Sunday, December 27, 2009

Dr M wrong on choice between Indian and Muslim - Malaysiakini

Former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad's advice to Malaysia's Indian Muslims to choose between their Muslim and their Indian identities puts one in mind of a resonant episode in the immediate prelude to the partition of India in mid-1947.

A delegation of Indian Muslims, contemplating abandoning their homes in India for the new entity called Pakistan, went to see Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the highest ranked Muslim in the Congress Party and a strong foe of partition.

Islamic scholar Azad, who was born in Mecca, was renowned for the battles he had waged for communal unity in India, for its freedom from Britain, and for secularism.

His visitors were in no doubt about where Azad stood on the matter of partition: he was unalterably opposed and an arch critic of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, head of the Muslim League and fervent proponent of separation.

The delegation just wanted to see for themselves if Azad would waver from his resolute anti-partition stance at a perilous time.

June 1947 comprised an exaggerated moment in Indian history. It is just such moments of extremity that best reveal the essence of things. And Azad demonstrated the seer-like qualities of his stature as a leader when he posed this question to the delegation: “Where will you go should you discover that Pakistan is not your home?”

Of course, none of his visitors could countenance the notion that their anticipated new abode could turn out to be forbidding.

Many of those who went to see Azad settled in the Sind region of newly-formed Pakistan, of which Karachi is the metropolis.

Fast forward 40 years to the late 1980s: The city becomes a maelstrom of communal violence between the muhajirs (Indian Muslims from India who moved to Sind and west Punjab after partition) and the indigenes.

The bursts of violence were frequent, horrific and sustained, and were caused by muhajir resentment at being marginalised by the indigenes of Sind.

Two decades before the muhajir-inspired convulsions in the Sind of the late 1980s and after, the world had already witnessed the animosity between Muslim Bengalis and the Punjabi Muslim-dominated Pakistan army that led to the war of secession in East Pakistan, which then became Bangladesh.

A notable feature of this war in 1971 was that here the muhajirs (Bihar Muslims who had immigrated at the time of partition to East Bengal/East Pakistan) backed the elitist Punjabi soldiers of the Pakistani army in the battle against indigenous Bengali Muslims.

From not only these facets of subcontinent history but from several others the world over in the last century, particularly if you take the flux and flow of sectarian allegiances in Lebanon, it is not hard to conclude that parochially-constituted identities provide no lasting solder by which to glue a national identity.

One can be both Indian and Muslim

Mahathir's positing of a dichotomy – either you are Indian or you are Muslim (and therefore Malay) – to Muslim Indians in Malaysia has been proven by recent history to be a delusive conceit.

Maulana Azad espoused a composite view of national identity to partition-leaning Muslims of the Indian subcontinent six decades ago: He held you could be Indian and Muslim at the same time, in contradistinction to the great Indian poet Mohamed Iqbal, who in a famous disquisition in 1930 argued that the Muslim identity would fade in an independent India. Hence a separate homeland for Muslim Indians was imperative.

Admittedly, it is a long way from Maulana Azad to Gerald Manley Hopkins, a 19th century English poet, of special resonance in these ecologically fraught times.

Hopkins loved nature in which he saw a “dappled” and “pied” quality of contrasting elements forming the same pattern which he tried to reproduce in his poems.

“Glory to God for dappled things,” he rhapsodised in one of his best poems, a cosmic plea for seeing things as nature would have us - as “both/and” and not as “either/or”.

Muslim Indians in Malaysia can be Malaysian, Muslim and Indian at the same time, a triple and sustainable (nice ecologically friendly word that!) identity that betters Azad, and tributes Hopkins.

Wayang kulit RM 7.93 Million & peanuts Tekun loans for Indians

As opposed to the RM 191.5 Billion 2010 national budget and the millions and billions dished out to the malay muslims under UMNOs’ racist, religious extremist and supremacist policies. (refer UM 15/12/09 at page 6)

P.Uthayakumar

HRP Secretary General

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UMNO 2009 / PWTC

UMNO excluded Indians from 90% of businesses

So the Indians end up largely in the restaurant and saree shop business (refer UM 15/12/09 at page 6). UMNO has rejected business licenses and loans to hundreds of thousands of Indians in pursuit of their racist, religious extremist and supremacist policies.

S.JAYATHAS

HRP Information Chief

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Five Indians shot dead by police in one day, Taser powered police?

One Billion budget in 2010 for the police to gun down up to one Indian a day for six days in a row in early November 2009. And now the police are asking for 30, 000 units of the (non fatal) taser guns but would not use it. They would rather shoot to kill the Indians and use up the RM 1 Billion allocation “else where”. (Refer The Malay Mail 15/12/2009 at page 4)

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Hindraf leaders squabble over accounts - Malaysiakini

Another crisis has erupted in the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) as the two main factions charge each other of cheating over the movement's funds.

