A Walk in Penang

Penang is not a walkable city. Pavements are not well maintained and often aren't there aren't at all. The shoulder of the road is narrow and the safest route between two points inevitable requires crossing the street several times. That being said this morning I decided to walk to the bus station to see if I could book at ticket to visit a friend for Hari Raya. Along the way I was surprised to see two cows by the side of the road (I have walked this route several times, but this is this first time I have seen livestock)

On the way back I stopped at an SPCA charity food fair. I wish that I hadn't stopped for a roti canai on the first leg of my trek, the amount and variety of food seemed endless. It was hot outside (88F) and felt hotter inside.Once I saw the "South Pole" t-shirt I felt cooler. We had a short chat. I learned that the Chinese prefer dogs (I had been told that dogs are primarily kept for protection. The dogs I saw seemed too pampered for guard duty). I have noticed that I have never seen anyone walking a dog. Apparently, dogs are restricted because Muslims consider them unclean. Malays own cats and Indians own dog and cats.

I decided to wait for the dog show. In the meantime I spent RM2 on the "lucky draw." One draws a number out of a bag and gets the item with the number - I got a can of longans, not a bad return on investment. The SPCA president started the programs. He pointed out that the SPCA receives no government support. With the change of government the SPCA hopes that the government will help it getland for a new/larger shelter. (Penangites voted in a new state government in March - optimism abounds, although most of the time I hear more about what people hope will happen once the country has a new government.)

The dog show was sponsored by the Dog Agility Association (which I have learned from Colin is the equivalent of Gymboree for Dogs). People were crowding around the dogs. Every picture I took was a dog lost in a sea of legs, so you will have to imagine a small yappy dog. There were a few big beautiful dogs but they were even harder to photograph.

As I walked back to USM I spotted the banner. I have no idea of what it is referring to but overdevelopment is a pretty common topic after race and the need for a new government. BTW - the bus route was sold out so I am Penang for the week.

Back to US Politics

Friday night during Channel surfing I was totally surprised to find that TV in my room gets CNN (a new addition). Channel 2, where I get my a.m. English news, now has a clear picture. (On Fridays I often watch an English-language comedy (?) cum talk show - it was awhile before I realized it was on a different channel)

I waited in my room on Saturday morning for the debate to start, but I guess CNN-Global wasn't showing it. I headed for my office (a 5 minute) walk and tried every gateway to web streaming I could think of. I had lousy luck (For the democratic convention I got in via CBS news). To my great consternation FOX news did the trick. Needless to say I didn't stick around for the commentary. (FYI - the university blocks U-Tube, radio streaming, and I don't know what else. I was told that this is to keep the system from being overwhelmed. At least one colleague attributed the block to less noble motives.)

When I returned to the Guest House my absentee ballot was waiting. I need to two witnesses - to verify that I am the one voting (filling in the circles). It is intriguing to think who might serve as witnesses. There are plenty of Obama supporters around (some are more up-to-date on day to day election happenings than I), and there are international students from countries where the US has tense relations. Before I vote I will check with my US colleagues for their opinions on the judicial races (the long ballot is challenging for someone who is trying to be informed)

What I learned yesterday

Last week Lina told me that a 50 or above was passing. I was astonished so I asked at lunch today. It seems that 80 and above is an A and a 79 is an A-. My students must be ecstatic at their homework grades. On Monday after the holidays I will get a list of point equivalants and adjust my later grading.

I spent most of yesterday with a social work colleague. She was instrumental in founding/revitalizing St Joseph School in Penang. The school takes in street children and other children who have experienced neglect or abuse. The children go to school during the day and then come back to the St Joseph to play, study, eat and live.

She wasn't aware of social service NGOs collaborating. They may work together on event, but these are ad hoc, short term projects. The NGOs do make referrals to one another and share some physical resources.

I had already heard that(1) small, economically fragile NGOs didn't have the energy or inclination to collaborate, (2) Asians don't do well at negotiation which serves as a disincentive to collaboration, (3) Malaysian NGOs lack leaders who can design/motivate a collaboration. In this conversation I learned about how race/religion acts as a barrier. Penang has several children's homes, including a Muslim/Malay home, St Joseph's (non-Malay b/c it is non-halaal), a Hindu home, and a Buddhist home. So inter-group activities tend to be minimal because of different races/religious/languages and foods. Of course, all the groups compete for funds.

