RSOG SEMINAR
On Being Culturally Creative – My Journey
with
Eddin Khoo
| When | : | 23 February 2017 |
| Where | : | Razak School of Government |
| Speaker | : | Eddin Khoo |
About the Seminar
As far as public record is concerned, culture has always been closely linked with tourism in Malaysia. Such inclination is understandable considering the close connection between the two. The fact that the former is unique and not easily copied, it offers a competitive advantage to the latter in the market place. Culture provides knowledge for people to behave in certain ways in the environment – eventually it keeps social relationships intact. Nonetheless, some cultural traditions which are less ritual such as arts and performances may prove challenging to be preserved and passed on to the next generation. The sophistication and convenience that technology offers, make the more elaborate and time consuming arts and performance appealing only to a limited number of aficionados. In this Leadership Forum, one will gain insights from Eddin Khoo on what drives him to preserve performances like Wayang Kulit, Mak Yong, and Manora? How to be creative, satisfied, and have fun in pursuing this cause?
Summary
What is culture? Culture is entrenched in our society and each race has their own unique cultural identity. Culture is dynamic and has evolved through time. However, the essence of a culture is what truly defines the culture itself. Edgar Schein, Professor at MIT Sloan states that culture “is our very core, that we live in culture, we display a culture and we are always driven by the culture.” In this session, the speaker spoke on myriad of concepts about his perspective on culture. He started the session by commenting on his observation on the inclination of the corporate sector to use the word organisational culture as their tagline to describe their identity and uniqueness. He believes that the word culture has more substance and in-depth meaning as it describes the essence and identity of a group of people across generations through individual and group striving. Beliefs, knowledge, values and symbols are examples of manifestation of culture. In this regard, it is important for the word culture to be used in the right context.
He continued by sharing about his diverse background attributed to having parents from the Chinese and Indian racial group. He was brought up by a Malay nanny. She was a big influence during his formative years. Hence, his perspective on race and culture is unique and diverse. He credits his upbringing for shaping and influencing his perspective on diversity and developing his interest to learn more about other cultures and religion. He developed an interest in theology and philosophy to enhance his knowledge on the influence of religion in developing the behavioural and personality traits of a person. His interest in the Malay arts intensified when he acquired his first job as a journalist at the Sunday Star. He added that his work led-him to the culturally rich-state of Kelantan where he dedicated himself to work on championing the cultural scene there. Interestingly, he mentioned that he felt a sense of obligation to the masters of Makyong, Menorah, Dikir, Main Puteri and Wayang Kulit among others that led him to establish PUSAKA, a non-governmental organisation dedicated to supporting the viability of traditional Malaysian art forms.
He illustrated the importance of embracing diversity and respecting the values and beliefs of one another. He believes that it is important to place emphasis on understanding and accepting our differences.
Based on his observations, he spoke about the challenges of managing diversity in Malaysia. Malaysia is a unique and culturally diverse country. However, there are prevalent issues that needs to be addressed to ensure that peace and stability will continue to be preserved. In addition, the relations between the races should be further enhanced and strengthened. In order to address the complexities in our plural society, a leader should engage with local communities to understand their needs, expectations and challenges. A good policy or programme can be formulated with regular channels of communication between the administration and the people. The speaker reaffirmed the belief that the various races should forge closer relations to live harmoniously and ensure the country can prosper and develop.
He singled out education as a medium to ensure interaction and integration among the various races. However, he lamented that the education system does not encourage creativity and instead school children are subjected to a rigid system that impedes their thinking skills.
As a person who has dabbled in the arts and creative industry for some time, the speaker emphasised the importance of preserving our arts to ensure that the younger generation are able to learn and understand the cultural identity of the various races in Malaysia. The speaker stressed that traditional culture helps nurture the way we think, the values we have, our feelings and sensitivities. He reiterated the importance of being cultured, creative and versatile. However, it requires time to learn and embody these characteristics in ourselves. In a multiracial society, it is vital to understand the different needs and expectations of the various segments of society towards the harmonisation of a common understanding on culture and values.
As Malaysians, we are constantly faced with issues related to cultural and religious sensitivities. Small incidents can trigger a backlash and create a sense of animosity among the races. Hence, it is vital for politicians and community leaders to promote and encourage inclusivity and respect towards one another irrespective of race or religion.
Critical events that has happened globally has influenced the existing world order. The vote for Brexit and Trump winning the U.S. presidency has jolted the world. It brings into question the expectations, needs, concerns and perception of the people towards common issues such as living in a multiracial society, Islamophobia, security, prejudices and challenging the current norms.
The speaker concluded his session by reaffirming the importance of Malaysians to be more culturally adaptable to understand the uniqueness of the country’s racial composition. This will also help to eliminate any element of biasness and prejudices in society and to strengthen the spirit of togetherness among the various races. In this context, understanding and respecting our heritage and cultural roots is an integral part of maintaining racial harmony in the country.
Key Issues Raised
- In most of the Asian literature, history is narrated through fables, myths and metaphors to create an interesting story that will attract the interest of the audience. History is important to impart lessons, values and symbols.
- It is vital for a person to be socially creative (open, adaptable and preserve). Hence, it is important for the education system to focus on inculcating and developing creativity and thinking skills instead of being inflexible, insulated, rigid and academic-centric.
- Many nations are grappling with identity crisis as a result of mass immigration and emergence of cosmopolitan societies. The intricacies of managing a diverse society has proven to be a challenge to many administrations around the world.
- Technological advancement, commercial development and many other factors has had an impact on preserving the essence and identity of a culture.
- Culture is not just a tool to refer to the identity of a particular race or community, but it is also meant to create awareness or learning.
- A person should understand themselves spiritually, to better develop and define their identity. This will help them to understand their personality traits better.
- The habit of reading should be inculcated in the young to enhance their knowledge and develop their appreciation towards the aesthetics of language. Language is an important medium of communication as it is poetic, literal and influences the way people see the world.
About the Speaker
Eddin Khoo is a poet, writer, translator and journalist – presently Founding Director of Pusaka. He was born in Kuala Lumpur, studied Politics at the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne and Southeast Asian Art and Archaeology at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, where he was a Chevening scholar, graduating with distinction. Eddin Khoo has worked intimately with some of Malaysia’s leading traditional artists including shadow puppeteers, musicians, dramatists and dancers. He has focused primarily on the state of Kelantan, researching aspects of oral transmission, cultural and religious politics and aspects of ritual in traditional theatre. In recognition of his work in culture, Eddin Khoo was selected as one of Digi Telecommunications Amazing Malaysians in 2006 and one of the Asians of the Year 2006 by the Channel News Asia, Singapore.
Contact
To get more information on this event, you can contact us via email at programmes@rsog.com.my