ADDED :
Anti-war candlelight vigils on Sat night
Candle light vigils in solidarity with victims of war in the Middle East and elsewhere will be held in major cities on Saturday night, 10 January. It is being organised by the Anti-War Coalition/Gabungan Anti-Perang (GAP)
Penang
Time: 8.30pm
Venue: In front of Dewan Sri Pinang
Contact persons: Chon Kai 019-5669518; Kris 016-3337678
Other vigils are expected to be held in JB, Ipoh and KL.
(Source : Anilnetto)
I do not wish to comment about the current, hotly debated issue because I cannot comprehend it. I read both sides of the stories and I do not find compelled to take any sides. I abhor the cruelty of killing children and condemn the acts.
To, me the issue is not a religious one but political or rather territorial one. However, in our country, we get the impression that it is a religious one because of the media featuring only one side of the story.
But when the Education Minister comes up with some idea that may involve my children, I have every right to express my opinions. How can he comes up with this idea of :
Students In Mass Movement Against Israeli Atrocities
PUTRAJAYA, Jan 8 (Bernama) — School students nationwide will be galvanised into a mass movement aimed at instilling hatred against Israeli atrocities on Palestinians, said Education Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.
Hishammuddin said the mass movement would involve those in the teaching profession and education ministry staff.
“Through the mass movement, the students will be exposed and reminded that the peace, justice and comfortable living environment can be easily robbed by people with greed,” he told reporters after presenting the ministry’s new year address here today.
The movement to be launched soon would involve all quarters including non-governmental organisations (NGO) and ministries to make the voice of young Malaysians heard globally.
Hishammuddin said the mass movement was approved at the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi yesterday.
— BERNAMA
And he quoted the Cabinet meeting chaired by the Prime Minister approved it.
So, I want to ask these bunch of politicians who are in the cabinet –
a) Which idiotic country use their children to challenge a cause, a cause that is not in our country and a cause that many still cannot understand why. What more, little children?
b) What kind of priority do they have? When our own Malaysians got into this ‘mass movement’ fighting for a clean and fair election, they were sprayed with chemicals. When our Malaysians were out having a peaceful candelight vigil for the ISA detainees, many were injured during the brutal haul up by the police. Even a Catholic priest who was just standing there was stuffed into the police truck. So, Mr. Education Minister, what you tokkok ah?
c) I teach my children love. Love your enemies. Forgive them. Strive for peace. I do not teach them hate. An eye for an eye is not what my Christian faith taught me. Is that what you teach your children, your anak buah, your konco-konco? HATRED?
d) You want to make the voices of our youth and children heard? There are many things they want to tell you and the Government of Malaysia. Let’s start with asking them what they think of heavy school bags, bad canteen foods, long school hours, learning Maths and Science in English, examinations, fun activities and etc.
And lastly, these words from the Education Minister makes want me to say something :
the students will be exposed and reminded that the peace, justice and comfortable living environment can be easily robbed by people with greed,”
but I shall not express it because when people’s emotions are running high they tend to tear and shred reasonings, facts and truths into a mess. So, I won’t dare to even utter that, “Oh…that sounds like what is happening to us. Only thing is it is happening right here in our backyards.” But no, I am not expressing it. Probably because when I was growing up as a student, no one taught me to react with hatred.
P/S : It is disgusting when politicians abuse the sufferings of others to gain some political mileage.
this is an inappropriate move even more so when the ministry’s trying to use the public esp young children for its propaganda! totally uncalled for. What he commented was like ‘spitting into the wind’….. make noise ony! if he wants to call for action, ask his ‘tai lou’ to make a scene on the international platform, leave us alone! niamah leh
JT´s last blog post..Go manual – The SUNNY F/16 rule
fully agree with you. As I responded elsewhere, the only reason the Malaysian gomen is so hot about this is because of religion and politics. I don’t see them protest about other people groups that are suffering … always palestin, palestin. These idiot politicians where got principle punya? What irks me most is to see their utter shamelessness in their hypocricy and now trying to get other people’s children to join them somemore.
