Anwar’s emphatic stand boosts unity effort

 

It was the most emphatic declaration ever by a prime minister since the time of Hussein Onn. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said, in no uncertain terms, that Malaysia belonged to all Malaysians and not to any one group.

It will certainly be welcomed by right thinking Malaysians.

Certainly other prime ministers have said this over the last few decades but they said it almost in passing. There didn’t seem as much conviction and commitment in their voices as there was in that of Anwar at a PKR congress in Shah Alam yesterday.

And their policies – from the first stint of Dr Mahathir Mohamad onwards – did not give enough attention to fostering unity among the races that make up Malaysia. Some tried, but eventually caved in to the loud voices of those who had their own agendas or to those who played up race and religion to win votes.

In reminding Malaysians that this nation belonged to all citizens, Anwar said: “Yes, Malay is the official language, Islam is the official religion, we still maintain the privileges for the Malays and Bumiputeras and we will protect the sanctity of the Malay rulers.

“But we will never compromise on the principle that this is a country for all Malaysians irrespective of race and creed. And if you challenge that, you challenge us. And I will use all the authority at my disposal to stop this madness, this insanity of fighting against other races or other religious creeds.”

He is right. It is insane to fight each other. That is not what civilised people do. And that is certainly not what life is about.

We have seen and we continue to see how hatred and internal strive are tearing apart many nations in the world. We see civilians who just want to get on with their lives becoming refugees or dying in conflicts not of their making.

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I hope Anwar won’t stop at just making this statement. I hope it will be reflected in government policies and programmes, otherwise he will be no different from the other leaders who came before him post-1980.

With high anticipation, Malaysians will be looking to see how he will create an atmosphere where everyone feels this is their home, where everyone respects each other’s rights, and where everyone joins hands in taking the nation forward.

What policies will his government introduce to get every Malaysian on the same page despite racial and religious differences? Will his government promote unity in diversity? If so, in what way? And will he be able to withstand the pressure that will come from certain groups or in certain political situations?

Anwar, who is also Pakatan Harapan chairman, repeated his warning that action would be taken against those fanning racial or religious animosity.

People will be watching to see if action will be taken against VIPs and important political or religious personalities if they make statements that can raise the temperature?

Anwar noted in his speech that in any conflagration it was the innocent people who would “get burnt”. Which is true. He added that those instigating racial or religious strive would scramble to escape on their private jets.

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The PKR president said he had been patient for four months and that he had acted and spoken in a manner and tone befitting a prime minister.

“But today I speak as the PKR and reform movement president. You want to threaten me with a gathering? You want to threaten me for acting against corruption? You have chosen the wrong prime minister. I will not be cowed by such threats. We have the power and we will use it.”

That sounded like the Anwar of old.

Anwar’s strong statement came in the wake of a move to hold a gathering to launch something called a “Malay proclamation” with former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad as chief guest, and statements by others recently which give the impression that the Malays or Islam are under threat.

The “Malay proclamation” event scheduled for March 19 was subsequently cancelled as the organisers could not find a venue to hold the gathering. Mahathir gave a press conference on March 19 where he accused Anwar of being behind the sudden cancellation of the event.

Mahathir was reported as claiming that the government was trying to portray Malaysia as a multiracial country so that it could deny the special rights of the Malays.

He has increasingly been saying that the Malays are being left out or are in danger of losing their power.

Mahathir and others like him suffer from wilful blindness. That explains why they refuse to see or acknowledge that neither the Malays nor Islam can be under threat because of the country’s demographics, the power structure and the way the system works.

And that is why many Malaysians will appreciate Anwar’s firm stand that Malaysia belongs to all citizens, and that he will fight those who are out to disrupt unity.

Race relations have deteriorated over the years and bigoted racial and religious ideologies have made it to the mainstream of not just national politics but national life.

This is cause for alarm.

It is incumbent upon the present generation to arrest the decline and foster unity and harmony so that the next generation of Malaysians can carry on smoothly with their lives and take the nation forward to glory instead of being shackled by divisive forces and ideas.

We are wasting productive hours in unfounded accusations about fellow Malaysians; we are wasting precious energy in holding on to useless suspicions; we are wasting our lives in dividing ourselves to the detriment of our individual progress and the progress of the nation. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.