Post on 29-Jun-2020
transcript
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 1
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 2
http://portal.clubrunner.ca/3045
e-Bulletin
December 21 , 2015 Issue# 22
Christmas
Special Edition
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 3
Headings Hyperlinked Page #
Editorial 4
President’s Message 5
Berita Pudu 6
Pudu Events - Events / Birthdays / Wedding Anniversaries 7
About The Speaker 8
Speaker’s Text 9
Picture Gallery 11
Announcement 13
District News 16
RI News 18
Get Inspired! 21
LOL... 22
Fit Brains 23
Motivational Quotes 24
IN THIS ISSUE...
During my club visits the last 5 months, and as highlighted during the meetings there seem to be very little con-
nection between Rotary clubs with our Youth. There are many concerns regarding our current engagement and
youth activities. We have currently 29 Rotaract Clubs with about 900 Rotaractors and 129 Interact Clubs with
about 6000 Interactors in our District, yet the relationship of this “family of Rotary” does not exhibit strong
cohesion. This meeting is to address these concerns and to outline a future plan to streamline our Youth Ser-
vices and provide for greater visibility of our Rotary Youth.
We are extending the meeting to include the Youth Chairs of your clubs, especially Rotarian Advisors who are
directly involved with Interactors and Rotaractors.
District Rotaract Chair PP Datin Sandra, will call on you to extend
this invitation and we hope you would encourage your Youth Chairs
to attend.
The future of Rotary is our youth and in the youth shall we invest.
Please assist us
Date : Saturday, January 9, 2016
Time : 10.30am
Venue : Rotary Centre
RSVP: Datin Sandra – 019 2709770
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 4
It’s Christmas here in Disneyland! It was a long overdue promise to my children and here we are in Hong Kong Disneyland, at last. As much as my kids were happy, I too, was having a child-like moment. It is definitely a place for all. We were there from morning till about 9pm and as much as it was exciting, we were also terribly ex-hausted with all the walking and running, around the park. Do you know that Disneyland believes they provide a 5-star service to their customers? They even call their customers 'guest'. You know why? - because when a guest walks into your home, they are treated with extra care and more often than not, you'll make sure that they leave your home happy. You’ll also make sure that there are no com-plaints about the way you treated them while they were at your
place. So, the reason is the same for Disneyland. They want to make sure all their customers, or guests feel happy. Couple of other things that I realized from the little conversations that I had with their staff, which I find fascinating, were;
all their attire must be clean and tidy at all times,
punctuality is utmost important so the guests will not have to wait and feel frustrated,
all staff, including their cleaners must know the park so well that when guests ask for direction, they
are able to give them an accurate one,
they can take a break at any time they wanted to, provided there is someone to replace them, and
all their people must be all smiles and all times!
I asked them how do they then maintain themselves in giving this 5 -star service at all times, and the answer was simple, yet mind blowing. According to them, their ultimate objective is to make people happy, and when each and every employee does the same thing, the objective is then achieved. It’s either you’re in the game, or out. I was speechless… To have acclaimed a 5-star status is definitely a proud moment, but the question is, how long do you want it to be with you? So my friends, are you in the game? Have a magical Christmas this year around...
Puvaneswaran (Iswaran) Shanmugam Editor iswaran@shanalag.com
EDITORIAL
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 5
We are now a 5-star Club. AG Teoh announced it on 10 Dec evening at our 49th Anniversary Dinner cum Charter Member PP Tan Sri Soong’s 90th birthday. We also honoured our two PPs Choo Jee Sam and Dato Jasani for winning coveted awards. Sam was honoured by Queen Elizabeth II for his work with St John Ambulance in the setting up of several dialysis centres in the Klang Valley; and Dato Jasani for win-ning the Lifetime Achievement Award by his Accounting Association. We had some 60 people attending the function which was held at the Unique Seafood Restaurant, Jalan Kemajuan, Petaling Jaya. We had wives, partners, former Pudu Rtns and their spouses and of course AG Teoh and his charming wife attending. We had the youngest and oldest Rtn – Shu Yi (25) and Tan Sri Soong (90) attending. It was great, just great; and many thanks to PP Ng Sim Bee for putting together the wonderful event. Indeed it was a good party and we enjoyed ourselves. And the fellowship was ex-cellent and I hope the former Rtns would want to come back because I know they miss our fellowship of the “good old days.” But AG Teoh’s announcement was a pleasant surprise; and to jump from 3 -star to 5-star is indeed a great honour and pride. Now comes the hard part.
