Author Archives: wcw

Earliest Malay settlement in Penang

Changing landscape: The original Kampung Batu Uban is overshadowed by new condominiums and apartments being built in the area.

ANYONE driving towards the Bayan Lepas International Airport is unlikely to miss the Batu Uban village but most of us would probably not even give it a second look.

But Batu Uban is a treasure trove of history with possibly one of the best stories to tell of early Penang.

The traditional Malay village is regarded as one of the earliest settlements in Penang before the arrival of Captain Francis Light.

It is also the home of the state’s oldest mosque, Masjid Jamek Batu Uban, built in 1734.

The mosque is said to have begun as a surau, or prayer hall, erected by Haji Mohammed Saleh, popularly known as Nakhoda nan Intan bin Tuanku Patis nan Sabatang, a Muslim leader from Kampung Bodi in Payakumbuh, West Sumatra.

Kampung Bodi, Pagaruyung and Sungai Tarab are reportedly in the Minangkabau province and are associated with early Penang and Batu Uban.

The great man's geandson: This is a drawing from the book by John Anderson (1826) Mission to the East Coast of Sumatra in 1823. The person sitting fourth from left is, was Datuk Muda Husin, the Datuk Bogak Batubara Tanah Datar, the grand son of Datuk Jenaton. Dato Muda Husin is the closest that we can get of the image of Datuk Jenaton. - Pix and caption courtesy of Prof A. Murad Merican, Universiti Teknologi Petronas professor and Penang Malay Historical and Heritage Society deputy president

The great man’s grandson: This is a drawing from the book by John Anderson (1826) Mission to the East Coast of Sumatra in 1823. The person sitting fourth from left is, was Datuk Muda Husin, the Datuk Bogak Batubara Tanah Datar, the grand son of Datuk Jenaton. Husin is the closest that we can get of the image of Datuk Jenaton. – Pix and caption courtesy of Prof A. Murad Merican.

Haji Mohammed Saleh and his followers arrived in Penang, which was then still densely covered in jungle, and built a settlement by the coast, to be inhabited mostly by fishermen.

It was named Batu Uban, meaning “grey hair rock”, after a sea boulder in the vicinity which had some dried grass clinging onto it, which seemed to resemble white hair.

But Batu Uban was founded by a Minangkabau trader-warrior, Datuk Jenaton Raha Labu, who had business interests on both sides of the Straits of Malacca.

In return for having thwarted a Siamese invasion, the then ruler of Kedah, Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Abidin, granted Jenaton a one-hundred acre site in Batu Uban.

Jenaton and his 90-odd followers from Batu Bara in North Sumatra, cultivated land in what is now known as Bukit Batu Uban.

House of worship: Masjid Jamek Batu Uban is the oldest mosque in Penang.

State’s oldest mosque: Masjid Jamek Batu Uban weas built in 1734.

This is where Minden is now, the site of the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).

In June 2013, more than 200 descendants of Jenaton flew in from different parts of the country and Indonesia to attend the sixth Jenaton family gathering in Penang.

The event brought together members of six generations of the Jenaton family, with some coming from the original hometown of Batu Bara.

Jenaton, who was a trader and plantation owner, had three wives and six children. His descendants now number more than 5,000.

Datuk Jenaton Family Gathering committee head Abdul Halim Ahmad said the event had been held every few years since 2002 to commemorate Jenaton, and to give his descendants a chance to mingle and get to know the extended family, the newest additions and the latest updates.

According to Dr Ahmad Murad Merican, a sixth-generation member of the family, the family lineage started from Pagar Ruyong and Bukit Tinggi in Indonesia.

“Jenaton was a Minangkabau court prince and a chieftain in Batu Bara, Sumatra, before leaving for Penang in early 1749,” he said, adding that prior to that, Jenaton frequently travelled between Penang, Kedah and Batu Bara for trading activities.

Dr Ahmad Murad said Jenaton can be counted as one of the earliest settlers in Penang after being awarded the land by the Sultan of Kedah.

“The land was a gift from the Sultan for Jenaton’s help in strategising Kedah’s war against the Achenese and the Bugis back then,” he said.

Progeny's home: 86 Armenian Street, Penang. This house belonged to Aishah binti Abdullah, the grand daughter of Datuk Jenaton in the late 1800 who married Che¿ Din Kelang or Jamaluddin, a wealthy trader and property owner from Kelang. - Pix and caption courtesy of Prof A. Murad Merican, Universiti Teknologi Petronas professor and Penang Malay Historical and Heritage Society deputy president.

Progeny’s home : 86 Armenian Street, Penang. This house belonged to Aishah binti Abdullah, the grand daughter of Jenaton in the late 1800 who married Che’ Din Kelang or Jamaluddin, a wealthy trader and property owner from Kelang. — Courtesy of Dr Ahmad Murad Merican

The Star quoted Dr Ahmad as saying that the land encompassed Batu Uban, Minden Heights and Bukit Gelugor, where Jenaton ventured into farming and trading by planting coconuts and sugar cane.

As a committee member of the Penang Malay History and Heritage Society (Pewaris), Dr Ahmad also spoke about latest developments tied to the Jenaton family.

“We have written a letter to the Penang Islamic Religious Council (MAIPP) to allow us to preserve Jenaton’s burial site in Persiaran Changkat Minden as a heritage site,” he said.

The Jenaton family history is closely linked to our nation’s history with notable descendants such as brothers Aziz and Yusof Ishak, who founded Utusan Melayu in 1939.

Yusof was also the first president of Singapore while his other brother Rahim served as Singapore’s Minister of State under Lee Kuan Yew. Rahim was also ambassador to Indonesia.

Other notable descendants are the late Supreme Court (now Federal Court) judge Tan Sri Wan Sulaiman Pawanteh and the distinguished career diplomat Tan Sri Razali Ismail.

Razali made an impact at the United Nations when he headed the Malaysian delegation in 1989 and 1990 during which time he also served as chairman of the UN Security Council. From 1996 to 1997, he became the president of the United Nations General Assembly.

The Batu Uban of today is also the site of a number of high-rise residential properties such as Sunny Ville, Villa Sri Kenanga, E-Park and N-Park.

And as Dr Murad correctly said the “village is now squeezed by land reclamation and the coastal highway, and the construction of apartments and condominiums. No one cares about history and heritage unless it has commercial value.”

But the story of Batu Uban must be remembered and recognised so that the legacy of Jenaton and the others who settled and built up the vibrant coastal settlement is recognised and honoured.

