Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Beware of that thin blue line by Commander (Rtd) S Thayaparan formerly of the Royal Malaysian Navy
Wednesday, June 05, 2013
From Malaysiakini "Police are inevitably corrupted. ... Police always observe that
criminals prosper. It takes a pretty dull policeman to miss the fact
that the position of authority is the most prosperous criminal position
available." - Frank Herbert (God Emperor of Dune)
COMMENT "So, to blame the entire police force as a form of protest is not fair," said
Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. I do not blame the entire police
force for the decrepit state it finds itself in; I blame the government
of the day for that. However since the home minister brought up
the subject of "protest", instead of the Black 505 demonstrations
perhaps it would be more constructive if Pakatan Rakyat and its
supporters (of which I am one) held a massive street demonstration on
this long overdue issue instead of picking on Hindraf chief P
Waythamoorthy. As far as I can tell, Waythamoorthy is holding up his end
of the agreement as far as voicing the concerns of the demographic he
claims to represent.
Of course, Hindraf "had to concede issues
relating to racism and deaths in custody during negotiations with the
ruling coalition to get the concessions and promises of better economic
opportunities for Indians" does make any kind of righteous indignation,
untenable. When you think of how many Malaysians over the
decades have perished from "sudden death" which seems to be the
nomenclature of whatever standard operating procedure that works to the
detriment of the rakyat that has gone unanswered for decades, the time
seems ripe for an outward expression of discontent.
A massive
demonstration would remind the authorities that we the people, or at
least a symbolic majority of us, object and abhor the violence
perpetrated against us by the security forces which are supposed to
safeguard our interest. Opening the Pandora's Box
However, while I see clear lines when it comes to deaths in custody, many others may not. Ina pieceabout the fallout of the murder of A Kugan, I wrote: "Our outrage in some cases is also dependent on the guilt of the
parties involved. We are indifferent to the fates of convicted inmates
and the unsanitary (and most often criminally negligent) conditions they
are housed in when it is the responsibility of the state to administer
their welfare." As usual, it is the disenfranchised and
marginalised that have it worse, and while they may make up the criminal
class of this country, always remember that those higher up on the
criminal class structure will never suffer the fate of those without
means.
Therefore, while I am contemptuous of the home minister's
apparent concern for the "humanitarian" aspect of this issue, I would
welcome any party seeking to express their dissatisfaction of the
current state of affairs in a peaceful manner by holding demonstrations. Irene Fernandez,
who has spent decades and at great personal cost exposing the
underbelly of our criminal justice system asks, "Why is there so much
resistance from the home minister and prime minister to investigate
these cases independently, and to hold those responsible for these
deaths accountable? Are they afraid that an independent and transparent
police commission will open up a Pandora's Box?"
Yes,
that Pandora's Box of race, class and massive corruption if the
duelling IGPs are to be believed is something that the establishment
wants to keep a lid on. Does not Zahid see the contradiction when he
says that those who go beyond the scope of the standard operating
procedure (SOP) should be held accountable and in the same breath says
that the standard operating procedure needs to be reviewed? No
wonder the establishment see fits to ban certain media organisations
from their meetings. Moreover, really, who can take anything seriously
from a high-ranking minister who advocates emigration for those dissatisfied with how things are done in this country?
Malay-on-Malay violence Do not make this a racial issue, say pro-establishment partisans. However as I wrote in the Kugan piece, "The Kugan case like most
flashpoints when it comes to the PDRM (Royal Malaysian Police) or any of
the enforcement branches of the state reveals simmering race and class
tensions that are so often glossed over in this country." Bearing
in mind that I dispute the official statistics when it comes to
non-Malay deaths in custody, especially when it concerns the Indian
population, what of the Malay deaths in custody? My pro-establishment
friends are quick to remind me that non-Malay deaths are always played
up in the pro-opposition alternative (sic) media. Who cares about the
Malays, they ask?
Certainly not Utusan Malaysia, I say.
That bastion of Malay rights defenders, which sees fit to demonise
every other community in this country but remains strangely silent on
Malay-on-Malay violence when it comes to deaths in custody.
I
assume it's Malay-on-Malay violence because we are constantly told that
these institutions are ‘Malay' institutions and because more often than
not, the culprits behind non-Malay deaths in custody, specifically
Indian deaths, are Indian police personnel. I am assuming the same
applies to Malay deaths in custody. My views on race relations
in this country are politically incorrect so of course whenever these
deaths in custody are brought to light, interested parties would seek
maximum political mileage. However the question remains, why do the
propaganda organs of the establishment remain silent when it comes to
this issue and always drawn attention to the fact that the opposition by
highlighting this issue is stirring "racial sentiment"? State of disrepute
For decades, the establishment promulgated the canard that street
demonstrations jeopardised public order and that the police were
demonised for merely carrying out their job. Recent events have
dispelled this canard. In other words, it was never about us, the public
but all about how the police chose to respond to us. The
same applies to this issue of deaths in custody. There is something
wrong with the "standard operating procedure" of our police force. The
problem may have been our apathy but at the end of the day, it is the
response of the government of the day, which determines the
functionality of our security apparatus.
Do not go around
blaming the opposition. To any right-thinking Malaysian, it is not what
the opposition says or does which has brought the police force into
contempt and odium. It is what the government of the day says or does
not say, or does or does not do, that has brought the PDRM into a state
of disrepute.
Fernandez ended her piece with "It is also indeed
equally important for the government to ratify and implement without
delay the UN Convention Against Torture to reflect its political will to
ensure citizens are free from torture by state and non-state actors."
I would add the treaty to that convention, the Optional Protocol to the
Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (Opcat) of which Article 1 states:"The
objective of the present protocol is to establish a system of regular
visits undertaken by independent international and national bodies to
places where people are deprived of their liberty, in order to prevent
torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of Royal Malaysian Navy.
Bearing
in mind that I dispute the official statistics when it comes to
non-Malay deaths in custody, especially when it concerns the Indian
population, what of the Malay deaths in custody? My pro-establishment
friends are quick to remind me that non-Malay deaths are always played
up in the pro-opposition alternative (sic) media. Who cares about the
Malays, they ask?
The
same applies to this issue of deaths in custody. There is something
wrong with the "standard operating procedure" of our police force. The
problem may have been our apathy but at the end of the day, it is the
response of the government of the day, which determines the
functionality of our security apparatus.
