Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
| Posted: 08 Nov 2011 05:03 PM PST
Umno does all the work but if things go wrong, Umno gets the blame. However, if the Chinese and Malays vote for MCA, then MCA gets the credit. A brilliant plan indeed. Umno has no choice but to remain silent over MCA's attacks on Islam because Umno thinks if MCA does not do that, MCA will not be able to obtain Chinese votes. Meanwhile, MCA continues to harp on the hudud issue by asking DAP to state its stand. DAP has already stated that the Islamic state is not part of Pakatan Rakyat's Common Policy Framework (CPF). Selena Tay, Free Malaysia Today MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek is an embattled man. He is trying to woo the Chinese voters by frightening them in regard to PAS' plans to implement hudud in Kelantan by launching scathing attacks on Islam. Is he trying to create an atmosphere of Islamophobia? If he is, then he must know that this is an unhealthy trend as religion is an emotive issue. Nevertheless, Chua is undaunted and pursues his agenda to obtain the Chinese vote as he has trumpeted that his cause is to enlighten the Chinese on the "dangers" of hudud. He continues to reiterate that although the Chinese will not be subjected to hudud, the said law will still have an impact on the Chinese besides impacting the nation's economy. Be that as it may, Chua is an astute tactician. His cunning strategy in this matter is an art that he has perfected by pretending to be weak. This is in accordance with the Chinese strategy of "using another person's leg strength", which means making it seem that MCA is unable to secure Chinese votes due to the behaviour of certain Malay non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and therefore Umno needs to assist MCA to overcome this predicament. Thus, Umno has no choice but to work hard to endear itself to the Chinese in order to help MCA in securing the Chinese votes. Umno can do this by giving grants and allocations to Chinese schools, Chinese guilds and associations and pandering to the requests of Chinese businessmen. Umno thinks that if it does not do this, it will lose Chinese support and this will be detrimental to its cause in the coming 13th general election. Still, Umno cannot afford to bend over backwards to cater to the needs of the Chinese community as then it may lose Malay support if it is seen to be too condescending to the Chinese. Yes, Umno is now caught between a rock and a hard place. Sly MCA Now MCA is sly in the use of strategy. On the one hand, it has succeeded in getting Umno to do its work of campaigning for Chinese votes and, on the other hand, if the Chinese still do not vote for MCA, then the fault is Umno's. This deceptive strategy employed by MCA will absolve MCA of any blame in the event the election results show that Chinese support has swung towards DAP. Umno is lacking in intelligence where Chinese strategy is concerned. Having an Oxford graduate in its midst has not helped the party even one bit. There are seven Chinese military classics and Sun Tzu's "Art Of War" is just only one of them. Umno is no match for Chua who has a vast array of tactics up his sleeve and surely not only Sun Tzu's. This strategy of pretending to be weak in order to gain a stronger ally's help through the art of flattery has Umno biting the bait hook, line and sinker. The stronger ally is almost always arrogant and succumbs to flattery. This is indeed an easy strategy to employ. Umno's western consultants are again no match for MCA in the game of Chinese chess and the consultants' efforts to improve the prime minister's image among the Chinese are a futile attempt. Umno will find it difficult to woo the Chinese simply because Umno cannot read the Chinese mind and what is worse is that MCA has assigned the task of wooing the Chinese to Umno! This is Chinese chess at its deadliest! A brilliant plan Back to MCA's own attempt to woo the Chinese via the use of the hudud and Islamic state issues. MCA continues to scare the Chinese by talking bad about the Islamic state. This shows that MCA does not care tuppence about the fact that it was Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak who reiterated Malaysia is an Islamic state way back in 2007 when he was still the deputy prime minister.
