as a successful
example of a moderate Islam state, with gullible and ignorant Westerners
often waxing lyrical
about its old growth jungles, exotic beaches and cheap, delicious food. Malaysia has
not one but nine royal families, which are all Muslim. Members of the
nine take
turns in ascending to the throne of the Supreme Ruler of Malaysia–the
King who reigns as
Head of State for a five-year term. Additionally, Malaysia’s Prime
Minister and Head of Government is now and has
always been a Muslim. The same applies for virtually all levels of
authority in the judiciary, military, police, and education.
Alongside the civil courts are the shariah courts which rule supreme in
Muslim-versus-Muslim disputes, are accountable to no civil court
(including the country’s highest civil court), and frequently rule on
disputes involving non-Muslims as well.
noticeable, and legal despite the fact that only a little
over half of the population is Muslim. True to the hegemonic nature of Islam,
knowledge of and respect for Islam is pervasive in the classrooms of government-run schools where a
substantial part of history courses revolve around the founding of
Islam and the glorious quest for independence from evil Western imperial powers by noble Malay saviours.
government levies heavy sin taxes on alcohol and cigarettes–bear in mind that any money
accrued from the selling of alcohol is technically haram, but never mind
the hypocrisy. Secondly, it lines its coffers with the income tax of its
citizens. It is open secret that most income tax paid to the Malaysian Muslim government comes
from more prosperous, more entrepreneurial non-Muslims, despite them being less than half the population.
The
Muslim
grievance–if not obsession–with the material success of non-Muslims has
always been
prevalent in Malaysian society, especially after the riots and mass
killings surrounding May 13, 1969, a blood-soaked date in Malaysian
history. More than four decades ago in the Malaysian capital city of
Kuala Lumpur, Malays rioted and killed non Muslims in large numbers; the
exact death toll has been shrouded in more than 40 years of official
obfuscation and will probably never be known.
Following this watershed event, the disparity between Malay and
non-Malay
involvement in the economy was officially fingered as an important
reason for
ethnic tension in the country. As such, the New Economic Policy (NEP)
was introduced to
correct this imbalance and was intended to last no longer than 20 years.
The NEP grants all sorts of financial benefits and privileges on the
basis
of race, which in Malaysia means religion. Malays and other citizens
designated as ‘bumiputera’ (Sankrit for ‘sons of the soil’) are
overwhelmingly Muslim and under the NEP
are entitled to all manner of benefits, such as lower income tax rates,
lower interest rates on certain loans, extra government assistance for
Malay-owned business, and so on. Also, non-Muslim businesses are
compelled to take on ‘Bumiputera’ partners who are entitled to a free
cut of the company’s profits without being compelled to do any
meaningful work in return. Malay-owned companies, often owned by
government cronies, are also entitled to outsized shares of government
contracts. In fact, the NEP amounts to nothing more than a
thinly-disguised
jizya system, where infidels pay and pay and pay some more to the ruling
Muslims. It has been over 40
years now since the NEP was introduced by the Muslim government, and
there
is no end in sight.
agenda of Islamic supremacy goes beyond funding and maintaining
politically untouchable programmes like the NEP. Muslims are entitled to
claim religious obligations such as zakat as
tax deductible whereas non-Muslims generally do not enjoy this form of
tax relief. Additionally, public funds are used to produce and
disseminate Korans and fund extensive
proselytization efforts by Muslims to non-Muslims (AKA ‘dawah’). Proselytization to Muslims by non-Muslims is, of course, illegal.
Malaysia’s
government also lavishly funds the construction of new mosques and
other Muslim houses of worship. A non-Muslim member of Malaysia’s
parliament, Nga Kor Ming, some years ago questioned why government
expenditures from 2000 to 2008 were so lopsidedly in favor of Muslims: “…RM748.26 million to build and maintain 661 mosques but a small
allocation of RM9 million was provided for non-Islamic places of worship in
the construction of mosques.” For pointing out these facts, Nga Kor Ming was threatened and accused of
derogating Islam, uttering seditious statements, and trying to provoke ‘religious conflict’.
The next time you hear politicians from Washington or talking heads on television talk about
how Malaysia is a ‘model moderate’ Muslim country, remember that they refer to a
country with the notion of Islamic supremacy firmly at the heart of its
agenda.