3 Lang

In the mood for elections

2006-11-30T21:16:00.000+08:00

**This video clip marks the official closure of 3lang.blogspot.com**

Production Philosophy by discordantdude
In the mood for elections is my feeble attempt not so much to convey a message but to capture the mood of a particular time period. In other words, I want my audience to feel, to ride on the sentiments of that time – the anger and frustration, the activism and solidarity, the injustice and disappointment, the fear and intimidation; yes, more than anything else in the face of apathy, I want the students to feel, to immerse in the emotions of captured, fragmented moments. But not having a systematic body of content does not mean that I’m neutral. And not being neutral does not mean that I’m wrong. My not being neutral means that I am also inclined to feel a certain way about student politics, and to hold to certain normative convictions about elections.

Set in University Malaya in 2005, I have intentionally waited for my release from the UUCA (University and University College Act) before producing this short movie. I have also strategically chosen to do this after the 2006 elections in order not to be caught up with the hype that so often distorts good intentions. Besides that, I have kept it below 10 minutes because I have plans to upload it online and make it more publicly available. My hope is that “In the mood for elections” will not be used as a piece of propaganda but as a launch pad to feel, to think, and to dialogue. While the production of this movie is solely my responsibility, this effort will not be possible without the total initiative by contributors of the 3lang project and all who have shown support to its cause. While 3lang is sort of dysfunctional now, I have not ceased to dream that one day students can once again mobilize and organize themselves in an open, civil, and democratic manner.

Sypnosis by bohtea
Call it the annual ‘sandiwara’- but campus elections held in public universities nationwide capture both the fascination and criticism of many each year. The alleged fights, and sleazy conspiracies are enough to make a soap opera a runaway success, but these are no mere plots made for television. The campus elections are known to be micro schisms of the country’s general elections, and launching pad for aspiring politicians. No wonder there are many who are willing to get their hands dirty over who sits in the student council each year.

Year 2005 was not an exceptional year- the pro-administrative students or notoriously known as the “Aspirasi” were set to make a clean sweep at the campus elections again. But 2 decades of clamping down opposing student movements has fanned enough flames to call for reformation in student politics.

However, with a hostile campus climate and the University and University College Act-a design to diffuse students from becoming a prominent political force; reformation is expected to be difficult, laborious; even bloodied. Will university students ever succeed in instigating any change?

“In the mood of elections” is a humble invitation to the Malaysian society to think, reflect and dialogue on the democratic processes of the country.

Watch the intense drama, frustrations and sentiments as university students wrestle for a week to win- not just votes, but ideals; to capture- not just hearts, but minds; to elect-not just people, but justice, as fore runners to campus elections.

High jinks in student politics?

2006-10-02T14:28:00.000+08:00

Try asking any undergraduates abt campus elections and you get soppy tales of struggles for the canteen-la, for the toilet-la, for projectors-la, for air-cond-la, for white board markers-la, etc. Another Mahathirian-legacy of preoccupation with infrastructure (I wonder what else can the past administration boast of besides its megalomaniac nation-building [read literally] policies addicted with the biggest and the tallest). Yep, in this sense, campus elections bores me! Its trivialities dull me! That's why when I read the first paragraph, I know I'm gonna like this article...

"Student politics bores me. Nothing can be more soul-numbing than a bunch of young people whining about the poor food in their colleges or the lack of parking spaces for the cars that daddy bought them." Read on High jinks in student politics? Azmi Sharom

What next?

2005-11-16T22:05:00.000+08:00

This blog has been pretty quiet since the campus elections ended, but it's not dead yet. Yet ;)

I've been contemplating on what to do next with this space we've created and what other issues that 3lang can focus on.

At the meantime, pls feel free to browse through the resources we've collected on the campus elections while we work on our examinations.

Cheers!

Aspirasi throwing free t-shirts to the crowd (video)

2005-10-02T01:39:00.000+08:00

Check out here

Circus in KPS

2005-10-02T00:57:00.000+08:00

While newspapers reported that the campus elections went smoothly, it wasn't all well, nice and civilized the night before the results were announced.

It started with Gagasan supporters singing their theme song and yelling their party cheer, overpowering the voice of the Aspirasi supporters. Then, one of the Aspirasi leaders incited the crowd by asking his supporters to shout: Gagasan, bodoh! The event got uglier with jeers and provocative slogans from both sides.

When Aspirasi ushered in a group of Indian drummers who was not from the university, Gagasan people took out their matrix cards and shouted "Penceroboh" urging the authorities to remove them from the hall. One of the HEP officers gave orders for the park guards and student-police to lead the drummers out when another HEP officer got angry that Gagasan non-student supporters were not given the same treatment. After a heated exchange between the both officers, all non-student supporters were asked to leave the hall.

