Kenyataan akhbar / 文告/ Press Statement Arts-ED 11 Feb 2011 & 8 Feb 2011

Kenyataan Akhbar oleh Persatuan Pendidikan Seni Pulau Pinang (Arts-ED)

11 Februari 2011

(ENGLISH PRESS STATEMENT)

(CHINESE PRESS STATEMENT 中文文告)

Risalah kami “Balik Pulau ku” (myBalikPulau) merupakan risalah berita untuk masyarakat yang diterbitkan dengan hanya satu tujuan: untuk melibatkan warga tua dan muda serta masyarakat tempatan untuk berkongsi ingatan, pengalaman dan kisah-kisah lalu dan legenda.

Arts-ED ingin menjelaskan bahawa risalah myBalikPulau TIDAK bertujuan untuk mengubah sejarah. Kami TIDAK PERNAH dan TIDAK BERNIAT untuk menjadikan risalah ini setaraf dengan buku sejarah.

Risalah ini hanya bertujuan untuk membentangkan sejarah lisan turun-temurun seperti yang diceritakan oleh penduduk tempatan di Balik Pulau. Risalah ini juga membentangkan sumber-sumber tulisan dalam terbitan buku yang dijumpai semasa kerja penyelidikan dijalankan. Informasi yang tidak dapat diperolehi pada masa tersebut jelasnya tidak dapat dibentangkan.

Sejarah lisan merupai pandangan dari individu-individu yang berminat serta sudi berkongsi cerita-cerita mereka. Dalam proses penerbitan risalah ini, langkah-langkah telah diambil untuk melibatkan ahli masyarakat dari pelbagai kaum. Ada di antara mereka yang amat berbesar-hati untuk berkongsi pengalaman, manakala ada pihak yang enggan berkongsi atau yang tanpa sebarang untuk dikongsi. Oleh itu, pengalaman dari kumpulan akhir tidak dapat dimasukkan dalam risalah ini.

Sejarah lisan merupakan refleksi ingatan, pengalaman serta cerita yang diturunkan dari generasi ke generasi. Ia merupakan artikulasi pandangan si pencerita tersebut. Arts-Ed berpegang kepada penglibatan sosial dan percaya setiap individu berhak untuk menceritakan sejarah serta pengalaman mereka dari satu generasi kepada generasi yang lain.

Sumber sejarah Balik Pulau yang digunakan dalam risalah myBalikPulau:

1. Asal-Usul Penghuni

Semasa penerbitan risalah myBalikPulau, penolong penyelidik ARTS-ED hanya menjumpai sejarah lisan yang diterbitkan oleh Pentadbiran Pejabat Daerah dan Barat Daya dan Tanah, Daerah Barat Daya.

Dalam terbitan tersebut didapati sebuah artikal bertajuk “Sejarah Penghijrahan Penduduk-Penduduk Awal Balik Pulau” oleh Ruhana Ahmad. Daripada cerita-cerita lisan yang dikutip daripada penduduk di Balik Pulau, beliau membuat rumusan yang berikutan:

“Hampir keseluruhan penduduk-penduduk asal yang ditemui di sekitar Balik Pulau mengakui  bahawa asal-usul keturunan mereka ialah dari Pattani, Satul, Yala, Kedah dan Perlis”. (pp. 14)

2. Penghijrahan/Pelarian Beramai-ramai

Informasi tentang penghijrahan beramai-ramai pada zaman 1820-an dalam risalah myBalikPulau didapati daripada sejarah yang diterbitkan di buku-buku tersebut:

i)  Haji Buyong Adil. (1980). Sejarah Kedah. Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka & Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia (pp. 53-71)

ii) Andaya, B. W. and L.Y. Andaya (1982). A History of Malaysia. London: Macmillan Press. (pp. 116-118)

3. Informasi berkenaan dengan kejadian sejarah, biografi tokoh dan bangunan dikumpul khasnya dari penduduk tempatan Balik Pulau, dan dari penerbitan yang dikeluarkan oleh institusi tertentu. 

__________________________

Baru-baru ini dalam Februari 2011, selepas penerbitan dan pengelilingan risalah myBalikPulau, Arts-ED telah diberitahu tentang sumber sejarah lisan yang baru. Arts-ED sangat berdedikasi untuk mengumpul sejarah lisan dan mengalu-alukan informasi baru dan percayai bahawa ianya patut disebar kepada orang ramai dan ditambah kepada sumber koleksi sejarah lisan.

