May 13 more accurately ‘genocidal’ than racial riots
By CT Wong, The Malaysian Insider
The Utusan deputy editor-in-chief Zaini Hassan had recently written that May 13 should be celebrated as “tarikh keramat” — an auspicious and sacred day. He opined that May 13 is a blessing in disguise, and without May 13 the Malays would not have enjoyed the benefits as what they are enjoying today.
From the Oxford Fajar bilingual dictionary, “keramat” means “place or object that is (believed to be) sacred with supernatural or magical powers.” The powers refer to the special ability to cure sickness or to provide protection.
So far, May 13 has not cured the malignant sickness of racism dating from colonial times — colonialism is a form of racism. Neither do the citizens feel more protected from its relapse. What we witnessed was not supernatural powers, but authoritarian powers that destroy the very foundation of democracy — separation of powers of the executive, the judiciary and the legislative.
I find it difficult to understand how May 13 might wish to be celebrated as sacred, as spiritual. The predators become heroes and idols. Where is the sacredness? When unarmed Malaysians who were non-combatants were sacrificed by those in the deadly pursuit of power and wealth, God or gods were also sacrificed. In fact, civilisation, if not God, abandoned us during those dark days.
To the Germans who are proud of their Einstein, Beethoven and Sigmund Freud, these names are forever linked to Auschwitz in the land of Germany. To many a Malaysian, “Islamic” civilisation and the “Malays” are eternally linked to the May 13 genocide.
The Germans do not celebrate the Holocaust, but to create a museum right in the centre of the SS headquarters and exposing all the crimes against humanity of Hitler and the Nazi party, lest the future generations forget. In this land of Malaysia, the ethnic minorities are repeatedly reminded of “May 13 or equality!”, lest they forget.
We can always look for a silver lining in our tragedies if we want to. However, the Utusan editor seemed to find the smell of death quite sweet and fragrant. This brings me back to the time how I lived through the days of May 13.
May 13 to me
I was an adolescent living in a rather isolated Chinese-owned rubber holding up north. Just a mile away was a formerly foreign-owned rubber estate with mostly Indian rubber tappers. And a few miles away was a Malay kampung. When the news or rumours of “racial riots” in KL reached us, we were shocked not only by the killings but the way they were carried out.
On May 13, life and death depended on skin colour; the skin that protects us as a biological organism suddenly becomes a death sentence and our vaguely friendly Malay neighbour could suddenly be a murderer. Such fearful thoughts disturbed me for quite a number of days.
My family and I were forced to move to the nearest small town to stay just in case we happened to be the victims.
As time went on, the traumatic memories and the rawness of receiving a rude shock out of the deep slumber of racial accommodation slowly faded. I moved on with my life. But, time and again, non-Malays like me are being reminded of May 13.
What is May 13 then? And why call it racial riots?
Social contract destroyed
To me, May 13 means that the Alliance government of the day failed to protect its citizens. It means that the social contract between the state and citizens was deliberately broken.
May 13 means the killing of civilians. It cannot be justified by any rules of war.
May 13 means the extension of politics by an unjust and immoral war.
The use of the phrase “May 13 racial riots” is constantly being circulated and recycled in all our narratives, including that from the opposition parties. It is understandable if we use euphemistic terms to describe something awful so that we can cushion off the emotional overwhelm. But the phrases “racial riots” or “racial clash” or “May 13 incident” only serve the purpose of bleaching the mass atrocities, the mass murders of May 13.
