Republic of virtue 7/09

Malaysia no longer a "Tanah Melayu" PDF Print
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Monday, 20 July 2009 12:16

Azly Rahman
http://azlyrahman-illuminations.blogspot.com/2009/07/rest-in-peace-beng-hock.html

Today is July 19, 2009, 40 years after the May 13 1969 tragedy.

I dedicate these notes to Teo Beng Hock, a young Malaysian who ought to be an inspiration to many wishing to call Malaysia home.

Because we have agreed to become a country rooted in a social contract that ought to give equality, equity, and equal opportunity to all who have given up their natural rights in exchange for "citizenship" and the rights of the State to tax them (with or without representation), we must recognize that Malaysia is for Malaysians.

This will be the most humane perspective we ought to work towards in holding. What is needed is a system of check and balance that will ensure that each generation of Malaysians will progress without the trappings of mistrust, hatred, and institutionalized racism.

But first, we must all fight for the installation of this reality. Political will that will move this agenda of ethical liberalism must be harnessed and be made the driving force for social, cultural, educational, and psychological change.

The idea of "Tanah Melayu" must be reflected upon -- of its relevancy and whether it is a kind of ideological thinking that will help develop a culture of peace or help nurture inter-racial hatred.

Communal politics is an old school thinking that cannot survive the wave of cosmopolitanism; just like the any idea that could not survive the inevitability of historical change propelled by changes in material condition and consciousness.

In Malaysia, the days of communal politics are numbered, however well it is packaged and propagandized. Multiculturalism, and in fact radical multiculturalism, or better still radical marhaenism is the next wave. Institutions that promote racism must be deconstructed and abolished; institutions that are funded by the ruling regime to ensure the hegemony of this or that race. Dismantle them before they become yet another layer of complexity in our consciousness; a layer that hides the structural violence inherent in a system of racism and false consciousness called "nationalistic history".

The only permanent thing is change, as the Chinese philosopher and mystic Lao Tzu said. Man has no nature, what he has is history, said the Spanish philosopher Ortega Gasset.

And there will be beauty in this change if we know how to destroy the beast within.

I am reproducing an essay I wrote sometime ago on "Ketuanan Melayu"

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A Malay view of 'Ketuanan Melayu'
Azly Rahman | Feb 4, 08 2:51pm

‘O people! Your God is one and your forefather (Adam) is one. An Arab is not better than a non-Arab and a non-Arab is not better than an Arab, and a red (i.e. white tinged with red) person is not better than a black person and a black person is not better than a red person, except in piety. Indeed the noblest among you is the one who is deeply conscious of God.’ - a saying of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon Him)

‘Malaysia - to whom does it belong? To Malaysians. But who are Malaysians? I hope I am, Mr Speaker, Sir. But sometimes, sitting in this chamber, I doubt whether I am allowed to be a Malaysian. This is the doubt that hangs over many minds, and ... [once] emotions are set in motion, and men pitted against men along these unspoken lines, you will have the kind of warfare that will split the nation from top to bottom and undo Malaysia.’ - Lee Kuan Yew, now Senior Minister, Republic of Singapore

Instead of defining Ketuanan Melayu as ‘Malay superiority’ which is quite meaningless, philologically inaccurate, and philosophically arrogant, I think the word ‘dictatorship’ is closer in meaning. As you read this piece, please refrain from value judgment and from bring trapped in the prison-house of language pertaining to the word ‘dictatorship’.

To dictate connotes to tell, which connotes to narrate. To narrate means to weave a story based on an ideology. To ideologise means to encapsulate. To encapsulate means to be trap. Dictatorship, here might also mean an entrapment. Instead of acknowledging one's freedom to rule, one is acknowledging being in an entrapment - and to rule out of that condition. This is a form of false consciousness.

Words, as a literary theorist Raymond Williams might say, must also be contextualised/situated within the economic condition they emerge in. Marx's famous dictum that human beings' existence is defined by the economic condition they are in and that this condition is already predetermined. This is a deterministic view of human history.

I first read heard the phrase Ketuanan Melayu in the mid-1980s from a book by one Malik Munip. I was reading his work, at the same time reading Lim Kit Siang's ‘Malaysia in the dangerous 80s’, to get a sense of the argument. I was an undergraduate reading Literature, Education and International Politics.

I also heard that Malay students were discouraged from reading Kit Siang's work and encouraged to read ‘Ketuanan Melayu’. I love banned books and books that others tell me not to read. There is a sense of intellectual challenge to be able to read banned books.

I read Mahathir Mohamad's ‘The Malay Dilemma’ and Syed Husin Ali's ‘Malays: Their Problems and their Future’ and Syed Hussein Alatas’ ‘The Myth of the Lazy Native’ at the same time. Again, to get a sense of balance.

I read Malaysian official publications on economic outlook, juxtaposing them with a close reading of analyses on the political-economy of the Malaysian capitalist state.

