The 6 pages of Jawi that could sink Pakatan in GE15

Sheridan Mahavera Sheridan Mahavera Updated 4 years ago · Published on 6 Aug 2019 7:00AM · 24 Comments

DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng at a meeting at the party headquarters which ended early today. The party is forced on the back foot over the Jawi controversy. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Hasnoor Hussain, August 6, 2019.

PAKATAN Harapan won’t emerge from the khat controversy unscathed as how the government mishandled the whole issue has left a bad taste in the mouths of non-Muslims, its core supporters, said political analysts.

PH can’t U-turn on this policy as it will lose more support among Malay-Muslims, they said.

But whichever way the government goes, the disenchantment the issue has caused will still carry over to the next elections, said political scientist Dr Wong Chin Huat.

“This is even if measures are done to appease parents who send their children to vernacular schools,” he said.

Universiti Malaya political scientist Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi said a policy reversal now would offer the strongest proof to its critics that the PH ruling coalition is being led by the Chinese-majority DAP, whose members oppose the move.

And the biggest loser will be DAP, said Prof James Chin of the University of Tasmania (UTAS).

DAP is made up of the Chinese and Tamil educators and parents opposed to including a section on khat in the textbooks.

The opposition to khat is driven by deep suspicions that Education Minister Mazlee Malik is attempting to spread Islam to non-Muslims by introducing a script that has been inextricably linked to the Muslim faith.

“There is a lot of suspicion that Dr Mazlee and the Education Ministry are trying to Islamise schoolchildren,” said Chin, who runs UTAS’ Asia Institute.

“DAP is now caught up in the MCA scenario,” said Chin, referring to the Chinese party of former ruling coalition Barisan Nasional (BN), which enjoyed solid support from the community since Merdeka. 

One of the main reasons Chinese voters started ditching MCA since the 2008 election was because they felt the former did not stand up to its Malay nationalist political ally Umno, said Chin.  

“DAP used to blame MCA for not standing up to Umno over Islamisation and now DAP is facing exactly the same accusation,” said Chin.

“The issue is now so politicised that I doubt there can be a compromise.”

Grassroots revolt

Starting next year, primary four pupils in all vernacular schools will get Bahasa Melayu textbooks with six pages that will introduce them to “khat” or Islamic calligraphy.

The lessons are brief and contain exercises for only five words and terms which must be written out in Jawi or Arabic letters that have been used for centuries as the writing script for Malay.

Pupils will not be tested on whether they master the lessons but this has elicited a storm of protests from vernacular school administrators and parents.

The suspicion that it is a form of Islamisation while experts have shown that Jawi is a religion-neutral script.

The opposition should be seen in the context of a more important policy failure by the PH government – the recognition of the United Examination Certificate (UEC), said Wong of the Jeffrey Cheah Institute on Southeast Asia (JCI).

While campaigning for the 14th general election, PH promised that public universities would recognise the UEC, a school graduation certificate used by independent Chinese secondary schools.

“DAP is severely damaged already by the grassroots revolt. They feel that the status quo has been changed at the non-Muslims’ disadvantage,” said Wong, a JCI senior fellow.

“Before the UEC is recognised, Chinese and Tamil schoolchildren are required to learn Jawi. Many Chinese feel that they have been taken for a ride after voting solidly for PH,” said Wong.

Wong said the ministry would have faced less resistance if it had balanced out the plan by also teaching Chinese and Tamil calligraphy to national primary school pupils.

Instead, it came out with a statement that gave the impression that the government is pushing through the subject despite all the opposition.

Prime Minister and PH chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad was also seen as bulldozing the move.

Losing seats

“Even if this episode is over, the bad after taste will dampen Chinese voters’ enthusiasm in GE15,” said Wong.

This will cost marginal seats not only for DAP, but PKR, Amanah and Bersatu, its partners in PH, he added.  

“Many are reading Dr Mahathir’s latest non-negotiable stand as a signal that Pakatan or at least Bersatu is very confident of Malay support and that Chinese support can be taken for granted.”

But if PH capitulates to khat’s detractors, it will be the biggest gift the coalition hands to its political rivals Umno and PAS.

“Dr Mahathir needs to increase Malay support and if this policy fails, more Malays who are on the fence and who voted for Pakatan in GE14 will return to BN,” said Awang Azman of UM.  

JCI’s Wong warns that the fallout from khat could make Pakatan easily lose more than the 29 marginal seats that a think-tank, Institute Darul Ehsan projected.

This is especially if PH can’t get the solid backing of the 7.8 million voters added after the voting age was lowered to 18.  

“The six pages of calligraphy exercises and the one page MoE statement may go down in history as the seven pages with the strongest electoral impact in Malaysian history,” Wong said. – August 6, 2019.

