PAS Cannot 'Mentuakan' Our Current Youths With Such Hoo Haa

The Malaysian Insider - Beyonce Stirs Islamist Ire Again

PAS wants US pop star Beyonce (picture) to cancel a planned concert here, two years after it prevented the singer from performing, citing moral issues.

Foreign acts often draw protests by PAS, whose youth wing succeeded in forcing Beyonce to cancel a 2007 concert and sought last year to prevent Canadian singer Avril Lavigne from performing in this mainly Muslim country of 27 million people.

"We are against western entertainment that promotes hedonism. We do not want our youth to be misled," said Ahmad Sabki, vice-president of PAS Youth, was quoted as saying in today's New Straits Times newspaper.

Malaysia's image as a moderate Muslim country has been hit by the recent sentencing to caning of a woman caught drinking beer.

Beyonce is due to perform here on Oct 25 for the first time, if she is allowed, as part of a global tour, the newspaper said.

Earlier this month, Malaysia initially banned Muslims from attending a concert by US hip-hop band The Black Eyed Peas, which was sponsored by Guinness, one of the brands owned by the world's biggest spirits group Diageo.

The ban was reversed, but a senior official said it was up to the individual's "better judgment" to attend the event.

PAS conservatism on cultural issues has caused problems for the three-member opposition alliance of which it is a part, said Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, a former law minister who is now a senior opposition politician.

"It is as if for PAS Youth, the effort to fight corruption, abuse of power and inciting racism is less important compared to the efforts to make sure the young who are just learning to love and wish to be entertained freely are obstructed from enjoying a little freedom," Zaid wrote on his website. — Reuters

I attended a forum a few months ago with one of the guest speakers was Hishamuddin Rais who gave some insights about youth that I felt that it should be enjoyed of. The space of the second 20 years of a person's life should be the time where people should enjoy things that they can never get to do in the first 20 years of a man's life.

Remember that youth comes only once and it cannot be revisited physically after we reach above 40. That is why this is the time where people get to do the best at their age.

There's one thing I was critical of PAS is that each time when a famous performer that everyone loves, like Gwen Stefani or Rihanna comes, the ho ha ho ha always comes from the PAS Youth. The one main fact that is to be learned from this debacle here is that PAS cannot 'mempertuakan' the youngsters. In translation, you cannot make a youngster behave like an old elderly person.

Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet presents us the idea that you cannot force the youngsters to behave exactly like an old person, evident at the end when the family at both sides regretted that their actions have sent the lovers to their deaths. In the Sicilian poem, The Baroness of Carini, the father paid the price of sins when he killed the fair skinned daughter in rage because she had an affair with her cousin. These are the examples that demonstrate that youths today has to be given the chance of freedom.

Youngsters nowadays would winning to spend the money to watch concerts, or meet up with their favorite celebrities that comes to town rather than listening to those monodrum speeches from leaders unless it is part of a ceremony or event that they are involved. And if there concert is held in Singapore instead it is Malaysia that stands to lose as they have lost a golden opportunity to promote tourism.

Out of 100 youths, the majority doesn't give a damn about appearances, costumes. The only thing that matters to them is that they enjoyed the show.

Many of us at my age spent money to go up to Genting to watch Michael Learns to Rock concert at the beginning of the month. If the thing is instead played at the National Stadium, many more would throng to there, like the Manchester United tour. And there's no way that PAS can stop that because there are many people would shout and boo at them if the relevant parties bowed to their pressure.

The opposite of the cool definition, is being square, confining ourselves in a boundary, being a nerd all the time and don't even know the niceties and happiness outside at all.

So the one message is clear that PAS cannot mentuakan the youths.