Tan Sri Datuk Professor Ahmad Ibrahim

AIKOL stands for Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws

What's that? That was my question when I first saw the acronym. I went to visit UIAM (Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia) Gombak campus for the first time. I had visited my mother's grave in Selayang earlier and had nothing to do before check-in at Hotel Putra KL in front of IJN, Jalan Tun Razak.

My husband and I were the only two visitors to AIKOL that morning. We passed through Sg Pusu and then came to the campus front entrance. It did look like Disneyland to me. I was happy that I was in "Disneyland", with castle and unpainted buildings. Not knowing the layout of the campus, we drove down the periphery road and landed at the bus depot/parking lot just before the stadium. We had passed the AIKOL roadsign and it was a one-way road (no turning back). We set out on foot back to where I spotted the AIKOL roadsign when we went past it.

We went downhill and explored the parking lot first, trying to get a good clear view of the signage high on the roof that says "Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws". We noticed each parking lot also bore his name on the parking lot signage. Here, every lecturer has a designated parking lot.

We walked and entered the building and reached the first courtyard where there were trees and tiny doors. We went to the next courtyard and there were more trees and the building formed a U-shape formation that opened towards the hills far away.

Then we went upstairs, past the AIKOL shop and reached second floor. The faculty main door says "Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws Administration Office". I went round to the back door which was opened and it says the same "Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws". So this must be the right place I thought. Then we went to the front (not knowing the front earlier) and I took some photos there. I discovered the dean's parking lot and saw the same words high up on the front facade of the AIKOL building. I climbed up the slope in front to get a good view and almost fell backwards on the road behind me. But it was worth it trying to get a good photo of AIKOL facade with the name.

Then we went to visit the graveyard in Sg Pusu. My husband called a man named Ujang and he informed us about the location of the grave for Prof Ahmad bin Mohamed Ibrahim. He said it was a "kayu cengkal" frame. There was only one that was made of teak. I guess this is it.

Dr Mohamed Ibrahim was an early Malay doctor in Singapore. In my research on The Early Malay Doctors, he turns out to be the first Malay doctor in Singapore. The other doctor at that time was Dr HS Moonshi who was born in Surat, India and came to live and study in Singapore. Both doctors graduated in 1916, Dr HS Moonshi graduated earlier than Dr Mohamed Ibrahim. They were close friends, so the families told me. 

Who was Prof Ahmad bin Mohamed Ibrahim?

Prof Ahmad was the elder son of Dr Mohamed Ibrahim. He was a lawyer for Natrah in the Natrah incidence that occurred in Singapore on 12-13 December 1950. Prof Ahmad was Singapore's first Attorney-General after Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965. He was Singapore's Ambassador to Egypt before he resigned and came to live in Malaysia. Prof Ahmad served at Universiti Malaya before joining UIAM when it was built during deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim's time. He headed the law faculty as dean, a faculty that was named in his honour and now popularly known by its acronym AIKOL.

I knew about him back in 1997 when I was looking for a university to hop to. I had obtained the faculty application form to join UIAM but there were a few questions that held me back. They were questions on faith and honesty. It asked what is the one book that you read that changed your life? I knew nobody who would ever ask such a question to any prospective faculty member. That question set me thinking and for which I had to read up on Islam before I could try to answer. I never answered that question. And that was why I did not leave USM to join UIAM in 1997-1999. And I never met the person who created that question, whom I strongly believe could have been him. I still have the form with me and a portrait of me stuck to the application form.

The great man has gone but his legend lives on in those who knew him. I met with Dato Abdul Mutalib when he came to pick up my 2 books at Hotel Putra KL on 15 December 2012. We were talking about his new upcoming book and what I can possibly contribute when the topic changed to remembering the great men in our history. I asked him whether he knew Prof Ahmad and he instantly replied yes. In the Malay socio-historical context, when someone is remembered long after he is deceased, he is regarded as one who has done many good deeds for his people and community. So someone remembering Prof Ahmad 13 years after his demise goes to show how significant his contributions were to our lives and status as Malays and upholding Muslim rights, both in Singapore and Malaysia today. I can't think of any other great men who contributed as much as he did to our education and yet upholding Islam. So in this respect, he was very special. That's how I look at men who made our history.

External links:
http://www.zimbio.com/Kuala+Lumpur/articles/278/Tan+Sri+Datuk+Professor+Ahmad+Ibrahim
http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_529_2005-01-07.html
http://infopediatalk.nl.sg/biographies/SIP_529_2005-01-07/
http://sezakiza.tumblr.com/post/37913263178/the-personal-side-of-ahmad-ibrahim-by-mohamed-sidek
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIRYc96mClk
http://zulkiflihasan.wordpress.com/2010/12/28/tribute-to-the-late-professor-ahmad-ibrahim/

Digital Museum of Life

I attended a meeting today on the proposed digital museum of life. I let my colleagues view my books. These pics tell the stories.

Assoc Prof Dr Col (R) Wan Pauzi Wan Ibrahim - he suggested a book launch for my books.
My books will help towards the setting up of the digital museum.

Dr Muzaimi Mustapha, heads the digital museum project for USM

Prof Sharifah Mastura Syed Mohamad heads the IT section for the digital museum

Prof Jafri Malim Abdullah, Head of Neurosurgery, USM medical school & hospital

Digital here means online or the Internet. The physical museum will be another project. Please provide ideas, suggestions, resources, comments, etc for the "Digital Museum of Life" under Comments for this post. Those of you who are interested in investing in the digital as well as the physical museum, can contact either Assoc Prof Col (R) Wan Pauzi or Dr Muzaimi.