Penerbitan tersebut ialah Vaughan, J.D. “Notes on the Malays of Pinang and Province Wellesley”. Journal of the Indian Archipelago & Eastern Asia, new series, 2, 1858: 115-175. (http://books.google.com.my)

Artikel Vaughan diterjemah dalam satu laporan kajian USM 2006 bertajuk “Sejarah Awal Pulau Pinang”,  diperolehi online (http://eprints.usm.my/4843/1/Sejarah_Awal_Pulau_Pinang.pdf)

“Dengan dasar sedemikian, permintaan untuk membuka tanah terus diterima oleh orang Melayu dan bukan Melayu. Orang Melayu yang datang bersama-sama Francis Light dari Kedah diberikan tanah percuma di kawasan Datok Keramat, mungkin kerana pengaruh Datok Setia dari Kuala Muda yang memiliki tanah di kawasan tersebut sejak awal lagi. Kapten Scott diberikan kawasan di Gelugor dan membuka tanah untuk penanaman lada hitam di kawasan tersebut. Seorang saudagar Inggeris bernama Bacon membuka Ayer Itam. Beberapa orang Melayu juga disebut membuka beberapa kampong di bahagian barat daya. Pah Kechil dari Batu Bara (Indonesia) bersama-sama Jamaluddin dan nakhoda Che Salleh dari Lingga membuka Permatang Damar Laut, Nakhoda Seedin dari Deli dan Panglima Long dari Setul membuka Teluk Kumbar, dan Lebai Tampak dari Deli membuka Balik Pulau (pp.38-39)”

Artikel asal oleh Vaughan, J.D:  

Vaughan membuat sesuatu transkripsi sejarah lisan yang diceritakan oleh anak kepada penghuni Melayu awal yang bernama Haji Mahomed Salleh atau Haji Brunie. Di dalam transkripsi awal sejarah lisan tersebut hanya terdapat satu ayat sahaja yang merujuk kepada Balik Pulau, yang menyatakan bahawa DUA orang terlibat dalam pembukaan tanah di Balik Pulau:

“The Malays that came over with Light got free grants of land and they cleared the jungle where Datu Cramat now stands. Seven years after the English came, a person name Danbie Chand cleared the land about Batu Lanchang. Two years after a Captain Scott cleared the land at Glughore; he was assisted by a man named Mahomed Prie of Sungora. Nacodah Intan cleared Batu Uban. A year after an European named Raboo(?) assisted by a Malay named Hakim Tudoh cleared Sunghie Nibong. A Malay named Loh Munu cleared Sunghie Kluang. Haji Mahomad Salleh three years after this, or about twelve after coming to Pinang, settled at Bayan Lepas with a man named Long Syed…(cont.) Nacodah Seedin, a native of Delhi, and Panglima Long of Sittool first settled at Tellok Commber. Tukong Ko of Purlis and Lebbi Tampak of Delhie, cleared Bali Pulo. (pp.174 -175)”

juga dipapar di  MERDEKA REVIEW

SURAT KEPADA PENGARANG

8 Februari 2011

Risalah kami “Balik Pulau Ku” (My Balik Pulau) telah menerima beberapa komen di akhbar akhir-akhir ini. Kami ingin menjelaskan bahawa risalah ini adalah himpunan kisah-kisah lisan dan temuramah hasil sumbangan daripada mereka yang dewasa, yang lebih berusia, dan murid-murid sekolah yang tinggal di sana. Persatuan Pendidikan Seni Pulau Pinang (Arts-Ed) juga melibatkan penyertaaan murid-murid ini dalam menghasilkan pameran-pameran serta peta-peta jejak warisan di Balik Pulau, yang telah menerima sambutan baik oleh orang ramai.

Risalah berita untuk masyarakat diterbitkan dengan satu tujuan: membolehkan kanak-kanak, orang dewasa serta sejarahwan tempatan berinteraksi, berkongsi ingatan, pengalaman dan kisah-kisah lalu dan legenda. Cerita-cerita ini terkumpul selepas beberapa tahun dan setiap kisahnya bersifat tulen pada pengalaman dan persepsi si pencerita; di samping itu, ia juga digabungi dengan maklumat tambahan yang dikumpul semak daripada sumber-sumber yang diterbitkan oleh pembantu-pembantu penyelidik Persatuan Pendidikan Seni pada masa itu.

Hasrat utama kami adalah menampilkan usaha-usaha kolektif kanak-kanak dan masyarakat setempat, tanpa sebarang tujuan menjadikan risalah ini sebagai autoritatif mengenai sejarah Balik Pulau. Sejarah menjadi salah satu tema dalam risalah ini; tema-tema lain ialah senibina, makanan dan tokoh-tokoh.

