Friday, February 11, 2005

The Great Debate

Yes. I've been back in Sydney for a few weeks now and have just been on auto pilot.
I'm pretty out-of-it, actually- walking around like a zombie.

I've been following an unfolding saga on the internet lately.
It's snowballed into something bigger than blogs. *Gasp* Is that possible? What could possibly be bigger than blogs?

What sparked it off was this post from The Malay Male.
Now I've generally found this guy to be a breath of fresh air amongst Malaysian bloggers.

Another respected Malaysian blogger, TVSmith, wrote a response here.
Suffice to say that many in the blogging community hold this guy in high regard.

That above post incensed a mild mannered bike riding blogger so much that he wrote this.
OoooooooOOOooooooOOOooo, I said to myself. People are getting emotional here!

That in turn, provoked another blogger to provide some perspective to the situation.

And so the Drama Minggu Ini continues.......
Call me a voyeur, a ke-poh-chee, a soap opera fan.....

This is the thing I've found about anything at all in Malaysia. Everything is so race-specific. Yes, I know this is the legacy of our colonial past. Malaysians keep it well hidden, but there is racial tension in the air. That's the first thing I notice everytime I land in KLIA, actually. Not the smog, not the humidity, but the racial tension. My Malaysian passport identifies my race. So does my birth certificate. So does any Malaysian application form. It is this that decides whether I am entitled to a scholarship, loan, job, shares, land, contracts etc etc.

Given all these seething underlying issues, how do Malaysians actually find a forum to discuss these issues?
There's the problem right there. Other than the internet, there isn't much of an outlet for these frustrations we all experience every now and then. On top of all that, such discussion of racial issues are frowned upon by the Malaysian government, ever fearful of another 13th May 1969 riot. ("Riot" is putting it mildly. According to this certain someone whom I know, who was in Universiti Malaya at the time of the riots, there were people killing each other on the streets. Heads lopped off with "parangs" i.e. very big knives. As I recall, thousands of Chinese Malaysians started migrating to Australia, in their highest numbers in the 70's and 80's.)

What happens when open communication and criticism is taboo? We end up not understanding each other very well. So we're all human. We form lots of stereotypes of each other.

And before anyone starts to get all defensive about these stereotypes, I believe these behaviour patterns that the abovementioned gentlemen were talking about DO exist. We all have a little bit or a lot of these qualities in us, whatever race we are. It's important to remember that the personification of each race is like a cartoon character in a political satire. (Datuk Lat has perfected the art of gentle criticism.)
I guess, according to the stereotype, I CAN'T possibly be malay, right?

Let's all be open minded and listen when people speak.

11 comments:

Sharizal said...

hiya, thanks for the mention.. i got to your site after i technorati-ed meself...

nice site!

Implosion said...

Hi Sharizal- good to meet you. It's true that bloggers speak their own language-
"technorati-ed"? LOL :-)

Anonymous said...

Read it all. In Mahathir's Malaysia, over 40% of the population lives under Constitutionally mandated and perpetual state sanctioned racism. It is verging on illegality to even bring up the subject - even in parliament.

Non-bumis live under widespread and considerable electoral, educational, economic and even religious restrictions and also have to live with the risk of racially motivated stirring from malay politicians who could put one nation to shame. And don't ask about illegal aliens, they're safely locked up in detention centres.

Unsurprisingly, some malay policies have played upon resultant fears of racial tensions and the difficulties non-bumis face in creating their own political voice to shore up a captive vote in the ethnic electorate.

Starting up a company or even purchasing land and property is harder and more expensive for non-bumis. The only way to alleviate their permanent designation as a second-class citizen is to convert to Islam and thus enjoy partial legal acceptance as a bumis.

This Malaysia, a land where racism is used to justify racism, is Mahathir's creation and if that isn't the pot calling the kettle black, then I need a new palette.

Perhaps you may have heard of the axiom making its rounds among the Malaysian bloggers:

"If it is a malay issue, it is a national issue. If it is an Indian issue, it is not an issue. If it is a Chinese issue, it is a racial issue."

That is the problem with Malaysia. The Chinese and Indians are made to feel as if Malaysia is for the malays, and not for the citizens of Malaysia. Even the textbooks are often written as if addressing the malays instead of Malaysians, with references to Islam and other malay cultural aspects.

Just look at Singapore. In spite of their being a multiracial society completely lacking in national resources, they are now a developed country. Why?

Because the people there are united. There is no presumption that the average citizen is a Chinese or any serious programme giving a particular race special rights.

