This letter is my response to Shukri Yusoff's '"Kiasu" and the pseudo-Americans', Aug 30). Criticism of the failures of one's homeland does not mean that there is no appreciation for the good things in Malaysia.

It is the sincere desire for positive change in Malaysia that many Malaysian 'expatriates' point out the shortcomings of the country and we do not do this in some foreign media but choose to write to a Malaysian forum.

That in itself is a vote for some of the institutions that still maintain their integrity in our country. This has got nothing to do with kiasu (keeping up with the Joneses) or being pseudo-anything.

That the US has got political and societal shortcomings is obvious and often paraded by the American press itself for all the world to see. A society that impeaches its own president for private sexual misconduct certainly has housekeeping to do.

Neither do I agree with every practice in US foreign policy and the behaviour of the Bush administration with regard to the International Treaty of Landmines and other current issues. The same standard for criticising hypocrisy in the US should also be used for one's own country.

Suggesting change in the accountability of our police force and revoking of draconian laws is key to determining the well-being of all Malaysians in this new century.

Recent human rights violations have badly tarnished the image of Malaysia as a democracy and a desirable place to invest in. If we continue to stick our heads in the sand and pretend that the rest of the world's opinion on our human rights practices does not matter, we set ourselves to become isolationist and backward. We can rattle our patriotic sabers and disregard outside views but eventually the consequences will be felt.

In 1957, Malaya was one of the most advanced nations in Asia with a billing of "most likely to succeed", ahead of South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. Today, while we are materially well-off in some areas, we have fallen so far behind in areas of education, the judiciary, the arts and culture and we keep as company, outcast dictatorial countries like Cuba and Iraq!

I concur that it took America a long time to liberalise many of its racist and unequal laws. The key for Malaysia is to learn quickly from the mistakes made by other nations and let ourselves benefit from their experiences. It is not necessary for Malaysia to have to go through a long bloody five-year Civil War between the states nor endure the pains of desegregation after the Jim Crow laws. That the US still has areas of inequalities does not disqualify the good things that we can learn from them, especially in areas of democratic practices at all levels of government, concern for humane treatment and official accountability. As the Malay proverb says it, "Buang yang keruh, ambil yang jernih".

The only way for a society to get past its problems is to have public discourse and form a national consensus. If we continue to excuse police brutality, deep-rooted corruption and lack of accountability from the country's leaders, then we will constantly be hostage to paranoia about 're-colonisation', 'neo-imperialism' and all these other shadow threats concocted by politicians to cow Malaysians into inaction.

As stated in the other reply to my letter ('To effect change, join the governing process', Aug 29), Malaysians should get more involved in the governance of the country; it will require a cooperative effort between the rakyat and an enlightened government, not the ISA and draconian laws.