Is there anyone to represent the Indian communities?
Is there anyone to represent the Indian communities?
Recent comments have exacerbated community sentiment
A section of the Indian community is angry over the perceived condescending comments made by prime minister Anwar Ibrahim to the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) on August 2.
There is now a great risk that many Indians may see no useful purpose in voting, as they feel marginalized and discriminated against.
The MIC being allocated no seats in the coming state elections, especially where the community makes up a significant vote in some states is an indictment against the respect towards Indians in parts of Penang, Selangor, Kedah, and Negeri Sembilan. Many within the community feel that not fielding Indians in the state elections just marginalizes them even further.
A diverse group with different issues
Malaysian Indians make up almost 7.9 percent, or 1.98 million of the nation’s 32.7 million people. However, the Indian population makes up even more in states like Penang (10.4%), Selangor (13.5%), Klang Valley (10.3%), Negeri Sembilan (15.2%), and Perak (12.3%).
The Indian population is far from being a homogenous group in Malaysia. Most Tamils are descendants of Indian labourers brought out by the British to work on plantations and railways. Many Indian Muslims came to the Straits Settlements prior to British times, along with Punjabis, Malayalee, and Telugu peoples.
Today, approximately 1 in 4 of those in poverty in Malaysia are Indian. They have been discriminated against in terms of opportunities, where Indian schools in estates tended to be run down, short of staff, facilities, and supplies.
At the same time Indians make an over proportionate percentage of Malaysia’s professional class, where 28.4 percent of doctors, 21 percent of dentists, and 26.8 percent of lawyers are Indians. Indian professionals have been shut out of the civil service and public universities.
Part of a long history of being taken for granted
The MIC initially represented Indians in the early Alliance government and later Barisan Nasional. There was an understanding that UMNO would be the main coalition partner, where the MIC would safeguard the interests of the Indian communities.
Inside the MIC, an elite and sometimes divided leadership grew up, which became corrupt, developed its own crony hierarchy, and mishandled funds allocated to the Indian communities by the Barisan Nasional.
This led to a weakening of the power the MIC held over the Indian community, where a number of Indians made political careers through the DAP and PKR. In 2007, mass protests in Kuala Lumpur led to the formation and development of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), which fought against discriminatory policies.
Former prime minister Najib Razak appointed Hindraf leader Waytha Moorthy a deputy minister in recognition of Indian grievances, where he resigned the next year, over what he saw was betrayal of the BN government. In 2017, Hindraf worked with Dr Mahathir and Pakatan Harapan, managing to sway Indian voters towards the coalition. Waytha Moorthy was appointed a minister in the Prime Minister’s Department. The Registrar of Societies (ROS) deregistered Hindraf in 2019, and Moorthy lost his place in government after the Sheraton Putsch in February 2020.
The great lesson from Hindraf was the inability to assist the marginalized sections of the Indian community from within.
Further marginalization under the ‘unity government’
The federal member for Klang Charles Santiago lost his endorsement by the DAP Election Committee just prior to the last general election. In the coming state elections, the DAP has not endorsed Prof Dr Ramasamy Palanisamy, the former deputy chief minister of Penang. Both of these DAP members are icons of sections of the Indian community, and it remains to be seen how Indian voters will react to this in the ballot box.
In addition, Anwar’s statement that once the state elections are over, the government will look into the grievances of the MIC, and reward some leaders with appointments to GLCs, could enhance this backlash. Many within the Indian community through chat groups are seeing this statement as being very condescending towards the Indian community.
As political analysist Bridget Welsh has stated “Despite promises, Anwar’s government has yet to introduce any meaningful programmes for the Indian community, as a unique community”. Indians have been forced to look after themselves, and how they will vote in the coming state elections is not a given.
However, there are alternatives open for the Indian community. Parti Socialis Malaysia (PSM) is running a few candidates in the coming elections. PSM is a political party that has itself been given short shift by Pakatan Harapan over the years. PSM’s democratic socialist values and long history in taking up the causes against communities that no one else would take up, put it in good stead to represent the marginalised. They have partnered with MUDA for the coming state elections.
The state election results will show us if PSM could represent the most marginalized in the country politically.
Originally published in My Sin Chew 5th August 2023
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We have zero representation & MIC is a dead duck !!
The problems with the Indian (mainly south Indian) communities in Malaysia is that they have an identity crisis which is age old at first base. By fielding an angry looking and sounding young woman at a public forum with the sole purpose of embarassing the PM and the Malays, they make no friends, receive no sympathy and fail before they can get off the ground.
To harp on the same old sentiments and grievances without showing how much progress they have themselves made over the years, out of their own efforts would not be a strong and impressive way to move forward. They can't and they don't. And Indians have made progress over the years.
There is unfortunately a mindset amongst the Hindraf types, of which this young woman who threw tthee question to DS Anwar and tried to embarass him is). They go around with a chip on their shoulders with a persecution complex hoping that this alone will win them hand outs without effort which is what they are doing.
What Indians do not recognize is that their destinies is in their own hands. Not in the hands of the MIC or Hindraf. The old Indian mindset of what an MP is, remains deeply etched in their minds. "We vote a member or members into parliamnent along racial lines, and they must give us hand outs if they win". Thats becausse their members promise them the moon and sixpence at election time and deliver nothing, not even sixpense after that.
Indians will continue to defeat themselves because it is deeply ingrained in their mindset to vote and support their representatives on racial, caste and language lines. They don't engage with Malays. They don't engage properly with the Chinese. They end up with the same tired old patterns of voting on the same basis then blame the government when they fail.
What many "Indians" (Malaysians of Indian heritage) don't realize is that on a per capita basis they have done better than the Malays as a whole.). They must represent themselves by being marketable in the first place. End the gangster intimidatory tactics. Adopt a more Malay centric, Malay friendly position and not be antagonistic towards Malays. The Malays are not antagonistic towards them. The Malays are not going away anytime soon. With the Malays lies the seat of power.
Malaysia's Indians must learn to negotiate. But for that they must first be in a position of strength. A little soul searching is necessary. Why is it they fail and fall back all the time? What is it that their leaders and community is doing wrong that puts them in the position they perceive themselves to be in?
Even in South Africa during the Apartheid era with all of the restrictions, obstacles and biases on the basis of race and colour, the Indian communities prospered above many whites. What did they do that was right that Indians in Malaysia are not doing?
Complaining alone without self help is no cure to any problem. Vote for someone whos not Indian. Get involved in their politics and meld into their causes and become one with them in their constituencies. Then the differences become very marginal.