Some group in Malaysia see nothing wrong with unfurling a flag claimed to be called Sang Saka Merah Putih which is similar to the flag of other countries and was intended to be similar to the flag of past left wing groups.
Lucky bastard. The action of the authority has thus far been soft. If it had been in America, flying a flag other than the star sprangled banner would have created an uproar and got oneself in the local papers.
And this was what happenned to a group of Malaysian students in Northfield, Illinois in an event organised to celebrate Merdeka.
Blogger Mesin Taip Buruk picked up the following news from CBS website here and it is reproduced below:
Group Takes Heat For Lowering U.S. Flag, Mounting Malaysian Flag For Event
NORTHFIELD, Ill. (CBS) — A local group took some heat this week for briefly taking down the American flag at a Northfield park and putting up a Malaysian flag.
The Chicago Sun-Times’ Winnetka Talk publication reports the Malaysian Association of Illinois gathered this past Saturday at Clarkson Park, located on the south side of Willow Road in Northfield. The purpose was to celebrate the members’ Malaysian heritage and commemorate the 55th anniversary of Malaysian Independence from the British, the Winnetka Talk reported.
But during the celebration, the group lowered the American flag and flew a Malaysian flag in its place, the publication reported.
The move drew attention from the ConservativeBrand blog, the blog of New Trier Tea Party founder and self-described “conservative citizen journalist” Eva Sorock.
“Is Northfield joining the country of Malaysia?” a Sunday blog entry read. The blog was quick to point out that the Malaysian group’s act violated the traditions of the U.S. Federal Flag Code, which restricts the replacement of the U.S. flag with that of another nation.
The blog quoted the relevant part of the Flag Code: “No person shall display the flag of the United Nations or any other national or international flag equal, above, or in a position of superior prominence or honor to, or in place of, the flag of the United States at any place within the United States or any Territory or possession thereof.”
ConservativeBrand said the Northfield Township Code expresses a policy of displaying and flying flags “in accordance with federal regulations, historic guidelines, and special proclamations issued by the President, Governor, Township Supervisor and Highway Commissioner.”
The blog said several neighbors asked police and village officials about the Malaysian flag replacing the U.S. flag, but were told the people renting out the park “have a right to fly the flag on the basis of religious freedom.”
The Malaysian Association has since apologized. Its director, Dr. Roslan Jamaludin, told the Winnetka Talk that the group put the U.S. flag back up, and the display was “not mean to offend anyone.”
Jamaludin told the publication the event was attended by over 100 people, and that they sang the Malaysian national anthem before quickly replacing the U.S. flag.
Meanwhile, Northfield Park District director George Alexoff left a comment on the ConservativeBrand blog post, saying the park district did not give the Malaysian Association permission to use the flagpole, but did not say using the flagpole was forbidden either.
“The Park District will be taking steps to clarify its laws and rules regarding use of Park District property to prevent future misunderstandings by groups using our parks,” Alexoff wrote on the blog.
Alexoff told the Winnetka Talk that he did not believe the replacement of the flag was malicious.
The Flag Code is part of federal law, first written in 1923 and adopted by Congress in 1942. But the code functions as a guide for voluntary civilian compliance, and has never included any provisions for enforcement or penalties for violation.
There have been state and federal laws against burning or desecrating the flag, but such laws were ruled unconstitutional under the First Amendment in the 1989 case Texas v. Johnson, and the 1990 case U.S. v. Eichman.
One of the most infamous challenges to the Flag Code happened in Chicago in 1989. Art Institute student and self-described Communist revolutionary Dread Scott – then known as Scott Tyler – sparked a month’s worth of protest from veterans when he lay a flag on the floor and invited visitors to walk across it in his exhibit, “What Is the Proper Way to Display a U.S. Flag?”
Then-state Sen. Walter Dudycz (R-Chicago) sued unsuccessfully in Cook County Circuit Court to have the exhibit shut down, and a teacher from Virginia was arrested for walking on the flag as the exhibit suggested. The City Council also passed an ordinance forbidding such displays from being shown in Chicago in the future, but the ordinance did not survive a court challenge.
The website AIDC believed the Sang Saka flag is a political propaganda project of PKR's Angkatan Muda Keadilan committee member, Najwan Hilmi just like those given to other PKR or AMK position holders and committee members to broaden PKR vote support by appealing to different segment and interest of the public.
Blogger Singa Selatan acknowedged himself as one of two unfurling the flag,
He justified his unpatriotic action by his romantic understanding of pre-World War II history of the Malay left by mentioning the likes of KMM, PKMM, AWAS, Mokhtaruddin Lasso, Ahmad Boestamam, Dr Borhanuddin Helmy, Putera-AMCJA and Hizbul Muslimin.
He claimed UMNO as pro-British or pro-colonial and is not the true fighter of independence.
Ah ... the naivety of youth.
Yes, UMNO's crying call was "Hidup Melayu" unlike PKMM's was "Merdeka!." Do not stop there but continue and describe UMNO as a political party made up of bangsawan dan have feudalistic inclination. If you an anti royals, continue to describe UMNO was blessed by the Istana.
Even then, the first group to take up struggle against the British were not PKMM but the commies PKM. But who set-up PKM? Who was Loi Tek? What did he do?
Are they aware of the history of KMM and PKMM struggles? Their profile and background?
Perhaps another time to explain the history and explanation of what constitute achieving sovereignty to claim independence.
If know they know the intricacies of history involving those groups, they should understand why we called them unpatriotic for unveiling the flag that closely resemble the UMNO flag.
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