The Difference Between Democracy Freedom And Rights

---

So, yes, I have democracy, but I do not have freedom and rights. I cannot do what I like, or what I am entitled to do. My freedom and rights are decided by others. And I need to follow the rules and regulations decided by others. And I did not even choose the government that decides what I can and cannot do. Others chose that government and I need to accept this choice. NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
DEMOCRACY: a form of government in which people choose their leaders by voting.
FREEDOM: the power to do what you want to do.
RIGHTS: the power or privilege to which you are entitled.
Most Malaysian politicians and social activists talk about democracy, freedom, civil liberties, and rights as if they are all mean the same thing. They do not. They are totally different things, and you can have one but not the other.
When Malaysians who do not understand the difference between democracy, freedom, civil liberties, and rights talk about these matters, the rakyat are misled into believing, kononnya, that the mandat rakyat (people’s mandate) will guarantee all this.
Not true. Adolf Hitler, too, received the mandat rakyat in a democratic election. And 60 million people died because of it. Many Middle Eastern, African, Asian, and Latin American countries also hold democratic elections and their leaders, too, receive the mandat rakyat. But you would not want to live in those countries.
Hence the mandat rakyat means nothing as far as democracy, freedom, civil liberties, and rights are concerned. However, ignorant Malaysian politicians and social activists do not understand this. So Malaysians remain ignorant and confused due to this misunderstanding.
In Islam, rights mean the right for every citizen to live in the Kingdom of God (as the Christians would say). This would translate to Darul Allah in Islam. Hence, if you deny citizens this right by declaring that Malaysia is a secular country, people are being denied their rights.
So, Malaysia may be a democracy as far as choosing the government is concerned, but Malaysia does not have rights because its citizens are being denied the Kingdom of God or Darul Allah (or Darul Islam, if you wish).
On top of that, the citizens of Malaysia are being denied their freedom.
You cannot leave Islam and convert to, say, Hinduism. You cannot change your name from Anwar to Alicia, enlarge your tits, wear a mini skirt, and marry another man (even if you undergo a sex-change operation). You cannot condemn all religions as fake news and organise a Bible and Qur’an burning event at Dataran Merdeka. You cannot sunbathe nude on a Langkawi beach. You cannot have sex in a park. You cannot smoke on a bus. You cannot drive down a one-way street. You cannot park in a no-parking zone. You cannot ride your motorcycle without a crash helmet. You cannot drive without a seat belt and speak on your mobile phone while driving.
Sigh…the list of ‘no-freedoms’ is just so long it is easier instead to make a list of what is allowed. Anyway, you get the point of what you are not free to do, even if Malaysia may be a democracy.
I am also not free to say Chinese and Indians are guests (pendatang) in Malaysia while Malays are the tuan rumah, and that guests must act like guests or else get out of my home. I am also not free to say all those who believe in God and His so-called religion and ‘holy books’ are idiots for believing in something that cannot be proven (even if that may be true). I am also not free to say Chinese and Tamil schools must be banned and all Malaysians can only have Malaysian names, like once-upon-a-time in Indonesia and Thailand.
So, yes, I have democracy, but I do not have freedom and rights. I cannot do what I like, or what I am entitled to do. My freedom and rights are decided by others. And I need to follow the rules and regulations decided by others. And I did not even choose the government that decides what I can and cannot do. Others chose that government and I need to accept this choice.
 

---