r/malaysia • u/dcx • Jul 09 '19

Ends today (Thurs) at 2pm Cultural Exchange with r/Polska

Hi folks, the cultural exchange has just wrapped up. Thank you so much to users from both subreddits for participating and creating such interesting discussions together! :)

🇵🇱 Witamy w Malezji! / Selamat datang ke Malaysia! 🇲🇾

Welcome to the cultural exchange between r/Polska and r/Malaysia! The purpose of this event is to allow people from two different national communities to get and share knowledge about their respective cultures, daily life, history and curiosities. This exchange will run for two days from July 9th 8am CEST / 2pm GMT +8. General guidelines:

  • Poles should ask their questions about Malaysia here on this post in r/Malaysia;
  • Malaysians should ask their questions about Poland in this parallel thread on r/Polska;
  • English should be used in both threads;
  • The event will be moderated, following the general rules of Reddiquette. Be nice!

Guests posting questions here will receive Polish flair.

Moderators of r/Polska and r/Malaysia.

74 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

106 comments sorted by

5

u/benq86 Jul 10 '19

Hey good people of Malaysia:

  1. Can you recommend some good Malaysian music?

  2. What are there some essential history facts that I should know about? I know nothing about the history of your country, sorry.

Thanks!

2

u/Minerex Jul 11 '19

For Malaysian music - refer to this thread (it's quite recent). I've listed some of my favourite in there.

6

u/T-harzianum Jul 11 '19

Can't really answer you the first question since I am a boring person.

Regarding second question, let see...

  1. Hinduism and Buddhism used to be the main religion in this region before the arrival of Islam.

  2. Our country or part of it was colonised by 3 great powers subsequently, Portugese, Dutch and British.

  3. We was the largest tin producer during British colonial period but now the mineral has been mostly depleted.

  4. Malaya gained independence from UK diplomatically in 31st August 1957 and and we celebrate national day on this day annually.

  5. Malaysia was formed in 16th September 1963 after Malaya, Borneo (Sabah and Sarawak) and Singapore decided to come together. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you interpret it), Singapore left (or kicked out also depending on how you interpret it) 2 years later. Nevertheless, we still celebrate Malaysia Day on every 16th September.

  6. We have the only racial riot in 13 May 1969 (for now and hopefully it is kept that way) between Malay and Chinese. A dark spot in our modern history. One of the most impactful consequences is the introduction of New Economic Policies (NEP) which granted Malay more privilege in economic sectors.

  7. Communist Party Malaya officially disband in 1989 after striking a deal with government and almost all of the party members were "exiled" to Southern Thailand.

  8. Barisan National (BN) lost their first election since independence on 9th May 2018 to opposition alliance (now the ruling party).

That's all from me and hopefully I didn't miss out anything important.

9

u/Whasume Jul 09 '19

Not trying to offend anyone but i always wanted to ask: 1.How do you guys feel about living in a third world country 2. How important is islam in Malaysia? Does it influence the politics and society as much as Catholic Church in Poland?

21

u/[deleted] Jul 10 '19

  1. We are developing country for sure. I've never been to Poland but I have been to nearby Slovakia and Czech. I can proudly say that Kuala Lumpur is pretty much ahead of Bratislava or Praha, infrastructure better than Munchen or Vienna but sadly we are still in the 3rd world mentality in some parts of the country.

  2. Malaysia is secular and Islam is the official religion. However our Rukun Negara (National Principles) states that you must believe in God, loyal to the King, preserve the constitution, obey the law and be civil to each other; which we must memorize all 5 principles as Malaysian. Thus being a Catholic or practicing any religion is constitutionally protected by principles. They're racial issues but never any major religious incidents in Malaysia other than Islamic extremist to its own Muslims here. Im not Catholic but I've been to churches countless times for weddings/funeral of friends.

3

u/sky2blue Jul 11 '19

I'm interested in the principle where you must believe in God. What about for the non-religious? How is atheism viewed in Malaysia? Thanks for the information!

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18

u/[deleted] Jul 10 '19

1.How do you guys feel about living in a third world country

My mother doesn't have medical insurance or coverage, lately she suffered a minor heart attack coupled with other health compilations, the government hospital here took care of her and now she's improving pretty well (follow-ups, physio, medications)

All that costing at 20% of what I'd usually spend for lunch dining out.

14

u/pothkan Jul 10 '19

How do you guys feel about living in a third world country

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index

Malaysia: 0.802, similar to Romania or Bulgaria, not that far from us (0.865). It's definitely not a "third world" country.

12

u/icemountain87 Jul 10 '19

1.How do you guys feel about living in a third world country

We still have roads, electricity, clean water, etc. It's not that different from living in most other countries (in an urban context). There are some things we can do better but nothing cripplingly bad.