We talked a bit about workshops, but they don't ask participants to develop a plan before the workshop is over. In addition the workshops are in English. Apparently benefiting from workshops is a struggle b/c of language skills (both with English and conceptually). Then if people learn something there are still challenges in implementing their new ideas. (Sound familiar?)

Research inch by inch

Last week a colleague told me that doing research in Malaysia was a very humbling experience. He put it exactly right. So far I have met very interesting, dedicated people who work in NGOs, but other than that not much to show. On Monday after class (10 pm) I met with Befrienders, who run a hotline. We had an interesting conversation - I learned that middle class problems/issues are probably the same everywhere. (Specifically we talked about the calls they get about relationships and stressed out over-acheiving kids.) Alas, they do no collaboration.

Yesterday I sent out two requests to leading human rights organizations - nothing yet. (Malaysian NGOs don't seem compulsive about opening their e-mails - a great trait from an efficiency stand point but lousy for a researcher) Currently human rights groups are seriously distracted by the current political situation. (A blogger is being detained for religious education/re-education(?) which seems creepy.)

Today I contacted about 1/3 of the members of the Malaysian AIDS Council - the good news is that the Dean wrote my cover letter. I'll finish those off tomorrow (at least the ones I can e-mail). Then next week is Hari Raya - so the campus pretty much closes down and the country might too. I'll check the bus schedules & ticket availability; perhaps I'll visit a Malay friend for the holiday (Festive Season)

Back to the research - there is the ever present issue of race.The survey has the USM letterhead. One potential respondent pointed out that his group did not like USM (an issue related to racial quotas and getting into universities). Another person read my cover letter and balked when she saw the name of a "bumi" (which refers to a Malay). I then heard a long, and familiar, discourse about the access of Malays to various privileges. Some else ready my cover letter and thought that I should down play my role, b/c I am a "foreigner." So there you have a vivid example that you can't please all the people all the time.

Culture Shocks

Culture Shock I - Where are note cards

On Friday I was saddened to learn that the young son of a colleague at North Carolina State had lost his long and courageous battle with cancer. Sending an e-mail seemed too cold, and all I have is lined notebook paper. The shops near campus had lots of Ramandham and Deepavali (the local spelling) cards and the unusually schmaltzy assortment of greeting cards. So I headed for the nearest mall sure that I could easily find note cards or blank cards - no luck. On the way back I stopped at Tesco and found cards labeled "blank cards." Alas, the outside had messages like "happy birthday" and "congratulations."

Culture Shock II - Paid to talk to students

The students in my class have limited exposure to the actual practice of public administration or policy analysis. In July I made inquiries about having someone local (the state government is here) speak to my class about how policy analysis is used in Malaysia. Last week I received an e-mail from my potential middle man asking who was going to pay the guest speaker. Apparently, there isn't a culture of civil servants (and I assume NGO staff) of talking about their work to students. Colleagues confirmed that speakers routinely expected to be receive some financial remuneration and transportation - both out of my league. On the surface it seems like a missed opportunity for all, but from my limited pointed of view there seems to be a wide gulf between the universities and civil service.

Culture Shock III - When do people sleep?

I resisted a student suggestion that I hold class between 8 - 10 p.m. during Ramandham. I can't imagine teaching beyond 9. Yesterday I received an e-mail from a NGO staff member suggesting that I meet with them at 10 p.m. I am not sure if it is Malaysian or tropical for how late things start. I assumed that the after 8:30 p.m. dinner invitations were scheduled for after prayers, but then there were the Independence Day fireworks at midnight. I guess that I am not cut out for this part of Malaysian life.

No such thing as a free lunch

Last night I went out with my Chinese dialect group contacts. We went to a noodle shop where we watched the noodles being made. The flat round pastry is for the dumplings - so you get to see how the dumpling began and ended (they were really good). The noodle-making was a longer, more strenuous process. The dough was pounded, kneaded, tossed into the air. Eventually the strings appeared. This was all done by hand with no implements. The noodle soup was very filling and I couldn't get close to finishing it. I felt guilty that I was under-appreciating all the work involved.