The presumption that greed, dishonesty, and betrayal are innate qualities of a Chinese is simply as abhorrent as the presumption by some Chinese that malays smell bad, are lazy, and are extremely religious to the point of martyrdom. Such stereotyping accomplishes nothing.

If Chinese kids won't die for Malaysia, we should not jump to the conclusion that Chinese cannot be trusted. Instead, we should consider it equally among other possibilities, such as the government's policies creating a feeling of unfair treatment despite the premise that we are all equal as citizens of Malaysia.

We know what the original intentions of the malay special privileges provision in the Merdeka Constitution were, but to maintain that it is a carte blanche for all manner of discrimination based on the bumi/non-bumi divide is certainly straining credibility.

Now that the commanding heights of the Malaysian economy have fallen into the hands of malay capitalists 48 years after independence, is it wrong to appeal for a new consensus based on social sector and need instead of race?

From the above, it is clear that the question of the constitutionality of the quota system as it has been practised since 1971 especially in totally bumi institutions has never been tested.

Because the government imposes racial quota in education and government departments, therefore Singapore and other countries take fortune at the tide. For years, there has been brain drain to our neighbour.

I called my newfound friend earlier who works in Singapore. Somehow, the conversation ended up on Malaysians holding top positions in Singapore.

Well, I have a good friend who is currently working with a top-notch investment company in Singapore. When my new friend found out, immediately said, "No wonder that Pak Lah person was mentioning about the brain drain in Malaysia!"

Well, I know a lot of doctors and scientists are working overseas. A number of my school alumni are actually working overseas and not in Malaysia. Some are doing well in Boston, London, to name a few. It's even funnier to hear stories of some of my school alumni to accidentally meet each other when they are overseas. Yes, my school is guilty for contributing to the brain drain……….

Closer to home, I wonder if Pak Lah knows about our own Malaysian companies that are also contributing to the brain drain. No name mentioned, but I know of one company, due to the change in business process has forced a number of the disgruntled staff to leave the company.

The worse thing, these staff left and joined the competitors that are not Malaysian owned. And even worse, some staff actually decided to leave Malaysia and work at greener pastures.

They could have stayed in Malaysia, but no company in Malaysia could afford to pay the expected salary due to the staff being former scholars and studied overseas during the economic crisis.

Sad really. Now wonder why Pak Lah has an uphill task.

Clearly, there has always been movement of highly skilled people in and out of a country. If there is brain drain from a particular country, it can scarcely develop. On the other hand, if it can keep its talents and successfully attract its skilled citizens to return as well as foreign talents to come, it will prosper.

Anonymous said...

Well said, we wish you well and kindly dismiss those who question your motive or patriotism. These are the bigots whose 'hidden agenda' and myopic vision that is keeping this wonderful bountiful country for progressing.

If you are emigrating for your kids education, you have made a right decision. Remember your kids will be influenced by the good and bad values overseas.

The ideal age for emigration is 16 years old or less. That is why your kids will make it in their careers and settle down successfully overseas.

Well done. Welcome to western culture where there are:

1. Equal opportunity regardless or race or religion
2. Environmental Awareness
3. Government subsidised healthcare
4. Government subsidised tertiary education as well as primary and secondary schools
5. Higher quality living
6. Protection of the labour market via enforced minimum wage across all industry sectors
7. Social welfare standards
8. Unconditional democracy

In the globalization era, we are truly citizens of the world and it is no shame to relocate to 'greener pastures' should you have the ability and the means. Why stay in a place where there are blatant abuses, discrimination and limited prospect for those unconnected!

Feudalistic rules are maintained to fleece the masses, where the titled and corrupted are the 'untouchables' but honest and hardworking citizens must bear the full brunt of the law (and taxed to the hilt).

"There is more than enough to feed the world but not enough to feed the greedy."

If you compute the cost of sending 2 children to an oversea university (probably RM200k to RM500k), it is more cost effective to emigrate even if it paying a bit more tax or giving up a cushion job to enter into the uncharted waters.

If you made it here with an ever-moving goal post; I don't think it will be hard for you to find your niche in a level playing field.

Farewell but do keep us in your prayers.

Anonymous said...

I am a second generation Chinese Malaysian with an Australian PR. I took it up mainly because the forecast does not look too good for my children in Malaysia, i.e. university entrance requirements, promotion in government and armed forces, discount in properties purchases, etc.

