WHO’S BULLYING WHOM?
Where and who are all these Christians (or Jews) that makes
Umno and PAS Malay Muslims so afraid? Malaysia’s Christians,
the bulk of whom are in Sabah and Sarawak, are outnumbered,
outvoted and outgunned, with Malay Muslims holding control
of every key lever of power. Yet Umno and PAS Malay Muslim
leaders claim they are under threat!
Malay Muslims form 60% of the population. They hold political
and economic power: all the key ministries of government from
prime minister downwards are Malay Muslims. Malay Muslims
form 75-85% of the police, armed forces, other uniformed services
and the civil service. Malay Muslims control the banking industry,
the automotive industry, and the share market.
Yet Umno-PAS Muslim politicians talk as if they are surrounded,
under great threat, and in danger of being overrun.
They could be right.
They could be under threat of being thrown out — by sensible
Malay Muslims tired of corrupt power-seekers.
Malay Muslim leaders who have become rich and powerful over
the past 55 years are indeed outnumbered by the poor and the
not-so-well-off Malaysians. The 1% of the Malaysian ruling
class, and the 5% of their hangers-on, are indeed surrounded by
the 94% of the rest of us.
The 1% of Malay Muslim clerics and ulama who seek power
over the minds of Malaysian Muslims, and the power to control
their behaviour — including their power to vote — and the
positions and perks that go with such power are indeed
surrounded by the masses.
Keeping people’s minds occupied by fighting an imaginary
Enemy has always been a favourite tactic of the autocrat.
While you’re busy squabbling, you have no time to notice his
looting and plundering.
The religious far right of Umno and PAS both carry out
campaigns with similar ends: to close minds, to control
thought and behaviour, and to keep themselves in power and
in control.
Umno opportunists like Mahathir Mohamad, a rabid racist,
anti-Semite, anti-liberal, anti-democrat, and anti-west in his
public speeches (when it is profitable for him to be so) and sub-
contractors like Perkasa have never shown hesitation in
manipulating the emotions and minds of Malaysian — for
their own profit.
Malaysia’s enemies are not Christians, outnumbered by 7:1, but
the corrupt politicians, corrupt police and military leaderships,
and corrupt civil servants, and the corrupt businessman who
keeps them in power.
Malaysia’s enemies are the powerful and their business cronies
who steal and subvert the nation’s systems.
Looking for Christian scapegoats is just a convenient way to
divert attention away from the real enemies.
The National Census of 2010 provides plenty of inconvenient
facts that Malay Muslim politicians would prefer not to notice:
Umno’s claimed membership alone (3mil) outnumbers
Malaysia’s 2.62mil Christians. Two-thirds of Malaysia’s
Christian population are in the native population of East
Malaysia: 1.55mil compared to 0.84mil in other ethnic groups.
Christians also belong to a variety of churches which often have
difficulty getting along with each other.
Malaysian Malay Muslims make up 85% of the 80,000 regular
servicemen and 244,700 reservists in the Armed Forces;
100,000 police; and 2.5mil Rela volunteers. The total number
of Malay Muslims in the uniformed services (with access to
arms) outnumbers the number of unarmed civilian Christians.
That’s not even counting the 1.4mil in the civil service, which
is predominately Malay Muslim, from 75% to 85% at the elite
grades.
Yet the Umno-PAS religious far right constantly raise the
spectre of the Christian bogeyman.
Muslims in Malaysia outnumber Christians by 6½:1
•Malays form 82% of Malaysia’s 17.4mil Muslims: the census
records no Malay Christians, Buddhists, animists, or Jews
— 0 (zero, nought, nothing, none, zilch). (The census does
not show actually show figures for minority religions such as
Sikhs, Jains, and Jews: if there are any Jews in Malaysia, they
would be lumped together with ‘Others’ if they are counted at
all.)
• Malaysia’s 17.4mil Muslims outnumber Christians by 6½:1
• Most of Malaysia’s 2.62mil Christians are in Borneo
• Umno alone (3mil members) outnumbers Malaysia’s Christians
• Uniformed services (3.5mil) outnumber unarmed Christians
• Foreign influence: 1.6mil Muslim aliens to 0.24mil Christians
• Even the Buddhists outnumber Christians by 2:1
• Most of Malaysia’s 2.62mil Christians are in Borneo
• Umno alone (3mil members) outnumbers Malaysia’s Christians
• Uniformed services (3.5mil) outnumber unarmed Christians
• Foreign influence: 1.6mil Muslim aliens to 0.24mil Christians
• Even the Buddhists outnumber Christians by 2:1
Christians are outnumbered by 6½:1 but are accused of plotting to take over a country run by Muslims
Umno and PAS Malay Muslims so afraid? Malaysia’s Christians,
the bulk of whom are in Sabah and Sarawak, are outnumbered,
outvoted and outgunned, with Malay Muslims holding control
of every key lever of power. Yet Umno and PAS Malay Muslim
leaders claim they are under threat!
