Bunga Raya – Malaysia’s National Flower

I love flowers.

I think Ralph Waldo Emerson was right when he said “The earth laughs in flowers.”

So important are flowers, so much so most countries have their national flowers. As for Malaysia, when the country was formed there were a list of flowers to choose as Malaysia’s national flower. The choices included Ylang Ylang, Jasmine, Lotus, Rose, Magnolia and Hibiscus.

Which flower was chosen?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed reading about the Bunga Raya!

In the twilight rain

these brilliant-hued

hibiscus . . .

A lovely sunset

– Matsuo Basho

King’s Message to School Children in conjunction with the Formation of Malaysia: Learning from Architectural History

The formation of the Federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963 was a very special event. As Malaysians, most of us are aware of the declaration of independence held in various venues throughout Malaysia. However, did you know that on the birth of Malaysia, the King of Malaysia issued a special message to school children in conjunction with the formation of the country?

By the way, Malaysia was formed on 16 September 1963.. and not on 31 August 1957 ya 🙂

Anyway, back to the King’s speech. His message was reported in the local news the day after the birth of Malaysia, Here’s what he said:

So nice of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to think of the students isn’t it, and very creative of him to refer to architecture and buildings as a reminder of the belief and principles of Malaysia.

So, which buildings are these I hear you ask…

 

 

Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s founder Prime Minister gave his thoughts on the Parliament building, too, as quoted above.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whenever Stadium Negara is mentioned the first image that comes to my mind is Tunku Abdul Rahman shouting “Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!” so I doodled him instead of the stadium 😛

 

 

Oh, I remember visiting this monument when I was 10 years old. I kept looking at the monument and then looking at my RM1 (I think) money because there was an image of this monument printed on the money. My parents kept saying the words “Tugu Peringatan”. I was very impressed by the sheer size of the monument then. I also remember it was a hot day.

 

 

My husband was looking at this doodle and commented that perhaps the palm leaves were used as writing medium instead of writing equipment/tool? Maybe he’s right…

 

 

Apparently the floor tiles of the Museum Negara (National Museum) were sourced from Pakistan.

 

So, there you are. The seven buildings which act as reminders of what Malaysia stands for in order to attain happiness and prosperity.  I am ashamed to admit that I have yet to bring my children to visit these buildings. I will definitely plan a trip as soon as possible. In the meantime, I’ll share with them this doodles as we look forward to the 50th anniversary of the formation of Malaysia which will be held on 16 September 2013.  Hope you enjoyed reading this post and learnt something new along the way 🙂

Last but not least, a final thought:

The Perfect Marriage… or so it seems: The Prenuptial agreement – 20 Points Agreement Sabah

The 20-point agreement/memorandum/manifesto (you decide what it is) was made/negotiated between Sabah (then North Borneo) with the Malaya Federation and Singapore (and Brunei) prior to the formation of Malaysia in September 16, 1963. A similar agreement was made between Sarawak and the Malaya federation/Singapore (and Brunei) but with certain differences in their 18-point agreement. Its main purpose was to safeguard the interests, rights, and the autonomy of the people of Sabah/Sarawak upon the formation of the federation of Malaysia. It was originally envisaged that Sabah be one of the four entities in the federation, the others being Malaya, Singapore, and Sarawak (Brunei pulled out at the last minute without the prior knowledge of Sabah and Sarawak).

Everything happened so fast it seems! Why the hurry I wonder? 

Scary times, exciting times, too! Negotiations happening in the background. 

He soon changed his mind though. Hmm……

Sarawak was more vocal in their reservations. There were even demonstrations against the proposed Federation of Malaysia. 

If you are wondering what are the 20 points, here they are:

The agreement

Point 1: Religion

While there was no objection to Islam being the national religion of Malaysia there should be no State religion in North Borneo, and the provisions relating to Islam in the present Constitution of Malaya should not apply to North Borneo.

Point 2: Language

a. Malay should be the national language of the Federation.

b. English should continue to be used for a period of 10 years after Malaysia Day.

c. English should be an official language of North Borneo for all purposes, State or Federal, without limitation of time.

Point 3: Constitution

Whilst accepting that the present Constitution of the Federation of Malaya should form the basis of the Constitution of Malaysia, the Constitution of Malaysia should be a completely new document drafted and agreed in the light of a free association of states and should not be a series of amendments to a Constitution drafted and agreed by different states in totally different circumstances.

