#history of malaysia

[newhistorybooks]

"Losing Hearts and Minds is an innovative blend of social and military history that examines how race, gender, and ethnic identities shaped the British army in a colonial setting. This deeply researched, beautifully written book brings to life the tensions within a multi-cultural military, when lines blurred between soldiers and civilians, and nationalist loyalties clashed with imperial subjecthood."

[thozhar]

In the estate, Thangamaal, despite not knowing how to read or write, raised her son, Neelavanan, with stories from the Mahabaratham, Ramayanam, as well as Tamil Bhakti songs. In spite of her devotion towards Hinduism, she was a woman who liked eating beef, a meat often seen as ‘impure’ by caste-Hindus.

“Once, my mother bought beef from the town, and when the neighbours asked her what she was cooking, she said mutton. When I asked my akka (sister) why amma (mother) said that, she told me that people [Hindus] who pray can’t eat beef,” recalled Neelavanan.

As Neelavanan grew up, he understood that Hindu religiosity surrounding beef was a weapon against Dalits who consume it. “People around me eat mutton, chicken, water monitors, pork—they eat everything,” he said. “But when it comes to beef, they say that it is god. They brand [Hindus] who eat beef as coming from a certain caste. We are buying [beef] with our own money; we did not steal or beg for it. Yes, I eat beef, so what?”

Ove time, however, the culture of eating beef has deliberately declined among Dalits in Malaysia as a way to escape casteism and adapt to caste-Hindu practices. This shift can be seen in Neelavanan’s own family, where his siblings and relatives refuse to eat beef and even scrutinise him for his beef-eating habits.

[vintagecamping]

Setting up camp in a safe open field. Malaysia

1967

[keystonepublishing]

Psychological Warfare of the Malayan Emergency by Herbert A. Friedman (Ret.)

Have you ever been taught a version of history at school that seems weirdly simplistic? And then years later, you find more evidence that shows the whole affair was a giant, complicated mess?

Guess what I learned over the past few months about the Malayan Emergency.

For context, the Malayan Emergency was a conflict that raged in the British colony of Malaya from 1948 until the 1960s between communist forces and the British government, later continued by the independent Malayan government. The government forces won, but any school teachings of the conflict was presented in a manner that simplified the complex (and often, grey) nature of the Emergency.

I knew since then that a lot of truths were hidden away, but I didn't realize that there was a psychological aspect to the Emergency until I stumbled upon this webpage by a retired military officer about it. Given the length of the information provided and that it's the only one of it's kind — and therefore at risk of information loss if deleted, I sought to bookbind it. Pictures and all.

Given the amount of information contained and the sheer number of images, this project took about a month!

I had to divide the continuous stream of information in the webpage into readable chapters.

Then, I had to layout the images with the text, which was actually harder than expected — the size of the image could shift relevant text into the following pages, so it was a process of balancing image size to textual placement.

In-between that was the regular work of typesetting, but also of formatting quotes and examples, of which there were a lot.

And then there were pages that required special attention. For example, these pages:

The pages on the right was relatively simple — a double-sided leaflet that could be showcased in a double-page spread, with contextual information in the following pages.

On the left however, to create the list of dead / living people, I had to finagle a table in Microsoft Word and constantly adjust the cell size to make the long names and positions fit. The whole endeavor was an exercise in patience.

Leafing through the pages, there are some parts I am annoyed with, such as pictures on the right page with their annotated message in the following left page. But as it is, I'm just glad this is done.

Special thanks to SGM Herbert A. Friedman (Ret.) for compiling this information that astonished me to create this bookbind.

[diioonysus]

beauty around the world: pt 8

[sonyaheaneyauthor]

russian fighters celebrate in the wreckage of civilian passenger flight Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. The rubble was looted of the victims' possessions.

MH17 was shot down over occupied Donbas, Ukraine on the 17th of July 2014, using a russian-made Buk ground-to-air missile. 298 people were killed.

The victims were from:

Australia (27)

Belgium (4)

Canada (1)

Germany (4)

Indonesia (12)

Malaysia (43)

Netherlands (193 including one dual Dutch/US citizen)

New Zealand (1)

Philippines (3)

United Kingdom (10)

[grafikita]

Nirnama oleh AsyrafAzulia

[gwydpolls]

Time Travel Question 18: Ancient History VIII and Earlier

These Questions are the result of suggestions from the previous iteration.

This category may include suggestions made too late to fall into the correct grouping.

