Posts Tagged ‘Religion’

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SRK Tamil Ladang Bukit Jalil new site surrounded by proposed cemetery

November 9th, 2007
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This school became famous due to the frequent flood that happened (read more here and here) and the slack work by DBKL. The parents got together to repair the drains and other maintenance works. As usual, after highlighted in media, MIC and govt sprang into action. The education ministry provided alternative land…which turns out to be small (with no field) and surrounded by cemetery.

Now, try convincing me that all the speeches at UMNO Assembly yesterday about being "sensitive to others", "we are all Malaysians", etc. are really true.

Quoting PM's speech: "Malaysia is a nation for all races and there is a future for every citizen" and "Issues must be addressed on the basis of the interests of the nation and the Malaysian people as a whole."

More quotes: “We are ready to seek intelligent resolutions and win-win solutions when dealing with sensitive issues relating to race and religion,” he said.

Let's leave out the race issue (it being a Tamil school), and consider if any sane person would put a school in such a place. I'm being Malaysian and questioning the logic of this move. This really takes the cake: "When contacted, Kuala Lumpur City Hall said the plans for the cemetery reserve land had not been finalised and that so far no complaints had been received." Need to for complaint ahh..? Where's your common sense la? Makes one wonder what these people been eating for food!

From wet to eerie for Tamil school

By : Evangeline Majawat and Choong En Han
source

Proposed location of SRKT Ladang Bukit Jalil

KUALA LUMPUR: The joy of moving into a new and better school was short-lived when parents of the pupils found out the site will be on reserve land for cemeteries. 

Less than a month ago, the Education Ministry approved RM650,000 to build a new school for SRK (T) Ladang Bukit Jalil which had been hit by floods five times in September. But the site for the new school, which is about 1km away from the present site, is on a large plot of land reserved for burial grounds. Parents were initially enthusiastic when Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu announced the relocation on Oct 16, as the 60-year-old school was in a state of dilapidation, especially after the floods. "We were shocked to find out that the new school will be surrounded by cemeteries," Ladang Bukit Jalil resident action committee secretary Thiakarjan Sathasivam, 54, said.

"It's unthinkable how the authorities can allocate such a piece of land. How do they expect the children to learn in such an environment?" To make matters worse, space is limited as the new school building would be alongside a temple on a 0.4ha plot. This is small in comparison to the surrounding burial grounds. The cemetery reserve land will be segmented according to the different religions: two cemeteries for Muslims (9.6ha); Buddhists (3.3ha); Christians (0.5ha); Hindus (0.4ha); and other religions (0.17ha). A detention centre will stand in the midst of the Muslim burial ground. "The land is so small, and shared with a temple too. There is also no field for the children to play." Thiakarjan said that the authorities should allot at least 5ha for the new school building. "The dead should be respected and a school should not be placed in the midst of dead people."

A parent, who declined to be named, is worried of the effect on the pupils. "No parent would want to send their children to study in such a setting. "Psychologically, the kids will be affected. These children seem to be discriminated because of their simple background," said the mother of two.

When contacted, Kuala Lumpur City Hall said the plans for the cemetery reserve land had not been finalised and that so far no complaints had been received. A visit to the present school site by New Straits Times found that the construction of the detention centre was under way. The empty plot beside the school was full of rubbish and a breeding ground for vectors.

Yasotharan Rajandren, 11, a pupil of SRK (T) Ladang Bukit Jalil said it was common for snakes and rats to enter the classroom. Yasotharan also said mosquitoes were abundant in the area. Flats and an upcoming gated community lie on the fringes of the proposed burial grounds.

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Posted in BornInMalaysia, Tamil-Schools

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PM says react with moderation over religious issues

November 1st, 2007
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this really takes the cake. coming from the very person who did not entertain top leader of indian community, pembela rakyat india di malaysia who went to meet him at shah alam.

Abdullah also pointed out non-Muslims also had their religious sensitivities. (yah..like smashing up deities).

