Note: While this SSS site promotes the use of Bahasa Malaysia in line with Article 152 on its role as the National Language of the country, articles may appear in the English language in oder that the message reaches our target audience. However, SSS Admin replies are always in the language in which the comments are made.
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The single-stream schooling or Satu Sekolah Untuk Semua (SSS) proposal aims at the creation of a united and cohesive Bangsa Malaysia, in the hope of bringing long-term harmony, peace and progress in the country. The New Economic Model (NEM) planned by the Government carrying the slogan of 1Malaysia aims at economic progress, a developed nation status by 2020, peace and prosperity in the country. The two are synergistic. Hopefully, they can be synchronistic as well. They can, if the NEM incorporates plans for changing the current three education systems (national schools, national type Chinese schools, national type Tamil schools) into a single education system (national schools only).
The Malays and the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak are far behind economically and educationally compared to the Chinese largely due to the incidence of history. British colonial policies had done the Malays/ Bumiputeras up quite a bit, coming out at independence owning hardly 1% wealth and, at best, only 5% in the professional jobs of the country in which they are 70% of the population. Historically and culturally, the Malays/ Bumiputeras were a nation of seafarers, engaged in barter trading, mainly for the purpose of daily subsistence, not having a culture of profit-taking or trading on the basis of weights and measures, not of business and the zealousness of making money and wealth accumulation. But with the educational opportunities provided under the New Economic Policy (NEP) starting in 1970, more Malays/ Bumiputeras have better education and now realise the need to speak up and make demands, including on the NEM, for bridging the gap between the Bumiputeras and the Chinese who control the economy, so that there is an equitable distribution of wealth and representation in all the professions, and consequently, less grudging and discontentment. Hopefully, those actions would translate into a harmonious, united and progressive situation in the country.
There has been a lack of inter-ethnic co-operation on what has been called “the restructuring of society”. Willingness to impart business knowledge and experience may not have been forthcoming due to the tradition of exclusivity of clan associations and business guilds that have been written about by researcher Janet T Landa (2008). She spoke about the “club-like ethnically homogeneous middleman group (EHMG) for the provision of infrastructure, essential for middleman entrepreneurship. Chinese merchants embedded in the EHMG were able to economize on transaction costs, and this gave them a differential advantage to out-compete other ethnic groups to appropriate merchant roles.”
And, as far as the SSS is concerned, the proponents of vernacular schools want to cling to the languages of Chinese and Indian civilisations.
All the above may be due to a lack of understanding and respect for the dignity of the Malay civilisation and the Malay language (Bahasa Malaysia). In view of these, we now reproduce write-ups on the Malay civilisation and the Malay language.
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A. Early history and Nation State
The “Early History” volume of “The Encyclopedia of Malaysia” edited by Professor Dr Nik Hassan Shuhaimi includes articles by Professors and PhD degree holders at University of Malaya, National University of Malaysia, National University of Singapore, University of Hawai, Australian National University, etc. Additionally, the book, “The Malay Civilisation” by Mohd Arof Ishak, published by The Historical Society of Malaysia, has a bibliography stating scores of books written by academicians and others world wide, quoting ancient documents and manuscripts some of which were discovered only in recent times. They provide a good and reliable insight into the history of this country, the Malay language and civilisation.
Here are some of the points stated in those books that show that the Malays and the large family of “Rumpun Melayu” have been in this country, Malaysia, and in this region, Southeast Asia, since the beginning of human settlement in this area, several thousand years ago:
1. The Malays (including the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak, as well as the aborigines of Peninsular Malaysia, all of whom belong to the same Rumpun Melayu) were the original inhabitants of Malaysia and also of Southeast Asia. A Chinese writer named Ch’en Lun-chiung used the word “Wu-lai-yu” (“Melayu”) in his writings which were completed in 1730. This was acknowledged by no other than the well-respected historian, Professor Wang Gung-wu, in his “Community and Nation”, 1992, pp 158-167. Before that the Mainland Chinese often used the word “barbarians” when referring to ALL others outside “the Middle Kingdom”, including those who conquered and ruled them – the Mongols for about 80 years and the Manchus (Manchuria became a part of China only after World War II) for several hundred years until the 20th Century. The Malays had existed as a civilisation several thousand years ago.
2. According to Ch’en Lun-chiung, people in the following places were all known as “Wu-lai-yu”: the islands of Luzon, Panay, Cebu, Mindanao, Sulu (all in present day Philippines), Banjarmasin, Brunei (in Borneo), Makasar (Sulawesi island), Maluku, Karimon (east of Sumatera), Kalapa (Jakarta), Patani (south Thailand), Kelantan, Trengganu, Pahang, Johor and Malacca. Also, people in the Asian mainland in Cambodia and Vietnam. This was also acknowledged by Professor Wang Gung-wu.
3. The Malay race is a large, ancient family of many groups, each group having its own name, like Aceh, Bajau, Bidayuh, Bugis, Chamorro, Iban, Ifugao, Kadazan, Maori, Merina, Suluk, etc. They may therefore be known as Achenese Malay, Bajau Malay, Bidayuh Malay and so on. In Peninsular Malaysia there are those who are of Javanese, Bugis, Aceh etc descent but “Malay” has been an apt description of them. The term “Rumpun Melayu” aptly describes the Malays, the Indonesians and the Filipinos. Indeed, the Filipinos called Jose Rizal, their independence fighter during the Spanish colonial days, as “The Great Malay” and one Filipino history book is titled just that.
4. Many linguistic studies have been carried out by Westerners since the 19th Century and they have concluded that the various ethnic and sub-ethnic groups that settled this vast area known as the Malay Archipelago are indeed of one and the same race – the Malays. Modern linguistic studies started from the 18th Century linguist, Sir William Jones. The family of language is determined by the grammar and vocabulary used.
5. In proto-historic and ancient times there have been various Malay states in Southeast Asia. What has been commonly known was the Srivijaya Empire centred in Sumatra 600-1200 AD. Another Malay state was also established in the present day Jambi area 4th – 13th Cent AD. Malay civilisation centred in Kedah had been active during that period as well. Kedah had appeared in Chinese records in 638 AD when it sent an ambassador to China. “Pan-pan”, believed to be in the Kelantan or Trengganu area, had been in Chinese records even earlier as they were in contact with China in 530 AD and 535 AD.
6. In 607 AD, a Chinese envoy sent abroad by a Sui Dynasty Emperor recorded having passed by Langkasuka (believed to be in present day Patani) and reached an inland kingdom called “Chi tu” or “Red Earth Land”, believed to be in Kelantan. In 671 AD, a Chinese Buddhist monk Yiqing on a pilgrimage to the brith place of Buddha in India, stayed 6 months to learn Sanskrit in Srivijaya, then sailed to “Malayu” in southeast Sumatra, then to Kedah. “Yiqing clearly stated that his voyages were all undertaken in ships belonging to Malay Kings” – Dr John Miskic, National University of Singapore, Encyclopaedia of Malaysia, pg 83. The Malays have been good hosts since ancient times and that kind nature must not be exploited.
7. The original centre of Malay civiliation is the Malay Archipelago of Southeast Asia – the largest group of islands in the entire world – measuring from end to end longer than the length of Mainland China. This Malay Archipelago comprises Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Philippines, small islands in the South China Sea, Singapore, a part of Peninsular Malaya that became part of south Thailand, and several islands south of Myanmar. All these areas have originally been settled by the Malays.
