The Hindu : Front Page : Malaysia bans Hindraf

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Friday, Oct 17, 2008
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Malaysia bans Hindraf

P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE: Malaysia has proscribed the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), which launched a protest last year against the alleged discrimination of the ethnic Indian minority.

Malaysian Homer Minister Syed Hamid Albar said Hindraf continued to pose a threat to public order, racial harmony, security and sovereignty of the country. The ban, effective from Wednesday, was based on the actions the organisation had taken since its inception. Hindraf, Mr. Hamid said, was not granted registration by the Registrar of Societies.

He said Hindraf “has also tried to secure support from foreign countries for the purpose of pressuring the government to bow to its demands.” No foreign power was immediately named, though. The ban was condemned by the opposition alliance, Pakatan Rakyat, with at least one constituent party wanting to know why Hindraf was being targeted in this fashion. The opposition believes that Hindraf’s campaign for a fair deal for the minorities in the multi-religious Malaysia was a factor behind the “changing political landscape” that the recent general election produced.

Power-sharing among the ethnic groups — majority Malay-Muslims, ethnic Chinese and people of Indian origin — is a principle espoused by both the ruling coalition and the opposition. But the latter is promising “a greater level-playing field” among ethnic groups for education and jobs. The timing of the ban took many Malaysian leaders by surprise, with some having even anticipated the release of all or at least one or two among the five Hindraf leaders, who were jailed under a strict Internal Security Act last year. A view in Malaysian political circles is that the ban was “precipitated” by the “conduct” of some Hindraf activists, who got involved in “scuffles” with the security personnel at the time of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s Eid-related “open house” programme recently. Malaysian Indian Congress leader Samy Vellu said the ban would not lead to any political vacuum on the ethnic scene.

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