DEC 24 — All I want for Christmas is for Malaysia to reach its full potential as a nation that is equal, non-discriminating and fair to all.
This Christmas right in the middle of a monstrous pandemic is certainly one that will make amazing conversation pieces in the years to come – how Malaysians and people worldwide bring meaning to the season of hope, faith, peace and love. All of which should be cornerstones on how this pandemic should be managed and dealt with.
All I want for Christmas is for the Malaysian Government to remove all reservations it has in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) for all children to be accorded the right to education, healthcare, citizenship and the due protection under the law.
All I want for Christmas is for the Malaysian Government to amend existing laws to put an end to child marriages in Malaysia once and for all. 543 applications and marriages involving children were recorded between January to September this year. What about the unrecorded ones?
All I want for Christmas is for Malaysian mothers to be accorded the same right as Malaysian fathers when their child is born overseas, to be proud Malaysian citizens.
All I want for Christmas is for Malaysian students to be granted equal right to education and not be subjected or categorised according to ethnicity, religion or class which discriminately blocks their potential to achieve greater heights which will reduce brain drain of talented Malaysians whose hard work, expertise and passion are appreciated and rewarded abroad.
All I want for Christmas is for all frontliners, including the cleaners, firefighters and grassroot enforcement officers to be given the due recognition and appreciation for all their hard work and sacrifices and not for those in Executive positions in the Government to reap the fruits of their labour.
All I want for Christmas is for Malaysia to wake up and to realise that gender-based discrimination hurts everybody and that it is a collective and shared responsibility of everyone to ensure we move in the direction of ending gender-based discrimination.
All I want for Christmas is for every person under the Malaysian sun to be accorded his and her right to practise and profess one’s faith freely and safely as enshrined in the Federal Constitution so long as it does not advocate and promote extremism, terrorism and crime.
All I want for Christmas is for migrants who were ferried in to work in Malaysia and refugees who arrive at our shores who pray and hope to find safety, refuge and peace in Malaysia while their homelands are plagued by ravaging wars, famine, terrorism, political persecution, religious and ethnic persecution and climate change, be treated as human beings in Malaysia
All I want for Christmas is for equal salary wages between men, women and the disabled for their share of work.
All I want for Christmas is for the rights of our Orang Asli and Orang Asal to be protected, defended and promoted and that their land be safeguarded and reserved and for their identities, beliefs and their souls that are tied to the earth.
All I want for Christmas is for the Government to respect the right to life as per enshrined in Article 5 of the Federal Constitution.
All I want for Christmas is for politicians to put the interest of the people and nation first before their hunger for power, greed, fanaticism and extremist views.
All I want for Christmas is for my Malaysia to be the best version of itself – a nation we all can call home, a nation where we are treated with respect and dignity, a nation where there will be no discrimination according to gender, age, ethnicity, religious background, socio-economic class, citizenship and political beliefs. A nation that respects the rule of law and all creatures are created as equal men and women.
All I want for Christmas is for Malaysians to stand together to name and shame extremists, radicals, sexists, religious bigots, the corrupt, the greedy, the crooked and the evil who are the real threat towards Malaysia being a nation for all.
* Kasthuri Patto is Member of Parliament for Batu Kawan and International Secretary for Women DAP.
** This is the personal opinion of the writer(s) or organisation(s) and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
