Malaysian National Service

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The National Service Training Programme, or Program Latihan Khidmat Negara (PLKN), is Malaysia's national service program. The conscripts are 18-year-old youths that are selectively drafted. The threemonth program, which started in December 2003, began as way to encourage friendship between youths of certain ages from different races and ethnic groups and address concerns that the country's various races were becoming increasingly isolated from one another.[1]

Selection of conscripts
In late December 2003, the names of 85,000 conscripts for the first National Service program was made public. The government announced that these youths were randomly selected out of the roughly 450,000 youths born in 1986, through a computerized process.[2] Conscripts are 18 years of age and picked from a national database that includes all citizens registered with a Malaysian ID card, whether born locally or overseas. Conscripts were informed of their participation in the program by mail at the address listed on their identification card. They are also able to check their status on the program's website, or by SMS. Lists of conscripts names and ID numbers are also published in major newspapers. Deserters and draft dodgers are subject to punishment of a fine of up to but not exceeding RM 3000, and/or up to six months of jail. Deferrals to a later date are allowed. Exclusion from the program requires that the conscript fall under one of the following ten categories:[3]

Insanity Physically disabled Currently being held under preventive detention (such as the Internal Security Act) Undergoing drug rehabilitation Detained by the Children's Act of 2001 (Act 612) Fatal disease or condition, as confirmed by a medical officer. Contagious disease, as confirmed by a medical officer. Full-time member or full-time trainee of the Malaysian Armed Forces, Royal Malaysian Police, Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency or Prisons Department of Malaysia. Pregnant women

Non selected civilians are also allowed to volunteer to enter the program after filling out certain forms in camps. Objectives of the PLKN

Develop a young generation who are patriotic and with love and devotion for their country Enhance unity among the multi-racial communities in the country Instill a spirit of caring and volunteerism among society Produce an active, intelligent and confident generation Develop positive characteristics among the younger generation through good values Develop a generation that is obedient and loyal to the government

Identity The program has its own theme song and logo. Conscripts are issued two pairs each of three different types of uniforms: a class uniform, a sports uniform, and a combat uniform. The combat uniform's design is of blue camouflage stripes, made out of light blue, dark blue, white, and black.[4] The general color scheme for the class and sports uniforms is blue, and black. Criticisms against trainees' uniforms are apparent as blue clothes are easily spotted in jungles and verdant vegetation areas except the sky and water. Modules The program is split into 4 official modules:

Physical Module (Fizikal) - Marching (Kawad), hand to hand combat (Tempur Tanpa Senjata, largely similar to taekwondo), Colt M16 usage,[5] obstacle courses (Kembara Halangan), abseilling (Tali Tinggi), Flying Fox, canoeing (Kayak), camping ("Wirajaya") (During Wirajaya, trainees will be also given mock missions such as:Search and rescue, night patrols, perimeter Guard, first aid and at night trainees have to guard their company flag from being stolen by instructors of other companies who would infiltrate their opponent companies' bases) Navigation (Navigasi), survival training and first aid training. Nation Building Module (Kenegaraan) - Classroom based. Nation's history, sovereignty and dignity, Malaysia and international affairs, Defence and National Security and Citizen's responsibility to the nation, and loyalty towards the current government, Barisan Nasional. The classes are based on group based training (Latihan Dalam Kumpulan). Character Building Module (Pembinaan Karakter) - Classroom based. It comprises 2 modules. The first one, Module A speaks about Bringing Out The Best In Me while the second module, Module B, relates to Bringing Out The Best In Others. This component is experential based and relies on games and activities as the means of teaching. It is about instilling good values and Self-confidence, leadership and self-evaluation. Community Service Module (Khidmat Komuniti) - Trainees are sent in groups to places in surrounding areas to give the trainees a chance to serve society. This is about building and restoring public amenities. It also teaches them environmental restoration and protection as well.

In the 2004 program, conscripts (referred to as "trainees" or "Wira" for boys and "Wirawati" for girls) spent 2 months in physical training camp, followed by a final month in a university setting. The program consisted of three separate, overlapping batches. The first batch of 24,000 began in mid-February and ended in the beginning of May, while the second and third batches began in March and ended in June. Trainees were divided among 79 training camps scattered all over the country. Each camp was supposed to contain a good mix of youth from different ethnic groups and locations.

