Sensitivities of the races

Sensitivities of the races

Bernama highlighted in an article, entitled “The Star asked to do more to soothe hurt feelings” that Malaysia’s Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein is still dissatisfied with the newspaper’s response to the mistake of publishing a photograph of a pork dish in the ‘Dining Out’ supplement of the paper.

Being a Supplement pullout section of the newspaper, the article is basically a paid advertorial. While it may be courteous of The Star editor in charge of Supplements to alert the advertiser of the oversight, I think the Home Minister’s arrogance in dealing with the issue has gone a little bit too far – which reflects nothing less than an ungracious attitude.

As a cabinet minister, Hishammuddin has failed to realise that there are other races and religions in this country, and for any race relation to exist, whether it is in Malaysia or elsewhere, there must be mutual respect.

Although I agree that the picture of pork in a section of the paper which promotes dining out during the Ramadan month was out of place, Hishammuddin cannot act as if the whole world revolves around him, and his religion, and nothing else matters.

We have often heard the saying that displaying pork or even publishing a picture of wild boar is being inconsiderate to the feelings of the Muslims. For the sake of argument, I like to turn the table around and ask our Muslim friends, “Do you regard the feelings and sensitivities of people from other races and religions?”

When the decision was made by the religious council of Penang not to broadcast Quran recital in a mosque before the call to morning prayers, the State Government was being dragged into the issue. I thought the decision, which was subsequently followed by Perlis religious council and PAS spiritual leader Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, is laudable because the Prophet Mohammad had never advocated or created disturbance to the community.

I would go as far as saying that Hishammuddin’s game of politics no longer hold water, as people can now see through what was done to Teresa Kok, the Member of Parliament of Seputeh, over the issue of a loud hailer. Later, the mosque committee came forward to speak the truth: that the loud hailer was indeed not functioning, not because they were pressured to tune down the hailer.

Allow me to quote Hishammuddin’s statement at a press conference in Putrajaya: “If a mistake has been made, a very clear apology must be made to Muslims in the country.” What is obvious to me is that Hishammuddin should instead apologise to Teresa Kok, and the people of Malaysia, for raising a sensitive issue without prior investigations – and causing her to be held under ISA for nearly a month, during which the people of Malaysia rallied behind her.

I wish to ask our fellow Malaysians to just stop for a moment to ponder over a number of issues:

