Measuring Peace

Posted by Natalie Shobana Ambrose

By Natalie Shobana Ambrose
theSun, Malaysia (page 14)


In the latest Global Peace Index (GPI), Malaysia ranked 19th out of the 153 countries reviewed – an achievement that was touted in the last week. Ironic for a week that saw continual reprimand, threatening and anger over calls for basic electoral reform. It has also been the week where the much anticipated findings of the Royal Commission of Inquiry on the untimely death of Teoh Beng Hock was announced. There is a public outcry for Parti Sosialis Malaysia leaders held under the ISA to be released, and the Economist article on the Bersih rally was blacked out.

All this begs the question, how is peace really measured?

Is peace measured by our military capability or sophistication, the level of democracy, the level of disrespect for human rights, violent crime rates, police capacity and influence, potential for terrorist acts and/or the perception of criminality within society?

Which leads to the question, can peace really be measured? What would be the components, who would be the sample size, what documents will be analysed and interpreted by whom and how? It seems a perplexing and complex concept to index.

Further to that, is this form of peace a Western perception? When calling for human rights reforms and democratic practices, often what sprouts out is the cowardly response that these concepts are Western in nature and do not sit well with our Asian heritage – then what’s good for the West is not necessarily good for us in Asia stand is continuously reiterated. How then does the definition of peace according to the GPI fare with our Asian heritage?

We’re patting ourselves on the back for ranking above countries like Singapore, the UK, Netherlands, France and the US because it suits us, but are we just bragging about an index instead of dealing with reality. What is the pulse on the ground? Are the people happy or are we an angry lot?

On a recent cab ride from KLIA, I was surprised at how young the driver was. We struck up a conversation which lasted the whole journey and what he said resonated with me. We were not in the same age bracket, ethnic group, gender box and everything else. We were poles apart. However, his unhappiness at the state of affairs was clear and shared.

At 25, with a diploma in automotive mechanics, he struggled to find a job in the field. He worked at McDonalds to avoid being lumped in the unemployment glut and now has found his way into driving an airport budget cab even though he is not qualified. He works long hours just to make a few trips a day. If he doesn’t work, he doesn’t get paid. If he takes a sick day, he doesn’t get paid. We did not get into details of superannuation and benefits – though I doubt it’s much to shout about. He spoke passionately of how it’s not about race anymore but about a Malaysian society that is worried about how things are being run, with the lack of transparency, the lack of respect for voters, the lack of justice and the level of inequality. I wondered what he would think of this peace index ranking. Would he too question how peace is measured?

If peace is measured by passive submission to authority, then we rank high on Hofstede’s Power Distance Index which measures the extent to which less powerful members accept and expect inequality in the distribution of power. Malaysia comes tops in the high-power distance culture category which suggests that the inequality within society is endorsed by both sides – the leaders and the people. I do, however, wonder how long our Asian passive nature will hold up against the rising anger of society at how concerns close to our hearts are being mismanaged, twisted and hijacked.

When a young man in the prime of his life, about to get married, with his firstborn on the way is falsely accused and is said to be interrogated to the point he loses perspective and chooses to commit suicide, giving up on the life he was looking forward to and prepared for – one has the right to question, to get angry and wonder if this happens in a peaceful country?

Natalie believes in the quote “the price of peace is eternal vigilance”.