By Farish A. Noor
As if the political landscape of Malaysia wasn’t overcrowded already, there has come into the fray yet another sectarian community-based party, Mindraf (Malaysian Indian Democratic Action Front). Ostensibly set up by ‘good samaritans’ concerned about the plight of their community, Mindraf has announced its political ambitions with the aim of representing Malaysian citizens of South Asian origin.
Now allow me to be blunt here: In the opinion of this writer, Malaysia does not need another communitarian party that caters to the primary concerns of a particular ethnic or religious community. We are already forced to work on a contested landscape where there are too many parties that are based on ethnic and religious loyalties, and yet another sectarian party will hardly bring us any closer to realising the notion of a Malaysia where identity is based on universal citizenship and equal rights.
If anything, the tendency of such sectarian parties is to further add to the process of divide and rule and to further entrench sedimented notions of ethnic-racial differences. This comes at a time when a younger generation of Malaysians have demonstrated their ability to transcend the ethnic divisions that once haunted the generation of their parents. So while we hope and pray for a better, more united and colour-blind Malaysia, whose idea was it to create another ethnic-based party?
The momentum for Mindraf was quite probably generated by the Hindraf movement that had managed to challenge the hegemony of the MIC over the Malaysian Indian community for decades. But even then, Hindraf’s appeal – as suggested by its name – was limited to Malaysians of the Hindu faith primarily. But some of us have maintained all along that the issues related to the Malaysian Indian community were issues that also affected Malaysians in general as well. The destruction of Hindu temples during the Badawi period was a loss for all Malaysians, and not Hindus only.
Over the past four years we have see how some parties have gone out of their way to accommodate the concerns and needs of others: PAS, for instance, has stood up for the rights of non-Muslims to build temples and churches and have defended the right for non-Muslims to practice their faith. It is clear that for some leaders of PAS like Nik Aziz, it is better for PAS to be allied to PKR, PSM and DAP rather than UMNO. So how much more accommodation does it take before the communitarians in our midst realise that we have to build a new non-racist Malaysia on the common platform of a universal citizenship?
The other worry is that Mindraf may yet drain support and members from the other parties of the Pakatan, notably PKR and DAP. At a time when we need to create an alternative mode of Malaysian politics that transcends the narrow, parochial and primordial sentiments of racial and religious solidarity, a party like Mindraf merely goes against the grain – and in fact confirms and further sediments the hegemony of divisive communitarian politics in Malaysia.
It is also during times like this that I feel that all our efforts (not mine alone) to promote a new de-racialised non-communitarian politics in Malaysia has achieved so little, despite the energy and time invested. Honestly, we are not going to have a new Malaysian politics unless and until we think, live and behave like Malaysian-minded Malaysians. And that day has yet to come, my friends. Sadly.
No doubt there is no need for another sectarian party and one that is purely sectarian. DAP and PKR are supposed to be non-sectarian but we all know in each party one race dominate. Mindraf is purely sectarian – something the entire opposition movement is suppose to be moving away from.
The truth is when you are as marginalised as the Indians, you want and think solutions should rightfully be faster, first and more. Being equal to them means getting more first..But how do you accomodate them more first if you preaching equality and non-sectarianism? Have faith you will survive the more socialist and meritocratic process?
When the whole NEP was conceived Tan Siew Sin warned of this. Groups will pop up demanding ‘special’ treatment even as the country try to work towards equality. Orang Asli, Women groupsl, Single Parents etc. It would be never end. It was a pandora box and the monsters are popping up, everywhere. At the core is the fundamental debate of whether affirmative actions makes sense at all and all the decades of lies about the suppose success of the NEP is coming back to haunt us.
The answer is a resounding NO! Having been ‘tortured’ and ‘tormented’ by communal politics for 51 long years, there is no reason for the people to want a return of that ‘dark era’.
I think a 2-party political system is the best system for Malaysia to move forward to achieve development and progress, both politically and economically, as we have recently witnessed how Najib promised the people of greater democratic freedom and how he liberalized the 27 sub-sectors of the service industry (he also promised liberalization of the financial sector).
