The extension of Argus Lane, behind St George’s Church.

How easy it is for a person to walk in a city – its walkability – is fast becoming a measure of how liveable a city is. The George Town Back Lanes Project is constructed on that understanding, and shows the potential that our forgotten pathways contain.

By Eric Capel

Back lanes as assets
An improved quality of life is a key advantage of having pedestrian-friendly spaces in the city. Pedestrians tend to congregate around safe, pleasant and interesting environments, particularly the young and creative generation that values a strong social culture. More public spaces would promote walking just as how increasing highways would bring in more cars. A city with a wide network of pedestrian infrastructure and spaces provides an avenue for creativity to manifest. The “Car Free Sundays” around Penang’s Beach Street, for example, has seen many events taking place, attracting tourists, skaters and cyclists from all over, some even coming out with their own quirky versions of bicycles. The additional public spaces will champion a more social and pedestrian culture, which George Town has been aiming to achieve.

Once the pedestrian groundwork has been put in place, small independent businesses like food bars as well as magazine and gift stalls will spur the economy by setting up their premises along the spaces to catch the pedestrian wave. This will spread economic benefits across the town.

Back lanes provide segregation between pedestrians and vehicular traffic. People are more inclined to walk or hang out in vehicle-free spaces compared to busy streets, away from the exhaust and hazards of the road. The ambience of the back lanes is naturally more laid-back, with less noise and less of the “stress and strains” of the city.

The Melbourne example
The Melbourne Laneways Project was implemented in the central business district (CBD) in the late 1980s. Before the project, the city was in the doldrums, experiencing its lowest occupancy. The programme witnessed the transformation of the back lanes and alleys in the CBD into public spaces. The garbage collection system was first reorganised, the grime and waste on the surface were removed, and a smooth walking surface was put in place. Once those dark lanes were spruced up and injected with life, people started to see the potential that lanes held in Melbourne.

Soon after, the city saw a dramatic improvement in street life and businesses along its downtown streets and alleys. Small independent businesses such as music shops, art galleries, food bars and craft workshops began moving away from the main streets (that demanded high rents), to set up in the revitalised lanes. Ten years later, the city showed an 830% increase in residents, 275% more restaurants and cafes, and a 62% increase in students [1].

Pedestrian barriers
Many of the back lanes located in the heritage zone of George Town are no longer “unknown” territory to the locals and visitors, thanks to Lithuanian-born street artist Ernest Zacharevic’s street murals and Think City’s metal sculpture project [2] that helped promote the character-rich lanes. Many tourists have identified the locations of the art pieces and continue to flock there. One such lane is an obscure lane opposite the Khoo Kongsi, which has seen a large increase in tourist flow ever since it was publicised online.

An appealing characteristic of the degree of walkability in George Town is that there are much fewer pedestrian barriers within the city compared to more complex metropolitan blocks like KL. There are no obstructing highways, no major rivers and no eight-lane road trunks. Most of the streets in George Town preserve the repose of old.

Yet a challenge faced by many pedestrians is that the street shoulders are not wide enough, and many times the sidewalks or kaki lima either are broken or too narrow, have an obstruction built into it like a wall or tree, or just do not exist at all. Therefore sometimes it just seems easier to walk on the streets instead of on the sidewalks.

An artwork lining one of the back lanes in George Town.

On the flip side, there is a considerably large network of back lanes within the heritage zone of George Town that provides an alternative pathway to the busy streets. The problem is that many of the residents use the lanes to park their vehicles, and it would be another matter entirely to get them to give up their parking lots in the name of public space.

The George Town Back Lanes Project
Penang Institute has been mapping the network of back lanes in the heritage zone of George Town, exploring their potential. The study, dubbed the George Town Back Lanes Project, shows that the lanes hold great potential to be converted into public spaces if provided with the proper infrastructure such as smooth pavements and benches. After all, they are already shaded by surrounding buildings and trees and are used as short-cuts or places for locals to relax.

Thus far, 40 lanes have been identified. The ownership of the lanes is being recorded and their current usage observed. These lanes, when connected with short street sections, have the capacity to create a whole network of walkways connecting important locations from Weld Quay and the clan associations of Armenian and Acheh Streets to the backpacker arteries of Love Lane and Chulia Street. Proper signages can be erected across the nexus of walkways to direct pedestrians to heritage sites in the city. Colour codes can also be used to categorise different areas of the network in the city; for example, light blue for Weld Quay and green for the area around the clan houses.

This mapping study aims to complement the Greening of George Town project and Think City’s Little India Improvement District project to transform two back lanes within Little India into walkways-cum-public spaces. Four underutilised courtyards in the district are also being transformed into urban pocket parks. This Secret Garden programme seeks to bring in an element of surprise into public space to encourage more people to explore those places.

Several concepts under the George Town Back Lanes Project have been tabled. One is an “Artist Lane” where artists can convene to display their artwork. The lane should have long stretches of clean walls that can be painted or printed on, with sections where benches can be placed. It would essentially be an open art gallery strip. A lane that may suit the description is the extension of Argus Lane, which is a clean and shady alley with an exceedingly pleasant atmosphere. Situated behind St George’s Anglican Church, the lane is also home to Seven Terraces, the newly restored boutique hotel. Other lanes near Cannon Square are being looked into as well.

Another concept on the drawing board is the “Cafe Lane” where small businesses and cafes shift their outlets to face the lane. The lane should be broad, attractive and safe. Incandescent lights may be used to line the rows of houses to provide ambience in the evenings. Currently under study is Cheapside Lane, which already has hardware businesses along it and is a hive of activity among technicians. It also has the back of houses facing the lane, which may present an opportunity for residents to open cafes and bars.

One of Zacharevic’s murals in a lane located near the Khoo Kongsi.

A “Garden Lane” impression was also developed in which linear gardens and creepers line the lane. A public park can be developed where anyone can contribute to the lush greenery of the belt. Different sections are envisioned, with areas for, say, potted miniature plants and flower beds. A bicycle station can be opened within the lane to serve as the start for a cycling trail around the heritage enclave.

In conclusion
The future of the George Town Back Lanes Project is still uncertain but one can already imagine the aesthetic or economic benefits the project will bring. The official implementation and infrastructure development are largely in the hands of the authorities, but for back lanes to be transformed into real public spaces, public participation is essential. Hopefully, residents or business operators may see their lanes as opportunities for art and business and explore the potential for improvement. George Town is already acclaimed for its high quality of life, but an increase in public spaces within the city will provide a catalyst for creativity and add an edge to the area’s social culture.

Eric Capel flips between the oil and gas industry and urban planning.

AkashA at the Penang World Music Festival 2013 in the Botanic Gardens.
Photograph: Sumitra Selvaraj

By Sumitra Selvaraj

The crowd at the recent Penang World Music Festival at the Botanical Gardens had already been entertained by a number of global acts by the time AkashA went on stage. And after the colourful and eclectic national costumes from the previous bands, the audience murmured curiously at the seven men in simple, white linen outfits who settled down before a mindboggling array of sitar and guitars, mridangam, drums and other percussion instruments.

A tap reverberated against the drum skins and a string twanged in response – and AkashA filled the air with electricity.

