Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe history states that Malaysia came into being in 1963 when the then independent Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore formed a 14-state federation.
(Singapore eventually came out of the federation two years later and became an independent country of its own.)
And if you noticed, the "birth" of Malaysia is not celebrated on Aug 31 every year.
Aug 31 is actually the Independence Day of Malaya which, probably for convenience's sake, is celebrated as the "independence" of Malaysia as well.
The real "birthday" of Malaysia is actually today - Sept 16.
It's surprising to note that this day is not given much prominence in most parts of the country.
In Sabah, Sept 16 is actually a public holiday because it's also the official birthday of the Tuan-Yang-Terutama or Yang-Dipertua Negeri (the state governor).
Whether this "official birthday" was fixed on Sept 16 intentionally or not, I don't know.
For some reason, I have the impression that more Sabahans and Sarawakians are aware of the fact that Sept 16 is "Malaysia Day."
Let's hope I'm wrong about this.
Whatever it is, don't just take my word for all of this because history is not one of my finer points. Go read up on it or something.
Anyway, happy 44th birthday Malaysia! Sorry most Malaysians are getting your age wrong!
(ps. dear readers, sorry for the lack of updates. Been a little tied up at work and some other stuff for the past few months. A little consolation is I'm always trying to source for new topics and material. Do email me if you have a suggestion or an experience to share. ;-)
Bonus Section!
Compare the two flags below and see if you know what's the difference and what it means.
The top flag is the Jalur Gemilang, the Malaysian flag as we know it today.
The one below is a reproduction of the pre-1963 flag of Malaya by wikipedia based on its official descriptions.
1 comment:
Quite a number of my colleagues who are non-Sabahan didn't even know that 16 Sept is a holiday in Sabah until I told them that Monday is a holiday. Was in KL over the weekend and sad to sad, not a single banner or celebration to mark the significance of Sept the 16th.
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