opinion

If we are optimists, then the heated controversies and emotional debates on the MCA's takeover of Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press , as well as the mystery surrounding the role of Sin Chew Jit Poh and/or its boss timber-tycoon Tiong Hiew King could be considered a blessing in disguise.

For it has open to public, and even international knowledge, some critical elements of Chinese politics in Malaysia, and its relations to Umno.

For the younger generation professionals in their late 20s or early 30s who are yuppily apolitical or lacking political knowledge and sense - and the 76-year-old Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad who is highly political - MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik's assertion that the take- over is a "normal business transaction" seems to be rather 'self-evident' and convincing.

Huaren Holdings is, after all, a registered company and Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press are two commodities to be sold by 'willing' sellers and bought by 'willing' buyers. What is wrong with the takeover in a market economy?

However, for those who have some sense in politics and history, Chinese-language newspapers are certainly not "normal" commodities like condoms, cars, pencils or apples, to be sold or bought by willing sellers and buyers.

Public instruments

Chinese-language newspapers are, in a popular parlance in the Chinese-speaking community, 'public instruments' to cater for the intellectual, psychological, political and moral needs of all groups within the community, including political parties that are supported by the Chinese in varying degrees like MCA, PAS, DAP, Keadilan, Gerakan, SUPP (Sarawak United People's Party) and business groups with different interests (logging or otherwise).

And for the older generation of Chinese, newspapers like Nanyang Siang Pau (founded in 1923), Sin Chew Jit Poh (founded in 1929) and Kwong Wah Yit Poh in Penang (founded in 1910 by the great Dr Sun Yat Sen who stopped in Penang to rally for support for his subversive activities to overthrow the Ching Dynasty) are witnesses of the historical evolution of the community and the nation:

- the arrival of their ancestors to British Malaya, the process of settling down and integrating socially, politically and economically into the local societies, and the anti-colonial struggle.

- the war of liberation led by the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) in alliance with the Allied forces against Japanese occupation (1942-1945).

- the return of the British Military Administration (BMA) after the war in early 1946 and hyperinflation, the uncertain years between 1946 and 1948.

- the anti-communist Emergency (1948-1960), Independence (1957).

- the May 13 riot (1969) and the 20 long years of the New Economic Policy (1970-1990).

Intellectual companions

In the absence of a unified system of institutional belief like Islam for Arabs in the Arabian Peninsular or Malays in Malaysia, or Roman Catholicism in pre-Reformation Europe, the Chinese-language newspapers, together with the Chinese-language education system are the two major public institutions in the Chinese-speaking community that hitherto enjoys multi-partisan support and multi-ideological goodwill.

Also, the Chinese-language newspapers are intellectual companions and windows to the larger and wider world for the Chinese-educated Malaysians. Because of these non-business factors of history, social psychology, politics and collective human emotion, the MCA failed miserably and pathetically in its earlier attempt to turn a Chinese-language newspaper Thung Pau , later renamed as Tong Bao , into a party organ.

The Chinese community, including ordinary members of MCA at the grassroot simply stopped buying or reading it, and it eventually folded in the early 1990s after being placed under receivership.

In fact, in the early and mid 80s, whether MCA as a ruling political party should be involved in commerce and business was debated with extreme emotion both inside and outside the party.

The debate finally led to a power struggle between two factions within MCA, one led by Dr Neo Yee Pan who was a former Malaya University physics lecturer and who opposed the idea of 'mixing politics with business' and the other by tycoon Tan Koon Swan who advocated the 'strengthening of Chinese political power through the concentration of economic resources'.

While Neo and his followers were defeated and purged in 1984 by Tan's faction, Tan himself landed in a Singaporean jail after being charged by the republic's authorities and convicted by a Singaporean court for criminal breach of trust in business deals.

Oriental manner

Dr Ling Liong Sik who was with Tan, came to power in MCA after the latter's conviction and incarceration. He continues to advocate and practise, albeit in a more subtle and oriental manner, the fusion of political and economic powers in MCA 'for the good of the Chinese community'.

'Self-strengthening and self-reliant' has been made a slogan of MCA ever since. But then, although MCA claims to be the sole and legitimate representative of the Chinese community in Malaysia, it has always been contested.

Chinese have always chosen to be represented not only by MCA but also DAP, PAS, the old People's Progressive Party (PPP) and the Socialist Front which comprised of the Labour Party and the People's Party (PRM) in the opposition, as well as Gerakan, Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) in the government and PBS (Sabah United Party) which went in and out of the ruling National Front.

Given the political, religious and ideological pluralism in the Chinese Malaysian community, it is not very difficult to understand why MCA's bid to takeover Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press has generated such a massive opposition in the civil society which now include the conservative and powerful

The Associated Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry and its very gentlemanly and usually reticent president Lim Guan Teik, and why the news black-out of the alternative opinions aired by the anti-takeover groups by Sin Chew Jit Poh created another emotional controversy.

