NGOs - well, at one time this referred to the groups that were fighting for human rights and justice - Groups that were for freedom of the press, opposed to the ISA and Detention Without Trial Laws, etc..
Suddenly, smart Malaysian government started using also the term 'NGOs' - and suddenly, we see many pro-government NGOs - and anti-human rights NGOs..
In the press, NGO here...NGO there - and alas the public is confused about what is this NGO is...
Today, the word 'NGO' is no more linked to groups that fight for justice and human rights - it is just 'non-government organisations' - and these can be pro-government or not, can be pro-freedom or not,...
So, what do we call these NGOs that fight for justice, human rights.....???
MERITOCRACY - This was the word used by many fighting against the 'positive discrimination' ...'preferential treatment' in favour of persons/companies of just certain particular ethnic groups in Malaysia...
Now, just heard Najib starting to use this word - and giving it a different understanding. He talks about the good Malay, the not-so good Malay...and says that in the future when it comes to the allocation of contracts, etc....'MERITOCRACY' will be a consideration in the allocation of projects/tenders to Malay/Bumiputra company...is this that 1Malaysia concept he talked about?
Either way, the new strategy is the giving of new meanings to words that have been used by the progressives, the reformists, etc...and hence, weakening the impact of words and slogans...
What other words/phrases have been taken by the government and been given new meanings? Words, like knives have been taken and their sharpness have been dulled...Sometime, the same word is taken and used giving it a different meaning...
One example is that word 'LEVY'...
For us, it was the 'penalty' that employers have had to pay if they wanted to hire foreign workers and not local Malaysian workers...
- but wait, now levy can also mean that Human Resource Development Fund levy - that employers have to pay for all workers..
(Using the same word confuses people - and I believe that this is the intention of the government...)
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1 comment:
Coffee shop definitions:
Good NGOs become Gongos and bad ones become Bangos!
Merit depends on the criteria used. Therefore, in Najib's 1Malaysia sense, where control is by 1Party, the criteria would include loyalty to the party and especially to him.
Levy is just some money to be extracted from anyone wanting to apply for anything so that the department can have official income. To the applicant, it is always a necessary cost by whatever name.
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