WHY INTERLOK MUST GO. KETUANAN MELAYU MUST BE ELIMINATED!

You wake up in 2011 from a deep slumber beginning in 1957 and look around and see. You are appalled by what you see. What had been the natural order of things while you were deep in slumber now begins to look like a terrible scheme to deprive you of your dignity, your pride, your identity, your everything. You are appalled. You have to stand up and say NO! For if you do not the future is lost.

What is this so-called natural order of things of the appalling past:

1) The Indian in this country is the dark, scraggy, oily, drunk and most likely a criminal Indian.

2) The Indian is unavoidable baggage to be carried by the nation. They do not exist but for the profits they produce.

3) They do not possess anything material or moral, of any value to the nation.

4) They are the filth of this country, and they came from the filth of India.

5) Call them filth, call them Pariahs, call them Indians , call them anything, it does not matter, they do not matter.

6) They should be grateful for what they have got in this country –a 1000 times more than they could have got in India.

7) The ordinary Indians can be bought for a little rice and samsu and their leaders for a bagful of money and some meaningless Datukship.

Ask any UMNO Malay – Muhyiddin Yassin, Ibrahim Ali, Asri the Mufti of Perlis, ask any UMNO Civil Servant . Ask ex UMNO stalwart –Anwar Ibrahim, Ask the scion of the Chinese rich Chua Soi Lek, they will tell you,”This is after all the natural order of things, nothing amiss here. What’s all the fuss about?”

Only when something is a natural order, do we not sense something amiss despite the emphatic noises around. Therein is the crux of the issue. It is this nonchalance resulting from the worldview of this natural order of things that characterizes the rot in our system. That is just the way the system has to work in Malaysia we are told.

The disgust of the Indians about the Interlok novel is not just about one word or a few words, as so many would have us believe. It is about that deep rot in our system – the rot of racism. It is about something totally and fundamentally wrong with our system.

Certainly , it is about those few words. But it is as much about the novel, And it is about the way the whole Interlok episode has been handled after it erupted. It is about the way this book was chosen and prescribed as compulsory text for all our Malaysian young in the name of national unity . It is about the way UMNO’s racist policies are perpetuated. It is about the continuing exclusion of minorities. It is about that which has become the natural order of things for the Ketuanan Melayu UMNO Malays.

This novel is only the tip of that iceberg.

What began optimistically as a Government of the Malayan people in 1957 has in the passage of time transformed into a subtle, systematic and pervasive Ketuanan Melayu racist Malaysia – a very well reinforced regime of racism. To most of us uninitiated, this claim of a systematic and pervasive racism may look excessive. That is exactly why we say racism in Malaysia is subtle, very subtle. The pervasive racism that we talk about is not an overtly visible phenomenon. There is a saying that you can kill by a deep cut across the middle or you can kill with a thousand small cuts, in which case the killing becomes slow and subtle. That is the brand of racism we have in Malaysia. A slow and subtle killing off. What we are looking at is the potential death of the Indian minority community by a thousand cuts.

This Interlok episode is not an isolated incident. It is just one in a big picture of many other what look like innocuous isolated occurrences. The racist scheme is not seen so readily when these are seen as isolated ocurrences.. But put them all together, along with what is happening to the other minorities and you immediately see the unmistakeable Ketuanan Melayu racist scheme. And I can see the potential demise of the Indian minority community as a proud and identifiable community in all of this some time out in the future.

Barn like Primary schools for the half the Indian children in Malaysia, problematic student years for the Indian young because of a combination of circumstances mainly relating to poverty, 40% of them involved in crime and a large number in prisons or in the Simpang Renggam detention centre. Rampant alcoholism to drown out the miserable and hopeless lives offered by this racist system. Then top it all up by stereotyping storytelling of a past like this from novels like Interlok,

“Di dalam kapal ini dia tidak susah. Sebahagian besar daripada penumpang dek yang bersama-samanya itu dapat bercakap dalam satu bahasa sahaja, Tamil. Mereka yang dari arah ke utara sedikit bercakap bahasa Malayalam atau Telugu, tetapi hampir semuanya tahu bahasa Tamil. Malayalam dan Telugu pun berasal dari satu rumpun bahasa Dravidia. Satu perkara besar yang membuatkan mereka senang berkaul adalah kerana mereka tergolong dalam satu kasta Paria.” (p. 211).

