Obama for Dobama Naypyidaw

Adapted and Burmanized from thw Malaysiakini’s article by Azly Rahman 

NOTE: DOBAMA is pronounced as Do’ Bama and means, we Burmans or our Burmese or we all as Burmese.

‘Do’ ‘ could mean we and has a possessive meaning.

This is not my invention but we Burmese already had a Do’ Bama association or Dobama Asiayone during the colonial period and was the first association that started the change of mindset of Burmese to start an  anti-British movement.

“…Haji Ramli Street was a dirt lane where Obama used to while away the hours kicking a soccer ball. In the long rainy season, it turned to thick, mucky soup; Obama and his friends wore plastic bags over their shoes to walk though it,” said Adi, who at 46 is the same age as Obama….

“Neighborhood Muslims worshiped in a nearby house, which has since been replaced by a larger mosque. Sometimes, when the muezzin sounded the call to prayer, Lolo and Barry would walk to the makeshift mosque together.

… “His mother often went to the church, but Barry was Muslim. He went to the mosque. I remember him wearing a sarong,” said Adi.

– reported by Paul Watson in The Baltimore Sun, March 16, 2007

“

What was I sent here (as an Indian) for ?

Natalie Shobana Ambrose | in Malaysiakini 

Please read my heartfelt feelings, written below, after reading this article_

Persian poet Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi (fondly know as Rumi) wrote, “The human being therefore has come into the world for a specific purpose and aim. If one does not fulfil that purpose, one has done nothing.

When I was younger I remember wishing so hard that I wasn’t Indian. Many times I’d ask my mother if I looked like I was of mixed parentage – my mother’s straight to the point answer ‘Of course you look Indian. What else would you look like? Both your parents are Indian. ‘

Much to my disappointment, without a shadow of doubt – I was Indian. My attempts to not stand in the sun didn’t help me on the fairness graph either.

It wasn’t that I didn’t like the way I looked or my inherited ability to roll my ‘r’s’. I just didn’t want to be Indian because of the stigma of being Indian.

To me, being Indian meant that we were not the brightest lot, we were poor, didn’t have much of a future and enjoyed fraternizing around coconut trees singing songs to our heart’s content.

But that wasn’t me. I refused to be defined by society’s perception of Indians.

No matter how hard I tried not to be Indian, I was derogatorily called Tangachi (literally, little sister, but often denoting, cutie or ah-moi) and would be teased by students of other races attempting to speak Tamil (something only fellow Indians would understand).

I grew up not seeing Indians on TV unless on the news, – usually at a crime scene – and I grew up listening to radio adverts mocking the Indian accent. Surrounded by all these observations, who in their right mind would want to be Indian?

Anything but Indian I pleaded. Anything! It must have been quite an amusing sight but an even more common sight in today’s Malaysia.

I’ve grown up since then, and fully embrace my Indian heritage. But what about society?

Of course the likes of Aishwarya Rai and Shilpa Shetty, the glamorization of Bollywood moves and movies has helped in the acceptance of being Indian. But what does it mean to be a Malaysian Indian?

Always #3

 

Am I, Malaysian first and Indian second? Or am I, Indian first and Malaysian second?

The reality of living in Malaysia means that we are defined by race. Every application form we fill subjects us to define ourselves by race and the Indian box is always at its highest position at number 3.

It didn’t matter that my parents raised their children to believe that we could be anything we wanted to if we really wanted to, because society dictated otherwise and the law makes sure we remember our ‘standing’ in the country. Always #3, nothing more.

I remember clearly being defined by race from a very young age. I remember while in primary school, my class teacher (who I thought was a very nice Malay lady) told the whole class that I looked like her maid.

Not a very clued-in child, I thought, well her maid must be very pretty. Little did I realise what had just happened. Of course, when I got home and spoke of my day to my mother this compliment turned into the bitter reality of class-fuelled racism. I had been indirectly told I was #3 in the scheme of things!

I never understood what I had done for someone whom I respected – and my teacher of all people – to treat me in such a manner.

In a perfect world, we would not see colour, but the reality is we do see colour and we interpret and place judgments – good or bad based on our biases, socialization and upbringing.