From the moment guitarist Jamie Wilson yelled out his trademark “Apa Khabarrrrrrrrr” greeting to the last frenetic battle between percussion and string, AkashA had the audience completely under its spell. And it’s easy to see why – the chemistry and camaraderie on stage between the musicians are infectious. You simply can’t help enjoying yourself when the guys providing the music look like they’re in the midst of the wildest party of their lives.

The story of the AkashA began in 2008 when Sivabalan S. Shanmuga Sundram hastily cobbled together a band at the request of the Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) in Sarawak. Siva, already an acclaimed classical musician in his own right, had just wrapped up performing with the fusion band Prana, which was disbanding. He made a few calls to like-minded musicians, including guitarist Wilson and sitar player Kumar Karthigesu, and planted the seed to form a new fusion band.

In no time at all they had an ensemble and played a live set for the RWMF director who flew down to KL to audition them. The rest as they say is history, as the newly christened AkashA took the stage at the RWMF in Kuching to rave reviews.

“AkashA is a Sanskrit word that means ‘bountiful space’,” explained Siva, as the rest of the band rested in their hotel room, just hours before their show at the Botanical Gardens in Penang. “Which is what our music is, in a way. It doesn’t represent any specific genre, but rather a multitude of genres across borders.

“Back in 2008 we started off as a five-member band, with a female pianist. The following year, she left due to family commitments and we replaced her with another pianist and decided that we had room for two more instruments! And ever since then, the line-up of seven has remained the same.”

So that’s seven musicians from wildly different backgrounds, influences and genres, trying to make borderless music. How do you keep the peace?

“It’s not easy,” he admitted with a laugh. “Believe me; we’ve had our fair share of trials and tribulations. But as clichéd as it may sound, the moment we start playing, it all comes together. And you go back home remembering the effortless way the music flowed, and hopefully recall that moment, when the music takes precedence, during your next rehearsal session! And it’s so completely worth it, when the music comes first.”

AkashA has released two albums to date, “Into AkashA” (2009) and “Karakoram Highway” (2011), with a third album slated for release at the end of this year. And with such diverse talents making up the band, it is not surprising to learn that the creative process behind making an album is as fascinating as the music that ensues.

AkashA.

You would think that with such an intense creative process they would have time for little else, but AkashA believes in keeping itself busy. Most of May this year was spent in Istana Budaya where they provided the musical backing to “Chow Kit Road! Chow Kit Road!”, featuring songs by the late, great Sudirman. The next few months will see AkashA at the Fete de la Musique organised by the French Embassy in KL, representing Malaysia at the first ever Borneo World Music Expo as well as performing at two separate international arts festivals in India.

All of this while their tune “Bourbon Lassi” debuts as the title track of the newly released Hollywood film “Farah Goes Bang” which picked up the Best Documentary Feature award at the 2013 Tribeca Film Awards. And that’s all just in the span of a few months. But AkashA thrives on the energy of it all. The guys share a fantastic relationship on stage, and it’s evident to every single member of their audience who dances, bops and sways appreciatively to the music. The musicians of AkashA encourage each other, playfully battle and tease one another and most definitely egg each other on to greater musical heights.

The beauty of AkashA isn’t just in its extraordinary music. It’s in the way it draws its audience into its musical journey. Long after the gig has ended you find yourself humming the riff to “Brickfields Blues” or absent-mindedly drumming your fingers to the beat of “Karakoram Highway”. The bountiful beats hook you – they’re like nothing you’ve heard before and yet they are hauntingly familiar because they’re rooted in the everyday emotion of our lives. AkashA does global music that makes you feel at home.

In her first ever kindergarten report card, teachers noted that Sumitra Selvaraj “loves words and stories, but is often caught with her head in the clouds”. Not much has changed since.

Photograph: Work Palette.

It was bound to come to Penang sooner or later. The possibilities that the internet provides have changed how we seek information, how we socialise and how we work. It is changing where we work as well.

By Maxine Carr

For 20 and 30-somethings, working all day in an office cubicle is increasingly becoming an antiquated concept especially since, for a lot of people, all that is really needed for work is a good internet connection and a laptop. Instead, there is a growing worldwide trend of people working freelance or using company “flexitime” to work from home or coffee shops.

However, coffee shops and cafes aren’t always the best working environments – chatty neighbours and an unsecured work space can be distracting and time-wasting. This is where co-working comes in.

The idea is simple: independent workers such as entrepreneurs, contractors and micro-businesses come together to work in a shared space which is rented on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. The idea isn’t new, other similar concepts such as hot-desking and cubicles-for-rent have been around for years, but co-working offers a working space that’s as comfortable as a cafe with all the facilities and structures of an office, such as printers and scanners, office supplies and meeting rooms, which can be especially important for start-ups trying to show professionalism when signing up new clients.

Co-working spaces took off in recent years in cities like San Francisco, New York, London and Berlin, and on a smaller scale throughout East Asia – Beijing, Bangkok, Tokyo and Singapore, for example. There is already a number of co-working facilities in KL such as White Space International, Nook, Paper+Toast, FluentSpace and Alt.Space, all of which prove the city’s status as an entrepreneurial hub, attracting small start-ups or freelancers.

And now Penang has also taken the plunge. Launched in March, Work Palette, situated in Pulau Tikus, attracts freelancers, technopreneurs and small start-ups who’d rather swap the isolation common to normal work for the synergy that occurs when talented people share space. In return they pay a sliding monthly subscription, ranging from RM23 for a four-hour pass or RM45 for a day pass to RM650-RM750 for a monthly pass, depending on the access they need.

Photograph: Work Palette.

“We opened Work Palette because there was nothing like it in Penang,” said Zye Ramli, associate partner at Work Palette. “Sure, there are a few virtual offices but no co-working space was available for young professionals and individual entrepreneurs. KL alone has eight co-working spaces and the numbers are mushrooming by the month.”

So what is fuelling the co-working trend? Perhaps it’s because co-working providers have finally figured out what people want in a workplace. Aesthetically, these spaces are designed to foster untapped creativity and energy to lure people in. Sharing facilities at a reduced cost is also an incentive, but the true value of co-working lies in the sense of community that is formed.

“We believe that employment trends in Penang are shifting as we’ve seen higher numbers of young graduates choosing to venture into their own business right after they finished high school, college or university,” said Zye. “Most work from home or coffee shops, before soon realising that working alone is no longer productive. We developed Work Palette to realise the opportunity and idea of cooperative working and business matching.”

It is argued that workers from different backgrounds and industries create a stimulating atmosphere where people can more easily make use of the group’s collective knowledge and experience, leading to increased collaboration and innovation. The process is known as “accelerated serendipity” – the theory that happy accidents happen more often in the right circumstances.

Some observers even believe that if new co-working spaces continue to thrive, larger corporations can profit from sending employees to work in them.

So what does this new co-working trend mean for Penang? Co-working is one of the ingredients in the move towards realising the vision of Penang as an “intelligent state”. Co-working, as evidence of increasing creative and entrepreneurial behaviour, represents the shift away from an industrial city where economic development translates to infrastructure and manufacturing, towards encouraging cities to build thier competitive advantage based on its people.

Since its opening, Work Palette has seen a mix of people coming to use the facilities: organisations and community groups have hired out the conference room for brainstorming activities; a group of gamers meets regularly to use the recreational space; environmental groups have come on board with collaborations on projects; and then there are individuals who rent a space just to work. “We are certainly overwhelmed with the response,” Zye enthused.

