Malaysian National Unity is the answer

ARCHIVES 2009

By MT Webmaster On Mar 27, 2009

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Tun Mahathir Mohamad launched a very scathing attack against Malay detractors in Malaysia, sounding at times vitriolic and in some moments uncompromising with regards to Malay rights and Malay political power. He is absolutely right in substance but could he be wrong in essence?

Tun Mahathir lambasted all the people and groups that ‘dared’ attack Malay rights, Malay culture and Malay political power. Tun Mahathir altogether criticized those who termed the racially driven policies in Malaysia as apartheid, claiming the Chinese community is the one practicing apartheid. In a high voltage country like Malaysia, with its diversity of races and cultures, attacking the cultural heritage of any one community is a bad thing. No one has the right to challenge or attack Malay culture Malay rights and Tun Mahathir is right here. The Malays too has no right to attack the minorities and their culture, race and religion. It is specifically stated in the Holy Book of Islam, the Holy Al-Quraan that Muslims have to respect the faith of others and it is also specifically stated that ‘special’ rights must be accorded to non-Muslims in order for their faith and culture to be ‘protected’ by a majority ruling Islamic state. Malaysia being a democratic country and a member of the United Nations (UN) and a signatory of the Geneva Charter, has to protect the rights of every single individuals, communities and race or religions.

Tun Mahathir exposed the blunt fact that non-Muslims are attacking the very substance of Malay rights in the country. He is right there. This is a free country with law and order to be respected by all and sundry. Tun Mahathir being the former Prime Minister of Malaysia knows what he is talking about. Being right in substance on the race relations in a country that is heavily divided by its variety of races tend to give political aces the belief that playing the race card will solve a tense situation. Tun Mahathir, the ace of aces in Malaysian politics, aware of his standing and of the impact of his speeches is aiming at Malay unity and the disintegration of support for the strong Pakatan Rakyat (PR) movement. Though Malay unity in the present scenario sounds like a ‘pipesdream’, Tun Mahathir has the social and political responsibility to show his aggressiveness in defending the Malays in order to achieve his stated political aim at ‘cleaning’ the Umno. The very reason he had to cry on stage in June 2002 was, according to many sources and to Tun Mahathir’s own statement about Malays and their social, economic and political disintegration process.

Since the existence of the Party Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) and the coming and going of parties like Semangat-46 and today Party Keadilaan Rakyat (PKR), Malay unity is a forgone dream. The ruling Malay party the United Malays National Organization (Umno) does not have the total support of the Malays or of the Muslims in Malaysia for that matter. Tun Mahathir is aware that his attempts at uniting the Malays under the banner of racial cum religious threats against the Malays and the fact that their political power is in real danger, had to jump on the loose ends and forgo the national realities, that of the diversity of races even among the Muslims. The difference between Tun Mahathir and Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of the Opposition is that Anwar Ibrahim is aware that without the support of non-Malays (Indian Muslims, foreign Muslims’ wives, Chinese Muslims and other Muslims) and the support of the non-Muslims are crucial for the PR to overtake the Umno and the Barisan National (BN) in the near future.

It is probable that Tun Mahathir will be able to rally a larger number of Malays to support his political agenda in this instance but it is not sure that all the Muslims (Bumiputera’s or Angsaputra’s all together) will lend him their shoulders. The political division of the Malays and of the Muslim community in Malaysia is a stark reality today as it was in the past and the Keris dancing – though perfectly normal despite the criticism it gathers – or the calls for Malay unity will not suffice. Tun Mahathir must leave the substance behind and tackle the problem of Malay-Muslim unity with more diligence. The elderly states man who has transformed this country from the rubber tapping and tin pot industry that it was after the British left Malaya must look into Muslim brotherhood and must call for Muslims to be united and abandon the Malay de-facto authority and leadership altogether. This will be hard for Tun Mahathir since he has to play the Malay race card in the current socio-political situation in Malaysia, albeit this is a dangerous card indeed.

It will be harder still for Tun Mahathir, a well respected figure in the International arena and beloved in the Muslim world from Africa to Pattani and Mindanao, to reverse the ‘racialization’ process in which Malaysia has dipped its face into. It is the policy of the ‘Melayunization’ of the Muslims and of Islamic principles in Malaysia that hampers the march for unity among the Muslims. Young Malaysian Muslim Angkasaputera’s (of non-Bumiputera origin) and in many cases (growing in number) of young Bumiputera’s (Malays) will not support Tun Mahathir’s views on the need for Malay dominance and the theories of Malay political power. Many of them believe in the ‘Muslim’ political power not in the Malay political power and they believe in the rights of others, not in curbing the rights of the non-Bumi Muslims or of the non-Muslims. They are right in the essence while the veteran Malay leader can only be right on the ‘substance’. The essence is Islam and the motivational factor of the essence in this particular situation is Islamic unity, not Malay unity. Malay unity will only strengthen the Umno to remain united and to be able to put up a stronger face against the PR. This does not mean the Umno will defeat the PR in any forth coming General Elections, alas.

Malaysia will not be ‘governable’ without the support of non-Malays in the political and economic process and to achieve this lost ‘holy grail’ that had kept Malaysia going and progressing under Tun Mahathir’s reign is to end racially motivated policies. There will be no 32 ways for this beautiful country to salvage its democratic gains and its political stability if the race card is overplayed and if the non-Malays feels offended in the process. A convergence must be found by all parties, including the opposition and the Umno or the BN to put an end once and for all to the racial bickering in a rather progressive Muslim country like Malaysia. More democratic standards must be accepted, such as a freer press and a less powerful ‘establishment’ that is today composed of anti-progressive elements. Tun Mahathir has been given a great opportunity to remake Malaysia and to do that he has to shed away the Malay tentacles and adopt the same political philosophy that the PR has adopted, that is National Unity beforehand.

Rest assured that there are many in the opposition, sitting on the opposition benches in the Parliament and in the Dun’s across the country and many opposition supporters, be they Malays or Chinese or Indians and Angkasaputera’s who would support Tun Mahathir is he make this historic turn around and try to rally an entire nation towards the new millennium goals, that is unity in diversity and rights for all! Is it not what a nation that has seen 51 years of Independence should do? Is it not the duty of aces like Tun Mahathir to rally the nation together by taking the right steps? Should it not be the target of the Prime Minister to be (in that case Najib Tun Razak) to quell racial politicking and racial bickering by taking a stronger and bolder national stance that will ensure Malaysia’s future as a nation for all? This is where the real problem is in my country of adoption.