Asli Tapi Tak Ori?

Pic: Courtesy of Malaysia Berih

As part of my ‘KPI’ on spending more quality times with my parents during weekdays, I make myself watch TV3’s “Aduan Rakyat” and “Bersamamu” – the only two segments that won’t get me into foul mood (or more of a foul mouth if you know what I mean).

A week ago, Karam Singh Walia’s “Aduan Rakyat” shared about constant water shortage in one village in Sik, Kedah (apparently, the problem has lingered around them for the past 10 years - huh! Nice try TV3). One of the ladies there expressed her disappointment saying that their situation is worse than Orang Asli.

I feel sorry for her but when she mentioned Orang Asli, how I wish those who walk the Corridor of Power would take serious note of her remarks.

Was she saying that now Orang Asli too have denied them their rights to one of our basic necessities? I shall reserve my opinion on management of common resources and business conflict resolution some other times (or if you can, could you please look at the sensible works of last year’s Economic Nobel Prize Winners?).

Or was she saying how could she, a Malay lady, whom our ruling party and its crying wolves defend fervently, suffered from such discrimination?

When our Orang Asli started marching to Putrajaya last month, I know they are now educated and confident enough to put a stop to sufferings they have endured for the past 53 years. Now we know it seems to many of us that our education system is made to rot to the core because I remember what Tony Benn from Sicko said, “[I] think there are two ways in which people are controlled - first of all frighten people and secondly demoralize them - Keeping people hopeless and pessimistic. An educated, healthy and confident nation is harder to govern”.

Since our Orang Asli live in close knitted community…

Wouldn’t it be great if we could assist a community by empowering its people by providing proper education?

With proper education, there will be no more children walking miles and miles away just to get to school because there is a teacher - one of their own tribe - in their village.

With adequate education, we would see a clinic in that village being run by their children.

With basic education, we could get them to read before they signed any documents in relation to their ancestral lands and being well informed of their rights.

I bumped into these priceless opinions of Mr. Howard Zinn and Mr. James Puthucheary from Encik Din Merican’s blog here that reminds me that education isn’t a privilege but social justice!

“I had always insisted that a good education was a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, that each enriched the other. I wanted my students to know that the accumulation of knowledge, while fascinating in itself, is not sufficient as long as so many people in the world have no opportunity to experience that fascination”

~ Howard Zinn
“You can’t be neutral on a moving train: A personal history of our times”


"If University students are to fulfill their social functions and justify the existence of the university, they will have to help in solving Malaya’s problems by adapting foreign ideas and thoughts to (its) special conditions and developing then according to the genius of (its) people”

~ James Puthucheary, “No cowardly past”
(edited by Dominic Puthucheary and Jomo KS)

p.s. I’m glad my Mr. Obama has signed the biggest overhaul deal of US healthcare system where the poors, the olds and the forgottens would be able to obtain proper healthcare service and supply. Like education, healthcare isn’t a privilege – it’s a right!