8. Taiwan is also an island very important in respect of the origin of the Malays. Several studies have been done in that respect.The Cocos/ Keelings and Christmas Island (now a part of Australia) were also part of the Malay Archipelago. Large parts of Vietnam and Cambodia on the Asian Mainland were also centres of ancient Malay civilisation. The Department of Museums and Antiquities held a Seminar in 2004 on “The Campa Malay Manuscript, Heritage of a Malay Civilisation” that existed (and remnants still exist even now) in Indo-China, specifically Vietnam and Cambodia. (The proceedings of the Seminar were published by the Department and is on sale).
9. Among the works of Professors, PhD degree holders, etc used as reference materials in the book published by the Historical Society of Malaysia are: Wang Gung-wu, “Community and Nation”, 1992; Charles F. Keyes, “The Golden Peninsula”, 1977; Wolfram Eberhard, “A History of China”, 1977; Peter Bellwood, “Man’s Conquest of the Pacific”, 1979; Kenneth Hall & John K. Whitmore, “Explorations in Early Southeast Asian History; The Origins of Southeast Asian Statecraft”, 1986; and scores of others.
10. A nation state has existed in Malaysia since ancient times and the leader of the organisation promoting Chinese schools should not try to inject the idea of a “multi-nation state” like he did recently. We are a multi-racial country (70% Bumiputeras, 30% Chinese, Indians and others) but calling Malaysia a multi-nation state, whatever it may mean, is not acceptable.
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B. The Malays and “Rumpun Melayu”
The Large Family of Malays and the Malay Language –
The Malay language is very ancient and comprises of a huge family of languages. Whereas the Malays (Rumpun Melayu of 350 million people) constitute only 6% of the total population of the world (6 billion people), the large family of Malay languages (totalling 1,268) represent 22% of the number of languages in the world (totalling 6,000).
These are actual languages in the scientific and linguistic sense. If dialects are included, the number is larger still.
Scientists who have studied the family of Malay languages include the following:
1. 1772-75 Dr Reinhold Forster who accompanied Captain Cook in his 2nd voyage to the South Pacific. He compiled a list of words from 11 languages in several islands there and compared them with words of the same meaning in the Malay language and with 3 languages in South America. He found them having similarities with the Malay language but none at all with the South American languages.
2. 1776-80 Anderson, another scientist travelling with Captain Cook studied the numericals used in various islands of Polynesia and in Madagascar and compared them with those used in the Malay language. He found very clear similarities among them.
3. About 1800, a Spanish Jesuit priest, Abbe Lorenzo Herves, confirmed that the Malay language, the language used in Madagascar, and the languages of the Polynesian islands belong to the same family.This priest was recorded as the person who had made “the most remarkable discovery in the history of linguistic studies, being the identification of one family of spoken languages, namely the Malay and the Polynesian languages, which were spread very far and wide from the Island of Madagascar across a 208 degree angle to Easter Island” – L. Andrews, “A Dictionary of the Hawaiian Language”, 1977, pg 7.
4. Some years after that, a European scholar, William Marsden, also identified the oneness of the languages referred to by Herves and called them “The Great Polynesian” (Language).
5. In 1836, a leading Linguist, William Von Humboldt, carried out a large and comprehensive study, comparing 9 languages in the family of the Malay language – Malay, Malagasy (Madagascar), Javanese, Buginese, Tagalog (Philippines), Maori, Tonga, Tahitian and Hawaiian. He concluded that these languages belong to the same civilization – the Malay civilization.
Given below are the number of Malay languages found in selected areas:
Peninsular Malaysia : 1 (+4 orang asli languages)
Sumatra : 22 languages
Java : 3 languages
Philippines :160 languages
Borneo :153 languages
Sulawesi :114 languages
Taiwan : 23 languages
Madagascar : 11 languages.
The Spread of the Malays –
How old is this Malay race, Malay Polynesia or Austronesia race?
In the 20th Century, various studies have been carried out on the migration and movement of the Malay people who have crossed the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Linguistic and archaeological studies especially since the 1950s have contributed a lot towards finding the age of the Malay race.
G.W Grace, a linguist of the 1960s, placed the origin of the Malay language at between 3,000 BC – 2,500 BC i.e 4,500 – 5,000 years ago – William Howells, “The Pacific Islanders”, 1973, pg 104. Isidore Dyen, a linguist of the 1950s, explained that Malayo-Polynesia is a major branch in the Austronesia (Malay) language and is of the opinion that the Malayo-Polynesian language alone is older than the Indo-European language which scholars have said appeared around 2,500 BC. Dyen believes that the Malayo-Polynesian people had started moving around and spread even well before 2,500 BC – William Howells, pg 104.
R. Ferrel a linguist expert on the natives of Taiwan, wrote in the 1960s that the Atayalic language in Taiwan grew out of proto Malay language (the original Malay language) since 4,000 BC-3,000 BC i.e 5,000-6,000 years ago. Ferrel is also of the opinion that the Tsouic language in Taiwan had grown out of proto-Malay language at about the same period. The original Malay language is therefore much older.
Many stuidies have led to the hypothesis that Taiwan / south China is the origin of the Malay race. Peter Bellwood is a well known supporter of that and believes that the spread of the original Malay language occurred between 5,000 and 7,000 years ago and that this took place in the centre of the Malay world, i.e an area that could not be identified but in the range of islands between Taiwan, Philippines and East Indonesia – Peter Bellwood, “Man’s Conquest of the Pacific, 1979.
This means that the Malay race is one of the oldest in the world.
Linguist William Howells himself had placed the first movement of the Malay people outward at 4,000 BC. So, it is clear that various scholars and linguistic experts have put forward the view that the Malay race is an ancient one and is about 7,000 years old, or even older.
Archaeologists have put out archaeological findings which showed that the Tonga islands were the first settlement of Malays in the Polynesian Islands after they arrived from Fiji Island. Samoa became the second island. These were estimated at around 1,000 BC.
The Malays reached the Easter Island around 500 AD despite it being the only island and so far away. Carbon dating of artifacts had shown that the Malays from Marquesas Islands reached and settled in Hawai around 750 AD – Joseph Feher, “Hawai, A Pictorial History”, 1969, pg 27. By 1,000 AD, the bigger islands of the Hawai chain had all been settled.
They arrived in boats built by inhabitants of the Marquesas Islands; the boats were as long as 18-24 meters and each could carry 30-40 people. From Tahiti, the Malays moved to Cook Islands and eventually touched the islands of New Zealand around 1,000 AD.
The fact that the Malays had discovered and settled all the islands of the Pacific Ocean, which is so vast, is testimony to the excellence in sailing and navigation skills of the Malays. This is a feat not comparable to any others up to this day. All researchers and scholars agree that all the islands of the Pacific Ocean, however small or isolated, bear marks of having been visited and settled by the Malays in a period of time stretching 3,700 years or a little longer.
The Malay Archipelago was the birth place of Malay civilisation. American Professor Wihelm G. Solheim had produced a number of books and notes on the prehistory of Southeast Asia – Mohd Arof, “The Malay Civilization”, 2007, pg 22, 96. Professor Solheim said that the Malays had been living a culture of seafarers and traders, possessing sailing and navigational skills that enabled them to traverse the entire seas of the Malay Archipelago since 5,000 BC or 7,000 years ago.
