Book Launch and Public Lecture: “Values to Bind and Build: A Reflection”

 

  

At 25 January 2019, there was a seminar held in University Tunku Abdul Rahman(UTAR), Sungai Long campus, KB-105 in block B and start by 10am. The title of the seminar also the launch of the book named “Value to Bind and Build: A Reflection”.

  The author of the book, YBhg. Prof. Dato’ Dr. Tan Chong Tin, was invited to give a speech to the audience about his book. This book is about the ethnic relation in Malaysia, there is need for intellectuals of different communities to build common ground as a foundation to ethnic harmony and nation building. About the ethnic relationship in Malaysia, they have been analyzed from different perspectives, like culture, law, political and history.

  Dato’ Dr. Tan Chong Tin said that one of the solutions is the paradigm shift to focus on needs for recognition and dignity. The key to grasping the psychological drive to ethnic harmony was to respect the role of “identity”, “collective self-esteem” and “dignity”. About his own personal appreciation of the collective identity and dignity is the field of epilepsy, where patients with epilepsy suffer far more from stigma, rather than the direct effect of epileptic convulsion. This was similar to understand the modern history nowadays, people need to appreciate the enormous in influenced by identity, collective self-esteem or ethnic and national dignity which would lead to the development of nationalism.

  “New Economic Policy” (NEP), is the most important national policy to achieve ethnic harmony since the 1969’s racial riots in Malaysia. NEP is built on the foundation that correct of national harmony cannot be achieved without ethnic equality. There is enormous growth of the Bumiputera professionals and middle class in the last fifty years, the ethnic tension has worsened.

  Secondly, Dr Tan also said that the dignity based on being recognized as competent. The neglected value was included the quality of education and English competency. The strong work ethic to be similarly as successful economically. All of the ethnic groups must develop and nature good work ethic, as ultimately work ethics determines economic productivity. The second is openness, the best example is China. The history of decline and rise of China has demonstrated the importance of openness as another key to economic competitiveness. A comprehensive approach to openness should include open-mindedness, the receptiveness to better ideas and willingness to adopt the best which is a meritocracy. The third neglected value is freedom, which is essential for nurturing of competence, creativity and maturity. One of the example that lack of freedom would result in loss of creativity is reflected in the low number of publication in the Arab world today. Pakistan American N Quereshi on authority: “Islamic cultures tend to establish people of high status as authorities, whereas the authority in Western culture is reason itself. When authority is derived from the position rather than reason, the act of questioning leadership is dangerous...”.

  The next was about the dignity of being recognized as good. Dr. Tan want to develop the theme that the core of a man’s self-esteem is ultimately moral. In Maslow’s hierarchy of human need, there has three level which the lowest level is physiological, the next is psychological and the highest level is about moral, such as truth, justice, goodness, perfection and meaningful. Dr. Tan give two example that was a fundamental issue in Malaysian life which include affirmative action policy and also the public space. Affirmative action policy is formerly a policy that to achieve social harmony. The underlying reasoning is that to have long term peace, a society should be the same or minimize the inequality of society. About the public space, the difference racial would have different faith share, it would be of help to emphasize for learning how to differentiate.

  Lastly was the needs of our individual differences or identities to be respected. It was about enhancing competence and goodness to strengthen ethnic self-esteem and dignity. In Malaysia, which is the country that multi-ethnic and multi-culture, whilst the historical Malay polity should be recognized, it is essential to accept and respect the identities of the minorities, including the language and culture. The identity of Chinese is rooted in a long history of civilization, preserved and transmitted by an idiographic script. The insistence of the Malaysian Chinese community on its vernacular schools is based on the need to learn the complicated language.

  In conclusion, people should have a paradigm shift to how we work at achieving ethnic harmony and change the perspective that looks at each other. No matter who you are, we are all people driven by emotions. The needs of emotional are the first to be recognized as competent and good, capable and want to contribute equally to the common goods, and our identities to be respected. This is the foundation of ethnic dignity that is the point to ethnic harmony.

