Comments on: civil society must take centerstage

By: reduced and recycled » some shorts and a to-do list

reduced and recycled » some shorts and a to-do list — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 13:56:09 +0000

[...] I could participate with more like-minded people. In any case, some time back I blogged about how civil society must replace the opposition in creating a space within which to negotiate with the government of the day. That is: stop talking [...]

By: theCicak’s recent articles: apathy or just funny? at reduced and recycled

theCicak’s recent articles: apathy or just funny? at reduced and recycled — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 15:35:58 +0000

[...] the very nature of what we do is reactionary. [â†©]See sigma’s post [â†©]I’ve said this before. [â†©]Share [...]

By: xpyre

xpyre — Wed, 30 Aug 2006 01:08:17 +0000

Succint and accurate! Ha! :p

By: percolator

percolator — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 22:31:03 +0000

I just came in for a quick scan, and I confess I haven’t read past the third para, but here’s what came right off the top of my head….

tweedledee, tweedledum and tweedlediddle… they’re all afraid of scaring the same bunch of horses.

cheers.

By: Han

Han — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 17:43:34 +0000

The needs of a few outweigh the needs of many. Altruistic, logical and selfless people are not a product of today’s society or maybe they are a small majority rarely ever heard on the media or often misquoted to seem like they have other agenda’s. You need these kind of people to make a stand.
How many people ” are willing to die for freeedom, but not willing to kill for it?” That is a paraphrased quote from MK Gandhi.
He tried to look after the interests of the Hindu’s, Muslim’s and Sikh’s and look where that got him.
Its a sad fact.
But protest and rallies to some people is not really about angst because of the frustration of seeing the unfairness of life while one is barely making ends meet even with effort and dilligence, it is a whole lot more.
It is about ideals of real democracy and freedom.

By: xpyre

xpyre — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 15:00:34 +0000

I think it has to be a two-way thing. Organizations cannot have the requisite clout without having enough people willing to step up and participate. I think the same follows for political parties - at least, opposition parties.

It boils down, as you’ve said, to freedom of speech and expression.

The downside is, waiting for these conditions to be present only perpetuates the lack of such freedoms. I’m not advocating that we take to the streets and demand these freedoms at the edge of a parang or such; I’m no revolutionary.

There has to be, however, an alternative means to circumvent this current veil of silence beneath which we all harbour. In recent months, we’ve seen NGOs taking a real stand, a brave stance. If what they’ve done doesn’t encourage people to flock to their cause, then I despair for the people. And now the judiciary have stepped up to the plate to try and restore some semblance of independence from the Executive.

I admire these people for doing something, even if only because Mahathir’s not in power. They are pushing the boundaries to the limit, and that can only infuse Malaysians with a sense of hope that something is changing.

With regards interests. Well, the plain truth of the matter is, each NGO strives to better the interests of its members. It’s no surprise, and it’s inherent; they wouldn’t be pressure groups otherwise. But the same follows for people who do not see fairness in government - they wonder if their interests are really looked after if the government spends lavishly on suspicious projects.

It’s all about interest, in my opinion; government - right government - seeks to balance these interests in a democracy.

A part of me feels that all this rioting and grandstanding for freedom - in which I have taken part as well - feeds back to what some would call middle-class angst. At the end of the day, I also do wonder if what we fight for right here and now truly benefits the people far less fortunate than we are.

I honestly do not know. It is my hope that the right government in Malaysia will turn things for the better for the less fortunate, and this can only happen if we have a strong accountable government.

What I do know is that the interests of those less fortunate will barely whisper along the halls of the current government.

By: Han

Han — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 12:55:36 +0000

im a field worker and poverty exists everywhere on every level and every race and ethnicity. I have seen it to a certain extent. To the 10 km of brushes students have to go through to get proper education to the hopelessness of existing infrastructure in rural areas. Promises aside, with smiling faces of superficial grace. A charade, only camouflage for more evil intent or of insidious nature. Who knows?
When they do the dance of that nature, all one has to ask is this: who benefits? when they commit indifference upon the public: who benefits?
NGO’s have little or no power at all. they talk and talk and talk… they can huddle together in numbers for security… but it boils down to this: who benefits?
If that organization is frowned upon by the current admin. you can sure bet they will be silenced or hidden well enough to avoid collateral damage to those its causes is against or for.
It all boils down back to freedom of speech, freedom of expression to an acceptable level to ensure fairplay.
Political parties should be allowed to have speeches. It is from these speech rallies that one can gauge who one is voting for, or maybe a rough idea.
We need that level of freedom, also to ensure that the voices of victims are HEARD. We really need that. An organization merely assist the individual, but he must speak to be heard…. But that, unfortunately cannot happen because of restriction placed by the incumbent party.