After reading the letter Pray tell me, my place in this country , I feel the urge to voice my opinion.

We are Malaysians. There is absolutely no doubt about this. Our Chinese ethnic identity does not contradict with our Malaysian identity either. We are legally, culturally, mentally and even physically, Malaysians

(I am now studying in Canada and I encounter many people of Chinese ethnic origin. Still, I am able to recognise a Chinese Malaysian according to their physical appearance.)

Policy-makers would attempt to define who is who according to their own agenda. But we should not allow them to alter our belief about who we really are.

Some of our ethnic-based policies were necessary when they were first created - for instance the NEP - to help our fellow Malaysians who were economically disadvantaged. However, because of the way they were implemented, they became racist against the non-Malays.

Some other ethnic-based policies are just plain discriminatory. Non-Malay cultures, histories and their contributions to our country have been purposely omitted or downplayed in all public and national institutions.

This always creates an identity crisis among non-Malay Malaysians. In my opinion, this is one of the factors that hinders racial integration in Malaysia.

Malaysia has many policies that are unfair to different groups of Malaysians. There are certain policies that are discriminatory against women, but this doesn't mean that female Malaysians are less Malaysian in any way than their male counterparts.

The same applies to other disadvantaged groups in Malaysia, including the Orang Asli, non- bumiputeras, non-Malay bumiputeras, disabled persons, homosexuals, transsexuals and others.

Hence, we should continue our struggle for a better Malaysia where no one is left out or marginalised. In the meantime, we all should preserve all records of our ancestors' footsteps in this beautiful country of ours.

Keep telling our children their stories and their contributions to Malaysia. We should continue to love our nation, and to be proud of who we are.

Furthermore, we must improve inter-racial discussion, cooperation and appreciation with the eventual aim of bringing about integration (not assimilation). We should also continue to contribute the best we can to bring prosperity and harmony to this nation.

I remain hopeful that one day, all the unjust policies will be scrapped and our 'Sejarah' textbook be rewritten to reflect the rightful place of our ancestors and their contribution to our Malaysia.