Please add new suggestions below if you have them for future consideration.

[omg-ranopano]

As I watch the sun #### the ocean

[historynerdj2]

Others: If you were asked to write for the 5th Valkyria Chrinicles game, how would you write it?

Me: As a mixture of the Burma, New Guinea, and Borneo campaign.

Others: … What?

Me: Well, the Valkyria chronicles franchise has always liked toying with some degree of moral ambiguity, with an empire that is clearly in the wrong, but the side you are fighting for, while better, still has glaring flaws. Furthermore, the fourth game implied and talked about the idea that nations within the Federation has colonies, and while I am skeptical of how much of what the Imperial soldier stating that claim is stating established facts or state propaganda, that could be an angle to explore plot wise.

Think about it, perhaps the Empire launches a naval invasion to try and take over these resource rich colonies, and are banking on creating a narrative that they are liberators to the indigenous population, just like how the Japanese did during their initial pushes into Southeast Asia.

This could also mean a new perspective of what I shall dub for the sake of this post, the “Commonwealth”, who draws inspiration from mainly British colonial forces and Commonwealth, more specifically, Indian and Australian forces, with a heavy side of Gurkhas. Where you have to manage and combat this narrative, between members of your squad that are descendants of Edinburgh Federation settlers (Australians), indigenous peoples (Indians, Indonesians, Malaysians, and Nepali Gurkhas) and those actually from the Federation (British).

Not to mention, this could also be interesting to explore in the context of why they are siding with the Federation. Those actually from the Federation might view the conflict through the lens of ideology, and preserving the Empire Federation. Meanwhile the settlers might not care about the broader Federation, but they do care about their home being threatened. Finally those who are indigenous might have negative feelings about their current Colonial overlords, but be even more skeptical to the Imperial claims, or maybe even be exposed to the actual Imperial treatment that is far worse than anything the Federation have done.

And the Darscen can be explored in an interesting lens, as the Federation-native members might have the most amount of anti-Darscen soldiers, while settlers might still talk about them using offensive terms, but otherwise treats them better due to the need for the skill sets often associated with Darscens being particularly useful and valuable, while the indigenous members don’t have the context for the hate, and as far as they’re concerned, it’s someone else’s problem.

Gameplay-wise, the door is open to a lot of creativity. Jungle warfare can open the door to a lot of new mechanics and tactical situations. Maps could be very claustrophobic due to the thick jungle. Closer engagements could lead to having classes be more flexible, such as the inclusion of melee, bonus equipment like flares for the Scout class that helps to boost accuracy within the zone, or even new skills like engineers being able to build emplaced weapons.

Then there are the tanks. Tanks could play an interesting role, as tanks were used in far more limited numbers and roles compared to the European fronts, but I can easily see an interesting exploration in this world about smaller more compact tanks that function like anti-infantry roles, like how the Australians use Matilda tanks in the liberation of Borneo.

I could also see the dropping of the lancer class (iconic as it is), but the adoption of a new class that I would dub the “point man”, who would act as a mix of the scout and the shock class, having high movement range, but armed with more short ranged weapons like submachine guns and introducing shotguns to the series.

And the enemy can be interesting as well, with perhaps less use of the traditional image of the Imperial forces within the series, but instead more like naval troops and sailors and marines, perhaps their own colonial forces, and maybe even native people who side with the Imperials, deeming the Federation too irredeemable.

Finally, aesthetic. I think people are too obsessed with either the German, Soviet and/or American WWII aesthetic, but I personally find British commonwealth and colonial forces too be an awesome aesthetic, and also because I believe people often overlook the actions and achievements of British imperial forces.

Personally, I think people might be intrigued with playing characters inspired and based off Sikh, Malay, Gurkhas, Australians, and even British forces. Slouches hats, Bren guns, Owen guns, and Kukri knives, honestly it would be cool to see and use.

Besides, what could be cooler than siccing a fantasy world equivalent of a Gurkha or Aussie on an unsuspecting Imperial?

Others:… Go back to having the shower thoughts be about Genshin.

Images from top left, clockwise: Australians during the Borneo campaign; Gurkha, unknown location; British soldiers crossing a river during the Burma campaign; Australian Matilda Tanks during the Borneo Campaign; Soldier of the Malay Regiment; Indian Sikh soldiers, Burma campaign

[the-pardon-my-french]

Ink Library Cafe.