It’s nice to be elevated to the pedestal and joining the ranks of the exalted. But it comes with a heavy responsibility. We have had problems before such that we fell to 3-star rating; but I am afraid these problems seem not to be going away. There is still complacency, “tidak apathy,” RINO-hood, poor deportment, unwilling to learn and embrace the future, unwilling to volunteer for important offices, unwilling to read, even. It’s like having 1st world infrastructure but 3rd world mentality; in our case 5-star outlook with 3- star mentality. So, it looks like we’ll have to develop new skills in “success management.” The Poser on the left is a good start. An-swer all the questions and keep track of your answers. Ask
at every Board meeting perhaps. That will keep us on our toes. And always with the “4-Way Test” of the things we think, say or do.
Dato’ Muslim Ayob President RY2015/16 Rotary Club of Pudu datomus.ayob@gmail.com
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 6
BERITA PUDU
Visiting Rotarians Club
Rtn Mindaugas Glinskis RC Vilnis
Guests Host
Mr KH Wong Club Speaker
Hew Jenn Wei Club
Vone Kwan Sandy Soh
Chew Song Kong Soong Siew Hoong
Karen Lau Mike Tung
Attendance Pax
Club Members 23
Visiting Rotarians 1
Guests 5
TOTAL PRESENT: 29
Collections RM
Birthday/Anniversary/Fines 74.00
Paying Dinners 210.00
Raffles/Others -
TOTAL AMOUNT: 284.00
LIST OF NAMES STATISTICS
Club Proceedings 1. Acting Sergeant-at-Arms Robert Tan called the meeting to order at 1.15PM on behalf of President Dato’ Muslim.
He welcomed all Rotarians and guests. He then led in the singing of the National Anthem and the Loyal Toast.
2. FINEMASTER- The Finemaster was PP KH Low and the list of fines were:
RM2 - Dato’ Muslim for a successful anniversary dinner.
RM1 - Those attended the anniversary dinner.
RM2 - Those who did not attend the anniversary dinner.
RM2 - Dato’ Muslim for his singing talent during the anniversary dinner.
RM2 - Rtn Robert Tan for his talent as a short film producer.
RM1 - All for the achievement of our RC Pudu being recommended as a 5-Star club by AG Teoh.
RM2 - PP Mohan for his successful fund raising effort for the Chennai flood victims.
RM2 - PP Sam for receiving an award for his enormous contributions to the St. John Ambulans Malay-
sia.
3. ANNOUNCEMENT -
Called upon the introducer for Mr. KH Wong.
4. INTRODUCING -
Rtn Shiou Ting did the introduction.
5. THANKING -
PP Mike Yeow thanked Mr. KH Wong for a very enlightening & educational presentation.
Mr. KH Wong shared some benefits of the alkaline water.
PP Mike Yeow then presented a certificate of appreciation and a memento to Mr. KH Wong.
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 7
PUDU EVENTS
Speaker:
PDG Dr. Rajindar Singh
Topic:
Public Image
Duty Table:
Rtn Wong Shuyi
Fellowship:
Rtn Angela
Finemaster:
Rtn Laura Lee
Introducing:
PP Quah SC
Thanking:
PDG Paul Lee
December 28, 2015
AGM
Please check the Club Diary...
