Emergency Festival!, comprising films, theatre presentations and art exhibitions, aims to give Malaysians an alternative view of the Emergency. DENNIS CHUA writes.

WHEN one talks about the Emergency, it refers to the period from 1948 to 1960 when Malaya’s then colonial masters fought to curb a Communist insurgency led by Chin Peng and Rashid Maidin.

A time of great hardship, it meant strict social control with the identity card and relocation of remote villages into

barb-wired New Villages thet had to endure curfews and food rationing.

The Emergency also saw increased political awareness and the acceleration of the national struggle for Independence.
In the cultural sphere, it saw the growth of the Malay film industry, then based in Singapore, and the rise of the King of Entertainment, Tan Sri P. Ramlee.

This important period of Malaysian history deserves to be remembered, warts and all, and for this reason, several creative young Malaysians, including Fahmi Fadzil and Mark Teh of Five Arts Centre fame, have come together to present the Emergency Festival! at Central Market, Kuala Lumpur.

Held from Thursday to October 26, it features film screenings, theatre presentations, art and photo exhibitions, musical performances and talks on the Emergency’s impact on contemporary Malaysian society.

Fahmi, who is one of the festival’s curatorial team alongside Teh, filmmakers Fahmi Reza and Hari Azizan, and theatre practitioners Wong Tay Sy, Norman Teh and Grey Yeoh, said they planned it five months ago to commemorate the Emergency’s 60th anniversary.

“While the Emergency is generally seen as a painful period, Malaysians should not dismiss its significance. Many of the things we take for granted emerged during this time, including modern democracy, the film industry and even art,” he said.

“Many of the laws which we blame for curtailing civil liberties have their origins in the Emergency. And so do most of the major Klang and Kinta Valley townships which are booming today, such as Serdang and Sungai Besi,” said Teh.

Fahmi said the films, theatre presentations and art exhibitions at the festival would give Malaysians an alternative view of the Emergency.

“We seek to move away from the view that the Emergency was all about ‘busting Communists’ and ‘making the country safe from the Reds’.

“Contrary to popular belief, the British did not just declare an Emergency to suppress the Communists. They were also out to suppress non-violent political agitation for independence on the part of the centre-left, pro-Independence parties back then,” he said.

Teh said: “We are just telling the story of Malaya’s independence struggle from a different point of view, taking all parties’ experiences into account.”

Fahmi said: “What we are doing is re-imagining the story of Merdeka. American writers Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky, and Australia’s John Pilger, have given the official histories of their countries similar treatment.”

Director Fahmi is presenting his very own short play, Operasi Oktober, from Thursday to Sunday at 8.30pm daily.

Starring dancer Janet Moo and actors Lim Chung Wei, Mohamad Hariry and Mislina Mustaffa, it is the story of four youths involved in the independence struggle as part of a banned political party.

Fahmi said: “It’s an attempt to translate the independence struggle conducted by the centre-left party in terms and slogans that can be understood by followers of present-day Malaysian politics and pop culture.”

Mislina said the play would, among others, parody popular “patriotic slogans” of the 1980s.

Fahmi said: “Viewers would also realise that we had a film titled Seruan Merdeka, starring Salleh Ghani, as early as 1946.”

Teh’s contribution to the festival is Re:Search Re:Source. shown daily, it features presentations and performances which “ensure that Malaysians do not look at official history in the same way again.

“The participants will present their personal research and interpretations of life during the Emergency in a creative, participatory environment,” he said.

Teh’s show contains, among others, Fahmi Reza’s lecture, Sekolah Revolusi Malaya, which chronicles the nationalist struggle of the centre-left parties.

Dancer-choreographers Marion D’Cruz and Elaine Pedley provide a demonstration-cum-discussion of Communist propaganda dances popular during the Emergency, while singer-songwriter and poet Jerome Kugan acts as DJ for the two-night Disko Darurat!

Teh has also invited Singaporean curator Seng Yu Jin to present a talk entitled “Art During The Emergency”, while singer-songwriter Azmyl Yunor will perform rearranged songs from the Emergency era, as well as new materials that reflect on those years.

“We’ll also have a reading of the Baling Talks 1955, and filmmaker Imri Nasution will examine the development of the Malay film industry,” he said.

Filmmaker Amir Muhammad will also provide alternative readings of films made during the era, particularly Matahari in 1951 and Mogok in 1957.

Fahmi Reza’s hit film which won last year’s Freedom Film Festival, Sepuluh Tahun Sebelum Merdeka, will be screened at 8pm on Oct 20.

Its sequel, Revolusi ’48, will also be screened from Oct 20 to 26.

Hari’s New Village People and Pineapple Rice will be shown from Oct 21 to 26. It highlights the story of two friends who are forced to relocate to a New Village.

Wong, Norman and Yeoh present “12 Years”, a multi-angled exhibition which focuses on contextualising the Emergency within a contemporary framework.

The festival opens daily from 11am to 5pm. Films are screened at 8.30pm from Oct 20 to 26, while theatre presentations take place at 8.30pm daily.

Entry is by donation of RM10 (students and senior citizens) and RM20 for theatre presentations. All other events are free. Call 03-7725-4858.