FOR someone who has represented Malaysians in five different states (Malacca, Selangor, Penang, Perak and Johor) over five decades, it’s not often Lim Kit Siang gets heckled in public.

The last time he faced the wrath of locals was in Kg Batu Bakar in Johor Baru in the run-up to the last elections. But then again, it was widely held that the demonstration was organised by the local Umno chapter that didn’t want Lim in their neighbourhood. 

As such, it was a rude awakening for the 78-year-old when he was jeered during a hungry ghost event in his constituency Iskandar Puteri on Friday night over the khat issue.

Lim played it down and said the viral videos didn’t completely capture the mood at the event.

He said the atmosphere at the event was no worse than usual and urged all parties not to forward misleading news that can confuse the people.

In the two videos circulating on social media, Lim, giving a speech at a hungry ghost festival in his constituency, can be seen being shouted at and booed at by the public.

Commenting on the issue, Dong Zong or United Chinese School Committees’ Association secretary-general Ng Chai Heng said a majority of Malaysians are unclear about the differences between Jawi and khat.

“And most of the confusion have been caused by vernacular media outlets that use different terminologies to explain khat and Jawi,” said Ng. 

Khat is Islamic calligraphy that uses Arabic script while Jawi is Arabic script used to write Malay before the switch to Romanisation.

The issue was worsened when some quarters linked khat to Islamisation, said Ng.

According to Ng, khat and other calligraphy styles have been part of the vernacular school syllabus since 2015.

“There is one chapter in the year five textbooks that covers Malaysian culture and contains sections on calligraphy for the three major languages in Malaysia – Malay, Chinese and Tamil. Nobody protested when this was introduced in 2015,” said Ng.

Chinese fallout

According to Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research’s Tan Seng Keat, Friday’s event was the culmination of one year’s worth of flip-flopping and failed promises by the new government.

“Notwithstanding the fact that the hecklers were mostly conservative Chinese, who do not fully understand the khat issue, this is a sign of their disappointment with DAP,” said Tan, who comes from the Chinese vernacular school system.

“After GE14, there was high expectation among the Chinese on DAP and the new government but till now some key issues, such as the recognition of United Examination Certificate (UEC) and Lynas, remain unresolved. The other issue that has upset the Chinese ground is over the university quota,” said Tan.

DAP is also paying the price of being “too populist” on the same issues in the past, he said.

“As such, the conservative Chinese see the khat issue as a form of back-tracking and betrayal of their trust.”

In 2008, Seputeh MP Teresa Kok protested against Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s plan to introduce Jawi on road signs.

International Islamic University Malaysia’s Dr Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar feels that identity politics have become stronger post-elections. 

“For Lim to be heckled, it shows how DAP’s followers feel the imposition of Malay-ness upon them,” said the political science lecturer. 

“DAP may lose some support for now but when people realise the responsiveness of the government in making khat optional, they may come to their senses,” said Tunku Mohar.

Upsetting Malays, too

While DAP faces brickbats on the Chinese front, the khat fiasco is not doing the multiracial party any favour among the Malays, said Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Dr Azmil Tayeb.

“This will further feed into the narrative that DAP is anti-Malay/Islam and puts the Pakatan (Harapan) in a bind since it’s fast losing the support of the Malay electorate. 

“The haphazard way the new government has been dealing with this issue shows the coalition is divided with the components acting as individuals instead of playing as a team,” said the political scientist.

Azmil said DAP will lose more support among the Malays as society becomes more polarised.

Moving ahead, Azmi said PH must act more cohesively. 

“Get all the component parties and their bases in line on a common agenda. Yes, there are many reforms that need to be made but some reforms need to be taken slowly and more tactfully, namely the ones that deal with Malay and Islamic privilege status. 

“PH also needs to come up with a counter-narrative and take control of the public discourse to deal with explosive ethno-religious issues that will surely be exploited by the opposition again and again,” said Azmil.

Just like ICERD and the Rome Statute, khat has shown that New Malaysia is but a distant dream. A dream that PH itself has yet to unravel. – August 11, 2019.