YOURSAY 'The answer to the question: ‘Draw the keris, bathe it in Chinese blood, and marginalise the Indians and treat them as pariahs'.'

Malay status textbook question raises netizens' ire

your say Disbeliever: I disagree with the Oxford Fajar social science unit editorial manager, Nurazizan Abdul Aziz.

Oxford Fajar has been in the book publishing business for too long to make such an error. In the first place, such a question should never be asked.

But if the publisher still wants to ask such a question, it has to be rephrased so that it is not ambiguous. The question in itself is poorly constructed.

A probably better question would be: ‘If you were a leader at that time, name two steps you could have done to defend the Malays' status quo'.

By making sure the time frame is given, then the question can never be taken out of context.

Dood: Nurazizan, perhaps it would have been wiser and more supportive of a united Malaysia if you simply admitted the insensitive oversight instead of passing the blame to the ministry or blaming the public for taking the question out of context.

Yes, we all know Umno-BN is racist and the main cause of many of our country's ills, but does that mean you should just blindly ape them?

As for the accusation of taking the question out of context, let me ask you this: do you think it is appropriate if you included a question asking the student how Indonesia could have successfully conquered Malaysia during the Confrontation period, or how Japan could have successfully subjugated Malaya during its World War Two occupation of the country?

That's part of the context during those periods, right? Your callous handling of this situation only shows your further insensitivity to the aspirations of the people. Apologies for genuine mistakes won't make you any less a person. Remember that.

Myop101: Given the racial tension perpetrated by BN, it is unsurprising that ordinary Malaysians are now becoming sensitive to every single remark made. Ordinary questions like this are deemed racist even though the context was regarding an event in history.

Can we all grow up and learn to trust one another? Also, Malaysian history should be revised to reflect the struggles of the leftist and other contributors to the birth of this nation. I think it is unhealthy to emphasis merely Umno and its fringe allies.

Mangodurian: In the history books, instead of harping about the Malayan Union and its implied fascist and racist undertones, shouldn't it be emphasising instead, ‘If you were a leader, name two steps you would do to realise a united Malaysia'?

How come such questions are not asked - even right after the question about the 'status quo'?

Ksn: The question in the textbook is straight forward. Clarifications such as those reported here are absurd. If what they say is true, the question must add ‘in the Malayan Union circumstances against the British'.

Without elaboration however, the answer to that question might end up being: ‘Draw the keris, bathe it in Chinese blood and marginalise the Indians and treat them as pariahs'.

Did I get my answer correct? The teacher who marks the question can either pass or fail me.

Shanandoah: Can some historian tell us what was wrong with the Malayan Union proposal? Is it any worse than what we are experiencing now?

We are a divided people; second class for all non-Malays; no jobs in the public service; discrimination at all levels based on race and religion; unequal citizenship rights; no soft loans whatsoever to steal from the taxpayers - all this to continue for all eternity.

CiViC: I am not surprised at all. Sooner or later, history will be all about Umno and BN. There will not be the term bumiputera anymore, only Umnoputra.

Traj: Umno is out to pollute the minds of young Malaysians. The clarification by the book publisher is stupid. What difference does it make to Malaysia now except to incite hate and indifference of the non-Malays?

Anyway Malays today comprise in large numbers Indonesians and Muslim Filipinos. The true Malaysians are suffering, ie the indigenous tribes of Sarawak, Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia. They have been relegated to third-class citizens status by Umno.

Sabah which used to be majority non-Muslim is now a majority Muslim state - all courtesy of the corrupt Umno regime. Millions of Filipino Muslims have been given blue ICs by Umno to reduce the Christian majority there.

Anonymous: Now the most important thing to do is to make sure the Umno-BN government comes out with a set of balanced school history textbooks.

Our current history textbooks have long excluded the contributions made by non-Malays in nation building and they are skewed towards only emphasising the Islamic civilisation over other civilisations like the Buddhist, Hindu and Christian civilisations.

That textbook question that smacks of racism in the exercise is actually part of the whole school history syllabus that only extols one race and tries all out to belittle other races.

Jiminy Qrikert: Blame MCA for the questions being posed in the twisted textbooks that our children are subjected to.

Blame MCA for our forefathers disappearing from the history books our children study. Blame MCA for allowing their Umno masters to wipe out completely the role our forefathers, and our communities, have played in the formation, building and enriching of Malaysia.

The sad thing is MCA members actually condition themselves to believe that the special rights of Malays must never be questioned. Not even when it is no longer special status but has evolved to rights, then to privileges and now to supremacy.

At this very moment, precisely because it is Malay supremacy, MCA is prostrating themselves as Umno's servants.

Just a few nights ago, I was having dinner with a senior corporate person with one of the MCA-linked companies, who obviously is an MCA member by default of his position in the company, and he was spouting this very same logic that non-Malays must accept the special status and even refuses to accept it is no longer just status, but supremacy.

It makes nonsense of the meaning of 'citizenship.' It means that forever, into infinity, there will always be that clause, that condition, that 'social contract' that will be used conveniently to shut the non-Malays up.

Imagine 50 years from now, and our children's children are told in no uncertain terms, to shut up 'because your forefathers entered into this social contract a century ago' and no one from the community led by MCA had the guts to speak up and challenge it.

Voteforchange: Actually the person to blame is you, yourselves and your parents. Why on earth have you Malaysians voted for BN for the last 40 years?

Now you all talk a lot as if you have been voting for the opposition in the last 40 years. Why have you guys woken up only in 2008? Open your eyes and vote wisely now.

Chritopher Loi: The answer to the history question is:

‘We must support the opposition so that the Malaysian Malay will have a better future that is more stable than now. If Umno remains in power only the status of the crony Malays will be defended'.

 

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