Maybe if we acknowledged that racism does exist in us, we might be better able to address it. It is a bit of a radical idea in harmonious unified Malaysia, but we all are biased to a certain extent. It’s just that some people are able to conceal it better than others – but it that doesn’t mean it doesn’t’ exist.

I’m not advocating racism, in fact the opposite. I’m looking for a solution. The first step to any recovery is acknowledging the problem, – if not what are we trying to fix?

We may have different likes and beliefs – but when does a preference become racism?

I believe it is when a sales person refuses to let you try on a dress because he thinks you can’t afford it. It is when a quota system limits you to the right of an education of your choice. Or when a job advertisement specifies what race, age and gender you should be before you can even apply.

It is when scholarships are limited by race and not test scores, it is when you have to pay more for the same house your neighbour has – on top of paying for your child’s education because there weren’t spaces left for your race in the public tertiary education system.

How then are we to love our neighbours?

When life is defined and limited to race, problems arise. When people are suppressed, repressed, bullied and forced to be voiceless a country suffers.

For today, we, as a nation may look well, but will Malaysia have a multicultural society to brag about in twenty years to come or would we have to scour foreign lands for sightings of Malaysians?

 Tolerating one another

 

 As a nation, our greatest asset is the fact that we are a multicultural people, and as the travel brochures would say ‘living in harmony with one another’. Or, as the Tourism Malaysia ad says, Malaysia – Truly Asia!

Somehow it has become a song we sing rather than a reality we practice. In many ways, it should read Tolerating One Another. After all that is what we do best – tolerate.

The very word advocates hatred. We should not have to put up with each other, rather we should embrace one another and strive to understand each other better …. not looking at race or religion.
The only way to do this is to spend time with each other instead of allowing our prejudice to distance us from one another.

It sounds very much like my moral classes back in the day. Maybe we should all hold hands and sing Kum-Ba-Yah or Rasa Sayang and sit around a bonfire and magically we will be transformed.

A huge part of me wishes I hadn’t spent all those years trying so hard not to be Indian. But an even bigger part of me hopes that young Indian children don’t feel like they have to apologize for being an Indian in Malaysia – for this is the only country they can call home.

Have migration enquiries to other countries increased in the last six months? I don’t think we need statistics to confirm it. As a young Indian living in Malaysia, why wouldn’t I embrace a country that allows me to be the best I can be without penalizing me for my race? As I ponder on RÅ«mÄ«’s words, I wonder to myself, will Malaysia allow me to fulfil my purpose or will I stay and achieve nothing.

Please read my feelings after reading the above article_

All the Indians and mixed blooded Indians are sufferring in Myanmar.

You still have here_

Indian MP, Indian Minister, IndianDeputy Minister, Indian Political secretries, Indian opposition leaders, Indian Judges, Indian Military officers, Indian Police Officers, Indian Ambasadors, Indian Immigration Officers – – -e.t.c.

You still have here_

Indian schools, Indian TV Channel, Indian Newspapers, Indian Radio Stations, Indian Journals, Indian Magazines, Indian Movie Theatre- – -e.t.c.

But in our Myanmar or Burma, sadly NON of the above could be found.

If your face have Indian features, dark skin, sharp nose, beard (shaved or not), whether you are Hindi or Muslim or Christian you are discriminated at each and every corner you turn!

Myanmar Military rulers are labeling all the Indians as guest citizens, ‘Kala’ or mixed blooded persons or not pure citizens. That, however, could not make us, or people like us, to become non Burmese Citizens. We are Burmese citizens no matter how some might disagree, or wish otherwise or decreed by force. Whether mixed blooded or not is not important in the eyes of the whole world but SPDC could not deny our right of 100% pure Burmese citizenship!

We, and all the other persons like us, not just those Indians, Chinese, Bengalis or Pakistanis although we are undeniably mixed blooded immigrants’ children or descendants of immigrants, but we are now full Burmese Citizens. No matter what some like SPDC racists or their cohorts might say contrary.