Another ugly event was when Aspirasi began throwing free T-shirts to the crowd and giving out Malaysian flags to their supporters. Gagasan took out RM notes, waved them at Aspirasi and chanted "Rasuah... rasuah..." Some even tore their money and threw it at the crowd. A fight almost broke out when one Gagasan member showed a paper with the word "Ugut" when an Aspirasi member nearby grabbed the paper from him causing all the nearby Gagasan supporters to surround him and yelled at him. This caused reactions from the Aspirasi side who rushed to the scene wanting to help before the authorities intervened.

Emotions were intense but the hostility toned down when both sides got tired after having to wait for the results till the wee hours of the morning.

What the papers say

2005-09-30T11:38:00.000+08:00

News on the campus elections:

Varsity student polls prove a damp affair. -The Star

Campus polls: A tame affair but irregularities abound -malaysiakini

Boycott of polls in five varsities -malaysiakini

Undergrad seeks judicial review -New Straits Times

MPP: Proaspirasi kuasai semua 17 IPTA -Utusan Malaysia

Results

2005-09-30T06:04:00.000+08:00

Opposition lost both umum and fakulti. Only won the seats in API (Akademi Pengajian Islam). Circus in KPS. Recount for Alam Bina - opposition lost by 8 votes. Longest vote count ever - from 430pm - 3am approximately with one hour break in between.

Too sleepy for details. More later.

2005-09-30T04:52:00.000+08:00

a dinner and prayer break from counting the votes. counting resumed at 8pm. vote counting is carried out in every college. the votes of students staying outside the campus are counted in Auditorium Perdanasiswa (pic).

2005-09-30T04:27:00.000+08:00

college students lining up to vote in Second College. rumours circulated among the freshies that they will be kicked out of college in the second semester if they do not vote accordingly (i.e. for Aspirasi candidates). such veiled 'threats' are also circulated in other colleges.

Local varsity student council elections not ready to be monitored?

2005-09-29T13:15:00.000+08:00

Complaints over campus polls KUALA LUMPUR, Wed.

Suhakam has received complaints that student-body elections carried out on campuses across the country are not being conducted fairly, Suhakam commissioner Datuk Mohd Hamdan Adnan said today.
The complaints include intimidation and other transgressions.He said there were also complaints of high-handedness by university authorities in the 2005/2006 campus elections."The students are requesting the elections be organised by an independent committee in a fair and just manner," Hamdan added.He cited several charges listed by the students against the officials in University Malaya, UiTM and Universiti Utara Malaysia.Hamdan said that Suhakam had held discussions with all the deputy vice-chancellors of public universities last month."All they said was that the issue would be brought to their respective vice-chancellors’ attention because they were the ones with the proper authority to make decisions regarding this matter," he said.On Sept 13, Suhakam also requested permission from 17 universities and colleges to monitor the process of their campus elections. To date, only five universities have replied, referring Suhakam to the Higher Education Ministry for permission.The ministry had yet to provide an official reply to Suhakam, Hamdan said.
(As reported in NST on the 29th of September)

Forced to vote

2005-09-29T09:51:00.000+08:00

News on local campuses elections

2005-09-29T09:21:00.000+08:00

Does this picture look familiar? Hehe... MALVU expressing their concern on local campuses elections. More info here.

USM VC - Elections in other campuses below standards!
"We want to maintain a clean sheet as reported by the Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM) last year that the elections at USM were above board compared to other universities," he (USM VC Zulkifli) said...

Read more here.

It's HOLIDAY!!!

2005-09-29T00:21:00.000+08:00

Finally a piece of good news!? ;)

From the grapevine, we heard that this notice was issued by the Ministry to all the faculties. Another indication of the politicization of our campus.

Leaflet from Abang Conteng

2005-09-28T18:58:00.000+08:00

This leaflet was found in the campus and the author of this leaflet is Abang Conteng.

We don't know who is Abang Conteng

But according to Abang Conteng, he stated that GAGASAN says that the campus fees are raised so he invstigated whether it is true or not. Eventually Abang Conteng found out that it is because this semester is longer than the previous semester so students are required to pay more.

In the last 2 paraghraph, Abg Conteng said:

...Kerajaan kita dah membiayai setiap daripada kita ni. ASPIRASI atau MGMUM yang ada ni menyokong kerajaan di bawah pimpinan Pak Lah sepenuhya! Bukan macam Gagasan yang buat fitnah merata-rata.

Abang Conteng percaya MGMUM atpu ASPIRASI mampu untuk menjadi platform yang terbaik kat UM untuk mewakili kita semua sebagi mahasiswa berintelektual.

p/s: SOKONG GABUNGAN(aspirasi) dan TOLAK GAGASAN.

(Look at the first picture)

Atmosphere in Faculty of Arts and Social Science

2005-09-28T18:32:00.000+08:00

Pictures are taken from Arts Faculty, UM

Candidates are busy drawing votes. One can easily see them around dataran sastera and in the cafeteria. Highlighted posters are everywhere.

