Tag: Muslim

Don’t Discriminate Filipinos, We Are Malays Too

Maria Menado

I’m getting frustrated being labeled as non-Malay. Why? Here’s my story.

My mom is a Filipino Catholic and my dad is a Malay Muslim. None of my parents convert, and so I was brought up going to church several times a year. Never been to a mosque because my dad has never cultivate any Islamic values in me or in our family. At this age, I still don’t know what is my religion, and I like it that way. But this topic is not about my religion. Being brought up speaking both Malay and Tagalog, and having experience both cultures, I do have a valid testimony to this confusion. Today I want to share my story about being a Filipino-Malay.

But first, I think the term Filipino Malay is oxymoronic.

Filipinos are of Malay stock. I know because I study SEA’s history in uni and this is my area of research.

People of ASEAN mostly they came from Malay stock that is why our face and skin complexion looks very much the same. Although there are many mixed marriage it didn’t only happen in the Philippines.

In the Philippines they call it mestizo while in other countries they have their own abbreviation. Please don’t think that Malay people in the Philippines are the only Malay who practice inter-racial marriages. There are many others in Indonesia (Dutch), Malaysia & Singapore (Chinese, Indian, British, Portuguese), Brunei etc.

Because of different religious background people may forget that Filipinos are actually Malay because predominantly Malays in ASEAN are Muslim while in the Philippines almost all of them are Catholic.

You don’t lump the race Malay as people who subscribe to the religion Islam, and therefore they are Muslims. Neither do you claim all Filipinos are Catholics.

Language is a little bit different but they derived from the ancient Malay language. While Indonesians, Malaysians, and Bruneians can understand each other, many find it hard to understand Tagalog because it is completely different language BUT there are words that are similar or sounded similar. I don’t think there is any problem if people from these countries want to learn Tagalog/Bahasa Melayu/Indonesia.

Tagalog is partly influenced by Spanish language, Malay, Chinese and local language like kapampangan, waray, cebuano.

Spanish = trabajo is trabaho in tagalog
Malay = kerbau is carabao in tagalog, mata is same in both language, as of kanan, kambing, anak etc.

If asked about their race, most Filipinos would identify as being Malay. Filipinos are taught in schools to be proud of their Malay heritage and encouraged to strengthen their ties with other Malays in Southeast Asia.

But Filipinos wishing to migrate in Singapore have to deny this fundamental identification because the Singapore government rejects the classification of Filipinos as Malay. But if Filipinos are not Malay, what ethnicity are they? Officially, Singapore recognizes immigrants from the neighboring Philippines as part of the racial category referred to as “Other.”

Singapore’s Immigration and Checkpoints Authority have clarified that new Singapore citizens of Filipino origin are not classified as Malays. They are typically classified as ‘Others’ under the race category. Indeed, this was affirmed by Communications and Information Minister Yaacob Ibrahim who wrote on Facebook that Filipinos are classified as “Others” and not as Malays.

But why refuse the Malay background of Filipinos in the first place? Perhaps it has something to do with the special privileges accorded to the Malay minority in Singapore. Article 152 of the Constitution of Singapore states that the government “shall recognize the special position of the Malays, who are the indigenous people of Singapore, and accordingly it shall be the responsibility of the Government to protect, safeguard, support, foster and promote their political, educational, religious, economic, social and cultural interests and the Malay language.”

For Filipino immigrants, it must come as a shock for them to be told by Singaporean authorities that they are not Malays. To avoid immigration troubles, perhaps it is more convenient for Filipino workers to shade the “Others” category when filing paperwork than to insist that they are Malays.

Source: Marie Joy Talib

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July 9, 2014
Who Are the Real Extremists?

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) spotted by media wearing a luxury watch

ISIL launched their own passport earlier this week

It is difficult to define someone who recognises no limits, if the definition of limits is constantly changing.

ACCORDING to the West, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil), is the world’s most dangerous extremist. Is this a fair statement?

An extremist is a transgressor, who recognises no limit in his mind, speech and acts. He could be anybody. Defined as such, an extremist is not necessarily an Arab or a Muslim, as it is commonly portrayed in the media.

