Inculcating a sense of unity
AT a talk given to students of a private college in Kuala Lumpur in conjunction with the upcoming National Day celebration, I was asked during the Q-and-A session how to make Malaysians patriotic.
Patriotism should be inculcated during childhood because when children love their home and country, they would grow up appreciating their heritage, diversity and history, and strive to improve Malaysia in all aspects.
Patriotism can be instilled in students through awareness, education and knowledge. The education system should be tailored to inculcate a sense of pride and belonging to the nation.
A sense of belonging is a significant element that needs to be nurtured and preserved among the students. Only through a sense of belonging could Malaysia’s younger generation be moulded into responsible and mature citizens as well as future leaders of the country.
Young children can be moulded into not looking at things through race-coloured lenses. Put the children together and let them grow up together so that the children will be able to get to know, understand and appreciate their peers of different skin colour or religious background.
The younger generation must be made aware of the importance of unity, social cohesion and reconciliation as they are the cornerstones of the nation’s success and development. As students are the future leaders of the nation, it is imperative that they forge closer relations despite differences in race, culture and religion.
Fostering unity should begin in the schools where efforts can be made to instil the values of inter-racial harmony, unity and peace.
Teachers need to use creativity and skills to get students of all races to participate in indoor or outdoor activities that enhance racial integration and unity.
Students should participate in school and outdoor activities that enable them to interact with one another and build lasting friendships. School principals and teachers must encourage students to understand one another better and to have mutual respect for each other.
They must be the prime movers of our educational transformation, not only to teach and impart knowledge and skills but also to unite students of different races through activities in line with the aspiration of a united Malaysia.
Parents need to cultivate and practise positive values in their daily lives so as to inspire their children to emulate good behaviour that would help them build a stable nation. Values such as honesty, integrity, tolerance, diligence, fairness, respect for elders and civic-consciousness must be upheld.
After 61 years of independence, we Malaysians should be more united as we share the same hopes, aspirations and dreams. All of us should proudly identify ourselves first as Malaysians. I have always believed that to be a Malaysian does not make a person less Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan, Iban, Bidayuh and others.
National unity and integration can be made stronger and more vibrant through the inculcation of the value of patriotism. History has proven that Malaysia was able to overcome any challenges when its people were united.
Our diversity is our strength and it is the recipe of success in achieving development and socio-economic progress, as well as our ability to conquer various adversities. Malaysians of different ethnicity, religion and skin colour complement each other and our diversity should not be an obstacle for us to lead a united and harmonious life.
All Malaysians, especially the younger generation, need to appreciate the concept of unity under 1Malaysia where everyone accepts the uniqueness of others so that we can live together in mutual respect and trust. It is the key to a peaceful country and wellbeing of the rakyat.
Nationhood and nation building is meaningless if the younger generation is not imbibed with appropriate values as they grow to fill in the role of today’s citizenship and leadership.
Youths have the power to transform the nation into a better place and bring about positive change in the country. Equipped with good and positive values, they can influence their peers to contribute to nation building. We need to give our youths a chance to prove themselves and to excel. We also need to instil good social and moral values in them to handle conflicts positively and to address problems related to social disorder.
Our youths must have the ability and take initiatives to be “ethnic bridge builders” to improve ethnic relations in the country by neutralising the politics of hatred, racial polarisation and racial exclusiveness which seem to be on the rise now.
Malaysia has established many milestones and it aspires to create more landmark achievements. Among its goals is to be an eco-nation that encompasses safe, clean and eco-friendly culture, built on sustainable development.
We should be mindful that the aim of Vision 2020 is not only to make Malaysia a fully industrialised nation in the economic sense but also to ensure it is completely developed from all aspects including from the moral and ethical dimensions.