UP until today, there is this general notion that youth, even on a global scale, are dependent on what previous generations have formulated for them. Among others, this includes setting goals and policies that the next generation is beholden to.
But if we were to look at the past year alone, there is no denying the impact of Malaysia’s next generation on speaking up and influencing social as well as political change.
The rise of youth-led and/or majority movements has allowed the pressure of better transparency and accountability on the administrative level – be it community, state or national – to be more effective.
Just look at the discourses surrounding #Undi18, #MakeSchoolASaferPlace, and #Lawan among others. The practices may not be in their ideal form yet but civic engagements among youth are ripe.
Importance of youth in nation-building
What do we understand when we talk about building a nation? How can we position our youth, so they can exercise their part rightfully?
To answer the latter, if recent events have not been obvious, “…as political, social, and economic agents”, said Majlis Belia Malaysia (MBM) president Jufitri Joha. He notes pluralism to be the strength of our nation.
Jufitri defines nation-building as a concept of unity worked by one nation that shares the same national identity (language, culture, and ethos). At its core, is an integration that does not dilute the unique racial and ethnic identities of the communities involved.
“Unfortunately, we have a country but there is no strong Malaysian nation,” he stressed.
While Jufitri admitted that a progressive Malaysia needs the viewpoints of both the old and young, “youth understand their desires and interpretations to adapt to the policy to be enacted or amended.
“The young represent almost half of the population. Hence, their ideas and aspirations should be represented at all levels”.
“Youths are increasingly given a place for their voices to be heard with various platforms, such as the Youth Parliament, Digital Parliament and the National Youth Consultative Council,” he shared.
“That said, the opportunity for youth to be taken more seriously at the highest policy order – by making platforms such as the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara more equally represented – is still lacking.
At the national level, the MBM president does profess that ample space is indeed given through establishments such as the National Cost of Living Action Council, the National Budget Consultative Council and the Communications and Multimedia Consultative Council.
“But the potential of young people actively used for nation-building (in general) is modest.
“The number of them contesting on behalf of the parties remains stagnant since the 12th general election in 2008,” added Jufitri.
Youth at the forefront of grassroots mobilisation(s) for change
“I am very optimistic because I see an explosion of youth enthusiasm, compassion and inclusion into the nation-building process,” said Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman sharing his views on the youth trend today.
“When I say this, young people (from the ground up) are more active in civil societies as well as politics. They are more critical of established parties, ensuring decision-makers factor in their views.
“That is why we see the growing number of young people leading almost all online and offline protests today, capturing the imagination of fellow Malaysians,” he said.
The former youth and sports minister added that while these activities are led by youth, the support branches out to those who are much older.
“It’s not a new phenomenon in getting young people into the decision-making process. If you look back in the 1970s, we have had a very young chief of the arms forces – specifically in the navy (Tan Sri K. Thanabalasingam, aged 32 when appointed). During that time, it was also common to have ministers and chief ministers in their early 30s.”
Saddiq added that while there is an explosion of youth demanding reforms sprouting recently, older politicians are still unwilling to let go of their throne(s), which is apparent in the line-up of the recently announced cabinet.
“More than 90% of those announced were the same faces of the ‘kerajaan gagal’, which Umno as a party took down, and now seem to agree.
“The easiest way to set aside youth opinions is simply to say you are too young and idealistic, and I have encountered this too many times – from my days in Bersatu up until today. The only way to deal with it is by proving them wrong,” he said.
“Moving beyond politics, if you look at the corporate reset – post-1998 – corporate Malaysia was led by the same faces but when Malaysia faced the Asian financial crisis, a lot of young corporate leaders in their 30s were given a chance to lead huge corporate enterprises like Media Prima and Malaysian Resources Corporation Berhad (MRCB).
“People like Shahril Ridza (Khazanah) started off leading GLCs in his mid-30s. Like Tengku Zafrul (minister of finance), he had the same opportunity of being in a leadership position in his early 30s.
“All it takes is by giving potential individuals the opportunity so that they can outshine others.
“Above all, we should also look at system reforms instead of a personality change (not appoint a token) to further instil legislative changes that are long-term.
“This was the very reason why I advocated for Undi18 because once you add on 7.8 million young people into the electoral roll, that will reset and reshape Malaysian politics that perpetuates the concept of old mindsets and patriarchal network, which the young will certainly not tolerate."
Entrusting our future to our youth
What started as a student movement back in 2016, Undi18 has grown beyond that by empowering public engagements to raise awareness on youth democratic representation and more notably, lowering the voting age in Malaysia.
“This year has been rather an eventful year for us. Of course, the pressing discussion is focused on the delay in the implementation of the Undi18 bill,” said Undi18 representative Roshinee Mookiah.
