CS Lewis to be honoured in Poets' Corner

Published by BBC News on 22 November 2012.

A memorial stone to writer and scholar CS Lewis is to be placed in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey in 2013. A service will take place on 22 November 2013 to mark the 50th anniversary of his death. Lewis will join such greats as John Keats, William Blake and TS Eliot in a tradition going back 600 years.

Vernon White, Canon Theologian at Westminster Abbey, said Lewis was an "extraordinarily imaginative and rigorous thinker and writer". Lewis, he continued, "was able to convey the Christian faith in a way that made it both credible and attractive to a wide range of people". The author, he said, had "had an enduring and growing influence in our national life".

Lewis (1898-1963) is best remembered for writing The Chronicles of Narnia, a series of books that has sold more than 100 million copies worldwide. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first instalment in the saga, was published in 1950 and has been adapted since for stage, TV and film.

Other works by the Belfast-born novelist, essayist and literary critic include The Screwtape Letters, The Space Trilogy and the non-fiction titles Mere Christianity and Miracles. 

Former poet laureate Ted Hughes was the most recent writer to be commemorated at the Abbey with a posthumous memorial stone. His memorial was unveiled by Seamus Heaney at a service held in December last year.

Link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-20426778#TWEET383477

ASEAN Human Rights Declaration

Published on 19 November 2012.

PHNOM PENH (The Cambodia Herald) - Herewith the full text of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration

adopted by Southeast Asian leaders Sunday:

WE, the Heads of State/Government of the Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (hereinafter referred to as "ASEAN"), namely Brunei Darussalam, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Republic of Indonesia, the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, the Republic of the Philippines, the Republic of Singapore, the Kingdom of Thailand and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, on the occasion of the 21st ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

REAFFIRMING our adherence to the purposes and principles of ASEAN as enshrined in the ASEAN Charter, in particular the respect for and promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as the principles of democracy, the rule of law and good governance;

REAFFIRMING FURTHER our commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Charter of the United Nations, the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, and other international human rights instruments to which ASEAN Member States are parties;

REAFFIRMING ALSO the importance of ASEAN’s efforts in promoting human rights, including the Declaration of the Advancement of Women in the ASEAN Region and the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women in the ASEAN Region;

CONVINCED that this Declaration will help establish a framework for human rights cooperation in the region and contribute to the ASEAN community building process;

HEREBY DECLARE AS FOLLOWS:

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

1. All persons are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of humanity.

2. Every person is entitled to the rights and freedoms set forth herein, without distinction of any kind, such as race, gender, age, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, economic status, birth, disability or other status.

3. Every person has the right of recognition everywhere as a person before the law.  Every person is equal before the law. Every person is entitled without discrimination to equal protection of the law.

4. The rights of women, children, the elderly, persons with disabilities, migrant workers, and vulnerable and marginalised groups are an inalienable, integral and indivisible part of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

5. Every person has the right to an effective and enforceable remedy, to be determined by a court or other competent authorities, for acts violating the rights granted to that person by the constitution or by law.

6. The enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms must be balanced with the performance of corresponding duties as every person has responsibilities to all other individuals, the community and the society where one lives. It is ultimately the primary responsibility of all ASEAN Member States to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms.

7. All human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. All human rights and fundamental freedoms in this Declaration must be treated in a fair and equal manner, on the same footing and with the same emphasis. At the same time, the realisation of human rights must be considered in the regional and national context bearing in mind different political, economic, legal, social, cultural, historical and religious backgrounds.

8. The human rights and fundamental freedoms of every person shall be exercised with due regard to the human rights and fundamental freedoms of others.  The exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of others, and to meet the just requirements of national security, public order, public health, public safety, public morality, as well as the general welfare of the peoples in a democratic society.

9. In the realisation of the human rights and freedoms contained in this Declaration, the principles of impartiality, objectivity, non-selectivity, non-discrimination, non-confrontation and avoidance of double standards and politicisation, should always be upheld. The process of such realisation shall take into account peoples’ participation, inclusivity and the need for accountability.

CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS

10. ASEAN Member States affirm all the civil and political rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Specifically, ASEAN Member States affirm the following rights and fundamental freedoms:

11. Every person has an inherent right to life which shall be protected by law. No person shall be deprived of life save in accordance with law.

12. Every person has the right to personal liberty and security. No person shall be subject to arbitrary arrest, search, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty.

13. No person shall be held in servitude or slavery in any of its forms, or be subject to human smuggling or trafficking in persons, including for the purpose of trafficking in human organs.

14. No person shall be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

15. Every person has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each State. Every person has the right to leave any country including his or her own, and to return to his or her country.

16. Every person has the right to seek and receive asylum in another State in accordance with the laws of such State and applicable international agreements.

17. Every person has the right to own, use, dispose of and give that person’s lawfully acquired possessions alone or in association with others. No person shall be arbitrarily deprived of such property.

18. Every person has the right to a nationality as prescribed by law. No person shall be arbitrarily deprived of such nationality nor denied the right to change that nationality.

19. The family as the natural and fundamental unit of society is entitled to protection by society and each ASEAN Member State. Men and women of full age have the right to marry on the basis of their free and full consent, to found a family and to dissolve a marriage, as prescribed by law.

20. (1) Every person charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a fair and public trial, by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal, at which  the accused is guaranteed the right to defence. 

      (2) No person shall be held guilty of any criminal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a criminal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed and no person shall suffer greater punishment for an offence than was prescribed by law at the time it was committed.

      (3) No person shall be liable to be tried or punished again for an offence for which he or she has already been finally convicted or acquitted in accordance with the law and penal procedure of each ASEAN Member State.

21. Every person has the right to be free from arbitrary interference with his or her privacy, family, home or correspondence including personal data, or to attacks upon that person’s honour and reputation. Every person has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

22. Every person has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. All forms of intolerance, discrimination and incitement of hatred based on religion and beliefs shall be eliminated.

23. Every person has the right to freedom of opinion and expression, including freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information, whether orally, in writing or through any other medium of that person’s choice.

24. Every person has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly.

25. (1)  Every person who is a citizen of his or her country has the right to participate in the government of his or her country, either directly or indirectly through democratically elected representatives, in accordance with national law.

       (2) Every citizen has the right to vote in periodic and genuine elections, which should be by universal and equal suffrage and by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors, in accordance with national law.

ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS

26. ASEAN Member States affirm all the economic, social and cultural rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Specifically, ASEAN Member States affirm the following:

27. (1) Every person has the right to work, to the free choice of employment, to enjoy just, decent and favourable conditions of work and to have access to assistance schemes for the unemployed. 

      (2) Every person has the right to form trade unions and join the trade union of his or her choice for the protection of his or her interests, in accordance with national laws and regulations.

      (3) No child or any young person shall be subjected to economic and social exploitation. Those who employ children and young people in work harmful to their morals or health, dangerous to life, or likely to hamper their normal development, including their education should be punished by law.  ASEAN Member States should also set age limits below which the paid employment of child labour should be prohibited and punished by law.

28. Every person has the right to an adequate standard of living for himself or herself and his or her family including:

a.The right to adequate and affordable food, freedom from hunger and access to safe and nutritious food;

b. The right to clothing;

c. The right to adequate and affordable housing;

d. The right to medical care and necessary social services;

e. The right to safe drinking water and sanitation;

f. The right to a safe, clean and sustainable environment.

29. (1)  Every person has the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical, mental and reproductive health, to basic and affordable health-care services, and to have access to medical facilities.

       (2)  The ASEAN Member States shall create a positive environment in overcoming stigma, silence, denial and discrimination in the prevention, treatment, care and support of people suffering from communicable diseases, including HIV/AIDS.

30. (1)  Every person shall have the right to social security, including social insurance where available, which assists him or her to secure the means for a dignified and decent existence.

     (2) Special protection should be accorded to mothers during a reasonable period as determined by national laws and regulations before and after childbirth. During such period, working mothers should be accorded paid leave or leave with adequate social security benefits.

