Public holiday won't solve Indian woes

Indians must not be hood-winked by gimmicks

It must have been a great scene – 15,000 Indians from all over the country packing the Cheras badminton stadium in Kuala Lumpur and greeting Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi with a thunderous standing ovation and bursting into applause at his declaration that Thaipusam a public holiday for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.

It must have been indeed a great morale booster for the prime minister and more so for MIC president,Datuk Seri Samy Velu,whose credibility has been seriously undermined since the Hindaf rally last November.

Prime Minister aknowledging to applause(Malaysiakini)

We are told that busloads of people were ferried to the stadium, entertained by singers and provided food and drinks. I wonder how many of them would have really turned out for ‘An evening with the prime minister’ if they were subjected to the same conditions as the Hindraf protesters on Nevember 25 – no police permits, own transport, police intimidation, tear gas, water canons, arrests and imprisonment?

Large crowd in Cheras Badminton Stadium(Malaysiakini)

By granting a public holiday the government and Samy Velu hope the problems of the Indian community will be overcome, at least for another five years. Is the Indian community so naïve as to believe this simplistic solution to their problems? If that was so then the Hindraf leaders must be stupid for having resorted to their actions, branded as terrorists and jailed under ISA.

The problems of the Indians are more complex and deep rooted to be solved by declaring Thaipusam a holiday. Their pathetic state of the Indians is due to the accumulated effects of their marginalization in the government and private sectors for over 50 years. They have been systematically denied their dues in the pretext of restructuring society.

Section of the crowd(Malaysiakini)

In fact the PM says he had to make it a holiday more because of the massive traffic that occurs on Thaipusam day in the Federal capital, rather than giving in to the demands of the Indian community.Furthemore he dare not even declare it a national holiday as requested by the MIC and the Indians community for more than 10 years. Most Malaysians believe it is more of a political gimmick coming at a time of general elections.

What the Indian community needs now is not another public holiday; many young Indians have more than they need, as they are unemployed. What they need is fair opportunities for education, training, jobs and business. They need fair opportunities in the civil service, police and armed forces. Selection for recruitment into these institutions and admissions to public universities must be based strictly on merits. They want freedom to practice their culture and religion without official impediment.

In short they want to be treated with respect and dignity as equal citizens in the country they helped to develop.Is this too much to ask from the government they helped to elect and stood by for 50 years?


Dr.Chris Anthony

Thousands at MIC's 'evening with PM'

RK Anand Malaysiakini Jan 20, 08 9:59pm

Thousands of Indian Malaysians packed the Cheras badminton stadium in Kuala Lumpur in a show of support for Barisan Nasional (BN) and MIC this evening.Since afternoon, busloads of people were ferried to the stadium amidst heavy police presence for the event themed ‘An evening with the prime minister’.

The crowd, which numbered around 15,000, were kept entertained by singers belting out inspirational Tamil songs from the yesteryears.Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who was greeted by a thunderous standing ovation when he appeared, announced in his speech later that a public holiday will be declared for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya for the Thaipusam festival.

“If there is no public holiday, the whole of Kuala Lumpur will be jammed up. So might as well give a public holiday,” said the premier, whose announcement was met with a roar of approval.

At present Thaipusam is a public holiday in Negri Sembilan, Perak, Penang, Johor and Selangor.Abdullah, who was accompanied by his wife Jeanne, said this was the biggest MIC gathering he has attended.“I am overwhelmed by the Indian community’s support for BN,” said the premier, who also praised MIC president and Works Minister S Samy Vellu.“I want to tell you the truth, Samy Vellu has been fighting for you in the cabinet,” he said.

Describing MIC as an “old friend”, Abdullah said BN will help the party if it is plagued by problems.Apart from this, the prime minister also announced that he will set up a “high-powered committee” to tackle hardcore poverty among all races.

Abdullah said the government aims to eradicate hardcore poverty by 2010 and vowed that no race will be left behind.“We will fight for all races. That’s my promise to you. I don’t want our children to lose out on education because of poverty,” he stressed to another round of thunderous applause.‘Stay united’

In his speech earlier, Samy Vellu said the Indian community has always been a strong supporter of BN. “Only MIC can, only BN can represent the Indians in this country. Nobody else can,” said the veteran politician.The MIC president also cautioned the Indian community not to fall prey to certain quarters who wanted to sow seeds of disunity.

“These quarters claim that the government has not done anything for the Indians over the past 50 years. They aim to break the community’s trust and support for BN.“But I am convinced that the community will not be easily swayed,” said Samy Vellu, who also enthralled the crowd by belting out a Tamil song on the importance of unity.

Admitting that there are problems in relation to the community, especially in the public delivery system, Samy Vellu said MIC has asked the premier to form a special mechanism, not only to monitor, but also ensure that the Indian community benefits from the opportunities provided by the government.

“MIC is confident that our prime minister will ensure that in the next 30 months before the Ninth Malaysia Plan ends, the government machinery will resolve the problems faced by the community,” he added.

Samy Vellu also praised Abdullah as a leader who feels for all races and creeds. “His ears are always open to hear and solve the people’s woes. He is our leader, he is the leader of all Malaysians.”For the critics and detractors, the MIC president had this to say: “We only attack from the front, we do not attack from the back. We only speak the truth.”

He also stressed that the party’s election machinery is prepared to face the general election which is expected to be called soon.MIC has pushed itself into overdrive by organising numerous events following the mass street rally organised by the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) on Nov 25.

Since then, the party has come under intense criticism for allegedly failing to uplift the Indian community and protecting its rights.Hindraf has also accused the government of marginalising Indians in the country and subjecting them to persecution, charges which have been vehemently denied.

Five Hindraf leaders have since been detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for allegedly being a threat to national security.Also present at today’s event were Women, Family and Community Development Minister Sharizat Abdul Jalil and Federal Territories Minister Zulhasnan Rafique.