IT’S that time of the year to usher in for Yuletide and cheer. Festive décor festooned in shopping malls, homes of the Christian faithful and in many cases, work places.
However, in Malaysia – or at least in the Peninsula context – it is a time where certain quarters use Christmas celebrations as a tool to further divide citizens.
This can range from the overload of Christmas decorations at shopping malls as compared to other festivities to politicising Muslims participating in Christmas celebration.
An example of the latter can be seen from a post on the Sarawak Public Feedback Facebook forum. In it, a poster going by the handle of Kolo Mee highlighted the unique and heart-warming practice among Sarawakians of taking part in each other’s festivities.
As evident, Kolo Mee shared an image showing nurses of different religious backgrounds, including Muslims, putting up Christmas decorations at the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) with the poster exclaiming:
Today at SGH, I witnessed a simple yet beautiful scene
Malay nurses happily helping to set up Christmas decorations
in the clinic. Moments like this remind me why I’m so proud to be Malaysian, and especially a Sarawakian.
“Here, we celebrate each other’s cultures with genuine respect and warmth. No matter our race or religion, we stand together and make each other feel at home. This is the true spirit of Sarawak
unity, understanding, and harmony.
Malaysia needs more of this.
The post has fetched 9.5K Likes, 867 comments and 519 shares at the time of writing, underlining that this message of peace and harmony resonated with many citizens.
Many citizens of the Hornbill State simply noted this was the norm where people live in harmony sans the poisonous racist invective that seems to infect Peninsula life.
The idea that every grand occasion was celebrated by all was emphasised by one commenter who declared she adored decorating with her colleagues for every festivity. “Love our spirit of teamwork,” she proudly proclaimed.
The toxic atmosphere that permeates Peninsula politics was noted by more than one observer. One commenter cautioned against “Malaya bringing its racist ideas to Sabah and Sarawak” (Malaya denoting the Peninsula and Federal politics).
However, one commenter pointed out that this wasn’t the case in the past in Peninsula, referencing old P. Ramlee films depicting various races getting along rather well. Things have changed and if Sarawakians are not careful, such toxicity could also infect Sarawak.
Needless to say, keyboard warriors can be expected to poke their nose on posts such as this that highlight racial and religious harmony in the Borneo states with their poorly constructed sentences and ill-conceived arguments.
A fine example was a comment from Backstreet Man who somehow equated “motorcyclists murdered by drunk drivers” as being relevant to this thread.
In the run-up to Christmas, one can be sure there will be plenty more noise surrounding Muslims participating in festivities of other faiths.
On the one hand, there will be tonnes of posts on social media highlighting the wonderful togetherness practiced by the people in the Borneo states where celebrations of different faiths are used to promote diversity, inclusivity and religious harmony.
On the other, there will be screams of “haram” and plenty of angry claims from ultra-conservatives who will use this to impose their religious indoctrination. – Focus Malaysia
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