Our great grand parents and all the ancestors were loyal citizens of Burma and all of them were and are holding the Burmese National Registration Cards or ‘Ah Myo Thar Mhat Pone Tin Cards’. My brothers and sisters’ family members are holding those Burmese National Registration Cards but now the SPDC Apartheid Régime had ordered to issue the differently formatted cards for their younger children. It is curious when the parents and elder brothers and sisters are the same citizens as our Burmese Buddhists at least on paper but now only their youngest children are blatantly or brazenly discriminated as different from others and their own elder siblings.

This racial discrimination is practiced on not only Muslims but on Chinese and Hindis. SPDC National Registration officers decreed that if any one is not pure Burmese Buddhist, could not claim to be pure blood and all the Burmese Muslims must be recorded as mixed blooded persons. Whether correct or not, know or not, must be enlisted as mixed blooded Indian, Pakistan or Bengali. So it is blatant Racial Discrimination or openly practicing Apartheid practice of SPDC Junta.

We believe that no one has that right to practice the issuing of Apartheid certificate or new type of Registration different from other citizens to us. By doing so, SPDC is clearly starting to commit a Genocide offence.

We wonder how that single document would change their dreams or what would be their vision of their world or Myanmar excluding them or shutting out all of them from all the opportunities. It is our children’s turning points of their lives. SPDC ruthlessly had shown them who they are, why and how they are not welcomed in Burma/Myanmar. As our children journey into an uncertain future, they will struggle and grapple with their sense of their rightful place in this Myanmar nation.

The constant emphasis on differences by the narrow minded SPDC apartheid racists who could not see value in these children prevent them from seeing them as anything other than Burmese Citizens.

Our country’s diversity makes us who we are and what we are today. And though we Burmese Indian Muslims, Burmese Hindus, Burmese Indian Christians may be different but we all are almost completely burmanized culturally but I am sure when we dream we dream as Burmese only because we know Burmese, we love Burmese, and Burmese only is in our heart and mind.

Successive Burmese Kings had accepted us as their loyal subjects or citizens, after Independence U Nu’s government had accepted us. And General Aung San had even promised us: “I want to address the Indians and Chinese residing in this country. We have no bitterness, no ill will for them, or for that matter for any race and nationality in the world. If they choose to join us, we will welcome them as our own brethren. The welfare of all people of this country irrespective of race or religion has always been the one purpose that I have set out to fulfill. In fact it is my life’s mission.”

But sadly those illegitimate illegal SPDC Régime is practicing Apartheid committing the Genocide on all of us.

I could guarantee to all of our Burmese friends that we are all Burmese in our heart and we have no intention or imagination to even support the foreign countries believed to be the homeland of our ancient ancestors even if Burma is at war with them!

Please give back our children at least a chance to dream. Please do not shut off their future.

 

 

The rainbow of pluralism

I have edited and adapted to the Myanmar context from the original letter to Malaysiakini by Yeo Yang Poh

I hope Malaysiakini and  Yeo Yang Poh could understand and forgive for this. They should even be proud that they could contribute a very good letter for the fellow Myanmar/Burmese citizens.

YEO YANG POH is an advocate and solicitor, and the immediate past president of the Malaysian Bar.

Like birth, race is, for all of us, a matter of fact in which we have no choice.

This simple, neutral fact of nature, however, weaves such a painful web of complexity, once it passes through the maladjusted looms of the human eyes, hearts, and minds.

Far from being a distinction without a difference, race has provided the ugly excuse for_

• discrimination,
• prejudice,
• fear
• and hatred.
• In the worst circumstances, the boisterous looms of race churn out bales of cloth soaked with human blood.

Just as_

• many sins are committed in the false name of God,
• much evil has been perpetrated under the mischievous pretence of championing a race.

Why has it come to be so?

It is rooted_

• in the perceived need for human beings to compete for limited resources, initially
• to meet one’s need
• and, later, one’s greed
• (or, more accurately, the greed of those in power).
• Banding together of persons increases their strength in the tussle for resources.
• Race became, and remains, one of the most convenient criteria to be used for rival groupings.

It takes little time for the leaders and the upper echelon of the pack, who have the most to gain in the economic and political game, to realise that the easiest way for them to retain support and control is to provide justification for discrimination

• (‘this is our land’),
• entrench prejudices (‘they are inferior’),
• instill fear in the followers (‘they will rob you of what you have’),
• and sublimely encourage hatred (‘their children will trample all over yours’).

