Part 2, Analyzing Malaysian Parties: Should DAP compromise its principles?
Photo by Fadzly Mubin
By KEITH LEONG
Make as many PAP jokes as you like, it cannot be denied that the Democratic Action Party is one of the most ideologically driven and grassroots orientated political parties in Malaysia today. It has fought long and hard in the opposition benches, and only the most hard-hearted could begrudge the DAP of its recent successes.
But because it has spent so much (if not all) of its history in the political wilderness, many have wondered if the party can govern effectively and even if it can, whether it can maintain the “killer instinct” that served it so well in the past. Many political parties have not been able to survive the very taste of power, as the cautionary tale of the rise and fall of Tony Blair’s New Labour so aptly demonstrates.
Certainly, the difficulties the party faced over the formation of the Perak State Government indicates that the DAP’s leadership, in particular it’s old guard are finding the transition somewhat difficult.
But then again, to dismiss any of the Pakatan Rakyat entities as not having the competence to rule is manifestly unjust when one considers how they were maliciously shut out from even the more basic participation in the political process to an extent that was unthinkable in other countries. Also, the DAP’s recruitment of bright young technocrats such as Jeff Ooi, Tony Pua and Hannah Yeoh renders such concerns moot.
The DAP’s young leaders bring with them a combination of technical know-how and ideological commitment that will make them formidable figures on the multiple political stages. The crux however, is whether or not they can maintain their idealism with the need to be pragmatic whilst in government.
In this sense, the party’s social democratic principles are double-edged sword of sorts. It is the “glue” that holds the party together, but it could also cause the DAP policy problems with its more centre-orientated partners in the Pakatan Rakyat, the PKR and PAS. Years of right-wing hegemonic discourse in the Malaysian public sphere has made such beliefs a dirty word and the party will (and has been) subjected to unfair attacks because of it. On the other hand, toning down or compromising on the social democratic aspect of the DAP would be a cop-out that will damage the party.
There is also a question of leadership. Party stalwarts like Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh remain influential, but they must surely have to relinquish leadership to the younger generation one day. Given that the DAP has, (like other political parties) its history of splits, the question of how smooth this process will remain hanging.
We must also ask if Lim Guan Eng, his father’s anointed successor, will be able to effectively function as both chief minister of Penang and as leader of the DAP’s parliamentary party, if he so chooses to assume the later role when the time comes. And if not, who amongst its MPs can step up to the plate? The importance of long-term planning cannot be over-emphasised in this regard.
As Malaysia moves towards a two-party system, the DAP must make strenuous efforts to maintain its multiracial ethos. It has always been open to all ethnic groups, but the perception that the DAP has been hampered by the lack of a significant Malay presence is hard to shake-off, although it was able to elect Ahmad Nor to Parliament in the 1980s.
The emergence of a “Green Rocket,” that is to say, a charismatic Malay leader or leadership within the party might be just the thing that propels it to be a truly “national” party. One must also admit however, that it would have been virtually impossible for the party to have won seats in 10 out of the 13 states within the Federation without at least some Malay support. The idea that a particular ethnic group cannot only be led by leaders from the same ethnic group is an outmoded idea that is fast becoming extinct.
All of this makes playing racial politics a no-brainer for the DAP, but it does not negate the need for the party to find its niche if it is to somehow maintain its distinct identity from the all-encompassing PKR for the time being. Specifically, what can it do for Malaysians that Anwar Ibrahim’s party cannot? Who can it appeal to? Many see the various parties meshing into each other in the near future, but this will probably be something that happens gradually. The Pakatan Rakyat must avoid the mistakes that enervated and fractured the Barisan Nasional.
But then again, maybe I am just nitpicking here. The DAP has shown a great sense of unity and purpose both internally and with its allies in the Pakatan. It has, despite being constantly under siege by the establishment remained a constant in Malaysian politics. Its administrations in Penang, Perak and Selangor are challenging the old paradigms and transforming the political landscape.
What remains is for it to buckle down and get on with the business of government with the same intellectual as well as ideological vigour (but tempered by the new realities) that has carried it forward thus far.
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KEITH LEONG is a contributing writer for theCICAK.
Keith was born in Melaka and grew up in Damansara Jaya. He has a BA in English and Sociology as well as Masters degree in Creative Writing from the University of New South Wales. Keith enjoys baroque music, grand epic movies and long walks. The views expressed here are his own.
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GE12 has proved that we can and will put aside racial politics and all its inanities. But I think the principle of seperation of church (mosque?
) and state is what will make or break Pakatan Rakyat eventually. But there are more pressing issues at hand for the short term.
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Nice article.
A few things I wanna touch on. In terms of grass-roots support, DAP is actually still considerably behind PAS and the BN parties in this. DAP relies more on its top leadership’s high integrity and profiles to sell itself to the voters.
I wonder how many ordinary Malaysians actually understand what DAP is supposed to stand for? Basically social democracy advocates a few core ideas:
Anyway, I do agree that PKR is currently encroaching on DAP’s ideology now. Despite its declared stance of being centrist, I’ve always felt PKR is more left-leaning than centre. It advocates a welfare net as well. And most of its policies are protectionist. I would say if PR proves to be resilient and survives as a viable coalition, DAP will inevitable have to engage in an equal status merger with PKR.
