Silencing a Malaysian student / rap artist

I'm a big fan of Chinese music even though I'm not Chinese educated. When I saw this Star report on how local Chinese singer Ah Niu was using his music to promote Malaysia and Malaysian Higher Education, it reminded me that I've been wanting to write something about the student who sang and composed the 'Negarakuku' and 'Muar Chinese' rap songs which have become a youtube.com phenomenon. Be warned, this is going to be a long post!

I like Ah Niu's songs because he brings in many authentic Malaysian experiences such as going to the mamak and mixing up English, BM, Mandarin and Hokkien instead of trying to cater to a more Taiwanese or Mainland China audience by taking away the 'Malaysian-isms'.

Similarly, I was intrigued by Wee Meng Chee (黄明志) rap song entitled Muar's Chinese (麻坡话语) - a creative MV criticizing people from KL who speak Cantonese and look down on their more provincial cousins in Muar who speak Mandarin (as well as Hokkien). You can listen to his MV here or you can just type in 'Muar Chinese' on youtube and you'll have lots of hits.

I couldn't find an MV with an English translation but JuneX2 has translated the lyrics in one of her posts in her blog.

Muar's Chinese has become a youtube sensation (at least by Malaysian standards) with numerous uploads recording probably 300,000 hits in total, if not more.

His lyrics are somewhat crude but I think it an honest reflection of what his young composer's feelings are towards life in general. Some of the content was made in a tongue in cheek fashion and was clearly made with purpose of eliciting a laugh rather than to incite racial hatred.

Perhaps I've been in the US for too long and I'm too used to seeing and hearing politicians and racial stereotypes being made fun of by comedians (and the good ones make fun of politicians from all stripes and people of all races). Perhaps it's because Meng Chee didn't make fun of the Chinese as much as he did the other races. But I enjoyed his rap piece and became an instant fan.

His follow up song / rap was something called Kawanku. You can access the youtube video here. This is a version has an English translation. His lyrics are more offensive in this video especially in regards to his statements about the Malays.

He hit the headlines for the wrong reasons recently when his 3rd song (on youtube that is), a parody of the national anthem, Negarukuku, was noticed by the Malaysian government and legal action was threatened against him, including jail time. You can view his rap / song here with an English translation.

He got into trouble for highlighting the widespread corruption among the police, the lackadaisical attitude of our civil servants, the notion that he was insulting Islam by saying that the morning prayers from the mosques are very noisy, the fact that the government only helps the Bumiputeras in the country and that it is very difficult for non-Bumiputeras to enter local universities.

Wee is currently a student in Taiwan but his family in Malaysia has been pressured over his Negaruku rap and I won't be surprised if he's picked up by the police or the Special Branch if he comes back to Malaysia in the near future.

His rap songs on youtube have received tons of comments and so has his own personal blog. If you have the time to trawl through some of the comments, you'll find a fair number of posters who are incensed by him as well as a fair number who are supportive of him and his songs. Because the issues raised here are pretty complex, I think that it is important to break down the discussion into different parts.

Firstly, does the Malaysian government have the right to go after Wee over his youtube postings, specifically his Negarakuku rap? Of course it does, given the prevalence of many draconian laws which exist in the country including the ISA and the Seditions Act, just to name two. Wee must be responsible for his lyrics and his rap songs, which he himself made public.

But does that mean I think it is right for the Malaysian government to go after him? Of course not. After all, he's just a harmless student studying in Taiwan. Yes, some of the things he rapped about were indeed offensive and he did use vulgar language, but he did not advocate for an overthrow of the government. Indeed, in one of his songs, he told the Chinese in Malaysia to be thankful for government policies since it made them more resilient and forced them to work harder and to seek opportunities abroad.

Those of my friends who watched the live proceedings of the UMNO general assembly last year told me that they were frightened by the tone of voice and language used by many of the delegates, especially those directed against the non-Malay community in Malaysia. Isn't this a more serious threat to the racial 'harmony' of the country given that these are political leaders rather than a harmless, long-haired student currently studying in Taiwan?

Secondly, do I condone or agree with all of what was sung by Wee? Of course not! I don't agree with his characterization of all Malays as being lazy. This is blatantly untrue and not helpful at all. I don't think he should have made fun of Malay women who wear the tudung. But just because I don't agree with this point of view, does not mean that I think he should be silenced!

I know of many non-Malays who agree with this kind of characterization of Malays, which I think is unfair but to a certain extent, encouraged by the continuation of certain economic policies in the country. It won't surprise me that many Malays have negative characterizations of Chinese and Indians and other non-Malays in Malaysia. But arresting people just for holding these views isn't necessarily going to improve race relations in Malaysia, is it?