Bagaimanapun, kami menyedari bahawa format persembahan dan alih bahasa risalah telah mengakibatkan interpretasi yang berbeza, maka kami kesali sekira ianya mungkin menyentuhi sensitiviti-sensitiviti tertentu.

Kami ingin menyampaikan ucapan terima kasih kepada masyarakat Balik Pulau, pihak penaja-penaja serta penyokong-penyokong kami atas kemurahan hati dan bantuan bernilai mereka dan ingin menyakinkan mereka bahawa hala tuju kami tetap bersifat awapolitik (apolitical) dan sentiasa berhasrat membantu masyarakat melahirkan hasratnya seperti menjanakan perbincangan mengenai aset-aset atau milikan budayanya.

Menyedari tentang had-had yang terdapat pada risalah My Balik Pulau, maka pihak kami, terlebih maklum, mengalu-alukan maklum balas, sumbangan positif dan sivil demi memperkayakan arkib milikan masyarakat.

Persatuan Pendidikan Seni Pulau Pinang (ARTS-ED)

Letter to Editor by Fidel Ho, parent of an ARTS-ED's program participant

22 February 2011

I have been following closely on the news on the My Balik Pulau newsletter and I personally feel that those who brought up the issue are just trying to pull a political stunt, maybe because election is near. It is very sad that our country is made up of politicians who resort to such despicable and degrading act.

Even my 15 years old daughter asked me why is it such a big issue of a project with the pure intention to document the history of the community, by the community and for the community when there is so much controversy in our history books. Won’t the history books pollute the minds of millions of our innocent children? She even asked me a simple question, “ Does establishing who occupied the land first bring our country forward as a nation? If yes, then we are doing a great injustice to the orang asli.” A fifteen year old can understand a simple concept like this, what’s wrong with us adults?

I have written a short article about Arts-Ed entitled ‘Heboh way to unity” which was published by The Star on 3 May 2007. It was about one of the biggest program by Arts-Ed, “Heritage Heboh” which brought together children from Penang to tell the story of how Penang started. Not only did it bring together children from different races but also children from different backgrounds. There were children from normal families as well as from homes. My children learnt that not everybody is as fortunate as them and also learnt how to make friends with people from different background without hurting their feeling. The most important thing is they learnt to be more appreciative. This is the moral lesson we want our children to learn, not memorizing  the  definition of thirty six moral values from the textbook and spill it out word by word in the exam. The most comical thing my children told me about the moral exam paper is the definition must be hundred percent same with the text book if you want to score. The ironical part is it doesn’t matter whether the students understand the importance of the value. Good luck to our education system and look what is happening to our society now.

 Also I mentioned how my two children were “stranded” in a Malay friend’s party whom they got to know from Arts-Ed. They were the only Chinese there and most of the guests were pakciks and makciks. When they told us about it over the phone, our immediate reaction was to ask them whether they wanted to leave immediately. We were spendidly surprised when they said no as the pakciks and makciks were so nice to them and they were enjoying the party. I felt like the luckiest and proudest mother at that moment.  Frankly even for us adults, we would want to “cabut” if we were in a room full of strangers not only not our kind but many times not our age.

I am forever grateful to Arts-Ed especially the founder Janet for helping to shape my two lovely children into teenagers who are colour blind as far as race is concerned.  They actually have a “love-hate” relationship with her. They hate her when they get scolded by her during the training but end of the day they love her for learning so much from her. Her style of teaching is so different from school. She gave space to the children to explore themselves. My children joined many camps but none can create such an impact. In fact my son’s exact words recently,” If not for Arts-Ed, I would still be a typical “kiasu” and “kiasi” Chinese nerd who doesn’t bother to have friends from other races.”  Thanks to Arts-Ed, he has transformed from an introvert to a cheerful, caring, daring boy who always makes me laugh until I cry and cry until I laugh. He is now actively involved in his university’s activities and enjoying every minute of it.

