BN luring Hindraf to its fold
Sources close to the top BN leadership said mediators had met London-based Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy to discuss the idea of the movement joining forces with the ruling coalition. The meetings took place recently in London and Singapore.
By Athi Shankar, Free Malaysia Today
GEORGE TOWN: Barisan Nasional has upstaged Pakatan Rakyat in wooing the outlawed Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf).
Sources close to the top BN leadership said mediators had met London-based Hindraf chairman P Waythamoorthy to discuss the idea of the movement joining forces with the ruling coalition. The meetings took place recently in London and Singapore.
However, it is learnt that Waythamoorthy laid down stringent conditions, asking BN to resolve a number of Indian issues.
Sources said the BN had conveyed Waythamoothy’s message to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak.
Although recent by-elections in Hulu Selangor and Bagan Pinang showed that the Indians were ditching Pakatan and giving back their votes to BN, BN strategists have conceded that “it was more an anti-Pakatan than a pro-BN swing”.
They said the switch was mainly caused by Indian disappointment over the Pakatan state governments’ failure to address major Indian issues, such as land ownership, housing, Tamil schools and temples.
“If Pakatan were to implement several comprehensive policies to resolve Indian issues in the states it rules, the Indian votes could move away from BN again,” said a source.
BN got an unexpected chance to woo back Indian voters with the demolition of Kampung Buah Pala, the 200-year-old Indian traditional village in Penang.
“That lucky break gave BN the impetus to woo back Indians,” said the source.
Since the demolition, the Indian community has been questioning the sincerity and competence of Pakatan state governments and elected representatives.
However, BN knows that it cannot be too dependent on the Kampung Buah Pala fiasco and that it needs strong backing from a politically influential Indian grassroots movement to enhance and sustain its reputation within the community.
Political game
The emergence of the Human Rights Party (HRP), formed by Hindraf legal adviser P Uthayakumar, as an influential Indian-based political entity, has complicated the political game in an already crowded Indian playing field.
