Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that he was very angry with Hindraf's allegations of ‘ethnic cleansing’ by the Malaysian government. Surely the term ‘ethnic cleansing’ in Malaysia does not mean the killing of non-Malays. But as a Chinese Malaysian, I fully understand what it means. It refers to the government’s practice of systematic policies which make life difficult for Malaysian minorities in sustaining their population in Malaysia.
This has resulted in a significant drop in the minority population’s proportion and growth rates. The Chinese and Indian population has dropped significantly since independence from 40% and 10% respectively to only 24% and 7%. These figures are expected to slip further. Yes, the decline also happens among the international Chinese and Indian communities worldwide. However, I would like to point out a fact that contributes to the decline here. It is the unfair and unequal treatment from the government.
It is generally more expensive for the average Chinese Malaysian or Indian to have an additional child compared to the average Malay. Chinese and Indian students in vernacular schools are only given little assistance in terms of free textbooks, school facilities and the development of the schools. Despite their major contribution to national income taxes, the government would rather use the money to build mosques and suraus than to help these schools. At the pre-university level, Malay students easily gain access to universities via the matriculation program specially designed for them whereas Chinese and Indian students would have to sit for one of the hardest examinations in the world (the STPM) to secure a place in national universities.
At work, one has to face multiple obstacles especially if employed in government-linked companies where promotions are reserved mainly for Malay employees. Malay politicians often counter-argue that the private sector has been dominated by the Chinese. This argument does not hold as the Chinese and Indians are tax-paying citizens too. They should be accorded equal rights and treatment in government-linked companies, whereas we cannot control what the private sector does.
When purchasing a house, the average non-Malay has to fork out an additional five to fifteen percent compared to the average Malay. In actual fact, the average non-Malay is subsidising the house of the average Malay. As a result, most Malaysian Chinese and Indian couples since the 1970s would have either had one or two children per family whereas policies favouring the Malays have consistently enabled them to have larger families, even within the poorer segment of the community.
Instead of offering assistance and protection to the minorities, a practice that is the norm in many countries, the Malaysian government chooses to ignore their rights and create a policy that favors the Malay majority. It should be noted that countries like Britain and even China have special policies for their minority communities. In emerging countries like Thailand and Vietnam where the majority of natives are poor and not accorded any special rights, they are still able to succeed in life with hard work. Instead of encouraging the Malays to change their mind-set and creating an environment to enable the Malays to work harder, Umno sees it fit to continue fighting for Malay special rights and additional privileges to ensure that it obtains the community's continued support for each and every election.
The reason why the Malaysian Chinese and Indian minorities are frustrated is because there are no leaders with the political will to fight for their rights. The prime minister may have big ears and no one might doubt that he is a fair and reasonable person, but all over the country there are countless overzealous government officials trying to make life difficult for the average Malaysian Chinese and Indians. For this situation to change, the presidents of MCA, MIC and Gerakan should be made decision-makers and approvers of government policies. They must not leave their community’s woes solely to Umno.
There should be three mayors in every major city representing the three major races. Why must the building of a Chinese school or Hindu temple be approved by a Malay who does not understand the importance of such facilities to the non-Malays/Muslims? Likewise, it would be unreasonable for a non-Muslim to decide on the construction of mosques and suraus. Hence, these leaders should be able to approve the construction of a Chinese school, Hindu temple or other buildings based on guidelines agreed upon by various parties.
There are many countries where various races live harmoniously, including Canada, Singapore, Turkey and many European countries. Malaysian politicians should therefore take a good look at themselves before singing praises about Malaysia. A good comparison is with our southern neighbour Singapore which also has an Indian minority that comprises seven percent of its total population.
Since Malaysia is ruled by the Malays and Singapore is ruled by the Chinese, it would therefore be fair to seek the opinions of the minority Indians in both countries as to how they view their respective countries, the tolerance level, government policies and so forth. It looks like Malaysia has much to learn from its southern neighbour in terms of fair and effective distribution of national wealth, tolerance and mutual respect.
