VOICES OF MALAYA: The Ethnocentric British

Hantu Laut

The film best describe Malaya then. Watch with caution and open mind. Some may not like the racial connotations. 

SYNOPSIS

Film showing Malaya before, during and after the war.

The film shows: how people from many races have settled here; the way that the Malays live; the Chinese and their way of life; the role of the Europeans, the 'white' man, in bringing civilisation to this area; the Indians and the way that they helped to build up Singapore; the way that money was spent - on hospitals, law and government, for example - to turn Malaya into a prosperous and contented country; 1941, when the Japanese overran the country and undid the work of more than a century; the building up of a secret resistance movement; the Japanese surrender; the desolation that faced people as they came back either from hiding or the army; cleaning up the mess that the Japanese had left before real productive work can proceed; disease, and the fact that the Japanese had refused to give medical treatment and many people were a long way from hospital and beyond the reach of ambulances; the shortage of food, which eventually led to stealing; the newspapers that were being produced; more easily available advice, and the idea that now, 'Malaya has changed. New ways grow side by side with the old. In no country is the struggle between traditional ways and the modern world more intense'.

Notes

Production: 'The Crown Film Unit wishes to express its grateful appreciation to the men and women of Malaya and to those organisations - both in Malaya and in Britain - whose whole-hearted cooperation made this film possible. Amongst them are: His Highness Sir Abdul Aziz the Sultan of Perak, the Malayan Film Unit, Malay 

Opera Company, Chinese Opera Company, Malay Tribune, Geographical and Survey Museum, London

CONTEXT

Although released in Britain in 1948, production on Voices of Malayaactually dates back to September 1945, when a detachment of the Crown Film Unit went ashore with the first wave of troops into Malaya. Cameraman Denny Densham explained how the Unit came to be there; ‘We had been standing by with a small flotilla of minesweepers in Southern India awaiting the start of an operation known locally as “Zipper” the invasion of Singapore’. On hearing that the British would take over the occupation of Penang Island on 3 September ‘Ralph Elton and I bribed the skipper of an M.L. to take us ashore, rather against orders, and we were set up on the jetty with our camera ready and waiting for the first official landing party’. Densham explained that after a couple of days, they explored the mainland, cleared themselves with the Japanese military headquarters in Taiping, and then drove south to interview the Sultan of Perak. ‘It was’, Densham added, ‘a great opportunity to put on record the history of a country as it unfolded before our camera; a chance almost unique in documentary film history to make a picture that lived with newsreel realism, yet had a heart so much deeper. We made a request to London for permission to go ahead on the story of a country’s post-war construction, and it was granted’ (Colonial Cinema, June 1948, 38-43).

Ralph Elton, who headed the Unit with a nucleus of four Englishmen and nine Malayans, returned to England with Densham in October 1946 (The Straits Times, 7 October 1946, 3). The crew had shot 250,000 feet of film, and the film was then left to a team in Britain, headed by Terry Trench, to edit. Densham referred to the ‘jungle of tin cans’ found in the cutting rooms and noted the enormity of the task facing the assembly unit back in London (Colonial Cinema, June 1948, 43). Trench and his team were responsible for ‘moulding the film’, developing a narrative and formulating the idea of the ‘Five Voices’, although this in itself is derivative of Alexander Shaw’s 1938 film for the Malayan Government, Five Faces.

It was difficult to complete the film because of the rapidly changing political situation within Malaya. Ralph Elton noted in 1946 that ‘script writing was very difficult. We would anticipate history and find that next week we were hopelessly out of date… it’s all very amusing to read our first rough script’ (The Straits Times, 4 August 1946, 4). Densham also noted that ‘owing to constant political changes in the Far East, it was impossible to shoot to a script… we shot most of the film off director Ralph Elton’s cuff’ (Colonial Cinema, June 1948, 39). The constant changes forced Crown to abandon their initial plans for two separate films – Speed the Parting and Reconstruction in Penang– as Speed the Parting was deemed out of date before completion, so both films merged into Voices of Malaya (INF 6/397).

By the time the film was finally released in 1948, the political shifts were even more pronounced. The Malayan Union, established in April 1946 and the subject of much Malay opposition (as noted by a banner within the film) had been replaced by the Federation Agreement on 1 February 1948, while the Emergency was declared on 18 June 1948. The COI file for the film noted that ‘the end was altered in accordance with the request of the Malayan Government before the film was released’ (INF 6/397). Mary Heathcote explained that the commentary originally hinted that Malaya still faced ‘internal problems’ but the government, claiming that ‘everything in the Garden’s lovely’, was unhappy with this and the commentary was changed. Heathcote suggested that the ending was now likely to be changed back again ‘to be in keeping with current events’ (The Straits Times, 1 August 1948, 9). The version viewed here concluded that ‘Malaya has a long tradition of peace. The goodwill with which all communities have accepted the new Constitution gives confidence that her problems will be solved as the four races build up a common loyalty to Malaya’. However, the script held with the COI file offers a different final line, without direct reference to ‘her problems’: ‘Progress is seldom simple, but Malaya is a naturally rich country with a long tradition of peace. The chances are in her favour. If the four races can build up a common loyalty to Malaya’ (INF 6/397).