NONEOn one side are Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy (right) and legal advisor P Uthayakumar, who have appointed a firm to audit the accounts of Hindraf Enterprise, a private company intended as a shell to collect funds for Hindraf in late 2007.

On the other are former Hindraf treasurer K Vasanthakumar and V Ganabatirao, who accuse Waythamoorthy of misappropriating funds collected for families of the five Hindraf leaders detained under the Internal Security Act.

Uthayakumar, Vasanthakumar and Ganabatirao were among the three ISA detainees, but since their detention they have had a falling out. Waythamoorthy is self-exiled in London.

On Thursday, at a press conference Vasanthakumar claimed that he is the sole proprietor of Hindraf Enterprise and Waythamoorthy had no business trying to pry into his accounts.

Instead, he demanded that Waythamoorthy reveal what happened to the tens of thousands collected after the five were arrested on Dec 13, 2007.

Vasan 'exonerates' Waytha

In a statement today, Waythamoorthy said funds collected in the name on Hindraf, but not banked into Hindraf Enterprise's accounts, were in the hands of independent auditors.

Turning to Vasanthakumar, Waythamoorthy explained that they were introduced on Oct 2007 and the former was made treasurer as he claimed to be a bank officer.

"It later came as a shock to me that he had instead opened an account for a stationery business under the name of Hindraf Enterprise and appointed himself director," said Waythamoorthy.

He said a lot of money was banked into Hindraf Enterprise by well wishers of the Hindraf movement and this should be accounted for.

He said Vasanthakumar (below) should not use this funds for personal use or the stationary business and make the accounts public..

"NONEI am glad finally for the first time Vasanthakumar has admitted to opening an account under the name of Hindraf Enterprise, which exonerates me of any fund collection," he said.

Waythamoorthy added that it was strange since the very people who were accusing him of embezzlement, are refusing to openly declare Hindraf Enterprise's accounts to independent auditors.

COMMENTS:-

by iilidetector - 6 hours ago

Everyone is accusing each other of taking money, but the deafening silence is from Waytha. He has not uttered a single word for past 2 years on how he can stay in an expensive city like London. Who is paying for his food and board. I understand he underwent heart treatment in London as well, was it from a private Specialist ? Who gave him funds to fly to Singapore to see Datuk Zaid in a hotel ?

by matahari - 7 hours ago

This crook vasanthakumar has got into his own trap. Initially he blamed the Hindraf brothers. Now after admitting he is the holder of Hindraf Ent he is caught in a catch 22 situation. Crooks always get caught in their own trap.Vasanthakumar rao is a disgrace to Hindraf and Indian community. Their task is to destroy Hindraf but looks like they are destroying themselves.

by Thanabalan - 7 hours ago

Whatever, we are among the contributors, we want this topic to be halted now. If one wants to fight for the community, be a gentlemen. We dont mind how the money spend, but with our contrubutions yet they cant get back what they lost and kept losing. They deserve for what they sacrifice. Common, splitting the community in facts as a human we should catergorise as the lowest cast, this aplicable.

by DC - 8 hours ago Delete

iiliedetector you are talking rubbish. U got your facts mixed up or u are pretending to be ignorant. Vasantha admits he is the Director of Hindraf enterprise. The money was collected into this account. The person responsible is vasantha and not Waytha. Why is vasantha being a chicken now. We know Vasantha has been instigating the public and those accused for illegal assembly and we know how the Tamil papers manipulate the story. After all the accusations it is not clear vasantha rao and raidu have to account for the funds. Why are they shy to cooperate with the public accountants. What Waytha is doing is right-get the accounts verified by independent professionals. Soon i believe vasantha is going to say the accountants have swindled the money.

by iilidetector - 9 hours ago

The timing of the allegations is very fishy. Waytha disappeared on Nov 07 and Vasanta was under ISA in March 08. Why bring up these allegations after 2 long years? The answer is very simple-Hindraf has lost it's influence because there are many Indian leaders to choose from.Money has been collected and money has to be accounted for. Who were the people authorized by Hindraf to collect money. In a report, in the Star paper, a few months ago, 18 ppl now being charged for the Hindraf demo went to Uthaya's office and asked for the accounts for the money collected. He told them he could not give an updated account because the person had left his job! He then proceeded to give them RM 50. There is no need to talk so much. Ask Waytha to tell us what funds he is using to 1) Finance his board and lodging in UK 2) How he managed to pay for his heart treatment in London 3) How he managed to fly to Singapore to meet Datuk Zaid in a hotel. Like I said, why bring up these allegations after so long?