I read the work of Freud and Marx to see where some of the major authors of the Frankfurt School of Social Research are going with their arguments on totalitarianism. I read the Quran and the Bhagavad Gita, the Ramayana, and the Mahabharata to see where the arguments on race superiority lie and what the fate of humankind will be.

The idea of social dominance and racial superiority might all be primarily about economics, if we are to read the history of the development of ideologies of superiority. But my question is - who has the right to claim that this or that land belongs to this or that group of people. At what point does culture and citizenship meet and negotiate the issue of egalitarianism? When does ‘the truth of one's culture’ reach its limit and the question of ‘the truth of citizenship’ dominate?

This is a very complex question Malaysians must answer after 50 years of Independence. We must open up the dialogue on this issue.

Lyrical propaganda

Let us look at how the idea of ketuanan Melayu is disseminated to the young. One way is through indoctrination camps in which songs are used.

Over the decades, perhaps millions of Malay students like me were taught the dangerous propaganda song, ‘Anak Kecil Main Api’(A Child Plays with Fire). One verse concerns the power of the Malays::

… kini kita cuma tinggal kuasa

yang akan menentukan bangsa

hasil mengalir, ke tangan yang lain

pribumi merintih sendiri…

My loose translation of this 1980s propaganda song by the Biro Tata Negara reads:

… political power is what we are only left with

one that will determine the fate of our nation

wealth of this nation flows into the hands of others

sons and daughters of the soil suffer in solace...

I do not think we have a clear understanding of what the lyrics mean. I doubt if the songwriter even understand what a 'people's history of Malaya' means. It is a song based on racist intents; its lyrics penned by one who does not have a good grasp of the political-economy of Malaysian history, let alone the latest advances in the field of psychology of consciousness.

The training programes that encapsulate the theme of this song are meant to instill fear of the Malays, not of others but of themselves, and to project hatred onto other ethnic groups without realising who the enemy of the Malays really are.

Using relaxation techniques to bring the brain waves in the alpha and state (conducive for suggestive and subliminal messages), trainees were put under ‘half-asleep’ conditions to get the ketuanan Melayu message to colonise the consciousness. The technique pioneered by Russian brain scientists Barzakov and Lozanov in the1970s, called ‘suggestopedia’, is used to instill the deep sense of fear for oneself and hatred of others.

History is a complex syntagmatic pattern of interplay between technology, ideology, culture, inscription and institutionalisation not easily reduced to simplistic lyrics as such sung to the tune of pre-war German-nationalistic-sounding compositions.

History is about the complex evolution of the ruling class which owns the technologies of control. As Marx would say, at every epoch it is the history of those who own the means of production that will be written and rewritten. The winners write history, the losers write poetry or study anthropology, some would lament.

Back to the lyrics. After 50 years of independence, who is suffering in Malaysia? Who has become wealthy? Who has evolved into robber barons? What has become of our judiciary system, our universities, our city streets, our sense of public safety and security, our schools, our youth, and our entire socio-economic arrangements at the eve of the 12th general election. How has the idea of ketuanan Melayu contributed to this state of affairs?

Language of power and ideology is at play in those lyrics. The definition of ‘bumiputera' is at play. It has become a problematic word in this age of deconstructionism; an age wherein as the poet WB Yeats said, "the centre cannot hold".

Rock musicians will recall the Scorpions' famous song 'Winds of Change' to serenade the fall of the Berlin Wall and the beginning of the breakdown of the Soviet Empire. We have to face the 'wrath' of the word.

Put an end to Ketuanan Melayu

For Muslims in Malaysia, this saying by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is familiar: ‘Your descent is nothing to be proud of. Nor does it bring you superiority. O people! All of you are the children of Adam. You are like equal wheat grains in a bowl ... No one has any superiority over anyone else, except in religion and heedfulness. In order to consider someone a wicked person, it suffices that he humiliates other people, is mean with money, bad-tempered and exceeds the limits…’

I would say that ketuanan Melayu is a dangerous concept that is threatening race relations. It is an arrogant interpretation of selective history; of a history that is largely benefiting those who profits from the ideology.

Those promoting this concept are not well-versed in the matters of philosophy of history. I do not think thinking Malays these days subscribe to the idea of ‘Malay dominance and dictatorship’. If there is a ketuanan of one race, then the rest are ‘slaves’ and ‘serfs’ and ‘sub-citizens’, if we are to analyse it from the point of view of ‘Master-Slave’ narrative?

As a Malay wishing to see the withering of and an end to the concept of ketuanan Melayu and the birth of a new consciousness that will respect the dignity of all races and the humility of all ethnic groups, I call upon Malaysians to continue to be critical of any attempt by any race to project their own sense of false superiority that would only breed dangerous ethnocentrism bordering on xenophobia.

We should work together to deconstruct all forms of race-based political arrangement and work towards establishing a new order based on a more egalitarian economic design that takes into consideration the basic needs and dignity of all races.

