Thousands join Uthayakumar at Batu Caves

By Syed Jaymal Zahiid

KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 - About 1,000 Hindraf supporters gathered at the Batu Caves temple complex from as early as 9am to pray alongside their recently-released leader P. Uthayakumar.

Uthayakumar will shave off the long hair and beard he has kept since he was detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) 17 months ago.

There was an air of festivity in the complex as the supporters, many wearing orange which is the official colour of the banned movement, marched some 300 metres to the river where the ceremonial shaving will take place.

Kapar MP M. Manickavasagam, who had had arrived earlier, waited with the crowd for Uthayakumar who finally arrived at 10.30am.

He was given a hero's welcome. The narrow street next to the river was crowded with his supporters and shouts of Makkal Shakti rang through the air.

A group of youths beating tablas accompanied him as he walked towards the spot for the ceremonial shaving where several supporters are also joining in this cleansing ritual by having their heads shaved as well.

Special Branch officers watched from nearby.

Shortly before noon, the river carried Uthayakumar's beard and hair shavings away.

His supporters, watching the shaving ritual of their leader every step of the way, shouted with joy at the sight of a clean-shaven Uthayakumar.

The Hindraf leader was then carried off to the streets and all the way to Batu Caves, as the crowd made its way to the Sri Subramaniam temple there.

By this time, the crowd had grown to some 2,500 people, causing massive traffic congestion just outside Batu Caves.

Uthayakumar then performed his prayers at the temple together with close relatives, including the wife and daughter of his self-exiled brother, P. Waythamoorthy.

He then climbed up the steep Batu Caves steps, accompanied by his supporters, to perform further prayers at another temple within the cave complex. As he walked up the stairs, he shook hands with bystanders, many of whom were keen to rub shoulders with the controversial figure.

After coming down from the cave complex at about 1.55 pm, Uthayakumar addressed his supporters from the back of a pick-up truck parked at the entrance of the stairs that led to the cave complex.

He recounted his days under detention saying that it was a mental torture for him but not once did he let it affect his perseverance to continue with the Hindraf struggle.

"They cannot scare us anymore," Uthayakumar told the crowd. "The number of people present speaks for itself," he added.

The crowd dispersed at about 3.30 pm.

Despite being a banned movement, no arrest was made.

(Source:"Hindraf supporters join Uthayakumar at Batu Caves"

Waytha's passport revoked ?

Malaysian Indian rights activist living in self-imposed exile after organising anti-discrimination protests in his home country denounced the government on Friday for allegedly revoking his passport.

Ponnusamy Waytha Moorthy, who has been in London since he fled the country last December, said he has sought asylum in Britain after learning that Kuala Lumpur had cancelled his passport.

"Technically, I am now without a state and am asking Britain for asylum," the chairman of rights group Hindraf told AFP in a phone interview. "This is a very cowardly act by the Malaysian government against me in order to undermine me, but it really undermines their credibility locally and internationally."

Malaysiakini :

The government has revoked the passport of a Hindu Rights Action Force chairperson P Waythamoorthy, Amnesty International said on Thursday.

Waythamoorthy, who has been living in London since he fled the country in December, has sought asylum in Britain, Amnesty's Washington-based Asia-Pacific advocacy director T Kumar told AFP.

The activist had planned to visit Washington for talks with leaders of the US Congress and Amnesty and other rights groups, "but it has been put off because of his passport's cancelation", Kumar said.

Waythamoorthy had sought the talks to highlight alleged discriminatory policies against minority ethnic Indian Malaysians as well as the arrest under the powerful Internal Security Act of five senior Hindraf members at home.

The five, who led a massive anti-discrimination rally in Kuala Lumpur in November, are being held without trial and for an indefinite period.

Kumar said Waythamoorthy only became aware of his passport's revocation when he returned to London from Geneva after talks recently with the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

"He was shocked to be informed by British immigration officers that Kuala Lumpur has revoked his passport," Kumar said. "This makes him de facto stateless."

"This is the first time I have heard of a political activist's passport being revoked by his own country's government," he said.

Kumar called on Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to give a "full explanation on the rationale for the cancellation."

Asylum application

The British authorities will hold hearings to consider Waythamoorthy's application for political asylum, he said.

Waythamoorthy said in a statement to Amnesty that the Malaysian government revoked his passport in the belief that the British authorities would deport him to Kuala Lumpur where he could be arrested under the Internal Security Act.

"This unwarranted act has given me greater 'inner' strength to continue to struggle for the Malaysian Indians and for the unconditional release of my fellow brothers held unjustly under the Internal Security Act," he said.

Malaysia's highest court on Wednesday refused to release the five activists, including a newly sworn-in state lawmaker.

Ethnic Indians make up less than eight percent of the 27 million population of the mainly Muslim-Malay country.

Lawyers for the five said they would appeal on Monday for the Federal Court to review its decision.

