“One afternoon I was stopped by ‘road bullies’ on a busy street,” Chong, a Chinese Sarawakian friend, told me. “A car bumped into mine from behind. When I got out to inspect the damage, two other cars pulled up. Four young Chinese men jumped out, carrying clubs. I suppose they wanted money.

“The street was crowded with shoppers, and many stopped to stare. While the thugs were waving their sticks, I tried to reason with them – I pointed at the witnesses all around.

“At first, no onlookers stepped in to help. But after a few seconds, I noticed two young Malay men had come to my side from a Ramly Burger stand on the pavement nearby. One of the Ramly boys shouted, ‘What’s going on here?’