“Di sini dia tidak sahaja bebas bercampur gaul dengan orang lain sama sebangsanya, malah dia tidak takut dengan pantang larang yang terdapat di negaranya apabila seorang India daripada kasta rendah menyentuh orang India daripada kasta tinggi.” (p. 218 – 219) and

All this then seems to justify the natural order of things. The low life they belong to just perpetuates itself till this day. The storytelling in Interlok of 1910 fits in with the low life experienced by the Indians in 2010 and caused by their low ways and background as in the story one hundred years ago. The Indian becomes permanently relegated to this serf like status, devoid of dignity, of pride and having their past of extreme poverty and dispossession thrust into their faces at every turn as the reasons for their continuing poverty and dispossession. They are subtly and constantly reminded that they have nobody to blame but their past. Anyway this life in this golden land of Malaysia is a thousand times better than anything they could have had in India. Something they are constantly being reminded of as part of the Ketuanan Melayu philosophy.

THAT IS THE REAL ISSUE!

Interlok is just a trigger for all of that. It is, as I have said , the tip of the iceberg. This UMNO government does not care, they want to go right ahead and institutionalize such material into the educational curriculum because they must push their Ketuanan philosophy on for them to succeed. Ask Mahathir about the logic of it all. He is the author of that Ketuanan Philosophy.

So, for our part as proud Indians who will not compromise dignity, we now have to take the bull by the horn. We just have no choice. We say the book must be withdrawn – or the UMNO government must face the wrath of the entire Indian community. This book represents for us an opportunity to turn back, stand up and say no to RACISM. We all have to say no, not just to the inclusion of the Interlok novel into the curriculum in schools but to the WHOLE FABRIC OF KETUANAN MELAYU RACISM that is the root cause of all of this.

This is a matter of great significance to the future of all the minority communities in the country.

Let us all democracy and justice minded Malaysians stand up. We need to eliminate this KETUANAN MELAYU racist system and that can only come when we all stand up. We, the minorities can live with dignity and pride in this country only when we eliminate this KETUANAN MELAYU racist system.

Look at what the people of Egypt and Tunisia have just done. They have stood up and said NO!

Let us stand and say NO! NO! NO!

Death of justice in police custody

Cases of people dying while under detention keep cropping up, leaving an indelible mark on Malaysia's human rights record.

COMMENT

Suresh Kunasekaran, Samiyati Indrayani Zulkarnain Putra, A Kugan, M Krishnan and K Sivam – these five shared a common death: they all ended up dead while in police custody.

They also shared something else in common – failed justice and blatant abuse of their rights as humans.
When Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak assumed the country’s leadership from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on April 3, 2009, he promised the rakyat that he would “uphold civil liberties” and exhibit “regard for the fundamental rights of the people”.

Sadly or typical in politics, neither happened. Six years ago a royal commission report proposed the setting up of an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) but in 2009 the government shot down the proposal, saying the IPCMC’s powers were “too broad” and unconstitutional.

Meanwhile, cases of people dying after being detained by police keep happening. Statistics showed that between 2000 and February 2010, those who died while in detention were Malays (64), Chinese (30), Indians (28) other races (eight) and foreigners (14).

In Kugan’s case, the cop suspected of causing the former grievous hurt has been declared a free man by the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court. Judge Aslam Zainuddin on Jan 28, 2010, set constable V Navindran free because the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case.

Kugan, 23, was arrested in January 2009 in Puchong for allegedly stealing luxury cars. Barely days after, he was found dead inside the lock-up of the Taipan police station in USJ-Subang Jaya. A post-mortem declared his death as “fluid accumulation inside the lungs”. But eyewitnessess told a different story. They said the cop Navindran whacked Kugan with a rubber hose. A second post-mortem commissioned by Kugan’s family revealed that apart from being beaten, he had also been burnt and starved, all of which led to Kugan’s death.
On Jan 3 this year, police arrested electrician Krishnan, 37, on a drug-related offence. Four days later, Krishnan was found dead inside the Bukit Jalil police cell, with a Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia post-mortem concluding he died from stomach ulcer. A preliminary report on the second autopsy conducted by Universiti Malaya Medical Centre concurred with the earlier finding.

What made police so powerful?

Krishnan’s wife rejected the preliminary report, insisting that her husband was beaten to death. She said there were photographs of bruises on Krishnan’s body as well as two eyewitness who saw everything. The lawyer for the family said they were awaiting official documents on the first and second post-mortems before deciding on the next course of action. The report is due for release on Feb 7.