Date/Day Time Event Venue
21 (Mon) 12:45PM Club Weekly Meeting Shangri-La, Kuala Lumpur
28 (Mon) 06:30PM Club Weekly Meeting + AGM Shangri-La, Kuala Lumpur
TODAY’S PROGRAMME NEXT WEEK’S PROGRAMME
CLUB DIARY OF EVENTS FOR DECEMBER 2015
December Rotarians
5th - PP Tai Chin Peow 7th - VP Jeffrey Yap 9th - PP Tan Sri Soong Siew Hoong 23th - Rtn Steven Ho 25th - Rtn CT Heng 26th - PP Ray Choo 27th - PP Tan Sri Tay Ah Lek 30th - Rtn Daryl Kok December Spouses’
29th - Spouse Eng Lee (PP Dato’ Rosemarie Wee)
December:
8th - Rtn Mohan Raj & Ann Rani 8th - Rtn Iswaran & Ann Suzan 12th - Rtn Richard Liew & Ann Angeline 27th - Rtn Leong Choy Ying & Spouse Edward 30th - Rtn Gary Lim & Ann Rowena
BIRTHDAYS WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 8
KH Wong is one of the founders of AlkaLife Sdn Bhd or AlkaLife. AlkaLife is the
pioneering company in alkaline antioxidant water in Malaysia having been in this
business for 17 years. AlkaLife is the authorized S.E.Asia wholesaler and im-
porter of EOS Lydia, the world’s most advanced brand of water ionizer.
KH possesses a bachelor science degree from University of Malaya and diploma
in nutritional therapy from Stonebridge University, UK. KH is able to articulate
the health benefits of alkaline water based on scientific facts. Over the years
KH has given many health talks to both individual consumers as well as corpora-
tions. As a nutritionist KH is passionate about educating the public about the
long term health benefits of drinking alkaline water and he is a strong advocate
of preventative healthcare using the water.
Quoting from his experience “It’s unfortunate that most people who bought our machine already have
health challenges. I wished they have started on alkaline water earlier and perhaps it will have strength-
ened their body immune system to prevent the onset of degenerative diseases”
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 9
OUR BODY IS 75% WATER, WHAT WATER ARE YOU MADE UP OF?
Alkaline water has been touted as the healthiest drinking water. What is so special about alkaline water? Is alkaline
water a recent fad? Is alkaline water natural? These seem to be common questions ask about the water.
Firstly alkaline water is not a new phenomenon. The Japanese and Koreans have been consuming this water since the
50s. There are many natural occurring springs or glacial water that have similar properties to alkaline water. The most
famous of these is the zam-zam water in Mecca and the Arabs have been drinking this water for hundreds of years.
Zam-zam is called ‘healing water’ or ‘holy water’ by the muslims. Other known natural alkaline water sources in-
clude Hunza (Pakistan), Loudes (France), Vilcabamba (Peruvian Andes), Tlacote (Mexico) and Lijiang (China). Peo-
ple who live near these spring water tend to be healthier and live longer.
Basically alkaline water is ionized water that contains predominantly alkaline minerals and possesses health proper-
ties to strengthen immunity, hydration and detoxification. An alkaline water ionizer is an electrical device that takes
in municipal water supply, convert and split it into two outputs through filtration and electrolysis. The two outputs are
alkaline water for consumption and acid antibacterial or beauty water for external use.
How does alkaline water differ from other popular drinking water such as reverse osmosis or RO water, distilled wa-
ter and filtered mineral water? The main difference lies in the technology used to process the water. In the case of
alkaline water, the electrolysis process in a water ionizer produces water with alkaline pH, antioxidant and micro-
clustering. Let’s discuss these properties and how it can impact health.
Alkaline pH
When eat food daily our body also produces acid as by product of metabolism. The acid is removed via breathing
(CO2), perspiration and urination on a daily basis, hence balancing our body pH. Modern diet on the other hand tends
to contain more processed food, more chemicals and more meaty. Together with a faster pace and stressful lifestyle,
they create more metabolic acid. This cause an imbalance in body pH and if continue will lead to acidosis which is
an increased in blood acidity and body tissues. This results in acid induced diseases such as gout (uric acid), kidney
stones (oxalic acid), high blood pressure (cholesterol), diabetes (organ or visceral fats) and cancer. Drinking alkaline
water daily will help to remove these acid wastes and help prevent the onset of these degenerative diseases. When
person is acidic he or she tends to be lethargic and tired. Drinking alkaline water will improve blood circulation
bringing more oxygen to tissues and hence improved energy level.
