Pekida was little known until the circulation of an SMS warning about a gathering of Malay extremist in Kuala Lumpur in response to the Hindraf issue. Malaysiakini carried a story where Islamic welfare organisation Pekida denied that it was organising this rally . Its Federal Territory chairperson was quoted as saying, “They are trying to pit us against the authorities, although we've never been against the government.”
Anyone who had received the SMS would understand that the undertones of this alleged gathering are in complete opposite to the peaceful protests led by Bersih and Hindraf. This gathering was certainly meant as a retaliation against the Hindus for daring to go against the Ketuanan Melayu concept.
Let's try and piece together what Pekida is, based on information from their own website .
One of the many goals in their mission statement reads: “Kami berjanji mematuhi peruntukkan perlembagaan sebagai dan menjadi ahli yang berdaftar dan terus berusaha mencapai objektif pertubuhan supaya menjadi sebuah organisasi Melayu yang terulung.” If you find nothing wrong with this, just replace the word “Melayu” with “Cina” or “India” and see if you are instantly branded a racist.
On its website’s forum, under news and current affairs, you can read disturbing discussions calling the rap singer who paraphrased Malaysia's national anthem a “Cina babi sudah naik kepala.” Indians at the Hindraf rally are called “botol kicap”, Malays are chided for buying nasi lemak from “Cina komunis” and not from the Malay makcik .
Please bear in mind that when nearly 100,000 Indians and non-Indians converged peacefully in Kuala Lumpur for the Hindraf rally, not one racist comment was made against the Malays. Note also that this rap singer never made any insulting or racist comments but merely expressed the shortcomings of the Umno-led government.
While all the Indians are asking is for the government to uphold their rights to worship freely and for equal employment, educational and business opportunities as enshrined in the Federal Constitution. They are not asking for the special privileges enjoyed by bumiputeras. The multitude of racist comments on Pekida's website is left unquestioned by the government and allowed to remain without any threat of sedition or the Internal Security Act.
But five Hindraf lawyers have been thrown behind bars under the ISA. This means the government does not need to prove their guilt and can lock them up and throw away the keys. P Uthayakumar was once arrested simply for writing an official letter to the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown highlighting defamatory and false statements made against Hindraf by Malaysia’s government-controlled media.
The police have also hauled up blogger Jeff Ooi for the “crime” of having made intelligent and rational comments on Al Jazeera. With these blatant discrepancies, it is easy to see why Hindraf leaders are so frustrated and are forced to take to the streets.
In Uthayakumar's interview with Malaysiakini , he confirms that he is not a racist. This has also been proven through his actions and words, strictly attacking only the unfair policies of the Umno-led government and not the Malays. He points to facts, such as his experience of being assaulted and threatened at gunpoint for investigating the case of Francis Udayapan who died mysteriously in police custody. If the police have nothing to hide, why did it take them two years to return Francis' body to his grieving mother?
The inspector-general of police has made unsubstantiated claims in the newspapers of Hindraf’s links with terrorist groups despite having absolutely no evidence of this. Enforcement officers demolished temples after giving only several hours notice and refused to wait for the outcome of court proceedings initiated by Hindraf lawyers to determine if the demolition should continue. Were they cited for contempt of court for not waiting? No.
I hope that the Malaysian public wakes up and sees the dangerous trend developing here. It is not just for Indians, but for people of all religions and races including the Muslims and Malays. Visit Pekida's website and you will see many attacks against moderate Malays too.
On another topic in Pekida’s web forum, someone said that Malays are synonymous with Islam. The person claims that the Federal Constitution states that Malays have no choice but to be Muslims and this should be tattooed on their foreheads. I fear for the safety of people like Lina Joy. No wonder she has gone into hiding.
This website has gone unnoticed by many bloggers because it is mainly in Bahasa Malaysia. Its founder boasts that the website receives 20,000 hits a day! There are attacks against Starbucks coffee houses calling them “Zionist supporters” and many other dangerous comments. No one at Pekida is hauled up for sedition yet.
While Malaysians keep overlooking these double standards, radical influences are infiltrating the minds of the impressionable and vulnerable Malay youth to create a false belief that Ketuanan Melayu is being threatened and must be defended at all cost “Demi agama, bangsa dan negara.”
Who knows how far these impressionable young minds would go after being brainwashed over and over? Perhaps this is intentionally aimed at ensuring that those who dare to stand up for truth and justice against Umno will be silenced by these unsuspecting young minds who retaliate as proxies for the powers-that-be.