And let’s not even get started on DAP’s peculiar relationship with PAS. I can’t see a way out of this one unless someone drops a chunk of its ideology. Sure everyone’s happy when they’re winning, but the 800 tonne gorilla in the corner of the room can only be ignored for that long. As a social democrat myself, I do hope PAS goes back to its left-wing roots during its early years and concentrate more on the welfare state ideology instead of its Islamic State ideology. After all, PAS is the odd one out in PR, with the other two being multiracial and left-leaning parties.
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Lol, sorry I forgot to delete a paragraph in my above comment. Initially wanted to explain further what social democracy was since like Keith said most Malaysians havent’ been exposed to left-wing politics much before. Anyway here’s what soc-dem parties believe in:
1. Secularism - doesn’t mean anti-religion, just means separation of mosque/temple/church and state
2. Taxing richer people more and redistributing that wealth to the poorer
3. Multiculturalism
4. Defending blue collar worker’s rights
5. Providing a welfare net
6. Minimum wage enactment
7. Preference for govt entities to remain in govt hands
8. Govt intervention in free market to correct market failures
‘Nuff said. Go support your nearest soc-dem party then
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I know one principle DAP needs to abandon - the right to vernacular language schools. This is a throwback to the chauvinistic, sectarian attitude that needs to go, and only reinforces the perception of the DAP as an ethnically-aligned party. Basically, we don’t need vernacular schools, their time has come and gone - if we’re going to have a national curriculum (which I think is mostly beneficial in a country like Malaysia) then what we now need is more effective multi-language education within a single curriculum, and less use of language and culture as political bargaining chips. This is a BN tactic and the DAP would do well to ditch it.
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First and foremost, if you wish to look at the number of technocrats, I think PKR is in the lead with that number. Just that we don’t often hear the names of Yaakob Sapari, Nik Nazmi and even Azmin Ali mentioned in the same caliber as Tony Pua and Rocketman Jeff Ooi.
The way I see it, the PR is a combination of three entities:
1. Malay Muslim conservatives - PAS
2. Malay Muslim liberals and centrists - PKR
3. Chinese and Indians - DAP
As for the DAP stance on separation of church and state, it’s not going to happen if PAS is in the Alliance, because the conservative Muslim grassroots will not allow such a thing to happen.
So if DAP will not bend it’s stance, and neither will PAS, it’s up to PKR to decide who to dump. Either lose Penang, or lose Perak, Kedah, Kelantan and perhaps in the future Terengganu.
That’s up to the ex-President of ABIM and Lim Guan Eng to decide.
So what can DAP do that the PKR and PAS cannot is to gain the support of the non-Malays, most obviously the Chinese and Indians.
If DAP wants to remain relevant, it has to gain Malay support without the PR in mind.
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What I have never understood about DAP is it’s inability to appeal to the Malays. This I feel reflects badly on the strategisers in the party and shows maybe they need to be changed.
I mean, if we work on the basis that the Malays are still the poorest ethnic group, then by right a soc-dem party should appeal to them.
But this isn’t the case. And the main reason for this is because DAP has successfully let BN paint is an anti-Islamic. Which is bull. I’m glad more and more Malaysians today understand the distinction between secularism and anti-Islamic.
On the second accusation that DAP gets a lot, of it being anti-Malay, this is also rubbish if you examine the party properly. As a soc-dem party, DAP supports the creative of a welfare safety net and stronger unionism in the public and private workforce. All this benefits the Malays. In this vein, DAP should not just blindly be opposed to the NEP, but promote its own affirmative action policy. Does it have one? It really should, since it is one of the core beliefs of a soc-dem party. Instead, PKR has stolen its mantle in this regard with their own New Economic Agenda which is non-race based. Golden opportunity missed, DAP…
So DAP should really start truly promoting the virtues of their social democratic policies, with heavy emphasis on the Malays, to ensure its long term survival and relevance.
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Another defamation sue in the making. This will be the first Malaysian taken to court for libel charges just because he made a Genuine Consumer Complaint on the Internet. Should we keep quite from being bullied by the rich and powerful? Is it right to use the law to muzzle a consumer in grievance? Read more here http://www.consumer.com.my/message/index.php?itemid=1715 and original complaint at http://www.consumer.com.my/message/index.php?itemid=1671
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the thing with most Malay heartlanders is that they do not and cannot accept the concept of separation of religion and state, because they see Islam as the golden path to salvation which leads to good governance (not my words, took them from a Kedahan).
as for members of the race in urban areas, we’ve been brainwashed with the idea that DAP was responsible for May 1969 since some of us were in university, especially if you were in mine…
not that I believed such crap.
but you have to look at the demographics of the party itself, it’s composition based on racial background in it’s upper echelons.
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The MP for Kelana Jaya sure brings alot of ‘technical know-how’
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Jeremy Mahadevan ,
I would have to disagree with you. If this is a dated concept, why do I keep hearing that malays and indians are sending their children to chinese schools? The parents will have the ultimate vote on this matter.
Vernacular language schools still have its place in Malaysia. Besides the advantage of speaking the language of China and India, studying in a vernacular school gives you a superior education in maths and science. And yes, we follow thenational curriculum .
The problem with vernacular school is that students there are very polarised. Solve this problem by encouraging people of other races to study in vernacular schools.
Former student of a vernacular school
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