My Stand on HINDRAF rally
I read with much enthusiasm about the Hindraf Rally this Sunday (tomorrow) . Meanwhile Malaysiakini reported Three Hindraf leaders arrested for you you-know-what.
These are the details that I have found on the net :
Date: Nov 25, 2007.
Time: 7am to 11am
Place: British High Commission, 185 Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Map and Transport details kindly provided here)
The intention of the rally is to present a memorandum to the British as well as to rally against marginalisation of the minority Indian community in Malaysia.
There are in fact two views to this rally. I would like to bring atttention to two posts on the question "Shall we rally this time around?"
1) A Nay :
Haris Ibrahim, The People's Parliament -> Why I will not walk this Sunday and why the walk must not proceed.
2) An Aye:
Nat Tan, Jelas.info -> Why I will walk this Sunday
Haris has brought up some valid points saying that the rally is communal/race-based and not national based such as the BERSIH rally. There are also concerns among bloggers and commentators that SOMEBODY would try to create a scene out of this in order to make future rallies for the best interests of the nation unlawful.
Point taken, but I would like to bring to attention some of the points mentioned in Jelas.info :
Point 1:
My conclusion is this: If we were to wait for another mass rally that will take a more mature, universalistic approach to race relations while actually having an impact in calling attention to the horrific living conditions facing Indian Malaysians today, we will wait forever.
Point 2:
Let’s be honest, no other group is going to pull those numbers in defence of minority rights in Malaysia.
Point 3:
So, are we going to walk the talk about multiracialism?
Point 4:
Are we who like to quote Voltaire’s “I may disagree with what you say, but will defend to the death your right to say it” actually going to do anything to defend the right to assemble?
My stand on the issue is similar to this point (Point 4) brought up by Jelas.info . After all, Hindraf has mentioned that this rally shall be a Peaceful Rally, unless of course some Agent Provocateurs appear out of SOMEBODY's (you-know-who-always-sabotages) command. Hope you catch the drift.
Let Indians voice out.
5 comments:
it is the first and only mass rally i've ever heard of from our INDIAN fellow countryman,with the suffering for so many years,when will this happen?i often wonder,finally it came.
it's a smart move,especially when you involve money with it.(you can't go wrong with it)although i disagree with the cause,but i strongly support for the freedom of speech and the right to a peaceful rally.
thkx dude. really appreciate multi-racial support at this moment.
bmahendran.com
I quite agree with HINDRAF taking this initiative to point out to the government the plight of the marginalized indians in the country. The politics of the country is based on racial divide. UMNO for Malays, MCA for Chinese and MIC for Indians etc. The predicament of the marginalized indians is mainly because the party representing Indians in the government has failed its duty. They have failed to or sold off their bargaining power. This has been eroding for the past 30 years ot so. Indian politicians have only waged war amoung each other and holding on to their dear party position is of paramount imporatnce to them.
When the real issues facing Indians were not looked after by the MIC, that's when HINDRAF came into the picture. Its only logical that Indians who are majority tamils have embraced HINDRAF to fight for their rights. I am sure other races too face this dilema and the time will come before they too become vociferos. Remember, our politics is based on race. Therefore, each race fights for its cause.
I hope at the end of this struggle a new political concept will be born. That is to have one party representing all Malaysians irrespective of race, color or religion
I believe HINDRAF's struggle for the Indians will eventually translate into a change of better politics in the country. Our politics have not evolved even after 50 years of independance and therefore this predicament.
The root cause of all this is because of unabated greediness and corruption that has become a systemic problem within the Barisan coalition.
My stand, i am with Hindraf. Please do not not see the march in its narrowest sense.
It is because no others have marched for Hindraf supporters that they have to march for their own cause.
It should be taken in the "all for one and one for all" spirit. This sunday you may march for Hindraf's course; surely the other day, many Hindraf supporters marched for Bersih cause and in the future we may all march for mutual causes.
Malaysian hindus had been pushed to the breaking point of human dignity, their temples were destroyed,their loving deities are spit upon and crashed, their self respect were torn apart, all in the name of city development. The one government they elected has denied their very right to exist.
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