COMMENT Do forgive my amazement upon reading the report that Perkasa, the right-wing NGO under the leadership of Ibrahim Ali, has opened a branch in London. Apparently there the movement is called ‘Malaysian Indigenous People’s Movement’. Perkasa is known for its protection of Malay rights, especially those pertaining to ‘race’ and the religion of Islam.
I am amazed for London is not exactly a hotbed for any race- or religion-based rightist movements; unlike Islamabad or Riyadh perhaps. London or more aptly England and the UK are more famous for their open and liberal political, economic or social environments, and even for race and religion.
It was in England after all that the Bill of Rights (one of the pillars of democracy and human rights) on the one part was passed, and that Karl Marx the ‘prophet’ of communism on the other is buried there. Won’t it be a hostile place for ethnocentric Perkasa to open up shop there, what with the expensive rentals, salaries, transportation, and other overheads that have to be paid?
I am not yet thinking of the costs of setting up an office which in all likelihood would surely be very expensive although its funders, having money to burn, might not mind it the least bit. I am thinking of the very idea itself. What can’t Perkasa do here in Malaysia that can be done elsewhere, in this case, England? Why export racism and religious bigotry to a country that had done away with them?
As an aside, why can’t Perkasa use the open environment prevalent in London to project its messages there? I am thinking of Hyde Park Corner. Can’t Ibrahim Ali and his spokesmen (or women) construct a little soap box there and blast away their messages to any developing and admiring crowd? It would be a lot cheaper, and more fun.
Causes for establishment
With all these doubts running in my mind I have to find Perkasa’s reasoning in this bold venture. According to reports, there are two, viz.,
Non-indigenous people upsetting indigenous ones. “Perkasa got its wisdom from Malaysia’s past independence fighters who established a party to rule based on principles of shared power. This is the main factor that guaranteed peace, prosperity and continuity of the nation,” Ibrahim has been quoted to cite as his first reason.
“But don’t let there be any party that is out to hurt and belittle the indigenous people. The dependency between indigenous and non-indigenous people must never be broken or betrayed,” he added in the event that he be misunderstood. (I find it difficult to understand this one).
Rise of Malay liberals. Ibrahim said he was disappointed that “a splinter group of Malays” have forgotten history and absorbed misguided liberal philosophy… “It is because of this historical blindness (my italics) that Perkasa exists on this good earth... otherwise, surely more people will be asking for equal rights, without considering the rights of the indigenous people,” he added as his second reason.
I’ll be candid, I don’t and won’t subscribe to these two rationales. On the first count the term indigenous and non-indigenous is contentious and fractious.
Just who is an indigenous person in the Malaysian melting pot? I can mention several offhand: The Minangkabau, Batak, Rawa, Banjar, Javanese, Bugis, Arab, Indians (comprising of Malayali, Keralan, Tamil, Sindi, Gujerati), Chinese (Hokkien, Foo Chow, Cantonese), Dayak, Iban, Bajau, Kedazandusun.
I dare say Ibrahim Ali himself coming from Kelantan might have some Champa (Cambodian) or Thai blood in him. The message is there is no such thing as an ‘indigenous’ people in Malaysia.
‘Malay’ is not mentioned and include in this list because I have come to understand this term refers to language (as per the Malay language) and not a cultural community.
As for the rise of the liberals bringing along with them a form of historical blindness I just wish to say that liberalism is the way to go in this post-modern era that we live in. To me a liberal is a thinking person, one who looks into alternatives before making any decision, delves into issues objectively and professionally, and thereby ready willing and able to accept change.
A liberal is also usually a change agent. It certainly is not criminal to be one but instead is an asset to the country.
With the doubts above, I find myself having to seek an understanding to Perkasa’s London foray. I can think of two reasons.
One, that Perkasa’s vision and operations is not getting the results it desires in this country. Should this be so then I find this doubly amazing (and confusing) what with the Biro Tata Negara, compliant mass media and press, supportive organisations like Jakim, and subservient civil service providing total support.
Two, Perkasa wishes to be nearer to its target audience, and on this I can only think of the (Malay) scholarship students now studying in the UK. I won’t think of other possible reasons, although I am sure there can be many more.
Should I be right on these two major counts, then I have the following comments to make:
Raidon d’etre is out of date?
1. On the possibility of its operational failure here. This could mean that Perkasa’s raison d’etre is out of date and no longer valid. Its celebrated cause has expired or is expiring. Racism and religious bigotry in other words are no longer ‘fashionable’ issues to fight for. They could have been overtaken by liberalism and meritocracy perhaps.
Or, it’s Ibrahim himself who has lost his credibility, and got the ire of many Malaysians for his numerous verbal diarrhea. He had lost as candidate in the general election, and had been jailed for a token one day by the courts. He has to set up shop elsewhere!
2. Capturing the minds of the student population. Should this indeed be a reason, then I pity the students. They have been sent abroad with the hope of getting good untrammeled education; only to be intercepted by Perkasa.
Let me elaborate. Education here for one, does not mean only its formal and technical ones like engineering, medicine, architecture and accountancy. Education also means, for two, its informal aspects namely the broadening and expanding of the students’ mental horizons, improving their inter-personal relationship and social interaction skills. Now Perkasa appears at stopping this learning curve!
And what a shame. Both formal and informal education can be found here, but their standards sliding down as noted by world watchdog organisations. The level of inter-personal skills for example seems to be sliding down, thanks to the efforts made by NGOs to ensure all Malay students are covered by slogans like the ubiquitous ‘untuk agama bangsa dan negara’ and ‘Tak kan Melayu hilang didunia’.
It would be a shame that now Perkasa sets up operation aimed at stopping students from benefitting from the advantages of solid and well rounded education so much lacking in their own country. It defeats the purpose of sending them abroad in the first place.
