NMF Live Blogging

First session is starting.

Dina Zaman is CEO of My Future Foundation!

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- Honored to be in the same panel as other speakers
- Congratulations for new Malaysian Prime Minister
- Engaging on social issue in Malaysia
- Wants a lot of things to happen
- Some are saying Malaysia heading towards Zimbabwe
- A lot of faith in this country
- Inspired by patriotism abroad, with their democracy, freedom and also public transportation.

- Hope that we can all build a Malaysia with faith
- Islamic Malaysia has not been getting good press, and we should correct that perception
- What is freedom, strength to Malaysians?
- Need to grasp the ideal
- Search for the soul
- Malaysians need to work on the ground, and not just talk
- 50 over years of NEP (with best intention)
- The poor deserves the benefits.
- Have to look at this aspect
- Constant bombardment of questions on identity

- Malaysia first
- Freedom, agree to disagree
- The word of integrity has been branded.
- Need to be transparent
- Good Malaysia
- Sometimes we say, but we do other things.
- We make excuses
- Instill what is right and wrong
- Instill in the young
- Honesty/sincerity
- Go back to basic

- Malaysia needs young Malaysians
- To take stakeholder of issues
- Cannot assume that the younger who are less intelligent
- 3 types of youth
- Youth like you, politically aware and technologically savvy.
- Hopefully, be corporate leaders, government leaders, NGOs
- the 2nd one is the urban ones
- 3rd one the disenfranchised youth (who think that they have no future in the country)

- Malaysian youth feel hopeless
- Despite concern, sense of apathy are weak
- Not many participate actively in politics
- Non-Malay Malaysians, who are open to politics, tend to open to opposition politics
- They have very conservative views of politics.
- Their focus has been different.

- Obama gets everyone excited.
- people are concerned of personal finances
- Political instability is one of the concerns.
- Young Malays consider themselves as Muslims first, then Malays or Malaysians
- Young Non-Malays consider themselves Malaysians first
- Youth are thinking that political divide are bigger
- We need to understand the youth lingual
- Don't say that don't understand the youth lingual
- What we do is fantastic, but need to bring to rural area

- Youth may not know of why they are having sex
- They know nothing of STD
- We have been too dependent on governments
- Need to get people to work
- Go to kampung and speak to people on issues
- We can debate on sensitive matters
- We need to talk on these matters
- Youth are creative
- Don't give up on hope

Q: How do we convince Malaysians that they are pretty smart? Especially in rural areas, like in Felda.
- Need to really to engage the kids
- Really talk to the rural kids
- Understand how they see the world
- Put it in their shoes
- Even things like personal hygiene
- Need to guide the kids to be presentable
- Don't talk down to them.
- Speak that you were once in their shoes
- Be very honest to them
- Explain to the kids on the rationale

Q. What do you propose that we do?
- Propose that you come back
- Work with the poor kids
- Irrespective of races
- The kids believe that they have no future
- Need to come out for micro credit programs
- For kids to go into business
- Empowerment program
- Come out with practical programs, not things that say must have 2 malays, 2 chinese, 2 indians etc.
- Be practical

- Come out with little workshop
- Not looking at big solutions
- Have German film weekend. Invite 20 young kids.
- The kids were able to take what happened in the movie
- And reflect on it
- Do a talk show/music video
- Annexe in Central market is speaking to a group of crowd, who needs the spaces.

From Amirah Chicago: Thanks for speaking your mind Dina, its great. How can we Malaysians achieve our freedom of speech and revamp laws that are unjust in this aspect? TQby Khadijah

- Have to keep on doing
- Be open
- Main thing is how we word it

Dina, seems that we are educating youth about sex only when situation is too late. I think you agree that we should be able to talk openly, about consequences, and risks. Do you foresee this to be possible ?
by Khadijah

- Yes. It is possible
- Parents educate on pre-marital sex
- Attended a sex education workshop
- Take steps

Dina you mentioned that it is now time for the younger generation to step up and for the older generation to step away. Is there a forum where we can learn from the older generation? (transfer of knowledge) - on a day to day basis rather than a conference?
by HW - london

- We have a lot to learn from the elders too.
- It is quite sad to talk to lower income kids
- The kids don't have the opportunities
- Engage with the young ones.
- Talk to the older ones..
- Be smart

Michael from KL - Do you see whether education in Malaysia be the problem of this? If yes, how do we solve it?

- Not very well versed with education now
- Went to Convent Bukit Nanas previously
- Used to be fantastic, and teachers are good
- Now, seems different
- Teaching has made creativity lost
- Now, all is work
- Education system got a lot of problem
- Something that we need to look at and resolve

Education system in Malaysia is like spoonfeeding babies. Should teach kids to be independent and to ask questions and explore. Don't you agree?by Khadijah

- Allow kids to make mistakes
- Yes, teach them to be independent
- Need experience to make them better person.

- Come back and get involved in a lot of programs.
- Learn from a lot of things from them.
- In Terengganu, a small community of Chinese/Indian, they all speak on Terengganu dialects

Amirah@Chicago: Some of us Muslim Malaysians feel that we re not able to be the Muslim we want to be due to the enforcement of Syariah Law and religious police that we feel is unjust, especially to women. How can we change this? This is also in relation to the question by Jian@Singapore below which is not addressed yet.
by Khadijah

- Pockets of NGOs here and there
- Muslims Women complaint to organizations, but no action
- Can't live in little bubble

---> Note that this is a live blogging and I might misinterpret what the speaker says.


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