Saturday, August 17, 2013

The Browns and Bridgets and their love-hate relationships with Malaysia

The modern white Rajahs. Just read New York Times' article on Ms Clare Rewcastle Brown, glorified and littered with factual errors, and wasn't really surprised to see another white chick, Ms Bridget Welsh, being quoted by the NYT writer. I had told you so - Welsh has begun to sell herself as an expert on Malaysian political affairs, which have officially included deforestration and greedy Malaysian elites. As I'd written h e r e, the number of people claiming to be experts on Malaysian politics is growing fast and some of them, like Welsh, are based in Singapore.

Back to the Brown article, even the headline Barred from Malaysia is not quite factual. Brown was never barred from entering Malaysia, she was denied entry into Sarawak (by the Sarawak immigration). Sarawak is a huge state in Malaysia once ruled by the White Rajah and its state government has the authority to stop any undesirable person - even fellow Malaysians - from entering the state. For eg, Member of Parliament YB Tian Chua was barred from entering Sarawak too, but that does not mean that he was barred from entering Malaysia; in fact, Tian Chua resides in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia which still boasts of the tallest twin towers in the world and if he was barred from Malaysia he would have nowhere else to go. These Mat Salehs, they think they know everything ... 
I am especially fascinated with Brown's "vivid memories of leaving North Borneo at 8" and remembering "vast canopy of rain forest", and how devastated that little girl would be to see "the destruction of the forest" when she returned to Sarawak ...40 years later! 
Brown isn't the only foreigner who has been denied entry into the beautiful East
Malaysian state, a popular tourist destination and the serene home to the oldest rain forests in the world and the flowers and fauna that come with the "vast canopy". She joins a list of Malaysians - predominantly Opposition leaders who harbor the hope to rule Sarawak themselves - who have been stopped from entering the state in the last year or so. 
Malaysia has also barred foreigners from entering the country, including Australian politician Nick Xenaphone, who not only has been openly supporting the Opposision leader in Malaysia but who has been openly opposed to the Malaysian Government.  
But as far as the US and Brown's own country the UK are concerned, denying undesirable elements entry into their borders isn't a bother at all, it's a hardly contested responsibility and right of the government of the day. The list of people banned from entering the UK  includes even elected leaders of sovereign nations! And believe it or now, Yusuf Islam aka Cats Stevens was barred from entering the US after 911 for some suspected terrorist links! 
Singapore, where Welsh is happily based, has also barred foreigners and if Welsh thinks she can criticize Singapore half as freely she now enjoys criticizing Malaysia, she'd soon be shipped back from wherever she came from. 
In 2012, Singapore even denied rescued boat people from Vietnam asylum in the republic! Guess who had to take in those poor souls? Why, Malaysia of course! 

13 comments:

  1. Anonymous4:04 pm

    Brilliant reply to the two bitches. Kudos to you.

    Misterzizou

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous7:58 pm

    O my two sister academes don't be righteous and mighteous. humility's harder when presumptions fester.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=0xEZ5NRcGH8

    I wish I knew, I wish I knew
    what makes me, me, and what makes you, you. It's just another point of view, oooh. A state of mind I'm going through, yes. So what I see is never true, ahhh.

    I wish I could tell, I wish I could tell what makes a heaven what makes a hell. And do I get to ring my bell, oooh. Or land up in some dusty cell, no. While others reach the big hotel, yeah.

    I wish I had, I wish I had the secret of good, and the secret of bad. Why does this question drive me mad? ahhh.'Cause I was taught when but a lad, yes, That bad was good and good was bad, ahhh.

    I wish I knew the mystery of that thing called hate, and that thing called love. What makes the in-between so rough? ahhh.
    Why is it always push and shove? ahhh I guess I just don't know enough, yes.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous12:47 am

    datuk, referring to sarawak as a state of malaysia is also factual error. negara sarawak and negara sabah made up malaysia together with negara malaya (persekutuan tanah melayu). sarawak and sabah are not equivalent to states within malaya.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Cormoran Strike10:04 am

    What's your point, Bru?

    Just because you rubbish Ms Brown and Ms Welsh, do you think that they are going to shut up and meekly disappear into the sunset?