• Raid of Dream Centre owned by Damansara Utama Methodist Church by JAIS during a charity fundraising event organized by Malaysian AIDS Council. How do you think the church leaders felt when a function in their holy sanctuary was raided by JAIS officials and the police?
• It reminds me about a raid by JAKIM on a British married, old couple who were making Malaysia as their Second Home, on suspicion that they were having khalwat. How do you think they felt? They are a loving old couple who have been married for many years, but the snoops said it was khalwat?
• While the British old couple finally decided that they would just drop the court case against the Malaysian Government, and return to the United Kingdom, it makes me wonder why the Datuk T involved in a highly-sensitive video did not in the first place call the whole contingent of police, FRU and JAKIM to just raid the hotel room to arrest the actor in the sex scandal? In the first place, don’t you think such a video posted by certain bloggers to discredit Anwar Ibrahim, breaches the sensitivities of most Malaysians, if not Anwar’s own family alone?
• Desecration of the holy sacraments in a Catholic Church by two journalists from a Malay magazine. True to their religious tenets, the Catholics did not shout, “Kill them!” What if someone did the same to a Muslim’s holy sacrament in a mosque? Where are the 95% peace-loving Muslims, when the 5% would do anything, including shedding of blood in the name of the religion, which in the first place believes and promotes peace amongst communities?
• The use of the kalimah Allah by people of other religions. Both the Sikhs and the Christians have for centuries used the name Allah to refer to the One God Almighty, but it is only in Malaysia, Hishammuddin and his likes are banning the use of the Name that cannot, in the first place, be copyrighted. This, despite Nik Aziz (PAS), Anwar Ibrahim (PKR) and the international Muslim ulama, saying that there is no issue about non-Muslims using the name Allah in their religions. This clearly differentiates the ruling party’s stand from the majority of Muslims throughout the world.
• The banning and subsequently the stamping on the Holy Bibles by the Customs, which raised ire amongst the Christian community. This, in my opinion, is the most insensitive and inconsiderate thing that you can do to the Holy Bible, a book revered by some one billion people around the world.
• Serving beef during government-sponsored functions, which had caused a number of journalists to stage a walk-out. I wonder, come the Raya Open House by the Prime Minister and his cabinet ministers, will they still serve rendang beef the way how non-Muslims treat their Muslim guests respectfully by choosing to serve only halal food during social functions when they know there are Muslims amongst their guests?
• The spitting and stomping of a cow head by a group of Malay demonstrators in front of the Selangor State Government. Until today, Home Minister, Hishammuddin Hussein has never been able to produce the names of some PAS members who were allegedly involved, despite Khalid Samad challenging him to produce the names.
• A failed attempt by a trader to hand over a set of the underwear to Ng Wei Aik, political secretary to Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng. Another attempt by the same trader to hand over a coffin, another taboo to the Chinese, previously to Ng. What does Hishammuddin have to say to such a behavior?
• Accusation by UMNO-linked Utusan Malaysia that Christians were in collusion with Guan Eng to set up a Christian state. This, in my opinion, is the most absurd of all accusations because the Bible clearly forbids the taking of oaths.
• Firebombing of churches at a time when the Allah issue was hot. Despite the High Court having ruled to lift up the ban, the Home Ministry and the BN Government chose to continue on with the controversy. How do you think the Christian community in East and West Malaysia felt during this period of crisis?
• During the same time, two mosques in Taman Sri Sentosa were desecrated when wild boar heads, wrapped in plastics, were thrown into the compounds. There seems to be no outcome from the police investigation, but at the back of my mind, I always wonder why the wild boar heads had to be plastic wrapped, if the dirty job was done by a non-Muslim in the first place!

I am not surprised that Islam has been abused by some politicians to a point, that my Muslim friends would agree that it touches the sensitivities of the Muslim community as well. Why is it that their religion is being used by some corrupted politicians in the political war game?

In Malaysia, we have always talked about the social contract, which in my opinion can only exist when there is mutual respect between the races, not when some arrogant politicians use religion to pit one race against another, and take advantage of the outcome in order to remain in power.

With all due respect, I have a lot more respect for PAS these days. Never mind about Dr Hassan Ali, the former PAS Selangor Chief, I would vote for PAS out of respect for their religion. As for Hassan, he has been voted out by his own party for going against the aspirations of his party. He tries to project himself in the name of protecting his religion, as if it is never in the interest of PAS leaders like Nik Aziz or Mat Sabu to protect Islam!

Wat-er Spin!

I have read Azman Ujang’s column, “Off the Cuff” on “Untangling the politics of water” in The Sun (August 2).

I beg to differ with the arguments offered by Azman which, in my opinion, are ill-conceived and lack the depth of research. At best, his long and convoluted argument is just to politicize the water issue further and to apply pressure on the Selangor State Administration to grant a development order to proceed with the construction of the Langat 2 treatment plant.

Azman, after he has expressed his own view, if he cares, should listen to the other viewpoints without using his vantage position to rebut. A topic of this nature will have endless strings of arguments, but at the end of the day, may I suggest, it is not what, but whose project, is at stake.

Indeed, water is a natural resource and Malaysia is rich with this God-given natural resource. It is a blessing, until it is controlled and commoditized with a price tag – and it becomes life’s most precious commodity. Where any commodity is monopolized by one or two parties, people do not care to provide plausible answers, as long as the water tariffs are raised every few years. At the end of the day, it is the consumer who has to fork out money to pay for this commodity.

After 54 years of Independence, if Malaysia is unable to meet the demand for water for its 27 million people, and Selangor with a population of just 5.1 million, it has to do with the way water is being managed. Raising the water tariff is definitely not the best way to control consumer behaviours. Rich people who can afford a higher tariff will continue to waste this basic necessity in life. It is the middle-income and lower-income groups, who have to fork out more money to upkeep a family.

