Malay Rulers: The symbol of Malay supremacy at the edge of relevance

Malay Rulers: The symbol of Malay supremacy at the edge of relevance.

I recently completed a book written by Syed Husin Ali titled ‘The Malay Rulers: Regression or Reform?’ and it ended with me having a conclusive emotion expressed in one word: Circus. Although there are numerous times where I found myself mentally ‘facepalm-ing’, too embarrassed by the extent of ridiculousness of my people, I must admit I am glad to be able to read on them. Of course, the book was not meant to degrade the position of the Malay rulers, but simply questioning their position in the modern state running on the system of dual governance.

There was a brief history on the beginnings of the Malay rulers and their significance pre-colonisation. There was an introduction to the concept of ‘Kedaulatan’ of the Sultans which led to other terms such as ‘Derhaka’ (disloyalty) introduced through the narrative of Demang Lebar Daun and Sri Tri Buana. The term ‘Slave Mentality’ certainly sees itself as a repeated theme throughout a book, one of the many outdated ideas that still persists till today. It begins with the people’s relationship with the Malay rulers thousands of years ago. Where the people would refer to themselves as ‘patik’ which means slave or dog and the term ‘menjujung duli’ which carries the meaning of ‘carrying the ruler’s feet on the head) is being used while addressing the ruler.

Colonisation came and it certainly challenges the long tradition of ‘Kedaulatan’ of the rulers. British residents in various states slowly took over administrative duties and in some cases, driven by their greed for power had come up with plans to strip the Malay rulers from their governing power. This does not come with no retaliation, British resident in Perak  J W W Birch was stabbed to death with a spear at the Perak River after ignoring the warning given by Pasir Salak chieftan Maharaja Lela whom refused to accept the authority of Birch. There were also many other well-known rebels hailing from different states, people like Tok Janggut from Kelantan and Tok Gajah and Mat Kilau from Pahang.

Side note: The term ‘Maharajalela’ is a term to describe someone whom do as he pleases in Bahasa Melayu. Many would not know that Maharaja Lela is an actual historical figure. It has been argued that the term ‘Maharajalela’ was introduced by the British as an insult to the Malays due to the murder of their resident.

The colonial presence in Malaya has also witnessed great changes in the movements of hierarchy in the traditional court of the Malay rulers. There were a couple of incidents where the rightful heir to the throne was ousted and being replaced by a more favourable candidate by the British. The dethroning of Sultan Ali of Terengganu, an Oxford educated sultan who had shown ‘aversions towards British colonial rule’ who was later replaced by the uncle of Terengganu’s chief minister Dato’ Jaya Perkasa whom the British garnered strong suppprt from.

Our independence in 1957 opens a new phase in the chapter of the Malay rulers world. Here there are faced with new challenges in keeping their relevance in the system of modern governance. The importance and relevance of the traditional Malay rulers are being questioned even further. Could the country survive if the tradition of Malay rulers were abolished? Or is it important to integrate the old into the new for as long as we could as to upkeep the ‘special position and supremacy’ of the Malays as a whole?

Wardah Mohamad

June 2015

Fyerool Darma 'Moyang'

My first attempt in coming up with a write up for Fyerool’s ‘Moyang’ snowballed into a big ball of factual blur. Fortunately, I have discarded the draft into the small thrash icon at the bottom right hand corner of my screen. Perhaps, this is how most art writers feel when they are required to produce a piece of writing for an institutional exhibition, or a critic to be published in an art magazine, or a press release for an upcoming show, written eloquently so as not to scream ‘BUY ME!’. The truth is, I am not an art critic, I have never written a press release (perhaps one or two isolated events), I am not an art history, anthropology or a fine arts graduate. Hence, I will write my take on ‘Moyang’ as from a perspective of a friend who has witnessed both the thought and craft process of putting this show together, as stress-free as possible.

