Not a party,
Just a pressure group
Looks like Singapore Malays may have a new pressure group; will it raise tension?
Nov 2, 2000

What the Association of Malay Professionals (AMP) was doing - without saying so - was this: All Malays, other than PAP Parliamentarians, should rally around a "collective leadership" to become a pressure group for the Malays.

It can do so without becoming a political party, since winning elections will be nigh impossible. That seems to be AMPs call. When I heard about it, I asked myself whether this group of professionals is really serious about the idea or whether it is just an attention-grabbing stunt.

My conclusion is that it must be latter that the leaders knew the idea would be turned down. Why? Simple. Any minority group would fight strenuously to prevent the formation of political pressure groups

If the Singapore government allows their formation, it will be harmful to the interests of the Malays, unless they can draw on outside help to support their cause. I doubt this because to have any group to serve as a foreign proxy will be harmful to all Singaporeans, including the Malays.

When the Madrasah problem surfaced and emotions were being aroused, I was worried about the timing and the motive. As a journalist I saw it as a potential seed for an explosion no one would want.

Obviously so did PM Goh Chok Tong, who personally worked to defuse it. I was anxious because of another reason. Under the shadow of an economic recession and spreading poverty, there was already an upsurge in Islamic extremism.

The violence in the Maluku Islands, Indonesia, Jolo in Southern Philippines and the arms raid by Islamic radicals in Malaysia, coupled with the election rise of PAS, the Islamic party in Malaysia - the list goes on - are already spreading concern in the region.

Add to them the dangers of another Israel-Arab conflict and rising trends of two other concerns - piracy around the Singapore waters and illegal immigrants in the state.

No one is suggesting the AMP leaders are radicals or capable of extremist action, but their action can unintentionally set of emotions that cannot be controlled. Men and money from abroad can infiltrate the "collective Malay leadership".

Most of the AMP leaders are enlightened citizens and would not have missed the heavy display of military might during the National Day parade and understood why.

I never missed these annual parades. It was the biggest military display I've seen in at least two decades, done for a purpose - to reassure Singaporean citizens that the armed forces were ready and able to defend them.

For the same reason, defence spending has gone up. Singapore has added new modern armaments to prepare itself ranging from fighter planes to submarines, from missiles to tanks.

To stir up racial, especially Muslim, emotions and rally them into a pressure group against the government will be especially harmful to stability.

Has the AMP succeeded in gaining the nation's attention? Yes. It has got PM Goh's attention.

But the AMP paid a price. The move has also stirred up strong feelings against it, including some Malays. Just read some of the web-sites and you'll see what I mean.

I hope it will lead to something better - removing politics from an all-Malay effort to make the lives of the Malays better. Let me relate this to the AMP leaders that may explain the mood of others.

When AMP was set up in 1990, it was the second Malay institution to gain government's dollar-for-dollar pledge of financial help, a top Chinese media editor said he thought PM Goh was exaggerating the problems of the Malays. That was exactly what he said. The man is still alive.

He said every other race had only organisation to help them why should the Malays have two? They already have a lot of other help, including university scholarship. Other races had poor people too, he exclaimed with some feelings.

I remember my reply to him. I thought it was fair because Singapore had to pull them collectively out of poverty through education and better skills. "If the Malays are poor, the Chinese cannot enjoy their wealth," I said.

That was a decade ago. I'm glad that the younger Chinese today have a greater understanding of the Malays. This must never be lost.
Seah Chiang Nee