Without Tsunami 308, there would not have been a 2-party system (nascent though it may be) and in turn, there would not have been promise of greater democratic freedom and liberalization of the economy by the new Prime Minister.
To sum it all, without a 2-party system, the people and politicians are still trapped in the political quagmire of communal politics.
To side tract,
I was surprise to read below Yahoo news, Malaysia is judged as the second cleanest country after Japan in Asia, a study done by a top university in USA.
http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/a/090421/69/1i8a6.html
I think it is more on air quality and overall environment but not about rubbish found on streets in Malaysia.
I guess it is a good selling point to attract more foreign visitors and investors to Malaysia.
Such international study will be 1000 times more powerful than the many costly overseas trips done by the Tourism or MIDA/MITI ministry to promote Malaysia!
To all PR goverments, pls make good use of such great news to seduce foreigners to visit or to invest in your states, especially the Japanese and the Koreans, whom treasure most on cleaniness.
Now that the LTTE has been demolished in Sri Lanka, why not those ‘good samaritans’ form the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Malaysia here?
I think ‘No” might be an over-simplistic answer. It’s as clear today as it was 50 years ago when the Malay Rulers told the Reid Commission that they didn’t want communalism in the Constitution: communalism is wrong.
Having said that, if you look at a group of people suffering injustice and they share a common attribute that is strongly correlated with the injustice, it’s a political vehicle waiting to be jumped on. Doesn’t matter whether it’s race, religion, or Adam’s-Apple-and-Makeup, your cause is easily identifiable and possession of the attribute automatically qualifies your supporters (or defines traitors if they don’t want to get involved).
It’s not as easy as suggesting they join the PR parties that don’t have an explicit selection criterion that excludes them. I’m not sure about PKR – every time I read their website I’m left wondering why they exist. If you attend some DAP ceramahs (my local ones, for example), you’d struggle to imagine how the organisers have convinced themselves that they’re an all-inclusive party. Even their symbolism is racist. The “3 major races and others” can’t have escaped the attention of the least of the 3: how long before an ‘other’ race catches up and overtakes? How long before DAP decides to drop a first-stage engine and go into orbit with only ‘2 major races and others’? The MCA don’t seem to fear ‘devil take the hindmost’.
Who should ask Mindraf not to be sectarian? Isn’t this “do as I say and not as I do”? Yes it’s a disaster for anyone who dreams of a united Malaysia, but it probably seems like a good idea to anybody who observes that it’s what works for everyone else.
GE 13 is still a long way off. Perhaps Farish should start a “rational” party that neatly avoids some of the historical baggage and popular spin of the other PR parties. I’d vote for it, if I had a vote. I’d probably vote for LKS too – he’s a one-man institution, but I wouldn’t like to be faced with a choice of DAP and any other thinly-disguised self-preservation party in Malaysia: I don’t know if I’d be able to distinguish between them.
I think the persistence of one-horse political start-ups in Malaysia could be a sign that the ‘major’ parties still have work to do to persuade Malaysians that they have all Malaysians’ interests equally at heart.
///Now allow me to be blunt here: In the opinion of this writer, Malaysia does not need another communitarian party that caters to the primary concerns of a particular ethnic or religious community. We are already forced to work on a contested landscape where there are too many parties that are based on ethnic and religious loyalties, and yet another sectarian party will hardly bring us any closer to realising the notion of a Malaysia where identity is based on universal citizenship and equal rights.///—the author
Until UMNO stands for United malaysians National organization instead of United Malays National Organization, other race-based parties will not stop to grow. Why can’t UMNO work for the interests of all Malaysians without appealing to only one community for support, or stop tailoring government policies to buy votes of the malays, one wonder. Yet the new PM is talking about 1Malaysia, like 1Utama, a successful shopping outlets in Selangor.
Loh Says: Why can’t UMNO work
I actually believe there’s a hazard to the PR parties that UMNO could take the moral high ground. When it comes to self-preservation politics, they’re only worse by a small measure. I think a lot of support for PR comes from the actions of just a handful of political superstars who excel at holding the moral high ground.
