(Part 1)
Former Ambassador Dato Dr Ilango Karuppannan speaks up on the need for racial harmony
M.Krishnamoorthy
A media coach, adjunct professor and author
Religion is becoming a source of racial tension in Malaysia, according to the Washington Post.
Former Malaysian Ambassador Dato Dr Ilango Karuppannan noted this in a recent YouTube posting.
“For those who do not know, the Washington Post, along with the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, is one of the most influential papers in America.
“More importantly, it concludes that racial tensions can affect investment decisions by pointing out that a company was forced to cancel its planned IPO.”
In Ambassador Dr Ilango's YouTube recording, he starts off by questioning: How has Malaysia fared?
“Malaysia was viewed positively from the 1970s through the 1980s, 90s, and even into the early 2000s. We had healthy race relations and multiracial harmony, and because of that, Malaysia was seen as low-risk. Investments flowed in, jobs were created, and we progressed. Malaysia was seen as a role model,” said the former ambassador, High Commissioner to Lebanon and Cyprus.
He had also served in many other countries, including Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the United States.
“In the early 1990s, as a young desk officer responsible for African affairs in Wisma Putra, I handled many African visits and took notes during high-level meetings. The African leaders wanted to know our secrets and learn from us. The same questions were raised during the many visits of our Prime Minister then, Tun Dr Mahathir, to Africa. It wasn’t so much our economic policies that interested them.
“They could get them from other developed countries or the IMF and World Bank. They wanted to know our secret. They concluded correctly - it was racial and religious harmony. As a diplomat, I would hear this often in my other diplomatic postings in other countries.
“Whether I was posted in Europe, Africa, the Middle East or the United States, I heard the same thing. The international community saw Malaysia’s multiracial harmony as a sign o progress and what was the secret? No wonder the World Bank labelled Malaysia as one of the East Asian miracles. Malaysia was also the subject of case studies in many leading business schools, including Harvard University.”
Dr Illango added that Malaysians naturally reinforced a united image through the Malaysia Boleh spirit without realising it.
“Where are we today?” he asked.
“I retired in 2020, the year I had anticipated retiring in a developed country. Unfortunately, we missed that target. What is worrying is that we are struggling to move on. It appears that we are stuck in the Middle-Income Trap, which means that we cannot progress to the next stage of development.
“We are at a crucial juncture where we should be concerned about how the international community perceives us now. Let me be clear: The international community is not sentimental about any country. Its perception can change quickly, and new competitors can displace us. If that happens, we will fall off the radar, and foreign direct investors may not be inclined to come.
“Even domestic investment could be affected if local Malaysian companies relocate their businesses elsewhere. Take the sock issue, as the latest for example. I understand why Muslims are angry.
I am appalled and angry, too. This is wrong and unacceptable.
“But the correct course of action is to let the law take its course. Therefore, championing identity politics by turning it into a religious issue is damaging. What does it say about the rule of law?
“We must be naïve to think this would not go unnoticed,” Dr Ilango added.
Freelance Writer M. Krishnamoorthy (www.imkrishna.net) is a media coach, adjunct professor and undercover journalist. He has freelanced with Bernama, NST, The Star, and Malaysiakini. He also freelances as a fixer/coordinator for CNN, BBC, German and Australian Television networks and the New York Times. As an undercover journalist, he has highlighted society's concerns.
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