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SJS band shines at community concert BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia, Sarawak Daily News » thesundaypost - New 2 Borneo

SJS band shines at community concert

Posted: 28 Dec 2013 11:29 AM PST

YOU probably already know about the celebrated St Joseph's Secondary School Band and their big victory at the German Music Festival in Chemnitz, Germany earlier this year.

You may have heard about the amount of sweat and tears shed by each member in order to produce the kind of sound and professionalism that could only have originated from some of the top percussion orchestras to grace the international stage.

You might even be a parent of one of these musicians, never having to worry about how to keep your child occupied and out of mischief during the school holidays.

You might have been there on Dec 15 when St Joseph's School (SJS) toasted the 131st anniversary of the school with a time-honoured way of celebration — an offering of music, the kind that would be right at home on international soil as it was in Trinity Methodist Church, Ellis Road, Kuching.

With 16 items on the programme, the night could have been consumed by the same problem that has plagued many other concerts but programme coordinator Jonathan Fox kept it varied and interesting.

The show kicked off with Chris Crockarell's Me Tarzan which featured the always-fun body percussions where the percussionists used nothing but rhythmic clapping and stamping to 'play' this composition.

This was followed by the full SJS Concert Band playing Dedication, March and Celebration, composed by James Swearingen.

The first of the featured SJS Band Staff soloists to take the stage was the school bands music director and arranger Anthony Wong, who performed Melody (In Search of a Musical) on his alto saxophone, supported by the band.

The next number was also a solo — A Trumpeter's Lullaby by wind coach Yap Thien Soo — on his trumpet.

The SJS Band Colour Guard then made their first of three outings. Armed with mock rifles which were later replaced by flags, the boys danced and spun with the grace and dexterity of dance-theatre performers. Their soundtrack was Beethoven's Five Secrets, which was the composition that happened when The Piano Guys put Beethoven's 5th Symphony together with One Republic's Secrets.

The concert this year featured BAM! Percussion Trio. Formed in Singapore by three first-year Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music students, they make their Malaysian debut at 131 years of St Joseph's School: A Celebration in Concert.

BAM! consists of Shi Boya (Malaysia), Joachim Chin (Singapore) and Nguyen DuyAnh (Vietnam). Performing their respective solos was serious business, if their focused facial expressions were anything to go by.

But when they came down to the floor for the first movement of Nebojsa Jovan Zivkovic's Trio Per Uno, it was an obvious crowd-pleaser with their showmanship and precise timing.

Another clear highlight of the evening was when Jonathan Fox picked up his mallets and showed the hall full of audience exactly how many tones a master can coax out of a full set of timpani. Accompanied by the band percussionists, he led the group in John Beck's Concerto for Timpani and Percussion Ensemble. Fox now serves as principal percussionist of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.

Because a percussion concert can be hampered by re-arranging heavy instruments between sets, we were treated by an impromptu performance from SJS band director June Ling on the piano, together with Anthony Wong on his saxophone and Yap Thien Soo on his trumpet.

The Colour Guard made their second appearance to Taylor Swift's Eyes Open from the soundtrack of The Hunger Games. The band followed this with a David Shaffer arrangement of Amazing Grace which triggered awe as if it was a bulb at the end of a light switch.

The full cast finished with Celebration from Kool & The Gang which we got to enjoy twice due to a demand for encore.

The St Joseph's Secondary School Band consists of students aged between 12 and 16 years from SJS, St Joseph Primary School Kuching, and St Joseph Private School.

I hope these young but formidable musicians (and their parents) are aware of how ridiculously talented they are, and how the possibility of seeing them perform in some of the great orchestras in the world is within grasp.

The concert was this year's community concert, making it their fourth since they started giving back to the communityin the form of both service and high-calibre performances.

I think those who attended will agree that this, with the seasonal festivities looming, was also nothing less than a priceless gift.

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Visual-kei bands electrify S’pore concert

Posted: 28 Dec 2013 10:54 AM PST

by Joash Kong reporters@theborneopost.com. Posted on December 29, 2013, Sunday

VISUAL IMPACT is nothing new to the music scene — from early heralds such as David Bowie and Grace Jones to modern day icons like Lady Gaga, notorious for her meat dress and other spectacular avant-garde outfits.

