KLANG, Sept 12 — The spirit of muhibah and patriotism must be jointly instilled in every Malaysian to maintain unity and harmony in the country’s plural society.
History expert and former University Malaya Prof Datuk Ramlah Adam said muhibah is the spirit of goodwill, harmony and friendship which has long existed within the people of Malaysia since its independence on August 31, 1957, where everyone just accepted the various races, religions, and cultures.
However, she added that spirit is now being eroded with a handful of citizens starting to manipulate sensitive issues such as race and religion recently and the gap appears to be widening when they voice opinions based solely on their own feelings and perspectives.
“Sometimes they are irresponsible and simply voice out anything, especially on matters which impact the Malaysian community,” Ramlah said during an interview on Bernama and Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) recently.
This scenario was apparent during the recent six-state elections and the 15th General Election last year, when numerous sensitive issues related to race, religion and royalty were manipulated to gain votes, particularly among Malays, which created divisions within the community.
"I thought one of the objectives of the Sedition Act 1948 was to reduce racial issues by taking action (against anyone who raises such issues). There should not be any questioning of sensitive matters (race, religion, and royalty or 3R),” she said.
Ramlah added the government’s stern action in handling the 3R issues is justified because these sensitive issues can jeopardise the Unity Government’s efforts to harmonise and unite the people, especially through the Malaysia Madani concept.
The concept aims to encourage the community to work together, respect one another and accept each others’ differences.
She said through the concept all Malaysians are meant to have the basic values of living together in harmony, respecting the rights and cultures of others, and being treated equally regardless of race.
In order to cultivate a patriotic community, education and enforcement must go hand in hand, right from the school level.
“For me, both (education and enforcement) should be implemented simultaneously. It cannot be a matter of which comes first. Because we want to build a race of Malaysian children, so we need to cover all directions and aspects,” Ramlah said.
— Bernama
