What has “bumiputeraism” done for the Malay, apart from giving him a sense of entitlement and make him lord it over the other Malaysians who are not Malay?
The so-called “bumiputeras” could make a real difference in Malaysia, but labelling people, “bumiputera“, is not the way forward.
After 63 years of sleepwalking, of which 40 were spent living in denial, Malaysians need to wake up.
The term “bumiputera” needs to be consigned to the history books, immediately.
If the people want another reason to reassure them that “bumiputeraism” is wrong, and misleading, they need only look at the Orang Asli, and think, “Why are they, the original settlers of the peninsula, not considered ‘bumiputera’?”
The Malays are as pendatang as the non-Malays whom the nationalist Malays like to denigrate.
The word “bumiputera” is synonymous with privilege and division. It manifests itself in racism. It is divisive. It is unfair. It creates a lot of angst and builds resentment.
No parents would like to admit that any one of their children is their favourite.
No teachers would like to admit that they have pupils whom they like best, and treat better than the rest of the class.
Why should any Malaysian leader mark out a section of the population, to whom they give special treatment? Some of us complain about the west having a class system; we are no different.
For more than four decades, the Malays were told that as “bumiputeras”, they were special.
In reality, the term was only used as a feel-good factor so that the majority of Malays could be manipulated by Malay politicians, to harness Malay votes.
The term “bumiputera” should be rejected together with apartheid practices.
And the term “kafir” too.
Not terribly useful, particularly when the nons appear to be the better endowed in ability.
And are the nicer sugar daddies and jizya generators. .
Using the word Bumiputra as a group of selected races together with the Malays had boosted their majority to 65%. In reality, removing those Indigenous races like Kadazan, Melanau, Senoi, Dayak, Iban, Orang Asli, Siamese, Portugis, Mamak, Peranakan etc will reduce Malay population to below 50%. In Sabah & Sarawak, the Malay is at a low minority of 6% and 25% respectively.
The actual Malay percentage probably could go even lower 40% since the Malaysian law had defined anybody (Japanese, Philipino, Bangla, Rohinyas, Caucasian, Korean, Black Negro, Myanmars etc) if they does all these 3.
a) a Muslim
b) speaks the Malay language
c) practiced the living lifestyle of a Malay.
Even if the term “bumiputera” were to be eradicated, it will not mean much so long as we have a Malay centric government, determined to “protect race and religion” – which is the Malay race and Islam.
As a Chinese, I am well aware that giving an extra hand of help to Malays is fine but to treat the nons particularly the Chinese as enemies out to destroy the Malay race and religion is going beyond the pale.
You can’t blame the nons for feeling alienated from this kind of Malay centric government.
Look at Singapore where the Chinese are the majority at 70%. Yet do you hear the government of Singapore harping on the need to protect the Chinese race? And Singapore is probably the only country in the world with a minority language for the national anthemn. Not forgetting in the uniformed organisations, the commands are in Malay.