Boycott in five varsities : Indictment against unfair campus elections

2005-09-28T11:47:00.000+08:00

As we all know, 3lang has received news that the anti-establishment faction from five local varsities, UIA, UPM, UTM, USM and UPSI decided to boycott this year's campus elections by refusing to put up any candidates during the nomination day. More info here.

Also, a politician's denial of interfering with local campus polls here.

Special article by a former MPMUM member

2005-09-27T14:58:00.000+08:00

Universiti Malaya proudly claimed affinity with Oxbridge (on a basis of memorandums of understanding!; i.e. a piece of good-for-nothing paper) and announced her illustrious 89^th position among the universities of the world in a flawed survey conducted by Times magazine. Granted she being the oldest and purportedly most prestigious university in Malaysia, are the claims justified? As a proud student of the university, I wished I can proudly nod my head. But I can’t, and anyone, ANY students who is worthy of his stature as a Universiti Malaya undergraduate, cannot and must not agree with the façade set up to hide the rot of our beloved school.

I was asked to comment on the students’ council election. That was, in my opinion an experience that disgusted me as much as the dirtiest toilet in the Ipoh whenever I thought of it. Politics is filthy, but I would never dream that at this level, politics can already be this bloody dirty. I have heard first hands of from those who are in charge that they profited financially (big cars!) from getting their hands, literally dirtied, slaving their souls and denying their humanity working for their pro-establishment (PE) masters. I was a candidate myself, believing in making a difference under the PE banner, but when I look at my colleagues, my heart cried out for the wretchedness and foolishness of this so-called university students. All that was in their minds were winning the election (even at the expense of invoking immoral means), the benefits and promises of success by their masters. Let me tell you, more often than not, the welfare of the students, the state of the university, the quality of education and even the cleanliness of the dirty toilets (though a little better compared to their filthy politics) were NOT in their agenda, no matter what they say. And this saddened me, especially when I saw them filling up their memorandums, ALL were rubbish promises of improving the overall conditions of UM. Most of the promises of the PE candidates were as worthy as the defamatory leaflets we were told to secretly scatter around the campus.

It’s infamous that Malaysian university and college students are so stupid and vulnerable that in order to protect them, they are prohibited from joining or affiliating with any political parties. Fair enough. But the reality is not as beautiful. UM allowed, during but not limited to the election period, a certain parties from the ruling Party to hold makan, ceramah, etc. for the PE team members (candidates and supporters/helpers). It was during sessions such as this that we were assured that we were really on the right side of the battle between good and evil, and of course it was there that we were practically bribed with promises of lustrous future. I am not sure, but perhaps the good guys were so concerned about us the PE winning the elections against the evil pro-students (PS) candidates that they were willing to spend thousands, possibly tens of thousands of ringgit to spend us all, including supporters/helpers, a night stay in a hotel for last minute preparations. Whose money was that, I wonder, that the people were spending…hmmm…out of their own pockets? I doubt. Our daddy’s hard-earned money? Who knows?

I wonder if the “crooks up there” really think that UM students are fools. Do they really believe that their cheapskate antics and lousy lies can cheat the intelligence of UM students. I’d always thought they will before long exposed and shamed. Yet last year, the PE student leaders, with tremendous support from the “crooks up there” won nearly all the seats and formed for the first time in years their own cabinet. Perhaps UM students are that vulnerable after all, or maybe their tricks were really good. But I believe, I still believe, evil will before long exposed and shamed. I hope that moment is near.

Once upon a student leader, PE

Nomination list is out!

2005-09-27T01:32:00.000+08:00

The lists of nominees for both calon umum (general candidates) and calon fakulti (faculty candidates) are out at about 2pm. Many students hovered at the boards where the lists are put up to look for 'minor' flaws in order to object, and thus disqualify, the candidates. The picture above shows the table set up to receive objections. There are 10 unopposed seats as posted earlier.

Gagasan Gathers

2005-09-27T01:23:00.000+08:00

Gagasan supporters singing their 'theme song', donning t-shirts with the words 'SWAT - aspirasi mahasiswa'. There is an evident lack of non-Malay opposition supporters among the crowd, an archilles heel for pro-student candidates.

Gagasan Arrives

2005-09-27T01:22:00.000+08:00

3lang was quite surprised at the no turn-out of the opposition candidates and supporters, a relatively quiet campaign as compared to aspirasi candidates.

We have received news that UIA, UPM, UTM, USM and UPSI have decided to boycott the campus elections this year due to unfairness in the election process. More info here.

We thought that UM is repeating history by joining this year's boycott when the Gagasan supporters showed up on motorbikes, shouting pro-student yells, circling UM before gathering opposite the nomination centre.

March to KPS

2005-09-27T01:14:00.000+08:00

Aspirasi candidates were followed by supporters both on feet and in vehicles walk towards the nomination centre.

Aspirasi Banners

2005-09-27T01:13:00.000+08:00

Different hostel residents gathered with their banners to show support for aspirasi candidates. However, the blogspot picture feature is not too friendly in allowing the upload of more than one image in one post. So here's one for now.