A week before Krishnan’s death, another death was recorded, this time at the Sentul police lock-up where Sivam, 43, was found dead. Samiyati, meanwhile, was found dead at the Wangsa Maju police station on Sept 12, 2006. Despite there being bruises on her body, Samiyati’s death was attributed to asthma.

The question being asked by the rakyat is: what has made the police so “powerful” in determining who they want to kill or set free?

In July last year, DAP MP Gobind Singh Deo demanded the Home Ministry clarify the cause of death behind the estimated 1,500 custodial deaths between 2003 and 2007.

“From 2003 to 2007, why was there no action taken? Why is it that until now (the) minister is unable to give a report and details?

“I call upon (Home Minister) Hishammuddin Hussein to respond and tell us how did these 1,500 people die? What has been done about their death?” asked Gobind.

On June 23, Gobind had forwarded to Deputy Home Minister Wira Abu Seman Yusop a copy of a BBC report titled “Malaysia pressed by UN over detentions without trial”. The report, published on June 18, stated that the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s visit to Malaysian prisons and detention centres found that between 2003 and 2007 “over 1,500 people died while being held by authorities”.

Gobind had said the deputy minister replied that there was no police report made and the ministry would only take action once a report is lodged.

Truly, such indifference shown by the deputy home minister towards the lives of people only further eroded the rakyat’s confidence in the police.

Basic rights denied
Criminal lawyer Amer Hamzah Arshad had once pointed out that laws such as the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) and subsidiary legislation such as the Lock-up Rules were designed to “uphold and ensure the basic rights of persons under arrest” as well as to regulate lock-up conditions. However, these have been enforced in such a way that the basic rights are denied.

Section 28A (3) of the CPC stipulates that when an arrested person wishes to communicate with a “relative or friend to inform of his or her whereabouts” or “consult with a legal practitioner of his or her choice, the police officer should allow this “as soon as may be”.

In reality, this provision under the law has been conveniently dismissed by the police. Why?
The Royal Commission on Police report, released in May 2005, stated that between 2000 and 2004 only six out of the 80 deaths in custody were subject to inquests.

The failure of the judicial system in delivering justice to Kugan’s family follows on the heels of Teoh Beng Hock, a former DAP political aide who was found dead on the fifth floor corridor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam on July 16, 2009, hours after he was interrogated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission in the same premises.

Teoh’s family rejected the possibility of suicide, suspecting foul play instead. Following a public outcry, Najib ordered an inquest into the death. But after 18 months of proceedings and with Teoh’s remains exhumed for a second post-mortem, the coroner delivered an open verdict, ruling out both suicide and homicide.

Teoh’s sister, disappointed with the unjust verdict, demanded that a Royal Commission of Inquiry be set up to relook the cause of Teoh’s death. Najib has given the royal commission a three-month deadline.

Najib, however, refused to select any one of the five nominees suggested by Teoh’s family as the commission panel. Names given included former Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan, former inspector-general of police Hanif Omar and workers rights group Tenaganita founder Irene Fernandez.

It is perplexing that Najib was not keen in all five names when all five are well known advocates in their respective fields. Would Najib care to answer why he refused to appoint even one of the names referred by Teoh’s family? Is it because the government wants to hide the truth one way or another? What happened to Najib’s cry of “people first, performance now”?

Even DAP leader Lim Kit Siang was left wondering why Najib rejected the names suggested by Teoh’s family. Lim regretted that the prime minister failed to consult Teoh’s family although he had promised to meet them and the public on who best be appointed as commissioners.

“It is no exaggeration to say that as a whole, the composition of the six members of the commission does not inspire full public confidence,” Lim had said.

In Kugan’s case, his family might not be as “enlightened” as Teoh’s in terms of demanding that an inquiry be set up. But all the bruises on Kugan’s body confirmed their fears that he was severely abused while in detention. A Sivarasa, one of the lawyers representing Kugan’s family, has demanded that Attorney-General Gani Patail resign for failing to ensure that justice prevailed.

Integrity of judicial system compromised
The Session Court’s decision to allow constable Navindran to go free has once again proven the public right that the judicial system is no longer trustworthy. To them it is unbelievable that in spite of eyewitnessess confirming that the cop had whacked Kugan with a rubber hose, the court set the constable free.

“The court’s excuse is the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case. It is unbelievable to what extent our judicial system can stoop so low. Setting the cop free has made a mockery of our country’s ability to mete out justice.