“It was supposed to already be realised earlier in the year, but back in March, officials notified us of the delay – either by year-end or next year.
“As a reaction to this, we are holding the former government as well as the election commission accountable to their promise, which can be seen through the #ManaUndiKami protest. This is also followed by a lawsuit represented by 18 individuals, aged 18 to 20, against those liable to deliver on their promise.
“Given the recent political developments happening (with the change in government), we continuously keep a tight watch,” added the program manager.
The Undi18 team have also been actively involved in organising youth community projects and capacity building programmes across the country.
“Recently, we launched Dewan Muda Malaysia, a collaboration between us and Unicef Malaysia and a sequel to Parlimen Digital.
“The project saw 222 young people being elected as youth parliamentarians. They will undergo a two-year leadership journey with us and emulate actual parliament proceedings and roles involved.
“Candidates will be able to discuss policy recommendations as well as undergo mentorship by experts in the respective fields. So, it’s a safe space for the young to learn about politics,” shared Mookiah.
“As event organisers, we make it a point to recruit candidates as diverse as possible. It’s not just a distinction between urban and rural, but also gender, race and ensuring minority groups are represented (ie, Orang Asal, as well as the disabled)”.
Youth involvement as a marker of progress
“You know how we always say, ‘I wouldn’t be here today for the mistakes made in the past’. That is an indicator of how we, as individuals, can rise above being a better nation today (and tomorrow),” said rap artist Syed Ahmad Syed Abdul Rahman Alhadad aka Altimet.
“The idea of nation-building has certainly evolved. I used to only associate it to the time – or frame of mind – when the country achieved its independence.
“Therefore, the dynamic(s) that make up nation-building revolves around everything, to be frank, even when something is viewed as not ‘constructive’ for the nation,” he added.
“Consciously or not, we are all nation builders – it concerns individuals creating and enacting policies as well as those affected by them."
In addressing the gaps to ensure youth voices are empowered with enough resources and become visible at the family, society, and state level (at least), Syed Ahmad highlighted that accessibility depends on the social and economic background where approaches may differ.
“Even if we take it down to the family unit, I have kids myself and –gender aside – they all have different personalities that I have to tailor my parenting to suit each personality.
“There are always going to be things lacking because it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution.
*'Negaraku’, a 2016 collaboration between Altimet, Faizal Tahir, JoeFlizzow and SonaOne is enough to prove that a patriotic song, if given a good arrangement and performance, can be popular among the young regardless of background.
The hip-hop artist, who entered politics by joining PKR earlier in April, is no alien to speaking about social and political correctness in both his craft and personal life.
“Undi18 [movement] is looking forward to, and the reason behind my support for it despite that I’m already above the voting age.
“I believe that it is the right thing to do, and it is for the next generation, which includes my children. I look forward to having the conversation with them when the next general election comes,” he said.
On the path of righteousness
“I find it very ironic, that we as a country are going all out to say that our youth are prepped to be more engaged in problem-solving because they are now well-informed. But the public spaces that we have do not encourage the young to practice such critical thinking skills that are taught in the first place,” noted Mookiah.
“As an organisation, we have seen this particularly when the Undi18 bill was delayed. When we challenge it, we receive criticism for our actions and are seen as being disrespectful. In reality, it was us asking those accountable to keep to their promise.
“Another example you can see are youth involved in the #Lawan protest, where they were unfairly intimidated by the authorities and called up to the station for investigation,” she added.
“I am very wary of cancel culture, but then again I also do not subscribe to the idea that cancel culture is a new thing. If you look at history, there have been many interpretations of it in the past, from the communities of a particular time rising against oppression,” she highlighted.
Looking at the youth trend as a modern form of ostracism in which something or someone is thrust out of social or professional circles (mostly to rectify power imbalances), Mookiah said that the call-out practice “...in the way we know now is quite problematic and feeds into a lot of misinformation.
“But at least from the content that I have been consuming on social media recently, young people are actively looking for more facts and evidence when engaging in discussions. So, the balance does exist,” she added.
On how youth can navigate sourcing and sharing information appropriately regardless: “We need to apply critical thinking and do more research on a particular issue at hand.
“This means reading beyond the headlines (or clickbait) despite the challenges being made more difficult where society today experiences shorter attention spans,” asserted the Undi18 programme manager.
“This also relates to media literacy, and it ties back to the education system. Have there been enough modules about it and ways to navigate media (and technology) for not just students but also the adults that are involved in the dissemination of the information?
“It is difficult to demand young people to be literate and source for information the right way if educators themselves might not be trained accordingly,” she said. – The Vibes, August 31, 2021