Malay Muslims form 60% of the population. They hold political
and economic power: all the key ministries of government from
prime minister downwards are Malay Muslims. Malay Muslims
form 75-85% of the police, armed forces, other uniformed services
and the civil service. Malay Muslims control the banking industry,
the automotive industry, and the share market.
Yet Umno-PAS Muslim politicians talk as if they are surrounded,
under great threat, and in danger of being overrun.
They could be right.
They could be under threat of being thrown out — by sensible
Malay Muslims tired of corrupt power-seekers.
Malay Muslim leaders who have become rich and powerful over
the past 55 years are indeed outnumbered by the poor and the
not-so-well-off Malaysians. The 1% of the Malaysian ruling
class, and the 5% of their hangers-on, are indeed surrounded by
the 94% of the rest of us.
The 1% of Malay Muslim clerics and ulama who seek power
over the minds of Malaysian Muslims, and the power to control
their behaviour — including their power to vote — and the
positions and perks that go with such power are indeed
surrounded by the masses.
Keeping people’s minds occupied by fighting an imaginary
Enemy has always been a favourite tactic of the autocrat.
While you’re busy squabbling, you have no time to notice his
looting and plundering.
The religious far right of Umno and PAS both carry out
campaigns with similar ends: to close minds, to control
thought and behaviour, and to keep themselves in power and
in control.
Umno opportunists like Mahathir Mohamad, a rabid racist,
anti-Semite, anti-liberal, anti-democrat, and anti-west in his
public speeches (when it is profitable for him to be so) and sub-
contractors like Perkasa have never shown hesitation in
manipulating the emotions and minds of Malaysian — for
their own profit.
Malaysia’s enemies are not Christians, outnumbered by 7:1, but
the corrupt politicians, corrupt police and military leaderships,
and corrupt civil servants, and the corrupt businessman who
keeps them in power.
Malaysia’s enemies are the powerful and their business cronies
who steal and subvert the nation’s systems.
Looking for Christian scapegoats is just a convenient way to
divert attention away from the real enemies.
The National Census of 2010 provides plenty of inconvenient
facts that Malay Muslim politicians would prefer not to notice:
Umno’s claimed membership alone (3mil) outnumbers
Malaysia’s 2.62mil Christians. Two-thirds of Malaysia’s
Christian population are in the native population of East
Malaysia: 1.55mil compared to 0.84mil in other ethnic groups.
Christians also belong to a variety of churches which often have
difficulty getting along with each other.
Malaysian Malay Muslims make up 85% of the 80,000 regular
servicemen and 244,700 reservists in the Armed Forces;
100,000 police; and 2.5mil Rela volunteers. The total number
of Malay Muslims in the uniformed services (with access to
arms) outnumbers the number of unarmed civilian Christians.
That’s not even counting the 1.4mil in the civil service, which
is predominately Malay Muslim, from 75% to 85% at the elite
grades.
Yet the Umno-PAS religious far right constantly raise the
spectre of the Christian bogeyman.
Muslims in Malaysia outnumber Christians by 6½:1
Malay Muslims outnumber Christians by 5:1
Muslim foreigners outnumber Malaysian non-Malay Muslims
Foreigners are next biggest group after the Malays
•Malays form 82% of Malaysia’s 17.4mil Muslims: the census
records no Malay Christians, Buddhists, animists, or Jews
— 0 (zero, nought, nothing, none, zilch). (The census does
not show actually show figures for minority religions such as
Sikhs, Jains, and Jews: if there are any Jews in Malaysia, they
would be lumped together with ‘Others’ if they are counted at
all.)
• After the Malays, foreigners form the second-largest group of
Muslims in Malaysia; no breakdown is given in the census, but
this figure probably includes Muslims from Mindanao and
Kalimantan, as well as Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, Muslim
Indians, Arabs and Iranians, Nigerians and others.
• Borneo natives and other bumiputras are the largest non-
Malay ethnic group of Muslim Malaysians (and not the Mamaks).
• Borneo natives are the largest ethnic group of Christians, and
outnumber all other ethnic groups combined by 2:1
• Borneo natives are also almost equally divided into Muslim and
Christian It’s the urge for power and control, and the money that
goes with it, that is behind all this constant fear-mongering by
the religious far right of both Umno and PAS and Utusan Malaysia.
It has been a convenient way to divert the attention of the Malay
masses away from the damage done to the Malaysian nation by
racist and corrupt politicians and businessmen over the past
55 years.
Looking for an Enemy among keeps the population distracted
by chasing their own tails. It allows the looting and plundering
to continue unchecked.
When the Umno-PAS religious right gets worked up into a froth,
are they seeking righteousness and justice for all Malaysians, or
merely seeking their own path to power, control and wealth, by
camouflaging the rich and powerful?
Who’s bullying whom?
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