A couple of Malays, when informed that the PAP has historically discriminated against the community, tried to play it down by saying these policies are in the past. they further argue that we have to forget the past.
This is the mistake some make when they discuss politics without understanding the institutional effects of policy formulation.
When a policy is implemented, it does not simply affect its immediate time. Instead, these policies’ effects and implementation can be found far into the future.
In institutional policy development, there is a concept known as path dependency. Path dependency refers to the behaviour of policy makers in the preferences of choices. When a specific choice is made at an earlier time, that same choice will be used as a template for future choices.
The PAP’s policy of excluding Malays from the uniformed services is still in existence today. The values, views, ideologies, the very template that gave validity to those policies are still part of the PAP today.
That it has changed slightly does not mean the reason the policy was crafted has changed.
The discriminatory policies, apart from showing how Malays are not valued by the PAP, also reveals a careless attitude to policies that affect the Malay community. They did not care or consider the effects the policy would have on the Malays.
The policy resulted in thousands of Malay youths being unemployed and unable to be educated between 1967 to 1977 (and it extends in some form until 1984).
No provisions were made. No alternative pathways were given. These youths did not even get the recognition of being informed they would not be enlisted.
It shows a government that did not care about what happened to Malay youths.
The effects of this policy devastated the community. Prior to the exclusion of Malays, we found social and economic mobility in the uniformed services.
Yet the PAP shut down this avenue. They did not renew the contracts of Malays in these services and new applicants were rejected.
This depressed the community’s economy. They lost their economic stability. An economically depressed community places stress on its own institutions and potential.
Marriages were affected because of unemployment and financial difficulties. Because Malays generally could not find proper employment or be educated until they were in their late 20s, many were married before they gained financial stability.
And the financial stress affected these families.
Opportunities to attend institutions of higher education became narrowed. Families either could not afford fees, extra lessons required or needed these students to find employment because of the family’s financial distress.
I know of a lot of Malays who had to leave school because their families needed them to work.
To assume that the PAP’s exclusion of Malay youths only affected the thousands of males during that period is to disregard the damage it caused to the community as a whole.
We are products of this policy. The Malay community is still getting out of the effects of PAP’s racism. While other communities have been able to afford excellent tuition the last couple of decades, most Malay families are just getting to that level of ability.
The forced financial distress caused by the PAP’s policies did not just affect those who were excluded in the 70s.
The racist policies still affects us now.
If we want to get out of this mess, we should recognise how the government behaves, what the institutional preferences are, what conditions are in place.
Yes, there are a lot of things we need to work on to strengthen our community.
And one of the things we need to improve is our self esteem.
We are better than what we have been accused of.
Yes some issues are due to our mistakes.
A lot are not.
We are a cultured, intelligent and dignified community.
Do not allow anyone to abuse us.
Never again.
We are strong.
We are Malays.
Source: Zulfikar Shariff
