First Malaysian In Space A Cosmonaut, Says Jarjis

Malaysia's first "angkasawan" (space traveller) will be recognised as a cosmonaut by the Russian space authorities, said Science, Techology and Innovations Minister Datuk Seri Jamaludin Jarjis.

He said that an official recognition ceremony for the angkasawan as a cosmonaut would be held in Moscow on Nov 11 following his return from space on Oct 21.

"Some countries might question this, but to me, it is not important. What matters is that the candidate was selected and trained by Russia and the country recognises him as a true cosmonaut," he told reporters after breaking fast with members of the media here tonight.

He was commenting on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) referring to Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha, one of two Malaysians eligible to make an expedition to the International Space Station (ISS) on a Russian Soyuz rocket on Oct 10, as "space flight participant" on its website.

The term given by NASA to the Malaysian angkasawan had made many Malaysians unhappy as Malaysia had put in a lot of effort to send its first man into space. "The Russians themselves had told our man (angkasawan) that he is a cosmonaut, and that's the end of the story," he said.

Jamaludin said it was the Russians who had selected and will be sending the Malaysian angkasawan to space and therefore it is appropriate for them to give the recognition and not the United States.

He also said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak will witness the launch of the space expedition in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 10 at 9.30pm.

There will also be teleconferencing between the leaders with the Malaysian angkasawan while he is stationed aboard the ISS.

Jamaludin said the spacecraft carrying the Malaysian angkasawan and two other astronauts accompanying him will land in Siberia not far from the launch pad in Baikonour, Kazakhstan on Oct 21 at 6.30pm Malaysian time. A helicopter will pick them up and take them to an airport where they will be flown to Moscow, he said.

Najib is scheduled to receive the Malaysian Angkasawan there. Jamaludin said the angkasawan would have to undergo health observation for a week before being allowed to return home and that a grand welcome would be organised for him.

He added that he had written to all State Islamic departments and menteris besar and chief minister to hold special prayers on Friday for the angkasawan.
He hoped all Malaysians would join in and pray for the angkasawan's safe expedition. (Bernama)

***** In the past, spacemen of different countries, including India and Vietnam, trained in Russia and launched in Russian craft were always referred to as cosmonauts. Our man is no different and deserves the same recognition and respect accorded to others.

There is no reason to doubt his credentials or his ability. The route through which he got into the space programme may be controversial, i.e. the defence purchase trade-off and the rumoured kickbacks to well connected and influential politicians and their cronies. But that has nothing to do with our man in space and he should not be blamed or belittled because of this. There seems to be a tendency among commenters in this and other blogs to be insulting and scornful of the angkasawan. This more than anything else seems to be a case of sour grapes. So much so one gets the impression that if the cosmonaut had been a Chinese or an Indian there would not have been so many negative observations.

The one thing which puts me off though, is the hype by the Umno leadership. Najib will try to get into the space limelight hoping that it will deflect attention from the irregularities of the defence purchase, while Jarjis will squeeze every bit of publicity for himself and the other umnoputeras. Already Jarjis is using the agama angle by asking State Islamic departments to conduct prayers! As the launch date nears you can be sure that the bangsa, agama dan negara refrain will be heard loudly ad nauseam, while the Umno warlords go to town with the perjuangan parti crap and the optimistic "tak kan Melayu hilang di dunia" slogan. What an effective way to amass some pre-election pahala!
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