Race tiff tempest hits DAP
PETALING JAYA:聽A remark about DAP by its central committee member Ronnie Liu (pix) has kicked up quite a storm within the party.
He drew heavy criticism from party colleagues, including secretary-general Lim Guan Eng.
But one political commentator said such sentiments had already beset the party since the 1970s, and another pointed out that while DAP is among several multi-racial parties, it is essentially dominated by just one race.
Lim described Liu as a 鈥渄inosaur鈥 and likened his words to 鈥渄og whistling鈥 just to gain votes for the upcoming party elections. DAP is due to hold its national elections in June.
Last Sunday, Liu had said the party should not sacrifice or dilute its Chinese identity just to fend off political rivals. He was speaking at an event in Klang to launch a book by veteran DAP member Liew Ah Kim.
Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh said Liu鈥檚 comments were
鈥渘arrow-minded and toxic鈥 while Damansara MP Tony Pua accused him of being chauvinistic.
However, Liu said the two MPs had misinterpreted what he said.
Lim stressed that the remarks by Liu, who is Sungai Pelek assemblyman, do not represent the sentiments of the party.
鈥淟iu is using this extremist ideology to change the soul of the party.鈥
He pointed out that the party has always been multi-racial and therefore, its priority is not to accentuate ethnicity.
鈥淏y his statement, Liu is implying that he is 鈥楥hinese first and then Malaysian鈥. Such thinking must be rejected outright,鈥 Lim added.
On Liu鈥檚 claim that his speech had been misinterpreted, Lim said it was Liu who had 鈥渕isrepresented鈥 what the party stood for.
鈥淲e have checked the translation of his speech shared on a news portal,鈥 Lim said.
University of Tasmania professor of Asian Studies, James Chin, said since the 1970s, young professionals in DAP had already tried to position the party as being more inclusive while veteran members were 鈥渕ore oriented towards being Chinese first and Malaysian after鈥.
He said while Lim and his father Kit Siang, a party stalwart, believed in a multi-racial Malaysia, the sentiments of the older members of the party were different.
Nonetheless, he said Liu鈥檚 remarks had not done any damage given that no one responded to it until Yeoh posted her reaction on Facebook.
鈥淣obody is keeping an eye on it because it is considered normal in the DAP circle.
鈥淚t鈥檚 only when younger members complain that it strikes back and becomes news,鈥 Chin said.
He added that the episode will, in fact, endear members such as Yeoh to a wider group of Malaysians.
鈥淧eople will see it as an attempt to reform DAP from a Chinese-based party to a Malaysian one.鈥
Another political commentator, Prof Dr Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi of UCSI University, claimed that mistrust among the different races
is the 鈥渂edrock of politics in Malaysia鈥.
鈥淚t is for this reason that there are race and religion-based parties such as Umno, MCA and PAS,鈥 he told theSun.
鈥淭here is nothing wrong with Liu鈥檚 statement.
鈥淲e are now ruled by PN (Perikatan Nasional), which is almost a total race-based government.鈥
He said when PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim made a bid for power, he claimed he had Malay support.
鈥淧akatan Harapan failed because its Cabinet was not dominated by one race. Malaysia is sick because its educated class use the race narrative. Politicians just make do with this fundamental mistrust between races,鈥 he added.
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