It was reported in Sin Chew Jit Poh on 18 Sept 07 that DAP Member of Parliament for Ipoh Barat M. Kula Segaran said that racially-based political should cease existence by giving the reasoning Malaysian society being multi-racial. He however reckoned that religious-based political party PAS is acceptable because any race could join PAS provided that its members were Muslims.

One can be forgiven if the public is unable to derive an iota of sense from Kula Segaran’s statements.

What is he trying to advocate? That Malaysian political parties take on a religious flavour and all the fervour that comes with it under the guise or outright precept of nationalism?

Looking back at history, wars have been waged in the name of religion. Christians and Muslims have spilt much blood over religion during the three Crusades. Today in the Middle East, peace is nowhere near to be found with the Palestinians and Israelis battling each other. Some groups have also labeled the first and second Gulf Wars as as another holy war perceiving the Western forces, particularly the American and British soldiers as modern-day Crusaders.

When DAP withdrew from the Alternative Front due to ideology differences with PAS over the PAS’s proposal to establish an Islamic state for all Malaysians including non-Muslims based on hudud, the split between DAP and PAS was apparent.

But Kula Segaran’s latest statement suggesting that religious-based parties are more inclusive for multi-racial Malaysia and acceptable than race-based political parties suggests that perhaps there never was a split in both DAP’s and PAS’s ideologies. Is DAP aligned with PAS’ Islamist principals? 

Would religious-based political parties while consisting of multi-ethnic and multicultural Malaysians spearhead services devoted to national interests, or would their political agenda be guided by personal religious convictions, and therefore subvert the civil laws of the land?

Moreover, if religious-based political parties are to govern the country, which would be the dominant or appropriate religion to head the administration and nation above  Malaysians who profess various faiths ?

Given the sensitive nature of race, and particularly religion where any tiny matter could be blown up and snowballed into national affairs by irresponsible persons, should religious-based parties be encouraged in Malaysia as the more appropriate choice for Malaysians?

Our Federal Constitution has clearly separated religion from national administration, and therefore, public administration of Malaysia should be as outlined in the Federal Constitution.

-Lovely Jin-