Waythamoorthy to continue hunger strike

He will stop fasting if Prime Minister Najib agrees to endorse the Hindraf blueprint at a meeting slated for tomorrow noon at Putrajaya.

RAWANG: A three-man delegation from Hindraf Makkal Sakti will meet Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak in Putrajaya on Monday at 12 noon for talks on the civil rights movement’s five-year blueprint alright.

But that does not mean Hindraf supremo P Waythamoorthy would end his hunger strike, which had completed 14 days. Neither would Hindraf throw its support to Barisan Nasional automatically.

Waythamoorthy today insisted that he would continue with his hunger virutham (hunger strike) until either political blocks – Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat, or both, endorsed Hindraf’s blueprint in writing.

He said Hindraf would meet the prime minister tomorrow to seek his written endorsement to implement permanent solutions as manifested in its blueprint for the marginalised Indians.

“We won’t settle for piece-meal solutions,” a resolute Waythamoorthy told FMT.

He is fasting in a Hindu temple here to compel BN and Pakatan to endorse its blueprint designed to uplift the downtrodden segment of ethnic Indians. He has been surviving only by drinking plain water and is physically weak.

Najib’s meeting with the Hindraf delegation – Waythamoorthy, his deputy W Sambulingam and the movement advisor N Ganesan – could be a crucial twist to the premier’s political plot to regain lost ethnic Indian electorate ground in the forthcoming general election.

No prime minister-cum-BN chairman-cum-Umno president has ever agreed to hold official talks with Hindraf anyway.

Just five years ago, BN federal government outlawed Hindraf for reasons best known to Putrajaya administration.

Prior to that, Putrajaya revoked Waythamoorthy’s passport, forcing him to live in Britain for four years under political asylum.

But things changed after Najib took over the premiership from Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in 2009.

Shortly after becoming the prime minister, Najib released the detained Hindraf activists under the now repealed Internal Security Act from Kamunting Detention Centre.

In July this year, Najib issued Waythamoorthy a valid Malaysian passport, allowing the Hindraf leader to return home. Two months ago, his government lifted the banned on Hindraf.

Now he wants to meet Hindraf officials to deliberate on the blueprint.

Ganesan told FMT that Najib’s invitation to Hindraf on March 22 for talks clearly showed that he recognised the movement as a powerful voice for the voiceless ethnic Indian working class.

Pakatan’s lost

Meanwhile, many Hindraf supporters and well-wishers have been visiting the ailing Waythamoorthy at the temple.

Some advised him to end his fast while others hailed him as hero for sacrificing his life for the ethnic Indian cause.

Among them were M Meenachi and K Kanimoli from Simpang Ampat, Penang, and T Saroja and M Punitha from Baling, Kedah.

They all supported Waythamoorthy’s hunger strike, saying that political parties cannot go on sweeping issues crippling the marginalised Indians under the carpet.

They said virtually all Indians have been affected by racism in both public and private sectors.

Given both BN and Pakatan failed to endorse Hindraf’s blueprint until today, they and other family members would abstain from the next election.

“We will support whoever endorses the Hindraf blueprint,” avowed the four ladies, who all voted for Pakatan in the last election.

A 65-year-old visitor, who wants to be named only as Ragu, said he and seven other family members have always voted for DAP in Rasah constituency.

But, he said Waythamoorthy’s hunger strike had made him realise that DAP was a chauvinistic party draped in a multi-racial veil.

“Why should we now give our votes to DAP?” he asked.

Observers insisted that if Najib takes the bold step to endorse Hindraf’s blueprint and vowed to implement permanent solutions to end working class Indian plight, BN could regain its traditional parliamentary two-thirds.

“Pakatan will be finished,” some said.

Hindraf and the crisis of conscience

COMMENT The Hindu Rights Movement (Hindraf) played an important catalytic role in waking up Malaysians to the dismal failure of the BN formula of race-based policy-making and its poor implementation.

It led the way and brought Malaysians to the streets. It contributed to wiping out BN's two-thirds majority.

Declared illegal, hounded and disempowered, its leader P Waytharmoorty (right) is in his second week of a 'hunger viratham'.

Although there are other groups of Malaysians in the same boat or in a worse state, the Indian poor has become a potent symbol of all that is wrong with Malaysia.

The bitter fruits of the corruption and systemic failure of the government's implementation of the NEP and the NDP is partially acknowledged by the Najib administration and addressed by generous handouts labeled as BR1M.
Struggling to make ends meet
After more than fifty years in power and especially decades of rapid economic growth, giving out BR1M because Malaysians are struggling to make ends meet is a terrible indictment for a country that is oil-rich, the 13th largest trading economy in the world, and one that is headed for developed status in seven years.

If inflation, as the mainstream press has reported, is at 1.2 percent and the economy is performing so well, income disparity remains a major problem.

