Tricia Yeoh

By Tricia Yeoh

LAST week, the Conference of Rulers issued a much-publicised statement. The statement reiterated the special position of the Malay rulers, Islam, the Malay language, and the genuine interests of other communities as enshrined in the Federal Constitution. The rulers reminded Malaysians that it is not proper to dispute the provisions of the Federal Constitution.

Many have pondered the significance of the statement’s issuance, since it comes immediately following a series of incidents that increasingly tug at Malaysia’s inter-ethnic fabric.

There was the decision by the Home Ministry to declare Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) an illegal organisation.

And then there is the continuing showdown between Seputeh Member of Parliament Teresa Kok and Malay-language daily Utusan Malaysia. Both parties are at psychological war with the other, although Kok was never proven guilty over the so-called azan debacle, which started the face-off.

Most recently, the daily published a fictional story about the murder of a Chinese woman politician, a character which many believe alludes to Kok (even though its author has denied any correlation).

Multiple interpretations

The rulers’ statement, just as the constitution on which it is based, is likely to be interpreted differently by various quarters. Barisan Nasional leaders welcomed the assurance that all communities in Malaysia are treated fairly.

However, due to the timing of the statement, it could also be interpreted as a convenient legitimisation of the more racist factions within Umno. It could lead to an even more aggressive defence of the ketuanan Melayu (Malay supremacy) discourse.

Read more here.

By Tricia Yeoh

IN opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s 13 Oct 2008 speech in Parliament, he called for a fresh budget, considering the ongoing global financial crisis. He said it was impossible for Members of Parliament (MPs) to debate an outdated budget. Furthermore, he said the budget was tabled under the former finance minister.

The coming weeks will see Parliament scrutinising a thick document on national revenues and expenditures, before it is due to be passed in December 2008 as the Supply Act. Opposition parliamentarians are bound to question the government, in critical analysis of this important document that outlines the nation’s money matters.

That parliamentarians are given the opportunity to debate the Supply Bill before it is passed is indeed an element of the democratic process. However, is the debate itself enough to qualify as being reflective of a well-governed country?

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By Tricia Yeoh

IN legal terms, the “reasonable person” standard is often used in arguing out cases. It is not always easy to define what this means. But it is generally accepted that the reasonable person is one who is well informed, capable, aware of the law, and fair-minded. Thus “reasonable politics” would be one that similarly lives up to each of these ideals.

It is safe to say that if Malaysia had ever practised reasonable politics, we have certainly long abandoned it.

In the last week, things have been quieter on the political front, presumably due to the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations across the country. But nay, never a dull day in hyperactive and hypersensitive Malaysia: at an open house hosted by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, a group of 200 Hindraf activists handed over flowers and a Hari Raya greeting card appealing for the abolishment of the Internal Security Act (ISA) and the release of the Hindraf five (the Hindu Rights Action Force leaders imprisoned under the Act that allows for indefinite detention without trial).

Read more here.

Last week’s entry in the Nut Graph is here:

By Tricia Yeoh

INCIDENTS belying the fragile state of integration in Malaysia have dominated the news in recent years. A pattern has emerged strongly: we are trapped in a vicious cycle — one that, unless broken, will repeat itself for time immemorial.

Of the significant incidences that have taken place over the last two years, an observer would document these: strong reaction to Article 11 (the group promoting religious freedoms); outcry over the bumiputera corporate equity report by the Centre for Public Policy Studies; demonstration against the Bar Council’s religious conversion forum; more recently, the Ahmad Ismail debacle; ISA arrests of journalist Tan Hoon Cheng, Seputeh Member of Parliament Teresa Kok (both have been released) and Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin; outcry over the azan and Jawi signboards; police report against Kok for insulting an egg; and Molotov cocktails thrown into the home of Kok’s family and the former residence of Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan.

Click here to read more.

Further thoughts on the Race Relations Act proposed by the home ministry in Malaysia recently, published in The Nut Graph.

Race relations: Acting and reacting

24 Sep 08 : 9.00AM

By Tricia Yeoh

AHMAD Ismail is now a familiar name: his remarks about the Chinese in Malaysia resulted in his three-year suspension from Umno politics. The arrest and subsequent release within 24 hours of Sin Chew Daily journalist Tan Hoon Cheng under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for accurately reporting Ahmad’s statement also sparked a nationwide outcry. It is within this context that a proposal was made by MCA Youth Chief Liow Tiong Lai for a Race Relations Act “to govern racial relations, encourage greater unity and avoid discrimination among races in the country.”

This proposal seems to have taken on a life of its own, leading to the cabinet’s approval to formulate the Act, as announced by home minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar. He said the home ministry and the ministry for unity, culture, arts and heritage will be working together to gather information to draft the Act.

The proposed Race Relations Act has elicited a range of responses, mainly positive, from those in government. Unity minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal said fundamentals of the Act were aimed at ensuring peace and harmony among the different races — the end goal of which is difficult to dispute.

To read more, click here.