Claims

From March 13, 2009

“The latest development in PCP is now to offer Grades for money or power. It took me 11 years of sweat, dedication and sheer will power to earn my grade. Now Mr Sanders is offering Guru grades in return for buying 4 dvd's and sending money. In my own country two different students with no added training, were given Guru grades, in return for offering seminars and money. This is disrespectful to every single student who has actively train or try to promote silat,to devalue it to the level of a couple of dvds and a money Cheque.”

Pendekar Sanders response...

What changed in 2008 is I stopped allowing others to make up their own rank requirements as they saw fit, pass up who they did not like, grade their friends and do numerous multiple times gradings for simple components of the art for commercial reasons just to pass out certificates and get away without knowing core material of the art like Sera Depok. For instance as I said any Guru Baharu should know and be able to fight with all of the Sera Depok Jurus and that is only one component.

Yes I made a big mistake and played along with others demands in the past and in 2008 that all stopped. I had done this to help out those who needed it with their schools not realizing what it was doing to the art and also in times past when I would visit a new country I had a few instructors ask me to "give them" a conditional teaching paper so they could teach the material. I made errors as I was trying to help them. These same people years later complained when I offered to give a conditional teachers paper to other students of theirs that had learned the art for many actual years, far more than they ever did on my first visit to them when they were asking and eagerly taking that paper after just a two day seminar. These other students claimed to have wanted to be a rep and open new schools so they got the same deal as their former instructor, even though they were more advanced. I guess what was good for the goose was not good for the gander.

All of this political grading and pressure on me from different directions to give each what they themselves wanted as a grading system, for material they liked or did not like had to stop and I had to take the reins back on my own system. In truth we now at last have a true grading system designed by me and not dictated to me by various so called reps who demanded their own way to keep up class attendance. That is grading for a buck. That was the real insult to the art.

When I took that away some took their ball and went home which was fine by me and good luck to them. Those on board now are really on board. Most of the higher ranks would not pass my distance learning Guru Baharu grade as it now stands as they refused to learn the core Sera Depok Material. They also forgot to mention that in my distance learning program I myself will see every single person who passes do every single technique up to my standards, not counting how much money they are giving me this month for classes, the contract I want them to sign, the outsider seminar I want them to attend or how many of their friends might leave if I don't pass them to keep their crew around etc. No one passes that is not up to high standards.

I am embarrassed to say this was not the case all the times in the past due to me trying to be to good natured and allow people a lot of slack and leeway as I was asked to do by some reps and I made terrible mistakes as I was put under tremendous pressure to pass almost anyone unless they were abysmal when I went to see their locally approved multiple grading. If a person stood there and did the same techniques over and over even when a different one was called out they might fail but if they sort of did the material but not well at all they were supposed to pass, along with those who did it very well (yes some did) but no more.

Separating the Facts

• Badui have no martial arts of their own despite what you might have hear or read.

• The following was a post that was made on a silat list several years ago. Recently the post was pasted around again:

• Original Post by Mr. Ian Wilson

• Response to the original post by the elders in Tarik Kolot (2003) I was contacted via email by Dr. Ian Wilson and we shared some information back and forth.

• The dialogue was cordial and informative. Listed below is his follow up discussion:
  Follow up discussion by Dr. Ian Wilson

Questions and Answers Over the Years

• FAQ