Rights for the wronged

When the lives of innocent people are on the line and split-second decisions have to be made, the majority of us would prefer to see strong police action.

SOMEONE walks into our room in the dead of night and he is armed with a gun. So is his accomplice.

He makes clear the intention of his presence, shouting obscenities and threatening you and your wife wildly. It is a robbery in progress.

He asks to see the safe but after you have opened it, he is not satisfied with what he sees, thinking you have stored the expensive items elsewhere.

He punches and kicks you as your wife watches in horror. Her screams wake up the other family members, including your teenage daughter.

Suddenly, the rest of the family is in danger. The threat of rape becomes a reality.

At that point, you wish the police would come rushing through the door and put an end to your terrifying experience. Or at the least, you hope an alert neighbour would call the police.

Now, if the cops arrive just as the robbers are about to escape from your house, you may wish that the police would just shoot the scums who put your lives in danger.

Or would you be like one of those naïve parliamentarians who insist that these robbers shouldn’t be shot? And my impression of such stupidity is that these politicians hope our cops should be shot at first.

I have never heard of these criminal-friendly politicians coming to the defence of our policemen, who are dying in the hospitals for performing their duty. Nor do I see them giving comfort to the grieving widows at funerals. Most of us would really like to know what they are thinking.

No doubt there are rogue, corrupt and lazy policemen whom we hate but we know that overall, our policemen have performed well when it comes to tackling serious crime.

Nobody walks around and draws their guns at you or the policemen unless they are hardcore criminals. The requirements for legal gun owners and bodyguards are strict too, as these weapons must be concealed at all times and every bullet used must be accounted for.

The person is also required to carry his permit at all times to indicate he has been given the authority to own a gun.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was perfectly right when he made the “shoot first” remark while talking about how the custodians of the law encounter hardcore criminals.

It is easy to make politically-correct statements that do not create any controversy but in many instances, when the lives of innocent people, especially victims or policemen, are on the line and split-second decisions have to be made, I think the majority of us would prefer to see gun-toting criminals being shot dead.

It is easy to make lofty, seemingly principled statements in a safe and comfortable environment and issuing statements condemning excessive use of police force against criminals but my stand is clear too – policemen and victims have rights too.

Do we want to see Malaysia become one of those litigious societies where criminals can file charges against you because they hurt themselves while escaping from your home after a burglary, and courts actually give them awards for damages?

We seem to have short memories. Just weeks ago, many of us were complaining aloud about the horrifying increase in criminal activities and gang shoot-outs.

And now we are saying that criminals should not be shot, even in the most dangerous situations, and our law enforcement officers are expected to play diplomats when dealing with criminals.

Zahid may have found himself running into controversies with his remarks but we need a tough guy like him to deal with criminals.

You can’t have a wimp to stop crime. You need a tough guy to strike fear in the hearts and minds of our bad guys, and Zahid fits the bill.

The police force has already gone on record to say Zahid doesn’t interfere in their jobs and that he gives them the necessary back-up.

For those of us who are old enough and have seen enough movies, we want our Charles Bronson, Chuck Norris and Clint Eastwood in our police ranks, and for the present generation, we want to see a Jason Statham in real-life situations.

We need to give every support to Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar to make us feel safe again. Don’t worry about the politicians, worry about our safety.

And in the same token, Zahid shouldn’t worry about journalists who look out for his gaffes. That comes with the job.

Closing down newspapers is a thing of the past in the digital age.

And even if he still has the authority, the fact is that the Prime Minister and the Cabinet have their say. He shouldn’t even think about it.

There’s also no need for him to get carried away in the run-up to the Umno polls as he is likely to garner the most votes in the race for the vice-president post.

He should grab the comfortable lead now by making postures that would put him up as a potential for a bigger office.

Zahid will get our full support for shooting down gun-toting criminals, not for shooting pen-toting journalists.

Foo Tye Sin a rarity among Penang elites

Foo: He was one of the three Chinese commissioners appointed by the British to sit on the inquiry board to look into the 1867 Penang Riots.— filepi

FOO Tye Sin was a remarkable man. The Chinese community leader was a Justice of Peace, businessman, tin miner and mediator who played major roles mostly reserved for leaders who had migrated from China and made it big in Penang.

But Foo was local-born and English educated. Even more unusual, he studied at both St Xavier’s Institution and Penang Free School, the two biggest rival schools in the state.

Tye Sin Street, popularly known to Penangites as “Si Tiau Lor”, meaning “Fourth Street” in Hokkien, is named after him. Interestingly enough, Tye Sin Street is within the working class neighbourhood of the Seven Street Precinct which I wrote about in an earlier column. (“Iconic streets locally known by numbers”, The Star, April 13).

The precinct was initially considered for inclusion within George Town’s World Heritage Site, but it did not fall within the zone, which is a shame as there is much history surrounding the area.

Tye Sin Street stands out in this precinct because it is the only Chinese name among the seven streets and another two which were also added on later.

Brief caption: Tye Sin Street in Penang. (Charles Mariasoosay - 09/10/2013)

Modern-day Tye Sin street: Tye Sin Street, popularly known to Penangites as Si Tiau Lor, meaning ‘Fourth Street’ in Hokkien, is named after Foo.

The streets in order of numbers are: Magazine Road, Noordin Street, Presgrave Street, Tye Sin Street, McCallum Street, Katz Street, Cecil Street, Herriot Street and Sandilands Street.

Tye Sin Street runs from Jalan Gurdwara (formerly Brick Kiln Road).to Jalan CY Choy (formerly Bridge Street).

According to reports, Foo was a Hakka born in a pepper estate in Bayan Lepas, Penang.

He started his early education with a private Chinese teacher before continuing at Penang Free School and later, the St Xavier’s Institution.

It is certainly most unusual for Foo to have studied in both schools as the rivalry between the two premier schools, which provided boarding for students from other states, was intense.

He was regarded the only non-partisan Chinese at a ceasefire conference called by Lt. Governor Anson at the height of the Larut War for control of the tin mines between the Ghee Hin and the Hai San gangs. Foo was perceived by some to be a Hai San sympathiser.

