The appointment of Rishi Sunak as the prime minister of the UK was hailed by many as a historic moment, describing it as a breakthrough against racism and the beginning of multiculturalism. This was something unthinkable a decade ago, a brown man as the top political executive selected by mostly white leaders in a party.
The local social media was full of raving reviews, some of which he deserves as, besides having the brains, he has proven himself in the predominantly white party. We must remember that he was born a UK citizen and lived as a Briton all his life; he wasn’t a migrant.
The larger picture from the rise of Sunak and the half-Indian Kamala Harris, who became the vice-president of the US, is that a predominantly white society has accepted a black or brown person as their top national leader. It shows a matured society.
They send a message to the world that globalisation also means accepting each other as equals and being given equal opportunities in the land where one is born and bred. The UK and the US will go down in history as nations which not only recognise talents and merits in putting people in key positions, but also societies that disregard race and religion as criteria for leadership.
Let us also bear in mind that it’s the political system that allows this to happen in countries like the UK and US.
But it should stop there. To use these examples to celebrate or say that Malaysia, too, is ready for such a drastic move is a little bit naive, and foolish to some extent.
We must understand that the Malaysian political culture and system is different from that experienced by Sunak. Whether one likes it or not, race-based politics is here to stay. Even a multiracial party like DAP has faltered, with the system throwing out an Indian MP who performed well for three terms and was well-liked by all races.
In Malaysia, going up the ranks according to merit is impossible even within a party if you are from a race that does not form the majority in that party. For example, can the multiracial PKR be led by a non-Malay if he is the best of the lot? Or can the powerful secretary-general’s position in DAP, which claims to be multiracial, be held by a non-Chinese?
The party’s former Klang MP, Charles Santiago, could not even be retained as a candidate despite his stellar performance for three terms, let alone move up the party hierarchy.
As for the Hindu-based MIC which has Sikh, Christian and Muslim members, can a non-Hindu become the party president? Of course, not. Actually, the party is said to be so caste-oriented that only leaders from a certain caste have been party presidents over the last three decades.
On another score, can a non-Malay lead multiracial and multireligious coalitions like Barisan Nasional or Perikatan Nasional? Dream on. Neither can the non-Muslim wing leader of the Islamic party PAS become its head honcho.
The Malaysian political and bureaucratic systems are such that there are many unwritten rules that stop the rise of competent and qualified individuals all because of their race or religion. With the rapidly changing Malaysian demography, some things will just be impossible in Malaysia for a long time to come.
Instead of talking and arguing about the impossible, the Indian community should focus on uplifting itself as much as possible, whether through their political representatives or other successful individuals. There is a lot to be done to help the Indians break out of the downtrodden situation they are in.
To keep on blaming it on national policies is not going to take the community anywhere. Yes, there are weaknesses in this aspect, in fact some blatantly lopsided ones too. But the Chinese community progressed despite these hurdles and made their mark in several areas.
The Indian community needs to work on improving itself by breaking away from the negative stereotypes that are associated with it. Here, it is the individuals themselves who have to work on them as no policies can help them.
Because some of the very Indians who are basking in the glory of a Hindu rising as the UK prime minister will not allow their sons and daughters to marry someone who is from a different caste or class although they are from the same religion.
It is left to the community and its successful leaders to reshape Indian lives and mindsets. But they need lots of help from a government which is committed to multiracialism and multiculturalism and which does not have the agenda of pushing for racial or religious supremacy.