[unlikelylotusagent]

HANG TUAH IS TAKING OVER MY BRAIN

HELP IAM CURRENTLY HAVING BRAINROT ABOUT HANG TUAH RABHHHHGH HEKPPP THE 3 FICS ON AO3 ARE NOT HELPING

Frick you dude

Why can't I have a brain rot of a more popular historical/ folk figuree like Hamilton or Napoleon, Odysseus or even Tripitaka 😔

[losthistoryblog]

Bujang Valley Archaelogical Site (Kedah, Malaysia)

This right here is the oldest South East Asian civilisation.

It was referred to as Qalah (now Kedah) and was a proper civilization with a history of trade with Mesopotamia, India, and China.

The archaeological discoveries are rumored to stretch from the border with Thailand all the way to Penang.

There was a history of iron smelting as well and a presence of Hindu temples and Buddhist temples.

Malaysia aims to make this a tourist site on par with Angkor Wat and Borobudur. It's still shrouded in mystery. According the Malaysian archaeologists there seems to be more left to discover

[droppedsparksfly]

Recall, Recollect, Remember

「Around the 4th Century, The Burnt Feather decided to expand outside of China. The Burnt Feather sent pilgrims to southeast asia, failing to solidify itself in mainland SEA except for Malaysia, which then led to the Burnt Feather traveling to Singapore.」

Apparently because there wasn't that high of an empowered population in southeast asia at the time, and most empowered people there weren't interested, The Burnt Feather failed to solidfy itself in most mainland countries. That explains a lot...

[southeastasianists]

In the mid-15th century, Ming Chinese princess Hang Li Poh was sent off to be diplomatically married to the Sultan Mansur Shah of Malacca in Malaysia. According to the local tradition, the Sultan gifted her the hill of Bukit Cina for her to build a residence, and in 1459, this well was constructed for her use there.

Now known as Perigi Raja, the King’s Well, or Hang Li Poh’s Well, this well became a significant source of water for the city-state and it is said that it has never dried up even during the worst droughts. Legend has it that whoever throws coins into the well is destined to return to Malacca.

After conquering the city in 1511, the Portuguese took control of the well. In silent resistance, warriors of the Sultan of Malacca poisoned the well and succeeded in covertly killing some 200 Portuguese colonizers. The Dutch and later the Acehnese, an Indigenous people from Indonesia, also poisoned the well in 1606 and between 1628 and 1629 respectively.

During Dutch control of the region, a wall was built around the well to protect it, forming a small fort complete with cannons and a guardhouse. In 1795, a high-ranking Chinese colonial official, Kapitan Cina Chua Su Cheong (Tsai Shih-chang), founded the Taoist temple of Poh San Teng dedicating it to the Peranakan deity Tua Pek Kong. Its entrance is adjacent to the fort. Following the British occupation and colonization of Malacca, the well soon fell into disuse and disrepair.

Today, the legendary well can still be found in a walled enclosure next to the Poh San Teng temple, hidden in plain sight. While its water is no longer clean enough to drink, the well has earned a reputation for being a wishing well over the years, and many coins lie scattered at its base.

[thozhar]

Gogu: Even after independence, the Tamils continued to be managed similarly to the colonial times. European estate managers remained involved in Malaysian plantations, and the political direction and policies of Malaysia did not undergo significant shifts from the colonial period to benefit the Indians.  As indentured labourers, the Tamils were seen as mere tools for profit and deliberately dehumanised. The oppression they faced was evident in every aspect of plantation life. From the regimental morning roll-call to the hierarchical divisions based on caste, from the promotion of toddy consumption to destroy their consciousness to the extremely small and substandard housing, and from being kept separate from the development of the new nation to limited access to education, everything was cunningly designed to strip away their self-respect and dignity, keeping them as ignorant slaves. Sadly, many Tamils were unaware of the extent of their oppression, as they were kept comfortable enough not to revolt.  It is indeed heartbreaking to see the lasting impact of the oppressive system on Tamil communities even today. Despite advancements in wealth, the chains of oppression have not been fully broken. The slave mentality still persists, hindering our ability to realise our true potential and independence. In the realm of arts, we continue to be enslaved to the influences of South Indian cinema and Hollywood, preventing us from exploring the true meaning of our existence in this land. I think when the Malaysian Tamils watch themselves represented truthfully in cinema, one step towards finding our identity would be taken. We must reclaim our narrative; that is our liberation!

— ‘Plantation Life: As It Was’ Documents And Reclaims The History Of Tamil Indentureship