“So it is important that we all take great care in what we say and ensure what we say is always right and moderate. We don’t have to be harsh in our words or go overboard even though we feel angry and hurt,” he said, adding that his message was also meant for the non-Muslims. 

“Even though many things are not right, what is important is that we discuss things among each other. Muslims must work to make others understand them (wow…what does that imply in the case of selangor MB and the MBSA?). Religious tolerance is when everyone understands what is happening and takes the correct action,” he said.

well…as vaigai puyal says.."ennai vechi komedi kimidi pannelele…"

thanks for the joke, pak lah.

React with moderation over religious issues, says PM

source

KUALA LUMPUR: Muslims should react with care and moderation even though they are rightfully hurt and angered by insensitivities to their religion.  

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said religion was a sensitive matter to everyone and Malaysians should be thankful that they are able to honour religious sensitivities so as not to create a situation that benefited no one. 

He noted that there were cases such as the caricature of Prophet Muhammad which had rightfully angered Muslims around the world, and they reacted strongly with outrage. 

“Those of other religions did not understand the strong reaction by Muslims and asked why it was such a big deal. We do not regard it as small matter but as a serious one. 

“The Muslims’ reaction reflected their frustration over the episode not because they were being emotional but because they took it as an insult to Islam and reacted spontaneously,” he said when closing the National Umno Religious Bureau Chairmen Conference here yesterday, where he also launched the Umno religious bureau website and bulletin. 

Abdullah also pointed out non-Muslims also had their religious sensitivities. 

“So it is important that we all take great care in what we say and ensure what we say is always right and moderate. We don’t have to be harsh in our words or go overboard even though we feel angry and hurt,” he said, adding that his message was also meant for the non-Muslims. 

“Even though many things are not right, what is important is that we discuss things among each other. Muslims must work to make others understand them. Religious tolerance is when everyone understands what is happening and takes the correct action,” he said.

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Posted in BornInMalaysia

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A rose by any other name

October 23rd, 2007
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Recently, I was involved in discussions on naming babies. Based on my observations, newborns are having more and more “exotic” and unique names. Why is this happening?

According to my wife, it is likely that the parents do not want to be reminded of someone else when the call out their childÂ’s name. For example, if I have a friend named Ganesh, I most likely wonÂ’t name my son Ganesh, according to her logic. So thatÂ’s why we seldom hear children being given their parentsÂ’ friends, grandparents, ancestors, relatives, leaders, religious/spiritual heads or other famous personÂ’s names.

My observation on the naming process reveals the following:

  1. Naming is complicated due to the various “ogies” – numerology, astrology, psychology, family interferencology.
  2. Religion/Race/Ethinicity/Caste also plays a role in the naming process
  3. Those who are more “educated” tend to give more “exotic” names. Perhaps to show that they are “educated” or symbol of “sophistication”?
  4. Names are more globalized in a sense that there will be elements of English/Western sounding words. Is it a plan to ensure that the child can easily migrate and adapt in other countries in the future?
  5. Use of Sanskrit words supposedly to reflect a more spiritual meaning of the name.

 Seriously, what happened to names like Saravanan and Ganesan? Or Nadeswaran, Ramanathan, Geetha, Saminathan, Gopi, Sivakumar, Perumal, Santhirasegar, Valluvan, Kanthasamy,  Muniswaran, Gomathi, Kavitha, Asogan, Valli, Saraswathi, Mullai, Srikanth, etc.? Are these names condemned to no further than 1980s and 1990s era only?

A newborn was given the name Rahul, which means sun (well, I didnÂ’t check on it). To me, Rahul sounds like Shah Rukh Khan’Â’s (or any other heroes) characters in Hindi movies. Why not just name the boy Surya (Nathan/Kumar/Kanth etc) and get on it with. I wonderÂ…

Another friendÂ’s sonÂ’s name sound like a girlÂ’’s name to me. I keep forgetting that itÂ’s a baby boy, unless the name is mentioned in full.

