By JOHN R. MALOTT*
Malaysia’s national tourism agency promotes the country as “a bubbling, bustling melting pot of races and religions where Malays, Indians, Chinese and many other ethnic groups live together in peace and harmony.” Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak echoed this view when he announced his government’s theme, One Malaysia. “What makes Malaysia unique,” Mr. Najib said, “is the diversity of our peoples. One Malaysia’s goal is to preserve and enhance this unity in diversity, which has always been our strength and remains our best hope for the future.”
If Mr. Najib is serious about achieving that goal, a long look in the mirror might be in order first. Despite the government’s new catchphrase, racial and religious tensions are higher today than when Mr. Najib took office in 2009. Indeed, they are worse than at any time since 1969, when at least 200 people died in racial clashes between the majority Malay and minority Chinese communities. The recent deterioration is due to the troubling fact that the country’s leadership is tolerating, and in some cases provoking, ethnic factionalism through words and actions.
For instance, when the Catholic archbishop of Kuala Lumpur invited the prime minister for a Christmas Day open house last December, Hardev Kaur, an aide to Mr. Najib, said Christian crosses would have to be removed. There could be no carols or prayers, so as not to offend the prime minister, who is Muslim. Ms. Kaur later insisted that she “had made it clear that it was a request and not an instruction,” as if any Malaysian could say no to a request from the prime minister’s office.
Similar examples of insensitivity abound. In September 2009, Minister of Home Affairs Hishammuddin Onn met with protesters who had carried the decapitated head of a cow, a sacred animal in the Hindu religion, to an Indian temple. Mr. Hishammuddin then held a press conference defending their actions. Two months later, Defense Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told Parliament that one reason Malaysia’s armed forces are overwhelmingly Malay is that other ethnic groups have a “low spirit of patriotism.” Under public pressure, he later apologized.
The leading Malay language newspaper, Utusan Melayu (Malaysia), prints what opposition leader Lim Kit Siang calls a daily staple of falsehoods that stoke racial hatred. Utusan, which is owned by Mr. Najib’s political party, has claimed that the opposition would make Malaysia a colony of China and abolish the Malay monarchy. It regularly attacks Chinese Malaysian politicians, and even suggested that one of them, parliamentarian Teresa Kok, should be killed.
This steady erosion of tolerance is more than a political challenge. It’s an economic problem as well.
Once one of the developing world’s stars, Malaysia’s economy has underperformed for the past decade. To meet its much-vaunted goal of becoming a developed nation by 2020, Malaysia needs to grow by 8% per year during this decade. That level of growth will require major private investment from both domestic and foreign sources, upgraded human skills, and significant economic reform. Worsening racial and religious tensions stand in the way.
Almost 500,000 Malaysians left the country between 2007 and 2009, more than doubling the number of Malaysian professionals who live overseas. It appears that most were skilled ethnic Chinese and Indian Malaysians, tired of being treated as second-class citizens in their own country and denied the opportunity to compete on a level playing field, whether in education, business, or government. Many of these emigrants, as well as the many Malaysian students who study overseas and never return (again, most of whom are ethnic Chinese and Indian), have the business, engineering, and scientific skills that Malaysia needs for its future. They also have the cultural and linguistic savvy to enhance Malaysia’s economic ties with Asia’s two biggest growing markets, China and India.
Of course, one could argue that discrimination isn’t new for these Chinese and Indians. Malaysia’s affirmative action policies for its Malay majority—which give them preference in everything from stock allocation to housing discounts—have been in place for decades. So what is driving the ethnic minorities away now?
First, these minorities increasingly feel that they have lost a voice in their own government. The Chinese and Indian political parties in the ruling coalition are supposed to protect the interests of their communities, but over the past few years, they have been neutered. They stand largely silent in the face of the growing racial insults hurled by their Malay political partners. Today over 90% of the civil service, police, military, university lecturers, and overseas diplomatic staff are Malay. Even TalentCorp, the government agency created in 2010 that is supposed to encourage overseas Malaysians to return home, is headed by a Malay, with an all-Malay Board of Trustees.
Second, economic reform and adjustments to the government’s affirmative action policies are on hold. Although Mr. Najib held out the hope of change a year ago with his New Economic Model, which promised an “inclusive” affirmative action policy that would be, in Mr. Najib’s words, “market friendly, merit-based, transparent and needs-based,” he has failed to follow through. This is because of opposition from right-wing militant Malay groups such as Perkasa, which believe that a move towards meritocracy and transparency threatens what they call “Malay rights.”
But stalling reform will mean a further loss in competitiveness and slower growth. It also means that the cronyism and no-bid contracts that favor the well-connected will continue. All this sends a discouraging signal to many young Malaysians that no matter how hard they study or work, they will have a hard time getting ahead.
Mr. Najib may not actually believe much of the rhetoric emanating from 
his party and his government’s officers, but he tolerates it because he needs to shore up his Malay base. It’s politically convenient at a time when his party faces its most serious opposition challenge in recent memory—and especially when the opposition is challenging the government on ethnic policy and its economic consequences. One young opposition leader, parliamentarian Nurul Izzah Anwar, the daughter of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, has proposed a national debate on what she called the alternative visions of Malaysia’s future—whether it should be a Malay nation or a Malaysian nation. For that, she earned the wrath of Perkasa; the government suggested her remark was “seditious.”
Malaysia’s government might find it politically expedient to stir the racial and religious pot, but its opportunism comes with an economic price tag. Its citizens will continue to vote with their feet and take their money and talents with them. And foreign investors, concerned about racial instability and the absence of meaningful economic reform, will continue to look elsewhere to do business.
