Riots and our racial prejudices

COMMENT | So much has been said and done in recent days about what happened in Seafield (Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Subang Jaya). Naturally, each of us has his version to believe.

I have seen Internet comments and viral messages among non-Malays cursing Umno / NOT for the tragedy. I have also seen similar comments and viral messages reminding the Malays that their position has been weakened since the current federal government took office.

Comments on Malaysiakini or the websites that address urban readers, (largely) unread, were just as bad. Immediately after, many comments condemned the police authorities for "permitting" the riot to take place.

There are always two sides of each story. There are different versions of the same event. normally the truth is in between.

Unfortunately, in Malaysia, each of us has our own racial and religious prejudices. To make matters worse, it is always too convenient to point the finger at the other person. We almost never look in the mirror and admit that each of us also has its racial bias.

It is so common that a lot of non-Malays that I have met (and my encounters with non-Malays are far superior to those of an average Malay) think that the racial problem only comes from the fact that I have not met them. only one side: the Malays and the Muslims.

Similarly, many Malays (even the most educated) still harbor anger and mistrust towards non-Malays, for allegedly marginalizing the Malays (regardless of the distorted logic).

So, when a very emotional event like this has taken place, it is very easy for everyone of us to be influenced by our racial bias.

It is easy for Indians and non-Malays to think that the Malays conspired to encroach on the temple and that the Malaysian police did not act promptly (in collusion with thugs).

It is easy for the Malays to feel angry and blame the entire Indian population for what happened to Muhammad Adib Kassim, the young firefighter who is now fighting for his life.

Events like this will be repeated in the future. Again and again, it does not matter which parties are the federal government. Regardless of the fact that PAS / Umno organizes anti-Icerd gatherings (International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination) or that the federal government of Pakatan Harapan ratifies Icerd or not. It will happen so long that most of us choose to see everything from a racial point of view.

There are a few things we can do individually to make things better.

We must admit that each of us carries a racial bias that we must resolve. We can not continue to patronize the other group, but deny that we are not better than them.

Whenever an event like this occurs or a problem that easily introduces racial perspectives, we must be objective and learn to see from the point of view of the other group.

The Malays must learn to appreciate the fears and concerns of non-Malays, in the same way that non-Malays can not continue to stereotype Malays as incompetent and stupid (especially in the event of disagreement).

Finally, try to make friends with people of other races. It is only so that we can embrace and work on our racial prejudices.

If we give all kinds of excuses and blame everything in the sun for not having a circle of multiracial friends – blame the national school, blame the pig, blame the Taliban but do not blame us- same – then we are the problem.

RAFIZI RAMLI is a former vice president and MP for PKR. This article was first published on his blog.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the author / contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.