Day: December 14, 2014

By Nigel Aw
Malaysiakini
Dec 14, 2014

Urgings for DAP to shed its Chinese-centric image and embrace more Malay members have been a staple message since the party’s rise in 2008 but something was visibly different at the party’s convention today.

The difference was probably most felt among some of the Chinese-speaking elderly DAP members who had complained they could not understand “90 percent” of the speeches.

The apparent gulf between the party’s elderly members and its mostly young speakers who spoke at the convention in Subang Jaya was perhaps symbolic of the transition the party was undergoing.

Speeches at the DAP convention in Subang Jaya were predominantly in the national language, peppered with Chinese, English, compared to its previous more Mandarin-oriented tone.

But the changes were not only confined to speeches as there were a visible number of Malay delegates, ranging from a pakcik clad in jubah to a middle aged men sporting a kopiah or women with tudung.

The sight was unusual for a party that had often been attacked by the ruling coalition as being “Chinese chauvinist”.

The gradual change of the party’s face in just a matter of years is perhaps facilitated by DAP’s tendency to place potential leaders into key positions regardless of seniority. Continue reading “DAP shows ‘Malay face’ as party targets Umno”

We are now engaged in a great battle for the soul of Malaysia – the politics of inclusion to unite all Malaysians to make Malaysia a great nation in international society versus the politics of exclusion based on hate, fear and imaginary enemies to further divide and polarise races and religions in Malaysia.

The UMNO General Assembly last month is a classic example of the politics of exclusion where the politics of hate, fear and lies reigned supreme, creating imaginary enemies and fears – that the Malays and Islam are under siege, that the Malays could suffer a fate similar like the Red Indians in the United States, that the Malays have become slaves in their own land, that the Chinese are out to grab the political power of the Malays, that ”if UMNO loses, Malays may never rule again”, and the “mother of all lies”, that the Chinese in Kedah burnt the Quran “page by page during a prayer ritual”!

The politics of exclusion is the politics to sow hatred, distrust, disunity and division in our multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-cultural and multi-lingual Malaysia based on The Big Lie that the Malays and Islam are under attack in Malaysia.

It is inconceivable and unimaginable that Malays and Islam are under siege after 57 years of UMNO government and six UMNO Prime Ministers, and this is why such exclusionary politics of fear and hate have to be based on The Big Lie.

In Malaysia on the eve of welcoming the new year of 2015, Malays and Islam are not under siege although UMNO and in particular the UMNO leaders and their cronies are under attack – the Umnoputras and not the bumiputeras are under siege!

Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy UMNO President, Tan Sri Muhhyiddin Yassin recently admitted that UMNO/Barisan Nasional would be ousted from power if the ruling coalition loses just two per cent of voter support in the next general elections.

This is why UMNO and their cronies, the UMNO-puteras are under siege, and not Malays, Islam and the bumiputeras.

For the first time in the nation’s history, UMNO/BN is poised of being toppled from power, not only in Putrajaya at the federal power, but also in the various states. Continue reading “Great battle for the soul of Malaysia – politics of inclusion to unite all Malaysians to make Malaysia a great nation in international society vs politics of exclusion based on hate, fear and imaginary enemies to further divide and polarise races and religions in Malaysia”