*Mr. Malott was the U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia, 1995-1998.
Rejoinder to John Malott (Thanks to Rightways for bringing this article to our attention)
Message to Mahathir:
What an embarrassment!
“Mahathir is racist, but Najib would not dare charge him with sedition. Mahathir certainly acts like he is the ‘co-premier’ and his flirtation with extremist NGOs like PERKASA, must embarrass the current administration.”–Mariam Mokhtar
Today, you are championing Malay Rights. You are angry that Non-Malays are questioning these rights. You are also angry that Malays themselves are questioning these so-called Rights. You want the other races to acknowledge that the Dominant Malays are the rightful heirs to this country called Malaysia. What an embarrassment to us Malays.
By Capt.Iskandar Dzulkarnain
Tun Dr. Mahathir was Prime Minister of Malaysia for 22 years. All of us lived under his leadership and many of us have come to admire him and regard him with our deepest respect, for what he has done for the country. The Galleria Perdana in Langkawi is testimony to his many achievements.
His Vision 2020, the Look East Policy, the Multimedia Super Corridor, the Internet and his efforts to industrialize the country have brought boundless prosperity to our nation. We look upon him as the most successful leader since our nation’s independence.
Lately, we see a sudden about turn in his speeches and rhetoric. Many who listened with interest to his sermons are alarmed at the vast distortion of everything he tried to impress upon us in the past. He is beginning to sound incoherent, with a tinge of cynicism. The great empire he built in the last 22 years is slowly unraveling, crumbling, torn asunder by the words that spews forth from your mouth. Everyone, who knew him in the past, is becoming disappointed in what you have become.
At your age, we expect the Grand Old Vizier with bottomless wisdom, 
considerable intellect, and wide political experience to advise us, and tell us where we went wrong, and to correct us. To bring continuous change, to unite us and to tell us that we are all Citizens of this great nation, to warn us of the pitfalls of racism, corruption and to protect this country from tearing itself apart.
Lately, many of your speeches have been received with apprehension, and later with disgust as you keep on leveling criticism on the different races. Even Singapore was not spared. Your latest speech that Malaysia belongs to the Malays, that Malays think 1Malaysia is about abolishing vernacular schools, and that Chinese and Indians think that 1Malaysia means abolishing Malay Rights, is really hurtful and hard to swallow. I really wonder what is going through the mind of this once Great man?
Today, you are championing Malay Rights. You are angry that Non-Malays are questioning these rights. You are also angry that Malays themselves are questioning these so-called Rights. You want the other races to acknowledge that the Dominant Malays are the rightful heirs to this country called Malaysia. What an embarrassment to us Malays.
What special rights are you talking about? If the Malays have benefited from it, and given us a window of opportunity, and an edge over others, why has the Malays not advanced any further? All these years, the bragging and the promises about Special Rights has only led us to acknowledge that it is only a big pie in the sky.
Through 3 generations, we have come to accept that we are all Malaysian citizens, and everyone is equal to everyone, and now we find out that we indeed do have Special Rights accorded only to us, and not to the others. We must also fight for our Rights and not let the other community take it away from us. But what are these Rights??? If we had Special Rights, why are the Malays still lagging behind? Did anybody actually accord the Malays these Rights in the past? Did the Malays reject these Rights, so much so that they are now living in utter poverty? Can someone start going around and bestow this Rights upon us right now? When are we going to get these Rights? As far as we know, we never had any Rights! Only the Chinese and Indians think we have Special Rights.
Most Malays don’t give two hoots about Tanah Melayu, Ketuanan Melayu or Special Rights, because they does not exist. We also got bored waiting for these rights to be transferred to us. We just want a decent life, job, a brighter, predictable future. And the Right to practice our Religion free from encumbrance.
We are a loosely knitted race that comprises mixed Javanese, Sumatran, Indian, Hainanese, Thai, and Middle East blood bound together by our Religion, Islam. And yet in the INTERLOK novel we branded other communities as pariahs. In another case, we allowed a full blooded mamak from Penang to call Non-Malays pendatangs.
And if there is a Special Right, I think I would want to have the Right to mingle freely with our Chinese and Indian friends, step into a church and listen with interest to their choirs singing Christmas Carols, drop by a Chinese temple, and observe the monks chanting their mantras, or to an Indian Temple to see how they worship. And to drop by the Pub, for a glass of cold Coke, or orange juice without feeling a little peculiar. I want the right to tell all our fellow citizens that we do not harbour any ill will against them, that we are just like them and that we will always stand by them.
22 years in power, and yet so many of our kin still live in misery. We are not asking for utter riches, just a decent life, but many Malays still lives in utter misery, and in such contrast to the Super rich UMNOPutras. And in the last election, many Malays were abandoning BN in droves, and now the ruling elite are not confident any more of retaining their power and has started to take drastic measures to regain their support.
Lastly, keep this in mind. There is no racism in Malaysia. 99 percent of Malaysians are not racist. We are too busy living our lives than to check on our neighbours. It is the one percent who is desperately clinging on to power, bent on staying, and who will do anything at any cost,even selling their souls to the devil, that is causing all this ruckus about Racism in this country. The one percent of Malays, Chinese and Indians who are about to be given the boot are shouting Ketuanan Melayu and Ketuanan What not!!
Malays, in their right mind are not going to support this bunch of losers. That is why they say that the Malays are split between UMNO and PAS. And the blame was put on poor old Nik Aziz, who became the scapegoat for splitting the Malays. They really must go!
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