The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion
The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion |
| Educate girls, weapons of mass construction Posted: 14 May 2014 04:50 PM PDT
One tries to find lessons and silver linings from tragedies. It is tragedies that bring people and communities together with a working "moral compass". The collective grief eventually inspires an inner resolve that sends a strong message of overcoming with hope around the corner. The kidnapping of 270 Nigerian school girls, with promise to sell them into the market by Boko Haram, created a global virtual campaign, #bringourgirlsback! Boko is translated as western/secular education, and haram means prohibited. The reaction to the kidnapping has reached and, genuinely, impacted the powerful, who may not be connected to these girls. Thus, the US First Lady, Michelle Obama, and former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, can be seen on twitter with handwritten sign about the return of these beautiful young girls. The immediate question that comes to mind is why would Boko Haram cult deviate from their path of vigilante business model of "cataract injustice" executed by M&A – murders and assassinations? Why kidnap school girls and threaten to sell them? Why extremist do not take on the military? Are they afraid of hellfire missiles, a precursor of their final destination? Do the members of this cult not have mothers, sisters, daughters or were they hatched on a factory farm on an experiment that went horribly wrong? Abduction It is easier to kidnap the helpless than to help them. Some of the reasons for kidnapping school girls include:
In the Quran, there is a whole chapter dedicated to women, al-Nisa, which deals with welfare, economic, and other important issues before they were recognised, acknowledged, and implemented in places, say, like the UK, on property or voting rights. Notice, the same holy book has no chapter dedicated to man, which implies man's ignorance of woman requiring divine intervention for the betterment of man! Narrated by Abu Huraira, a man came to the Prophet and said, "O Allah's Apostle! Who is more entitled to be treated with the best companionship by me?" The Prophet said, "Your mother." The Prophet institutionalised honour in motherhood, gained with the hadith, "Paradise lies under the feet of the mothers". Thus, what book is Boko reading, assuming they can read and write? Furthermore, at a secular level, there is a treasure trove of studies, from public and private sector, to show that investing in a girl's education has the best sustainable return for the family, village, etc. The return is in variety of forms: smaller families, educated children, reduction from agriculture subsistence, higher income, etc. Putting it into today's financial markets terminology, it's a massive angel investor and venture capitalist exit, "pop", via an initial public offering (IPO)! Extremist fears Boko, and its equivalent elsewhere, are more terrified of educated girls than a bullet with their name on it. Why? For the simple reason, an educated mother instills lessons of reason and empathy, enjoining good and forbidding bad in her (daughter and) son, potential recruits. For example, Malala Yousafzai, the brave teenager from Pakistan who was shot in the head by the "brave" Taliban, has become a global figure for girl's education. Thus, the shot backfired, unfortunately Malala had to endure the horrible ordeal. The Quran raises seeking knowledge as an obligation on every Muslim, male and female. For example, in Qur'an chapter 96 verses 1-5, which says: 'Proclaim! (or read!) In the name of your Lord and Cherisher, Who created. Created men, out of a leech-like clot. Proclaim! And your Lord is Most Bountiful. He who taught by the Pen. Taught man that which he knows not.' The pursuit of knowledge is an important part of worship, as Islamic civilization has contributed to vast number of fields during its Golden Age, including medicine, architecture, astronomy, chemistry, mathematics and philosophy, etc. Knowledge is closely connected with ethics and morality, which promotes virtue (enjoining right) and combats vice (forbidding wrong). Basement/de-humanising In many countries, the proverbial glass ceiling exists for women and minorities in the workplace. Boko's school of management and ensuing actions suggests ceilings or even glass floors are too high for them, so they have opted for the opposite, the basement. The basement may not have windows (to view the Creator's bounty), rarely receives light (enlightenment), infested with vermins (self explanatory), and it's rare for one to escape its quicksand effect (would result in Hollywood movie). Boko wants to pull these young girls into their quicksand of self implosion, whereas these they want to pursue self-actualisation. In kidnapping the school girls, they are physically and psychologically taking away their future. Their hope is these girls will always be fearful to step outside of their home to go to school. Thus, "pregnant, barefoot and in the basement kitchen" will keep girls financially and emotionally subservient. Finally, to sell girls into the market place, detaching them from dignity and into a life of destitution, means Boko wants to (1) replenish its war chest of mayhem, (2) takes the education fight out of the girls and (3) sends a message of consequences for others. It's interesting to note, that the villagers have taken "vigilante justice" into their own hands against Boko, as the latter lives by the bullet, they will be killed by the former's bullet. For example, Nigerian northern state villagers, like in Kalabalge, possibly in reaction to the abductions, killed/detained a number of Boko "fighters" who were suspected of planning another attack. The villagers seem to have lost confidence in the military/police. Conclusion The Somali pirates seems to have more class than Boko Haram, at least they picked on someone their own size! In abducting the school girls, the cult's aspiration has actually backfired, as they have raised the profile of the importance of girls, education and combined beneficial consequences. Boko Haram looks at these school girls and does not see its mirror image, failure, but sees "weapons of mass construction", the ultimate nightmare of extremists! – May 15, 2014. * This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider. | |
| Kisah si pengamen Pujiono dan para juri yang sakit Posted: 14 May 2014 04:19 PM PDT
Jadi saya tidak berapa mengikuti perkembangan yang berkonsep seperti itu. Saya percaya pada program yang melibatkan juri profesional sepenuhnya, seperti program Bintang RTM yang popular di tahun 70-an dan 80-an dulu. Bukan pak lawak menjadi juri orang menyanyi, bukan pemain bola dan penyanyi top menjadi juri pelawak berlawak. Apatah lagi jika orang awam yang menjadi juri, payahlah sedikit kerana 'level' mereka ini hanya tahap peminat, bukan pakar dalam bab seni dan suara. Itulah antara penyebab lahirnya penyanyi yang hanya bertahan semusim atau dua musim. Jadi yang hadir hanyalah sekadar pelengkap kalendar seni dan hiburan tanah air sahaja. Baru-baru ini, isteri saya menunjukkan saya sesi ujibakat Indonesian Idol 2014 di YouTube. Sebelum ini, banyak juga yang ditunjukkannya, tetapi semuanya tidak menarik minat saya. Salah satu sebabnya kebanyakan mereka ini hanya hendak menjadi klon, menyanyi lagu Inggeris pun keluar telor Indonesia. Nyata ramai mereka yang berangan hendak menjadi penyanyi ini mengalami 'sakit' untuk dilihat sebagai 'orang hebat' dan dilihat 'elit'. Di mana yang nampak elitnya saya pun tidak pasti. Pun begitu, saya sangat tertarik dengan penampilan seorang pengamen yang mencuba nasibnya di program Indonesian Idol 2014 itu. Rakamannya sekitar November 2013 tetapi baru sahaja diterbitkan baru-baru ini. Pertama kerana nilai kejujurannya dalam berkarya. Kedua kerana menyanyikan lagu daripada karya ciptaannya sendiri. Ketiga kerana menjadi dirinya sendiri. Keempat kerana nyata Pujiono nama si pengamen itu seorang yang bijak melebihi kebijakan para juri yang terlibat Ahmad Dhani, Anang dan seorang lagi yang saya tidak kenal. Saya katakan bijak kerana Pujiono mungkin sedia tahu dia mungkin tidak punya peluang untuk mara ke pusingan seterusnya lantaran sikap bodoh sombong para juri dalam menilai mana kaca mana permata. Jadi beliau tekad dengan bangganya menyanyikan lagu ciptaannya sendiri. Dia tidak akan rugi apa-apa jika diterima mahupun tidak. 