bangkit.net

During the 12th General Elections, the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese
Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) issued a proposal-cum-statement, in which a 14-point
demand was made in six areas, including the restoration of local elections,
the abolition of the Internal Security Act, a comprehensive review of media
regulations, a full-scale reexamination of privatization, and a replacement
of the “Bumiputra policy” with a “competitive welfare policy”.

With 446 member bodies, the KLSCAH is an umbrella group that includes
various Chinese guilds and clan associations in the Federal Territory of
Kuala Lumpur and the state of Selangor. Since the 1980s, the KLSCAH has been
actively involving itself in politics, as evidenced by the “National Culture
Memorandum” in 1983 of the 15 Chinese Associations and the “Joint
Declaration of the Chinese Guilds and Associations” in 1985 respectively,
both of which affirm the pioneering role of the KLSCAH in promoting civic
rights and benign competition between political parties.

The KLSCAH is deeply heartened by the outcome of the 12th General Election,
which indicates strong desires on the part of the people for political
reform. Now that the country’s political landscape has been redrawn and the
shadows of one-party dominance cast out, the conditions are ripe for a
positive development of democratic and multiethnic politics as well as
two-party system. One the other hand, it is encouraging to witness the new
political frontiers created by the opposition parties, which also herald
separate state rule and local autonomy from the central government.

In light of this, the people ought to press on confidently and courageously
with reform in order to achieve the ultimate goal of multiethnic politics
and a system of checks and balances, which is vitally important. This
consensus is key to laying the foundation for the future development of a
healthy political culture.

There are, however, daunting tasks ahead, as the suppression of the freedom
of the press, abuse of power, corruption, the rot in the judiciary, and
mismanagement cannot be put right overnight. One thing is certain: the
arbitrary authority of the over-powerful government has resulted in serious
institutional flaws that are badly in need of reform. The decades-long rule
of the Barisan Nasional coalition has given rise to two major evils, ie.
racism and authoritarianism, and they are the two sides of the same coin
that have severely weakened constitutional democracy of this country since
Merdeka.

The race-based political parties that appeal to race as a mobilizing factor
only serve to entrench racist mindset and split the society down the middle.
Politics is no longer about policy formulation but appeals to sentiments at
the expense of justice and administrative procedure. Meanwhile,
authoritarianism manifests itself in the suppression of social freedom.
Hence, politics ceases to be reflective of the will and need of the people,
but a terrain for the political parties to pursue their various interests.

In the just concluded General Election, the opposition parties have made
tremendous gains and are now in power in five states, having radically
changed the political landscape. Most significantly, the rise of the
multiethnic parties signals that racial politics is at an end, while the
close to 50% of the parliamentary seats won by the opposition could be a
harbinger of two-party system. This positive development no doubt poses
formidable challenge to BN hegemony and ensures the materialization as well
as the strengthening of democratic checks and balances.

The forming of new governments by the opposition parties is bound to have
profound implications for the states, as it has broken the monopoly of the
centralized authority of the federal government. Now that separate
administrations are in place in several states, it will encourage the
development of bottom-up democracy, and pave the way for the restoration of
local autonomy. We therefore urge the newly formed state governments to
honour their promises by restoring local government elections but also
promulgating policies that are beneficial to the weak minorities.

Now that the new state governments are in charge of land, local planning is
vitally important. In the past, local development was haphazard due to the
lack of check-and-balance mechanisms and transparency, aggravated by rampant
corruption. For instance, many squatter settlements were demolished in
Selangor on one hand, while white-elephant projects only bred corruption and
serious wastages. As such, both state and local politics needs to be
vigorously restructured. We must first pay our attention to squatter homes
and provide more low-cost housing in order to meet the needs of the weak
minorities. This aside, the new governments must handle the sensitive issue
fairly, ie. Pig farming, an area which should be assisted through public
funding, land allocation and logistical support, so that it could be
centralized and the environment safeguarded. This will also affirm the value
of the pig farming industry.

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*The Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) is the
umbrella organization of over 400 various Chinese community-based
organizations in Klang Valley.*

The Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall

NO. 1,Jalan Maharajarela,

50150 Kuala Lumpur

Tel:03-22746645

Fax :03-22724089

website:www.scah.org.my

email:info@scah.org.my