That foreign maids are abused is not new. What's new, however, is the justification for such horrendous behaviour on the part of Malaysian employers. True, some maids are bad workers, but surely no one deserved to be bludgeoned black and blue by their bosses.

Perhaps such a defence mechanism reflects the blaming-the-ingrates syndrome popularised by some of our leaders. Like it or not, we get the maid we pay for. With RM350 per month, we cannot expect a trained domestic "slave", ready to work between 12-16 hours a day, seven days a week.

The maid abuse issue clearly goes beyond cultural differences or misunderstanding between the maids and their employers, as some editorials in the mainstream papers have suggested. The government can, and must, do more. Foreign workers should be treated much in the same way as local workers; they should be allowed to form unions, take days off, and earn a decent wage. Only then, will they be accorded some respect.

Moreover, we should not shirk from addressing the underlying causes of the harsh treatment meted out to foreign workers - racism and racial prejudice.

Racial prejudice, too, is nothing new in Malaysia.

A few years ago, Selangor football team manager Aini Taib drew heavy fire when he said he preferred white players over black. He was arguing against his team signing on a black English striker, Arsenal's Ian Wright.

Apparently, Aini's disapproval of black players was due to their ''tendency'' for indiscipline. Moreover, white players, he said, are ''more popular'' with Malaysian football fans.

In reaction to the furore ignited by the racist bomb he lobbed, Aini claimed his comments were misinterpreted.

''I was referring to just one black player,'' he clarified, ''and not the whole legion of blacks.''

But that's exactly how racism works. Slur one black because of his or her skin colour, and all blacks are slurred.

Nevertheless, Aini had raised a number of uncomfortable questions regarding our perception of matters black and white. Uncomfortable, because his views are held by many Malaysians.

Why is it we assume our football fans are ''naturally'' attracted to white players? Why do we fawn over models, movie stars and singers who sport Western features? Why do we worship all things white? And more importantly, why do victims of racism malign those who are darker than them?

Aini had argued he cannot be racist because he is non-white.

''I'm black myself,'' he said, ''so why should I hit out at the blacks?''

But being non-white does not automatically exempt a person from being racist. True, elements of nationalism can be found in every nation.

And such chauvinism often fuels hatred and discord between contending groups of people, sometimes degenerating into all-out wars. However, nationalism can also help empower the people in their struggle for freedom and equality after centuries of colonial subjugation and humiliation.

Indeed, in colonising the world, Europeans exported a brand of racism which comes with a colour-coded scale. At the apex of this racial hierarchy sit the whites, followed by brown-skinned people, and at the very bottom, the blacks. The world has since been poisoned by this racist ideology - that white is best and anything associated with the Third World is inferior. Some, of course, are more inferior than others.

This psychology of racism and colonial domination was extensively explored by Franz Fanon, a West Indian doctor involved in the liberation movement in French-occupied Algeria. In his book ''Black skin, white mask'', he lambasted those in the Third World whose minds are thoroughly ''whitewashed''.

Such ''whitewashed'' individuals, apart from being afflicted with self-hatred, often turn against those who are perceived to be darker or weaker, he wrote. Their frustration of being rejected by the whites is later directed against the blacks. Instead of being part of the solution, they are part of the problem, and help perpetuate the vicious cycle of violence and oppression.

In Malaysia, such "Third World" racism rears its ugly head wherever foreign workers are abused and exploited, and where the rights of tribal and ethnic minorities are trampled upon.

Yes, we must address the immediate issues which led to the abhorrent treatment of foreign workers in the country. But in so doing, we should not ignore the mother of all problems - racism.