| |
Sensitive times in
Malaysia
By Anil Netto
PENANG, Malaysia -
Many middle-class Malaysians raised eyebrows last week
when they heard that the authorities had refused to
grant a political-satire group any more permits to
perform in the capital, Kuala Lumpur.
The
Instant Cafe Theatre Company had until then enjoyed a
successful run of its "The 2nd First Annual Bolehwood
Awards 2003" - Bolehwood here parodying the
nothing-is-impossible "Malaysia Boleh" (Malaysia Can)
spirit touted by the government in a country where
Bollywood movies enjoy a sizable following.
Unfortunately, thin-skinned city councilors - unelected
political appointees of the ruling coalition - failed to
see the humor in the plot for a variety of reasons and
stopped the run.
It would be easy to see this as
an isolated incident of censorship by overzealous
councilors. But it should also be seen in the light of
city council actions elsewhere in Malaysia. Last month,
in Ipoh city, city councilors fined 30 unmarried
non-Muslim couples RM30 (about US$8) for holding hands
in a bid to keep the city "morally clean". (Government
concern and adverse publicity later forced the council
to suspend its "no holding hands" rule.) A new ruling by
the Johor Baru city council from this year requires
written approval from Muslim neighbors before seeking a
dog license. In recent weeks, the authorities have also
moved to crack down on pirated and pornographic video
compact discs.
All these moves appear aimed at
projecting a certain image of the government as the
moral guardian of society and are probably not
coincidental. They suggest that the government is trying
to improve its moral standing among the people,
especially in the light of the challenge that the
conservative opposition Islamic party, Parti Islam
Se-Malaysia, is presenting. PAS has often pointed to the
moral failure of the current administration and social
ills - whether it is the presence of gambling and
casinos, corruption or other vices.
With
Mahathir having declared in September 2001 that Malaysia
was already an "Islamic state", there is added pressure
on the ruling coalition to show that its model of an
Islamic state is just as good as if not better than
anything PAS can offer.
And now with jailed
former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim's bail hearing under
way and the release of six reformasi activists,
the authorities are showing signs of nervousness. Events
over the past week or so have shown that there is
noticeably less tolerance of even the smallest outdoor
gatherings to express dissent.
Last Monday, two
demonstrations were held outside court in Kuala Lumpur.
The first, a gathering of 250 people, took place during
Anwar's bail-application hearing, which was postponed
until this Tuesday because his lawyer had fallen ill.
The other took place the same morning during
another court hearing for seven suspended university
students charged with illegal assembly for their part in
a gathering to protest the use of the Internal Security
Act (ISA), which allows detention without trial. Another
small crowd gathered outside that venue.
But
when 15 activists highlighting the situation in the
Indonesian province of Aceh gathered outside the
Indonesian Embassy last Thursday, they found themselves
outnumbered 2-1 by police. The following day, police
moved in to disperse some 300 students who had gathered
to accompany the seven suspended students from the
National Mosque to the Kuala Lumpur magistrate's court
for their hearing. The crowd had carried placards and
chanted slogans calling for the repeal of the
Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA), which
bars students from getting involved in politics.
Perhaps the most surprising obstacle to a public
gathering came when women's groups tried to march to
raise awareness of violent crimes against women. The All
Women's Action Society of Malaysian (AWAM) was refused a
permit to hold an outdoor march from a prominent
shopping mall to the trendy upper-middle-class area of
Bangsar Baru. The organizers were forced to relocate the
event indoors at an exhibition center, but that too hit
a snag when they were given the runaround when trying to
obtain a permit.
Why all these problems? First,
the unresolved fate of Anwar continues to hang like an
albatross over Malaysian politics.
Second, the
six reformasi activists who were recently
released after more than two years under ISA detention
are in the midst of a grueling political road show,
criss-crossing the country to revive reformasi's
flagging fortunes. The six, most of them crowd-pullers
in Anwar's National Justice Party (Keadilan), have been
speaking in community halls and more intimate smaller
gatherings. For once, Keadilan's intense campaign
schedule has probably even surpassed the well-oiled
campaign machinery of its main opposition partner, PAS.
Third, some 2,000 people are expected to gather
on August 3 in the capital to mark the merger of
Keadilan and the smaller left-leaning Malaysian People's
Party (PRM). Party leaders hope that the merged entity -
to be known as the People's Justice Party (Parti
Keadilan Rakyat) - will provide a "third force" in
Malaysian politics apart from the ruling coalition and
PAS. Unlike the largest party in the ruling coalition,
the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), and its
main rival PAS, the new Parti Keadilan Rakyat, though
Malay-Muslim-based, will also have a significant
non-Malay/Muslim presence in its leadership and ranks.
These political developments are occurring at a
time of transition of the elite guard in the leadership
when the full succession scenario has not yet been
conclusively settled. There is intense speculation as to
whom Abdullah Badawi will pick as his deputy when he
takes over from Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad after
the Organization of Islamic Conferences summit meeting
in Kuala Lumpur scheduled for October.
In the
midst of all this, almost like a distraction, a
government-sponsored advertising blitz in the local
media has highlighted the Malaysian government's views
on the prickly differences with Singapore over the
pricing of Malaysia's supply of water to that republic.
Some cynical observers say the timing of this ad blitz
has diverted attention away from domestic issues and
appears aimed at drumming up nationalistic sentiment
ahead of a general election, expected early next year.
With UMNO party elections due by the middle of
2004, the factional jostling within UMNO is expected to
intensify. Abdullah's own position too cannot be taken
for granted. Meanwhile, the Anwar issue is unresolved,
the reformasi activists are on the loose, and PAS
and Parti Keadilan Rakyat are poised to present a
formidable challenge. It's no wonder the authorities
here are having a bad case of the jitters.
(Copyright 2003 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All
rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for
information on our sales and syndication policies.)
|
| |
|
|
 |
|
