In Malaysia, Democracy system are well known back fifty years ago. At that time, the land of Peninsula Malaya was colonized by the Imperialism of England. Before independent, Malaysia was formerly known as Malaya and under the predominate government of England which launched a famous policy known as Divide and Conquer ( In Malay, “Pecah dan Perintah”). The people who stayed at the Peninsula included races of Malay, Chinese and Indian that were influenced by the ideology of Imperialism of England. That was how three major of races were brought together without consciousness. However, Tunku Abdul Rahman changed the situation which oppressed the people in the Peninsula Malaya especially the Malays. He released them from the hand of Imperialism of England to build a more democratic government which was run by leaders who represented each of their races.
Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, CH (February 8, 1903 – December 6, 1990) usually known as "the Tunku" (a princely title in Malaysia), and also Bapa Kemerdekaan (Father of Independence) or Bapa Malaysia (Father of Malaysia). He was the Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955, and the country's first Prime Minister since its independence in 1957. He remained as Prime Minister after Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore were called upon to join in 1963 to form Malaysia.
After his return to Malaya in 1949, Abdul Rahman was first posted at the Legal Officer's office in Alor Star. He was later asked to be transferred to Kuala Lumpur, where he became a Deputy Public Prosecutor. He was appointed as president of the Sessions Court by then.
During that period, nationalism was running high among the Malays, with Datuk Onn Jaafar leading the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) in the struggle against Britain's Malayan Union (see History of Malaysia). Tunku Abdul Rahman joined UMNO and became active in Malayan nationalist politics. He was popular and later became head of the Kedah branch of UMNO.
In August 1951, an internal crisis in UMNO forced Datuk Onn Jaafar to resign as party president. Abdul Rahman was elected as the new president and he eventually held the post for almost 20 years.
In 1954, Abdul Rahman led a delegation to London to seek independence for Malaya, but the trip proved to be unfruitful. The British were reluctant to grant independence unless there was evidence that the different of races in Malaya were able to work together and cooperate in a new and independent country.
Race relations were the cause of Onn Jaafar stepping down. He wanted the Chinese and Indians to join UMNO but the UMNO members were not ready to accept that. His successor, Abdul Rahman saw another way round by forming a political alliance with the Malayan Chinese Association called the Alliance Party. The coalition proved to be popular among the people. The Alliance was later joined by the Malayan Indian Congress (MIC) in 1955, representing the Indian community.
In the same year, the first federal general election was held and the Alliance Party (Parti Perikatan) won fifty-one out of the fifty-two seats contested. Abdul Rahman was elected as Malaya's first Chief Minister.
Tunku Abdul Rahman proclaiming Malayan independence.
Later in 1955 Abdul Rahman made another trip to London to negotiate Malayan independence, and 31 August, 1957 was decided as the date for independence. When the British flag was lowered in Kuala Lumpur on independence day, Abdul Rahman led the crowd by announcing "Merdeka!" (freedom!). Photographs of Abdul Rahman raising his hand, and recordings of his emotional but the determined voice leading the cheer have become familiar icons of anyone who is proudly name themselves, Malaysian.
The word "democracy," as well as the concept it represents, can be traced back to the area surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. The beginnings of democracy can be credited to the Greeks of the sixth century BC. The word comes from two Greek words: demos, meaning "the people," and kratein, meaning "to rule." These two words are joined together to form democracy, literally meaning "rule by the people" (Pious). The Greek system of government was perhaps closer to a true democracy or rule by the people than any other in history. The Greeks viewed dictatorship as the worst possible form of government, so their government evolved as the exact opposite. Their civilization was broken down into small city-states (never more than 10,000 citizens), and all the men voted on all issues of government. There were no representatives in the Greek system of government. Instead, they ruled themselves directly; each man was a lifelong member of the decision making body. This was almost a total democracy except for the fact that women and slaves (over 50% of the population) were not considered citizens and were not allowed to vote. Despite this, no other civilization has come as close to democracy as its creators, the Greeks, and many later civilizations have incorporated this Greek idea as part of the foundation for their government (Lee; Lefebvre).