In one letter said, "A person with PR (permanent residence) status has two choices. When it is good weather that person can stay on in that particular country, and when the weather turns bad, he can move on to another country. A person who goes overseas to study may try to get PR to find a job there. But PR or not they are second-class citizens in that country."

I do not mind being classified as second-class citizens in Australia because even as PR, we are treated fair and square (except that we don't have voting rights). Everything there is based on merit and not the color of your skin or race.

For information, I feel very sad and disgusted to be treated like a second-class citizen in our own country.

The real reason is that the affordability of tertiary education hits most middle-class Malaysians. However most find a way out by obtaining PR status either in Australia, Canada, New Zealand or the UK.

Permanent residency of Australia entitlement includes not having to pay full fees for one's children's tertiary education. A PR only pays the home student's scale of fees.

However, as I am not running down the shortcomings of life of one country or another but rather depicting important real life issues that affect life in a developed country like Australia, I shall endeavor to comment on some points that bemuse me.

As for the free university education my children received, a quick search in the library should reveal the fact that, free university education was accorded to all and sundry in Australia.

In essence, people in Australia are gauged not by race but by merit. Therefore, it is ironic to claim that white Australians behave more superior to anyone else, while the society at large is governed by non-discriminatory policies.

Nevertheless, it doesn't in anyway grant privileges for a university admission. Australia is a free society where everyone is equal and measured by merit.

As everywhere else in the world, quality medication is expensive. But then in Australia, 50 to 90 percent of the real cost of compulsory medicine is subsidised by the government. Private healthcare insurance is again an alternative for those who do not wish to go through the public healthcare system, which provides service based on 'medical need' rather than 'individual preference'.

In actuality, unemployment benefit is not a blind handout. It is subject to skills upgrade for employment under the Tafe (Technical and Further Education) programme. Isn't this the epitome of a caring government?

Discrimination is a myth of the past era of 'White Australia'. In reality, meritocracy is the only prevailing force in action. For instance, two-thirds of undergraduates pursuing medical degrees in Melbourne University and Monash University are Australian of Chinese origin from different parts of Asia. Isn't this strong enough proof of Australia's non-discriminatory policy?

Moreover, Asian migrants have excelled in different professions from university chairs to specialist doctors solely on the grounds of their merit. Furthermore, anyone with the substance and the support of voters can become the country's prime minister.

Hence, no one could stop an Australian-born Asian from contesting the office of prime minister in Australia if he aspires to do so.

A better life to all.

Anonymous said...

Now if you followed speech about a new agenda to help bumis. So this is the way to create towering malays - just give them more handouts.

All talk was about helping, read enriching the malays. No one had the balls to talk about the Malaysian agenda. If this is what our future leaders spew, then I shed tears for my beloved country.

Much of so-called leakages of bumis allocation has not gone to other bumis but merely lost. Look at the ringgit depreciation, the loss of Proton, the debt of Perwaja, the bank write offs etc, and you get an idea where they have gone. The non-bumis benefit is marginal compared to the larger loses.

Just look at how many of the Menteri Besar and Chief Ministers reap profit from their position for personal gain, compared to few did not do it. They must be using the same pretext of some noble cause like NEP. But at the end the one benefiting is their closet cronies.

What left to Malaysians is the exorbitant car prices, high toll rate, no viable alternative public transport in cities, ever increasing water tariff etc. Who is suffering at the end? Isn't it the "rakyat" at large and bumis forming the largest portion?

Have they not considered why previous implementations failed? In fact one needs not look far to find the answers - CORRUPPTION and ABUSE of POWER leading to cronyism and nepotism.

A simple solution is to implement an independent judiciary, answerable to parliament and freedom of the press as a starter.

Instead, Umno is asking for more privileges. Who are the main beneficiaries? So long as Malaysia's resources are plentiful, the non-bumis as scapegoats, the use of religious fear factor works on the rakyat, Umno will continue to call the shot.

Unfortunately there is not enough resources to satisfy the greed of Umno, the rakyat will remain poorer while the rich get richer.

For non-bumis, their ultimate aim is going abroad. Those left behind, well, the left over will join the poor including the bumis in Malaysia. Thus denying Malaysia the skill and wealth of the emigrating Malaysians.

Don't forget the call for more help, enriching the malays are actually for Umno, selected few and cronies! Not all the malays!

Do read them carefully and not counting it as every malay or Malaysian! Because of this nature of speech don't count it as "for all malays" and a case for you to bombast the innocent malays!