Aspirasi gathered in front of science faculty

2005-09-27T01:12:00.000+08:00

Aspirasi candidates and supporters gathered at the Dataran Sains on the 26th morning before marching to the nomination centre in KPS to hand in their nomination forms. The march was accompanied by the kompangs (a traditional Malay percussion, something like our modern tambourine) and traditional Indian drums.

Heating up!

2005-09-27T01:01:00.000+08:00

You feel the heat of the campus elections when you see notice like this.

Due to not ample time given to notify students on the closure of certain sections of KPS (and some cancellation of classes), some students encounter difficulties this morning getting to their faculties. 3lang thinks that the election dates ought to be announced earlier, and not be made a classified matter not only because it gives the candidates sufficient time to prepare (thus a better quality elections), but it also helps to improve on administrative issues like the above.

Ten Unopposed Seats

2005-09-26T21:06:00.000+08:00

Menang tanpa bertanding (two seats for each faculty):

-Perubatan
-Undang-undang
-Pusat Sukan
-Pusat Kebudayaan
-Sains Komputer dan Teknologi Maklumat

Qualifications of a candidate

2005-09-24T13:07:00.000+08:00

Notis Pemilihan Majlis Perwakilan Mahasiswa Sesi 2005/2006

2005-09-24T01:02:00.000+08:00

This notice was issued on 22 September 2005 (see top right hand corner).
Nomination day is on 26 September.
Elections will be on 29 September.
All this within one week.

Sufficient notice?

Pelajar UM diugut pegawai HEP

2005-09-23T03:13:00.000+08:00

Check this out (thanx to a fren for the link).

And check out the updated stuffs on 3lang's sidebar.

May love and justice reign throughout our campus elections!!!

Assertions from SMM on 21st Sept 2005

2005-09-23T00:24:00.000+08:00

Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM) had submitted a memorandum to the parliament for a free and fair campus election and there are 6 assertions that they have made in the memorandum.

They are basically asking for the candidates to have more time to draw votes, to insist upon HEP to stop threathening students to vote which particular candidates, to abolish electronic votings and serial numbers voting forms, to allow observer outside campus, e.g SUHAKAM to monitor the process of the campus election, and the Deputy Vice Chancellor of Students Affair shouldn't be involve in the Urusetia Pilihanraya.

Election dates are out!!!

2005-09-22T19:28:00.000+08:00

23rd - Buy nomination forms
26th - Nomination
29th - Voting day

Keep watch!

Pro Aspirasi Demonstration

2005-09-22T19:24:00.000+08:00

Pro-aspirasi candidates, in an act of backlash, demonstrated in front of Kompleks Perdanasiswa today (22nd Sep) chanting slogans and putting up anti-opposition posters. The meeting ended with student representatives handing over their memorandum to TNC HEP, Dr. Razali Agus.

Students protest in front of Parliament

2005-09-22T19:07:00.000+08:00

Students gathered in front of the Parliament on the 21st Sep morning in the hope of meeting Higher Education Minister to pass him the memorandum demanding for free and fair elections. It was a disappointing end for the students who did not get to see Dr. Shafie as he was outstation, and only managed to meet his Parliamentary Secretary to the ministry Dr. Adham Baba who did not give satisfactory treatment to the students' questions.

3lang is in the process of editing the video and making the memorandum available to the public,

More to come soon!

Talk on campus election

2005-09-21T01:50:00.000+08:00

Date: 21st September 2005 (Wednesday)
Time: 8pm
Venue: SR3, Arts Faculty, University Malaya
Organized by PBCUM (Chinese Language Society of UM)
All campus citizens are welcomed.

Counting down...

2005-09-21T00:32:00.000+08:00

On the 19th September 2005, there was a "penyerahan referendum" signed by 700 undergraduates to the TNC in the gazebo, kompleks perdana siswa UM. We were told dat the peaceful event was marred by an unruly scuffle between the park guards and a kosmo photographer. Apparently the guards pulled the photographer by the collar and later tried to obtain his identity in a rude manner. 3lang is trying to get hold of the video footage and photos of this event. Do contact us if you have info.

From Pusat Mahasiswa USM today (20th September). Nomination forms out on the 20th Sep 2:30pm, nomination 26th Sep and voting on the 29th Sep. We suspect dat the election process dates for UM will not be very far off from these dates.

As we continue to update viewers of 3lang on campus elections especially in University Malaya, we want to reiterate here dat we are not, in any sense, encouraging a bitter resentment towards the authority or propagate a sectarian spirit as we approach campus politics. We hope to report incidences and events as they are, news that may not be apparent to many yet vital in inculcating awareness and critical thinking into our undergraduates. The world needs love as much as it needs justice.