‘Moyang’, a Malay word meaning ‘Ancestors’ is the pivot point in Fyerool’s paintings for the show. I would like to view this body of works an extended conversation on ancestry presented in tangible forms as opposed to an ‘exhibition’. Like many other Malays, we have spent countless of afternoons with our parents and grandparents discussing our ancestry over a cup of coffee and an oily bowl of fried banana fritters. Yes we are Malay, but what kind of Malay? Where exactly did we come from? How was it like living in the kampong? Which Kampong did Atok or Nenek lived in? What year did they arrived in Singapore? What, why, when, where and how. The five questions that was taught to us back in primary school for us to ponder upon before attempting to compose a 300 word long composition has again come in useful.

Certainly, most of these questions could be simply answered in a sentence, but that is not usually the case. The complexity of the answers can only be justified through an extended and often inconclusive conversations. Indeed the original population of Singapore was made up of native fishermen tribes. However, the Malays as we know today not only evolve from the original natives of this land, but also from the Malay migrators from Indonesia. The ever changing and growing political and commerce landscape in the archipelago were the main contributing factors to the movement of the Malays in the region. The Malays from Sumatra arrived in Singapore as early as 1160. We later see the arrival of the Javanese from Java when they overthrew the ruling Malays in Singapore in 1252. The Bugis from Southern Sulawesi who were known for their sea traders and warriors, made their way down to Johor to serve the Johor-Riau empire as early as the 16^th century. The success of Singapore as a trading port later invited more ethnic groups from Indonesia, such as the Banjar from Kalimatan, the Boyanese from Bawean Island and many others.

As more Malay settlers call Singapore home, the line which divides the identity of various Malay ethnic groups diffuses as marriages between different ethnics became part of the norm in the society. The diffusion of ethnic identity within the Malay community in Singapore took another major turn when in 1871, the separation along the Malacca Straits by colonial powers in the region divided us geographically into British Malaya and Dutch Indonesia. Although we eventually gained our independence from the colonizing powers, the borders that was drawn out remained the same. We eventually identify ourselves quite simply as ‘Singapore Malay’.

Most, if not all Malays in Singapore are aware that they are not simply ‘Singapore Malay’. However, not many are willing to find out more about their ancestral past. This could be problematic as we continue living with the present simplified definition of Malay, which denies the diverse and unique cultural past that we had. It is clear that the subject of ancestral identity is far too wide to be discussed in the presentation of ‘Moyang’ alone. However, we could view this body of works as a tool in regaining consciousness of our identity, which might foster further discussions on forgotten historical narratives that has shaped us. It would not be too much to say that ‘Moyang’ is indeed a contributor to the justification of a rich history that was lost through the traumas of our historical past.

Wardah Mohamad

June 2015

Reflection I : Le Voyage dans La Lune and the Temenggong – A Reminder

On 30 May 2015, I came across a silent film produced in 1902 by Georges Mieles while browsing through Youtube (on the topic of aliens possibly). It was fairly short film that lasted barely 13 minutes titled ‘Le Voyage dans La Lune’ or ‘Trip to the Moon’. As the name suggests, it is indeed a short film quite literally depicting a trip to the moon. However the narrative of the story that triggered me to view the film almost as a summary of some of the historical events in the archipelago, perhaps that perspective was also partly driven by my recent read of ‘Prince of Pirates’ by Carl A. Trocki.

The film opens with a scene of European men dressed in robes, they looked more like wizards than astronomers and scientists. To begin with, they were all gathered in a room with a large blackboard with an illustration of the earth and the moon. A gesture of drawing an arrow from the  illustration of the earth to the moon by one of the men caused a commotion, finally it was resolved and a handful (of about 5 men) removed their wizard-looking robes revealing their European outfit underneath. They later made a trip down to visit the ‘construction site’ of the shuttle that will transport them to the moon, and soon after, they were ushered into the shuttle by a trail of women wearing what resembles a swimming costume. The shuttle was shot through a massive telescope looking cannon and landed on the left ‘eye’ of the moon, which apparently had a face of a man.

