Ketika ada di kalangan
kita yang tuduh menuduh siapa yang menjadi dalang kejadian di Lahad
Datu, Putera Yang Dipertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan, Tunku Zain
Al’Abidin ibni Tuanku Muhriz telah menghadiri upacara memperingati
pahlawan yang gugur dalam perang yang begitu masyhur iaitu Perang
Jambatan Gemencheh. Perang Jambatan Gemencheh ini begitu banyak
diperkatakan oleh dunia luar, tetapi amat malang, bukan sahaja orang
Malaysia, malah ada orang Negeri Sembilan tak pernah tahu kewujudan
Perang Jambatan Gemencheh semasa Perang Dunia Ke 2.
Saya rasa berbangga Tunku
Zain Al’Abidin ibni Tuanku Muhriz rupanya adalah salah satu
keturunan pembesar Melayu yang menubuhkan Askar Melayu iaitu Almarhum
Tuanku Muhammad Shah ibni Yamtuan Antah , Yang Dipertuan Besar
N.Sembilan ke 7 bersama moyang saya , Undang Rembau ke 18 , Dato
Abdullah Hj Dahan.
Saya juga rasa berbangga
Tunku Zain Al’Abidin ibni Tuanku Muhriz dilantik sebagai Major
Kehormat Rejimen 508 AW, dimana arwah ayah saya pernah menjadi
Pegawai Memerintah Rejimen 508 AW Kem Rasah, Seremban.
Remember sacrifice and sovereignty
Friday, March 08, 2013 - 16:10
by Tunku ’Abidin Muhriz
THIS is an extract of the speech
delivered at the Battle of Gemencheh Bridge Remembrance Ceremony.
We gather today to remember a
significant battle of World War II in Asia: the Battle of Gemencheh
Bridge, which took place on Jan 14, 1942.
On Dec 8, 1941, the Pacific War began
when the Japanese landed at Kota Baru, hours before the bombing of
Pearl Harbor.
Penang fell on Dec 17, Ipoh was lost by
Christmas, and the Battle of Slim River on Jan 7 did little to slow
the Japanese advance.
Three days later, the invaders were at
Serendah, and on that day, the decision was taken to ambush the
Japanese at Gemencheh Bridge.
When the Japanese did arrive at the
bridge on Jan 14, Australia’s Captain Desmond Duffy of B Company
2/30th Battalion let hundreds of soldiers, many on the bicycles on
which they had so quickly traversed the peninsula, cross the bridge.
The bridge was then destroyed and the
Australians commenced a successful attack that killed hundreds of the
enemy and six tanks.
Just over two weeks later, the Japanese
arrived at the causeway, and Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival
surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Army in Singapore on Feb 15,
1942.
The bravery and courage shown by the
alliance of Malayan and Commonwealth troops throughout the war
deserves to be more widely recognised and remembered.
Of the many individual stories of
tremendous valour, one concerns a volunteer of the 3rd Battalion of
the Federated Malay States Volunteer Force based in Negri Sembilan,
Captain Raja Aman Shah Raja Harun Al Rashid.
Having fought the enemy all the way
down to Singapore and subsequently captured, he refused an offer of
freedom, as his colleagues would not be freed together with him. For
this loyalty to his starving comrades, he was force-marched alongside
them, stripped and then shot into trenches that were deliberately
uncovered so the bodies were left to rot.
Emotionally difficult as these accounts
are, they form a vital part of our history and ought to be
transmitted to the younger generation.
I am therefore grateful to Datuk
Thambipillay Rajasingam for bringing together so many representatives
from army, police, diplomats and students.
In the fading days of empire and the
emergence of the postcolonial nationstate, combatants on either side
were more easily identified.
But today, in another part of this
country, there are on-going operations that have resulted in the
tragic loss of life.
Historical and legal arguments have
been put forth to explain the conflict in Sabah, but the protection
of our sovereignty must be the priority. In this regard I declare my
utmost gratitude and appreciation to our armed forces, whatever the
political and diplomatic machinations at work behind the scenes may
be. Sacrifices should not be forgotten.
Attending memorial events helps us
visualise some of the heroism and also contextualise the action
within the wider geopolitical tussles of the day.
An earlier conflict in Negri Sembilan
neatly illustrates these shifts. In the 1874 War of Bukit Putus,
Yamtuan Antah repelled invading British forces at Seri Menanti to
Seremban, but their cannon fire prevailed and the Istana was
destroyed.
However Yamtuan Antah’s son, Tuanku
Muhammad, chose to work with the British, resulting in tremendous
economic development.
With his brother Rulers, he urged the
formation of a local army regiment.
This became the Royal Malay Regiment,
which fought alongside so many Commonwealth units during World War II
and the Emergency.
It just celebrated its 80th birthday
last week in Port Dickson.
The point of my story is that although
relations with different leaders and governments of countries can
fluctuate, the memory of acts of courage can bind us together.
While the military aspect of our
relationship continues through initiatives such as the Five Power
Defence Arrangements, the political and economic relationship is
flourishing too. However, as we have seen, not all offers are taken
up with equal enthusiasm.
The on-going skirmish in Lahad Datu is
a rare event.
These days, ensuring wellpeace and
freedom within our borders more often calls for good governance, rule
of law, proper check and balances, healthy civil society and free and
fair elections.
Malaysians look to the police and armed
forces to protect these institutions, and while I am proud of all the
strides made in Malaysian civil society in the past few years, I am
humbled to be able to wear this uniform as Honorary Major of Regiment
508 of the Askar Wataniah.
I understand that with the cooperation
between Wira Association Malaysia, the OCPD Tampin and other
supporters that this remembrance will be an annual event. I therefore
hope to return here in the future.
Tunku Zain Al’Abidin ibni Tuanku
Muhriz is Honorary
Major of Regiment 508 of the Askar
Wataniah.
He is also the president of the
Institute for Democracy and Economic
D.Y.M.M Yang Dipertuan Besar Negeri
Sembilan
1. D.Y.M.M Raja Melewar - Dari
Pagaruyung
2. D.Y.M.M Yamtuan Hitam - Dari
Pagaruyung
3. D.Y.M.M Yamtuan Lenggang - Dari
Pagaruyung
4. D.Y.M.M Yamtuan Radin ibni Yamtuan
Lenggang
5. D.Y.M.M Yamtuan Imam ibni Yamtuan
Lenggang
6. D.Y.M.M Yamtuan Antah ibni Yamtuan
Radin
7. D.Y.M.M Tuanku Muhammad Shah ibni
Yamtuan Antah
8. D.Y.M.M Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni
Tuanku Muhammad Shah
9. D.Y.M.M Tuanku Munawir ibni Tuanku
Abdul Rahman
10. D.Y.M.M Tuanku Ja'afar ibni Tuanku
Abdul Rahman
11. D.Y.M.M Tuanku Muhriz ibni Tuanku
Munawir
Terpahat nama Allahyarham Kapten Raja
Aman Shah bin Raja Harun dan Allahyarham Kapten Yazid Ahmad
http://www.nagarinantuo.com/butakah-kita/
Tiada ulasan:
Catat Ulasan