'I don't know,i don't know,i don't know'

2005-09-19T02:17:00.000+08:00

[3lang has been noted dat some ppl have been misled by this article thinking dat the nomination for UM campus election was on the 19th Sep. We want to clarify here dat the nomination date on the 19th was a rumour. HEP has yet to put up any specific dates for nomination and voting. We apologize for any inconveniences caused]

Today is the day when every 'wanna be' student representative reporting themself to the authority in charge of the coming student council election.Every one of them no matter which side or background they are from,they are to submit up their nomination form today in order for them to run for the election.All come with great ambitions and dreams hoping to secure a seat in the student council to represent the whole student population in the campus.Is it for a better cause which they hold on to, just to grab some fame for themselves or acting as a puppet for others controlling from behind scenes?We shall wait and see.There are many things which are happening now in campus but one interesting statement by our respectful Minister of Higher Education Dr Shafie Salleh which says 'I don't know,i don't know,i don't know'.It was reported in malaysiakini by Beh Lih Yi on the 17th of September 2005-- [ Higher Education Minister Dr Shafie Salleh has claimed that he has no knowledge of matters related to the upcoming campus elections which has been tainted with allegations of scare tactics and biased rules.] Perhaps he really wasn't briefed on this by his assistant or he is too busy for petty matters like this?Let's wait and observe for more to come.By the way, all the best to all those future candidates which are running for elections!Don't allow yourself to be disqualified by not following the paper instructions.

The Meaning of Democracy

2005-09-17T12:30:00.000+08:00

Scene: At a residential college in UM
Actors: The Pengetua, students (in their 3rd, 4th, 5th etc year)

Pengetua: Memandangkan pilihan raya akan datang, kita perlu buat keputusan untuk mengundi dengan baik. Kolej ini sentiasa dipandang sebagai pembangkang. Walaupun kita telah mendapat banyak undi pada tahun lepas untuk universiti, saya berharap tahun ini kita boleh capai 100% undi untuk calon universiti. Jadi undilah untuk universiti yang telah memberi banyak manfaat kepada pelajar semua.

Student: Kalau macam ni, mana ada demokrasi?

Pengetua: Saya beri contoh. Bila hari raya, perayaan besar, bukan? Jalan raya, jalan pun besar. Pilihan raya, mestilah pilih yang besar. Macam inilah baru ada demokrasi.

NOTIS PERINGATAN HEP

2005-09-15T14:35:00.000+08:00

This poster says that any activities which are not approved by the HEP are prohibited. This notice is mainly for residents staying in colleges especially those who are studying at the Academy of Islamic Studies (API).

Contents :
PENGANJURAN/MENGIKUTI AKTIVITI YANG TIDAK DILULUSKAN OLEH PIHAK HEP
DIDAPATI BAHAWA RAMAI PENGHUNI KOLEJ TERUTAMA PELAJAR AKADEMIK PENGAJIAN ISLAM MENYERTAI AKTIVITI YANG TIDAK MENDAPAT KELULUSAN PIHAK HEP. DIINGATKAN BAHAWA MENGANJURKAN DAN MENGIKUTI AKTIVITI TERSEBUT MELANGGAR PERATURAN DAN TINDAKAN DISIPLIN AKAN DIAMBIL KEPADA MEREKA YANG TERLIBAT.

Buletin (We love UM)

2005-09-14T22:07:00.000+08:00

Our team found this Buletin UM with the line WE LOVE UM on top.

From the comic... refer to the first picture

(1st part from the first picture)
(Sebagai pemimpim mahasiswa)
Sebagai pemimpim kita perlu ada ciri-ciri pemimpim yang baik, penampilan yang berkualiti barulah menjadi role model kepada yang lain. Dan apa yang penting adalah kita perlu mencorakkan kepimpinan mahasiswa yang cemerlang, gemilang dan terbilang.

(2nd part from the first picture)
(Tapi jika di luar)
Inikah pemimpim mahasiswa??? Role Model???

Some comments from students :
(2nd picture)

Mahasiswa adalah aset penting negara dan mereka 'berhak' menetukan agenda masa depan mereka.

Universiti sendiri adalah gudang untuk melahirkan pemimpin-pemimpin pada masa depan. Bakat dan potensi diri diasuh agar mahasiswa tersebut lebih berprestatif dalam kepimpinan. Namun, kemunculan Akta Universiti dan Kolej Universiti (AUKU) pada 1971 telah melesukannya.

More blogged on campus elections in UM

2005-09-14T14:12:00.000+08:00

Tauke fooji blogged on what candidates should fight for instead of promising more carparks plus some promo for 3 Lang (thanx man!).

Pilocarpine shared his personal experience (and hopefully his video clips with 3 Lang) in Election time is near.

James Liew has got lots of pics from last year's campus elections. Check out his blog.

Examples of "Risalah Haram"

2005-09-12T18:19:00.000+08:00

Nomination day of campus election

2005-09-11T12:01:00.000+08:00

According to reliable sources, nomination of campus election will be at 19 September 2005 and voting day will be a few days after nomination day. Please prepare to fight for a free and fair campus election.

Lim Kit Siang's response - Lightning varsity student polls?

