selamat hari Malaysia!
Have you ever felt like you don’t belong in your own country? I have…
Born and raised in Malaysia, my own home country has turned out to be a foreign country where nothing seems to be the way it used to be, at least to me. I used to feel like shouting ‘I’m home’ whenever I step my feet at the airport after a long vacation outside Malaysia. Nowadays, it felt like I’m coming back to a place where I don’t belong.
I enrolled my degree in a local university that welcome students from abroad to enjoy education from this country. Instead, these foreign students come to this country and make it like their own, speeding around campus in their luxury cars, hosting late night parties at the apartment block where I stayed and skipping classes like their parents own the university. Although the university clearly states that a student can only sit for the final exam provided they attend 80% of the classes, foreign students get away with their attendance but local students are not allowed to sit for the final exam if they don’t fulfill the requirement. Try knocking on your foreign neighbor who’s busy hosting a wild party at 3am and ask them to turn the music volume down. Chances are you’ll get shoo-ed away by them. Foreign students driving recklessly around campus, just because they own freaking weird batman looking cars causing danger to local students who obviously drive local cars. I don’t see any local authorities doing anything about that. Probably they are too busy escorting foreign vips on the highway. I left uni back in 2007, so I don’t know what the situation now is.
Other than that, it is no longer safe for young girls to drive around at night or hangout with friends til late night because snatch thieves, robberies, kidnapping for human trafficking are making headlines on the newspapers. I’m not pointing fingers here because the people who commit these crimes are not only foreign workers but our own people. But statistics have shown that these crimes are committed mostly by foreign workers who come here to “work”. I guess they are really “working”.
Lunch last Friday reminded me of my uni days where I had to battle with foreigners in my own country. I work in the heart KL, where this shopping mall is flooded with tourists. I am proud and happy that they want to visit my country, see and experience our culture, learn about our food and tradition. But it pisses me off when I am queuing for my food and they just barge in the restaurant 10-20 of them rushing for the table and grabbing the food as if it was a buffet line. What did I do? Stared at them and didn’t utter a word. These tourists in groups with their tourist guide (who is obviously from my country) walk in groups pushing people around in the shopping mall, making it as if their own. Some of them even smoke in the shopping mall which has clearly state no smoking. I even saw with my own eyes that tourist smoking in our own international airport. I do travel around the world and behave well in other countries. Respect the rules and tradition. Even to the countries where flip flops are considered rude, I do put on my shoes (although I prefer to walk in flip flops). It is just a simple respect and courtesy of the place where I am visiting. Yes, visiting! Is it too much to ask for these tourists to at least respect the place where they are visiting.
Another thing I LOVE about my home country is how you can get things done if you carry a title in front of your name. In this country, Tan Sri, Puan Sri, Datuk/Dato’, Datin, Toh Puan, Dato’ Sri, and list goes on and on. These people with title in front of their names are looked up like God. Just mention your title and voila, everyone else will bow and obey your instructions. Another disclaimer I have to make, not all of them are misusing their power and title. I’ve come across some of them who are very humble and nice. Most of them are just big headed with their title which gives them power. Double standard in this country is pretty common, as far as I’ve experienced it. My friends and I used to try it when we were scouting for property couple years ago. I just started working and like any other daughter, my parents wanted me to invest on a property. So I brought my friends along to check this property I wanted to buy. Went to the sales gallery, under-dressed, no makeup on, drove my local made car, and I introduced myself. He explained to me about the property, the price then he said there’s a new property scheduled to launch the next month, if I’m interested he will call me to attend the launch. Apparently you need an invitation to attend for property launching, I didn’t know that. I gave my business card and there he was treating me like a princess. I was given royal treatment during the time I was there. My other friends who are also interested in the new property also put up their name to attend the launch, but guess what? If your name or dad’s name doesn’t have Dato’/Datuk, Tan Sri, Tuanku or any title, no invitation to the launching. I wasn’t even interested in the RM3.5 million bungalow, my friend was actually considering it, but she didn’t get the invitation because she doesn’t carry a title in front of her name. Booooo!
Another incident happened was when my friend got into an accident with this 70 y/old Datin. To cut story short, her husband who is a Datuk called the police around that area and instructed the police to inspect my friend’s car along with a police cameraman to snap pictures of the accident. It wasn’t a big accident that needed special attention, but because he carries the title Datuk and my friend carries title Miss, Datuk overruled everything else, even when the car was not even his. It was my friend’s car, so what if she wants the car to be towed to the police station. As she explained in anger and stress yesterday, “suka hati aku la nak tow kereta aku pegi Disneyland ke, dah tu kereta aku”. We could argue or cry blood if we want too, but nothing will happen. We will still have to wait. So, there we were sitting by the curb waiting in anger, under the hot sun for the policeman to inspect and snap pictures, while the Datuk probably sitting comfortably at home in front of the tv watching BBC, legged crossed waiting for updates from the policeman. This is all because the Datuk said so. Sighhhhhhh….
While I am a proud and happy citizen in my country, sometimes I do feel like an alien in my own home. I might not carry Datuk/Dato’ or Datin title, but I do pay tax. I don’t think I deserve this treatment and I am voicing out my two cents on behalf of other Malaysian citizens who feels the same way.