Rights groups say 70 people, mainly alleged Islamic militants, are being held under the Internal Security Act.

(Source)

British Hindus liken Malaysian government to Taliban

British Hindus are to hold a silent protest outside the office of the British premier this week to highlight the 'new lite-Taliban' policies of the Malaysian government, an umbrella group for Hindus said Tuesday.

The Hindu Council UK (HCUK) said Hindus would present a petition to Prime Minister Gordon Brown Friday to protest the condition of Malaysian Hindus, 'who number two million and are suffering religious persecution' by the government in Kuala Lumpur.

It said Hindu temples have been razed and damaged in Malaysia, 'irrespective of their age' but added that the silent protest was against human rights violations of not only Hindus but also other religious minorities of Malaysia.

The issue hit the headlines in November last year when Malaysian police used violence to break up a march by Hindus in the capital Kuala Lumpur and arrested 31 protesters, five of whom, HCUK said, were still in detention.

The police action was criticised around the world.

Last month, members of the British parliament demanded that the Malaysian government scrap plans to demolish Hindu temples and to allow legitimate protests against it.

In a strongly worded statement, they also urged the British government to take up the matter on their behalf and 'make the strongest possible representation' to Kuala Lumpur.

HCUK general secretary Anil Bhanot, in a statement Friday, likened the Malaysian government's attitude to that of 'the Taliban ideology which destroyed the Bamiyan Buddhas (in Afghanistan),' and said it needed to be 'challenged for re-education.'

'We appeal to world communities to help stop the lite-talibanisation of the Malaysia government through trade and other means,' Bhanot added.

Meanwhile,A candlelight vigil at Hindu temples to protest the detention of five leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) has been condemned by Malaysian minister of Indian origin S Samy Vellu.

The sentiments of two million-plus Hindus had been hurt by the "desecration of a place of worship", Works Minister Vellu said on Sunday.

"Hindus do not use candles in temples ... we use the kuttu vilaku (oil lamp). From the feedback I got, (other) Hindus are very unhappy over this," Vellu was quoted as saying.

Crackdown Averted Racial Violence ?

Malaysia on Monday defended its crackdown on dissent, including the arrest of ethnic Indian activists and suppression of street protests, saying it had averted a serious risk of racial violence.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak raised the spectre of the country's worst race riots, when almost 200 people were killed in clashes between ethnic Chinese and Muslim Malays in May 1969.

"If the Malays of Kampung Baru come out then we have the specter of a serious possibility of a racial clash in this country," Najib said in an interview with AFP. The Malay enclave was one of the flashpoints of the 1969 riots.

"There were signs that they were preparing to come out so we had to tell them, 'look, don't make the situation any worse'," he said.

"The government was actually taking action to prevent anything worse from happening." Unprecedented street protests by ethnic Indians, which police broke up with tear gas and water cannon, opened a new faultline in Malaysia's increasingly tense race relations last November.

Five leaders of Indian rights group Hindraf, who claim the community is the victim of discrimination at the hands of the majority Malays, are now being held without trial under tough internal security laws.

Najib -- who as deputy premier is expected to be Malaysia's next leader after Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi -- defended the use of the much-criticized Internal Security Act (ISA) on the Hindraf leaders.

"A great deal of people thought we should have used it earlier, but if we had used it earlier there could have been pros and cons, those who say we are not tolerant, we are autocratic, we are not democratic enough," he said.

"So by allowing things to pan out and for us not to use the ISA early, I think when we used it the vast majority of Malaysians supported it." The Hindraf rally came two weeks after another rare demonstration organized by electoral reform campaigners, which saw 30,000 people take to the streets. They were also dispersed with tear gas and water cannon.

Emboldened by the new mood, civil society groups and non-governmental organizations have held several more smaller street protests in the capital, despite not having a permit.

Police have broken up peaceful demonstrations, and Najib said there was a limit to the government's patience.

"We are responsible for peace and harmony in this country and public order," he said. "We are quite tolerant in this country, but if it comes to the point I suppose when push comes to shove, we have to be firm about it." He declined to specify what action would be taken at that stage, saying: "We know what to do." Najib indicated the National Front coalition government could lose ground in general elections expected to be held in March, which follow a torrid few months that have included the protests as well as food shortages and a ministerial sex scandal.

After a resounding victory in 2004, which reversed losses in 1999, commentators say the pendulum is likely to swing against the government again.

"We don't want a dip (in seats), but our benchmark has always been a two- thirds majority," Najib said.

"Even during the worst of times, say in the 1999 general elections, we still managed to attain a two-thirds majority and I don't expect this time to be worse than 1999," he said.

Najib admitted that the race-based component parties that make up the coalition were "going through some problems" and that the government had a big job to soothe the public over forthcoming fuel price hikes.

"We have to manage it. We have to manage between good governance, good macro management of the nation, as well as possible reaction from the public. As long as it's seen to be equitable I think people will accept it," he said.