Water conservation has to do with the way how consumer education is being taught in this country, something which FOMCA as a consumer organisation, should be more proactive and devote more of its time to carry out Save Water campaigns.

I just need to raise three pertinent points due to space constraints.

Wastages

Look at the wastages in your own homes. The water tap is turned on as you wash the dishes. I remember while studying and living in Australia, I learnt how the Australian families do their dishwashing. It was done out of two sinks of water, one to wash and the other for rinsing. Conservation of water was always on top of their minds.

Without going further, look at how many illegal car wash operators have sprung up over the past five years. Where do you think they get their water from? Besides damaging the roads where they operate, imagine the amount of water that they use to wash a car. Has the water utilities company taken drastic action against any of them? If not, why not?

What about all the Green initiatives that we are talking about as a nation? We have plenty of rain water, but are we, as individuals, conscious enough that we are wasting away treated water when we could have harvested the rain water to flush our toilets?

Non-Revenue Water

Many of us have seen water pipes burst and tonnes of water gushing down into the public drain. We say “Wat-er waste!” but do nothing about! At least one or two still has the initiative to contact the water utilities, but when a complaint is lodged, how long before someone really attends to the complaint? My guess is as good as yours.

What about the amount of water that is being wasted through underground leakages, where you see water flowing out from beneath the road causing a pothole? The city council workers would just cover the pothole with tar, and in no time, the pothole reappears.

The organisation

Which organisation if, according to certain quarters, is RM2.9 billion in debt, can afford to pay an executive chairman RM5.1 million in director’s fee/salary (according to the 2007 Punchak Niaga Holdings Berhad annual report) or hire an Executive Director of Corporate Affairs when a manager or at most a senior manager would do? In America, the CEO would have to take a pay cut or his head would have to roll if the company continues to underperform.

It is time that Syabas and Punchak Niaga look at restructuring its organisation before it seeks another tariff hike. The utilities company managing water cannot afford to continue to expect that consumers have to pay higher water tariff in order to keep the company afloat. If the company fails to deliver water at a competitive rate, there is no reason for the Government to pass on the burden to the consumers.

As far as I see it, as a corporate man, what the Menteri Besar of Selangor is seeking to do (and I take this opportunity to thank him for the first 20 cubic meter of free water), is to first put things in order with the water utilities, before talking about spending billions of Ringgit on the water tunnel from the state of Pahang. In my opinion, if any government of the day is able to manage all the three points above, Selangor would not have to face a water crisis.

WHY I DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN BERSIH 2.0

Many people asked me if I was going to the streets on July 9. I made a conscious decision not to participate in the Bersih 2.0 peaceful march for personal reasons --- probably due to my upbringing or religious convictions.

Nonetheless, I was equally concerned about the development in my country. I counted myself to be “in spirit” with the Bersih 2.0 people who made a stand for Clean and Fair Election. Despite the attempts to demonise Bersih’s noble objectives, nothing stood out more than the eight demands spelt out by its president, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan.

The people of Malaysia demand for a clean and fair election. This, unfortunately, the Election Commission and Najib’s administration have stubbornly stood their ground, assuming that for every one person who participated in the rally, another 100 or 1000 people were against it.

As far as I know, Ambiga was picked to receive the International Women of Courage in 2009. Here was a woman of great admiration, who stood for what she believes in. Malaysia has never before seen a woman of her stature who would defend her rights as a voter in this country. She has risen above the “pariah” community, which the Malay literature Intelok had portrayed to the detriments of race relations in this country.

Compare this to Datuk Ibrahim Ali, president of the right-wing and pro-Umno NGO, Perkasa. He was filled with hot air, but the balloon finally burst at the eleventh hour. Instead of showing up in Kuala Lumpur, he was holed up in his home, giving the excuse that he was one of the 91 persons banned from entering into the city. As if his wife had never advised him against being a fool himself, for once, he had to heed the advice of his better half.

