In an understandably defensive tone, Najib tries in vain to convince millions of us that Umno is not to blame for the terror attacks on the churches. And in what clearly is a follow-up attempt at more damage control, he’s now, tried even more desperately to insist that Umno is not a racist party. And what’s his basis for such a claim? History!
Now, there’s a perfect example of what would surely have to be selective Umno history. Perhaps Najib and Umno sympathizers could use a brief refresher on some landmark episodes so that we can see once again how badly he’s got it wrong when he claims Umno is not a racist party.
It was Umno that gave us the NEP and our legalized discriminatory system – our very own Malaysian apartheid.
It was Umno that gave us unprecedented expansion of discriminatory educational, housing, employment, and various other public policies.
It was Umno that gave us the culture and ideology of Ketuanan Melayu.
It was Umno that gave us the marginalization of minority rights in every imaginable facet of society.
It was Umno that gave us kris-waving general assemblies.
It was at an Umno rally in 1987 when anti-Chinese rhetoric was being stoked and fermented.
It is Umno that has given us an education system in which merit has been set aside in favour of race-based criteria for admission, promotions, and success.
It is Umno that has given us the tradition of abuse and contempt for the poor minorities in the country.
It is Umno that has been at the controls when the racist and brainwashing BTN programmes were put in place.
It was Umno that was in charge when we underwent the saga of temple destructions.
It was Umno that was in charge when the ban on ‘Allah’ was imposed.
And who exactly controls the so-called newspaper that publishes racist garbage?
And under whose watch exactly did this current controversy get incompetently - and tragically - out of control?
Huufff…. Need I go on?
Well, let me just make one other point. If I didn’t know any better, I’m inclined to think that more than being just a racist party, there is actually a broader racist design of ethnic cleansing that has been underway for many years now.
No, it’s not the kind of ethnic cleansing that went on in Rwanda and Bosnia and such, but one has to wonder if Umno has in fact been actually engaging in a low-intensity strategic ethnic cleansing policy for some years now.
And one of the telling signs of the outcome of this strategy and the impact of the above policies has been the steady outflow of minorities from the country coupled with the highly controlled policies of limiting the influx of non-Malays.
Do you suppose after these current terror attacks which happened under Umno's watch, there won't be many more Christians and others who may truly be wondering about what the future holds and may be thinking about a future somewhere other than here? Are we likely to see continued exodus of fearful minorities out of the country? I wouldn't rule it out.
And with each passing year, Umno policies come to have the impact of producing ethnic cleansing, only not in the way we have come to think of the term.
Umno not racist?
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