Something is seriously wrong in this country. The authorities should ask themselves this question: who empowered them? However, just like how other incidents were managed e.g. toll rate hike protest, pig farms demolition in Malacca, Bersih event in Trengganu and others, excessive amount of force was used. Is this slowly becoming our culture?
Reported in Malaysiakini.com, The Kampung Rimba Jaya in Padang Jawa, near Shah Alam was a chaotic scene when residents tried to prevent the Shah Alam City Hall from demolishing their houses.
The residents’ attempt to save their homes turned physical and bloody when scores were hurt in the ensuing melee. In the end, over 200 houses, a 100-year-old temple and a surau have been levelled to the ground by the authorities.
Eye witnesses claimed that the MPSA enforcement officers were beating people with batons. "I saw an enforcement officer pulling out a knife and waving it around threateningly," said Kumaravel. It took almost three hours to demolish the Sri Maha Mariaman temple. The temple's nursery was the first to be demolished when the exercise began yesterday morning.
Suhakam commissioners slammed the authorities for the 'inhumane' treatment. Suhakam commissioner Dr Denison Jayasooria said the incident showed that the authorities did not have respect for religious and cultural sensitivities. “The authorities may have state or legal right to carry out the demolition, but the manner in which it was conducted requires far greater consideration,” he told a press conference at the Suhakam headquarters in Kuala Lumpur today.
“Suhakam has been repeating this so many times. But the authorities seem to be deaf. They cannot display simple human decency in responding to a crisis. “Why make it a crisis when it can be settled amicably?” he said, adding that the demolition was untimely since the Hindu festival of Deepavali was only a week away.
Something is seriously wrong if the sensitivities of the 'others' or minorities are not respected and if they are not treated as equals. Politicians must know who they got their power from to govern.
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Have you ever watched the old Cowboy Westerns where a mob of enraged self-righteous people "seek to carry out justice" and conduct a public-square lynching? Change the time and place and a couple of names plus the props and put Hindraff in the plot as the chief evil black hoodlums. I wonder if it would make a good box-office hit?
It is a dangerous sign to monitor the current scenario and plot unfolding in the land of mainstream goverment controlled media. None of these media organisations has given Hindraf or its leaders an equal opprrtunity to present their views or to respond to the overwhelming tirade of accusations levelled against them. Instead, there has been a calculated, slanted and selective barrage of insinuations as well as maximum coverage on unsubstantiated allegations. Djs thought to have joined the march were fired from radio stations, a company with the same name lost its buisness license and the intensity of this momentum is liken to a massive vigilante.
* If sciologists were to evaluate the Barisan controlled-media's turnspeak on Hindraf, it would be entitled "the lust to demonize." It is almost impossible to conduct a meaningful dialogue with a media bound by a Printing Act leash dangling around its neck.
I am reminded of the statesman Dr Tan Chee Khoon, he was one of the few who had the capacity to speak for the downtroden without fear or favor, and that was in an era where the media was not emasculated. Certain government-controlled media have conveniently camoflouged the whole March and dissent as an incidious racial issue, and pre-judged it as a volatile attempt to stir unrest in the country.
It is a winding road often travelled, yet Malaysians are not as gullible as the establishment envisions it to be. All government newspapers are tools of state propaganda. Even a first-year Universiti Sains Malaysia student of journalism can tell us that. Even a padi farmer in Arau can preach that pertinent point to his children. Those who buy and read government-owned newspapers are news junkies subjecting themselves to Official Knowledge crafted to suit the need of the owners of the means of producing propaganda. However, it is interesting to monitor the scope of how far the media has become agents of the executive.
All government newspapers are used to skillfully silence and kill opposing viewpoints, albeit couched in some proclamation of free speech. It has been used to engineer risings, uprisings and downfalls. It has been bought and sold by those who have the means to buy and sell politicians.The same goes for the government-owned television stations. They are shapers of consciousness, they will condition those unwilling to unplug themselves from the propaganda of the regime, and uncritical citizens end up victims of the establishment agenda of racial and religous subjugation.
No other Malaysian community can deny that Malaysian Indians have been crushed for decades. The tarred roads they laboured over have almost become a painful reflection of their marginalisation, while others have long passed that road to acheive their dreams. For decades the community, their children and peoples continue to face the same cycle of poverty, discrimination and disenfranchisement.
The Indians have often stood with others in the cause of fighting against injustices, often to the point of losing the little finances they have. They have often walked championing the cause of emancipation for other minorities while losing their own, and often at the expsense of their own lives. Invariably, when Indians stand up for their own plight, they stand alone.This predicament after five decades of oppression will not get them any standing ovation, other than continued “Police prison lock up mystery deaths” and a stoic establishment silence. There is no just solution or determination to prosecute those who perpetrated brutal killings of their families in slums such as Kampong Medan.
Selective journalism has been with us long before the oldest profession. And it does exhibit its “assets” for maximum appeal. It amuses me to varying degrees of hilarity and sorrow as to how far some would go to legitamize their prejudice and religous bigotry against Malaysian Indians who have been marginalised. The Printing Press Act table could have had an adverse effect on institutionalised loyalty and allegiance. Rice bowl journalism however does create a dependence that is hard to disenggage from.
It is interesting to observe that none of the goverment-controlled media has dared to break ranks from the establishment leash or to feature an independent non-biased interview with Uthayakumar. On the contray they sought to seek some high profile exclusive interviews with both royal and common subjects on the road to deliver the goods.Invariably, the Hindraf march has been portrayed as one that is both seditious and militant in orientation. The issue of multiple deaths of Indians in prison or the Kampong Medan killings is avoided as it were a contagion.
