Indirect discrimination is a subtler version in that it is not always obvious when the discrimination takes place such as when there is an imposed requirement or condition which results in discrimination against individuals on the grounds of gender or race. For instance:

Imposing an age, language, race, gender requirement in a job advert;

Not promoting women who are pregnant;

Setting tests and or asking for qualifications above the requirement for the post.

Indirect employment discrimination based on racism is not something new in Malaysia and it tends to grow rapidly day by day. This will eventually lead to an uncompetitive situation for the organisation in the long run as the best talents are not sourced for the particular position advertised.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak's request for the private sector to stop Mandarin-language discrimination shows how poorly informed he is about the way the Chinese are balancing the discrimination of the government against them by hiring their own people.

Apart from that, the Mandarin language is the world's most spoken language and with China's emergence as a global market, it is imperative that we learn and equip ourselves with Mandarin.

I am working for a MNC in Manchester and the whites here (who are very proud of their English) has recognised that Mandarin is an important business language and are urging their staff to learn the language.

The current Malaysian government needs to change their attitude first with regards to discrimination before requesting someone else to do so.