Photograph: Work Palette.

What’s interesting is that Work Palette has seen quite a number of expats rushing for desk space, raising the question: does Penang have the potential to become a co-working hub similar to what’ s happening on the islands of Bali and Hawaii? Hubud, a co-working space in Ubud, northern Bali, attracts nomad freelancers – those who prefer to combine travel and work – who are always on the lookout for value-for-money when it comes to cost of living. Most people perceive island living for a holiday break, they return to big city life for work. But these islands are actually attracting co-workers because they are away from the hustle and bustle and the expenses that come with living in capital cities.

Although still in their early days in Penang, co-working spaces such as Work Palette demonstrate an attitude shift towards more flexible and creative working conditions, which may even have the potential to draw those from abroad to not simply get lost in paradise, but thrive in paradise.

Maxine Carr is a research analyst at the Penang Institute.

Photograph: Shane Adams/Flickr

The internet has been changing our lives for a quarter of a century now, and it does not look like that will stop. In fact, the pace will increase and change the way we are used to doing things. One new phenomenon is online freelancing, which will change how companies work.

By Ooi Pei Qi

Azlina Abdul Jalil has always had a passion for languages. In July 2011, she got to know about Elance and decided to try her luck as a translator. It took her four months before she got her first job from Mascus, an Australian machinery and transport company. “My background in Mechanical Engineering helped me,” says the 36-year-old mother of two. She translated its website from English to Malay, and received a high rating of 4.9/5.0 for a job terrifically well done.

This led her to become a full-time freelancer. Besides translation, she also transcribes, proofreads and writes short articles. In a good month, Azlina can earn up to RM2,400. Earnings depend largely on job availability; as a work-at-home mum, she has the flexibility to work according to her own hours. “It helps pay the bills,” she says.

The online freelancing platform allows individuals to market their skills to prospective hirers and present themselves as quality talent. It removes the boundaries of nation states and leverages on the global market. Anyone with internet access is part of a global pool of talent that companies can easily tap into. Azlina is just one of the many who have been leveraging on online freelancing websites such as Elance to earn a living. While still in its early stages of adoption, online freelancing has given companies an alternative model for business process outsourcing (BPO). Other online freelancing platforms include oDesk and Freelancer.com.

Hirers are not subjected to the foreign labour laws of a country, neither are they subjected to pay minimum wage to their employees. Under typical conditions, these freelance workers personify underpaid and overworked employees. Yet freelancers have more deciding power than normal employees. They choose the job they want (and, intrinsically, the pay as well) and have the flexibility to do it anytime of the day.

The dawn of online freelancing starts with similar incentives as in BPO. The point is to cut operating costs. In fact, 53% of businesses surveyed in Elance’s Global Business Survey 2012 mentioned that cost savings drive online freelancing. It has already made a dent in the BPO industry, where simpler tasks such as data entry are awarded to freelancers rather than to BPO companies. The BPO industry is further impacted as US companies are opting to conduct IT services in-house or within the US as the benefits of cost arbitrage in countries such as China and India diminish.

Nonetheless, the BPO industry is still set to grow in sectors that can maintain its cost advantage. Organisations with established brand names using BPO still have an edge over individuals using online freelancing websites.

The situation in Malaysia
According to an Online Employment report released by Elance, in the third quarter of 2012, 58% of projects done came from the US. Although a majority of the work still comes from Western countries (the UK, Australia and Canada are next in line), some Asian countries are within the top 25 list (see Table 1), with Malaysia ranked 22nd. Eighty-eight per cent of the jobs posted by Malaysian companies are in the IT and creative fields.

Table 1: Jobs posted online by selected countries, Q3 2012.
Source: Elance.

There is no dearth in job postings from Malaysia-based companies. Golf + Leisure Magazine recruits a sales and marketing team to approach branded products to advertise in the magazine. A general manager based in Malaysia looks for an online assistant to manage administrative matters such as phone calls, email and data entry. A web designer seeks a search engine optimisation expert to increase his visibility on Google Search.

Freelancers in Malaysia have also been participating in online freelancing; Malaysia ranked 15th among registered online freelancers by country in Elance’s Q3 2012 survey. Malaysians also have a variety of talents to offer. One Malaysian user for example had clocked 4,817 hours on oDesk as of January 2013, developing mobile applications and doing programming work. Another freelancer does voiceovers via the same web platform. Others offer project management, translation and data entry skills.

Malaysia has a surprisingly young online freelancing workforce. Sixty-five per cent of Elance workers are below 30 years old, and 24% are between the ages of 30-39. “This is much younger than we see in most other countries, but only slightly younger than others in Asia,” says Elance’s chief marketing officer, Rich Pearson, in an email interview. Malaysians who have yet to take part in online freelancing have similar opportunities. Sites such as oDesk and Elance have online IT, writing and translation tests that can be taken to give credibility to a freelancer’s skill. Online freelancers can also enter online contests for logo designs at 99designs and Freelancer. com. Those with IT skills (programming and web application development) are much in demand by companies worldwide.

This isn’t limited to just programming skills, however. Scriptwriting, legal work and marketing are very much wanted in this world market. Scriptwriting saw a 16% increase in jobs posted on Elance in the third quarter of 2012 as compared to the previous quarter. “The key is to have self-motivation,” says Azlina. This self-motivation propelled Azlina to join Elance directly as a “mobiliser”. Elance mobilisers are tasked with helping people get started as freelancers and providing ongoing support and resources.

Table 2: Freelancers by selected countries, Q3 2012.
Source: Elance.

Many hirers that find freelancers on web platforms only have one criterion in mind – to lower costs. This drives down the market rate and frustrates freelancers wanting to earn a decent income. Nonetheless, not all hirers are of that category. Some hirers base their decision on track record, giving security to freelancers who produce quality work. Case in point: income for Malaysia Elance freelancers has increased by 10% in 2012 as compared to the previous year.

Malaysians are actually at an advantage in the online freelancing industry as compared to developed countries. Cost of living and the salary scale in Malaysia are comparatively low. A freelancer in Australia may charge US$30 an hour for a programming job, while Malaysians can charge US$15 an hour and still deliver quality work. Malaysians, however, are also competing with freelancers in developing countries such as India, Philippines and Indonesia who can charge rates that are even lower.

Interested companies
Companies that use BPO services can also seek contract workers via online freelancing platforms. Benefits include reduced costs, trained workers and fast completion speed. Instead of hiring fresh graduates and training them for months, companies can go straight to oDesk or Elance to find a freelancer who best suits their needs. Sixty-nine per cent of businesses state that the quality of an online task force is equal or better compared to local talent, according to the Elance’s Global Business Survey 2012. Online freelancing platforms also allow clients to compare the testimonials freelancers received for their past jobs.

Sole proprietary or small businesses benefit from this setup. This is seen in the number of SMEs that uses Elance. “In the past 12 months, 500,000 SMEs hired (freelancers) on Elance,” says Pearson. It also allows for quicker expansion with less capital.

Payment is made via Paypal, credit card and Escrow. Hirers using Elance and Task Army have to make a deposit in Escrow before assigning the job as guarantee of payment. Most online freelancing platforms take a cut from the payment, ranging from eight per cent to 10%.