Footage from the expedition was also used elsewhere. Densham noted that the filming served ‘mainly for record purposes, while quite a bit of footage was taken and used by the newsreels’. In addition, their material was used in a number of Crown and COI films including This was Japan, Pop Goes the Weasel, The World is Rich and Burma Victory, while subsidiary films were made from the footage includingThis is Malaya, Malay Village, People of Malaya, and Products of Malaya (Colonial Cinema, June 1948, 38, INF 6/397).

Read more and watch film here.http://colonialfilm.org.uk/node/2541

Trip Through North Borneo (Sabah) 1907

An advertisement for A Trip through British North Borneo in The Erain January 1907 offered some insights into the production history of the film. It referred to this new series ‘by courtesy of the British North Borneo Company’ and reported that ‘this unique and beautiful subject contains the best photographic results of two expeditions organised and conducted by the Charles Urban Trading Co. Ltd., and illustrates the quaint manners and strange customs of the natives of British North Borneo’. A number of the scenes listed within this film – for example ‘Panorama of the Padas River’ and ‘First Trading of Natives with White Man’ – had also appeared in an earlier Urban series released in 1904, and A Trip through British North Borneo appears largely, if not exclusively, to reuse this earlier material (The Era, 19 January 1907, 35).

In 1903 Harold Mease Lomas, a chemist-turned-amateur photographer, had led the ‘Urban Bioscope Expedition through Borneo’, which then travelled through Malay in 1904 (Iversen, 2001, 71). The Urban Films catalogue of June 1905 explained that ‘this expedition was started and equipped by us for the purpose of securing bioscopic records of native life and scenes in the interior of North Borneo’. It noted that the ‘unparalleled idea of taking the bioscope into an almost unknown district of the tropics’ was ‘enthusiastically supported by the Government’ and indeed the trip was financed by the British North Borneo Company, the imperial charter company that administered rule in the country between 1882 and 1946 (Herbert, 2000, 257). A report in the Daily Mail described this as an ‘excellent investment’, as, according to the Company’s managing director in 1904, the photographs and moving pictures ‘had been instrumental in helping the company to raise during the last few years over £500,000’ (The Times, 7 December 1904, 12).

Some of the films were shown at the annual dinner of the British North Borneo Company in December 1903 and again in 1904 (at which ‘guests smoke North Borneo cigars and drink North Borneo coffee’).The Era noted that the films were ‘extremely instructive’ in introducing and explaining the company’s work in an ‘entertaining’ way, while one of the speakers at the dinner in 1904 praised them for highlighting the beautiful scenery and commercial value of the country without ‘the boredom attaching [sic] to long speeches’ (Herbert, 2000, 264). Commenting in January 1904 on the films, The Straits Times noted their appeal to ‘stay at home folk’ who now had the opportunity to behold ‘the descendants of ferocious pirates walking along the iron way’. ‘In the cut-throat days of not long ago they would either have run away or tried to wreck that train’, it continued, ‘Experience has taught them that the native shares in the benefits of British enterprise’. The paper further noted the scenes of local labour ‘under the eyes of Europeans’, which it suggested showed that ‘the natives are eager to work for the British, and when allowed to do so are most zealous’ (Straits Times, 5 January 1904, 5).

Read more and watch the film here: http://colonialfilm.org.uk/node/1419

My Way, The UMNO Way

Hantu Laut

Change, reform, transformation, reconstruction, renewing, or whatever name you want to give it,  if you take no effort to do what you preached, you'll eventually be fucked!

Kaput! 

If it is not now, it's a matter of time, the crunch will come.

Reforms and transformations are words that have been tossed around since Mahathir left the scene and the "wimps" took over and promised change they had no desire to carry through.

Frankly, I think UMNO had no desire to change. UMNO is  hellbent in running the country the way they deemed fit, running it to the ground.

There are many bloggers like me that have been supporting their cause for nothing and are tired and have had enough of defending people who had no desire to change.

How many times have we heard the word uttered whenever the party's barometric level goes up and stormy weather looms ahead?

