KUALA LUMPUR, July 17 — Debate attempts by politicians and even academics on the role of the Malay Rulers in modern Malaysia in recent times often end in emotional outbursts, legal and sometimes even physical threats, but little meaningful exchange.
Until today. At a forum titled “Abolish The Monarchy System?” organised by a pro-Barisan Nasional (BN) student group here, youth panelists for and against the monarchy showed how Malaysians can discuss the highly-charged topic, and even disagree with each other, calmly and civilly.
They took their time to present their cases, each never backing down and arguing with utmost conviction to convince the fewer than seven people that made up the forum’s audience.
“I do not see any problems with calls to improve the monarchy, like limiting their allowances from excess… and there is no law that says we cannot criticise the Malay rulers,” said Khalid Ismath, the Parti Sosialis Malaysia youth chief who had been arrested and charged for posting comments on social media deemed “offensive” against the monarchy.
“We may not insult them by using heinous words, but nowhere does the law say they are immune from valid and fair criticism,” he added.
His opponent, pro-monarchy and Malaysian Student Activist director, Farhan Khairudin, argued that one cannot look at the Malay royal institution without looking holistically at its role in forming the Malaysian identity.
“It was through their grace that we as Malaysians earn our sovereignty, it was their efforts that contributed to our independence,” Farhan said.
The points raised by both panelists throughout the forum were not new and certainly had been raised in mainstream legal debates about the constitutional status of the Malay Rulers.
Khalid believes Malaysia should head towards a future where freedom of expression reigns supreme and in which her citizens should be able to criticise or question the monarchy openly, pointing to countries like the United Kingdom or Scandinavia.
There, citizens are free to debate on whether or not their kings or queens serve a meaningful purpose in modern democracy, he noted.
Deeper in the debate, he argued that sustaining the monarchy must be conditioned upon their usefulness, citing the egalitarian royalties of Norway or Sweden whom to him play vital symbolical roles safeguard the interests of all their citizens regardless of race or creed.
“They also pay taxes,” the PSM youth leader said.
Farhan, on the other hand, viewed the monarchy as an integral aspect of Malaysian democracy. To him, the royals also serve as an effective check and balance that provide “the last protective shield” against corrupt government leaders, something he thought was impossible in a republic.
“Imagine if the Malay Rulers are gone, who will protect us if the system has been corrupted by the highest-ranking politician? They are our last protective shield, something republics lack,” he said.
These points were hardly novel, yet rarely have they been discussed and debated between polar opposites panelists as openly as in today’s forum.
In the past, attempts at critical discussions of the monarchy were often muffled by extreme elements within then ruling Malay party, Umno, or influential hardline nativist groups that use the special constitutional position accorded to Malay Rulers to paint even the tamest of criticism against the royalty as an affront or a bid to subvert Malay political power.
This, in turn, have made criticism of the Rulers almost unthinkable even among progressive politicians as they fear losing Malay support, which rights activists say helps legitimise the restriction on free speech and make royalties impregnable to scrutiny, even if they were found to be corrupt.
Today’s forum was also held amid a revived national debate about free speech and royal immunity following the arrest of activist and lawyer, Fadiah Najwa Fikri, over a column she wrote criticising the monarchy.
Fadiah was arrested, detained and charged but under a law unrelated to her offence, and has since been released on bail.
Despite their opposing views, both Khalid and Farhan unanimously agreed that any critical debate about the Malay monarchy must not be curtailed. Instead they encouraged for more open and constructive dialogue in the future.
“I was initially surprised that a pro-BN group had invited me to talk about this..even PH politicians have not done so and avoided talking about this sensitive issue so I feel that this is a very positive development,” Khalid said.
“My intention is always clear: I want to go around and educate people about the importance of the Malay Rulers and with the hope that my campaign would convince Malays, Chinese or Indians - the royalties need not be our enemies,” Farhan said in response.
Siswa BN secretary and forum organiser, Syed Muhamad, said the debate was a positive start and proved youths are very much capable of taking the bull by the horn and break that taboo to tackle any sensitive issue through meaningful intellectual dialogues.
“We are definitely going to organise more of these forums in the future because it shows that we can sit together and go through the tough topics without being offensive… I hope others can do the same,” he told Malay Mail.
