Melayu Über Clueless

Technorati tags: Race, Racism, Royalty, BBPM, Clueless

Walski comes home from his most recent trip, fires up the notebook, and finds this.

Now, some of you may view this post as being anti-Royal. If it had been, there would have been a whole tirade against this one Crown Prince, including talking at length about the dangers of close-relative marriages...

Well it's not. It's anti-Cluelessness. And Walski, in truth, doesn't know much about the Kelantan Crown Prince, Tengku Faris Petra - other than that he's the Crown Prince of Kelantan, and that up till 3 years ago (give or take) was the only bachelor crown prince in Malaysia.

But somehow, Walski has a distinct and nagging feeling that the Tengku didn't write this keynote speech. The part in the Malaysiakini article stating an 11-page prepared text was probably the big giveaway. It souded like a speech designed to play to the gallery. Of 1,000 clueless individuals.

Walski also realizes that this newly formed Barisan Bertindak Perpaduan Melayu (Malay Unity Action Front - or MUAF, which coincidentally rhymes with BARF) probably doesn't speak on behalf of all Malays. Only on behalf of those who just don't get the reality of the fast-evolving world around them. And on behalf of the same people most likely to get left behind, stuck in a paradigm that's quickly becoming fossilized.

Regardless, these racial ultras have just found themselves a new royal patron - not the sharpest tool in the shed, by the sounds of it - but a royal patron nonetheless.

So, why does Walski think that these folks are clueless? Well the Malaysiakini report does provide a few clues... of über cluelessness.
(clueless uber alles, and more, in the full post)

The Malaysiakini article quoted above has since been reworded. The clipping you see is the original, while the one that you'll find online now has been rewritten. Like the first paragraph, shown below, with the altered portion highlighted.

Kelantan Crown Prince Tengku Faris Petra said today that Malays had given into granting non-Malays citizenship and the latter should therefore not seek equality or special treatment.

The word "coerced" now conspicuously missing. The original, of course, read "... had been coerced into giving..." instead of the new, slightly less contentious wording. But the gist is the same - non-Malays should just accept being unequal citizens.

Clueless.

There is a term where citizens coexist on unequal basis of rights - apartheid.

“Therefore, the rakyat must unite and never raise issues regarding Malay rights and special privileges because it is a quid pro quo in gratitude for the giving in of citizenship (beri-paksa kerakyatan) to 2.7 million non-Malays into the Tanah Melayu federation.

“Thus, it is not appropriate for these other ethnic groups to have citizenship, only (later) to seek equality and privileges,” said Tengku Faris, who read from a 11-page prepared text.

However, the crown prince stressed that in an effort to unite the Malays, non-Malays also have rights that must be protected, such as in areas of religion.
(source: Malaysiakini - subscription required)

At the end of the day, it's all about uniting the Malays, nothing more, nothing less. Come hell, highwater, or blatant discrimination. But at the same time, the rights of the non-Malays must also be protected.

Huh? Like saying that you can have your cake, eat it and then grab someone else's cake just for good measure.

So, which is it? Confused? So are these clueless people, it appears. But wait, there's more...

“In fact, if Malay rights and special privileges are taken care of and is not disturbed, it would ensure national harmony. It does not just benefit the Malays but all ethnic groups,” he said.
(source: Malaysiakini - subscription required)

Now that almost sounds like a veiled threat - uphold Malay special rights, everyone's safe, but challenge it and watch the fuck out! Slick.

But the comedy doesn't end there. The biggest hint that these people haven't the slightest clue about - well, anything much in the real world of the now - comes later in the report.

In his speech, Tengku Faris said the 12th General Election results have shown that the Malays are being “challenged” and thus Malays unity is of the outmost priority.

“The election results have shown that the Malays are disunited and facing other ethnic groups who are more dominant politically and economically,” he said.
(source: Malaysiakini - subscription required)

No, the election results have shown that it's not just about race anymore, but about good governance. Get that into your thick coconuts.

Nevermind that BN is not a Melayu-only coalition... minor detail. Why? To these folk, at least, their viewpoint is that only UMNO matters, and the other components are just there to comply to UMNO's every fancy. Unless, of course, this is actually the reality of the race-based coalition.

In other words, it's okay to have an inept, corrupt and clueless government, as long as its Malay leadership is not challenged. Wake up and smell the globalization, people. Malaysia, for the most part has come a long way. There are those, however, clearly left behind in the glorified, romantic feudalism of the the pre-20th century.

And quite frankly, apart from finding these people funny - both in the ha-ha and bizarre senses - what Walski really feels for these people is pity. Pity that they can only see as far as the limited Melayu sphere - their own comfort tempurung, so to speak. Because, the world is changing, and the inability to accept change is going to be their own undoing.

Them, and whichever royal patron clueless enough to buy into the rhetoric of racial supremacy and limited vision.

Related posts from elsewhere in the bloggerhood (as of 0933hrs):
►► Full Text of the Speech (in Bahasa Malaysia, via A Voice)

► Bersatu kita Teguh, Bercerai kita Roboh (A New Dawn for Penang)
► Kelantan Crown Prince Tengku Faris Petra is Way Out of Royal Line ... (Aarvidi’s Weblog)
► Spitting Towards The Sky (Aisehman)
► The Malay, non-Malay cat & mouse game (Anak Merdeka)
► Tengku Faris: Don’t question Malay rights (Bangsaku... Bangsa Malaysia!)
► Ketuanan Melayu tercabar - Kaum lain lebih dominan dari segi politik, ekonomi – Tengku Faris (Bangsaku Melayu)
► A case of trying too hard (Beautiful Malaysian)
► Lindungi hak istimewa Melayu (Berita Panas)
► You have GOT to be kidding me. (convicted certainty)
► Racial inequality as a norm (Dai Lan Tong)
► Tengku Faris: Non-Malays should not seek equality (Edi神's Footprints)
► Kelantan Crown Prince 'slapped' non-Malays in face! (KTemoc Konsiders)
► Many Apples in a Barrel (Malaysia Today)
► Not Rational To Seek Complete Equality Amongst Malaysians For Historical Reasons - Crown Prince of Kelantan (Malaysiana1)
► The New Malaysian Dilemma (Maverick SM - Cakap Tak Serupa Bikin)
► no national unity without malay unity (Lucia Lai - Mental Jog)
► Jika ketuanan Melayu hilang...! (Penyokong KJ)
► Fu*k you Tengku Faris & MCA (Perspective of Monk)
► K'tan clown prince clueless on basis of social contract (Sean The Man)
► A New Patron of UMNO (Seventh Rangers [Mechanized])
► Prince: Not appropriate for other ethnic groups to ask for equality and priviledges (Simply Puteri)
► Tengku Faris Petra... I'm Speechless! (Surind)
►Malays Special (Teh's Tales, Ian's Yarns)
► Perhimpunan Perpaduan Melayu (Teja)
► Non-malays owed Tun Mahathir a big thank you! (Tell You Something)
► Tengku Faris: Non Malays should not seek equality (The Edge)
► Tell Me Which Country In The Civilized World Does Not Accord Rightful Citizenship and Equal Rights After 3 Generations of Residency (The Sensintrovert)
► Tengku Faris: You are WRONG! (Tides of Change)
► Who is creating racial tension now??? (Young Journalist)