Not Malay Enough..

We tend to ask why the Malays aren’t Malay enough but fail to ask the same question of the Chinese and Indians.

COMMENT

Lately there has been much talk about Malays wanting to be more Arab than Malay. While the non-Malays respond to these articles by penning comment after comment, I see the Malays keeping mum. I don’t blame them for their silence because I believe that one should zip up if he/she has nothing better to say.

Sadly many who should zip up tend to speak their so-called minds instead. As if by doing so they are adding value to the discussion or contributing to the well-being of our society and nation. Why ah? I guess people are just getting so frustrated nowadays that they jump at any opportunity and every opportunity to whack each other.

Do I sound bitter? To tell you the truth, I am not bitter. I am pissed!

The thing is, I don’t quite understand all the fuss about Malays being more Arabic when everyone seems to be okay with Malays being more westernised.

Why question the Malays giving their children Arabic names when you tend to close an eye to all the western names we find floating around? Do Aaron Aziz, Ian Hamzah and Anna Maria ring a bell?

Someone recently wrote about Arab attire such as the jubah replacing traditional Malay attire like the kebaya and baju kurung. I wonder if the writer is suffering from temporary blindness because by my observation, more Malays are in jeans, skirts and t-shirts than in jubahs.

Seriously, how many times have you witnessed Malays greet each other with ‘Assalamualaikum’ versus ‘Hi’ , ‘Hello’ or ‘What’s up?’ ? Don’t even bother with ‘Apa khabar’. We tend to use it only to greet tourists.

Seems to me that Malaysians are quite okay with Malays wanting to be Americans but not okay with them wanting to be Arabs. What makes it their business what the Malays wanna be anyway?

While on the topic of asking the Malays why they aren’t Malay enough, I wonder why no one has asked the same question of the Chinese and Indians?
How many Chinese today speak Chinese dialects? Or wear the samfu and cheongsam? How many stick to their Chinese names without adding weird names like ‘Apple’ or ‘Puppy’ or some Christian name for that matter?

How many Indians today speak their mother tongue? How many wear saree, kurta or pavadai? Have you noticed how Indian names such as Letchumy or Sundari or Ganesan have been replaced by Bollywood/ Mollywood/ Kollywood/ Tollywood names such as Kushboo, Priya Darshini or Surya?

Even my fellow Mamaks are no better. Most Mamaks are ashamed of calling themselves Indian Muslims nowadays. They all ride on the Bumiputera status, claiming they are Malays when one peek inside their pants would show two burnt buns – a clear case of ‘Melayu Celup’ syndrome.

So once again I ask you – why not ask these Chinese, Indians and Mamaks why they are not portraying their true identity?

“Meludah ke langit akhirnya jatuh ke muka sendiri.”

Come on lah people, stop the hypocrisy.

I understand all the worry about Arabisation in our country today, I truly do. But please don’t bark at the wrong tree lah.

I feel the real issue lies with some quarters who are using religion as a weapon to control the Muslims. The over-sensitivity, easily being offended, allergic to pigs (or wombats), dress codes and imposing one’s beliefs upon others can all be traced to the same source.

I agree that some Malays easily fall prey to being used as puppets to achieve the agenda of these people. I also believe that there are many right minded, wise Malays who know how to differentiate between right and wrong and who despise being manipulated and exploited just like the rest of us.

One thing we seem to be forgetting is the fact that Malay society is one close-knitted family. They may not agree with or support the decisions and actions carried out by other members of their family, but when ‘outsiders’ whack one of them, the entire family gets bruised. Poking over and over again at some Malays only serves to destroy our relationship with the entire Malay community.

If the Malays, Chinese and Indians are one big family, why is it so easy for us to hurt each other?

I’ll tell you why, it’s because deep inside our hearts our “race” is still who we are. You can chant 1Malaysia and wave Jalur Gemilang all you want – but at the end of the day, it takes more effort to be Bangsa Malaysia than to be a Malay, Chinese, Indian and lain-lain.

Frankly, I don’t give a shit if my Malay friends are called Jebat, Aaron or Bukhari; or if they wear sarong, jeans or jubbah. As long as they are kind, sincere and warm, they are true Malays – because that is the true identity of Malays.

Now I suggest the rest of you to go take a look at yourself in the mirror and reflect on your own identity before you start whacking others.