Social freedom for positive self-improvement

Last evening, I was interviewed by a very young feature writer of the Chinese-language Oriental Daily and one of the important points I put forward to her was that the social freedom or the sense of it that the people have gained since the 1998-99 Reformasi, and which has been consolidated in the recently concluded general election, can be used for positive improvements for individuals, families or communities, especially in terms of acquisition of many forms of useful knowledge. I also pointed out that social freedom could be misused by some for economically unproductive or socially undesirable activities and that the civil society must always be vigilant against antisocial 'liberalism'.

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