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| Posted: 08 Nov 2011 01:33 PM PST
Prejudice and discrimination, both rooted in fear of the unknown, can always be dispelled with better knowledge, at least in those willing to learn. It is also clear that very often those who steadfastly refuse to eliminate their prejudices do so because they think it is politically profitable to them. The loudest Islamophobes always seem to be politicians trying to win the populist vote. And the only way they maintain those votes is by keeping people ignorant. Hence, their refusal to engage at all with Muslims. By Marina Mahathir, The Star TEN years ago the world turned a decidedly nastier place for Muslims. Although Islamophobia already existed before Sept 11, the events that day ratcheted it up several notches. Suddenly Muslims in the United States and all over the world found themselves under intense scrutiny, much of it hostile. Stereotypes abounded. Although Islam is a religion of peace, all Muslims were branded terrorists, undemocratic, violent, oppressors of women. The only images seen in the media were of angry bearded men wielding weapons and shouting threats to the West. Only Muslim women covered head to toe in dour black, were seen. It did not help that some Muslims themselves provided fodder for these images. Tales of aggression against Muslims abounded. Headscarves were pulled off, insults hurled and, at airports, anyone with the slightest tinge of an Arabic name was pulled out for special inspection. Some people suffered even more violence, resulting in injury and even death. Sometimes entirely wrong people became victims of the prejudice. A Sikh man got shot because he wore a turban, a bunch of Orthodox Jewish rabbis were pulled off a plane because they were praying in a language other passengers didn't understand. Fear ruled and with it came prejudice and discrimination, much of it fuelled by the media. Most of it stemmed from ignorance about the world of Islam, which is not only large but also diverse. A Muslim in the Middle East is culturally different from a Muslim in Asia, but that was not appreciated in much of the West. Indeed Middle Eastern Muslims comprise only 15% of the entire Muslim world. Furthermore there are many Western Muslims who look and act no different from their fellow citizens. Meanwhile, the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq only angered Muslims, who then reacted in ways that ingrained the stereotypes about them. The early post-Sept 11 Islamophobic madness only lessened when much better information and knowledge about Islam and Muslims became available. This took two forms. One, many Muslims took it upon themselves to educate non-Muslims about Islam, and in particular reached out to other faith communities to talk about their commonalities, rather than differences. And two, thousands of students flocked to universities to learn more about Islam. Both Muslim and non-Muslim scholars of Islam did much to teach students about the real religion, rather than the one perpetuated by the media. Ten years later, although it cannot be said that Islamophobia has disappeared, Western perspectives on Islam have become more measured and based on better knowledge. One of the biggest boosts to the image of Islam and Muslims has been the Arab Spring. Suddenly the images of Muslims were young, modern, and protesting not about the West but about their own corrupt leaders. Although they did not explicitly talk about religion, in 2011 the Middle East became associated with the yearning for freedom and democracy, one not too different from what developed countries enjoyed. Women were seen at the forefront of the revolution, both head-scarved and not, and changed the image of the oppressed Muslim woman. It just goes to show that prejudice and discrimination, both rooted in fear of the unknown, can always be dispelled with better knowledge, at least in those willing to learn. There are of course many who simply refuse to open their hearts and minds to such enlightenment, but progress has been made in incremental steps. It is also clear that very often those who steadfastly refuse to eliminate their prejudices do so because they think it is politically profitable to them. The loudest Islamophobes always seem to be politicians trying to win the populist vote. And the only way they maintain those votes is by keeping people ignorant. Hence, their refusal to engage at all with Muslims. Every phobia about groups of people who are different from us works in the same way. They rely on stereotypes and on the fear that allowing these minority people the same basic rights as others would mean that they would demand more. Thus, although no Muslim ever asked for it, some people in the US insist that there are plans to impose syariah law there. The media stokes the hysteria and stigmatisation. Unjust accusations and calls for depriving them of citizenship becomes the norm. Although those baying for blood are small in number, they still make innocent people suffer. People who have never harmed anyone else suffer distrust and hostility from their former neighbours. Violence against them is justified, sometimes with religious backing. The entire atmosphere is poisoned by hate. This past week, where some people seem to be proudly picking on the powerless, has reminded me of that Islamophobic hysteria. I fear for our country and where we are heading.
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