“The other truth is that the Session Court’s decision has also tainted the integrity of Malaysia’s judicial system. In this country, justice is all about power and influence, not about punishing the wrong-doer. It is as if justice is dead in Malaysia,” an activist Manohara Subramaniam lamented to FMT.

In October 2006, Amnesty International Malaysia (AI), disturbed over the custody death of Suresh, said its documented cases in the past revealed that relatives of those who died in police custody alleged that the police had obstructed the complaint process, suppressed evidence and even colluded with hospital officials and medical officers.

AI had then called for amendments to the CPC to include best practices on preliminary investigations in cases of custodial deaths. This also included sealing a police station as a crime scene for an independent investigation, including temporary suspension of officers in charge of the lock-up. These procedures were deemed important in avoiding tampering of evidence and any possibility of conspiracy between people involved in the case.

Another issue that AI believed needed urgent implementation was the installation and proper maintenance of closed-circuit televisions in all police stations, especially lock-ups and interrogation rooms with clear guidelines on how these recordings are kept safe.

Incidences of deaths at the hands of the police have left an indelible mark as far as the manipulation of justice and abuse of human rights are concerned. Failed justice in such cases is seen as a humiliation in the face of Najib’s promises of putting the rakyat’s welfare first.

In February 2009, the United Nations Human Rights Council examined Malaysia under its Universal Periodic Review mechanism. Malaysia, however, rejected various recommendations by member states, including ratifications of core human rights treaties.

Fight against Interlok not over, says Hindraf

(Malaysiakini) Hindraf Makkal Sakthi will be organising a march for solidarity against racism on Feb 27 at the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC).

Hindraf national coordinator W Sambulingam said the scheduled rally was to protest against Interlok, the controversial novel that Form Five students use as a literature text.

Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin had announced on Jan 27 that the novel will remain as the textbook for the literature component of the Bahasa Malaysia subject for Form Five, but with amendments to those parts deemed offensive by the Indian community.

"We want the book to be withdrawn. From day one until now, we have wanted the book gone," Sambulingam said when contacted by Malaysiakini.

He also said that Interlok is nothing but an engineered plan by Umno to further plant the seeds of racism and segregation in schools and in the mind of youths, similar to the programmes that are run by the National Civics Bureau (Biro Tata Negara).

He added that tolerance and co-existence in this country has been abused and misused, and the patience of Indians taken for granted.

"It is time to bury racism in Malaysia and it is time to take the bull by the horns," he said.

When asked on whether there are any back-up plans or approaches other than holding the rally, Sambulingam said: "We will take it as it is and this is how we always do it. We won't fight back. We don't practice any violence.

"If the police were to spray water canons at us again, by all means... we will take it.

"The meeting point will be at KLCC at 9am and the location (of the march) would be kept from all until the very day itself, so that our plans don't go wrong," he said.

The issue first surfaced at the end of last year when Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department T Murugiah (above) registered his protest after his ministry discussed the novel with Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.

The MIC has also called for changes to be made to the novel before it is used as a literature textbook by Form Five students this year, with the BN component party saying it contained a chapter that was offensive to Indians.

Indian NGOs decry the book's description of Indians in Malaysia as being from the lower caste, among other racial stereotypes.

Hindraf to rally nationwide against racism

KOTA KINABALU: Hindraf Makkal Sakthi is planning a series of demonstrations against racism after its Feb 27 rally at the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) against Interlok, the controversial novel that Form Five students use as a literature text.

Hindraf not only wants Interlok out of the schools, but also seeks to put related issues under public scrutiny, according to its chairman, P Waythamoorthy, who spoke to FMT last night from London, where he has political asylum.

The demonstrations would be held all over the country, he said.

“The series of rallies will be to educate the people against racism and racial polarisation, besides saying no to Interlok even in an amended form,” he added.

“We must not glorify anti-1Malaysia writers with the Interlok mindset.”

Waytha was elaborating on a statement released yesterday by Hindraf national coordinator W Sambulingam, who announced the Feb 27 rally.

Sambulingam lamented that Interlok, written by national laureate Abdullah Hussain, remained compulsory reading for Form 5 students despite attempts by the Indian community to have it dropped.

Several groups take offence at the novel’s alleged stereotyped and misleading portrayal of Malaysian Indians. The government recently said it would order amendments to the student edition.

