Chinese exclusion - US lawmakers seek apology

US lawmakers seek apology for Chinese exclusion
By Shaun Tandon (AFP

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WASHINGTON — More than a century after the United States shut its doors to Chinese immigrants, Asian American lawmakers are seeking an official apology that they hope will serve as a lesson for future generations.

Approved by Congress in 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act banned immigration by Chinese workers and their naturalization as US citizens, marking the first time the United States explicitly closed itself to a particular nationality.

Census figures show that more than 100,000 ethnic Chinese were living in the United States at the end of the 19th century. Many had been recruited to build the transcontinental railroad, but faced racism from white workers.

Representative Judy Chu, a Chinese American who took over this month as the new chair of the Asian American caucus in Congress, said that legislation offering an apology for the act would be a key priority.

Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943 during World War II after Japan highlighted the law in propaganda questioning China's alliance with the United States. But apology advocates note that the US government has never voiced regret.

After the act's repeal, the United States still let in only 105 Chinese each year. The United States opened up to large-scale immigration by non-Europeans under a landmark 1965 law championed by then-senator Ted Kennedy.

Representative Mike Honda, the outgoing chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, called the anti-Chinese law "a shameful chapter in our country's long history of exclusion."

"The great thing about humanity is that we have the opportunity to learn from our mistakes," said Honda, who was interned as a child during World War II due to his Japanese ancestry.

"Chinese were used as cheap labor to do the most dangerous work laying the tracks of our transcontinental railroad to strengthen our nation's infrastructure, only to be persecuted when their labor was seen as competition when the dirtiest work was done."

Honda, like Chu a member of President Barack Obama's Democratic Party from California, said he saw "the same hatred" now in calls aimed at Mexicans for an end to US birthright citizenship.

"We must not vilify entire groups of people because it is politically expedient," Honda said.
But some advocates said they hoped to steer the debate clear of sensitive issues such as immigration and US-China relations, particularly with Republicans in control of the House of Representatives.

"This is not about immigration. Certainly the US government has the right to set its policy. We are talking about how you treat people," said Michael Lin, chair of the 1882 Project, a coalition of rights groups seeking the apology.

"We will make sure that this is not an apology to China. It has nothing to do at all with foreign relationships," he said.

Lin said an apology would mark closure and also encourage schools to devote more than cursory mentions to the Chinese Exclusion Act.

"We strongly believe that this needs to be in education so that future generations will learn this lesson and, hopefully, something like this will not happen again," he said.

Lin was flexible on the wording, saying he may accept a statement of "regret" if Congress balks at the word "apology." He also made clear that Chinese Americans were not seeking financial compensation.

In a landmark apology, President Ronald Reagan signed an act of Congress in 1988 regretting the wartime internment of 110,000 Japanese Americans. Survivors each received $20,000 and a letter of apology.

But such apologies are rare. Congress formally apologized to African Americans for slavery in 2008. In 1993, the United States apologized to native Hawaiians for the overthrow of their kingdom a century earlier.

Honda chaired the Asian American caucus for seven years, fighting for a range of priorities. He helped win funding to close educational gaps and to provide counseling for Asian Americans facing home foreclosure, as well as securing promises of greater diversity in the media and government hiring.

Under Honda, the caucus achieved a key goal sought for decades -- winning compensation for Filipino veterans who fought for the United States during World War II.

Malaysia, truly paradoxical

ON THE BEAT WITH WONG CHUN WAI

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Foreigners are bemused by some of our peculiarities.

An expatriate friend of mine is slowly settling down to life in Kuala Lumpur. We will just call this American, Paul.

It is his first trip to Asia and he has found it easy adjusting himself. English is widely spoken here, which means he has no problem moving around.

The easy availability of news allows Paul to closely follow events and life in Malaysia but the country remains a paradox to him.

I assure him that he is not the only one who feels that way. Even Malaysians born and bred here are still trying to figure out the many contradictions of life in Malaysia.

Well, Paul has been pretty observant and has asked me about some of our peculiarities.

Below are his observations after a month:

Malaysians are supposed to be lazy when it comes to reading. They read an average of one page a year. Okay, the latest statistics say one-and-a-half pages.

