To Bring in ICERD peacefully we have to first get rid of Venarcular Schools.

 THERE MUST BE A MINDSET CHANGE FROM ALL QUARTERS.

Recently there has been a spate of provocative incidents involving mostly UMNO and PAS influenced groups about ICERD.

The people at large are asking why the police are not taking action,  criticisms abound  on the PH government  and no one is spared.

The way I look at it there is a massive amount of ignorance on both sides of the divide, it is communal and it has been developed since the days of the British and advanced not only by the BN but the political system by and large, it reflects on both sides of the house the government and the opposition since independence.

Has he found a way of getting out of the trouble he is in?

The  UMNO/PAS leadership's  fanning of  discontent and discord  over ICERD among  their members, the majority of whom  do not have clue of what ICERD is, but go on and get incited by this leadership on the premise of what is told to them that it is a threat to the Malays, the Royals and Islam, that is what they have been told, they accept it  and it  only goes to show how ignorant these grassroots are.

Making the grasroots ignorant seemed to be UMNO's strategy in the NEP to control them. 

Mahahtir has said and even Zahid and Hadi should know it is  an impossibility to Ratify ICERD, as we'd require to amend the Constitution first  and to do that the government has to have a two third majority voting in favour, which means PAS and many UMNO MPs will have to vote for it and to make matters worse there are even people in PH who are against it, so how are we going to get there.

 Why the Hurry?

I think the real issue of ICERD has to be discussed and understood across the board and as Anwar has put it very rightly:  why the hurry? 

After all  Rome was not built in a day, and I really think that P Waytha Moorthy has jumped the gun. The new government has not even setteled in and he brings out such a controversial issue, it reflects on his political abilities.

Why the Hurry

I'd like to ask him if we can do away with Tamil schools, and Chinese Schools too?
 

If we are to be one people should we not have a single single school system, so that our children grow up together and and foster racial unity first?

I remember writing in an earlier article about HINDRAF that the Tamils who are marginalised are marginalised the day they go to Tamils schools. 

Why, even when they come to the secondary schools where it's no longer a Tamil school they find it difficult to even associate with the Tamil boys who have spent all their primary education in the normal Government schools. They stick to themselves, talk Tamil among themselves an eventually get more marginalized. 

Well I'll admit the situation is improving in Tamil schools but that is not the answer, getting out of the Tamils schools and putting a stop to this segregated educational system  is.  

I am sure there will be many who will come and ask why?

Why?

Because we need our children to begin mixing and learning and playing together in close harmony with Malaysians of all races in one school system so that the  the mindset changes to that of Malaysians and not Chinese, Indian and Melayu,  they grow up as one and learn to appreciate each others point of view, then things will become more cordial. 

Over time they'll learn to live as one. Over time of course if we began that from Independence we'd be there today. Lets start now so that our children's children will enjoy that one day.

This is where the education policy has to be seriously  looked into and revamped, turn the present thinking upside down, the changes have to be drastic.  

I am sure we can gain  useful contributions to this from the present crop of Tamil and Chinese School boards too  and this can be done if there is a real will to unite everybody in this country as one people and one nation.

There is certainly a lot to learn from the Chinese schools to improve the quality of education for the children as much as  the Chinese Schools can learn from National Schools as well and the current crop of Tamils schools which have improved leaps and bounds in the quality of their students and curriculum now,  use that learning experience from all the types of schools to come out with a  single efficient and dynamic system led by a value system like the Rukun Negara.

Our biggest problem stems from the education system that allows the vernacular an Tafiz Schools to  segregate our students,  it  fosters division to the extent that it is almost enmity among Malaysians of different races from a very young age, what are we trying to do? 

That is the root cause of all our problems.

If we can get that right,  we'll get this (ICERD) right then we are certainly on the road to unity and a unified country.

Excellent single stream education should  be our topmost priority. education cannot be discriminatory, equal opportunity should be given to all students with special care for rural schools.

Religion should be the domain of the various religious groups and there should be no coercing.coveting  and forcing minors with religious education not of their respective religions. 

I am not talking about the Muslims alone, I am talking of the Christians too as it does happen in some cases.

After 61 years of Independence we are a  divided nation, more so now then at the pre-independence era and all this can be attributed to the educational system we fostered and promoted all these years, and all of us have to take the blame not the BN alone we allowed it to happen by bickering and promoting the vernacular system.

Pupils own language:

There are two sides to this coin, and I'd like to take the Sikhs as the example.

There are no Punjabi schools in this country, I mean regular Punjabi schools as there Tamil and Chinese Schools. 

They have classes in their Gurduwaras where the language is taught, the parents who are keen that their children know their mother tongue make sure they attend and they learn the language well supervised..

There may be  some who may not be keen but they are not forced to do so, it is their choice of the parents, but going by percentage in population more Sikhs are committed to their Children learning Punjabi then Tamils having their Children learning Tamil and Chinese learning Chinese. 

Any Introduction needed?

The Sikhs have made it a point to have Punjabi education for their children and they have catered for it, they even provide teacher training for Temples who require and do not have Punjabi teachers, All Sikhs speak Punjabi, Most in fact almost all speak Malay, many English and even Tamil and are Malaysians thru and thru and although a small community are very visible in the country, from the Courts to Parliament to Hospitals, the Police Force, Other branches of Government Service and of course the Bars all "Big Strong and Friendly."

Distinctly visible

If the Chinese and Tamils are really interested in their respective languages for their children they should make the necessary options available, based on demand the government could cater fo a third language .in the country, or leave it at two and let them choose between Bahasa which will be compulsory,  then English, Chinese or Tamil, this will strengthen the Bahasa.

If we are sincere about ICERD this is the route we have to take. 

The poor education system in the country, the divisive nature of the system is what has brought this negativity about ICERD and where we are today in race relations.

Our History has to be really looked into and it should be focused on the truth too.

On the other side of the divide we see the ignorance of the UMNO and PAS influenced Masses, they are so narrow in their thinking that UMNO and PAS are actually using them the way the instigators of suicide bombers get innocent young people including children to blow themselves up with bombs.

This has become possible because UMNO with its NEP actually churned out not second class but fourth class graduates from universities, not all of them but a significant portion that you can tell them any nonsense and they'll buy it, as long as you tell them that  race and religion are a threat they will jump and start reacting they have made sure that Race, Religion and the Royalty are the flash point.

These people do not have an inkling about what they are talking about, in the first place they do not even understand what ICERD is but are effectively used by the leadership of these provocateurs, and as Mahathir rightly put it there will be no trouble unless Zahid starts it.

The likes of Zahid, Najib and even Hadi are keen to see the investigations into corrupt practices, money laundering and Criminal Breach of trust disappear and the one way they now probably see that as possible is by creating trouble - Big Touble.

The Police rightly are not acting they do not want to give these trouble makers the opportunity to start trouble on a big scale, all responsible Malaysians from both sides of the divide  have to keep calm and not give trouble makers the opportunity of inciting trouble.

Don't give them that Opportunity

It is therefore not surprising that some of the agitators we see today are even threatening people with the recurrence of May 13th and to me that is to be expected, this kind of talk and behavior because we are dealing with.   After all we know the architect of May 13th don't we?

If we are serious and show we are serious about improving our education system and if we are prepared to make the sacrifices of nation building then surely there is a possibility of a non Malay Education Minister as well in the future, it will take time,  people who  are truly qualified because once that trust is built,  the Malays will only be too happy to have the best man on this job after all it is eduction.

Are we ready for Nation Building?