Which brings us back to Hindraf and the problems the movement is highlighting about the Indian poor in Malaysia.

There is no disputing that there are other groups of Malaysians who are equally poor or even worse off.

The main argument put forward by Hindraf is that the situation for the Indian poor is more acute because it is a direct result of institutionalised racism and the failure of the government (whether BN or Pakatan) to address the issue.

The issue of poverty is intractable enough, its proponents claim, without being made worse by ethnicity-based policies, racism and religious discrimination.

In short, it is bad enough being discriminated against because of the colour of your skin but much worse to be stereotyped and despised because of your way of life, religion and culture.

It is more than a movement to highlight the discrimination by the government, it is a national struggle for dignity and respect from the wider Malaysian society.
Fasting in protest
One of Hindraf's leaders and some of its followers, including non-Indians, are now fasting to protest their situation.

They want the Hindraf Blueprint to be fully incorporated into the manifestos of the political coalitions contesting the 13th general elections.

It is, they argue, the only way to break the glass-walls of Malaysia's race-based policies, which is so pervasive that both coalitions are committed to upholding it.

There is also an additional class element that Hindraf is highlighting, the propertied and moneyed class that make up Malaysia's elite, who by and large want business as usual.

In going beyond ethnic politics, some in Pakatan have argued that one has to move away from policies that address one ethnic group alone.

Whilst Hindraf itself acknowledges that Pakatan has accepted some of their blueprint recommendations, the sticking point is Pakatan's refusal to promise enacting policies that are tailored to the Indian poor specifically.

This, Pakatan said, will be going back to square one.

Many overtures
The BN, through the initiatives of Premier Najib Razak, have made many overtures to Hindu Malaysians.

Brickfields in KL, for example, is now brightly lighted and has been spruced up and promoted as a national tourist destination.

It is "Little India" that, if the BN wins convincingly with Indian support, can be expanded throughout the country.

Tamil schools have been provided with bigger budgets although the carry-through has not met the mark.

The MIC, embattled since the 2008 GE, has been given the opportunity to deal directly with Indian Malaysians through BR1M and other 1Malaysia programmes.

All this, Hindraf and detractors of the BN claim, is mere window-dressing.

Can we expect the BN to re-structure and address the problems associated with Indian Malaysians more comprehensively? If it continues to outsource Indian issues to the MIC, can the problems ever be solved?

The problem with appealing with both coalitions is that one is at the tender mercies of politicians.

As individuals they may be decent and committed but once in a group, they have to make expedient decisions.

Hindraf will not get its desired objectives without support from all Malaysians.

Herein lies the rub, for is Malaysia really facing a crisis of conscience when they can see their fellow Indian Malaysians taking to the streets, filling up prison cells, dying in police custody, forcibly removed from plantations, drifting into the cities with no social security and being forced to accept BR1M and other handouts?

When the Sabah was "intruded" upon by foreign elements, Malaysians went ballistic with patriotism.

Some even suggested going into Mindanao to take out the Sulu sultanate.

But when the disenfranchisement of their fellow Malaysians happen gradually before their eyes, we see, hear and say "no evil".
Comprehensive solution
The solutions that Hindraf seeks will not be found on the political platform.

Yet, they are right to insist on a blueprint that will force the public eye on the problems faced by the Indian poor.

Malaysians have to do a lot of soul-searching to find innovative ways to come out with a comprehensive solution.

If we regard this as an "ethnic" issue, we might as well vote for the coalition that has the longest experience managing them.

Hindraf like other movements dedicated to the cause of a minority group has to be radical and aggressive.

So long as they keep within the law and do not resort to extra-constitutional means to achieve their goals, they have the right to fight their cause.

The government recognised that right recently when it declared that the movement was no longer illegal.

Whilst there is no denying that Hindraf is a ethno-religious movement focusing on the Hindu poor, solutions that they seek need not be based upon more "ethnic-based" policies.

I do not believe that more of the same will help the Indian poor.

It will take all the talents in Malaysia to figure out how to alleviate poverty, narrow the income gap and create a more equitable society.

Hindraf forced us to stare at inequality in Malaysia squarely in the eye but in finding solutions to the problems it highlights, we may yet find the solutions to intractable larger issue of Malaysia's unequal society.

Ultimately, it is about dignity and respect.

Handouts, festivals, free food and patronage do not solve problems. They are in fact part of the problem.

To level the playing field, to provide a human being a proper head start, we need to restore to them a healthy sense of self-respect.

India has given the world some of its oldest religions. It is the land of the Buddha and of Gandhi.

If we have enough respect for each other, half the battle is already won. Unfortunately, we are not even near crisis point on this important issue.

Our conscience seems to have been seared.

It contains no impressions!

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NEIL KHOR completed his PhD at Cambridge University and now writes occasionally on matters that he thinks require better historical treatment. He is quietly optimistic about Malaysia's future.

