A quick intro - I was born and bred in Ipoh, moved to Hong Kong for my degree in 2009 and returned to resettle in Malaysia this January. Like many of my peers returning from overseas and other good Malaysians, I have this hopefully-achievable goal of contributing to the well-being of our beloved nation.

The impression I got from my first month in Malaysia after six years abroad is that we seem to live in fear. For example:

We fear being robbed if we walk through a parking space alone or if we don’t lock all doors, gates and windows at home.

We fear our neighbours because they belong to another race or religion, that they have some secret cabal working to undermine us.

We fear confronting bad behaviour or injustices because whistleblowers are shut down in all kinds of unsavoury ways.

These fears didn’t come from nowhere - they reflect our lack of trust in our national institutions and leaders. Because our inspector-general of police (IGP) spends more time on Twitter shutting down anyone who doesn’t sing praises of the current administration instead of finding more efficient ways to combat crime (no offence to the good cops who are on the line keeping us safe), we have to be vigilant to the point of paranoia.

Because politicians have constantly exploited racial and religious differences, we grow up hearing - and maybe even believing - the worst stereotypes about each other: Malays are lazy, Chinese are greedy, Jews are the Illuminati, etc. Lenin said, “A lie told often enough becomes the truth.”

Because we see criminal behaviour go unpunished, we think, “Why bother?” After the horrific murder of deputy public prosecutor Kevin Morais, we think, “Why risk our everyday lives to fight for something so abstract like politics?” After all, with the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) while the economy and ringgit tank, life is hard as it is.

Fear is a necessary survival tool. However, if we allow ourselves to be paralysed by fear, we effectively relinquish our control of the situation. We become bystanders. We allow events to happen to us and then wonder later on how things turned out so bad.

I still believe in the power of people and Malaysians’ ability to unite over other things besides good food. Many things we aspire to are similar: a peaceful country; a comfortable home; our children to grow up safe, happy and healthy; to be respected and to have the freedom to live as best as our consciences or ideals dictate.

What can we do to free ourselves from the politics of fear?

We need to learn how to discuss complex issues with open-mindedness and empathy, even if others’ perspectives conflict with ours. By seeking to understand different perspectives and working towards gaining middle ground, we can avoid being swayed by the current narrative of ‘us vs them’.

We should call out bad behaviour, but with civility instead of resorting to quick accusations based on rumours or condemning an entire community because of one person’s actions.

We can reject public figures’ statements if they are racist, divisive or plain ridiculous, and make it clear that sowing discord or spouting nonsense is unacceptable. We can and should hold them to a higher standard.

We can still vote.

The philosopher Joseph de Maistre said it best, “Every nation gets the government it deserves.” Will we succumb to the politics of fear or will we be brave to stand up for a better Malaysia?