VOXPOP 'Everyone, young and old, must march to show that electoral reforms must be completed to the satisfaction of the people before calling for election.'

Groups threaten to stop GE13 if no reforms made

vox populi small thumbnailBender: It is a well-known fact that civil society organisations (CSOs) in this country are toothless tigers.

CSOs in a democratic society should do more than just being an echo - they may be loud but in the end, all they offer are just voices bouncing off walls, with no visible effect.

Unlike their counterparts in the more advanced democratic societies, our CSOs are perhaps only beginning to show some gumption in going against the powers-that-be. It is quite exciting to see CSOs such as Solidariti Anak Muda Malaysia (SAMM) and the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) showing this kind of bravado.

We just hope and pray that their efforts will be able to make a dent at least, which, given the current situation in this country, will be quite a task.

The rakyat (at least those who care), I'm sure, are strongly behind SAMM on this. Bersih 3.0 is actually long overdue.

Voluptouslygreedy: We should now be wise to demonstrate in our own areas - in the hundreds and thousands, and in every town and city.

There were thousands who were denied entry into the capital city on July 9. They should gather in their own cities instead. This must be a march in the likes of Gandhi, peaceful yet determined to right the wrongs to this country and people.

Everyone, young and old, must march to show that electoral reforms must be completed to the satisfaction of the people before calling for election.

Geronimo: If such a protest is to take place, which I know is imminent, we must learn from the mistakes of July 9. Although we must maintain a passive and defensive posture towards the police, we must ensure that physical injuries are minimised at all costs.

Just like in the army, whenever a platoon goes out on a patrol, a medic always tags along to take care of would-be casualties. This time, we need to harness the support of neutral bodies such as the Red Cross and the St John's Ambulance.

Hospitals must also be prepared to render support by receiving the injured and providing prompt medical care. They must abide by the Hippocratic Oath they swore to uphold, irrespective of political leanings.

Tired: SAMM chair Chegubard (Badrul Hisham Shaharin) said the people are beginning to lose patience. It looks more like a ‘syok sendiri' statement from a person who has self-appointed himself to be the people's spokesman.

Politicians from both divides like to claim that the people say this, the rakyat are behind that, the country is supporting them, etc. Short of a referendum, no one can be sure whether they have the support of the people and rakyat.

Proarte: If we want an effective 'people's movement', then it should be based on commonalities, not differences. A potent tool used by fascists, be they religious or secular, is to use religion and race to divide the people.

Are the Malays willing to join hands with Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, animists and atheists to bring a new paradigm, which is non-racial and secular?

Tunisia, the country that spawned the Arab awakening, has a Muslim party with a majority of seats in a coalition government.

Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of the victorious Ennahda party, has vowed to promote an inclusive Tunisia where the rights of "women, men, the religious and the non-religious are assured because Tunisia is for everyone".

This is an Islamic party that has said it will not ban alcohol, wearing bikinis or impose Islamic banking. PAS and PKR Muslims must realise that adopting the primitive Saudi and Taliban model of Islam is outdated.

The Muslim Arabs have awakened. When will the Malays?

Anonymous_3e86: The only way BN-Umno can win in GE13 is through cheating. BN has already put its machinery in place, and registered thousands of illegal immigrants as citizens and voters.

But we can still beat the odds if we can convince the fence-sitters to vote BN out. We should be doing our part by talking to these fence-sitters.

Writing in Malaysiakini is not good enough. There are those out there who don't know what is happening to our country and who still don't know that BN is bleeding our country dry.

Anonymous_4041: Count me in, I will join the march this time as I missed out on the last Bersih rally.


Chinese schools: Growing despite prejudice

Swipenter: I want my daughter to be multilingual in order for her to be a global citizen. English is must and Mandarin is important too with the emergence of China as a global player, both in politics and in commerce.

Right now my little girl speaks English, a little Mandarin and a splattering of Bahasa Malaysia as well as our dialect.

I encourage her to mix around especially with children of other races. Being monolingual is a distinct disadvantage nowadays, especially if the language is not used internationally.

I believe the role of the parents is very important if the child is to be multilingual. We just cannot leave it to the school/education system and hope for the best. As parents, we must be proactive.

I am Mandarin illiterate but not my wife, so we intend to send our daughter to a Chinese-medium school at least for her primary school education. At the end of the day, we want her to be multilingual, have a rounded education and not be restricted because she is monolingual.

Multi Racial: It is true that in Singapore they discontinued the vernacular schools. It is also true that Singaporeans, and not just the Chinese, accepted it. Why?

1) All races still get to pursue their mother tongue apart from English as the main subject. So the Chinese in Singapore still learn Mandarin, and likewise the other races, their respective languages.

2) The quality of education has improved significantly. If you compare their primary, secondary and tertiary education against ours, you will know. The above only refer to government schools.

However, in the case of Chinese vernacular schools in Malaysia, their standards have also improved. That is why those studying in these schools are well accepted elsewhere.

Even Singapore offers scholarships to Malaysians who did well in UPSR and mostly those from Chinese vernacular schools are the ones who get them.

So it is about the quality of education and not vernacular schools. Most Chinese sent their kids to mission schools in the past because of their quality and the genuine interest in providing an education.

Sze Tho Weng Ho: Despite my admiration for Malaysiakini columnist Sim Kwang Yang and his past articles and insights, this piece makes some inaccurate assertions.

For example, he mentions that Chinese school students tend to be multilingual. This may be true in urban areas and among middle-class families but it does not hold true for the majority of Chinese school students.

Yes, non-Chinese enrolment has risen, but 10 percent is not enough to expose the students to the multicultural aspects of our society.

I have many friends and associates in my line of work. While I can see some examples of Chinese graduates who can converse in English and BM, it is worth noting that this was only achieved after joining the workforce.

Even then, it took further exposure to colleagues of other races for them to understand other cultural practices, which many of us from the government schools take for granted.

Indeed, the mindset of many Chinese students are shaped in an almost mono-ethnic school environment.

 

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.