In my view the PR parties don’t go far enough in pushing the ‘Malaysian Unity’ message. If Najib sprung a tax reform tomorrow on the back of the abolition of the NEP, paying a Cost Of Living Allowance tax credit to every holder of a MyKad, I think a lot of PR support might just evaporate in the light of a new dawn. Or if he did rename UMNO to U Malaysians NO, and push through some reforms to re-assert the superiority of secular law and start on a program of bringing the constitution into line with UN best practice so that Malaysia could be a global model for good governance, PR could be left in the dust – complaints about ‘swirling allegations’ being ignored ‘in the national interest’.
Being the second least attractive option in a 2-party system isn’t the worst strategy in the world: it’s the second worst strategy. The prospect of UMNO springing a ‘new dawn’ surprise is admittedly unlikely, but it remains a risk, doesn’t it? The recent limited liberalisations may have been a test to see how well received ‘the right thing’ would be. UMNO may be banking on ‘the right thing’ not actually being ‘a good thing’, based on the observation that the Opposition don’t seem to be terribly committed to it.
It’s hard to say isn’t it? That’s the problem with 2-party politics, if you don’t get 2 parties committed to battling it out to prove which one is better, you end up with 2 parties trying to suck votes off each other by pretending they’re less unattractive than the other.
I think greedy politicians and “soldiers of fortune” will continue to form political parties to seek fortune, positions and power. It is up to us Malaysians to assess and determine the fake from the genuine. Many Malaysians are racists and that is why politicians are just capitalising on it. To make matter worse, cunning politicians are reinforcing and accentuating racism among us. The solution lies in us. We must identify and only support parties that are sincerely and truly multi cultural, religious and inclusive.
Some of you here, may be through years of indoctrination, have always said that DAP is a sectarian party supported only by the Chinese. That is wrong. DAP has the most progressive constitution which even UMNO is now trying to emulate today. If other races are not supporting DAP, it is because they are racists through years of indoctrination. They are taught they are the “tuan” and they can’t stand equality and fair treatment for all. But guess what has happened. Even the racist policy is not working anymore because most people have awaken to the reality that ketuanan is only meant for certain people within their racist group. This is good. We must continue propagating the idea that racial equality and fairness to all is a non zero sum game. All will gain and none will lose. Only the rent-seekers, the cronies, and the do nothing ministers and civil servants will lose. We the people must take charge of our destiny, not this small group of rent-seekers, cronies and half baked ministers and civil servants.
Wind of change and Power to the People.
///If Najib sprung a tax reform tomorrow on the back of the abolition of the NEP, paying a Cost Of Living Allowance tax credit to every holder of a MyKad, I think a lot of PR support might just evaporate in the light of a new dawn.///–OrangRojak
That would be good for the country. A two-party system will finally become meaningful when they will check each other on the role in performing the functions of modern government. PR will have longer to wait in trying to form the federal government while BN will have to work to remain in power. The inconvenience for the politicians will be a gain for the people and the country. TDM have wasted forty years of precious Malaysian time since he beame a torn to TAR and and ended up haunting AAB. Najib does not have to wait for TDM to be called to God to spring a pleasant surprise for the country.
We certainly do not need another sectarian political party to fight for the rights of one ethnic group only.
Why do Indians keep insisting on digging in to perpetuate the old politics? If they fight for all races, they will gain much more multi-racial support than fighting for one race only.
The issues that affect Indians such as poverty also affect all races. By fighting for all races, you also uplift your own race. Why do these people keep having a blinkered view through their own racial lens? Are they not bighearted enough to fight for all races?
Ethnic parties is the key to BN’s racial divide and rule strategy. Multi-racial parties will spell the end of BN. Unfortunately, many Indians are unable to escape the racial prison that BN has built for them.
I’m also sick of people saying communal politics is better but they cannot practise it until everybody is doing so. Why don’t they start with themselves instead of helping to perpetuate sectarian politics?
52 years of race based politics has not uplifted Indians. Another 50 years will produce the same result. The structural flaw of race based politics is that the dominant race will always get the most while the weakest race the least.
