The new year 2012 begins with a black cloak shrouding an already gasping democracy. And this is not in a distant, iron fisted regime but right here in Malaysia!
The brutal blows thrown by the long hand of the law keepers on our young, vibrant and vocal youths from the corridors of future leaders – our universities, with one student battling for his life is a shocking trauma that grips the nation of 28 million citizens and another four to eight million of foreign labor here.
How do we allow this? What justifications can anyone dish out? Will we once again sweep all these democracy-bashing governance tactics under the carpet and resume life as if semua nya is okay?
Law abiding, nation-caring, and democracy champions must rise to the occasion and demand univocally in all earnest: How do we respond to such blatant high handedness that smacks right in the vital spot of true democracy?
Do we need to be brutal in our ways in curbing public expression within the corridors of knowledge and leadership formation? Are there no more civil and globally accepted standards that we could have deployed to bring about awareness, understanding, empathy and acceptance amongst groups (students) who have a going-concern?
Hold the leaders responsible
The Prime Minister and the Education Minister must hold themselves accountable to this darkened start of a new year. The worst tyranny that any statesman can commit is to allow the brutal and lethal blow-treatment against innocent, unarmed -- the children of future Malaysia, who want a participative role in the formation of a better nation in their future ahead of them.
Are our ministers so preoccupied that they did not anticipate the issues brewing and having the propensity to disintegrate into a crisis and finally ended up having to react by using the high handed law keepers to breach all decency and protection owing to our youth?
All civil society, learned minds, committed activities must come forward and demand that civil liberties and true democratic expressions that do not threaten national security cannot be brutalized like what has happened now. We cannot stain our hands with the sins of killing our own children for the sake of keeping power.
We need to know and accept the fact that that students’ uprising is because of issues that go ignored and unattended in a persuasive, convincing and transparent manner.
We need to realize that as long as the powers-that-be continue to stifle public display of concerns by using might power with total disregard for the safety and security of protestors, we are only being reminded that Malaysia is becoming a highly intolerant society of power that intimidates, annihilates and hinges on the edge of becoming a potential North Korea.
No? Then what is it?
When a government loses its moral fibre
Surely our neighbors are watching. Surely our major trading partners are increasingly becoming cautious. And surely, we – all Malaysians will become the victims of such brutality aimed at staying in power at all costs.
Yes we do not condone restlessness. We do not want street marches. We want peace, harmony and co-existence.
But when politicians lose their two cents worthy of moral fiber and will not hesitate to go to extremes to bargain and keep power at the expense of basic democratic principles, then we have lost our radar for the journey into the second decade of the 21st century.
The buck must stop here. How? When? Who? And when there are no answers to these questions, we know that we are already doomed in our progress.
The presiding government owes all Malaysians answers and explanations that better be good.
