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Tuesday, August 30, 2005

What Will Happen If Malaysian Independence Was Never Achieved?

A thought-provoking conversation left me curious, and perhaps an idea for an alternative reality novel or a movie.



What will happen if, let's say, we are still under British rule? What happens if, 48 years ago, we never achieved independence? What if 'Merdeka' never occurred? I am not well-versed in local history, and whatever details that helped me get an A in SPM four years ago were pretty much forgotten.

If we were still ruled by the Brits, are we going to be like, say, pre-1997 Hong Kong? Was that so bad? Is our culture going to be so Westernised that we'll end up losing our own identity? What about our arts and our literature? What will they become? Will English remain the main language of our country? (didn't see that happening in HK though) Will local writers who write in English become more accepted while Malay writers struggle for acceptance?

What about our films and music? What are they going to be like? Predominantly English as well? Or will there be room for acceptance for other languages? What was the main fear of the continual colonisation of the British? That our language and culture will disappear? That our economy will be seriously screwed? Are all these going to happened if Merdeka was never achieved? What do you guys think? If someone is to make a movie about a parallel universe where Malaya had never achieved independence, what will it be like today?