We should teach our schoolchildren how to deconstruct such sense of racial superiority, through the teaching of not only tolerance but social egalitarianism - via peace education strategies. We will have a lot to gain for generations to come.

OUR USUAL REMINDER, FOLKS:
While the opinion in the article is mine,
the comments are yours;
present them rationally and ethically.
AND -- ABOLISH THE ISA -- NOW!

Comments (31)Add Comment
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written by *********, July 20, 2009 12:20:26
Tanah Melayu is a relic of the past. Let's have a Malaysian Malaysia instead...More http://*********.********.com/...html#links
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written by aeromaverick, July 20, 2009 12:36:28
Tanah Melayu is political brew, deadly I must say, TDM introduced into the system, when his political power started to get eroded.
This country will not exist in its present vibrant format, if for argument sake all other non Malay citizens leave the country one day.
This is not due to some special gift they have, and the Malays do not have!
Its because of the disruption of the very fabric this nation is built on, over 400 years plus.
It takes all of us to tango, in MALAYSIA.
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written by storm62, July 20, 2009 12:50:28
should be "Tanah Komunis Melayu umno" now...or Tanah Jajahan Melayu umno.

anyway, we are living on borrowed land and time...it's ok if they claim this land belongs to them...GOD will collect rental from them later!!!
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written by harryo, July 20, 2009 12:51:48
I fear, as much as I hate to say, nothing much can be done to change ketuanan melayu as that is probably the only convenient means to go on with their lives confortably for generations effortlessly. The question of nons disputing that status would certainly become an issue that would threaten unity severely. I would draw attention to Manek Urai where UMNO almost defeated PAS.
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written by NSTPravda, July 20, 2009 13:01:29
Malaysia no longer a "Tanah Melayu"

Aiyah we knew that all along lah Malaysia is "Tanah UMNO" and there is only "ketuanan UMNO"... just look around lah!
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written by Oscar Winner, July 20, 2009 13:18:04
Anyone in Tanah Melayu who writes an article with the title "MALAYSIA NO LONGER A TANAH MELAYU" will be jailed for sedition. Luckily this writer is overseas
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written by asguard, July 20, 2009 13:25:36
better to be put into museum where belong's to ....
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written by mamanur, July 20, 2009 13:43:31
thank you Dr Azly,
i never believe in ketuanan melayu and i am malay.
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written by Ocassey, July 20, 2009 13:49:25
Well said, A.R. I would personally appeal to you to write in complete details the role , purpose and the types of venoms Biro Tata Negara is feeding our Rakyat all these years... especially those from the Malay section of the Civil Service who were selected to attend its brain-washings and the subsequent effects the nation is facing from these "graduates" from BTN. Were there non- Malay participants, a fractional % perhaps , involved to "witness and to acclimatetise" in future? This GIANT INCUBATOR (BTN) has long been a worry to Malaysians of MALAYSIA with the great numbers it is churning out to flood the nation with "RE-CONDITIONED MALAYS".
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written by Loh, July 20, 2009 14:34:18
We know TDM would uphold Ketuanan Melayu since that would only be worth while for him for converting to Malay from Indian Kerela root. AAB wanted to make this place more in keeping with Tunku’s vision, but he was powerless, and was checked by TDM who said that AAB did not do enough for Malay. We do not know whether Najib could outgrow his father’s racist vision. UMNO ministers and the 200 plus UMNO Division Chiefs cannot change their lifestyle if UMNO is no longer in power, and they will fight to death to make sure that the status quo remains. They would keep race-based politics at all cost. Since the top down control of UMNO is complete by the incumbents, can we expect them to lead their members to accept that Malaysia is a multi racial country and each and every citizens should be equal? How then can they have a role as Malay champions?
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written by REN DAIBO, July 20, 2009 17:54:21
A very well written article as always, Dr. Azly. You have quotes from politicians
as well as lyrics from songs to bring home your message. Well done Sir.
The title of the Article " Malaysia is no longer Tanah Melayu " is correct because
the original Tanah Melayu is "Malaya" but after the formation of Malaysia, with the joining of Sabah, Sarawak and the then Singapore, it cannot by any logic be called as Tanah Melayu. Nonetheless, Ketuanan Melayu is altogether a different matter, here a concept of institutional racism is being preached.
Regards,
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written by Siapabohong, July 20, 2009 20:18:13
Still very far, still very far.....
The race card has been played for far too long. Tanah Melayu kami orang punya, TongSan lu olang punya....Bukit Cina gua olang kasi sama lu punya, Hang Li Po mali itu jam, Kampong Melayu, Kg. Baru, kita orang punya, Little India, India mali punya, Shah Alam & lain-lain Bandar-Bandar Baru, kita punya, Taman OUG, Jalan H.S.Lee Cina punya, Taman Tun Razak, Jalan Melayu punya, Jalan Tun Sambanthan, India punya, ini rumah Cina punya, ini rumah melayu punya, india punya etc.... How to achieve Malaysia no longer a Tanah Melayu when everybody still think of their race come first and better than others?
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written by nanyangren, July 20, 2009 21:13:01
UMNOist is the real racial culprit.