Foo Tye Sin Mansion, Light Street, Penang

Foo Tye Sin Mansion: The building above was Foo’s home in Light Street. It is one of the first non-European mansions built in 19th century Penang. The magnificent building is now home to a branch of Hong Leong Bank (below). — Picture above taken from Penang Postcard Collection 1899-1930s by Khoo Salma Nasution and Malcolm Wade

Foo was one of three Chinese commissioners appointed by the British to sit on the inquiry board to look into the 1867 Penang Riots.

The Penang Riots rocked the state for nine days which saw heavy street fighting and bloodshed among the secret societies of Penang, chiefly the Cantonese speaking Ghee Hin and Hakka speaking Hai San. It was a fight over the control of business interests involving tin mining, gaming and opium farms.

Along Penang’s Heritage Trail, Cannon Street was so named because of the hole made on the ground by a cannon ball fired into the area at the height of the riots.

According to a report, the fighting was eventually quelled by Sepoys or paid Indian troops, brought in from Singapore by the Governor-General, but by then, hundreds had been killed and scores of houses burned.

A penalty of $5,000 (Straits Settlement Dollars) was levied on each of the secret societies, some of which was later used to finance the building of four police stations to deal with any future trouble, it was reported.

Brief caption: Hong Leong Bank at Light Street in Penang. (Charles Mariasoosay - 09/10/2013)

Foo made a name for himself within the Penang elites because he was local-born and English educated, a rarity among the local Chinese business community.

He was also one of the founders of the Penang Chinese Town Hall, which was founded in 1883. The present building of the business association, completed in 1983, is located at Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Keling or formerly known as Pitt Street, next to the iconic Kuan Yin Teng (Temple of the Goddess of Mercy).

In fact, it sits directly opposite the old Star office, where I first started work as a rookie reporter in 1980.

The Penang Chinese Town Hall is also a favourite spot for political parties to hold ceramah during the elections, sometimes, with the crowd spilling onto the road, if it involves DAP politicians.

Just a short walk away from the Penang Chinese Town Hall is the Foo Tye Sin Mansion, located along Light Street.

It is one of the first non-European mansions to be built in 19th century Penang. The magnificent building is now home to a branch of Hong Leong Bank.

Foo Tye Sin, a true Penangite, has gone down in history as one of the biggest names of the state, whose influence also stretched further beyond.

As I was going through The Star’s archives, I came across an interesting article about a book written by a fellow journalist Tony Danker entitled The Cristangs of Tye Sin Street.

Danker wrote about how his family of Portuguese Eurasians, originally from Kuala Lumpur, moved to Penang in 1921.

They first stayed in Green Hall, near the Esplanade, before settling in Tye Sin Street.

“The area was infamous as a gangster haven. But in all the years that we lived there, we were never disturbed by the gangsters,” wrote Danker.

There are many interesting anecdotes about the family, including how his father, Chris, represented the state in football from 1932 to 1941.

He appeared in the 1934 and 1941 Malaya Cup Finals, losing in both to Singapore, and suffering a broken collarbone to end his state career.

Then there was Uncle William who was a good boxer and famed for donating blood. He was much sought after by our neighbours, who gave him money and gifts for his blood.

Stories like this remind us that history is alive if we continue to not only research deep into the past, but also take efforts to trace the links to our present-day generations.

Same old shameful story

Every year, we recoil in shock when we read the Auditor-General’s Report and yet we hear little about punishment being meted out to those responsible for the colossal loss of billions of ringgit.

IT’S simply disgusting and shameful. Whether the colossal loss of billions of ringgit is due to negligence, slipshod decisions, incompetence, stupidity, criminal breach of trust or, worse, plain corruption, Malaysians are finding it too painful to bear.

Every year, we read of such horrible accounts and yet we hear little about punishment being meted out to those responsible.

Who can blame taxpayers if they have the perception that the Auditor-General’s reports are tabled in Parliament yearly only because it is mandated by law? Aside from the fiery debates, for a little while at least, there is really not much that can be done.

Rightly or wrongly, many of us think the recalcitrant civil servants do not have any fear of the consequences of their actions in, for example, approving the purchase of over-priced items.

How can one explain the purchase of 20 wall clocks at RM3,810 each when the actual price is only RM100 a piece?

The crappy answer given by the Information, Communications and Culture Ministry was “that the board of procurement awarded contractors which provided the best value for money”.

Yes, that was the reply – “the best value for money”. And here’s the best part, the ministry also told the Auditor-General that “the ministry obtained the best technical evaluation grades board to compare prices of items offered by companies online before making its decision”.

I doubt any of us sees the need for “technical evaluation” in the purchase of 20 wall clocks. And we shudder at the thought that “having the best technical evaluation” resulted in a decision to buy those clocks at such an exorbitant price!

Seriously, the whole board needs to be sacked because what was needed was plain common sense. That, however, seems to be uncommon at that level. Well, we are told these are “branded” clocks, thus the difference in price.

But try explaining to the people how three A4-sized scanners were bought for RM14,670 per unit, which was more than 70 times the estimated price of RM200 each.

Seriously, where is that sense of responsibility, dignity, accountability and credibility? How can such blatant wastage of funds be allowed to continue year in year out?

The reports of Health Ministry staff filing dubious claims for RM550,000 to RM600,000 on tailoring and footwear must surely be a clear-cut case for the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency to investigate

Audit checks had revealed that 1,014 of the ministry’s employees in 10 centres responsible for the tailoring claims had produced dubious receipts. The premises stated in the receipts simply do not exist.

Then there is the RM1.3mil in police assets lost over three years, including 136 pairs of handcuffs, 44 firearms, 27 cars, 26 walkie-talkies and 22 radios.

Let’s put this in context. There are over 100,000 policemen in our country. It is a huge machinery and the loss of these handcuffs, walkie-talkies and radios is actually a tiny figure. Policemen are humans too and the loss of such items in a rough operating environment is not unusual.

We also acknowledge that our policemen put their lives at risk daily to keep our streets and homes safe.

But the loss of firearms is serious, more so when the current spate of serious crime has been attributed to the ease in getting weapons. Surely, we do not want the criminals to be using guns that belong to the police.

What we would also like to know is how 27 cars can go missing. Hopefully, we will not only get to know the answer but also the clear-cut actions taken on those responsible.

The burning question that Malaysians continue to ask is: “Has the civil service learnt from the weaknesses highlighted by the Auditor-General?”

The Public Accounts Committee, which under parliamentary tradition is the most powerful committee in the august House, must also do more than just deliberate on the alarming findings in the Auditor-General’s reports.

In other countries, ministers and civil servants shudder when they are called up by the PAC to explain anything amiss in the money allocated to them for spending.