AUKU Seksyen 15(3) and 15(4)

2005-09-08T15:24:00.000+08:00

Question on 3 Lang

2005-09-07T21:38:00.000+08:00

More than one have raised the question on the name 3 Lang. So, i've posted these comments found in one of the blog posts. Hope it'll shed some light.

hosanna said...: Just curious, why choose the name '3lang' if we're trying to be impartial and unaffiliated to any political party? Doesnt it smack of the political connotation of BN and all it represents?

idiotic_syncratic said...: Hi hosanna, that's a very good question. kakikopi was also telling me the other day how difficult it is to remain neutral.

But I told her that being neutral does not mean that we do not take sides and being impartial does not mean dat we cannot stand on one side of an issue.

It simply means that we do not take sides partisanly but rather, we take sides based on values and issues, NOT which party a candidate is from.

If BN says something good, we affirm its effort, if BN says something bad, we critique its flaws. That goes for DAP, PAS, Gerakan, MCA, etc. But our political culture has taken it to be, if BN says something, it is either just good (for pro-government) or just bad (opposition).

This is just to give you a backdrop of the kind of neutrality and impartiality we hope to nurture in our political culture, more immediately in our campus political culture.

As for 3 Lang, we see that these goals have nothing wrong in themselves, and if UM wants to adopt this gov's coined phrase as the direction our uni should take, then it is the responsibility of us as students to show our support.

But of course, our stand is that the end does not justify the means. How we attain 3 Lang is just as important as 3 Lang themselves. Justice, righteousness, equality, fairness must underpin the means to cemerlang, gemilang and terbilang.

People like saudara Lim Kit Siang has been employing the language of "free and fair" campus elections in his blog. Of course by us also using "free and fair" does not mean that we are supporting DAP, but we are in agreement with him on this issue and therefore, we are willing to support his cause.

We believe that students should participate in politics, be critical on issues, and thus we encourage a neutrality that takes side based on issue and values. But we utterly reject sectarian politics where right and wrong is simply determined by which party you are from.

Hope this answers your question and helps you see where we're coming from ;)

Updates on campus elections

2005-09-07T20:54:00.000+08:00

UM is having a one-week break at the moment. 3 Lang has received news that the campus elections will be starting on the 19th September, one week after uni reopens. Generally, pro-aspirasi folks have been very tight-lipped abt the elections while pro-student folks are struggling to find enough candidates for the elections.

First MP to blog, saudara Lim posted a series of post on "free, fair and clean varsity elections"
1. Free, fair and clean varsity elections - foundation for national integrity
2. Free, fair and clean varsity elections (2)

3 Lang members are busy setting-up interviews with people, some of which we cannot post up yet due to the sensitivity and timing of certain issues, and also scouting for new information on the campus elections.

Election Tactics

2005-09-03T01:26:00.000+08:00

Rachel Leow of theCicak has this sweet series of bitter election tactics. Watch the space:
Lesson 1 Malapportionment
Lesson 2 Gerrymandering

Big words. Wut the heck are they? A closer look tells you that it ain't dat distant from us.

Those interested to read more about campus politics in mandarin can go to this blog. Hope to work on the link list soon to get things more organized.

Meddlings in local campus elections!

2005-09-02T14:07:00.000+08:00

UMNO's plan to meddle in local campus elections EXPOSED!

Read more about it at http://malvu.org/index.php/articles/2176

VC on academic staff union (video)

2005-08-31T18:26:00.000+08:00

Any implicit meaning to his explicit 'by the way' remarks?

Selamat Hari Merdeka, Malaysia!

2005-08-30T23:00:00.000+08:00

The word ‘kemerdekaan’ or 'independence' seem to be such a popular word on everyone’s’ lips when 31st August is around the corner and we hear endless calls by leaders to ‘raise our national flag’.

Long gone are the days when we see flags being hung out by office windows or cars having their own little Jalur Gemilang stuck on them without the need of leaders calling us to do our part in showing our patriotism.

Is patriotism all about raising our national flag, or having competitions to see how long we can make our Jalur Gemilang and have it in record books? Is it just another public holiday for us? If that is the case, then we are a sad bunch of citizens.

The meaning of being an independent country probably doesn’t mean much to many. We don’t remember or don’t even know what the struggles were to achieve independence. We are too comfortable, too complacent with the freedom we have.

We should…we must be thankful and be appreciative that we have been so tremendously blessed.

Selamat Hari Merdeka, Malaysia!

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!

2005-08-30T22:43:00.000+08:00

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!
Mari kita sambut Merdeka!
A chant we always here from afar
Cum 31st August every year
Malaysia's 48th Independence Day is here!

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!
We shout to show how united and free we are
To all ye nations near and far
United hmm... probably, but are we really free?
A question we ought to ponder and see

3lang! 3lang! 3lang!
Why am I chanting 3lang!?
3 things we want our campus to be...
Cemerlang! Terbilang! Gemilang!
Campus elections here we come!
But a clean free election is what we want!