They seek to defend Malay rights - insulting all the Malays, as if they need to be protected, at the same time suppresses their own kind.
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written by LJN, July 20, 2009 21:56:34
Azly,

I agree with you, but I beg to differ on your title. It should be, "MALAYA (not Malaysia) NO LONGER TANAH MELAYU". The fact is, only the Malaysa in the peninsula ever claimed that title. Sarawak and Sabah, they never were claimed as such.
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written by Nick V, July 21, 2009 06:58:57
Salaam and Thank you, Azly ... I've always followed your articles with delight.

It is indeed a privilege to have a Malay Malaysian stand by my side to demand for a Malaysia for all Malaysians.

For the last 50 year, many Malays especially in the rural heartlands, have been institutionalized by a racist elite to fear and be threatened by their own countrymen whose only 'fault' is being born not Malay. What is worst and most hypocritical is these racist elite have mostly benefitted their selfs at the expense of the very people they claim to be fighting for, and enjoying the spoils from the hard work of every Malaysian and especially the very people they say they are standing against. But we know race based political parties can only continue to exist when this distrust and hate continues. So, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Why I'm so grateful is because it would seem as a Malay, you do not have to do what you're doing. But because you are a civil Malaysian, standing up for a Malaysia for all Malaysians, I can hence see your sense of purpose.

There are many fair minded Chinese & Indian politicians fighting for a Malaysia for all Malaysians (none from BN for sure!), but truth be told is they can't do what you're doing to reach the Malay mind because unfortunately, many have been institutionalized to see the Chinese or Indian leader through jaded eyes.

Azly and Malay Malaysians of like mind, ... please continue to reach out to all of us so that one day, we will all not have to refer to each other as Malays, Chinese or Indians ... but as MALAYSIANS. Full Stop.
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written by Pakyeh, July 21, 2009 07:58:10
Anybody who wish to debate on Ketuanan Melayu is welcome to..

http://warongpakyeh.********.com
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written by Milo, July 21, 2009 18:28:27
If Tanah Meleyu is so important, why from Malaysia in the first place?
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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:01:37
///6. Kerana mereka rela berkongsi negara mereka dengan kaum lain, kaum yang berasal dari tamadun yang lebih tua (4,000 tahun) dan lebih berjaya, hari ini yang sedikit yang ada pada mereka pun hendak dipisah dari mereka./// -TDM

TDM is using the modern Malaysian government adminstration to project backwards as though there were Malay’s immigration control when non-Orang Asli came to Malaysian shores, to impute the sentiment of sharing of the nation by the natives and the immigrants. He is looking at the racial composition in Malaysia and wishes that it could have been completely a Malay country; how then would he as a Malayali belong? If he cared to go back to the pre-independence day when he was still listed as Mahathir s/o Kutty, Indian, in his student days, he would have noted that half the population in the country belongs to non-Malay residents, and they were all British subjects. Obviously whether the Malays liked it or not for immigrants to come into Malaya during the British watch, there was nothing the Malays could do about it. It was not right to claim that the Malays had sacrificed for the incoming of immigrants, as though they did involve in the decision. TDM could blame the British for changing the face of Malaya, but then if not for the British, his grandfather would not be in Malaya, and we would be celebrating today. It should also be noted that the four northern states of Peninsular Malaysia were ceded by Siam to the British.

When one talks about the past, one should choose the period which is relevant to the issue. The issue today should be after gaining independence from the British, has the government honoured the promise made between the leaders of three communities who together extracted agreement from the British for independence, and that they agreed to live by the constitution of independent Malaya.

It is simplistic to say that the Malays had to share the country with community which have longer history in civilization. It would not be correct even to refer to the true natives, the Orang Asli, because one cannot claim that they belong to a new group of people who had recently evolved from apes. It would certainly be wrong to talk about the earlier migrants called Malays who could have migrated from around the south east Asian region, including those from Arab, and Middle East which had history dating back as long as any other civilisations in the world. It is a myth to say that the Malays are native of Malaya as though they had just been evolved from apes recently, as TDM implied. It was wrong to claim that the local residents were sharing what they had with the newer migrants, as if they were limited land mass for them to make their living. The later migrants came in and developed Malaya together, under the British. They did not take away the land, but they made the land prosperous.