The Auditor-General is one institution which has stood the test of time, from the days of the late Tan Sri Ahmad Nordin Zakaria. And credit should be given to the government for not tampering with the report and releasing it as it is. Only constant, at least in the eyes of the public, is the lack of action taken against the culprits.

The MACC must be proactive and commence investigations to get to those who not only inflate the prices of purchased items but also receive kickbacks in the process. It’s plain corruption at the expense of taxpayers’ money.

All the efforts to reduce government subsidies on essential items and calls for the people to be prudent are meaningless if such blatant wastage and leakages continue unchecked.

George Town’s first mayor a fiery man

The educator: Ramanathan in his office in 1963. – Photo courtesy of MBS Heritage Centre

PENANG, or more specifically George Town, still does not have a mayor or Datuk Bandar although it has long attained the status of a recognised city.

Many towns in Malaysia are eager to seek city status and have to work hard to meet the requirements and standards.

Ironically, there are also those which have attained city status but in reality, are not functioning as cities, in the eyes of many.

Back in 1956, George Town had become the first municipality in the Federation of Malaya to have a fully elected council, with G.H. Goh from the Alliance comprising Umno, MCA and MIC as its first president.

More importantly, on Jan 1, 1957, George Town became a city by a royal charter granted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Historic: The land on which the Jalan D.S. Ramanathan passes through was formerly the Ayer Rajah Estate.

Historical significance: The land on which Jalan D.S. Ramanathan passes through was formerly known as the Ayer Rajah Estate.

George Town, in other words, was the first town in the Federation of Malaya to be elevated to a city, and the only city in Malaya/Malaysia until Kuala Lumpur was granted city status in 1972.

The first mayor of George Town was councillor D.S. Ramanathan from the Labour Party of Malaya.

The former teacher, who began his career in Perak, was the president of the National Union of Teachers from 1959 to 1962 as well as vice-president of the Malayan Teachers National Congress from 1961-1962.

During that period, he was also an active member of the National Joint Council of Teachers.

But it was his involvement in politics that Ramanathan made his mark in the state’s historical landscape.

He was a founder member of the Pan Malayan Labour Party and was its first chairman.

Politics at the local level was very vibrant back then.

The people at that time elected over 3,000 representatives to head 37 town councils, 37 town boards, 289 local councils and seven district councils.

George Town was said to be the richest local council with reserves totalling $6.037mil.

Local elections were suspended in 1964 because of the Indonesian Confrontation.

Ramanathan was popular and was elected the mayor of George Town for two terms – 1958 and 1959.

According to a report in The Star by Neil Khor and Khaldun Malik, after elections were suspended, “Ramanathan accused his local council colleagues of corruption and mismanagement” leading to the formation of the Athi Nahappan Commission to study the alleged corruption and inefficiency of local government in Malaysia.

Despite his socialist inclinations and fiery image, Ramanathan was a dedicated Methodist.

After finishing his term as mayor, he was appointed as the headmaster of the Penang Pykett Methodist School.

The old school: Pykett Methodist School as it is today.

The appointment by the Annual Conference of the Malayan Methodists was reported in the Straits Times issue of Dec 15, 1959.

Ramanathan, who passed away in 1973, was married to Ruth Vanniasingham, who now lives in Kuala Lumpur.

But her family members declined The Star’s request for an interview.

Hailing from a prominent Jaffna- Tamil family, her father, Kanagasa-bapathy Vanniasingham founded the Tamil Methodist Church in Penang.

According to reports, Ruth was the first person in Penang to obtain the Licentiate of the Trinity College of Music in 1936.

She initially taught Penang’s renowned pianist Dennis Lee before he went to the United Kingdom.

Scott Road, a small road off Air Rajah Road, has been renamed in honour of Ramanathan.

Scott Road is said to have been named after James Scott, who was a partner of Francis Light.

The land on which the then Scott Road passes through was formerly the Ayer Rajah Estate which belonged to the Brown Family, which has close ties with the Scotts, according to reports.

Although Ramanathan has been described as “an erstwhile socialist challenging the colonial and federal authorities for the most downtrodden people in the country, and stood side by side with Lim Kean Siew and other socialists” the politicking from within the ranks made him quit the socialist platform.

With various allegations hurled against him, Ramanathan resigned from the LPM to become an independent councillor and subsequently an Alliance councillor, representing the MIC.

The principal: Ramanathan (front, third from right) with the other members of the Penang Pykett Methodist School board.

Not surprisingly, the Left has not spoken highly of him, and has refused to accord him the kind of respect given to other socialist comrades.

When Scott Road was renamed in his honour, it sparked off controversy and the road sign was defaced on numerous occasions.

One reader wrote in to The Star, at the height of the controversy, to say that if any road should be renamed in his honour, it should be Pykett Road, since he was the headmaster of the school there.

Some said the residents, who are mostly affluent, did not like being linked to someone with a socialist background.

Others claim the controversy was ignited by his former socialist comrades.

But a compromise seems to have been struck, ending the standoff, with the city authorities putting both the names of Ramanathan and Scott on the roadsign now.

As a student, then in my secondary years, I spent a fair bit of time playing football with my school mates at the open field at the then Scott Road.

Although I lived in Ayer Itam, which was far away from the area, it did not stop me from cycling all the way to Scott Road, where many of my friends were living nearby in Pulau Tikus for our games.

My years as a Boy Scout also led me to spend my time there, carrying out my patrol (or team) activities there.

While his politics were contentious, Ramanathan has surely left his mark as a school principal with many of his former students posting fond memories of him on the Internet.

In fact, he was also credited for his pioneering efforts to set up a university in Penang.

The idea of a university in Penang was first mooted by him in 1959 in the State Assembly and later crystalised when he was nominated chairman of the Penang University Project committee.

The Universiti Sains Malaysia opened in 1969 and is today one of the leading tertiary institutions of learning in Malaysia.

Ramanathan will certainly be remembered for his contributions as a mayor, politician, teacher, unionist and educationist.

Extension of the painful cut

It’s really mind-boggling but this is democracy.

IT’S really a hair-raising issue. And by that I mean shocking rather than spine-chilling. I am sure few Malaysians could even imagine that we would come to this – hair salons in Kota Baru being ordered to remove posters of female models with uncovered hair.

If there is such a thing as hair extension, then here is a case of an extension of an earlier directive to owners of non-Muslim hair salons to stop their female hair stylists from cutting the hair of male customers.

