The Star captured the essence of Mahathir's explanation when it headlined its report today: "Malays 'must fight as one'" to defend four subjects - Malay special rights, the position of Islam and the national language, and the status of the Malay rulers.
If the 43 year Malaysian nation-building and the Vision 2020 concept of a Bangsa Malaysia means anything, then it should be "Malaysians 'must fight as one'" to defend the entrenched provisions in the Constitution, or are the entrenched provisions only of concern to the Malays but of no relevance to the non-Malay Malaysians?
Article 153 of the Malaysian Constitution entrenches the provision of special position not just to Malays but also to "natives of any of the States of Sabah and Sarawak".
If Mahathir claims that Article 153 is being threatened, shouldn't the Ibans and Kadazans and all the other natives of Sabah and Sarawak who are also supposed to be beneficiaries of this provision, be invited to the UMNO-PAS talks?
Mahathir made very serious allegations in his media conference yesterday when he said that "certain quarters had been making attempts to challenge the special position of the Malays….With that, they question and challenge the position of the Malays and Islam" (New Straits Times) and "If any quarter questions Islam as the official religion, it is against the federal constitution and all Malays must defend this, but not all Malays are doing it", which have far-reaching implications for nation-building in multi-racial Malaysia.
Firstly, he is alleging that the three entrenched constitutional provisions of Malay special rights, the national language and the status of the Malay rulers as well as the position of Islam are being challenged by "certain quarters".
It is the height of irresponsibility in a multi-racial society for a person holding the highest office in the land to make such a grave and sensitive allegation without identifying who are the "certain quarters" challenging the three entrenched provisions and the position of Islam. Mahathir should name these "certain quarters" and substantiate his allegations or he should stop making wild and baseless charges which are not conducive to promoting inter-racial harmony or national unity.
Secondly, as any challenge of the three constitutionally entrenched
provisions tantamounts to an offence under the Sedition Act, why hasn't
the government arrested and prosecuted those challenging these provisions
- if there is indeed in existence "certain quarters" acting seditiously
to question and challenge the entrenched subjects? The government
has charged several Barisan Alternative leaders under the Sedition Act
but these have nothing whatsoever to do with the entrenched constitutional
provisions.
Thirdly, where is the proof that the constitutional position of Islam is being questioned and that Malays are not united to defend Islam?
Fourthly, shouldn't the protection of the Constitution, including the entrenched provisions, devolve on all Malaysians and not just on the Malays or any other community - which will have the effect of compartmentalising and institutionalising ethnic divisions and throwing the country back to the old communal politics of "divide and rule", making a mockery of Malaysian nation-building?
All in all, Mahathir's media conference yesterday is most mischievous and irresponsible and a grave setback to nation-building and the Bangsa Malaysia concept of Vision 2020 - for its whole intent is to create a sense of Malay insecurity and fear as well as non-Malay alarm by asserting that "the position of the Malays is being threatened overall" (The Star) and that the Malays are not waking up to this threat!
If Malay leaders from PAS or other political parties had painted such a scary scenario in the heyday of UMNO before the 1999 general elections, they would have been condemned as communalists and anti-national elements seeking to destroy the nation by undermining inter-communal harmony and goodwill and be clapped into detention under the Internal Security Act or charged under the Sedition Act.
Would the Attorney-General, Datuk Ainum Mohd Saaid establish her independence by initiating action to consider whether the Prime Minister had committed the offence of sedition in his media conference yesterday?
Mahathir said the Malays should place greater importance on the race and not their parties. Shouldn't he say that the Malays, together with the Chinese, Indians, Kadazans and Ibans, should place greater importance on the nation and not their race or parties?
In any event, Mahathir has not set the example of placing greater
importance on the race and not on the party, as othersie, why the
unfair, undemocratic and vindictive hijacking of the Terengganu oil royalty
from the PAS state government by the federal government or the slashing
of Harakah's publication permit from twice a week to twice a month after
the last general
election?
In his 20th year as Prime Minister, Mahathir should be setting the good
example as the Bangsa Malaysia of his Vision 2020 than as a Malay communalist
of pre-Merdeka era. As it is, the PAS leaders are showing themselves as
better Malaysians than Mahathir, in setting down the conditions that the
talks should not be about Malay unity, but national unity; and that they
should deal with the issues of the judiciary focussing in particular on
the case of Anwar Ibrahim; on democracy and human rights;
Federal-state relations, economic mismanagement with particular reference
to corruption and cronyism like the various mega-bailouts and misuse of
public funds such as the Employees' Provident Fund, the Pension Funds,
Tabung Haji and the various trust funds.
Mahathir should abandon plans for UMNO-PAS "Malay Unity" talks and accept instead Barisan Nasional-Barisan Alternative "national unity" talks as proposed by the Barisan Alternative in early January to show Malaysians and the world that Malaysia is undergoing the political and nation-building transition where politics would not be so race-dominated but be more issues-centred.
(9/3/2001)