Plan 2013

Australia
I may/may not travel to Perth in January 2013. In South Como, Perth I may get to meet Kak Rahimah, Megat Khas's adopted daughter. I don't know her address or contact. In Mandurah, I hope to meet Daisy Yvette, Dr Che Lah's youngest daughter. I don't know whether I will get to meet Anwar Ibrahim, Dr Mohamed Ibrahim's second or middle son. I will also drop a copy of my books at the Reid Library in University of Western Australia, my alma mater. I may drop by WAIMR (Western Australia Institute of Medical Research) and Royal Perth Hospital, to meet some old friends.

I also need some photos of Adelaide University Medical School for Dr Ruby's biogrpahy.

I also need some photos of Melbourne University Dental School for Dr Nuruddin Mohd Salleh's biography.

I have to be back in Kelantan as I have lectures on 7 January 2013 onward.

Middle-East
I may travel to the Middle East in March 2013 to get stories from that region for another book I plan to write and which I teach a class in first year medicine.

Europe
I may travel to Spain and Morocco. I have read about the nuts, oils and life there. I've seen documentaries of the oils and life there.

Great Britain
I may go up north to Great Britain to photo shoot institutions in London, especially the hospitals and the LSHTM (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine). I asked around but nobody could supply good photos of the LSHTM.

I have to draft my manuscript before I travel. That way I don't waste time during my travel.

So that is my plan wrt my books and my travels for 2013.

Plans for 13 December 2012

It is not pay day yet even though Christmas is near. Since it is not pay day yet, my husband advised that we will only go to Kuala Lumpur and not down to Malacca. We will do Malacca another time when we don't have anything to do in KL.

Kuala Lumpur - Klang Valley
 I plan to go down to Kuala Lumpur this Thursday, 13 December 2012, insyaAllah. I have a meeting that afternoon from 2.30 pm to 4 pm. I will leave after the meeting and travel at night. I will try and bring down the books and deliver them to Nizam. You can collect your orders from Nizam. He lives in Serdang, opposite UPM campus, near the big pond. I will probably stay at Hotel Putra near Institut Jantung Negara (IJN) as it is near Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia (PNM) and I can deliver a copy at PNM. I will also stop by Arkib Negara Malaysia (ANM) to drop a copy there. I may have time to visit Universiti Malaya (UM) and I may get to meet Prof Jamaiah Ibrahim (Dr Pandak Ahmad's granddaughter). I will also need to deliver to Datuk Ariffin Ngah Marzuki as it is urgent and he's unwell. I will need to deliver the book to Tan Sri Dr Abdul Majid bin Ismail. I don't know if I can meet the son(s) of Tan Sri Dr Mohamed Din. I would also like to meet and deliver the books to Dato Abdul Mutalib Razak (ex-TV3 Chairman, grandson of Dr Ismail Ghows, nephew of Dr Latifah Bee Ghows) and Tan Sri Megat Najmuddin Khas (son of Dr Megat Khas).

NS
I don't know if I can leave the books for Dr Azlan (Seremban) and Dr Hamdan (Tampin). I may have time to visit Tampin as I plan to return to my hometown for the first time in many years.

Malacca
In Malacca, I hope to meet Dr Siti Fathimah bt Datuk Dr Haji Abbas and deliver the book to her. I have not met her.

Penang
After I return from KL, I will pick up more books from my house in Kelantan and travel to Penang. I will put up at my sister's house in Minden Heights, Jalan 7. I hope to deliver the books to many Penang residents who helped with the book. I hope to meet Kamaruddin Che Lah (Dr Che Lah's son), Assoc Prof Sr Azlan Raoffudin (HBP USM; Dr Nuruddin's son), Datuk Zubaidah CM Hashim (married to the son of Sir Kamil Ariff), Puan Rukiah Hanoum (Sir Kamil Ariff's granddaughter), Dato Anwar Fazal Mohamed, etc.

Singapore
I don't know if I can travel to Singapore. There are 3 doctors' families in Singapore. There is also Wardah Books near Masjid Sultan. I may just visit Singapore for nasi biryani and visit the hospitals and mosques there which I didn't get to see at my last visit in 2011.

Doa Ibubapa

Another theme that I blended into my writing for Biography of the Early Malay Doctors was the respect and prayer we must accord to our parents. For this I have included information about the parents of each doctor (where possible). That way you can see how parents brought up their children to become our early Malay doctors. From the accounts I wrote in the book, almost all the doctors had a hard life but they persevered and made it. Shouldn't they be grateful to their parents? The same with us today, we should be grateful to our parents for everything they have tried to do and have done for us.

This is the prayer for parents. I found it in Ustaz Don Daniyal's Facebook:


Ustaz Don Daniyal:

Like This Page · 1 November

Jom Aminkan doa ni... :)

"Ya Allah, Ampunilah bagiku segala dosaku dan juga dosa kedua ibu bapaku dan kasihanilah mereka keduanya sebagaimana mereka memelihara dan mendidikku di masa kecil."

This is the same prayer that my eldest daughter made which attracted me and I used it for class lectures.

Silaturrahim

One of the reasons for researching and writing on The Early Malay Doctors was the harmonious relationship between humans, a term referred to as "silaturrahim". When I first heard the term, it made me wonder what it was and why people mentioned in at family gatherings or when friends met. For a long time, I wondered and tried to search for the meaning of "silaturrahim".

Today, I found Mohd Nasir bin Ismail, a relative who wrote about the meaning and context of that word in Facebook. I'm copying it here for everyone to read. He is also following up on his relatives and therefore fulfilling the meaning of "silaturrahim".

