A Time For Self-Reflection

A commenter Tebing Tinggi left a comment early this morning. Thank you. I totally agree with you.

Yesterday, when my colleagues and I were at the market interviewing the people, many of them were blaming the government and "the Malays for not liking dogs and this is why they kill the dogs this way".  One Indian guy asked: "If I were to talk to you and the government come and find me, can you protect me?"

If the sight of dogs being killed and dumped like that make our hearts cringe, then don't contribute to the problem.  Irresponsible breeders and guardians need to self-reflect.  The relevant authorities need to keep the streets safe.

However, there must be a more humane way of ending a life,  I sincerely hope the local councils and animal welfare non-governmental organisations will work together to find a solution to this problem.

APPEAL FOR COMPASSION: The Johor Baru Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals wants to work with local councils to control the stray dog population in the city

JOHOR BAHRU: THE Johor Baru Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (JBSPCA) hopes to work with local councils to control the stray dog population in the city.

Its chairman Ranjit Singh said this after receiving complaints from the public that dogs were being killed and dumped in refuse bins in their neighbourhoods.

"We can understand that the local councils have to do something about the stray dog population, as canines in a pack can turn hostile.

"JBSPCA is appealing to the authorities to use a humane euthanisation method. We are also willing to assist the local authority in a spay programme," Ranjit said.

He said it was unethical to clobber or shoot an animal, and then put it into a plastic bag for it to die from its injuries or from lack of oxygen.

"That is a very cruel way to die," he added.

Streets checked out two garbage disposal centres -- one at Taman Universiti and another at Taman Ungku Tun Aminah -- and found that stray dogs were indeed dumped in black plastic bags.

A Taman Ungku Tun Aminah resident, who only wanted to be known as Pei, said she often heard dogs wailing in the garbage dumpster near the area's market.

"Being an animal lover, the dreadful sound of a dog crying as it breathes its last really disturbs me. I can't sleep at night," she said.

Pei claimed that the dogs were brought there in a truck and dumped.

Traders at the market in Taman Universiti, near Taman Ungku Tun Aminah, said there was a strong stench when the rubbish was not picked up on time.

"The men would come in a truck two or three times a week and dump the plastic bags containing dogs into the dumpster.

"Sometimes, some of the dogs are still alive when they dumped there," said one of the traders who declined to be named.

It is learnt that this inhumane practice has been going on for several years.

JBSPCA vice-chairman Joseph Chia said stray dogs should be put down humanely and the carcasses disposed off properly.

SWM Environment Sdn Bhd corporate communications head Shahrul Amir Abdul Rahim said the company would look into the matter. The company is in charge of waste management in the two areas.

Johor Baru Central municipal council could not be reached for comment.

Read more: 'Cull stray dogs humanely' - Johor - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/streets/johor/cull-stray-dogs-humanely-1.560512#ixzz2yXAyKEvt

Empathy and Compassion

Did my story on  stray dogs which is coming out tomorrow in Johor Streets. Let's hope there'll be some positive changes.  

On the way to a residential area for the story, we stopped for some vanilla ice cream. Yummy! That's Mary Victoria in the backseat.

The dumpster in Taman Universiti where the carcasses of stray dogs were put into plastic bags and dumped.  Some of the dogs were not dead yet but would eventually succumb to their injuries or die from lack of oxygen.

Please be responsible guardians. Don't let your beloved pets end up in such a sad state.

Starting the Day

Woke up at 6am. Going to be a busy day as I have 3 stories to work on.  One concerns HIV patients and their plea for "equal rights not special rights".  No one wants to be a sex worker but sometimes they are forced by life's circumstances.  

Another story will be about one of my favourite subjects

The Johor Baru Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) would like to work with local councils on the sterilization of stray dogs in the city.  The NGO understands that stray dogs have to be killed as they can be hostile and become a threat to people but SPCA is appealing to the local authorities to be more humane in its euthanisation method.

I sincerely hope the local authorities will agree to work with SPCA and that SPCA will step up efforts to educate the public, namely dog owners, on how to be responsible guardians.

And my last assignment is a food write-up on an Arabian restaurant. How cool is that? I can't seem to find my waistline anymore but I'll worry about that after the food tasting.

Need to get ready for work now. Have a good day, everyone.

Springtime In The Tropics

Tabebuia rosea blossoming all over Malaysia.  Pic by Esther Teo

I didn't know much about this flower species until yesterday.

After doing some research, I learnt that the Tabebuia rosea aka trumpet rose tree is a tropical tree that is widely planted along city and residential streets all over Malaysia.

Johor Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) chairman Vincent Chow, in his FB site, said the tree is native to Central and South America and is popularly planted along roadsides and as a garden ornamental plant.

In Malaysia, Tabebuia is also known as the “Cherry Blossoms of Penang” after its pink flowers which are much like the cherry blossoms of Japan.

Other local nicknames for the plant include “tissue paper tree”, referring to its thin petals.
The tree is also known as ipê rosa in South American countries.

"When the wind blows, the falling white blooms give one a feeling that it is snowing,"says Vincent.

However, the time to enjoy the blooms is limited.  See it before it's over!