2. How important is islam in Malaysia? Does it influence the politics and society as much as Catholic Church in Poland?

Very important and influential especially in politics. Politicians always paint the picture that the non-Muslims are trying to take over the country and turn into a haven of sin and whores. It's effective in uniting the conservative voters under one banner.

13

u/Felinomancy Jul 10 '19

How do you guys feel about living in a third world country

O___O

Just because we're "Third World" doesn't mean we live on trees, shit in holes and eat our meats raw.

Personally, we could use more freedom (actual freedom, not the American version), but then again at least we're not living in a hellish landscape torn apart by civil wars and what have you.

How important is islam in Malaysia? Does it influence the politics and society as much as Catholic Church in Poland?

Officially, very important. "It's un-Islamic" is a powerful political bludgeon, although it's not omnipotent - I dare say it's as influential as race politics.

On a personal level of course it depends. It runs the gamut from people who wants to establish a Saudi-inspired theocracy, to those who are Muslim only in name. Some of the kinkiest people I came into contact with are hijabis.

7

u/redfournine Jul 10 '19

  1. Having lived in Japan for several years, and having traveled to lots of first world countries (mostly west EU), I can say it isn't so bad in Malaysia. There is inconveniences here and there when dealing with governments, but in general it's decent, and it is improving (albeit at a snail's pace). Politics is shit, but it is shit no matter which country you go to, it's just different flavor of shit. In the capital city of Kuala Lumpur (literally the only place in Malaysia that at least can be somewhat compared to first world country), people are generally less warm than in the rural area - but I get the same vibe even in Japan. That people in urban city is less warm compared to people in the rural area.

  2. Islam is the main religion in Malaysia. It does influence the politics and society a lot, but nothing severe that stopping you from practicing your own religion.

0

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '19

3

u/Doppelgangeryc Jul 10 '19

  1. Islands on the East Coast of the peninsula.

  2. Mahathir is conservative. He is the master of previous corrupted government. Many do support him out of their will to oust Najib. Some support him because they believe he is a changed man. But what he has done in the past year indicates otherwise. U can say he has hijacked the then opposition movement.

  3. I’m not Malay, I can’t speak for them. On the surface, everything seems peaceful and harmonious. Underneath, there is mistrust, suspicion between races.

Interracial marriage between Malays and other race still a big no no for most non Muslim, pretty much because of the force conversion law. Whoever marries a Muslim, must be converted into Islam and no turning back. And also due to the lack of religion freedom as a Muslim for your offsprings.

6. Probably not, Malaysia is not an aggressive country. Unless we are under Attack.

7. Still same old problems, racial issue, chronic brain drain, poor education system produces poor quality graduates.

9. I think it’s good, especially for those working in SG.

4

u/icemountain87 Jul 10 '19

What spectacular place did I miss in my recent visit (I listed above places I've been to). What should I definitely see next time? I already know I want to visit Borneo.

If you're into nature, definitely East Malaysia.

Is Mahathir considered a controversial leader who got into power mostly as an opposition to corrupted Najib, or does he really have major support regardless of outing Najib? I ask, because I sometimes read r/singapore, so I have some basic knowledge about regional politics, but it's from a Singapore point of view. Mahathir seems to be a bit hostile to Singapore, so their sub probably is not the most objective about him.

It depends who you're asking. I think Mahathir still holds tremendous support among conservative Malay voters while the non-Malays just wanted someone, anyone to oust Najib.

Are there still some racial tensions in your society? I read somewhere that there is some aversion from Malays towards Chinese Malaysians. Is this true? Are marriages between people of Malay and Chinese ethnicity common or is it rather a tabu?

Yes, there are racial tensions. Some politicians try to rally conservative Malay voters together by painting the picture that the Chinese Malaysians are trying to seize political power which will oppress the Malays.

Marriage between Malay and Chinese is not taboo but it is uncommon due to religious reasons. Malays by default are born into Islam. In order to marry, the Chinese spouse must also convert into Islam (most Chinese are Buddhists or Christians). This is not attractive to the average non-Muslim due to two main reasons:

  1. Muslim Malaysians are subjected to Shariah laws. This will impact your rights (for example, inheritance), lifestyle (for example, no consumption of alcohol or non-Halal products) and other issues.

  2. It is difficult (almost impossible) to convert out of Islam. So if the marriage fails, there is no way to convert out.

Do you see any possible scenario in which Malaysia would have a war with Singapore (edit: or Indonesia) in the next 50 years? What would be the reason; or why not?

No, quite unlikely. War is always fought for resources and I personally don't see anything to be gained in the region that will justify the high price of war.

What do you think will be the biggest challenges your country will face in 30 years horizon, around 2050?