PM finally to meet Hindraf leaders tomorrow

(Malaysiakini) Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has finally scheduled to meet leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) movement tomorrow, two months after the government lifted its ban on the group.

As Hindraf is one of the best recognised groups speaking up on Indian-related issues, the meeting is likely targetted to help Najib shore up his Indian support prior to dissolving Parliament.

"(Hindraf chief) P Waythamoorthy has received an invitation from the prime minister on March 22 for talks on Hindraf's five-year blueprint.

"This has been discussed within the leadership of Hindraf and it has been decided to accept the invitation," Hindraf advisor N Ganesan told Malaysiakini.

The meeting is scheduled to take place tomorrow at the Prime Minister's Office at 12pm.
Ganesan said Hindraf would be represented by a three-man delegation, but did not name whom.

The meeting comes as Waythamoorthy enters his 15th day of his solo hunger strike to highlight the movement's blueprint.

‘Pakatan talks stalled’

Hindraf had previously met with Pakatan Rakyat's leadership to highlight its blueprint to uplift the Indian poor, but talks have stalled after the movement demanded seats to contest in the next general election.

PKR supremo Anwar Ibrahim has also appeared reluctant to give a full endorsement of Hindraf’s blueprint, although he has since added some demands into the Pakatan manifesto.

Waythamoorthy in a recent interview with Malaysiakini dismissed any possibility of an electoral pact with BN, saying that the ruling coalition has "a long way to come" compared to Pakatan Rakyat.

However, he had said that he would still submit Hindraf's blueprint for endorsement should Najib meet with the movement.

Najib has been working hard to court the Indian community since taking office in 2009 and on Jan 25 lifted the over four-year ban against Hindraf.

The PM’s agreement to finally meet Hindraf comes as time runs out on Najib to call the next general election.

While Parliament will only expire on April 28, Negeri Sembilan will be the first state assembly to be automatically dissolve next Wednesday and analysts predict that the premier may call for polls before then, in order to not appear weak.

‘Outlawed under Abdullah’

Hindraf was outlawed on Oct 14, 2008 by then Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar under the administration of former PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

The government had then described Hindraf as a threat to public order, the security and sovereignty of the country as well as the prevailing racial harmony if left unchecked.

Hindraf had earned the ire of the government after it mobilised more than 30,000 Indians onto the streets of Kuala Lumpur on Nov 25, 2007 in a bid to highlight the marginalisation of the community.

The historic street protest is credited as one of the contributing factors for the March 8, 2008 electoral setback for BN that saw Indian support for the ruling coalition dramatically reduced.

The BN lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament that it had held since the coalition’s creation in 1973.

Some two weeks after the 2007 rally, five Hindraf leaders were detained under the Internal Security Act for two years.  

Hindraf critics are demonizing the victims

Written by Dr V.S. Paraman

Nyam Kee Han may be young in age but the comment made by this activist of the ‘Sahabat Rakyat’ human rights group is mature. He had said: “Any real reform agenda could never be successful by ignoring, neglecting and sidelining a selection of marginalised citizens…”.

If only the many experienced governments had listened to the concerns of their marginalised and disgruntled groups, and practised policies of inclusion, they could have been avoided the high cost to lives and threat to internal security.

Below are examples albeit the list is not exhaustive:

Irish Republican Army and the British government

The dispute, which began as a struggle for home rule, was drawn out over many years. After it descended into an armed conflict and spread into England, extensive damage was inflicted on the UK economic structure and security. Although loathed by British public and politicians, the IRA enjoyed financial and moral support from the American Irish community. The then Prime Minister Tony Blair eventually brought the IRA to the discussion table to reach a settlement. Today, the Irish parliament includes elected ex-IRA members.

Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Turkish government

The PKK was a workers union outfit, which began as protectors of improvised ethnic Kurds in Turkey. When the authorities used violence to arrest, intimidate and harass the Kurds for pursuing their ethnic interests, the PKK started an armed campaign to counter the actions of the authorities. The European Union had tried to broker a peace deal but to no success. Although there is some improvement; the Kurds remain marginalised. The EU has used Turkey’s breach of human rights to forestall its entry into the union.

African National Congress and the former apartheid government

The appalling sufferings of the blacks during the white South African rule are well known. Malaysia staged an anti-apartheid concert to support worldwide campaign to free Nelson Mandela, who had run an armed struggle against the racist, ruling government. Following global condemnation of the white government’s apartheid policy, Nelson Mandela was invited to join the reconciliatory council to rebuild the country. Free after 25 years imprisonment, Mandela became the first president from the ANC of South Africa.

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the government

FARC grew from a small peasant organisation to its present unprecedented military strength, in part facilitated by its taxation of illicit drug production. FACR is a product of a lack of government response to the severe hardship faced by peasant farmers. On 27 August 2012, the Colombian government engaged in exploratory talks with FARC to end the internal conflict.

Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA) and the Spanish government

ETA is an armed Basque nationalist and separatist organisation formed in 1959 with an aim to gaining independence for the greater Basque country. On 5 September 2010, ETA declared a new ceasefire and in the following month, the group announced a cession of its armed activity. In November 2012, ETA announced that it would disband its armed wing – a decision welcomed by the government.

Taliban and the Afghanistan government; Somali warlords and the transitional government in Somalia

In these two countries, the examples relate to majority clan warlords who engaged in armed activities to gain military power. After overthrowing their legitimate governments, the Afghan and Somalian warring militia groups had seized land rights from unarmed minority groups. After many years of violent conflicts which totally destroyed the infrastructure in their countries, transitional governments are only now installed to return stability.

Where does Hindraf sit?

Hindraf’s campaign for real freedom sits in line with two other groups that ran a non-violence campaign against its oppressors: the Indian National Congress led by Mahatma Gandhi against the British Empire and the black civil rights group led by Dr Martin Luther King Jr against racial discrimination exercised in southern states of America.

In the first instance, the British government had ridiculed, humiliated and imprisoned Mohandas Gandhi several times to break his resolve for India’s independence from the British.

Gandhi’s practise in truth and non-violence secured him a moral victory over the colonizers. The British was significantly condemned by the international community for being prepared to use violence against an unarmed and non-violent group. Gandhi’s passive resistance had succeeded to buckle a great empire and won India her independence.

In the US, Dr King and his supporters used Gandhi’s non-violence approach to reform the practice of racism. They withstood insults, violent attacks, threats and intimidation, loss of lives, humiliation, arbitrary arrests and detention in order to end racism in the US.

The above victories are significant because the people there were prepared to brave physical violence in pursuit of real reform.

Makkal Shakti in Malaysia



Whether one supports Hindraf or not, we must acknowledge the movement’s invaluable contribution to the birth of a true public and collective democracy. Malaysian political consciousness was awakened by Hindraf’s outcry for justice.

Makkal Shakti caught fire in Malaysia when in November 2007 a little known Hindraf organized a very large protest to signify the Indian community’s dissatisfaction with regard to their living standards and treatment in Malaysia.

Hindraf’s daring stance is historic in Malaysia because the group and its supporters were fearless in their public display of solidarity against a brutal government. They did this in the face of harsh reprisals from the government. Its many prominent activists and supporters had suffered bouts of imprisonment, detention and violence as well as slapped with multiple court charges.

But many remain steadfast in the struggle to further their cause.

Their resolve, hardened by an oppressive and racist government, won them a moral victory.

What ‘ubah’?

Opposition politicians and the opposition-supporting public alike are desperate for reform in Malaysia.

In their desperation for ‘change’, many fail to appreciate the young Nyam Kee Han’s view that any real reform cannot be “…successful by ignoring, neglecting and sidelining a selection of marginalised citizens.” Both novice and experienced politicians have a tendency to demonise victims to deflect from their own failings and responsibilities.

Senior politicians take the position that Hindraf’s campaign should be put on the backburner because its agenda is “racist”. They like to add that poverty and/or statelessness exist in the Malay and Chinese communities too.

It is not that these politicians dispute the merit of the Indian complaints. They are just saying that the suffering of the Indians is no greater and no worse than that of the Malays and Chinese.

In other words, such remarks can be loosely translated as “Take a number and sit down because there are others before you Indians”.

What is the truth of the situation?

Let’s examine the favourite argument by Hindraf detractors that there are other ethnic groups who have poor people too.

Since our Independence in 1957, Umno has prioritized care for the welfare of Malays and you have to admit that they’ve done so quite capably.

If you insist on arguing that there poor Malays, then you should at the same time ask why the Malays are still poor after 53 years of NEP assistance. And the next question is where does this put the other non-Malay communities who have had no NEP assistance whatsoever for 53 years?

The opposition is deafeningly silent on the future of the NEP vis-à-vis the Malay ‘special position’ as highlighted recently bu Dr Kua Kia Soong.

As for the Chinese opposition, they have thundered that the NEP has failed and there exists Chinese poor too whom the affirmative action programme has not helped.

Do these Chinese opposition supporters expect Hindraf to take up the cudgels for the poor and disadvantaged Chinese in the name of colour blindness and the “beyond race” dogma?

Since the Chinese are a bigger minority and better organized and more well-to-do, isn’t the onus on the Chinese to “fight for all the poor (including Indians) regardless of race”?

And therefore, instead of criticizing Hindraf for not rising above a “race-based” focus, how about these Chinese critics show us that “they fight for all the poor irrespective of race”? Can they show that they’ve ever fought for the Indian poor?