise the tropical timber industry here," he said.
Meanwhile, Aliran executive committee member Anil Netto said the social reform movement would not respond to the Pemenang and Teras' joint statement as yet.
"We will not make any remarks on this issue until our committee members have discussed it. We may release a press statement later," he said.
Below is the full version of Rajendra's poem.
Kingdom of Purplaya
The Kingdom of Purplaya
is located somewhere in Asia
slightly north of the Equator.
Its people are of mixed origins:
some Indonesians, some Chinese
some Indians, some Portuguese ...
Most Purplayans were immigrants
from the neighbouring countries;
only a handful are pure indigenes
who live up in the mountains
and are hunters & fruit gatherers
but not land-owners - just tenants.
These natives - true sons of the soil -
have been made marginal
by usurpers who stole their mantle
claiming that they are the original
god-chosen people of Purplaya and all
others, including indigenes, are mere aliens.
To ensure their privileges in perpetuity
this 'purple' bunch of pretenders
(With aid of their colonial masters)
drew up a farcical Constitution
which ensured that King & President
would always be of their persuasion.
They implemented a quota system
to reserve places for their children
in school, college & university;
stuffed ranks of Police & Army
with officers of their nomination
to protect their pockets & property;
and legislated that any question
of their special powers & position
would invite a charge of treason.
These self-anointed 'purple people'
now enjoy licences unlimited
for they are the only ones free
to libel enemies in their papers
burn effigies on street-corners
while other citizens of the country
face torture & imprisonment
if they criticise the government
or organise any kind of rally
Still, this apartheid autocracy
- the world's last bastion
of institutionalised racism -
harbours pretensions extraordinary
and lays claim to be
the only true surviving democracy!
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