KUALA LUMPUR, April 18 — A minister’s remark that young Malaysians want to identify as “Bangsa Malaysia” demonstrates the irrelevance of communal politics, DAP Wanita vice chairman Hannah Yeoh said today.
Yeoh was referring to a reports citing Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin as saying that young Malaysians want a more common identity that is not defined by race, based on their feedback on the government’s National Transformation 2050 (TN50).
“This statement by Khairy Jamaluddin is significant. Finally an admission from an Umno minister that the BN policy of racial governance is irrelevant and disconnected from the young Malaysians,” Yeoh said in a statement.
She recounted her own experience when she had tried to register her daughter’s race as “Anak Malaysia” six years ago.
Yeoh and her husband in 2011 attempted to register their daughter, Shay Adora Ram, as Bangsa Malaysia in her birth certificate, but the application was rejected by the National Registration Department (NRD).
“… Barisan Nasional poured scorn on our effort, accusing my husband and I of many incredulous things, including marginalising the Indians, wanting ethnic cleansing and many other vile allegations,” she added.
She then expressed hope that Khairy will take heed of the findings from the TN50 dialogues and take measures to dismantle all forms of “institutionalised racism.”
