My Yellow Support

When I was younger, I would follow the country’s politics with strong guidance from my grandfather. This was back in early high school when I was still close to him.

Back then, Mahathir was our Prime Minister and Anwar Ibrahim was set to succeed his place.

Then the whole Anwar scandal erupted and my grandfather swiftly chose his side. He chose Anwar.

I would like to think that everyone of us likes our own comfort zone. It is familiar and it is often a safe choice.

Then in 1998, Barisan Nasional has been the ruling party of this country some forty years. If nothing went badly wrong, it could possibly mean they were doing some things right.

BN was, in a small way that I am trying to make sense of here, the people’s comfort zone.

That was my comfort zone. I chose my side because heck, this felt like a safe choice. So when my grandfather took Anwar Ibrahim’s side, I did not understand.

But now come 2007, many years too late, I finally do. My grandfather was a brave man to step out of his comfort zone, to quit his position in the national party, to stick up for who he believed was right.

This November 10, a 40,000 people-strong BERSIH rally was held in Kuala Lumpur.

Yes, this very November. Yes, this very year. And yes, last Saturday.

The rally was held to push for clean and fair elections in Malaysia.

How many of us knew this?

In our national newspapers, both The Star and News Straits Times, there were close to no coverage on one of the largest protest demonstration in Malaysia. How did this escape the media’s attention?

It did not. They just chose another angle to this news.

From The Star, the headline reads Road closures, checks cause massive jams in Klang Valley
From News Straits Times, the headline again similarly reads Illegal gathering causes traffic chaos in city

Are.you.freaking.kidding.me?

Is there all there is to this news?! You have 40,000 passionate Malaysians walking down the streets in KL with a memorandum about to be handed to our King and this is all you can freaking write?

About a damn traffic jam that happens every other hour in KL?

Boo!

Do see for yourself how bias our media is. Heavily controlled and ass-whipped by the government, this is all you can get.

A video to show just how ridiculously misleading our media is about the rally. So blatant, right? The rally was nothing like how the video portrayed it to be!

Disgusting.

Look at what other ridiculous front page news just in this month alone in our national newspapers. Look at how they conveniently side-stepped one of the biggest nation cry for help to our King!

While internationals papers are going wild with reports and live video footage, our own media are weighing their stand.

Oh and let’s not forget that they fired water cannons and chemical-laced water at the peaceful protestors. There were children and teenagers in the crowd!

I’d like to stress on peaceful. This rally had a dedicated group of people, Unit Amal Malaysia who were there to control the crowd (click for proof! The men in red at 0:06 were the brave crowd control people) and to pick up the bloody rubbish after the rally!

Picking up rubbish, my people! Crap, even on a normal day, you don’t normally see a Malaysian bending over to lift up a soggy plastic bag by the roadside!

A rational decision to spray chemical-laced water? I dare say NOT!

Click here to watch the tear gas video because yet again, I still don’t know how to work the youtube video.
Oh Malaysia!

As much as I hate the way freedom of the press and speech is suppressed here despite the Constitution, the underground bribery and the-exposed-and-swiftly-swept-under corruption scandals, the notorious Malaysian drivers, I am still a Malaysian and not a thousand wishes to move overseas will change this fact.

Oh but you know, what the hell am I really doing here? Writing about politics? Hell. I am just a 22 year old girl who loves her fun and parties. What the hell am I doing writing about grown-up stuff, right?

But I am a 22 year old Malaysian girl who loves her fun and parties. And it’s about time I grow up anyway!

Most importantly of all, I have a vote! You have a vote! And nobody can take this away from us.

A vote that our country’s forefathers fought for us. People shed blood for this vote. People cried and died. People sacrificed.

… for this damn vote that I hold within my power to give to who I think will serve my country best.

So please use your vote.
It is time we step out of our comfort zone.

Hidup Rakyat!

Read more at Dan-Yel, Pinkpau and BERSIH.

Photos taken from The Associated Press.