Mohd Nasir Bin Ismail:
Dari Malik bin Rabi'ah as-Sa'idi Radhiyallahu 'anhu, katanya:
"Pada suatu ketika kita semua duduk-duduk di sisi Rasulullah Shallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam , tiba-tiba datanglah kepadanya seorang lelaki dari Bani Salamah.
Orang itu bertanya:
"Ya Rasulullah, apakah masih ada sesuatu amalan yang dapat saya amalkan sebagai kebaktian saya kepada dua orang tuaku setelah keduanya meninggal dunia?"
Baginda Shallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam menjawab:
"Ya, masih ada. Iaitu mendoakan keselamatan untuk keduanya, memohonkan pengampunan kepadanya, melaksanakan janji kedua orang itu setelah wafatnya, mempereratkan hubungan kekeluargaan yang tidak dapat dihubungi kecuali dengan adanya kedua orang tua itu serta memuliakan sahabatnya."
HR Abu Dawud [Riyadhus Solihin, Imam Nawawi, Bab42#342]

From the above text, I think we can safely say that "silaturrahim" is abount human relations and bonding of relatives and friends. So that is why I have added "Family" and "Friends" for each of the doctors' biography for my book, Biography of the Early Malay Doctors. And that is why this book is special. The element of "silaturrahim" is a strong theme throughout the book and is meant to bring family and friends together.

Biography of TEMD, paperback edition

Biography of TEMD
The order for paperback arrived today at lunch time, 11 December 2012, at 1.30 pm. Altogether 164 copies were received in 21 boxes (20 boxes of 8 books + 1 box of 4 books). These boxes traveled from Lightning Source, Milton Keynes in UK via Air Asia cargo to Subang Airport, Malaysia and onward to Kota Bharu, Kelantan. DHL handled the customs security check at the airport. 5 boxes were opened for checking and then resealed. One box was ripped opened at the side fold but the books were safe inside (none was damaged). The boxes were meant to travel from Subang Airport to the Kuantan HQ but they detoured direct to Kota Bharu. Thus, I received the 21 boxes today instead of 5 days time. Content Distributors only informed me late last night 11 December 2012, about 1.30 am, that it had shipped my books. So I am a bit shocked that the books arrived earlier than I thought.

The official DHL van broke down and is not repaired so this delivery man uses his own 4WD.

That's 21 boxes of my books, direct from the airport in Pengkalan Chepa. DHL cannot store any of the goods.

Downloading during lunch time. Altogether 21 boxes of books

Book Distribution
Now the work is distribution. How do I distribute my books? Please read my next post.

He's happy to hold my books (hardcover and paperback) for this pic. He carries them from the parking lot in the basement to half way to my office. And he carries them back to the car if he cannot find the person to deliver to (as in this pic).

Complimentary copies

Complimentary copies are meant for the main contributors, one per biography.

That's how I pack each book for sending as free complimentary copy to each contributor by PosLaju. Each paperback edition costs AUD39.99, weighs 1.370 kg and costs me RM11.25 to send. I do that for the elderly ones first, and then the younger contributors next week. I do that till I run out of copies to send. Then I need to find a new printer and print some more copies. These books are printed in Great Britain.

Institutions, libraries and lecturers who are teaching History of Medicine can write to Xlibris and ask there for complimentary copies.

Kobo Books

Research on the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at Kobo Books for £2.92 £2.63  (ebook edition).
http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Research on the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore

Conversion rate:
£1 = MYR4.963

£2.63 = MYR13.05 (ebook)

HotBookSale

HotBookSale.com based in Florida offers reduced membership prices for one of the books:

Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore:
Hardcover:
Your Price: $38.41
Member Price: $28.70
Paperback:
List Price: $23.99
You Save: $9.73 (41%)
Your Price: $21.95
Member Price: $14.26
http://www.hotbooksale.com/store/productslist.aspx?searchAuthor=Rashid+Faridah+Abdul

Contact info:
HotBookSale.com
PO Box 810365
Boca Raton, FL 33481 - 0365
Phone: 1-888-646-1662

Conversion rate:

USD$1 = MYR3.065

USD$21.95 = MYR67.28   (paperback Biography of TEMD, non member)

USD$14.26 = MYR43.71   (paperback Biography of TEMD, member price)

USD$38.41 = MYR117.73 (hardcover Biography of TEMD, non member)

USD$28.70 = MYR87.97   (hardcover Biography of TEMD, member price)

Note:
Research on the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is not currently available at the website:
http://www.hotbooksale.com/p10005048/Research-on-the-Early-Malay-Doctors-1900-1957-Malaya-and-Singapore.html

ebay

Research on the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at ebay for AU$41.99. International air courier from New York, USA to Australia. Delivery within Australia via Australia Post.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Research-Early-Malay-Doctors-1900-1957-Malaya-Singapore

Conversion rate:
AU$1 = MYR3.198

AU$41.99 = RM134.28 (paperback)

Tower Books

Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at Tower Books for $23.99 (paperback):
http://www.tower.com/biography-early-malay-doctors-1900-1957-malaya-singapore-faridah-abdul-rashid-paperback

Research on the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at Tower Books for $34.99 (hardcover).

Both books are displayed here:
http://www.tower.com/faridah%20abdul%20rashid/quick-search/

Tower Books is an affiliate of Amazon.com. The book prices follow those at Amazon.com.

Conversion rate:
USD$1 = MYR3.065

USD$23.99 = MYR73.53 (paperback Biography of TEMD)
USD$34.99 = MYR107.24 (hardcover Research on TEMD)

Xlibris

Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at Xlibris website.