So far none of the State owned media has taken Umno Youth keris waving politicians to task of inciting racial or religous sentiment. Threats of ethnic cleansing made by keris waving and flag burning are prominently highlighted by these media organizations, while the less influential minorities with little economic clout on the other hand are admonished and coerced to apologize for using their voices. In other words, the marginalised Malaysian Indians is only qualified to be the nation's top candidate for the heaviest possible crush.
Should the marginalised Malaysian Indians and other minorities smile and politely nod and sing praises to the goverment's "ketuanan Melayu" concept? It was and is being championed as an ethic of wholesome value, while any hint of protest against it will be construed as an anti-national threat to nation and security that will result a quick confrontation and deportation to Kamunting. Perhaps it is a silencing Malaysian Indians and other minorities will eventually be legislated "to get used to". The subliminal reasoning postulated is that the non-bumis will eventually come around and embrace ketuanan Melayu just like a keris that is raised with "pantuns" and choruses that call for it to be bathed in blood. Are there any journalists left in the mainstream media with professional and journalistic chutzpah to critic such blatant racism?
Legitimate issues brought up by Hindraf should not be eclipsed by selective journalism or propaganda. None of the goverment-controlled media dared to report how the Police and FRU bulldozed the Batu Caves temple and shot chemical-laced water jets and tear gas into captive crowds. The establishment potrays all foreign media including the BBC and other independent news agencies as "enemies" united against the government. Such allegations will no longer influence or work against Malaysians who wish to get a balance and fair coverage of issues.
The local Press failed its readers and took their support for granted when they launched a tirade of unconfirmed “scoops” like the allegation that Hindraf members had attacked an Indian restaurant in Brickfields(Paandi). Even in their retraction (when the restaurant owners had confirmed that the report was false and that he had not spoken to any reporter or news agency), the Star failed to print a retraction. Sri Paandi Restaurant boss Mr Thomas and Mr Kumar denies making any allegation against Hindraf or to indicate that they were responsible for an attack by thugs at his restaurant. Nevertheless, Tv1, Tv2, Tv3 or NTV7, Bernama and The Malay Mail quoted that he did. Such media abuses and maneuvering will lead people to further distrust it. And the beat goes on.
In my opinion, Indians of various religous background and persuasions will stand with Hindraf for the following reasons:
Firstly, Hindraf has a legitimate right to speak out against the systematic ethnic cleansing of poor and marginalised Indians that has manifested over the past three decades. There is irrefutable evidence of this in the aspect of multiple deaths or “Police related lock-up deaths” and the involment of other personnel in carrying out such dastardly attacks. Uthayakumar himself has documented death threats against him and the destruction to his car and property over the years he has spent exposing these injustices
Secondly, Indians of other religous and ethnic persuasions have witnessed similar violations against them, the destruction of churches and property including the removal of crosses and statues in Christian schools and Convents as well as attacks against the Orang Asli in the interior. There is documented evidence of these and other violations and the goverment must demonstrate sincerity in its claim to openess to executing justice for these oppressed groups.
Thirdly, the current MIC leadership has failed to bring economic, social or cultural emancipation to the community. There needs to be a new impetus and reformation in seeking development and breakthrough for the community. Investigate and make public the real culprits who attacked and killed the 5 Indians and injured over 100 others in the Kampong Medan racial attacks tragedy from March 8th 2001 to March 22nd March 2001.
Malaysians owe themselves the duty to investigate the 1,000 over police reports against the various authorities for the shoot to kill of hundreds of suspects and the mysterious deaths of hundreds in police custody (60% estimated to be Indians who only from 8% of the population). Hundreds of Indian “suspects unlawfully arrested, detained, beaten-up and tortured, hundreds of hindu temples demolished at the rate of one hindu temple in every three weeks and scores of hindu temples forced to relocate next to sewerage tanks.
Investigate the unreported information on Hindraf's letters,(over one thousand), memorandums, appeals protest notes scores of Civil Suits to the Prime Minister Ministers, Attorney General, Inspector General of Police, Chief Ministers and the other Malaysian authorities. Detailed reports on racism, marginalization and captive colonialism of the Indians in Malaysia.
Hindraf’s track record of legal and peaceful struggle is irrefutable and the campaign to mislead the Malaysian public that it has links to terrorits groups is a pernicious political ploy to divert attention of these continued injustices and violations. This continued media demonization of Hindraf is counterproductive and serves only to promote the narrow racist policies. Fear and intimidation should not be the motivation in dealing with greviances of any community. Is the promise given by Prime Minister to hear the truth even if it hurts still valid?
Hindraf’s track record of legal and peaceful struggle is verifiable and the campaign to mislead the Malaysian public that it has links to terrorits groups is a pernicious political ploy to divert attention from atrocities faced by the Malaysian Indian community.This continued media demonization of Hindraf is counterproductive and the culture of fear and intimidation should not be endorsed.
When media control becomes interlocked with political parties and business interests, the selling of lies and half-truths become more savvy, sophisticated and salivating. The story of poverty and why people become poor will not be told - the truth will hurt and bring governments down.
We are all, in our own way, turning into journalists telling our own truth. In my definition truth is an objective verifiable criteria independent of viewpoint or consensus. Why independent of a goverment-controlled media? Because true non-selective journalism conforms to the constitution of reality, and a knowledge of things as they are. The people is entitle to that.
We no longer need a media that present us with half-truths. We need our cell-phone cameras, our blogs, and our will to speak truth without apology. The fast rate of Internet penetration in Malaysia will see the proliferation of ‘citizen journalists and commentators’ who will continue to exercise their rights to free speech. Nothing can stop the bloggers from providing alternative truths or truths that matter. It is pivotal that other communities stand with Hindraf in their struggle to liberate the Indian community from its captive status.
When one chooses to remains silent when a minority is being crushed, it may reap silence when if falls on them. Now is the time to make the choice to use your voice.
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