And the takeover bid comes at a politically wrong moment when MCA itself is split between Ling Liong Sik's faction and the rest like deputy president Lim Ah Lek, vice-president Jimmy Chua (Jui Meng) and Youth leader Ong Tee Keat.

As for the Chinese community, the takeover is not even connected to MCA as a whole, but only a faction within the MCA.

The fear of the impact of Ling's (and his political operator Ong Ka Ting) almost complete control of the major Chinese-language newspapers is not only strongly felt by the opposition but also personalities associated with anti-Ling factions with MCA.

'The mastermind'

The Chinese newspapers could be used as propaganda machinery in the party elections next year by Ling and his faction against factional rivals.

Gerakan, a predominantly Chinese multiethnic component party in the Barisan Nasional (BN) too has reason to feel uneasy and threatened by the takeover because Gerakan has been a competitor of MCA in BN for Chinese support.

MCA lost its chief ministership to Gerakan in 1969 after the latter which was then an opposition party, defeated MCA in Penang, and now it tries to capture back the post, which is said to be symbolic of the political power of the Chinese in Malaysia.

Where does Mahathir fit in? The answer is that the Ling and anti-Ling factions within MCA, Gerakan/SUPP, BA and the Chinese civil society have also become a classical model for Dr Mahathir and Umno (if we still can speak of Umno as one entity) to manage a kind of balance-of-power.

And the takeover and anti-takeover bids provide the field for Mahathir to practice the Byzantine (or Machiavellian) art.

In the street, most of the ordinary people, be them Chinese, Malays or Indians, seem to see and think that Mahathir is the 'mastermind' behind the MCA bid. For the Chinese who know Singapore politics well enough, they think Mahathir is emulating Lee Kuan Yew in 'consolidating' the Chinese-language newspapers under one umbrella to enable easier political control.

True or not, Mahathir has to accept the fact that, in public perception, everything bad now must be 'masterminded' by him because, among other factors, he is seen to be the only leader in BN who still uses the 'brain', for good or bad purposes.

The people might not be very wrong because just before the takeover bid was revealed or exposed, Mahathir had already talked about 'good dictatorship'. 'Dictatorship', so the people reason, needs a unified and controllable propaganda machinery.

Even if not to be used for the establishment of a 'good dictatorship', the 'consolidated' and 'coordinated' Chinese newspapers could at least be used to black out news and opinions from opposition leaders or to flash photographs of Mahathir and Ling's smiling faces everyday in the front pages, supplemented by Mahathir or Ling quotes, especially when elections come.

Strategic stalemate

In a strategic stalemate in the Malay/Muslim community which is expected to last as long as Anwar Ibrahim is incarcerated, Chinese-language newspapers have become the gateway to reach out to the Chinese voters who could be used to offset the decline of Malays/Muslims support for Umno and BN.

In this situation, Mahathir and Umno have to love MCA for practical reasons. But then, things are not that simple or straightforward either. Public affection could co-exist with secret hatred, suspicion and fear in politics.

To allow Ling's faction to control one English and two Chinese newspapers commercially, and another Chinese daily ideologically or politically, without limits or countervailing forces would be dangerous in the management of balance of power within BN, and between Umno and MCA:

What would happen if Ling's faction of MCA tries to play 'Chinese hero' vis-a-vis Umno and its group of media which are also in desperate need to play 'Malay hero'?

Here should be where Gerakan and anti-Ling factions come into the balance-of-power equilibrium. Both could be used to contain and, if necessary, countervail Ling's faction of MCA.

Do not be surprised if the final outcome is that MCA formally and technically gives way to a consortium of 'neutral' Chinese-owned companies actually representing interests of Mahathir's personal Chinese friends and allies, and proxies of Ling's faction, anti-Ling factions, Gerakan, SUPP and even Umno bosses.

That would defuse the anti-takeover movement on the grounds which, if not checked, would backfire on MCA, Umno and BN as a whole in the coming general elections.

'Byzantium court'

If the 'consortium' strategy works, the propaganda machine would certainly say: "See, where got concentration of ownership? Where got MCA control? We are still liberal."

Of course, there are always people credulous and malleable enough to believe this, especially after being oppressed by tougher measures.

For people like us who are not inside the Byzantium Court, whether the Chinese-language newspapers are taken over or not by MCA or Umno, the fact remains that there are severe restrictions on the freedom of press and freedom of speech by colonial laws like the Printing Presses and Publications Act, Sedition Act and Internal Security Act.

Even if there was no bid to takeover Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press by MCA, honourable and conscientious journalists of all languages should struggle to get rid of these oppressive colonial laws now used by Fidel Castro's good friend in his 'war of national liberation'.