"It makes this country a complete police State......
Independence without freedom is an empty independence,
because the people of this land fought for their freedom,
fought for their independence, so that they will be free.
They did not fight for independence so that they become unfree,
so that they become slaves of the police."
Independence without freedom is an empty independence,
because the people of this land fought for their freedom,
fought for their independence, so that they will be free.
They did not fight for independence so that they become unfree,
so that they become slaves of the police."
- Enche' Karam Singh, MP for Damansara, Debate on ISA 21st June,1960
**********************************************************
But that is what has happened - today, we as an "Independent nation" have "fought to give up our freedoms"!!
Let's be honest about it, guys - we were stupid to surrender our freedoms to a bunch of thugs in Gucci suits, and we are about to celebrate it this 31st of August!!!
Despite much opposition from Onn Jaafar and Ahmad Boestamam, Dato' Dr Ismail conveniently, had this to say (since he was not to see the damage) in the debate:-
“In parliamentary democracy the powers given to the Government are the powers
given by the majority of the people in the country, and no government worthy of its name ... will dare to abuse these powers so long as parliamentary democracy exists......
I say, let these powers be abused, and you will see how
the people in the country will rise against it.”
-Dato' Dr Ismail, Minister of External Affairs, Debate on ISA, 21st June, 1960
ROTFLOL - " ....and you will see how the people in the country will rise against it." given by the majority of the people in the country, and no government worthy of its name ... will dare to abuse these powers so long as parliamentary democracy exists......
I say, let these powers be abused, and you will see how
the people in the country will rise against it.”
-Dato' Dr Ismail, Minister of External Affairs, Debate on ISA, 21st June, 1960
The shameless audacity of that statement, after depriving us of our liberties!! That's like asking the crowd not to laugh at the amputee at the starting line of a 100m dash, after breaking his legs personally!!!
Yes - how convenient .... some call it "visionary", others, "prophetic" - while applauding his (Tun Dr. Ismail's) "principled politics". Maybe he was justified personally back then - simply beacause he was just too naive (and I don't believe that!!) to know that there would one day be one man who was not so honorable & "Malay" in breeding (yes- you and I know who that "one man" is), as he thought the future leaders of Umno would have been.
And so it happened - that the despicable and unconstitutional law called the ISA came to be passed by the parliament.
Today, after 25yrs of Mahathirism, and the the persistant efforts of the racists under his patronage, the worst nightmares of the parliamentarians of the 1960s have come true - we have given up the "Merdeka" which our forefathers had strived to create in their trade-off with the Brits.
I state once again - they had a "trade-off" and not a "fight" - in achieving our independence.
This was simply because the great power of the WW II - the US of A, demanded that trade barriers be brought down throughout the British Empire, and that the Straits of Melaka be freed for their shipping routes - and a bankrupt Britain was in no position to say "No". Then the invasion on the beaches of Normandy happened - and the rest is history ..... and with the spilling of American & British blood on the beaches of Normandy, the "fight" about which the "Hidup Melayu" pariahs of Umno talk about was "won" .... and voila - we had "Merdeka"!!!
It seemed to me for some time that Umno itself was a creation of the Brits, with the help of chronic flunkies (save Onn Jaafar, Razak & Ismail) among the Malay aristocracy/elite MCKK boys who were "groomed for leadership". The rest who aspired for leadership, were systematically filtered out in the so-called Umno "elections" (which made a mockery of democracy).
Little do many know that this "Merdeka!" call was that of the leftists and the IMP of Onn Jaafar, which Umno had later hijacked.
This they (Umno) did by playing second fiddle to their Brit masters while the real fighters were shedding their blood in their struggle against the Brits.
Being small & less popular, they worked along with the Brits using the "Emergency Ordinance", and did all they could to suppress/arrest all activists who would not work with the British "Tuans". Anyone who was suspected to be "not supportive" of the ruling regime ( read, the British) was "filtered-out" with the excuse that he was "a threat". They mysteriously "happen to lose democratically" by wafer thin margins to the "blue-eyed elite boys" who were groomed at every Umno election ......
In return, the "grateful" tuans of the past passed the mantle of power to the new "Tuanship" in Umno.
