HINDRAF must rise, not float by J. D. Lovrenciear

HINDRAF’s strategies of late have met with great suspicion and even alarm, especially amongst the Indian community. Its leaders who proclaim to be passionately absorbed into the cause of the Indian community must recognize that time and tide is against everyone as we race to the polls.

HINDRAF must place a premium on the 3-C principles of collaboration, consolidation and condescension. Only by having fought a battle successfully along the 3-Cs can you create opportunities for negotiation.  Mutiny mindsets or dagger-to-the-throat strategies will not bring strength, but only weaken your bargaining chips over time.

Many are asking a common sense question: How can HINDRAF negotiate and fall in line behind BN at this eleventh hour after all these years of seeking, fighting, protesting and even begging for HINDRAF’s cause to be heard by BN? The people who have been following and / or are interested in HINDRAF’s purpose are asking, what makes you HINDRAF leaders to trust a political party suddenly at the eleventh hour when that particular party has neglected your very cause for over three decades?

People are talking: Is there after all a connection between the leader's returning safely to Malaysia from self-imposed asylum and the sketch rising from the chapters of HINDRAF i.e.  a possible aligning with BN? Even when your members were beaten, smashed up and drowned with chemical waters, they the powers that be from the BN turf, remained defiant and insolent to your demands – remember?

As we march to the polling stations come 5^th May 2013, we need to realize that the credo is not about standing tall all alone. It is not a time for leaders to think that personalities are indispensable. It is the battle-cry that is paramount.

And this is a battlefield HINDRAF is entering. The GE13 has to be the defining mother-of-all-battles. And HINDRAF leaders must recognize that the time has arrived not to fight or raise mutiny and least of negotiate for your cause. On the contrary, HINDRAF must prepare to join the voters to do battle. The armory that will define victory in this battle is that of collaboration, consolidation and condescension.

And so HINDRAF must decide and decide not in the interest of its founder-members but the macro interest of the battle lines that have been drawn by the rakyat. Wisdom also dictates that as we near the polling date, one should aim to win the battle first before negotiating over causes. 

IF HINDRAF chooses to go along with BN, then it must ask itself why were its members and the community it claims to represent made to wait for 55 years to make that decision?

Why make that decision at this eleventh hour? Does it not place HINDRAF on the beggar’s end of the bargaining slope?   

Hopefully, reason and conscience will prevail over HINDRAF.

J. D. Lovrenciear

Kuala Lumpur