Samsengs all ...

I just saw a video clip of the incident involving the rock band "Carburetor Dung", which happened during the recent PROTES rally at Kelana Jaya. What I saw on the video was absolutely appalling. I'm not talking about what the lead singer did, there will be endless arguments about whether what he did was correct in the circumstances... but surely even if one does not agree, there are better ways to take the matter up with the organisers, instead of turning immediately to violence, aggression and lawlessness??! From several reports and articles online, it seems these hooligans were PAS Youth people, who were fuming that such performances were insulting, were not part of Asian culture and set a bad example to young children. This same bunch cited the same reasons to recently object to performances by Ella and Mas Idayu at some football match.

If that's so.. can I ask is shouting "PUKIMAK! PUKIMAK!" at the top of your voice a good example to children?! Is beating up people you don't agree with part of Asian culture? What about throwing bottles without thinking whether someone innocent could get hurt? Or brandishing sticks while shouting threats, hitting the railings and acting as if the devil has possessed you?

C'mon the guy just showed a bit of his boxers, what he was saying while doing that was not aimed at the crowd, but at the subject matter of the song. Even if one doesn't agree, this is not the right way. It's not like he was raping your grandmother. These are the same bunch of monkeys who are always clamouring about freedom of expression anyway...

I have not seen any official statement from any of the PR parties or leaders condemning this kind of violence (if there is and I've missed it, please let me know). The police should take action against those who assaulted the band members. Above all, PR diehards need to be careful who their leaders and MPs "pakat" with. PR leaders and supporters should always be held to the same high standards of conduct they demand from the BN. Otherwise, if we're not careful, the people may just be walking into a different kind of nightmare.

For some background, check out the articles and links below:

Nothing to apologise, says punk rock band

UPDATED
By Wan Hamidi Hamid and Shannon Teoh

KUALA LUMPUR, July 8 — For Malaysia's seminal punk rock band Carburetor Dung, the ruckus during its performance at the anti-fuel price increase rally in Kelana Jaya, Petaling Jaya yesterday was just a misunderstanding.
Band leader Joe Kidd explained that there was no need for them to apologise over the song "Mari Nyanyi Menjilat" or lead singer Alak pulling down his jeans to show off his boxer shorts to the mainly Malay audience at the Kelana Jaya Stadium.
"The song which is well known among our fans is about anti-corruption. It has nothing to do with the current political issue such as the allegation of sodomy against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
"We've always played that song without any incidents. I guess to people who've never seen us, it's a culture shock for them. But for us, we've been writing and performing anti-establishment songs for many years," he told The Malaysian Insider.
Arguably the first punk rock band in the country, Carburetor Dung was formed in 1991. The 43-year-old Joe Kidd is also regarded as a veteran of the alternative music scene in Malaysia, paving the way for hundreds of young bands to emerge a decade later.
Writing in the band's website yesterday, he explained: "Some reports I saw also misquoted the title as 'Liwat' instead of 'Jilat', so if some bloggers made the mistake, I'm sure a lot of the people in the stadium misunderstood too. So many took umbrage lah, thinking that we were making fun of Anwar. Actually I even explained to the crowd the gist of the song before we played it."
The band's bass player Fendi said that the singer would explain every song before blasting into their three-chord frenzy.
"I guess it is up to the political parties and their supporters to think about the whole issue. If freedom of expression is on the agenda, if the parties are supposed to be different from that of the ruling coalition, they have to decide the future of freedom," he said.
PKR Youth's Balik Pulau MP Yusmadi Yusoff defended the band's right to freedom of expression, saying that from this the organisers — Coalition Against Inflation (Protes) — could learn how to prepare their events with more coherence.
"There is no standard form of expression for everyone. But the organisers need a coherent strategy to have an effective campaign. We must encourage a conducive environment for all stakeholders, and for an underground band, perhaps we should have agreed on a song or songs that most resonated with our agenda," he said.
PAS Youth chief Salahuddin Ayub, however, said it would be unfair to lay all the blame solely on Protes, noting that activist Hishamuddin Rais who had engaged performers for the event had taken responsibility for the mishap.
"Everyone has a right to freedom of expression but we still need to look at the sensitivities of people. As we can all agree, the singer pulling down his pants was an embarrassing event," he said.
Yusmadi stressed that in the end everyone came back to hear Pakatan supremo Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim speak, showing that there was common ground for all. "I guess we learnt that as a society, we still need to learn how to negotiate our plurality."
Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim yesterday remarked that it was all done in the spirit of the "protest event. So while we protested fuel prices, members of the audience were also protesting against the behaviour of the band."
Meanwhile, the band will continue to play whenever and wherever it is needed, without having to compromise its stance, Fendi added. For example, crowd favourites like "Oppression" and "Boo Hoo Clapping Song" offer their take on social issues such as political hypocrisy and lack of freedom in the country.
Carburetor Dung has been involved in social causes over the years, working with Food Not Bombs which helps to feed the homeless in the city and performing at the annual Press Freedom Day concert.

http://themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/headlines/42-lead-stories/1510-nothing-to-apologise-says-punk-rock-band
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And this is from Joe Kidd:

http://ricecooker.kerbau.com/2008/07/05/sunday-6th-july-2008-penghimpunan-aman-sejuta-rakyat/

guys, kami semua OK (Alak ada benjol sikit kat dahi). kami perlu berterima kasih pada pemuda-pemuda AMK (Angkatan Pemuda Keadilan - t-shirt biru) yang rata-rata marah tapi masih cuba sedaya-upaya menyelamatkan kami dari segerombolan pemuda-pemuda berbaju merah yang memang ready to rip us apart. With the help of AMK, we all managed to sneak out of the stadium (separately) after about 20 minutes being under siege.
The problem here is our song “Mari Nyanyi Menjilat”. Macam biasa, Alak did his exposing his underwear thing and of course dalam situasi panas tentang “liwat-meliwat” sekarang, aku rasa that gesture was misunderstood by the people there.
Some reports I saw also misquoted the title as “Liwat” instead of “Jilat”, so if some bloggers made the mistake, I’m sure a lot of the people in the stadium misunderstood too. So many took umbrage lah, thinking that we were making fun of Anwar. Actually I even explained to the crowd the gist of the song before we played it.
The thing is aku rasa Alak was in his “auto-pilot” mode. We have been playing that song for a long time and to a lot of people for years already and Alak have always been doing that to heighten the “satire”. The kids in the scene would get the joke all the time but we can’t expect the same from the public. That’s our mistake.
Anyways, apart from the guys in AMK, we also must thank Tom (Skitzofrenia) who shielded Alak from a lot blows, and in the process also got some benjol-benjol. Much thanks to Mad Yus (Apparatus), Poodien, Mirdza (Relationsheep), Black and many more who were there and helped out.

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/ichithekiller