Many of us who were watching the “matches” knew that both Perkasa and Umno Youth made their noises mainly to intimidate and to scare the people from the Bersih 2.0 rally. The Najib administration failed to put a stop to some of these elements, including Umno’s Utusan Malaysia, which were trying to play up racial and religious tension, hoping to use this to demonise the Bersih 2.0 rally.

I am glad that many Malaysians stood up for their rights to a clean and fair election. I estimate it to be anything between 20,000 to 50,000 people. The official figure of between 5,000 and 6,000 quoted by the authorities rings hollow, judging from the sea of people in the photographs and videos.

Contrary to news reports about Molotov and parangs linked to Bersih 2.0, I believe none of the people who were arrested had any form of armed resistance. The evidence from the amount of video and photographs published on the Internet showed what appeared to be a peaceful demonstration by civilians.

The appearance of 65-year-old Auntie Anne Ooi is a testimony of what all Malaysians, young and old, can do when faced with a government that continues to use brutality against civilians. Some of the policemen whom I know personally said that they have no choice but to act against the non-violent civilians. With the exception of some in the police force, as far as I can see it, the blame has to fall on the political masters of the day.

I have time and again reminded Najib’s administration through numerous channels of communication that “a government that continues to fight the civilians will not last very long.” The tipping point will come and any ruling party that wants to win the hearts of the people again sometime in the future will ensure a smooth transition of power instead of creating more political havoc – something that we are witnessing these days.

The domino effect seen, since the People’s Power in the Philippines, Indonesia, and recently in Thailand, will not be easily overcome with force. No amount of harassment by the Special Branch or the police will stop the people from becoming more resolved to see a change of government. There are many lessons to be learnt from the sage of old, the late Mahatma Gandhi. Thousands of Indians were arrested, but with each arrest, the multiplying effect is simply too big for the colonial government to cope at the end of the day.

Najib should realise that it is not as if he were to shed blood that he and his men could remain in power. The people can choose to kick you out of Putrajaya tomorrow. They can put another person in power. This is true democracy, Malaysian-style or otherwise. This is something that our political leaders, including the prime minister himself, have failed to understand despite Malaysia being a democratic nation. Dirty politics have been played over and over again, since March 2008 – and I cannot help it but to say, Enough is enough!

One good example is the recent shameless expose of a man having sex with a lady is a good example. In a country where religious sentiments are high, the expose has rocked the nation. Any right thinking person in this country would not buy the Datuk T’s lies which were aimed at forcing Anwar Ibrahim and his wife to step down. No one would be as foolish as these three to think that they could not have called the whole contingent of police, FRU and Jakim personnel to capture Anwar Ibrahim red-handed in the hotel room – so what’s the point of using a black-and-white video clip in the first place!

If these three stooges think they can fool the people of Malaysia using so-called foreign “experts” from Dartmouth College, I even took the trouble to write an email to both Professor Farid Hany ('farid@cs.dartmouth.edu') and the president (via email to 'President's.Office@Dartmouth.edu') of that tiny college in the US. It is only fair that Professor Hany should furnish the report or dispute the news report, since his credibility and that of his college was at stake, if he had not made the claims that the person in the video was 99.99% Anwar Ibrahim. Repeated emails were not responded to!

I believe many Malaysians agree with me. What we have seen so far is bad enough to make us say, “Enough lah!” The ball is in the court of the people in power, on how they want to win back the people, but CHANGE appears to be the order of the day after 54 years the country has come under the rule of Barisan Nasional.

Barisan Nasional, at its peak during the hey days of Allahyarham Tunku Abdul Rahman, was a beautiful coalition of political parties, comprising people from all walks of life. Religion and race did not differentiate one Malaysian from another. I remember my late father telling us that in Pahang, he was enjoying his breakfast with other Malay colleagues when there were riots of May 13 in Kuala Lumpur.

