Tuesday, April 25, 2017
Malaysiakini : Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion, but
when a supposedly learned religious man makes an ‘incorrect’ analysis of
another faith, the damage he causes is worse than if the remarks had come from
an ignorant oaf.
The Indians of Malaya building a bridge
Of all the muftis in Malaysia, the one from Perlis, Dr Mohd Asri
Zainul Abidin (Maza), was considered the most progressive and respected, whose
insights resonated with many Malaysians. His views on Act 355 were applauded
when he said that this ruse was just another political ploy by PAS and Umno
Baru. He disagreed with the use of khalwat squads to test people’s morality. He
said that non-Muslims had a right to use the word ‘Allah’
.
Maza opposed forced conversions of children, when one parent
decided to convert to Islam. He blasted the syariah courts for taking years to
reach a decision on divorce cases. He courted controversy when he said that
religion should not be forced on Muslims.
Whilst Maza’s reputation soared, that of other muftis plummeted.
The respect Maza enjoyed ended when he published his poem on Facebook last
week. He allegedly claimed the Hindus worshipped cows and practised ‘suttee’.
Maza exposed his poor understanding of Hinduism and its practices.
Hindus do not worship cows and suttee has been outlawed for almost two
centuries. We cannot say the same about some ‘Muslim’ practices, like female
genital mutilation.
Maza’s back-pedalling did not help him. First he said that his
poem was directed at Narendra Modi, the nationalist prime minister of India.
That simply exacerbated the problem, so he said that Malaysian Hindus should
ignore his remarks, because they did not apply to them.
He also alluded to “our preacher” being handed over to a
tyrannical government. Was he referring to Zakir Naik, the controversial Muslim
preacher who is purportedly seeking refuge in Malaysia to escape two arrest
warrants issued by the Indian authorities? Why does Maza harbour a soft spot
for Zakir, who seemingly likes to stoke religious fires amongst Malaysians?
Maza’s work and opinions are highly valued and sought after. He is
also human and it is possible he made a mistake, and should apologise. The only
positive aspect of Maza’s debacle is that he has put the spotlight on Malaysia’s
marginalised Indian community.
When government-linked companies (GLCs) took over British rubber
estates, they converted land into housing developments, golf courses and oil
palm plantations. The displaced Indians drifted to urban areas to form Indian
ghettos, which became breeding grounds for gangsters.
Bumiputra policies and quotas denied Indians access to education
and work opportunities. Places in local universities were limited and Indian
graduates claimed they face discrimination when applying for jobs.
Lack of self-confidence
With so much against them, is it any wonder that the Indian
community suffers from a lack of self-confidence, low self-esteem, the highest
rates of suicide and low performance in business, equity ownership and
employment in professional sectors and the civil service?
A few have escaped the poverty trap, and at the other end of the
social spectrum, there are many qualified and successful Indian professionals,
who form a large proportion of the country’s top lawyers and doctors.
Restrictions on places of worship mean that Hindu temples are
forced to be built without planning permission. The Indians could only watch in
silence when Hindu temples of historical and cultural importance were
demolished.
In 2000, TimeAsia reported that Indians had the lowest share of
the nation’s corporate wealth - 1.5 percent compared to 19.4 percent for the
Malays and 38.5 percent for the Chinese. In 2003, The Economist reported that
Indian Malaysians comprised “14 percent of juvenile delinquents, 20 percent of
wife and child abusers, 14 percent of its beggars, and that under 5 percent of
successful university applicants were Indian.”
In 2011, the erstwhile MIC deputy president, Dr S Subramaniam,
claimed that Indians were ashamed of their community, were looked down upon by
the other races, and that 45 percent of the country’s crimes involved Indians.
The Indians are viewed as an afterthought, because if Chinese or
Malay communities were treated as badly, there would have been a severe
backlash; but with Indians, the common response, is “Who cares? They are only
Indians. Even their own politicians fail to promote their cause.”
Zakir Naik was granted permanent resident (PR) status, but many
Indians remain stateless, and do not have birth certificates or identity cards.
The Indians form the highest percentage of deaths, whilst in police custody.
The poorest Indians survive on a ‘hand to mouth’ existence.
Ironically, Maza’s faux pas has highlighted the plight of Indian
Malaysians/Hindus. Will he help make Malaysians understand that we cannot
alienate the Indians? Issues which affect the Indian community are not solely
an Indian problem; they are a Malaysian problem.
MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of
the Green Bean Army and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO).
No comments:
Post a Comment