Where has the spirit of muhibbah gone?

There has to be a real desire by the people in power to check the rising temperature.

COMMENT

By Syed Nadzri Syed Harun

Looks like national reconciliation, the Race Relations Act and the National Unity Consultative Council could be doomed to remain just what they are in the present Malaysian context — a load of meaningless polysyllables and a mouthful of tongue-twisters.

Against a backdrop of caustic name-calling, abrasive communal-centric behaviour and hopeless insecurity in our midst, we wonder whether anyone is actually following up on the prime minister’s call for a national reconciliation that came on the night the results of the 2013 general election were known nearly three months ago.

On top of that, the proposed National Unity Consultative Council seems to be taking forever to come into shape, let alone function, while the once intense Race Relations Act is stillborn.

And most significantly where is the Rukunegara? This very foundation of national philosophy is lost, its coded concept seldom uttered even in schools and the spirit buried.

So in the meantime the siege mentality has burst out on many fronts with the pervasive who’s-right-who’s-wrong frenzy hellbent on race and religion. Don’t believe? Get into the social media whirl.

The “us and them” mindset has come to a point where everything controversial is either politicised or spun out of context, leading some people to believe they are really under siege.

The fiasco that perpetuated from a makeshift canteen at a shower room in Sekolah Sri Pristana, Sungai Buloh, has degenerated into a tinderbox of race-religion issue waiting to explode.

Similarly the move by the education authorities to introduce Islamic and Asian Civilisation (TITAS) as a subject in schools is read by some quarters as a step towards indoctrinating non-Muslims, again the race-religion factor coming into play.

There are so many other issues flaring up the same way of late — the one surrounding the intake of students into universities, complaints of racist doctors in Penang, deaths in police lock-ups, inefficient delivery system in the civil service, etc. Even court verdicts have been turned into racial subjects.

It does not help of course when once in a while we do have stupid people committing stupid acts or nutty politicians blurting out senseless statements that could trigger nasty reactions.

Everyone has become very sensitive and death threats have surfaced regularly. If you notice, even offers of apology have been deemed inadequate on most occasions.

Given the scenario, there has to be a real desire by the people in power to check the rising temperature.

In need of a remedy

The national reconciliation proposal, for instance, has not moved an inch despite the initial heat. On the contrary, blame is heaped on everybody else for the flop (and this makes it worse). There has to be a remedy.

The country went through an uglier episode in 1969 but the recovery was swift, mainly due to sincere efforts to mend fences. The authorities played a major role, of course.

There was the National Consultative Council, set up specifically to deal with divisive issues. It worked wonders because the spirit for unity was sown in.

The buzzword at that time was “muhibbah” which in the context then meant more than goodwill. It signified a real urge to work towards better race relations. There were regular muhibbah gatherings, muhibbah durian parties and even the “muhibbah” song became a big hit.

Sadly, the spirit is gone and efforts to bridge the race-religion gap today would, in many cases, be met with scepticism that breeds questions like “Why are we giving too much face to them?” or “They want to persecute us and deny our rights”. Classic cases of distrust.

The Rukunegara that came into being post-1969 does not come with a shelf life deadline. So why not live its spirit? For the benefit of those who have forgotten, the Rukunegara declares these principles:

* Belief in God

* Loyalty to King and Country

* Upholding the Constitution

* Rule of Law, and

* Good behaviour and morality.

Live them. Is that too much to ask?