    If you want to debunk what they have written, then do it with sound arguments and verifiable facts. What part of that is so difficult for you to understand?

    Btw, both the Singapore Straits Times and Business Times recently carried editorials that commented on the crime situation in Malaysia and the Fitch downgrade. These must have been overlooked by you, because I think that you would have wanted to comment on them, seeing as how you seem to see a Singapore connection in many things concerning in Malaysia.

    Incidentally, Ms Welsh is based in a reputable Singapore academic institution, where her credentials and scholarship hasn't been questioned. Why haven't you taken this institution to task for what Ms Welsh has said and written with regard to Malaysia? If they respond robustly, you can man up to it, can't you?

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  5. Anonymous10:26 am

    Those people banned from UK for some reason and the reasons will never be political or being critical to British gov unlike the Sarawak state which ban people from entering the state for political reason or even NO reason.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous5:14 pm

    UMNO monkeys jumping up and down whenever there is talk of corruption, incompetence, inaction. Sigh, as though being banned in Sarawak and not being banned in Peninsular is such a big thing. Corruption not a big issue, incompetence not a big issue.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous6:15 pm

    Is this Welsh that you are referring to the Bridget Welsh of Pak Lah book? Actually she is an expert on Malaysian politics or to be precise Malaysian opposition politics. But if you noticed, she prefers to churn out dirt on Umno and BN rather than share her Pakatan expertise with us.

    Why? Because she is hoping to be their advisor when they come to power, best not to offend them, especially Lim Guan Eng who has a vindictive character. Have you ever seen her wirte anything bad about Pakatan in malaysiakini her favourite portal?

    That is why she is not seen as a professional academic. A real academic must criticise all without fear or favour. But this woman practise selective criticism. Sad because she is quite clever. Her problem now is that her selective attacks and mischief making has given her a reputation as a CIA agent. It is probably not true but labels like that tend to stick and it has damaged her. Only Sleepy Man would be blur enough to talk to her.

    Don

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  8. Anonymous7:15 pm

    " glorified and littered with factual errors," after reading this, one must wonder, where's the 'factual errors'? Where's the argument? Where's the supporting reference for such claims? Nothing? A real comedian indeed!

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  9. Anonymous7:29 pm

    Is there a point to the article? Welsh and Brown are not Malaysians? ok. They arent based in Malaysia? Obviously or they would be kicked out or arrested for sedition. UK and Singapore have lists of undesirables? Yes and so does any other country, but they dont put someone on the list for criticising them, only for dangerous or illegal activity. But do those facts change anything? After your article is there more forest in Sarawak? Is the government less corrupt? No. You don't seem to be able to discuss the facts of Malaysian politics so you try to disqualify the opposition in the debate and sidestep the issue entirely. Fact is that criticism is GOOD for Malaysia. Every government on earth needs opposition as a sounding board for their ideas, without them things just get worse. And they indeed are getting worse, the education system the economy, the ecological situation are all getting more difficult, but you prefer not to see this because a foreigner said it? Ooh, you so smart one eh? Your country is going down the drain but you sure told em.

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  10. You can't argue with an IDIOT like Rocky ,cos he will bring you down to his level and then beat you with his vast experience as an IDIOT.
    Nothing that he churns out is backed by facts but some figment of his imagination.
    For this imbecile, there is no corruption, the economy is wonderful, the leadership is stellar and everything is just HUNKY DORY.
    Like I said you cant argue with an IDIOT.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous8:30 pm

    Bru you got point there! luv yer country and about that minah saleh and mat saleh, late Sultan of Johor says....peduli itu melaun!

    Solok Clan

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  12. Anonymous8:34 pm

    only an idiot call someone else idiot actually that someone else is not an idiot.that ' some one is a blogger.

    truly Malaysian
    Johor DT

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  13. Anonymous9:13 am

    We don't need foreigners to tell us how we govern our country.Let them with their criticisms.The former colonists Brown n Welsh aren't welcomed to Sarawak.They treat Sarawak as though Sarawak is still a British colony.

    Pity those foreigners who pretend to know Sarawak better than Sarawakians,or claim by those as expert in Sarawak's affairs.

    ReplyDelete