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‘Malaysia’: What’s in a name?

by Clive S. Kessler
The Malaysian Insider
Mar 10, 2011

MARCH 10 — “What’s in a name?” asks Shakespeare’s Juliet. “That which we call a rose,” she avers, “by any other name would smell as sweet.”

Likewise, “Malaysia.”

So what is in a name, and behind this one?

In a recent blog post (Semenanjung Tanah Melayu (http://chedet.co.cc/chedetblog/2011/03/semenanjung-tanah-melayu.html) , March 3, 2011) Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has repeated the claim — now almost a commonplace in the thinking of many Malaysian citizens — that it was only when the Tunku consented to the blandishments and machinations of retreating British power in the region that the name “Malaysia” was suggested for the newly proposed federation of the pensinsular Malay states, Sarawak, North Borneo (Sabah) and Singapore.

With that, Tun Dr Mahathir asserts, the Federation of Malaya (understood as the Malay Lands or States) or Persekutuan Tanah Melayu came to an untimely and underserved “official” end.

In effect, this claim holds, that older name or identity was throttled by an entirely new coinage, a hitherto unprecedented idea, a crude and ungainly neologism, and then buried under its weight. Continue reading “‘Malaysia’: What’s in a name?”

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Cops question students for 10 hours over ‘Interlok’

by Zaidatul Syreen Abdul Rashid
Malaysiakini
Mar 8, 11

Three Form Five students were yesterday taken to the Kuala Kubu Baru district police headquarters and traumatised by being questioned for 10 hours – all for wanting to return the novel Interlok to their headmaster last Friday.

Initially, seven SMK Kuala Kubu Baru students, who wanted to return the book because they were not happy with its contents, were stopped by a discipline teacher who allegedly abused them verbally.

“All seven of us we were walking calmly towards the headmaster’s room when our discipline teacher stopped us and started making comments at us, which hurt our feelings,” said one of the students, who was with four others at the Human Rights Party headquarters today.

According to the student, the discipline teacher said the students were purposely creating problems because of their race.

The teacher reportedly said, “Kenapa orang India garang? India memang suka rosakkan nama sekolah. Keling memang dasar pariah sejak sejarah lagi” (Why are the Indians so fierce? Indians really like to tarnish the school’s name. The keling have been pariahs since historical times).

The students were not able to return the novel as the teacher told them to disperse immediately. Continue reading “Cops question students for 10 hours over ‘Interlok’”

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Senior Gerakan leader resigns, blames Umno

The Malaysian Insider
Tuesday, 08 March 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, March 8 — A senior Gerakan leader announced his resignation from the party today, blaming it on the Umno’s “hegemonic race politics” that has changed little since the political tsunami in the last general election.

Dr Hsu Dar Ren said, in a statement today, that he was resigning from all his positions in Gerakan, including that of central committee member, Federal Territory state liaison committee member, division chairman, branch chairman and ordinary membership.

“Parti Gerakan is a party with good ideology to establish a fair and equitable society in Malaysia. It too has many conscientious members who subscribe to this ideology. Unfortunately, within the framework of BN, where the hegemonic race politics of Umno predominates, it is impossible for Gerakan to realise this ideal,” he said.

The disheartened Dr Hsu (picture), who has been a vocal leader, said that after more than five decades of “race-based politics”, the country has drifted so much apart that “racial polarisation has never been as bad as now”. Continue reading “Senior Gerakan leader resigns, blames Umno”

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‘Interlok a classic work of Malaysian racism’

Malaysiakini

Centre for Policy Initiatives (CPI) director Lim Teck Ghee has added his voice to calls for the novel Interlok to be removed from the Form Five Malay literature syllabus due to its perpetuation of “offensive stereotyping” of minorities.

This, while the controversial novel celebrates the virtues of the Malay race, culture and value system.

As such, Lim noted, it has led some quarters to see the novel as “the classic Malaysian racist book”.

In remarks e-mailed to Malaysiakini today, the former academician-turned-social activist said some may be tempted to invoke freedom of expression to justify maintaining the book as required reading in secondary schools.

That same “freedom to offend” would not, however, be granted if the offence were against Malays, he noted.
Continue reading “‘Interlok a classic work of Malaysian racism’”

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Letter to the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers on Interlok as Literature School Text

by Dr. Lim Teck Ghee

Dear Esteemed Malaysians,

I am not sure if you have been following this issue which is not only causing concern amongst many Malaysians but it also has the potential to poison young minds through its insidious and divisive racial stereotyping and messages.

I feel that, purely on educational and pedagogical grounds, this book with its denigration of the various communities, and in the context of our multi-ethnic society facing one of the most turbulent periods of our history, should be subject to higher standards of acceptance before being designated as a reading text in our schools.