It is ridiculous that a person should claim a right to a place at the time when his ancestor was not even here. TDM is trying to promote discussion which would contribute more to dividing the people rather than uniting them. He is a clear case of a descendent from a 4000 old civilization from Kerela, India. And he is trying to mislead those who he thought had recently evolved from the apes.
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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:02:42
///7. Fikirkan hanya berkenaan Dasar Ekonomi Baru (DEB). Agihan kekayaan korporat dalam DEB ialah sebanyak 30% bagi bumiputra (walaupun mereka adalah 60% dari penduduk) dan 40% bagi kaum lain serta 30% bagi orang luar. Tetapi setelah diusahakan selama 39 tahun bahagian yang terdapat bagi mereka ialah 20%, sedangkan yang terdapat bagi kaum lain ialah hampir 50%, walaupun mereka hanya 26% dari jumlah penduduk.///-- Mahathir

It was never the objective of the NEP to nationalise wealth in the country and distribute them in the proportion as Mahathir tries to imply as if the Malays have been short-changed. The 30% was a target of Malays participation in the business sector. Participation in the business sector is nebulous concept, and there was no direct statistical indicator to quantify such participation; since it could be labour, management or capital. The EPU in the 1970s decided to use the share of corporate equity owned by Malays as a proxy for Malays’ participation in the business sector. It is now taken as a measure of wealth owned by Malays in Malaysia. Certainly mega land holdings such as FELDA which was run on a pure corporate basis should have been included in the EPU statistics as part of the 30% has not been included.

Tun Razak’s government established government investment corporations to participate in business, and the government intended to hold them in trust for Malays, and the equity shares would be sold to Malays when they were able to own them. It was no yet a transfer of government funds directly into the pockets of Malays.

Soon after Mahathir became PM in 1981, he declared that NEP would have been a success if he could make a Malay millionaire. Mahathir introduced the negotiated tender for government projects and procurements in place of public tender which had been the norm since 1957. We know that Mahathir had made many Malay billionaires, and his sons and daughters are among the wealthy “Malays”. Najib announced recently that RM 54 billion worth of equity share in the corporate sector had been allocated to Malays since NEP, and at a discount under the aegis of FIC, but only RM 2 billion worth of the share remains in Malay hands. RM 52 billion have been cashed out by Malays, and if they chose to invest their funds overseas or held them in other forms of assets, the non-Malays cannot be held responsible when the share of corporate equity held by Malays in the country fall below the 30% , which they had owned, had they kept them. No body can have the cake and eat it. The government chose not to insist that Malays hold on to their shares, and keep their money in the country, it cannot hold non-Malays responsible to ensure that Malays have 30% to show.

The NEP was promised by Tun Razak to be in operation for 20 years, at the whims and fancy of UMNO leaders, and now Mahathir said that despite having NEP run for 39 years, the objective had not been met. The truth was the 30% had been met in 1990, but Mahathir chose to rename it as NDP but continued with the discriminating policy. Even now, the share of corporate ownership held by Malays, despite the sell off, was more than 30% according to ASLI’s report issued in 2006. The government has not honoured its commitment to prove ASLI wrong, more than two years after it announced its intention to do so. Mahathir seems to blame non-Malays that NEP had to be implemented for 39 years instead of 20 years. When UMNO steps on your feet, you are blamed for having your feet at the wrong place. How arrogant is UMNO, and Mahathir is its worst example.

At the time of independence in 1957, the proportion of non-Malays in Malaya was closed to 50%. Since NEP from 1970, two million non-Malays emigrated because of the discriminatory basis the policy was implemented. The non-violence ethnic cleansing was quite successful, especially with project M in Sabah which have brought in more than a million Muslims who have since become Bumiputras and bosses of Sabah. Yes, non-Malay population is decreasing.

The original intention of NEP was to have Malays participate in the business sector. Mahathir consider NEP as a licence to distribute wealth built by the efforts of others through government sanctioned robbery. Yet he complained that the non-Malays still owned more than their population share. Why did he not comment about the percentage of foreigners in local population against their percentage share? Only non-Malay Malaysians are susceptible to government bully, not the foreigners who have strong governments behind them.

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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:03:52
///8. Nilai harta milik bumiputra pula berjumlah 15% sedangkan yang baki dimiliki oleh bukan bumiputra disebabkan harta di bandar bernilai lebih tinggi dari di luar bandar.///-- Mahathir

The figure quoted by Mahathir has no statistical basis because the government department of statistics could not have conducted a study on the topic; it is not relevant to economic studies. Mahathir tried to divide the country by Malays and non-Malays, and he uses the term bumiputras versus non-bumiputras. The most expensive neighbourhood in Kuala Limpur is the Kenny Hill areas where Najib has his residence, and he is surrounded by very rich people, Malays or non-Malays. Poor non-Malays are also residing in rural areas as much as Malays. There is no way to value small orchard plantations owned by Malays, an equivalent environment where very rich tycoons in Hong Kong might be able to afford there.

The value of residence lies in its value to the residents, and its resale value. Certainly those who own dwellings on loan have the pay interest on them, the higher the value, the more it costs them to live in. We do not know the percentage of the owners of properties in the urban areas who have not fully paid up the loans; it would be high. We know that properties in urban areas are created on the former rural areas, and as with all new properties they are mortgaged. One wonders how much the net-equity, or sometimes negative equity remains held by owners of properties in urban areas. The prices of properties are what people are willing to pay. The recent subprime problem in USA is because property prices went down. That can happen easily if there is social unrest. Was it the intention of Mahathir to bring down prices in urban areas so that that ratio would look good?

