Try as they might, the racist bigots and chauvinists both in Malaysia and Indonesia cannot deny the fundamental similarities and connections that are shared by the peoples of both countries. The right-wing press, aided and abetted by some unscrupulous politicians, demagogues, ideologues and sabre-rattlers, have failed in their pathetic attempt to force a wedge between the two nations. The reason for this is simple: Though 'Malaysia' and 'Indonesia' are relatively new and modern constructs born out of the postcolonial era, the peoples of the two nation-states share a common history and one might argue a common destiny that goes back more than two thousand years.

This fact was brought home when a fellow Indonesian academic-activist based in Jogjakarta informed me that some of the radical right-wing nationalist groups in Indonesia have taken to the streets burning the Malaysian flag and chanting anti-Malaysian slogans. But one of their slogans was "Ganyang Malaysia Selamatkan Siti Norhaliza!" (Crush Malaysia But Save Siti Norhaliza!). Another popular slogan making its rounds is "Siti Yes, Malaysia No!". Blood (or culture), it would seem, is still thicker than water (or crass ethno-nationalism in its diluted form).

"Ganyang Malaysia Selamatkan Siti Norhaliza!" was the slogan chanted by the members of the Gagasan Mahasiswa Universitas Riau when they demonstrated at Pekanbaru. (Detik.com, 15 March). The same theme was picked up by students in Jakarta, who chose to stage an impromptu drama on dear old Siti as they demonstrated in the streets recently. While in the chatrooms hosted by some of Indonesia's newspapers and magazines such as Detik, it was noted that: "Yang dipertahankan Indonesia adalah satu paket, iaitu blok (kepulauan) Ambalat dan Siti Norhaliza". It would appear that apart from claiming the disputed Ambalat islands, some sections of Indonesia are also laying claim to Malaysia's own Cik Siti. (re: 'Aksi e-Ganyang Situs RI-Malaysia: Indonesia Klaim Kepemilikan Siti Norhaliza', Detik.com, 15 March.)

In the midst of the confusion and uncertainties of the times, it would seem that Miss Norhaliza has succeeded in doing what no Malaysian or Indonesia politician of recent memory has been able to do: She has crossed the political divide and been elevated to the status of transcendental signifier for a collective imaginary that exceeds the boundaries of the nation-state. At a time when Post-Structuralism is being discredited and condemned for its critique of master narratives, Siti Norhaliza stands apart and alone as an overdetermined marker that can (and does) mean all things to all people. So where is she when we need her the most?

Siti, where art thou?

Allow me to begin by stating a fact that I am proud to admit: I, like thousands of others, am a Malaysian citizen whose roots go back to Java, Indonesia. My ancestors fell under that dubious category of 'Jawi Peranakan' (Mixed-race Eurasian-Javanese) who were detested and suspected by British and Dutch colonial administrators alike, for the simple reason that they could not be conveniently slotted into the rubric of divisive racialised colonial politics. Being a hybrid (yes, I know it's a trendy term these days, but that's not my fault) descendant of mixed marriages means that I feel equally at home in Malaysia as I do in Indonesia, and going to Java is, in a sense, tantamount to going back to my roots.

Whenever I find myself in Indonesia, I am struck by two obvious factors:

Firstly there seems to be a peculiar ignorance of the common history that both our countries share. Indonesians often forget the fact that Malaysia's independence struggle up to 1948 at least was carried out alongside that of Indonesia's, and that scores of Malaysian nationalists (be they from the Communist or the Nationalist camp) worked hand-in-hand with their Indonesian counterparts.

Many Malayans like Osman Abdullah(1) and Ibrahim Yaakob fought alongside the Indonesian nationalists during the anti-Dutch uprising following World War Two. There were also a number of Indonesian nationalists like Bachtiar Djamily(2) who came to Malaysia and who continued their political struggle in post-colonial Malaya. It should also be remembered that the founding fathers of Indonesia Soekarno and Muhammad Hatta were in constant contact with Malayan nationalist leaders like Dr. Burhanuddin al-Helmy and Ibrahim Yaakob. During the 1930s and 40s, both the Malayan and Indonesian nationalists even shared the same flag, the Sang-Seka Merah-Putih.

Secondly there is the obvious curiosity on the part of our Indonesian brethren about all things Malaysian. My Indonesian friends, contacts and the people I meet usually ask me about life in Malaysia and how things are done (or not done) there. Often I am asked the question: "why are the Malays of Malaysia so enamoured by the Arabs and why are they ashamed of their own Malay identity?" ('Go and ask the people in PAS, Umno or Jawi', I tell them.)

But the most startling discovery of late is the revelation that Malaysia is loved and admired by our Indonesian friends for one simple reason: Siti Norhaliza.

Now I have to admit that I haven't actually listened to any of Miss Norhaliza's songs, or know anything about her. I once watched a video with her singing and sitting on a buffalo cart that looked as if it was hastily assembled by the underpaid special effects department of the Malaysian Tourism board. Siti Norhaliza has become a phenomenal success in Indonesia. So loved is she and her music, that even in the madrasahs of the Tabligh Jama'at that I have been studying I have been asked by young Islamists: "do you have her phone number?" (To which I can only reply: 'Get back to reading the Qur'an and stop thinking of girls!')

