Out of tune

To many, the national anthem is a sacred symbol of a country. Any change, they say, would be sacrilegious. But the 46-year-old Malaysian national anthem, Negaraku (My Country), which underwent changes 11 years ago, will see another revision at the stroke of midnight tomorrow - independence day.

The current anthem is in march tempo, whereas the original, from 1957, was played in a very slow rhythm. But this version never really caught on, and some Malaysians even claimed it lacked the dignity of a national anthem. So some tinkering had to be done.

The 1957 version begins with a short drum roll, which beckons the audience to attention and heralds a stately pace, where the nation sings its pledges of loyalty to king and country. The anthem continues serenely, expressing the unity of Malaysia's multi-ethnic population and its gratitude to God for His blessings. A stirring crescendo of drum rolls and cymbals leads to a poignantly dignified ending.

By the early 1990s, with the economy booming, it was felt that the 1957 version was so slow as to be boring, and a march version was introduced to invoke a greater sense of stirring patriotism. Now, however, the government feels that this version lacks patriotic passion.

Besides the tempo, the government was also toying with renaming the anthem Malaysiaku (My Malaysia), to instil a greater sense of patriotism among the young. But it backed down following a flurry of protests.

One enraged commentator said the frequent changes would only show the world that Malaysians do not know how to respect their national anthem. Another who objected to the renaming said that neither Britain's God Save the Queen nor America's Star-Spangled Banner mentioned the name of the respective countries.