Now I understand why someone once said he looks like a dead Pharoah :reallypissed:
We have the worse kind of leadership leading our country now, what more can one expect? We tried to drum into their thick skull in March of how unhappy the people are already but they seem oblivious!
There are already so many instances before this that proves these bunch of “air brain” or “kepala angin” are really incompetent to be leading the country, so many times talking without using their brain(numbed already).
Only thing left for us to do is to teach our children “properly” and not let these bad leaders use our children as “genuine pigs”!
You are right, what kind of leaders say something like that, not to mention even think of something like that! :reallypissed: TOOLAN!
toolan – Yalor, it gets ridiculous by the day. We sympathize with the carnage, we feel for the Palestines, we pray for peace. But to get our children to get involve? How do we parents explain to our children an issue like the Gaza strip when we ourselves are baffled by those endless wars between them? We cannot just tell them to hate, hate, hate because it is not healthy to teach kids that. They may grow up as terrorists!
awphng – Hahaha..the jaw.
mad – Everyone is trying to make use of this war to gain votes in the upcoming election in KT and also their party election.
JT – This is not the only time he shoots a policy/decision without thinking and then, he needs to withdraw again.
Aiyah Lilian… What can we expect from the sub standard politicians we have in our country. Nothing but crap after crap after crap. From a packaged space tourist to saving a prostitute in UK. All we can do is watch as they pretend to champion causes of others while what they really want is to further their own personal political agenda.
http://www.dpinterworld.com/blog´s last blog post..Custom Officer Scam
This comment is out of topic Lillian. hope you don’t mind too much 🙂
Recently I have been receiving about 1000 spam a day average. It slows down my blog lots. I am using akismet and all comments on my blog have to pass through a e.g. what is 3 + 7 test . if by evening i do not delete spam, the site omos grinds to a very slow crawl.
🙂 Can you please advise me on this?
Bengbeng´s last blog post..Photohunters : Aftermath
Why am I not surprised anymore that our politicians are using the current Israeli-Gaza conflict to gain political mileage?
Wonder what would happen if the kids say to their teachers that they do not want to join in such protest stuff? 😉 How can you teach peace and justice when you are teaching kids to hate either party?
Angie Tan´s last blog post..The Tenji Experience
Can someone tell the government this…
“If you see a speck in someone else’s eye, do you not see the log in yours? Remember to look at your own backyard before bitching about somebody elses.”
They can’t even figure out their own problems, and yet they want to “kaypoh” with other people’s problems?
How could they even think of using the children…????!!!!
When we enroll our kids in the schools, it does not mean they (the govern) are free to do instill whatever value in them, especially the negative ones. Who are they to use our children and teach them to hate. Wey, go back teach your own kids to hate-lah, don’t mess around with our kids. Shallow punya otak. Doh. Tengok mukanya pun macam kena flu redi. I think he is trying to stand out and earn mileage with some weird childish ideas. Bodoh.
You said it all, Lilian. They are only using the children as a mouth piece. Putting words into their mouth. Whereas the real issues concern the children are not addressed.
Its like arming our kids with guns and ask them to fight ‘their’ war. Whats the difference??!!??
‘These people’ did it again. When will they ever learn? *sigh* Tau cakap saja, buat kerja tidak. I agree with JT. They should go and make a scene on the international level instead of dragging Malaysian school kids and education staff into their own agenda.
“An eye for an eye is not what my Christian faith taught me. Is that what you teach your children, your anak buah, your konco-konco? HATRED?”
Even a lot of imams who are supposed to teach people to love God’s creatures and forgive those who have erred – preach the killing of infidels, konco-konco Israel and America in their Friday prayers, in a tone that sounds like he is gonna kill you in any minute. :talktothehand:
My university is decorated with a lot of anti-Palestinian-war posters. And there’s this list of brands to boycott pasted on my studio’s notice board! I wonder whether there are these hypocrites who go and join the hoohah anti-this anti-that demonstrations and after that go and munch a burger at McD and surf the net using their Intel-powered PCs. *ROFL*
kyh´s last blog post..Bonne année 2009!