That was the beginning of the painful cut, you may say. After all, in PAS-led Kelantan, there is such a thing as gender segregation at the supermarket check-outs. At state-approved concerts, the audience also has to be split up.

There were similar scenarios in Kedah when the previous PAS state government banned female artistes from performing at Chinese New Year shows in malls.

In fact, the Kota Baru rule on uncovered hair also applies to pictures of models, especially Muslims, who are featured on advertisement billboards.

As with most rules, where religion comes into play, it is always difficult to reverse them once they are enforced, given their sensitive nature.

Well, that’s what happens when voters give their mandate to religious hardliners. Unfortunately, the voters also included non-Muslims who were warned during the campaign for the general election. But many went ahead to endorse the hardliners.

In Temerloh, Barisan Nasional’s Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah lost to PAS Youth hardliner Nasrudin Hassan, who has made a name for himself protesting against every concert that comes to town.

He also organises yearly protests against Valentine’s Day celebrations.

The voters, sadly, dumped Saifuddin, who is known for his moderate stance, in favour of Nasruddin.

It’s really mind-boggling but this is democracy for you. The reality, as we all know, is that many non-Malay voters, angry with the Barisan, refused to listen to anything negative about PAS. Anyone who warned about the nature of PAS invariably invoked the wrath of many non-Malay voters.

But in the end, liberal-minded leaders like Saifuddin, who already had to face tremendous internal pressure from the right-wingers in the party, got rejected.

In Johor, PAS national information chief Suhaizan Kayat, who openly forbids Muslims from wishing Christians “Merry Christmas”, also contested in the general election but he was rejected.

And now, the Kota Baru local council is pushing hard to remove posters of female models who do not cover their heads.

But there should be a line drawn here – non-Muslims have every right to protest as the hair salons affected are run by non-Muslims and the models featured in the pictures are likely to be non-Muslims as well.

Even PAS Supporters Congress chairman Hu Pang Chaw reportedly said the move was not business-friendly and that it violated a local council by-law which required only Muslim models appearing in advertisements to cover their hair.

Well, what I cannot fathom is why Hu is still supporting the Islamist party despite the many outrageous decisions affecting non-Muslims.

The local council has even insisted that married couples, including non-Muslims, must sit separately in cinemas.

If we are not careful, it will not come as a surprise if PAS insists that non-Muslim models for hair shampoo advertisements must also cover their heads.

Much sadder, the protest against the ban on these posters has, again, come from the same political parties and individuals.

What has happened to the critical voices who are often so quick to jump in to post angry messages on their Facebook and Twitter on a wide variety of issues?

It’s another small step in the infringement of the rights of non-Muslims, but there will be larger implications in the long run. I am sure many of our moderate and fair-minded Muslims share the same sentiments.

Political expediency may be a factor but the silence of some politicians who claim to represent non-Muslims is indeed disturbing.

Powerful ties that bind two nations

Well-connected: Kittiratt Na-Ranong launching the House of Ranong signboard at the Esplanade in May. The deputy prime minister and finance minister for Thailand is a direct descendant of Sim Bee’s older brother, Sim Kong.

THE distance between Penang and Hatyai, the southern Thai city, is just 183km, and it only takes about three hours to get there if you drive. Weekend getaways for shopping and other things are very much a part of life for many Penangites.

And if one wishes to head to Phuket, it would just be another two hours or so. That’s how close Penang is to these two southern Thailand towns.

Captain Francis Light, who founded Penang in 1786, had established his headquarters in Salang, near Phuket, about 10 years earlier. It was also in Phuket that he met his Eurasian wife, Martha Rozells.

As early as 1771, he had tried to convince his superiors to take up the Sultan of Kedah’s offer of Penang in return for British protection, but his letter was largely ignored.

Held in high regard : The statue of Khaw Sim Bee that was erected in his honour at Khao Rang hill in Phuket.

Finally in 1786, he got the attention of Sir John MacPherson, the Governor-General, and was able to convince him on the need to secure a British trading post in Penang.

Today, many Penangites have relatives in these two Thai towns with the northern Hokkein dialect, spoken in Penang and Kedah, widely used there.

For many years, the Chinese community in southern Thailand would send their children to study at the Han Chiang High School in Penang so they could pick up Chinese and English.

Today, due to that foresight, the top editors of The Nation, the top English-language newspaper of Thailand, all come from southern Thailand.

One Thai-Chinese businessman who made an impact in Penang was Khaw Sim Bee. A road, which runs from Perak Road to Westlands Road, is named after him.

Khaw was born to a wealthy family in 1857. His father, Khaw Soo Cheang, was the Governor of Ranong, Southern Thailand.

Grand funeral procession: Khaw Sim Bee’s eloborate coffin being carried to the Swettenham Pier at Weld Quay. Sim Bee died on April 10, 1913, a little over a month after he was gunned down by a doctor.

Through these strong connections, Khaw began serving the Siamese government as a royal page and went on to become the Governor of Trang, a southern Thailand province in 1890.

He introduced rubber plantations into the region, which according to many accounts, helped in “increasing the productivity of the impoverished south, winning him favour with the king.”

In May this year, some 300 descendants of Khaw Sim Bee gathered in Penang to commemorate the 100th death anniversary of the man remembered as the ‘Father of Thailand’s Rubber Industry’.

Khaw was influential in south Thailand but it was in Penang that he found his true love when he married a Chinese woman, Lim Seng Kim, and the couple had five sons. But there was more to Khaw’s love life than this, as future events would unveil.

The family left behind two beautiful mansions in Penang, the Asdang House (the current site of Mayfair condominium) and Chakrabongse House in Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah. Unfortunately, the houses were demolished in 1993 and in the 1970s respectively.

The family also donated the Ranong Ground (where the Dewan Sri Pinang now stands) in Jalan Padang Kota Lama in the late 19th century to the people of Penang for recreational purposes.

The family’s historian Teik Gim, who is a sixth-generation Khaw, gave a presentation on the family’s background during a conference titled “Penang Story Symposium: Khaw Sim Bee na Ranong and Shared History of Malaysia-Thailand Relations: From The Past To Future Cooperation” during the gathering.

He said the family patriach, Khaw Soo Cheang, arrived in Penang in 1810 from Fujian, China, before going to Thailand in 1822, which was a remarkable achievement for an immigrant as he went on to become a governor of Ranong!