The only way forward is multi-racial parties where all marginalized people are uplifted irrespective of race.
If Hindraf and Mindraf will not recognize this, they are doomed to perpetuate a system that has failed them.
///52 years of race based politics has not uplifted Indians. Another 50 years will produce the same result. The structural flaw of race based politics is that the dominant race will always get the most while the weakest race the least.///– KennyGan.
True, except for mamaks, the Indians who chose to call themselves Malays. It is because the mamaks lost their identity with Indians that they insisted on exacting a pound of flesh from Malaysians who stick with the race of their fathers. Mamaks rob the Malays pretending to be one of them, and they would not allow the country to become race-blind.
Let see if DEO can become the General Secretary of DAP?
Loh says { True execpt for mamaks,the Indians who chose to call themselves Malays “.Loh,why the UMNO and Malays accepted these Indian so called mamaks as their own kind ?. Do you think UMNO and Malays can also accept you as Malay when you “masuk” islam ?. Born a Malay is always a Malay.I cannot and will never accept any of my Malay friends even if he or she converted to christianity as CHINESE .
///why the UMNO and Malays accepted these Indian so called mamaks as their own kind ?///–frankyapp
Tunku Abdul Rahman remarked that whether or not he was accepted as Bapa Malaysia, he was certainly not a mamak. Tunku was very clear that TDM was a mamak, and he sacked TDM not because he was a mamak. It must be noted that at one time, some non-Malays who did not claim to be Malays were accepted as UMNO members.
Since umno did not bar Mamaks from the party, as time went by, mamaks got stronger, and one became president for 22 years. Of the 2 million plus members, the majority bulk was not mamak, but mamaks controlled the lever of power, and they were more competitive than most other non-Malays in business on equal term. So when they are accepted as Malays because of article 160 of the constitution on the interpretation (of Malay) they naturally beat the true Malays in all business opportunities. It is much worse when they were given special privileges. Thus what chance do the ordinary Malays have against people who had the privilege on top of the capability of non-Malays which Malays claimed that against whom they could not compete? It should be interesting for Malays to find a breakdown of the share of political power and business wealth mamaks have among the article-160 Malays. Any wonder why the mamaks in Penang were the first to create trouble for Pakatan rakyat government. Mamaks had more share of NEP largess under NEP ever since TDM stopped public tender and used NEP to create ‘Malay’ millionaires. Mamaks would stop the emergence of race-blind politics in this country, and TDM’s writing in his CheDet.cc testifies to this.
So while we may disagree with the tone and tenor of Mindraf’s communitarian political-speak, let us not miss the wood for the trees. Mindraf did not invent racialised communitarian politics in Malaysia, it was the component of the Barisan Nasional parties that did, and continue to do so. Mindraf did not begin a new trend of race and religious-based political association and collectivism in Malaysia: it was the older race and religious-based parties and movements like UMNO, PAS and ABIM that did, and continue to do so. Mindraf did not invent the language of racial and religious identification in Malaysia, for these terms were already hoisted on them and the minority communities of Malaysia by the state, the mainstream media and the conservative reactionary forces in this country long ago. It was the politicians, political analysts, media commentators and communitarian activists who referred, for instance, to the Hindu temples of Malaysia as ‘Indian temples’; and who continue to refer to Malaysians of South Asian origin as ‘Indians’ or the ‘Indian community’….
In fact the above words were taken verbatim from Dr Farish Noor’s Article “Hindraf, Communitarianism and the Made-In-Malaysia Dilemma” November 29th, 2007 in his “The Other Malaysia” Blog though I have substituted the word “Hindraf” in his article with “Mindraf”. :)
Farish you have defended Hindraf when it was attacked from all quarters for being communitarian and sectarian – “if Hindraf is to be accused of communitarianism and exclusivism in its politics, then we need only to look at the mould from which it emerged: a cauldron of racialised, divisive and exclusive politics that clearly bears the made-in-Malaysia stamp, a symptom of the ills of our times and the failure of the state.”
Hindraf representing Hindus is even more sectarian/narrow than Mindraf representing a wider group of Malaysian citizens of South Asian origin including but not limited to Hindus.