Waythamoorthy said he doubted that the author would agree to his work being amended. “Any novelist worth his salt will demand that his novel be used in its entirety or not used at all,” he said.

He cautioned against caving in to closet racists. “Today, the focus is on a novel for Form 5. If we don’t put a stop to it, they will introduce similar trash in Form 3 and at the Year 6 level,” he said.

Strong attack

Waythamoorthy also disclosed that the Feb 27 rally had forced the Jan 23 Kuala Lumpur Gathering of the Marginalised and Minorities to delay the submission of their resolutions to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. The new date will be between the Feb 27 rally and the second rally, which is yet to be scheduled.

Sambulingam’s statement contained a strong attack against Umno. He accused it of racism, political hegemony and promoting an “artificial” Malay supremacy agenda.

“At a time when the world is moving away from racism in all forms, Umno and its allies are further encouraging racism,” he said. “Other countries are meanwhile engaged in nation-building.”

The statement dismissed Indians linked with Umno as “mandores” who helped to promote caste epithets, ethnic slurs, racial prejudices and communal stereotyping in the minds of the young.

“Interlok is nothing but an engineered plan by Umno to further plant the seeds of racism and segregation in schools and in the minds of the youths,” he said. “This is similar to the programme run by the Biro Tata Negara.”

The statement claimed that tolerance and co-existence had been abused and misused in Malaysia and patience taken for granted.

“It’s time to take the bull by the horns on racism in order to build national affinity and a shared destiny,” it said.

HINDRAF to organize People’s march for SOLIDARITY AGAINST UMNO/BN RACISM”.

Despite various repeated attempts by the Malaysian Indian community, the UMNO/BN government refuse to remove the “INTERLOK” novel as a compulsory read for the Form Fivers.    

Where countries are moving and building nationhood by abolishing racism, the UMNO government aided and abetted by their allies are encouraging racism further to extend their political hegemony through the artificial Malay supremacy agenda.

The absence of national affinity and shared destiny for all citizens of Malaysia is clearly obvious as we can see by arrogance of UMNO and its mandores in sidestepping the concern of the Malaysian Indian in regards to this controversial novel that promotes caste epithets, ethnic slurs, racial prejudices, and communal stereotyping in the mind of the young.

“Interlok” is nothing but an engineered plan by UMNO to further  plant the seed of racism and segregation in schools and in the mind of the youths similar to the programs that is run by the BTN (Biro Tata Negara).    

Tolerance and co-existence has been abused and misused, patience has been taken for granted endlessly. It is time to bury racism in Malaysia and it is the time to take the bull by the horn.

UMNO has to go. RACISM has to go.      

Please join us in our march to show solidarity against racism perpetrated by UMNO and its allies.   

W.Sambulingam

HINDRAF National Co-ordinator

+6010-2774096

Hindraf-HRP to be neutral in Merlimau

Seeing no difference between Pakatan and BN with regard to the Indian community, P Uthayakumar says a decision has been made to stay out of the contest.

GEORGE TOWN: The Human Rights Party (HRP) – Hindraf Makkal Sakti political axis will take a neutral stand in next month’s Merlimau state by-election.

HRP pro-tem secretary-general and Hindraf legal adviser P Uthayakumar said the stance was adopted due to the indifferent attitude shown by Pakatan Rakyat towards the Indian community.

“We will not participate in the campaign to woo Indians for Pakatan. So long as we are not there, Pakatan will never secure the majority Indian votes,” he told FMT, adding that HRP-Hindraf would never back Barisan Nasional either.

The Election Commission fixed nomination day for the Merlimau by-election in Malacca on Feb 26 and polling on March 6.

The seat fell vacant after the death of its BN assemblyman Mohamad Hidhir Abu Hasaan, 54, on Jan 20. In the 2008 general election Hidhir defeated PAS candidate Jasme Tompang with a majority of 2,154 votes.

Merlimau has 10,679 registered voters consisting 64.69% Malays, 21.11% Chinese, 14.16% Indians and 0.04% others.

Indian support has shifted

Uthayakumar pointed out that the Bagan Pinang, Hulu Selangor and Sunday’s Tenang by-elections showed that Indian support had shifted from Pakatan.

He warned that the trend would continue in Merlimau unless Pakatan worked with Hindraf–HRP.

He insisted that Hindraf–HRP would never work with the Umno-led BN due to its “racist policies and massive discrimination” of the Indian community for the past 53 years.