Of course, this doesn’t take into account potential cultural clashes between clients and freelancers from different countries. Jason Widjaja, a Melbourne-based entrepreneur, needed a programmer to develop a website for his new business and hired a programmer based in Pakistan via Freelancer.com. Although the programmer was competent, Widjaja and the programmer did not see eye to eye regarding the timeline of the project, and the engagement soon fell through.

Conclusion
Online freelancing will inevitably affect the Malaysian labour force in the near future. Malaysia has roughly one million SMEs1, which can benefit from using freelancers for jobs like computer programming, translation and videography. As a result, we may start to see the beginnings of a kind of hybrid company, one that uses both traditional employees and online workers. Companies or individuals seeking to establish themselves beyond Malaysia can list their skills on these web platforms and gain international experience without even leaving our shores. Individuals with extra time and who want extra money can of course list their services online, but need to be prepared to face the competition that is the global workforce.

The opportunities are there. Last month, for example, a company posted a task on Elance, searching for a freelancer with Photoshop skills, and is offering up to US$50 per hour. Any takers?

Ooi Pei Qi is a research analyst at Penang Institute. She is interested in global trends that affect Penang.

Kelvyn Yeang (red t-shirt) and Ocean of Fire.
Photograph: Darshen Chelliah

By Amanda Yeoh

Backstage at IndiePG, the members of The Electric Min’z Project are trying to define what their band sounds like. Guitarist Angelo Manuel has a go at it: “It’s a bit psychedelic… and we’ve got a bit of rock, rock and roll and ambient sounds going on. It even borders on being industrial at certain points.”

All five enthusiastically agree with him. It’s been two years since they started out as an experimental project, when their vocalist, Lim Min Tze, got them together. “All of us have very, very different musical influences,” Lim explains. “We’re so different but we gel with one another.” Perhaps that’s why they have such an eclectic sound; The Electric Min’z Project doesn’t sound like something you usually hear on the radio.

“Whatever you hear on the radio is safe,” Kelvyn Yeang tells me. “The songs have to fall within a certain timeframe and they always follow a trend. If the trend right now is punk, then punk is what you hear.” Yeang goes on to add, “When you talk about being artistically expressive, we cannot be controlled in that way. That’s why we have to do things independently.”

Yeang knows a thing or two about what it means to be an independent musician in Penang. He is a prolific guitarist who has become a household name in Penang’s local music scene. “There isn’t enough space for creative music in Penang,” he says. “In KL, musicians have all sorts of platforms. There’s Moonshine, you have whatever’s happening in the Laundry Bar, you’ve got Alexis, and there’s No Black Tie for the jazz musicians. In Penang, we have nothing.”

Yeang wants to change that, and he’s begun by spearheading IndiePG, an event which serves as a platform for people to perform their own music, even if it’s music that isn’t commercially friendly. The idea for it first came to him over some small talk with a friend, Ian Chow, the theatre manager of The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLpac). “While Ian was in Penang, we talked about the idea of having a platform in Penang to cater for people who write their own music,” he says. “Both of us realised the dire need for such a platform. Being a Penang guy myself, I felt it even more.”

It was in a rather spontaneous way that Yeang acted on that idea. He booked some dates for the two-day event at the Performing Arts Centre of Penang (Penangpac), with which he managed to strike a partnership, and he roped in several people who were just as committed to making IndiePG happen – Raggy Singh, Ang Eng Bok, Samwise Wee and Lawrence Seng. “The moment the idea kicked off and everybody was free enough to sit down and agree to it, we had slightly over a month left,” Yeang recalls. But with the help of volunteers and contributors, they eventually managed to get things rolling.

IndiePG at Penangpac in late March.
Photograph: Darshen Chelliah

IndiePG also showcased fresh-faced bands eager to get their music out to a larger audience. One such band is Sedsuna. For them, IndiePG was their first Penang gig, and the first, as they mentioned between songs, that was longer than 10 minutes. In spite of that, the band closed the first night with their industrial metal and progressive rock jams on a high note. It wasn’t a surprise, considering that they’d already dropped jaws during their soundcheck.

One act from Penang, Beat in the Street, stood out from the rest. With a violin, a guitar and a cajon, they made for a pretty interesting trio. Plus, they’ve gone busking on the streets of Penang. “We saw it as a way to express ourselves,” says guitarist Joshua Yam. “We started during Christmas last year, playing cover songs.”

Jonathan Khor, their violinist, adds, “It was quite cool. But we’ve stopped busking because the government issued a statement saying that we needed to have a license to busk.” At IndiePG, Beat in the Street jazzed things up when they included a vocalist, Tiffany Kym – the collaboration made for an upbeat performance.

Kiss Kill Mary’s Jenn Chia.
Photograph: Darshen Chelliah

Kiss Kill Mary was one of those femalefronted bands at IndiePG. Fronted by singersongwriter Jenn Chia, they put on an energetic show the entire time they were on stage. Of the energy of the band, Chia says, “When I’m with the band, we play these dance-y songs where the music is pumping. It just hits this spot in you and you just have to dance. That’s where everything sparks.”

As much as IndiePG embodies the spirit of being creative and original, having featured a diverse range of music acts, the event is driven just as much by a need to create a sustained independent music culture in Penang. The best way to do that is through education, the team feels, hence the workshops at IndiePG. Conducted by professionals, they consider the workshops to be just as important as the concert in generating interest amongst the public in the local music scene.

“We’ve done a lot of road shows in schools and colleges where we’ve aggressively pushed for participation in the workshops,” says Yeang. “I think the whole idea behind having an educational sphere to things is different, especially in the way we are doing it.

“We’re not selling a brand – we’re looking at the bigger picture. There’s no point in just doing events, because when you do a performance people will watch it, they’ll go home and that’s it, you know. It doesn’t create a new audience.”

Of the four workshops, the one by Darren Teh, “When Dream and Day Unite”, seemed rather unusual at first because unlike the others it wasn’t meant to explore the technicalities which come with being a musician. Instead, it highlighted an extremely relevant issue for people in the music scene: how to balance one’s day job and one’s career as a musician. Teh is a full time lecturer at Limkokwing University but he is more widely known as the frontman for An Honest Mistake, an alternative rock band that’s become a staple in Malaysian independent music. Right after his band’s set at IndiePG, Teh commented on how he balances his fulltime job with his career as a musician, saying, “I don’t believe in taking my work back home. When I’m done after nine to five, I do whatever I want, whether it’s music or just going out for a movie.”

IndiePG seems to have generated enough buzz. “Until today, there still are submissions from KL coming in through the mail,” Yeang says. “I’ve even had a hotel manager email me saying that he was coming to check out the event for both days. To even generate enough interest for hotel managers to want to check us out – yeah, we’re probably doing something right.”

The Electric Min’z Project.
Photograph: Darshen Chelliah

Amanda Yeoh is a student, a writer and, of all things, a minimalist.

Photograph: Kwong Wah Yit Poh

Now that the Pakatan state government has been returned to power, and with an increment of one seat, more concerted efforts are possible in order for it to fulfil its many promises.

