Live & Learn

Cars, cars, and more cars. We love our cars—we’re Malaysians after all. While our public transport sector is being developed to address issues related to the negative effects of cars, like pollution and traffic congestion, most of us still drive a car. Let’s face it, Malaysia’s a hot place and this is in part no thanks to the climate crisis, and how cities like KL, from a design standpoint, don’t do enough to make it conducive for pedestrians to get around in this hot weather. So I thought I’d look at ways we can better cool down our cities through smart design and planning, with Serina Hijjas from Hijjas Architects and Planners, and GRA Architects’ Boon Che Wee.

Article 43 of the Federal Constitution does not indicate that the Prime Minister of Malaysia has to be of a particular race (or gender). Why then is there a misconception that only a Malay can head the government of Malaysia? On the 8th and final episode of What if Malaysia, historian Dr Dayana and  anthropologist Kamal Solhaimi, both from University Malaya, join us to explore what Malaysia could look like with a non-Malay Prime Minister and if the country is ready for one.

Other episodes of the miniseries:

> What if Malaysia… Has a Woman Prime Minister #1

> What if Malaysia... Decriminalised All Drugs For Personal Use #2

> What if Malaysia... Has Freedom of Speech Like the US #3

> What if Malaysia… Legalises Abortion (On-Demand)? #4

> What if Malaysia… Legalises Sex Work? #5

> What if Malaysia… Abolishes the Death Penalty? #6

> What if Malaysia… Ratified the UN Refugee Convention? #7

Image source: Maria Chin Abdullah's Facebook Page, Gobind Singh's Official Twitter Page

In the paper, Economic Cost of Youth Suicide Malaysia, Relate Malaysia found that, for every youth suicide in 2019, the Malaysian economy lost RM676,165. Dr Chua Sook Ning – clinical psychologist and founder of Relate Malaysia – said the shocking figures should serve as a wake-up call to the Malaysian Government to invest more in youth mental health, including effective suicide prevention strategies. On this episode of Live & Learn, we dissect this study with Dr Chua Sook Ning, and discuss what the country should do moving forward. 

Image Source: Shutterstock

After years of working as a pastry chef, George Fernandez was unexpectedly made redundant, and forced to resign from his job last year, as a result of the pandemic. Saddened but not defeated, he continued to put his culinary skills to good use by cooking and distributing food to the homeless in Kuala Lumpur, despite his own struggles. He soon bounced back with an online baking business on Facebook - Uncle George Bakes - and a percentage of his profits still goes towards feeding the homeless. In conjunction with the International Day of Happiness, we speak to George and his niece Elvina Fernandez, about both the business of baking and giving back, and showcase how they exemplify this year's theme to "Keep Calm. Stay Wise. Be Kind."

In 2016, Malaysian Beh Chew Boo was arrested in Singapore for allegedly attempting to carry 499.97g of meth across the causeway. He was sentenced to death in January last year (2020) by the Singapore High Court. In an unprecedented turn of events, the 38-year-old managed to escape the noose when he was acquitted by the Court of Appeal in October 2020. 

On this episode of Live & Learn, we’re joined by the lawyer Wong Siew Hong, who represented Chew Boo throughout this ordeal, to discuss the details of the case, as well as share his thoughts on the drug laws in Singapore.

Image source: Pixbay

Over the past year, the Malaysian government has been criticised by various human rights organisations, for its treatment of refugees and undocumented migrants. However, the hard truth is, Malaysia is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention (which defines who a refugee is, and sets out the rights of individuals who are granted asylum and the responsibilities of nations that grant asylum) and so it becomes difficult to hold our governments accountable. But what if we do sign the 1951 Refugee Convention. What would change? How will it benefit our country? On this episode, Katrina Jorene Maliamauv and Aslam Abd Jalil join us on the show to discuss.

Other episodes of the miniseries:

> What if Malaysia… Has a Woman Prime Minister #1

> What if Malaysia... Decriminalised All Drugs For Personal Use #2

> What if Malaysia... Has Freedom of Speech Like the US #3

> What if Malaysia… Legalises Abortion (On-Demand)? #4

> What if Malaysia… Legalises Sex Work? #5

> What if Malaysia… Abolishes the Death Penalty? #6

> What if Malaysia… Has a Non-Malay Prime Minister #8

Image Source: Shutterstock

In the span of a month, Kuala Langat MP YB Xavier Jayakumar is the third PKR MP to leave his party and support Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin's government. While opposition lawmakers are accusing Perikatan Nasional of buying over MPs to bolster their parliamentary majority, Malaysians are also wondering whether Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is to blame for the defections, and whether talks of internal party rifts could spur more defections. We speak with PKR's Fahmi Fadzil to get a clearer picture of what's happening inside the party—and where it's heading.

Image source: Shutterstock

Siti Aishah Hassan Hasri founded Soroptimist Puberty Organising Toolkit (SPOT) in 2015 to help parents and teachers talk to children about sex and sexuality, tackle child sexual abuse, and raise awareness on safe sex practices. She’s also working with other women to tackle the shame and stigma that young girls face when it comes to talking about and navigating their periods. We speak with Aishah to understand how she’s changing the conversation, and supporting young girls to care for their sexual health and understand their bodies.

Image source: Shutterstock

Despite the events of Langkah Sheraton which caused the downfall of Pakatan Harapan, the new Perikatan Nasional government led by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, enjoyed decent support from the masses during its early days, particularly for its handling of COVID-19 during the first MCO. But a lot has happened since -- the Sabah state elections which caused a new wave of the virus, economic instability, a spike in domestic violence cases, an rise in school dropouts, etc. 

How did the Perikatan Nasional government deal with these challenges? And what would former ministers who are currently in opposition do differently? We discuss all this and more with YB Hannah Yeoh, YB Syed Saddiq, and Aira Azhari, Manager of the Democracy and Governance Unit at IDEAS.

Image Source: Hannah Yeoh's Facebook, Syed Saddiq's Facebook

What If Malaysia is an 8 episode miniseries where we explore what Malaysia could look like with certain progressive ideas, concepts and policies. 

“Every day, people are executed and sentenced to death by the state as punishment for a variety of crimes – sometimes for acts that should not be criminalized. In some countries, it can be for drug-related offences. Some countries execute people who are under 18 years old when the crime was committed, others use the death penalty against people with mental and intellectual disabilities and several others apply the death penalty after unfair trials – in clear violation of international law and standards.” - Amnesty International

Malaysia is one of the countries that is yet to abolish the death penalty. On this episode of What if Malaysia, Sangeet Deo, joins us to explore what Malaysia could look like if the death penalty was abolished.

Other episodes of the miniseries:

> What if Malaysia… Has a Woman Prime Minister #1

> What if Malaysia... Decriminalised All Drugs For Personal Use #2

> What if Malaysia... Has Freedom of Speech Like the US #3

> What if Malaysia… Legalises Abortion (On-Demand)? #4

> What if Malaysia… Legalises Sex Work? #5

> What if Malaysia… Ratified the UN Refugee Convention? #7

> What if Malaysia… Has a Non-Malay Prime Minister #8

Image source: Shutterstock