      (3)  Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. Every child, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

31. (1) Every person has the right to education.

    (2) Primary education shall be compulsory and made available free to all. Secondary education in its different forms shall be available and accessible to all through every appropriate means. Technical and vocational education shall be made generally available. Higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.

      (3)  Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and the sense of his or her dignity. Education shall strengthen the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in ASEAN Member States.  Furthermore, education shall enable all persons to participate effectively in their respective societies, promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial and religious groups, and enhance the activities of ASEAN for the maintenance of peace.

32.  Every person has the right, individually or in association with others, to freely take part in cultural life, to enjoy the arts and the benefits of scientific progress and its applications and to benefit from the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or appropriate artistic production of which one is the author.

33.  ASEAN Member States should take steps, individually and through regional and international assistance and cooperation, especially economic and technical, to the maximum of its available resources, with a view to achieving progressively the full realisation of economic, social and cultural rights recognised in this Declaration.

34.  ASEAN Member States may determine the extent to which they would guarantee the economic and social rights found in this Declaration to non-nationals, with due regard to human rights and the organisation and resources of their respective national economies.

RIGHT TO DEVELOPMENT

35. The right to development is an inalienable human right by virtue of which every human person and the peoples of ASEAN are entitled to participate in, contribute to, enjoy and benefit equitably and sustainably from economic, social, cultural and political development. The right to development should be fulfilled so as to meet equitably the developmental and environmental needs of present and future generations. While development facilitates and is necessary for the enjoyment of all human rights, the lack of development may not be invoked to justify the violations of internationally recognised human rights.

36. ASEAN Member States should adopt meaningful people-oriented and gender responsive development programmes aimed at poverty alleviation, the creation of conditions including the protection and sustainability of the environment for the peoples of ASEAN to enjoy all human rights recognised in this Declaration on an equitable basis, and the progressive narrowing of the development gap within ASEAN.

37. ASEAN Member States recognise that the implementation of the right to development requires effective development policies at the national level as well as equitable economic relations, international cooperation and a favourable international economic environment. ASEAN Member States should mainstream the multidimensional aspects of the right to development into the relevant areas of ASEAN community building and beyond, and shall work with the international community to promote equitable and sustainable development, fair trade practices and effective international cooperation.

RIGHT TO PEACE

38. Every person and the peoples of ASEAN have the right to enjoy peace within an ASEAN framework of security and stability, neutrality and freedom, such that the rights set forth in this Declaration can be fully realised.  To this end, ASEAN Member States should continue to enhance friendship and cooperation in the furtherance of peace, harmony and stability in the region.

COOPERATION IN THE PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

39. ASEAN Member States share a common interest in and commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms which shall be achieved through, inter alia, cooperation with one another as well as with relevant national, regional and international institutions/organisations, in accordance with the ASEAN Charter.

40. Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to perform any act aimed at undermining the purposes and principles of ASEAN, or at the destruction of any of the rights and fundamental freedoms set forth in this Declaration and international human rights instruments to which ASEAN Member States are parties.

Adopted by the Heads of State/Government of ASEAN Member States at Phnom Penh, Cambodia, this Eighteenth Day of November in the Year Two Thousand and Twelve, in one single original copy in the English Language.

Link:

http://www.thecambodiaherald.com/cambodia/detail/1?page=11&token=ODYwNjEzMDgzNTIzODcwMGIyNTNiZGRkZWM4ODM0

Crime Statistics – Let the truth be told!

Published by Free Malaysia Today on 22 August 2012. FMT LETTER: From Veteran Cop, via e-mail.

...There are several types of crime where the classification can be manipulated from index to non-index. The maneuvering begins at the police district level which receives the report and subsequently transmitted to the State Police Headquarters and Federal Police Headquarters. The crimes which were manipulated are:

• Robbery cases under the Penal Code are classified as index crime. This offence will be classified as non-index under section 382 of the Penal Code. Since, section 382 of the Penal Code is a non-index crime, therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.
• Burglary under section 457 of the Penal Code is an index crime. This offence will be classified as non-index under sections 452 or 453 of the Penal Code. Since, sections 452 and 453 of the Penal Code are non-index crime therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.
• Causing hurt under sections 324 and 326 are index crimes. These offences will be classified under section 148 of the Penal Code. Since, section 148 of the Penal Code is a non-index crime therefore will not be reflected in the crime statistics.

