Ok kisah ni ditulis sendiri tuan punya badan di facebook beliau. Copy paste. Tolong share kepada kawan² yg lain.
As I sit here writing this, I am just so grateful to be alive.
To think that 30 hours ago I had a knife to my throat, face to face with the threat of being kidnapped and raped.
It
was a Sunday, at 5.22PM. I was alone, walking towards my boyfriend's
car in level B2 of The Curve, Mutiara Damansara. He was not in town, and
I was running errands with his car. Just as I was putting my shopping
bags in the rear seat, the rear car door was slammed against my back,
and a meat cleaver was pressed against my throat. A man covered my mouth
with his hand, and whispered not to scream. He then shoved me onto the
floor of the backseat of the car and waved the cleaver at me, reminding
me not to scream. He was skinny, wearing a baggy turqoise blue t-shirt,
had a thick moustache and short curly hair, approx 5'8", mid-30s, and of
Indian descent.
At this moment, second man appeared. He
was also in his mid-30s. He was wearing a red t-shirt, had a crewcut,
and was of Malay descent. He grabbed my car keys and demanded for my
parking ticket. I couldn't remember where it was. They shoved me deeper
into the car, and the Indian man got into the back seat with me, while
the Malay man got into the driver's seat, driving us out of the carpark.
I
told them they could take everything, just let me go. But at that point
they didn't even ask for money. Instead, the Indian man started to make
sexual advances. Then it hit me. "Oh my God. Oh my God. This is really
happening. I'm being kidnapped.. and I think I know what they want."
From this moment on, there were a few crucial things that happened that I think is the reason I'm alive today.
1. I managed to get into a position to escape.
When
they got into the car, the Indian man had tried to force my body down
onto the floor. I knew that the moment I'm on the floor, there would be
no chance of escape. So I begged him to let me sit up. I promised him I
wouldn't scream or alert anyone's attention. Thankfully, he trusted me,
and let me sit up, gripping my arm tightly. Then I told him my arm
really hurt and to please not grip it so hard. He loosened his grip.
2. I did not fight for the sake of fighting.
I
was in an enclosed space, with no clear escape route. I would never win
in a fight with these 2 guys, especially when they have sharp weapons.
Had I fought from the get go, I may not have been in a position to
escape. I might've even been knocked out cold, and God only knows where I
would be right now.
3. I was lucky and sneaky.
I
knew that the only way to escape, was to jump out of the car, even if
it was moving. They had locked the car doors. So I leaned back,
pretended to scratch my hair, and shakily unlocked the door I was
leaning against. I'm so lucky they did not see or hear this!
4. I went 'crazy' at the right time.
And
then I waited. I knew that the car would have to slow down outside the
parking lot, as it exits to merge with the main roads. The moment it
slowed down, I opened the car door and tried to make a run for it. I
failed. I kicked my legs out of the car, but the Indian man had managed
to pull my body back in. From this moment on, everything is a blur. I
remember the Malay driver temporarily stopping the car, leaning over
from the driver's seat and attempting to close the door and pull my legs
in. At that point I remember thinking, "Even if I don't get out now, I
need to keep the door open and my legs out the door. At the very least,
it should cause a scene, and someone would see me. Or, the door might
hit another car and they'll be forced to slow down." So I continued
kicking. My right foot pushed against the wide-open car door to keep it
open. I recall elbowing, struggling, kicking, and even biting. I lost my
glasses, and was struggling blindly for my life. At some point the
Malay driver yelled, "BAGI DIA LEPAS! BAGI DIA LEPAS!" (Let her go! Let
her go!) and the Indian man loosened his grip. I made a jump out of the
still-moving car, and ran for my life.
5. I acted in spite of the fear.
My
friends said I was brave. But I didn't feel like it. I was quivering
and shaking in fear. I was so afraid. I thought I was going to die. I
was weak with fear and deathly afraid. I truly thought "this was it".
But I knew I HAD to move. I had to run. Or there would be a worser fate
in store for me. While I was quaking in fear, I forced myself to look
around and see if there was any way I could escape, or even catch
someone's eye.
6. I remembered the people I love.
The
only thing that matters when you're faced with potentially horrendous
fate, is the people in your life. When I felt the knife to my neck, the
first thing I thought was , "This cannot be happening. I must be
dreaming." The second? The people that truly matter to me flashed across
my mind. It sounds cliche, but it's true. I thought of my parents. My
brother. Khailee. Esther. More people. That's all I could think of for a
few moments, before I started brainstorming my escape.
//
I
ran towards the Maybank outlet at the Curve. There were plenty of
people milling around. I screamed for help over and over again. I was
hysterical. I grabbed an older Malay man by his shoulders and begged for
help before practically collapsing at his feet.
I will always remember the relief and liberation I felt, running over Mutiara Damansara's manicured grass and into the crowd.
//
Today,
I found out that the entire ordeal from the moment I left the parking
ticket payment machine, to my escape, happened in about 4 minutes. To
me, it felt like one long nightmare.
We never think its
going to happen to us... and then it does. I used to think that this is
something that happens only in the papers and to people far, far removed
from me. But then it did happen to me. I moved to PJ/KL 6 years ago,
and I've spent countless mornings, afternoons and nights at The Curve.
When my friends and I were organizing Rock Up! back in 2008, we were
walking around the place at 4AM even. It's been 6 years, and never once
did I feel that I was unsafe at The Curve. Until yesterday.
I
feel like moving out of the country ASAP. Getting the hell out of this
state where you hear of a kidnapping or attempted one every month
(remember Nayati?), or a snatch theft every week. And yet
I'm fully aware of the fact that in another country with more lax firearm laws, they would've been holding a gun to my head, not a cleaver. And that would've been so, so much worse.
I'm fully aware of the fact that in another country with more lax firearm laws, they would've been holding a gun to my head, not a cleaver. And that would've been so, so much worse.
I'm Blessed. By God's
grace, I am alive and relatively well. And I will live another day to
build another cat iPhone app. It just was not my time to go. And for
that, I thank God.
I want to share this story with everyone because cops tell me that they rarely get to hear it from someone who escapes.
Girls,
be so very careful. Be vigilant, and please try not to go anywhere
alone. If you need to walk to the carpark, and you're alone, get a guard
to go with you. I was recently told that it's part of their job
description to assist anyone if needed.
Guys, watch out
for your girlfriends, wives, mothers, sisters and friends. Walk with
them, don't take their paranoia or fear lightly. Watch out for them.
And
everyone, just watch out for each other. Take care of each other. These
things really DO happen.
As I ran out of the car, so many people came to help me. Strangers who didn't know who I was, came forward and offered me tissue paper, water, cellphones, and general comfort.
As I ran out of the car, so many people came to help me. Strangers who didn't know who I was, came forward and offered me tissue paper, water, cellphones, and general comfort.
Malaysians,
please care for one another. You already do. Just keep on caring. Keep
watching out for each other. Don't worry about being thought of as "busy
body" or "overreacting".
The world can be a cruel place, but all it takes is for people to care for one another to make all the difference.
The world can be a cruel place, but all it takes is for people to care for one another to make all the difference.
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