He could possibly be a Christian, a Buddhist, a secular democrat, a scientist, a human rights activist or a feminist.

What makes al-Baghdadi an extremist in the eyes of the West is perhaps his terror tactics, but the same could be said of George W. Bush and Tony Blair, who are responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis.

Being elected through a democratic process does not give them the right to determine the life or death of the rest of the world. But that was precisely what Bush and Blair did to the Iraqis, and that has made them the extremists in the eyes of Iraqis and Muslims in general. In the definition above, it is assumed that there must be a limit for everything for it to be rendered good and acceptable.

So an extremist is not a good person because he trespasses what others consider as the limit, regardless of whether he does not know the limit or he simply does not want to honour it knowingly.

But the real problem is, what are those limits? And on whose authority are they to be accepted as the limit that everyone has to observe?

In the man-made system known as democracy, man is said to be the measure of everything, so the limit is determined by man. But what kind of man is actually determining the fate of the world today?

What is the idea that governs his actions and behaviour, like his idea about truth and reality? About right and wrong? And about happiness?

For a secular man, reality is limited to physical reality and truth to factual scientific truth. Based on that, he has developed a peculiar idea about happiness and morality that is basically in constant change.

A secular world view lacks permanence because of its affirmation and preoccupation only with the evanescent aspect of existence. In fact, it is the world view that is built upon the rejection of anything permanent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp7BF_rLhkE

So by nature this world view actually has no place for god and religion, because it insists that what is understood by “god” and “religion” must also be open to change and reinterpretation.

Coming back to our definition of extremism, we must conclude in the first place that secularism is itself intrinsically an ideology that recognises no limit. It is based upon the rejection of a permanent truth and reality, making it impossible to agree upon a definition.

Without an agreed upon definition, how are we to know that a limit has been trespassed, effectively making the trespasser an extremist? Yet the secular western world has been all too certain that they always “know” the limit and hence the transgressor.

A correct definition would tell the limit of the thing defined. An extremist is the person who does not know the definition, or he does but does not honour it because he believes that a definition of something could and should change with time.

Not knowing the definition is a simple ignorance that can be easily remedied by imparting the knowledge. But when the person is bent on believing that no definition is forever fixed, something is appallingly wrong with his way of thinking. It is an indication that his belief is characteristically similar to that of the secular man that we have described above.

The so-called jihadis are extremists by virtue of their ignorant rejection of important definitions agreed upon by Islamic scholars throughout the ages. Inspired by the misguided Wahhabi ideology, they have caused great confusion and disunity among the Muslims worldwide.

They are the ones portrayed in the Western media as the Sunnis, yet the title has nothing to do with Islamic orthodoxy known as Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jama’ah. The term “Sunni” has been hijacked by the fanatic Wahhabis, who have neither respect towards nor affiliation with authentic Islamic tradition and scholarship. They are the ones who have caused a great anxiety to the West and the world today; yet both are similar in one respect: they do not know the limit.

> Md. Asham Ahmad is Senior Fellow of Ikim’s Centre for Shariah, Law and Politics. The views expressed here are entirely his own.

Source: http://www.thestar.com.my/Opinion/Columnists/IKIM-Views/Profile/Articles/2014/07/08/Identifying-the-real-extremists/

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July 9, 2014
Bekas Pelajar Madrasah Aljunied Terima Ijazah Kepujian Kelas Pertama NUS

https://www.facebook.com/faizal.binabdulaziz

DARI madrasah ke universiti ulung dunia. Demikian pencapaian Encik Faizal Abdul Aziz, 26 tahun, yang juga merupakan antara 1 peratus pelajar terbaik kohortnya bagi tahun terakhir pengajiannya di Universiti Nasional Singapura (NUS). Bekas pelajar Madrasah Aljunied itu, yang mengambil jurusan utama ilmu alam, menerima ijazahnya dengan kepujian kelas pertama di majlis konvokesyen NUS semalam.