This is not to challenge the artistic freedom and independence of the writer in pursuing his craft and writing on any subject that he chooses. In our country there is a need for greater candor and honesty on all types of divisive issues, however sensitive there are. Writers and artists should be encouraged to write freely and without any restrictions; and all Malaysians should work harder to dismantle the constraints on our freedom of expression and other freedoms.
Continue reading “Letter to the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers on Interlok as Literature School Text”

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Malays are afraid of themselves

Mariam Mokhtar | Feb 21, 11
Malaysiakini

The BTN or National Civics Bureau is divisive, racist and politically-motivated. Most people are aware of this except for BN politicians. Despite the serious allegations made about the BTN, their main coalition partners, MCA and MIC have not been effective in condemning the BTN.

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin denied claims that courses run by the BTN were a form of political indoctrination. He said, “BTN is to inculcate nationalism and unity among the people in line with the 1Malaysia concept”.

Talk of nationalism smacks of the supremacy of one race over the other races. If he had said that the mission of BTN was to promote patriotism, this would be more in line with the spirit of Malaysian unity.

After a media blitz on the BTN in late 2009, the cabinet decided that the BTN would be revamped as it had run counter to its aims of instilling a united Malaysia. When former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad disagreed, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nazri Aziz described him as racist.

Nevertheless, the task of revamping the BTN was given to Ahmad Maslan, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, who is also the BTN chief. As is common with most BN politicians, he flip-flopped and said that he was not going to revamp the curriculum but would merely ‘upgrade’ it. Continue reading “Malays are afraid of themselves”

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Season of goodwill

MIND MATTER
By Raja Zarith Idris
Sunday Star
Sunday January 9, 2011

If Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Isa (Jesus), a prophet respected and revered in Islam, is it so wrong to wish a blessed day for those who celebrate it?

DURING the days before Christmas last year, I wished my friends who were celebrating it “Merry Christmas” in much the same way they would wish me “Selamat Hari Raya” or “Happy Eid”.

I find it rather sad that such a simple greeting – one which I grew up with and which I have never regarded as something that would compromise or de-value my own faith – is now regarded as something so religiously incorrect for us Malaysian Muslims.

When I was at boarding school in England, I had to go to church every Sunday because it was part of the rules. My father advised me to consider it as part of my “education” and he had no doubt that the experience would strengthen rather than weaken my own faith. Continue reading “Season of goodwill”

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Critical test for Najib’s 1Malaysia

Yesterday, political scientist Farish Noor told the forum on public governance by the Perdana Leadership Foundation and the National Professors’ Council that Malaysia is dangerously close to absolutely breaking down if racial politics is not kept in check.

Farish, who said that Malaysia’s patterns of politics seem to reflect that of other countries which have suffered severe racial and religious discord, told the forum:

“I’ve spent more than 10 years studying dysfunctional countries and I believe we are going down the path of countries like Pakistan, Indonesia and Bangladesh.

“I have seen enough race and religious riots to see that Malaysia is close to going down that path.”

A week ago, former US ambassador to Malaysia John Malott warned that racial and religious tensions are higher today than when Datuk Seri Najib Razak took office in 2009 and even worse than at any time since 1969.

Najib’s 1Malaysia, which he promulgated as the signature theme of his premiership, is facing a critical test when more and more warnings are made inside and outside the country that racial and religious relations in Malaysia are at their worst since he became Prime Minister just short of two years ago. Continue reading “Critical test for Najib’s 1Malaysia”

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A race with no winners

by Zairil Khir Johari

I recently read about a family who had returned to Malaysia after many years abroad. Their six-year-old was enrolled into a local kindergarten. One day, during his first week in school, he came back excited about some race everyone was talking about.

Thinking there was a competition, his parents asked the teachers at school the next day. As it turned out, the other students had been pestering their son about his ethnicity, seeing as he had no discernibly stereotypical features, being a child of mixed parentage. The couple did not quite know what to make of it, as up till then, their son had no understanding of an identity other than his nationality — Malaysian.

Reading this story triggered a distant memory. I was around the same age during a brief sojourn in the United States, when one day a boy in the neighbourhood called out to me.

“Hey, Asian boy!”
Continue reading “A race with no winners”

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The Price of Malaysia’s Racism

Slower growth and a drain of talented citizens are only the beginning.

By JOHN R. MALOTT
The Wall Street Journal
Feb 8, 2011

OPINION

Malaysia’s national tourism agency promotes the country as “a bubbling, bustling melting pot of races and religions where Malays, Indians, Chinese and many other ethnic groups live together in peace and harmony.” Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak echoed this view when he announced his government’s theme, One Malaysia. “What makes Malaysia unique,” Mr. Najib said, “is the diversity of our peoples. One Malaysia’s goal is to preserve and enhance this unity in diversity, which has always been our strength and remains our best hope for the future.”

