Delimma
3:02pm Tue Jan 7th, 2003

Manjit Bhatia’s rudimentary attack Why? PM why? on Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad seems feverish, at times annoying and somewhat written with what I would describe as a ‘frustrated-migrant Malaysian’ fervour.

Despite the conceited attempt to veil his or her ‘Malaysianism’, Manjit lacks the Aussie-whipping finesse — which is usually done through comparing how good life is in Australia compared to Malaysia.

Though the country’s racial and immigration policies reek of ‘apartheid’ and ‘white-supremist’, Australia seems like the ideal place to migrate to. Firstly, there is no such thing as equal social rights in Australia. The supposed freedom is only limited to townships where immigrants have actually taken over the social structure — in terms of economy and sheer numbers — such as in Sydney, Canberra and the Gold Coast to name a few.

One cannot but feel concerned that Pauline Hanson’s open war against the minority races has somewhat been echoed by John Howard’s “we have every right to invade your homeland for our sakes” recently.

So much for Valhalla…the ongoing and I believe unending dispute with the aborigines (who are actually the true sons of the land) also provide a cruel reality tour of Australia’s struggle.

Manjit summarises the present political uneasiness in Malaysia in one simple sentence — the failure of Mahathirism. That is reason enough for this response and one which I hope will entail more of same from my fellow countrymen.

Sure, there have been times when we have also questioned Mahathir’s wisdom. Sometimes we feel he tries to be prophetic and is unfortunately, too far ahead of his time. His insight into the Malay dilemma came at a time when such thoughts were deemed malicious and treacherous — hence his removal from Umno. Present readers might find similarities between Mahathir’s concerns with the current stigma of the Malays as induced in his New Challenges.

But Mahathir is Mahathir — there can never be any other Malaysian leader like him. And we must, although disagreeing with his ideas and actions, respect him for acting on his beliefs, and never once retreating, even during the worst of times. Without getting too intellectual, Mahathir does makes sense and Manjit need only look into the present turmoil facing the world to realise his cunning choice of words.

Manjit needs to face the fact there is no country on earth where all share equal rights, not even in the US and Australia. Compared with these two self-proclaimed shepherds of the world, Malaysia has a long-standing and tested record of equality. Sure, the Malays ‘speciality’as Manjit puts it is enshrined steadfastly in the Constitution. But where are the incidences of the other races being treated like second-class citizens as Manjit claims? Does Manjit have one example of this? Is one example enough to convince Malaysians who have toiled and struggled over the past 45 years to make the country what it is today believe that there is no hope in their own country?

I beg to differ from Manjit in demanding an explanation from malaysiakini readers. In what sense hasn’t Malaysia provide equal opportunities for everyone. In education? In employment and business?

The last time I looked, all races were busily striding towards a new economic era which we foresee will happen in 2020. Manjit’s gloomy outlook stems from the fact that as a migrant Aussie, he or she has suddenly realised that “all is not well in the state of Denmark” (to quote Hamlet). Manjit still resists the idea that the Malaysian way helped this country to weather the 1997 financial and economic crises and spared thousands of families from going bust.

Mahathir should be left to his opinion, however strange or controversial they may seem. But we have to admit that part of the blame should also rest with these speculators who caused much suffering before 1997 –– if I’m not mistaken during the Black Wednesday of 1992 that signaled the end of Norman Lamont. Why should they be allowed to prey upon developing countries’ weaknesses? If this is the capitalistic ideology that the West is rying to promote, surely something must be wrong with it!

It takes courage and wisdom to implement the system that we have in place, and even Manjit has to admit it has worked so well for Malaysia. We are not asking the world to copy what we have done, but merely raise the point that not all what the gurus of the West preach is the gospel truth.

So Malaysia has proclaimed itself an Islamic state. Is there anything wrong with this? Do we see a mass exodus of non-Muslims? In fact, there are those who are now desperately trying to enter the country despite the vigorous enforcement of immigration laws. This goes to show that there is a future in Malaysia, and one which unfortunately will not appease Manjit.

Manjit should stop playing the Western trumpet. I agree that not all that Mahathir has done for Malaysia is good; there have been instances where Malaysia Inc has gone so wrong that we had to revert to the old system. The current saga of trying to bring to book Tajudin Ramli is but one example. People like him are are not Mahathir cronies, but actually cronies of his political buddies. And cronyism exists all over the world, wherever one builds a power base among trusted allies. President George W Bush’s allies are not much better.

And why can’t we make mistakes along the way? Do we have to be perfect? Did not the US make a mistake in going to Vietnam? Was not Sept 11 a consequence of mistakes in US foreign policy? Why can’t our leaders have their fair share of mistakes, because if we don’t make them we’ll never learn from them.

This is all part of the growing up process, and compared with Australia, Malaysia is still a baby. But this baby has achieved great miracles of growth, pluralism in society and greater unity through shared goals and visions. Is this so bad to Manjit? Or is Manjit only interested to see a gloomy, distraught, broken and fractionalised Malaysia? Maybe then it would legitimise the fateful decision to migrate to a white supremist land.

In the complex Malaysian society, there have to be checks and balances to ensure stability and continued harmony among the various races calling this country their home. Manjit holds the view that Mahathir’s renewed attacks on the West are a ploy to strengthen his grip in BN. For someone who is leaving after 22 years of honourable tenure, I believe he is doing the opposite. Mahathir is attempting to rally his troops for one last swing to promote the national integration — the Bangsa Malaysia agenda.

It took the US more than 100 years to right some of the wrongs against minority races. And I believe they still have a long way to go. For Malaysia, the 45 years of tranquil growth could not have been achieved without the policies and subsequent actions to nurture the Malaysian people. I can go out in the middle of the night to have teh tarik at a mamak shop without fearing repercussions from Malays or Indians. My Chinese friends all enjoy Hari Raya goodies, and refrain from eating pork when I am with them.

The major difference between Western and Malaysian policies with regard to race relations that have so angered Manjit is that we do not conform to assimilation or forced learning to become Americans or Westerners. Malaysia proposes integration, wherein we become one despite our differences. We do not force all Malaysians to become Muslims even though we are an Islamic state. We believe and practise tolerance and understanding, two facets that make Malaysian society as strong and as outward looking and appealing as it is today. And by Western standards, our unity is fascinating.

So Manjit must not rush into forming opinions on Malaysian leaders. Who would have thought that Mahathir would be the man he is today when he first assumed power in 1981? The same has to be applied to Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Manjit thinks Abdullah lacks the capacity to rule. And this is the man who has survived three years in the political wilderness, has been thrown into wildfires and excelled as our foreign minister. I am confident he has both the acumen and desire to succeed. Let time be the judge, not someone who no longer calls Malaysia home.