With all the multibillions and hundreds of millions of ringgit contracts going to the Umno bumis and crony companies, with all the Approved Permits (APs) going to the bumis (almost), with all the banking licences going to the bumis (almost), with all the big Government-Linked Companies (GLCs) coming under the control of the bumis, with all the government jobs (almost) going to the bumis, with all the petrol stations, transport licenses going to the bumis, etc, etc.

Perhaps one reason that Umno Youth perceived that the bumis are not faring too well in the economic field is that the wealth that is now in their hands is not well shared out, and is concentrated in the hands of a small number of elite and crony bumis.

If you look at the number of government contracts going out to bumis is really discriminating against the non-malays.

Until now, I have not heard of one malay who has the courage to admit, that about 90% of the government projects and assistance that went to help the malays has gone to waste - huge squandering and wastage.

It is the reason why they are not being respected by other races.

That is their huge weakness. No matter how much monetary assistance you give to the malays, somehow or rather it doesn't improve their character and attitude towards work. It doesn't improve their knowledge on any business they are in.

Their business ethic is the lowest among Malaysians. Their wealth will never improve. Later down the road, they will be spending most of their money if not all on material gain rather than on building values, skills and knowledge.

That is why, 90% of the student scholarships, or 90% of the government projects goes to them, has gone to waste. They didn't take the opportunity to enhance their knowledge, skills but merely for material gain.

They have no confidence in themselves after so many years of independence. No confidence and faith in themselves to do their best and compete in the world. None at all.

Because most of the time, they spend their money and time on politics, and material gain. I would say malays place more importance on the form rather than on the substance.

Look at the amount of protocol they have to follow in their daily life. Most of it is not practical at all.

In short, we are stuck in medieval concept of balance of conflicting interest rather than those about moving forward to be become one.

So long as we are stuck in such medieval thinking, so long as we will be paralyzed by our fears and insecurities, and honestly second-rate as a nation.

Anonymous said...

I have lived and worked in six foreign countries, Australia, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Pakistan, and Singapore, and have visited even more countries. I must say that in all my travels, I have not had the unfortunate experience of racial discrimination. Sure there were cultural barriers, inefficiencies and language difficulties. But never was there a particular country where I was systemically discriminated against.

In Australia, even foreigners, are protected by the equal opportunity commission. Japan, where the locals are known to be xenophobic, have proven to be one of the most hospitable people in the world.

Even in India and Pakistan, there is no single group that is constitutionally and systemically discriminated against. Sure, there are religious fault lines between these two countries due to history. In both countries, I was treated with the same respect for locals, if not more.

The main point that missed is that in spite of all the hype surrounding the 'successes' Malaysia has arguably achieved, it has not integrated its ethnically different races any closer.

In Malaysia, racial discrimination is institutionalised, in Singapore perhaps it is done tacitly. In the public sector in Malaysia, it is no coincidence to note that the majority who hold the top posts are the bumis.

Well, without doing much research, I can tell that Singapore's president no less, and its foreign minister are Indians. Even from a cynical point of view, their positions in comparison with our Malaysian situation, are something our minorities here can only dream of. Of course, we cannot compare our Yang Di Pertuan Agong and other Sultans with the position of president, but a Chinese or Indian Malaysian foreign minister to represent Malaysia?

There is no point in arguing about favouritism and nepotism as they exist everywhere in the world and it is up to the electorate in each country, to decide to what extent they can tolerate them. The crux of the problem here is institutionalised racial discrimination where race takes precedence over merit as official policy.

Financially, instead of lowest tender, our contracts go to the most well-connected politically, with multi-level rent-seekers. The effects are beginning to show in terms of productivity and efficient use of resources. So far, we are lucky to have Petronas to hide our excesses. What happens when the oil runs out?

Singapore, as a small island with very limited natural resources, has been acknowledged worldwide as a developed nation. Whatever criticisms we may have of it, Singapore's development speaks for itself. Unlike the self-proclaimed developed status by Selangor, which is currently the butt of jokes.

The likes must understand that while many non-malays have left the country due to the discriminatory policies institutionalised by the National Economic Policy (NEP), many of us also understand the importance it played in ensuring equal distribution of wealth in this country. It would be naive to say otherwise.

However, the time has come now for a review on how the policy is applied. I am for one, a strong backer of the ideals that the NEP should be shifted from the current race-centric approach to an approach that uses a means test to justify affirmative action.

Poverty eradication regardless of race is stipulated under the NEP, but has this been implemented? All that is being asked is the promotion of equality to wipe out poverty regardless of race as promised by the NEP.