Paperback is AU$39.99 and hardback is AU$59.99.

http://www.xlibris.com.au/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=501451

Conversion rate:

AU$1 = MYR3.198

AU$39.99 = MYR127 (paperback)

AU$59.99 = MYR191.85 (hardback)

Google Books & Amazon

Information about Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at Google Books. You can preview 8 consecutive pages, some of the contents, common terms and phrases.
http://books.google.com.my/books/about/Biography_Of_The_Early_Malay_Doctors

It is available at Amazon.com.uk. Kindle edition is £2.63; paperback is £18.00; hardcover is £27.00:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Biography-Doctors-1900-1957-Malaya-Singapore

Conversion rate:
£1 = MYR4.963

£2.63   = MYR13.05   (kindle)
£18.00 = MYR89.33   (paperback)
£27.00 = MYR134.00 (hardcover)

Amazon

Research on the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore (Kindle edition) is available at Amazon.com. However, the kindle edition is not for Asia & Pacific region. Hardcover edition is USD$34.99. Paperback edition is USD$30.39.
http://www.amazon.com/Research-Doctors-1900-1957-Singapore-ebook/dp/B009319J5Y

Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore is available at Amazon.com. Hardcover edition is USD$26.62. Paperback edition is USD$23.99.
Book ranking: #2,002,899
http://www.amazon.com/Biography-Doctors-1900-1957-Malaya-Singapore/dp/1477159940

Both books are displayed here for price comparison:
http://www.amazon.com/book relevance rank

Paperback of the 2 titles:
http://www.amazon.com/paperbacks

Hardcover of the 2 titles:
http://www.amazon.com/hardcovers

Conversion rate:
1 USD = MYR3.065

USD$34.99 = RM107.24 (new hardcover, Research on TEMD)
USD$30.39 = RM97.19 (new paperback, Research on TEMD)

USD$26.62 = RM81.59 (hardcover, Biography of TEMD)
USD$23.99 = RM73.53 (paperback, Biography of TEMD)

WHSmith

Research on the Early Malay Doctors is also available at WHSmith in the UK. The paperback edition is selling for £18.00
http://www.whsmith.co.uk/

Conversion rate:
£1 = MYR4.963

£18.00 = MYR89.33 (paperback)

Visit to SMO

My husband and I left campus at 11.30 am to go to the insurance company and visit Syarikat Muda Osman (SMO) manager for Kota Bharu. After going round and round in circle, we managed to get in touch with the man on the phone. He was also out visiting the branches in Kelantan and was returning to SMO HQ in 7/44, Pengakalan Chepa Industrial Park. We were told to wait at the "pintu gerbang junction 3" so we could meet up. We arrived at the said place and saw the blue-white SMO signboard by the roadside, at the junction. We turned into that junction and waited for him to show up. After waiting for quite some time, we called him. He was already in his office at SMO HQ. We followed his instruction and went past a lot of premises and missed the SMO HQ which was on the right. Its view was blocked by leaves on the tall trees that grew on the premise. After driving past all the landmarks, we called him again and asked where SMO HQ was. We quickly made a U-turn and went the direction we came. I saw a faded blue-white SMO HQ and we turned left in front of an ugly place on the left. We called him again to inform we have arrived on site. We parked and went through security hut. We went inside and were told by the receptionist that he had other customers. We waited. It was a long wait and we decided not to meet him. We called him to inform we wanted to leave. He quickly called us upstairs and up we went up a narrow staircase. At the top of the staircase were 3 men who were ready to go down the same narrow staircase. They waited till I was upstairs and then they went down. Upstairs was a busy open office with a lot of ladies working. On the left I could see a bird's eyeview of the huge warehouse interior. I saw images of it through the dark glass panels while waiting downstairs earlier. I was curious what they were doing behind closed doors in the warehouse - I saw little cranes moving stuff about and dark shadows of men working (very interesting to me). Now I could see a lot of stuff at SMO outlets which were stocked at SMO HQ warehouse. I was attracted to the brightly coloured luminous paper - yellow, green, etc. There were shelves and people working far down below. There was some lighting but it was not so bright as in my office. However, the lighting was very bright near the boxes on the shelves. I thought the place would be good to shoot a movie. Then we were called in to see the manager. He was standing behind his desk, clearing up after the last 3 men left. We showed him the 2 books on TEMD. The minute he saw the English titles, I think he almost fainted! He explained to us, that English books don't sell well in Kelantan; the readership is decreasing. I took that as a positive clue that our community is not the "reading type" and don't like to read. He said even with fiction books, SMO has a hard time trying to sell books. We explained to him it was ok and informed him where to get the 2 books if customers asked about them. We informed him to find the books at Xlibris (I gave him the tiny business card for Research on the Early Malay Doctors). He was happy. We also talked about how much SMO profits from book sales. He said SMO takes approx. 30% of retail price of books at SMO outlets. We thanked him and headed home for lunch.

Professor Rahmatullah Khan

Prof Rahmatullah Khan is the youngest son of Dr Abdul Wahab Khan, an early Malay doctor whose work contributed significantly to the health of the populace in early Perlis, Pattani and Kelantan.

Prof Rahmatullah Khan visited Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in Kubang Kerian, Kelantan today, 9 December 2012. He has a viva to attend at the School of Health Sciences (Pusat Pengajian Sains Kesihatan, PPSK) in the afternoon.

We were lazing at home after lunch, waiting for azan Zohor when my husband received Prof Rahmatullah's call to meet him at PPSK. We rushed to meet him outside Pejabat Pentadbiran PPSK. He was happy to meet us again. After some quick photos we accompanied him downstairs for lunch. We talked about my 2 books and what next. Of course I told him to write his own book after this.

A book that details the meaning of the word "Malay" and has all the names of the 55 early Malay doctors between 1900 and 1957.

