Letters written by a Sarawakian

I have been in Kuala Lumpur for more than 5 years now.I went to the school there,and then when I was 18,I went to a college in Perak and now,I am currently studying in University of Malaya,Kuala Lumpur.Generally,Kuala Lumpur is a nice place to stay;for one,I did not have much difficulties moving around the city as there are many reliable transportation available, namely the LRT,the Monorail,the spacious highway and also the taxis.
As for the school,I have been fortunate to be in a school where the teachers would know immediately if there's any update in the syllabus;the chairs and tables were all brand new,the school use white boards and projectors instead of the blackboard.All in all,those who live and study at Kuala Lumpur enjoy a lot of new things and up-to-date facilities that are available in the market.
However,one thing that I realise here is that racism is still going on strong,which is pretty shocking for me when I first came here.Other thing that I have encountered is that many of my KL friends have asked me, "You guys still live in the jungle? You guys there use cars? You guys there have electricity?You guys there still headhunts?"
This is completely a stupid question,don't you think so?Seeing that we are now living in an Information-Technology era,to ask this sort of questions show how these people have been in the dark for so long,taking the technologies available for granted.This is nonsense.Completely nonsense and shows how some are being too ignorant over this matter.But after four years of living here,I'm used to people ask the same questions over and over again,and as a civilize person,I would love to answer them with facts,not with being irritated and leave them at the dark.But just to set the record straight,think about it.About a hundred years ago,the British have been developing areas like Kuala Lumpur,Pulau Pinang and Johor earlier than any other states in Semenanjung or Sarawak and Sabah.As for Sarawak,this particular state had been under the Brooke administration,and it's only included in Malaysia in September,1963.Another fact needed?Think about it-Sarawak is almost the same size as that of Semenanjung and that's a pretty large area to cover by the Sarawak government,whereas in the Semenanjung,the vast land is divided into several states,and some of them are Selangor,Johor,Perlis and Penang.But there's a lesson that each of us,the Malaysians need to take note here:that all of us are living in a multiracial country,and that has been said,the sensitive issues such as asking an insulting questions like that should be treated with great care.Besides,to ask that sort of questions when we're in this Infomation Era shows how narrow-minded and ignorant these people are.
Another issue that I wish to write on here is about racism. Throughout the years of my stay at Kuala Lumpur and a year at Perak have made me realise how far we have to go to achieve 'Malaysia 'in a whole.The term 'Malaysia' here is used,because in my definition,it is defined as a multiracial country where different races live together in harmony and look at each other based on the person himself or herself,not based on the colour of skin,religion or race. That's why I called this post "Learn from Sarawak,Truly Malaysia",because I believe Malaysians in a whole can learn a lot of how we,the Sarawakians live with each other,regardless of race.Here,in this state,we have a lot of race,namely the Malays,the Chinese,the Ibans,the Bidayuhs,the Kayans,the Kelabits,the Bisaya,the Indian,the Penans,the Kenyah and so on.It is normal for us here to hang out together,either at school or shopping malls,but it is seen as rare if it takes place in KL.
There's this one time when I was having a lunch with the Chinese here,at University Malaya.And then,an hour later,I hang out with the Malays to study and then another time,with the Indians.But what happened after that?A friend of mine came to me and said, "Eh,u so weird lah.You mix with everyone!that's so cool!"
Get what I mean here?It is seen as something abnormal or rare.While I was having my lunch here,either at the University,or my college,or during recess time at my school last time,one that that was and is pretty obvious to me is that one race sticks to their own kind in most of the tables.The Malays with the Malays,the Indians with the Indians and the Chinese with the Chinese.There was this one time when a Chinese guy(a malaysian who stays in Taiwan)posted a video in YouTube who sang the Negaraku in his own style.However,in between the song,he rap about things that he felt unsatisfied with about Malaysia. I suppose if you guys check the video at YouTube,you'll be able to check out what he said.But what I like you to read is the comments of the video.It shows how far we have to go to achieve true Malaysia.And of course,there's another scene that I disliked very much.A video-clip of what happened in the Parliament.Well,here how it went.LimKitSiang,one of the opposition leaders said something,I'm not really sure what he said but after that,another MP stood up and shouted, "Kalau tak suka,you keluarlah dari Malaysia".I have the video in the Politics section,you can check the video there.This really dissapoints me because that was not said by a commoner,but by our MP.
Dearest Malaysians,take note that because of these differences that we have in each one of us,we are strong and we are able to outperform others.But,if we continue to harp on this issues(the differences in belief,race),later,our own defeat is not because of other countries,but by our own.There's so much we can learn from the so-called 'primitive' and 'underdeveloped' Sarawak(which I hope most of you after reading this,will correct your understanding on this matter).The title for this post is 'Learn from Sarawak,Truly Malaysia' because a person who ever lives in Sarawak for more than a month,at least,would understand what I mean by Truly Malaysia.It is a more open society where everyone of us here accepts each other by what we have to offer-by who we really are,not the appearance.
This year,we are celebrating the Golden Anniversary of Malaysia-her 50th,but,if the trend of only sticking with your own race still continues,well,maybe there won't be the 100th.Get what I mean?It is high time for everyone of us to put aside these kind of mind-sets,because it really shows how Third-Class our minds are if we are to continue seeing it that way. For your information,I learn a lot more when I hang out with the other races,mixing with everyone than if I were to only stick with my own race.
But,then again,this is just my opinion,in which,you can choose to read and follow,or read and don't follow.The choice is yours...But if you're serious in seeing a stronger Malaysia,you should read and follow and prove to everyone that Malaysians are a First-Class minded people instead of the ThirdClass but with the First-Class facility.

Thanks for reading.