COMMENT Remarks made about Bukit Kepong by PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu in the heat of a ceramah have turned into a debate about the nation’s historical narrative.

All countries, in the tradition of the western nation state, have some mythical origins. More importantly, there are key events that reinforce national identity. This can take the form of a revolution, which in the US is called the ‘War of Independence’. In France, the national credo of ‘liberty, equality and fraternity’ was forged during the French Revolution.