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Comments

  • The same Minister must now allay fears by increasing the secularism in national schools. And introducing broader calligraphy to the subject in the interest of increasing knowledge of other writing forms. Job done.

    Posted 4 years ago by Malaysia New hope · Reply

  • Introducing khat is art is acceptable but the MOE can introduce it as a Ko-k where students can enjoy it as a selective subject.

    Posted 4 years ago by Chong Choong Kian · Reply

  • Introducing khat is art is acceptable but the MOE can introduce it as a Ko-k where students can enjoy it as a selective subject.

    Posted 4 years ago by Chong Choong Kian · Reply

    • Good Idea

      Posted 4 years ago by Hazlan Sani · Reply

  • DAP is becoming MCA where Khat is concern. Once khat is implemented no U Turn but ICERD Rome Statue got U Turn. Non Malays DONT EVER FORGET HOW OUR NON MALAY KIDS ARE TREATED IN SCHOOL. Each n every day we are LOSING OUT to govt policies. Govt of the day n previous never want to RESPECT or FOLLOW the Federal Constituition. ALL RACES BUILT MALAYSIA BUT TODAY ONE RACE HAS TAKEN IT ALL FOR THEMSELVES. NO JUSTICE AT ALL IN MALAYSIA.

    Posted 4 years ago by Mindy Singh · Reply

  • Ask yourself why the Jawi learning was dropped from the school's in the 70's. And why revive it now? Who wants it? For what?

    Posted 4 years ago by Tanahair Ku · Reply

    • damm good question. LGE must answer

      Posted 4 years ago by . . · Reply

    • Dont think LGE should answer that at all, the PH house already started rumbling. This is the trick of all Ex UMNO in PH. Why dont get new PM like AA to clean all those old rusty minded. As long religion and race a subject of discussion, there will no end to it.

      Posted 4 years ago by MA63 SSS · Reply

  • Take a lesson from the Chinese, who give up bopomofo and adopt hanyupinyin. If not the change, they probably still do not know how to use the smartphone.

    Posted 4 years ago by Tanahair Ku · Reply

  • Very sad. Khat is not an issue. A group of selfish people with herd mentality make a mountain out of a molehill.

    Posted 4 years ago by Malaysia Baru 09052018 · Reply

  • There is a big movement to destroy PH and our dumb leaders subscribed to it by voting for 18 year olds to vote. Young people are mostly anti establishment so PH has just self destruct

    Posted 4 years ago by Elyse Gim · Reply

  • ya right. stupid to fight for PH. all talk cock. fr Tun to LGE to stupid Mazlee. half of them useless.

    Posted 4 years ago by . . · Reply

    • We had no other choice during election. Please Never go back to UMNO-BN again.

      Posted 4 years ago by Tanahair Ku · Reply

    • Don't even think about it!

      Posted 4 years ago by Tanahair Ku · Reply

    • die also would not go back dumno. just wont vote

      Posted 4 years ago by . . · Reply

  • Paradoxically, I see the Machiavellian hand of Mahathir in this totally avoidable controversy. The Tun is a master of political intrigue and his calculation is for a future result, when or what that may be!

    Posted 4 years ago by Simple Sulaiman · Reply

  • Why not fix the proficiency in English and Malay first? As it is, most people speak neither well. On another note, we need someone from the education sector who has worked as a true professional to be the minister.

    Posted 4 years ago by K Pop · Reply

  • MOE and PH are letting some of us down...will cost them.

    Posted 4 years ago by Lipdah Lia · Reply

  • ROT PH UMNO BN PAS All total RUBBISH

    Posted 4 years ago by Mindy Singh · Reply

  • In order to appease the rakyat, replace Maszlee Malik and Teo Nie Ching with more capable people as soon as possible.

    Posted 4 years ago by T E · Reply

    • Noway because they are playing vital role in turning this country towards more Islamic. Teo with Lim's families will not bee LESS CHINESE when they turn muslims in the next generations to com.

      Posted 4 years ago by Swaminaidu Venkatasamy · Reply

  • PH will sink but the rise of UMNO2 will be in the making soon after that. Almost ALL Umno stooges are in Bersatu today so the road to recover UMNO2 minus Najib and Zahid is very clear to take its roots soon after GE15..

    Posted 4 years ago by Swaminaidu Venkatasamy · Reply

  • When you have no ideas of substance, you come out with rubbish that causes division amongst the rakyat.
    Where is your blue print for education O Mazlee, you have proven that you are incapable. Why dont you do the right thing and resign.

    Posted 4 years ago by Stanley Sinnappen · Reply

  • By reacting in the manner it did, DAP painted itself into a corner.

    Posted 4 years ago by Léon Moch · Reply