Point 4: Head of Federation

The Head of State in North Borneo should not be eligible for election as Head of the Federation.

Point 5: Name of Federation

“Malaysia” but not “Melayu Raya”.

Point 6: Immigration

Control over immigration into any part of Malaysia from outside should rest with the Central Government but entry into North Borneo should also require the approval of the State Government. The Federal Government should not be able to veto the entry of persons into North Borneo for State Government purposes except on strictly security grounds. North Borneo should have unfettered control over the movements of persons other than those in Federal Government employ from other parts of Malaysia into North Borneo.

Point 7: Right of Secession

There should be no right to secede from the Federation.

Point 8: Borneanisation

Borneanisation of the public service should proceed as quickly as possible.

Point 9: British Officers

Every effort should be made to encourage British Officers to remain in the public service until their places can be taken by suitably qualified people from North Borneo.

Point 10: Citizenship

The recommendation in paragraph 148(k) of the Report of the Cobbold Commission should govern the citizenship rights in the Federation of North Borneo subject to the following amendments:

a) sub-paragraph (i) should not contain the proviso as to five years residence.

b) in order to tie up with our law, sub-paragraph (ii)(a) should read “7 out of 10 years” instead of “8 out of 10 years”.

c) sub-paragraph (iii) should not contain any restriction tied to the citizenship of parents – a person born in North Borneo after Malaysia must be federal citizen.

Point 11: Tariffs and Finance

North Borneo should retain control of its own finance, development and tariff, and should have the right to work up its own taxation and to raise loans on its own credit.

Point 12: Special position of indigenous races

In principle, the indigenous races of North Borneo should enjoy special rights analogous to those enjoyed by Malays in Malaya, but the present Malays’ formula in this regard is not necessarily applicable in North Borneo.

Point 13: State Government

a) the Prime Minister should be elected by unofficial members of Legislative Council.

b) There should be a proper Ministerial system in North Borneo.

Point 14: Transitional period

This should be seven years and during such period legislative power must be left with the State of North Borneo by the Constitution and not be merely delegated to the State Government by the Federal Government.

Point 15: Education

The existing educational system of North Borneo should be maintained and for this reason it should be under state control.

Point 16: Constitutional safeguards

No amendment modification or withdrawal of any special safeguard granted to North Borneo should be made by the Central Government without the positive concurrence of the Government of the State of North Borneo. The power of amending the Constitution of the State of North Borneo should belong exclusively to the people in the state.

Point 17: Representation in Federal Parliament

This should take account not only of the population of North Borneo but also of its size and potentialities and in any case should not be less than that of Singapore.

Point 18: Name of Head of State

Yang di-Pertua Negara.

Point 19: Name of State

Sabah.

Point 20: Land, Forests, Local Government, etc.

The provisions in the Constitution of the Federation in respect of the powers of the National Land Council should not apply in North Borneo. Likewise, the National Council for Local Government should not apply in North Borneo.

So, there you go! The 20 points. Why not 50 points? Why not 10 points? I don’t know.  But even that 20 points are subject to much contentions even now. And like any other marriages negotiations continue as the day, weeks, months, years pass by. It seems “and they live happily ever after” is only meant for fairy tales… 

Formation of the Federation of Malaysia

The Federation of Malaysia was formed on 16 September 1963. So, what was the story behind its formation, in particular what were Sabah’s and Sarawak’s experience? Sharing here some of the doodles that I did for my children about the formation of Malaysia. 🙂

Sabah and Sarawak were informed of the intention to form a federation in 1961 by Tunku Abdul Rahman in Kuching.

(The first political party for North Borneo that is!)

The Registrar of Societies must have been extremely busy then!!

All men folks doing the negotiations…Why no women representative oh?

You can find out more about the Cobbold Commission here! Phew… this topic is a bit dry isn’t it? Yawnn…. I need my spectacles to read the Cobbold Commission report…. 😛

Ooohhh… the table is so big! I wonder if they can hear each other?…..

Is the 20 points an agreement or just a memorandum or merely a political manifesto? That is the question! Hmmm….. (*48 years later.. still thinking and asking the same question*)

Too much to remember in one day! I want to take a break and read a different kind of history… the ones involving pirates! Adventures! Treasure hunt! Kings and Queens!