Has Farish now changed his stance even if Hindraf is recognised as one of main catalysts for the political tsunamy of 8 March 08, and its leaders paid and are paying a big price in Kamunting ?
Or is he worried that with Mindraf formed, it would replace or marginalise MIC more to join with BN than help Pakatan Rakyat in its Cause?
So far no political party outwardly representing communitarian sectarian interests has yet joined Pakatan Rakyat. There is also a question whether party with communitarian sectarian agenda fits into Pakatan Rakyat’s professed political national agenda!
On the other hand, a party purporting to represent communitarian sectarian interests will fit mould of BN’s main parties UMNO, MCA and MIC.
Jeffrey Says: So far no political party outwardly representing communitarian sectarian interests has yet joined Pakatan Rakyat.
Is that a deliberate play on words, based on the fact that Pakatan Rakyat doesn’t officially exist, and so cannot be joined? When did PAS become the Pan-Affiliation Society? Is there a distinction between Hindraf and PAS that I’ve missed?
Per OrangRojak’s posting, much hinges on scope of meaning of that obscure word “communitarian” used by Farish. As I mentioned UMNO, MCA and MIC, I meant the narrower meaning – ethnocentric/race based parties of which PAS is not, but Mindraf purporting to represent a group of Malaysian citizens of South Asian origin is.
However I would agree that communitarian from word “communitarianism” may likelier have broader meaning. What exactly is Communitarianism, a word of 20th-century origin?
It is a political/philosophical theory that individual freedoms have weakened the bonds of community, and that as a result, individual rights must be balanced against the more moral (read sectarian) interests of the community. Then again what exactly is sectarian?
Without attempting to draw a line where “sectarian” begins and ends (where its antithesis – cosmopolitanism/universalism then begins) and whether DAP & PKR platform or any part of it could fall within the communitarian definition in widest sense, I guess it would certainly be safe to include narrower religious based groups like Hindraf and PAS to be within scope of the term “communitarian”.
In that sense OrangRojak was right to point out that PAS inclusion within Pakatan Rakyat would contradict my earlier statement about no political party outwardly representing communitarian sectarian interests having yet joined Pakatan Rakyat. :)
Sabah tested a multi-racial party government for about nine years under party Berjaya.Sabahans were happy for about 5 years as social services,,enonomic activities and development funds were distributed quite evenly to all sectors of the population.Unfortunately,due to pressure from the Federal/Central government,Berjaya whose top leaders were Malays particularly the CM changed coast to adhere the NEP implementation of emphasising the privileges for the muslim malays,hence side tracking the local ethnic Kadazan,Dusun and Murut bumiputera.The NEP inplementation turned so bitter at one stage that the malays/muslim were considered Ist class bumi,the ethnic Kadazan/Dusun/Murut who are mostly non-muslim were classified as 2nd class Bumi and the chinese as 3th or 4th class citizen only.These political scenario remained bitterly disputed endlessly especially by the three major ethnic and other minority ethnic groups started in the early stage of the Berjaya Party second term of office.The situation worsen hence the split of the Berjaya Party top leaders especially leaders from the Kadazan/Dusun/Murut group who later formed their own communal or sectarian party.The Party Bersatu Rakyat {PBS} though multi-racial in name but sectarian in nature and later defeated Berjaya Party and formed the state government.The rest was history.The sabah ethnic non-muslim groups felt marginalised in every respect of their livelihood even though they were in the government through Party Berjaya.Similarly though MIC is a partner in the BN but the Indians were marginalised,thus most indians felt that it’s best for them to form Mindraf to tackle their problems.As a Sabahan I can feel their frastration and the strong desire to have their own platform to voice their fair and square share of the cake.
Please lah, wannabe (Jeffrey), you don’t have to show that you are one up on others. Yes, sectarian politics is introduced, inculcate and reinforced by UMNO-BN and also PAS, but does this mean that others have to follow this kind of politics in Malaysia. Have we not had enough of all these. UMNO-BN and PAS are not our teachers, got it, wise guy? A very simple analogy for you: If terrorists go around bombing and killing innocent people, should others then do the same?