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!
Let us not only shout this chant
But let us remember this day together!

Merdeka!

2005-08-30T19:47:00.000+08:00

Zealous nationalists, enthusiastic journalists, political pundits, spin doctors, and even the average bloggers are flooding the media on what it means to be independent after 48 years of Merdeka. Perhaps another way to phrase the question is to actually ask ‘What is freedom?’

Celebration, no matter how pompous, is no match to those that are kindled by the stirring emotion when in gentleness, grasped the true meaning of freedom. Giants of the past echo to us that freedom has close and inseparable acquaintances with truth and virtue.

“Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom.” – Benjamin Franklin

“Truth without freedom is a manacle, but freedom without truth is a mirage.” – Os Guiness

“...a fish lying on dry land is perfectly free, viz, to die and to perish, while a fish, which really shall be free to live and to thrive must be entirely surrounded by water and guided by its fins.” – Abraham Kuyper

As such, a group of us from University Malaya want to celebrate our independence day by remembering, cherishing and upholding a freedom that constitutes both truth and virtue this 31^st August 2005.

In simple ways, we have committed to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly before God in our campus. Therefore, we will open our mouths for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute, and will judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy. Only then, our campus can be cemerlang, gemilang and terbilang.

We want to invite all like-minded Malaysians, especially students, specifically UM, to join us in this celebration of independence and freedom. We welcome you to participate in our blog http://3lang.blogspot.com by sharing your stories and initiatives that render a fuller appreciation of freedom, of justice and of righteousness. Leave a comment in our blog if you are interested to participate further.

With that, I wish you a truly free and independent celebration!

Strip it off!

2005-08-30T18:54:00.000+08:00

The moment the British's Union Jack was lowered down and our Jalur Gemilang was being raised high up in the sky, our father of independence Tunku Abdul Rahman led us in shouting three times of 'Merdeka, merdeka,merdeka!'. This scene of independence stays vividly in my mind although i wasn't born yet that time but yet the spirit of getting independence excites me as i grow older. What does independence means to me? It means being not dependent on others but only yourself,being not influenced or controlled by others. Does that means that we can do whatever things freely in whatever ways we want? Being independent means getting freedom and getting freedom means you are free to do what you want to do but you must be responsible for it. But for now it seems that the definition has change tremendously, the moment you get your freedom means that is the moment you realize you have no freedom or somehow you are controlled by others. For me as a Christian, i learnt how to use my freedom so that it does not go over board my sinful nature. No matter how bad you are, you are still given freedom to choose. Its the same here that now we are all university students who have eyes to see and ears to hear, the many unfair and injustice things which are happening around us. We had heard enough and saw enough and now we want to make a stand here to disagree with the administrators of University ofMalaya. The many injustice things which had happened cannot be allowed anymore because if it continues to happen then University of Malaya cannot declare independence yet though our country had did that. It will contradicts clearly with the definition of being independent and the three times shouting of merdeka will be futile as some of us are still like a frog living in the well. Once again let us make this 48th celebration of merdeka meaningful not only by reminiscing the past but more importantly is the future that is to come.

Merdeka,merdeka,merdeka!May it comes real to everyone

From the hands of the colonizers

2005-08-30T18:07:00.000+08:00

I am glad that we are celebrating our 48th year of independence. Even without the colonizers, I am proud that our own home leaders can bring our country into the international sphere and now Malaysia is widely known in other foreign countries. While I do feel proud about that, at the same time i also feel that there are a lot of policies in Malaysia has to be review rather letting the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. Certain policies are important in the 70's doesn't mean that there are important now.Apart from that , I do hope to see real democracy rather than pseudo democracy. We get our nation from the hands of colonizer but are there any mini colonizers in our own country. Looking forward for a merdeka where I can have nothing to complain about.

The Silence is Deafening

2005-08-30T15:26:00.000+08:00

today is August 30.
today is the eve of our nation's Merdeka.
campus elections will be held in September.
yet there is no news on what's going on.
no news on the exact date.
no news on who's running for elections.
there might not even be elections.
no need to vote.
'candidates' will stand unopposed.
like what happened last year.
unwilling ones cajoled into standing for elections.
or threatened with expulsion from hostels.
students in general, couldn't care less.
as long as my grades are not affected.
as long as i am not personally affected.
i shall not create or go near trouble.

why is this happening?
how did we come to this stage?
when did it happen?
who planned it?
who allowed it?
who sat back and did nothing about it?
who doesn't know anything?
who doesn't care?
what will the future hold for us university students?
what kind of individuals will we become?

Happy 48th Birthday Malaysia.
may your citizens never be sucked into apathy and mediocrity.
may your citizens never be deaf, dumb and blind when things don't seem right.
but may they be a proactive people.
a people with ears, eyes and voices.
may the silence perturb your people.
may the silence be deafening.