By Goh Ban Lee

Penangites have shown their preferences. Notwithstanding accusations of fraud in certain constituencies, there is no doubt that the final election results in Penang were reflective of the sentiments of its residents. Penang voters definitely preferred Pakatan component parties, especially DAP, to BN parties, especially Gerakan, MCA and MIC. However, in the rural areas and small towns, Umno was still the voters’ choice.

Pakatan won 10 of the 13 parliamentary seats and 30 of the 40 state assembly seats (see Tables 1 and 2). Compared to the 2008 general election, it lost a parliamentary seat and won a state seat. Gerakan, MCA and MIC lost all the seats contested, which was a repeat of the 2008 general election results.

TABLE 1: NUMBER OF SEATS CONTESTED AND WON BY PAKATAN IN PENANG

TABLE 2: NUMBER OF SEATS CONTESTED AND WON BY BN IN PENANG

DAP did very well in the May 5 elections, winning all the seats it contested: seven for Parliament and 19 for the Penang state assembly. Furthermore, the margins of victories were very large.

The 40-seat Penang state assembly will have nine opposition members, all from Umno. It is, however, not a good sign that the state opposition is completely made up of members of the Malay community.

Even before the results were known, it was clear that BN candidates were encountering very strong headwind. This was reflected in the success of the campaign methods and party strategies. Pakatan rallies not only attracted tens of thousands of spectators but also managed to collect hundreds of thousands of ringgit per rally. There was no doubt that Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng was a very popular man, with many wanting to have photographs taken with him.

BN held free-food nights with lucky-draws and even cash handouts. Even then, the size of the crowds was nothing to shout about. Worse, instead of having good words for BN and its candidates, the topics of conversations were about the sources of the money spent. Clearly, BN needs better strategists in the coming elections.

Flags and posters in this election outnumbered those in the past. There were more BN flags than those of DAP, PKR and PAS. Together with the 1Malaysia flags, there is no doubt that BN won the flag war. However, to many observers, BN and the 1Malaysia Penang Welfare Club that was responsible for putting up the 1Malaysia flags went too far. It was clearly a waste of money. In fact, it raised questions about where the money was coming from.

It may be useful to reiterate here that there is a limit to the amount of money that can be spent for election campaigns. For those contesting parliamentary posts, the limit is RM200,000. For those contesting for the state assembly, the maximum amount of expenditure is RM100,000 each. Clearly, election offence laws need drastic amendments.

Clearly, Penangites want Pakatan to be the state government for another term. It is also fair to assume that many voted for Pakatan because they just did not like BN. The lack of support and dislike for MCA candidates were so intense that two could not even garner more than one-eighth of the total votes cast and thus lost their deposits. The BN (MCA) candidate in Pengkalan Kota obtained only 10.5% of the total votes cast while Chow Kon Yeow, the DAP candidate, received 89.5%! This must be a first in the history of elections in Penang.

There is no guarantee that the pro-Pakatan sentiment of Penangites will go on forever, though. History shows that voters in Penang, especially those in the urban areas, are prone to dramatic swings. Gerakan and MCA won all state seats in 1995 and 1999, and in 2004, MCA lost only one seat while Gerakan won all.

The 2013 General Elections is now over. Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and his state executive council members have taken their oath of office. It is time to implement the 12-point manifesto that was made public on April 14. It covers promises of a clean government, economic growth, developing the tourism sector, enhancing science and education, building infrastructure, elevating Islam, housing for all, a welfare state, and a cleaner, greener, healthier and safer Penang.

During the campaign, however, there was no debate on the content. There was also no demand to discuss the details. Even if Lim had wanted to provide details of the manifesto, the crowds would not have appreciated it. They were having too good a time echoing his calls and those of other Pakatan leaders.

But now, after the elections, there is a real need to discuss details to facilitate the implementation of the 12-point manifesto. For example, the state government should discuss how economic growth is to be achieved, taking into account the fact that Europe and America are facing serious economic problems. Also, the state government and the local councils must provide details on a “cleaner, greener, healthier and safer Penang”. There is also a need to pinpoint the locations of the 200km bicycle lanes that are promised.

Five years is a very short time to get such big jobs done. For example, in the push to have a cleaner and greener Penang, the government did manage to persuade the supermarkets to charge their customers for the use of plastic bags. However, it has not made any headway in the use of plastic bags in wet markets and hawker centres. Used plastic bags are still very visible in drains, dumpsites and coastal waters.

Despite some improvement, Penang is still dirty. More specifically, there has been little progress in keeping drains clean. Mosquitoes still pose serious problems in some housing areas.

At present, there are no proper bicycle lanes. The “bicycle lanes” recently delineated are not separated from roads for other vehicles. Bicycle lanes should only be used by those who ride bicycles. The MPPP must quickly rectify the mistakes. If need be, MPPP should make sure its officers learn the correct way of providing such lanes.

Now that the Pakatan government is beginning its second term, it is fair for Penangites to expect the state government, including its agencies and the two municipal councils, to be in compliance with the CAT principles. For instance, the approval of development projects should be transparent and those involved in the approval of projects should be held accountable for their decisions. Meetings to approve projects should also be open to the public.

Implementing the CAT principles may require amending some laws. But this is what the legislative assembly is for. Besides, it is also important to note that as a second-term government, there will be less opportunity for Pakatan to blame the BN government if and when things go wrong or are not up to the expectations of the people.

Datuk Dr Goh Ban Lee is interested in urban governance, housing and urban planning. 

Sutra.

By Ooi Kok Chuen

The George Town Festival is back! Mark down the dates, from June 7 to July 7, when the streets and arts centres of Penang will resonate with scintillating sights and sounds celebrating creative life!

Two new major foreign acts – Sutra ( June 29-30) and I Musici ( June 7) – headline the adrenaline rush of more than two dozen programmes with a platform built more on street-level and people-orientated celebrations, and an exhibition roster skewed towards visual arts.

Tropfest, the world’s largest international short film fest, will again get an encore under the billing Roughcut ( June 28), as will the ProMusica Gala Concert ( July 6) featuring opera singers Laurent Kubla, Ines Madeira and Julie Mossay.

Says Festival director Joe Sidek: “We want (the festival) to appeal to everyone, to make it accessible, for the whole community, and cheap (too).”

His game-plan is also to educate and expose the young to all the raft of creative expressions and energies, and enable them to re-romance their own rich cultural heritage.

Even as corporate sponsorship is lukewarm in this fourth edition, Joe Sidek, the 55-year-old cultural czar, is looking to them to sponsor student tickets priced at only RM20 each. “The festival is non-political. It’s for the people,” he reminds us gently.

In this, the federal government is strangely diffident, uncooperative and unresponsive, never mind that the festival is also to mark George Town’s selection as a UN heritage site (2010). To think of the frivolity of millions spent on the Gangnam Style sensation Psy concert and the 1Malaysia Hong Kong songfest, just as part of the Feds’ pre-election sweetener!

“How does one develop culture that way, and where’s the KPI (Key Performance Indicator)?” a visibly piqued Joe Sidek poses.

This year, the Penang state government has increased the allocation from RM2.5mil to RM3mil. Taking a slight loss in last year’s Festival, Joe Sidek has opted to focus on fewer Biggies and to go back to basics in spreading the arts and culture gravy thinner over a wider area and for bigger outreach.

While some are paying acts, there are many financed via the normal cover charges or entrance tickets (Peranakan Mansion), workshop fees or registration or invitation only.