According to Professor Solheim, the specific place in the Malay Archipelago with the highest possibility of being the origin of the Malay people is the area where today is found the Bugis, Bajau and other Malay ethnic groups that have been very active seafarers and traders for ages in history. They have made the Sulu Seas, fringed with the large islands of Borneo (Kalimantan), Sulawesi and Mindanao, as the busiest seafaring area. They spread to the Pacific Ocean, starting from eastern Indonesia, before 5,000 BC. They moved north as traders through Philippines, Taiwan and southern China, reaching Korea and Japan.
Professor Solheim also believed that the Cham Malays who still occupy parts of Vietnam and Cambodia to this day had moved there from the Malay Archipelago after about 2,000 BC. Solheim also stated that the Malay language evolved in the Malay Archipelago at the end of the Ice Age w hen the Malay Archipelago took shape about 8,000 years ago. The latest research on this subject done by Stephen Oppenheimer, “Eden in the East”, 2001, strongly supported the views put forward by Solheim.
Ancient Chinese records written as early as 3rd Century AD mentioned “Kun Lun” people (ancient Chinese terminology for those coming by sea from the direction of Southeast Asia) conducting trade between east and west. Those records mentioned the boats used by the Malay traders. According to those records, the Malay boats were large, about 170 feet (51 meters) long. In the Polynesian islands of the south Pacific, the well known English voyager, Captain Cook, himself saw and recorded boats of about 108 feet (32 meters) which could carry 300 sailors.
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C. The Spread of the Malays –
The Malay Continent: Land and Sea World (Tanah Air) –
How old is this Malay race, Malay Polynesia or Austronesia race?
In the 20th Century, various studies have been carried out on the migration and movement of the Malay people who have crossed the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Linguistic and archaeological studies especially since the 1950s have contributed a lot towards finding the age of the Malay race. G.W Grace, a linguist of the 1960s, placed the origin of the Malay language at between 3,000 BC – 2,500 BC i.e 4,500 – 5,000 years ago – William Howells, “The Pacific Islanders”, 1973, pg 104. Isidore Dyen, a linguist of the 1950s, explained that Malayo-Polynesia is a major branch in the Austronesia (Malay) language and is of the opinion that the Malayo-Polynesian language alone is older than the Indo-European language which scholars have said appeared around 2,500 BC. Dyen believes that the Malayo-Polynesian people had started moving around and spread even well before 2,500 BC – William Howells, pg 104.
R. Ferrel a linguist expert on the natives of Taiwan, wrote in the 1960s that the Atayalic language in Taiwan grew out of proto Malay language (the original Malay language) since 4,000 BC – 3,000 BC i.e 5,000 – 6,000 years ago. Ferrel is also of the opinion that the Tsouic language in Taiwan had grown out of proto-Malay language at about the same period. The original Malay language is therefore much older.
Many studies have brought out the hypothesis that Taiwan / south China is the origin of the Malay race. Peter Bellwood is a well known supporter of that and believes that the spread of the original Malay language occurred between 5,000 and 7,000 years ago and that this took place in the centre of the Malay world, i.e an area that could not be identified but in the range of islands between Taiwan, Philippines and East Indonesia – Peter Bellwood, “Man’s Conquest of the Pacific, 1979. This means that the Malay race is one of the oldest in the world.
Linguist William Howells himself had placed the first movement of the Malay people outward at 4,000 BC. So, it is clear that various scholars and linguistic experts have put forward the view that the Malay race is an ancient one and is about 7,000 years old, or even older.
The archaeologists’ Views:
Archaeologists have put out archaeological findings which showed that the Tonga islands were the first settlement of Malays in the Polynesian Islands after they arrived from Fiji Island. Samoa became the second island. These were estimated at around 1,000 BC. The Malays reached the Easter Island around 500 AD despite it being the only island and so far away. Carbon dating of artifacts had shown that the Malays from Marquesas Islands reached and settled in Hawai around 750 AD – Joseph Feher, “Hawai, A Pictorial History”, 1969, pg 27. By 1,000 AD, the bigger islands of the Hawai chain had all been settled. They arrived in boats built by inhabitants of the Marquesas Islands; the boats were as long as 18 – 24 meters and each could carry 30 – 40 people.
From Tahiti, the Malays moved to Cook Islands and eventually touched the islands of New Zealand around 1,000 AD.
The fact that the Malays had discovered and settled all the islands of the Pacific Ocean, which is so vast, is testimony to the excellence in sailing and navigation skills of the Malays. This is a feat not comparable to any others up to this day. All researchers and scholars agree that all the islands of the Pacific Ocean, however small or isolated, bear marks of having been visited and settled by the Malays in a period of time stretching 3,700 years or a little longer.
The hypothesis that south China or Taiwan was the origin of Malay civilisation has been hotly disputed by those who believe that the Malay Archipelago was, in reality, the birth place of Malay civilisation. The latter includes the scolar Wihelm Solheim. He insisted that the Malays had been living a culture of seafarers and traders, possessing sailing and navigational skills that enabled them to traverse the entire seas of the Malay Archipelago since 5,000 BC or 7,000 years ago.
According to Solheim, the specific place in the Malay Archipelago with the highest possibility of being the origin of the Malay people is the area where today is found the Bugis, Bajau and other Malay ethnic groups that have been very active seafarers and traders for ages in history. They have made the Sulu Seas, fringed with the large islands of Borneo (Kalimantan), Sulawesi and Mindanao, as the busiest seafaring area. They spread to the Pacific Ocean, starting from eastern Indonesia, before 5,000 BC. They moved north as traders through Philippines, Taiwan and southern China, reaching Korea and Japan. Solheim also believed that the Cham Malays who still occupy parts of Vietnam and Cambodia to this day had moved there from the Malay Archipelago after about 2,000 BC. Solheim also stated that the Malay language evolved in the Malay Archipelago at the end of the Ice Age when the Malay Archipelago took shape about 8,000 years ago. The latest research on this subject done by Oppenheimer strongly supported the hypothesis put forward by Solheim.
Ancient Chinese records written as early as 3rd Century AD mentioned “Kun Lun” people (ancient Chinese terminology for those coming by sea from the direction of Southeast Asia) conducting trade between east and west. Those records spoke about the boats used by the Malay traders. According to those records, the Malay boats were large, about 170 feet (51 meters) long. In the Polynesian islands of the south Pacific, the well known English voyager, Captain Cook, himself saw and recorded boats of about 108 feet (32 meters) which could carry 300 sailors. And there were reports stating “in the year 945 an Arab sailor suddenly came into a fleet of 1,000 Malay boats in the act of piracy in the straits of Mozambique” -A.M Jones, “Africa and Indonesia”, 1964, pg 187.
Malay boats used for trade and voyages to the Indian Ocean region were referred to in 1st Century BC records as “large boats built from two round trees that are merged (dua batang pokok kayu bulat yang dicantumkan)”, an image similar to the type used by the inhabitants of Polynesian islands. One Chinese record on the “Kun Lun” (Malay) ships in the 3rd Century mentioned the size as “200 feet long and 20 feet high from the sea water surface.” The Malay boats could carry 600 – 700 people, with cargo of up to 900 ton, and each could be fitted with up to four sails .
Kempen SSS 
Nothing mentioned about writer of the book. Also about the History Society. I think the average reader need to know how reliable is the book and the information in it. Thank you.
Andrea,
Based on what we know, the writer attended the Royal Military College and obtained a degree in Politics in a university in England. He was not an academician or taught at any university. What is important is that he had the background and a university discipline to do research and put up study papers. He served many years in the public sector and took years to do the research and complete his book, “The Malay Civilisation”.