The ruling United Malays National Organisation has led the National Front coalition in government for half a century.

One thing for sure, the quick-fix declaration of a holiday for Thaipusam after it being shoved aside for many decades. Suddenly, we hear sober words from our power-drunk leaders.

The Hindraf serum is taking effect.

Malaysia, not truly Asia?

It's the biggest sustained mass movement of humans in history: the great Indian diaspora. If not in sheer numbers, certainly in scope and width and diversity not even the Chinese diaspora can rival it.

From America to Australia, from Brazil to Bulgaria, and right through the global alphabet to Zaire, Zurich and Zimbabwe, there is invariably, and it seems inevitably, a corner of a foreign land that is a far-flung India; the shifting tides of history have created a human archipelago of many Indias strewn across the Earth. These many Indian worlds within the world are both strikingly different and yet similar, thanks to their common point of origin and the tenuous links that continue to bind them to it. Some were created by indentured labour sent out to work on the plantations and farms of empire. Others were formed by successive waves of migration — of unskilled workers, agriculturists, artisans, entrepreneurs, cab drivers, doctors, teachers, nurses, scientists, IT professionals — whose ripples continue to spread across the planet.

The diaspora is not one, but many narratives, told by many voices. Some are strong and resonant with success as echoed in media which exult in a Swraj Paul, or the poster boys of Silicon Valley, or the 'potels' of America. Others are anguished, such as those currently protesting against ethnic discrimination in Malaysia where their forebears were forcibly brought generations ago and whose plight today has provoked an international debate.

But the majority of the diaspora is silent and unsung, its unrelated stories mute and unheard. Yet together with its more visible and vocal counterparts, this scattered community of many Indias annually remits some $25 billion to a home country which, like a benignly neglectful parent for the most part, accepts it absent-mindedly as its due.
(Source)

India has the third largest Diaspora in the world after Britain and China. These two countries have never fought shy of taking up cudgels on behalf of their scattered brood. When Indonesia under Suharto banned public displays of Chinese culture and asked its Chinese population to change their names to Indonesian ones to get citizenship, China broke off diplomatic ties for years. "The English too take care of their own across the globe, including in Australia," says Jamia Millia vice-chancellor Mushirul Hasan.

"India has taken the correct stand on Malaysia. Persons of Indian origin are culturally bound to us. We cannot wash our hands of them simply because they do not have Indian passports."

In the past, too, India has spoken up--when Mahendra Chowdhary was deposed as prime minister in Fiji in 2000, New Delhi expressed its concern. But, equally, it has always worried about crossing the thin red line from concern to interference. A dithering that angers the Indian Malay. "If India does not protest against the unfair treatment of Malaysians of Indian origin do you expect Mongolia and China to do so on our behalf?" asks an indignant P Uthayakumar, legal adviser to the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) which is leading the movement. "For God's sake, we in Malaysia have the closest links with India. If a wife is unfairly treated by her husband, she can only go to her parents. India must intervene because human rights have no boundaries."(?)

G Parthasarthy, former Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan points out that whenever there has been a massive violation of human rights of Indians, such as in Fiji, the Indian government has taken cognisance. "This has been our policy since the time of Jawaharlal Nehru," he says. "The problem is that if we start making statements other countries can do so too when there are communal riots here. Therefore, we have to be objective."

India's early Diaspora has its roots in colonial oppression. In the 19th century, boatloads of indentured labour were forcibly transported to work on the rubber plantations of Malay. Today, the descendants of the boat people may not be watering rubber fields but their lot is still very much that of the marginalised migrant, they claim. Since its independence in 1957, Malaysia has powered ahead and is often held up as the exemplar of Muslim development. But for the Indians who make up a little less than 10 per cent of the population, prosperity has stayed stubbornly out of bounds.

Hindraf says that the job reservations for ethnic Malays effectively cut the Indians out leaving them to be "labourers, industrial workers, office boys, sweepers, beggars and squatters". The only index on which ethnic Indians lead is suicides (?). The crime rate of the group is also shockingly high. The Tamil schools are largely dysfunctional. "The conduct of the Malaysian authorities has been particularly offensive," says India's former external affairs minister, Yeshwant Sinha. "Even the country's official history starts with the 14th century after the last Hindu king converted to Islam. They want to obliterate their past."

On November 25, nearly 8,000 Malaysians of Indian origin gathered in the shadow of Kuala Lumpur's iconic Petronas Towers to demand equality. Instead they were brutally beaten with batons, bombed with tear gas and flung into jail. An anguished Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi wrote to Manmohan Singh urging him to intervene diplomatically. He did. Malaysia reacted swiftly. "This is Malaysia. We'll deal with our problems and issues according to our laws. Other countries should be mindful of our rights," said Syed Hamid Albar, Malaysia's foreign minister.