To the uninitiated and kiasu (fear of losing), there are many free events offering plenty of visual thrills, learning experiences and interactive opportunities. The visual arts showcases are free, of course.

There are also free music and dance offerings which include zapin, Sufic rhythms (Yusof Ganief from South Africa), keroncong, Melayu Asli, Islam Tamil and Qawali Hindi, Tamil goldies, Bollywood melodies (Abhas Joshi), Teochew Rod Puppets, Menora, Bharatanatyam, wayang kulit, Hokkien Lang rhymes, poetry-recitals, stilt-walkers and mime performances.

But a free event not to be missed is the Intriguing Instruments performances ( June 29, two 45-minute shows from 6.30pm to 11pm) using jaw’s harps, flutes, shawms, mouth organs, tube zithers, xylophones, clappers, strings and percussion instruments from Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. One can even have a go at the instruments during the breaks.

As usual, the annual Eurasian Festival adds another dimension to the cultural potpourri.

Bridges & Kaki Lima.

There will also be the unveiling of the 15m high bamboo installation by Indonesian Joko Avianto, wedged in between City Hall and Town Hall and looking like the shape of Jorn Utzon’s Sydney Opera House.

Sutra, the brainchild of Flemish-Moroccan choreographer-dancer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, combines dance, music, kung-fu, art and acrobatics with a multidisciplinary team of real monks from the Shaolin Monastery as dancers, Turner Prize-winning (1994) sculptor Antoni Gormley designing the pedestal-props and Szymon Brzoska on music.

Rome-based I Musici, the oldest chamber group in Italy at 64 years, will play interpretations of “Tomaso Albinoni” and Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons”.

Still on kung-fu, the spirit of Bruce Lee is captured in the dance-drama “My Dragon Papa” ( June 21) presented by the Ox Puppet Theatre of New Era College.

Then, there is the “Bridges & Kaki Lima” street dance ( June 29, 6pm to 9pm) under the choreography of Aida Redza and Indonesia’s Jefri Andi Usman, starting at the Penang Youth Centre at Acheen Street.

Admission prices are reasonable, with rates as low as RM20 for students, RM60, RM80 and RM100, and concessions for Senior Citizens. For comparison, the cheapest ticket for an international act at Istana Budaya in KL can easily set you back RM66.

On an intellectual level, the top jaw should be the Arus Melayu forum exploring the “complexities and diversities on the word and notion of ‘Melayu’,” capped with a gala night ( June 15-16); and the Urban Residency (UrRe) workshop ( June 10-17), towards improving public spaces for a Better City.

Arus Melayu, supported by the Penang Institute and Persatuan Sejarah & Warisan Pulau Pinang, will feature key speakers Salleh, Dain Said and Eddin Khoo besides “presentation of maps, ideas, perspective and theories on language and literature, logic and in film.”

This forum on the Malay diaspora will help open minds.

There will also be a film documentary, “Tukang Perahu Pulau Duyong” (Boat-Builders of Mermaid Island), by filmmaker Azharr Rudin. Another symposium-showcase is Beyond Our Backyard ( June 22-23) on South-East Asia’s performing arts, while a design workshop called Design DNA George Town will be conducted by designerresearcher Sali Sasaki ( June 15-16).

Admission to all three events is free but by registration only.

It’s no coincidence that the profusion of visual art events falls under the label Secret Garden of Earthly Delights – a spiritual obeisance to Hieronymus Bosch’s wacky Garden of Earthly Delights.

Obscura Festival.

Other leading contemporary artists will be featured in Art@Whiteways ( June 7-July 7), while an exhibition of Chinese brush paintings by Henan artists adds to the eclectic mix.

There will also be a display of Laotian heritage gold-thread embroidery by Tiao Nithakong Somsanuth ( June 7-16) and glass art by Taiwanese Loretta Yang and Chang Yi ( June 7-16).

Scatalogical stand-up comic Kumar heads the Singapore big battalion with a special performance on June 20. Also from across the causeway is a contemporary Hainanese opera take on Poem of Autumn Leaves ( June 21-22) while Singapore House designers will be showcasing their brands.

Other attractions from the Lion City include monologues by Siti Khalijah Zainal, story-teller Verena Tay, singers Erfannulia and Rumana, female deejays (PFF Girl DJ Bootcamp), deaf artist Justin Lee and other stand-up comics.

During the festival period, do note the Dragon Boat Festival ( June 8-9), Penangpac Fringe Festival ( June 6-8, 2pm to 7pm), the splendour of the Evening of Lights at Khoo Kongsi ( June 29) and the pungent Penang Durian Festival.

So take your pick, there’s something for somebody, anybody, everybody, to suit your taste and budget – or no budget at all!

Ooi Kok Chuen has been writing on the art scene at home and abroad for 30 years.

The tension between cars and cycles is certainly not a Penang thing. It is global, and solutions are therefore to be found globally. London, for example, managed to turn things around. So can Penang, and by doing that, it can become a model for East and West.

By Pamela Nowicka

London, 1983. I’m cycling down St John Street, a busy main road adjoining the city. Attempting to squeeze my bike alongside the cars, I tap the wing-mirror of a Mercedes. The driver glares furiously. Gestures and yells.

The lights change and I move forward. Merc Driver (MD) is still yelling and gesturing. I cross the road and shoot into a side street. MD does an illegal U-turn and attempts to pursue me. I lose him, but am shaking.

Penang, 2013. I’m cycling on Market Street ahead of a car. In what cycling safety advisors call “the dominant position” – directly in front of the car – so that the driver can clearly see the vulnerable road user: me. I am honked at.

The car passenger yells at me to get out of the way. I explain I’m doing this for safety, and point out that the traffic is moving at a snail’s pace. The woman informs me that “it’s not like that here”.

A bus on a bus priority lane in London.

London, 2013. I’m cycling in one of the many cycle lanes. The streets are crowded with cyclists commuting to and from work. Racks of rental bikes fill the pavements. There are bike priority signals at traffic lights, flocks of cyclists exercising, commuting. A taxi driver waves me ahead at a junction.

What happened, and can Penang avoid decades of car misrule by examining the mistakes that were made in London?

For decades in the UK, pro-motoring lobbies like oil multinationals, auto manufacturers and road-building interest groups pushed an agenda of the car is king. The unproven notion of infinite economic growth on a finite planet ensured that road-building mega projects, beloved by politicians and their cronies, got the lion’s share of public funding.

Public transport was underfunded; cycling and walking, seen as, at best, unavoidable, and at worst, unwanted obstructions to the holy grail of roads full of speeding traffic. For the unwary, the slow and the simply unlucky, interacting with traffic was a real life version of the video game Carmageddon.

Communities were split by highways and roundabouts. A free-for-all slalom of one-way streets turned quiet residential areas into rat-runs. Ancient trees were chopped down in “road expansion projects”, deemed essential to ensure the traffic moved faster.

More roads meant temporary relief, then the roads were again clogged with even more traffic than before, since road-building simply creates more traffic.

By the 1980s many Brits were fed-up. People were sick of sprinting across pedestrian crossings which gave too little time on the pedestrian phase to walk across. They didn’t want a four-lane superhighway bisecting their local shopping centre or beauty spot. They started to get together, under the auspices of local groups and organisations like the London Cycle Campaign, Sustrans and Living Streets.