Antioxidant
The start of most diseases is inflammation of the tissues and organs. What is the main cause of inflammation? Free-
radical, a by-product of body metabolism. Our body generates more free radicals in a polluted environment, such as
smoking or if we over exert ourselves in sports. Free-radicals damage our body cell by oxidizing it, similar to rusting
iron or darkening of cut fruits. As the name implies, anti-oxidant protects our body cell by preventing this oxidative
damage caused by free-radicals.
When our cells are oxidized by free radicals they are damaged and die off faster. This is ageing. Also our immune
system is compromised. Drinking alkaline water which contains antioxidant prevents premature ageing and helps
boost our immune system.
Micro-clustering
Water is H20 molecules. The molecules clump together into clusters. Normal water has 10 to 14 molecules per clus-
ter. Alkaline water has 6 to 8 molecules per cluster, meaning smaller clusters. Alkaline water is also called micro-
cluster water. This clustering can be demonstrated using tea leaves.
When we drink alkaline water, the water goes through the cell wall faster, meaning absorption is faster. Alkaline wa-
ter is twice more hydrating than any other types of drinking water. Micro-clustering also results in faster detoxifica-
tion. If you drink alkaline water you will urinate more often initially. Good hydration and effective detox are two
important health properties of alkaline water.
SPEAKER’S TEXT
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 10
How is Alkalife Water different from other brands of water ionizers?
1. Alkalife Water comes with 10 years warranty, the longest in the industry. Warranty is indicative of product qual-
ity. For the next 10 yrs any parts replacement is free of charge!
2. Alkalife Water offers a 30 days money-back guarantee for the best performance, warranty and price ratio. Alka-
life’s customers are assured they are getting the best value when they purchase our product.
3. Alkalife product is most advanced and comes with some unique features:-
@ user friendliness - large touch screen, one touch operation, full colour display,
@ cleanliness – auto clean and double internal filtration
@ lower running cost - long filter life
@ power savings - auto sleep mode, no overheating using smps power and
@ proven -fully tested globally having sold in USA & Europe and comes with 7 languages.
4. Alkalife product conforms to “gold standard” GMP, possesses halal and medical device certifications
5. Alkalife is a pioneer in alkaline water business in Malaysia having been in the business for 17 years (since 1998).
Our long track record assures continuity in after sales service and commitment to our 10 years warranty.
SPEAKER’S TEXT
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 11
PICTURE GALLERY
Our acting SAA kick-starting the meeting... Our handsome PP KH Low all ready to fine...
Our star, Rtn Shiou Ting introducing our speaker of the day...
PP Michael Yeow presenting a memento to our speaker. Rtn Mindaugas Glinskis being the youngest member from RC Vilnis visiting us.
Weekly Club Meeting - December 14, 2015
A day without laughter is a day wasted...
- Charlie Chaplin -
Our speaker, Mr. KH Wong during his presentation, with our President paying full attention from his seat...
Quote of the Day
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 12
PICTURE GALLERY
Weekly Club Meeting - December 14, 2015
Many happy faces...Many happy faces...Many happy faces...
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 13
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Event:
LAUNCHING OF COMPUTER LAB AT AUTORR CENTRE Date/Time:
December 22, 2015 (Tuesday) @ 02:00PM Venue:
Autorr Foundation, Ampang. OC:
President Dato’ Muslim
Event:
RC PUDU 49TH AGM & CHARITY FOUNDATION 43RD AGM Date/Time:
December 28, 2015 (Monday) @ 07:30PM Venue:
Shangri-La, Kuala Lumpur. OC:
RC Pudu Event:
INTERNATIONAL NIGHT - IU Date/Time:
February 2016 Venue:
TBA OC:
PP Alex Chang
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 14
ANNOUNCEMENTS - We Made The Headlines...
