In the movie The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Sean, a foreigner in Tokyo, meets a

European and asks her, Where do you come from? She then replies by saying, Does it really
matter where Im from?
To some, belonging to a country doesnt really mean anything these days. Country borders are
just technicalities. One can be a Malaysian and feel like an American. Globalisation occurs. We
have KFC fast food chain restaurants, Nike shoes, iPhones and so on. Though one could also
reverse the following and say theres Chinatown in the United States.
In Malaysia itself, the question of Where do you come from? will get several different
responses. A Chinese man might tell you that his forefathers came from Canton. An Indian man
might tell you that his forefathers came from Tamilnadu. A Malay man might tell you that he
grew up in Kelantan. But surprisingly, when Malaysians travel out of the country and bumps into
some random foreigner, theyll say they come from Malaysia when asked.
I love Malaysia. I feel that I belong to Malaysia. But I dream of living outside of my beloved
land for a better life. Why such a contradiction? Unfair treatment towards minority races by the
present government. Where in the world can you find laws to protect the majority except in our
own Malaysia? Of course, one can always say this was what the minorities agreed to in exchange
for citizenship. But then again, how much protection does the majority need? And for how long?
As a student, we observe potential scholarships to save our parents money when we want to
further our studies. A startling finding, which is special scholarships for bumiputeras, which
means princes of the land, when translated loosely. Why do they need a separate category to
themselves? When buying property, bumiputeras get a one-off discount of around 5 percent. I do
admit, that these are the sacrifices minorities have to make do with.
But for how long can the minorities withstand these? As the majority gets more and more
aggressive with their special rights, the minorities get more and more unnecessary discrimination.
Former Penang Chief Ministers photo was torn at a press conference held by Ahmad Ismail. A
keris was waved in a political partys conference. No apologies were offered. Blatant racist
expressions are not punished, and yet, former communist leader, Chin Peng cant return to
Malaysia, a place where he wants to call it his home.
Theres a common saying, love forgives all. Unfortunately, I do not think that my love to my
country is so blind to the extent that I can be blind to such unfairness. I am not saying in other
countries, there is no biasness towards minorities. The fact that most forms of racial injustice
originate from a strong sense of belonging towards ones own race is undeniable. A European
might think all Asians living in Europe are immigrants and should leave their country.
I have no intention of giving up my citizenship. I dont want to come back to my home country
as a foreigner. I dont want to walk through immigration counter as an alien. I cant say I came
from China. But I can say, Malaysia is my home. I hope one day, well all say were Malaysians.