I applaud the recent announcement by the Malay Rulers of Malaysia for the non-Malays to respect the so-called agreed ‘social contract’ between us and the Malays and in return the Rulers too ensured that the rights of the non-Malays in the country would be protected.

In addition to this, various Umno politicians have also raised the need for the non-Malays to respect this so-called agreed ‘social contract’. I feel that the majority of the non-Malays do agree with the agreement.

However what intrigues a lot of non-Malays is what the definition of a Malay in this country is.

Is Dr Mahathir Mohamad a Malay? His father is an Indian and his mother is Malay. A child will follow its father. Barack Obama is a black because his father is an African though his mother is a white.

Most of the children of an Indian who marries a Chinese carry Indian names and are registered as Indians in their IC though whether they follow the Indian language and culture are doubtful. The same goes when a Chinese man marries an Indian girl and the children carry Chinese names.

Theoretically, our much beloved Tunku Abdul Rahman is Malay because his father is one though his mother is a Siamese. The same goes for Dato Onn Jaffar as his father is Malay and his mother is a Turkish.

There were rumors that when Mahathir was studying in Singapore his race was put down as ‘Indian’ though there is not much proof to back this up. Theoretically therefore, Mahathir is an Indian.

Then the question arises as to why he had and is enjoying all the privileges accorded under the so- called ‘social contract’.

When the new chief minister of Penang raised the issue of revamping the NEP, some Malays in Penang, especially Umno members, demonstrated in front of the CM’s office. However, if we scrutinise the television footage of the demonstration, most of the demonstrators do not resemble Malays but are more Indian.

It is also not surprising to see in the Umno assemblies some members who do not resemble Malays at all but Indians. I do not wish to speculate but clearly these so-called Malays are not Malays at all but could most probably be Indians.

This raises the question as to who is a Malay? According to Wikipedia, Article 160 of the constitution of Malaysia defines a Malay as a Malaysian citizen, born to a Malaysian citizen who professes to be a Muslim, habitually speaks the Malay language, adheres to Malay customs and is domiciled in Malaysia or Singapore.

As a result, Malay citizens who convert out of Islam are no longer considered Malay under the law. Likewise, a non-Malay Malaysian who converts to Islam can claim to be Malay, provided they meet the other conditions.

An example of this is Jeanne Abdullah, the wife of our Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is ethnically a Portuguese-Eurasian.

Clearly, this is a vague definition and prone to much abuse. It is not surprising to see some non- Malays who fulfill the above conditions being awarded government contracts, discounts for the purchase of new houses, education loans and scholarships, places in the public universities etc.

All the above privileges are accorded under the so-called ‘social contract’ though I am not sure whether they are indeed part of the so-called ‘social contract’.

Being an Indian or a Chinese or a Iban or any one of the other races is not an option as you need to be born as one but it looks like being Malay is an option and it looks like it is a lucrative option.

I do not think there is any other such classification of a race as a Malay is classified in Malaysia.

Clearly, the above has caused much dissatisfaction among the non Malays. In some cases, the so- called Malays who enjoyed all the benefits of the ‘social contract’ are only second generation in the country whereas the non-Malays are a couple of generations more.

And in most cases, to emphasise their so-called ‘Malayness’ they resort to unethical practices of racism. A good example is Mahathir himself.

He used to be called an ultra-Malay for his fierce anti non-Malay stance though theoretically, he is an Indian. He needed to play the racial card in order to be accepted by the Malays in Umno.

Thus it is important that the rulers or the government clearly define what a Malay is so that we know that the benefits accorded under the so-called ‘social contract’ are received by genuinely economically deprived Malays.

The Malays themselves need to understand that each opportunity accorded under the so-called social contract that is taken away by a so-called ‘Malay’ deprives a genuinely economically deprived Malay.