Mahathir’s views in Malaysian Insider

///KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 – Tun Dr Mahathir argued today that non-Malay complaints of discrimination stemming from policies favouring the Malays are without “basis” as the country’s minorities too enjoy special rights including the freedom to speak their native languages and practice their own religion.///–Mamakthir

Speaking one’s own native language and practising one’s own religion are the basic human rights advocated by the United Nations, which Malaysia belongs. Malaysia cannot deny its citizens their basic human rights; else Malaysia becomes a unwelcomed state to the international community. Malays too enjoy those basic human rights, and they were placed under the special position for reasons well documented in the report of the Reid’s Commission on Malaya’s independence. It is not what Mamakthir says and he has no right to create history as he likes. The basis to conclude that non-Malays are discriminated is known to all the leaders of the civilized countries in the world, but yet Najib had the nerve to advocate moderation in the United Nations General Assembly when he does not practice it at home.

///“Each race enjoys special rights in their own way,” the longest-serving former prime minister (picture) told a forum at University Malaya here, when asked to comment on the opposition’s push for “Malaysian Malaysia” carried by the DAP’s predecessor, the People’s Action Party (PAP), in 1964.///–Mamakthir

When everybody enjoys the same basic rights, it means that they do not enjoy special rights. Those people who enjoyed something extra might be said to be given the ‘special favour’ like special position to be taken care of; they do not have the special rights.

///Dr Mahathir said while the country’s ethnic majority do enjoy a special position under the Constitution, the same law guarantees the minorities the right to self-identity through the freedom to practice their respective religion, language and mother-tongue education.///–Mamakthir

The law guarantees the basic human rights for non-Malays. They are discriminated by BN government which reads beyond the constitution, such as the NEP which is not provided in the constitution.

///He added that only in Malaysia, the minorities identify themselves according to their root “nationality” like “Chinese Malaysian” and “Indian Malaysian”, a phenomena that reflects the freedom and rights enjoyed by the non-Malays.///–Mamakthir

Sulu people call themselves Tausug, but Chinese call themselves Chinese even though they can be further divided into 56 ethnic groups. Chinese in Malaysia are happy to be called Malaysian. But when you ask them of their race, they certainly would not say Malay unlike Mamakthir who is Malayalee but he calls himself Malay. When government documents ask the people to fill the column of race, they have to describe who they are, in the name that is accepted by the authority. If that question is not asked, then the answer would not be given.

Mamakthir once said that there should not be a column on race in government forms/documents. His intention was to have names that do not sound like Chinese, Indian or Christian automatically treated as Malays. As Malaysia still practices race-based policies, people who want to be treated as Malay have to state it officially, so that person who masquerades as Malay might be charged for making false declaration. But nobody touches Mamakthir when it is known that he is not Malay but claiming to be one.

///“This idea is not practised anywhere else. In Indonesia the Chinese don’t call themselves Indonesian Chinese, they call themselves Indonesians and speak Indonesian.///–Mamakthir

That statement would only be made by an irresponsible person like him. He is saying that of the eight million Indonesians of Chinese descend none will answer correctly when he is asked of his race. Chinese Indonesians speak Chinese too so are Chinese Thais. There is no racial discrimination in Thailand.

///“Here, we agreed to maintain their rights,” Dr Mahathir said.///

It is not a right to say the right thing, unless Mamakthir thinks that everyone should lie.

///Dr Mahathir had and continues to be the leading proponent of Malay rights, in the face of growing calls for a revision of Putrajaya’s race-based affirmative action policies which have been blamed for much of Malaysia’s present economic woes.

Critics have also attributed the country’s corruption problems on the policies which they said nurtured the entrenched culture of political patronage among Umno supporters.

The federal opposition pact Pakatan Rakyat (PR) argued that such policies and the Malay-rights debate are used to enrich only a selected few Malays. Its pledge to dismantle race-based policies and put in place an economic model based on merits have won the support of the non-Malays.///–the report

The surest way to divide the citizens in a country is to have government policies based on race, with some having preferential treatment and others the target of discrimination.