The under classification of the index crime to non-index crime runs into several thousand cases. Of course, by removing these cases from the crime statistics will reflect that the crime has gone down.

A simple way of ascertaining the extent of cases taken off from the index crime category for the purpose of reducing the crime statistics is by asking the police to provide the statistics of cases classified under sections 148, 382, 452 and 453 of the Penal Code since the implementation of the NKRA to date. Then a comparison should be made with the statistics of cases under the said sections in the last three years preceding the NKRA.

You will discover a sudden hike in the number of cases under those sections after the introduction of the KPI. This figure should then be compared with the figure of the same sections for the three years preceding the NKRA.  The result will confirm that for the period of three years prior to NKRA, cases classified under sections 382, 452 and 453 are almost nil and under section 148 may have only few reported cases. The number of cases recorded under the four sections for the 3 years after the NKRA minus the number of cases recorded for the 3 years before the NKRA will be the figure that has been manipulated.

Other factors that suppress the crime statistics during the NKRA period are:

• There are many cases under the index crime category that are not opened for investigation and were closed with no further action (NFA). These cases involve robberies, snatch thefts and burglaries. Police take no further action for the reason there is no sufficient ground for proceeding with the matter if the suspect cannot be identified, the loss is minimal or there is no lead to proceed further. There are thousands of cases of this nature and since these cases are not opened for investigation, therefore, will not be reflected in the crime statistics. No profiling is done on these cases, but merely swept under the carpet. Without profiling then the trend, pattern, target areas and possible suspects could not be studied to address the recurrence of these incidents.
• There are also cases short-changed in order to achieve the KPI. Say, for example, in a particular day there are 10 cases of burglaries reported in a certain housing area. Only one case will be opened for investigation and the other nine cases will be cross-referred to the one case that was opened. For the 10 cases of burglaries, the statistics should be 10 cases of index crime. Since, there is only one case that was opened for investigation therefore the other nine cases will not be reflected in the index crime statistics.
• Dark figures (crimes not reported) are not factored into the crime statistics. There is a theory that for every 10 cases reported there will be one case not reported. People do not report crime when they have lost faith in the police. Lack of faith may arise when the people have the impression that the police will not treat the report seriously; ineffective investigation due to incompetence; practicing double standards; no confidence the police can solve the case or bring  justice to the victim or can recover the lost items; discriminative investigation based on the person’s background, influence, or status in society; minor trauma or losses treated with scorn; cases can be compromised by suspects getting away through bribery, influence be it political or social standing; exhaustive in going to the police station and lodging report; and last but not least is distrust and suspicion about the police.

Overall, the crime has indeed gone up. There are many flaws in the statistics dished out to the public. The statistics was tailored to justify the KPI and appease the powers that be. It is better for the police to tell the truth and shame the devil. In response to Dr. Lim Teck Ghee, the police said, “Crime statistics released by the PDRM are the actual figures of criminal cases reported to and investigated by the police department. These figures are auto-generated by the department’s computer system i.e. the Police Reporting System (PRS). In this way, no alteration or adjustment to the figures can be done, in order to portray a rosy picture of the crime situation as claimed by certain quarters.”

The rationalization of the computer system (PRS) to validate the crime figures is a flawed excuse. The system picks up only what has been fed into it. PRS system does not control classification of cases. To demonstrate that the GTP, NKRA and KPI are a success, classification of cases was doctored and entered into the system which will surely produce the result that was desired.

The police made another assertion, “All crime data and statistics generated within the PDRM system have been audited and verified by Pricewaterhouse Coopers Malaysia.” Do you expect accountants to audit and verify classification of cases? Are they going through all the police reports to ensure the nature of crime committed, categorizing the correct section of the offence under the law, and classification of the case as index or non-index? Be truthful on their role that is only limited to calculating the figures given by the police. In fact, it is a waste of public funds hiring accountants to just vet the figures if only the police are honest in the first place.