  

Movie Review: Train To Busan

  

  Train to Busan is a South Korean film that releases at 2016. This movie is about the zombie attack and the main character want to arrive to Busan by train. The audiences can receive a lot of the value and also thought themselves while watching this movie.

                       

  The movie has reacted the humanity, for example when the people attacked by the zombie, the people will become selfish and abandon others people. The example that can find in the film is one of the survivors who named Yong-suk, he does a lot of hateful behaviour in the film. For example, when the party of Seok-woo want to come into the safe zone of the train, he doesn’t let them come in and instigate others survivor to block them open the door. As the result, he intermittently killed Sang-hwa and In-gil. Other of it, when Yong-suk and one of the train attendant hiding in the toilet, he escapes by sacrificing the train attendant and also on the way of his escapes, he sacrificing Jin-hee by pulling her and become the target of the zombie. All of this kind of behaviour is inhumanity, however at the last of the movie audiences can know that the action he does like this is worry about her mother, but his approach is wrong. In my own perspective, I can’t say that Yong-suk is wrong, because he is just present about the nature of humanity, the human being is selfish creatures.

  We also can find out the value of the friendship. For example, when Seok-woo, Sang-hwa and Yong-guk want to cross to the front of the train where the hiding place of Su-an, Seong-kyeong, In-gil and the homeless man, they meet Yong-guk friends, who already infected. Yong-guk hesitates to hurt them. No matter his friend has already infected, they also as the friend, teammate before it happens, so he can't bear to hurt them. After Jin-hee bite by the zombie, Yong-guk did not leave her and feel very despair and sadness, he chooses to accompany with her until the last of life. To explain the action of Yong-guk, we know that friends are also as one of the characters that accompanied us to grow up, some of the friend also can be like your family members, even they had been infected, but they are friends of Yong-guk before it happens, it is a fact that cannot be changed.

  The next is about the courage, in the movie audiences can see that there are few of the survivor will help others without any reasons. The best character to be the example is Sang-hwa. In the movie, I personally think that he is the most impressive character. He always the first who come to help others, all of the people scare about the zombie, sure he also fear for it, so he behaviour in the movie will tell the audience, he is a brave man. At the last of his life, he wants to protect and gain the time to lets his party members open the door, he bite by the zombie unluckily. In the end, At the last, because of not enough of stamina, he sacrifice himself to force open the door. I can assert that in this world, there are very few of such people. Human being is selfish, much of us will think for ourself first and make the situation become benefit for ourself.

  The movie also presents the changes of character in this movie. The journey can make the people change their attitude by through by a journey. The main character Seok-woo is a very cool and selfish person at the beginning of the story. As the story progresses, he started to change his attitude become a kind and helpful person. The turning point of his change is at the Daejeon station, he tried to conceal others to take Su-an to the safe place. Sure it failed and he was fell in danger, but Sang-hwa and the survivor from baseball team still waiting for him, they did not abandon him. The other example is about the relationship between Seok-woo and his daughter Su-an. At the beginning of the movie, their relationship is not really good, because Seok-woo always busy at his work and cause they are lack of communication. However in the train that attack by the zombie, their relationship become better and better. At the last of the movie, Su-an feels very sad because her father has been a bite and want to leave her alone for safety. Su-an never has a chance to interactive with her father, and also don’t have the chance in the future anymore. In our life, we also will have a change thought by the ways that we grow up, it may call the journey in our life. Everyone has changed their attitude when happening something, it is also a part of grow.

  In conclusion, Train to Busan is not only a horror movie, but it is also a movie that let people to think deeply themselves and about humanity. As an audience, this movie is also present about the power of relationship, whether is a family, friend and also the lover. It is undeniable that people will become selfish when facing an emergency. However, the people that who have a relationship with us will more important than our own self if you cherish his or her very much.