'Modern development economics' as mentioned empowerment to enable the poor and the underprivileged of all races to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps and to move forward. But is this being done equitably today in Malaysia?

With due respect, has to come to Malaysia to see for the reality on the ground and to help us all create a more just and equitable society - a Bangsa Malaysia - that will truly promote greater national unity in our country. We who are here are trying to do our best to achieve this.

A nation can never be built on principles of racism, favouritism and discrimination. With the pervasive racial policies and political intervention of the BN monster in the tertiary institutions, dubious quality will still be a feature of our local institutions.

Anonymous said...

I was in the same boat as 13 years ago. My Form 6 results were 4As and 1B and I could not be accepted to go to local university. Whereas the bumi classmate earning 1 or 2As goes straight to local universities. Those bumis who earn 3As were selected to be on an all expense paid oversea university education.

My father is a lorry driver all his live. Our only most valuable possession was a 20 years old bicycle. All 5 kids cramped into the same bedroom with my parents.

I worked for 7 years and applied to US universities. I borrowed money from my uncles, parent's life long savings of US$6000, my 7 years of earnings, and close and far relatives. This enable to survive my 2 years in colleague.

I worked and worked during school days in the campus (allowed under US law). During the summer I worked 3 jobs (deliver newspaper in the morning, then paint house and in the evening worked in a restaurant). I put myself through school and got my PhD in Engineering.

I did not get a single Malaysian cent sponsor from the malay government for my studies. It was an easy decision whether I wanted to return to Malaysia for work.

I stayed in US and worked for some multi-national companies. Last year I was moved by my company to come to Malaysia to work.

The malay manager in another department was hostile to me (to the surprise of my white skinned colleagues). He has put a lot of roadblocks in my work. I sensed that he was thinking an ex-Malaysian Chinese is now a big shot. I totally resent that but I knew he has those hatred toward Chinese instilled in him. I still have 3 more months to go to complete my assignment in Malaysia.

I never ever regret the choice I make to give up my Malaysian citizenship. Being a non-malay is a second or third class citizen in this country.

Anonymous said...

You do the right thing and I think you will never regret.

The trouble with the management of this country is that they always do not know what they want. It has been put in a kind of a trial and error method of management for so long with the one man said something and the rest just echoed.

We can't afford to dilly daddy the whole game, as the precious time for our kids development is limited.

I faced the same dilemma fifteen years ago when the confusion attained to its peak. The Bahasa was greatly emphasized in all subjects (I have no grudge with national language), 3M (which I still don't know what it is), and the cruel system of quota, practically telling that your kids stood very slim chance to enter university if you were not born as a bumi.

Faced with the situation, I had no choice but to throw away my high fly corporate job and emigrated with my family of three kids to Australia.

Eleven years later, when my children were fully qualified as professionals of whom one is a medical doctor, our Malaysia clever leader started to say that "Actually English is very important, and let us start with English again starting from primary one for science and mathematic subjects next year."

With the fall of another politician, the Baku of Bahasa also disappeared. I do not know where 3M is nowadays!

I consider myself very lucky that I could jump out from this black box in time. Today, with God's blessing and the dynamism of Australia's economy, three of my children and their partners are doing exceedingly well.

With the present situation of unemployable graduates in the country, I think my children are very lucky that they do not waste their precious time. But to be fair to the current Malaysia PM, there seems to have a slight improvement now and we hope there is a light in the end of the tunnel.

What said about the meritocracy and transparency in education and employment in Australia is very true. My children face a fair competition, and have equal opportunity to compete in university places and employments.

Son, a medical doctor faced no competition as demand exceeded supply. Daughter, a medical staff faced twelve competitors and she won and got the job, and the last, son, a master degree holder in economics and finance faced 150 competitors and he won and got the job.

All jobs interviews are conducted in a transparent manner and those who fail have a chance to appeal to a tribunal, if they find there is a suspicion of nepotism or other back door entry.

Don't worry too much about the words like "patriotism" and "traitors". They are the words used by the politicians with a different agenda.

I worked honestly for the corporate and paid high income tax (at top few percent of the country average), and they practically told you right in the face that your children could not get into the university no matter how hard you tried.

What choice do you have? Go somewhere you and your kids have a fair chance!

At the end of the day, one fine day you heard the minister got caught in the Australian Airport carrying undeclared millions in bags of which the purpose was to scour for properties in Australia, minister son's multimillion mansion in Canada was put up for sale after the intrusion of thieves, etc. Do you think they are really patriotic?

