Why should state emblems be sacrosanct?
The other aspect of this case springs from calls to strip Wee of his citizenship or to prosecute him for vandalising the national anthem. It’s something familiar to Americans, I’m sure, recalling debates about whether flag-burning is protected by the First Amendment. If I’m not wrong, the US Supreme Court has consistently ruled that it is. The crux of the issue lies in the way we conceptualise the state. I hold that the state is there to serve the people, not the other way around. If the state no longer serves the interests of the people, get rid of it. In this, I am acutely aware (and not a little tickled) that I am being Confucianist: the people can justifiably rebel when the Emperor no longer does his part. Should Wee owe Malaysia loyalty when Malaysia does not give him justice? Law, as an instrument of the state, should be there to serve the people, not as a tool for coercing people to serve or worship the state. Too often we conceive of the state in feudal terms, as something to w