End the charade on public relations (PR) exercises to erase the fear of crime. Stop fooling the public with PR programs, like ‘high profile policing’, ‘high visibility patrol’ ‘walkabout’ ‘stop and talk, ‘meet and greet’, and ‘singing in shopping malls’, that won’t work when criminals are still milling around. Spending huge money hiring consultants with no background or expertise in criminal field to advise the police was the biggest blunder. It is a shame on the police organization of 205 years, having police officers of more than 30 years in service and experience with educational background from degree to PHD, unable to tackle the crime situation...

There must be a climate of fear and respect towards the police. The fear must come from the wrongdoers and those who intend to contravene the law. Respect is from those who feel secured when seeing the men in blue. Are the police doing the right thing to earn that respect? People are feeling unsecured with the crime situation and the fear of being a victim keep increasing. Ironically, even the policemen are having the same sentiment. Camouflaging crime figures will only aggravate the situation further. Be honest and tell the truth.

Read more here: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2012/08/22/crime-statistics-%E2%80%93-let-the-truth-be-told/

CALLING FOR PUBLIC SUBMISSION OF EVIDENCE AND INFORMATION ON ALLEGATIONS OF VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRIOR TO AND DURING BERSIH RALLY

The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) has decided to conduct a Public Inquiry into allegations of violations of human rights, including, the use of excessive force by the authorities prior to and during the public assembly on 9 July 2011. The Panel of Inquiry will be chaired by the Commission’s Vice-Chairman Professor Datuk Dr Khaw Lake Tee and assisted by Commissioners Professor Datuk Dr Mahmood Zuhdi b. Abdul Majid and Mr Detta Samen.

The Commission calls for public submissions of evidence and information following the allegations of amongst others, use of excessive force by the authorities prior to and during the public assembly on 9 July 2011. Members of the public who had witnessed any acts or incidents relating to such allegations, or who believe that they may be able to give relevant information and/or documents and other evidence including video/photo recordings pertaining to these or other such allegations are invited to contact the Commission as soon as possible.

More info may be found here:

http://www.suhakam.org.my/c/document_library/get_file?p_l_id=35723&folderId=441003&name=DLFE-12503.pdf

I Will Be Still

Hide me now,

Under Your wings,

Cover me within Your mighty hand.

Rest my soul,

In Christ alone,

Know His power in quietness and trust.

When the oceans rise and thunders roar,

I will soar with You above the storm,

Father, You are King over the floods,

I will be still and know You are God.

(The composer of this song is unknown to the blogger)

End fear of 'May 13'

KUALA LUMPUR (May 13, 2010): Over 100 civil society groups has called on the government to make May 13 a day to cherish peace, reason and freedom, instead of a date which continuously creates fear in the society.

"The May 13 riots in 1969 was an unfortunate episode in Malaysia’s history in which lives were lost and properties destroyed as politics broke down into violence," said former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenivasan.

"But thankfully, Malaysia has since moved forward as a nation in denouncing political violence," she said at a joint press conference today.

She said after the March 8, 2008 general election, attempts to trigger ethno-religious tensions and justify authoritarian controls have been resolutely defeated by condemnation by Malaysians of all ethno-religious and socio-cultural backgrounds.

Ambiga cited the cow-head protest last August and the desecration of places of worship in January this year, as evidence that many Malaysians are against provocative racial sentiments and those who propagate them.

"Today Malaysians have expressed disgust against politicians who bring issues relating to race," she said.

Condemning the "Melayu Bangkit" rally organised by Gerakan Kebangkitan Rakyat (Gertak), which was initially scheduled to be held yesterday, Ambiga questioned the true agenda and motive of the rally.

"No matter what the organisers may say or how they may deny about the intention of organising such a rally, Malaysians are not stupid (to believe) due to the theme of the rally, which is instigative in nature and the date it was planned to be held," she said.