Council meetings were attended. Traffic was stopped (usually, but not always, with police cooperation), representations were made. Voices were raised. People were taken aside and given a talking to. Heads were knocked together. Common positions and interests were found. People started to talk about Climate Change and Peak Oil as if they were real. The radical concept was mooted of shopping locally in a market, rather than drifting around a soulless out-of-town shopping mall, full of over-hyped, overpriced, branded stuff which would soon find their way to the landfill.

And if people could shop locally, perhaps they could (cue jaw drop) even work locally? A lot of people decided that they would like to exchange a two-hour daily commute for the possibility of spending more time with their families and friends and working closer to home. Daytime telly presenters started to talk about things like “work-life balance” and “quality of life”.

Planners and local councils (also made up of people, many of whom were also sick of commuting and eking out their lives in a haze of petrol fumes and bad MOR rock) caught on. The concept of “traffic calming” entered polite conversation, while road humps, bollards, road narrowing and graduated roads/pavements began to be introduced to streets.

“Pedestrianisation” and an awareness of the vital role of public open space in enhancing community and quality of life were factored into planning decisions.

Joined-up public transport policies were brought in. Planners discovered “connectivity”. You know, that thing where you cycle to a station and there’s a covered and secure cycle stand for your bike? Or where bus routes are introduced and synchronised so that passengers can travel where they want, rather than routes that suit the convenience of the operators.

None of this happened overnight. Victories were won and battles were lost, but overall, London has made significant steps to becoming a city that is enjoyable to walk and cycle in, with public transport being the preferred mode of getting around for many.

Bicycles available under London’s “bikes for hire” scheme.

Cycling was normalised. Previously seen as the realm of obnoxious out-groups like greenies, troublemakers and “lycra louts”, it was vilified by the press. Now, journalists, politicians and even Madonna have been spotted shooting around the capital on two wheels.

The economic downturn contributed to the increased popularity of cycling. Most car journeys are relatively short – less than 9km long and easily cyclable. High public transport costs linked with straitened economic times, and a growing interest in health and fitness, led many onto their bikes.

The result? Healthier, happier, fitter people; less congestion and a more liveable and pleasant environment.

A key factor in these changes for policymakers and public alike was a growing awareness of the huge negative impacts of car travel, and an attempt to reduce fatalities and injuries from road traffic accidents which regularly kill, injure and maim millions globally. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that 1.24 million people die every year on the world’s roads; 2,278 annually in the UK, 7,085 in Malaysia. Low and middle income countries have proportionally more accidents than high income countries.

Not only do these have serious and ongoing personal, societal and healthcare implications, they have high economic costs, from loss of income and family breakdown to taking up of family finances and much-needed hospital beds.

It took decades for planners and politicians in London to understand that a healthy, liveable environment cannot be created by prioritising the speeding up of traffic. Surely Penangites are equally deserving of health, fitness and freedom from fear when crossing the road or cycling? At the moment, Penangites are forced into car usage, costing a hefty RM1,000-RM1,500 per month of their hard-earned cash, but there would be huge benefits to their health, fitness and quality of life if they felt safe enough to walk, cycle and use good public transport.

The environment would be safer, greener and a more pleasant place in which to live, work and raise children. Penang is an island. What will happen when there is no more land to be expanded into? What kind of life will there be when roads or condos have covered every scrap of green?

Penang has an opportunity to learn from the mistakes of cities like London and to challenge the dominance of the car-centric culture. Penangites can benefit from the struggles of advocates of cycling, walking and liveable cities globally. Campaigns, strategies, statistics and studies abound which could easily be translated into a Malaysian context. They don’t have to reinvent the wheel, just adapt from what has already been done.

The Pearl of the Orient could provide a shining example to East and West by implementing a new inclusive clean and green paradigm. London is still trying to recover from the outdated and unsustainable measures put in by car-centric orthodoxy. Penang has the opportunity to rise like a phoenix and become a leader, not just in Malaysia, not just in Asia, but globally; leading the way in a sustainable lifestyle, where quality of life, not speeding cars, is paramount.

An author and award-winning documentary maker with the BBC, Pamela Nowicka has been an evangelist for green issues for over three decades. As an investigative journalist she has written environmental and social justice stories for The Guardian, The Independent and The Times.

Photograph: Lim Choon Kiat

A travelling astrodome introduces children – and adults – to something that has fascinated man ever since he looked upwards. For urban dwellers, the expanse of the universe is not very obvious; all the more reason why Lim Choon Kiat wants to make astronomy interesting to today’s children.

By Julia Tan

A line of children, accompanied by the random adult, waited for their turn to squeeze through the mouth of the igloo-shaped tent. The hall was abuzz with their excited chattering outside the entrance, which is designed to block out as much light as possible. There was another group of people waiting to pay RM5 for the tickets and to book their viewing time.

The queue was for the Portable Planetarium, the country’s only private mobile planetarium. It hosted a state-of-the-art fish-eye lens projector which was capable of 3D, 360-degree screening. “It’s different from normal 3D projectors in cinemas, which project to a square screen,” said Lim Choon Kiat, the man who brought the astrodome to the Penang International Science Fair at Straits Quay in April, as he ushered in guests who were waiting for the next screening.

Lim Choon Kiat

“The planetarium’s fish-eye lens provides a thoroughly immersive 3D experience – it puts you inside the movie.”

I was enthralled by the idea, but as I looked at the small black igloo, I wondered how it was going to take 30-35 people. Lim held the entrance open for me and I slipped through, rustling the fabric gas bag as I did so. The circular room was lit up by a projector in the middle – a map of the world was projected onto the ceiling of the astrodome.

The rest of the audience was already sitting down on the floor, and the children were getting restless. I counted 29 people – a mix of young and old – with room for maybe five more, and gawped. “Feel free to lie down if you wish,” Lim said, to which a few children enthusiastically obeyed. “I’m going to start by playing a short clip to show you the full effects of the dome.”

A kid’s animation about molecules began to play and I craned my neck back to look up at the ceiling – a 3D fare without glasses, how brilliant! It was a distinctly different experience. Although there was a general “front” viewing direction, images could appear anywhere on the dome. I had to constantly rotate myself to check if I’d missed anything out. Plus, it was probably the closest I would get to a private IMAX experience.

Then came the show that we’d all been waiting to see – an astronomical exposé about the winter sky. The educational video showed the positions of the stars in the night sky and taught one how to find the constellations. “I picked the second clip because it depicted seasonal astronomy, which would be about right for this time of the year,” Lim later explained.

“Besides, it’s more fun to learn this way – one of the reasons I brought in the Portable Planetarium was to promote astronomy in schools. Stargazing was, and still is, really important to humans, and I’d like to create awareness about that.”

The realistic projection of the artificial sky took us aboard the International Space Station in a simulation clip of what it takes to be an astronaut. The children around me ooh’d and ah’d as we watched astronauts zip above us, doing routine maintenance work such as fixing their space shuttle in zero gravity. I was reminded of our very own angkasawan – the first Malaysian in space – and wondered what an experience he must have had. Not being a math genius or even a mildly good navigator, I was content to sit on the floor of the astrodome and look up with my mouth wide open.

