Asian Angle | Malaysia’s Mahathir holds ‘outdated’ view on ethnicity but does debate show cracks in nation’s multiculturalism model?
- Mahathir’s recent questioning of the Indian community’s loyalty was heavily criticised, but the debate reflects problems with Malaysia’s model of multiculturalism
- Mahathir is a product of his era, and it is current PM Anwar Ibrahim who must unequivocally put the matter to rest and regain support from ethnic minorities
During a recent interview with Indian television channel Thanthi TV, Mahathir said that ethnic minority groups who have “their own schools, their own language, their own culture” are “different from the original people who founded this country”, and therefore Malaysia cannot belong to them. When pressed further, he said they are “not completely” loyal to Malaysia as they “want to identify themselves with their countries of origin”.
He said they should become Malay and assimilate with the country’s majority race if they want to claim that they belong to Malaysia. Mahathir’s questioning of the Indian community’s loyalty to Malaysia was heavily criticised. However, the debate that arose out of his comments is reflective of problems with Malaysia’s model of multiculturalism.
Mahathir responded to some of these criticisms, one of them coming from former DAP leader P. Ramasamy who accused the former of “convoluted logic” and being the “prime architect” of divisive policies. Mahathir countered that Ramasamy was the true racist for leaving DAP to establish an Indian-based party. Ramasamy retaliated, saying that Mahathir is a “more intensive racist”.
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A multiracial Malaysia would be unconstitutional, says former PM Mahathir
Many Malaysians deem Mahathir’s remarks irrelevant and anachronistic. Yet, one should understand the roots of his thought, dating back to pre-independence Malaysia. Shaharuddin Maaruf’s Malay Ideas on Development explains Mahathir’s theory of Malay backwardness. In his book The Malay Dilemma, Mahathir mixed Darwin’s survival of the fittest, the Malays’ genetic inferiority and their perceived indolence.
