IT is natural for people everywhere to be proud of their birthplace, family, community, religion, language, tradition, history and food.

Everyone is entitled to such pride, which is subjective, but no one should claim mine is better than yours, and least of all resort to condemning others.

Those who truly believe in their religion should appreciate the Almighty for allowing such diversity for mankind to treasure and celebrate, not hate and denounce.

Citizens of a nation would naturally swell with pride if their nationals emerged as victors in major contests, particularly in sports.

Such pride is also exhibited by enthusiastic football supporters, which can be for a state or club.

Nations everywhere have their own national flag, anthem and language to promote unity among its citizens but these are just a means to an end.

Raising the Jalur Gemilang and singing the Negaraku can make citizens feel nationalistic.

I attended a meeting organised by a government agency before May 9. When the national anthem was played, tears of sadness rolled down my cheeks.

On June 7, I attended the townhall session with the new Human Resources Minister and joined others in belting out the Negaraku with joy and pride.

In the past, displaying of national flags constituted patriotism. From August, many buildings would be adorned with national flags.

Mini flags used to be stuck on cars, with many falling off and being run over by other vehicles. The media has to be blamed, as owners of vehicles and trishaws decorated with national flags were hailed as patriotic.

Patriotism is contributing positively to the country. Those who study or work hard are patriotic, and even more so if they are productive, earn a salary and pay tax accordingly.

Those who contribute to charity using their time and talent are model citizens.

It is the responsibility of all patriotic citizens to take care of their health. Apart from regular exercise, they should consume a wide variety of foods.

Likewise, true champions of our national language should make efforts to promote it and not prevent fellow Malaysians from learning other languages.

Malaysians should be encouraged to learn many languages to compete in the international arena which can attract millions of foreign visitor to our shores.

We also have a large number of foreign workers, including expatriates, who want to learn our national language.

If we have enough volunteers, free classes could easily be conducted for them. I did an online search and found a website for 1,000 most common Malay words with translation and audio pronunciation available to subscribers for a fee.

Corporations could be invited to sponsor prizes for weekly contests promoting the use of our national language.

Languages are learned out of interest or for their practicality, not through compulsion.

History is learned not by glorifying past achievements or glossing over mistakes but understanding the circumstance that led to the rise and fall of societies and countries.

Our royal families are the best guardians of local history and the royal institution is embraced by Malaysians of various races, languages, religions and traditions.

YS CHAN

Kuala Lumpur