The same question has been asked by Indonesian Islamists of all shades and colours, ranging from the Majlis Mujahidin Indonesia, Fron Pembela Islam to the Hizb'ut Tahrir Indonesia. They may take to the streets burning the flag of the United States of America, call for Jihad against the West, demand the introduction of Shariah Law; but they all share one common interest: They all want me to give them Miss Norhaliza's phone number. (Which I do not have, I swear.)

The Cik Siti factor

What does this mean and how should we interpret this admiration and longing for Cik Siti Norhaliza?

It is interesting to note that those who admire Siti Norhaliza seem to do so for the same reasons: She is seen as a 'nice, proper, well-dressed and well-mannered' girl whom many a young Nusantara male might want to take home to introduce to his mother, or at least send an SMS to. Then there is the fact that her music seems to appeal to the tastes of a wide spectrum of folk in both countries. Unlike the more hot-blooded and explosive performance of the famous Indonesian dangdut superstar Inul (whose concerts have received rave reviews after some Ulama went amok thanks to her ecstatic swinging of her hips, and a few old dodgers kicked the bucket when they got too exited), Siti Norhaliza is seen as 'good, clean, entertainment' by all parties concerned. Mothers don't complain when their sons put up posters of Siti on their bedroom walls, and the Ustaz doesn't complain when his madrasah students listen to her music in secret at the back of the mosque

But more than her charm, looks and character, there is the presentation of Siti herself that we need to consider. The factor that tends to be bracketed out of the equation is the enormous marketing talent that goes into selling the whole Siti Norhaliza product. Here for once we see Asean ingenuity and local genius at its best. Recognising the potential of Siti for a wider Malaysian-Indonesian market, her promoters have presented her as a truly pan-Asean Nusantara phenomenon. It is for this reason that Siti sells so well in Indonesia, as she does in her home country.

In terms of her dress, behaviour, choice of language, carriage and demeanour, the Siti Norhaliza phenomenon is replete with empty signifiers that can mean anything to anyone. For the more conservative Islamists, her baju kurung is a symbol of Muslim modesty and upright Muslim womanhood. For the trendy urbanites, the fact that she does not wear a tudung (headscarf) proves that she is an intelligent independent woman in charge of her own destiny. For young men she is the perfect date/fianc/wife and for young women she is proof that Asean women can have a public profile on their own terms. As far as marketing is concerned, the Siti Norhaliza phenomenon is nothing short of a truly made-in-Asean success story.

The lesson to be learned from all this is that when it comes to negotiating the differences between nation-states and governments, we invariably need to fall back on an all-encompassing narrative that is inclusive, general and relative. Asean was cobbled together in haste to keep the bogeyman of international Communism at bay; and with no real understanding of a common history, culture or destiny to bind it together. Today, as the countries of the region race against each other in order to win desperately-needed tourist dollars and direct foreign investment (FDI) that is slipping away to China and India, we need to put together a common pan-Asean narrative that convinces us that the fate of Asean is a concern for every single citizen of the region.

While the diplomatic dispute over the Ambalat islands calls for a diplomatic-political solution, it is nonetheless true that the failure to create a common sense of Malaysian-Indonesian (and to a greater extent Pan-Asean) destiny will undermine the very basis of Asean itself in the long run. Neglect over these concerns will leave the door open to the predatory instincts of global capital that may decide to play the game of 'divide and rule' to exploit the differences within Asean; and it will also leave us vulnerable to the bellicose, racist and xenophobic rhetoric of the right-wing ethno-nationalists in our midst.

Asean, and more importantly the peoples of Asean need and deserve a comprehensive vision for the future that includes us all. We need a popular culture that is recognizably Asean and which we can all claim. When angry young Indonesians say "Siti Yes, Malaysia No!", they are rejecting the divisive logic of nation-state politics while at the same time affirming the cultural continuities between our two nations. It is for that reason that we should not be too despondent, and persevere nonetheless in our struggle to build a peoples' Asean, by and for the peoples of Asean. And for this we need cross-cultural translocal signifiers that transcend political horizons. One of these signifiers is right here: her name is Siti Norhaliza, the prototype of the new Asean citizen.

Endnotes:

(1) Osman Abdullah was born in Malaya but studied at the Islamic University of Padang in Indonesia. During the anti-Dutch struggle, he joined the Indonesian Republican forces (as part of the Hizbullah militia formed and trained by the Japanese) and took active part in the anti-colonial war in Indonesia. By the end of the Indonesian war of independence he had risen to the rank of captain in the Free Indonesian Republican army. He then returned to Malaysia where he first joined the UMNO party. Then in 1951 he was one of the first to joined the Islamic party PAS. He later left PAS in 1963 and joined the UMNO-led government, rising to the rank of Deputy Minister.

(2) Bachtiar Djamily was born in 1929 in West Sumatra. He was member of the Indonesian nationalist movement and was one of the strongest supporters of President Soekarno. He began his career as a journalist and a propagandist for the Indonesian Nationalist Party (PNI) and was actively involved in the anti-Dutch struggle following World War Two. During this time he also wrote extensively about the need for the newly independent Indonesian state to support the anti-colonial movement in British Malaya. Following the fall of Soekarno's government in 1965 and the rise of the US-backed President Soeharto, Bachtiar moved to Malaysia where he became a strong supporter of the Malaysian Islamic Party PAS, then under the leadership of Dato' Asri Muda. In Malaysia he worked as a supporter of PAS and became a novelist. His novel 'Air Mata Tok Ngah Jusoh' (1976) was awarded first prize by the Selangor Religious Council in 1976.