LETTER | Do Malaysians really ever focus and even care about what the government is being told to do by foreign diplomats and our own human rights activists?
Some may disagree with me, but that's not what Putrajaya should focus its efforts on in this 'new Malaysia'. We should not solely stick to certain issues that will open a Pandora's box and cause tensions if not handled properly.
To do what most human rights NGOs and foreign governments want us to do is too idealistic and practically impossible.
Constitutional compromise
Issues like sexual discrimination, removing the religious identification on our MyKad, allowing total freedom of religion are serious issues that need more stakeholder engagement.
Should we push away the constitutional compromise and its sanctity only to satisfy the agendas of the few, while being rejected by our own citizens?
This is where public engagement is vital. The last thing we need in this country is racial and political instability. The status of Islam as the religion of the federation will be questioned and the role of the monarchy to uphold Malay values, its traditions and Islam will be affected
Most definitely our laws, which are sovereign to our country, and our judicial system will bow down to pressure of supranationals, which may be seen as a form of colonialisation. We will no longer free to determine our own laws and how we should govern, simply because it doesn't go well with what other countries tell us to do.
In fact, I am still consistent with my objection of the ratification of International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Malaysia should uphold bumiputera policies in order for greater equity, and making sure that all Malaysians feel truly at par without the inequality plagues Malays until today.
Misplaced priorities
It seems that this new government has misconstrued its purpose of being in Putrajaya.
What happened to their pledge for a fully functional and more empowered legislature? To guarantee an equitable welfare system? The other promises in their manifesto.
We are being taken on a roller coaster ride by this government. Pakatan Harapan is in an unstable position internally.
PKR is slowly losing its credibility because of the disgrace of its party election, Bersatu attracting Umno members for their party's survival, and the Harapan government is introducing economic policies that only favour the capitalists and businesses, rather than the vulnerable, with a flawed welfare budget and their broken promises.
As if pushing their so-called human rights agenda as a top priority, more so than the other ludicrous proposals in their agenda.
If they say that their human rights agenda is in line in their manifesto, then they might as well argue that the pledges should be fulfilled.
I would confidently say that their manifesto is a sham. Their 100-day pledge was nothing but election slogans which are unsustainable. Even their policies are full of U-turns.
The government should focus more on making sure its citizens are living well and enjoy a prosperous economy rather than fulfilling a utopia that may not be possible.
Where do we go from here?
If the government refuses to stand by our longstanding principle of non-alignment, and bows down to foreign pressure in relation to the sovereignty of laws and the constitution and our way of life, then it should be voided of trust and be taken to account for the negative effect it has to our democracy and national values.
IKMAL HAZLAN IKMAL HISHAM is the Umno Youth exco for international affairs.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
