CIVIL rights group Agora Society Malaysia is disappointed that Putrajaya will not be ratifying the International Convention On The Elimination Of All Forms Of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) just as they launched an online petition to support the UN convention, said spokesman Ng Yap Hwa.

“We are quite disappointed with the news, and we think the Malaysian Government is sending a wrong signal to the people of this country, that the ‘New Malaysia’ supports and allows racial discrimination” Ng said.

In a statement earlier today, the group had said that racial extremism cannot prevail if “we are to build a progressive and harmonious nation for ourselves and future generations”.

Ng said the social contract reflected in the constitution through its provisions, such as special rights for Malays and citizenship laws, were enacted to alleviate the unequal economic conditions that existed in the country when it was formed 60 years ago.

However, it is now outdated and a review should be done through the ICERD, as it will be inclusive of poor and lower-income groups regardless of race or ethnicity.  

“Our position is that, after 60 years of independence, Malaysia should go for the next best affirmative action, so regardless of whether one is Chinese, Malay, Indian or Kadazan-Dusun, if one is poor or in a low-income group, then that person should be eligible to get support from the government,” he said.

Ng said the political parties opposed to the ICERD, are supporting the popular opinion of extreme groups in order to get support, but the government should not be rattled by such “extremists”.   

“The political parties are doing this for the votes, they need to follow the popular opinion.

“People need to voice their support for ICERD. The government should not only listen to right-wing and extremists groups.”

Those who love harmony, peace, democracy and human rights, should voice out their opinion through Agora Society Malaysia’s online petition, said Ng.

“Even though the government has made a decision now, we urge everyone who supports ICERD and equal citizenship rights for everyone in Malaysia to vote on our online petition,” he said.

Agora Society Malaysia’s online petition, which was launched today, has been signed by nearly 100 people as of 7pm. – November 23, 2018.