He had six sons — Sim Cheng, Sim Kong, Sim Chua, Sim Khim, Sim Teik and Sim Bee.

The Star also quoted Teik Gim as saying that Sim Kong and Sim Bee were the high commissioners of Monthon (country subdivision) Chumphon and Monthon Phuket respectively.

Meanwhile, Sim Khim and Sim Teik were the governors of Kraburi and Langsuan, respectively, carrying the title “Phrayas” while Sim Cheng and Sim Chua were assistant governors of Ranong with the title “Luangs”.

Teik Gim further elaborated on Sim Bee’s achievements, which included being appointed the Governor of Trang in 1890 and sub-sequently the High Commissioner of Monthon Phuket in 1900.

The power link of the Khaws in Thailand seems to have continued even today.

The conference was also attended by Thailand Deputy Minister and Finance Minister Kittiratt Na Ranong, who is a direct descendant of Sim Bee’s older brother, Sim Kong. Kittiratt’s Chinese name is Khaw Cheng Thong.

The 55-year-old Kittiratt is today Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

Despite the glorious past of Khaw Sin Bee’s legacy, there is a blot with reports describing him as “a polygamous man and a notorious womaniser.”

This proved to be his undoing, according to a report, as he was killed by a doctor in Trang whose wife he had his eyes on.

The shooting took place on Feb 25, 1913. Also wounded was his nephew, the Governor of Trang.

Khaw Sim Bee and his nephew were rushed to the Penang hospital, but succumbed to their injuries on April 10 and May 2, respectively, the reports said.

But Khaw Sim Bee continued to be held in high regard, particularly by the people of south Thailand, from Ranong to Phuket to Trang.

A statue erected in his honour can be seen at the Khao Rang hill in Phuket.

For this writer, there is a Thai link, too. My brother, Wong Chun Keong, has a lovely Thai wife, Naiyana, whom he met when she came to Penang from Hatyai to study at Han Chiang.

My wife, Florence, still has Thai relatives in southern Thailand from her grandmother’s side.

At Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, it was compulsory for all students to sign up for a foreign language and I signed up for Thai, although it was not quite my first choice.

I had initially set my sights on studying French, Spanish or Korean, regarding them as languages with more economic value. But after a long night, I turned up late for registration and classes for all the more popular languages were fully booked.

As fate would have it, I happily signed up for Thai, enjoying the formal Thai classes. Along the years, I have lost the conversational skills despite my many trips to Thailand each year.

For many Penangites and Kedahans, especially those with family ties that bind, Thailand continues to be just a short distance away by road or by air.

Changing face of Malaysia – in Lee Kuan Yew’s eyes

The cover of Lee’s book ‘One Man’s View of the World’.

The political demographic landscape has dramatically changed and will continue to move even more drastically in the coming years.

I HAVE just finished reading Lee Kuan Yew’s book – One Man’s View of the World, a collection of his analyses on various subjects across the world.

There is no denying that the former Singapore Prime Minister is a man of intellect. He is still sharp and insightful. He uses simple languages to offer his thoughts on subjects that would have turned out dull if presented by academics and diplomats.

Naturally, like many Malaysians, I started reading the chapter on Malaysia first, of which a part was conducted in a question-and-answer format.

There was one paragraph that stood out, which was his recollections on attending the meetings of the Council of Rulers in his capacity as Prime Minister of Singapore when it was still a part of Malaysia.

What he wrote is relevant to this day, and is something for all of us, especially those from the younger generation, to ponder upon even as we debate about the nation’s future following the outcome of the recent general election.

Between 1963 and 1965, as the PM of Singapore, he wrote that he had to attend the meetings of the Council of Rulers in Malaysia.

“The rulers who attended would all be Malays, dressed in uniforms and accompanied by their sword bearers. All the chief ministers had their traditional Malay dresses on and I was the sole exception.

“This was not mere symbolism. It was to drive home a point: This is a Malay country. Never should you forget that.”

But LKY’s memory has failed him somewhat. He was not the only non-Malay present. The Chief Ministers of Penang, Sarawak and Sabah were also non-Malays.

The Penang Chief Minister was Wong Pow Nee of MCA, who was the state’s first Chief Minister when Malaya was founded in 1957 and served until 1969 when the state fell to the then opposition party, Gerakan.

The first Sarawak Chief Minister was Stephen Kalong Ningkan, who was in office from 1963 to 1964. Sabah’s first CM was Donald Stephens, also from 1963 to 1964, who was then succeeded by Peter Lo Sui Yin. Stephens formed the United Sabah National Organisation while Lo was from the Sabah Chinese Association. So, in the period that Lee was referring to, he was certainly not the only non-Malay present.

Fast forward to 2013. Today, the only non-Malay and non-Muslim attending the Rulers Conference is Lim Guan Eng, the CM of Penang.

Chinese representation in the Federal Government, with the exception of those appointed from the ranks of non-politicians, has been reduced to zilch.

At the 13th general election, Umno performed slightly better to win 88 seats while the other component parties representing the Chinese – MCA, Gerakan and SUPP – suffered a bruising defeat.

The reality is that the majority of Chinese refused to vote for the Barisan Nasional, with the final analysis showing only 16% of the Chinese electorate went Barisan’s way. The Chinese vote is never permanent, and they have been known to swing their support at different elections.

But the strong swing against the Barisan was premised on the belief that they could help to form a new federal government if they threw in their lot with Pakatan Rakyat.

Many even returned from abroad and hoped to be part of history. They wanted to punish Umno but in the end, it was the Chinese-based parties they ended up punishing.

Not many were prepared to accept the reality that there were only 45 Chinese-majority seats in the 222-seat Parliament and even if every single Chinese had voted for the Opposition, there was no way the Barisan could be removed – unless the Malays decide to vote out the ruling coalition.

All that debate over the kind of electoral system, the gerrymandering process, whether it was Chinese or urban tsunami, and the rural advantage is academic when compared to the harsh political reality.

Last month, The Malaysian Insider news portal quoted Ibrahim Suffian of the Merdeka Centre as saying that its survey showed that the majority of first-time Malay and young Malay voters gave their support to the Barisan, suggesting that the Opposition has not done enough to convince young Malays that their future was secure with PAS, PKR and DAP.