If we really feel better that we must serve, we might as well consider ourselves as global citizens. There are so many charity/volunteers organizations, borderless doctors in Australia that one can join, for example go and help the tsunami victims.

(Two million ringgits are good enough in smaller cities but might be a bit difficult in big city like Sydney. On the whole, one million for the purchase of your own house and one million for your working capital and it is an added advantage that you have a skill as a engineer.)

With money and skill, Australia welcomes you as the country is in great shortage of skilled manpower with the present robust economy.

Best luck to you all!

Anonymous said...

Racism and racial discrimination have been part of Malaysian social, political, economic and cultural realities ever since colonial times.

Today, race has been so deeply institutionalised that it is a key factor determining benefits from government development policies, social policy, education policy, entry into educational institutions, bids for business contracts, cultural policy, discounts for purchasing houses and other official policies.

Practically every aspect of Malaysian life is permeated by the so-called 'bumi policy' based on malay-centrism. This is unabashedly spelled out by political leaders in the daily mass media in Malaysia.

It is an established fact that racial polarisation is prevalent in various Malaysian institutions. A survey by University Malaya shows that 98 percent of malay students do not mix with non-malays while 99 percent of Chinese students and 97 percent of Indian students do not mingle with the other races.

While the government tries to account for this problem by blaming other extraneous factors such as the existence of vernacular schools, it is clear that the roots of polarisation lie in this institutionalisation of racism and racial discrimination.

The ruling party Umno prides itself on the supposedly 'successful' affirmative action in favour of bumi. Bumi literally means 'princes of the soil', the official epithet for malays and other indigenous peoples but which excludes the original peoples, i.e. the Orang Asli of Peninsula Malaysia. This has been the cornerstone of development plans since the New Economic Policy was started in 1971.

Consequently, while this populist bumi policy has been applied to the benefit of bumi as a whole, the new malay ruling elite is strategically placed to reap the full benefits of this racially based policy. Totally committed to capitalism and to privatisation, this policy has ensured that the non-malay local and foreign elite have also gained from the New Economic Policy since 1971. This class cohesion among the Malaysian ruling elite underpins the racialist politics which has characterised Malaysian society since Independence.

Racial discrimination in the realm of culture is seen not only in the education policy but also in the discrimination against non-malay cultures and religions in the National Cultural Policy. Non-muslims face obstacles in their freedom to build places of worship and access to burial grounds, among other complaints.

Racism and racial discrimination have dominated Malaysian society for far too long. Now that the malay ruling elite has clearly gained control of the Malaysian economy, it is high time for a new consensus based on non-racial factors such as class, sector and need to justify affirmative action.

Anonymous said...

Human beings migrate because they seek a better habitat, a better life or better opportunities. Is there anything wrong with this?

In modern times, people often migrate for work, security and education opportunities etc.

Migrants of course have to sacrifice much, to the extent of even being separated from their friends and family, but the human spirit for achievement and self-actualisation is very strong and will overcome great odds to achieve its potential and dreams.

An example is pointing to other countries where racism is practiced - reports this occurrence even in developed countries such as the US, UK, New Zealand and Australia.

This point of comparison weakens because is confusing covert, attitudinal racism - and marginal too at that - with institutionalised discrimination in Malaysia in the form of the abused outcomes of the NEP.

The prospect of a larger community in Malaysia that cannot come to terms with meritocracy is even more confusing and daunting.

In the countries mentions, racists are the minority. In this country, while the NEP is purportedly not racist, it confuses and confounds to the point of being seemingly intractable from the dimensions of race and legitimate opportunity.

Here, race is a major independent variable that is legalised to manipulate business, educational and political outcomes.

At least the white masters have drawn up laws and regulations to protect the minorities who stay in their countries. Equal employment means equal employment. That they actually make laws to make life more equitable for immigrants is quite admirable.

On our end, we to bow to the brown masters. If having to pay more for your house when your bumi neighbour pays less is not having to bow to the brown masters then what is?

If expressing your feelings about the inequities in the country is constantly labeled as bumi-bashing, when instead you feel that you are the one being bashed, and then being told to shut up and put up with it is not having to bow to the brown masters, then what is?

Well maybe you feel that those who have left are no loss to the country. Generally speaking, those who have left were the ones who qualified to go to another country.

But such a paradigm is usually a reflection of one's own inabilities to come to grips with the fact that there is something systemically wrong and this has been causing people to leave the country.