Another book that details the lives of 43 of the 55 early Malay doctors. Prof Rahmatullah contributed information for his father's biography on pages 277 to 292. He was only 4 years old when his father passed away. Now his daughter Dr Nuur Iman has followed the footsteps of her grandfather.

My husband Affandi (left) with colleague Prof Rahmatullah Khan at PPSK.

Tok Kenali (1)

The MAIK expo at Istana in Kubang Kerian ends on 6 December 2012. I have not been there yet. Tomorrow is the last day. What I did earlier today after work was to visit one of the founders on MAIK. I did not visit a live person but I visited his grave Kubang Kerian. This is Kubur Makam Tok Kenali, a famous Malay man who devoted his life to the cause of his religion and his people. Reputed as a kind man, and quiet in his ways, he was one of Kelantan's powerful man. Along with four others, they set up MAIK, a first government of a free state of Kelantan following its freedom after the Bangkok Treaty where the state of Kelantan became the free state of Kelantan Darul Naim, a name that has withstood peace, war, reoccupation and Merdeka. Without his support, Kubang Kerian would never be this famous nor would we have set up our university here. Thanks to him, his people and the people of Kubang Kerian, we have managed to safely set up our university here. We are indebted to this man, a great man, whom we know today as Tok Kenali. His name appears everywhere in Kubang Kerian, at little chicken slaughter huts, pondok, wakaf, roads, lanes, mosque, madrasah, etc. Almost all structures in Kubang Kerian bear his name. Why?

Real name: Muhammad Yusuf bin Ahmad (1868-1933)

Contributions to Kelantan: religious teacher, thinker, intelligent holy man, sage

Tok Kenali was born Muhammad Yusuf bin Ahmad in 1868. He grew up and married and had family in Kubang Kerian. I couldn't make out which one was his house when I visited his grave today (5 December 2012). Tok Kenali walked from Kubang Kerian to the Muhammadi Mosque in Kota Bharu where he taught the religion. He walked barefoot. From accounts I have heard and read, he walked fast and there sightings of him in Kubang Kerian and he had arrived in Kota Bharu soon after that. These sightings were typically of people close to god, the Muslim god Allah SWT.

After assisting to make Islam a state religion and to focus life around its tenets, Tok Kenali finally died in 1933 at age 65. From the accounts and descriptions I read, I figured had died of diabetic complications. There was one account which mentioned he didn't feel an injury on the sole of his foot, which points to a diabetic foot. This was probably advanced diabetic neuropathy.

Tok Kenali was finally laid to rest at the Muslim graveyard in Kubang Kerian, close to the water storage towers in Kubang Kerian. The graveyard probably occupies a corner lot of a few houses and with a perimater road on 2 sides, a forest on one side and some house on the fourth side. A bright yellow graveyard board says its name. My husband and I entered the graveyard to explore it. We went right up to Tok Kenali's shed/makam and saw two graves and a whiteboard that explains his grave. We then explored the east, west and behind his shed. We then left as dusk approached.

Books on Tok Kenali:

Amin's On9 Bookshop
http://aminon9bookshop.blogspot.com/2012/12/tok-kenali-pembangun-pemikiran-umat.html

Prof Asma Ismail

UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA (USM)

Prof Asma Ismail (USM photos)

UNIVERSITI SAINS ISLAM MALAYSIA (USIM)

Prof Asma Ismail is now VC of USIM, effective 1 December 2012 till 30 November 2015. She is related to the first Malay doctor via her mother. You can search this blog by typing "asma" or click "Prof Asma Ismail" under Index.

USIM = Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia

In the news:
http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/Kampus/USIM-perlu-teruskan-kecemerlangan---Muhamad

Jawatan Muhamad akan diganti oleh Timbalan Naib Canselor (Penyelidikan dan Inovasi) Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Prof. Dr. Asma Ismail berkuat kuasa 1 Disember sehingga 30 November 2015.

Amanat 2013

External links:
http://penangmonthly.com/16-women/9/
http://www.usim.edu.my/
http://www.usim.edu.my/aluan-naib-canselor
http://www.usim.edu.my/files/amanat-nc/amanat2013/

-------

YBhg Dato' Prof Dr Asma bt Ismail
Ketua Pengarah Pendidikan Tinggi
Jabatan Pengajian Tinggi
Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia
1 Jun 2014 - present

501451 Biography of the Early Malay Doctors

The second book is out now. It was released on 21 November 2012.

I have just received my paperback copies today, 3 December 2012.

Please check at Amazon. At Amazon, the price is in US Dollars.
http://www.amazon.com/Biography-Doctors-1900-1957-Malaya-Singapore

Please inform your friends and organisations about this book.

TQ if you have placed your order for this book.

Happy December 2012.

Happy reading!

Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/EarlyMalayDoctors

 

501451 Biography of the Early Malay Doctors

BIOGRAPHY OF THE EARLY MALAY DOCTORS 1900-1957 MALAYA AND SINGAPORE

I have obtained feedback from the publisher today, 30 November 2012. The Press Release (PR) has been sent to 105 media organizations in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia.

Please note that the listed price for the book is AUD$39.99 for paperback and AUD$59.99 for hardcover. At Xlibris, the prices are in Australian Dollars.

I would appreciate it and be very grateful if anyone could email me if you see any promotion on the book. It will be a good learning experience for me.

You can also use the PR attached below for promoting my book in your magazines, newspapers, club magazine, flyer, poster, banner, etc. You can edit for brevity or to fit column or page constraints. Shouldn't be a problem. I trust people.