She questioned the government’s stand on the rally, which was postponed to another date yet to be announced, as Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak asked to call off the rally for "security reasons".

"The government should have called off the rally because it was racist in nature and created uneasiness amongst other races in a multi-racial society," said Ambiga, who also questioned the involvement of a government agency in organising the rally.

"While freedom of speech and freedom of assembly for all political persuasions should be celebrated, any attempt to exploit the anniversary of May 13 to glorify political violence or instil fear is disgraceful and should be shunned by the public."

"In addition, any commemoration of the tragedy involving state funds and resources must be inclusive in both content and target group," Ambiga stressed.

Acknowledging that Malaysians today are better informed and active participants in politics, Ambiga said any attempt to mock or trigger another May 13, whether to subdue citizens or to seize power, may end in "complete political destruction of the culprits".

Meanwhile, lawyer and social activist Haris Ibrahim, who is the coordinator of Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia project, called on the government to form a 'Truth and Reconciliation Commission' to find out the truth behind the dark incident. -- theSun

Christmas Isn't Christmas Till It Happens...

Chorus:

Christmas isn't Christmas

till it happens in your heart.

Somewhere deep inside you

Is where Christmas really starts.

So give your heart to Jesus, you'll discover when you do.

That it's Christmas, really Christmas for you.

Jesus brings warmth like a winter fire, a light like a candle's glow.

He's waiting now to come inside, as He did so long ago.

Jesus brings gifts of truth and life, and makes them bloom and grow.

So welcome Him with a song of joy, and when He comes you'll know that

Christmas isn't Christmas

till it happens in your heart...

NB: The composer of this song is unknown to this blogger. Those with the information kindly comment. Thank you.

Nostalgia

Semasa mengemas buku-buku lama di rumah (emak sudah mengeluarkan arahan tidak boleh ditanggung lagi), saya terjumpa buku bertajuk, "Prosa Klasik & Sajak: SPM Bahasa Malaysia" (Cetakan 1987). Teringat kembali ketika mengambil peperiksaan SPM. Walaupun BM bukan subjek kegemaran saya, buku ini saya pernah membaca berulang-ulang kali. Bukan sekadar untuk lulus peperiksaan tetapi saya amat tertarik dengan kesusasteraan yang terkandung di dalamnya. Bahasanya begitu halus dan penuh bermakna. Di antara kegemaran saya ialah sajak hasil karya Usman Awang (Bahasa Alam) yang bertajuk, "Anak Jiran Tionghua":

Begitu kecil ia berdiri di tepi pagar

kilat matanya memanggil Iskandar

siapa berlalu siapa berkaca

melihat keduanya bergurau senda

Anak Tionghua kelahiran di sini

di bumi hujau ladang-ladang getah dan padi

ia bisa bercerita untuk siapa saja

di sini tanahnya dan ibunya bersemadi

Lihat mereka sedang berebutan pistol mainan

he, jangan berkelahi

ah, anak-anak dengan caranya murni

berkelahi untuk nanti bermain kembali

Lihat mereka tertawa riang

Ah Chen tak punya gigi sebatang

Iskandar mengesat hingus ke baju

sekarang mereka menunggu ais krim lalu

Bumi tercinta resapkan wahyumu

jantung mereka adalah langitmu

darah mereka adalah sungaimu

nafas mereka adalah udaramu.

Malangnya, kesusasteraan yang bijaksana seperti ini telah semakin berkurangan. Ditimbun laungan ahli-ahli politik yang hanya menjaga kepentingan sendiri. Alangkah baiknya jika yang dewasa juga saling bergaul tanpa mengira kaum seperti kanak-kanak.

The Jews: Gandhi

Lord Bobo · Thursday, January 29th, 2009

Sharmila Sekaran wants us to re-read Mahatma Gandhi's views written some 70 years ago, taken from here

(Harijan, 26 November 1938).

Several letters have been received by me asking me to declare my views about the Arab-Jew

question in Palestine and the persecution of the Jews in Germany. It is not without hesitation that I

venture to offer my views on this very difficult question.