Umno had started breaking up in 1987 during the former prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed who, despite nearly losing to his Team B rival, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, continued to build his foundation with Team A people. Most of the people in Team B had left Umno to join Semangat 46 and subsequently PAS. The country’s Malay party was ruled with an iron fist by one man, whose descent is unquestionably from Kerala, India, who despite promising not to meddle with the politics of the day, had continued to whack former prime minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. This was my turning point when I saw how wicked a man could be even into his old age. At that juncture, I said to myself, “Enough is enough!”

Bersih 2.0 was the climax of my disappointment with the present administration. They can use all the force, laws or detention orders against the civilians, but when the silent majority pushes forward, they better opt for a smooth transition of power – that is, if they want to win the people’s hearts once again!

Now, that July 9 is over, as I look back, perhaps, the reason why I chose not to participate in the Bersih 2.0 rally is because I wanted to prove to the authorities that thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, or even into the millions of Malaysians, are with Bersih 2.0. They may not be wearing the Bersih t-shirts, but their hearts have turned yellow. They are wearing the Yellow t-shirt in their hearts – something that no government will be able to fight against.

Cheers

Stephen Ng

My favourite colour is Yellow

Down with Kerajaan Songsang!

A BN vote bank is aided by Pakatan

Terence Netto
Jan 22, 11
10:59am

The Temiar of Sungai Siput have long been a reliable vote bank for the BN, something like 9,000 of them domiciled on the banks of tributaries of the Sungai Perak that crisscross the constituency, giving the ruling coalition 99 percent of the vote in the general election of 1999, 96 percent in 2004, and 90 percent in 2008.

In all that time, the recipient of this largesse, MIC's S Samy Vellu, confined reciprocation to the giving out of presents to headmen while the Orang Asli Department (JHEOA) periodically supplemented the trickle with handouts.

Apparently, from whom a lot is given little is required.

A rather bleak situation, one might say, to a prospective MP trying to break the cycle of servitude in which the Temiar are immured.

But Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj of the Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), since 1999 a rival claimant to S Samy Vellu for the allegiance of Sungai Siput's voters, decided that even if naught is to be had for service to the Temiar by an opposition politician, service must still be rendered.

Thus when the 400 Temiar of some 50 households in Kampong Perje in Pos Legap needed money in 2009 to buy new cables to secure a rickety bridge over the Sungai Pelus, used by them to ferry the latex they tapped from rubber trees off the banks, they approached their newly elected MP.

“We decided that because their conditions were wretched, their needs overrode other considerations such as their solid support for the BN,” said Jeyakumar, who was elected in March 2008 on a wave for the opposition that year.

“Also, representatives of Kampong Perje continued to attend meetings we held to discuss Orang Asli needs even after the fall of the Pakatan state government in February 2009,” he said. “Reps from other Orang Asli villages kept away out of fear,” he added.

Popularly known as 'Dr Kumar', the PSM activist had made forays into Orang Asli villages deep in the interior of Sungai Siput even when he was not their elected MP prior to 2008, to see what could done for them.

“They are a terribly marginalised group and they needed all the help they can get,” he rationalized.

So when Pos Legap's Temiar wanted new cables for a dilapidated bridge, Dr Kumar and his crew of PSM stalwarts in Sungai Siput decided that it would be better to build a new bridge a kilometer away from the site of the old one.

“The old one was too rickety,” he said. “There was little point in shoring it up with new cables.”

But where to get the money for the new bridge, given that opposition MPs are deprived by the federal government of constituency allocations rendered to the tune of RM2 million a year to BN legislators?

PAS leader steps in to help

Dr Kumar, who was elected on a PKR ticket because PSM was not yet a registered political party in March 2008, asked help from his Pakatan Rakyat cohort in Sungai Siput.

The PAS leader in the constituency, Ahmad Mazlan Othman, a retired army engineer who had been a candidate for the Lintang state seat in the 1999 and 2004 elections, was instrumental in getting his party to contribute RM5,000 to the overall cost of the new bridge which was estimated at RM70,000.

The rest of the budget was raised from the MP allowances for Dr Kumar (RM35,000), from sundry friends of his (RM20,000) and from two Catholic groups (RM10,000).

