Are the non-Malays really a threat? Should the Malays listen to Umno & reprise May 13?

On February 18, 2013 UMNO had a closed-door exclusive preview of the fictitious and controversial film “Tanda Putera” at a gathering attended by some 2000 Felda settlers at the Putra World Trade Centre. This was purportedly endorsed by the Prime Minister – Najib Abdul Razak – himself out of desperation to get back Malay support for UMNO.

But are the Malays succumbing to this ruse after 56 years of independence? Aren’t the Malays already living harmoniously together with the non-Malays in this country?

The film supposedly accounts the events that led to the May 13, 1969, racial riots. Of course, by screening it to the group of Felda settlers this must have indirectly miffed the morale of many non-Malay voters, as the latter were given no avenues to elucidate to the audience the many controversial scenes lacing up the stories that led to the riots.

Offended the non-Malays

This political strategy by UMNO may or may not get any sympathy from the audience. But what is certain is that UMNO has yet again offended the non-Malays.

Critics say that there is a malicious intent behind the preview of the film – to scare the voters so that they would continue to support UMNO. But this manoeuvre is not going to help the nation recover from the May13 trauma.

The film seems to have come up with some imaginary scenes to make it more ‘palatable to the Malay taste’ and indirectly make them ‘hate’ the Chinese.

This fictitious film was surely not based on well-grounded research backed by historical facts. Until today the people have not seen any documented historical evidence that many of the depicted episodes found in the film actually took place and that these incidents provoked the May13th incident.

Screening the controversial film to the audience has further infuriated the Chinese, especially, as the people were made to watch episodes of the film that are ghoulish that could trigger interracial hatred and distrust.

Without any documented evidence on the many controversial scenes found in the film it is certainly not fair to Malaysians. UMNO must still be thinking that the Chinese are a threat to Malay supremacy in the country after 56 years of independence.

Be that as it may, what had happened after about 12 years of Independence cannot be simply assumed to happen again after 56 years of independence.  The people of all races have gone through a maturing and mellowing process that they do not need to be reminded in a fictitious manner what had happened in the past.

Let the past be a lesson to all that they have no choice but to live together as true Malaysians.

Are the non-Malays a threat to the Malays today? If the idea of showing the fictitious movie to a Malay audience is to make them feel bad about the Chinese and Indians then the latter should not vote for UMNO or Barisan Nasional. UMNO’s brashness here is akin to a party that has no trust for the non-Malays in the country.

If UMNO cannot bury the May 13^th episode for good after 56 years of independence then they do not deserve to get votes from the non-Malays.

UMNO has lost Malay support

As who started the May 13 riots is still debatable among historians.  It was indeed a black spot in our history but this happened four decades ago just after 12 years of independence. It was due to some raw and rash kind of political conditions of those days that triggered the event.

Malaysians have mellowed since then and thinking of a recurrence of another May 13 has now become a fantasy. The people of this country – Orang Asal, Malays, Chinese and Indians – have graduated from the dark period of history to enlightenment and are today willing to live together in harmony. But UMNO does not seem to acknowledge this.

UMNO’s hegemony over the other races has made the party think that only UMNO can rule this country and be the supremo of the Malays.

Today, with the advent of a two-party system, there is a viable alternative to UMNO. PAS and PKR have dominated the political scene and Malays are observed to have shifted their loyalty to these parties. Noticeably, UMNO has lost Malay support.

If this fictitious film goes on to become a campaign tool for UMNO then no Chinese or Indian will vote for UMNO or Barisan in the next general election. The 13^th general election will be Barisan’s day of reckoning.

MCA, MIC and Gerakan – partners in Barisan – cannot stay silent over this matter as calling to mind the May 13^thriots by UMNO is alike  telling their partners that they cannot be trusted.  Hatching political hatreds in a multi-racial Malaysian at this stage is not going to bode well for the nation.

Fear not the non-Malays

The Chinese and Indians were born and have lived in this country for many years but they are still under a class of their own – they are not considered as Bumiputera and the local Malays and Orang Asal have no reason to fear them.

The Chinese and Indians are less favoured by UMNO government. The Chinese and Indians will have to struggle to find space in the Malaysian economy. But they are not the type that will carry arms against the government or other races. They only want to earn a decent living as citizens of this country. They are only demanding for their basic rights as citizens.

Political observers have this to say: The threats to the Malays and Orang Asal today come not from the non-Bumiputera citizens of this country but from the thousands of foreigners who were given instant citizenship since the days Mahathir came to become the prime minister. These foreigners can now claim to be Bumiputera by virtue of them being Muslims. And many have become more successful than the Malays and Orang Asal of this country.