Given the changing population profile, Malays will form an even larger chunk of new voters in future polls than the nearly two-thirds, or 64.17% of new voters, registered this year. In analysing the voting patterns of young and first-time voters, the Merdeka Centre, as part of its study of the recent general election, found that based on the electoral rolls used on Election Day, there were some 2.7 million more voters, and the influx of new voters was more pronounced in mixed and urban seats.

It grouped these voters into five voting channels with each representing an age group. Of the five channels or groups, the youngest group of under 30s was 64.17% Malay. The voter turnout overall for all races in this group of first-time and young voters was a hefty 83.22%. Of those, just over half, or 52.96%, voted for Pakatan.

Suffian’s advice to Pakatan was that the coalition would have to continue refining its position on Malay rights and cobble together a plan with an emphasis on job and wealth creation. The Pakatan, especially the PKR, will have to stand up to fight for Malay rights and positions if it wants to win the Malay votes. It has to compete with Umno, in other words.

The PAS ulamas, in the run-up to the party polls, have already served notice to their delegates to reject the so-called Anwarinas, PAS leaders said to be aligned to Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, which the hardcore have blamed for the party’s loss of Kedah and many other seats.

For an astute analyst like LKY, he would not have been surprised at the outcome of the general election.

There is much resentment in Putrajaya, until today, over how the Chinese voters had turned away from Barisan.

The Chinese, mostly in urban areas, on the other hand, see their decision as an outpouring of frustration over the many injustices with regard to opportunities from scholarships and university entrance to government contracts.

The Chinese also feel Malaysia has become more Islamised and is in danger of losing its moderate Malay identity. Money politics and corruption, which appear to have become entrenched, have also led to a sense of resentment.

The right-wing Malays, on the other hand, see the many compromises that have been made from the beginning of the nation, even over the name change from Tanah Melayu to Malaysia, the provision of citizenship and the guaranteed use of Chinese as a medium of instruction in schools, making us the one country beside China and Taiwan to do so.

As much as many of us want to see the future of Malaysia from a more Malaysian prism, the reality is that ethnicity will continue to be a factor with the Malay population growing bigger while the Chinese population continues to plunge.

In 2011, the national census revealed that Malaysia’s population doubled in size from 13.7 million in 1980 to 28.3 million in 2010.

Bumiputras numbered 17.5 million, or 67.4% of the population, while Chinese made up 24.6% of the population at 6.4 million, Indians 7.3% of the population at 1.9 million while “others” made up 0.7% of the population at 200,000.

Foreigners made up 8.2% of the population at 2.3 million – much more than the Indians.

Going by current trends, the projection is that the non-Malays will continue to drop further with some saying that by 2050, there could be 80% bumiputras in Malaysia and just 15% Chinese and about 5% Indians.

In fact, LKY, in his own words, predicted “eventually, the Chinese and Indians will exert little influence at the polling booths. When that day comes, with no votes to bargain with, the Chinese and Indians cannot hope to bring about a fair and equal society for themselves”.

Naturally, there will be those who disagree with this assessment as they strongly feel that race should not be the sole criterion in an election as Malaysia matures democratically.

They will point to the urban Malays who voted for the Opposition, citing the victory of PKR leaders in urban constituencies of Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

Race-based political parties, they believe, would fade away to make room for multi-racial parties.

But still, it is difficult for politicians aspiring for power to run away from the interests of the predominant race in this country. It’s the same in other countries as well.

In the book, LKY was asked if Malaysia becomes more homogenous, would there be a likelihood of the Malay privileges being let off, to which he replied: “You believe the majority will support leaders who want them to give up their privileges?”

And what about the Pakatan? LKY said “when it comes to the crunch, however, PR will not be able to do away with Malay supremacy” and “the moment the bluff is called and it is handed the full power to push ahead, it will either be torn apart from within or be paralysed by indecision”.

“Any party that takes the place of Umno and becomes the main party representing Malay interests will not act very differently from Umno.”

LKY cannot be faulted for his pragmatism, even if one does not agree with his politics.

The political demographic landscape has dramatically changed and will continue to move even more drastically in the coming years.

For the Chinese community, it will have to learn to be more strategic and also to be more realistic in its assessment of the community’s role in the country, as LKY had quite candidly observed.

What’s in a word?

A lot, it seems. For starters, it’s much cooler to be a mixologist than a bartender.

I HAVE to confess that I have never heard of the word until recently. I thought they were just known as bartenders but now, many are known as mixologists.

Mixology is generally accepted as a slang term to refer to the “refined and in-depth study of the art and science of mixing”. A bartender or bar chef who has become an expert on mixing drinks is therefore known as a mixologist.

Well, to me he’s just mixing drinks and some of them do it pretty well, but I am still trying to figure out what the science behind it is.

But hey, there is a scientific ring to the term mixologist and it certainly sounds more authoritative and respectable than bartender.

Then there is the barista, who is essentially the person who prepares the coffee for you at Starbucks or Coffee Bean.

According to a report on the Internet, a barista is an Italian term for the bartender who works behind a counter, serving both hot, preferably an espresso, and cold drinks.

Certainly, barista sounds better than a kopi tiam waiter who has to take your order for kopi kaw with thick condensed milk.

Well, what’s in a name? Plenty! It’s much cooler, especially among the younger set, to sign up for a job that sounds respectable.

An advertisement for an administrative assistant is likely to elicit more responses than one looking for office boys. In the 1960s, they were known as peons but that’s an outdated term now.

I am told that even at nightclubs, patrons are no longer looking for guest relations officers (GROs) but club ambassadors. Night club hostesses? No way, that’s so 50s!

In schools, it’s not vogue to be known as the headmaster or principal – a school director surely sounds better.

Americans are notoriously famous for such title creations. In the United Kingdom, a manager is essentially someone who heads a department or office but in the United States, they would refer to this person as a vice-president, which does sound more powerful.

I had thought an evangelist is someone who preaches the Christian Gospel until I learnt recently that evangelist can also refer to a technology geek “who builds a critical mass of support for a given technology, and then establishes it as a technical standard in a market”.

In my time, the cosmetics salesgirl was simply someone who sells beauty products but now they must be known as beauty consultants. Beautician just isn’t good enough.

Life was so much simpler then. Housewives were just housewives. Then they became home makers and eventually home ministers!

During the 60s, hospitals used to be called sanitariums (or sanatoriums). Most dictionaries define sanitariums as places for “improvement or maintenance of health, especially for convalescents”.

Then they were called hospitals – which, according to the spirit of the word, meant a place where there’s hospitality.