Democracy is a system of government by which political sovereignty is retained by the people and exercised directly by citizens. In modern times it has also been used to refer to a constitutional republic where the people have a voice through their elected representatives.Even though there is no universally accepted definition of 'democracy', there are two principles that any definition of democracy. The first principle is that all members of the society have equal access to power and the second that all members enjoy universally recognized freedoms and liberties.
Democracy in the Middle Ages
Though democracy was not directly instituted in the Middle Ages, many democratic ideas were prevalent throughout the period. Because Christianity, which taught that men were created equal in the eyes of God, was deeply ingrained into the society of the Middle Ages, the democratic idea of equality was understood by many of the people.
Democracy in England
In 1215 AD, the Magna Carta opened the door to a more democratic system in England. Nobles forced King John to sign this "Great Charter" that created the English "Parliament" and the Bill of Rights (1689) to provide freedom of speech and banned cruelty or unusual punishment. These strengthened the Parliament and gave the people more rights to express themselves. The concept of democracy continued to be prevalent in Europe with the philosophies of an English philosopher, John Locke and a French philosopher named Jean Jacques Rousseau. Locke’s book, “Two Treatises” (published in 1690), stated that under the "social contract," the government's job was to protect "natural rights", which include the right to life, liberty, and the ownership of property.Rousseau expanded this idea with his book, The Social Contract, in 1762. In essence, these two philosophers said that the people should have input on how their government is run.
The Path to Modern Democracy
Revolutions began to spring up against monarchies and democratic governments began to develop. Before the end of the 19th century, almost all of the Western European monarchies had adopted a constitution of limiting the power of the Royal Family and giving some power to the people. Parliamentary type representative legislatures were also developed in many of these countries, giving the people more power to rule (Pious).
With the growing success of democracy in the United States and in other countries throughout the world, democracy became more and more popular. By the 1950’s, almost every independent country on the planet had a government that embodied some of the principals and ideals put forth by democracy. The model nation for these principals became the United States (Pious; Sanford 20-27).
Democracy in America
Modern American democracy is in the form of a democratic republic. A representative democracy came about in the United States because the colonists were tired of taxation without representation and wanted a more fair system where the people had more say in the ruling of the country. They did not desire the Athenian form of democracy however; as they feared it would give the people too much power and would lend control of the government to the uneducated masses. What they came up with was a representative democracy where elected representatives were elected by the people, rule the government.
These representatives are elected with the idea that they will accurately represent their constituents, but in case some don’t, the U.S. government is divided into three branches to keep corruption in check. These three branches are the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches. Not one branch contains absolute power; rather than each branch is balanced off while the others create a check and balance system to protect the principles of democracy. This system is no way perfect and this is why we must pursue a more perfect form of democracy and union between the citizens, states and country (Pious; Sanford 20-27).
There are several varieties of democracy, some of which provide better representation and more freedom for their citizens compared to the others. However, if democracy is not carefully legislated (to avoid an uneven distribution of political power) such as the separation of powers, a branch of the system is able to accumulate power in a way that is harmful to democracy itself.The "majority rule" is often described as a characteristic feature of democracy. Without the presence of a responsible government, the rights of a minority will be abused by the "tyranny of the majority". An essential process in representative democracies are competitive elections, that are fair both substantively and procedurally. Furthermore, freedom of political expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press are essential so that citizens are informed and able to vote in their personal interests.
Edmund Ngo Chun Hou, the E-N-C-H-anther of the team is a self-confessed person who loves purple and has a funny nickname, Purple Angel which he uses it since form 4. It may be corny, but then, it has a simple story behind it.-What’s the juicy story Ed? - Although he looks like a normal person from the outside, but he’s a a geek, nerd, gamer, analyst combined on the inside. This is probably the reason why you would be amazed at him playing magic: the gathering cards (what? u haven’t heard of it?), fidgeting with a Rubik's cube, trying out sudoku, and drooling in anticipation for the latest Red Alert 3 instalment (it’s in October).
