TRANSFORMASI – Madam Butterfly

Transformation demands sacrifices.

Quoting His Excellency  Mr. Mahatma Gandhi “You must be the change you wish to see in the world”. Just like our Madam Butterfly, she struggles and transform from a ‘yuckky’ caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly.

I would like to share a story that I read on transformation, its toil and sacrifices……..For half a century, the British people suffered economically for their moral leadership. The British has decided to abolish slave trading. On the eve of the abolition, British ships carried 52% of slaves across the Atlantic and British colonies produces 55% of worlds’ sugar. Without slaves the British colonies will be ruined. France benefited enormously and The United States too... Sugar production in the British West Indies fell 25% in the 1st 35 years of the slave abolition, while production in competing countries with slaves rose 210%. And while leading the way in trying to suppress slave trade, the British Army lost 5000 lives, not to mention higher taxes for the British people.  Furthermore, such unilateral action was costly diplomatically, enraging other countries and putting Britain in open conflicts with rival military powers. Yet Britain did not flinch and subsequently its example prompted France to abolish slavery in 1848 and inspired the Emancipation Proclamation which in effect ended the transatlantic slave trade. For 60 years Britain SACRIFICED an annual average of 1.8 percentage points of its GNP because of its moral commitment to ending slavery.  Calculated accumulatively for the United States today, it would be the equivalent of sacrificing an astounding US$ 14 Trillion.

A HEROIC EXAMPLE OF A NATION PLACING ITS VALUES ABOVE ITS INTEREST.

Transformasi  yang kita inginkan memerlukan pengorbanan yang amat besar, tidak cukup dengan hanya menginginkannya, Kita mesti ada SEBAB mengapa ??? kita perlukan transformasi ini. Kekuatan untuk mencapai transformasi ini terletak pada SEBAB itu sendiri.  Apakah SEBAB nya? Apa kah SEBAB kita? Apakah SEBAB anda? Menginginkan transformasi ini.

Kemarin, ada seorang  bagi tahu pada saya....”Kaum lain, bila tahu sahaja bangunan (shopping mall, pasaraya,kedai) tu kepunyaan orang Melayu, dia kona…tak masuk , dia pi kedai  kaum dia, contoh bangunan UDA kat bas stand klang. Dulu penuh tempat tu, orang ramai, la ni mati”

Shema jawab/tanya. “Mengikut statistic  Kaum Melayu la…yang paling banyak mencurah kan duit bebelanja….mana pi depa? Depa shopping kat mana?  Kalu betui statistic rasanya kita tak perlu kaum lain belanja tempat kita.”

Secara tersurat saya mengaku bersalah sebab memang selalu belanja tempat kaum lain….SEBAB tersirat….kita bincang lain topic ok.

Apakah SEBAB nya? Apa kah SEBAB kita? Apakah SEBAB anda? Menginginkan transformasi ini.

Terima  Kasih daun keladi.

* Originally written 12th December 2010.