How about influence of India cinema? I Heard that Shreya is the number one chosen baby name in US for the Indian (Southern Indians?) community last year. Now my niece is named Shreeya as well 🙂

Anyway, as you may point out, itÂ’’s their child and they can name him/her any which way they like. I canÂ’’t agree more! As long as you donÂ’t make it difficult for me to pronounce it or IÂ’’ll just make up my own name for your kid. 🙂

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet – Shakespeare!

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Swiss Garden Resort and Spa Kuantan

October 7th, 2007
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We reach Swiss Garden at about 3.30pm, after a slow drive from Maran Temple. The hotel (resort?) is located along Jalan Beserah (linking Kuantan and Kemaman), near a place called Pantai Balok (Balok Beach). The place is quite nice, but unfortunately, I have few complaints. Firstly, our room was near to the pub and the noise was audible till about 1am. Changed to another room the next day, and the management gave a suite (two rooms and two TV) further away from the pub. Guess it pays to look as if you are honeymooning and want much more privacy and quietness. 🙂

The TV was another problem. They advertised that upgraded the channels, which sounded very promising. But when I flipped through it, the upgrade was RTM 1, RTM2, TV3, NTV7, CH9, 8TV, and in-house promotion, plus 2 music channels! Oh my…what happened to CNN, BBC, Star Movies, ESPN etc? No more Astro, but only local free channels? That’s a new definition of upgrade!!!!

Breakfast was nothing much to shout about. In fact, I would say slightly disappointing since there were not many choices.

The beach was inaccessible due to jellyfish threat, so we didn’t venture out to the beach much. We went to Kuantan in the evening. Went to Berjaya Megamall and caught The Brave One at the cinema.

empty Balok Beach

We also took their Ramadan dinner buffet at RM48 each. There were about 60 people at the most, and the food finished very fast. That’s where we meet a familiar face, Thirumila. It was great to meet up an old friend after so long.

The resort had its spa packages under Samsara Spa. We took one of their packages. It was refreshing and really relaxing feeling after the treatment. Plus, their ginger tea was super!

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Posted in I Was Here, Personal

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Sikh community joins in Merdeka celebrations

September 4th, 2007
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THE Gurdwara Sahib Bandar Sunway came alive on Aug 31, as some 500 people from the Sikh community gathered to celebrate Merdeka. Inside the premises, a large candy-like cake bearing the Malaysian flag was displayed. The huge cake was made from 700 coconuts.  President Jaswant Singh said it took about three days to cook the ingredients and make the cake. 

Sweet celebration: Visitors marvelling at the giant candy-like cake.

According to Jaswant, prayers would also be held for 245 days from Aug 14 to April 14 next year. “The prayers are held around-the-clock, with five different priests taking turns. “We are doing this to raise funds for our Gurdwara Sahib. The holy book takes three days to read, so this would mean 121 sets of prayers. “With every set of prayers, we would have sponsors coming in to make pledges,” said Jaswant. During this period, halal vegetarian food are will also be served around-the-clock for free. “Four meals are cooked and served daily by our volunteers. It’s definitely no easy task to ensure 24-hour service until next April, especially since this is the first time this will be done. He added that the prayer recitation was also meant as a blessing service for the country’s prosperity. 

Kelana Jaya MP Loh Seng Kok, who was guest-of-honour, wore a bandana-like headgear as a mark of respect for the Sikh customary tradition. “Irrespective of what religion we are, everyone just wants to bless the country and see that it progresses,” said Loh. “I can see people from all walks of life rejoicing in Merdeka celebrations without needing to be persuaded or forced, and this is what the essence of Merdeka is. “The younger generation, especially, should learn to understand the different religious practices cultures that make Malaysia unique,” he said. 

The crowd later indulged in a spread of vegetarian food sponsored by Kohinoor Catering Sunway and visited booths selling a variety of Punjabi sweets. Mugs bearing the Merdeka logo and words were also distributed out to young children.  

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