I refer to the Malaysiakini article Malaysia is like Israel .

I read the article and my heart sank. Helen Ang of course is correct on a number of things, like why Malays have not protested against the recent killing in an African state, or the recent Mumbai killings or even of a thirteen-year-old girl who was reportedly stoned to death for adultery (her father claimed they went to the authorities to report rape) in Somalia late last year.

Yes, Malays appear to symphatise with Palestine and see the Israel as an aggressor. There is a complex history to the story of sympathy and affirmity, but one that is familiar and available. Anyone can simply Google it nowadays and get both sides of the story. But the point in the case of Palestine/Israel is one of massive displacement and continued imposition by the authority on the displaced till the present day.

Why and how, these are the points of contention. And why do the Malays feel particularly aggrieved for the Palestinians? Perhaps as the writer suggests, this is because of the Islamic connection. But that is simplistic and narrow. There are probably much more complicated emotions and key events in recent history that bring about sympathy.

And, this is by no means a sentiment solely belonging to the Malay or even Muslim. There are Jewish groups who oppose the nature of the conflict, both among the civilian and army population. There are private citizens across America, Australia and Europe who also oppose the conflict. Many of them are not Arabs or Muslims. They are Caucasians.

I am in Canberra, and recently a group of Christians spoke against the violence in Palestine at a talk organised by the Australians for Justice and Peace in Palestine (AJPP). These were church leaders and except for one Palestine lady whom I believe is Muslim, the other speakers were Caucasians and Christians representing the different churches.

The AJPP were handing out leaflets and brochures. In their leaflet I learnt that between 2000-2006, the total number of Palestinians killed was 4,046 (of which 798 are children). During the same period, the number of Israelis killed was 755 (including 124 children).

Today, we are told in the news, that the 12-day old violence has seen more than 400 Palestinian and four Israelis killed. Of course, the death of Israel civilians is no less aggrieved. If anyone can stand up in Malaysia and say that the death of an Israel child is collateral damage or inconsequential, that is a pity.

A child is a child regardless of race, religion or class. I will mourn the death of a child that dies in conflict; I will mourn the death of civilians in this conflict. But what we have to understand is that the issue isn't over death; it is over what makes the disproportionate figures - and that is power.

The Palestinians at best, have a government in running. With PLO, they were a people without land. Now they have some land, but they don't have the means to control the outcome. The entire society is regulated by another country.

But that is not the point here. Different people will have different opinions on this matter and being neither a Palestinian or Israeli, and since I am not living in the Mid East, what I say is really not based on my experiences and it would be unfair to judge from a far.

This letter is only in response to the above article that compares Malaysia to Israel. I have three comments:

Firstly, if you want to argue on similarity, stick to the plot; either the Malaysian government is like Israel or they are the Arabs that refuse to recognise the Israel state - they can't be both when you see fit.

Second, learn your history. If anybody can claim internal colonisation, cultural ethno-cide and the persistent state of institutionalised dependency, it is the Orang Asli of Peninsula Malaysia. Read up about them, there are fantastic articles in several websites on the Internet.

And you could always look up Iskandar Carey's book written in the 1970s that talks about the impact of resettlements on the Orang Asli communities - many died during the periods when the government tried to resettle them.

Many were in fact displaced from their land and until today, most of their claims for ancestral land have not been gazetted. They have a disproportionately high number of TB and malaria cases (considering they are only 0.5% of Malaysian population), more than half drop out from secondary schooling and more than half are considered as living below the poverty line.

Let’s not forget that there is also a much higher number for infant mortality among the Orang Asli community as compared to other Malaysians. A good book to start with is titled The Orang Asli and the Contest for Resources by Colin Nicholas (2000). Another good book to read is Modernity and Malaysia: Settling the Menraq forest nomads by Alberto Gomes (2007). This book deals with the effects of resettlement on a Negrito community.

Third, why are you essentialising race? Isn't it enough that we have rotten politicians who unabashedly turn every small thing into a race issue? Following your example on Malay and protest patterns, do you see Chinese going out in droves to protests against the French government ban of headscarves in their schools?

Why not? Isn't there a strong and continued resistance against integrating the vernacular schools here? Aren't both issues about the rights to practice one's culture? My point is that it is easy to colour our actions as racial. But that is simplistic and misleading.

Why does it appear that we have similarities with the Israel state? Because we speak the same ‘race language’ as the Israel government. But we don't practice the legal doctrine whereby blood gives you right to the land as practised by Israel. A Malay in any part of the world is not automatically a Malaysian. Yes, the government is making actions that appear they are heading in that direction. Well, let us ensure that doesn't happen.

No one is saying Malaysia cannot go down the path of apartheid or other racist designs. But at this stage, be realistic and ask yourself, can you go to a hospital if you are sick? Do you have access to pharmaceutical products when you need them?

Be honest to yourself, have we come to the stage where we cannot drink from the same water fountain, go to the same clinic, or schools? We are not separated from each other by means of segregating physical space.

We don't have a society where part of the population cannot be seen in other parts without a pass or permit to travel. The only place you need to get a permit to enter are the Orang Asli villages (under the Orang Asli Act, the state requires that the non-Asli write-in for permission before entering any Orang Asli village), and probably security premises and forest reserves.

But if you say recent activities are working towards justifying the logic of segregation (even apartheid started with a benevolent yet misplaced idea), perhaps. But that is where we expect the role of the media to kick in. To keep vigil against these threats and not to act as apologists or alarmists. If you have the facts let it be known. Otherwise, come up with a strong argument and not a cut and paste.

On another point, we need to dig a little deeper beneath the veneer of the plural society and realise that we have never tolerated each other - we have blended into a state with many expressions, and we have lived comfortably with this so called incompatibility.

Everyone talks about Chinese or Indian or Malay or Portuguese or Sinhalese etc, but these are only the outer layers. Peel away these layers and underneath resting comfortably at home is our heart - as Malaysians.

If you don't believe me, write down words that you use in a conversation. List down the food that you eat. Think of places most memorable to you. List down your complains. List down your loved ones. List down what it is about Malaysia you like and hate most. Go to Lake Gardens and walk to the National Memorial. Than ask the person next to you in your office or on the street to do the same.

Chances are, before you are through, both of you would laugh and say this is so stupid; but you would have realised the natural bond that exists and we often overlook this invisible bond because we grew up with it. It is so familiar to us that we no longer see it. It is irrelevant because it is a part of us. Are we like the Israelis, In my opinion, not by a long shot.