He used the facts and arguments put out in books written by researchers, academicians and specialists in many discipline, including linguists, archaeologists, sociologists, and historians. He quoted them and provided references to those specialists and their written works. His book was published by The Historical Society of Malaysia, a respectable and reputable organisation equivalent to that which existed and was active during the British colonial period, The Royal Asiatic Society.
Articles in the Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society became regarded as historical materials; so do articles in The Historical Society publications. The book published by The Historical Society and the information in it is reliable.
In fact The Historical Society started druing British colonial times. It was formed in 1953, then named as The Historical Society of Malaya, with Dato Mahmud bin Mat as President, Dato Sir Tan Cheng Lok and Dato Thuraisingam as Vice Presidents (leading personalities of the time), and Council Members included Mubin Sheppard (an Englishman who became a Malaysian and a Muslim), the first Director of Muzium Negara. They provided views of the locals on then Malaya, unlike the Journal of the Malayan Branch of The Royal Asiatic Society (JMBRAS), which usually provided expatriate views. They produced The Malayan Historical Journal, later named Malaya (now Malaysia) In History.
Among academicians who had served on the journal publication were Professor Datuk Zainal Abidin Wahid of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Professor Tan Sri Khoo Kay Kim of Universiti Malaya, and those on the Executive Committee included Professor Datuk Mohd. Taib Othman of Universiti Malaya and Professor M.A Fawzi Bin Basri of Universiti Utara Malaysia.
Ini seronok baca. Tak pernah dengar masa dulu. Tak belajar ni semua disekolah. Saya tak pandai sangat bahasa Inggeris tapi dapat gambaran yang ditulis itu. Kalau gitu, sedara saya semua di negeri Jawa memang sama bangsa Melayu. Rumpun Melayu. Dulu disekolah kami segan sikit budak budak kata engaku Jawa, engkau Bugis, angkau Banjar. Sekarang semua sama. Satu rumpun. Orang Asli juga. Naik sikit semangat Melayu. Terima kasihlah tuan.
Imran,
Berbagai adigan dalam sejarah memecah belahkan bangsa dimerata dunia. Didalam sejarah moden bahana penjajahan negara-negara Barat dan pengaruh agama yang dibawa mereka menyebabkan kita tidak sedar bahawa, umpamanya, orang-orang Filipino yang beragama Kristian itu adalah bangsa Melayu dan serumpun dengan kita. Melayu diSemenanjung dan diSabah dan Sarawak yang menganut agama Islam sudah kelihatan terpisah dari Bumiputera lain yang menganut agama Kristian atau animisma. Pada hal, mengikut apa yang ditulis dibuku “Tamadun Alam Melayu” itu, kesemuanya dari Rumpun Melayu. Mudah-mudahan kita semua akan sedar dan terima hakikat Rumpun Melayu ini didalam masa berikutan supaya boleh membantu mengiratkan saliturahim dan semangat persaudaraan diantara kita. Justru, semangat itu akan memupuk keharmonian dan keamanan negara.
Masih ada lagi usaha-usaha memisahkan Rumpun Melayu ini sekarang, termasuk apa yang dilihat sebagai usaha keagamaan saperti menggunakan kalimah Allah bahru bahru ini. Maka tidak dapat kita berbincang panjang dalam perkara ini sebab kesnya dimahkamah masih belom selesai.
Dalam pada itu masih ada pemikiran budak-budak yang tidak menyenangkan sekarang, saperti disekolah diPerak, ada yang mengejek kanak-kanak pendatang Indonesia dengan menggunakan perkataan “Indon” kapada mereka. Sehingga ada kanak-kanak yang berhenti sekolah kerana tidak tahan diejek. Adalah diharapkan tidak banyak yang serupa ini. Sebaliknya, pekerja-pekerja Indonesia yang datang mencari makan diMalaysia didapati memanggil diri mereka sebagai “Indon” dengan bangganya. Begitulah sepatutnya. Mereka diistilahkan begitu dan kita diMalaysia perlu mengikut peruntukan diPerlembagaan negara berkenaan difinasi Melayu itu.
Dalam pada itu tidak salah kita berbangga bila mengtahui betapa luas penyebaran dan ramainya bangsa Melayu, saperti juga orang Cina dan India merasa demikian berkenaan bangsanya. Namun begitu, kita semua adalah orang Malaysia dan perlu juga berbangga sebagai rakyat Malaysia. Kita berharap dengan penulisan-penulisan tersebut diatas kaum-kaum lain akan mengtahui dan sedarkan sejarah dan tamadun alam Melayu dan kita saling menghormati diantara satu sama lain. Kita perlu ketepikan helah parti pembangkang yang sengaja mencari fasal dengan mengeksploitasi perkara sama ada “Melayu dulu” atau “Malaysia dulu” saperti yang diberitakan tempoh hari.
Why you write this articles? What pupose.
If you thinking like Maphilindo I read President Sukarno wanted, it wont happen. We OK as Malaysia and want it remain as Malaysia.
Steven,
As stated in the introductory part of this post, the write-ups on the Malay civilisation and the Malay language were put out in the hope of a better understanding of the 70% component of the country on the part of other Malaysians, and of mutual respect developing from that understanding. Mutual respect can foster harmonious relations, peace and progress so necessary for the achievement of Vision 2020, i.e a developed nation status by that year. We are glad that even Malays themselves now get a better understanding of their own race from those articles, as indicated in one comment just before this.
There is no political motive in putting out those articles, certainly not for the purpose of the creation of a wider political entity comprising of the territories now occupied by the family of Malays or the Rumpun Melayu in Southeast Asia. We at this Kempen SSS blog aim at the creation of a united and cohesive Bangsa Malaysia for the sake of lasting peace and prosperity in this country, and unity through the single-stream schooling or Satu Sekolah Untuk Semua (SSS) has been our declared and only objective.
From the records, Malindo (Malaysia + Indonesia) was the idea mooted by Sukarno of Indonesia during the time of the formation of Malaysia that he objected to in the early 1960s, that led to his “Confrontation”, an undeclared war against Malaysia. Indonesia then was facing deep economic difficulties, made worse by an active communist party, Partai Komunis Indonesia, and Sukarno appeared to want to distract the minds of his people from the problems at home by taking them to a foreign adventure. With Suharto coming into power, peace returned and the Indonesian economy recovered in leaps and bounds. Malaysia suffered the racial riots of 1969 but the economy, based on the New Economic Policy, was also bouncing, especially in the 1980s and, despite the Asian Financial Crisis some time later, the country prospered. The economy slackened again in the last several years and now the New Economic Model being discussed aims at reaching a developed nation status by 2020.
Maphilindo (Malaysia + Philippines + Indonesia) was suggested by Diasdado Macapagal, then President of the Philippines, during the time the idea of Malindo was bandied about in the newspapers. However, to our knowledge, it was not pursued at the level of official discussions among the three countries at that time.
We certainly need to focus on getting a developed nation status by 2020. However, there is a need to ensure that we do not rush to the extent of putting aside those elements of the NEP so important in bridging the huge gap in the economic and educational situation between the majority Bumiputeras and the 23% Chinese who control the economy of the country. The NEM must ensure that for long-term peace and uninterrupted progress.
We respect Malays but Malays must also respect us. Malays call us pendatang after we in this country for long time. After Merdeka we all citizens and now Malaysians and Malays still called us pendatang.