Visual-kei, however, is something unique to Japan and described as a movement among Japanese musicians, characterised by the use of varying levels of make-up, elaborate hairstyles and flamboyant costumes. Another defining part of visual kei is that it is often coupled with androgynous aesthetics.

thesundaypost was fortunate to clinch an exclusive interview with visual-kei bands SCREW and D=OUT at the Sundown Festival in Singapore recently.

SCREW is a five-member Japanese rock and visual-kei band founded in 2006, and comprises members Byo (lead vocalist), Kazuki (leader, lead guitarist and backing vocals), Manabu (rhythm guitarist), Rui (bassist) and Jin (drummer and percussionist).

Having experimented boldly with their visual and musical styles since their debut, the members have produced a diverse musical portfolio of tracks — from rock and heavy metal to dance, pop and even ballads.

This was the first time they had been invited to perform in Singapore, so all the members were excited about being  part of such a star-studded music festival and eager to play for their fans in Singapore as it was a rare opportunity for them to perform overseas.

"We want everyone to remember there's a Japanese band called SCREW," Byo told a press conference the day before the concert when asked how they would like to be remembered post-concert.

He also surmised the band as "Poison" when asked to describe it in one word.

The band has a knack of choosing unique words for its song titles which aren't run-of-the-mill words you come across — words like BIRAN, KAIROS, XANADU and the latest being CAVALCADE which is a new number from the group and most recommended by them as it purports the "true essence of SCREW."

"I always decide on the names to not destroy the image or feelings of the music, sometimes picking out what sounds kakkoi (cool) or what inspiration that comes from the songs or lyrics," Byo added.

On the subject of musical influences, the band cited those from other artistes like Slipknot and Gazette (another popular visual-kei group from Japan) that have made their way into their musical as well as performing styles.

"I was influenced by Slipknot and incorporated the drummer's style into my own personal drumming style,"

Jin explained.

Meanwhile, when I interviewed the other visual-kei band D=OUT, I was struck by the contrast between the two.

Visually, SCREW seemed to portray a darker and more intense vibe whereas with D=OUT (pronounced doubt) seemed sunnier and lighter. Despite the two performing together, there was, however, no pressure from either to 'out-perform' each other as the two bands were just out to have fun at the festival and bring the audience an essence of their own.

Following the disbandment of former band Mist of Rouge in 2003, Kouki (band leader and vocalist of D=OUT) set out to form D=OUT in 2006 and recruited Ibuki (guitarist), Hikaru (guitar), Reika (bass) and Minase (drums). After a mere five days of its formation, the band took the stage on Dec 29 for its very first concert.

"Doubt has the element of lies in it but we want to let everyone enjoy and see everything about our group — plus it's a movie that Reika likes," Kouki explained when asked for the reasoning behind the band's name.

He added that since its debut, the band had seen changes from all the exposure to become a more focussed group.

On the appeal of visual-kei, the band said the music was a core component and something fun to watch as it provides the visual impact from the costumes and elaborate makeup but as a genre, it's quite open to interpretation as there is no specific inspiration behind it.

"We also would not want to tone down the visual impact but rather do the opposite and tone up instead,"

Kouki quipped.

The costumes the band chooses for its performances seem to derive inspiration from its songs as well as each member's own personal style — from monochromatic hues to being unpredictable and mixing things up.

"For me, I usually like to wear something similar to Japanese traditional clothes to show and let everyone enjoy the traditional Japanese culture," Kouki said, adding that most of the costumes were designed by the members themselves.

This was also the first time the group was invited to perform in Singapore and like fellow visual-kei band SCREW, the members were very excited to be able to give their Singapore fans a taste of D=OUT.

"I'm very happy it has happened for our fans who have waited a long time for us to come to Singapore and perform," Hikaru said.

"My heart was thumping when it was decided for us to perform in Singapore which has always been one of the places on my to-go list," fellow band member Minase added.

True to both bands' words, it was an electrifying performance when they took to the stage and the crowd was definitely happy. If any in the crowd were not fans of the two visual-kei bands before, they definitely might have been converted the moment the bands started performing.

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Rare Iban ritual to celebrate good fortune

Posted: 28 Dec 2013 10:18 AM PST

by Geryl Ogilvy Ruekeith reporters@theborneopost.com. Posted on December 29, 2013, Sunday

OBSERVING a rare traditional Iban ritual to seek or celebrate good fortune called Gawai Kelingkang dan Tuah was an opportunity too good to pass up when it  presented itself about two weeks ago.

I needed little convincing when my colleague, whose relatives would be hosting this age-old  ritual at his longhouse in the interior of Kanowit, invited me to tag along. All he said was "it's a special Gawai which will also commemorate our new longhouse – a sort of adding Gawai Pangkung Tiang in the mix. There is a special ritual where they bathe pigs in the river."

The thought of witnessing this ritual (bathing of the pigs) got me curious. So without hesitation, I decided to make the seven-hour drive from Kuching to Kanowit – plus a boat ride across the mighty Rejang, and another hour's drive along a mix of tar-sealed and off-road tracks to the nearest pick-up point before taking a longboat ride along Sungai Poi to our destination – Nanga Ulin.

The Gawai Kelingkang dan Tuah was to be celebrated at the newly-built 21-door longhouse called New Ulin (New Orleans inevitably came to mind). This modern structure replaces the old Nanga Ulin traditional longhouse, situated further upriver, which was gutted in 2009. Work on New Ulin (also known as Rumah Sangga) started that same year and the first family moved in two years ago (2011).

The Gawai hosts were Jackson Uding Upak, 54, a senior commissioning engineer with a multi-national company in the oil and gas industry and his brother 39-year-old Rimau Tengoling, a sub-sea engineer with a multi-national drilling company also in oil and gas. The three other individuals involved were the duo's children and a brother-in-law. In all, there were five hosts.

"In the old days, Gawai Kelingkang was celebrated to prepare or mark the success of the notorious Ngayau (headhunting) tradition, but today, the Ibans celebrate this ritual as a symbol of good fortune and success in their Bejalai (sojourn) undertakings, mainly in search of jobs and higher education.

"In this Gawai Kelingkang today, we celebrate our new home and the successes of some of our fellow longhouse residents," Uding told thesundaypost at the celebration.

Rimau chipped in: "The celebration is observed in accordance with the ripih (process) of Gawai Kelingkang in the Batang Rajang area. There are seven stages, starting with Nguak, Nyingka, Ngabas Amuk, Nyulap, Ngerara Belayan, Ngitang Tali Buru and Besimpan."

He noted that the ripih could be different in other areas. For instance, at New Ulin, the Gawai, which took place on Dec 11, was celebrated in the Nyingka stage.

Ari Nimang Pantar

Preparations for Gawai Kelingkang dan Tuah started on a Tuesday evening as village elders and the Gawai hosts took part in Nyambut Orang Nasak, a ceremony to herald the arrival of the Pugu Berani (the most important and wisest person) to the celebration.

Gotong-royong-style, the women prepared "offering plates," each containing glutinous rice, hard-boiled eggs and fried popped rice, among other foods.

During the Nasak, the Gawai hosts acted symbolically as the Pugu Berani. On arrival at the foot of the longhouse, each was presented with rice wine to "drown any bad omens" that they might have caught on their way to the celebration.

As chief host, Uding was required to symbolically chant an invocation.

The Lemambang (bard), represented by the chief host, and his assistants, represented by the other hosts, took on the roles of Berbiau (performing prayers), Biau/Miau ke piring (holding a rooster and blessing the offering plates) and Biau/Miau orang Nasak.

At the end of the ceremony, the men proceeded to build an offering hut for the sacrificial boars, and a shrine at the gallery for the Bilik (household unit) of the hosts. A flag pole was also planted where offering baskets for the spirits were placed on top.

At 9pm, the bard started the Nimang Pantar (chanting ritual) ceremony by performing invocations of his guardian spirits. He began with the Ngerayong Pandong ritual (covering the shrine with Pua Kumbu) before the chanting ritual with his two bala (assistants) who acted as Penyaut Lemambang or Nyagu (answering poetry-like chants sung by the bard).

For first-timers, especially non-Ibans, watching the bard and his assistants walk along the longhouse gallery, chanting and stomping their staves, can be a chilling experience. The bard and his assistants were so caught up in the ritual that they, somehow, gave the impression of walking in some spirit world.

The bard led his two followers in chanting a ritual song called Ngerara Rumah. They recited the reason why the longhouse had been prepared for the festival. The bard carried on chanting along the longhouse gallery until midnight, calling on the Sengalang Burong (spiritual beings) and Orang Panggau Libau (spirit chiefs) to attend the feast.

After the Nimang Pantar, the celebration continued with an all-night karaoke session and merry making.

Bathing of kelingkang

Wednesday started early for the longhouse community as they prepared to celebrate Gawai Kelingkang dan Tuah. Five sacrificial pigs – one for each of the hosts – went through a Nyugu Babi (combing the fur) ritual where rice wine was served and blessings offered before the porcine herd was led in a procession to the river for the bathing ceremony. No one, apart from those involved in the ritual, was allowed to go into the river. This was to avoid bad omens.

After the bathing, the pigs were fed, combed and carefully placed in a specially-built hut until their sacrifice at the end of the Gawai. Another ritual offering hut was built at the gallery of the Ketuai Gawai (chief host) to place a sacrificial Tuah (luck) pig.

The six pigs, including the Tuah, would be sacrificed for their livers and these, in turn, would be divined by experts.

The livers of five of the pigs would indicate the luck (health and prosperity) of the hosts while the Tuah would represent the Bilik.

After the morning ceremony, three gunshots were fired to symbolically announce to the nearby longhouse communities that Gawai at New Ulin had begun.

Before the guests arrived, the longhouse folk took part in the Ngetas Pintu ceremony to "officially" open the door of the bilik ketuai gawai to guests, and invite the Sengalang Burong to descend from the sky and the visitors from Panggau Libau to a feast. Throughout the afternoon, the hosts entertained visitors, relatives and friends from villages near and far.

In the evening, led by Uding and Rimau, the five hosts embarked on a Ngerandang (making a safe passage) ritual at the longhouse gallery. This ritual is important to set a "path" for the bard and his assistants to conduct their Timang Kelingkang so that the spirits would not be disturbed.

Symbolically, the Ngerandang ritual was conducted to celebrate the successful careers of the hosts, particularly Uding and Rimau. In the old days, it celebrated a successful headhunting trip (conquering of the enemy).

Around 9pm, the bard and his troupe started the Timang Kelingkang which lasted till the next day. Throughout the night, the five hosts were not allowed to fall sleep for fear their absence during the ritual might affect the livers of the sacrificial Kelingkang pigs. The Timang was meant as an offering to the gods for prosperity and health.

According to old traditions, amulets and offering plates were placed at a Kelingkang (shrine).

Some more rituals

Around 1am, the hosts took part in a Ngerampas ritual where they carried a coconut as a symbolic replacement for a smoked skull/head. The bard continued with his Timang Kelingkang until 7am, proceeding with the Ngelampang (cutting of the head) ritual. Here, Uding was tasked to cut the coconut.

The Bertama Tuah took place at the house of the hosts on Thursday morning. All the longhouse folks were invited to attend – and breakfast was served. Before entering the bilik, guests were required to throw a coin into a jar for luck and prosperity. A miring (offering ceremony) for blessings from the spirits and to show the intent of goodwill of the longhouse community, was then held.

Subsequently, the pigs were sacrificed, starting with the Tambak Bulu where a string of thread was sewn onto the Baju Burong of each of the five hosts. Eight women were needed for the task.

"Fortunately, all the pigs provided good omens, otherwise, we might have to repeat this whole Gawai process,"  Uding said with some relief.

The bard and his assistants continued with the Ngading Kelingkang until 3pm where Gawai Kelingkang was adjourned. In the evening, the Mupu Buluh Rapuh was held where the longhouse folks donated various food and jungle produce for dinner at the host's bilik.

Those present during Gawai Kelingkang dan Tuah were not allowed to wear black so as not to create a sorrowful atmosphere and offend visitors from the Panggau Libau.

Those in mourning cannot be involved in the various ceremonies. Moreover, no one is allowed to get into any argument. Negative and ill feelings must also be put aside under all circumstances.

Rimau explained all these could reflect the "divining" outcome of Gawai Kelingkang dan Tuah.

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A Sarawak kebun in Perth

Posted: 28 Dec 2013 09:50 AM PST

by Chang Yi. Posted on December 29, 2013, Sunday

AT the end of Apsley Road in Perth, on top of a hill, stands a house which is home to Ted and Menai Westley.

This unique couple migrated to Perth more than 35 years ago. Not many people actually know Menai was born in Sarawak and Ted in England more than 70 years ago for they are as Aussie as Woolies.

Their home has a collection of souvenirs which adorn almost every table and wall available, including Menai's Sarawakian artworks and photos as well as Ted's family photos from England.

Ted comes from a long line of soldiers who served in the First and Second World Wars. He himself was part of the British troops deployed to Sarawak during the Confrontation. And that was how he met Aup-born Menai Lumpoh who is from a long line of Iban chiefs from the Rajang.

Menai continues to practise her Iban-style backyard gardening since arriving on the shores of Western Australia with Ted and their only child, Brenda. She brings a delightful mix of English-Iban fusion culinary to her table while the family enjoys a good mix of East-West lifestyle.

Menai remembers when her daughter went to school, she would bring hot, home cooked meals for the little girl's brunch for all six years of her primary school – everyday and especially in winter. The teachers acknowledged her special qualities for no other Aussie mothers could do the same.

In the small kebun or backyard, Menai plants an array of vegetables, fruit trees, flowers and herbs which any local Sarawakians would envy.  She brought over a small lime seedling 30 years ago. And almost every Sarawakian family has since been blessed with goodness of the fruits (limau kasturi or sng kam) the lime tree has produced.

On a good day when all the limes are ripening, Menai will invite her Sarawakian friends over for a lime juice and acar get-together. She will freeze the concentrated lime juice and give it to friends for making laksa or when they need extra flavour for their salads. The limes are also used to make the famous Sarawak indigenous pickles — acar limau.

"Limes are produced in large quantity all year round and we are very blessed with the fruits of Menai's tree from Aup," said Sylvia Teo, from Kuching.

"Menai is ever so generous, considering limes are sold at $A1 for two in the Perth market. I usually come here to get 10 or more limes whenever they are ripening on the tree," she added.

Lesley and May — Menai's best friends in Perth — bring acar raisins and other goodies when they meet up with Menai. Both learned how to make rojak sauce from her a few years back.

"It's not easy getting the recipe because most people would rather keep it as a kind of family secret," May said.

Lime juice is indispensable for serving Sarawak rojak.

One of Menai's favourite vegetables is the Iban wild ensabi. She has several plots of these plants. Moreover, she grows Australian mustard greens and recently also planted some huge Hong Kong variety of the vegetable, one or two leaves of which is usually enough for an evening meal dish.

When a group of friends turned up for a Tuesday afternoon get-together, she plucked four leaves to cook soup for them. She also made some kasam ensabi (salted mustard green) for the family.

She even has a small meedin clump and her coriander, kunyit, daun sup, ginger, tapioca, changkok manis, pumkin, petola, long beans, squash, kaffir limes, sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, leeks, sugar cane, chillies, kacangma, curry leaf trees, bananas, tomatoes, cucumber and winter cabbages, are all doing well.

It's unbelievable her gardening can bring forth so much for herself and her friends in Perth.

Recently, she had a kacangma party for about six friends. One was actually a "culinary student" who specifically made an appointment to learn the "original" recipe from her.

The lesson went well and all the women enjoyed a hearty Sarawakian lunch. Besides kacangma, they had stir-fried ensabi, longbeans fried with belacan, fresh mushrooms and babi kicap.

"Kacangma or motherwort grows very well here. And I actually supply lots of it on request. How much do you want is the question," Menai beamed.

Flowers are her favourite though. She has some very rare plants from New Zealand. A black flower called New Zealand Flax was given to her by a good friend many years ago. Every seven years, the plant will flower.

Menai takes great pride in knowing the names of the flowers she grows and she also visits Bunnings and many other gardens to view and purchase plants and flowers. She also makes composts and recycles all her food wastes in the garden.

The young and old love Menai. A gathering — known fondly as Friday Night at Menai's — has become a Perth tradition ever since she offers her home as venue for the social event.

Sarawakians from Kuching, Miri, Sibu, Bintulu, residing in Perth, find their way to her home every Friday. While some are regular guests, others drop by once a year, or when they are in Perth for a visit from Karatha or the East Coast. Some come by invitation for an unforgettable Sarawakian dinner. The regulars bring either a sweet or savoury dish while the others the best of oysters — if the group is lucky!

Kai, a young student from Sarawak said he was very "comfortable with all the aunties and uncles from Sarawak whenever he joins Friday night's dinner."

His own home-cooked dish is always welcome to the table alongside the other delectable contributions.

According to him, Uncle Glen, who grew up in Sarawak, will always bring his best seafood dish and an extra dessert while Auntie Kui Hua from Kuching never fails to show up with a plate of onde onde or fruit cake.

"Whenever I come for this gathering, I feel as if I'm back in Sarawak, especially when I can eat the vegetables grown by Aunty Menai," Kai enthused.

Ted remains very much an English gentleman, having his bacon-and-ham sandwich or a good soup prepared by Menai.

While continuing to pound dried prawns and make sambal, Menai enjoys a good steak with his family as well but is assured by Ted she can cook anything under the sun for herself and her friends.

Ted and Menai share a great sense of humour. He said for them, there has never been a great divide between East and West but always a loving fusion and compromise.

Ted was in the Technical Corps and is a good carpenter. He loves collecting antiques — a 1920 English stove occupies pride of place in the living room and a 1930 gramophone features prominently by the stairs.

Menai adds her Iban and Melanau hats to the walls of the living room.

Her taste for good fashion brings into their living room lace curtains that would feel comfortable and right in any parts of the world – be it UK or Ulu Kapit. Books on Sarawak fill their shelves.

Ted continues to use sarong as his sleepwear – something he picked up when he arrived in Sarawak in the 1960's. He thinks it's the best and most intelligent attire anyone can have for lounging around and a good night's sleep.

Menai is obviously the green fingers of the family while Ted, the guardian of what is within the home for himself, Menai, their daughter and grandchildren.

Like a good sentry, he pops in every 10 or 15 minutes to check on Menai and her friends working in the garden and asks: "Is everything all right?"

Menai is now into her 70's while Ted is over 75. While she tends her Sarawak kebun, he watches TV or reads, knowing his wife is happy after all these years and travelling half the world to "follow" him to Perth.

Menai in her own quiet ways is a boon and inspiration to the Iban community in Perth.

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More of what’s ‘new’ in the natural world

Posted: 28 Dec 2013 09:39 AM PST

by Tom McLaughlin. Posted on December 29, 2013, Sunday

SCIENTISTS have continued to make discoveries about the natural world and here are a few of the many.

Seagrass study

A team of researchers led by EI Ahmad-Kamil, which included R Ramli, of University of Malaya studied the monthly changes in seagrass population in Lawas.

It was found that seagrass dramatically declined during the landas season between November and January because the plants were uprooted, the seeds were buried in the bottom and the turbidity (dissolved particles in the water that inhibits sunlight) was high.

However, the population immediately recovered after the landas by extending the rhizomes and seed eruption. This was the first study of seagrass in Borneo.

Chirping news

A 28-month cricket and grasshopper study of a vacant lot in Singapore disclosed 18 species of grasshoppers and 36 species of crickets and katydids. The plant life revealed 45 species with only 16 per cent of those native to Singapore.

The paper stated that grasslands are important for birds, butterflies and dragonflies.

The monograph also suggested that native species of grass should be encouraged in urban areas.

Future planning

It has been widely assumed that only humans plan for the future and that all other animals deal only with their immediate needs.

An investigation of a male orangutan in Sumatra has shown that some long calls inform others the direction of travel for the next day.

The vocalisation was emitted just before the ape went to sleep for the night.

It was postulated that females listened to the call because they prefer to mate with the dominant male and he offers protection from the harassment from unflanged males.

Fishy news

Researchers from the University of Kansas and Connecticut in the United States have identified five new species of stingrays (Myliobatiformes: Dasyatidae) from Malaysian and Indonesian waters.

This doubles the number of stingray species found in the area. In other fish news, three new species of halfbeaks were made known to science.

The halfbeaks were named because the lower jaw is significantly longer than the top one. The researchers from the University of Singapore found the new species in lowland streams.

They are also found in the lowland river systems of the Sematan, Lundu, Bau, Batu Kawa, Matang, Bako, Serian, Balai Ringin, Gedong and Sri Aman river systems.

It is currently thought that the species is only found in Borneo.

In streams with clear water the body colour is light while those found in tea coloured water have darker skins.

Here kitty, kitty

It was found that the Clouded Leopard (Neofelis diardi) has a range of 16.1km and a core range of 5.4km after researchers from Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) and Oxford University attached a radio tagged collar and tracked it for 109 days.

It was also revealed that the cat is mostly nocturnal but the study did reveal some activity during day light hours. There has been very little ecological information written about the leopard because wild ones are very elusive and hard to catch.

The Malaysian Nature Society

Established in the 1940, the Malaysian Nature Society is the oldest scientific and non-governmental organisation in Malaysia. Our mission is 'to promote the study, appreciation, conservation and protection of Malaysia's nature heritage'. Our 5,000-strong membership, spread across 12 branches nationwide, come from all walks of life, bound by a common interest in nature. For further information on membership or our activities in Kuching, call Kwan on 019-8349499. For information on our activities in Miri, call Nazeri Abghani on 085-453185. You can also visit www.mns.org.my or http://mnskuching@blogspot.com.

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When children view pornography

Posted: 28 Dec 2013 08:01 AM PST

No parent wants to think about his child viewing pornography, but it often happens

NO healthy parent wants to think about his child viewing pornography, but it often happens. Some researchers have stated that the average age of exposure to pornography is down to eight. Before the days of the Internet, children were typically between the ages of 11 and 13 when they began by viewing soft-core pornography found in magazines like Playboy.

Today's child lives in a culture where hardcore pornography abounds. Our children are being seduced daily, and we need to bear this fact in mind whenever we have the occasion to redirect them away from pornography. It is also extremely important that parents not direct all their efforts towards their sons at the expense of their daughters. Pornography and other sexualised media can adversely affect girls as well as boys and often leads to significant damage in their ability to form healthy relationships as an adult.

The goal

We want to be intentional parents. It's our privilege and responsibility to educate them about sexuality. We want to begin early, and continue throughout their time with us in the home.

The ultimate goal for our children's sexuality is that they will be able to see the dynamic interplay between sexuality and spirituality. We want to help them understand, for example, that sexual intercourse is an act of love shared between a husband and wife. What we model today in our marriages will likely reproduce itself in our children's marriages.

By helping our children to see the big picture about the sanctity of sex, we are better prepared to confront the problem of pornography when and if it occurs in our children's lives.

Do you and your spouse share the same core values?

Ideally, parents will share the same core values that promote sexual purity. This unity will facilitate your child's recovery. On the other hand, if a child's parents are divided about pornography, that child's rehabilitation will be more difficult.

A child's repetitive involvement with pornography can be a symptom of an unhappy home. Once the child's issues begin to surface, his parents may benefit from marital therapy if they continue to be at odds on pornography in general or fail to agree on how to facilitate their child's recovery.

Before you start beating yourself up, however, any exposure to pornography can harm children—even otherwise healthy children. The point here is not to blame parents but to help them identify any problems that may be negatively affecting their children's understanding of sexuality or recovery

Did my child view pornography intentionally?

I'm convinced that children are victims of a covert form of sexual abuse whenever they are confronted with sexually provocative materials. With

this in mind, our children need us to be healthy advocates for their well-being, even if we must confront their wilful exposure to porn.

If a child has been found with pornography, it's important to not jump to conclusions. A harsh, impulsive interrogation will most likely just shut down your child. An unhealthy shame often leads to more acting-out with pornography.

You will want to learn how your child found pornography. For example, did someone introduce your child to pornography? Mental health professionals recognise the power differential that occurs as result of age, and if the person who introduced the pornography was older by three or four years, it constitutes a type of sex abuse. These incidents should be reported to local authorities.

Was this my child's first exposure?

It will also be important to learn if this was his first exposure to pornography. The frequency of exposure matters, as a child becomes increasingly desensitised over time. As desensitisation occurs, a child typically begins to seek a greater frequency of pornography, and a harder or more severe quality. Greater frequency and a shift to hardcore pornography are indicators that the brain has begun to seek more stimulation, which can lead to addiction.

If you learn that your child has developed a habit of viewing pornography, it will be important to seek the services of a specialist who is trained to facilitate recovery.

Just exactly what did my child see?

What types of pornography did he see? Sadly, with the Internet a child can be exposed to a wide range of sexual perversions in seconds. If your child has an email address, chances are he or she is being exposed to pornographic email. One recent study found that 47 per cent of school-aged children received porn spam on a daily basis. This study also found that as many as one in five children open the spam they receive. It will be important to learn about the types of pornography that your child viewed. For example, was the pornography heterosexual or homosexual? Was it limited to body parts or did it include sex acts? Was sexual violence a part of the pornography, and did it include bestiality?

Many parents will seek the help of a therapist at this point. Wisely, they want to safeguard their roles as parents, and avoid harming the relationship by making the teen feel interrogated or ashamed as they ask such difficult questions. The therapist can also delicately approach the job of ascertaining to what extent he or she has been exposed to more severe types of pornography, without inadvertently planting ideas the teen has never even imagined.

Regardless of what was viewed, it will be more important to rehabilitate your child than to merely correct or punish him.

How can you prevent future occurrences?

Frankly, there is no guarantee that even the best parent can prevent his child's exposure to pornography. As with parents of any age or culture, we seek to do the best we can with the resources we have. Should another incident occur, it will be another teachable moment where you restate the precepts and principles that guide us toward wholeness.

Fortunately, the probability of future occurrences can be diminished by taking a four-pronged approach.

Behavioural

Behavioural approaches attempt to prevent a scenario from developing in the first place. The house and grounds, for example, should be purged of all pornography. Media should be carefully screened for triggers that serve as gateways to acting-out. If the problem occurred with the Internet, a filter can be one of your strategies, although it can never replace parental supervision and involvement. Other common-sense approaches include moving the computer to the family room where others can easily view the screen, limiting the time on the computer so that no one is alone on the Internet, and developing a mission statement that directs the family's the use of the computer and the Internet.

 Cognitive

Pornography is propaganda and generates destructive myths about sexuality. Once exposed, it will be critically important that a comprehensive sex education gets underway, if it has not already been initiated. The child will need to learn what and how to think about sexuality. More than mere behaviours, parents will want to communicate the core values of sexuality, the multifaceted risks of sex outside of marriage, and their ongoing compassion for what it must be like to grow up in this culture.

 Emotive

Sex is inherently emotional. Premarital sex has even been linked with co-dependency, where at least one person becomes compelled or addicted to be in relationship with another. The youth culture would lead you to believe that sex is not necessarily emotional for them ?don't you believe it. Sexual relations of any type bond the bodies, minds, and spirits of two individuals. At the conscious level, this attachment is largely emotional. Our children need to understand that emotional attachment is often involuntary, and especially when the relationship has been compromised sexually.

 Spiritual

At its core, sexual integrity comes down to a spiritual commitment and our children need to see how our lives are different.

Has your child's exposure to pornography triggered you?

A child's exposure to pornography often triggers a parent's unresolved issues. It may be that a mother will be reminded of sex abuse in her past, or a father will be reminded of his own struggles with pornography and other sexual sins. Because these kinds of memories can be painful, coping with a child's exposure to pornography can become even more difficult. For these reasons, family therapy may be particularly helpful.

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