JAN 8 — We have amongst us segments of Malaysian society who feel a deep sense of alienation.
It is not that they haven't tried to change their circumstances. In most cases, they have spoken to community leaders, written letters of petition, pleaded with government officers, sought the help of politicians and civil society groups. However, their struggles still go unnoticed.
They may have received some attention — the spotlight given by a curious journalist, an organised visit by a politician — but these were scattered, and temporary. Still bound in their suffering, they don't know to whom they can turn. They have not witnessed concrete change in their daily lives.
There are many who are systematically marginalised. There are Orang Asli whose traditional lands are taken away with minimal compensation; whose children struggle to finish school — their will to get educated battered by racism and poverty; whose livelihoods related to the jungle and sea are destroyed by logging, palm oil plantations and projects in the name of “development”.
There are the people of Sabah and Sarawak, whose supply of electricity and water remains intermittent after 45 years of “independence”, whose access to basic health services and education is jeopardised by destitution and poor transportation, whose young adults are forced to seek employment elsewhere because of limited job opportunities.
There are the marginalised in the Indian communities, whose poverty remains hidden, whose housing and livelihoods remain uncertain after eviction from plantations, whose temples have been torn down, whose vernacular schools remain poorly resourced, who work for low wages and poor job security, whose frustrated youth turn to gangs, whose suicide rates are the highest in the country.
There are foreign spouses, whose impermanent immigration statuses make their futures uncertain, who are forced to carry passports wherever they go and have to pay exorbitant foreigner fees at hospitals, who struggle to find work because of immigration restrictions, who wait years for a decision on their application for permanent residence. They — who left behind careers and ties to their homeland to pursue a future with those they love and raise their Malaysian children — can too easily lose their right to be in Malaysia.
The list goes on.
We are a nation who, in forging our future, have systematically left people behind.
Over the years, the institutions by which the people of Malaysia are able to voice their views and seek redress were decimated. We became estranged from our politicians who, caught up in picayune power struggles, stopped listening and responding to our concerns. We lost our access to information about how our country is run with restrictive laws and government controls over media. We felt powerless to confront the ineptitude, corruption and racism in our civil service. Our freedom to assemble, join associations, form trade unions, mount collective protest was curtailed. We have been threatened with arrest and intimidated into silence.
Things are changing. We, the Malaysian people, are no longer accepting these restrictive parameters of citizenship. We are concerned over the state of our nation and we want to be part of its social and political reconstruction. However, if we are serious about addressing alienation in our society, if we are serious about curtailing social fragmentation and fostering a sense of belonging and community across boundaries, we need more than just empathy and goodwill.
We need visionary leaders who are committed to the marginalised amongst us, who act free from their personal ambitions, and are able to set new direction. We need leaders who don't just do what is politically expedient but who do what is right (it is rarely useful to act for the weak and poor; you get more mileage courting the well-connected and powerful). We don't want rhetoric and we are tired of empty promises. We need humble leaders who are willing to listen carefully, accompany those who suffer, and lead with strength of heart and moral vision.
We need reform in government administration. There are too many ambiguities in government procedures that leave marginalised groups at the mercy of petty bureaucrats. We need accessible, transparent and timely processes for basic functions such as registering births and applying for permanent residence. We need accountability for expenditure; we have to fight corruption seriously. We need talented and hard-working civil servants to be promoted and their recommendations for internal reform given due attention. We need the civil service to be accountable — not just to politicians but also to the public.
We need a judiciary that is respected and which acts independently and impartially. We need to review ouster clauses — provisions in legislation that exclude actions and decisions from judicial scrutiny — that restrict checks and balances in power. We need judges who are trained in human rights and international law so that they issue judgments that do not violate fundamental norms (jus cogens) and which respect international customary law and our treaty obligations. We need well-resourced legal aid programmes that help the marginalised to seek effective redress.
Finally, we need a vibrant civil society composed of the marginalised populations themselves as well as others who care about them and share their cause. We need to band together. We need institutions, trade unions, community-based organisations, faith-based groups and non-governmental organisations to act for change. We need to diagnose the problems in our society, to provide services and resources to those who need them, to keep our government accountable, and to lobby for change in policies and laws.
The alienation felt by marginalised groups in our society is not insurmountable. Malaysia is not a weak state — we have the resources, knowledge, and capacity to address these social issues. What we need is visionary and principled leadership, an efficient administrative system, an independent and effective judiciary in a functioning legal system, and a vibrant civil society.
With this we can create an inclusive society that systematically respects the rights and dignity of all.
Alice Nah - The Malaysian Insider
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