Racial politics masquerading behind Islamist front, WSJ says
(Malay Mail Online) – A fatwa banning Muslims from “celebrating” Halloween is indicative of a growing use in Islamist rhetoric to repackage the racial politics that has blighted the nation for decades, the Wall Street Journal reported today.
Pointing to the National Fatwa Council’s edict as well as recent controversies stemming ostensibly from offended Muslim sensitivities, such as the Oktoberfest furore and the “I Want To Touch A Dog” row, the US daily asserted that the growing clash between religious conservatives and moderates is actually a proxy battle by supporters of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) with those backing Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Rakyat (PR).
“But while Islamic beliefs have seen a renaissance in Malaysia, as they have done in other Muslim countries around the world, political analysts say what’s really going on here is an attempt by some of the country’s ethnic-Malay majority to use Islam to ensure they hold onto the reins of power here, as they have done since independence from Britain over 60 years ago.
“Briefly put, the rise in Islamist rhetoric in Malaysia is racial politics by another name,” the WSJ wrote in an article today.
Since the so-called political tsunami of Election 2008, race-based politics has gradually waned but found a new lease on life — or so critics contend — under the auspices of Islamic-centred groups such as Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma).
This is facilitated by the ethnoreligious identity of the Malays, which is inexorably tied to Islam by dint of the constitutional wording that describes Malays as Muslims.
While Isma professes the “defence” of Islam and Muslims as its stated goal, it has been forced to fend off accusations of racism. This view has been compounded by a sedition charge for Isma president Abdullah Zaik Abdul Rahman for categorising the ethnic Chinese as “intruders” into the country.
“Malay supremacy was the old school. People like Abdullah Zaik and others like him belong to the new school, and that’s Islamist supremacy,” James Chin, Monash University’s head of political science, told the WSJ.
“It’s potentially more volatile,” Chin added.
The use of religion as means to curry favour with the electorate was also palpable in the tussle for “Allah”, the Arabic word for God that Muslims here consider to be exclusive to Islam.
The division was also clearly along political lines, with the ruling Umno and the BN it underpins staunchly against non-Muslim use of the word while the federal opposition PR adopted the view that there was no issue with Christians calling their God “Allah” in Malay.
The WSJ noted that president of Malay rights group Perkasa Datuk Ibrahim Ali had last year made the call to burn Malay-language bibles containing “Allah”.
Despite the call considered provocative by critics and rivals of Perkasa, authorities chose not to prosecute Ibrahim and saw fit to categorise his actions as “defending Islam”.
Perkasa is unaffiliated with the ruling Umno party, but counts many members of the Malay nationalist party among its ranks. Its patron is also former Umno president and Malaysia’s longest serving prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Dr Mahathir also came out in defence of Ibrahim this week, suggesting against a mountain of criticism that what the Perkasa leader did was acceptable to Muslims.