Even the ratio Mahathir said was true about the value of properties in urban rural divides, it cannot be true in racial divide. In Hong Kong where 95% of the population are Chinese, there are certainly difference between the rich and the not-so rich Chinese. Would Mahathir suggest that there should be fights in Hong Kong to have equitable distribution; so that all becomes poor? Would Mahathir say that it was not a problem because they belong to one race? Why then should it be a problem in Malaysia just because government classify the people into bumiputras and non-bumiputras, as though they no longer possess full human intelligence.

For a person who talked about 2020 vision of Bangsa Malaysa to talk now about the value of houses, sum the value up by race, and to claim that Malays are marginalised because of the value on the property, he must have good reason. That reason is to cause trouble in the country so that he might make a political come back through his son.

The government banned discussion of sensitive issue because it is easy to arouse emotion of those who choose not to reason with their head, and to blindly follow the leaders. The topic raised by Mahathir shows that on casual reading he seems to make sense, but on further thought regarding its relevance to people leading their life in a modern world under the rule of law, unlike in the past where collective brute forces are needed to ensure self defence, it amounts to senseless jealousy that hardly has an relevance on a personal basis. Yet it would be difficult to get the ordinary people to analyse rationally the issue before they are clouded with emotions. But unless the matter is discussed publicly the taboo remains, and the people would never be able to rise above the susceptibility to indoctrination; a racial one is worse since good ethic values are forgotten. It would be easy for public figure to garner support on nebulous issues for political gains. The following questions would help:

What does it matter if the person who is exceedingly rich does not belong to one’s own race?

Why does it matter whether the Prime Minister belongs to the same race, if he is fair to all races?

What good if the Prime Minister belongs to one’s race if he is corrupt, and serves only his interest?

What does it matter if the sum total of the equity shares added up for one race amounts to certain level when one does not benefit from such ownership?

What relevance is the statistics summed up by race, when the race does not belong to something which one could feel real affiliation? For example, is the definition of race under Article 160 has any meaning when an Arab, Turks, Tunisian, Malayali from Kerela of India are called Malay when they practice Islamic religion?

What does it matter to a person if one among his “race” is successful if he does not, even if success is considered important to himself?

When 100 families among the Malays and NEWMalays owned 90% of the said to be short of 30% equity capital, what good is to the ordinary Malays if the same 100 families and their friends owned more, and be officially known to be equal to the official target of 30%?
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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:05:07
9. Tokoh bukan Melayu yang cuba duduki tempat Melayu (in the shoes of the Malays) jika ikhlas, akan rasa kekecewaan Melayu melihat hampir semua perniagaan dan perusahaan serta kekayaan yang diperolehi darinya dimiliki oleh bukan Melayu. Segala estet rumah mewah juga diduduki oleh bukan Melayu. Sikit benar orang Melayu yang tinggal di estat mewah ini. Lebih ramai yang tinggal di kawasan setinggan.

The non-Malays believe in Karma; you sow what you harvest. They believe that people are free to set agenda for their life. If they would like to succeed in any endeavour, they work for it. They welcome good opportunities, but they do not gang up to bully others so that they gain advantage with the strength of numbers. Non-Malays believe do not unto others what you do not want others to do unto you. We have a mind which we cannot see the sufferings of others. We feel that those who are poor and downtrodden should be helped; in the modern political language, there should exist a social safety net. We believe that the government has a duty to help the poor satisfy their needs, but the government should not work to satisfy the insatiable desires which had been made possible through NEP, by continuing with the perverted programmes which deviated from the original objectives.

When we possess the commiserating mind to help the hapless, we would admire people who have achieved success, in spiritual or material sense. When we see rich Malays, we would like to follow their examples of becoming rich, bound by adherence to basic values of ethic and civility. We are motivated by examples of success, but not become jealous of their good tidings, and much less work to dismantle others’ good tidings out of jealousy.

Iado said, in William Shakespeare Othello:

“ Poor and content is rich, and rich enough
But riches fineless is as poor as winter
To him that ever fears he shall be poor.
Good heaven, the souls of all my tribe defend
From Jealousy”

Mahathir, a prime minister of Malaysia for 22 years, promotes jealousy. And worse he promotes jealousy based on racial ground. He does it as a racial mercenary for gains, because he is ethnically based on blood flowing in his veins a Malayali originated from Kerela of India, and he is only trying to arouse the support of Malays for himself, and his son later to flesh out his dream of Malayali political dynasty in Malaysia.


