Even as it clamps down on the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), the government is capitalising on its more “extreme demands” to shore up Malay support, cautions the as-yet-unregistered Parti Sosialis Malaysia.

Pro-tem vice-president and social activist Dr D Jeyakumar said he believes the government is using such demands to stir up communal sentiments among the Malays.

“This is creating a certain amount of antipathy among the Malays (thereby adding to) ethnic tensions,” he alleged, citing Hindraf’s claim that there is “ethnic cleansing” of Indian Malaysians.

He was one of three speakers at a forum entitled ‘Malaysia After Hindraf’ on Tuesday night. It was organised by the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall civil rights committee.

Jeyakumar said the government reaction is a strategy to deny that Hindraf’s claims - that the Indian community is being marginalised and faces entrenched discrimination - have any basis.

However, he warned that the ongoing attempts to criminalise Hindraf leaders and supporters has only added to discontent within the Indian community.

The other speakers were Hindraf representative A Sivanesan and blogger Nathaniel Tan. Two others invited, lawyer Haris Ibrahim and PAS head researcher Dr Dzulkifli Ahmad were unable to attend the event which drew a mixed crowd of 400.

'Not anti-Malay'

Sivanesan stressed that Hindraf is not anti-Malay but is targeting unfair policies towards the Indians.

He cited a recent survey that 80 percent of Indians are supportive of the Barisan Nasional government, although he did not discount the possibility of this having changed after Hindraf’s Nov 25 rally and the subsequent hardline stance of the government.

“We did not speak a single word about Malay brothers and sisters or about Malay special privileges. We did not speak a single word about Islam... It is this government which is misleading the public,” said the lawyer.

Sivanesan, who pointed out that the government is using the mass media to confuse the public, also challenged the government to an open debate.

He further claimed that the movement has received a surprising amount of support from the Chinese Malaysian community.

Those in the Malay community “have contributed RM9,632", he said, towards raising bail for Hindraf legal advisor P Uthayakumar who faces two sedition charges to date.

Late yesterday, lawyer Uthayakumar was offered bail at RM50,000 on the second charge. His relatives and supporters manage to raise the sum.