'SPECIAL POSITION' OF THE MALAYS DOES NOT GIVE NAJIB THE LICENCE TO DESTROY MALAYSIA

After living harmoniously with the non-Muslims for decades and decades, a small band of self-appointed protectors of Islam took it upon themselves to belittling of the faiths of the non-Muslims and this has gone too far because the authorities have refused to act against these bigots. The peace-keeping and law-enforcing authorities’ refusal to act, and the political masters’ silence on the matter, have been interpreted by the bigots to mean that their racist activities have the blessings of the government. They conveniently shield themselves behind religion by proclaiming themselves as defenders of their faith.

Do the authorities believe that any action against these bigots will condemn them to hell, like Hadi said recently that not voting for PAS will incur the wrath of God? Are secular laws such as the Sedition Act and the Penal Code not applicable to these bigots because they are masquerading as the defenders and saviours of Islam?

The rise of bigotry and anti non-Muslim sentiments among a small number of Muslims can be compared with the rise of mat rempits that has become a menace to society today and who are labelled by the police as “samseng jalanan” or roadway mobsters. The police is having a very hard time controlling them so much so that the government has been forced to accommodate them and give them more face by wanting to shut off roads in Kuala Lumpur for them to show off their antics. They could do this at the Sepang F1 circuit, but no, they want to show off their “power” by disrupting traffic and causing panic to innocent road-users, i.e. they want to exhibit “ketuanan jalan raya”.

Allowing bigots to play with racism is like allowing little children to play with matches. While the little children do not know that lighted matches landing on easily combustible materials could result in infernos causing loss of life, limb and property, the bigots are not innocent children but matured people with motives for their deliberate, planned racist activities. Some of these bigots are professionals and learned people like teachers in schools and professors in Universities. They are not making “mistakes” when deriding the faiths of the non-Muslims, but doing it subtly and deliberately, camouflaged in their lessons and lectures and feeling safe within the walls of the classrooms and lecture theatres.

In the case of the demeaning UTM module on Sikhs and Hindus, a reader of news items in the Malaysiakini, one ‘dzulkefly ahmad’ posted two comments as follows:

THOSE RESPONSIBLE IS FROM JABATAN PENGAJIAN ISLAM, FAKULTI PENGURUSAN & PEMBANGUNAN SUMBER MANUSIA, UTM (Sikhs want author of erroneous UTM module sacked)

2. IT WAS THE SAME 17 YEARS AGO. MODULES DONE BY LECTURERS FROM JABATAN PENGAJIAN ISLAM. THE MAIN PERSON AT THAT TIME WAS RAMLI AWANG. DUNNO IF HE'S STILL AROUND. HE'S A BIGOT! (Police report lodged against UTM on ‘dirty Hindu’ module)

Unless the book is thrown at the bigots and the severest action taken to stop them, more of them will grow like mushrooms. The government must not be complacent in dealing with these bigots who are planting racial land-mines. Learn how giving face to the mat rempits have made them “samseng jalanan”. Racial bigotry is a far worse matter that could result in destroying the country.

A minister had lamented why all the mat rempits were Malays. The answer is simple – the government gave them face when they were incubating, and I wonder if this was because of the “special position” of the Malays.

“Special position” does not mean closing an eye to the activities of a small band of bigots who are using religious cover to carry out anti-national activities of driving wedges between the multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-cultural population of Malaysia which has been a showcase of harmonious living to the world. - MAILBAG