This is entertainment, this is a rap song! We shouldn't take it so seriously (definitely not as seriously as something like the UMNO General Assembly, which actually has political bite). I watch a lot of Jay Leno on the Tonight Show here in the US. He constantly makes fun of US politicians from the left, right and center. Is Jay Leno endangering democracy in the US in any way? Of course not! The Instant Cafe Theatre (ICT) in KL is famous for making fun of Malaysian politicians and of racial stereotypes. Should they be arrested as well? Of course not!

Thirdly, Wee brings up more than just racial stereotypes. He makes fun of the Singaporeans who come to Malaysia to buy chewing gum and then spit it on the streets, he pokes fun at the Chinese who go to KL or live in KL and speak Cantonese and think that they are better than the Mandarin and Hokkien speaking Muarites, he raps about transvestite prostitutes in Muar, he makes fun of the habits of foreign workers who work in factories, he talks about life in small town Muar, driving Proton cars, and so on.

He's just a kid, a student, that has been conditioned by his upbringing and surroundings, putting into words and song his feelings about the world, in a way in which he thinks is creative, honest and perhaps even funny. He's from a Chinese educated background and is probably not that proficient in English (but probably better than my Chinese) and was probably forced to go to Taiwan to study at the university level. His profile is very different from most of the readers of this blog but perhaps not that different from many non-Malays or Chinese from small towns scattered all of Malaysia.

If you read his personal blog, you'll find an idealistic, passionate and perhaps somewhat naive young kid.

I've translated his post entitled "Getting ready to go to jail" when he found out from a reporter that the Oriental Daily, a Chinese newspaper in Malaysia, had an article about how he might be charged and arrested and put in jail. Perhaps those with a better command of the language can help me out with the translation.

Today I received a phone call in Taiwan from a reporter who told me of a news report in Oriental Daily in regards to my 'Negaraku' rap. The contents of the newspaper report can be summarized as such:

The deputy director of the Minister of Culture (Chinese division) expresses his view that the Wee's version of Negaraku twists the lyrics and cast aspersions on civil servants by insinuating that they are corrupt and damages the good reputation of the country. In addition, namewee's video on youtube does not conceal the faces or the identities of those filmed. Therefore, legal proceedings have to be taken and if it is determined that a legal transgression has taken place, Wee will be sentenced and put in jail.

I thought to myself, when did I 'insult' my country? Wasn't what I described part of reality? They can arrest me, but I would advise them to go and arrest the criminals in JB first. Given that the crime rate in JB is so high, why not deal with that situation and catch the criminals there instead of coming after me?

Some more (sic) dare to say that I insult the country ... actually I feel very disappointed with what they have said ... because they tell lies with their eyes wide open.

Furthermore, he himself is a Chinese ... sigh

In reality, scandals are not important...
Ironically, my song is finally getting some recognition from them! Maybe it's a good thing after all!
At least I won't be going to jail for nothing.

I love my country, which is why I did what I did (inaccurate translation)

Going back to the newspaper story, I'm actually looking forward to going to prison. This is not a facetious remark. When I was younger, I used to watch those Hong Kong prison drama serials. I got very interested in the situations that developed in this prison settings...especially those with Chow Yuen Fatt in them!

I'm very happy that another exciting episode has occurred in my life - when I get to eat curry rice every day! I'm sure that this is an experience which most people have not tried before. What an opportunity!

My girlfriend often tells me that I'm a magnet for strange events since I am often confronted with many baffling and unpleasant situations...thus increasing my experience in these things! That's life ... wanting to experience different things.
Otherwise, a life that is too peaceful and without incident can be seen as somewhat tragic. Hopefully going to jail will help be gain new experiences and enable me to come up with better products (talking about his music) ... On with the revolution!

This is a translation of his most recent post. Again apologies for any inaccuracies.

I have removed my Negaraku song from youtube
My youtube account is being monitored closely so there's not much I can do
The is great pressure on my family ... even though they have been very encouraging but I cannot be too selfish

This is what you call 'draconian pressure'

Though the song has been removed from my account, there are many other accounts out there
They can oppress me, they can catch me, ask me to remove anything
But nobody can change the thoughts and ideas of others
Nobody can cover up the truth

My reason for composing this song is very simple
I only use music as a way of reflecting society
I'm only someone who likes to play music ... it's really that simple
Never thought of wanting to make political waves, never wanted to incite racial sentiments, or to oppose the government

However, because somebody had a guilty conscience, was shamed into anger, made a mountain out of a molehill

Thanks to everyone for their encouragement, thanks to everyone for their criticism
As long as there is air, there will be music, no one can stop the spread of music.

This is a somewhat different post from what I normally write about but I thought that since we were discussing freedom of expression among students in Malaysian public universities, I thought that this is fair game.

Still think that Wee should be arrested and thrown in jail?

P.S. You can view his personal youtube account here. Again, note the comments.