But he said that did not mean Hindraf – HRP would support Pakatan blindly without securing any political and socio-economic concessions for the Indian community.

He said Pakatan had so far refused to acknowledge the strength of the Hindraf–HRP axis to galvanise Indian support.

Therefore, he said that Hindraf-HRP would continue to work on its own 15/38 political agenda and not help Pakatan to regain lost ground among Indian voters.

“We won’t back anyone in Merlimau,” said Uthayakumar.

Referring to the Tenang by-election in Johor, he pointed out that 62.6% of Indian voters moved from Pakatan to BN.

His calculation was based on balloting results in the Indian-dominated Ladang Labis Timor, in which only 40 voters backed Pakatan on Sunday, a huge dip from 107 in 2008.

He claimed that the Ladang Labis Timor voting trend was a reflection of current Indian sentiments nationwide.

He stressed that only the Hindraf–HRP political axis could check and reverse the trend, as in 2008.

“But Pakatan leaders are not interested because they know we will never become their mandores,” he said, adding that there was no difference between BN and Pakatan with regard to Indians.

“If this attitude continues until the next general election, Pakatan can never end BN’s reign,” he said.

Boycott Interlok panel, Indian reps told

Calling it a futile exercise, an Indian business group leader says the demand is crystal clear – withdraw the book.

PETALING JAYA: Representatives of the Indian community slated to sit on the panel tasked with making amendments to the controversial Interlok novel should boycott the appointment.

In making this call, Malaysian Indian Business Association (Miba) president P Sivakumar said the panel was an exercise in futility, when the community’s stand on the issue was crystal clear.

“We want the book to be withdrawn. How many times do you have to meet over a school book? The last meeting went on for two hours,” he told FMT.

Sivakumar also reminded politicians that the issue concerned the shaping of young minds and should not be viewed from a ballot box perspective.

“Politicians should not turn schoolchildren into a vehicle for political mileage. It’s about doing the right thing, so the book must be removed from the syllabus,” he said.

However, he warned that the government’s adamant stand in retaining the book could court political repercussions for Barisan Nasional (BN), with regard to Indian votes in the next general election.

“The decision to retain the book albeit with some changes to the offensive parts is not the desired remedy as the book has left bitter memories in the minds of the Indian community,” he said.

“The community is disappointed; we expected nothing short of a complete withdrawal,” he added.

Previously, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also education minister, said the book would be retained but would only be distributed to students after a panel, comprising literary experts and Indian representatives, made the necessary amendments.

Interlok, penned by national laureate Abdullah Hussain, was introduced as a component for the Malay literature subject for Form Five students this year.

However, Indian groups, including MIC, objected on the grounds that the book contained inaccurate and disparaging information about the community.

Disappointed with MIC
Elaborating on the yet-to-be formed panel, Sivakumar said: “This is perceived as a design to further frustrate the Indians and somehow force them to come to terms with the authorities’ decision.”

“It is feared that the representatives from the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) and from groups aligned to the DBP would impose their views and compel the panel to accept some shoddy changes.

“In the final analysis, the book would leave much to be desired and would turn out to be a bitter pill for the Indian community to swallow,” he added.

Sivakumar said that he was bewildered by the government’s “insensitivity” towards the feelings of the Indian community and its inability to see eye-to-eye with MIC on the matter.

The Miba president also expressed disappointment with MIC for bowing to pressure and compromising on its stand.

“We expected MIC to remain firm in its call to have the book withdrawn,” he said.

Sivakumar stressed that Miba would work with other NGOs to continue pressuring the government to withdraw the book.

Cikgu! Penari Kathakali tidak pakai topeng

Sebagai individu yang diakui sudah ‘dewasa’ dan ‘matang’, pelajar perlu berani bersuara semasa perbincangan di kelas. Adik-adik sekalian,

