The Sun

Keynote address by the Raja Muda of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, at the first annual Student Leaders Summit 2007 — “Celebrating 50 Years of Nationhood” — on Aug 5, 2007, at Nikko Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.

I am delighted to be here this morning to deliver the keynote address at this Summit, dedicated as it is to Youth. All of you in this room are the creme de la creme of the young generation — those fortunate enough and intelligent enough to benefit from the best education. You are the future leaders of this nation.

This morning, I want to talk to you about the challenges and prospects for nation-building. Nation-building refers to the structuring of a country, with the help of state power, to ensure a strong national identity that is viable in the long run. It is predicated on national unity and is a topic of utmost importance to all of us, not least the younger generation. Fifty years of the national relay race has been run. Soon the baton will be handed to those of you who will run the next lap. The Malaysia familiar to most, if not all, of you is the modern prosperous nation with its increasingly urban population and robust middle class; not the poor and predominantly agricultural society of 50 years ago. When Malaysia gained independence, we were on a par with countries like Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Ghana, Morocco and Senegal in terms of per capita income. Today we have far surpassed these countries in economic growth and human development.

However, it is important to be aware that this was a far-fetched vision 50 years ago. The first Merdeka generation, almost overnight, found themselves tasked with an onerous job when Malaysia gained independence. The country was born against the backdrop of a virulent communist insurgency. Poverty was widespread, particularly in the rural areas. There was very little sense of unity and national identity. The states that made up the federation were only loosely integrated. Many people regarded themselves primarily as natives of their state rather than as nationals of Malaya. The enlargement of Malaya into Malaysia in 1963 was vigorously opposed by our neighbours, leading to confrontation with Indonesia. After the traumatic events of 1969, many predicted the imminent disintegration of Malaysian society.

That we have been able to forge a successful nation without resorting to the rule of the gun makes us something of an oddity in a region of coups, civil strife and people power. This has been due in large part to wise leadership, the innate good sense of the Malaysian people — and a bit of luck. Today, the nine Sultanates, two Straits Settlements and the two states in Borneo have united in a tangible way despite historical separation and physical distance. Development policies and communication channels have managed to fuse together the myriad religions and ethnic groups and forged a sense of belonging and shared destiny.
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Pauline Puah
The Sun

PETALING JAYA: Five years after the Aku Janji loyalty pledge was enforced, some academics in public universities are still against the mandatory oath while others do not think it is an issue at all.

Those who want the pledge to be scrapped stand by the view that it curbs the university’s autonomy and academic freedom. Others, however, are more concerned about the staff’s welfare and think that as employees of public institutions, they do owe the government of the day some allegiance.

Recently, former academics Dr Lim Teck Ghee and Dr Syed Husin Ali initiated a petition asking the government to scrap the pledge.

“This requirement of loyalty to the government – found only in a few repressive university systems in the world – has stifled academic freedom in our country to an unprecedented extent.

It has also inculcated a culture of fear, passivity and uncritical thinking in the campuses, which is antithetical to the development of our universities and to the quality of teaching and scholarship,” the petition said.

It is endorsed by 42 individuals – including former academics and those who are still teaching – and 46 non-governmental organisations.

The petition was sent to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed last Wednesday.

Lim told theSun that they had received “a large number” of endorsements from present academics but whose names do not appear in the petition. “They are those who cannot include their names here for fear of victimisation by the authorities.”

He said he hoped the campaign would be a continuous effort and the list of endorsements would be updated from time to time.
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Charles Ramendran
The Sun

KAJANG: Police have arrested three Pakistani men, including a security guard, in connection with the rape and murder of a Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) student on Thursday.

The guard, who is an employee of a security company hired to patrol Bandar Mahkota Cheras where the student stayed, had not turned up for work after Tang Lai Meng, 20, was found dead.

She was found clad only in a T-shirt with her hands bound behind her back and a pillow case coiled around her neck, in her rented double-storey terrace house.

The three men are aged between 26 and 35.

Sources said that early yesterday, the guard was picked up when he finally reported for duty. It is learnt the two other Pakistani men are the housemates of the guard who lived in a flat in the same housing estate.

Police have recorded a statement from several people, including neighbours and a close male friend of the victim who visited her often at the house.

Earlier reports had stated that police were looking for the victim’s housemates. But investigators have since determined that Tang was the sole occupant of the house on Jalan Putera 4/1 in Seksyen 1.

Sources also said the master bedroom she stayed in was the only room in the house that was furnished.

Police said a post-mortem report showed that the victim, a star student who was doing her degree in business administration at UTAR’s Bandar Sungai Long campus, was also sodomised. Ulu Langat police chief ACP Rosli Mohd Nizam said anyone with information should call the district CID at 03-8736 2222

Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, SUN:

The Raja Muda of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, today outlined three essentials for an effective and sustained nation-building that include Rule of Law and inviolability of the constitution.
Economic, social justice for all and good governance and a thriving civil society are the other two essentials, he said in his keynote address at the inaugural Student Leaders’ Summit 2007.

On the Rule of Law, Raja Nazrin said the constitution was the nation’s supreme law that guarantees fundamental liberties to every citizen. He said the cleverly crafted document clearly provides for adequate “checks and balances” against excesses through the separation of powers between the executive, legislative and judicial branches, with each protected from encroachment by the other.

“It has often been said many misunderstandings may be avoided if the principles embodied in the constitution are adhered to strictly. Upholding the Rule of Law is paramount,” he said in his address entitled “Challenges and Prospects for Nation-Building - A Lesson for the Young and Bright.

On economic and social justice, Raja Nazrin said all groups in society, regardless of their ethnicities, religion or gender, must participate in decision-making that affect their lives and livelihood.
“They must have voice and a place in all sectors. They must carry equal responsibilities in making society work.

“The people we work and play with, the friendship we make, must never be constrained by ethnicity,” he said.

The Perak prince said preconceptions, parochialism and chauvinism can be eradicated if the people interacted freely and actively with others of different ethnic groups or religions, “even if it is just one teacher, one policeman or one schoolmate.”

“In many areas, this is absent and it must change,” he said.
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