///But while PR leaders maintained that this does not mean the abolition of Malay rights, Dr Mahathir alleged voting the opposition would erode the positions of the Malays who would end up being “slaves in their own country”.///–Mamakthir

Now Malays are slaves to UMNOputras, just like the non-Malays, in paying higher price for proton so that the APs holders who are UMNOputras can become multimillionaires. That slavery should stop first.

When the country practices rule of law not tempered by race, nobody will have the excuse to take advantage of others in the name of making Malays proud. No one is a slave if he reaps what he sows.

///The former prime minister argued today that it would not be possible to abolish Malay privileges without doing away with the rights of the minorities.

“If you want to abolish the rights of one race then you have to also do away with the rights of others. Of course none of the races would want this,” he said.///–Mamakthir

To do the away with the basic human rights of its citizens, whether in the minority or majority, Malaysia will become failed. Malays are placed in the special position according to Article 153; that according to the Reid Commission report, was based on needs and ought to subject to review by the parliament.

///Dr Mahathir had also suggested that the growing opposition to Malay rights reflected a deepening racial strife. He argued that this showed Malaysians are now more racially-conscious.///–Mamakthir

BN government makes Malaysians race conscious. The late Tun Dr Ismail said that Malays would be happy to end the special position out of pride, when they are ready. Mamakthir knows no pride for Malays; he is not one of them biologically, the status of which cannot change with time.

///This has led to stronger racial identification including the birth of more vernacular schools and poorer integration among Malaysia’s different races.

“In other countries there is assimilation but here we are happy with integration. There is even little integration now. The different races are not coming together,” he said.///–Mamakthir

When Mamakthir was in power he pretended to accept Bangsa Malaysia. He objected to Najib’s 1Malaysia, and now he is the worst racist in the country advocating animosity against non-Malays.

True Malays are peace loving. People who masquerade as Malays such as Ridhuan Tee and Mamakthir thrive through racial animosity. They promote hatred against one another based on race.

A poem written by Andrew Cheng sums up Mamakthir’s character very well:

Quote: ///A “Tribute” to Dr M
By Andrew Cheng
A Doctor In The House wry and sly,
The Malay Dilemma you feign to cry,
Soon after the tragedy in May 69,
Rising from the ashes you became mighty and high,
A good 22 years you reign in style,
Shedding crocodile tears when time to say good bye.
A crooked man with a crooked mind,
Wanted a crooked bridge, the rationale hard to find,
Billions vanished without any trace or sign,
Plundering the country is never a crime,
Corruption, cronyism and racialism, all are fine,
Leaving this beloved Bolehland way far behind.
Ketuanan Melayu, Hidup Melayu is your battle cry,
You scream all these to cover your deception and lie(s),
Many saw these but pretend to be blind,
Mercy upon those who do not toe your line,
Know not why you lose your memory when in a bind,

///“Princess” Jacel Karim of the Sulu Sultanate has come up with contradicting statements, adamant that the Malaysian government has agreed in principle to pay compensation to the Sulu Sultanate, a few months before the onset of this conflict. She is also reportedly unhappy with the terrorist label and claims that the intruders are armed with the “truth”.///–the author

If the claim is merely for the money from the descendants of a family which entered into an agreement to lease the land now known as Sabah, till the end of time, who prefer to convert the lease till tend of time to one-time settlement, that claim can be amicably settled. It should be the responsibility of the now ‘sultan of sulu’ to settle with other pretenders to the title. The so-called sultan certainly cannot claim to have Sabah under his control, and neither would Malaysians want to install him as sultan, for Sabah.

The 200 million suggested by Harris Salleh might be a hundred times more that the poorest sultan every dreamed. But it should be possible to compute the purchasing power of 5,300 Spanish Dollar in 1903 to what its is now, and make a lump sum payment for 99 years, with a new agreement to terminate all future claims.

Malaysia can certainly finish off Sulus now, but it is an unequal contest!

///The Philippine senate has demanded its government to hold Malaysia accountable for possible human rights violations against the 800,000-strong Filipino migrant community in Sabah at the hands of local authorities, who are searching for a ragtag band of Sulu militants claiming ownership of the north Borneo state.///–MalaysianInsider

Following the Philippine’s example, China and India should make Malaysia face the discrimination charges.