Rambling Minds

Rape, arson, gang fights, theft, robbery and murder are criminal acts which are quite commonly associated with the very small Indian community of Malaysia, very often the perpetrators being youths and teenagers. According to the Star dated August 6th 2007, a 12 year old boy along with teenagers aged between 16 and 19 were held by the police for the abduction and rape of a 30 year old woman! What were the boys thinking! If only these boys had channelled their planning and strategizing skills into something worthwhile, they would have surely shined. But now, their future looks bleak.

Text book education alone cannot help the young generation become holistic individuals. Proper guidance and enough attention need to be given in order for the youngsters to define right and wrong. Parents should not turn a blind eye on this matter. Parents must learn to be more far sighted rather than being narrow minded as it will be the future generation of Indians who will seriously be affected by their actions. There are a number of avenues which can help deter youngsters from choosing the dark side. Active involvement in sports is one such avenue.

“No! Don’t waste your time on games. You won’t get selected anyway. Go study!” “It’s raining. You’ll fall sick. You can try for the team selection next time.” “You might get injured. Who’s to take care of you then?” “People like us can only dream of going far in sports.”….Do these comments and remarks sound familiar? In reality, many Indian parents tend to discourage and dissuade their children from participating in sports by making such statements. But the truth is that the young ones of today can gain a lot of benefits by being actively involved in sports. When precious time is well occupied, Indian teenagers and youths would not have much reason to get involved in social ills.

Of course, many would say, parents in particular, that opportunities maybe scarce for the Indian youngsters to excel in sports in this country. But, little do they realise that, apart from just turning sports and games into professional careers, such activities can help motivate and build healthy bodies and minds. While it is often assumed that biasness and discrimination may be happening with the selection process for games, even at school level, that should not discourage the Indian children from finding other ways to have active lifestyles by participating in the games of their choices, even if it means playing in their own backyards.

In the process of building a forceful society, the young of our community have to be safeguarded. The “go with the flow” mindset has to be changed among a large number of Indian parents. Life is not only about day to day living, but also about chasing dreams and achieving them. It is hoped that social ills among Indian youngsters will slowly but surely be extinguished for good.

What do you think about this topic? EWRF would like to hear you. Email your comments to ewrf-hq@streamyx.com.