Kamala has the right qualities; ancestry, gender, faith shouldn't matter - Rafidah
- Updated to include comments by Teresa Kok and Ivy Josiah
Veteran political leader Rafidah Aziz has lauded Kamala Devi Harris' nomination as vice-presidential candidate for the US Democratic Party as a great step forward, saying that with the right leadership qualities, ancestry, gender and faith should not be a factor.
"It is the dream, I believe, of girls of the new millennium generation to reach for the highest possible level of achievement possible, in any endeavour.
"Who our ancestors were, what faith we follow or what gender we are are all immaterial for as long as we are citizens of the nation we belong to and have the requisite leadership qualities," she told Malaysiakini.
Rafidah who herself ...
- Updated to include comments by Nurul Izzah Teresa Kok and Ivy Josiah
Veteran political leader Rafidah Aziz has lauded Kamala Devi Harris' nomination as vice-presidential candidate for the US Democratic Party as a great step forward, saying that with the right leadership qualities, ancestry, gender and faith should not be a factor.
"It is the dream, I believe, of girls of the new millennium generation to reach for the highest possible level of achievement possible, in any endeavour.
"Who our ancestors were, what faith we follow or what gender we are are all immaterial for as long as we are citizens of the nation we belong to and have the requisite leadership qualities," she told Malaysiakini.
Rafidah who herself blazed a trail as a female cabinet minister in an often male-dominated sphere said that there were many aspiring leaders who just coveted positions but who lacked the right qualities.
"Some fight tooth and nail with no care for principles and scruples and they lack the important characteristics of integrity, ability, competence, discipline, visionary thinking and proactiveness.
"Clearly Kamala has proven herself as having those qualities and this is something all women should be very proud of. I wish her all the best in the coming elections in November," said Rafidah.
Trump gets nasty - Republican knives out
The nomination of Harris, who has roots in Jamaica and the south Indian city of Chennai, has garnered significant attention around the world. Many have cited her candidacy as evidence that the US - reeling from the Black Lives Matter riots in the aftermath of the custodial death of George Perry Floyd Fr - is still capable of overcoming the enormous hurdle of racial prejudice.
However, it has not taken long for incumbent US president Donald Trump's campaign team to target her on issues such as ethnicity, gender, temperament and progressive politics.
The attacks began from the very top with Trump himself calling her "nasty", drawing attention to her tough questioning of Brett Kavanaugh during his Supreme Court confirmation hearings and going on to try and provoke divisions between Harris and the man who nominated her, former vice-president Joseph Biden.
"Angry, mad [...] and there was nobody more insulting to Biden," claimed Trump in saying that Harris was furious with Biden when she quit the Democratic primary race which he eventually won.
It should be noted that, as is common with Trump, there was no evidence to back up his claims and the president has repeatedly been exposed for telling lies that get debunked by fact-checkers.
Instead, the evidence indicates that Trump and his followers in the Republican Party and right-wing media are going to attack Harris viciously over the very qualities that make her an attractive candidate.
The attacks are usually on petty topics - Fox News host Tucker Carlson mispronounced her first name and got irked when corrected and dismissed the issue in a xenophobic manner.
Another Fox News item saw commentator Dinesh D'Souza challenging Harris' claim to be black because her father had traced his ancestry to a slave owner. For the record, the senator from California is the daughter of Shyamala Gopalan, a Chennai-born cancer researcher and Donald Harris, an economist from Jamaica.
Jenna Ellis, a senior legal adviser for the Trump campaign, also took a potshot at Harris during her first speech as Biden’s running mate on Wednesday saying, “Kamala sounds like Marge Simpson".
The Republican Party has even tried to attack Harris on two fronts with the Republican National Committee calling her the “most liberal” member of the Senate, trying to highlight that progressives had deemed Harris to be not "progressive enough."
And Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh said Harris' selection pushes the Biden campaign "further to the left".
Biden hits back
Biden has not kept silent on the matter and has called out the Trump strategy for what it is.
“Donald Trump has already started his attacks, calling Kamala ‘nasty,’ and whining about how she’s ‘mean’ to his appointees. Is anyone surprised Donald Trump has a problem with strong women across the board? We know that more is to come," he said.
Aside from Rafidah, Harris' appointment has also resonated with Malaysians who laud it as a "colour-blind" move.
"With the current economic, social and health crises, the nomination could not have come at a better time! That a possible president of US would select a brown woman who is the daughter of immigrants (and one from Chennai) as the most ideal running mate gives me hope," said academic Joseph Gonzales who is based in Hong Kong.
"Kamala will send a message to women and children all over the world that there are no barriers to success with hard work and determination."
Nomination 'timely and masterful'
Human rights activist Ivy Josiah believes the nomination says a lot about Biden himself as a male leader who recognises the importance of female leadership and that he is not threatened.
"For us, in Malaysia, we can’t help but compare, we are dismayed that women in decision-making positions are being sidelined, replaced by men. I am referring to recent moves in the GLCs. Furthermore, a cabinet that only has five women out of 36 members is sad. What has happened to the promise of having at a minimum 30 percent of women in decision-making positions?" she said.
"Let me be blunt, here in Malaysia we are witnessing an overdrive of male leadership across the board!" added Josiah.
Seputeh MP Teresa Kok also felt the move to nominate Harris was a positive one.
"As a Malaysian MP, I don’t wish to take sides in the US presidential election. However, I am very happy that a learned black/Asian American woman has been named by Joe Biden to be his running mate.
"It is a true recognition to minority women in the US. It is also a good election strategy especially when the black community in the US is still aching over the killing of George Floyd by the police," she said.
PKR's Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar also weighed in calling the nomination of Harris as timely and masterful.
"Harris outweighs both her male and female competitors and is certainly a leader who should be celebrated for her illustrious professional experience - which includes, but is not limited to, reform of the criminal justice system, minimum wage and the overall plight for the working class against systemic economic inequality.
"The fact that she is a woman and a minority makes her candidacy all the more astounding and inspiring; her prosecutorial background should more than add a dose of anxiety for political opponents.
"Weeks back, she was definitely one of my favourite Democratic candidates for the Presidency," Nurul told Malaysiakini.
She added that it would be interesting to observe reactions to Harris' candidacy.
"For this Trumpism era is marked by many hidden and obvious challenges - be it xenophobia, racism, sexism and an outright aversion for the preservation of democratic institutions and the rule of law," said Nurul.
Gonzales acknowledged that Harris had taken a few hits for her stance on crime while serving as the San Francisco district attorney and attorney-general of California.
While serving as attorney-general in 2016, Harris opposed a bill to investigate deadly police shootings following the death of a stabbing suspect — shot 21 times by the police — that sparked huge protests. She also came under fire for pushing legislation that would punish parents in California for their children's truancy.
At the same time, Harris has also been lauded for her most successful programme, "Back on Track," to get nonviolent first-time drug offenders to avoid jail by enrolling them for a high school diploma. She also initiated a project for anti-bias training for law enforcement agencies throughout California.
"Her record could possibly be divisive but she has proven to be unafraid to fight her causes involving violent crimes, cybercrimes, injustice and better healthcare and human rights.
"Trump has already called her “nasty” and is going to paint her as an enemy of upper-class white America but I truly hope America rises above this and rallies behind her to show the world that glass ceilings can indeed be smashed," said Gonzales.
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