Yeah, he digs manga and anime to the max (well, maybe still in a balance) Further more, he likes to excite and stimulate his mind and all his thinking juices. Not to forget that he aspires to be a journalist. What we quote from him: “I chose the option because it appealed to my sense of curiosity. I am a VERY VERY curious person. Don't mind me if you find me reading the encyclopaedia or maybe the dictionary, or seeing me asking the why questions all over the place”. –Edmund: The walking dictionary ;) -
She is a pink person.. Not all shades of pink but ONLY nice creamy pink and hot pink. She is ANGELA. She is always known as a “shortie”. However, she is grateful for her shortness. Hmmm...her reason: able enjoy nice high heels without being worry if she’s going be too tall (HAHA...really...?)... Window shopping, reading novels and trying out new and simple recipes are what she enjoys the most! –Angela’s going to cook for the whole team of one2voice!!!-
And this is what we quote from our sweet lil’ Angela: “I am glad that I’m teamed up with a bunch of really dependable people. I hope we will grow deeper in friendship and be able to work together as a team J” That’s the way to go!!! Whoooot!!!
Tan Wei Fu is his name but he is known by the name of Jason (nama glamour wei... ;P ). Even though he is just 21 years of age BUT he speaks like an old man!~SAd!!~ Jason is very easy-going, trustable, friendly and this and that...
Like what he said, “Good things (about him) doesn't end” hehe!!~ But somehow, don't ever take him for granted! ~ He can be very irritating at times (TRUST me). He’s a person who is an eye for an eye. He hates betrayers and backstabbers!! So for the betrayers and backstabbers out there, BEWARE of Jason and if you are one of them, please get out of his life!!~
And what we quote from Jason: “I'm a football fanatic. I play football, eat football, sleep football, dream football and bla bla bla, the list just goes on none stop!!~ I always dream of playing with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez”. –you sure will, OLD MAN- =)
Her name is sYen, Neoh Shin Yen to be precise. A Malaysian born Chinese but can’t read a word of mandarin (what a sad scenario). She seems to be quite self-absurd (really?), pretty annoying and loud at times. Paranoid. Cuckoo. RANDOM. That was the three crucial element of sYen in the making. According to her these are the few things she wanted to do before she die:
· Get married by the age of 28!!! (latest 28- the importance of good family planning) · Get a great job with the salary of at least five digits. · Have a great life and a happy family. · Go back-packing round South East Asia. (if she manage to do that, she’ll proceed to Europe!) · Go bungee jumping and skydiving! *JUMP!!! Oops! · Own a private jet!
What we quote from her was: “Though some things that I want to do might sound a little ridiculous but I don’t find dreaming big is a problem. To me, it’s ok to dream big, but we must remember to work for it.” –Don’t forget us when you own that private jet!!!- HAHA!
Sia. Melvin Sia. Haha, okay... Sia is his surname and Melvin is what we call him. He is a guy with fashion sense and style. What we quote from him: “I am sure eu guys know who I am but maybe I don’t know who eu are... so... really sorry la... haha... Actually I am quite friendly, nice, good......oh my!! I kept praise myself... hahaha. Just normal and simple guys...come and talk to me and eu will find out the difference. ” –wow, SUPERSTAR in the making!! Whee!!~- *eu* indicates “you” for Melvin.
His first impression towards people may seem to be unfriendly and obnoxious... sigh... However as you get to know him better, you’ll actually find that he is very easy to get along.... So, the morale of the story is to not judge a book by its cover... (Yes Melvin, we got you...)
You can call him Vincent a.k.a. Fun... Just like his name, he is very FUNny... And love to make fun of people... He is the eldest among his siblings and is very active in his school activities back then during his schooling years (busy, busy man...Or should I say busybody? Haha...). He’s a scout, an athlete and the vice president for the board of prefects back in his school. Now, University life seems to be a little too slow for him. He claims that he’s nothing but just an ordinary undergrad in uni... WHY?
Here it goes: He’s busy with his Amway business and is working as a part time videographer for wedding ceremonies (I can hear money cashing in... *ka-ching*ka-ching*). And what we quote from Vincent: “I must be successful because I believe that if success comes earlier; I can enjoy my life more. LIFE IS GREAT, LIVE IT!!~” -Vincent, you sure are ambitious-
She thinks she is outstanding, extraordinary because she is the ONLY 3rd year student with the ages of 24 in our group. Suo Fei must be proud with the fairness of the skin she has because she is VERY FAIR!~(Just like Elizabeth Hurley in the advertisements of Estee Lauder)
Being an intellectual and perfectionist, she used to be alone, shy, moody and passive. However, Suo Fei turns over a new leaf when she was baptized as a Christian. Her quote of the day: “Be Positive”. She wishes to be a SPIRITUAL LADY!~
Hui Ling is a 21 year old girl who was born in Malacca, the historical place of Malaysia. Ask her about the portuguese and baba nyonya, you will have the answer. Hui Ling is currently doing her major in Broadcasting and minor in graphic communication. She has the “Barbie Doll” look-alike thingy as a result of her hairstyle and fairer skin.