The title of this entry is a bit ungrateful and was largely done to be catchy. I finished an article on collaboration over a week ago - and it has proved helpful in explaining my study. I am now working on one on American NGOs. I promised to have it done by Friday. After struggling on how to organize the article I decided to focus on nonprofit - government relations. I am simply summarizing tax exemptions, filing requirements, lobbying and the like, and letting the reader compare. The internet (especially the IRS website) makes it easy for any reader to access more than enough details to satisfy their curiousity. (Tan who is translating my questionnaire is involved with the Chinese schools. We have had lots of discussions on US NGO membership, fund raising, and other familiar issues) .

Yesterday Anwar Ibrahim announced that he enough MPs were willing to cross-over so he could start a new government. The effort seems stalled today. Today is a public holiday and who knows what is unfolding behind the scenes. I frequently hear admiration for the American two-party system. Which brings me back to the above paragraph - the amount of transparency. Of course there is the issue of the present administration's lack of transparency, but under the circumstances it seems better to focus on what is working. After all both countries share a lot of what isn't working.

Head to Head with a God

When I first went to Bali (1971) a joined a group that was led into the jungle, stood on a platform, and for the next two hours watched a frenzy that built into men walking on coals. I was reminded of that last night when Tan, the man who does my laundry, invited me to his temple. He had told me several times about what would happen, but the whole concept was so unfamiliar I wasn't prepared and even now can't put all the pieces together.

As we drove to the temple he talked about people who die before their time (mostly, if not exclusively, suicides) and wander as ghosts. The offering of food and money are meant to sustain them as they wander. That was the end of the tale and did not seem to directly have to do with events at the temple. (I believe that it was his understanding of the Hungry Ghosts)

When we got to the temple Tan pointed out that the pillars were beer and glass wine bottles. In the first room there was an image of a Taiwenese god - apparently dead for over 100 years. So far nothing very strange.

In the next room there as a bare-chested man in deep conversation with a woman. I was told that he was a medium who was channelling a god - a god who speaks Mandarin. I was urged to take pictures, had a bit of food, and sat with Rattu (who I had invited along) and took in the scene. There were about 70 people sitting around and in casual conversations. The medium was quite ruddy and his consultations involved a far amount of theatrics - yelps and banging a large knife on the table. Close to him was an assistant, who mixed herbs to cure various complaints.

Soon I was face to face with the medium. He offered to cut his tongue and asked me how much blood I wanted him to spill on my hand. I said "sedikit" (very little) - his words were translated as "very little, go on home." He offered to spill at least a 100 drops. He cut his tongue and my hands were covered with blood. I kept my eyes closed as much as possible - having little taste for the sight of blood. I shared a bit of whiskey - I had one swallow - I forgot to check the brand, but it wasn't rot gut. The ruddy complextion - blood.

I was urged to ask a question - so I decided on the US election - Obama should be happy, but I am not sure that the word of a medium is too reassuring. BTW - his day job - a car salesman! I didn't see any evidence of money changing hands - so being possessed doesn't seem to bring wealth.

Earlier as I walked around the temple Tan showed me pictures of other people he had taken to the temple - clearly people who had an easier time getting with the program than I did.

NGOs - The advantage of powerful connections

On Thursday I met with the Executive Director of Panyayang http://www.penyayang.org.my/ This foundation was set up by the late first lady who died of cancer. Since I am studying collaborations our conversation focused on who collaborates with Panyayang and why. The bottom line is that corporations seek relationships with Panyayang to gain access/face-time with the Prime Minister. (Panyayang can produce the PM for its events.) Consequently, Panyayang vets its collaborators carefully and works with the same people time after time. Our conversation didn't seem very different than learning why people join symphony and similar boards - although they are more interested in meeting the corporate leaders than political leaders.

Panyayang does a lot of campus events - to involve the students in charity or to enhance inter-racial relations. At least one of their corporate collaborators helps with bringing in entertainment to reve up the students. One of the first lady's interests was batik so the foundation sponsors a major (as in large cash awards) batik design award.

I asked about what would happen if the government changes (after 51 years it is only now an imaginable possibility). I learned that all PMs set up their own foundations upon taking office. Panyayang would probably survive, but the amount of money would be reduced.