Didn’t you read the articles fully? Don’t you understand that the malays been in this area even 6,000 years ago? Why you still complaining about the word pendatang? You don’t understand Bahasa Malaysia dont you.
Steven,
The key words are mutual respect or respecting one another’s communities, respecting one another as fellow citizens and as human beings, including not using the word “tongkat” or crutches and the word “pendatang” if the intention is to demean the other person.
However, historically, it is now clear that the Malays have been in the Malay Archipelago for 5,000 – 6,000 years and in Malaya for at least 2,000 years if not more. It must be noted that the Orang Asli are also Malays – they have been referred to as Proto Malays whereas the Malays as defined by the Constitution have been referred to as Deutro Malays.
As far as we can recall, the word “pendatang” became an issue when a Malay politician used it to refer to the non-Malays in Penang who had been frequently anti-Malay in their stand and who even wanted the communist terrorist leader Chin Peng be allowed to enter and die in Malaysia. Perhaps that was a tit for tat and, when not merely trying to state facts, we all should avoid the tit in order not to bring about the tat.
Mengapa tidak boleh menulis rencana-rencana itu? Mengapa menanya seolah-olah salah mereka buat demikian? Melayu sekarang sudah banyak yang mahu bersuara. Mereka mesti dibolehkan bersuara dan digalakkan bersuara dalam lingkungan undang-undang. Mereka mahu memajukan kepentingan mereka. Tidak boleh satu hala atau satu kumpulan sahaja yang banyak bersuara.
Jika konsep Malindo atau Maphilindo mendapat sokongan ramai, pungutan suara boleh dilakukan dan tindakan sewajarnya dijalankan. Asalkan tidak bertujuan menjatuhkan Kerajaan secara diluar Perlembangaan.
Perwira,
Memang dijangka ada yang akan menanya mengapa rencana-rencana itu dikeluarkan. Ada yang sensitif berkenaan Malindo atau Maphilindo. Mereka harus tahu bahawa selagi hak dan kepentingan Melayu tidak dipertikaikan, tidak diungkitkan – dan jangan sekali coba diperso’alkan – selagi itu tidak ada Melayu akan melaungkan apa-apa yang merupakan mahu gugusan politik Melayu Asia Tenggara. Penulisan-penulisan tersebut diatas hanya untuk mendapatkan faham memahami latar belakang budaya dan tamadun Melayu. Terutamanya bagi memahami mengapa Melayu belom dapat mencapai kekayaan dan kedudukan disegala bidang professional sebagaimana disebut diDasar Ekonomi Bahru dan mengapa ciri-ciri DEB mesti dimasukkan dengan nyata di Model Ekonomi Bahru. Hanya untuk harmoni dan keamanan jangka masa panjang. Saperti tujuan sistem sekolah satu aliran atau Satu Sekolah Untuk Semua (SSS).
Orang Melayu memang perlu bersuara dan mengeluarkan suara sebanyak mana dan sebagaimana selalu yang boleh. Dimana-mana tempat sekali pun. Orang bukan Melayu mengeluarkan berbagai kata kata di akhbar, dialam citra, dimassa udara (radio, TV dan sebagainya). Orang Cina mempunyai banyak wang dan diberi banyak lesen surat khabar dan sebagainya. Ada Sin Chew, Nanyang Siang Pao, The Star, The Sun didalam bahasa Cina dan bahasa Inggeris dan berbagai saluran radio dan TV. Pihak-pihak pembangkang yang kebanyakannya Cina mempunyai berbagai laman citra yang bermodal besar, siap dengan pemberita dan penulis yang berkerja sepenuh masa dan dibayar gaji. Ada Malaysian Insider, Malaysia Today, Malaysiakini dan sebaginya yang mengeluarkan suara atau pendirian bukan Melayu dengan lantang dan gampang sekali.
Banyak juga Melayu yang tidak tahu latar belakang bangsanya sendiri, ada yang tahu sedikit sebanyak sejarah bangsanya tapi berpendirian dan bertindak saperti kacang lupakan kulit. Malah ada yang menjadi pengkhianat bangsa, sama ada atas desakan kuasa politik atau kononnya “liberal”, “confident woman” dan sebagainya, pada hal mereka hanya “pseudo liberal” atau “liberal separuh masak”. Mereka tidak sedarkan bahawa Amerika Syarikat pun masih melaksanakan tahanan tanpa bicara diGuantanamo Bay dan perbezaan layanan berdasarkan warna kulit masih berlaku diantara orang kulit putih, kulit hitam, Hispanics, orang Asia dan sebagainya disana.
Maka orang Melayu diMalaysia serba kekurangan. Selalu dikatakan berbagai macam, termasuk malas, bertongkat dan sebagainya. Hakikatnya, orang Melayu dan Bumiputera diSabah dan Sarawak kekurangan wang, mundur dari segi ekonomi dan pelajaran. Mahu beli komputer pun susah. Mana yang ada komupter dikampong dan dibandar untuk pelajaran anak-anaknya, tidak cukup wang membayar kemudahan Internet tiap-tiap bulan. Walau pun ada hampir 70% Melayu dan Bumiputera, penyertaan mereka diInternet amat sedikit dibandingkan dengan orang Cina yang hanya 23% penduduk diMalaysia ini. Maka melanda-landalah keritik terhadap bangsa Melayu, pemimpin Melayu, pemegang teraju pemerintahan Melayu, komplen perkataan pendatang dan sebagainya.
Dengan yang demikian, diharap rencana rencana tersebut diatas dapat memberi mereka gambaran yang sewajarnya berkenaan budaya dan tamadun Melayu, sebab-sebab Melayu dan Bumiputera diSabah dan Sarawak mundur ekonomi dan pelajaran – selain dari ditindas dan dianaktirikan penjajah kolonial British selama 80 tahun pemerintahan mereka.
How to become developed nation fast and become strong? America become strongest country in the world only after few hundred years. America also has many races. India and China many thousand years only now coming up. Both only one race country. Can Malaysia become strong country?
Prashad,
Those appear to be pretty loaded questions you are asking. Despite not being experts at them, we will try to give our views to the best of our ability. Hopefully one or two experts may like to chip in as we go along in the discussion on this subject.
The economists will argue from the angle of sound economic policies, the sociologists will talk about norms of behaviour and social values of the citizens, the historians will point out the mistakes of the past that we must avoid in the future, and yet others will say respect the Constitution as there must be peace and stability for foreign investors to come in bringing all sorts of advanced technology.
Technology it is that has made countries develop fast and become strong. A country must have a good spread of home-grown pool of people that can develop and improve technology in the various fields continuously. The education policy of the country, the courses offered at the various universities, plays an important role in this. The US smuggled into their country many of the German scientists at the end of World War II and they have played a significant part in the rapid advancement in technology in the country, together with their home-grown specialists of various kinds. The German World War II rocket specialists brought into the US contributed a lot to the US space and aerial defence programmes.
As far as military strength is concerned, some hold the view that aerial superiority – which now includes Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAVs – means the ultimate. In this regard, Malaysia has not been quiet – the blog BigDog.com mentioned about UAVs being tested from time to time in this country by big companies in conjunction with the Ministry of Defence. Of course, aircraft manufacture is still at an infancy stage – the joint Malaysia-Indonesia attempt at manufacturing helicopters for military use has not reached the stage of producing extremely effective combat helicopters of the type used by US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan now. But perhaps we are on the right track, spending time and money on UAVs, because it is possible that in future wars are fought less and less with human pilots but with specialists manning computer keyboards on the ground.