She is active(at the campus 24 hours all the time) and humorous(as in FUN in her own way, hehe!). She has great passion towards music, multimedia, diving and movies too. Her quote of the day: “Happy Go Lucky”.
A 21 year old “young” girl called Chia Pui Shan who is doing major in broadcasting and minor in graphic communication. She looks like an ordinary and rustic girl even though she comes from the city, Kuala Lumpur. Besides that, she loves singing and music. From songs to lyrics, she knows everything about it.
In short, she is a “walking music dictionary”. Pui Shan likes to make friends from all walks of life. She loves travelling and enjoying life, but of all these, she enjoys CHASING ARTIST!!She doesn’t mind people calling her stupid, idiots, but to her, it’s more of passion and craze for the love of music. One of her wishes is to be with the artists!
His name is Chong Er Siang but people are more familiar with the name like “ryan” or “ces”. But if you put those two together, it sounds more like Ryan Seacrest! He is thick face enough to say that he is only 18 years old, even though he is already 22 years old! Old man, haha!~ Ryan can’t live the world alone.
He just need to talk all the time! He is active, humorous and self-motivated His hobby is to listen to music, movie, online, play badminton, pc games and reading. He dreams of becoming the next Steven Speilberg or Lee Aun. His favourite quote is “Everyone is number 1”. If you want to get an insurance, find him!
Modest, humble and respectful. That’s how people described him. Vincent or his full name Chin Ying Shin is an ordinary guy who hails from The land below the wind. He has been living in Sabah since the day he was born, but he NEVER hike the Mount Kinabalu before!!!(What a disgrace, hehe!!!) People might think that he is a very quiet, passive and introvert person, but to him, that’s NOT the case!
He is talkative when you talk about badminton, bowling and singing, which he LOVES most!~ Though he can’t sing well, he enjoyed watching American Idol, of which Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood is some of his loved idol! Don’t make him eat spicy food, you will spoil his day!!~Hope you sing like David Cook one day!
She was born in 24th of October 1987, 7 days before our country achieved its independence. Now, the Kelantan girl is staying at Aman Damai. Suhaida is an ordinary, simple and friendly person to mix around with. Don’t mess with her because she is a team member of the Kor Suksis.
She is glad to join the co-curriculum activity as she gets to learn a lot of things that she never experienced before. She even know how to march like a team and use a revolver now.*Piiissttt, don’t tell anyone she is a POLICEWOMEN*
A big hand of applause to the world well-renown break dancer…He is in the house. Please welcome Aun a.k.a. bboy tarzan!!!!~*whistling* He was well-known of the name “tarzan” during his secondary school life as president of the scout troop. Now, he is a full time student and work part time as a breakdance instructor! (Whooaaa,cool man!)
Tarzan is a busy man as he needs to teach break dance and for god’s sake, he OWNS a dance team!!!~ Besides, he is committed to the state scout association and St. John ambulance emergency rescue team as well. So, don’t kacau(disturb) him for nothing because he needs to sleep!~*Pig*…Zzz…Zzz…
This dude here goes by the name Vance. Stand 6 feet 1 and got this passion for on-stage performance. To share you a little secret, he is currently a part-time freelance model while studying in college. Wow... Imagine how cool could that be!! Also, he likes and enjoy MC-ing. Never give up is his most use line and for christ sake he always see things at the bright side. He is very obliging and approacable although hr might seem CoooLLLl for those who dunno him well. His was initially wanted to become a law practitioner but now he is doing PR(Public Relations) as well as IR(International Relations). Aim to enter the entertainment world as he was one of the 30 finalist outta 1500+ contestants in the "I wanna Be Model" contest in year 2007.
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