Beliau, yang meraih Gred Purata Mata (GPA) 4.89 mata daripada GPA penuh 5 mata, turut dianugerahkan Pingat Emas Lee Kuan Yew dan Pingat Emas Persatuan Ilmu Alam NUS. Atas kecemerlangannya, beliau turut dipilih menyampaikan ucapan perpisahan (valedictory speech) di majlis konvokesyen NUS pada hari ini.

Encik Faizal juga menerima tawaran melanjutkan pengajiannya ke peringkat sarjana di Universiti Cambridge di United Kingdom tetapi buat masa ini, beliau ingin meraih pengalaman kerja buat beberapa tahun dahulu.

“Ibu bapa saya bimbang apabila saya beritahu mereka saya hendak meninggalkan madrasah… mungkin kerana mereka ada rancangan lain untuk saya. Tetapi apabila mereka lihat saya bekerja keras untuk terus mencapai keputusan cemerlang kerana tidak ingin menghampakan mereka, mereka bertambah yakin dengan keputusan saya,” kata anak bongsu daripada keluarga dua beradik itu.

Ibunya merupakan pegawai pentadbiran, sementara bapanya bertugas sebagai pegawai logistik. Encik Faizal yang menuntut di madrasah selama 10 tahun sejak di peringkat sekolah rendah meninggalkan madrasah pada usia 16 tahun untuk menduduki peperiksaan GCE Peringkat ‘O’ sebagai calon privet. Ketika itu, kebanyakan mata pelajaran yang diambilnya seperti biologi, fizik, kimia, pengajian sosial, ilmu alam dan perdagangan adalah asing baginya.

Namun dengan bimbingan guru tuisyen dan kegigihannya mengulang kaji pelajaran sendiri, beliau mencapai keputusan cemerlang bagi peperiksaan tersebut yang melayakkannya memasuki Maktab Rendah Catholic (CJC).

“Saya rasa kekurangan berbanding teman-teman lain kerana banyak subjek yang saya ambil, saya tak belajar di madrasah, jadi saya terpaksa berusaha lebih keras,” ujarnya.

Encik Faizal merupakan antara 10,233 lulusan yang menerima ijazah mereka dalam majlis konvokesyen di NUS yang berlangsung sejak semalam hingga Selasa depan.

Ketika baru memasuki NUS, Encik Faizal berkata beliau tidak menetapkan matlamat menjadi pelajar terbaik tetapi setakat hendak melakukan yang terbaik supaya dapat cari pekerjaan yang baik selepas tamat pengajian demi membanggakan keluarganya.

Malah, beliau tidak pernah mendengar tentang Senarai Dekan, satu anugerah yang diberikan kepada 5 peratus pelajar terbaik setiap kohort, sehingga dimasukkan ke dalam senarai itu buat kali pertama pada tahun pertama pengajiannya. Semasa di tahun kedua pengajiannya, Encik Faizal juga merupakan antara empat pelajar NUS yang dipilih mengikuti pengajian di Universiti North Carolina Chapel Hill di Amerika Syarikat selama setahun di bawah satu program ijazah bersama yang dikendali bersama universiti itu dengan NUS.

“Bagi saya, apa yang penting adalah disiplin diri dan untuk terus mendorong diri kerana saya tidak mahu pulang dengan tangan kosong. Saya juga suka bersaing dengan diri saya, dan ingin melakukan lebih baik dalam setiap semester berbanding semester yang lalu,” ujarnya.

Source: http://beritaharian.sg/setempat/terus-cemerlang-biarpun-tinggalkan-madrasah

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July 8, 2014
Owner of SoulHunterz International Manipulate Customers, Crew

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Soulhunterz-International-Production/259877690789040

https://www.facebook.com/soulhunterz.angah

Good day R1C,

I’m a personal assistant owner of production company called the Soulhunterz International a self-proclaimed paranormal organization that is not registered therefore I need to expose their dark secret, Angah Soulhunterz the self-proclaimed director of the so-called company has been making profit by manipulating his victims into becoming a subject at any potential haunted location while recording the entire events of the victims getting possessed & producing DVD titled “Pakaton” which will be sold at bazaar Geylang every year, victims was make to sign up indemnity form declaring that if death occur during the film recording they will not be held responsible.