"I can turn around and ask, what business was it of Malaysia's to protest the Babri Masjid demolition or even the Danish cartoons of Prophet Mohammed," rebuts Dr Subramanian Swamy, known for his efforts to improve Indo-Chinese relations in the Eighties. "Malaysia should be the last country to tell India to lay off."

Those who advocate caution say that India cannot take on the burdens of its Diaspora, and that fighting for Malaysians of Indian origin will only open a Pandora's box. After all, there are millions of Indians in Fiji, South Africa, and the Caribbean Islands. Others say that since India is quick to tom-tom the achievements of its Diaspora--V S Naipaul, Bobby Jindal, Sunita Williams --it should also look out for them. Moreover, since they are victims of colonialism, the government owes them the support of the mother country, says Ormila Bhoopaul, an activist lawyer of Indian origin from Guyana, who now lives in Canada. "What first needs to be acknowledged is that these PIOs were forced to leave, they were tricked into going by the British," she says. "Why didn't they all return? The reasons are many and when examined, they are not to be blamed for not returning. And the British must take some responsibility too."

Hindraf still hopes that old blood ties will move the mother country. "Every few weeks a temple is being razed. Last year, 79 temples were demolished or faced legal action," says Uthayakumar. "We are grateful that India has expressed concern. We hope now for more concrete action. India is a growing power. Malaysia is bound to listen."(?)
(Source)


P/S:

Malaysiakini reported that The police have arrested the Bar Council human rights committee chairperson Edmund Bon allegedly for preventing local authorities from performing their duty in removing banners outside the lawyers' headquarters, read here.

China Praised, Malaysia Criticised At Bali Talks

China was named Good Guy at the UN climate change negotiations in Bali on Friday, Malaysia was condemned to join Saudi Arabia, Japan and Canada in the Bad Guys group and Australia and India were told to make up their minds which category they wanted to be in.

Hans Verolme, director of the climate change programme at WWF, was the man responsible for the naming and shaming.

He was particularly critical of Malaysia’s stance, which he condemned as “not politically acceptable.”

He told a media briefing on Friday morning, on the fifth day of the two-week conference, that Malaysian delegates were even questioning the climate change science that underpinned the negotiations and saying that they needed more time to study the scientific reports.

It was a delaying tactic, said Verolme, perhaps stemming from fear that Malaysia might be asked to do more to combat climate change.

Yet other “emerging economies” had agreed to take action, he pointed out, and the Malaysian Prime Minister had been positive about the need for action when he spoke at the recent Commonwealth Summit in Uganda.

He said officials needed to sort out their position with the Prime Minister.

Australia, too, needed to make up its mind, said Verolme. The new government was sending positive signals, such as signing up to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, but it wasn’t clear that the negative line followed by the previous government had been dropped.

[An Australian NGO later told OneWorld.net that part of the confusion might lie in the continuation in office of civil servants closely identified with the previous government’s policy.)

He said he did not believe Japan was serious about the negotiations and he criticised Canada because in Parliament ministers talked about committing to actions that would stop global temperatures rising more than 2 degrees “but what it is doing here in Bali is more like 4 degrees.”

India, he said, had been relatively quiet in the negotiations: ”They are hesitating. I have a sense that they will not stand in the way of an agreement but that they have doubts.”

Verolme praised the least developed countries for “for speaking up in a very constructive way”, but his fullest praise went to China for its positive, constructive, flexible, open attitude at the talks.

Asked why China had dropped what had been widely perceived as a negative stance in earlier discussions, he said that about a year ago the government had decided to get serious about the issue because the country was already feeling the impact of climate change.

-OneWorld UK

Meanwhile, leaders of ethnic rights group Hindraf, which last month organised mass anti-discrimination protests that were broken up with tear gas and water cannons, have already been slapped with sedition charges,are now been accused of having links with Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers, a charge the campaigners said could see them detained under internal security laws.

Police Inspector-General Musa Hassan accused them of seeking support from terrorists, smearing Malaysia's reputation, and inciting racial hatred -- a serious charge in the multicultural country dominated by Muslim Malays.

"Of late there have been indications that Hindraf is trying to seek support and help from terrorist groups," Musa said in a statement carried by the official Bernama news agency late Thursday, without giving any details.

However, Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail said Hindraf was suspected of involvement with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) whose campaign for an independent homeland has left tens of thousands dead since 1972.

US congress-appointed panel has called for Malaysia to do more to protect sacred places and bring an end to alleged discrimination faced by the country's religious minorities.

Malaysia urged to protect temples

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom cited the destruction of Hindu temples as a particular cause for concern and urged the Bush administration to raise the matter with Malaysia's government.

The commission's comments follow a protest last month by thousands of ethnic Indians against what they say are discriminatory policies by the Malaysian government in favour of the majority ethnic Malays.

The protest in Kuala Lumpur was broken up by police using tear gas and water cannon and several protest organisers have been arrested.

The Hindu Rights Action Task Force, the group which organised the rally, says an average of one Hindu temple is being demolished every three weeks.