In short, the money for the new bridge came out of a Pakatan-like collaborative effort by assorted groups. From whom much is deprived, not a little can be got.

Construction of the bridge, which was supervised at every stage by Ahmad Mazlan, began in August 2009.

A squad of PAS volunteers helped out at every stage of the construction. PSM activists M Sukumaran, M Augustine, S Nagentiran and Alexis Paulraj did turns helping out with the technical and other inputs.

Jointly and severally, this motley crew pooled their slender resources which Ahmad, with his professional expertise, ably marshaled to bring the bridge to near completion.

“There is only a little more work left to be finished,” said Dr Kumar, “which Ahmad says would be completed this weekend or over the next.”

There will be no opening ceremony for this bridge that a Pakatan-like 'gotong royong' has almost brought to pass for the Temiar of Pos Legap and no plaques to honour the selfless band involved in its conception and construction.

Whether the bridge would shift the Temiar's voting allegiance is a question of some irrelevance to Dr Kumar.

“The wretched must inherit the earth,” said Dr Kumar in typically socialistic, Franz Fanon-like, style.

View Comments (26)

Getting something done with very little

Jan 23, 11 9:02am

'This project is born out of needs and not as a bribe to help the Orang Asli to make their already harsh lives a little bit easier.'

A BN vote bank is aided by Pakatan

P Dev Anand Pillai: Whilst most BN MPs will laugh the matter off when they are approached for funds to build amenities like this, MP Dr D Jeyakumar has shown the way.

If PM Najib Razak really meant 'People First, Performance Now', the job could have been done with a phone call to JKR (Public Works Department), but as usual politics comes first.

Perhaps what Umno has forgotten is that as they pursue wealth via capitalism, the people have been forgotten. Though the Orang Asli may be swayed by money and gifts, this selfless act by Dr Kumar will see more of them voting for him from the interiors of Sungai Siput.

Black Mamba: Perak needs to revert to Pakatan Rakyat, and Putrajaya too, before funds for all constituencies will flow again to where it is needed most, the rakyat.

This is a great effort by the Catholic groups and PAS to work for the sole purpose of meeting a basic human need irrespective of culture, faith and race. PAS may be an Islamic party but they are to be lauded for their justice, fairness and incorruptible leaders.

BN wants a 100-storey tower that only serves the pride and ego of the leaders but of no use to the citizens at large who are in need of basic amenities such as electricity, clean drinkable water and functional sanitary.

Anonymous_417c: This is a heartwarming story that will light up anyone's day. I suggest PM Najib personally call up the MP (Jeyakumar) and thank him for the good work.

Disgusted: This is how Pakatan government and their representatives have to work - starved of funds legitimately due to them because they are in the opposition, while the actual funds due to their constituency are given to BN reps who were not elected by the rakyat and with no accountability as to how it was spent.

Isn't it time to replace the government in Putrajaya so that all citizens in Malaysia will receive a fair deal from the government? The ball is in the rakyat's court.

Tsc: This is truly 1Malaysia. With the help from different groups, be it in monetrary or effort, such projects can bring tremendous improvement to the lives of the Orang Asli. This is indeed a no-frills project without a commemorative plaque and an opening ceremony with some big shot's presence, which will just waste more public money.

Anonymous: It doesn't matter where the resources are from. These donors are sincere in doing good for the benefit of the people who need it most, leaving politics aside. They have compassion for the weak and needy, and are genuine in their contribution. This should be the driving force, and not personal gain.

Swipenter: This reinforces the fact that PR does no practice discrimination based on race, religion or creed and definitely not political affiliation unlike Umno/BN. There is no "you help me, I help you" thingy.

The project is born out of needs and not as a bribe to help the villagers to make their already harsh lives a little bit easier. Our salutations and respects to all those who contribute to the completion and success of building of the bridge.

Ong Guan Sin: I am lost for words. When the politics in the country is so full of patronage culture and 'cost-benefit analysis', YB Dr Jeyakumar is a rare gem that Malaysia must treasure.

Venu: People of different races working for a common good in the service of humanity, it is beautiful to see.