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 15
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 16
Dear Interact Club of S.J.K. Tamil, Kajang, Congratulations, your club is this 2015 Fan Favorite Award Winner! Your video, “1 Interactor 1 Plant,” received the most votes in our 2015 Interact Video Awards! Your video received an AMAZING 42106 votes. You should be proud of your success in spreading the word about your video and receiving so many votes in the online voting portion of this year’s campaign. We look forward to featuring your video in an upcoming issue of the Young Leaders in Action newsletter, on our Inter-act Official YouTube channel and Facebook Page, in a feature story on Rotary.org, you will receive a personal letter from RI President K.R. Ravindran, and an award commemorating your success. Please provide an email address for someone we can contact, whether it is the Interact club president, school adviser or a contact in the sponsor Rotary club, in order to write an article for the Rotary website. Please also provide a mailing address where we can send your award. Here are some more ways to celebrate your hard work and continue sharing your video to show your club’s impact in creating positive change:
Share your video with everyone! Your club’s video is a great way to share your positive impact with your sponsor
Rotary club, promote your club’s activities to potential new members in your school or community, and demon-strate the global power of Interactors at a district conference or RYLA event.
Inspire others to take action. You will receive a Certificate of Participation and the Fan Favorite Award that you
can display in your club meeting room, include it with your school or community center’s award or trophy case, and post pictures on social media to show others that you are active in service.
Apply for the Presidential Citation for Interact Clubs. You’ve already completed one of the activities to earn even
more recognition for your service.
Thank you for your commitment to Interact and your dedicated service to your community. Please send our congratu-lations to all of the Interactors, school staff, and Rotarians who helped to document the good work your club is doing. Also, I apologize for the misspelling of Malaysia on your video entry. It should now be corrected. Sincerely, Jessie Dunbar-Bickmore Rotary International
DISTRICT NEWS
It’s Official - SJKT Kajang Has Officially Won...
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 17
Dear friends, Good day to everyone. This month of December has seen the involvement of many of our Rotarians in activities within and outside of our district. The visit of the RI president, K. R. Ravindran brought the best out of us in terms of success-fully organizing the various events in a day with the RI president himself expressing his delight at our ability. We had a very successful Interact conference organized by RC Klang and when we talk of the youth, we have been gripped with the Interact video contest where the Interact club of SJK( T), Kajang has been hogging the limelight and finally emerging as the champion in the popularity contest. It was inspiring to see how the Rotarians from our District responded to the exhortations of AG Mah and Governor Siti. We will wait and see how the judges decide but whether they emerge champions or not, the interactors who are only 11-12 in age have made a name for themselves and made us proud. There are currently two groups of our Rotarians from our district who are currently undertaking humanitarian service projects. The group in Sri Lanka are undertaking a project called " Dhanvantri- Limb for the Limbless" which has brought mobility to hundreds of victims who have lost their limbs during the civil war in Sri Lanka and is in its third year. RC Melawati is the lead club but from what I notice, there are Rotarians from many other clubs in the team. While the team in Sri Lanka are fitting limbs, another team led by RC Damansara West are currently undertaking an-other project which is providing the "gift of sight" to the many poor and needy in Kampuchea. This is yet another long term signature project and there are Rotarians from other clubs too involved. This project has restored vision and giv-en new hope to hundreds of poor patients who have benefitted from this meaningful project. I would also like to bring to your attention about another project which touched many of our hearts. There was this boy from Sarawak, Joshua, aged 4 years who had a heart condition called Fallots tetralogy, that needed immediate surgery for the child to lead a normal life. The Rotary club of Kuching Central was alerted about this boy whose par-ents are poor and they worked hand in hand with RC Penang and RC Tanjung Bungah to bring them down to Penang and have the surgery done in Penang free of charge. A surgery that normally costs Rm 60,000 was done without any cost to the poor family thanks to RC Penang's 'Gift of Life' and contributions from RC Kuching Central, RC Tanjung Bun-gah and other well wishers. Joshua is back in Kuching with his parents grateful that Rotarians have given him a new lease of life. There are just a few examples of some of the good work that has been done by our clubs and Rotarians in the last fortnight alone. There must be many other similar projects that Rotarians in our district must be carrying out but have gone unreported. Kindly share with us and inspire all the clubs in our district. BE A GIFT TO THE WORLD- There is no doubt that Rotarians in district 3300 are indeed a gift to the world!!!
DISTRICT NEWS
A Touching Message By PP Baskaran
Another Proud Moment… The Rotary Club of Pudu is pleased to inform that we have contributed RM14,470.00 towards the Chennai Flood Aid. Thanks to PP Mohan and all those contributed...
