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Updated July 6th, 2021 at 09:41 IST

Malaysians facing COVID-19 lockdown fly white flags in novel initiative to seek help

Malaysians have started a white flag campaign that is gaining traction to help Malaysians facing economic devastation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reported by: Rohit Ranjan
COVID-19
AP Image | Image:self
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Malaysians have come up with a movement to assist those in need of essentials by urging them to put up a white flag to alert those around them that require help. They are banding together under the community initiative White Flag Project to help those in desperate need of food and assistance in light of worsening Covid-19 health and economic crisis.

The white flag movement or “Bendera Putih” gained traction online as Malaysians across the country appear to have reached their breaking points. 

Social media posts urged people to hoist a white flag to signal they needed immediate help "without having to beg or feel embarrassed." Scores of food retailers and celebrities have responded with offers of help and many Malaysians like Mohamad Nor have driven around their neighbourhood to find white flags.

Significance of Hoisting White Flag

Reports of families receiving immediate medical attention after hoisting a white flag warmed the hearts of the Malaysian people. A single mother and her teenage daughter who survived on biscuits for days fed by a neighbour, a debt collector who is nearing the end of her life received financial assistance to start over, a family of Myanmar refugees who survived one meal a day were immediately given food.

Thousands of people have lost their jobs since Malaysia imposed various restrictions on travel, including the coronavirus emergency that suspended Parliament until August 1. The sharp national cuts made on June 1 are the second in more than a year.

Story of Mohamad Nor Abdullah

Recently, a resident from Malaysia, Mohamad Nor Abdullah put a white flag outside his window late at night which turned into the outpouring of support. By morning, dozens of strangers knocked on his door, offering food, cash and encouragement. "It was so unexpected. So many people reached out to help, support and also encouraged me", said Mohamad Nor Abdullah. He further said that Samaritans offered to help pay for his rent and that help should be enough to move him in the next few months.

Mohamad Nor makes his living by selling packets of nasi lemak, a popular coconut milk rice with condiments, at a roadside table every morning, but due to the lockdown in the country, his income has vanished.

COVID Situation in Malaysia

Malaysia recorded 6,387 new COVID-19 cases on July 5th, bringing the cumulative total to 785,039. The health minister Noor Hisham Abdullah took to Twitter and shared the data.

Last week Malaysia extended a national lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19. Now only essential businesses, including factories producing food and daily necessities are allowed to operate.

Image: @DGHisham / Twitter

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Published July 6th, 2021 at 09:41 IST

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