by Zamani - 10 hours ago

In my opinion none of the hindraf guys are interested in abusing the money. Waytha, Kumar, Vasantha, Ganabathi rao, Genga or Mano - all of them have immensely contributed. Fighting over these accounts is a complete misdirection. Stop all these rubbish and get on with your work. The more you guys argue and talk the worst you become. You have earned yourself a place in the community, time to live up to that image. If there is diagreement in directions amongst you, let it be so. Public are not fools, they will judge whom to trust!

by Bozuka - 10 hours ago

Did the Hindraf Brothers organize road shows to collect any money for the detainees’ families????? Waythamoorthy was in self exile while Uthayakumar was in Kamunting Camp. Then who organize the road show??? The Indian mandor from DAP especially people like Sivanesan and Prof.Ramasamy together with Ganabatirao’s brother Raidu were doing the collection. So now WHO should show the accounts??? DSP. Vasanthakumar of Special Branch for Hindraf account. And as for the detainees’’ family account it should be Sivanesan, Pro. Ramasamy and Raidu. Why are these jokers going after Waythamoorthy?

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by Rohan Tan - 13 hours ago

Waytha has been under attack for a long time. They keep blaming him for fund collections which ended up in millions. The truth is he was out of the country all these while. Now the truth is revealed-Vasanthakumar has openly declared that he is the owner of Hindraf enterprise. So the onus is on him to reveal the monies that was collected. There is only 1 account and Vasantha is the Director of that account. Obviously the Special branch has a hand in this. They are penetrating well into Hindraf. My advise to Indians ignore this plants and moles and move on. The community needs reputable leaders. People like Vasantha and Rao are cheap characters.

by matahari - 13 hours ago

It is obvious Vasanthakumar is splitting the movement. I have noticed from the day he was released. He and his honcos only speak about money right from the time they were in detention. They never took part in any of the Hindraf activities nor have they thanked Hindraf and its thousands of supporters that organised campaigns to get them released. truly ungrateful. The SB is doing his part well. Finally he admitted he opened an account but used Hindraf name to open up a stationery business. Innocent people banked into that account. So who is the crook now? The truth will come out slowly albeit surely. I personally donated to Rao's family for the benefit of the 5 but he denies now.

by Mydin Kutty - 13 hours ago

Hindraf became a giant overnite and the UMNo could never take nor accept that they challenged the might of UMNO. The Police is assigned to destroy Hindraf and that is exactly what they are doing. The special branch plant and Rao are doing ecactly that. From the time of being released they speak only money and have forgotten the cause. Its a pity they have become slaves of money and UMNo instead of fighting the true cause raised by waytha and uthaya.

PKR racist: Glenmarie Tamil school falling apart and risking 130 childrens’ lives.

PKR racist: Glenmarie Tamil school falling apart and risking 130 childrens’ lives. This school is infested with termites. New school building remains a dream. The PKR Selangor government refuses to grant this school and all 98 Tamil schools in Selangor state government land and so the UMNO Federal government refuses to grant fully financial aided status for these schools. Thus the dilapidated state of almost all of the Tamil schools in Malaysia. (Berita Harian 16/12/2009 at page 1 (Sentral)

Editor

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ASB : RM 4.95 Billion plus RM 537.65 Million bonus payout to 6.78 million (malay muslims), says the Chairman of Permodalan Nasional Bhd

ASB : RM 4.95 Billion plus RM 537.65 Million bonus payout to 6.78 million (malay muslims), says the Chairman of Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) Tun Ahmad Sarji. But why is this part of the country’s wealth not shared with the poor and working class Indians. Why are the Indians yet again being excluded from the national mainstream development of Malaysia.

The UMNO Amanah Saham 1 Malaysia ASB, PNB or any other such shares gives out lucrative dividends and bonuses of 7.3% and upwards even up to 12%.

IF only UMNO and PNB arranges for Maybank, CIMB etc loans for these poor and working class Indians as they have done for the malay muslims, these Indians would have also benefited at least from the 7.3% minus 4% bank interest ie 3.3% net profit per annum returns. Just by lending and or giving their names and their Identity Cards and without taking out a single cent to Maybank, CIMB etc these poor and working class Indians would be guaranteed a minimum of a couple of thousand ringgit of this PNB bonuses and dividends every year. It is in effect free money by the UMNO government but the poor Indians are excluded.

This UMNO government’s scheme of redistributing the wealth of the country to the poor must also reach out to the poor and working class Indians as it reaches out the Malay muslims.

P. Uthayakumar.

HRP Secretary General

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Indian poverty: Wife left with four kids after hubby goes missing (Refer The Star 16/12/2009 at page N61)

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