Hubby and I have just gotten back from a wonderful holiday to Thailand. Will write all about it in my next post. For now, the most exciting thing happening is the elections in my beautiful home state, Sarawak.
Hubby and I were back in time for the final opposition party's rally and also voting the next day.
Well, this election is going to be an interesting one indeed. We have a Chief Minister who has 'reigned' for 30 years!! Yes, so long that he has become like royalty! There are so many allegations about him and his family. They are reported to be richer than the Sultan of Brunei! With a chief minister's salary of RM20,000 a month, one can only guess where his wealth comes from...
So anyway, with the advent of the internet; blogs and Facebook, etc.. have played a large part in informing the public about what is going on behind the scenes in our country. The government controls the media here, but they are having a hard time controlling what goes on in cyberspace. They do try, with hacking attacks of a level which even blog hosting giants have never seen before!
Now that the public are well-informed, they can tolerate this 'dictatorship' no longer. Many are asking for change. However, the ruling government is powerful and have financial resources beyond our imagination. They will pull out all sorts of tricks from their hats. Bribery, threats, buying votes, tampering with votes... etc.. Too much is at stake for a fair fight.
So anyway, last night Hubby and I went to the final opposition party's rally. The turnout was incredible. Some estimate 30,000 over people were there to listen and show support. Before the rally began, the police and town council tried to dismantle the stage! Then, while we were at the rally, the police came on stage and tried to stop the proceedings! They said that they had been given orders to stop the rally, even though the opposition had a valid permit!
Everyone was livid and booed the police. The opposition leaders however asked for quiet and then informed the police that they acknowledged the directive, but would still continue with the rally. They then requested the crowd to let the police leave in peace as they were only carrying out their duty. Even the police could not do anything with so many people who were, moreover, orderly and peaceful.
Freedom of speech?
It was an interesting experience, and today, for the first time in my life, I voted. I've never been interested in politics. I find it boring and frustrating. I barely even read the papers. But, I'm thinking now, more than ever, my state needs me to do my part as a citizen. I vote because I do not want my children to live in a country which is heading in the direction the current government is leading us. I have a lot of friends who today, have also voted for the first time, and we all feel proud to have done our part. No matter how insignificant our little vote feels, in the face of a giant of an 'enemy' it still counts and contributes.
There are reports of ballots being tampered with, of polling stations in the interior closing half a day earlier, of voters being offered hundreds to thousands of ringgit for votes! We can only pray that our votes will be enough to pull through.
Tonight will be a pivotal night for Sarawak. Will there be change?
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