The first time I sent my children to Arts-Ed camp was in 2005.  I still remember how they refused to get out of the car when we reached the place. After much persuasion they finally went in. When we went to pick them up later, my husband and I were surprised as both of them were busy chattering about the camp, new friends they made and how they look forward to the next session.  The whole of the following week, all they talked about was the camp. On the day of the next session, they got ready without my usual nagging and made us go there early. We met the organizers, coordinators and facilitators. They were from all races, all ages and most of them were volunteers. Even though they were not paid or paid a minimal amount, they were very passionate about their jobs. They made the children felt at ease especially the younger ones. I can still remember my daughter was so attached to a Malay and an Indian facilitator even though she couldn’t speak much Malay or English yet. I was so impressed with how Arts-Ed runs their programs until I became one of their volunteers and later a part-time employee. They promote racial integration by indirectly making them feel less conscious about their race but more of a Malaysian or rather a Penangite. That is the true 1 Malaysia spirit and it works. Children learnt indirectly how to respect others regardless of their religion and race and they learn to accept and understand that people are different.  Of course there were occasions whereby the children would argue over something  but it was never over anything racial.  Furthermore their programs were all very interesting and most of them were free.

After becoming their volunteer, only I realized how the organization runs on a skeleton staff and budget. One can imagine the challenging and daunting task of getting sponsors, planning and organizing. As a mother, I can imagine the challenges of dealing with so many children especially the hyperactive ones.

To say Arts-Ed is a racist organization is sheer nonsense. Those who make police report s against the newsletter are people who have nothing better to do or rather they think the police have nothing better to do. Police should be doing what they are supposed to do which is primarily taking care of the safety of the citizens. But thanks and no thanks to a certain group of ignorant people, they have to spend their time handling all this time wasting and no value add cases. Worst still, it creates disharmony among the people. I wonder what is their real objective. One just need to get feedback from those especially the Malays who have participated in the program  or those who have worked with Arts-Ed to find out  what Arts-Ed is all about and all the great job they have done for the community.

I personally feel we need organization like Arts-Ed to revamp our education system. Once again I would like to thank Arts-Ed for being there and doing what they are doing . Please do not  quit because of some ruthless politicians. Hang in there. You are one of the genuine NGOs that really care about the community and the future of our children. The truth will prevail.

Fidel Ho 

Stories from the People: ARTS-ED by Suzy Sulaiman

Feb 22 2011 by Suzy Sulaiman

http://www.suzysulaiman.webs.com/

When I received news from fellow artists about the plight with Arts Ed's MybalikPulau newsletter, I knew I had to say my two cents before the matter became further distorted by political figures solely out to for their own image and popularity.

My working experience with Arts Ed came through an invitation to work on a collaboration between my research team and their organization. This was to produce a heritage architecture trail brochure. It was designed as a brochure for tourists that gives information about heritage architecture within a section of George Town.

In 2008, my team spent two weeks in Penang; as we are KL-based; to work on the production of a prototype version of the brochure. We were introduced to the neighborhood and were also equipped of basic research skills of conducing interviews by Arts Ed. Arts-Ed arranged for graphic designers, testers and even a heritage architect; to come over and discuss my team’s proposal. They came across as very dedicated, driven and hard-working individuals. It was a fantastic learning experience for the team and I as we got to work closely with the local communities and hear the `untold’ stories of the people.

Above: Drawings produced by my research team about the neighborhood architecture in George Town. (Picture Credits: Author)

What I can summarize from Arts-Ed’s initiative is historical empowerment through community engagement. Children and youths are trained to be gate-keepers of their own heritage as they learn the methods of conducting research. We want to make everyone feel that their stories matter. No person exists in a vacuum and their foot paths can be traced back to a certain beginning. Every voice adds to the collection of our oral heritage.

All great and robust cities are cosmopolitan. They consist of a population from different races, religions and languages. And everyone matters, because it is in their differences that create symbiotic relationships crucial for economic survival. It is high-time that we acknowledge every groups of people; especially those who had migrate to Malaya in search of better opportunities because they have helped build this country in some small way. From the colonial master's gardener to the colonial master himself; must be brought forward. Strength in unity through diversity; is what I feel Arts Ed is about.

It is very disheartening to know that the works of Arts-Ed; that champions educational empowerment through artistic endeavors; is being portrayed so negatively in the recent turn of events. All of their sleepless nights, toil, sweat and tears are going down the drain simply because ruthless parties want to manipulate this into an issue to get political leverage. To those irresponsible parties; I suggest that instead of bickering and burning a newsletter; why not focus on more constructive efforts like better quality education or basic amenities for Balik Pulau?

Suzy Sulaiman holds a diploma in Architecture and masters in Digital Media from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM). In 2005, she founded a designers' collaborative known as `Responsible Community Architecture + People (re-cap.org) that is dedicated towards community-building through new media and architecture.She has lead research  projects for private and non-government organizations like Rapid Penang, Arts Ed., Anak-Anak Kota and the Heritage Trust of Malaysia. Suzy also lectures extensively in subject of architecture, culture and theory.