Putik Lada: Unity through acceptance

©The Star
By SYAHREDZAN JOHAN

Malaysians must accept that every citizen has a stake and a say in our country, as well as a place in the nation.

LAST month marked the 40th year since the terrible tragedy of May 13, 1969. The riots then represented the lowest point of race relations in the country.

Of course, we can safely say that things have improved since. Instances of ethnic violence have been very sparse and nowhere near the magnitude of May 13.

By and large, Malaysians have managed to live peacefully together in the 40 years after the event.

Yet, while we have not resorted to violence, we cannot deny that we have still to find true national unity.

We can project to the world that we are a multi-cultural, multi-religious society, the “melting pot of Asia”, but peel away the facade and we will discover that there is a deep undercurrent of suspicion and frustration.

No, we cannot claim to be united just because we have not experienced any major racial riots since 1969. Unity is not achieved merely by superficial levels of interactions with others.

We are not united simply because we work together, have lunch together, play football with each other or visit each other during festive seasons. Society remains fractured along racial, religious and social lines despite the illusions we create to portray the contrary.

Let’s face it, racism and racial prejudice are very much part of everyday life. True unity is still elusive to us. But what is the measure of unity?

Some advocate the assimilation of the various cultures and ethnicities into one homogenous society, discarding the different cultural identities for one single Malaysian culture and language.

Such an approach may have its merits. It may have worked if it had been adopted immediately after we achieved independence, but it would be impossible right now.

Forcing such assimilation would result in resistance and be counter productive to our nation-building efforts.

But national unity must be achieved in spite of our diversity. The racial make-up of our country is unique. We have an ethnic group with a majority but also sizeable ethnic minorities.

Our nation building efforts will inevitably be fraught with difficulty.

Acceptance is the key. We cannot achieve unity until and unless we accept each other, regardless of our race, religion, skin colour, sex, social status or wealth.

We must accept and believe that each and every Malaysian has a place in the nation. We must accept that Malaysians have a stake and a say in our country.

Yet, acceptance is easier preac-hed than practised. After all, it is human nature for us to prefer to surround ourselves with the “familiarities” of those that belong to the same ethnic or religious community as us.

Some say that we need to mingle with each other more. While this is true, it is difficult to do so if we view others with resentment and through race-tinted glasses, entertaining thoughts like “he can make it because of government assistance”, “they have monopoly of everything” or “we’ve been marginalised by others”.

Coupled with this, we also have other obstacles in the way of acceptance, the most prevalent being deep rooted prejudice, suspicion and resentment towards each other.

Let’s be truthful — a large part of it stems from socio-economic policies formulated along racial lines. The New Economic Policy (NEP) needs a thorough re-examination.

This is not to say that government assistance and affirmative action are no longer necessary — in some areas they are still very much needed — but we need to start creating policies that are more acceptable in today’s environment.

The NEP is creaking under decades of corruption and abuse, its original aims lost in a forest of political patronage and lack of proper implementation.

We can no longer justify government assistance and affirmative action that is entirely race-based. New and more equitable policies must be formulated with a mixture of race-based affirmative action and means-based government assistance.

Another obstacle in the way of acceptance is racial politics. Too many politicians resort to the race card to further their political ambitions. They portray themselves as champions of their respective race or religion, so much so that they have no qualms about fanning the flames of racism.

Are we willing to allow such people to sow strife and discontent just so that they may gain some measure of power, position or wealth?

Such irresponsible conduct cannot be tolerated. Parties from both sides of the political divide must ensure that their members and supporters do not resort to anything that can jeopardise the relationship among the races.

If we can formulate more equitable socio-economic policies, and eradicate racial politics, it will be easier for us to accept one another. We will have little reason to continue to fear, suspect or resent other Malaysians.

Some of us are able to accept each other and to stand united even with the status quo. Imagine what we can achieve if we can clear the hurdles standing in our way!

Unite we must. We simply do not have a choice in this matter. If Malaysia is to realise its full potential as a nation, we must achieve true national unity.

How much longer can we continue to live as a deeply divided nation without realising the price we have to pay for such divisions?

Globalisation is knocking at our door and we cannot afford to fight with each other when the real competition comes from beyond our borders.

It will take a change in culture, attitude and mindset. It will take time. It will not be easy. But as long as we continue in the right direction, we will one day be able to create a nation that is truly united.

> The writer is a young lawyer. Putik Lada, or pepper buds in Malay, captures the spirit and intention of this column: a platform for young lawyers to articulate their views and aspirations about the law, justice and a civil society. For more information about the young lawyers, please visit www.malaysianbar.org.my/nylc