Audio on VC's Public Lecture

2005-08-25T02:01:00.000+08:00

YBhg. Dato' Profesor Dr. Hashim Yaacob gave a public lecture on the 19th August 2005 in DTC, UM entitled "Taking The University By The Hand".

You can check out the audio here (REC01 is Ungku Aziz' introductory remarks while REC02 is Hashim Yaacob's lecture and REC03 is the UM song). Video clips of the public lecture should be made available soon.

Some comments/notes on the public lecture:
1. He compared UM with NUS a lot!
2. The public lecture will be done once in three months.
3. Perhaps in the run-up of his brawl with Rosli Mahat from PKAUM, Hashim Yaacob hinted at the abolishment of the academic staff union (again, comparing it with NUS who 'surprisingly' has no such union because it makes the life of the President, equivalent to our VC, easier)
4. Proud of the fact that UM is 89 in the world! (err... NUS shares the same roots with us you know but they are... top 20?)

UMANY

2005-08-21T20:03:00.000+08:00

Undergraduates are prohibited from participating in programs organized by University Malaya Association of New Youth (UMANY). Again, the University and University College Act is used to threathen students.

The content of the poster:
PENGUMUMAN PENTING
Pihak hak Ehwal Pelajar dan Alumni mendapati Program di bawah "Penjelajahan Di Sungai Api-Api" adalah program HARAM (tanpa kebenaran Bahagian Hal Ehwal Pelajar dan Alumni) yang dijalankan oleh pertubuhan haram yang menggelarkan diri mereka "UMANY". Justeru itu, para pelajar adalah dilarang sama sekali menyertai program ini. Tindaka tatatertib menurut Akta Univeristi dan Kolej Univerisiti 1971 (Akta 30) akan dikenakan kepada para pelajar yang didapati terlibat.

Risalah haram (Illegal Brochures)

2005-08-19T13:43:00.000+08:00

This poster is issued from HEP to inform the students to stay away from any 'NEGATIVE BEHAVIOR'.

The content of the poster:
Pihak bahagian Hal Ehwal Peljar Dan Alumni Universiti Malaya amat memandang serius perbuatan meneluarkan SURAT LAYANG, RISALAH HARAM, BERITA PALSU , KENYATAAN PALSU DAN MENGHINA piha univeristi, serta bahan-bahan bercetk yang tidak mendapat kebenaran bertulis daripada pihak Bahagian Hal Ehwal Pelajar dan Alumni serta Univeristi. Ini kerana perbuatan tersebut tidak menunjukkan nilai-nilai positif dan berhemah sejajar dengan hasrat kerajaan yang mahukan mahasiswa lebih menumpukan kepada pengajian dan aktiviti-aktiviti yang menjurus kepada nilai-nilai keintelektuan. Oleh keranan itu, disebabkan segelintir mahasiswa yang cenderung kepada PRO GERAKAN PEMBANGKANG, telah menyebabkan imej dan maruah Univeristi Malaya tercemar. Sesiapa yang didapati MENGELUAR, MENCETAK, MENGEDAR dan MEMILIKI bahan-bahan tersebut akan dikenakan tindakan tegas, Justeru itu, pihak Bahagian Hal Ehwal Pelajar dan Alumni menyeru kepada mahasiswa-mahasiswi Universiti Malaya, agar MENOLAK BUDAYA dan PERLAKUAN NEGATIF ini kerana ianya akan merosakkan pemikiran, perlakua, serta penumpuan kepada pengajian dan nila intelektual yang selama ini didokong oleh mahasiswa-mahasiswi Universiti Malaya.Sesiapa yang mempunyai maklumat berkenaan dengan aktiviti-aktiviti negatif tersebut, sila hubungi atau laporkan kepada pihak Bahagian Hal Ehwal Pelajar dan Alumni

Notis Peringatan HEP

2005-08-18T22:35:00.000+08:00

This notice can be found all over the faculties in University Malaya forbidding students to join activities organized by IKD (Institut Kajian Dasar), alleging it to be an opposition party's machinery to preach hate propaganda, threatening to use AUKU (PINDAAN) 1975 on students who fail to abide by this warning.

Introduction

2005-08-18T17:23:00.000+08:00

Mission Statement

We are committed to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly before God in our campus. Therefore, we will open our mouths for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute, and will judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy. Only then, our campus can be cemerlang, gemilang and terbilang.

Ethos
1. Independent
We are an independent initiative that welcomes and encourages others to make a difference in their own capacity at their own campuses in line with our mission statement. We are not affiliated to any group but welcome everyone especially students irregardless of race, religion, class or creed to share their resources and stories of their respective initiatives.

2. Non-partisan
We are aware of the partisan mentality in our campus political culture. As such, we are committed to make an intentional effort to remove any such prejudices and to nurture a political culture based on values and issues.

3. Partnership
We believe that our initiatives must be worked out through partnership with anyone who is willing, even those who may not subscribe entirely to our mission statement. We believe that our partnership with others will contribute to the nurturing of a more responsible, aware and involved community in our campus.