Malaysian Indians at crossroads

Temple demolition a wake up call

We were overjoyed when at last Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) strongman, Datuk Seri S. Samy Velu spoke out strongly on an issue that has been plaguing the Indian community for so many years – indiscriminate demolition of temples. To Hindus, demolition of deities and temples that house them are acts of desecration and are considered sacrilegious. Our joy and hopes were very short-lived when the MIC president quickly regained his posture and returned to his “fold”, the Barisan National (BN).

Of late this practice of demolition of places of worship has become so rampant, with little or no consideration for the sensitivities of the Hindus. The latest of these is the demolition of the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Kampung Rimba Jaya in Padang Jawa, near Shah Alam.

The 100-year old temple may need to be relocated alright but couldn’t it be done in a more civilized way? Why has it to be done just before Deepavalli, the festival of Lights, an auspicious day for the Hindus? Can’t the local authorities give in to the request of a very senior cabinet minister, which they always do in other instances? Do they need to use so much force against unarmed civilians? Do they need to arrest and manhandle lawyers at gunpoint? Why the arrogance and display of power against simple devotees in a temple?

In his strongest criticism so far, Samy Velu warned that the BN government risks losing the Indian votes if it does not stop this discriminate and inconsiderate action against the Indian community. As the leader of the Indian community his comments are long overdue. In fact I am afraid it may now be too late to stop this discriminative actions against the Indians by the UMNO-led BN government, of MIC is a major partner since its inception.

The MIC, by its docile and submissive stance, has long lost its voice and power in the coalition. Its leaders, including Samy Velu who had ruled the party for over 2 decades, have allowed the opportunities to slip by a long time ago. Is threatening with denying the Indian votes now going to work? The Malacca Chief Minister,an UNMO stalwart, has recently even gone to the extent to reiterate that they do not need our votes as they can win without us.

A number of incidences recently have highlighted the deplorable attitude of the government towards the Indian community. These have prompted the Hindu Action Front (Hindraf) to resort to legal action against the British government for being the indirect cause of their pathetic state in Malaysia today.

As Samy Velu said the vast majority of Malaysian Indians had stood by the Alliance and subsequently the BN in thick and thin. They are still loyal and would continue to be so if only they are treated with due dignity and respect. Their loyalty to the government was unquestionable. In fact this blind loyalty, that was occasionally a pain for the opposition, has contributed to a great extent for their pitiful state today.

From the beginning, it is undeniable that the Indians had contributed much to the development of the nation. They served at all levels in estates and the civil service, from the highest positions as managers and directors to the lowest as manual labourers.The medical, legal, railway and PWD were in fact monopolized by Indians whose exemplary services we still treasure till today. As directors, doctors, lawyers, nurses, teachers and even as manual workers and union leaders, they had given their relentless services to the nation of adoption they considered their motherland.

The blind loyalty to the BN is being repaid today in the form of discrimination, denial of educational and job opportunities, denial of land to erect places of worship, demolition of existing temples, passing of derogatory remarks and so on. On the whole they are being treated as second or even third class citizens in the very land they toiled to develop.

It is very extremely sad and disgusting to see the way Samy Velu,a very senior cabinet minister being snubbed by the Menteri Besar and other government officers in his attempts to stop the demolition of the temple in Padang Jawa. We understand he was even pelted with stones when he went to mediate the ongoing standoff between the MPSA authorities and the devotees at the temple.

We are also deeply disturbed by the way the lawyers were treated by the police when they went to the defense of the rights of the people who were unarmed and peaceful. They were manhandled by machine gun-bearing police, handcuffed and beaten. Imagine professionals being treated like criminals without any respect whatsoever as lawyers representing the affected residents.

The Malaysian Indians are now at the crossroads, uncertain of what the future holds for them as the path for the future is very obscure. The only encouraging sign that this Kampung Rimba Jaya tragedy produced was the reaction of the MIC leader. Does his outburst indicate that he and the MIC have finally come to face reality under which the Indians live? Has the MIC the political will to swim and sink with the Indians?

Our leaders contend that we are financially better now but we know as a community on the whole we were better off at the time of independence than now,50 years later. We have lost almost all we once had – positions and employment in estates and the civil service.Today even the distribution of newspapers by Indian vendors is being envied. With these losses, we seem to have also lost the respect that we once commanded especially from the other races. Poverty and its accompanying social ills are still a big problem among Indians. Unemployment and crime rate are highest among them.

We have brought up a younger generation of Indians with all the problems of the previous one minus the positions and respect. There are no opportunities for education, jobs and even in sports and recreation for the young. With the escalating cost of living, many are finding it extremely difficult to make ends meet let alone having access to proper housing, education and quality basic medical care.

The Indians have nowhere to turn to for help. The government that we were loyal to has rejected us.The party,MIC, that we trusted betrayed us.We try turning to God but even that we are prevented from doing so as they demolish our places of worship and the deities.Where else can we go?To the British?Can they and will they do anything?No way.That lives only ourselves and ourselves alone.Yes,we will have to rise up and fight for ourselves.As a community we must help ourselves to come out of our doldrums.There are only 2 million of us.Can't our leaders help us out of of our predicament?I am sure they can but each and every one of us must also help ourselves.

Samy Velu and the MIC leaders have a serious problem in their hands and they must search their conscience deeply to see whether they have brought any real benefits to their community. Do they sincerely believe, if the present state continues, there is a bright future for the future generations of Indians? All in-fighting for power and self glory must stop as we unite in our endeavor to uplift the morale and zeal of the Indian community.

We salute the younger leaders of the Hindu Action Rights Force (Hindraf) and lawyers like P Uthayakumar, P Waythamoorthy, M Manoharan, S Ganabathi Rao, Gengadharan and many other social workers and activists for their relentless work in protecting the rights and attempts to uplift the poor Indians. Samy Velu and the MIC must get down to the masses to tap the potentials of this capable and brave younger generation of Indians.

Let the temple demolition be a wake-up call for us.We must get rid of the so called “Crab Syndrome” that had inflicted our community and is the major cause of our failure. There is a need to change our mindset from one of dependence on the government to that of self-dependence. We need to maintain our traditions and culture but at the same time acquire modern scientific knowledge and skills to be competitive in a global society.

We must get our priorities right.Over indulgence in cultural and religious activities is not going to take us far in this highly competitive world.What we need is modernization in thinking and actions,while at the same time using our faith and culture as a guide in life. Unless we act now to take charge of our destiny, even God will not be able to help us.

Dr.Chris Anthony