Thursday, September 10, 2009

Malaysia celebrates - 52 years of Independence




I come from a jewel of a nation, Malaysia.

We celebrated our 52nd National Day, Merdeka Day on 31 August. Our country has moved on, by leaps and bounds in many ways since our severance from British colonial rule in 1957. All the sweeter, as independence was achieved with no blood spilled.


Our first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al Haj led the crowd and shouted, 'Mereka!' (Independence) and the crowds echoed,'Merdeka!'at the Selangor Club Field (now known as Dataran Merdeka) The Union Jack was lowered and replaced by the flag of The Federation of Malaya.

This year it's no different that the country celebrates this significant day in our history albeit on a much smaller scale because of the H1N1 flu and being the holy month of Ramadan.

We cherish the fact that we are living in a peaceful nation. This country is my true home. This is where I was born. Home is where my heart is. My grandfather came from China and I've not to this day set foot in China tho I have it on my 'must visit' list but keep skipping it for one reason or another.

Here in Malaysia, it's a melting pot of Malays, Chinese, Indians, Kadazans, Ibans and numerous indigenous people. A visitor would wonder, where am I ? Who is a Malaysian? We all are. See the faces of the children? - that's looking at us, Malaysians.





I thought I'd let my readers from near and far flung have a sneak peep into our corporate ads that showed up in full strength to celebrate Merdeka Day. Had there been a mammoth national parade celebration, thousands of people from all walks of life and from the corporations would have taken the march past before the King. Hope you the reader can soak in some Malaysian flavours there :)

There's so much to say in the pictures which tell our Malaysian story - our history, our diversity, our beauty, our togetherness, our achievements, our hospitality. Above all, our dignity and pride.

Every Merdeka Day brings with it the pledge to strive for the aspirations of one nation. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, it is a gargantuan task with this multi-racial mix.

Dear Malaysians , let's build on our shared vision , on our strength in diversity . Let's take our aspirations forward. Be non -prejudicial, be civil and responsible citizens. Unity is in our hearts and if we follow our hearts, Malaysia for all is truly ours to keep.

Happy Merdeka!











On a lighter note, enjoy LAT, our foremost and beloved cartoonist. This cartoon appeared on 31 August in the NST ( New Straits Times) - Yes, we're ONE, as always!! ( read: MAY post on 'it's LAT!')


28 comments:

  1. My dear Sunshine Girl, are you doing this based on Malaysian time? Nevertheless its a great post and here's wishing you Happy Hari Kemerdekaaan aka National aka Independence Day all over again!

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  2. Happy Independence day :)
    Fantastic lonnggg... post ^__^
    Thanks for the great shots

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  3. Dear Keats, you brought tears, in the words of Kimora, to my waterproof mascaraed eyes :)

    Malaysia, oh how we take this country for granted. How we don't feel patriotic - at all or not enough. All because everything comes so easy to us.

    Happy Malaysia Day Keats. Thank you for the remembrance of otherwise a passed uneventful day for me.

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  4. How wonderful! You speak with pride about your country, which is the way it should be. It sounds fantastic. Congratulations to your country and you!

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  5. This was such an interesting post! Thank you for sharing so much about your country. I like the message that "we're all 1"

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  6. Happy Merdeka Malaysia .............and happy weekend to you Keats :P

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  7. Has it been 52 yrs already? Wow.. so much achieved, yet still such a long road ahead given the state of affairs now. Anyway, happy birthday to our Msia.

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  8. Hi
    Autumn Belle, this post is a little late but better late than never:)
    Yah, we need to have a standard name for our Independence Day. Hari Merdeka is good.

    Anya, thanks for your good wishes.

    Ocean Girl, you're right. everyone has to be couted for the good of the country and not take it for granted.

    The Retired One, thank you for your good wishes. Malaysians love their country. We are a young nation and we have to work together for the common good.

    Catherine@AGardenerinProgress, thanks for visiting. We have to work very hard on 'We're all 1'. But times are a changing and we need to take stock for our future and that of our children.

    M. Kate, the same to you:)

    petite nyonya, yes, the road is long and windy and tough. Hope is there and we must work together. And we can't leave it to the politicians. We have our VOICE .

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  9. I dont know much about Malyysia, but I am learning thanks to you..

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  10. Greetings from India on your independence day!
    Great post.

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  11. HI
    Turquoise Diaries, yeaH!,that's nice to know and one of the ways is through blogging.

    Indrani, thanks so much for your wishes.

    lili11, our prayer and hope towards 1Malaysia. Sacrifices aplenty.

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  12. Hi Keats! Congrats! Have a great time!!

    Blogtrotter is now in Turkey. Enjoy and have a fabulous weekend!

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  13. "Be non-prejudicial, be civil and responsible citizens." - is very deep and love this statement. All the same it ends up on being compassionate to one and all. Thanks for sharing and Bring it on Malaysia!

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  14. Hi
    GMG, thanks for your wishes.

    Unseen Rajasthan,Malaysia welcomes you!

    Pacey, Yeah, we need all the good wishes, thanks! A melting pot like us need to be compassionate and understanding of each other. We must not fail.

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  15. I am so glad that you stopped by my blog. You gave me a huge emotional boost. I really needed that because there was a misunderstanding on one persons blog I had written a comment on. I just wish the United States could all be one big happy group but it will never happen. And truly I must say many people don't like our president because of the color of his skin and that is not right. Your blog really did the trick as far as lifting my spirits. I love all the pictures and you describe each event. Please put me on your list and come back. You can bet you have not seen the last of me.

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  16. Hi Lucy, thanks so much for stopping by too.Glad I lifted your spirits. The sun always shines in Malaysia!!let's get to know each other more :)

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  17. Happy Independence Day!!

    Great post

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  18. Wow! Great ads. And lots to celebrate! Thanks for giving us a peek into your world.

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  19. What a great message, Keats! Reading this made me swell with pride! I feel like forwarding this blogpost to all our politicians! Stop playing up our differences, people -- we are all in this together! Berat sama dipikul, ringan sama dijinjing!

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  20. WOW! Where did you get all those ads? How did I miss them?!!

    That was beautifully written !!

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  21. HI
    febriana, thanks for dropping in. Have a good day!

    Suzanne Casamento, I agree the ads are great and it is more than a peek :)

    ~Covert_Operations'78~, your heart, mine and our fellow Malaysians want so much. Together, we can achieve :))

    Veronica Lee, These ads were in the NST. I missed watching the parade on tv. I said,'hey! hubby, is it still on?' His reply, 'Only a short one,it's over!'. So, I sat and read the papers and caught these ads.

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  22. Happy Belated Merdeka Day! Great post. I love what you said about the faces of the children. I really think that they should be us all over the world :). Have a wonderful week, my dear.

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  23. I enjoyed looking at all the ads. What a wonderful message.

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  24. Ha ha ha, I like the Lat cartoon! 1 Malaysia!

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  25. Hi Pete, Lat is a fantabulous guy! he really does us proud :)) 1 Malaysia is us, always been.

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  26. Hi
    ROSIDAH, sorry to be so late in acknowledging. Happy Raya to you and your family.

    adrienne, am glad you enjoyed the ads. Have a good day!

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Great to have you popping in!