Featured image source: Reuters/Bazuki Muhammad
As we strolled down an unusually quiet Kuala Lumpur street, something felt different, something had changed.
We stopped for a moment on the strangely quiet street. My friend, sensing my wonder, turned to me and asked, “So, what happened here?”
“Well, a bunch of people from all walks of life got together. Some important, some nobodies, but with a love of their country and with one purpose in their hearts. They put away their differences for a couple of days and got together to send a message.”, I replied, trying to explain to a stranger from the outside, looking in.
“How many?”
“Some say 15,000 some say 250,000. Depends on which side of the spin you’re on. And not just here, lots of places around the world.” I said.
He continued,”What was the message?”
Thinking for a moment, I offered, “More clean elections, clean governments, the right to dissent and some other things. It got a bit muddled.”
With a small look of disbelief on his face, he asked, “They don’t have that now?”.
I smiled a bit, “Depends on which side of the spin you’re on.”
Not giving up, my friend continued to wonder, “Will it make any difference?”
It took me a while to come up with the answer that would explain it best, “Not right away, Malaysians don’t do things in a hurry. But they do things with conviction. In time, with luck, things will get better.
If nothing else, that’s what Malaysian always have… Hope.
We walked in silence, a bit longer down the deserted street and finally he stopped again, looking ahead at the strangely empty downtown of Kuala Lumpur. “So… a quarter of a million people. But… this place doesn’t have an empty bottle, no trash, no litter… nothing!
I turned, looking out into the darkening streets,
“That’s what is all about… Bersih.”
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“Never believe that a few caring people can’t change the world. For, indeed, that’s all who ever have.” ~Margaret Mead
– This beautiful post was written by Facebook user Jay Sheldon.