I will not go for anti war vigils but I will go ( and encourage my children too)for peace rally. It’s no point to be anti this or that.There is no who’s right or wrong.
War is just wrong, no matter who is fighting whom. I myself is not too sure who are the ‘good’ guys and who are the ‘bad’ ones, so I can’t bring myself to be anti-Palestinians for example,or to be anti-US,anti-Israel or anti whatever.
I pray for peace throughout the whole world.Every man, woman and child deserves to grow up in a peaceful environment.
Oh Lord forbid! What are they teaching our children?! They are poisoning our children’s mind! They should organise donation drive in schools to help the victims, not instilling hatred towards the Israelis! Things may not turn out the same anymore in our kids’ time. Instead, teach them to appreciate the value of peace and order, not teaching them to instill hatred!
I would say, doing so means instilling prejudice among our races is ok among we Malaysians. It would also mean it is also acceptable to hate other races because of something you dont like. They are promoting racism in that sense.
I just don’t understand why the government is drilling such ideas in our kids’ head. Our kids don’t even understand adults’ topic, doing so will only poison their innocent mind.
boon kheng´s last blog post..Xunlei Thunder 5.8 Hehehunter’s Edition
Yup, milder version of arming kids and sending them to the frontline while they sit comfortably in their bungalows.
Truly unfair for the kids!
It is for them to decide what should they do to prevent war when they are adults. This is supposed to be something that the grownups today should settle among themselves without involving their “seeds of the future”.
If we want to instill a sense of peace and justice in the minds of our young ones, then we must not be hypocritical. Why just stop at this Israel – Palestine conflict? The children should have been sent out on the streets in any civil conflict out there be it in Sudan, Timor, Sri Lanka, Chechnya etc. Why zero in on Gaza strip alone? Granted, the Israelis are the aggressors this time. What about the times when rockets were fired into Israeli territory? Or when terrorists killed indiscriminately in Mumbai?
No wonder our kids are confused.
pablopabla´s last blog post..Ah Chong, Ali and Muthu
AIyaaa……don’t worry. Our Minister will issue another statement saying that he was misquoted, the media twist his words, Opposition party assasinating his political image…and the whole issue quite down. See ? Simple.
Blood IS thicker than water.Care for our own children first.Dadah addicts at stairways,Pak Lah,School councellors doing their jobs?Does ROTAN really get kids to stay in school or end up as dadah addicts n depression.Send these kids to Psychiatrist.Have a Psychologist at every school.Instead of discipline teacher or Guru Besar with Huge canes.Listen to our children.Don just whack.Does anyone wants to b whack without given a chance to TALK.Teachers don listen.They want children to listen.Our children takes good milk formula liao.They r undergoing hormone changes only.Listen to them.We were kids too.
How get my kids to understand the situation??? i let them read the bibble stories of these 2 countries & they know what happened. Who provoked who????
Frankly speaking we shouldn’t take sides. Palestinians and Israelites are God’s people, His creation. They shouldn’t kill each other. I pray that they have peace and not fight and cause more suffering. But what’s really funny here in Malaysia is that when the Palestinians (Hamas) fire rockets into Israel, it is not in the front page of the news papers. Can you prove me wrong, Lilian?
Anyway, as we went out of St John’s Cathedral last sunday, some youth were collecting money for the Palestinian cause they said. Hubby pulled out some money out of his pocket and donated. I asked them whether they were from the church and the answer was “no”. I sure hope it was done out of compassion and the money was to help the wounded and suffering Palestinian victims and not in the name of HATRED.
‘…a mass movement aimed at instilling hatred…’
I hope the media misinterpreted what he said. Or is that wishful thinking?