If Mr. Najib is serious about achieving that goal, a long look in the mirror might be in order first. Despite the government’s new catchphrase, racial and religious tensions are higher today than when Mr. Najib took office in 2009. Indeed, they are worse than at any time since 1969, when at least 200 people died in racial clashes between the majority Malay and minority Chinese communities. The recent deterioration is due to the troubling fact that the country’s leadership is tolerating, and in some cases provoking, ethnic factionalism through words and actions. Continue reading “The Price of Malaysia’s Racism”

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In praise of secularism

By AB Sulaiman

In my earlier but one commentary, I stated that the Malay problem is the root cause of the nation’s problems. Soon after it was published on Jan 6, a dear friend and former office colleague sent me a note.

Ali (not his real name) agreed with my observation but disagreed strongly with my suggestion that one of the ways of solving ‘the Malay problem’ would be to secularise the Malay mind. He seemed to be saying, “Yes I agree with all your observations so long as you don’t ask the Malay to secularise his thinking”.

His reaction was all too familiar, for secularism is considered a dirty word, amounting to blasphemy and apostasy, to the Malay community – a major sin in orthodox Malay reckoning.

But Ali, and those who think like and agree with him, can be no more wrong. Here’s why:
Continue reading “In praise of secularism”

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Pakatan wants Najib’s reply to Dr M’s Tanah Melayu remarks

By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal
The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 4 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) lawmakers have demanded that Datuk Seri Najib Razak respond to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s latest remarks that Malaysia belongs to the Malays and other races are expected to respect Malay sovereignity.

They want the prime minister to state his stand and views on the matter, and whether he subscribes to Dr Mahathir’s views or feels otherwise.

Opposition leaders said Dr Mahathir’s statement was a direct contradiction to Najib’s 1 Malaysia concept of equality. Continue reading “Pakatan wants Najib’s reply to Dr M’s Tanah Melayu remarks”

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Loyalty to King and country – or to BN?

By P Ramakrishnan

All citizens owe their loyalty to king and country – that includes civil servants. Civil servants are expected to serve the government of the day faithfully, irrespective of whichever party that forms the government.

They shouldn’t align themselves to any political party whether it is the ruling parties or the opposition parties. They should remain above politics and stay faithful to their vocation.

Their dedication should be to their profession and their commitment to serve and discharge their duties should not be wanting in any way.

This is how they preserve their integrity and safeguard their professionalism.

However this simple thing was not understood by the Johor State Director of Education, Markom Giran. He despicably attempted to force teachers to play a partisan political role. He was trying to corrupt the civil service. Continue reading “Loyalty to King and country – or to BN?”

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Creating a harmonious, just, democratic and competitive nation remains the single greatest challenge of Malaysians

The creation of a harmonious, just, democratic and competitive nation, which is a model to the world as an united, tolerant and successful multi-racial, multi-lingual, multi-cultural and multi-religious society, remains the greatest challenge of Malaysians.

Nation-building should not be a zero-sum game but must be a win-win formula for all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or region.

Malaysia has strayed from this formula, with a world diaspora of a million-strong Malaysians – testimony that Malaysians are helping to create the greatness of other nations instead of their own country.

Although there is belated official recognition that human capital is even more valuable than natural resources as national assets in the era of globalisation, there is still no political will to introduce nation-building policies that will develop and retain Malaysian talent as well as attract foreign talent.
Continue reading “Creating a harmonious, just, democratic and competitive nation remains the single greatest challenge of Malaysians”

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Imperative that the public lock horns over ‘Interlok’

By K Pragalath
Introduction by CPI
28 January 2011

The Star today frontpaged ‘Interlok stays’ as its main story and reporting Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin as saying the contentious novel is to remain a Form 5 exam text but with amendments to several aspects “deemed sensitive by the Indian community???.

A section of the Indian community suspects that the selection of this more than 40-year-old book – only reprinted as recently as last year – was impelled by an ulterior motive. The novel Interlok not only portrays the Indian community as the ‘pariah’ class that emigrated to the peninsula but has as its running theme a recurrent allusion to the Indian and Chinese races as ‘pendatang’ as well as many negative, racial stereotypes.

Muhyiddin was quoted by The Star (source: Bernama) as saying that his ministry’s decision to retain ‘Interlok’ was made “after taking into consideration the views of all parties, which acknowledged that the book was good in nurturing and strengthening unity among the multi-racial and multi-religious society in Malaysia???.