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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:05:59
///10. Mungkin semua ini disebabkan kesalahan orang Melayu sendiri. Mereka tidak guna peluang yang disediakan bagi mereka. Ada yang salahguna peluang-peluang ini pun. Tetapi jika seorang pengayuh beca diberi sejuta Ringgit, apakah ia akan dapat berniaga dan berjaya dalam bidang ini./// -- Mahathir

If the Beca driver is given a million dollar, he should be very happy with the windfall. He could be able to purchase what he could not before because of lack of funds, and now, he would be able to satisfy his little desires, which might not be a need else he was suffering from wanting. Interestingly it is the person who was able to manipulate state funds as his own to talk about giving money to persons as experiment.

Why should a Beca driver choose an occupation which he was not familiar with? More importantly why should a Beca driver change his job just because he had the money? An artisan is able to perfect his skill because he loves his job. Man is brought to this world, and it is for him to choose how he wants to lead his life. It is bad to look down on jobs performed by others as ‘low class’. If there is no demand, the occupation would not exist. It is most unbecoming of any person to utilise the service of others and yet look down upon what others do. It is as though people who lead in those lowly occupations should not live. It is a disaster if the leader or once a leader of a country would declare that certain occupations are not dignified, like the example of Beca in this case.
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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:06:45
///12. Lihat sahaja sejarah perjuangan Melayu. Pada Pilihanraya 1955, diwaktu mereka menguasai 82% dari kawasan-kawasan pilihanraya, mereka rela memberi sejumlah yang tidak kecil dari kawasan - kawasan mereka kepada kaum lain dan mengundi calon dari kaum-kaum ini sehingga menang melawan calon Melayu lain (PAS).


13. Kemudian mereka anugerahkan satu juta kerakyatan tanpa syarat biasa kepada kaum lain sehingga peratusan rakyat Melayu jatuh dari 82% kepada 60%. Siapakah yang lain yang pernah lakukan yang sedemikian?///-- Mahathir

It is trite to say lies, damn lies and statistics; and what about those who use statistics to promote skewed views?

The British government was clear that unless there was racial harmony in the country, Malaya would remain a British colony. Malaya without Singapore had a total population of around 7 million in 1955, and 50 percent of them was Malays. The figure of 82% could represent certain electoral constituencies with Malay majority, and when non-Malays were fielded in those constituencies and won presumably with Malay votes against any opponents, the seats stayed with Alliance in computing majority. The hatred Mahathir has for Anwar was not because he was Malay, but because he was his political opponents. The UMNO leaders had non-Malays fielded the constituencies so that they would win against PAS. It was political power that the Alliance government of the time was thinking. It was not the largesse given to the non-Malays as Mahathir tries hard to defame Tunku.

The UMNO leaders of the days had to decide whether they wanted to pursue independence, or to remain the British subjects. The found the Chinese and Indian community leaders at the time agreeable to work towards independence, and agreeing to the provisions in the constitution of Malaya. Whatever they agreed to, they had the intention to honour them. It is irresponsible of the succeeding leaders of UMNO to decide not to honour the agreement in full, and to jerry-pick issues as though founding members and early leaders of UMNO, including the late father of Najib were selling out to non—Malays. It was as though the good fortune of Malays that a Malayali from Kerela of India, who by Satan’s will, descended upon Malaysia to help the Malays realise how weak their leaders were half a century ago.

UMNO had by its population and by normal parliamentary democratic practices more power than it ought to have. There is a person who now finds it opportune to fan racist sentiment, and he chooses to justify why the people should be divided by race. Australian and Californian governments have recently expressed regret for racist policies they forefather imposed on migrants. Here in Malaysia where migrants had been associating freely as equal with the earlier migrants, and the Orang Asli, the natives of the land, until a decade after independence, we find five decades later, a person who had absolute power and who practised racial discrimination for 22 years, finds it proper to give justification why racial discrimination is in order. Political leaders around the world progress with time, UMNO leader of past prominence regresses.

Everything under the sun is relative; longevity is good, until that is associated with a person who happens to be the greatest liability of the society.
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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:08:09
///14. Pada ketika itu nama rasmi negara ialah Persekutuan Tanah Melayu. Apabila Semenanjung Tanah Melayu dicantum dengan Singapura, Sarawak dan Sabah, perkataan "Tanah Melayu" digugur dan cantuman negeri - negeri ini dinamakan Malaysia. Dengan itu hilanglah identiti Melayu dalam nama negara sendiri. Tidak pula mereka tuntut nama-nama lain digugur.///-- Mahathir

The UMNO leaders who decided to form Malaysia were wrong for choosing the name which dropped the word Tanah Melayu, by Mahathir’s argument. Interestingly when Mahathir declared his vision of Bangsa Malaysia, he did not declare Bangsa Tanah Melayu. Whatever Mahathir chooses to support his argument at the time, it was the right and only right thing to do. People in Sabah would be happy to drop any name just that there could have remained independence outside Malaysia. Malaya was known as Malaya in the world before Malaysia was formed; we were never known as Tanah Melayu outside the country. In fact Mahathir is free to call himself emperor in his home.



