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You know what this country loves more than nasi lemak and political drama? Heroes. We can’t get enough of them. We want them in our movies, our classrooms, our news feeds - heck, if someone rescues a cat from a drain, we’ll throw them a Datukship.
It started harmlessly, of course. Marvel gave us Iron Man, Captain America, Thor - men in tight suits who save the world and still have perfect hair. We worshipped them, lined up for every sequel, and secretly wished we could be them.
Malaysia, on the other hand, gave us Cicakman, Kluang Man… and Reformasi Man. Yup. Malaysians don’t need super serum or vibranium shields - just a bit of drama, a camera crew, and some airtime.
Our own history is filled with “heroes.” Hang Tuah, the ultimate loyal servant. Hang Jebat, the rebel with a cause. Both became legends because one obeyed blindly and the other got angry about it - basically the origin of every Malaysian politician, really. Every time a crisis hits, we dust off their names like old trophies, argue about who was right, and end up disappointed with their lack of integrity and leadership.
And now, we have 23 new heroes. Not from Wakanda. Not from Melaka. From Gaza, Palestine. Heroes who went, got detained, came home - and were immediately hailed by the Prime Minister himself as “heroes and heroines.”
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying their intentions weren’t noble. But this obsession with labelling people “heroes” is… exhausting. Because being a hero today isn’t someone who does good quietly. It’s someone who gets a hashtag, a viral photo, and a prime-time welcome-home ceremony.
Even Greta Thunberg gets it. After being released from Israeli detention, the 22-year-old could’ve made it all about herself - the abuse, the mistreatment - but she didn’t. She said, “That is not the story.”
When the crowd shouted calling her “hero”, Greta corrected them: “No, not heroes. We are doing the bare minimum.”
So yes, let’s celebrate the safe return of our 23 activists. But let’s not get carried away with the medals, the photo ops, the grand speeches. As Greta reminds us - the ultimate mission must always be louder than the messenger.
Fa Abdul (fa.abdul.penang@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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