by Ravinder Singh
The Malaysian Insider

MAY 1 — Actions speak louder than words. BN’s words splattered all over the landscape proclaim 1Malaysia, which people have been made to believe is about all races and religions living as one big family while practicing their own religions and cultures. However, its recent actions show the hidden agenda behind the facade. The ugly head of racism has been put up for all to see.

The appearance of BN billboards with the extremely racist message “Do you want to see your grandchildren praying in this Allah’s house?” is something all peace-loving Malaysians of all racial and religious backgrounds must condemn. I’m sure many Malays too do not condone this racial bigotry of stirring up racial feelings for the sake of winning elections.

Such billboards could not have gone up if the head of the BN had firmly given instructions that religious and racial issues were not to be used for campaigning. On the contrary, that BN campaigners have boldly put up such boards is evidence that they have the tacit blessings of their head and of personalities such as Dr. M and Ibrahim Ali of Perkasa to whom 1Malaysia means 1 race, 1 religion, 1 language and 1 culture. Dr M had not minced his words when saying that other races in a country must assimilate and become one with the main race and religion in the country.

It was the head of the BN who had proclaimed that he and his party would defend Putrajaya at all costs, even with crushed bodies and broken bones. So are they hoping to bring about crushed bodies and broken bones by stirring up racial and religious strife?

This shows the hypocrisy of the BN leaders, particularly the head of the BN. Could Najib please tell Malaysians whether Malays had never attended Christian Mission Schools in the past, and if they did, how many were converted to Christianity?

To my knowledge, many of the UMNO people themselves, some of whom became leaders of the country, and many other Malays who became top civil servants or some big guys in the private sector, had had their education in the Christian mission schools in Malaysia. Those Malays who attended school overseas, particularly the UK, did not attend Islamic schools but Christian schools. How many of them became Christians?

I can vouch for it that the missionary teachers in schools never tried to convert any non-Christians to become Christians, and neither did any Malay children in these schools convert to Christianity although they were exposed to Christianity daily for the many years they were in these schools.

Having spent the first three years in a Malay school, many of my Malay classmates and I moved to a Christian missionary school (the only English medium school in the district at that time) to continue our education in English. We were put in a special stream as we did not know a word of English though we were in Std. 4. The class was known as Special Malay One, or SM1. Following year, SM2, then Std. 6. From form 1 they were mixed with children who had started Std. 1 in English.

These Malay children became proficient both in Malay and English. They did well in life as civil servants, some held very senior positions; some went into the private sector and others into politics. Every morning they had stood respectfully for the Christian prayer to be recited before classes commenced, just like the doa recited in National schools. I don’t know of anyone of them who converted to Christianity. They did not have any negative words for the Christians.

Some politicians have gone too far in condemning others in trying to get support. They are openly and freely breaking the law on racial sensitivities. Leaving alone the man-made law (the Penal Code), can they, as Muslims, show us where in Islam are they allowed to create racial and religious strife between people who are living peacefully. Najib’s silence on this can only mean that he condones what his party members are doing.

Those politicians and parties that do not reject racism, but embrace it for personal purposes, must be rejected by peace-loving Malaysians. Malaysia can only be a better place without such racial bigots in politics in a multi-racial country.