Advantages of Technology There are all kinds of great reasons to use technology, so dont be shy about getting involved with it. There are many advantages, and people of all ages and other groups can enjoy what technology has to offer no matter whether they use it for business or they just play around with it in their personal lives. Take advantage of all that technology can give to you, so you can have more fun in your personal life and potentially see more increase in your professional life, as well. There are all kinds of ways that you can use technology to bring you joy, happiness, and prosperity, so its very important that you dont forget about them. One of the main advantages of technology is staying in touch with people. You can talk to people all over the country and all over the world when technology is involved, and it doesnt really matter how far apart you are you can still be connected. Make sure that you show the people you care about how to use technology, so they can stay involved in your life and share in your joys and your sorrows. Social networking has become such a big deal today that there are always new people to meet and talk to, no matter where you live or what you do in your daily life. Technology is also being used to save lives, and medicine is advancing a lot so that people can lead better lives. Dont underestimate how powerful technology can be and what a great ally it can become if you use it correctly. When you dont use it right it can actually be harmful, so you dont want to let that happen. Its much better to learn how to use it, so you can move your life forward and make sure that you enjoy technology as much as possible. The Internet helps users to access the computer geographically in some other part of the world and then store or retrieve data from it. The World Wide Web browser helps people to go from one page to another through hyperlinks. Examples of such software are Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox. The data might be in the form of text, audio, video or any such multimedia related graphics. To retrieve this data from the Internet, users are provided with these search engines. Today, we cant imagine ourselves without technological advances such as cars, microwaves, cell phones, computers, and televisions. However, technology wont stop here, but develop further. As technology develops, there are not only advantages, but disadvantages from them. A few advantages of upgraded technology are that one can save time and money and life will be made easier as a result of not having to do all the hard labor. I personally would want a developed world with advanced technologies. The following are the reasons why I do want a more advanced world with advanced technologies. My major reason is because when you have advanced technologies, life is much easier as robots and machines would take over your daily life chores. For example, daily life chores might be serving your breakfast, cutting your lawn, or cleaning your room. With robots and machines doing ones chores one has time to relax. Another reason is because unlike humans, robots and machines do not make mistakes when programmed correctly. They always accomplish tasks perfectly so you wont have to worry about making a mistake and getting trouble. Other reasons why I want advanced technologies are because they save a great deal of time and money.

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Some of the advantages of information technology include:

Globalization - IT has not only brought the world closer together, but it has allowed the world's economy to become a single interdependent system. This means that we can not only share information quickly and efficiently, but we can also bring down barriers of linguistic and geographic boundaries. The world has developed into a global village due to the help of information technology allowing countries like Chile and Japan who are not only separated by distance but also by language to shares ideas and information with each other. Communication - With the help of information technology, communication has also become cheaper, quicker, and more efficient. We can now communicate with anyone around the globe by simply text messaging them or sending them an email for an almost instantaneous response. The internet has also opened up face to face direct communication from different parts of the world thanks to the helps of video conferencing. Cost effectiveness - Information technology has helped to computerize the business process thus streamlining businesses to make them extremely cost effective money making machines. This in turn increases productivity which ultimately gives rise to profits that means better pay and less

strenuous working conditions. Bridging the cultural gap - Information technology has helped to bridge the cultural gap by helping people from different cultures to communicate with one another, and allow for the exchange of views and ideas, thus increasing awareness and reducing prejudice. More time - IT has made it possible for businesses to be open 24 x7 all over the globe. This means that a business can be open anytime anywhere, making purchases from different countries easier and more convenient. It also means that you can have your goods delivered right to your doorstep with having to move a single muscle. Creation of new jobs - Probably the best advantage of information technology is the creation of new and interesting jobs. Computer programmers, Systems analyzers, Hardware and Software developers and Web designers are just some of the many new employment opportunities created with the help of IT.

Curbing obesity: prevention and treatment Our thoughts, described below, are 3-fold. On a macro-level, politicians will have to invest in new rules and regulations as well as in large programs which will be the only way to streamline society with all its different and conflicting pressure groups. Secondly, serving healthy food and facilitating a healthy life style should be mission statements in socialising agencies like schools, sport clubs, and summer camps. Finally, on a micro-level, all of us can model a healthy living attitude which can influence the people and especially the parents and their children in the near environment. Reduce screen-time to maximum 2 h a day it is advisable to develop the habit of eating only at fixed hours. How To Prevent Obesity Be Active Simple activities, such as climbing the stairs instead of using lifts, morning and evening walk in the park and swimming, can bring about tremendous changes in your lifestyle. Such activities will not only help you burn excess fat, but also help you stay active. Start doing light to moderate exercises for thirty minutes, five times a week. Switch over to the tough exercises, once you have gained stamina and strength. You may also join a health club or gym and socialize with like-minded individuals. Keep A Check On Your Weight Monitor your weight regularly. Weigh yourself at least once a week. This will help you figure out how much extra flab you have lost by doing simple activities or workout. In case you are being inactive and not eating healthy, you will be aware of the weight gain at an early stage. This will prevent your weight gain from being too much to get off. Drink Plenty Of Water Drinking lots of water will help your body detoxify all the impurities present in the system. Doctors recommend that you to drink at least 8-10 glasses of water a day. Having a glass of warm water in the morning, with half a lemon squeezed in it, is also a good idea. Remember, water cleanses and rejuvenates your skin as well. Stay Away From Junk Food One of the prerequisites of staying healthy is avoiding junk foods. The smart way to stay away from junk food is not to buy them at all! Avoid frequenting the fast food chains. Keep junk food out of your house as well. If you really like stuff like pizza and burgers, indulge in them not more than once or twice a month.

Eat Slowly & Only When You Are Hungry Do not cut any of the three meals per day. Rather, divide them into small meals, stretched over a gap of 2-3 hours. At the same time, cut off high-calorie snacks in between the meals. Eat small portions of food and do not gulp them down. Do not stuff yourself with food when you are not hungry. Eat only when your body signals you to have food. Eat slowly because the stomach takes some time to feel full. Diet Your diet should be balanced, with fruits, vegetables and whole grains included in it. An obese adult should have at least five servings of low-sugar fruits and vegetables on a day. A vegetable serving shall include one cup of raw or one and half cup of cooked vegetables. One piece of fresh fruit and one and half cup of canned fruit are included in a serving of fruit. You should avoid fruits and vegetables that are high in calories, like mango.