THE increasing tide of divisive rhetoric and actions, which threaten our national harmony and make a mockery of our proclaimed adherence to moderation, is causing alarm among concerned citizens.

Tuesday, 16 Jan 2018

As the 14th general election approaches, this tide is becoming a tidal wave. Now, hate politics is also coming into the picture so much so that the Prime Minister has recently come out strongly against it.

Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam has given an excellent list of proposals on how to combat this hate politics in his letter, “Keep hate politics out of GE14” (The Star, Jan 9).

For sustained national harmony and to minimise the impact of hate politics, I think Malaysian citizens should adopt and practise a certain code of ethical conduct. In this respect, I would urge concerned Malaysians to adopt and practise the Dialog Rakyat code of ethical conduct and make it our New Year resolution. The code of ethical conduct is as follows:

> Respect for one another regardless of ethnicity, religion, geographical region, status or political leaning; and

> Recognition of our similarities and acceptance of our differences.

We, the concerned and responsible citizens of Malaysia agree to:

> Respect the Federal Constitution and uphold the Rukunegara so as to preserve the independence and sovereignty of our nation;

> Promote activities that nurture civic consciousness, civic nationalism, patriotism, national cohesiveness, harmony and unity at all levels of society;

> Advocate justice and fairness, transparency and integrity in all aspects of management and governance;

> Resolve contentions and differences through constructive engagement, always seeking for equitable, mutually beneficial outcomes;

> Refrain from actions that offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate others;

> Reject any form of discrimination, bigotry, extremism, unjustified acts causing harm to any individual or group, including any action that can disrupt harmony and cohesion; and

> Fight corruption and kleptocracy at all levels and in all its manifestations.

We, the concerned and responsible citizens of Malaysia, resolve to:

> Adhere to and promote the Code of Ethical Conduct, and to

> Mobilise citizens towards a Citizen Movement for National Cohesion and Unity.

This code of ethical conduct is the outcome of the first Dialog Rakyat on National Cohesion and Unity held in December 2016. Since then, three other dialogues have been convened to translate the code of ethical conduct into “actionable practices” respectively for individuals, universities and community groups such as residents associations and rukun tetanga.

Dialog Rakyat is an initiative of seven organisations initially, Association of Voices of Peace, Conscience and Reason (PCORE), Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia (PAGE), Malaysian Invention and Design Society (MINDS), Nation Building School (NBS), G25, Inter-faith Spiritual Fellow­ship (INSaF) and Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (ASLI). They were joined later by Yayasan 1Malaysia and the National Council of Women’s Organisations, Malaysia (NCWO).

The dialogues have been jointly convened by a number of universities, residents associations and rukun tetanga. More are planned for 2018 to get the support of other organisations and citizen groups.

We can continue to express concern and assign blame about the unhealthy development in our country but we cannot control the action of those with selfish agendas. It is better therefore to focus on what we can control – ourselves – and together we CAN make a difference.

TAN SRI OMAR ABDUL RAHMAN

Chair, Organising Committee

Dialog Rakyat for National Cohesion and Unity

Kuala Lumpur

https://www.thestar.com.my/opinion/letters/2018/01/16/focused-on-making-a-difference

Please be fair and inclusive - RAMON NAVARATNAM

ALMOST all Malaysians would have been shocked and deeply disappointed by the divisive discussions that took place at the recent “Rise of the Ummah” convention.

Tuesday, 16 Jan 2018

RAMON NAVARATNAM

It was even more depressing to hear that a former senior education officer, Datuk Raof Husin, had urged the Government to “return the exclusive right of government scholarships to bumiputra students and do not give them to others”.

For crying out loud, what was Raof doing right through his long career in the education service? Was he promoting or degrading national unity? I wonder how he got away with this anti-national unity attitude. Has he got so many followers that people can legitimately ask: “Is our Government condoning this negativity and divisiveness?”

The other shocker emerging from this conservative convention was the equally damaging statement by Muslim cleric Ismail Mina Ahmad who reportedly tried to erase the great patriotic contributions and ultimate sacrifices made by non-Malays, especially in the Malaysian Armed Forces and the Royal Malaysia police, in the defence of our dear country. How can anyone be so unfair and discriminatory to our fellow citizens unless they are blatantly racial?

It is also laudable that the secular group Bebas spokesman Azrul Mohd Khalib has boldly called on Malaysians to reject the demands of this negative and conservative convention. Bebas has rightly pointed out “the real need to focus on the future, where we do not need to depend on racial discrimination and bigotry to succeed”. Bebas is so rational and right.

Many other loyal individuals and organisations have also bravely spoken up. The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism led by its president Datuk R.S. Mohan Shan, MIC treasurer-general Datuk Seri S. Vell Paari, and MCA Religious Harmony Bureau chairman Datuk Seri Ti Lian Ker have all stoutly spoken against this threat to national unity from the parochial conservative convention.

But the Government has surprisingly been quiet so far. “Why?” I wonder. The Government should come out against racist and unrighteous remarks. It is indeed expected by all right-thinking Malaysians, especially voters, to state its firm stand against divisive and disruptive remarks that are not historical facts and against national unity and the future of non-Malays.

Both Raof and Ismail Mina Ahmad have apparently violated the spirit of our precious Constitution and the Rukunegara, which provide the foundations of our national unity, fairness, justice and socioeconomic progress.

Should the Government not take the lead by expressing its official stand against attempts to cause public restlessness, disharmony and even unrest?

In fact, the authorities could be reasonably expected to take appropriate action under the laws of the land against those who undermine national unity.

So many Malaysians would appeal to the Government to please be fair and inclusive and to actively promote national unity in our beloved country. This is particularly pertinent at this time before the 14th general election.

A positive move by the Government would definitely benefit all patriotic Malaysians who will be grateful for its leadership to effectively promote greater peace and harmony in our nation.

TAN SRI RAMON NAVARATNAM

Chairman

Asli Center of Public Policy Studies

https://www.thestar.com.my/opinion/letters/2018/01/16/please-be-fair-and-inclusive/