RC Pudu Boleh!
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 18
The common perception of the physically disabled throughout Mexico was that they are incapable of being productive members of society. Unable to work or provide for their families, they face discrimination, must be taken care of, and are kept at home. But an organization called Autonomy, Liberation Through Movement (ALEM) is working to change all that. Founded in 2007, ALEM provides vocational training, encouraging and empowering people with motor disabilities to find meaning-ful employment. In addition, the group is providing a service that was sorely needed throughout central Mexico: wheel-chair repair. With the help of the Rotary Club of Cuernavaca-Juárez and the Rotary Club of Paoli-Malvern-Berwyn, Pennsyl-vania, USA, ALEM has been able to provide low-cost repairs for wheelchair users in their community. A Rota-ry Foundation grant is funding a mobile repair clinic that travels to neighboring central Mexican cities including Puebla and Veracruz. Local Rotary clubs arrange accom-modations, meals, publicity, and a central location where the ALEM team can set up its mobile repair shop. Erik Friend, co-founder and now president of ALEM, brought his experience as a mechanic to the organiza-tion, and presented ALEM as a potential project partner to various clubs in Mexico and the United States. Impressed with Rotary club involvement in projects that goes beyond funding, he became a Rotary member himself, joining the Cuernavaca-Juárez club. “This project has benefits and contributions to society that are very interesting,” Friend says. “Some are simple, as people who have lost their mobility regain it by having their wheelchair fixed, but other benefits are more subtle, like the impact on the local culture and on society. People with disabilities now see that it is possible to work. We know that we are changing perspectives.” ALEM has 10 people working out of its Cuernavaca-based workshop, all with physical disabilities and most of them wheelchair users. All workers are trained in various specialties, including painting, welding, and upholstery work. Mayra Solano, director of ALEM, explains that the organization’s name is meant to emphasize the possibility of growth and change for anyone with a motor disability. She adds that the constant challenge is figuring out how to fight pre-established notions about the capabilities of people who must rely on a wheelchair.
“ALEM works in two parts,” says Solano. “One part is painting a picture in our country showing that even with a disability, in our case motor, there are still many op-tions and we can integrate [these people] back into the world. The other part talks about the education needed, so they can become professionals and work. They have to learn new things -- to use their hands, to use their sight, to work in a team, to talk about ideas, and start working together.” Providing low-cost wheelchair repairs is another im-portant element of ALEM’s mission. Although replace-ment parts are relatively inexpensive, they still aren’t
affordable for most wheelchair users in the community. With Rotary’s help, ALEM now charges only for labor, any-where from about $3 to $18. With the ability now to bring the repair clinic to other communities, ALEM’s impact is that much wider. “We [and the Rotary clubs] joined our efforts and started working together, but it goes much further than that,” Sola-no says. “It goes in the feeling and the spirit of Rotary, which is about working with the community, for the communi-ty. It’s the partnership that makes change possible.”