Former Prime Minister Ahmad Badawi had said it umpteen times since March 2008, but nothing had came out of it. The only change that happened was changing of the guard in UMNO from Badawi to Najib, who like his predecessor has also uttered "CHANGE" umpteen times yet change remained empty war cry.

Now, the Malay first, Malaysian second Deputy Prime Minister says the same thing that "UMNO must change if they want to stay relevant"

Will they ?

The Malays in the streets knew very well they have always been taken for a ride and gotten raw end of the deal, more often than not, would not have benefited from the "ketuanan Melayu" bullshit. The NEP was to serve the interests of UMNO leaders and warlords. 

Maintaining the status quo had become so irresistible to these leaders, come what may, they will not change. Even low ranking UMNO leader can make a fortune if he knows which apple to polish.

One have to go round the country to see the sub-standard and shoddy works of completed government projects that have gone through the UMNO laundry machine.

One can see the extent of the power and influence of the UMNO warlords by the Prime Minister's recent action of appointing those dropped at the last elections with cosy and rewarding jobs in GLCs and other government agencies. 

UMNO elected members continue to show their revolting habit and lack of intellectuality by asking anyone that criticises the government or Malay rights to migrate to other countries. 

How much shallower can you get with this kind of response?  

Najib, whom many had been looking forward to execute radical changes had been a big disappointment so far. Can we expect him to bring about meaningful changes? 

He is still surrounded by the same old people, the same old politics of patronage, cronyism and nepotism. He has to pay tributes to these self-serving bloodsuckers and re-appoint them to pivotal positions in government and government agencies.

His sovereign vehicle 1MDB had become the butt of jokes and laughing stock of the financial world after paying the highest fee ever, 7.7 % of the face value of the bonds to Goldman Sach for underwriting fees. The industry average for that year was 1.32 % for junk bonds. 

The Malaysian government had given a "Letter Of Comfort" to Goldman Sach, which they say did not amount to a guarantee. Who are they trying to fool, themselves or the Malaysian public? 

1MDB is wholly owned by the Malaysian government and in the event of a default the Malaysian government, with or without the "letter of comfort" will have no choice, in order to save its world's credit rating and credibility will have to make good the default and pay up. That's your money and mine!

The people at Goldman Sach know it, the people at 1MDB don't, they are bluffing themselves and the Malaysian people.

I presumed the bonds are US$ denominated and the currency may go north or south making the bonds vulnerable to foreign exchange currency fluctuations. If the US$ goes north at maturity than bad luck for 1MDB, they may incur huge forex losses.

It may not be too late for Najib to kick asses at 1MDB, remove those morons and replace with people who know the business.

UMNO may still be able to keep the rural Malay votes in the Peninsula, but Sabah and Sarawak may be gone. No more fixed deposits for BN. It will just be UMNO against the rest of the country. 

The erosion of KDM votes in the 13th GE in Sabah is a prelude to a wind of change. The same scenario prevails in Sarawak.

Was Washington Behind Egypt's Coup ?

The overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi by the Egyptian Armed forces was not carried out against US interests, it was instigated to ensure “continuity” on behalf of Washington.

“[US Defense Secretary] Hagel and [US Chief of Staff General] Dempsey were walking a fine line … expressing concern while attempting to avoid the impression that the U.S. was manipulating events behind the scenes.” (Military.com, July 3, 2013)

The protest movement is directed against the US and its proxy Muslim Brotherhood regime.

The Muslim Brotherhood had been spearheaded into the government with the support of Washington as a“replacement” rather than an “alternative” to Hosni Mubarak, who had faithfully obeyed the orders of the Washington Consensus from the outset of his presidency.

While the Armed Forces have cracked down on the Muslim Brotherhood,  the Coup d’Etat is ultimately intended to manipulate the protest movement and prevent the accession of a “real people’s government”.  The overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi by the Egyptian Armed forces was not carried out against US interests, it was instigated to ensure “continuity” on behalf of Washington.

“Demonstrators carried hand-made posters denouncing Obama and his pro-Muslim Brotherhood Cairo Ambassador, Anne Patterson.” (F. William Engdahl, Global Research, July 4, 2013).  

The Muslim Brotherhood and the CIA

Western intelligence agencies have a longstanding history of collaboration with the Brotherhood.  Britain’s support of the Brotherhood instrumented  through the British Secret Service dates back to the 1940s. Starting in the 1950s, according to former intelligence official William Baer, “The CIA [funneled] support to the Muslim Brotherhood because of “the Brotherhood’s commendable capability to overthrow Nasser.”1954-1970: CIA and the Muslim Brotherhood Ally to Oppose Egyptian President Nasser,

Read more.