September 2, 2012
Comment: The article below appeared in the Star on August 21. A little dated, but it was a topic of last Friday’s khutbah, which a dear friend and ex-Sime Darby colleague, Taib Wahab and I heard at Majid Al-Taqwa in the affluent Taman Tun Dr. Ismail. If there is such a thing as a political khutbah, the one we heard at last Friday’s prayers is certainly one.
What struck me last Friday at Majid Al-Taqwa was that the words Kerajaan (meaning UMNO) and Negara were used interchangeably. The implication is that if one is critical of, or perceived to be opposing, Kerajaan, one is unpatriotic. Nothing can be further than the truth.
Kerajaan is made of a cabinet of individual Members of Parliament from the party which wins the most seats in an election, and institutions of governance. The Leader of that party is then invited by DYMM Yang DiPertuan Agong to form the Kerajaan and becomes Prime Minister. Kerajaan can change if we as a people choose to do so.
Negara is different. Malaysia is Malaysia. It is you and I united as a people who uphold our constitution and pledge our loyalty to the Malay Rulers as represented by DYMM Yang Di-Pertuan Agong. As a concept, Malaysia is unchanging, although its landscape changes with socio-economic development.
If we can see the distinction, we know that we can be patriotic towards our country and yet disagree with our government over policy and approach. We are all patriots because we love our country and will put our lives on the line to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. But we may have different political beliefs, and can disagree with Kerajaan of the day .
It is a fallacy to think that Government equals UMNO-BN equals Country. We must break this habit of mind, and only then we can move forward.–Din Merican
True Malaysians and Patriotism
IKIM VIEWS
by Enizahura Abdul Aziz,
Senior Research Officer,
Centre for Shariah, Law and Politics, IKIM
IN the midst of the excitement in celebrating Aidilfitri, one must not forget another forthcoming celebration — Merdeka Day. While the former rejoices the spiritual journey and striving in the way of God during the month of Ramadan, the latter calls for every citizen to commemorate the feeling of love towards the country and be thankful over the nation’s independence enjoyed over the past 55 years.
Why does a country’s independence matter? When we look around us today and see the physical and social development that has rapidly taken place, we need to appreciate the freedom that we have been enjoying in determining our own path and future.
Compare this to a situation where we could not make decisions on what was best for us as a nation but had to succumb to the will of a colonial master. With this realisation, a sense of appreciation must be demonstrated in various ways during the Merdeka Day celebration.
It is thus imperative to have in us a strong spirit of patriotism.Patriotism is generally defined as the feeling of love or devotion to one’s country. When we claim to be patriotic, what do we actually mean?
One must realise that being patriotic should not be limited to only putting up a flag or merely standing up for the national anthem. The spirit of patriotism entails a deeper reason for these actions.
Being patriotic also requires a feeling of wanting what is best for the nation
and doing things that would make the nation proud.So, when we hope for a gold medal in the Olympics, a win in an international football tournament or feel exuberant when the first Malaysian astronaut boarded the International Space Station, we are actually taking pride in the country’s success.
This pride and hope are a form of patriotism, as is supporting the good qualities and ideals of the country and striving to mitigate its negative ones.
Patriotism also implies feelings of solidarity and mutual responsibility among people of different ethnicities and religious backgrounds. A multi-racial and multi-religious nation like Malaysia needs to find commonalities due to the differences that exist among the various groups.
Therefore, through the spirit of patriotism and love for the nation, these differences can be transcended, thus allowing a strong basis for consensus among the citizens. For Malaysia, this form of solidarity is central.
In Islam, being patriotic or having a love of one’s country is highly encouraged. A renowned Muslim thinker and activist who might have been thought to say little about patriotism and nationalism was Hassan al-Banna. He coined terms like wataniyyat al-hanin (love for the country) and wataniyyat al-hurriyyah wa al ’izzah (nationalism of freedom and glory) to explain the need for patriotism and freedom for one’s country. In Risalat al-Mu’tamar al-Khamis, he said:
“Islam enjoins upon every person to strive for the good of his country and lose himself in its service, render utmost service to the nation (ummah) in which he lives, and to give precedence to kinship and neighbourliness (in acts of benevolence).”
Malaysia today is at a juncture where globalisation seems to pose an imminent threat to the spirit of patriotism among its citizens. It is not a problem only for Malaysia but also for many countries in the world.
As we celebrate more years of independence gained from Western colonialists, the more difficult it becomes to educate and instil a feeling of patriotism in the younger generation. This is the challenge we face today.
Compared to earlier generations in post-independent Malaysia, the later generations may not appreciate the struggle and hardship that took place to liberate the country from its colonisers.
