Sights and sounds from a multi-cultural country
By S S Jeevan
Twin Appeal
From the moment you step into Kaula Lumpur’s newly built and yet half-empty airport, you cannot miss Malaysia’s amazing tryst with multiculturalism. Long stretches of rubber plantations dot our hour-long drive to the KL City Centre, a reminder that Malaysia was primarily a tin and rubber exporting country until recently. But it is only when you reach the KLCC that the new Malaysia begins to unfold itself — needle-thin skyscrapers, high-speed trains, sanitised roads and bustling shopping malls. At the heart of the city is the magnificent 88-story Petronas Towers, which has also become the overriding symbol of Modern Malaysia. It houses the government’s oil company, Petronas, and was the world's tallest building till a while ago.
Though an Islamic country, Muslims enjoy much more freedom in Malaysia than in any other country in the world. Women wear the tudong — a tight drape framing the face — along with jeans or T-shirts. But it is not a compulsory dress code. Pork and alcohol too are available in almost every part of the country. And you begin to wonder how this developing country has transformed itself into a modern industrialised nation, and that too within a couple of decades.
“Mahathir Mohamad,” exclaims our guide Jamil. Everywhere people talk of the man who ruled Malaysia for 22 years and changed the country beyond anyone’s imagination. Income per head rose from $2,320 when he came to power to roughly $9,000 today. The multiculturalism manifests itself in the rendang that peacefully co-exists with the kway teoh or the butter chicken in numerous food courts. And for a country with a huge ethnic minority — Chinese (26 percent) and Indian (10 percent) — Malaysia’s inclusive culture is truly remarkable.
Indian Flavour
Close to 10 percent of the country’s population comprises second and third generation Indians, most of them employed in the service sector. Indians came to Malaysia as illegal workers in the early part of the century. And the trend still continues. A few days after we left Malaysia, the government was deporting around 17,000 Indians working illegally.
A typical Malaysian-Indian would at first deny his origin, but with a little prodding, would concede his ancestry. Scratch some more and the real emotions will pour out. Take JJ for instance. This middle-aged driver in Penang — whose grandfather ran away from Kerala in the 1940s to find work in Malaysia — has the choicest of left-handed compliments for local Malays. “We have played an equal role in the country’s development, but only Malays enjoy preferential treatment from the government.” We are told the sops include special privileges for Malays to have children.
But attitudes are changing. Says Rajoo, our room boy whose grandparents hail from Tanjavur, “It’s a safe place to live and there is religious freedom, despite the fact that it is a Islamic country.” And like the ubiquitous Indian, Indian restaurants too are everywhere, and hugely popular. Hotels such as India Palace in Penang are doing roaring business and the owner has plans to start a few more. A growing number of new generation Indians now occupy Malaysia’s upper middle class society, working as doctors, engineers and computer professionals. In many ways Indians add colour to Malaysia’s multi-cultural society and they now hope to get a bigger share of Malaysia’s fast-paced developmental cake.
Sun and Shine
A visit to Malaysia will be incomplete without its breathtaking beaches. So we were taken to Langkawi — a group of 104 islands located 100 km north of Penang. Langkawi did not exist on the tourist map till 10 years ago. Mahathir Mohamad changed all that. We were told that he got his first job in one of these islands, and when he became Prime Minister he decided to develop it with large private partnerships. Many of these islands are just outcrops of coral. The largest, Langkawi Island, is the only one with sophisticated tourist facilities (it has been declared a free port and duty-free shopping is available). Several international hotels and resorts have opened as the government and international developers flood into what is set to become Malaysia’s premier island beach resort. The island’s many coves, lagoons and inlets make it ideal for all kinds of water sports such as swimming, sailing, fishing and scuba diving. Eulogised as the ‘Pearl of the Orient’, the island of Penang, is just as charming as Langkawi. It was the natural harbour that first attracted the British to Penang in the late 18th century, and the port is still one of the most important ones in the country. Though large tourist inflow has spoilt some of its beaches, many of them are still pristine with palm trees dotting the entire seascape.
Escape to the woods
We took a break from our “travel-trap” itinerary and escaped to the woods. Over 70 percent of Malaysia is forested and there are about 20 million hectares of forested land. Our destination was the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) — one of the leading institutions in tropical forestry research, both within Malaysia and internationally. Frim is located around 18 km north of Kuala Lumpur and is surrounded by the Bukit Lagong and the Bukit Hari forest reserve. It is a secondary rainforest and owes its origin to the British, who in 1918 replanted the area. The regeneration has been a success: Flying Lemurs, binturong, pangolin, civet, reptiles and amphibians have migrated back into the area. Among the rare species is a tree whose leaves never touch the other (the National Geographic put in on its cover) or the amazing leaf-eating tree. So it is not surprising then that Malaysia supplies 80 percent of tropical sawn timber to international trade and is the world’s second largest tropical timber exporting nation after Indonesia. The country is also fighting a fierce battle with the loggers who set off forest fires. They are said to be largely responsible for the haze that frequently envelopes the region. But the highlight of FRIM was the 150-metre canopy walk. Constructed with help from the Germans, it is literally a tightrope. After our guide’s safety instructions we walked on what seemed like the most breathtaking view of the forests, usually reserved for the resident lemurs, squirrels and macaques.
Meet the king
Located 64 km south of Kaula Lumpur, Seremban is the capital of Negeri Sembilan, which translated literally means “nine states,” so named because it comprises a federation of nine states. The city lies in a mountainous region, and with a population of just 1.6-lakh people, sports a sleepy look. It came alive though on February 20, the day we reached there. It was the opening of the Chinese New Year Open House Official Programme and more than 30,000 people had gathered at the Municipal Council field to take part in the celebrations. Our hosts — Tourism Malaysia and Malaysian Airlines — had arranged a meeting with the King of Malaysia, Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail. Malaysia is the only country in the world to have a rotating kingship.
Unlike other monarchies, Malaysian kings change every five years. Although apolitical, the king serves as a symbol of national solidarity and a defender of the Islamic faith. Following a 1993 constitutional amendment, the king’s role has become largely ceremonial. We are told that rivalry amongst the sultans is non-existent. Each sultan has the ultimate authority within his state and is fiercely independent. Inter-marriages and close-knit family ties among the royal families reinforce these close bonds. Negeri Sembilan continues to practice its own customs, dating back to the 1700s. Traditionally a matrilineal society, property passes from mother to daughter. In families that still follow pre-Islamic laws, a bride doesn’t move in with her husband when she marries, but rather brings him into her family’s home as a guest. Watch out for the state’s Minangkabau-styled architecture, reflecting the influence of its first inhabitants from Sumatra. Some public buildings showcase the characteristics traits of Minangkabau architecture, recognisable by steep, pointed, curving roof gables.
Tailpiece: Uma Bharti in KL
Late one evening in Kaula Lumpur I was treated to a surreal experience. After a tiring day of sightseeing and shopping I decided to unwind with some television and light refreshments. But there was a problem — all channels were in Malay language. And the only Indian channel beamed was, lo and behold, Sahara-Madhya Pradesh. So sitting in my hotel room on the 24th floor of Times Square I sat glued to compelling television — Digvijay Singh declaring that Babulal Gaur was a better CM than Uma Bharti. And Uma Bharti declaring that she had no plans to return as CM. I decided to check out the Malay channels just in case, but it was quite mindless — soap operas and dubbed programming. I switched off the idiot box and opened the window. The skyscraper skyline of Kaula Lumpur was a welcome relief and made better viewing. I left the window open for the rest of my stay in Kaula Lumpur.
