NS good but needs more commonsense
Reader letter to Malaysiakini, DelCapo,May 16, 08 4:50pm
I would like to share my personal experiences about NS. So far, most I have read are other
people's reactions based on reports they have read about the deaths and horrors at NScamps and rightfully so. Parents are now horrified to send their kids to this programme.I want to be objective here. Personally, I have had young cousins and nephews/nieces who have attended NS. I have visited them during their stay in NS camps here in Peninsula Malaysia (Machap) and in Sabah and Sarawak (Tawau, Miri). My visits were out of concern as a relative, as well as to check out the rumoured ‘brainwashing’ going on there.
My personal experiences have been good. No strong trace of any ‘brainwashing’. In fact, I will go as far as saying that the short period the kids were there, they experienced:
* Toughening up and independence, especially for the spoilt over-sheltered city kids - the ‘urban bumpkins’
* Met new friends from different parts of the country and from the different races
* Learnt new things (like water-rafting, mountain-climbing, light military activities etc)
* For the poorer students, a chance to visit a new area of the country
* The kids had a good mix of fun, physical activities and disciplinary training. Honestly, our kids are all a little spoilt and lembek these days.
Yes, I did witness some fights on the football field during their recreational games but hey, what do you expect when you place a couple of hundred of 18-year-olds in one place?
For every camp, safety and discipline (of the kids and the staff) are the responsibilities of the camp operator and the assigned Camp Commander from the defence ministry.
They follow (apparently) strict guidelines for the programme, buildings, equipment, food and lodging and the camp commander reports directly to Mindef on these. So it seems a good check and balance are in place.
Now, regarding the tragic deaths and rape incidents at NS camps. My view of the problem is this.
Why do Najib Razak and Mindef just report only the statistics? These are people's children. One death is one too many and one rape is one rape too many. Get it?
They need two simple things:
1. A NS Camp Discipline Committee that must be decisive and strict. Sack the camp commander and suspend the camps at which such incidents occur. No dillydallying, no mucking around.
2) Set up a good and competent NS public relations department to write better reports for the public. Show compassion, not just tell people, ‘Oh it's only one in a million....’
Tell the public that it is only a few badly managed camps with these problems. Reveal the names of the operators and commanders. Then see if the rest of the NS camps dare to be slack. Show testimonials from successful and good camps and from parents and kids who have benefitted from them.
Write better speeches for your leaders when they talk about NS and rate the camps independently and make them public.
I just want to say that I believe NS has brought some good to the kids. Just ask those who have been to the good camps. The few rotten ones should be shut down and this made known to the public. For goodness sake, sack the bad officers and shut down the bad camps. Stop the deaths and rape cases by using some common sense and brain power.
The political motivated view(talk only, but no
constructive suggestions):-Scrap NS scheme, Guan Eng urges Govt
The Star, PENANG: May 11, 2008
The National Service (NS) programme should be scrapped if the Government cannot ensure the safety of trainees.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the Government has no choice but to scrap the programme if trainees continue to die while undergoing the program-me.
“Isn’t this an indication of the failure of basic safety security measures that are supposed to ensure the safety of our children at NS camps?
“Imagine the sentiments of parents who sent their children off to NS camps in buses but re-ceived them back in boxes. How would you feel?
“It is inhumane and cruel to continue with the programme if the trainees safety cannot be en-sured,” said Lim......
I abhor the death of the NS participants. Solutions need to be found. Our NS is only 4 years old, Singapore's NS is more than 40 years. The government should study in depth the national service programmes in other countries. Some of these countries are Singapore, Austria, Mexico, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Taiwan, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. Many have conducted their NS for decades. These countries experiences can provide answers to the problems we are facing now.
8 comments:
I do not want to equate LGE to a devil. Unfortunately, when I was searching for a cartoon character with Hammer, the immediate result of my search was the "red baby devil with hammer picture".
Sorrylah LGE.
hkl, we always hv options.
but i like the red baby devil. it is cute.
I agree with you that the program may have some merits as you mentioned, but what i don't agree about it is the way the whole thing is executed.
What is the actual purpose for Malaysian NS? Is it to actually build a second line of defense or just a fun camp to build character. With the short time it seems more for the latter.
Can't all the benefits of character building, discipline and racial tolerance be done in school and inculcated over the 11 years that each student would have already spent? Isn't participation in a uniform unit in schools already compulsory?
Perhaps the military can have programs in schools and assign officials in schools so that the "urban spoilt brats" can be thought some discipline and respect for authority, and some military activities. NS is clearly not the only solution and certainly not the cheapest.
Our NS gives me the opinion of a haphazard program set up with the so-called purpose of military reserves and racial integration. The reason it will still fail is because our political leaders are insincere in racial integration and they themselves are still racists. Hence the NS is an excuse for some politically connected companies to benefit monetarily through uniforms, food, facilities, etc.
I agreed, it is more character building. Many people think the NS is meant to brainwash young M'sian into BN supporter, it is not.
However, the fatality rate is unacceptable.
NS is new, many potentials to develop.
I encourage the NS to be continued, but it should exclude those "girls". They are seen NOT SAFE in the camp!
NS is good to mould young people's character etc, but on condiction that it is not BN-mould, nor mould of any political parties. Keep party politics out of it.
NS in Msia is badly run because I believe its setting up has a lot to do with "Kangtaoism", a way of letting some leaders and their cronies to make some fast bucks. Remember the incident of buses that didn't have licence to carrying NS trainees to the camps? This is only the tip of an iceberg. If we dig in further we can find an answer why NS is so badly done in Msia and has so high rate of fatal accidents due to negligence. It's national service but a service of kangtao for somebody, my friend.
Charlie:
I agreed it have to be run professionally, without partisan politics and free of 'kangtao".
It should be a programme that the youth look forward to be included.
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