One of the usual 'tea-tarik' topics, more common than 'are you migrating?' and definitely more relevant than 'where are you migrating?' is 'when are you migrating?'
Anywhere seems better than this place; be it Australia, Singapore, the US, Europe even China and Thailand. As long as discrimination isn't part of the constitutions and even opportunities are promised.
Not all of us can go. Obviously some of us are luckier than the average Malaysian. In my last discussion with a migratory hopeful, a finance grad who seems to have his head screwed on thinks he would be able to save over a million ringgit on education alone on his 2 children if he could obtain an Australian citizenship.
Even if it is not about saving money, it's a common fact that unless you're wealthy enough to send your kids to an International school, Singapore's level of education far exceeds ours.
Migration is not only for the non-Malays, I know of several Malays who has either migrated or are planning to. After all, the NEP's unfair discriminatory policies have only mainly benefited the elites and friends of those in power. Another interesting fact is you don't find the well connected non-Malays, those close to the people in power ever objecting the NEP. An observation that supports the paradoxical idea of the racial discriminatory NEP policies, in practise, has no racial boundaries when it comes to the beneficiary and clearly benefits only those in power.
In the extremities of it, there are those amongst us who wouldn't want to start a family yet because they don't want their children growing up in a system rife with corruption, where their child will grow up thinking racial discrimination is part of life and experience a system that doesn't practice meritocracy.
There are countless reasons for migrating, we are all too familiar with the reasons. This is not the time for this but there is something more urgent. Its about our general elections, particularly the one on th 8th of March 2008.
When I hear Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Tony Pua and other opposition speakers talking about our eroding standards in education, environment, racial harmony and economy and their pledge and plans to fix it; I have hope. For once, there's an alternative to migrating. If we really vote these folks into power and if these problems are addressed, there's genuine hope for all of us. clearly, a more practical alternative to migrating. After all, how many of us can actually afford to migrate even if we wanted to? At last, the issue of migration, as it should be, would be a matter of 'where would we like to migrate to?' as opposed to 'we have to migrate'. Subtle, yet very distinctively important.
What has these two topics got to do with each other? Everything! I had the opportunity to speak to one of the inner circles of the opposition camp (at least that's what I would like to believe) about this elections and the one thing that made writing this so urgent was when he squarely faced me with unblinking eyes he said, "if we aren't able to deny BN their 2/3 majority, get out! Just migrate, there's not point staying here anymore."
We have put one of our best effort, its one of the best timing and opportunity, where the BN is the weakest and sentiments are not in their favor. If we still don't win, its either the majority of the people don't want to be helped or the election system is so wrong that we'll never be able to win. Either way, its the acid test and what I imagine this as the election of my lifetime.
So if we lose this election, and unless you're hoping for a military coupe like in Thailand recently, the next big question after the election at our favorite mamak stalls should be 'when are you migrating?'
--
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
(Edmund Burke)
Anywhere seems better than this place; be it Australia, Singapore, the US, Europe even China and Thailand. As long as discrimination isn't part of the constitutions and even opportunities are promised.
Not all of us can go. Obviously some of us are luckier than the average Malaysian. In my last discussion with a migratory hopeful, a finance grad who seems to have his head screwed on thinks he would be able to save over a million ringgit on education alone on his 2 children if he could obtain an Australian citizenship.
Even if it is not about saving money, it's a common fact that unless you're wealthy enough to send your kids to an International school, Singapore's level of education far exceeds ours.
Migration is not only for the non-Malays, I know of several Malays who has either migrated or are planning to. After all, the NEP's unfair discriminatory policies have only mainly benefited the elites and friends of those in power. Another interesting fact is you don't find the well connected non-Malays, those close to the people in power ever objecting the NEP. An observation that supports the paradoxical idea of the racial discriminatory NEP policies, in practise, has no racial boundaries when it comes to the beneficiary and clearly benefits only those in power.
In the extremities of it, there are those amongst us who wouldn't want to start a family yet because they don't want their children growing up in a system rife with corruption, where their child will grow up thinking racial discrimination is part of life and experience a system that doesn't practice meritocracy.
There are countless reasons for migrating, we are all too familiar with the reasons. This is not the time for this but there is something more urgent. Its about our general elections, particularly the one on th 8th of March 2008.
When I hear Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Tony Pua and other opposition speakers talking about our eroding standards in education, environment, racial harmony and economy and their pledge and plans to fix it; I have hope. For once, there's an alternative to migrating. If we really vote these folks into power and if these problems are addressed, there's genuine hope for all of us. clearly, a more practical alternative to migrating. After all, how many of us can actually afford to migrate even if we wanted to? At last, the issue of migration, as it should be, would be a matter of 'where would we like to migrate to?' as opposed to 'we have to migrate'. Subtle, yet very distinctively important.
What has these two topics got to do with each other? Everything! I had the opportunity to speak to one of the inner circles of the opposition camp (at least that's what I would like to believe) about this elections and the one thing that made writing this so urgent was when he squarely faced me with unblinking eyes he said, "if we aren't able to deny BN their 2/3 majority, get out! Just migrate, there's not point staying here anymore."
We have put one of our best effort, its one of the best timing and opportunity, where the BN is the weakest and sentiments are not in their favor. If we still don't win, its either the majority of the people don't want to be helped or the election system is so wrong that we'll never be able to win. Either way, its the acid test and what I imagine this as the election of my lifetime.
So if we lose this election, and unless you're hoping for a military coupe like in Thailand recently, the next big question after the election at our favorite mamak stalls should be 'when are you migrating?'
--
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
(Edmund Burke)
