At one time the Malaysian University Students were in the forefront highlighting issues of the poor, farmers, homeless, etc and leading protests - but nowadays, it seems to have 'fallen asleep' - and their concerns seem to have become more 'self-centered' on issues like academic freedom, etc
Soon, those 18 years and above will be able to VOTE...and there is a great concern as to whether our 'students' that seem to no more speak out for the poor, against injustice, etc are a dangerous voting block. Will they simply be casting votes based on ethnicity, religion or propaganda...
At the same time, in neighboring Thailand, we see a growing protest movement amongst HIGH SCHOOL students, and their leaders are young people who are 15 years old plus..
Yes, during COVID-19, Malaysians are having difficulty coming out on the streets to protest - exercising their rights for peaceful assembly... and protest...BUT, OUR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES TO JUSTICE AND RIGHTS DOES NOT TAKE A BREAK EVEN FOR COIVID-19.
Thai school students protest against government, demand reform
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thousands of people joined a protest led by high school students in Bangkok on Saturday to call for education reforms as well as the demands of a broader movement pushing to remove the government and curb the powers of the monarchy.
It was the first major protest since Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Thursday that police would use all laws against protesters, who have become the biggest challenge to the establishment in years.
Police said the protest by the Bad Student group could go ahead, although two of its teenage leaders were summoned on Friday for charges over a previous protest.
“We are here to ask for the freedom that has been taken away from us as well as for reforms to education,” said high school student Mameaw, 18, who declined to give her full name. “We want a real constitutional monarchy.”
Protests since July have three core demands: the removal of former junta leader Prayuth as prime minister, a new constitution and reforms to the monarchy of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.
But the high school students also seek greater freedom and fairer treatment within an education system they say is archaic and aimed primarily at inculcating obedience. Many spoke of the importance of gender equality.
“I have been sexually abused by teachers. School is not a safe place,” said a placard held by one student who sat in uniform with her mouth taped shut in protest.
One of the hashtags used by the Bad Student group on Saturday translates as #ByeByeDinosaurs.
Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said the prime minister hoped protesters would exercise their freedom constructively and within the law.
Prayuth
has rejected the demand of protesters that he resign and their
accusations that he engineered last year’s election to keep power that
he first seized from an elected government in 2014. The Royal Palace has
made no comment since the protests began in July. - Reuters, 21/11/2020
Asia
Thailand's 'bad students' get an education from the streets
Teenage protest leader Benjamaporn "Ploy" Nivas is at the forefront of Thailand's "bad student" movement, challenging the country's rigid educational norms. (Photo: AFP/Lillian SUWANRUMPHA)
"Students should be able to think for themselves and be themselves," Ploy told AFP during a recent protest at Bangkok's democracy monument.
The
15-year-old is at the forefront of Thailand's "bad student" movement
which is planning a major rally in Bangkok on Saturday (Nov 21).
READ: Thai protesters take on authorities in 'rubber duck revolution'
Ahead of the event, officers on Thursday issued her and two male students with a summons to report to a Bangkok police station for questioning.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights say the trio have brought the tally of
juveniles facing prosecution over protest activities in Thailand to four
- while overall 175 protesters have been charged with sedition or
public assembly offences.
Thai schools have very strict dress standards, with ponytails and ribbons mandated for girls and military-style crew cuts for boys.
But after years of having rules drummed into them, Ploy and her fellow high school activists have gone rogue, emboldened by the broader political protest movement currently sweeping Thailand.
The students want cultural change, a curriculum overhaul, equality and a relaxation of rigid rules.
"We are brainwashed ... as students we are taught not to ask questions, but to study and memorise facts for exams," she said.
READ: Thai PM says all laws to be used against protesters
History textbooks are a particular bone of contention in a country which has seen a dozen coups since becoming a democracy in 1932.
School books gloss over events such as the massacre of pro-democracy university students in the 1970s, and instead focus on promoting the work of the monarchy.
The campaign has had a mixed reaction from her teachers.
"If my teachers are on (the) same side with me, the democracy side, they will admire me – but if they want (the status quo) those teachers hate me," Ploy said.
DEFYING DANGERS
Youth-led demonstrations have rocked Thailand since July, and have for the most part been peaceful.
But at a rally on Tuesday police used water cannon and tear gas on activists, and six people suffered gunshot wounds.
Despite the dangers, Ploy insists protesting is her duty.
"We cannot afford to be afraid of anything, otherwise we cannot change anything," she said.
Since August, the "bad student" movement has campaigned for the resignation of Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan and even staged a mock funeral for him.
Student protesters carry a portrait of Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan followed by a mock coffin and a white cloth during a street march in Bangkok, Thailand, Nov 14, 2020. (Photo: AP/Sakchai Lalit)
There have long been calls to reform the kingdom's schools but progress has been piecemeal, said Pumsaran Tongliemnak, an expert at the state-backed Equitable Education Fund.
The Thai government needs to shift its focus from granting access to education to improving its quality, he told AFP, particularly for those who cannot afford expensive private schools.
"The gap between the haves and the have-nots is quite high," Pumsaran said.
In international assessments, Thai students score lower than the OECD average in maths and science.
They perform particularly badly in reading, and a World Bank report in 2015 noted widespread "functional illiteracy" among students across all types of Thai schools.
The report said problems included chronic teacher shortages, too many under-resourced small schools, and a focus on rote learning.
Corporal punishment is still practised regularly in Thai schools, despite government efforts to ban it.
READ: Thai women use protests to challenge sexism
Teenage girls are the backbone of the "bad student" movement, which Ploy attributes to growing frustrations over the lack of gender equality in Thailand.
"I think that girls and LGBTQ people are suppressed by the patriarchy both at home and at school. This has made me come out to fight for myself and for everyone," she said.
"SCHOOLS ARE DICTATORSHIPS"
At an early October rally outside a high school in central Bangkok, scores of mostly female students tied white ribbons on the gate.
They covered the student identification numbers embroidered on their uniforms with tape and shielded their faces from the media throng.
A young female student leader made an impassioned speech atop a truck outside the school, demanding respect from teachers instead of "preaching about rules".
It's a sentiment that strikes a chord with Vegas, a 16-year-old transgender student forced to change schools because of discrimination and bullying.
Vegas, who declined to give their full name, describes schools as training students to fit in with Thailand's hierarchical society, rather than challenge or question it.
"Schools are like small dictatorships, with all their rules." Source: AFP/dv - CNA, 20/11/2020
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