On to political news - yesterday three people were arrested under the Internal Security Act - a blogger with Malaysia Today (an on-line newspaper), a state assembly woman, and a journalist (Chinese-language newpaper). The why now question probably has to do with the August 26 by-election and the predicted (threatened?) change of government on 16 September. I gather there is widespread sentiment should change but far less agreement onwhen and how. For further details such as they are here is a start http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7612845.stm

Stateless in Malaysia

Thanks to Bogordoug I have edited the URL's (I pasted them - I don't know how stray punctuation occurred. See comment 3 for information on how to access community center study

On Wednesday I visited with ERA Consumer Malaysia (Education & Research for Consumers Malaysia). To see how broadly consumerism is defined in Malaysia visit to its website http://www.eraconsumer.org/
(A factoid - one of the founders of the Consumers Association of Penang, the grandfather of Malaysian Consumer groups, was inspired by Ralph Nader.)

The first group I met (6 persons including 3 interns) were the fund raisers, who follow up on contacts made by the organization's president. Two people work on interpreting/analyzing international standards- we chatted about the ISO 9000 complaint cemetery in Sarawak (seemed as odd to them as to me) and ISO 9000 restaurants in London (I was told that it meant safety standards were adhered to, not that every item would taste the same each time & place). The consumer-oriented NGOs in Malaysia would provide an interesting research opportunity - plus their staff are smart, friendly, and accessible - alas it isn't where my research is headed.

I had a long conversation with the Program Director about two initiatives - Community Centers to Empower Indian Women in Malaysia and ERA Consumer's participation in a network to hold Asian governments accountable for their human rights. The latter group recently issued a report which can be found at http://www.forum-asia.org/in_the_news/pdfs/ANNI2008web.pdf Things may have loosened up here. A critical report has yet to result in adverse personal outcomes (detention). All conversations with NGOs end up with some sort of assessments of the political situation (past, current, and future).

First a bit of history and then on to statelessness. When rubber plantations are sold to developers the plantation workers (rubber tappers) are relocated to the equivalent of public housing (with the usual leakage so many end up as squatters rather in public housing). The outcomes are familiar to anyone with a little knowledge of public housing - break up of social networks/support systems, moving from an outdoor rural community to an apartment (one of the complaints mentioned was dealing with stairs), and all the expected social problems. Both the men and women lack marketable skills, but women were seen as the brunt of the expected social problems. (Plus one assumes that funding to empower women may have been more available.) BTW - the rubber tappers are Indians - and it was the Indian community that got the ball rolling by demonstrating against the present government

ERA Consumer, with funding from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (Germany) and the European Union, opened up community centers to empower the women. The centre programs focus on enhancing the women's earning capacities, their physical and mental health, legal support, and family and community support. To enhance earning capacity aim participants learn skills to set up their own businesses, for example some women assembled small packages of peanuts to sell outside schools. (Of course, the women were taught to assemble safe/healthy packets). At the pictured community center I saw the crafts the women had made- small baskets woven from recycled magazines and decorative pillows. The next step is for the women to market their products - deciding how to market their products and marketing them is seen as an important part of empowering them. The focus is improving their lives and their communities step by step.

On to statelessness - in Malaysia every citizen has an identify card. It seems to be needed for most things, e.g., to take important examinations or get a job. The rubber plantations, as private property, were considered outside government control. Major events, such as births, were not registered. Now that people have moved from the plantations they need ID cards to work, but they can't because their births were not registered. So what to do? A person needs to find someone who witnesses his/her birth - a challenge when people may be 40 years old; plus the community has dispersed to who knows where. EraConsumer works with each individual on a case-by-case basis. The paper work, which is intimidating, may vary from state to state. I was incredulous throughout the entire conversation about the tappers and their new lives. The lack of an identify care was amazing as was the failure to develop "class action" to address the problem.

FYI - the European funding has ended by ERAConsumer has commitment to continuing the community centers for 15 more years. I found a publication describing the centers "Community Centres for the Empowerment of Indian Women in Malaysia" on the web - but no information on how to access it.

Ramandham

Yesterday I made it to the Ramandham Market near campus. To my western eyes it did not compare with a German Christmas market - perhaps it was the absence of beer, wine, and boisterous Germans. I understand that special foods made/cooked only during Ramandham were there, but without a guide I had no idea. Overall it was the usual collection of stalls, so no photo. (I have made e a mental note to get a picture of stalls they are an obequous presence here.)