///15. Tidak seperti di negara-negara yang membenar hanya bahasa kebangsaan mereka sahaja untuk semua sekolah nasional, orang Melayu bersetuju bahasa Cina dan Tamil dijadikan bahasa pengantar di sekolah bantuan Kerajaan. Bahasa Kebangsaan (Bahasa Melayu) tidak menjadi bahasa kebangsaan seperti di negara-negara jiran dan di Eropah, Australia dan Amerika.///-- Mahathir

The declaration of Human rights in the 20th century by the United Nations Human Rights convention provides for the parents the right to choose for their children to study mother tongues. Malaysians’ forefathers of the different communities had the foresight which the United Nations found it proper to support. Malaysians should be proud that the education system since the British colonial days has capitalised its strength in diversity.

Mahathir has recently defended the use of English. It seems a different logic works here when immigrants’ language are involved. He still respects his colonial master, the British. How low can a racial mercenary go, in terms of making seditious remarks?


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written by Loh, July 24, 2009 18:09:40
///16. Dan banyaklah lagi korban yang dibuat oleh orang Melayu supaya kaum lain mendapat apa sahaja yang dituntut oleh mereka, demi keamanan dan perpaduan rakyat dan negara.///-- Mahathir

The education system has been the same during the British colonial days. The carry forward of those schools involved no sacrifice of individual Malays. There are 60,000 Malay children in Primary Chinese schools. The parents of these children obviously did not agree with the perception Mahathir has regarding Chinese schools. The Chinese ask only to be treated fairly. As religious persons Malays respect fair play and equality advocated by Islam. There can be no sacrifice to allow others to practice what are respected by the religion. Mahathir no doubts consider a limit to the areas one can bully as a form of sacrifice. That is only in his dictionary.

///17. Apakah gamaknya perasaan tokoh yang meletak diri di tempat orang Melayu, terhadap semua korban ini? Apakah dia masih fikir yang orang Melayu harus korban segala-gala yang dituntut daripada mereka?///-- Mahathir

The only persons who are sacrificed are the Orang Asli; even their land was known as Tanah Melayu. The ordinary Malays sacrificed their good name so that UMNOputras could enrich themselves, and the success they achieved through their efforts were not recognised by UMNO leaders as such, to them the Malays owed UMNO the gratitude for what they achieved. The earlier migrants to Malaya did not have conflicts with the later immigrants. For without the efforts put in by all residents of the country, the urbanisation might not have reached the stage, at the time of independence. The indiscriminate deforestation and building of concrete jungles were the results of corrupt practices presided over by UMNO-led government

18. Dengan rencana ini saya tetap akan di cap sebagai racist oleh racist bukan Melayu. Tetapi kalau mereka sanggup menerima yang benar, mereka boleh banding korban orang Melayu pemilik asal negara ini dengan korban mereka untuk kepentingan negara ini.

It would be singing praises to call Mahathir a racist. He would be a racist if he had cared about the pride of the Malay community, like the late Tun Ismail would. To repeat, Tun Ismail said that Malays would give up Article 153 on their own, when they no longer required them, out of pride. Mahathir was only a mercenary, using the issue of race to advance his political interests. If he was a true racist, he would care about Indians’ lives in this country, rather than Malays which he was allowed to be associated only after the 1957 constitution provided the loop hole in article 160. It might be closer to describe him a racial opportunist.

///19. Saya berpendapat jika negara ini hendak aman dan maju, agihan kekayaan dan kualiti hidup semua kaum hendaklah adil (fair) walaupun tidak sama (unequal). Janganlah hendaknya mana-mana pihak atau kaum tanggung beban kemiskinan yang keterlaluan, sementara kaum lain hidup mewah. Mengumpan sokongan dengan mengambil hak satu kaum untuk diberi kepada kaum lain bukanlah caranya - lebih-lebih lagi mengambil dari yang kurang berada untuk diberi kepada yang sudah lebih berada.///-- Mahathir

A commiserating government cares about the people, and they cannot bear to see the suffering of others. When leaders can bear to see the sufferings of one race and not the others, they were only doing it to win the support of those who benefited. That divides the people, and the process would ensure that the people themselves stay divided, and to take side to ensure that their interests are protected. That is why polarisation persisted in this country, and will continue to be so when unequal treatments of the population are legally allowed.

The unequal treatment in early days after independence was to create level playing grounds. Mahathir makes the blatant attempt to justify it based on entitlement.

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written by rams609, July 27, 2009 00:41:34
NazlinHisyam,

If you come to my house, I would say " Please make yourself at home". I will NOT remind you,that you are a guest to my house and you need to behave.

If you are my auntie's son who lives with us, I shall NOT remind you that you are the son of my aunt every now and then.

Get the full picture?

You are a Malay. So is Dr.Azly. So am I.

See the difference?
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