Tunku Aziz: Bumi status for all but…

The former DAP leader says this must be done after addressing the economic imbalance between the rural Malays and non-Malays.

PETALING JAYA: Human rights activist and former politician Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim said the nation must one day allow non-Malays to enjoy Bumiputera status for the sake of unity.

However, he said this should only be done after addressing the current economic imbalance between the rural Malays and the non-Malays; and having a single-stream education system built on Bahasa Malaysia.

Speaking to FMT, Tunku Aziz said Bumiputera status is being seen as form of discrimination against the non-Malays, which is part of the reasons why they do not have a sense of belonging to the country.

“You cannot expect people to love this country if they feel they have been discriminated against,” said the former DAP vice chairman.

He envisioned a nation where anyone born and bred in Malaysia would be a Bumiputera with equal opportunities, and there would be no more Bumiputera-only institutions such as Universiti Teknologi Mara (Uitm).

He said he opposed the idea of setting up Mara colleges when it was first mooted in the 1970s because he felt that this is a form of discrimination.

“To create a Malaysian nation, you cannot put all the Bumiputera together because they would mix among themselves, and they would have no opportunity to interact with other people,” he said.

Tunku Aziz first spoke of allowing non-Malays to enjoy Bumiputera status in an interview with China Press published on Monday, in which he said it is the time for the BN government to consider such a move.

He pointed out that Malays are not the only people facing poverty, as such the government should assist all ethnic groups through equitable policies.

He reportedly said allowing non-Malays to enjoy Bumiputera status upset some of them who are currently enjoying the status, but he felt this group should be prepared to scarifice and share with others.

However, Tunku Aziz told FMT such move should only be implemented later because little has been done to raise the level of rural Malays to compete with the non-Malays.

“These people must be brought up to a position that they must be able to compete on their own. I don’t believe there would be a real harmony if the economic gap is allowed to go on,” he said.
Asked about the New Economic Policy which had been in place for more than 30 years, he said: “It has not been done to a sufficient level.”

He also pointed out that multi-stream education is another hurdle to national unity because many Chinese school graduates do not have good command of the Malay language.

“Language is a unifying force, it is a glue that binds the nation together. We can’t claim as a nation if we all speak in different tongues.

“They must accept that there is only one national language, which is Bahasa. If not, I am afraid technically we are a nation, but without national identity,” he said.