Little do they know that the country’s fight for independence did not begin on the discussion table in London in 1956, but was actually a continuous struggle of many national heroes that had begun decades before that significant event. This is why we have been told many times to appreciate what we have today.
A patriotic spirit must be instilled in the hearts and minds of all citizens. Serious efforts need to be taken to nurture the spirit of patriotism especially among youths today.
Although patriotism is an innate feeling, it is the responsibility of various parties to help spur a love for the country. The education system must be tailored to inculcate a sense of pride and belonging to the nation.
It is insufficient to focus only on elements of patriotism in subjects like History and Nationhood Studies. Teachers also play an important role in educating students about the importance of a spirit of patriotism.
NGOs too must play their roles in educating the public on the importance of patriotism. They serve as the best bridge between the government and the public in a civil society framework.
NGOs can carry out activities that are non-partisan and less political. The love
of country should be above politics and politicians must also accept this.
Citizens should not be dragged into a situation where efforts to nurture patriotism among the public are politicised.
Ultimately, true Malaysians would always want the country to remain peaceful and harmonious. Real Malaysians would ensure that the bond among fellow citizens remains strong and intact.
It is love for the country that binds the people together. As Malaysians, we should be proud of what the country has achieved in 55 years.
Nonetheless, for Malaysia to become a strong and developed nation, much more needs to be done. Malaysians from all walks of life should understand that nurturing patriotism is not just the responsibility of the government of the day, but also a collective endeavour of all who do it for the love of the country.
Din Merican: the Malaysian DJ Blogger 
“It is a fallacy to think that Government equals UMNO-BN equals Country. We must break this habit of mind” — Din Merican
The political party that wins the mandate to govern, that runs the government has to be distinguished from the government – and here’s why. The political party that runs the government may change but not the government. UMNO under Mahathir has blurred the line separating the two and made short shrift of the age old doctrine of civil service neutrality, The government under Mahathir and since Mahathir has become the political appendage of the political party.
As a result, the Prime Minister is campaigning for his party’s election at taxpayers’ expense. He goes on a vote buying binge using your money like a drunken sailor uses his credit card. He uses your money to give fat bonuses to civil servants in return for their loyalty. Even his daughter’s engagement party held at his official residence was made at taxpayers’ expense. What else has he not done??
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That is why Bean, we must have a caretaker government after the Prime Minister with the Agong’s consent dissolves Parliament and calls for elections. All government assets cannot be used for elections. QED.–Din Merican
Patriotism to my mind is our loyalty and love for the nation of ours. We will defend against any verbal attack/ criticism levied on our country by anybody from other countries. It is not about saying our government of the day is good when in fact it is not. And if we are patriotic, we must not be afraid of booting out the government of the day and replacing it with a better one. A devil you know for 55 years is obviously not going to be better than the devil you do not know. Because the new devil will try to be better than the old devil. New broom sweeps clean as the saying goes.
Please let us look at the case in Penang. Penangites are not afraid of the devils they do not know. Penangites have kicked out the devil they know and replaced with the one they do not know. And each time it was for the better-
Penang has been under the labour party, gerakan [before joining theBN], and now under the PR govt..
Civil servants on the other hand have to be loyal to the government of day. They are to carry out their duties according to the rules and regulations and not according to the whims and fancies of their political masters who can come and go, perhaps every 5 years or so. Civil servants are expected to understand this – isn’t it right?
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Well said,k dollah. The civil service is supposed to be neutral but I am not sure if this new broom KSN Dr. Hamsa Ali and his predecessors since Mahathir’s premiership understand this. Theirs is to ampu bodek, get big fat appointments after retirement, and die. –Din Merican
” The education system must be tailored to inculcate a sense of pride and belonging to the nation.”–Enizahura
That being the case, shutdown BTN (Biro Tata Negara) which is preaching racial obscurantism and inculcating hate of the other. But education is more than that. It is liberation of the Malaysian mind and the preparation of citizenry for competition in a globalised world. Atch cha hay, buttho gum, gum ji hai.
Gurunanak speak??
Mr Din Merican’s comments are very correct and the proper counter point to the confusion (intentionally created, I strongly suspect by the powers that be) between loyalty the nation and loyalty to the Government of the day. But I am sure more value would be served if they were addressed directly to the devotees at the Masjid Al’Taqwa who may not be as perceptive as many of the commentators here.
patriotism is when politicians think of citizens welfare and get the best deals for the country.
patriotism is when politicians don’t line their pockets with taxpayers money but think of the good they can do for the country.
patriotism is when politicians treat all the people equally and not divide and rule.
patriotism is when the citizens could rely on the education system to impart useful knowledge to their youngs and not an education that undermines the objectives of an education – to defeat the purpose of education.
the politicians should set an example first and then talk about patriotism to us.
with independence we freed ourselves from slavery and tyranny?
we freed ourselves singlehandedly from the commis and japs
and then we chased the tyrannic imperialists and bloodsuckers out of our beloved land on the 30th of August 1957.