PR AU 501451 684196 Nov 26.doc 38K   View   Download

------ The PR starts here ---------

Contact:  Marketing Services
 1-800-618-969
 MarketingServices@Xlibris.com.au

Xlibris
Suite 1A, Level 2, 802 Pacific Highway, Gordon NSW 2072


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Book on Malay Medical Pioneers Takes Up Their Role in Shaping National History
Faridah A. Rashid chronicles the few good men who practised medicine in obedience to Islam to reach the “bottom billion” of their suffering masses

KELANTAN, Malaysia  – Faridah Abdul Rashid fills in an important gap in Malayan history with her treatise on early Muslim doctors who worked in British Malaya (now Malaysia), Singapore and other parts of Southeast Asia.  In no wise does her book neglect faith in favour of the secular nature of modern medicine.  Thus, while Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and
Singapore is a chronicle of doctor graduates from King Edward VII College of Medicine in Singapore and the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, it is also a study in the interaction of faith and healing as these doctors practised grassroots rural medicine to reach “the bottom billion.”

The doctors in this book were the first Malaysians and Singaporeans to practise modern medicine.  Yet there were less than 60 of them from 1911 to 1957 before Merdeka or Malaysian independence.   Their significance lies in their providing the groundwork for the Malaysian health system, which is numbered among the world’s most enlightened and progressive health programmes.   The said doctors built prayer rooms in hospitals for patients as well as immunized patients.

Another vital part of the history of these medical pioneers was the belief of many people in their capabilities to lead, not just in helping provide good health.  Thus, beyond faith and medicine, they were obliged to lead in the political enlightenment of their people.  Some of them were stalwarts of the Malaysian independence movement.
The Malaysian health system today operates with a big budget, but it started out with a group of people who became part of the agency of humanitarian change for their suffering masses.  The system still proudly practises this part of their history today.

For more information on this book, interested parties can log on to www.Xlibris.com.au.

About the Author
Faridah Abdul Rashid was born in Malacca, Malaysia.  She grew up and attended schools in Malaysia and completed the Malaysian Certificate of Education (MCE) in 1975.  She attended universities overseas and holds a double BA in Microbiology (with distinction) and Chemical Sciences from California State University (1980), MSc in Biochemistry from the University of California, Riverside (1982) and PhD from the University of Western Australia, Perth (1990).  She has received prestigious financial, academic and merit awards locally and internationally.  She is a lecturer in biochemistry at the School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus in Kubang Kerian, Kelantan in Malaysia. Her teaching career began in 1982. She has taught medical biochemistry to medical undergraduates and postgraduates in addition to medical laboratory technologists and nurses. Drawing on her passion in local history and zest in computers, she was compelled to teach subjects pertaining to medical bioethics, history of medicine and research on telehealth.

Biography of the Early Malay Doctors 1900-1957 Malaya and Singapore * by Faridah Abdul Rashid
Publication Date: November 21, 2012
Trade Paperback; $39.99; 982 pages; 978-1-4771-5994-1
Trade Hardback; $59.99; 982 pages; 978-1-4771-5995-8
To request a complimentary paperback review copy, contact the publisher at 1-800-618-969. To purchase copies of the book for resale, please fax Xlibris at (02) 8282-5055 or call 1-800-618-969.

Xlibris books can be purchased at Xlibris bookstore. For more information, contact Xlibris at 1-800-618-969 or on the web at www.Xlibris.com.au.

-------The PR ends here ---------

The book image is on the Internet and can be used for promotion.


My portrait is also on the Internet and can be used to promote my book. This is my official image for my book. You can crop or edit it.



My details can be obtained from LinkedIn at: http://www.linkedin.com/in/faridahabdulrashid

My book info is here: http://www2.xlibris.com/books/webimages/wd/anz/501451/

The fan page for the book in Facebook is here: http://www.facebook.com/EarlyMalayDoctors


The 105 (106) organisations which have been faxed the PR are (based on the report I received from the publisher):

