MALAYSIANS are no longer content to watch the official government-organised Merdeka parade on their televisions. Instead, they have been taking to the streets to celebrate Merdeka in their own way. What’s behind these different celebrations and do they make Malaysians unpatriotic?

TIME Magazine has just named The Protestor its Person of the Year for 2011. Malaysians would count among protestors that made headlines this year, if not internationally than nationally. But what is the point of continuing to protest when something – like the Peaceful Assembly Law – is a foregone conclusion? Political scientist Wong Chin Huat explains the value of civil disobedience and how it can work.