He manipulated all his victims by portraying convincing words & expression that he is financially stable in the pretext that he is a property developer in overseas which are all just lies & this is a video to back up my statement of truth.

I do have screenshot & police report concerning my valuable items getting stolen by Soulhunterz but the police classify it as personal dispute aside from Soulhunterz victimizing the Malay community, the best evidence is to get a volunteer for trial just to evaluate on the entire situation because none of the crews nor fans ever remain since 2006 due to bad conflicts after realizing we have been taken advantage which also include our local music celebrity, Elfee Ismail whom has been defamed by Angah Soulhunterz thru media magazine.

This is the police report which I lodged against Soulhunterz.

This is the text message evidence sent by his crew named “Helmi Soulhunterz”.

The self-proclaimed director whom promised all his crews that they will become a local movie stars in a horror movie title “Arau” since 2012 but no result up till today.

That’s me back in 2012 back at bazaar Geylang promoting for Soulhunterz Pakaton 2 DVD, honestly I do felt very guilty concerning all those victims whom has been possessed, 2012 victims managed to exceed more than 4 hours in the challenge but only received $100 cash reward & a replica Luminox wrist watch for risking their lives.

Angah Soulhunterz even threatened to sue me by hiring Rudy Marican for exposing him but so far no lawyer letter for almost 3 months, every year you will be witnessing brand new fans & crews because it will take them a few months to realize that they have been manipulated including myself.

A sample of Soulhunterz Pakaton which means “Pernampakan” in Malay.

Saiful Saad he is operating under a unregistered company name “Soulhunterz Computer Clinic” located at Blk 6A Woodlands Centre Road.

This year he will be promoting Pakaton DVD & setting up a haunted house charging $2/entry a.k.a “House Of Unknown”, opposite of Paya Lebar Singpost.

I’m speaking up the truth & nothing to fear, he even harassed me at my previous workplace for walking off from Soulhunterz with an excuse that he just wanted his company mobile which was in my possession at that point of time.

Last few days I have reported his unlicensed DVD distribution at bazaar Geylang thru MDA hotline & I will also report him to MUIS for their sorcery activity in public.

Authored by Elfie De Souza

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July 8, 2014
Never Reject Yourself, You Are Born This Way

Muhammad Khairul Ikhwan

Muhammad Khairul Ikhwan

Yes there are these bunch of people whom always get treated badly because of their appearance / attitude / behaviours , because they are DIFFERENT. Yes , they are loud and party people and fun to hangout with . Yes , they SEEM to not know anything about stuff where the ” REAL ” Couple go through. Yes , they seem to go to a path differently from the “origins” path WHICH doesnt even EXIST cause really , the path that each of us are walking will always be the true one. Many people say , you are confused thats why you are like this , whereas we are’nt . We are the LBGT Community. IN FACT , I dun even wish to categories.We are the normal human beings that you also see everyday in your lives. We are the human being with feelings too , we are NEVER A TOY to PLAY. We Get Criticize Alot Thats True but we really don’t care about the things that they THE IGNORANCE were saying. We just play along with the words they say and act as if it never happened. Though sometimes it kills to hear those harsh words from them.

DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHATS DISGUSTING?!! Seriously. The way we walk , talk , dress and our lifestyle are DIFFERENT. Yes it is different. When we walk outside , dressing up as a Metrosexual , putting on Makeups to boost our confidence , there you go EYES STARES everywhere , and then came gossips here and there . The malay aunties will go preech the OMG , the uncles will just shaked their heads . The normal aunties will just brag about the way we dress and stuff. And the teens , they will just look at us as if we are some kind of FREAK. The friends that you are not close to / expose to , will give weird comments and even questions that you don’t even wish to hear. Will just have to pull it off and make fake smiles to them or in other words SLY. This is roughly the daily basis of our lifestyle which applies to those who aren’t comfortable with us or still not accepting us.

