Rights group Negara-Ku patron Ambiga Sreenavasan has urged Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) to introspect on whether it is a boon or bane for the Malays.

She said a thorough self-examination is required for Isma to determine if the siege mentality it is foisting helps to advance the community or whether this is holding them back.

"How can you uplift a community when you are constantly destroying their confidence by saying they are under attack, easily confused and so forth," she told Malaysiakini .

Ambiga was responding to Isma's criticism of fellow Negara-Ku patron and national laureate A Samad Said, who is fondly known as Pak Samad.

Yesterday, Isma policy unit head Badhrulhisham Abdul Aziz questioned if Samad was "blind and naive" to the "fact that he was acting on behalf of others".

The movement was reacting to Samad's remarks at a forum where he dismissed claims that Malays and Islam are under threat in this nation.

Samad believes in Malays more than Isma

Ambiga said Isma, as always, was attacking the messenger.

"But it has no answer to Pak Samad's message, that is if the Malays are (as they claim) under siege then who is responsible? It must be the party that has been in power for 57 years.

"Pak Samad clearly does not agree the Malays are under attack. He clearly has confidence in the community that Isma does not seem to have.

"He believes in the dignity of each of us and with all the wisdom that he has, can see that we can all live harmoniously as Malaysians without any of us feeling threatened," she added.

Describing him as a "great man", Ambiga said Samad believes in justice, compassion and fair play.

"For myself, it has been an honour knowing this man who at 80 plus has the courage and fortitude so many do not.

"It would have been easy and probably more lucrative for Pak Samad to have toed the line but he chose a more difficult but principled path.

"Isma might not agree with his views, that is their right. But they are the last people who should question his motives or suggest he is being manipulated," she added.

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