Rapprochement tough after BN’s ‘divisive’ campaign, says The Economist

Umno’s “racially divisive” and pro-Malay campaign, along with an attempt to blame the Chinese for its losses, made it hard for BN’s opponents to accept the olive branch. — File picKUALA LUMPUR, May 10 ― National reconciliation appears a distant dream post-Election 2013 for a country scarred by the “nasty, divisive” electoral campaign led by Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) in the rural heartlands, The Economist has said.

The international current affairs magazine observed that Umno, to shore up its base of rural Malay voters, had alienated the Chinese and other communities already fed up with the alleged cronyism and corruption associated with affirmative action policies that favour the country’s largest ethnic group.

“Mr Najib has said he wants to be prime minister for all Malaysians. Sadly, however, he presided over an ugly campaign by his... Umno, the main component of Barisan,” the magazine wrote, referring to Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who was sworn in for his second term as prime minister after BN emerged victors again for its 13th general election running.

“In the rural Malay heartlands, Umno was as negative, racially divisive and pro-Malay as ever,” it added.

Adding salt to wound, The Economist said blaming BN’s losses on a “Chinese tsunami” had been unwise of Najib as the vote trend had clearly shown a massive swing in votes from the young and rising urban middle class, which cut across racial lines.

“Casting the election in such racial terms is neither wise nor accurate,” the magazine wrote in one article titled “A dangerous result”.

“Despite professing to promote a multi-ethnic Malaysia, Barisan’s election strategy has left the country more divided than ever, both along ethnic lines and between urban and rural areas,” it said in another, titled, “A tawdy victory”.

The Malay language media also has not helped BN, The Economist added, citing Utusan Malaysia’s controversial front page on Wednesday when it splashed the headline, “Apa lagi Cina mahu (What else do the Chinese want?), in what appeared to be an attempt to shape the results of Election 2013 as a Chinese-versus-Malay vote.

Despite the outrage sparked, Najib came to the defence of the Umno-owned daily, earning himself more criticism for using race to characterise the results of Sunday’s polls.

Opposition leaders and analysts disagreed that it had simply been a “Chinese tsunami” that caused BN to bleed more seats this time, but a major swing in the urban and middle-class electorate that saw Malaysia’s urban-rural rift widen.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim blamed widespread fraud and electoral irregularities for denying Pakatan Rakyat (PR) victory, and has kick-started a mammoth movement to prove he has the solid backing of thousands of Malaysians.

A gathering in the Kelana Jaya stadium saw a sea of over 60,000 black-clad Malaysians across all ages and races come together under wet skies to rally behind Anwar and PR and mourn the “death of democracy”.

The Economist said Anwar’s claim was “almost certainly” an exaggeration but admitted that the latter’s allegations, fuelled by those of other civil society leaders like Bersih co-chairman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, would only add to the loss of faith in the entire political process of the country.

“His (Anwar’s) claim is almost certainly an exaggeration. Still, the bitterness engendered by the vote will persist.

“National reconciliation, which Mr Najib sees as the way to heal the wounds, looks a way off,” the magazine said.

It added that with BN still emerging the overall winner even after the polls results saw the ruling pact lose the popular vote, Najib now owed it to Malaysians who backed the opposition to investigate the alleged fraud.

“Whether that is true or not, it is certain that the ruling coalition, Barisan Nasional, has huge inbuilt advantages.

“Gerrymandered constituencies meant that with less than 47 per cent of the popular vote, its worst-ever electoral performance, it still won 60 per cent of the 222 parliamentary seats,” The Economist wrote.

The BN coalition won with a weaker majority last Sunday by taking 133 out of 222 federal seats and ceding an additional seven seats to the federal opposition as compared to the 2008 polls results.

Out of the 89 federal seats won by PR, DAP had the largest share with its win of 38 seats.

BN also lost the popular vote to PR ― the first time since the 1969 election when the long-ruling coalition had contested as the Alliance Party.

In his victory speech after the polls, Najib said the vote trend suggested a need for national reconciliation, noting that it had been a “Chinese tsunami” that caused BN to perform worse than it did in Election 2008.