Being nervous little new "Tuans", these guys needed certain laws to help them maintain their grip on power, while depriving the people of their freedoms in the pretext of "protecting their rights" - that's what ISA is all about today!!
Nothing more, nothing less ....
So now - With all the staged dramas in the Umno elections throughout the years, am I expected to believe that the early leaders of Umno (yes- "the reluctant politician", Tun Dr. Ismail himself included) were unaware of the possibility of the ISA being subjected to abuse when enacting it?
Did they actually believe that "Democracy is more than the ritual casting of a ballot at multi-party elections. True democracy involves participation by the people at all levels so that they have a voice in the discussions and decisions by which they are governed. But democracy must not only govern the political process, it should pervade all sphere of society, including economic and social life."?
I seriously doubt it.
It is the very same reason that keeps in place the 4 proclamations of emergencies, the enforcement of which has been crafted very well, designed to perpetuate the police state we are today.
The following is an excerpt from a Paper by Mr. Wong Hon Wai- The role of fundamental liberties in the evolution of Malaysia as a democratic society.(the original link is dead, but the full article may be read in the three parts of The ISA in Malaysia links given below):-
"However, the Constitution Amendment Act 1960 removed this highly desirable protective mechanism by providing that neither the Proclamation of Emergency nor the laws passed automatically lapse after two months. Instead, they remain in force indefinitely, until both Houses of Parliament pass annulling resolutions [9]
As the consequences of this 1960 amendment, there are 4 proclamations of Emergency that are still valid and in force today as none of them had been revoked or annulled [10].
The 4 proclamation of Emergency are
- Indonesian Confrontation (1964)
- Political crisis in Sarawak only (1966)
- Racial riot (1969)
- Political crisis in Kelantan only (1977)
They were well aware of it- Tunku, Razak, Ismail, Mahathir (although he apparently thought otherwise, since he was a smalltimer back then, and still afraid of relegation). Was it about "national security" as they say it was - I seriously doubt it, although that was what they said.
If it was about "national security", freedom and "communist terrorism", where then is the sunset clause? Why are these evil laws still in place?
This is definitely not about what they claim it is - It was about creating a Police State by design.
- It was simply about "POWER" - the power to control the masses and the national coffers.
- Period.
- It was about perpetuating an elite oligarchy.
- It was about having a subservient underclass, which is ignorant of their rights and humanity, while the plunder and rape goes on silently.
- It's about a working class keeping up pretences of "prosperity" in driving their Proton/Kancil tin-cans, while they are squeezed of their financial lifeblood and their economic future through sub-standard education, religiosity, hidden taxes, cheap foreign labour, tolls, mega projects (the likes of BMF, PKFZ, Bakun, Proton, KLCC/Petronas Twin Towers), illegal immigrants (Sabah) etc etc etc. - in short, daylight Grand Theft by "heroes" of "Bangsa, Agama dan Negara".
- It is about being able to perpetuate the evils of Racism under the patronage of Barisan Nasional.
- It's about the elitist "Ketuanan Melayu" promoted by the shameless Perkasa who use the Pribumis to further their agenda of Kleptocracy under the guise of the NEP.
To top it all off and complete their grip on all Malaysians' lives, they have added on the likes of Police Act, UUCA, PPPA, OSA, DDA, Sedition Act and what not.
I end this post with Mr D.R. Seenivasagam's words in Parliament:-
"You pass this Bill, but remember that one day somebody else,
perhaps, not as democratic as you are, may be sitting on that very Bench;
and when that time comes you—perhaps not you
but the children of those who to-day support this Bill—will say
"My God! We regret the day we introduced this Bill into this House.”"
- Enche' D.R. Seenivasagam, MP for Ipoh, Debate on ISA, 21st June, 1960
perhaps, not as democratic as you are, may be sitting on that very Bench;
and when that time comes you—perhaps not you
but the children of those who to-day support this Bill—will say
"My God! We regret the day we introduced this Bill into this House.”"
- Enche' D.R. Seenivasagam, MP for Ipoh, Debate on ISA, 21st June, 1960
How prophetic ......
There you have it, guys - that's MERDEKA for you!
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