But Paul is amazed at how we have become so emotionally interlocked over a book first published over 40 years ago. We may not have produced any literary giants, except our home-grown laureates, but he is impressed by how passionate we are when it comes to literature.

Like elsewhere, money doesn’t grow on trees here but access to it is pasted on every available place on the streets.
With thousands and thousands of notices plastered all over the city – offering competitive rates with just one mobile phone number to call – Paul thinks getting loans in Malaysia is rather easy.

He’s impressed that the country is both flushed with funds and how easy it is for people to borrow cash as there’s no red tape. Even those blacklisted can borrow. It’s a great country, he says.

Malaysians are health freaks. They are so health conscious that spas and services for massages, starting from foot massages upwards, have been sprouting all over towns and cities.

Notices promoting “Honey Massage” and “Rocket Massage” are even sprayed on walls. And of course, the Malaysian service providers are super efficient, making the massages available with just a phone call.

Malaysians love debates. Every other day, someone seems to be throwing a challenge to debate with another. He feels that these guys must have great oratory skills. He thinks that this is yet another indicator of a truly democratic country.

Paul finds it hard to fathom that Malaysia has a problem with corruption. Something is not quite right as Malaysians are also so religious. His question: If everyone gets all worked up whenever religious matters are questioned, how can the country be grappling with corruption? Many seem so puritanical too.

Paul also observes that Malaysians are environmentally conscious and take great pains in loving their trees. There may not be tree huggers like in the West but he thinks we protect our environment using the full brunt of the law.

He thinks our policemen spend an awful lot of time protecting trees because he always sees them behind trees, along the roads and highways. Such dedication and love for the greens, he says.

Paul has also found out that Malaysia, which used to rely on rubber for its economic growth in early days, still tends to stretch the meaning of being on time.

He has learned that when people say “on the way” or “coming soon”, it really means they are still at home or have yet to begin their journey.

Paul has also discovered that “traffic jam” is the most convenient Malaysian excuse for not being punctual, even if the person arrives an hour late. The rule of thumb is to add another hour if it rains.

But the best part is this: Malaysians must love many things about pirates. We call unlicensed taxis “pirate taxis” and imitation DVDs, “pirated DVDs”.

Pirated DVDs are illegal but openly sold. No one would admit buying or owning one but many Malaysians seem familiar with it.

And pirated DVDs even carry messages telling Malaysians why they should NOT buy pirated DVDs, with a short trailer of a speeding car, showing you the difference in quality between an original and a pirated copy.

Malaysia is truly amazing. Paul is already in love with Malaysia after being here a month.
To know Malaysia is certainly to love Malaysia.

Egypt, Arab world on Fire !

Egypt behind the headlines

By Amy Chew sunday@thestar.com.my 

The Star team Amy Chew and Azhar Mahfof were in Egypt recently to witness the people’s uprising against Hosni Mubarak and their victory when the president stepped down after 30 years.

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Are you game for Egypt?” said a text message from my group chief editor Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai.
I stared at the text, not believing my eyes for a moment, before replying “yes!”

I immediately set out to make contacts in Egypt. I called and e-mailed Cairo for days on end, to no avail.
Ex-President Hosni Mubarak’s regime had shut down the country’s mobile phone and Internet services on Jan 27 for five days in an attempt to stop the protests from spreading.

After I arrived in Cairo on Feb 5, I learned that Vodafone, one of the country’s largest telecommunications companies, was forced to shut down at gunpoint.

This interesting bit of news came from a Vodafone employee protesting at Tahrir Square, the epicentre of the movement to oust Mubarak.

Clear message: An anti-government protester holding a placard that reads: ‘Leave, if you don’t understand, we can write in Chinese for you’ during a demonstration in Tahrir Square. — AZHAR MAHFOF/The Star  

“This is something the public relations at my company will deny. I was at work that time,” says the employee who declined to be named.

“On Jan 27, the government sent people to Vodafone. They went to the control room, took out their guns, pointed them at the staff and told them to kill switch,” said the employee.

I was fascinated. As he was speaking, more people joined in. Each time I interviewed a person, people would join in.

Everyone was eager to voice their opinions or recount a bad experience with Mubarak’s regime. I found myself constantly surrounded by a small crowd at Tahrir Square.