'Fuelling unrest'

In its comments on Thursday the US commission said it was "concerned" by recent Malaysian government actions against the ethnic Indian Hindu minority "curtailing their human rights, including the freedom of thought, conscience, and religion".

Michael Cromartie, the commission chairman, said "continued discrimination against members of the ethnic Indian Hindu minority, including the destruction of sacred places and images, only fuels religious unrest and intolerance".

The government says it does not target the Hindu community and its demolition of places of worship are because they are illegal structures or because land is needed for development.

It has also rejected accusations of discriminatory policies against ethnic Indians.

PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, has accused ethnic Indian activists of stirring up racial conflict and threatened to use a law that allows for indefinite detention without trial.

In an opinion piece published on Friday in the Asian Wall Street Journal, Abdullah wrote that "the right to protest is fundamental, but it is a right that must be matched by a responsibility to respect general public safety".

"This year, Malaysia celebrated its 50th anniversary of independence, what we Malaysians term "merdeka." In this short period, we have achieved much as a nation. Poverty has been reduced tenfold, a thriving middle class created, and the foundations for a competitive 21st century economy put in place. But our most striking accomplishment is that we have managed all this while maintaining harmony within an ethnically diverse society."

While maintaining that he would listen to "all points of view and concerns that are honestly and reasonably presented", he said "we cannot and shall not tolerate those who seek to incite or provoke violence for their own personal gain".

The November 25 protest followed another rally on November 10 – also dispersed by force - to demand electoral reforms.

Together, they have presented the biggest challenge to Abdullah's authority ahead of elections which are expected to be called soon.

Maligned in Malaysia

The Malaysian government’s decision to set up a ‘special committee’ to probe the demands of the ethnic Indian minority and resolve the community’s alleged ‘marginalisation’ is welcome.

Recent demonstrations by ethnic Indians denouncing alleged racial discrimination had forced law enforcement authorities to use tear gas and water cannons against protestors. This only served to strengthen allegations that human rights were being violated. Not surprisingly, the flap prompted New Delhi to make guarded statements about being “concerned” over the plight of Indians in Malaysia.

Of course, Kuala Lumpur’s angry reaction to this perceived “meddling” in its “internal affairs” is understandable, considering no citizen of any State can be above its law. But then that is the big question these protests raise: is there really a lack of educational and job opportunities for ethnic Indians in Malaysia? After all, successive administrations in Kuala Lumpur were known to adopt an affirmative-action policy in favour of the majority ethnic Malays. It is an open secret that racial politics still prevail in Malaysia despite being ruled by a coalition of political parties of the three main races — Malays, Chinese and Indians — since the country’s independence. This is borne out by the fact that few multi-racial parties ever made any headway in Malaysian politics, which has led to perpetual coalition rule of the major race-based parties. Whenever the political leadership tried to forge a Malaysian identity, the Malays in the United Malays National Organisation (Umno) — the predominant party in the coalition — saw to it that the effort was thwarted. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi himself admitted this when he described the worsening relationship between the Muslim Malays and the minority ethnic Chinese and Indian communities as a “disease” that had to be tackled quickly.

With rising fundamental overtones of Islam feeding the insecurity among minority groups, it is not difficult to see why racial polarisation in Malaysia is a disturbing fact. Hopefully, Kuala Lumpur has reckoned with these issues in its bid to to resolve the current crisis.

Last week Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said New Delhi was disturbed by reports about the use of force against the protesters in the multicultural Islamic country.

The United States has also backed the rights of Malaysians to hold peaceful protests and criticised the threat to use a draconian law to detain protestors indefinitely without trial.

"This is Malaysia. We'll deal with our problems and issues according to our laws. Other countries should be mindful of our rights," Syed Hamid Albar, foreign minister was quoted as saying.

It is Malaysia's problem !

Creating a furore in the Rajya Sabha over Malaysia's handling of a mass rally by ethnic Indians in Kuala Lumpur might augur well for those seeking brownie points among their political constituents. The outrage expressed by Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi and others over Malaysia's "mistreatment" of Tamil ethnic minorities in the country is an attempt to gain political mileage out of what is basically a local governance problem in another country, by citing ethnic similarities. That our parliamentarians and other political leaders are petitioning the prime minister to intervene in what is essentially Malaysia's internal problem reflects the shortcomings of a parochial political class.

Two hundred or more years ago, the forefathers of today's ethnic Tamil population in Malaysia - who rightly see themselves more as Malaysian-Tamils rather than as Indian-Tamils - were taken to that country as indentured labour by the then colonial power, Britain. Since then, similar expatriate Indian-origin communities in Mauritius, Fiji, the Maldives, South Africa and other former British colonies have grown and identified themselves with the countries of their residence. They don't look to India to solve their problems - whether economic, social or political. Even the currently disgruntled Malaysian-Tamil community - that took to the streets protesting against Malaysia's alleged discrimination against them in providing employment opportunities - did not expect India to speak up on their behalf. Then why are Karunanidhi and others getting so exercised about the whole issue?

