There is little the non-Malays can seek solace in when it comes to calling Malaysia their motherland. They are repeatedly reminded not to become too comfortable.
Homophobic, pro-Malay and swear by Barisan Nasional – these are the pre-requisites that will make life comfortable in this country. If, however, you profess otherwise, be prepared to face the worst, as experienced by those who dare stand up for the truth.
Homophobic, pro-Malay and swear by Barisan Nasional – these are the pre-requisites that will make life comfortable in this country. If, however, you profess otherwise, be prepared to face the worst, as experienced by those who dare stand up for the truth.
When Article 153 of the Federal Constitution which guarantees Malay rights was debated by the non-Malays, blood shed was threatened by the ultra-Malays. The voices of the extremists were joined by leaders like Hishammuddin Hussein, now the home minister, who waved the Malay dagger or keris during the Umno general assembly, making it loud and clear that non-Malays better keep their mouths shut.
Even former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has warned the non-Malays to tread carefully, never forgetting that they owe it to the Malays for having Malaysia as their home.
When the non-Malays complained that the azan or the Muslim call for prayer was too loud for comfort, they were again threatened with violence.
Needless to say, there is little the non-Malays can seek solace in when it comes to calling Malaysia their motherland. They are repeatedly reminded not to become too comfortable on the very land they have been calling home for years.
Also warned to tread carefully in their home country is the LGBT community (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender). The scenario in Malaysia is such that the LGBT community must best remain invisible and any attempt to make their presence felt will be dealt with severely, as is now the case with the Seksualiti Merdeka event.
The Seksualiti Merdeka festival, which celebrates the rights of the LGBT community, has been an annual programme since 2008, taking place at the Central Market’s Annexe Gallery. This year’s event, themed “Queer Without Fear” kicked off on Nov 2 and was to go on until Nov 13.
NGOs and political parties including PAS and Perkasa have strongly opposed the event, calling it a celebration of homosexual and transgender lifestyles.
In short, there are “conditions” if the non-Malays and the LGBT are to call Malaysia their “tanah tumpah darahku” or homeland.
Truth is always feared
When on July 9, the rakyat assembled on the streets to participate in Bersih 2.0′s “Walk for Democracy” to call upon the Barisan Nasional government to reform the electoral system, this call for the truth was haphazardly and viciously thwarted.
It is no secret that the country’s polls have been nothing but dirty, with vote buying, rigging and money politics being the norm. When the July 9 rally demanded a clean-up, the event was declared illegal and the entity Bersih 2.0 banned and its chairperson, lawyer Ambiga Sreenevasan branded a traitor. Some pro-Umno characters went so far as to threaten her with gang-rape. Was the “power that be” worried for Ambiga’s safety? Not at all!
Now, it is the LGBT community’s turn to face the wrath of the pro-Umno and BN loyalists. Ultra-Malay set-up Perkasa decided to pen down its objections against Seksualiti Merdeka in black and white before passing it off to the Inspector-General of Police Ismail Omar.
And Perkasa also wants Ambiga, who was due to officiate at the event on Nov 9, to be arrested.
Obnoxious parliamentarians like Bung Mokhtar (Kinabatangan MP) and Zulkifli Noordin (Kulim-Bandar Baru MP) deviated from the original agenda of the day and turned to condemning Seksualiti Merdeka.
Said Bung Mokhtar: “Lately, there is the issue of Sexualiti Merdeka, which Ambiga supports. Your Honour, I am asking for this activity to be blocked. It involves wild relationships that will damage the country and nation. It is planting the seeds for the emergence of wilder relationships.”
Zulkifli had this to say: “This is an event that supports unnatural sex. On top of that, it is supported by Ambiga, who is the Selangor Caliph who spearheaded the illegal rally of Bersih. I hope the Dewan and the home ministry will reject this.”
Drop the hypocrisy, Umno
With censorious voices coming from even Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin who called the Seksualiti Merdeka event “totally non-beneficial” to Malaysians and “immoral”, the police spared not a second and deemed the week-long affair illegal, a day after it opened.
Muhyiddin, representing the voice of the BN government and Umno, said: “I don’t know what our country can gain from this. Umno and the government feel something like that is totally non-beneficial at all. I don’t understand why they are holding this. Does it have any hidden political agendas?”
He reminded the rakyat that Malaysia has clear guidelines and legislations outlawing “unnatural” sexual activities such as sodomy.
Since when has Umno become the moral guardian of this nation? What did the party do when an Umno big-wig raped a teenage schoolgirl years ago? Nothing! And what did Umno do when a then Cabinet minister molested a restaurant worker? Nothing!
That being so, what is Umno’s agenda in the LGBT bashing? Will it hurt Umno if the LGBT votes were no longer favouring the BN alliance, after all the humiliation faced by the LGBT community?
Clearly, if one dares lead the live of truth, much is at stake. But then, to do otherwise would be to act as hypocritical as Umno does and this, under all circumstances, shoud never happen.
Jeswan Kaur is a freelance writer and a FMT columnist.
No comments:
Post a Comment