I’M emotionally disturbed by the public response towards the marriage of Fatine Min Baharin with Ian Young.
Our Malaysian Immigration Department has declared that Fatine overstayed in the United Kingdom. If found guilty, she’ll be barred from leaving Malaysia for two years.
If we don’t want people to stop us from doing what we like and what is best for us, then why must we stop others from choosing what they like? It’s their individual right to choose their life partner.
This couple isn’t harming you or me, nor are they a threat to the UK’s and Malaysia’s security. They are not a threat to anyone. By being together, they don’t harm our environment, they are not committing any crime against others, they are not terrorising any country, they don’t make you lose your job, and they don’t kill, rob, steal, or smuggle drugs.
We are harming them. Now, Malaysia seems to be a threat to the couple. Fatine is so afraid to come back to Malaysia because of the discrimination and hatred towards people like her. She may also be caught under syariah law for marrying a person of the same sex.
Their marriage may seem to be against the norm of Malaysians but culture and tradition should not be obstacles for someone to live their lives. Sometimes our norms, beliefs, cultures, and traditions kill. Some of these are not even relevant to us in today’s world.
We should not discriminate against people who are different from us. These people deserve the way of life they want for themselves. We can’t expect others to be like us or to follow our choices.
Some people choose to stay single, some choose to marry someone picked by their parents, some prefer to have intermarriage, some people choose to have a partner of the same gender. Fatine and Young chose the marriage that they want. And they have every right in the world to stay together.
So what if they are straight or otherwise? So what if they are bi-sexual? So what if they are gay or lesbian? So what if they are transsexual? So what if they are pengkid, pondan or tomboy?
If it’s against their religion, let God judge and punish them, not us. God never said we can discriminate and condemn people who are different from us, right?
No matter what Fatine choses, it’s her decision. She has already made up her mind. It’s her choice. This is what she wants. This is what makes her comfortable. She’s happy with it. Why can’t we just accept and respect it?
Oh Chin Eng
Penang
4 Dec 2009
Antares says
Thanks for writing this letter in moral support of Fatine. I felt exactly the same when I first read the report in Malaysiakini. In fact, I felt like throwing up on the Immigration DG. The nerve! Talk about bringing shame upon Malaysia, the Immigration Dept has acquired a reputation for working in cahoots with human traffickers, behaving like sadists towards refugees and detainees, and for causing the unnecessary deaths of thousands in refugee camps that resemble World War Two death camps. Not only that, the DG has kept mum all this while about who ordered the deletion of Altantuya’s entry details in the immigration records. That’s a very serious crime indeed, concealing evidence is tantamount to complicity in murder.
SFMalay says
Kudos to you for stand up and writing a letter of encouragement to Fatine. She need all the love and support from caring Malaysians like you who’re not afraid to voice out your opinions.
It is very sad to see another Malay-Muslim who runs the Immigration Department being prejudiced and judgmental. More disturbing is their abuse of power as “the servant of the people”. No wonder Malaysian government is so corrupt …
Fatine and her husband are in love. Their love may be different from you and me, but it’s truly love and it doesn’t cost Malaysian government a dime. Why are Malay Malaysians not compassionate about their own people? Is it because people like Abdul Rahman just can’t accept the fact that there are different kinds of people that live in this world? He is such a hypocrite. Don’t use religion or tradition as an excuse …
oh chin eng says
Thanks for the comments, people. I’m really glad to receive feedback on my article.