WHATS THERE TO ACCEPT OR NOT TO ?!? IS THERE EVEN A CHOICE WHEN COMES TO ACCEPTING ANOTHER BEING? You ask yourselves that , in terms of LBGT , you can ask them why they become like this , or what made them like that , but really there is never a fixed answer to that , NEVER , cause they themselves are not sure of what to reply back to you cause really , they are born that way or the lifestyle around them which helps them to shape up to what they have become now , and they have NEVER taken it for granted , they only can accept the fact of what they have done and accepting the reality and goes on in life to what they are. Yes we do have choices in LIFE that you can’t deny , but if we are comfortable with who we are and that people around us or our loved ones accepts the way we are , we will never hesitate to be more passionable and more fruitful in life than ever.

Muhammad Khairul Ikhwan

Muhammad Khairul Ikhwan

THE FAMILY , its a tough tough situation when comes to this , and it will take years to get accepted or will NEVER be accepted. Its hard for people in LBGT to get accepted and love from families due to the status that they are in, even I myself am still stuggling to get my family accept the way I am. They would always ask why you have chose to be this way or that way and that the fact is we don’t choose , we just feel ourselves when we are that and GOD loves each and every one of us.Though there are some parents whom still accepts their child for who they are and supported them. My mum supports for what I’m doing and stuff , but still there is always a nudge sometimes .. I really hope she does. They were many obstacles that people like us have to think of besides thinking of how to feel or be accepted in the public.

ASIAN OR AMERICANS , IT DOES NOT MATTER WHERE YOU ARE OR RELIGION YOU ARE?! Its the same everywhere or anyone, you will just feel disconnected from the society or sometimes feel not being socialize to your family members due to some circumstances. Firstly , you do not want to have an impression where they will just like hates the way you are , and being in that situation , you try to avoid them and spend more time with your friends . Secondly, sometimes going to your own worship places , you will feel uncomfortable due to stares received , and people whom are Homophobic / or people whom are noble . Though there will be some of the nobles that will come and talk to you and try to be understanding yet very rare to find those noble people these days. Which is why sometimes , its hard for us to go there .

THE SOCIETY . Teachers , friends family members ,SAID JUST BE YOURSELVES AND NEVER LIE TO IT , I’m not sure whether the things they say the MEAN IT. When we be ourselves , we get criticised , we get bad comments , we get haters , we get stares , we get teased , we get DEHUMANISED to the extend , some of us Commited Suicide due to overly depressed about not being able to get accepted for being themselves. Should we Discreet and LIE to ourselves the whole LIFE we live. Should we do dirty stuff and things that we should not do and make ourselves uncomfortable and “GET USED TO IT ” to the situation or the appearance of the people . Should “FIT IN ” to please or respect others people demand whereas they dont even respect and disgusted towards us? Should we?? Should we live a life with 2 faces ? or even deny the things that we like and rejects everything we love to and passionate about?

THERE GOES , they will then say , not that we don’t accept you or whatever you are doing BUT…BUT….BUT.. There will always be a BUT , …just stop SLY~ing we had enough of it. Appreciate us. We are Nevertheless The Same As You. If you think that we are that disgusting , think again , the worst and sick people are out there somewhere , you shall know when time comes…

Lastly for the last part of this note , this goes to all those people whom you think you are having a hard time getting accepted just because you are Different . This note Is Especially For You Isaac Hasan<3 .

NEVER REJECT YOURSELF, I WANT YOU TO REJECT ANYONE OR ANYTHING THAT EVER MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE AN OUTCAST OR MAKE YOU FEEL THAT YOU WILL NEVER BE GREAT OR YOU ARE NOT FIT ENOUGH , YOU ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH OR YOU CANT SING WELL ENOUGH OR YOU CANT DANCE WELL ENOUGH OR YOU WILL NEVER BE A STAR YOU JUST REMEMBER THAT YOU’RE GOD DAMN SUPERSTAR AND YOU WERE BORN THIS WAY – LADY GAGA – MY INSPIRATION.

PLEASE SPREAD THIS NOTE

Authored by Muhammad Khairul Ikhwan

Contribution from Hj Ali Kassim

Muhammad Khairul Ikhwan

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July 5, 2014