Chin Peng – The Secret Weapon

“Chin Peng won’t be forgiven for waging war against Malaya and then Malaysia. As of now, there is no forgiveness for you (tiada maaf bagimu).” So steadfast was his conviction that no one would ever imagine the same person would, a few days later, contradict himself by calling on us to “appreciate the spirit of ‘qurban’ or sacrifice”.

By Utuh Paloi

When NST carried the solemn thought of Roger Tan “Tell your dad ‘I love you’ now before it’s too late for that” I could not yet fathom the contents.

 

“Since he came over here in 1947, he only went back to China once in 1983. That trip meant a lot to him because he had always wanted to make this ‘pilgrimage’ to fulfill his wish and duty by paying his belated respects to his departed parents”.

 

Watching drama serials ‘the little nyonya’ had somehow helped me understand some of the customs and traditions of the Chinese.

 

Inevitably, it also made me understand why Chin Peng had desperately wanted to pay respects to his late parents, just as what Tan Sue Yong, the missing father of Roger Tan did in 1983.

 

What are hard for me to digest are the contradicting statements by no less than the Deputy President of UMNO.

 

“Chin Peng won’t be forgiven for waging war against Malaya and then Malaysia. As of now, there is no forgiveness for you (tiada maaf bagimu).” So steadfast was his conviction that no one would ever imagine the same person would, a few days later, contradict himself by calling on us to “appreciate the spirit of ‘qurban’ or sacrifice”.

 

But then, what can we expect from politicians?

 

I thought the phrase of “white men speak with forked tongue” made famous in early cowboy Hollywood movies is only relevant to white Americans. It never crossed my mind that the phrase, immortalized by the Red Indians, still holds good. The only difference between then and now is that the white man’s skin has turned darker.

 

Contradicting oneself in virtually the same breadth made the task of separating the ‘white men who spoke with forked tongue’ from that of egocentric politicians a difficult proposition. And it is even harder to separate the two from the politician who wants us to look at ‘qurban’ far beyond the slaughtering of animals. 

 

How to define ‘qurban’ or sacrifice in a wider perspective?

 

Since it was the DPM who urged us to appreciate the spirit of sacrifice, it is only proper that he shows us the way. If he is tongue-tied or still muddled in thought, then allow the scholars to dissect without fear or favour. If they are given the freedom to preach without fear of reprisals, I am sure they will be able to crack open the hard shell that encapsulate the soul of those who steadfastly oppose the return of this old man. After all, true Muslims should not harbour grudges and should be willing to forgive the enemy.

In less than a fortnight, Muslims all over the world will be celebrating the ‘hijrah’, another important day in the Muslim calendar. And we can again expect another round of call, and this time is about ‘appreciating the spirit of Hijrah” or ‘migration’. Our leaders will urge the Muslims to migrate from one state of mind to another or in short a paradigm shift.

 

As I am writing this, I can hear over Astro the voice of our most prominent motivator urging listeners to be gracious and forgiving. I believe his prompting is from the heart. Somehow, I wonder what will be his reactions if confronted with the dilemma of Chin Peng.

 

Does he possess the courage to say without reservations that the scope for forgiveness cover every human being irrespective of race, religion or their past or will he simply open the safety latch and join the bandwagon by complimenting the words of our politicians, “We must take into considerations the feelings of ex-servicemen and their families who have lost their loved ones in the course of duty”?

 

Read more at: http://utuhpaloi.xbrain.biz/chin-peng-the-secret-weapon/