But military strength is not the only consideration in this day and age. And we need to look at the lengthy subject of a country’s strength in other aspects, and the methods of reaching a developed nation status in a speedy manner, in our follow-up comments in due course.
They say India and China both about 5,000 years old, conquered or colonised, now over 1.2 billion people each, started becoming strong only 1-2 decades ago.
Why do these people use the terminology “Proto-Malays”, “Deutero- Malays”, “Malayo-Polynesia”, “Austronesia” etc, when they all mean Malays. I suppose they want to distinguish the groups who existed over so long a period of time, so vast an area of land and seas – the writer said longer than the width of mainland China.
Interesting also the theories on where the Malays actually originated from. What is clear is that they originate from the islands known as the Malay Archipelago, not from Yunnan or the Asian mainland. The Campa Malays, whose descendants still exist in Vietnam and Cambodia in places like Kompong Cam, started to settle those areas after about 2,000 BC whereas the Malays are said to have existed 5,000 – 6,000 years ago.
That the Bugis were among the earliest of the Malays is of interest to me. The Bugis were very good in ship building and still are to this day. We can still find old Bugis kampong folks who speak of their young days 40-50 years ago in the jungles of Kalimantan cutting suitable timber, hauling them to the seaside and constructing sailing ships that ply the coasts of Kalimantan, Sabah and Sarawak, and the Sulu Seas. I believe such boat construction is still going on to this day. And of course, diesel engines have reinforced the sails of yester years.
Aku,
There are those who wish to portray the image that the Malays come from Yunnan or perhaps from the areas where those who had settled south China moved to when displaced by the Chinese who originally settled only the northern part of China – areas north of the Yangtse River. Those were the Tai and Miao people who now largely occupy Indo China countries. These people were said to have migrated south to the Malay Peninsular and then to the islands of the Malay Archipelago.
That idea or theory is not consistent with the findings of experts as stated in the book, “The Malay Civilisation”, published by The Historical Society of Malaysia. The Malay civilisation was generally as old as 5,000 – 6,000 years (even up to 8,000 years old according to one theory) and the origin of the Malays was the Malay Archipelago, not Yunan. DNA studies may have linked the Malays with those of Yunan but they are not backed by linguistic, archaeological and other scientific studies carried out since the 19th Century, and especially those carried out in the latter part of the 20th Century, involving carbon dating and other scientific methods.
Why talking restructuring society. Now 40 years done NEP. Malays on tongkat very long. Chinese wanted tongkat also Many Chinese poor in kampongs and in small towns. So many have no car only old motobikes. Children school clothes only one have to wash every day. So give equal opportunities la and NEM is good. So long already we now equal ma.
Kit,
Tun Dr Mahathir in a current post in his blog talks about the Malays on crutches and Article 153 of the Constitution allowing that. The Malays were left behind very far from the Chinese after 80 years of British rule. The British assisted the Chinese with mining land leases, mining licenses, and licenses for all sorts of easy money making like lotteries, gambling, and licenses for rubber trading, etc. They did not assist or even encourage the Malays to do business. They built all sorts of schools, including English schools, in the towns, at primary and secondary levels. But they built only Malay schools in the kampongs where most Malays live, very far in between the kampongs and only at primary level – the Malays had only four years of education because the British wanted them to continue being padi planters and fishermen.
The Malays did not have a culture of doing business, for thousands of years did only barter trading i.e exchange of goods not buying and selling based on weights and measures, not taking profits or accumulating wealth. So, even the 30% corporate wealth accumulation under the NEP takes a long time. You cannot blame the Malays for taking longer than the time stated in the NEP because that period was fixed by the inexperienced Malays themselves and not even the Chinese can estimate accurately the time taken because nobody has done it before.
NEM will help the 40% low income people no matter what race they are. But the NEP benefits for the Malays must continue in the NEM because there is Article 153 on the Special Position of the Malays. The non-Malays must not grudge that because that was in exchange for citizenship, which they already have got and their descendants will continue to get.
Waaaah, sedap nya cerita kali ni. Sampai 7 – 8,000 tahun cerita Melayu ni rupanya. Samapi keTaiwan, Hawai dan New Zealand pulaknya. Aku ingat sampai keIndonesia, Philipine saja. Dulu ada dengar juga pasal orang pulau Polynesia. Tapi dema kulit hitam sikit, ingatkan bukan Melayu. Ini ada pakar bahasalah, pakar arkeolojilah, macam macam pakar dah kaji.
Baguihlah mike me tulis semua ni. Jangan marah teman rasa nak cakap oghang Perak kali ni, sebab ada beribu bahasa Melayu mike me cakap tu.
Bila baca semua ni tak patut le kalau dema tak hormatkan orang Melayu. Banyak yang politik celaka tu yang kurang ajor. Dulu sampai baring dijalan halang Raja Muda Perak kami nak lalu pulak. Yang bukan Melayu tu sudah lah. Yang pakai kain dengan ketayap pun tak sedar diri. Dema tu biadap. Suruh dema baca yang mike me tulih ni banyak banyak.
Sayong,
Kami tidak ada kepakaran didalam perkara ini tetapi kulit maanusia menjadi gelap (skin pigmentation) saperti orang dikepulauan Polynesia boleh juga disebabkan oleh dedahan kapada matahari dan makanan (diet). Lihat sahaja orang kulit putih yang dahulu suka “mandi matahari” (sunbathing) dan mendapat “sun tan” sehinggakan itu menjadi tanda taraf (status symbol) diEropah dan Amerika – sehingga masa mereka dapat tahu itu boleh menyebabkan kanser kulit. Begitu juga hal penyanyi kulit hitam Michael Jackson yang melakui proses pemutihan kulit melalui ubat dan sebagainya. Sekarang ada banyak orang yang berwarna gelap mahukan kulit yang cerah – mungkin termasuk juara tennis adik beradik Williams.
Apa yang diceritakan dibuku Tamadun Alam Melayu itu berdasarkan kajian-kajian berbagai jenis pakar dan boleh dipercayai. Penerbit buku itu ialah Persatuan Sejarah Malaysia yang telah ditubuhkan sejak zaman pemerintahan British, ahli-ahli Jawatankuasa Kerjanya termasuk Professor-Professor dan mereka yang berkelulusan dan bertauliah didalam bidang Sejarah dan pengajian Melayu.
Masih banyak lagi orang yang memikirkan Melayu ini hanya 2,000 tahun sahaja sejarahnya. Disana sini ada yang menuliskan kebanggaan orang Cina mempunya sejarah yang bercatit 3,000 tahun dan sejarah mengikut kajian arkeoloji sehingga 5,000 tahun. Maka diharap maalumat didalam buku itu boleh mendatangkan saling hormat menghormati diantara kaum diMalaysia ini, terutamanya mereka yang berpolitik perkauman.
Bercakap pasal Bahasa Melayu, nak petik sikit tulisan Rejal Arbee yang saya ceduk dari sini:-
“…Bila bahasa kebangsaan sendiri pun diabaikan. Inikah dikatakan warga yang berbangga menjadi rakyat Malaysia?…”
“…Bagaimana pula dengan pengerusi akhbar China yang berucap dalam bahasa Mandarin dalam satu upacara ulang tahun akhbar itu dengan Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Razak menjadi tetamu kehormat. Sepatah pun bahasa Melayu tidak digunakannya…”
Berpandukan petikan di atas, boleh ke saya simpulkan bahawa:-
Perdana Menteri Malaysia sendiri mengabai Bahasa Kebangsaan jadi, dia bukanlah seorang warga yang bangga menjadi rakyat Malaysia.