My sympathies are all with the Jews. I have known them intimately in South Africa. Some of them

became life-long companions. Through these friends I came to learn much of their age-long

persecution. They have been the untouchables of Christianity. The parallel between their

treatment by Christians and the treatment of untouchables by Hindus is very close. Religious

sanction has been invoked in both cases for the justification of the inhuman treatment meted out

to them. Apart from the friendships, therefore, there is the more common universal reason for my

sympathy for the Jews.

But my sympathy does not blind me to the requirements of justice. The cry for the national home

for the Jews does not make much appeal to me. The sanction for it is sought in the Bible and the

tenacity with which the Jews have hankered after return to Palestine. Why should they not, like

other peoples of the earth, make that country their home where they are born and where they

earn their livelihood?

Palestine belongs to the Arabs in the same sense that England belongs to the English or France

to the French. It is wrong and inhuman to impose the Jews on the Arabs. What is going on in

Palestine today cannot be justified by any moral code of conduct. The mandates have no sanction

but that of the last war. Surely it would be a crime against humanity to reduce the proud Arabs so

that Palestine can be restored to the Jews partly or wholly as their national home.

The nobler course would be to insist on a just treatment of the Jews wherever they are born and

bred. The Jews born in France are French. If the Jews have no home but Palestine, will they

relish the idea of being forced to leave the other parts of the world in which they are settled? Or do

they want a double home where they can remain at will? This cry for the national home affords a

colourable justification for the German expulsion of the Jews.

But the German persecution of the Jews seems to have no parallel in history. The tyrants of old

never went so mad as Hitler seems to have gone. And he is doing it with religious zeal. For he is

propounding a new religion of exclusive and militant nationalism in the name of which any

inhumanity becomes an act of humanity to be rewarded here and hereafter. The crime of an

© LoyarBurok · URL of this document: http://www.loyarburok.com/selected-exhortations/the-jews-gandhi/ · Document created: February 1st, 2009, 10:25 pm

obviously mad but intrepid youth is being visited upon his whole race with unbelievable ferocity. If

there ever could be a justifiable war in the name of and for humanity, a war against Germany, to

prevent the wanton persecution of a whole race, would be completely justified. But I do not believe

in any war. A discussion of the pros and cons of such a war is therefore outside my horizon or

province.

But if there can be no war against Germany, even for such a crime as is being committed against

the Jews, surely there can be no alliance with Germany. How can there be alliance between a

nation which claims to stand for justice and democracy and one which is the declared enemy of

both? Or is England drifting towards armed dictatorship and all it means?

Germany is showing to the world how efficiently violence can be worked when it is not hampered

by any hypocrisy or weakness masquerading as humanitarianism. It is also showing how hideous,

terrible and terrifying it looks in its nakedness.

Can the Jews resist this organised and shameless persecution? Is there a way to preserve their

self-respect, and not to feel helpless, neglected and forlorn? I submit there is. No person who has

faith in a living God need feel helpless or forlorn. Jehovah of the Jews is a God more personal

than the God of the Christians, the Mussalmans or the Hindus, though as a matter of fact in

essence, He is common to all and one without a second and beyond description. But as the Jews

attribute personality to God and believe that He rules every action of theirs, they ought not to feel

helpless. If I were a Jew and were born in Germany and earned my livelihood there, I would claim

Germany as my home even as the tallest gentile German may, and challenge him to shoot me or

cast me in the dungeon; I would refuse to be expelled or to submit to discriminating treatment.

And for doing this, I should not wait for the fellow Jews to join me in civil resistance but would

have confidence that in the end the rest are bound to follow my example. If one Jew or all the

Jews were to accept the prescription here offered, he or they cannot be worse off than now. And

suffering voluntarily undergone will bring them an inner strength and joy which no number of

resolutions of sympathy passed in the world outside Germany can. Indeed, even if Britain, France

and America were to declare hostilities against Germany, they can bring no inner joy, no inner

strength. The calculated violence of Hitler may even result in a general massacre of the Jews by

way of his first answer to the declaration of such hostilities. But if the Jewish mind could be

prepared for voluntary suffering, even the massacre I have imagined could be turned into a day of

thanksgiving and joy that Jehovah had wrought deliverance of the race even at the hands of the

tyrant. For to the godfearing, death has no terror. It is a joyful sleep to be followed by a waking

that would be all the more refreshing for the long sleep.

