In Malaysia, politics is the epicentre of power. It affects our daily lives from the simplest of things like the cost needed to buy groceries to the most complex of things like dealing with sensitive religious conflicts.

As the saying goes, “You can ignore politics, but politics will never ignore you.” Since politics is an omnipresent entity, it is critical that we shape it in a way which best serves societal interests. It is critical that we foster a progressive and inclusive political atmosphere which propels our country forward and not drag it downward. For the cultivation of this atmosphere, an honest policy-based discussion should be pedestalised over the immutable identity-based politics.

Identity-based politics refers to political positions based on the interests and perspectives of social groups with which people identify. It can range from social constructs like race and gender to more ideological stances like religion and ‘conservatism/liberalism’. Policy-driven politics on the hand judges issues based on data and well-researched outcomes, devoid of sentimentalism and the imposition of ideological structures.

Let’s be clear, it is perfectly fine for a person to associate themselves to a specific race, class, religion, etc, however the assessment of the issues should not be predominantly controlled by those very same characteristics. For example, a discussion of gender-based issues shouldn’t be driven by sentiments and traditional misbeliefs but data.

Arguing for quotas should not just be based on one’s born-into identity, instead it should be based on the efficacy of the plan fused with notions of justice and equity.

In Malaysia, when discussing about ways to uplift the position of the bumiputeras, we are quick to jump to emotive logic. This has led to policy-outcomes which are undesirable where the elite Malays are the biggest beneficiaries of the well-intentioned policy to reach racial equity.

In its 20 years, the New Economic Policy (NEP) has raised the bumiputera share in economy from 1.9 percent in 1970 to 20.4 percent in 1990. Since then it has hovered at the 22-24 percent mark, thus signaling a need for a recalibration.

One of the major problems of identity-based politics is that it paints everyone from a specific identity with the same brush. It presumes that all Muslims want a specific set of laws. This is evident in the debate on Act 355. Anyone who objects to the law is quickly labelled as deviants and ultra-liberals. At its base, identity politics is driven by the need to homogenise groups as it gives them strength in numbers and some form of ideological purity to champion for.

Disrupting progression of beliefs

Identity politics also disrupts progression of beliefs as it chains itself to a set of moral structure. Traditions which are often outdated are lobbied to be preserved as it’s argued to be a crucial part of the identity structure. In India, despite the existing laws which have outlawed sati burning (an obsolete Hindu funeral custom where a widow immolates herself after her husband’s death), we still see it being practiced in Rural India.

In Pakistan, ‘honour killings’ are still carried out when a son or daughter dishonours the family name. Identity politics treat traditions as sacrosanct items which cannot be perturbed. It gets worse when we look at immutable characteristics (born into) like race and gender.

One cannot possibly escape the prescriptions placed on a specific gender or race. If Malays are stereotyped as ‘lazy’, it hurts every malay from the laziest to the most hardworking. When women are painted as ‘inferior beings’, it hurts the chances of all women, from the corporate to government sector from obtaining a place which fits her qualifications.

In order for Malaysia to move forward, we need a hybrid of identity- and policy-based politics. The Malaysia we live in today is still dominated by identity-based politics. This is evident when we look at what issues are played out when an election comes. Composition of parties as a consequence are tuned that way.

A gradual transition out is needed. This can be done when when identity-based parties focus more on policy issues to forward their agendas. The protection of bumiputeras can still be done through a policy platform. Achieving racial equity is not racist, but economic justice. Achieving gender equity is not sexist but gender justice. This line however must be toed with extreme caution, thus the need for the discourse to be dominated by data and policy-based outcomes.

It would be too idealistic for Malaysia to transition out from identity-based politics today. However it’s critical that we don’t strive for either extremes. The dream today is to respect identity affiliations which are driven by policy outcomes which respect rules of equity and justice. Let’s make that dream a reality.

SYED SADDIQ SYED ABDUL RAHMAN is a part-time lecturer at Universiti Islam Antarabangsa (UIA) Malaysia and is Asia’s best debater, winning the United Asia Debate Championship in May 2015.