"MERDEKA" has different values and meanings for every Malay-sian. For the previous generation, which went through the colonial era, "Merdeka" meant freedom and liberation from the grip of colonialism.
What about those who were born decades after independence? Does independence have the same meaning for them?
In the book Genta Telah Berbunyi (The Bell Has Sounded) by Raja Ahmad Aminullah, the part that intrigued me the most is on building "jiwa merdeka" (an "independent soul") among youth. Analysing the meaning of Merdeka 65 years after Malaya gained independence is an important question that's worth thinking about.
"Independent soul" is not a newly established expression or narrative. It has existed since the 1950s, uttered by a patriot and nationalist figure, Dr Burhanuddin Al-Helmy.
"Jiwa merdeka" has also been discussed by the first National Laureate, Datuk Usman Awang, in his poem, Jiwa Hamba.
Their ideas and works are incredibly relevant and significant in answering questions about the formation of a nation-state.
The "independent soul" has been commonly misinterpreted as a free soul that is without a direction, mixes freely, is not dominated and doesn't choose anarchy. In reality, it is an ultimate goal to achieve by educating and shaping young people to become resilient leaders who stand firm and are not easily dictated, but still celebrate similarities and respect differences.
The key to the success of this roadmap is reforming education, whether at the formal or informal level. It's about time our youth identified what more can be improved in our education system. Indeed, we have one of the best education systems in the region. A few of our universities are among the top in the region and in the world rankings. It is somewhat frustrating when a recent news report says that 72.1 per cent of students are reluctant to continue their studies after Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia.
Pendeta Za'ba spoke about the importance of making our nation and people smart. This task rests on the shoulders of educators, that is, teachers, lecturers and parents. Universities should be an open field of discussion for finding similarities and working over differences through discussions, debates, forums and book reviews.
An academic's "character" and "charisma" are also important factors in making a subject interesting and "meaningful". One of the ways is to encourage critical dialogues with the students and take real-world case studies as examples.
The situation post-2018 has shown how student activism has improved through the re-establishment of student unions. This is necessary in giving greater autonomy to students to lead their own groups and be actively involved in the decision-making process at the university level.
Student unions play a vital role in representing students' voices on national issues, especially those involving their interests.
Next is reading and writing, two powerful mantras in the knowledge-seeking process. They are crucial in broadening youth's horizons in understanding issues.
Works by critical thinkers like Za'ba, Hamka, Syed Naquib al-Attas, Syed Hussein Alatas, Royal Professor Ungku Aziz, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Muhammed Abd Khalid highly facilitate the process of "self-criticism" and "self-reflection". These two elements are vital in planting an "independent soul" among youth.
We should never belittle the power of youth. History has recorded how the youth initiated "reformasi" in Indonesia and how the youth toppled an iron-fist president in Tunisia and a few other governments during the Arab Spring.
In the 1960s, Malaysia's youth were also vocal towards the government over socio-economic problems facing the people, resulting in the implementation of the University and University Colleges Act 1971.
Now, the media has been greatly helping the youth in their advocacy, protest and public education activities on numerous issues, such as corruption, the minimum wage and the price of goods.
The youth are the nation's hope and future. Issues concerning them require a close synergy via the whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.
Our youth have the potential to transform current systems in a variety of ways.
Our ultimate goal is to create a resilient and truly "Merdeka" nation in which people can recognise their own limitations and open their minds to accept different perspectives on how to improve themselves so that those limitations can one day become their strengths.
The writer is assistant director at Centre for Political Studies and Economic Diplomacy, Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations Malaysia
