THE INDIAN MARGINALIZATION ISSUE NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED IN A COMPREHENSIVE MANNER.
74 percent of the Indians (1,295,775 out of a total 1,749,639 Indians in the country – year 2000 census) live in the 5 states controlled by the Pakatan Government (at least till Perak fell into a Limbo) and the Federal Territory of KL. This is a substantial opportunity for the Pakatan Governments to consolidate the support of the marginalized Indians, who form a large section of the Indian community.
Let me suggest a few things that the Pakatan State government should begin doing now so that it will be a win – win situation for the marginalized Indians and the PR governments:
1) Knowing that primary education is Primary, the PR State Governments in all these states should draw up a comprehensive plan of allocating land to all the Primary schools in the state that are not on their own land or are in very confined spaces.
This is well within the authority of the Pakatan Governments. They can prepare the way for a revamp of the Primary School system for the marginalized poor. This will set the stage for an improved future for this group. The state government should get off the mindset that the federal government holds the purse strings in education and therefore they have to wait to get federal government cooperation before they can move on this rather serious issue.
Look at the history, on which issue has the BN government cooperated with the PR government. So, the PR state governments should not wait but should get on with the task of identifying the lands for these schools per the national standards and alienate the land to the schools. This will all surely take some time and maybe after this is done the BN government may not want to be outdone and may come up with money and other resources for the remainder.
2) The Pakatan State governments can begin setting up appropriate Citizens groups (NGOs) to begin understanding the many social issues that invariably exist within marginalized groups to determine what needs to be done and then to draw up plans to address them . All they need to do is to work with organizations like Hindraf to set up necessary NGOs for this purpose. They can fund and resource these groups.
The social problems are many and clear plans need to be drawn up to address the issues comprehensively. This is a long haul effort. There are no shortcuts. The problem is multiplying.
There was a recent report that 100,000 Indian youths are involved in some criminal activity (reported by the erstwhile BN Human Resources Minister). In the census quoted above,in the year 2000, a total of 234,000 male Indian youths are in the age group of 15 to 29 years. This means about 40% of the Indian youth are at risk. This is a very serious problem by any measure.
This probably is what Uthayakumar was always alluding to in saying what he did that got him into Kamunting. Can he be faulted for saying what he did, when such a big problem has crept up on all of us?
Think what happens when they become parents in their turn. Think how this problem will multiply. So, who is going to address this problem if it continues to languish because of the racial mindset in everything? The Pakatan Government should start seeing these things with a national perspective. These are clear nation building issues. Our human potential is going wasted because of the mismanagement of the country. This is a significant opportunity for Pakatan to live out its Electoral promise of a New Dawn.
3) There are significant issues of citizenship documentation within large numbers of this marginalized group. Resources can be applied by the PR State Governments to locate and to resolve the problems, as the BN recently did in Lubok Antu in Sarawak.
The problem with the birth certificates and ICs is a problem of poverty, ignorance, mistaken beliefs, attitudes, practices of customary marriages, out of wedlock births, child runaways, broken homes and such issues that directly are caused by poverty and deprivation.
To top it all off, the Government Bureaucracy is totally insensitive to this situation. They do not provide an iota of assistance to help these people regain their lost rights. Lately the JPN is going through some motions to do something about all this. The mindsets at the counters in the various Pendaftaran offices are that the applicants deserve the problem they find themselves in. They should have done it right in the first place, but did not, so whose fault is it. Anyway they are of Indian ethnic origin – pendatang. This is the mindset and anyone who does not think so, should go and spend a day at the Pendaftaran office and they will find out themselves.
Plus, the procedures for correcting this situation are so complicated, that even the strong among us can be brought to our knees. What of these people.
The PR State Governments should start a publicity campaign, identify the people with such problems, help them to meet all the documentation requirements and then work through the bureaucracy to finally resolve the issues and get these people what is their right. This will truly be the kind of thing that a Government of the people should be doing for the people.
This is another very serious situation, as there are so many without these documentation who are being exploited in various ways, who are underemployed, who are just waiting to find a way out by engaging in criminal activity. They have anyway been excluded.
4 Allocate affordable housing for those in dire need of such housing. The State Government sponsored NGOs can be assigned to identify and work with the respective Administrative units to appropriately allocate low cost housing units to those in true need.
There apparently are low cost housing projects with one or two room units available – but few people seem to know about this.
All of this can be readily and easily addressed by the Pakatan Governments.
5) Small business help can be provided to create employment opportunities for the poor and marginalized. These include providing micro credit to purchase the basic tools of some trade, providing some licences, maybe identifying spaces and providing for such other basic needs of people in these situations.
These could include training programs in the conduct of business or training in some skills that can create a viable and sustainable income. A Government of the people should take all this seriously and start on some program like this. Again NGO assistance can also be used.
6) Training programs to develop employable skills can be initiated for the 18 – 25 group as special programs for the groups at risk. Skills that will help them realize their human potential.
There are agencies that can be recruited to advise the Governments on such programs. There is plenty that has already been done for the Bumiputra community in this area; similar efforts need to be instituted for the marginalized Indian poor.
It is time that something comprehensive like all of this is attempted so that the Indian poor and marginalized can see that they equal citizens of Malaysia, so they can regain their pride and position in our country. Also this will certainly make them feel they were right in supporting the Pakatan Government in these 5 states.
The attempts to address the issues must be sincere, not superficial, not piecemeal but comprehensive. The issue is National in character and must not be argued away as a narrow racial issue, as I see being done often when this problem is raised. This is what the aggrieved Indians are looking for immediately. All other social and political reforms that are needed only come after.
So, Pakatan Government, what are you all waiting for?
No comments:
Post a Comment