My "Sakura Boulevard"

A huge sigh of relief as my Tanjung Kupang crash story did not see print in New Sunday Times as earlier expected.  

For a flash respite, I walked over to my "Sakura Boulevard" in Bandar Baru Uda, Johor Bahru.  The sight of the delicate petals floating in the air from its branches was sheer poetry.

Delicate petals

Bandar Baru Uda

"Buddhism teaches that everything is life, from human beings to the smallest roadside pebble or a single blade of grass. Every bit of the world that surrounds us embodies the mystery of the universe and the wondrous law of life. A rugged mountain that has been buffeted by harsh winds emanates the poetry of intense struggle; the innocent smiles of children convey the love of life." - Soka Gakkai International.

Meanwhile, an excerpt of my story on the 1977 Tanjung Kupang crash.  I have taken out the part where I interviewed the mother of one of the victims of the ill-fated flight.  It had caused her much anguish and distress.

JOHOR BARU: Over the years, the visitors to the Tanjung Kupang memorial in Jalan Kebun Teh here have grown lesser in number.
  The memorial contained the remains of the 100 people on board the ill-fated Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH653 which crashed into a mangrove swamp in Tanjung Kupang near Gelang Patah here on Dec 4, 1977.
  Of the 100, seven were crew members and 93 were passengers.
  The crowd who visited the memorial may have lessen over time, along with the pain of those who lost their loved ones in the crash, but the memories still linger.
  Abdul Latif Ahmad, 48, a businessman, was at the memorial yesterday with his wife, Bahiyah Ahmad, 46.
  Bahiyah's mother lives near to the memorial site, making it convenient for the couple to visit the site regularly.

Abdul Latif Ahmad at the Tanjung Kupang Memorial

"I was 10 at the time of the crash.  I am from Kampung Rambah in Pontian.  At that time, all the villagers rushed to the site because our former Agricultural Minister Datuk Ali Ahmad was one of the passengers," said Abdul Latif.
  Ali was the best friend of Abdul Latif's late father, Ahmad Mohd Yatim.  Ali, who was born in Kg Rambah, and much loved and respected by the villagers.
  Also on board were Public Works Department head Datuk Mahfuz Khalid, and Cuban ambassador to Japan Mario García.
  "I was too young to follow my father to the site but I heard stories about how human flesh, body parts and hair were hanging on the mangrove trees.
  "It was horrific.  And in Kebun Teh, before the residential area was fully developed, taxi drivers said they would see headless corpses in the area.
  "In the first five years after the memorial was built, the relatives flocked here.  But now that it has been 37 years since the tragedy, the number of people who come here have grown lesser," he said.
  And no, news of MH370 that went missing on March 8, had not brought the crowd back except perhaps journalists who are out for a fresh news angle.
  Abdul Latif said the younger generation may not even know about the memorial.

A tabebuia rosea tree in Taman Johor Jaya.  Pix by Mary Victoria Dass.

Keseluruhan Saya Cinta Kamu Semua

Hahahahaha!

I'm a little depressed actually.  So am in need of some loving.  

Tomorrow is April 6.  Indonesians working in Malaysia will come out to cast their votes for the 2014 Indonesian legislative election on April 9 to elect members of both national and regional legislatures.  

Tomorrow my story on the Tanjung Kupang crash is expected to come out in the New Sunday Times.  The interview brought back sad memories for the mother of one of the victims of MH653. It upset her quite a bit. My intention was never to cause her any pain. Hope she can forgive me.

Tomorrow is also Qingming Festival.  The actual day is actually today but Qingming, aka "Tomb Sweeping Day" can be observed two weeks before and after the day of the festival.  Tomorrow being a Sunday, the Chinese community, namely Taoists, is expected to be at the graveyards (even though Sunday is not a rest day in Johor).

To Taoist believers, the burning of the paper-made items and "paper money" meant that the departed will be able to receive the items in the other realms or wherever they are right now.

However, Buddhist practitioners believe differently. 

"There is a Chinese saying that ‘no possessions can be brought along to the next existence; the only thing that follows one is his deeds, or ‘karma’ ‘ ( 万般带不去，唯有业随身 ). Furthermore, his relatives and friends only follow the deceased up to the grave, but soon turn to go home, leaving the dead alone in his tomb!

Thus, the burning of cheaply-produced paper models and effigies served as an effective educational tool. Witnessing how fire consumes every ‘former possession’ of the deceased, even an illiterate peasant or young child was able to understand this sense of total relinquishment at death.

Today, this practice is completely misunderstood by the majority of Chinese. Instead of the original meaning, paper-made models have been turned into “paper offerings” – with the mistaken thought that whatever one burns, his departed relatives will obtain in the netherworld!

Hence people nowadays burn paper models of the latest i-Pads, smartphones, LED screens, and “paper money” in inflated sums in order to please the dead. All these will not help the departed ones at all. In fact, this misunderstanding will only harm the living by maintaining their ignorance and delusions.

Instead of burning “paper offerings”, one can perform ‘Dedication of Merits’ (Pāli, ‘Pattidāna’) to help their departed relatives." - source Nalanda Buddhist Society.