Mat Rempit
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A Mat Rempit is a Malaysian term for 'an individual who participates in illegal street racing', usually involving underbone motorcycles (colloquially known as Kapcai) or scooters. Not all Mat Rempits are involved in street racing; some of them perform crazy stunts for fun, such as the wheelie, superman (lying flat on the seat), wikang, and scorpion (standing on the seat with one leg during a wheelie).
Mat Rempits usually travel in groups and race in bustling city centres on weekend nights. In recent times, Mat Rempits have been linked to gangsterism, gang robbery[1][2], street fighting, assault[3], vandalism, theft and bullying. Most motorcycles used by the Mat Rempits do not meet standard specifications, or have been modified extensively for greater speed, or just to make the exhaust noisier.
Additionally, some Mat Rempits do not have valid motorcycle licenses, do not pay road taxes, and ride stolen motorcycles[4][5]. A growing number of housing estates have also been turned into racing tracks[6]. It is estimated that there are about 200,000 Mat Rempits in Malaysia[7].
In some other countries, the term Mat Rempit is also used, but more to refer to one as a motorcycle lover or rider (Mat Motor), as opposed to an illegal motorcycle racer. Sometime the terms of Mat Rempit misused to refer any individual who rides an underbone motorcycle. Related to this is the Mat Konvoi, which claim to be the non-racing version of Mat Rempit.
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[edit] Violence
On April 2009, Malaysia's Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan said that the Mat Rempit had become violent and brazen instead of just being a public nuisance. He said “We have to come down hard on the Mat Rempit who have started to become involved in robberies, snatch thefts and are even attacking innocent road users." He also added that "Parents must be more responsible and should not allow their underage children to drive cars or ride motorcycles" [1]
[edit] Etymology
The word 'Rempit' came from the combination of ramp it (ramp the throttle). The definition of 'Rempit' in Kamus Dewan[2] is menyebat dengan rotan in malay or whipping with cane. An alternative source of the word, 'Rempit', is derived from the noise made by a 2-stroke motorcycle. 'Mat' is a malay slang term to call or to refer to a person who usually is of Malay descent but usually used derogatorily.
[edit] Political influence
There are numbers of political influence in helping Mat Rempit.
[edit] Mat Cemerlang
Khairy Jamaluddin and Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim from Putera UMNO attempt to rebrand "Mat Rempits" as "Mat Cemerlang". The suggestion by Khairy that "Mat Rempits" should become the "Eyes and Ears" for the Malaysian Police Force.
[edit] Adopt Mat Rempit
Datuk Mohamed Jaafar from UMNO suggested that Mat Rempit been adopted to guide and save them from indulging in dangerous activities.[3]
[edit] Kelantan to build track for Mat Rempit
Kosmo! reported that Mat Rempit in the state of Kelantan will be allowed to show off their skills at a special track [4] to be built by the state government soon. The government of Kelantan Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said the track in Tanah Merah was not a waste of money.
| “ | They (Mat Rempit) always make their mothers and wives worry. With the track they will have a proper place to express their feelings and show their bravery and heroics | ” |
[edit] Kedah considering circuit for Mat Rempit to race
The Government of Kedah state is looking into the possibility of building a circuit [5] for Mat Rempit to race and overcome the menace, saying another option was to create more job opportunities for them as most of them were jobless. Azizan said:
| “ | We will first study if the circuit in Kelantan has effectively curbed the menace | ” |
[edit] Notable massive operations
On 3 May 2009, the Bukit Aman Traffic Division of the Royal Malaysian Police, together with the Road Transport Department, have lanched a major integrated operation to crack down on both car and Mat Rempit motorcycle illegal racing. More than 115 motorcycles were impounded in the major operation which was held simultaneously in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang and Negeri Sembilan.[8]
[edit] Pop Culture
Mat Rempit is the focus of several Malaysian films:
- GILA - GILA REMAJA (1984)
- ALI SETAN (1985)
- LITAR KASIH (1996)
- KL MENJERIT (2002)
- KL MENJERIT 1 (prequel of KL Menjerit; 2005)
- REMP-IT(2006)
- Bohsia: Jangan Pilih Jalan Hitam (2009)
- Remp-It V3 (2009)
[edit] Songs aiming Mat Rempits
- Spider - Salut (From Bintang 12)
- Namewee - Kawanku
- Yazer featuring Doul - Rempit
- Ustaz Akhil Hayy Rawa - Relaku Rempit (parodying Spider's song called Relaku Pujuk)
- JJ and Rudy (The Morning Crew) from hitz.fm - Not So Furious (parodying Teriyaki Boyz's called Tokyo Drift)
Deejays JJ and Rudy (The Morning Crew) from hitz.fm radio station have made a parody of Teriyaki Boyz's called We're Not So Furious, designed to mock Mat Rempit culture.
Mat Rempit was also the main influence for the song "Salut" by the Malaysian band, Spider, in their album Bintang 12
[edit] References
- ^ Motorcycle gang robs vendor of RM70
- ^ Mat Rempit gang menace Rep: Three robberies brought to my attention
- ^ http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Monday/National/2397834/Article/index_html]
- ^ Mat Rempit The Star Online Motoring Blog
- ^ Membendung lumba haram Harian Metro
- ^ Residents fed up with Mat Rempit ruckus go after them
- ^ Rempit - Budaya Menunjuk-nunjuk - Kosmo! (4 January 2007)
- ^ "115 motor kena angkut (Malay)", Harian Metro, 2009-05-04
[edit] See also
- Street racing
- Kapcai
- Mat Konvoi
- Bōsōzoku Mat Rempit's Japanese counterpart
- List of subcultures