COMMENT

Kita sambung perbincangan yang ditangguhkan semalam. Sebagai pelajar dan remaja yang sudah diberi lesen ‘dewasa’ dan ‘matang’ oleh pelbagai persatuan penulis mewakili kaum tertentu dan NGO kaum tertentu, anda boleh membaca secara terperinci kisah di halaman 210-284, novel Interlok edisi murid dan mencatatkan jati diri Maniam, jika ada.
Maniam hanya ‘menyaksikan pawai gajah yang dihiasi dalam perayaan Onam di pekan Tricur’ (halaman 211). Tiada apa-apa bukti menunjukkan identiti keturunannya sebagai seorang Malayali (Malayalam); termasuk namanya!
Upacara perkahwinan Maniam-Malini di Malaya disempurnakan mengikut budaya keturunan Tamil, iaitu keturunan Perumal (bapa Malini) yang berasal dari Madras, Tamil Nadu, India. Malah, ‘pesta perkahwinan’ itu digambarkan sebagai ‘upacara yang meletihkan’ (halaman 229).
Sejak masih berada di ‘sebuah desa yang terletak berdekatan dengan Tricur, Kerala, sebuah negeri di pantai barat India Selatan’ (halaman 210) hinggalah ke saat Maniam ‘hanya berdoa dalam hatinya, untuk keselamatan anaknya’ (halaman 288), tidak ada apa-apa penanda dan petanda yang nyata untuk menunjukkan Maniam ada sebarang jati diri sebagai seorang Malayali (Malayalam) beragama Hindu; kecuali bahawa – syukur, segala pujian hanya bagi-Mu, Tuhan! – ‘Sebagai orang Hindu, lembu tidak boleh disembelih dan dimakan dagingnya’ (halaman 215).
Sebenarnya, ‘alasan’ mengenai sebab kaum India tidak makan daging lembu seperti digambarkan dalam Interlok edisi murid lebih berciripurana dan bukannya fakta. Siapakah agaknya ‘a scholar from University of Malaya’s Indian Studies Department’ (New Sunday Times, 23 Januari 2011) yang menjadi ‘pakar rujuk’? Entahlah, segalanya masih menjadi ‘misteri nusantara’ (common noun).
Sekurang-kurangnya anda tahu bahawa Maniam bukan Paria (proper noun) atau paria (common noun) kerana istilah itu sudah terbukti merujuk secara khusus kepada ‘kumpulan manusia yang makan daging lembu’ (common noun). Ini baru fakta, dan ini juga mungkin fakta baru untuk anda.
Dramatari Kathakali
Adik-adik sekalian,
Maniam juga tidak tahu apa-apa mengenai budaya Malayali walaupun dia lahir dan membesar di Kerala sebelum menjadi ‘pendatang’ di Malaya pada usia 30 tahun. Ops, maaf! Pendatang(proper noun), bukan pendatang (common noun).
Maniam sangat suka melihat penari-penari Katha-kali yang memakai topeng dan melakonkan kisah-kisah lama. (halaman 211)
Petikan di atas menunjukkan bahawa Maniam – atau Sasterawan Negara Datuk Abdullah Hussain (Pak Lah)? atau pakar runding/rujuk penuh ‘misteri nusantara’ dari Jabatan Pengajian India, Universiti Malaya? – tidak tahu apa-apa mengenai Kathakali iaitu suatu bentuk dramatari yang mula ditarikan di Kerala oleh orang Malayalam (Malayali) mulai abad ke-17.
Salah satu kehebatan dan keunikan Kathakali adalah bahawa penari/pelakon mengenakan solekan (mekap) yang tebal pada muka. Saya mengkaji Kathakali semasa mengaji di Universiti Malaya (1993-1998) serta menulis makalah dan cerpen mengenai dramatari itu, serta pelbagai aspek budaya kaum India. Maka, saya tahu bahawa watak Maniam dalam novel Interlok edisi murid tidak tahu apa-apa mengenai Kathakali.
Dalam hal ini, seorang pensyarah, penyair dan penterjemah terkemuka dalam kosmos sastera Melayu tempatan tampil mempertahankan kesalahan fakta mengenai Kathakali (baca: menegakkan benang yang basah) dengan mengatakan ia berciri faksyen (faction) dan ‘the author wanted to incorporate something new or different into his story’ (New Sunday Times, 23 Januari 2011).
Bukan model yang sesuai
Adik-adik sekalian,
Ringkasnya, watak Maniam dalam novel Interlok edisi murid bukan model yang sesuai untuk dijadikan ‘cerminan’ jati diri kaum India beragama Hindu di Malaysia; khususnya generasi muda yang mahu tahu mengenai sejarah nenek-moyong yang datang dari India.
Segala perkara berkaitan Maniam dan kehidupannya (termasuk budaya) seperti yang diangkat dan dijulang dalam novel Interlok edisi murid hanyalah imaginasi liar seorang pakar runding/rujuk penuh ‘misteri nusantara’ dari Jabatan Pengajian India, Universiti Malaya yang mungkin boleh dianggap sebagai ‘tangan halus’ (common noun) yang berjaya menyesatkan Pak Lah yang tidak bersalah.
Sayang sekali tiada kisah terperinci mengenai 119 Paria lain yang datang bersama-sama Maniam menaiki kapal ke Pulau Pinang pada Julai 1910. Mungkinkah ada dalam kalangan mereka yang lebih ‘berjaya’ berbanding watak Maniam?
Analisis kritikal dan waras seperti ini – ‘you need to look at it in the context of history, sociology and social linguistics to get the right message’ (New Sunday Times, 23 Januari 2011) – perlu anda lakukan sendiri tanpa berkiblatkan buku-buku panduan menjawab soalan peperiksaan yang membantutkan niat murni Kementerian Pelajaran (baca: Kerajaan, proper noun) menjadikan anda benar-benar ‘dewasa’ dan ‘matang’ menerusi pembacaan novelInterlok edisi murid yang dijadikan teks Komsas di Zon Tengah.
Semoga panduan yang saya berikan selama ini membantu anda menjadi pelajar yang benar-benar ‘dewasa’ dan ‘matang’ serta berani menyerap reformasi dalam pemikiran.