It is hardly necessary for me to point out that it is easier for the Jews than for the Czechs to follow

my prescription. And they have in the Indian satyagraha campaign in South Africa an exact

parallel. There the Indians occupied precisely the same place that the Jews occupy in Germany.

The persecution had also a religious tinge. President Kruger used to say that the white Christians

were the chosen of God and Indians were inferior beings created to serve the whites. A

fundamental clause in the Transvaal constitution was that there should be no equality between the

whites and coloured races including Asiatics. There too the Indians were consigned to ghettos

described as locations. The other disabilities were almost of the same type as those of the Jews in

Germany. The Indians, a mere handful, resorted to satyagraha without any backing from the world

outside or the Indian Government. Indeed the British officials tried to dissuade the satyagrahis is

from their contemplated step. World opinion and the Indian Government came to their aid after

eight years of fighting. And that too was by way of diplomatic pressure not of a threat of war.

But the Jews of Germany can offer satyagraha under infinitely better auspices than the Indians of

South Africa. The Jews are a compact, homogeneous community in Germany. They are far more

gifted than the Indians of South Africa. And they have organised world opinion behind them. I am

convinced that if someone with courage and vision can arise among them to lead them in nonviolent

action, the winter of their despair can in the twinkling of an eye be turned into the summer

of hope. And what has today become a degrading man-hunt can be turned into a calm and

determined stand offered by unarmed men and women possessing the strength of suffering given

to them by Jehovah. It will be then a truly religious resistance offered against the godless fury of

dehumanised man. The German Jews will score a lasting victory over the German gentiles in the

sense that they will have converted the latter to an appreciation of human dignity. They will have

rendered service to fellow-Germans and proved their title to be the real Germans as against those

who are today dragging, however unknowingly, the German name into the mire.

And now a word to the Jews in Palestine. I have no doubt that they are going about it in the wrong

way. The Palestine of the Biblical conception is not a geographical tract. It is in their hearts. But if

they must look to the Palestine of geography as their national home, it is wrong to enter it under

the shadow of the British gun. A religious act cannot be performed with the aid of the bayonet or

the bomb. They can settle in Palestine only by the goodwill of the Arabs. They should seek to

convert the Arab heart. The same God rules the Arab heart who rules the Jewish heart. They can

offer satyagraha in front of the Arabs and offer themselves to be shot or thrown into the Dead Sea

without raising a little finger against them. They will find the world opinion in their favour in their

religious aspiration. There are hundreds of ways of reasoning with the Arabs, if they will only

discard the help of the British bayonet. As it is, they are co-shares with the British in despoiling a

people who have done no wrong to them.

I am not defending the Arab excesses. I wish they had chosen the way of non-violence in resisting

what they rightly regarded as an unwarrantable encroachment upon their country. But according

to the accepted canons of right and wrong, nothing can be said against the Arab resistance in the

face of overwhelming odds.

Let the Jews who claim to be the chosen race prove their title by choosing the way of nonviolence

for vindicating their position on earth. Every country is their home including Palestine not

by aggression but by loving service. A Jewish friend has sent me a book called "The Jewish

Contribution to Civilisation" by Cecil Roth. It gives a record of what the Jews have done to enrich

the world`s literature, art, music, drama, science, medicine, agriculture, etc. Given the will, the Jew

can refuse to be treated as the outcaste of the West, to be despised or patronised. He can

command the attention and respect of the world by being man, the chosen creation of God,

instead of being man who is fast sinking to the brute and forsaken by God. They can add to their

many contributions the surpassing contribution of non-violent action.

Segaon, November 20, 1938

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 29th, 2009 at 7:00 pm and is filed under Selected Exhortations