So it snowballs.

• By painting other races as an ominous threat to the well-being of one’s own race,
• one can instantly become the champion of a cause,
• the hero who offers to save his race from humiliation.

This cunning but cowardly man in a superman suit_

• lights fires
• so that he can ride in each time for the staged rescue.
• As time goes by, this pattern is institutionalised, exploiting the weakness and vulnerability in the psyche of a mixed populace.

The fake angels

Such are some of the troubles of our multi-polar and terribly disturbed world, and of the difficulties faced by many pluralistic societies, MYANMAR/BURMA among them.

While we never celebrate our togetherness as Myanmar or Burmese, one of the most patriotic things we may usefully do is to examine our successes and failures, ask ourselves honestly how much of the ills described above have befallen our own society, and urgently seek better ways forward from now on. This must include a candid re-examination of our race-based system of Military Government Policies discriminating on MIXED BLOODED PEOPLE e.g. Burmese Muslims and Burmese Chinese.

How may we do that?

Racial differences_

• do not need to lead down the path of discord and conflict,
• notwithstanding the long periods of political propaganda that have duped a lot of us into thinking otherwise.
• Race may be a fact about which we have no choice,
• but what we would do with this fact is a matter very much of choice.
• We have suffered long and hard, because more often than not the wrong choices, urged on by power mongers, had been made.

We may begin by realising that_

• racial differences are never the real enemy.
• The culprit is the inequities in the distribution of resources within a society, regardless of race.

Harmonious race relations will be achieved by_

• building a fair and equitable society
• in which resources are applied and distributed in accordance with need, ability and effort;
• rather than for satisfaction of greed, manipulation or corruption.

The politics of race, and the fake angels who sing that lone tune, must be exposed for what they really are:

• persons too selfish
• or too incompetent to provide for all,
• and too weak to govern except by_
• o dividing
• o and ruling.

We must wake up to the fact that we belong to one race, the human race.

One much-touted approach to avoid racial prejudice and combat discrimination is_

• to build a culture of colour-blindness.
• See not the skin colours of persons,
• or see beyond their colours.
• requires one to ignore the obvious differences that one’s senses perceive,
• and to act as if those differences do not exist.
• acknowledges and accepts racial differences as a positive enrichment of the diversities of our world.
• No basis or excuse for discrimination,
• but for non-discrimination
• and mutual appreciation.

Unity forged, not forced

• Instead of being colour-blind,
• we should be colour-appreciative.

In other words, we learn, understand, accept and appreciate the differences that exist among various races; and know that the world is better and richer for it.

• A rainbow is beautiful precisely because it is not single-coloured.
• And none of its colours could, nor should, claim a larger share of its glory.

By the same token,

• integration, when not entirely voluntary, is not the best solution for a plural society.
• A better approach is to embrace plurality.
• Pluralism is the silver lining for the world’s future, as it is for Myanmar’s.
• Pluralism is_
• o not to be merely tolerated
• o or accepted.
• o It should be embraced.

Sixty years ago, Burmese of all races united to free themselves from colonialism.

• Sixty years hence, we face new challenges in a globalising world.
• Failure to adequately meet these challenges will enslave all of us, regardless of race, as much as colonialism would have.
• To meet these challenges, unity is essential.
• 1. But unity requires equality.
• 2. Unity cannot be coerced.
• It has to be forged, not forced.
• If people feel less than united, it does not help calling them unpatriotic or disruptive.
• It is usually due to the presence of inequity.
• Examine the causes, and effect change.

There is such a lot to do, and so much to change within ourselves.

Let us reject race-based politics in Military Government, Ethnic Minorities and all the opposition Groups including NLD.

Let us_

• embrace equality amidst pluralism,
• and be colour-appreciative,

so that the next 60 years will be far better than the last.

Person of Indian Origin outside India

Person of Indian Origin and

Non-resident Indian

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Please continue to read the full detail in Wikipedia.

  

A non-resident Indian (NRI) is an Indian citizen who has migrated to another country, a person of Indian origin who is born outside India, or a person of Indian origin who resides outside India. Other terms with the same meaning are overseas Indian and expatriate Indian.^{[citation needed]} In common usage, this often includes Indian born individuals (and also people of other nations with Indian blood) who have taken the citizenship of other countries.