Why I will vote for HRP/Hindraf and not PAS/PKR/DAP or BN/Umno

I cannot get a job in the government, a scholarship, a job with Ah Pek Sales and Marketing Bhd, a place in MARA, a cheap home that I can afford, a meager 10 acres in some FELDA scheme somewhere, a loan from the bank, or teachers that won't call me Pariah to my face during sastera lessons, and I know that only HRP/HINDRAF finds that this is simply not acceptable.

By Indian MALAYSIAN

I am a Malaysian. But that statement needs to be qualified 99% of the time in this country.

I am an Indian Malaysian; and the only two times the fact that I am of the Indian persuasion did not matter was when I cast my vote. As an Indian Malaysian, my vote is counted as one, just like the vote of a Chinese Malaysian or any other; and when I slap down my passport in some foreign land.

I would love to vote on the basis of who will lead this country better and reduce the wastage and corruption that has become endemic in this land I love, but I cannot do that for a few simple reasons.

1. I am more likely to be killed by the authorities, either when and if I find myself in custody, or when some dude in blue decides to get some target practice done on the roads. Now, I have followed enough extra judicial killings to know that PAS/PKR/DAP will not raise much of a fuss if I am the victim but I do know for a fact that HINDRAF/HRP will.

2. I get thrown in the slammer for some reason or other, maybe I had witnessed a fellow Malaysian (Indian Malaysian to be exact) get beaten to death and decided to open my big mouth. Once again I know that PAS/PKR/DAP won't even pick up the phone, but HRP/HINDRAF will.

3. I had knocked some girl up before I was thrown into jail, and the poor girl now cannot get a birth certificate for the baby, as the daddy (yours truly) is busy learning how to survive on 800 calories a day behind bars. I know PAS/PKR/DAP won't even find out the name picked out for the baby, but HRP/HINDRAF will. Now if the girl decides to give up the baby, or she dies giving birth to it, PAS/PKR/DAP will have no issue with the baby now having a Bin/Binti in its name, but HRP/HINDRAF definitely will.

I believe you get my drift now.

I cannot get a job in the government, a scholarship, a job with Ah Pek Sales and Marketing Bhd, a place in MARA, a cheap home that I can afford, a meager 10 acres in some FELDA scheme somewhere, a loan from the bank, or teachers that won't call me Pariah to my face during sastera lessons, and I know that only HRP/HINDRAF finds that this is simply not acceptable.

So you say I should vote for PAS/PKR/DAP because of the greater good. Okay I will, with a couple of conditions.

Give it to me in writing that the next time I am at risk of getting shot or beaten to death by the police, one of you will come and take my place. Tell me that the next time I apply for a job in the private or public sector, you will give up yours so that I can have means of livelihood. Tell me the next time someone decides that I am not entitled to what another Malaysian is, because I am an Indian Malaysian, you will march on the streets and hound those responsible until things change for the better.

Tell me that, and I will give your beloved PAS/PKR/DAP my vote. If you cannot do that, there is an easier way for you to get my vote. Tell your PAS/PKR/DAP to sit down and talk to HRP, MCLM, KITA, UBF, SNAP and whoever else is out there who is anti BN. If you cannot even do that, I suggest you take your opinion on who I should vote for and stick it where the sun don't shine.