Racial tensions and the rise of religious extremity. Corruption will probably still be a problem but I hope to be proven wrong.

Do you think that there is some real value and benefits from ASEAN, or is it more a "social club"?

I have enjoyed free visa visits to Philippines, Indonesia and Cambodia thanks to ASEAN so I guess there is some real value and benefit to it.

3

u/billykeke Jul 09 '19

hey!! can't answer all of your questions but i can answer a few.

  1. east malaysia really is something else. sipadan, kota kinabalu and really most of anywhere in east malaysia is somewhere you should visit the next time youre here that is if you like nature and the sorts.

  2. its not entirely similar but there are a lot of words that cross over. if i were talking to an I=indonesian there is a high chance he would understand what im saying and ill understand what hell be saying baring a few words.

  3. I cant speak for everyone but for my family we are rather environment conscious. I can say that a lot of restaurants have stopped giving out plastic straws however some of our beaches and streets are still littered with plastic waste

  4. I don't dwell on politics. sorry

  5. definitely but I don't think its as common as it is said to be. and pertaining the marriage question, I don't know many chinese-malay marriages but they do exit and they are definitely not taboo (in fact I am a product of a chinese and malay marriage)

11

u/Elberg_the_Great Jul 09 '19

Hi, what is the weather usually like on malysia?

5

u/exaThik Jul 11 '19

I've contacted with a Polish girl in the game few months ago. We updated our daily weather. She's a bit 'jealous' with my 30°C and she have 14°C while I wish to feel the real snow if it happened. She's surprised that we didn't have heater in the home.

8

u/blakerzgood Jul 10 '19

Sometimes hot or become very hot. Then a sudden rain in the evening.

4

u/Minerex Jul 10 '19

rain in the evening

Uh! hate it when that happens, especially when I was a kid. Can't play football.

6

u/FayeChan350259 Jul 09 '19

If you enjoy hot & humid summers, then the Malaysian perpetual summer is definitely up your alley.

Personally, I look forward to the wetter months when the monsoons come over; it gets cooler.

12

u/waf_xs Jul 09 '19

Wet and hot, hot and hot.

11

u/ca_ffiend Jul 09 '19

Ranges from hot to very hot

7

u/doomarc Jul 09 '19

Don't forget the yearly haze season wafting from our dear neighbor lol

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6

u/Angelix Jul 09 '19

And wet to very wet.

6

u/AquilaSPQR Jul 09 '19 edited Jul 09 '19

Hello everyone! I love such exchanges and I'm always interested in other cultures and that's why I usually have a lot of questions. You're free to skip any if you want, but please be aware that God kills a kitten every time you skip the question.

(*note to myself - check if kittens are not a popular dish in that country)

  1. I love to try foreign recipes - so can you recommend me something truly Malaysian, quite easy to make (I'm not a professional chef) and made from ingredients I could probably buy in Poland? I know there is a lot of Malaysian recipes on the internet, but I prefer to ask real guys from Malaysia than to trust some random website. I'm also more interested what common people usually eat, not in some fancy dishes made by professional chefs.

  2. What's the state of public transport? Trains, buses?

  3. What about roads and drivers? Are the roads of good quality?

  4. What are the most popular unique traditions/customs in your region/country?

  5. What holiday do you like to celebrate the most and why?

  6. What's the most dangerous animal living in Malaysia? Or the one which frightens you most/you wouldn't like to encounter (if there's any)?

  7. Is there any wild plant or animal you like the most?

  8. If I meet anyone from Malaysia - is there something short and easy in your language to learn for me to say to surprise him or make him laugh? For example - not so long ago I learned that saying "how you dey?" would probably make Nigerian laugh.

  9. I love old history, the older ruins/monuments - the better. What are in your opinion the oldest or the most interesting ruins, monuments or historic sites in Malaysia?

  10. Please show me a pic of your favourite Malaysian tourist attraction.

  11. I also love wild nature, so what's your best National Park?

  12. Is there a Malaysian specific faux-pas?

  13. Is there anything particular a foreign tourist can do or say in Malaysia that would positively surprise your people and leave a good impression? Some particular gesture, form of greeting etc. (I'm speaking of something else than learning basic words in your language, because that's quite obvious)

  14. What's the top thing you like in Malaysia?

  15. And what's the top thing you don't like in Malaysia?

  16. What do you think of your neighbouring countries?

  17. What custom would you think would be the most bizarre for an european traveller, not accustomed to your culture?

  18. What is the best example of Malaysian art in your opinion? It can be both historic or contemporary.

  19. Tell me some of your popular proverbs.

  20. What is, in your opinion, the most important event in your history?

  21. We don't hear much news from Malaysia - so what important happened in your country recently?

  22. Malaysian Airlines flight 17... What are common people's opinion of it?

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