Fixing definition of ‘Malaysian’ can lead to discrimination, says Marina

Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir says after 58 years of independence, do Malaysians know who they really are. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Hasnoor Hussain, November 28, 2015.

Fixing a definition of what is and who is a Malaysian can lead to marginalisation and discrimination, says social activist Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir.

She said the definition of national character should remain an evolving process.

“The problem is once a person starts nailing a definition of what is a Malaysian, by default they will exclude someone. 

“Then it is a slippery slope towards marginalisation and discrimination,” she said in her keynote address at the opening of the George Town Literary Festival in Penang yesterday.

The theme of the festival, which ends tomorrow, is “We are who we are/are we who we are?”

Marina said some people might define a true Malaysian as “a member of the majority community, full of testosterone, supporters of certain parties only, Malay-speaking and definitely straight”, which made for a rather “exclusive club” that “nobody might want to belong to”.

“After 58 years of independence, do we know who we are? Are we part of this globalised 21st century world or are we still a rural people? Are we afraid of being overwhelmed by universal human rights?

“The question is do we really need to define who we are? Do we box ourselves in? Is it better to stumble along in our usual chaotic fashion because that is really who we are or are we all undefinable or undefined?

“There are areas we agree on and don’t agree on. There are people who champion human rights, as long as it was not about the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered) community. We believe in gender equality but have no qualms making sexist jokes. So do we define such people as liberals or conservatives?”

Marina said although Malaysia wanted to be part of the globalised world, it called itself different from everyone else, but “how exactly, we cannot say”.

She said Malaysia was dual-natured but those less charitable would call it “two-faced” and “schizophrenic”.

She gave several examples of how Malaysia was a nation of contradictions.

“On one level, it is rocked by much hate and divisiveness, usually related to race and religion,” she said, citing how newspapers and social media were painting a bleak picture of the country.

“On another level, we can be at peace with one another. Malaysians simply get along perhaps because we have lived together for so long, we cannot imagine a landscape without one another,” she said, giving the “hybrid food” from its multiracial and multicultural society as an example.

Marina said Malaysia has the looks of a well-developed nation with its highways, skyscrapers and mobile phones, but it took little for the people to plunge into superstition, backbiting and parochialism.

“We love it when Malaysians succeed overseas but at the same time, we snipe at those who are outstanding in their achievements, finding fault with everything we can possibly find about them.

“Oh, she won a gold medal, but she doesn’t know how to choose her clothes,” she said, referring to the incident where gymnast Farah Ann Abdul Hadi was criticised for exposing her “aurat” and the “shape of her vagina” in a leotard despite winning a gold medal at the SEA Games in June.

Marina said Malaysians could also be big-hearted and generous when it came to making donations, especially in the aftermath of natural disasters, but they could also be picky about who they helped, depending on how much affinity they felt, whether in race, religion or something else.

Malaysia was quite willing to accept Bosnian and Syrian refugees because they were Muslims but it was nowhere near as welcoming towards the Muslim Rohingya refugees, fleeing rioting, poverty and persecution.

“Some of us think it is a waste of time to help anyone outside the country and we should start with those who need help at home first. 

“Some believe those far away should be entitled to their own lands but we have no qualms about taking land from our own indigenous people.

“We like to say we believe in human rights but we don’t truly believe that it should be universal. Yes, we should be equal but not that equal.”

Marina said Malaysians were diverse in terms of ancestry, skin colour, gender, religious and political affiliation, level of education, income and other differentiations.

Each day, she said, was a negotiation of how everyone could live peacefully based on their common interests which were encapsulated in the Federal Constitution.

- TMI