How could it come to this?

We have to ask ourselves — how can it be that asking people to protest in a non-violent way, such as wearing black or yellow, can lead to a massive police crackdown?

James Chin, The Malaysian Insider

Back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Malaysians had an attitude towards the Indonesians. We used to laugh at them because they were living under the authoritarian military Suharto regime. The military was a law unto itself and we Malaysians thought that we were so much better off than the Indonesians.

There was a lot of pride in being a Malaysian, not least after mega projects such as the Twin Towers. Malaysia was on its way to becoming a respected fully developed country. There was much confidence that we will reach 2020 without any real problems.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had a strong grip on power and this allowed many things to be done quickly, often without the checks and balances. Nevertheless, people were willing to live with this as long as the country was moving forward.

Today, after the Perak fiasco, we really have to ask ourselves, if we are a nation in waiting or a failed nation. Any sensible person, inside and outside Malaysia, would come to the conclusion that Malaysians are willing to do anything to get power, even to the extent of destroying the constitution, the rule of law and parliamentary traditions. And for what?

You may have power but power without legitimacy is the same as having no real power. Do those in power really think that the people are so stupid that they cannot tell who is the legitimate government? Do they honesty think that what happened on Thursday will have no effect on the next general election?

The question I have to ask is this; how did it come to this? We have always taken pride in ourselves that we are more developed than our neighbours. We never had a military coup; we always held elections (free but not fair); we have a fairly solid judiciary and, by and large, legitimately elected governments since independence. Even the hiccup of 1969 lasted only about 18 months before the nation was back on track.

We have to ask ourselves — how can it be that asking people to protest in a non-violent way, such as wearing black or yellow, can lead to a massive police crackdown? These are the sort of things we expect to see in a banana republic, not a country that wants to be a fully developed nation in 11 years’ time.

We have to ask ourselves — how can it be that lawyers are arrested for trying to defend their clients? That lighting candles can be deemed a security threat? Are we that fragile that a sea of people wearing black and holding candles will lead to the disintegration of the country?

Surely, after 51 years, we have come to a stage where we can have a mature political discussion. Surely after 51 years, we must allow our citizens to protest in a non-violent way and use non-violent means.

It is time that we moved up the ladder in terms of our political development. We should not allow history to shackle us and hold us back. Just because a minority prefers Malaysia to remain a banana republic does not mean that all of us must behave like monkeys.

We must learn to agree to disagree. We must learn that a difference in political opinions does not lead to chaos and emergency rule. We must learn that dissent has a place in a modern democratic nation. We must learn that the rule of law is the best guarantee for the nation’s future.

And perhaps we should learn the most important lesson; what happens today will be reflected tomorrow. Do we want to leave what happened in Perak as the legacy for future generations?

James Chin is a Malaysian academic. The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the views of institutions he is associated with. He can be contacted at
[email protected]