Malaysia's Hindus show political
muscle By Baradan Kuppusamy
KUALA LUMPUR - A new political force -
right wing Hindu activism - has strongly emerged
in multi-ethnic Malaysia, adding volatility in an
election year to the country's already religiously
charged political arena dominated by the majority
Malay Muslims. Across the country, ethnic
Indians, who make up about 8% of the country's 26
million people, are mobilizing to protest against
alleged socio-economic neglect and discrimination
in employment, education and business at the hands
of the ethnic Malay majority.
It
represents an increasingly vocal ethnic awakening
with which opposition political parties are
angling to join forces. Last
November 25, ethnic Indians
took to the streets en masse to protest against
alleged discrimination, a protest that resulted in
a government crackdown and the indefinite
detention of five the Hindu Rights Action Force's,
or Hindraf's, top leaders.
Prime Minister
Abdullah Badawi has acknowledged that the group's
grievances as highlighted by the Hindraf may dent
election prospects for his government's ruling
National Front. "Yes, I think votes will be
affected somewhat," he was recently quoted saying
by the Sunday Star newspaper.
The ferment
is now visible in the country's hundreds of Hindu
temples where working-class Tamils, mostly youths
and young married couples, gather to avoid police
harassment and speak out against discriminatory
pro-Malay policies. "We have been left out of 20
years of progress and development," said Munusamy
Marimuthu, 28, a supervisor in a small rubber
factory.
On the weekend, Marimuthu joined
some 800 working class Tamils to pray to Lord
Muruga, the sentinel god of the Tamils, at a Hindu
temple in Kuala Selangor, a town set amid oil palm
plantations about 70 kilometers east of the
capital. They also broke coconuts, a religious act
usually associated with seeking divine
intervention to resolve woes faced by the Hindu
religion's devotees.
"Our politicians have
betrayed us - only our energy and our god can
protect us now," said Marimuthu, a descendant of
19th century Tamil indentured laborers. He says
his views echo that of the majority of Tamils in
the country now caught up in the so-called "Makkal
Shakthi" (People Power) movement.
The
youths were led in their protest prayers by a
saffron-clad priest from South India chanting in
Sanskrit, the ancient language of Hinduism, which
few of the congregation could understand.
Nevertheless, camaraderie was high. "For the first
time we are united and under the banner of our
religion," said protester Arumugam Chedi, 39, a
laborer. "Our religion is under threat, but now we
are united and can show our anger."
Protesters released five pigeons in honor
of the five incarcerated Hindraf leaders. The five
are being held without trial at a political
detention camp in Northern Perak state on charges
of "developing links" with Sri Lanka's militant
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. They have all
denied the charges.
Also at the center of
the Makkal Sakthi protest were allegations that
Abdullah has failed to take firm action to "right
the wrongs" faced by the country's ethnic Tamils
and for the harsh treatment meted out to the
Hindraf leaders. In a new twist, protesters have
also taken aim at the Malaysian Indian Congress,
which is a partner in Abdullah's National Front
coalition government and led by longtime president
Samy Vellu.
On January 23, Hindus
expressed their anger and frustration with Samy
Vellu and the MIC by boycotting the Thaipusam
festival, the biggest event on the calendar for
Malaysian Hindus which is held annually at the
Batu Caves temple complex outside of Kuala Lumpur.
Typically, about 1.5 million devotees and
spectators throng the caves for the festival. But
this year only about 300,000 Hindus showed up, and
most people stayed away in support of the boycott
and as a symbolic rebuke to Samy Vellu, who
traditionally opens the celebration with an early
morning speech. Phone text messages were used by
Indian groups to convince Hindus to eschew the
event.
"Indian anger is focused on Samy
Vellu who is seen as betraying the community by
not speaking up for its needs in the government,"
said parliamentary opposition leader Lim Kit
Siang. "He should resign because Indians have
rejected his inept leadership," said Lim.
Lim, who leads the Democratic Action Party
(DAP), has demanded that two of the detained
Hindraf leaders, M Manoharan and B Ganabathi Rao,
be allowed to contest the elections, which are
widely expected to be held in March. Both men are
DAP members.
With Abdullah's popularity
among Indians plunging and Samy Vellu's leadership
discredited, Indian voter support for the
government is at an all-time low. The opposition
Chinese-majority DAP and opposition icon Anwar
Ibrahim's National Justice Party are expected to
be the big winners from the protest movement.
"We expect the majority of Indians to vote
for the opposition this time," said Murugesan
Kulasegaran, the only ethnic Tamil opposition
lawmaker in Parliament. "They can be kingmakers in
at least 30 parliamentary constituencies. Their
voice will be heard this time," he said.
However, the rise of political Hinduism is
also unleashing other potentially divisive forces
in this fragile multi-ethnic society. As a
counteraction to Hindu activism, Malay Muslim
support is on the rise for Abdullah, according to
recent opinion polls which show his popularity
rising from 65% a year ago to 80% at present.
Another significant sign is that while
Tamils are flocking to opposition party rallies,
Malay Muslims and Chinese are conspicuously
missing. Ethnic Chinese, who first arrived in
Malaysia as laborers to work in tin mines, now
represent 25% of the population and are
economically the most vibrant group - controlling
by some estimates 60% of the economy.
Observers say the business-minded Chinese,
who historically have favored stability and a
strong central government, are feeling uneasy with
the rise of Hinduism as a political force.
"They fear how Muslims would react and the
possible implication for stability and growth,"
said a senior University of Malaya lecturer who
requested anonymity. "They worry because the
multi-ethnic society is already under stress."
Still, the rise of Hinduism will have an
impact on the voting trends among Malay Muslims,
who represent about 60% of total voters, the
lecturer said. "They are more likely to side with
the government seeing it as better able to protect
Islam against a Hindu upsurge."
The net
effect, however, could be that the opposition
political parties win large chunks of the smaller
Indian vote, but lose a larger portion of the
bigger Malay and Chinese votes.
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