The Trust of All Malaysians
Published: Friday October 31, 2008 MYT 3:51:00 PM
Updated: Friday October 31, 2008 MYT 4:41:38 PM
Respect the rights of all citizens: Zaid
By NG CHENG YEE
KUALA LUMPUR: The Barisan Nasional government must abandon its reworked concept of the social contract, said Datuk Zaid Ibrahim.
He said the Government must now embrace a fresh perspective borne out of discussions and agreements made in good faith with all the communities in this country.
“It is time for us all to practise a more transparent and egalitarian form of democracy and to recognise and respect the rights and dignity of all the citizens of this country,” he said Friday at the 21st LawAsia Conference 2008 here.
Zaid was invited to speak on “Malaysia - A Lost Democracy?” on the second day of the conference.
He said the social contract was restructured unilaterally in the 1980s by a certain segment of the Barisan leadership, which marked the advent of “ketuanan Melayu” or Malay supremacy, that allowed for developments that had resulted in the country’s current state of affairs.
“The non-Malay Barisan component parties were perceived by Umno to be weak and in no position to exert influence.
“Bandied about by Umno ideologues, the social contract took on a different, more racialist tone.
“The essence of its reconstructed meaning was that Malaya is primarily the home of the Malays and that the non-Malays should acknowledge that primacy by showing deference to the Malays and Malay issues.
“Affirmative action and special status became a matter of privilege by reference to race rather than of need and questioning of this new status quo was not to be tolerated,” he said.
He said majoritarianism had become the governing paradigm of governance as the character and nature of rights were defined by Malay interests and the Malays.
He said the institutions of government were such that the Malays were effectively represented and there was no way the interest of the Malays could be taken away other than through their own weakness and folly.
“It was, and still is, impossible to reconcile the principles of equality and civil rights of the people of this country with the primacy of one group over all others,” he said.
Zaid said the country had failed miserably in dealing with complex issues of society by resorting to a political culture of promoting fear and division amongst the people.
“The ketuanan Melayu model has failed and it has resulted in waste of crucial resources, energy and time and has distracted from the real issues confronting the country,” he said.
He said the results of the March 8 elections showed that the Barisan was no longer exclusively speaking for the rakyat.
“Prompting discourse and dialogue is essential as we must learn to talk and listen to one another again,” he said.
He also said goodwill must continue to strive to bring about change so that the trust of all Malaysians could be rebuilt.
“From that trust, we can rebuild the country where we do not live in fear, but in freedom; that the rights of all Malaysians are acknowledged, respected and protected by the system of law that is just and fair,” he said.
Updated: Friday October 31, 2008 MYT 4:41:38 PM
Respect the rights of all citizens: Zaid
By NG CHENG YEE
KUALA LUMPUR: The Barisan Nasional government must abandon its reworked concept of the social contract, said Datuk Zaid Ibrahim.
He said the Government must now embrace a fresh perspective borne out of discussions and agreements made in good faith with all the communities in this country.
“It is time for us all to practise a more transparent and egalitarian form of democracy and to recognise and respect the rights and dignity of all the citizens of this country,” he said Friday at the 21st LawAsia Conference 2008 here.
Zaid was invited to speak on “Malaysia - A Lost Democracy?” on the second day of the conference.
He said the social contract was restructured unilaterally in the 1980s by a certain segment of the Barisan leadership, which marked the advent of “ketuanan Melayu” or Malay supremacy, that allowed for developments that had resulted in the country’s current state of affairs.
“The non-Malay Barisan component parties were perceived by Umno to be weak and in no position to exert influence.
“Bandied about by Umno ideologues, the social contract took on a different, more racialist tone.
“The essence of its reconstructed meaning was that Malaya is primarily the home of the Malays and that the non-Malays should acknowledge that primacy by showing deference to the Malays and Malay issues.
“Affirmative action and special status became a matter of privilege by reference to race rather than of need and questioning of this new status quo was not to be tolerated,” he said.
He said majoritarianism had become the governing paradigm of governance as the character and nature of rights were defined by Malay interests and the Malays.
He said the institutions of government were such that the Malays were effectively represented and there was no way the interest of the Malays could be taken away other than through their own weakness and folly.
“It was, and still is, impossible to reconcile the principles of equality and civil rights of the people of this country with the primacy of one group over all others,” he said.
Zaid said the country had failed miserably in dealing with complex issues of society by resorting to a political culture of promoting fear and division amongst the people.
“The ketuanan Melayu model has failed and it has resulted in waste of crucial resources, energy and time and has distracted from the real issues confronting the country,” he said.
He said the results of the March 8 elections showed that the Barisan was no longer exclusively speaking for the rakyat.
“Prompting discourse and dialogue is essential as we must learn to talk and listen to one another again,” he said.
He also said goodwill must continue to strive to bring about change so that the trust of all Malaysians could be rebuilt.
“From that trust, we can rebuild the country where we do not live in fear, but in freedom; that the rights of all Malaysians are acknowledged, respected and protected by the system of law that is just and fair,” he said.
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