The Independence Day celebration of 2010 was no less when compared to the previous ones that we had had in the past. Everything was extravagant, loud and vibrant. That is Malaysia. We are proud of who we are and we really want to keep it that way. (At least I want it to be that way). We take pride of every bit and every little difference we have and transform it into a greater thing – more than the sum of individual parts. That makes Malaysia special and unique. It is so special and so unique that I would say no countries in the world are like her. So here I am, proclaiming that I am officially proud to be a Malaysian.
In Malaysia, we have many different yet amicable races – Malays, Chinese, Indians and aborigines. No one can deny our colorful and harmonious interrelationships between these races. So it is very synonymous to use “Malaysia, Truly Asia” as our slogan to promote Malaysia to the world because we do offer that full package. People from the outside always envy our harmony and say “it is too good to be true”. Yeah… that’s right. It is so because they don’t know how much we have to compromise among us to make it happen. And that’s where our true strength lies.
Even though it has been 53 years we achieved the independence from England. The real independence is still not fully achieved. The fights and struggles are still far from over. Like the 4th Prime Minister of Malaysia said “Getting the independence is hard, and it is much harder to fulfill the meaning of it”. Yes I have to agree with him. Many don’t realize how difficult it is to fulfill the independence with a meaningful progress to show that Malaysia is worth of her independence.
When I look back on what we have and what we do to fulfill the independence, I feel something is missing, something is not right, something is just not that good enough. I keep asking myself what it is, what is the missing jigsaw puzzle in the big picture? Unfortunately it comes to my realization that it is about true independence in us all - how much we’ve grown up not just grown old, and how mature we are in tackling the current turbulences in politics, economy and social.
Currently we are confronting with a handful of unprecedented troubles - religious feuds, racial incitement, economic instability and political reformations. This train of challenging situations is just a starting point to test whether we are ready to face them up front or not. I hope we really learned from the history. If we can face these problems and rise from the ashes, we can be a lot stronger and more united in tackling any future challenges. Believe it or not, this is just the very first bite of responsibility of having independence. I know it is difficult and please don’t get panicked. Let’s take our time to sort things out. Happy Independence Day, Malaysia. May Allah bless Malaysia with harmony and prosperity.
Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely ~Auguste Rodin~
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