ARE THEY THE CHINESE AND INDIAN CHAUVINISTS IN MALAYSIA

– HE WHO SPEAK IN THEIR OWN LANGUAGE WITH THEIR OWN PEOPLE BUT WHO FORCE THE MELAYU TO SPEAK IN ENGLISH INSTEAD OF MELAYU EVEN WHEN THEY ARE WORKING IN GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.

By Mansor Puteh

They are Chinese and Indian chauvinists alright, they who claim to be Malaysians through and through but who do not speak in the national language even with the Melayu.

Yet, they speak in Chinese which is not a language, but a nationality – with the languages of the Chinese being Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien and so on; and Indian is also not a language but a nationality of India – whose languages are Hindi, Tamil, Malayam, etc, etc.

In Malaysia there are many Chinese and Indians who refuse to speak in the national language because they are not conversant in the language. Most of them are also not conversant in English, yet they want to force the Melayu to speak in this language.

There are some Chinese and Indians who are true-blooded Malaysians who have high appreciation of the national language.

There are also more and more young Chinese and Indians who do not behave or misbehave like their parents, but who are stuck in their mentality which they are trying to shake off, because they were forced to studying the vernacular Mandarin and Tamil schools which many of them would later realize to be not good for their future, when they are forced to mix more with the Melayu than their parents could avoid doing.

And many of them realize how without a good command of Melayu, they are not able to survive living in the country and operating their businesses, large or small.

In fact, the common language of communication in Malaysia is still Melayu; it’s just that the common language of the confused class is English.

The middle class in Malaysia now with the Melayu as the majority is Melayu.

There are many Melayu who do not speak in Melayu with those Chinese and in English instead, and in the process give the Chinese and Indians some ‘face’ for them to show to the Melayu back by saying indirectly as though Melayu is an inferior language.

Worse of all is how the so few Chinese and Indians working in government agencies and institutions of higher learning who are surrounded by Melayu students and faculty but who force everybody around them to speak in English.

They are not supposed to be there because they do not speak in Melayu.

This is one of the many reasons why there are many Chinese and Indians in Malaysia who simply cannot and do not want to enter the government workforce, because they know they cannot force the Melayu to follow their orders, except for those who are in the uniformed units, such as police and army, etc whose language is Melayu.

Even in Singapore the military orders are still in Melayu; they say or shout ‘Hormat President’, but then go on to say more orders in English.

Even their national anthem called ‘Majulah Singapura’ is in Melayu despite the majority of the members of their cabinet and parliamentarians and general non-Melayu public not conversant in the language.

In the end the Singaporeans have to adlib to the song that is being played pre-recorded.

In Malaysia the same problem happens with many Chinese and Indians not able to sing in the national anthem called ‘Negara Ku’.

The Melayu mostly sing it quietly with so few doing in with gusto and full of energy.

The national anthem was sung in many Chinese vernacular schools in the 1960s up to the 1980s in the general assembly before schools started, but not anymore.

And coming back to the Chinese and Indian chauvinists we still have in Malaysia, the problem stems from how the general orders are not obeyed.

Worse, when even the Melayu senior officials themselves opted to speak in English because they do not speak in Melayu well.

This is a crime and it cannot and must not be tolerated.

There are some so-called members of some royal households who do not speak in Melayu. So legally, they cannot be described as Melayu but Fake English.

They studied in England when they were still young, so they do not speak Melayu well or at all even amongst their family members.

They should know better how knowing Melayu or any additional language would be useful, especially Melayu and especially if they are members of any royal household and those who want to be in the public service.

Unfortunately, none of these Fake Melayu are not able to say or do much in England where they studied and grew up in because they are seen to be odd people.

Besides, they do not feel belonged there too, so they have to return to the country and speak in English here and cannot use the language to excel in any field in England or America.

If they indeed good, they would have already been accepted by the English and England where they would remain there like some Melayu and other Malaysians who are living in this country, but who mostly speak in Melayu amongst themselves with the Chinese and Indians, speaking in English poorly, because they hardly ever mix with the locals who do not find them fascinating.   

But generally the Chinese and Indians are not chauvinists; it’s their political masters who are making them to sound like one, and whose understanding of the history of this country is bad with them getting their cultural and historical influences from the many films made in Hong Kong that they grew up watching.

The irony being their political masters on the Left are generally able to speak in Melayu because they know without being able to speak in this language they cannot run for election and if they win they still have to speak in Melayu in the parliament and/or state assembly.

The worse irony would be if there is a state assembly which would have a majority Chinese membership and they still have to speak in Melayu.

The Pulau Pinang state assembly has such a situation where their Speaker and most of their state assemblymen or women are Chinese.