Tak leh simpulkan gitu? Ahakkss !! Tak pe lerr !!!
Habis tu PM tu jadi tetamu kehormat majlis cina di atas BUMI MALAYSIA ni, tu apa pulak kejadahnya ?!!! Suka sangatke PM (yang juga PRESIDEN parti politik ORANG MELAYU) dgn bahasa cina tu?
antumalay,
Sejak memegang jawatan PM, DS Najib nampak banyak melebihkan perhatian kapada kepentingan bukan Melayu, khasnya Cina. Liberalisasi ekonominya dikatakan bertujuan menarik pelaburan asing dan memulihkan ekonomi negara banyak menyenangkan hati kaum Cina sebab mereka yang memegang teraju perniagaan dan mengawal ekonmi sehingga sekarang. Dia telah memberi wang Kerajaan kapada sekolah Cina sejak belom menjadi PM lagi – diPRUK Kuala Trengganu.
Sebagai PM, dia melawat sekolah Cina dan mengumumkan sistem persekolahan yang menggunakan bahasa Mandarin sebagai bahasa pengantar itu boleh diteruskan, walau pun sistem sekolah satu aliran atau Satu Sekolah Untuk Semua (SSS) dibincangkan diParlimen tidak lama sebelom itu. Dia bermakan malam disuatu sekolah Cina sehinggakan Rang Peruntukan Kewangan (Budget)nya nyaris nyaris tidak lulus – akhirnya lulus dengan 2-3 undi sahaja diParlimen. Dia menghadziri majlis makan malam yang dianjurkan persatuan peniaga-peniaga Cina. Model Ekonomi Bahrunya yang sedang dibincangkan sekarang mencadangkan penubuhan Suruhanjaya Peluang Samarata yang banyak menyenangkan hati orang Cina, walau pun Perlembagaan negara ada Artikel 153 berkenaan Kedudukan Istimewa Melayu.
Mungkin kekalahan besar diPilihan Raya Umum 12 (dimasa dia TPM) menyebabkan dia sangat mengejarkan undi bukan Melayu, terutamanya kaum Cina. Jika demikian, so’alnya ialah sama ada tindakan-tindakannya itu berlebihan sangat mementingkan kaum Cina. Masakan tidak kelihatan tindakannya yang memajukan kepentingan Melayu melainkan penubuhan Ekuinas yang tidak banyak diberitakan sejak pengumumannya. Perkasa dan 76 Badan Bukan Kerajaan (NGO) Melayu telah bersuara meminta dia melebihkan perhatian kapada kepentingan Melayu. Betul tidak politiknya akan dapat dibayangkan diPRUK Hulu Selangor nanti. Majlis Tertinggi UMNO boleh memberi teguran yang bermakna kapadanya dimasa yang sesuai dan perwakilan UMNO boleh menentukan kedudukannya sebagai Presiden parti diMesyuarat Agong akan datang. Berharaplah kita dia melebih pentingkan bangsanya sendiri dan konsep 1Malaysia itu tidak bermakna mengabaikan kepentingan bangsa sendiri. Malaysia terdiri dari berbagai bangsa dan 1Malaysia boleh timbul dengan menjaga kepentingan semua bangsa selaras dengan demografi penduduk dinegara ini.
How to say Bumiputera of Sabah and Sarawak are Malays. The Constitution say Malays are Muslims. You say Rumpun Melayu is so far. You mean Hawai Americans and Maori N Zealand also Rumpun Melayu?
James,
The definition of Malays under the Constitution is different from the definition of Malays as a race. The Malay leaders in the then Malaya had been so generous – perhaps in the haste of getting independence from the British – as to agree to a rather simple definition and it can now accomodate anyone who is Muslim, speaks the Malay language (Bahasa Malaysia) and follows the Malay way of life. What constitutes the Malay ay of life or culture is not defined in great detail in the Constitution. By and large, present-day Malays do not seem to mind all those and have hoped that such a definition is not exploited by those calling themselves Malay but may not be Malay in spirit, hopes and aspirations.
The Bumiputeras (sons of the soil) of Sabah and Sarawak may not be Malays according to the Constitution but they are of the Malay stock (Rumpun Melayu) according to the researches and studies by done by experts in the various fields, including linguists, archaeologists and other scientists since the 19th Century. What is important is that, under the Constitution, they have the same status as the Malays and are included under Article 153, which has been referred to as the Special Position of the Malays and the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak.
It is true that the Hawaian natives and the New Zealand Maoris are also of the Malay stock just as there are Australians, Americans and others being of the Anglo-Saxon stock, or Americans, British and Malaysians are of Chinese or Indian stock.
Since the Malays are 5,000 – 6,000 years old, why their number is only 350 million, not over 1 billion like the Chinese and Indians are? Maybe it’s because they are seafaring, not much space on the perahus, or the Malay boats. Even on large ships, there is not much privacy like there is on land. Maybe also not knowing much about medicine.
Izham,
Not being experts, we can only venture our opinion on the question you asked. We agree with the reasons you gave. Wars, revolts and rebellions have taken a lot of lives of people permanently settled on land. The seas must have taken its toll on seafaring people who moved from place to place over the thousands of years. Wars have also occurred among people of the seas. The Srivijaya and Majapahit Empires, as well as the Malacca Empire, had engaged in wars across the seas in the Malay Archipelago.
Diet might have been another factor. We have yet to come across studies on the staple food of the Malays thousands of years ago. Grains like rice are cultivated only on land. There might have been problems of adequacy, malnutrition and diseases. Those settled on river banks might have planted grains only sufficient to sustain their own communities. Trading or business by way profit-taking and wealth accumulation had not been the Malay way of life, hence the idea of planting extra rice to sell and make money was simply non existent. However, the reasons for the much smaller population size among the Malays compared to the Chinese and Indians stated above are mere conjectures on our part.
Different styles, different ways of life, different culture. It would be very difficult to achieve unity. A lot of lip service about unity but not living the talk of unity. The politicians, the political parties all exploiting situations to get votes. Some more racist than others.
The Bumiputeras are just trying to learn making profit as a way of life, doing business, accumulating wealth. Their forefathers never did, didn’t have that way of life, that culture. It will take a long time, now have only 18% corporate wealth. Yet the Chinese already talking all sorts, making fun, DAP followers saying crutches, anaktiri, etc. Now Najib wants to please them because 2008 elections were bad for BN. NEM talks Equal Opportunities. How equal when Bumis have only 18% wealth. How to get unity like that.
abda,
Te most important thing is the difference in values among the various communities. The Chinese are driven by the need to have more, to accumulate wealth, to do business and make profits. True, the Malays have just started to do business, to learn to make profits and accumulate wealth since the 1970s and the New Economic Policy. Business is competition, often driven by “the killer instinct’ – you kill your competitor to survive and excel, like in the West – and it’s a huge effort for the Malays and the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak to try and catch up with the Chinese. Despite NEP, the Malays managed to acquire only 18% corporate wealth after 40 years.