Many even have dual citizenship and treat this country as a sanctuary for making money.

If there were to be animosity it would soon be between these new instant Bumiputera and the Malays and Orang Asal of this country. Fear not the non-Malays who have been in the country as loyal citizens.

With many foreigners now infiltrating the country there is no certainty that there will not be severe problems in the country. Many of these foreigners who are Muslims are given instant citizenship and they will soon claim to be Bumiputera, classified as Malay and claim equal rights with the Malays and natives of the country.

Being in the same religious pool but coming from different ethnic backgrounds and even Islam of different sects may not augur well with the local Malays and Orang Asal. Very soon the local Malays and Orang Asal will come to realise that their economic quiche will have to be shared with these foreigners who have become instant Bumiputera and Malay.

Malays cannot be threatened

Perpetuating the politics of fear is not the way forward in nation building. But there is no reason for the Malays to fear the Chinese and Indians who form less than 30 percent of the population.

The Malays cannot be threatened by the 23 percent Chinese and 7 percent Indians from the total population of today. The Chinese and Indians are constitutionally not considered as Bumiputera.  But life goes on as usual for these people even when they are discriminated against in many social and economic sectors.

However, the three major races in the country together with the Orang Asal have relatively lived in harmony for the last 56 years.

UMNO for the past 56 years has failed to make the Malays compete with the Chinese, especially in business and under UMNO rule the Malays are still many steps backward economically. Forty percent Malays are still under the poor category. A few UMNO cronies have enriched themselves but the majority Malays are still in pitiable states.  Blame not the Chinese for UMNO’s debacle.

The less than 30 percent Chinese and Indians can never be a threat to the Malays or the country from the security point of view.

Foreigners who are given instant citizenship

UMNO has failed the Malays and now we see the country face another bane – the influx of foreigners who are given instant citizenship just because they are Muslims and with the hope that they will keep UMNO in power.

These foreigners will claim to be Bumiputera by virtue of them being Muslims. They will soon become a big threat to the real Malays and Orang Asal in this country. Very soon the local Bumiputera will have to compete with these instant Bumiputera for government privileges.

The many Muslim foreigners from neighbouring countries could be a threat to the Malays and the country. These foreigners have their roots in the Southern Philippines, Indonesia, Southern Thailand and some others in Myanmar and Kampuchea.

The country’s borders have always been porous and UMNO is too generous to accommodate these foreigners.

Let’s not forget our history

The ongoing incident in Lahad Datu is testimony to this problem. The standoff between a group of armed men and Malaysian security forces in Lahad Datu, Sabah reminds Malaysians of the danger of being too kind to illegals that were given refuge on this soil. The lives of innocent people and of the security forces can be put at risk.

The group of some 200 men with their supporters, said to be heavily armed, has resurrected the old territorial claim on Sabah by the former Sulu sultanate. And they have supporters from among those who have been residing in Sabah. Now the authorities have to rise to the occasion to protect the country's sovereignty.

And let’s not forget our history lest it repeats itself.

This Sabah incident reminds Malaysians of the country’s past history. The Indonesian–Malaysian Confrontation during 1962–1966 was Indonesia's political and armed opposition to the creation of Malaysia. The confrontation was an undeclared war with most of the action in the border area between Indonesia and East Malaysia on the island of Borneo (known as Kalimantan in Indonesia).

However, Sabah and Sarawak were ethnically, religiously and politically diverse and there was some local opposition to joining Malaysia that Indonesia attempted to exploit. Today we have many legal and illegal immigrants from Indonesia residing in Malaysia.

Early history of Malaya saw Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and north of Malacca, as nominal subjects of Siam at one time before and after the Portuguese took over Malacca in 1511. Today the northern border of West Malaysia is also porous with many Siamese living around the zone having dual citizenship – Malaysia and Thai.

Instant Bumiputera

The Malays are more worried of the thousands of foreigners from neighbouring countries who have been given citizenship and have become instant Bumiputera. They now have to compete with Muslim Bumiputera from the Phillipines, Indonesia, Thailand, Bangladesh, Myanmmar, India and Pakistan who have become instant Bumiputera..

Among them are those who still retain their ethnic identity and many are with dual citizenship.

The Malays thus are not facing any threat from the non-Bumiputera Chinese and Indians who have been in this country for so long.

Showing “Tanda Putera” to the Malays to convince them to be sacred of the non-Malays is just a waste of UMNO’s precious time. The May13 incident has become irrelevant to the present day scenario in the country, as it does no more hold water in a country with a diverse population.

Malaysia Chronicle