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Everything About the White Flag Movement in M’sia, Whereby People Who Need Help Would Put White Flag Outside Their House

2021-07-04 , 3:21 pm

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit many people in our neighbouring country really hard, both financially and mentally.

In a shocking reveal by health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah while citing data from the police, he said that within the span of the first three months of 2021 alone, there were 336 cases of suicides that were reported to the police.

That’s a staggering 4 suicide cases a day.

He also pointed out that the number is already more than half of the suicide cases reported throughout the year 2020 where the pandemic had initially begun spreading in earnest, or even in 2019.

The suicide cases reported for 2019 and 2020 were 609 and 631 respectively.

People who are made desperate whether because they lost their jobs and can no longer support their families or were isolated from their support network and families due to continuous and seemingly endless lockdowns end up getting severe depression which may lead to suicidal tendencies.

Hang a White Flag and Hang in There; Help will Come

Despite being desperate, many of these Malaysians still have the dignity not to resort to begging for food and other essential goods or money to survive, even if they are starving.

In one case in Kota Bharu, a single mother and her youngest 14-year-old daughter had to survive on biscuits alone for three days due to running out of rice.

In another case, a man was spotted rummaging through trash for food at night when nobody could see him.

There’s also a 54-year-old father with 3 kids who could no longer feed either himself or his children properly after not being able to work for 3 weeks now, no thanks to the lockdown.

There are way too many people like this who might/are at their wits’ end and this is exactly where the White Flag Movement comes in.

It is a way for struggling families and people to light a flare in the dark and get some much-needed help without having to beg and be ashamed of doing so, or resort to desperate measures like ending their lives or putting their own health on the line just to survive by eating food waste.

The idea is for these needy people to hang a white flag and let the people around them – their neighbours, specifically – immediately reach out to help.

#KitaJagaKita

From their flip-flop SOPs and their MCO 3.0 that further devastated the livelihoods of millions without showing any positive improvement in the daily COVID-19 cases, the Malaysian government is seen by many Malaysians as failing them despite their “best” efforts.

In fact, many Malaysians are infuriated that the government chose to shut down most small and medium businesses, bar essential ones while allowing many factories to continue to operate, when it’s the factories where the infection is spreading into various communities like wildfire.

Even the most recent EMCO imposed on multiple states isn’t inspiring any confidence that things will get better either.

This is why the people of Malaysia have decided that enough is enough – many people are killing themselves because they are not getting the aid that they really need in a timely manner from the government, so it’s up to “Kita” (Us) to “Jaga Kita” (Take Care of Our Own).

The White Flag Movement is hailed as a true display of Malaysian unity; the spirit of “Muhibah” (goodwill) among the Malaysian people, and how that, when push comes to shove, we will always stand up for our own.

Corporations Are Quick to Lend a Hand As Well

Many businesses ranging from multinational corporations like Tesco/Lotus’s to smaller chains like 99 Speedmart and Econsave to even individually-owned small businesses, are quick to respond to the call.

Tesco/Lotus’s has, for instance, set up Charity Food Bins at some of their stores across the country so people could donate essentials to the needy.

These donated goods will then be sent to communities that need them the most.

In 99 Speedmart’s case, it’s pitching in 1000 packs of essential goods every day from 1 to 14 July, complete with free delivery, to submitted photos of houses with white flags.

Of course, the address will also have to be included for this to work.

The Origin of the White Flag Movement

The #BenderaPutih (#WhiteFlag) campaign was brought to life on Twitter by Nik Faizah Nik Othman, the deputy president of the women’s division in the Malaysian political party, Amanah.

On 28 Jun, she wrote an impassioned plea on her Twitter account to call upon the desperate to raise a white flag and let the people around them help.

“Jangan ambil tindakan yg merugikan diri-sendiri dan keluarga. Elakkan stess, berkongsi lah masalah dgn org ramai.”(Don’t take any actions that would harm yourself or your family. Avoid stress, share your problems with the people.)

Her plea was taken up by many, with her post being shared over 20,000 times, turning it into the massive movement it is today.

To put it simply, it has become an initiative by the people, for the people.

Police to Check If Cry for Help is Genuine

Of course, there will always some black sheep that would take advantage of good, kind-hearted people and steal vital resources that are meant for the needy.

Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Hazani Ghazali was quoted as saying that his officers will be keeping a close eye on white flag cases.

If there are any “fake” white flags, they would launch an investigation.

After all, “we don’t want some people to take advantage to cheat,” he explained.

Politicians Responses

The White Flag Movement isn’t a sign that the Malaysian people are admitting defeat, but apparently, this was what the Bachok MP from Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) Nik Abduh Nik Aziz thought it meant.

As a result, he was lambasted by the people when he commented on the movement in his Facebook post, saying that those affected by challenges posed by COVID-19 should pray instead of admitting defeat.

Guess he now regrets spending just 5 minutes to actually look up the hashtag – likely the same amount of time he used to type out and publish his Facebook post.

Politicians from the ruling government, like Minister of Housing & Local Government, Zuraida Kamaruddin, are also facing harsh criticism from netizens for attempting to hijack the people’s initiative.

As Juice Online so accurately puts it, “This flag is not a political tool, it’s a symbol that the nation is suffering.”

Featured Image: Twitter (@NewsBFM)