Civics bureau’s indie problem

Everyone’s favourite National Civics Bureau (BTN) is at it again.

This time, a bunch of slides allegedly from the BTN has been making the rounds online.

These slides claim that Malaysia’s “indie” music and literature scene is anti-establishment and could have a political impact.

I feel personally affronted by these slides – and that’s not just because they seem to suggest that several friends, acquaintances or colleagues of mine, including Faisal Mustaffa, Adam Adli Abd Halim, Melati Rahim, Eekmal Ahmad, Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud, Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa and Amir Muhammad – are threats to the country.

These allegations are frankly laughable and no one with half a brain could take them seriously.

Rather, what worries me is that BTN – which has courted controversy in the past for its use of racist and sectarian rhetoric in its work—seems to be going from bad to worse.

Three points are of particular concern.

The first is, as mentioned, the BTN’s alleged sectarian content.

I was a GLC scholar and as a result, I had to sit through a BTN course.

At the time, I found it more of a nuisance and a waste of time more than anything else.

Still, some of the things the lecturers told us disturbed me.

It wounded me that they were trying to make the Malay participants fearful of non-Malays and non-Muslims. This all pointed towards an obvious partisan purpose at the end.

It is unacceptable for a governmental body – supported by taxpayer funds – to try and turn one group of young citizens against another.

This is no way to uplift or protect the rights of the Malay race.

It is certainly no way to build a nation.

In 2009, I joined a group of young Pakatan Selangor assemblymen in urging the state government to stop sending participants from the state civil service or state-owned institutions to BTN. The Federal government had promised to review the BTN’s content but we have heard nothing of what has been done since.

Second, the slides are striking because it highlights how fundamentally clueless BTN and by extension, the entire establishment is about young Malaysians.

The slides seem to imply that the “indie” movement is some vast, politically-motivated conspiracy.

Never mind the fact that trying to lump all the above mentioned writers, activists and musicians into a single, homogenous group is dead wrong.

Seriously: what planet is the BTN living on?

It is true that some of these artists and activists have become involved in political parties.

But even so, that is their right as citizens of Malaysia. There are countless other celebrities who have chosen to join Umno or BN as well.

Fans and voters alike will judge them on their merits.

Still, the idea that the so-called “indie” movement is somehow out to get the government is mind-boggling.

Indeed, some of PKR, DAP and PAS’ fiercest critics come from this “group.”

It shows that the establishment does not understand young Malaysians, their culture and concerns.

BTN is stuck in the past and their relevance to the rising generation is almost nil.

Which brings me to my final point: the slides highlight once again the growing intolerance within the Malay-Muslim community.

The BTN slides single out Malays who have expressed stands that disagree with the establishment, whether on political, economic, social or religious issues.

This suggests that the Umno-BN government, are not only seeking to divide Malaysians along racial and religious lines, but also harass and intimidate Malays who do not toe their line.

Even if the establishment genuinely disagrees with such views, they should seek to address their differences on an ideological basis, rather than abuse state machinery.

Malaysians should view the BTN’s activities very seriously.

The Malays are the majority community in the country.

By virtue of our demographic size, the health and state of our minds as well as culture will impact the nation as a whole.

Our land is headed for disaster if the Malays are not being allowed to think for themselves and express differing views on important issues.

It is true that the great civilisations of the past often collapsed because of “disunity.”

But they also fell because of intolerance and the closing of their hearts and minds.

Dissent is not disloyalty.

Loving someone or something – even your race, religion and country – means being willing to point out faults.

That is the truest kind of love and loyalty.

Bodies like BTN do no good either to the Malays or Malaysians as a whole.

It is time to put a stop to the waste and damage they are doing to our people.  – June 19, 2015. 

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.