The mind of Perkasa is 'corrupted by the spirit of zeal and bigotry'.
A firebrand Malay group has been making a lot of threatening noise in its campaign to fight for Malay rights and supremacy. It called itself Perkasa and has rapidly won notoriety for its relentless assaults not on external foes but on the common citizens of other races. It has shed its innocent-looking NGO garb to reveal a blood-curdling ogre bent on creating fear and havoc. Thirsting for a fight, the increasingly militant organisation seizes every opportunity to bare its fangs and spill its venom. Its favourite tactics is to lodge police reports and hold placards in front of the intended target. In its self-anointed role as the guardian of the Malays, it has thrown sanity overboard in pursuing its agenda of total Malay supremacy. Ostensibly, the “brown shirts” are aiming their keris at leaders of ethnic parties for allegedly challenging the rights and special position of the Malays. But in reality their ultimate goal is not hard to guess – cowing the next largest ethnic population into submission. Or getting rid of them altogether. In short, Perkasa is lighting the fuse of an ethnic-cleansing war.
To achieve its dastardly aim, Perkasa has set up a Rela subgroup which has all the strappings of a military wing. Called the “Briged Setia Negara”, the volunteer corps will presumably receive para-military training – how to handle arms and kill with precision? – and will no doubt be called out “to preserve national peace and security” if the government whistles. The government has given the “Doberman” its blessing courtesy of the home ministry, which means that it has the full backing of the ruling party to be the shield of the Bumiputeras and not in response to an external threat. Once activated, one can imagine the armed members going on a rampage to stop citizens from exercising their right to stand up and speak out. It is unlikely the legitimate forces of law and order will stand in their way. As it is, Perkasa members seem to enjoy immunity when it holds rabid protests against its perceived enemies.
Perkasa is playing with fire with its aggressive political posturing. The mind of Perkasa is “corrupted by the spirit of zeal and bigotry”. By flagging the May 13 bogeyman, it is trying to intimidate the non-Malays to submit completely to the will of the dominant race. It threatens a replay of the 1969 race riots in the belief that the other races will back down and will forever keep quiet while waves of extremism wash over the land unchallenged. With its military wing, it probably sees itself as the “angel of death” sanctioned to spread terror and destruction. It gets bolder by the day in the knowledge that it has the tacit support of the two cousins occupying the seats of power. A governing political party needs an armed wing to do the dirty job while it maintains its seemingly neutral stance and caring attitude with its public behaviour. In Perkasa, Umno has found the ideal rabble-rouser to create a climate of dread to serve the Malay agenda.
The Rela or People’s Volunteer Corps that Perkasa has in mind is different from the original Home Guards formed in 1948. Then there was real and tangible threat – the communist menace, the Indonesian “confrontation” and the racial conflict. When the Home Guards or volunteer brigade was finally disbanded, its place was taken over by Rela in 1974 to preserve the peace of the land. It became the eyes and ears of the government. Now Perkasa’s Rela – a subgroup in the organisation – has become the binoculars and loudspeakers of Umno in their common objective to promote the 1Melayu power base. The friends of Umno are now regarded as threats to national security and therefore must be confronted with force. By resurrecting the May 13 ghost, is Perkasa saying the old Home Guards played a sterling role in the killing fields? Is Perkasa’s Rela ready to shed blood again all in the name of Malay supremacy? Its provocative behaviour seems to invite trouble.
Perkasa wants to propagate a “narrow-minded” 1Melayu, 1Bumi concept with only the Malays standing tall. It wants to turn it into a movement first mooted by an ultra Malay language newspaper. The Malay daily and Perkasa have joined forces to confront the political allies of the ruling party and the communities they represent. Their message is clear: oppose the Malays at your own peril. The subtext is the Malays do not need the support of their partners to survive a political battle. They can rule on their own which means Perkasa and its militant Rela can impose their extremist will without any hindrance. When this happens, an iron curtain will surely descend on the country separating the Bumiputeras from their fellow citizens. Two hostile camps. Two antagonistic forces. Two irreconcilable principles. Perkasa and its commander-in-chief Ibrahim Ali, however, cannot bask in strength of numbers. When minorities are pushed to the wall, they have no choice but to turn back – and fight for their lives.