Malaysia is an independent sovereign country. Would India take kindly to Malaysia's intervention in any internal uprising in any of its states? Most likely India would ask Malaysia to mind its own business, albeit in a more diplomatic manner than has Malaysian minister Nazri Aziz, who has reportedly told Karunanidhi to "lay off".
(The Times of India)

What it means for Samy Vellu

Christie Loh
christie@mediacorp.com.sg

FLAMBOYANT Malaysian politician S Samy Vellu is like a man used to walking over beds of burning coals.

Through cheating allegations in a telecom stock controversy and embarrassing gaffes in infrastructure projects, this Works Minister has survived 28 years so far to be the country's longest serving ethnic Indian in Cabinet.

But will the latest trial, coming ahead of elections widely tipped to take place next year, end his grip on power?

When some 10,000 Indian Malaysians marched angrily through the heart of Kuala Lumpur last Sunday, braving tear gas and nausea-inducing water cannons, their protest against decades of marginalisation was also seen as a slap in the face for their long-time community leader, Mr Samy Vellu.

As president of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) since 1979, the 71-year-old has been the rare Indian voice in the 14-party governing coalition Barisan Nasional.

But while he has promised repeatedly to improve the lot of the minority race dominated by plantation workers and squatters, some feel the man in the sharp suits and shiny Mercedes Benz has not delivered.

Look at the equity of the nation's two million ethnic Indians, said political analyst P Ramasamy, who is also international secretary of Malaysian opposition Democratic Action Party. They make up 8 per cent of the population, yet their share of the economy is just 1.5 per cent today and little changed from the 1 per cent in the 1970s, no thanks to the policies favouring the indigenous Malays, known as bumiputeras, since 1971.

In contrast, Malays have 19.4 per cent of corporate wealth and the ethnic Chinese, 38.5 per cent. It is the same story when it comes to education, wealth and job prospects, although a few Indians do famously excel in areas such as medicine and law.

Beyond economic stress, Professor Ramasamy said a series of religious incidents have "traumatised" the Hindus: High-profile tussles with Muslims over burial rites for some converts and the insensitive way in which the authorities tore down and relocated hundreds of Hindu and Chinese temples, said to be illegally built, to make way for new buildings.

"Samy Vellu's presence, or non-presence, doesn't make any impact on the Indian community. MIC is just a joke for us," said Prof Ramasamy.

The community's discontent has been seething for years, but it needed an avenue and the "right" timing before spilling onto the streets.

"It is only with the advent of a civil society movement that has concentrated the cause of the ethnic minority that this sort of subterranean sentiment, which has already been building over the years, gets an outlet," Associate Professor Joseph Liow, of the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, told Weekend Xtra.

The "outlet" is the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), a non-government organisation formed in 2005 and rapidly gaining prominence for voicing the community's frustrations. It moved in while MIC leaders were caught up in internal politics, and mobilised Indians nationwide last weekend — not just the working class, but professionals such as doctors and lawyers, too.

The fact that the Hindraf march went ahead despite Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's appeals to the people not to join in suggests the Prime Minister and Mr Samy Vellu "both have lost control and influence over the more vocal elements of the minority Indian community", said Associate Professor Hussin Mutalib, political scientist at National University of Singapore.

He added: "These are indeed trying times for the leadership of PM Abdullah and Samy Vellu as leader of the MIC."

Still, the MIC boss is determined to hang on. In a Reuters report this week, Mr Samy Vellu said he would hand over the party reins only at "an appropriate time". He also wrote off the protesters as mere "troublemakers" and said: "We are confident of winning the next elections handsomely."

His confidence may not be misplaced.

For one, Mr Samy Vellu has few competitors. Within the party, where he is into his 10th term as president, he has ensured there are no alternative powers, said Assoc Prof Liow.

There is a similar drought externally. MIC is the only Indian-based party, besides the one-week-old independent Malaysian Indian United Party led by businessman K S Nallakaruppan.

The multi-racial People's Progressive Party, half of whose membership is ethnic Indian, could try stepping in to help fellow Barisan ally, MIC. But Assoc Prof Liow feels PPP is preoccupied with internal battles.

"I don't think there is someone who really stands out in the community who is already in politics," he said.

The community's political star has somehow always been Mr Samy Vellu, the poor boy made good. The son of a rubber tapper, he went from doing odd jobs to becoming a certified architect. Similarly, he advanced politically through the MIC ranks over 20 years to become chief of the third largest party in Barisan, where the power-sharing structure landed him a senior ministerial post.

This long-time Member of Parliament for Perak's Sungai Siput constituency has a "strong network on the ground", said Assoc Prof Liow.

Numerous shoddy public works, such as burst water pipes in the Immigration Office and a major mudslide along a part of the North-South Expressway, may have hurt Mr Samy Vellu's name and led to calls for his head, but they have never resulted in his resignation or sacking.

