Here is a short release from the author's publicist. (:
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Reformasi 1998: From a 'participating' bystander's eyes
By: One Party

Title: Patah Balek: Catatan Terpenting Reformasi
(literally, Revisiting Malaysia's Reformasi: Some important notes)
Author: Fathi Aris Omar (a media activist & Malaysiakini.com columnist)
Pages: 263 + xxii (with an index)
Publisher: SIRD Petaling Jaya, Malaysia (in cooperation with KSJT)
Printed: 2005 (February)

Main themes: political reform, creative and cultural freedom, the role of public
intellectuals, academic freedom, language and literature, democratic culture and rights,
public sphere and civil society, freedom of the press and violation, student politics and
youth movements, political Islam, Malay politics, human rights

AYU Utami, a well-known Indonesian novelist, describes the author as 'Si Malin Kundang'
– an ungrateful son who was cursed and turned into a 'stone' (or, a piece of reef) in the
popular Minangkabau and Malay folklore. The son, in the Malay version, is 'Si Tenggang'.
It is said that a piece of stone on a beach near the town of Padang now (West Sumatra)
resembles a man and his wrecked jong ('junk', or ship, as originated in Malay)

The author of the novels Saman and Larung however, is sympathetic with the author
Fathi Aris Omar's quandary. "We know that a piece of reef (or stone) is also an icon of
strength," she says in her 'foreword' to Patah Balek: Catatan Terpenting Reformasi.

Fathi Aris is, in Ayu's eyes, a critic of the groups he belongs to, although he has been
actively and deeply involved in Gerakan Reformasi (reform movement) and is close to
Opposition parties and Islamic groups. Yet, he acts like a curious bystander – a delicate
position indeed, "standing between his own village and the sea (like the stone of Malin
Kundang in West Sumatra)," concludes Ayu, who is also a member of the editorial team of
Kalam, a cultural journal.

The articles in Patah Balek were written as 'answers' to some issues since Malaysia's
political crisis in 1998 – after the sacking and imprisonment of Anwar Ibrahim – because of
his personal curiosity in and attachment to the nation's democratic reform.

Fathi Aris tries hard to convince the readers that the undemocratic political culture has
seeped through most spheres of Malaysian (or rather, the Malays') political life. He also
quotes the Iranian president Khatami's analysis: "We are all individually dictator-like in our own
ways, and this unfortunate condition is evident in all strata and spheres of our society." .

Fathi Aris passionately promotes the 'independent' stance of public intellectuals in
national politics. He has no sympathy with intellectuals who are drowned in 'political
quietism' or who side with political parties, whether that of the Government or the
Opposition. To the author, intellectuals have to participate actively in the public sphere
because it is his opinion that current Malay political discourses are biased and
propagandist.

It is unfortunate for him that he voices out his concern during one of the most critical
political crises. The author's position is seen as undesirable. How could a self-confessed
advocate for the freedom of expression criticise a group of people, who were already
deprived of their democratic rights and were his comrades in those chaotic years?

However, he is our 'Malin Kundang' – perhaps the only Malay writer prepared to accept
the curse that turns him to stone. The 'stone' will blow the whistle on current shortfalls
and future shortcomings.