[ad_1]
YOUR OPINION The | “We have to be cautious with our select few, who will always continue to attack ours.”
They will attack us when they are in numbers: Rais in Rohingya and other races.
Federal Bakery: Pronouns like ‘kita’ (us) are dangerous when you use it in opposition to a group that you consider different from you, as ex-minister and head of Negeri Sembilan Bersatu, Rais Yatim, does in his tweet: first separate from the Rohingyas and then to equate the Rohingyas with the ‘kaum lain’ (other races) that he claimed came in the 1920s under Britain.
Rais does not explain who the “we” are as opposed to his “kaum lain”. Is it just your ignorant little self?
Or does it include Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan and Terengganu, all formerly under Siam until the British incorporated them into the territory that now forms Malaysia? Are these states also the “kaum lain”, the others?
Does it also exclude from the “we” the people of Sabah and Sarawak, who were also “brought” by the British?
Warn “us” to learn from history. Rais is not a historian, he is not a humanist, and he is not even consistent with his beliefs. I just want to remind Rais that both history and law are on the side of his “kaum lain”.
Rais has no better claim to “us” than those who came to these territories to eventually form the Federation of Malaya and then Malaysia. Rais has no right to a predominant “we”. His statement of that is no better than that of any of his “kaum lain”.
I would say more about this man’s emptiness, but the hundreds of responses from Malaysiakini Readers of his prank already give him too much credit, certainly the only credit he would have for his name when he meets the guard at the last door.
Anonymous_07cd875d: I have always had great respect for Rais as a senior politician, but he has disappointed me and many others with his statement regarding “the country’s past experience of accepting other races” (when it comes to Rohingya refugees).
Obviously he is referring to the Chinese, Indians, and Indonesians. He should have limited his statement to the current situation regarding Rohingya “refugees”.
I am deeply hurt by his statement, and my sentiment is shared by millions of patriotic Malaysians of various ethnic backgrounds. Rais should rightfully apologize to all Malaysians for his verbal outburst.
David Dass: “Let’s learn from history to side with strangers,” said Rais. There are no lessons in our history that can be learned here. Rais draws a bad analogy.
The Indians and Chinese who were brought here in the early 20th century by an established government to assist in building the nation’s infrastructure and economy. They were not refugees. His contribution to nation building was enormous.
Malaya was relatively sparsely populated at the time and the Malaysian rulers, on the advice of British advisers, decided to import labor from foreign lands.
India and China were ideal places to obtain hired labor. The people there were prepared to live and work in very difficult and dangerous conditions for very little pay.
Rohingyas are refugees fleeing persecution from Myanmar. There may be some troublemakers among them. But the vast majority strive to survive in very difficult circumstances.
It is a decision for us to decide whether we choose to absorb them into our population. The other option is to wait for issues in Myanmar to be resolved or for third countries to host them as refugees.
GooseNBanter: Since the 1920s, we have been divided between the elites among us who persecuted power and political positions (something we have been doing to this day) and the majority among us who were content to take care of the field and the herd. We mistreat ours.
While the elites among us sent our children to schools abroad, there was a majority who were content with “sekolah pondok” and mission schools set up by “strangers.”
These select few among us stoke the fear of the majority to apostasy from outside religions and stoke the fear that outsiders monopolize the trade that rightfully belongs to the bumiputeras.
And they fueled many other fears that mutilated the minds of the majority and made them cringe under the “protection” of a select few.
Those majority of us today are still unnerved by fear that they cannot help after years of being psychologically mutilated by themselves.
The chosen few have left the majority still struggling far behind. The select few have been racking up billions of ringgits that, if shared, would have elevated the status of the majority in the past 60 years. A state in which the majority continues to fight.
And therefore we must be cautious of our own select few, rather than of the 1920 outsiders, who will always continue to attack our own.
Quigonbond: Rais, are you suggesting that the Indians and the Chinese are “meowing” to Malaysia? Surely the police should investigate him by incitement.
Anonymous_1565629164778.0191565628799150: Rais, open your eyes and look around you. The world speaks of globalization, life on Mars, artificial intelligence that replaces low-end manual labor.
But all he is concerned about are the refugees from the unfortunate third world that competes with the Malays on this land. After almost 50 years of privileges and special rights, shouldn’t Malay be at least up to the ‘pendatangs’ (immigrants) of the 1920s?
Quo Vadis: Scratch the surface of the old leaders, now happily at their point: you see their true colors. It is not always pretty.
Mazilamani: The holy month of Ramadan is observed as a month of fasting, expiation of past mistakes, being reflective about what we think, say and do, we seek forgiveness from those who have hurt and forgive those who have hurt us.
Christians observe the same thing during Easter.
What good is Ramadan and Easter if our hearts and minds are filled to the brim with thoughts that lead us away from God.
I have the greatest respect for people truly faithful to the religions they adopt, but they are definitely not counterfeits. Rais has a habit of exposing her deepest thoughts at the most unlikely moment.
Selamat pushes all devout Muslims.
YOURSAY | Is race first or religion first?
The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. In the past year, Makinkinians have posted more than 100,000 comments. Enjoy the Malaysiakini community and helps set the news agenda. Subscribe now.
These comments are compiled to reflect the views of Malaysiakini subscribers in matters of public interest. Malaysiakini It is not intended to represent these views as fact.
