In July there was a pro-democracy demonstration in Kuala Lumpur, the largest in recent years, asking for transparency in the electoral process among other things. The number of participants was in the low to mid five-figures. It was said to be illegal, and the government scattered the demonstrators with tear gas. (A friend in the know says that even some highly-placed government officials acknowledge that they would have been smarter to join and thus co-opt the demonstration, given its innocuous demands, rather than demonizing it). We're told that even days before the rally, people were detained for wearing a yellow shirt (just the colour, which was symbolic, but no message). A memory of post-WW2 communist insurgency, and deadly race riots in 1969 makes these kinds of incidents highly charged, and partly explains the continued use of the Internal Security Act (ISA). But as they say in the advice columns, Maybe it's time to move on.

Government apologists have been quick to use the London riots as a cautionary instructional tool: You see, we were right to clamp down, at least we don't have that here. Of course these events couldn't be more unrelated:  planned versus spontaneous, peaceful versus violent, politically focused versus nihilistic. When I was in Lesotho 30 years ago there was also trouble in London, and the South African government took the identical line: You see, ours is the more civilized way, we keep the races separate and there is no trouble here. It works until it doesn't.

Some discussion has also been generated by the perception that the riots are the inevitable result of "western values."  These analyses do not necessarily say what they mean by western values, so you have to read between the lines. For some people, it's obviously materialism, the consumer culture. I think this is based on a misapprehension, because as I said in my China entries, Asian societies seem to me the most relentlessly materialistic in the world. At least in Europe and Australia you have some consideration (although too little too late) of environmental issues, as well as more public acknowledgement of the arts. In Asia it's all about owning and eating.

On the other hand, if by western values you mean the declining importance of the family and religion, those are indeed factors that may have contributed to the disturbances in London, and for which Malaysia at least can feel less at risk.

Having said that, there is a lot of petty crime here in Malaysia (we'll leave the serious crime for now) about which Malaysians generally seem to be in denial. Snatch thieving is routine, breaking-and-entering is common, and in both cases violence is not unusual. In Ipoh Garden in particular, which appears to be a peaceful middle-class neighbourhood of two-storey houses, there is an ongoing crime wave that no one wants to acknowledge, which I find completely baffling. Within a very few blocks of Frances' parents' house, every month there are one or two more people robbed at their own doorstep, usually when returning home, often with violence. These incidents are only reported anecdotally. Frances' mother was a victim last year. Yet even she herself doesn't seem to feel that the neighbourhood is particularly dangerous. I will walk almost anywhere in London, but I won't walk alone in Ipoh Garden.

A recent report rated Malaysia as the 19th-safest country in the world. I didn't see the complete list, but I find this ludicrous. I assume it was based on some kind of data -- so much for data. There are at least two dozen countries in Europe which I am confident are safer than Malaysia, not to mention Singapore, Laos, China, Japan, Korea, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. There must be a number of others. Possibly Thailand and Vietnam. India was safer when I was there, maybe not now. Lesotho was much safer, and Botswana and Swaziland also come to mind.

Here's another thing: In Malaysia everyone has barred windows. To leave the house in the morning, we have to unlock three locks. When we stay at home, the door always remains locked. New neighbourhoods are often gated, and in older ones people are just setting up road-blocks at the end of their street and hiring guards to man them. All this is an important consideration in choosing where to live. I imagine you can get used to this, but I hope I never do.