In fact if you look at it closely, the politics of the whole country have more or less UMNO’s disease. Yes, the number 1 and number 2 in the party should not be contested, the outgoing party president shall decide who should be the successor, there is no way one could challenge the president unless of course the president has chosen to step down, all parties must have the youth, wanita and puteri winds who then put up all kinds of stupid demands and pressures (as if all these are special groups of people within the party).
It is precisely every party in Malaysia has tried to follow the DNA of UMNO that we have racism and dictatorship mentality being so strongly entrenched in this country. I say go for inclusiveness, multi-racialism and multi-culturalism, period. As I have said before, DAP is the only party with a most progressive constitution. It has never wavered despite the institutionalised racism in the country. Only racists could condemn DAP for being sectarian because they can’t stand equality and fairness dished out to all. But I can see DAP’s philosophy winning because this is the only correct and viable way. The rest are bigotry, jingoism and parochialism.
Jeffrey, you are dead wrong.
Once again I have to acknowledge that I am moved beyond a whimper of rebuttal by LimKamPut’s customary deep insights : as always, he is always ‘dead right’ and every engagement has only left me with a humbling realisation that I knew a lot less than what I had initially thought I knew. :)
As a lot of Farish’s writings how, he clearly is not in touch with the social demographics and ground realities in Malaysia. Instead of advocating bold yet impractical ideas, he should work within the status quo to bring about changes with subtleties that are known to work within the Malaysian mindset. Instead of promoting a complete revamp of governance in the country, he would be more successful in being pleased with the small changes that bring the country one step closer to a real and tangible, just and equitable country for all its citizens.
I support Jeffrey’s view that Farish’s analysis is rather hypocritical. When Hindraf first emerged, Farish had defended them as Jeff had shown. But now he reverses he stand and sing a different tune.
However, this race based party issue that Pakatan been making a big issue out of it also highly hypocritical.
If Pakatan stand for multi-ethnic politics, then shouldn’t they disband religion-based parties like PAS as well ?
As for DAP, that the party has not moved beyond its Chinese roots is an indication that it is far from a multi-ethnic party.
PKR can be considered as a truly multi-ethnic one but only from a very superficial 40,000 ft level. This apparent multi-ethnic make up is rather skin deep as the leaders are appointed and not democratically elected like most other Malaysian political parties. I dare say that very very few non Malays would be elected to even divisional level if elections are held.
So Pakatan has a long way to go before it can claim to be a truly non ethnic based coalition. At this point, I don’t see it any different from BN.
While PR might propagate a more “Malaysian” approach, so far that has not been translated into action in the 4 states they rule. The blunder about DCM1 in Penang being reserved for a Malay is very telling. Even an Indian Muslim wasn’t good enough really surprised me since even UMNO doesn’t practice such discrimination.
Looking from a nuetral point of view, frankly there is nothing to separate BN and PR. And with Najib’s reforms, PR is in real danger of being caught with pants down and lose all the advantage they had. Before 0803, PR had the advantage of able to use BN’s track record against them. But now the advantage had been lost.
That even Penang’s DAP govt had failed to bring any improvement (and not real reform) is highly telling. Honestly, at this rate DAP/PR won’t retain Penang in the next GE.
All politicians are liars.
There is no clean politician in this world, there is only transparent one like the US but there are still question? Obama’s paying millions personal income tax, compare to local politicians, how much taxes they paid? well certainly that’s questionable aspect?
Therefore, we need more political parties, the party that can push for changes and for the people, not that talk and shout like for the people, act like one but not showing any results, this is not a personal battle for personal gain (Keadilan) or religion gain (PAS) or cronies gain (BN). Ahmad Fairus have stepped down now and PKR has lost its grip in Perak, due to someone is playing fire at the end burn his own fingers. There is already rumour that someone will put his close kins to interfere in Penang. Well, if this rumour is true then it is true we have a family business here in Malaysia. People really got no chance to elect their representative.
During the DAP 100 days meeting with people, i don’t see many supporters turn up, is it because, penangites start losing interest in the current affairs?