If you think life has dealt you the biggest blow today, what would you do to overcome it? For some people, they would resort to ChatGPT or DeepSeek as if Artificial Intelligence is the new answer to all the universe's unexplained mysteries and problems. But jokes aside, fret not if your life is not exactly a smooth walk, since some people have experienced far worse hardships in life compared to what we have endured. Without further ado, let's take a walk back down memory lane with these 4 unsung heroes from the marginalized community that helped contribute to and redefine Merdeka.
Night soil carriers
Way before the arrival of modern toilet facilities, night soil carriers were the only way of keeping Malaysia's toilets in check. Night soil, which aptly means human excrement, was collected in heavy buckets on poles during nighttime on the night soil carriers' shoulders to be transported elsewhere for proper disposal. Due to the nature of the night soil carriers' job, they were looked down on by most people back then. For example, some people would spit on their faces or cover their noses in disgust whenever the night soil carriers came to do their night duties. However, these folks do not know that if not for the night soil carriers, no one in their right mind would do this particular job, or what's more, tolerate the unbearable stench of their waste.
Samsui Women
Before the arrival of foreign workers, the Samsui women were the original female construction workers of the bygone past in old Malaya. These resilient and hardworking women were recognized by their signature red headscarf and also their incredible Herculean strength that could outdo any beefcaked male construction worker of today. For example, they could perform all sorts of strenuous construction tasks like digging soil or carrying heavy raw materials despite low wages and harsh working conditions. As a child, I recall my late Grandma or Ah Poh saying that the notorious 9-storey building in Jalan Bendahara, Malacca, was built by the strong hands of the Samsui Women. On top of that, the Samsui Women were considered by many to be the pioneers of feminism due to their independence and vow to celibacy until their final remaining days.
Amahs
Although the Majies share the same vow of eternal celibacy as the Samsui Women, this trait is the only thing they have in common. Unlike the latter, the Majies were domestic helpers from China, primarily noted through their signature long braided pigtails and black and white matching uniforms. Despite the humble status of Majies, many of their past employers firmly vouched that the Majies were hardworking, kind, dutiful, and often pampered their kids as if they were their own. Also, the Majies were very loyal to their native homeland of China, where they would frugally keep every cent of their monthly paycheque to send it to their destitute-stricken families over there. After the Majies fully hung up their domestic aprons for good, some of them sold local street food such as wantan noodles at morning markets, albeit with a special touch of the Majies' delicious Guangdong taste.
Coolies
Coolies are male workers who originated mostly from Tongshan, China, and Southern India. They are lowly paid to perform physically demanding jobs in mines, ports, plantations, construction sites, and as rickshaw pullers in old Malaya. The coolies were mainly recruited through deceptive and shrewd tactics, where they were required to sign a labour contract pledging their full allegiance and life-long service to their colonial employer. Due to that, coolies did various back-breaking jobs under the hot, gruelling sun for hours, such as loading and unloading cargo as well as tin-ore mining. Since coolies were often exploited by their employers, they usually drowned their sorrows and other life hardships via opium smoking, gambling, and soliciting for prostitutes at nearby brothel dens until the end of their miserable lives.
Conclusion:
In short, whether or not they are the much discriminated nightsoil-carriers or the tough-cookie Samsui women from yesterday, all these special people mentioned above have contributed greatly to the country's nation-building progress, albeit quietly in their own respective ways. Because of them, we know that Malaysians from all walks of life can make their own significant contributions to the current MADANI government, regardless of big or small stature. In addition, no significant recognition is needed for every kind or noble act, so outsiders know that Malaysians are paying it forward genuinely from their hearts.
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Lim Su Yee (michellelimsuyee@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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