GAUGING from the reactions of Malay groups and individuals, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s remarks that Malays should not be too comfortable and arrogant to the extent that other races were unappreciated, was found to be extremely unsettling.

It is unsettling because it does not reflect the current state of affairs and mirrored a gross misrepresentation on the Malays.

To add insult to injury, the remarks were made in comparison with the position of the 10 percent Muslims in Cambodia.

In Anwar’s words: “Cambodia is a Buddhist majority nation but they continue to celebrate the small 10 percent minority Muslims by holding an iftar (breaking of fast) programme and appointing an Islamic Minister.”

The comparison is totally misplaced, an apple to an orange.

If having iftar and the appointment of a Minister from the minority is the measure of tolerance, then, the Malays should be celebrated the world over for being the most accommodating race in the world.

Despite being the majority, minority races have had Ministers represented in every Cabinet formed since independence, without fail. Not only Ministers, but even minority representatives, who did not have any majority in any constituency, were elected, courtesy of the majority race.

Hence, when some minority races in Malaysia celebrate the ascension of one of their race into public office in other countries, the Malays do not bat an eyelid as they are used and receptive to the minority races in such positions and even higher at home.

Still unhappy with such achievements locally, some non-Malay politicians race-bait and compared the achievements of migrant community in United Kingdom and the United States – Rishi Sunak and Barack Obama to be specific.

In the case of Sunak, he is as British as any other. In fact, the manner the British squeezed India dry all those years of colonisation, the Indians deserve the cheer and poetic justice.

In the case of Obama, given the way the white Americans had enslaved, dragged and treated the Africans like animals, an African American should have helmed the nation much, much earlier and deservingly so.

No amount of African American becoming president can wipe out the horrors, atrocities and cruelties inflicted on their forefathers.

Lest Malaysians forget, the American laws on segregation or the derogatory Jim Crow legislations were only finally abolished in the 1960s.

Comparatively, in Malaysia, none of the non-Malays were enslaved or forced to come to then Malaya by the Malays. It was all the mechanisms of the British.

Albeit that, in pursuit of independence and on the imposition of the British, the Malay leaders then agreed to the millions of citizenships accorded to migrant communities.

And immediately after, the non-Malays participated in all economic, political and social affairs of the nation without any restriction albeit some constitutional provisions protecting the rights of the Malays which in effect as a recognition that they are the primacy race.

Any efforts to improve their lot must be tailored along the constitutional provisions. Further to that, any economic strategy does not pursue equal distribution but rather a fair one.

On the Cambodian iftar example, the Malayan, then Malaysian minority community had enjoyed all their rights, cultures, customs, religions and languages from the word go, from the day the nation gained independence.

In Malaysia, festivals of the minority communities are celebrated, public holidays declared and open houses crossing racial and religious boundaries are held.

Of course, there are some Malays who are uncomfortable in these cross-religious/cultural celebrations and at times advised fellow Malay Muslims against participating but it had never been an imposition of the will of the majority on the minority.

Unfortunately, in Malaysia, when some Malays expressed their opinion towards their own race against participating in cultural or religious celebrations of minority races, they are labelled as bigots and racists.

In other words, it is at best a debate within the Malay community as to what is allowed or forbidden on them as Malays and Muslims in their participation of the culture and religious celebrations of others.

Never at any moment had these debates ventured into demanding that cultures or religious celebrations of the minority races be banned or stopped.

Such is the tolerance of the Malays that the non-Malays even venture into the debates between the Malays on matters of beliefs and practices.

This in effect is what the reactions were over recent efforts by some Malays to get the community to support a Malay proclamation.

The proclamation in essence urged Malays to unite so as to address their diminished economic, social and political equity which were caused by Malay political parties and leaders who were corrupt and power crazy.

But before the Malays could even come together to discuss their plight between themselves, the non-Malays immediately participated in the debate and immediately concluded that it is bigotry and racist.

Their conclusion is further affirmed by Malay apologists who felt that the majority race should not even try to discuss their plight as it is self-inflicted though none gave a solution other than to embrace multi-racialism.

In short, there is no need to discuss the plight of the Malays and any concern towards their continuity is deemed racist and bigoted then.

Now, that is arrogance.