The next video clip took us on a rollercoaster journey to various planets and moons. “Close your eyes if you feel dizzy,” advised Lim. “Remember, it’s not real, it’s just special effects.” Apparently there had been a few viewers during the previous screenings who’d felt nauseous. Luckily, no one in my group was, although the younger ones looked apprehensive when I scanned the room before the video started.

We volleyed through the clouds of Uranus and the sulphur surface of Io. A trip to red Mars was of course warranted, as was to our familiar moon. Halfway through Neptune, a little girl of about four who sat next to me grabbed my leg. I jumped in shock. Our eyes met for a brief second before she realised that I wasn’t her sister.

“That’s all, folks,” Lim said when the clip ended, and thanked us for our time. I hadn’t realised that 25 minutes had flown by, and it was just as well that the show was finished because had it continued any longer, I would have gotten a crick in my neck. Exiting the astrodome, I heard ecstatic cries such as “That was awesome!” and “Syok-loh!” from the children around me. I wouldn’t be surprised if more than a few went back for a second round.

Photograph: Lim Choon Kiat

“This is my aim,” Lim said, looking at another group of enthusiastic children already queuing up for the next screening. “I want to make astronomy more interesting to kids, and what better way than to use graphics to explain the planetary system? With the mobile astrodome, I help to cut down a lot of hassle by bringing the planetarium into the classroom.”

Lim travels a lot. Just last week, he was in Malacca to showcase the astrodome at a family day event for an army camp. “I just fold everything up and go,” he said. “It’s really easy to bring the astrodome around. It’s heavy – it’s about 70kg including the projector – but that’s alright.” He doesn’t just agree to any booking, though. “If the conditions aren’t right – if it’s too windy or too hot, or if the area is uncovered, then it’s not possible for me to set up the astrodome. The wear and tear is too much,” he continued, gesturing at the fabric gas bag material.

What started out as a hobby has now become a full-time job, and on top of his shop at Bukit Jambul that specialises in selling telescopes, Lim has his own observatory at Pulau Betong, off Balik Pulau. “It’s not easy to carve out a career in astronomy, but it’s not impossible either. Hopefully, the dome will inspire students to walk down the path of astrophysics. Even then, the sky is free. One just has to look up.”

Julia “Bubba” Tan is a 27-year old writer from Penang.

By Clement Liang

Penangites may recall catching a glimpse of a road sign bearing the name “Jalan Khaw Sim Bee” while passing Perak Road. This may very well be the only landmark in Penang reminding us of the Khaw family who once commanded a business empire of tin mining, rubber and shipping which straddled Penang and southern Siam.

The Khaw family history began with the emergence of one patriarch – Khaw Soo Cheang – who migrated to Penang from Zhangzhou, Fujian in 1822. Khaw started a vegetable farm in Sungai Tiram, near Bayan Lepas, but after several years of unfruitful endeavours on the island, he decided to venture into southern Siam to explore other opportunities such as tin mining as well as shipping and supplying workers to the west coast of Siam down to Penang. His business began to flourish and soon he was appointed the Royal Collector of tin royalties in the Ranong area. He was awarded the title “Luang Ratanasethi” for his honesty and loyalty to the King and made governor of Ranong, the first non-Thai to be granted such a high position in the Kingdom’s history.

Khaw Soo Cheang had six sons. The eldest, Khaw Sim Cheng, died long before his father passed away in 1882. The second son, Khaw Sim Kong succeeded him as the next governor before becoming Commissioner of the Monthon of Chumphon in 1896. The third son, Khaw Sim Chuah passed away in 1880 and was reportedly buried in Penang.

His fourth son, Sim Khim, became the governor of Kraburi and the fifth, Sim Teik, became governor of Langsuan. Khaw Sim Bee (1857-1913), the youngest and the most well-known among the siblings, was knighted as “Phraya Ratsadanupradit Mahisorn Phakdi” or “The Grand Cross of the Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant”, and became governor of Trang, and in 1900, Commissioner of Monthon Phuket or “greater Phuket circle” which included seven provinces: Phuket, Thalang, Ranong, Phang-Nga, Takuapa, Krabi and Satun.

Khaw Sim Bee almost single-handedly saved the economy of southern Siam by introducing rubber plantations at a time when the tin industry was hit by dwindling supplies and falling prices in the early 20th century. He started rubber tree planting in Trang and persuaded local officials to distribute rubber seeds to more farmers. Chinese immigrants who arrived in Phuket to work the tin mines switched to rubber tapping and in turn helped expand the local rubber industry. The rubber was exported through Penang’s port to meet the industrial demands of Britain. Khaw Sim Bee is remembered as the Father of the Rubber Industry in Thailand.

The Khaw family thus contributed to the development of the economy and the modernisation of the administration of southern Siam by introducing talent, technology and institutional innovations from Penang while resisting British political and economic encroachments into the southern hinterland. Their efforts did not go unnoticed, and the clan was given the noble title “Na Ranong” by the King of Siam after the death of Khaw Sim Bee.

In Penang, Khaw Soo Cheang founded Koe Guan Co. Ltd which grew to be one of the biggest shipping companies during the British Malaya era, plying between Penang and southern Siam. The family also pioneered the insurance industry in Malaya by founding the Khean Guan Insurance Company while holding interest in Tongkah Harbour Tin Dredging Co Ltd and Eastern Shipping Co Ltd.

The Khaw family left a legacy of beautiful mansions and landmarks in Penang. They owned two grand mansions which used to stand along Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, i.e. Asdang House (site of current Mayfair condominium) and the sea-fronting Chakrabong House. Both were named after sons of King Chulalongkorn and became favourite venues for Siamese dignitaries and socialite activities.

In the eyes of the Thais, Penang at the turn of the 20th century was an advanced state administered well by the British authorities. To enhance the reputation of Siam, the Khaws donated a piece of prime real estate at the Esplanade to the people of Penang for public recreational purposes. Named Ranong Ground, it was the site of today’s Dewan Sri Pinang.

To commemorate the centenary of the death of Khaw Sim Bee who passed away in Penang on April 10, 1913, Penang Heritage Trust in collaboration with Think City, the Royal Thai Embassy and the Royal Thai Consulate-General Penang plans to organise the Penang Story Symposium on May 11 at E&O Hotel, with special focus on the Khaw Na Ranong family and the shared history of Malaysia and Thailand. A number of prominent speakers will be invited from both countries, including the main speaker, current Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Thailand Kittirat Na Ranong, a direct descendant of Khaw Sim Kong. To continue the legacy of the Khaw Na Ranong family in promoting trade between Malaysia and Thailand, the Royal Thai Embassy will organise a Thailand-Malaysia Business Networking Forum on the same day and it will be officiated by Kittirat Na Ranong, with a panel of business associates and high ranking officials to promote and explore trade opportunities between both nations.

For further enquires please contact PENANG HERITAGE TRUST Tel: +604 264 2631 or visit its website at www.pht.org.my

Clement Liang is an ardent researcher in the history of ethnic minorities in Penang.He has presented papers on the pre-war Japanese community, designed the German Heritage Trail and organised a Siamese Heritage Forum in 2012. He was featured in the war documentary “1941 – The Fall of Penang” by the History Channel recently. He holds positions in several NGOs including Penang Heritage Trust.