The group of men immediately exited the shuttle in their neat European costume complete with a brolly each, and the first thing they did was to get their night’s rest. The day after, they continued with their expedition leading them to an area where mushrooms grew up to the size of a man, however their bewilderment was short lived when an ‘alien’ approached them. One of the European man decided to hit the ‘alien’ with his brolly which reduced it to dust. Soon, a group of ‘aliens’ came to capture and present them to the ‘alien king’. Upon arrival the group of men was greeted quite politely by the ‘alien king’ only to be hit by one of the men (again) with his brolly reducing the king to dust, they managed to escape and ran back to their shuttle to leave for earth.

Upon arrival, there was an elaborate ceremony complete with a marching band waiting to greet them. Each of the men was awarded with a crown and a ridiculously large medallion in a shape of a moon pinned onto their coat. The adventure was summarized with a joyous dance with a few maiden.

Although the film is quite an admirable reflection of the scientific goals of man in that era, I can’t help to feel that it is also reflective of some of the events in our colonial history. How the British came to Singapore, surveyed our land, made a couple of contacts, established some agreements with the natives and eventually, managed to rule out the local administrative power to gain control of this maritime state, bringing glory and recognition back home in Great Britain. With that being said, we cannot generalize the colonizing powers due to some of the traumas inflicted upon us, however, we also should not deny the events that has occurred, voluntarily or involuntarily as to justify the history that has shaped us.

As we celebrate our jubilee year since our independence in 1965, reflecting on our past has become an important nostalgic element to add onto our celebratory notes. The humble beginnings of Singapore as a fishing village before the arrival of the British have been overly romanticized. Important historical events which happened between the sighting of the ‘singa’ by Sang Nila Utama until the arrival of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles have mostly been erased out from our national narratives. So what happens between all these years? Singapore, together with many other islands of the archipelago such as Lingga belonged to the maritime state of Johor-Riau, an empire which history traces back to the beginnings of the Srivijayan Empire of the 7^th century. One (of the many) turn of events that has happened in Singapore which I feel had been ousted from our local history is the expulsion of Temenggong Abdul Rahman from his ruling epicenter located at Singapore river which ultimately stripped him off any power in Singapore. Although this might seem like a small gesture resulting from a disagreement between the ruling Temenggong and the British, it has led to many more profound events in Singapore’s history. Temenggong Abdul Rahman also known as Temenggong Sri Maharaja of Johor was regarded as a sea lord in the bustling maritime state of Johor-Riau, whose control spans across the islands of northwestern part of Riau archipelago and included Singapore and Johor coastline.

The year 1819 witnessed the receiving of the island of Singapore by Raffles from Temenggong Abdul Rahman, whom at that period was channeling his focus on the building of Johor. Regardless, Temenggong Abdul Rahman still maintains his administrative residence at the Singapore River. With an extensive tradition and methods of ruling  that has been applied for hundreds of years by the ruling Malays, Temenggong’s intention in welcoming the British to Singapore was to work hand in hand while still maintaining as the head of the empire. An intention which did not sit very well with the British, many conflicts later erupted which ended in the rearrangement in favour of the East India Company in 1824. The Temenggong was dispossessed, forced to relocate his site from Singapore River to Telok Belangah and to add to that, he has lost all his legal authority in Singapore.

I would like to rule out my study in comparing a French silent film with a local history on colonization as a thought from a perspective of (at this moment) an amateur thinker. In the case that the moon is Singapore, the aliens are the natives, the ‘alien king’ is Sri Maharaja Temenggong Abdul Rahman, and the European men are, well still European men. Could this perhaps be a representation of the failure to understand and accommodate with the unknown natives whose land has been kindly welcoming? Instead, what was archived is the glorification of the victory in discovery (or colonization in this case) that has been summarized romantically in favor of  ‘men who knew better’?

To be continued…

Wardah Mohamad

May 31^st 2015.