opinion

Recently, a friend showed me a Chinese newspaper article - which I haven't quite learned how to read - that reported (DAP Youth secretary) Hew Kuan Yaw's comments on his party's withdrawal from Barisan Alternatif. Neither his appearance nor the subject matter of the article shocked me - I had prior knowledge of DAP's exit from BA.

However, I was quite disappointed and surprised by the comments made by Hew, who quite often portrayed himself as an intellectual - by expounding on democratic socialism whenever the opportunity arose.

Anyway, I was deeply disappointed because I considered him as an acquaintance who shared similar political views with me.

First of all, I consider it far too convenient for DAP to simply cite PAS' long-term objective - establishing an Islamic state - as the reason for leaving the opposition front.

If Hew were such an expert on political theory, then he should know that politics share similar objectives with religion, irrespective of whether it is Christianity, Islam or Buddhism. Moreover, if one were to study the religion of Islam, it would be quite apparent that one of its main aims is to achieve social justice for all, irrespective of whether one is Muslim or non-Muslim.

That, to me, does not sound very remote from the ideals of democratic socialism.

Timing is everything

As people often say, in politics, timing is everything. Well, if Hew maintains that the timing of DAP's departure from BA is purely coincidental, then I guess we have to take his word for it.

But - no longer as idealistic or naive as I used to be - I do wonder what Islam and terrorism have to do with Malaysian politics. Of course, in our national context, the threat posed by PAS to BN's hegemony in the Malay heartland is undeniable.

However, how did everything seem to just fall into place for BN manipulation when the Sarawak state elections was looming like a dark cloud over BN?

Whatever it is, I admit that it strains our imagination a bit too far if we are to allege that PAS is responsible for the attacks on America.

However, despite being a lawyer, I must say that the circumstantial evidence does strongly indicate that DAP seized the chance to exploit people's fear of Islam and terrorism, to enhance their position in the Sarawak state elections.

However, not wanting to risk being sued for defamation, I shall not share my personal opinion on this matter here.

In the first place, I was quite against the idea of bilateral negotiations between DAP and PAS. As component parties of the Barisan Alternatif, we should be approaching the Islamic state issue as a united front. Indeed, the very act of discussing this matter publicly belies the truth of the matter.

Being aware of the sensitive and controversial nature of the subject matter - both politically and religiously - DAP and PAS should have dealt with this matter carefully. Perhaps they should have debated the matter internally before giving BN the bullets to shoot us in the foot.

Whatever it is, if we are sincere in the common struggle for the people and social justice, then we should view their needs and concerns as our primary consideration, and not those of our own. Indeed, both DAP and PAS have to see the wider issues here and take care not to get lost in the maze of political manipulation.

Extremely unfair

Personally, I think it is extremely unfair for Hew to say that PRM and Keadilan did not make a stand on the Islamic state issue. First of all, both Dr Syed Husin Ali and Dr Wan Azizah signed a PRM-Keadilan joint statement to clarify the parties' views and position on the matter.

In an extremely complicated matter like this, we must always be careful not to clumsily step on other people's toes and hurt other people's feelings. Indeed, when it comes to religion and politics, many people - myself included - tend to become quite emotional and say the wrong things; albeit, I do try my best to be circumspect and truthful at the same time.

In a multi-civilisational society like Malaysia, we should always keep our hearts and minds open, recognising that others - like ourselves - have their reasons for their own beliefs and practices. If someone chooses to do something that appears to be peculiar, or even immoral, we ought to recognise his or her freedom of choice; and if we want to, pray that God will deal with him or her accordingly.

It is not for us, as mere mortals, to condemn others and impose our beliefs on them. We should realise that all of us probably have our own map of the world, cosmology or attitude towards life. Thus, it would be quite arrogant for us to presume the spiritual fate of others, especially when they do not share the same worldview with us.

Distant memory

Contrary to Hew's and DAP's hopes that the party will be strengthened by this move, I believe that DAP will fast become a distant memory in the minds of Malaysians.

Although the party strives to present the image of a multiracial party to the public, I must say that it seems to be failing miserably.

Indeed, that was one of the reasons why I did not join the party, even though I quite liked their ostensible ideology. That is, although they say that DAP strives for a 'Malaysian Malaysia' and democratic socialism, I am not entirely convinced that the party believes in the virtues of diversity - especially in terms of race, culture and religion. Indeed, it is quite plain that democracy is not really practised in the party.

The recent attacks on both (party Youth chief) Teng Chang Khim and his supporters - for criticising (party leader) Lim Kit Siang - is a very good example of this lack of democracy in the party. Indeed, the experiences of people like (former DAP stalwarts) Fan Yew Teng, Kua Kia Soong, Lee Ban Chen and Sim Kwang Yang are testimony to the limited space for dissent within the Party.

In any case, instead of having a brighter future, I believe that DAP will become increasingly irrelevant and meaningless in Malaysia.

JONSON CHONG is acting vice-chief of PRM Youth. This opinion was written in his own personal capacity.