THE STAR
Wednesday, January 29, 2003

LETTER
Do not let racial polarisation ruin us

DR JACOB GEORGE of Subang Jaya (via e-mail) writes:

I REFER to your report, “Malays more proactive,” (Sunday Star, Jan 26).

I cannot but strongly endorse Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s statement that Malaysia will disintegrate like Yugoslavia if racial polarisation sets in, with the Chinese, Indians, Malays and other bumiputras separating along religious and ethnic lines.

During our undergraduate days abroad, those of us who had the chance to visit Yugoslavia before the civil war and the horrors of ethnic cleansing saw its beauty and great achievements.

These included the hosting of international sports events such as the Olympics.

Today, all that was achieved through decades of hard work and sacrifices is lying in ruins. We do not want a similar situation in Malaysia.

This observation had been made repeatedly over the years by a “chorus of voices” from visionary and sensitive politicians, academicians, education policy analysts, social and consumer activists but few in the corridors of power made any concrete effort to address these legitimate fears.

Thus the deputy premier's statement at the opening of the Penang Umno Education Convention 2003 in Kepala Batas could not have come at a better time.

Polarisation is prevalent in our institutions of higher learning, civil service, corporate organisations and, sadly, in our sports organisations as well.

Abdullah was justified in saying there was a possibility of Malays being divided into two groups because of religious fanaticism and extremism. Recent events clearly showed a lot more needed to be done to address the problem.

Our founding fathers had, through sheer sacrifices and vision, laid for us a strong foundation which has seen Malaysia develop from an agricultural nation to one that has gone into heavy industries and is today standing tall among the developed nations of the world.

We have also hosted international sports events and conferences, wining praise from foreign dignitaries and nationalities for our excellent organisational skills and role as warm, caring hosts.

But like Yugoslavia, all that can be lost if we fail to foster “fair, pragmatic and holistic relationships” between all Malaysians, be they Orang Asli, Malays, Indians, Chinese or the indigenous populations of Sabah and Sarawak.

All efforts must be made to develop genuine relationships free from political, religious or racial influence and bias – the type enjoyed by many of us in the 1950s.

As Abdullah said, it is time we laid earnestly the “seeds of peace, harmony and mutual respect” for one another and what better way to do this than from the school level.


SOURCE:
http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story...isex&sec=focus