It Makes No Sense To Fight Racism Without Fighting Chauvinism

By batsman 

As RPK says – it must necessarily take the support of all races to unseat the BN (Let the results do the talking). I believe the 2008 tsunami happened because all the races were fed up with the arrogance, abuse of power, discrimination, racism, corruption, nepotism and authoritarianism of the BN in somewhat different measures, so the negative sentiment of resentment boiled over and all the races subconsciously acted in concert. In doing so the people gave the reform movement a vague sense of direction.

Unfortunately none of this was organized or ably led in a positive, disciplined and systematic way. The result was only a near unseating of the BN. 

In trying to organize a more determined and systematic assault on BN’s disastrous domination, each race now put its own agenda forward. Not only this, there were also religious agendas, ideological agendas and personal agendas apart from the bigotry and prejudices that reared up. The net result was not more organization and more discipline but more confusion and more disenchantment. None of the agendas matched. The movement had no direction and no able leadership. The people’s enthusiasm dissipated in the numerous quarrels, sabotage and betrayals awash in a sea of ancient ideological and chauvinistic prejudices and bigotry. The tsunami ebbed in the sticky resistance of a putrid, dense mass of human foibles and egos. 

So negative subconscious sentiments created a favourable result and positive conscious efforts created an unfavourable result. These are some of the strange conditions of life. In fact some of the strangeness was exhibited by the relative relaxation of censorship and suppression of free speech. This caused some of the stupidest and most prejudiced statements to be uttered, posted and printed. It were as if all the BN needed to do was give the bigots enough rope to hang themselves with. The people naturally turned away from all this folly. The people are not to blame. 

As has been shown and observed by RPK, it must take the support of all the races to unseat the BN. However, each race has its own agenda. This is further complicated by global ideological and religious disputes that stretch back into the centuries and only brought forth in small time Malaysia after the 2008 tsunami because some small minded people think they need to show off their intelligence by re-enacting these ancient disputes on Malaysian soil. 

The current need of negotiating, making meaningful compromises and uniting all efforts to unseat the BN was pushed aside by individuals bent on showing off their intelligence in arguing ancient ideological disputes. This is egotism and arrogance to the highest degree and is a direct sabotage of the unity of the reform movement. 

It is as if these people in trying to show off their intelligence treated politics as merely shouting their positions at the top of their voices, ignoring everyone else and they would have proven their intelligence. Painful and accurate analysis of current needs, patient creation of a disciplined corps of activists and the formation of a good strategy and direction means nothing to these people. As long as they shout their positions at the top of their voices, they deem themselves to have exhibited their intelligence. 

All this gives immense opportunities to BN cybertroopers to do their dirty work. By shouting open support for the reform movement but championing bigotry, quarrelsome and isolationist ideas, they hope to split the reform movement from the inside as well as turn the people against the PR. 

This is where the provocateurs of the MCA and MIC prove their worth to the BN. CSL’s criticism of PAS candidate Cikgu Mala for wearing gloves when shaking hands with male voters was roundly condemned. This is right and fitful. Unfortunately hundreds of thousands of similar type criticisms and comments flood every blog and newspaper in the land. Unless the PR and reform activists show some guts in opposing these prejudices and bigotry, the way is open for confusion and disenchantment to reign. Leadership of the political process must be established and it cannot be done by forcing activists to tow the line but by patient persuasion and reasoned argument (I hope – generously peppered with sardonic insults). In this way some form of leadership and direction for the reform movement can be established. 

Activists do not need a leader in so much as an individual but a political line. The political line sets the strategy and the direction of all reform efforts. The individual as a leader is only accepted as such if he/she champions this political line. Needless to say, it must be a political line that is acceptable to all the races and religions after all the small sacrifices and compromises have been made for the united common good. 

The reality of the Malaysian situation has to be accepted. Non-acceptance only means isolation and marginalization from the people. Worse, it gives ammunition to the BN to claim that it is impossible for the PR to unite and offer stable government because of their fundamentally conflicting positions. Hard headed activists if they wish to be positive contributors must realize that politics is the art of compromise because there can only be one reality but many agendas and the political line that most closely matches what the rakyat think and feel is the most correct political reality even if it is not the most ideal one. 

Malaysia cannot go from a near failed state to the land of justice and honey in one GE. Political positions that demand this are out of touch with reality even if the urgency of such positions cannot be denied and without a realistic political line, there is no possibility of unseating the BN. Even if by some miracle the BN were to be unseated in the 13th GE, there is still the 14th GE to contend with. Political lines that are out of touch with reality cannot win 2 such GEs in a row. The provocateurs and dirty trick departments of the BN will see to that. 

I have my ideas of what a realistic and correct political line should be, but I leave it to you bigots to trash it out before the long expected 13th GE is upon us. Realistically, I don’t think I can make that much of an impact and at any rate I am trying to keep my write-ups short which I am barely coping with. So shout on please. Much as I try, I cannot force myself to give up the relish of insulting bigots. heeheehee