Tonight I have class from 6:30 to about 9:00. Two or three weeks ago someone in the class suggested that we change the time from 8:00 to 10:00. I balked. I assured them that they would have a long break to break fast and pray. Now I feel a little bad - apparently the convention is to start class sometime between 8 and 8:15. I asked one of the econ profs today what he did and he said that he goes from 8:00 - 11:00. Actually the class looks close to brain dead by 9:00 and I hate to assess my performance as the night wears one.

The campus is relatively quiet. About 7:00 a crowd appears at the mosque to break fast together - during the day the campus is missingthe large groups of people headed out to eat. On Friday offices close from 12:15-2:45 for lunch and prayer. Naive me, since it was fasting month I figured that the offices wouldn't be closed as long. They were - I was told that the substitute for lunch is shopping.

Seasons?

Today I noticed a change in fruit at the fruit stand. Gone were the rambutans, mangosteens, and durian. July and August were mentioned as "fruit season." Since I have only been in Asia in July I never thought about the seasonality of fruits. This leds me to think about rainy season. I just googled "rainy season Penang" and found that it starts in November. Not exactly a source of comfort since we have had steady rain today with intermittent periods of downpours. I made it to the bus station today to get my tickets to KL. Checking out the Ramadham market will have to wait.

Same promotiions everywhere

The USM campus is filled with construction projects. I was amused to see the following very familar sign, albeit no mention of what politicians/referendum moved the project forward. Also no completion date.

A race to the top

Any readers in academia will find that yesterday's events here have a familiar ring. Yesterday USM was named the Apex University of Malaysia. As I understand it the university will get extra resources and autonomy so that achieve its goal of being in the top 200 world universities (Times Higher Education Supplements) within 5 years and in the top 100 by 2020. The article about the award is at (and you can get a flavor for Malaysian English language news!) http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/Frontpage/20080904074919/Article/index_html

As far as I can figure out the Apex University approach is similar to how the Nat'l University of Singapore has built up its repution (and in my opinion quality) by bringing in the best people they can find (and paying for them). The man I have been working with on the sustainability manuscript helped write the proposal. Si I have been kept up to date as D-day approached; there was great joy in his office when we met today.

I first heard about award last night. I ran into a staff member as I was heading into Bali Bali (my regular eating spot) As we chatted she asked if I would be working with "Corporate?" The division is "Corporate and Sustainable Development Division." I haven't figured out how "corporate" fits in - I suspect that it has to do corporate relations and not the universal charge that universities are becoming more corporate.

Another busy day - killing off the sustainability MS, meeting with the Chinese dialect group late this afternoon, and starting to contact another round of NGOs. Progress on recruiting subjects proceeds slowly, but it is proceeding. Thought that I would get a head start on my notes for Monday night's class - hate to thnk that is what I will be doing on Sunday!

Labor Day in Penang

I "celebrated" Brendan and Doug's birthdays before they even woke up, but it didn't feel as strange as ending Labor Day before it had started in the U.S. Yesterday (Labor Day) was a Public Holiday, b/c Malaysian Independence Day fell on Sunday. It was also the first day of Ramandham fasting.

I spent most of the day working on two manuscripts. In the afternoon I went to one of my co-authors office to review chapter 3 - it seems that he wanted to bring his 7 year old son into the office to distract him. In Malaysia the custom is that fasting starts at age 7 - one of my classmates in the Malaysian class is from Pakistan. There children don't begin fasting until 12 years old. It must be quite an ordeal since fasting includes nothing to drink. (I had a chance to confirm the extent of lack of drink this a.m. the office teapot was cold.)

I am told that there are many stalls on the street outside the Guest House selling various treats. I didn't try it yesterday, b/c of rain. Instead I tried this laksa stall (temporary for the Feast of the Hungry Ghost). Not as good as the Laksa I had several weeks ago, but passable. I try to watch how much I eat as these ad hoc stalls - since I suspect that they are more generous with MSG. Note the large pot and the fire underneath - that explains why it was really hot laksa!

Sunday's paper has interviews with people about their opinions of Malaysia. My favorite - a Malaysian who had lived in the US for 5 years - he missed having weather! I agree. I also miss having no one to share campaign news with. Abu of the nasi kandar stand is as close as I get, but his information is limited and he is always running between our conversation and attending to a paying customer.