Opinions

A group of government doctors who work under the contract system of Malaysia had claimed that more than 8,000 of them would go on a strike from 3 to 5 April 2023 to protest against the “unfair system” and “low wages” under the “Mogok Doktor Malaysia” (MDM) movement. This was the second effort of contract doctors’ protest since the “Hartal Doktor Kontrak” (HDK) movement in 2021.

The study of geopolitics concerns the way in which nations interact with one another, the nature of the policies instituted that govern these interactions, and how the motivations that underlie these policies can be reasoned to in light of a country’s interest, particularly from the perspective of geography, politics, and international relations. Malaysian perspectives on foreign policy, since its independence in 1957, have almost always—as highlighted by Sharifah Munirah of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia—revolved around “regime legitimization.” Having transitioned from colonial rule into independent governance, Malaysia’s primary aspiration it wished to realise—concerning its foreign policy objectives—was to progressively transform into a reputable geopolitical power in the eyes of the international community; one that is efficient, self-sufficient, and capable of forging diplomatic alliances indiscriminately to both facilitate and expedite economic growth for domestic empowerment.

Would you take care of your parents when they are old? Rolling your eyes, you might be thinking, duh, of course I will. As Malaysians, many of us were brought up with traditional values emphasising filial piety. Customary Malaysian values of filial piety have always dictated that adults should care for their ageing parents, but what happens when the government proposes a filial piety law? Will it be a welcome reminder of cultural values, or will it lead to tension between parents and their children?

“Selamat pulang ke tanah air”—these words strike a chord within the hearts of many Malaysians; I am no exception. This is the phrase I have yearned to echo in my ears and heart again since I first touched down in KLIA after a year of loss, solitude, and sorrow in my distant home, the UK.

The recently announced Budget 2023 under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s administration will allocate RM15.1 billion to the Ministry of Higher Education, which is a 5.7 per cent increase compared to the previous budget, as reported by New Straits Times. The ministry has since pledged to improve the quality of Malaysian higher education, including upgrading the basic infrastructures and adopting more digitalisation to enhance digital learning, pairing with fiscal efforts such as the deferment of National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loan payment and cash distribution via the e-tunai Belia Rahmah initiative.

It was certainly a tough pre-Valentine weekend for Penang Deputy Chief Minister Ramasamy Palanisamy when he was attacked by politicians from both sides of the aisle, along with various civil societies and non-governmental organisations, over his remark that the Malaysian civil service is currently Malay-dominated and that the current government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim must take action to ‘break’ the Malay dominance in the public sector.

On 16 August 2021, following the resignation of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s government due to backlash on the handling of Covid-19, UMNO vice president, Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri became the ninth Prime Minister to lead the country’s recovery. He commanded a very slim four-seat majority in Malaysia’s 222-seat parliament of 114 seats. Pakatan Harapan (PH), the opposition bloc, had 88 seats in parliament. The country was still recovering with half-baked lockdowns and an unfinished vaccination program, and a general election was unrealistic and inconsiderate to the struggling rakyat. Thus, a memorandum of agreement between PH and the government was signed to ensure political stability.

It’s odd how what other people see as a waste of time is insightful for me and has changed my perspective on things. Whether it be bickering couples or day-to-day lives, as usual, your girl loves listing, and today’s list will be in the form of the things I have learned from one of my go-to series, One Day At A Time.

Malaysia has been and is able to produce great actors and actresses, but great actors and actresses need great scripts to support their skills. Under the current highly-restricted content-creating environment via various laws such as the Film Censorship Act and the Communications and Multimedia Act, it is hard for directors and scriptwriters to produce works with unconstrained style. One of the reasons why Asian films find it difficult to surpass Hollywood films in terms of global box office performance is the relatively restricted genres of content that can be legally and safely produced. In Malaysia, issues about race, religion, gender identity, and politics have always been untouchable taboos. Whoever touches it, even while meaning well, will be deemed insensitive and face various legal and ethical controversies. As an industry that values freedom, it is not irrational for filmmakers to leave Malaysia and seek a freer market overseas.

An oft-cited defence of Muslims against Islamophobes and critics of the religion is that what those on the fringes of the religious practice and preach is not what Islam stands for. In addition to a gap between theory and practice, there is also a gap between the mortal and the divine. Islam is a perfect divine religion, but those practising it are imperfect mortal men. This imperfection manifests itself in many ways. Some are as innocent as in the way Muslims pray (notice how some schools (madhhab) hold the hands over their bellies whilst others don’t?).1 Some as far as whether women are sui juris in terms of marriage.2 And there are even ones that go as far as differences in basic theological principles. For instance, on whether people have free will as it relates to predestination (Qada’ and Qadr).3 The core idea here is that these differences in opinion epitomise the problem of human interpretation of the divine – that they are fundamentally imperfect.