Nonetheless, Happy Birthday Malaysia!
Born and raised in Malaysia, my own home country has turned out to be a foreign country where nothing seems to be the way it used to be, at least to me. I used to feel like shouting ‘I’m home’ whenever I step my feet at the airport after a long vacation outside Malaysia. Nowadays, it felt like I’m coming back to a place where I don’t belong.
I enrolled my degree in a local university that welcome students from abroad to enjoy education from this country. Instead, these foreign students come to this country and make it like their own, speeding around campus in their luxury cars, hosting late night parties at the apartment block where I stayed and skipping classes like their parents own the university. Although the university clearly states that a student can only sit for the final exam provided they attend 80% of the classes, foreign students get away with their attendance but local students are not allowed to sit for the final exam if they don’t fulfill the requirement. Try knocking on your foreign neighbor who’s busy hosting a wild party at 3am and ask them to turn the music volume down. Chances are you’ll get shoo-ed away by them. Foreign students driving recklessly around campus, just because they own freaking weird batman looking cars causing danger to local students who obviously drive local cars. I don’t see any local authorities doing anything about that. Probably they are too busy escorting foreign vips on the highway. I left uni back in 2007, so I don’t know what the situation now is.
Other than that, it is no longer safe for young girls to drive around at night or hangout with friends til late night because snatch thieves, robberies, kidnapping for human trafficking are making headlines on the newspapers. I’m not pointing fingers here because the people who commit these crimes are not only foreign workers but our own people. But statistics have shown that these crimes are committed mostly by foreign workers who come here to “work”. I guess they are really “working”.
Lunch last Friday reminded me of my uni days where I had to battle with foreigners in my own country. I work in the heart KL, where this shopping mall is flooded with tourists. I am proud and happy that they want to visit my country, see and experience our culture, learn about our food and tradition. But it pisses me off when I am queuing for my food and they just barge in the restaurant 10-20 of them rushing for the table and grabbing the food as if it was a buffet line. What did I do? Stared at them and didn’t utter a word. These tourists in groups with their tourist guide (who is obviously from my country) walk in groups pushing people around in the shopping mall, making it as if their own. Some of them even smoke in the shopping mall which has clearly state no smoking. I even saw with my own eyes that tourist smoking in our own international airport. I do travel around the world and behave well in other countries. Respect the rules and tradition. Even to the countries where flip flops are considered rude, I do put on my shoes (although I prefer to walk in flip flops). It is just a simple respect and courtesy of the place where I am visiting. Yes, visiting! Is it too much to ask for these tourists to at least respect the place where they are visiting.
Another thing I LOVE about my home country is how you can get things done if you carry a title in front of your name. In this country, Tan Sri, Puan Sri, Datuk/Dato’, Datin, Toh Puan, Dato’ Sri, and list goes on and on. These people with title in front of their names are looked up like God. Just mention your title and voila, everyone else will bow and obey your instructions. Another disclaimer I have to make, not all of them are misusing their power and title. I’ve come across some of them who are very humble and nice. Most of them are just big headed with their title which gives them power. Double standard in this country is pretty common, as far as I’ve experienced it. My friends and I used to try it when we were scouting for property couple years ago. I just started working and like any other daughter, my parents wanted me to invest on a property. So I brought my friends along to check this property I wanted to buy. Went to the sales gallery, under-dressed, no makeup on, drove my local made car, and I introduced myself. He explained to me about the property, the price then he said there’s a new property scheduled to launch the next month, if I’m interested he will call me to attend the launch. Apparently you need an invitation to attend for property launching, I didn’t know that. I gave my business card and there he was treating me like a princess. I was given royal treatment during the time I was there. My other friends who are also interested in the new property also put up their name to attend the launch, but guess what? If your name or dad’s name doesn’t have Dato’/Datuk, Tan Sri, Tuanku or any title, no invitation to the launching. I wasn’t even interested in the RM3.5 million bungalow, my friend was actually considering it, but she didn’t get the invitation because she doesn’t carry a title in front of her name. Booooo!
Another incident happened was when my friend got into an accident with this 70 y/old Datin. To cut story short, her husband who is a Datuk called the police around that area and instructed the police to inspect my friend’s car along with a police cameraman to snap pictures of the accident. It wasn’t a big accident that needed special attention, but because he carries the title Datuk and my friend carries title Miss, Datuk overruled everything else, even when the car was not even his. It was my friend’s car, so what if she wants the car to be towed to the police station. As she explained in anger and stress yesterday, “suka hati aku la nak tow kereta aku pegi Disneyland ke, dah tu kereta aku”. We could argue or cry blood if we want too, but nothing will happen. We will still have to wait. So, there we were sitting by the curb waiting in anger, under the hot sun for the policeman to inspect and snap pictures, while the Datuk probably sitting comfortably at home in front of the tv watching BBC, legged crossed waiting for updates from the policeman. This is all because the Datuk said so. Sighhhhhhh….
While I am a proud and happy citizen in my country, sometimes I do feel like an alien in my own home. I might not carry Datuk/Dato’ or Datin title, but I do pay tax. I don’t think I deserve this treatment and I am voicing out my two cents on behalf of other Malaysian citizens who feels the same way.
Nonetheless, Happy Birthday Malaysia!
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