If there is no spirit of understanding and co-operation shown by the Chinese, who has been controlling the economy until now, the Malays and the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak can only hope for the Government to continue assisting them under policies akin to the NEP. That co-operation cannot be expected because of the Chinese club-like system of exclusivity of doing business that the American researcher spoke about in the second article of the previous post in this blog. The Malays and the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak, who form 70% of the population of the country, need those NEP facilities to continue under the New Economic Model. The Equal Opportunities Commission proposed under the NEM appears to run contrary to the Special Position of the Malays and the Bumiputeras and would likely retard the restructuring of society and the bridging of the huge gap they have economically and educationally compared to the Chinese. Unless the NEM ensures that these are rectified, long-term unity and 1Malaysia may not be achieved.
It says
“The Malay race is a large, ancient family of many groups, each group having its own name, like Aceh, Bajau, Bidayuh, Bugis, Chamorro, Iban, Ifugao, Kadazan, Maori, Merina, Suluk, etc. They may therefore be known as Achenese Malay, Bajau Malay, Bidayuh Malay and so on.”
If the Iban, Kadazan, and other non-Muslim Bumiputeras are all of the same Rumpun Melayu, how do we sort out the religious differences? What do we do with the definition of Malays in the Perlembagaan? I hope we can go on as we are, respecting one another as members of the same family – the family of Malays and of Malaysia.
Anak Bapak,
The religious differences need not be sorted out as the people must be allowed to choose their religious beliefs. The various groups can continue to go on as they are, practising the religion their forefathers have chosen. No religious or missionary groups should attempt to convert them one way or another and recently the issue over the use of the term Allah has created problems in the country. They are of the Rumpun Melayu irrespective of their religion. They are known as the Bumiputeras of Sabah and Sarawak just as the Malays are Bumiputeras as well, mainly in Peninsular Malaysia. They are not called Malays as defined in the Constitution but they also enjoy the benefits of the Special Position under Article 153 of the Constitution.
Similarly, nothing should be done with the definition of the Malays under the Constitution. That definition was deliberated and discussed by the leaders at the time of getting independence from the British. There has been no real problem pertaining to the definition.
Salam SSS Admin,
Ribuan tahun menjadi tuan di tanah sendiri… masuk samseng cina Hai san dan Ghee hin, bermulalah penaklukan secara halus hak dan kepentingan Melayu keatas tanahairnya.
Kalaulah datuk moyang dari ribuan tahun dulu tu melihat bagaimana ribuan tahun punya amanah yang diturunkan dari satu generasi ke generasi lain kini berdepan dengan risiko dipindah milik secara total kepada bangsa lain, mengamuk sakanlah diorang !
Hmmm… boleh buat filem tu, ada mesej yang jelas dan kuat. Jutaan zombi yang mewakili datuk moyang Melayu bangkit dan beramai2 berkumpul di Putrajaya menuntut dikembalikan hak orang Melayu.
Menteri Amaran akan hunus keris….. beri amaran
PM akan bersalam ngan ketua mereka dan janji macam2…
Menteri Penerangan kelam kabut cari kamera nak rakam PM..
Menteri Botak menanti siapa yang menang, setia menunggu arahan dari pemenang
Bini PM – rambut tegak cacak… sempat fikir nak ajak anak2 zombi masuk program Permata
Dap – lama dah cabut lari, basuh pinggan kat restoran di UK, Ostrolia
dinturtle,
Bila samseng masuk, keadaan boleh jadi porak peranda. DiLarut dipertengahan abad 19, samseng yang dibawah nama dua kongsi gelap mulanya bergaduh menyebabkan berpuluhan mati diantara mereka dan menyebabkan pembakaran dan tawanan lombong bijih timah puak lain. Sehingga “Manteri Laroot” Ngah Ibrahim memanggil 400 orang Melayu (yang dipercayaai termasuk pelombong Melayu) dan 1,000 orang kongsi gelap Hai San berlawan dengan kongsi gelap Ghee Hin. Melayu terlibat dalam apa yang telah dipanggil Peperangan Laru 1, 2, dan 3. Akhirnya kongsi gelap, penjahat dan gengster menguasai perindustrian perlombongan dan 350 lombong bijih Melayu tidak kedengaran lagi. Begitu juga keadaannya diSelangor yang sejarahnya penuh dengan kegiatan kongsi gelap Hai San dan Ghee Hin.
Maka gejala kongsi gelap, penjahat dan gengster ini masih ada lagi sekarang. Seorang ADUN PKR Selangor dan seorang Wakil Rakyat PKR hanya beberapa bulan yang lalu telah menohmah Exco DAP Selangor membuat perhubungan dengan “Underworld” diIbupejabat Kerajaan Selangor itu sendiri. Ini menakjubkan. Institusi kongsi gelap ini timbul dinegeri Cina untuk melawan dan menjatuhkan pemerintahan kuasa asing Manchu yang menawan dan memerintah negeri Cina beratus tahun sehingga awal abad 20 (Manchuria menjadi sebahagian negeri Cina hanya salepas Perang Dunia ke2). Apakah gejala itu memainkan peranan dalam mereka mendapatkan kuasa diSelangor? Begitu juga diPenang?
“The hypothesis that south China or Taiwan was the origin of Malay civilisation has been hotly disputed by those who believe that the Malay Archipelago was, in reality, the birth place of Malay civilisation.”
Teori dari Taiwan sudah dipendamkan oleh penemuan terbaru dari kajian DNA seperti di link.
New DNA evidence overturns population migration theory in Island Southeast Asia
http://www.physorg.com/news130761648.html
Mengikut penemuan DNA, orang Melayu berasal dari Borneo dan orang Taiwan itu (orang asli Taiwan (native), bukan Cina Taiwan) berasal dari orang Melayu bukan sebaliknya. Dari mana orang Borneo berasal? Perlu lebih kajian lagi. Tapi yang pasti bukan dari Taiwan.
Hee,
Terima kasih diatas link yang berikan.
Baguslah penemuan DNA bahawa orang Melayu berasal dari Borneo itu tidak jauh bezanya dengan pendapat yang mengatakan bahawa tempat asal Melayu ialah dikawasan yang didiami orang Suluk, Bugis dan Bajau dan lain-lain etnik Melayu, yang melibatkan pantai pulau besar Borneo.
Didalam buku “Tamadun Alam Melayu” yang diterbitkan oleh Persatuan Sejarah Malaysia itu, Mohd Arof Ishak menyebut tafsiran Professor Wilhelm Solheim, ahli antropologi Universiti Hawai, bahawa “tempat khusus diKepulauan Melayu yang paling berkemungkinan sekali tempat asal orang Melayu adalah dikawasan dimana terdapatnya pada hari ini orang Bugis, Bajau dan kumpulan etnik Melayu yang lain … Mereka telah menjadikan laut Sulu yang dipinggiri oleh pulau-pulau besar Borneo (Kalimantan), Sulawesi dan Mindanao sebagai kawasan pelaut yang paling sibuk sekali.” – ms 96.
Istilah “Melayu” merangkumi “Malayo Polynesians” dan “Austronesians”, juga “Proto Malays” dan “Deutero Malays”. Maka sukubangsa Bajau, Bidayuh, Iban, Kadazan dan lain-lain di Sabah dan Sarawak dimasukkan kedalam keluarga besar Melayu dan dikenali juga sebagai Rumpun Melayu yang telah wujud 6,000 tahun atau lebih – ms 8.
INFO YANG BERMANFAAT…TRIMS