The Minister’s rationale and claim of “nurturing unity??? fail to withstand scrutiny when there have been nationwide protests against the book, countless police reports as well as threats of civil suits. These very acts in themselves are already indicative of the deep cleavages and ill-will that the book has engendered.

Are we to trust Malay Literature teachers, predominantly belonging to one race, to exercise an adequate wisdom and tact over such an emotion-rousing novel when the racist utterances of the Bukit Selambau (Kedah) and Kulaijaya (Johor) school principals still leave a sour taste in the mouth? Continue reading “Imperative that the public lock horns over ‘Interlok’”

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Returning to democratic foundations should be the top priority

Breaking Views
by Ahmad Mustapha Hassan
The Malaysian Insider
January 17, 2011

January 17, 2011JAN 17 — Malaysia is considered by the present leaders as being a democratic country. It goes to the polls every five years or whenever the ruling coalition feels the time is right. It allows its citizens to practise whatever religion they choose, with some major exceptions. It allows the media, electronic and print to exist, with again very major restrictions. But, of course, the rationale behind all these restrictions is to maintain peace and order. This is the common cliché used to justify the existence of all the preventive and restrictive laws. Of course, the real reasons are to maintain power.

Looking back on how Malaya then was formed, there was every reason to believe that our model of democracy would be a shining example to all the newly independent countries that were once colonies of Britain. Malaya followed the Westminster model. Malaya had all the trappings that would make all other countries envious of it.

It had a bicameral legislature just like Britain. Instead of the House of Lords, it created a nominated House known as the Senate. Members of Parliament were to be elected through a general election. It separated the functions of the Executive and that of Parliament. Each had a definite power of its own. The Judiciary was independent of the Executive. The separation of power was put in place to allow democracy to flourish. The media was to act as the fourth estate.

To top it all, Malaya created a unique constitutional monarchy to be rotated every five years by the nine Sultans in the country.

And the civil service was to remain neutral.

It was beautifully conceived by the founding fathers. The country was to be secular in nature although Islam was made the official religion with all other religions allowed to be practised. There was, in other words, religious freedom. Continue reading “Returning to democratic foundations should be the top priority”

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The insidious pattern

Breaking Views
The Malaysian Insider
January 16, 2011

Since Election 2008, the racial and religious mercury has appeared to rise in Malaysia.

Little incidents of friction have sprouted here and there, testing inter-community ties and blotting the Malayan, and later, the Malaysian dream of Tunku Abdul Rahman and the Merdeka generation.

Fact is, there is an insidious pattern all over Malaysia, especially in states held by Pakatan Rakyat (PR), where little slights have exploded into full-blown crises that appear to require the deft touch of senior politicians to maintain calm and cool-headed thinking.

Name the issue, from Lim Guan Eng’s name in a prayer, relocation of temples, destruction of suraus and, the latest, where a surau allegedly had its speakers turned down after a complaint from an MCA man.

Many of these things were brought up, broadcasted, twisted and turned to major issues when the solutions could have been found within the communities themselves.

What is certain is that most are linked to either Umno or their allies, who manufacture racial or religious slights and then go on about how Malays/Muslims’ interests cannot be protected by PR. Continue reading “The insidious pattern”

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MRSM schools obstacle to national unity?

by Azly Rahman

As hypermodernising societies such as Malaysia progresses in syncrony with the advancement of capitalism, and as race and religion becomes the foundation for decision-making in education, especially in elitist well-funded schools, Malaysia is faced with another dilemma of education and national development.

Is this country creating sophisticated ethnocentrists that will continue to sustain race-based ideologies?

Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (Mara Junior Science College) schools, well-funded, well-staffed with advanced degree faculties, and well-taken care of by the Malay-centric government may be one example of a phenomena of a successful failure in the system’s 40-year evolution.

The school system prides itself in innovative curricular experimentation drawn from best practice of schools, particularly those of the United States; as its original template was based upon.
Continue reading “MRSM schools obstacle to national unity?”

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Open Letter to Chua Soi Lek

By Kee Thuan Chye
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
Malaysiandigest.com

Dear Soi Lek,

You are a highly educated person and one with the ability to think. As such, you are probably aware that the welfare of this nation rests on more than just the MCA winning its share of seats at the next general election and remaining in the coalition that holds the power to decide the fate of Malaysia.

You are probably aware that the way forward for Malaysia is renouncing the way of the Barisan Nasional, led by Umno, falling back on an outdated decades-old formula. And that if you and the MCA continue to collude with the other parties in BN to retain power, you are subscribing to practices that could lead the nation to racial rifts and economic ruin.

Would you not agree with me that at this point in our history, as we stand at this crucial crossroads deciding which is the best path to take, national politics should no longer be race-based?
Continue reading “Open Letter to Chua Soi Lek”