'Nothing to lose' bak kata orang putih! Saya agak terkejut kerana Pujiono gagal memikat ketiga-tiga juri yang macam bagus itu. Lagunya berkualiti, liriknya matang walau dalam bahasa yang mudah, malah punya nilai komersial yang tinggi ditambah mood di Indonesia saat ini yang sedang mengalami musim pilihan raya. Juga kerana lagunya punya nilai nasionalis yang tinggi dan iramanya yang 'catchy' dan merakyat. Selain itu, cara penyampaian Pujiono yang jujur itu jelas dan tidak dibuat-buat sehingga kesannya berjaya meledak ke halwa telinga masyarakat Indonesia majoritinya sehingga video ujibakatnya di YouTube itu ditonton melebihi 2 juta pendengar. Mereka ini (para juri) kebanyakannya memang dan sedang 'sakit'. Sakit mereka ini sakit orang sukses dan berjaya kerana mereka merasakan mereka ini orang hebat, jadi nilai ego dan bodoh sombong itu memang wujud dalam diri dan penampilan mereka, kerana mereka punya kuasa untuk 'Yes' or 'No' untuk setiap peserta yang mengambil bahagian. Di sana, biasanya yang kaya makin kaya dan yang miskin makin terhimpit. Di sini pun begitu juga, tetapi penduduk di negara kita hanya berjumlah 27 juta orang. Peluang pekerjaan di sini masih ada dan kita masih mampu cari makan di negara kita sendiri. Saya tidak pernah jumpa lagi mana-mana busker kita yang sanggup naik bas turun bas, naik keretapi turun keretapi demi busking mencari sesuap nasi di negara kita ini. Maknanya 'survival' busker kita tidaklah se'real'pengamen di Indonesia sana. Ditambah pula hari ini kebanyakan anak muda kita akan bangga mengusung gitar tong ke sana-sini dan menggelarkan diri mereka busker. Ini pemandangan biasa di Kuala Lumpur hari ini jika kita terlihat mereka dua tiga orang anak muda akan mengusung gitar tong dan alat perkusi seperti cajun mahupun djembe. Apatah lagi jika menjadi juri di Indonesia yang majoriti penduduknya melebihi 250 juta orang pada tahun 2013. Saya juga faham untuk lepas dan berjaya sebagai penyanyi mahupun penghibur memanglah sukar. Tetapi apabila mereka berjaya melepasi pelbagai dugaan dalam meniti tangga sukses, jadilah mereka seperti yang kita lihat menjadi juri di program Indonesian Idol itu. Kebanyakan juri memang begitu. Kebanyakan mereka memang macam bagus-bagus walaupun pendapat mereka kadang-kadang sangat bodoh dan tidak matang. Mereka akan melihat penampilan dan siapa para peserta itu. Anak orang kayanya dia? Pandai nyanyi lagu yang punya elemen jazzy seperti penyanyi Adelekah dia? Atau berpenampilankah dia? Apabila Pujiono melantunkan suara dan lagunya berserta siulan pelik, para juri yang menilai bakat beliau sebenarnya kagum akan bakat dan lagu Pujiono, namun atas nilai ego dan elit, mereka menafikan peluang si pengamen itu untuk maju terus ke saringan yang seterusnya. Hari ini, selepas mendapat liputan yang meluas di media juga dengan meletupnya lagu karya Pujiono yang judulnya 'Manisnya Negeriku' itu selepas dibeli oleh sebuah parti politik di sana, Pujiono akan melalui musim yang menarik dan gemilang sekurang-kurangnya untuk satu musim, sama seperti nasib si pengamen cilik Tegar. Beza lagu Tegar dan Pujiono, 'Aku Yang Dulu' Tegar tema lirik lagunya hanya mengundang simpati masyarakat walau melodinya catchy, tetapi terlalu tipikal berbanding lagu Pujiono yang mantap dari sudut tema, mesej mahupun melodinya. Dan hanya kesalan walau berserta ego yang keluar daripada mulut Dhani yang menyesal tidak membeli lagu milik Pujiono, 'Manisnya Negeriku'. Yang jelas, sekurang-kurangnya untuk musim ini, seperti kata si Tegar dalam lagunya, Pujiono Yang Dulu Bukanlah Pujiono Yang Sekarang. Dan yang lebih menarik, sekual perjuangan lagu yang berkonsep merakyat penyanyi folk Indonesia legenda seperti Gombloh, Leo Kristi, Iwan Fals dan Doel Sumbang antaranya akan terus hidup dengan hadirnya pujiono di pentas industri dan hiburan Indonesia. – 15 Mei, 2014. * Ini adalah pendapat peribadi penulis dan tidak semestinya mewakili pandangan The Malaysian Insider. |
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