AB SULAIMAN is an observer of human foibles, and has written and recently published a book ‘Sensitive Truths in Malaysia’.
I am amazed for London is not exactly a hotbed for any race- or religion-based rightist movements; unlike Islamabad or Riyadh perhaps. London or more aptly England and the UK are more famous for their open and liberal political, economic or social environments, and even for race and religion.
It was in England after all that the Bill of Rights (one of the pillars of democracy and human rights) on the one part was passed, and that Karl Marx the ‘prophet’ of communism on the other is buried there. Won’t it be a hostile place for ethnocentric Perkasa to open up shop there, what with the expensive rentals, salaries, transportation, and other overheads that have to be paid?
I am not yet thinking of the costs of setting up an office which in all likelihood would surely be very expensive although its funders, having money to burn, might not mind it the least bit. I am thinking of the very idea itself. What can’t Perkasa do here in Malaysia that can be done elsewhere, in this case, England? Why export racism and religious bigotry to a country that had done away with them? As an aside, why can’t Perkasa use the open environment prevalent in London to project its messages there? I am thinking of Hyde Park Corner. Can’t Ibrahim Ali and his spokesmen (or women) construct a little soap box there and blast away their messages to any developing and admiring crowd? It would be a lot cheaper, and more fun.
Causes for establishment
With all these doubts running in my mind I have to find Perkasa’s reasoning in this bold venture. According to reports, there are two, viz.,
Non-indigenous people upsetting indigenous ones. “Perkasa got its wisdom from Malaysia’s past independence fighters who established a party to rule based on principles of shared power. This is the main factor that guaranteed peace, prosperity and continuity of the nation,” Ibrahim has been quoted to cite as his first reason.
“But don’t let there be any party that is out to hurt and belittle the indigenous people. The dependency between indigenous and non-indigenous people must never be broken or betrayed,” he added in the event that he be misunderstood. (I find it difficult to understand this one).
Rise of Malay liberals. Ibrahim said he was disappointed that “a splinter group of Malays” have forgotten history and absorbed misguided liberal philosophy… “It is because of this historical blindness (my italics) that Perkasa exists on this good earth... otherwise, surely more people will be asking for equal rights, without considering the rights of the indigenous people,” he added as his second reason.
I’ll be candid, I don’t and won’t subscribe to these two rationales. On the first count the term indigenous and non-indigenous is contentious and fractious.
Just who is an indigenous person in the Malaysian melting pot? I can mention several offhand: The Minangkabau, Batak, Rawa, Banjar, Javanese, Bugis, Arab, Indians (comprising of Malayali, Keralan, Tamil, Sindi, Gujerati), Chinese (Hokkien, Foo Chow, Cantonese), Dayak, Iban, Bajau, Kedazandusun.
I dare say Ibrahim Ali himself coming from Kelantan might have some Champa (Cambodian) or Thai blood in him. The message is there is no such thing as an ‘indigenous’ people in Malaysia.
‘Malay’ is not mentioned and include in this list because I have come to understand this term refers to language (as per the Malay language) and not a cultural community.
As for the rise of the liberals bringing along with them a form of historical blindness I just wish to say that liberalism is the way to go in this post-modern era that we live in. To me a liberal is a thinking person, one who looks into alternatives before making any decision, delves into issues objectively and professionally, and thereby ready willing and able to accept change.
A liberal is also usually a change agent. It certainly is not criminal to be one but instead is an asset to the country.
With the doubts above, I find myself having to seek an understanding to Perkasa’s London foray. I can think of two reasons.
One, that Perkasa’s vision and operations is not getting the results it desires in this country. Should this be so then I find this doubly amazing (and confusing) what with the Biro Tata Negara, compliant mass media and press, supportive organisations like Jakim, and subservient civil service providing total support.
Two, Perkasa wishes to be nearer to its target audience, and on this I can only think of the (Malay) scholarship students now studying in the UK. I won’t think of other possible reasons, although I am sure there can be many more.
Should I be right on these two major counts, then I have the following comments to make:
Raidon d’etre is out of date?
1. On the possibility of its operational failure here. This could mean that Perkasa’s raison d’etre is out of date and no longer valid. Its celebrated cause has expired or is expiring. Racism and religious bigotry in other words are no longer ‘fashionable’ issues to fight for. They could have been overtaken by liberalism and meritocracy perhaps.
Or, it’s Ibrahim himself who has lost his credibility, and got the ire of many Malaysians for his numerous verbal diarrhea. He had lost as candidate in the general election, and had been jailed for a token one day by the courts. He has to set up shop elsewhere!
2. Capturing the minds of the student population. Should this indeed be a reason, then I pity the students. They have been sent abroad with the hope of getting good untrammeled education; only to be intercepted by Perkasa.
Let me elaborate. Education here for one, does not mean only its formal and technical ones like engineering, medicine, architecture and accountancy. Education also means, for two, its informal aspects namely the broadening and expanding of the students’ mental horizons, improving their inter-personal relationship and social interaction skills. Now Perkasa appears at stopping this learning curve! And what a shame. Both formal and informal education can be found here, but their standards sliding down as noted by world watchdog organisations. The level of inter-personal skills for example seems to be sliding down, thanks to the efforts made by NGOs to ensure all Malay students are covered by slogans like the ubiquitous ‘untuk agama bangsa dan negara’ and ‘Tak kan Melayu hilang didunia’.
It would be a shame that now Perkasa sets up operation aimed at stopping students from benefitting from the advantages of solid and well rounded education so much lacking in their own country. It defeats the purpose of sending them abroad in the first place.
AB SULAIMAN is an observer of human foibles, and has written and recently published a book ‘Sensitive Truths in Malaysia’.
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