12/05/2025

MONDAY | MAY 12, 2025

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E VERY Mother’s Day, we find ourselves drawn to the quiet and unyielding strength of a mother’s love. It is a day to honour the women who have carried, nurtured and shaped us – and to remember the spaces where these stories of life first begin: our nation’s maternity hospitals. These are not just buildings. They are places where joy and pain meet, where futures are quietly set in motion and where a mother’s resilience leaves its first invisible mark on the world. Among these, Kuala Lumpur Maternity Hospital – or as many fondly remember it, Hospital Bersalin Kuala Lumpur – holds a special place in Malaysia’s collective memory. The story of this maternity hospital began with the hopes of a newly independent nation. Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s first prime minister, was deeply concerned about the well-being of mothers and their newborns. In a post independence capital experiencing rapid growth, maternal healthcare was limited and basic. Recognising this need, Tunku envisioned a modern, dedicated maternity facility. On May 12, 1961 – a date that fittingly coincided with the global celebration of mothers – he officiated the construction of the Kuala Lumpur Maternity Hospital. It was a decisive step, not just for healthcare but as a symbol of the young nation’s commitment to its people. The hospital’s design was entrusted to K.C. Duncan, a senior architect from the Public Works Department (JKR). Inspired by Le Corbusier’s modernist principles, Duncan created a building that responded intelligently to Malaysia’s tropical climate. Ventilation blocks allowed fresh air to circulate through non-air-conditioned wards and corridors, long before air conditioning was standard. Its clean lines, honest materials and human-focused spaces marked a new chapter in healthcare design – one centred on functionality, dignity and well-being. But beyond architectural achievements, Kuala Lumpur Maternity Hospital became something greater – a sanctuary of beginnings. For decades, its delivery rooms echoed with the cries of newborns, marking the start of countless Malaysian stories. Mothers from all

COMMENT by Dr Zuraini Md Ali and Dr Nor Hayati Hussain

Honouring mothers and the place where life began

rise to power. The Walton family, though poor, were hardworking, generous and hospitable, with Christian virtues, offering an insightful perspective on life and identity that transcends narrow tribalistic views. One episode that particularly caught my attention focused on a Jewish family who had fled Berlin in Germany to escape Nazi persecution and betrayal by close friends and neighbours. They relocated to the mountainous region where the Walton family resides. The Jewish family, led by a university professor, had lost trust in humanity after enduring intense bigotry in Germany. walks of life – royalty and labourers, homemakers and professionals – passed through its doors, each carrying a silent hope for the future. For some, it was the place where they delivered more than one child, each a fresh chapter of sacrifice and devotion. For others, it was the first place they cradled a tiny heartbeat against their own, exhaustion mingling with awe. Every cry and every heartbeat heard within those walls is a living reminder of life’s miraculous, everyday beginnings. Today, while newer facilities have risen across the country, this hospital – along with others in Penang, Johor, Sarawak and beyond – continues to evolve. Maternity care has expanded to include not just safe delivery but postnatal counselling, breastfeeding support and mental health services. It reflects a growing recognition that caring for a mother extends beyond birth, embracing the full, complex journey of becoming one. Motherhood, in every culture and time, is a quiet kind of heroism. It is forged in sleepless nights, carried through unspoken fears, and sustained by the enduring strength to give, even when depleted. It is a universal story written in different languages but felt in the same aching, joyous corners of the heart. As mothers ourselves, we understand this intimately. We have known the weight of responsibility, the anxious prayers during labour and the indescribable relief at a baby’s first cry. Regardless of where one is born – in a humble kampung home, a public ward or a private suite – the pain of delivery humbles and the moment of birth transforms it into something eternal. That moment connects us not only to our children but to every mother before and after us. It reminds us that every life begins with a woman’s courage and that this

Maternity hospitals are not just buildings. They are places where joy and pain meet, where futures are quietly set in motion, and where a mother’s resilience leaves its first invisible mark on the world. – SUNPIX

To every mother, by whatever name you are called – mak , ibu , mama, bonda , umi , maa , amma , mum or mummy – thank you. We love you. Always. DrZuraini Md Ali is an associate professor at the Building Surveying Department, Faculty of Built Environment, Universiti Malaya and a mother of seven. Dr Nor Hayati Hussain is an assistant professor at the School of Architecture, Faculty of Built Environment, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology and a mother of six. Comments: letters@thesundaily.com

modernising city, these spaces remind us of who we are and where every journey begins. This Mother’s Day, under the theme “Every Birth is a Miracle, Every Mother is a Hero”, we salute not just mothers but also the midwives, doctors, nurses and support staff who stood quietly beside them. We pay tribute to professionals and visionaries like Tunku who placed maternal care at the heart of national development. As we reflect on our mothers, let us remember the words of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him): “Paradise lies at the feet of your mother.” Their sacrifice is priceless, their love foundational.

Fearing similar hostility in America, the professor decides not to identify as Jewish. He decides not to participate in Jewish festivals and rituals, causing unhappiness for his wife and son, who eventually confide in the Waltons family. The Waltons family tries to reach out to this family but is rejected by the professor on several occasions. It takes the Walton family’s grandfather to finally approach the Jewish professor and tell him that one should never hide their identity out of fear of bigotry. He emphasises that a person should be proud of their culture and upbringing and express it in a positive light. The professor eventually comes resilience, though often unseen, is the invisible scaffold of a nation. As we celebrate the women who raised us, let us also honour the spaces that silently cradle our futures. Maternity hospitals are more than functional institutions; they are living archives of stories, struggles and beginnings. Their walls have borne witness to the first moments of countless lives and deserve a place not only in our healthcare history but also in our cultural memory. As architects and mothers, we believe it is important to preserve these places, not only for their physical heritage but for the intangible legacy of care and resilience they represent. In a rapidly

LETTERS letters@thesundaily.com

Reject flawed narrative of choosing between race and nationality RECENTLY, there has been ongoing debate in Malaysia about whether one should identify as Malay first and then Malaysian. to his senses, and it is a touching moment when the Walton family, though Christian, joins the professor’s family in celebrating the Jewish festivals. A person can be Malay, Chinese or Indian and still proudly embody a national identity as a Malaysian through genuine engagement and mutual respect.

As I reflected on this issue while flipping through Astro channels in search of a programme that might offer some insights, I stumbled upon the decades-old drama The Waltons . Aired from 1972 to 1981, The Waltons is an American historical drama series set in rural Western Virginia’s Appalachian Mountains. The show portrays the struggles of a family living through the economic hardships and mass unemployment of the Great Depression in the 1930s, followed by the wartime challenges of World War II in the early 1940s, during Hitler’s

The real issue arises when one is forced to choose between the two – an approach often exploited by opportunistic politicians, particularly in the Malaysian political context, where race and religion are used as tools to gain votes. It is time we move beyond this flawed narrative and reject the false choice between race and nationality. Ronald Benjamin Secretary Association for Welfare Community and Dialogue

This exchange highlights the shared humanity between the two faiths as they come together to resolve a challenge, fostering a sense of common national identity. Ultimately, the story shows that one can be both Jewish and a proud patriot of their country, embracing both their faith and their national identity. The binary approach of choosing either nationality over identity or identity over nationality oversimplifies the complexity of human nature.