Indians smothered by the humongous garland

YOURSAY 'Religion has a way of enslaving its followers with constant indoctrination with the likes of a political 'brain washing'.'

The slaying of our sacred cows
Cala: Correct me if I am wrong, my impression after reading S Thayaparan's article is that he appears to be overly concerned about describing the various shortcomings in the system that resulted in the sorry state of affairs facing the Indian community, but not in providing some workable solutions.

Three major challenges have been identified by him: i) high level of crime rate; ii) gender inequality; and iii) the community's subservience to religious figures.

One may ask: Who should be held accountable? Who else but MIC which is supposed to represent them under consociational politics? In the absence, the community has to abandon its historical source of support.

Hence the real challenge facing them seems to be the leadership issue. Who then is the saviour to a community plagued by both poverty and the class system?

TC: Tamil schools have been under performing for a long time. But they have changed. Many are putting in a lot of effort to improve and the results are showing.

You cannot compare the Chinese schools with their enormous funding from all sections of the Chinese community with the ill-funded Tamil schools.

What was wanting amongst the poor Tamils was awareness. Awareness that education is a tool for betterment is slowly dawning amongst them now.

Political awareness came with the Hindraf march (After that march, it does not matter what happens to Hindraf). The priestly class are not the beneficiaries of the money channeled into temples, but the people in the temple committees.

Fairnessforall: Thayaparan, you condemn the bathing of the Indian gods with milk which cost but a few ringgit and yet did not bother to mention the wastage of thousands of ringgit on a humongous garland for someone who comes and lies in the temple premises thereby desecrating the holy ground.

The Indians are stupid - that is why they have made Najib their god. I have never seen a garland even half that size being put on the statue of Lord Murugan.

Indians need to wake up and first kick out Sri Maha Mariamman Temple Committee president R Nadarajah and his 40 thieves. The committee collected RM10 from the poor Indians to do an ‘arjane' yet they did not think twice to spend thousands on a garland.

Thaipusam is a religious festival and should not have been used as a political platform. Shame on Nadarajah and gang for allowing Najib to come and desecrate the temple premises with his lies and even a bigger shame to the Tamils for standing there and listening to his lies.

Onyourtoes: As I read through some of the comments here, one point of view is Indians are easily exploited because of their caste system, closed affinity with gods and Tamil education.

Another point of view blames the exploitation on others, particular their own leaders (MIC and in fact many others including those at the temples) and Umno.

So which is the chicken and which is the egg? Why do you think Indian leaders and those from the Umno could so easily hoodwink the Indians and "take them to Holland"?

Fairnessforall mentioned an interesting point - why condemn "the bathing of the Indian gods with milk which cost but a few ringgit and yet did not bother to mention the wastage of thousands of ringgit on a humongous garland for someone who comes and lies in the temple premises thereby desecrating the holy ground."

But here lies the irony. Has it ever occurred to us that whether it is a few ringgit of milk or thousands of ringgit on the garland, the modus operandi is the same - the same exploitation on the ignorant and gullible Indians?

So between the chicken and the egg, I feel that the chicken must come first - get rid of the ignorance, gullibility, caste and the totally hopeless Tamil education first, the exploitation will eventually die a lingering death.

Open Minded: Religion has a way of enslaving its followers with constant indoctrination with the likes of a political 'brain washing'. MIC has used it very effectively to hoodwink and control the poor Tamils in particular, to be totally dependent on the powers-that-be for their sustenance.

Tamil schools, the bane of the community, which has gained almost no progress over the years, is another juicy vote-buying tool to arouse and seek fanatical support for a party whose sole intention is seen to be, enriching themselves at the expense of the masses.

Accept it or not, Tamils schools are a thing of the past and have no future in this country. Do not play politics when it comes to the future well-being of the community. Stop whining and move with progress or be left even far behind.

Gandhi: Thayaparan, you should say Tamil schools and not Indian schools. As a Sri Lankan Tamil, you should be proud that Tamil language is used in Malaysian schools.

My friend's son can write and speak like you in English, but his pride took a deep dip when his white friends asked him what was his mother tongue.

Just because you write well in English and express your ideas easily doesn't mean that Tamil schools should be integrated with mainstream schools.

You would be sure about certain areas of Hindraf's contribution only if you had perspired on that day of the rally. You as a retired Navy commander, I would say you may be good at management of an organisation, but politics in the multiracial environment is not that simple.

What I would request you is, get to know P Uthayakumar and M Manoharan personally then you may understand the complexity of our brethren.

You say D Jeyakumar is the kind of politician we need but did he bring in the tsunami? Hindraf moved the laggard Indians to rise up, did Jeyakumar do that?

Cocomomo: Hindraf and MIC (both are no different when it comes to the bottom line of retarding the progress of poor Indians) will soon be calling for Thayaparan's blood.

This is a brilliant article that hits the nail hard with truth - one that all Indians should read with an open mind. However, I believe many will curse Thaya rather than mull over what he has written.

Indians have but themselves to blame for the predicament they are in. I grew up in a rubber estate. My parents chose to send me to government school rather than the Tamil school in the estate.

While Tamil education maybe well-developed in India, the quality of the Tamil schools in Malaysia results in the vast majority of those who go to such schools to be caught and kept within the cycle of poverty and look for handouts rather than improve themselves and progress.

Jiminy Qrikert: Thayaparan has voiced what many 'Indians' (people originating from India or Indian nationals, take your pick) here in this forum will not - that the emotional shackles of religion and education have made the community subservient to Umno-BN.

But then again, 'religion' refers only to 'Hinduism' and education refers only to 'Tamil' education. What about the other 'Indians' who are neither Hindu nor Tamil? Which is why Hindraf was conceived as 'Hindu Rights' - focused and began its life championing only the Tamils equated as 'Indians.'

Torn between harnessing the deep frustration of the Tamils and focusing all that anger and energy to 'champion the Indian cause' and the increasing need to be more inclusive, first towards 'other Indians' and later 'Malaysian' perspective, it morphed into HRP (Human Rights Party) to then loudly proclaim ‘15 + 38' (state and parliament seats).

Today, HRP is just another mosquito 'Indian' party with the two founder brothers not even agreeing on what they stand for. Indeed, Thaya makes more sense than Uthaya.

Kit Carson: Commander, I like your write-up. I hope people like G Palanivel, P Kamalanathan and all the other goons in MIC will read this. I, for one, will circulate this article to all my Indian friends and family. - Malaysiakini