Could the upcoming polls, which must take place by May 2009, seal his fate?

As Mr Abdullah has instructed the MIC to form a special team to study the Indian community's socio-economic woes, Mr Samy Vellu may still be able to recover lost fans.

NUS' Assoc Prof Hussin is less optimistic: "Although Indians constitute a small percentage of the electoral votes, in border-line cases, their frustrations at the Barisan coalition may impair its performance."

If MIC truly does not fare well, it will be "a sign of weakness on the part of Samy Vellu", said Assoc Prof Liow. Following that, challengers are likely to emerge amid "a push from the bottom" to relook the party leadership.

At MIC's 51st annual general meeting a decade ago, Mr Samy Vellu delivered his usual presidential speech about taking Indian Malaysians forward, saying "we will never get to the future if we wait for someone else to blaze the trail".

Ten years on, his fellow men have heeded his call to seize the day. But will he still have their ear or have they walked away for good?

(Today Online)

Malaysia's indentured rights

Malaysian court may have temporarily “discharged” three top leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force from sedition charges, but that would do little to allay the socio-political unrest that has erupted out into the open in Malaysia.

The scale and ferocity of last Sunday's street protests, which were spearheaded by this forum of minority ethnic Indians, underscores how strong ethnic minority disaffection is in this ‘multicultural’ nation. Enforcement of the exclusionary Bhumiputra policy — which discriminates against citizens of other ethnic vintage, vis-a-vis native Malays, in distribution of social goods and even economic opportunities — and active Islamisation of the public sphere by the Malaysian state is at the heart of such social strife.

Kuala Lampur must revise its discriminatory policy orientation, if only to effect a genuine national reconciliation. Any reluctance on that score is sure to undermine Malaysia’s considerable economic advances.

Democracy may not be an inevitable corollary of free-market capitalism, but the ever-growing chain of aspirations, which a successful free-market economy fuels, can be meaningfully fulfilled only when democracy is functional. Malaysia’s Bumiputra national identity, given the success of capitalism in the country, has become more of a bane now than ever before. An exclusivist marker of national identity is, in any case, not in keeping with the ethos of the modern nation-state.

The vicious marginalisation of the then deputy PM Anwar Ibrahim, who has steadfastly espoused the cause of enlightened democracy and secular national identity, by former PM Mahatir Mohammed and his handpicked successor Abdullah Ahmed Badawi has only compounded the crisis.

Kuala Lampur must recognise that ethnic Indians are fighting for expanding the scope of Malaysian national identity. That their agitation has not made any overture, direct or indirect, to India shows that their politics is not chauvinist and separatist in character. The government’s failure to respond appropriately could lead to a Sri Lanka-like situation in Malaysia.

BN to suffer poll losses ?

The ruling Barisan Nasional coalition is expected to suffer losses in elections expected early next year as it grapples with rare street protests and ethnic tensions, experts told a forum here, reported Malaysiakini.

But Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's National Front coalition government should maintain its two-thirds majority in parliament unbeaten since independence in 1957, they said.

Unprecedented street protests demanding electoral reforms and highlighting racial discrimination erupted in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur this month, posing one of the biggest challenges to Abdullah since he took over from the largely authoritarian and abrasive Mahathir Mohamad in 2003.

"I think that even with the parameters shifting at this particular juncture, it is extremely difficult for the opposition to break the barrier of the two thirds. Period," said Bridget Welsh, a Southeast Asian expert at John Hopkins University.

Opposition parties in Malaysia, she said, did not provide a viable alternative electorally as they were still very personality driven and ideologically divided with limited capacity in terms of "real representation and aspect of governance."

The National Front secured the largest majority in about three decades, sweeping 198 parliamentary seats to the combined opposition parties' 20 seats, in the last elections held in 2004.

But Welsh predicted Abdullah's United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the Front's linchpin, could lose up to 15 parliamentary seats in upcoming polls and its senior coalition partner the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) could drop about six seats.

"The reality is electorally, the only place he has to go is down because he has 91 percent of the seats and it is very hard to go much higher," she said.

The fundamentalist Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party (PAS), which rules Malaysia's northeastern state of Kelantan, also has a "good chance" of losing the only opposition held state to UMNO amid an influx of new voters, she said.

Aside from rising prices and other economic issues, race, religion and ethnic concerns are going to matter considerably in the next elections, she said.

Pek Koon Heng, an expert on Chinese politics in Malaysia from American University, highlighted dissatisfaction over an affirmative action policy favoring majority Muslim Malays over other races.

Many ethnic Chinese and Indians feel the time has come for a review of the New Economic Policy, framed after bloody race riots in 1969, after studies showed that Malays have already achieved the target of 30 percent corporate ownership.

But the government last year introduced another benchmark -- household income -- to measure Malay progress in an indication that the controversial policy would remain at least up to 2020, Pek said.

