Why does Hindraf have to organise a peaceful walk to the British embassy to submit a petition? Why doesn't it go through proper channels?
"There are proper channels for this," so said the prime minister.
Why are Indians - young, old, men and women - throughout the country taking the risk of being beaten, jailed and facing chemical-stained water cannons and tear gas just to show their support for the peaceful Hindraf march to the British embassy? We have never seen Indians from all walks of life coming together to support this. Why?
One available channel is through the MIC. Can their grouses be channeled through MIC? What is the achievement of MIC as the voice of Indians? It claims to have championed Indian rights. If that is the case, why were thousands of Indians willing to take to the streets in support of the peaceful march?
If all poor Indians are taken care of, as MIC claims, then who are the thousands of Indians who turned up? There should not be anyone there. Do you think people will leave their jobs and come from all over the country to face the FRU and police? Don't they have anything better to do? What about the poor Indians and the ones who could not attend but supports it 100 percent?
Well, the actual fact is that this is a yardstick which measures your claim. The gauge clearly indicates that you have failed the Indian community miserably. You have kept the poor and marginalised Indians at the same pathetic position for such a long and agonising period.
The MIC chief said that his Indian-based party is "The mainstream party in voicing the rights of the Indians and it will remain so." Sadly, MIC chief, the crowd has spoken. The peaceful Gandhi-style mass civil disobedience speaks for itself. The poor Indians can no longer accept this. Where were you when the thousands of temples were indiscriminately destroyed? Isn't your venture as MIC president for almost three decades long enough to have changed the fate of poor Indians?
Let's look at it from another angle. Why are all the Indians supporting this peaceful march by Hindraf? When extremists crashed the plane into the twin towers in New York, the world was shocked. Why did they do it? Well, obviously nobody wants to kill themselves for no particular reason. But why are they willing to do the unthinkable?
It is because they believe that the root cause lies in the harsh and double-standard American policies towards Muslims and Middle Eastern countries. They have nowhere else to turn to. When a cat is being chased, it runs away. But try cornering it and it will do something by all means to escape and survive. In fact, our Malaysian government has repeatedly requested the American government to look into the root cause of that catastrophe.
That is exactly what we, the poor Indians, are asking for. Look into the root cause that has cornered us and caused poor Indians to march peacefully. Instead of spending money and resources on the FRU, police and roadblocks, why doesn't the government help the Indians instead? Are we, the poor Indians, asking that much?
Aren't the Indians contributing to the Malaysian economy too? Did we not work in the rubber plantations, earning pathetic hourly wages, when the economy was making tonnes of money as the world's top rubber exporter? For your information, some of us are still there with a pathetic RM325 per month, way below the poverty level.
The Indians have joined the mass peaceful march because they have no other avenue, they have nowhere else to turn to because all the channels have been exhausted. It has been a long, depressing and frustrating journey for the poor Indians and we stand in one voice. It is about time the government looks into this. Please don't turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to this. We are only seeking your help for the poor Indians. If you are really a prime minister for all the races, please look into this. Ask yourself, why?
