LETTER | Pusat Komas is deeply concerned about recent racially charged comments made by newly established local fast food restaurant Darsa Fried Chicken, which drew criticism for its use of the race card.
We, Pusat Komas, back DAP vice-chairperson Teresa Kok’s calls for de-escalation over this latest incident in a string of issues tied to race and religion that have plagued the nation in the last few months.
In an online apology last night, Darsa, which describes itself as “100 percent bumiputera-owned”, labelled the comment (above) an “unintentional mistake”, placing blame on mounting pressure faced by its page administrator to address a slew of comments.
Racism, racial discrimination, and xenophobia occur on a daily basis, impeding progress for millions of people around the world.
Unfortunately, Malaysians - of all races - share this deeply rooted problem in our belief and dissemination of negative racial stereotypes about each other. These are practices we, especially business owners, should not continue to normalise.
Darsa Fried Chicken has shown some goodwill by issuing an apology. However, such instances of racial language should not have been used at all, as the use of racial slurs only serves to further polarise and divide Malaysians along ethnic lines.
Let us not forget that such business models rarely work in a multicultural, multiracial Malaysia. Take, for example, the Mara Digital Mall, which was the brainchild of then-rural and regional development minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob in 2015.
Beyond its Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman mall in Kuala Lumpur, the mall meant for bumiputera retailers once had branches in Shah Alam, Johor Bahru, and Kuantan.
By 2019, however, the Rural Development Ministry in a parliamentary reply reported the closure of the Kuantan mall in December 2018, the Shah Alam branch in 2018, and the one in Johor Bahru in February 2019.
Compete based on relevant factors
In 2022, mall retailers claimed they had been operating at a loss for the past few years, with their income plummeting with the Covid-19 pandemic.
Instead of supporting businesses due to their racial and religious affiliations, Malaysian businesses must compete based on relevant factors such as product quality and value for money, as opposed to race and religion.
Malaysian consumers must also be more discerning about parties that attempt to divide us in our everyday lives.
Likewise, Pusat Komas would like to caution against a boycott of Darsa Fried Chicken, which some internet users were seen calling for.
A knee-jerk reaction to this issue can only work to the detriment of the livelihoods of our fellow Malaysians, as seen in the recent closure of more than 100 Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants nationwide.
Pusat Komas recognises that there is merit in promoting a 100 percent Malaysian-made food chain like Darsa.
At the same time, we hope Darsa takes this incident as a learning experience that businesses operating on a racial platform struggle to find footing in a multicultural, multiracial Malaysia and that they should refrain from using racialised language in their official communications in the future.
PUSAT KOMAS is a non-governmental human rights organisation that advocates for democracy and non-discrimination.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
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