RI NEWS
BRINGING SOCIAL CHANGE AND MOBILITY THROUGH WHEELCHAIR PROJECT
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 19
Naing Ko Ko - Rotary Peace Fellow University of Queensland, Australia, 2012-13 In 1988, when I was 16, I began to protest with other students for democracy, human rights, and social justice in my home country of Burma, now called Myanmar. Four years later, I was arrested and tortured for two months in an inter-rogation camp. I was shackled and beaten. I was not allowed to sleep. They put a cloth over my eyes and a hood over my head, so I could not tell the day from the night. They asked me the same questions over and over. It was quite similar to George Orwell’s 1984. After this, I was sent to a special court. I was given no lawyer, just sent directly to prison. They did not want us to learn in prison, but I had a dream to go and study overseas when I was released. I convinced a guard to smuggle books to me. I received a dictionary to learn English and books on economics and philosophy. I dug a hole in the wall of my cell and hid the books and covered the hole with an image of the Buddha. I studied Eng-lish at night and in the day I slept. But one day, I got sleepy and didn’t hide the books, and they were discovered. After that, I was moved to a cell where they kept the dogs. They put me in shackles again and made me behave as if I were a dog. If they called my name, “Naing Ko Ko!” I had to respond, “Woof! Woof!” When the guards came, I had to kneel down and press my face to the floor and not look at their face. They put the food on the ground and I had to eat just with my mouth, like a dog. With water it was this way, too. At this time, I realized that I would die in the prison if I remained fighting and stubborn. I knew I had to accept the reality and control my mind or I would go crazy in that place. There were others who committed suicide. They smashed their heads against the wall. I didn’t want to be defeated in this way. I did not want to die in front of inhu-man wardens. But I had also to remember that the guards were not educated people. They were part of a system. So I started to talk with them. I said, “Come on. We are just students. We are not murderers or criminals. We only want the right to learn and to make a democracy.” I tried to explain as much as I could, from reading the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi. Many did not respond at all. But I kept talking. I made my voice loud. After many times talking, some prison guards replied to me. We became familiar and finally like close friends. After six years and eight months, I was released. I am now fulfilling my dream of studying overseas at Australian Na-tional University in Canberra. Of all the prisoners who were arrested in the protests, I think I am the only one who is getting a Ph.D. More than 3,000 people died during the democracy protests of 1988. Thousands more went to prison like me. We be-came known as the “88 Generation” because we called for democracy and human rights. We cannot forget what happened in places like the dog cell. But we must forgive the guards and wardens or we cannot move forward. You cannot make a democracy with rage in your heart. There must be forgiveness. It is important to talk about justice. But revenge and justice are not the same. For me, the best revenge is to become someone who can work to change my country systematically. I want to return to Myanmar to become a chief policy adviser. I want to work on anti-corruption and anti-poverty programs and social justice, and most of all the peacemaking process. I want the interrogation camp where I was tortured to become a museum so we never forget this part of our history and never repeat it. Are you interested in working for peace and conflict resolution? Find out how to become a Rotary Peace Fellow or support the Rotary Peace Centers at www.rotary.org/peace-fellowships.
RI NEWS
WHAT IT'S LIKE TO GO TO JAIL FOR YOUR BELIEFS...AND FORGIVE YOUR CAPTORS
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 20
If you’re interested, please click the following link and win! Rotary Photo Contest (click on the link above if you are viewing this page online)
RI NEWS
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 21
GET INSPIRED !
A man was exploring caves by the seashore. In one of the caves he found a canvas bag with a bunch of hardened clay
balls. It was like someone had rolled clay balls and left them out in the sun to bake. They didn't look like much, but
they intrigued the man so he took the bag out of the cave with him.
As he strolled along the beach, he would throw the clay balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could. He
thought little about it until he dropped one of the balls and it cracked open on a rock. Inside was a beautiful, precious
stone.
Excited the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each contained a similar treasure.
He found thousands of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so clay balls he had left. Then it struck him. He had been on
the beach a long time. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 of the clay balls with their hidden treasure into the ocean
waves. Instead of thousands of dollars in treasure, he could have taken home tens of thousands, but he just threw it
away.
It's like that with people. We look at someone, maybe even ourselves, and we see the external clay vessel. It doesn't
look like much from the outside. It isn't always beautiful or sparkling so we discount it. We see that person as less im-
portant than someone more beautiful or stylish or well known or wealthy. But we have not taken the time to find the
treasure hidden inside that person by God.
There is a treasure in each and every one of us. If we take the time to get to know that person, and if we ask God to
show us that person the way He sees them, then the clay begins to peel away and the brilliant gem begins to shine
forth.
May we not come to the end of our lives and find out that we have thrown away a fortune in friendships because the
gems were hidden in bits of clay.
May we see the people in our world as God sees them.
Clay Balls
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 22
LOL!
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 23
Word Search..
Let’s go Disney this time around….see if you can find ‘em...
Answers will be posted in our RC Pudu clubrunner portal. So visit us frequently :) Our portal : http://portal.clubrunner.ca/3045/ (click on the link above if you are viewing this page online)
FIT BRAINS
Continuity of Service through Effective Leadership
Rotary Club of Pudu 2015-16 Page 24
MOTIVATIONAL QUOTES - Abraham Lincoln