PATRIOTISM is when the schools teach the REAL HISTORY of Malaysia and not the history as perceived by a racist and incompetent party which has been sucking us dry for the last 55 independent years.
independence – license to loot the country as understood by the politicians of today!
My favorite quotes on nationalism/patriotism:
“Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind” Albert Einstein.
“Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious” Oscar Wilde.
Basically, these ideas are popular with the conformist masses who have acquiesced to their own political obsolescence – i.e. a populist culture obsessed with pleading their own agenda. Often it takes the form of ‘sitting on one’s hands’, instead of confronting what we are really afraid of – a conversation of ‘Be-ing’ and the purpose of a nations ‘Existence’.
A romantic Utopian patriot has the conviction that the course of the history of his nation is based on their reading of the past. They understand history as a process or purposeful development, even an unfolding creation. However, in the words of George Orwell: “Nearly all creators of Utopia have resembled the man who has a toothache, and therefore thinks that happiness consists in not having a toothache.”
An Enlightened patriot otoh, sees his nation as devolving or evolving into dark periods of chaos, fanaticism, exclusivity and superstition or their opposites of order, moderation, inclusivity and reason. This is a then is a critical transitional period.
Politics is just an addendum in this conversation.
The Khutbah must have been delivered by an UMNO Khatib and written by JAKIM or JAWI. So who has the official interpretation of patriotism from the Islamic perspective? IKIM, JAKIM, JAWI? All these cari makan Ulamas needs to be reeducated in Islam especially in matters of Islam in the modern world. The Khutbah is very “kolot” and reflects the thinking of UMNO ulamaks.
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It is political khutbah for a discerning audience. That does not gel at all. –Din Merican
Seriously, with all the political bickering going on & all my ever missing cookies. Perhaps, folks especially Bean would agree with me, all Malaysia needs is have a little kindness. Guess what! This song was used for singapore gracious campaign. That would solves all problem including the taxi mishaps Bean encounter when he pays a visit back in Malaysia
Across the road, in Damansara Utama, at Masjid Mujahidin, the khutbah was on the meaning of Merdeka, or as the khatib interpreted it, “kebebasan”.
He saw it first as freedom to serve one’s Maker without hindrance, freedom to obtain justice and to ensure justice (keadilan) for all, including confronting and standing up to injustice wherever it is encountered, and freedom to seek and share knowledge (ilmu). It was the longest sermon I have heard for a some time, but it was well delivered with examples and illustrations.
I must admit that not all of the jemaah were as appreciative as I was; some fidgeted, perhaps because of the length, but some were frowning, perhaps because the subject matter and the illustrations were not in conformity to their views.
patriotic? well , lets see, some persecute their own M’sians and they claim it to be patriotic.
It isn’t easy to see how the more extreme forms of nationalism can long survive when we have seen the Earth in its true perspective as a single tiny globe against the bilion of stars…
Patriotism is not short frenzied outbursts of emotion for whatever reasons, but rather the tranquility and strong, steady dedication of a lifetime nation building.
In Boleh land everything is politicised. It is owned by members of UMNO who are Malay that practices Islam. The rent seekers are the MCA who is Chinese and practises Buddhism or Christian. Not forgetting MIC, the Indians who practises Hindu, Islam or Christian. Of course, the balance are not signification.
Malaysia with such diversities are not something worth admiring because these are engineered segregations which many Malaysians are blinded or just ignorant. Malaysia is not diversity in one but divided and ruled over for the past 55 years. The 1Malaysia program is nothing more than a smoked screen. It is now time to seriously take a closer look at what diversity really mean.
Malaysians are living a thin line where anything can happen at anything because of these segregation as we rally one another for economical control and survival.
So unless, Malaysian take the word diversity by its horn and steered us out of these engineered segregations. Retake control of how this country is to be governed or get ready for the backlashes of all the things done for the past 55 years. Man built man destroyed.
What goes round comes around. What goes up must come down. So are Malaysian ready.
And the time for the turn around is the GE13. The time to retake control is the GE 13. So do heed the call to vote. Malaysia needs your vote.
You guys got the two concepts ‘patriotism’ and ‘nationalism’ confused. In a changing world nationalism is an anachronistic concept as the rise of the nation state gives way to economic unions.