A Person of Indian Origin (PIO) is usually a person of Indian origin who is not a citizen of India. For the purposes of issuing a PIO Card, the Indian government considers anyone of Indian origins up to four generations removed, to be a PIO. [1]. Spouses of people entitled to a PIO card in their own right can also carry PIO cards. This latter category includes foreign spouses of Indian nationals, regardless of ethnic origin. PIO Cards exempt holders from many restrictions applying to foreign nationals, such as visa and work permit requirements, along with certain other economic limitations.

The NRI and PIO population across the world is estimated at over 30 million (not including Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan or Roma diaspora).

The Indian government recently introduced the “Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI)” scheme in order to allow a limited form of dual citizenship to Indians, NRIs and PIOs for the first time since independence in 1947. It is expected that the PIO Card scheme will be phased out in coming years in favour of OCI.

Contents 1 Moving on out 2 PIOs today 2.1 Indians in the U.S. 2.2 Indians in Canada 2.3 Indians in the UK 2.4 Indians in Australia 2.5 Indians in New Zealand 2.6 Indians in Singapore 2.7 Indians in Malaysia 2.8 Indians in Indonesia 2.9 Indians in the Philippines 2.10 Indians in the Middle East 2.11 Indians in Mauritius 2.12 Indians in South Africa 2.13 Indians in East Africa 2.14 Indians in Madagascar 2.15 Indians in the Caribbean 3 Statistics 4 Bollystan 5 See also 6 References 7 Sources 8 External links

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Please continue to read the full detail in Wikipedia.

The Government of India recognizes the first week of January as the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Hindi: Pravasi – Non-resident or diaspora, Bharatiya – Indian, Divas – day). The occasion is marked by special programs to recognize the contributions of NRI/PIO individuals of exceptional merit, felicitate NRI/PIO individuals who have made exceptional contribution in their chosen field/profession (Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (Hindi: NRI/PIO Award)) and provide a forum to discuss issues and concerns that people of the diaspora.

The event has been organized every year since 2003, and is sponsored by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs and the FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry). The 2005 edition was organized from 7th to 9th January in Mumbai.

Non-resident Indians and People of Indian Origin
Africa	Botswana · Mauritius · Réunion · South Africa · Seychelles
Asia	Burma (Myanmar Indian Muslims) · Philippines · Hong Kong · Indonesia · Malaysia (Chitty) · Singapore
Americas	Canada (Tamil Canadians) · Guyana · Jamaica · Mexico · Suriname · Trinidad and Tobago · United States
Europe	Germany · Netherlands · United Kingdom· France
Oceania	Australia · New Zealand · Fiji
See also	Anglo-Indian · Desi · Non-Resident Indian Award · Non-Resident Indian Day · Tamil diaspora

 See also

• Pravasi Bharatiya Samman
• NRI
• PIO

Pravasi Bharatiya Samman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman is an award constituted by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs in conjunction with the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, to honor exceptional and meritorious contribution in their chosen field/profession. The award is given by the President of India. Please continue to read the detail in Wikipedia.

Contents 1 Awardees for 2007 2 Awardees for 2006 3 Awardees for 2005 4 Awardees for 2004 5 See also 6 References

Non-resident Indian and Person of Indian Origin

Total population
25 million
Regions with significant populations
Largest ethnic group  United Arab Emirates 1,300,000  Mauritius 855,000  Trinidad and Tobago 525,000  Guyana 327,000  Suriname 175,000 Major ethnic group  Nepal 4,000,000  Malaysia 2,400,000  Burma 2,000,000  Saudi Arabia 1,500,000  Kuwait 400,000  Fiji 340,000  Singapore 320,000 Minor ethnic group  United States 2,200,000  United Kingdom 1,400,000  South Africa 1,160,000  Canada 960,000  Oman 450,000  France 330,000 [1]  Australia 235,000  Netherlands 217,000  New Zealand 105,000  Philippines 80,000  Germany 80,000  Indonesia 60,000  Jamaica 60,000  Hong Kong 50,000
Language(s)
Indian languages, English
Religion(s)
Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism