Prisoner of Unity

I have attended many camps and conventions with the theme of unity and togetherness. But this one camp I attended last week was a real eye-opener.

The overall design and theme of the MIM-TRYLA camp was Unity. In my mind I thought it was just another muhibbah thingy where they bring in people from all races and background to lecture them on Unity. I mean – all of us know Unity is not a topic to be lectured – it should be experienced.

The camp was designed to create an equal distribution of people. The participants were 25 males, 25 females and equal racial distribution and professional backgrounds.

We didn’t know what to expect in the beginning – some had vague perceptions that the venue was Genting or some five-star accommodation. We had to wait to find out as we gathered at the MIM headquarters in Jalan Ampang.

After lunch we proceeded to the lobby to get into the bus – and there it was gleaming in its black and metallic paint – A Jabatan Penjara bus! We were having some doubts as the idea of Genting did not match with the transport which was standing at the porch.

The first 2 days was the replica of a Malaysian survivor camp. It was 2 days of continuous activities at the Pangsun Eco Resort...

Jungle trekking, obstacle courses, treasure hunts followed by campfire to cook our dinner and building tents to stay. When we finally had some sleep that night, it was not long after that we were awakened by the damn hailer… it was the 4am roll call and we had to continue once again. All the while no rest, no sleep and no bath!

The day started again with jungle paintball... all tired and weary but pushing us to the limits was their objective anyway. Then there was the much-needed lunch, as we could not eat whatever we cooked the night before! Next was – a rest? No. We continued with water rafting at Sungai Langat – one of the most tiring activity – we were on our own self-made raft on a raging river just after rain… We reached the destination through sheer teamwork, and then we reached and finally got time to wash up...

Then came the real deal. We arrived at our permanent destination for the 7-day camp. It was Maktab Penjara Kajang. What a venue! And what a contrast to the hopes that we had – Genting!

We had to be at the roll call at 6.15 am every day and go for marching with the Penjara trainees – trying to match our decade-old marching skills with the trainees there. And the best part was - the Maktab compound is a no-walking zone. We had to march wherever we go – even if we were alone.

We had food cooked by prisoners who were working there. We return to the room at 1am everyday only to start the next day start at 6.15 again.

Through the whole process, the facilitators carefully analysed each person’s leadership skills and were quite strict with us all the way... keeping in mind the unity that is slowly developing as we go through each challenge as a team.

There were talks and sharing from creative thinking, prison life by Inspectors, character building and various other topics. But more than the talks, we got a whole new perspective of prison life, spirit of leadership through unity.

And as we approached the final closing dinner on the 22nd, I realized that I had now with me 49 other individuals who are so much bonded together with me and shared the same ups and downs with me and I have not even thought about their race, creed or religion for the past 7 days.

Now, that is a statement of proof that this particular camp managed to test our physical and mental endurance and push us to the limits so much that the subtle message of unity was inculcated in the process of it all. I could not recall any other camps that did that to me. Neither can I think of a better way to build such a strong bond with my fellow Malaysians.

It was a noble effort by MIM and I laud their program, which is on its 17th year this year. And that means there are around 850 TRYLA participants out there who knows what it feels to work together as one entity – Malaysians in unity.

As I think back of the experiences, I think it’s time for me to live a life as example of understanding the fundamentals of unity – rather than in a divided outlook.

Now I am missing the morning marching at 6.15am... maybe I should start marching around my office now...