AUGUST 14 — Instead of trying to repair ethnic relations after the Low Yat race riot, a minister suggests a Malays-only tech mall called "Low Yat 2" that only serves to keep us apart more. Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob reportedly said the tech mall will only have Malay traders. This is the same man who urged Malays to boycott Chinese traders whom he accused of profiteering. What does he hope to achieve by setting up a mall with only Malay traders? Does he expect Malay consumers who have been patronising Low Yat to move over to Low Yat 2 instead, just because the traders come from their own ethnic group? Consumers look for the best products and deals. The ethnicity of the traders they purchase from doesn't matter. 

Or is he suggesting that Malay traders will do better in a mall without Chinese traders? Malaysia wants to be a developed country in five years' time and yet, the government still relies on protectionism instead of empowering Malay entrepreneurs to compete on the same level as other businesses. We should move towards meritocracy and an open market, not rehash NEP-style policies that merely act as a crutch.

If indeed some Malay traders couldn't cut it in Low Yat, it's unlikely that they'll succeed in another shopping centre. 

It also takes time to promote a new place and to build a customer base. By staying at Low Yat, Malay traders are at least guaranteed some visits from consumers who are already familiar with the mall. Why do the authorities only care about failing Malay businesses anyway? What about Chinese and Indian traders and those of other races who failed to make it in Low Yat? Do they get their own special mall too? The segregation solution is disturbing, not least because it could be extended to other areas of life. If you want Malay consumers to patronise Malay-owned shops, will there be Malays-only restaurants too? Malays-only buses? Malays-only supermarkets? As it is, we don’t see Malays and Chinese running hawker stalls side by side in the same premises anymore, caused by an unnatural fear of pork (as if the very air is contaminated by the meat) perpetuated by the religious authorities.  Non-Malays have been emptying out of national schools over the years, amid a curriculum that increasingly focuses on Islam and policies that don’t accommodate non-Muslim students during Ramadan, such as the closure of canteens during the fasting month. The race problem is one that all of us Malaysians need to solve collectively. We can’t blame the authorities alone for racism. But the government shouldn’t be proposing harmful policies like racial segregation that will deepen divisions among us. If politicians can’t (or don’t want to) think of ways to unite Malaysians, then they should just shut up. The solution to the awful racism we witnessed in the Low Yat riot isn’t more racism. 

We need to mingle more with each other, not less.

*This is the personal opinion of the columnist.