“Don’t be bitter” – M’sians Defend KL Students’ Haka Performance from Being Shamed

The haka was originally created and performed as a war dance and ancestral war cry by different Māori tribes.

Though, since then, it has evolved into a symbol for community and strength, often seen performed by the New Zealand national rugby union team, the All Blacks, during their games. So, it should be nothing wrong for our Malaysian students to perform the haka, to also show their strength in community, right?

The Himpunan Cerita Lawak Facebook page recently shared a video of students from the St John’s Institution in KL performing the haka.

In an effort to shame the students, the page captioned the video with, “Ruffling feathers.”

What many might not know is that the all-boys school has a rugby team that also performs hakas, just as any other international rugby team would.

On top of that, the performance by multiracial students shows their spirit of togetherness and unity.

Malaysians, too, realise this and took the opportunity to defend the students from people who might want to shame them for displaying culture that isn’t ‘Malaysian’.

“Great. It’s good lah, what they’re doing. For confidence and to build discipline. Another thing, to build character. Isn’t this their time? There’s no need to criticise them. Keep the spirit going, kids.”

“I see unity. Students of many races. Congratulations, students!”

“Great. These are the kinds of things that can develop their identity. What is there to condemn? They are not disturbing anyone.”

“This is normal is sports, the haka is to give them spirit. What is there to criticise? This often happens at schools.”

You can check out the students’ amazing haka performance here.

What do you think about this? Do feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.

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