It is unfair for certain quarters to continue harping on the number of Indian professionals in this country, said Malaysian Indian Business Association (MIBA) president P Sivakumar today.

He said certain quarters are using this to show that the Indians in Malaysia are doing well contrary to the allegation that the community has been marginalised.

"It is very unfair to quote these statistics," he told Malaysiakini .

Sivakumar explained that it is the "sweat and tears" of parents, and not the government or others, which are behind the creation of these professionals.

"These parents exhausted all their resources to give their children a sound education. There was very little government help in the past. It is the hard work of the parents.

"If anybody is to take credit for the number of Indian professionals, it must be these parents," he added.

Sivakumar, who was one of those who attended the special meeting between Indian non-governmental organisations and Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Friday, pointed out that the current standard of living has made education an expensive acquisition.

"Without government help, it is very difficult to get a good education these days. It is a very sad situation," he added.

Things are improving

The MIBA president also said Indians must not forget that once under the tenure of former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad, only one Indian student was given a medical seat in a public university.

"There is a down-track in every professional area as far as the Indians are concerned. This is especially so in medicine, which in the past was a traditional area for Indians," he added.

However, Sivakumar noted that the situation has improved under the Abdullah administration, with more assistance forthcoming for the community in relation to education.

"Under Abdullah, we are confident that there will be even more education opportunities for the Indians, such as scholarships and loans," he said.

In view of this, he stressed that the number of Indian professionals should not be used to argue that the community is fairing well in this country.

The plight of the Indian community was thrust into the limelight following a class action suit filed against the British government by the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf).

The plaintiffs demanded a whopping US$4 trillion collectively - or US$2 million in damages for every Indian - for suffering continued discrimination since their ancestors were brought here by the British as indentured labourers.

Hindraf also accused the Malaysian government of marginalising the Indian community and subjecting them to ethnic cleansing.

On Nov 25, the movement organised a rally which saw some 30,000 Indians taking to the streets in Kuala Lumpur.

Although Hindraf leaders drew much flak over these allegations and their actions, which subsequently resulted in their detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA), the situation ignited a huge debate on the state of the Indians in Malaysia.

This also paved the way for the special meeting between the Indian NGOs and Abdullah.