by Kee Thuan Chye
Malaysian Digest
11 July 2010 | Sunday
The call for the setting-up of a Chinese Perkasa to counter the Malay right-wing group’s racial attacks is one of the most outrageous things I’ve ever heard. Yet this is a call that comes from none other than Deputy Finance Minister Donald Lim Siang Chai, who is also an MCA vice-president.
How can a deputy minister suggest such a thing? Is he speaking as an individual or does he have the endorsement of the MCA – or, worse still, the Government?
That he is part of the ruling administration makes the call suspicious. It seems to corroborate what many have come to suspect – that Perkasa (Pertubuhan Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia) is linked in an informal way to Barisan Nasional, that the NGO is actually doing the dirty work that BN cannot be seen to be doing, i.e. championing Malay rights and taking a hard line stance against perceived adversaries.
Chauvinism has been outsourced to Perkasa, observers say. In light of Lim’s statement, one might be persuaded to see a connection.
What is objectionable about Lim’s call is that it will reinforce what Umno itself has been drumming into the minds of the Malays – that the non-Malays, particularly the Chinese, are a threat to them, that the non-Malays want to take over the country.
This has been the crux of Umno propaganda since the day after the 2008 general election, with even people like former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad going around the country spinning the myth that “Malay land has fallen into non-Malay hands”. Most days when you open Utusan Malaysia or Berita Harian or switch on to TV3, you’ll get reminders of this insidious message.
It is unlikely that Lim and the MCA are not aware that the call for a Chinese Perkasa will reinforce the fear of the Malays about a takeover by the non-Malays. They would also be aware that although it’s an imagined fear with no basis whatsoever in reality, if you tell it often enough, it can become real. Even more effective is when the telling turns into showing. And that is what will happen if a Chinese Perkasa comes into being. When it starts yelling at the Malay Perkasa and proceeds to quarrel with it, it will automatically reveal its own aggressiveness. That will certainly make the Malays feel even more fearful of the Chinese.
That will turn Umno’s propaganda into palpable proof of Chinese ambitions. That will then ensure that the Malays vote for Umno at the next general election. Which will also translate into victory for BN.
Lim may be thinking that his suggestion could help the MCA win back Chinese votes because to the less enlightened Chinese, this could show that the MCA is finally standing up for their race. But this is a dangerous way of going about it.
The formation of a Chinese Perkasa will merely cause deeper resentment between the races. As it is, the country has become more divided than it has ever been; Lim’s suggestion can only make race relations worse. What happens when relations become so bad that they reach a point of no return? What good will it do for either the Malays or the Chinese? What good will it do for the nation?
Didn’t Lim think of this before he opened his mouth? Such irresponsible talk coming from a deputy minister must be censured. If his party does not do it, Prime Minister Najib Razak should. It is one thing to think of winning votes for your party and another to cause greater strife in society. Because the call comes from what will be perceived as an authorised source, it may just turn out that some fanatical Chinese individuals or groups will respond to it. If that happens, we may all be in for tumultuous times.
Lim has hinted that the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) would be the proper body to play the Chinese Perkasa role. This is utterly misguided. The KLSCAH has been at the forefront of pushing for civil rights and social progress. It is by no stretch of the imagination a chauvinist body. It presents annual Civil Society Awards to individuals and organisations that promote multi-culturalism and multi-ethnicism.
I have attended several forums held on its premises that propagated the idea of working towards a better Malaysia for all Malaysians. Many of these activities are not organised by the KLSCAH itself but they reflect its broad-based leanings.
How could Lim even think of calling on the KLSCAH to perform a detestable role? Is it his ulterior motive to discredit the KLSCAH, whose orientation is antithetical to the MCA’s ethnocentricism?
For saying what he said, Donald Lim is not only prescribing trouble but also revealing how warped his thinking is. The MCA has been castigating Perkasa for its rightist, racist stance. How can he then propose the formation of something that is similarly rightist and racist? This is a clear-cut case of double standards and hypocrisy.
Is it any wonder, then, that if the MCA has leaders like Lim, Malaysians should have even more reason to reject the party?