By the 80s, hospitals were meant for the poor while the richer patients went to medical centres – where the charges are higher, of course. The term “sanitarium” is no longer used in most parts of the English-speaking world now.

Overnight, massage parlours also turned into spas and wellness centres, which sound more clinical but certainly no less seedy.

There are also many words that are unique to a particular country and are unlikely to be found in any dictionary. In Malaysia, we have the term “gostan” which is neither a Malay nor an English word. It’s actually “go astern” which, in simpler English, means reverse.

Then there is the popular term “going outstation”, which is uniquely Malaysian and Singaporean. It’s an old colonial British term to describe an officer travelling out of base when he goes from one station, or posting, to another. Certainly, for Malaysians, there’s really no station to go to except to travel to another state.

And now I have learned a new term – twerking – which an online dictionary described as “rhythmic gyrating of the lower fleshy extremities in a lascivious manner with the intent to elicit sexual arousal”.

Well, in simple language, in my time it was just sexual thrusts hiding behind what are supposedly dance movements.

As for me, whether one is a reporter, journalist or a writer, the term that best refers to people like us is the one used by columnist Karim Raslan who calls himself tukang cerita or story teller. We certainly have plenty of cerita to share each time we get into the writing mood.

Farlim, the old tai kor’s place

Almost all those in Farlim live in high-rise flats.

The township that is home to Air Itam’s high-rise flats is steeped in history.

LOOKING at the skyline of Bandar Baru Air Itam or more popularly known as Farlim among Penangites, with its many high-rise apartments, many among the young would probably have no inkling of the history of this township.

The land where Farlim is located was previously known as Thean Teik Estate, which was named after Khoo Thean Teik.

Thean Teik, literally translated as “heavenly virtue”, was no ordinary person. To the Chinese community, he was a businessman who used his social and clan associations to protect his business links but to the British, he was simply the leader of a notorious triad.

At the age of 34, he established himself as the Big Brother or tai kor of the Khian Teik or Tua Pek Kong secret society.

A typical day at the Thean Teik Estate prior to the 1982 demonstrations.

Historian Dr Wong Yee Tuan wrote in his article “Uncovering the Myths of Two 19th Century Hokkien Business Personalities in the Straits Settlements” that Thean Teik and his younger brother Thean Poh, even formed an alliance with the Red Flag, a Malay-Acehnese secret society.

More interestingly, the alliance was further strengthened when Thean Poh gave his daughter in marriage to Red Flag leader Syed Mohamed Alatas’s son, Syed Sheikh Alatas, as the latter’s second wife.

The friction between the Red Flag/Khian Teik alliance and the White Flag/Ghee Hin alliance eventually erupted into an open gang war, known as the Penang Riots.

As students of history, we would have read of the Hai San-Ghee Hin clashes. Thean Teik was aligned to the Hai San gang.

They mobilised thousands of coolies and started the street fights, the worst in 19th-century British colonial rule, in order to regain control of the opium farms.

Khoo Thean Teik was no ordinary man. To the Chinese community, he was a businessman who used his social and clan associates to protect his business links.

At that time, Thean Teik was also a director of the respectable Khoo Kongsi, the clan house of the Khoos, but that did not stop the authorities from sentencing him to death.

But Thean Teik had enough clout and influence. The British colonial government even feared that his execution would lead to another riot and quickly reduced it to life imprisonment. But he was released after seven years. Another report claimed that his sentence lasted for only 18 months.

Thean Teik made his fortune and prospered by buying up vast tracts of land that came to be known as Thean Teik Estate.

Much of the money came from immigrant labour trading and opium distribution, permitted by the British. In Perak, he was also involved in gaming and pawn-broking, which made him even richer.

He was a chairman of the Penang Chinese Town Hall and a trustee of the Leong San Tong Khoo Kongsi, his family clan temple.

Dissatisfied: About 300 residents protested against Farlim Sdn Bhd's development project in October 1982.

Residents of Thean Teik Estate protesting against Farlim Sdn Bhd’s development project in October 1982.

In fact, due to his invaluable contributions, a large estate in Air Itam owned by the family clan association, where Farlim now stands, was named after him.

A report in the Straits Times weekly (Oct 1, 1890) recorded his death and funeral with great detail.

“He was taken to his burial place last Wednesday with all the pomp and splendour which money could command to make it the grandest funeral yet seen here,” according to the report.

“A general holiday in town enabled crowds of sightseers to swell the multitudes, who gazed at the flags and banners, bands of music, gilded shrines, pigs, goats and accompanying the richly decorated coffin and taking an hour to pass.”

But the violent past and the link to Thean Teik Estate took a different form in 1982, when riots broke out at the Thean Teik Estate as developer Farlim Sdn Bhd began groundwork.

The protest led to the death of Madam Tan Siew Lee and injury of four persons, turning the confrontation into major national news.

The Star front-paged the news on Oct 30, 1982, with the headline “One Dead, 4 Hurt in Brawl” with the report that Tan was shot in the neck by police when they tried to stop a crowd of between 100 and 150 residents from attacking construction workers at the Thean Teik Estate.

The injured included three workers. One was hit by a hoe on the head during the protest in which the crowd was reported to be armed with parang and sticks. Police had to use tear gas to break up the protesters.

Police moving in after firing the tear gas to break up the demonstration in Thean Teik Estate.

I was then 21 years old and still studying at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. I knew Thean Teik Estate like the palm of my hand, having used the winding trail connecting Kampung Melayu, where I stayed, to the neighbouring estate countless times.

I was familiar with the many vegetable and chicken farms in the area with its rural setting, which often gave me a sense of isolation.

Gripped by the newspaper reports of the clashes, I had wished I was at the scene to file my reports of the violence at my kampung instead of being stuck at the campus in Bangi, Selangor.

Having had a taste of journalism in 1980, when I briefly worked for The Star in Penang after I finished my Sixth Form, I became addicted to the world of journalism and could not wait to get back to work.

The demonstrations were emotional with some activists attempting to make it look like a fight between the downtrodden peasants and a rich developer, with the police siding the rich. But the reality was land had become scarce by then, and many Penangites were beginning to realise that farms had to eventually make way for flats.

Today, Farlim is home to thousands of people, almost all living in high-rise flats. And many more such buildings are being built.

No one is likely to bother about the link to the past — the connection to a wealthy businessman, of a bygone era, who led a triad and staged a full-scale war in the streets of Penang; and the violent protest just over three decades ago that captured our national attention.