On The Question of Identity by Choong Kam Kow (Malaysia) Symposium: Cultural Dimensions of Globalisation Organized by Heinrich Boell Foundation, Chiangmai 07 & 08-02-2004

Identity has long been a concern by artists in their artistic expression but it’s scope remained regional or national due to limited communication network or facilities and non-democratic state control in the early days of mankind. The issue of identity has become a common topic in artistic expression in recent years. This is due to differences or disparity in cultural values, social conditions, faiths, political systems and economic status as a result of different degrees of progress between different ethnic groups or nations on one hand, and on the other, the sense of insecurity on the economic superiority and military supremacy of developed and rich nations achieved through their mega multi-national corporations and technology advancement. In the process of modernization and industrialization, our social structure changed as economy grows and expands. Our identity as a nation, as a people and as an individual also evolved and transformed as a result of progress and development in the passage of time. As Malaysia and some South-East Asian countries as well, enters the new millennium of information age, the boundary of country or region has become blur and insignificant. Globalisation is a process which every nation will be engaged and faced with later or sooner. To what extent will this globalisation dilute the individual country’s or region’s cultural identity and life style? How will the globalisation process alter our Asian social structure, human behaviour and value judgment? Will small nations become submerged and swallowed by major superpowers? The arrival of information age has increased the pace of progress towards globalisation is undeniable. The achievement of hi-tech has created the information age which provides new facilities for rapid communication such as internet, satellite T.V., mobile cell phone, etc. for people in all walks of life. In the information age, every one has easy assess to information worldwide whether accurate or otherwise or exposed to alien cultural values and life styles indiscriminately, be it positive or negative. For example, the rapid coverage on important events like the 911 tragedy, the spread of SARS, major earthquakes and the recent outbreak of bird flu to inform the whole world sounds fantastic and great. But we are also caught in the dilemma as the monopoly of media and information are worrying. We often come across the exaggerated, distorted or slanderous reports on certain issues or events for reasons or motives only the media people themselves know best are unfair or damaging to the subjects, people or countries being reported. In the developing nations like some of our Southeast Asian countries, people are also enjoying the fruit of modernization. The rapid growth of economy makes it possible to provide facilities like internet, cell phones, chained food outlets of global brands, one-stop mega shopping centers, satellite T.V. etc. etc. in the developing nations. There is no more borders or demarcations in our daily communication with people in other parts of the world. These modern facilities have definitely brought about mutual influences and understanding among different people. The increase of practice in shared-global-values, acceptance of new cultural elements, the choice of global brands fast food like McDonald, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Coco-Cola drinks, the preference over global branded goods like Adidas and Nike shoes, the presence of one-stop shopping centers like Carrefour and Ikea, the monopoly of Western movies from Hollywood studios, the adoption of new art forms like installation and performance art etc. have definitely affected our value judgment, social behaviour, life style and even visual thinking. Will this new phenomenon create new conflict, dislocation or disorientation between different generations or ethnic groups? Will the mega shopping centers and transnational corporations uplift the standard of living of a nation or created hardship for the general traditional traders? How will the monopoly of media and information benefit us? How will this new development affect Asian stance and position? When we accept or adopt new life styles, alternatives, supplements or new art forms from the West or elsewhere. Does it erode our Asian identity or cultural values? Let us look at ourselves, are we still the same Asian as the Asian fifty years ago? If we have not changed, then what remain unchanged? If we have changed, then to what extent is the change? Is it superficial or in substance? Is it about mental character or physical appearance? Today, Asians wear jeans is already a common practice. Does it change our Asian identity? Our young Asian dyes their hair in blonde, green, red and blue. It is so fashionable these days especially after having watched the colorful hair styles of the Korean and Japanese players in the last World Cup matches. Will such choice of fashion affect our youth’s Asian identity? Young people have picked up the habit to stay late beyond mid-night into the early hours of the following days and wake up late. Is this a choice of life style or detoriation of discipline? This phenomenon is often viewed as a negative result of globalization which effects peoples’ moral judgment, quality of life and behaviours. This development has also alerted and worried many intellects, social reformists, educationists and parents. Efforts have been made to counter balance these prevailing conditions through imposing different measures and strategies in different countries. For example, the accessibility to satellite T.V. movies and internet