Organisation	Media type
The Observer (Home Hill)	Daily Newspaper
The Sunday Times	Daily Newspaper
Harper's Bazaar	Magazine
Numurkah Leader	Daily Newspaper
The West Australian ED Magazine	Daily Newspaper
News-on-Bookselling	Magazine
Insights	Magazine
Lake Times	Daily Newspaper
Health Today Malaysia	Magazine
New Times	Magazine
Sarina Midweek	Daily Newspaper
The Inverell Times	Daily Newspaper
Bega District News	Daily Newspaper
Asuh	Magazine
The Tablelander	Daily Newspaper
Euroa Gazette	Daily Newspaper
The Weekly	Daily Newspaper
The Herald Sun Weekend	Daily Newspaper
Signs of the Times	Magazine
Attitude	Community Newspaper
Pink Ribbon Magazine	Magazine
Press Guide	Magazine
Broadside	Magazine
Far North Queensland (FNQ) Independent	Daily Newspaper
Sayang Muslim	Magazine
Woman's Day	Magazine
Deniliquin Pastoral Times	Daily Newspaper
Vision	FM Radio Station
Scone Advocate	Daily Newspaper
Berita MMA	Magazine
Riverine Herald	Daily Newspaper
The Herald Sun YourMoney	Daily Newspaper
Bellarine Times	Daily Newspaper
The Australian Women's Weekly	Magazine
West Coast Sentinel	Daily Newspaper
Blaze	Magazine
The Western Herald Bourke	Daily Newspaper
Barossa & Light Herald	Daily Newspaper
Radio National The Book Show	Radio Network Show
Pelita Bahasa	Magazine
Duo Magazine	Magazine
Byron Shire Echo	Daily Newspaper
Think Big Magazine	Magazine
Eastern Riverina Chronicle (Henty)	Daily Newspaper
Allora Advertiser	Daily Newspaper
Gladstone News	Daily Newspaper
Forbes Advocate	Daily Newspaper
Hunter Valley News	Daily Newspaper
The Warialda Standard	Daily Newspaper
Ballina Shire Advocate	Daily Newspaper
Top	Daily Newspaper
East Gippsland News	Daily Newspaper
ASIA TIMES	Daily Newspaper
Nihon Keizai Shimbun Sydney Bureau	Daily Newspaper
Radio National Australia Talks	Radio Network Show
Malaysian Women's Weekly	Magazine
The Northern Star	Daily Newspaper
The Irrigator	Daily Newspaper
SHE	Magazine
Singapore American Newspaper	Daily Newspaper
Hello Malaysia	Magazine
SMA News	Magazine
ABC Radio National The Book Reading	Radio Network Show
Quadrant	Magazine
Yass Tribune	Daily Newspaper
Chieu Duong	Daily Newspaper
New Dawn Magazine	Magazine
Port Stephens Examiner	Daily Newspaper
Whitsundays Coast Guardian	Daily Newspaper
Hopetoun Courier & Mallee Pioneer	Daily Newspaper
Geelong News	Daily Newspaper
Mailbox Shopper	Daily Newspaper
Traralgon Journal	Daily Newspaper
Camden Haven Courier	Daily Newspaper
The Sunday Canberra Times Relax	Daily Newspaper
The Australian Family	Magazine
Majalah I	Magazine
inCite	Magazine
Blayney Chronicle	Daily Newspaper
NANYANG SIANG PAU	Daily Newspaper
ABC Channel 2 NSW First Tuesday Book Club	Television Network Show
Westerly	Magazine
New Sabah Times	Daily Newspaper
Condobolin Argus	Daily Newspaper
Yamaji News	Daily Newspaper
Gatton Lockyer Brisbane Valley Star	Daily Newspaper
The Malaysian Reserve	Daily Newspaper
Australian Author Journal	Magazine
UTUSAN BORNEO	Daily Newspaper
Gold Coast Panache	Magazine
MALAYSIA NANBAN	Daily Newspaper
Benalla Ensign	Daily Newspaper
Great Southern Herald	Daily Newspaper
The Edge Singapore	Daily Newspaper
Riverland Weekly	Daily Newspaper
The New Paper	Daily Newspaper
Townsville Bulletin	Daily Newspaper
South Gippsland Sentinel Times	Daily Newspaper
The Sunday Telegraph Funday Telegraph	Daily Newspaper
NW	Magazine
Her World - Malaysia Edition	Magazine
Today	Daily Newspaper
The Noosa News Life	Daily Newspaper
LiveWell	Magazine
Eastern Shore Sun	Daily Newspaper

Thank you if you are helping to promote my book.

Stamford Raffles and Warkah-Warkah Raja Melayu

Who was Raffles?

Warkah = letters of correspondence

Prof Ahmat Adam has researched and written about Raffles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MSloHUA3Uv0
- correspondence (letters, warkah) between Raffles and the Malay rulers from Bali (written in Malay), Java (written in Javanese) and Bengkulu (Bencoolen)
- the Malay calendar system, the daur system used Arabic alphabets, separate from the Islamic calendar
- these letters are kept in the British Museum
- the spread of Islam via tasawwuf (sufism)
- the link of the Malays to their Indian ascendants
- Light was a thief (stole Penang and Province Wellesley from Kedah)
- Raffles liked the Malays and studied and mastered the Malay language
- Raffles sided with Sultan Abdul Rahman of Riau-Lingga-Johor (younger brother of Sultan Hussain of Singapore) and obtained Singapore for the British
- Sultan Hussain remained a puppet sultan in Singapore under the British. Broken hearted, he left for Malacca. He died in Malacca. His son did not manage to regain the throne in Riau-Lingga-Johor nor Singapore.
- aspects of British colonialism in Malaya: To separate the administration (secular State) from religion (Islam), taking the administration for themselves and limiting the Malay rulers to manage just the religion. For judiciary, the Roman court system overruled the Shariah/Syariah/Islamic Law. This was the British system of "divide and rule" which was how Tanah Melayu fell to the British colonials.
- today, we don't teach students to think but to copy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=8qDxsxbQkXg&feature=endscreen
- Dunia Melayu
- When did Islam come to Tanah Melayu?
- Islah dan sejarah (transformation and history)
- the British laid the foundation for Malaysia
- Islah was the State religion (religion of the nation)
- a lot of Malay artifacts have been discovered at Bujang Valley and in Cambodia
- the headstone of Fatimah
- the headstone of Sultan Malikul Saleh
- the Chinese chronicle, Kublai Khan's time: mentioned Sumatra
- the old Chinese chronicle mentioned South East Asia (SEA)
- Islam spread gradually from 12C and was established by 14-15C
- Islam could have been brought by the sufis (ahli tasawwuf)
- Islam was established in Sumatra in 19C
- When did Islam come to Tanah Melayu?
- Batu Bersurat has Malay and Sanskrit
- Chinese chronicles mentioned Iskandar Shah visited China
- Iskandar Shah was the son of Parameswara
- Sultan Muhammad Shah practised Islam
- Sri Maharaja was Sultan Muhammad Shah 1423-1424/5
- Malacca was established in 15C; Malacca was an international trading port
- Malacca's rise to greatness was troubled by Siam
- Malacca was a strategic location in the Malacca Straits; a;; trade focused on Malacca
- the Ming Emperor provided protection to Malacca
- the Ming Emperor was a Muslim and his food was cooked only by his wife; the rest of the palace was non Muslim
- there was close ties between the Malacca rulers and Chinese Emperor: exchange of silk, etc
- the Malacca officials visited China many times
- Is Malacca really that great?
- Portuguese sources: Malacca was an Islamic centre (santri = alim ulama)
- the Malay ulama learned from maulana, they performed tarawih in Ramadan, they prayed on the 27 Ramadan
- the Malay rulers learned from the ulama
- Sultan Mansor Shah learned Islam but there was no pondok recorded in Malacca history
- Who was the great sufi in Malacca? Was there one?
- There were many sufi in this region; was Malacca a centre of lerning of Islam? There is no evidence
- These great sufi left a lot of books which they wrote and were widely distributed in SEA
- Portuguese arrived: The ulama took charge of Islam in Malacca; some of the rulers sided with the Portuguese
- Old Johor was attacked by the Portuguese
- later the rulers sided with the Dutch
- under Alauddin Riayat Shah, Aceh attacked Perak
- Perak prince was married to Aceh princess => ?
- the Malays were scared on the Aceh
- there were many attacks and royal marriages between the Malays and Aceh
- many of the Malay states were attacked by Aceh each time the Malays disobeyed the Aceh rulers
- creation of the Orang Besar 8, 12, 16 based on Aceh system
- Aceh destroyed a lot of Malay things but the Aceh books survived till today
- the Malay rulers were weak and could not defend themselves
 - Malacca fell to the Dutch; Kedah fell to Siam; Sultan Mahmud was a homosexual and died from a stab wound (Sultan Mahmud Mangkat Dijulang) which ended the Malacca Sultanate
- Bugis arrived in Tanah Melayu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I-3mafnF5E
- Sultan Mahmud was of Indian extraction (described as a wild character)
- Tun Fatimah was an Indian-Malay mix
- Hang Tuah's child, Tun Biajid (?)
- a lot of Malay practices are derived from Indian beliefs (Hinduism and Zoroastrianism) and practices
- Sanskrit words in Malay usage, past and present
- Hisbul Muslimin
- Malacca Malays aren't like the Malays in Kelantan and Terengganu
- the Indian influence was very strong in Malacca