A firebrand Malay group has been making a lot of threatening noise in its campaign to fight for Malay rights and supremacy. It called itself Perkasa and has rapidly won notoriety for its relentless assaults not on external foes but on the common citizens of other races. It has shed its innocent-looking NGO garb to reveal a blood-curdling ogre bent on creating fear and havoc. Thirsting for a fight, the increasingly militant organisation seizes every opportunity to bare its fangs and spill its venom. Its favourite tactics is to lodge police reports and hold placards in front of the intended target. In its self-anointed role as the guardian of the Malays, it has thrown sanity overboard in pursuing its agenda of total Malay supremacy. Ostensibly, the “brown shirts” are aiming their keris at leaders of ethnic parties for allegedly challenging the rights and special position of the Malays. But in reality their ultimate goal is not hard to guess – cowing the next largest ethnic population into submission. Or getting rid of them altogether. In short, Perkasa is lighting the fuse of an ethnic-cleansing war.To achieve its dastardly aim, Perkasa has set up a Rela subgroup which has all the strappings of a military wing. Called the “Briged Setia Negara”, the volunteer corps will presumably receive para-military training – how to handle arms and kill with precision? – and will no doubt be called out “to preserve national peace and security” if the government whistles. The government has given the “Doberman” its blessing courtesy of the home ministry, which means that it has the full backing of the ruling party to be the shield of the Bumiputeras and not in response to an external threat. Once activated, one can imagine the armed members going on a rampage to stop citizens from exercising their right to stand up and speak out. It is unlikely the legitimate forces of law and order will stand in their way. As it is, Perkasa members seem to enjoy immunity when it holds rabid protests against its perceived enemies.
Perkasa is playing with fire with its aggressive political posturing. The mind of Perkasa is “corrupted by the spirit of zeal and bigotry”. By flagging the May 13 bogeyman, it is trying to intimidate the non-Malays to submit completely to the will of the dominant race. It threatens a replay of the 1969 race riots in the belief that the other races will back down and will forever keep quiet while waves of extremism wash over the land unchallenged. With its military wing, it probably sees itself as the “angel of death” sanctioned to spread terror and destruction. It gets bolder by the day in the knowledge that it has the tacit support of the two cousins occupying the seats of power. A governing political party needs an armed wing to do the dirty job while it maintains its seemingly neutral stance and caring attitude with its public behaviour. In Perkasa, Umno has found the ideal rabble-rouser to create a climate of dread to serve the Malay agenda.
The Rela or People’s Volunteer Corps that Perkasa has in mind is different from the original Home Guards formed in 1948. Then there was real and tangible threat – the communist menace, the Indonesian “confrontation” and the racial conflict. When the Home Guards or volunteer brigade was finally disbanded, its place was taken over by Rela in 1974 to preserve the peace of the land. It became the eyes and ears of the government. Now Perkasa’s Rela – a subgroup in the organisation – has become the binoculars and loudspeakers of Umno in their common objective to promote the 1Melayu power base. The friends of Umno are now regarded as threats to national security and therefore must be confronted with force. By resurrecting the May 13 ghost, is Perkasa saying the old Home Guards played a sterling role in the killing fields? Is Perkasa’s Rela ready to shed blood again all in the name of Malay supremacy? Its provocative behaviour seems to invite trouble.
Perkasa wants to propagate a “narrow-minded” 1Melayu, 1Bumi concept with only the Malays standing tall. It wants to turn it into a movement first mooted by an ultra Malay language newspaper. The Malay daily and Perkasa have joined forces to confront the political allies of the ruling party and the communities they represent. Their message is clear: oppose the Malays at your own peril. The subtext is the Malays do not need the support of their partners to survive a political battle. They can rule on their own which means Perkasa and its militant Rela can impose their extremist will without any hindrance. When this happens, an iron curtain will surely descend on the country separating the Bumiputeras from their fellow citizens. Two hostile camps. Two antagonistic forces. Two irreconcilable principles. Perkasa and its commander-in-chief Ibrahim Ali, however, cannot bask in strength of numbers. When minorities are pushed to the wall, they have no choice but to turn back – and fight for their lives.
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