video is often controlled by the state authorities for fear of ill influences on moral and value judgment. Will this be viewed as a negative move toward globalisation or measure to safe guard the morality? In the process of evolution towards globalisation we shall adopt and learn the best from developed countries in the West in order to enrich ourselves. But let us be very clear that modernization is not westernization! We must not simply copy or transplant the West without selection, examination and discrimination. As we modernize, our society also evolved and transformed as a result of modernization and global exposures. We must not modernize at the expense of our cultural value and identity. However, it must be noted that, as evident in the past, the alteration of life styles, value judgment and changes of identity is conditioned by the cultural behaviours and social conditions of any people. The adoption and acceptance of new elements and values must be seen as an enriching process in our development towards modernization. The gradual transformation of identity must also be viewed as an evolving process which is unavoidable in our pursuit towards better living conditions. So long as we do not forget to inculcate our younger generation the good sense of value judgment and treasure our cultural heritage as well as to equip them with knowledge we will not lose out in the process of globalisation. If we want our identity to evolve, we must be open-minded but not loose sight of our own cultural mission and social obligation. So long as we continue to feel proud of our past, our roots and stand firm on our belief on cultural significance and national aspiration, Asian identity will flourish and sustain. Now, let us look at Malaysia. Malaysia is a multi-ethnic country ruled under the British for nearly 200 years until 1957 when she gained independence. During the colonial era, culture and art were not encouraged, let alone cultural identity or citizenship. It was only after the independence that artists were more conscious of their roles and positions. But due to the fact that most of artists were trained in the west where exposures to global art movements were imminent, every individual was free to practise in any of the prevailing western style, ranging from Impressions, Cubism, Abstract, Expression to Pop Art. The reference of art was centered around London, Paris and New York. In many aspects, the British were still regarded as established and superior. As a result, the first National Congress was held in 1971. Malay intellectuals from the academia as well as the arts gathered together to chart the course of cultural direction and formulate national cultural policy. The outcome of this congress was the resolution that the new national vision must be founded upon the Malay cultural and traditional values if a “national identity” was to be established. During the 70’s, rounds after rounds of seminars, conferences and symposiums were held to discuss the roots of Malay culture and address the issues of Malaysian cultural and art identity. There was also another important seminar on modernization and national- cultural identity organized by the Malaysian Social Science Association at University of Malaya in 1983. The seminar addressed and deliberated the issues of acculturation, assimilation, interaction and ethnic consciousness of the ethnic Chinese in Malaysia. It was pointed out by Prof. Dr.Goh Cheng Teik that ethnic Chinese in Malaysia particularly those who born after the independence have integrated into the multi-racial society as royal Malaysian. Though the passage of time, every aspect of the Chinese community in Malaysia has changed, only its ethnicity remains. The ethnic Chinese in Malaysia would identify themselves as Malaysian but on traditional and cultural aspects they remain as ethnic Chinese. This has contributed to the birth of a new consciousness for Malaysian artists. Some artists have begun to re-examine their ethnic identity while the others made attempts to explore new identities based on cultural and social environment which was prevailing during this period. The works by Redza Piyadasa, Sulaiman Isa, Choong Kam Kow, Awang Damit are typical examples of reflection to this phenomenon. In the 90’s the rapid modernization and industrialization has broadened the space for artistic expression. These days the young and mid career Malay artists are no longer like their seniors, limit themselves to just center around Malay-Islamic cultural, religious, principles, social and economic conditions and issues. They have also expanded their artistic horizon into a broader scope such as cosmopolitan, IT phenomenon, South-East Asian, and global issues. The Malaysian artists of Chinese and Indian origins on the other hand, express their concerns of social position, human conditions, cross-cultural issues, ethnic identity and the impact of globalization on their ethnic tradition. In the past twenty years or so, as a whole Malaysian artists have been intensively dwelled into their past cultural roots and traditions and used cultural elements to enrich the contents of their art through which to project their cultural or ethnic identities based on an ethically neutral approach. The Heinrich Boell Foundation must be applauded for having organized this exhibition of identity vs globalisation as it can serve as a platform for viewers to apprehend how artists in the South-East Asian countries responded, interpreted, expressed the views, experience and thoughts about identity in the development process towards globalisation. We now, would like to show some examples of artworks by Malaysian artists for you to see how our artists deal with their cultural or ethnic identity on the road to globasiation. Thank you.