http://elib.uum.edu.my/kip/Author/Home?author=Ahmat%20Adam.
(papers)

Monograph 43. Letters of Sincerity: The Raffles Collection of Malay Letters (1780-1824)
A Descriptive Account with Notes and Translation by Ahmat Adamhttp://www.mbras.org.my/monograph43.html

What's Up?

Nothing much. The second book is late (still being printed). I'm just waiting. There is however good news from another quite unexpected aspect of this research. My husband went to talk to his friend about staging some drama/sketches of biographies in my second book. I agreed but it will certainly need a lot of work.

He first went to see a friend who is skilled in writing scripts for staging Malay drama, only Malay drama, not English drama. This man is also a USM staff. He usually stages very good Malay dramas. I have no idea where he stages them but I believe for the university.

Now, this friend can get a professional playwrite or script writer to make professional dramas and stage them at USM. Since I am based in USM, we may try out and stage the dramas in Kelantan. Since it will be the first time we stage a medical Malay drama (of course with some English dialogues since the early Malay doctors probably dealt in English for a major part of their work). The stage, props, music, etc will reflect the time of British Malaya. The costumes are varied but should reflect that bygone era.

My husband also suggested that I piece together each early doctors' biography separately. He also mentioned it would be great if I could talk to Datuk Lat and get him to draw cartoons to accompany each biography & drama. I added I could do that - compile biography + Lat's cartoon + images of memorabilia of each doctor + scenes from drama. Among the biographies we can try to stage (just a suggestion from my husband) are Tan Sri Dr Abdul Majid bin Ismail (Coco Majid, 2nd DG), Tan Sri Dr Raja Ahmad Noordin (3rd DG), Datuk Dr Ariffin Ngah Marzuki, Tun Dr Ismail. I added we can also try and do the same for the Singapore doctors in addition to Tan Sri Dr Mohamed Din (1st DG), Dr Abdul Wahab Mohd Ariff, the lady doctors - Dr Latifah Bee Ghows, Tan Sri Dr Salmah Ismail, and Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali. My husband said Panggung Negara already staged Tun Dr Siti Hasmah so there is no need to duplicate that.

The big job is to go round and obtain rights to stage the drama. I will need to obtain agreements from the doctors' families, find a producer for the dramas, and get copyrighted music approved. I will also need to check with Arkib if they have filmed these early doctors and whether we can be allowed to make clips out of the existing ones. It is a lot of work and I wish someone can take this up since I still have another 6 years of lecturing before I can call it quits and help out. Otherwise I can only do this part time after office hours.

As for actors and actresses, that will certainly need a lot of auditions for the various roles of the early Malay doctors. I offered my youngest daughter and she shrieked! I must have scared her stiff. LOL

So that's what is on my mind right now.

I'm listening to Maple Leaf Rag (since 9 am, it's 3.37 pm now) because I'm also updating the story about my mum at another of my many blogs when the suggestion to do the drama above came at lunch time. I can't think straight if I don't listen to bkgr music or noise. I cannot work in a silent room. I can work in any noisy environment except traffic noise. K-pop is playing on ASTRO, ustaz is speaking on IKIM FM, they don't disturb me at all, I can still work good and fast. Of course I can't hear calls on my phone with all the bkgr noise. It has to be very noisy so the blood flows out from the heart and up to the brain and back down. Otherwise the brain has stale blood. No scientific theory can prove that music as bkgr noise makes a person happy, helps memory and keeps one young, healthy and alert. That's my unscientific theory.