"There is a lot of unease about how the New Economic Policy is measured. With the uncertainty -- the moving targets -- it (the policy) can go on forever," Pek said.

"Although they accept the policy ... because we need political stability but then to subject generations and generations of Malaysians to the policy, they say, 'sometimes we need to do something about this.'"

Citing an opinion poll conducted this year, she said the Chinese in Malaysia were "least satisfied with the economic conditions and Prime Minister Abdullah's leadership and most likely to vote for the opposition."

The ethnic Indians are also discontented. At least 8,000 of them defied police warnings and held rare protests in Kuala Lumpur earlier this week against what they see as racial discrimination.

Police beat them with batons and used tear gas and water cannon to disperse the rally.

Welsh said the protests were a critical "test" for Abdullah's coalition government.

A key problem in the government is "the rising dominance of UMNO and Malay chauvinism of UMNO (which) do not listen to the other voices within the coalition," she said.


Indians in Malaysia fighting for rights: activist

Ethnic Indians in Malaysia plan to continue their protests against alleged racial discrimination in that country. CNN-IBN spoke to Y K Murthy, the chairman of Hindu Rights Group in Malaysia. He said his group had submitted a charter of 18 demands to the government.

FIGHTING ON: ‘We are a non-political group and will
continue our struggle on those lines,’ says Murthy.

CNN-IBN: Sir what is it that you plan to do immediately?

Y K Murthy We are now planning to go on an international lobby to lobby for the international committee for the cause and the plight of the minority Indians facing humiliation.

CNN-IBN: Sir don’t you think that it would be wiser to wait for them as the Malaysian government is now forming a committee to look into this?

Y K Murthy The Committee is just to pacify the people temporarily. They have always done this but we will not be duped into this. We will continue with our struggle.

CNN-IBN: Do you also intend to get into the political scene? Do you think that could make a difference?

Y K Murthy No, we have always maintained that our organisation is a non-political organisation. We will maintain our cause along those lines. We do not have political intentions.

CNN-IBN: What is it that you expect out of the whole thing? What is that you hope to do and achieve?

Y K Murthy We hope that the government will listen to the 18 demands that we have submitted to the government on July 27 and that they come out with a complete solution that we have for from them.

(IBN Live)

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Hindraf wants to meet Prime Minister and UMNO leadership to discuss our 18 points demands.

Suite 8-9-7 (A) Menara Mutiara Bangsar
Jalan Liku Off Jalan Riong
Bangsar 59100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel : 03-22825622 / Fax : 03-22825616
www.policewatchmalaysia.com

MEDIA STATEMENT (1-12-2007 )

1. Hindraf wants to meet Prime Minister and UMNO leadership to discuss our 18 points demands.

2. Hindraf rejects MIC special committee and MIC hotline proposal
as it has not worked over the lasts 50 years.

3. Hindraf wants Special committee and hotline to be lead by Prime
Minister’s office.

With reference to the Prime Minister’s statement that he is prepared to listen to all Malaysians, we are hereby once again requesting an urgent appointments with the Prime Minister and the UMNO leadership to especially discuss the 18 point demands which has duly been forwarded to your goodselves on 12/8/07 at Putrajaya.

We wish to reiterate that we have no confidence in the MIC Special Committee and MIC hotline proposal as hundreds such committees and hotlines have been proposed and had before in the last 50 years but with almost zero results

We would like this special Committee and the hotline to be lead handled and implemented by the Prime Minister’s Office and the UMNO led Malaysian government.

It is plain and obvious that then UMNO’s mandore system (supervise ) has never effectively worked.

If the Prime Minister and the Umno led government are sincere in addressing and resolving especially the poor ethnic minority Indian problems, please meet and hear out.

We regret that despite the desperate public outcry on 25/11/2007, the UMNO led Malaysian government still went ahead and on 27/11/2007 ruthlessly demolishing the poor Indian homeless people’s squatter houses in kampung Tropicana Subang Jaya. No proper alternative houses were accorded to them.

Thereafter on 29/11/2007 UMNO came in with hundreds of policemen enforcement officers and bulldozers an UMNO mob and Indian gangster wanting to demolish the Arumigu Nava Thurgai (Behind Market Jalan Kuala Ketil) Hindu Temple , Sungai Petani Kedah. Only when thousand of hindus prevented them did they back off but promised to demolish the temple next week in the early hours of the morning as what they did to the Kg Karupaih, Padang Jawa Mariamma Hindu Temple on 30/10/07.

TO UMNO : We are a very small minority- only 8% of the population.

Please do not bully us with your mighty majortarian might ie. your army, police, enforcement personnel, Attorney General, Judiciary Civil service etc.

Don’t hit a fly with a sledgehammer.

Please treat us with some dignity and humanity.

50 years is enough!

Thank You,
Yours Faithfully

P. Uthaya Kumar
Legal Adviser