“Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.”
- Isaac Asimov, ‘Foundation’
I have no idea if Sungai Besar Umno chief Jamal Md Yunos made the alleged seditious Facebook post warning of a repeat May 13 on Nov 19 but I could care less if he did. Part of my apathy is because all this falls under the free speech which I support but more importantly, I see no reason to get upset or make police reports because (1) establishment politicians have issued similar warnings, and (2) it is not as if the police will investigate this latest incitement by an Umno political operative.
As for (2), a good example would be when Sabak Bernam district police chief Nor Azmi Isa said there was no reason to investigate the egg pelting of a Bersih supporter because nobody was hurt. Silly me, I thought it was assault but maybe Bukit Aman should send out a memo that the police would only investigate cases where somebody was hurt. By the way, the definition of “hurt” will be defined shortly (forget the Penal Code) after the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) have arrested all those who take to Twitter and Facebook and “hurt” the feelings of those the state deemed worthy of protection.
After all, the leader of the red shirts has publicly stated that more aggressive responses would be meted out to Bersih, not to mention threats of vehicular manslaughter against the protestors exercising their democratic rights. Either Jamal has watched far too many ''Fast and Furious'' movies - one is excessively many except if the person is a Jason Statham fan, then any ''Furious'' movie with him in it is worth a watch - or he does not understand physics.
However, threatening Malaysians with violence, especially racial violence associated with May 13, is what Umno does best. Anyone interested in a brief summary with links to pro-opposition and pro-establishment narratives should refer to Greg Lopez's excellent summary in the ''New Mandala''. I quote this paragraph of his piece to make a point:
“However, one thing became very clear after May 13. Any attempt to challenge Umno would be met with the strongest response - legitimately or illegitimately. May 13 established the concept of Malay supremacy through the blood of hundreds if not thousands of Malaysians, especially those of Chinese heritage. This led to most non-Malays having no options but to accept Umno hegemony (ketuanan Melayu/Malay supremacy) or leave Malaysia. Many chose to migrate - a trend which has continued as a result of systematic discrimination against the non-Malays.”
Six years ago, Penang opposition leader Azhar Ibrahim in a spat with Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng not only referenced May 13 but also “saying Umno has three million members, that he could call in the Malay 'Tiga Line gang' and asking the army to take over the duties of the police”. Of course, calling in outsourced thugs to secure political victory or usurp political power is a threat many in Umno have no problems making.
Indeed, in my piece ‘In defence of our realm’, I took exception to the police report lodged by the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) against Perak opposition leader Nizar Jamaluddin because he claimed that Prime Minister Najib Razak was having secret backroom talks with the security apparatus of this country.
The issue was this: “In 2010, Azhar Ibrahim was suspended for six months from the Penang state assembly for making ‘references to the May 13 incident and inviting the Armed Forces to take over the government’, not to mention his threat that Malay triad organisation ‘Tiga Line’ would be called in to teach the state government a lesson.”
“So, why no report against the Umno assemblyperson? Umno distanced itself from these inflammatory remarks, but my question is, why didn’t MAF chief General Zulkifeli Mohd Zin lodge a police report alleging sedition against Umno’s Azhar?”...