Earlier, I had interviewed a doctor who had a haunted look on his face. He had approached me, saying he was a doctor at a government hospital closest to Tahrir Square.

“I was on duty the night violence erupted (Feb 2),” he said, declining to give his name. On that fateful night, pro-Mubarak supporters had clashed with anti-Mubarak protesters. Hundreds of people were shot and beaten to death.

“I saw many victims. They were brought to my hospital,” he continued.

“They had been shot in the head, the neck, the chest. I saw people shot between their eyes; there were more than a hundred of them,” he said softly and then paused, blinking away tears.

I lowered my head. “I felt very sad. They (victims) were all young, below 30 years old. They felt like my brothers and sisters,” said the doctor.

Human rights groups estimated more than 300 people died in the violence. “Are you worried for your safety as you personally witnessed the brutalities?” I asked.

“No. I am not scared and I want change. That’s why I am here,” said the doctor. After recounting his experience, he slowly walked away, silent, dignified and determined.

Courage and kindness 

On Feb 10, Egypt was abuzz with rumours that Mubarak would announce his resignation on national TV. The whole country waited with bated breath.

When he finally appeared, Mubarak announced he was not stepping down. The protesters were outraged.
The next day was a Friday. The crowds at Tahrir Square vowed to fight to the end.

“If a bloodbath is what he wants, that is what he will get. We are ready to die,” said Mohamed Faisal, a member of the anti-Mubarak youth movement.

Rumours flew in every corner of the city that Mubarak’s regime would attack the protesters. “We heard all kinds of things, that bad things would happen to us,” said the protesters.

“Are you scared?” I asked them. “No,” they said. I wrote down their words. “Don’t worry. Nothing will happen to you. We will not let anyone harm you,” a 20-year-old student by the name of Helmy said to me. I was touched.

Helmy is a tall, sweet-looking boy. He travelled from Dakaliq in the north of Egypt to Cairo to demonstrate.
“My father is old, so he sent me here to protest on behalf of our family, to fight for change,” said Helmy.

We had two translators, Amr Gamal and Mohamed Saeed, who took good care of me and my colleague Azhar. Amr is a professional bodyguard who works in Dubai. He was back in Cairo on home leave when he was roped in to help us out.

Friday dawned. Amr, who has good government contacts, was assigned to assist me. “Today is going to be very dangerous. There is talk of shooting at Tahrir after 2pm,” he told me.

We headed off to the square. The crowds were massive. We had to squeeze our way through a sea of humanity.

Female travellers to Egypt often complain of harassment by local men, of being groped and pinched. There was none of that during the revolution.

The anti-Mubarak movement had brought out the best in people. The men were polite and chivalrous. They gave way to women at every turn.

On arriving at the square, I chanced upon a group of protesters who spoke English and interviewed them.
At 2pm, Amr who had left earlier, reappeared. “Do I have to go?” I asked.

“Up to you. There may be shooting. But if you want stay, that’s fine with me. Nothing will happen to you. I will protect you, don’t worry,” he said.

I felt it wasn’t fair for Amr to risk his life and limbs for me. So we left. In the evening, Mubarak resigned. Cairo erupted with joy.

I called Amr who immediately returned with a friend, also a security personnel. Our other translator, Mohamed, could not make it. 

Amr’s friend, who declined to be named, translated and guarded me. Amr went with Azhar. We finished our work and returned to the hotel past 11pm.

Journalist attacked

This week, CBS News disclosed that its correspondent Lara Logan was sexually assaulted and beaten by a mob of 200 while covering Mubarak’s resignation and the crowd’s reaction at Tahrir Square, the very same time I was there. I did not witness the attack.

From my experience in covering huge rallies, untoward incidents can happen at any given time. I could be at the same venue as another person, but encounter a very different experience. There is no doubt in my mind Amr and his friend’s presence and dedication kept us safe that night.

Many journalists were attacked while covering the revolution in Egypt. We were very lucky.

Egyptian demonstrators

Egyptians must be the best-looking demonstrators in the world and their courage was inspiring.

As I boarded the plane to return home on Feb 13, I felt very blessed for the chance to witness a major chapter of Egyptian history.