If we are serious about promoting national unity, we must take the cue from the Malaysia Madani concept initiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

However, we must learn to be creative in applying this excellent concept in our everyday life in order to be more effective and impactful in the things we should be doing or are already doing to promote cultural harmony.

Malaysia is ethnically a very diverse country and this should be an enviable source of strength rather than being seen as a weakness by some malicious quarters.

The strength of our diversity is because we come from different ethnic backgrounds yet we have a lot more in common than our differences.

Therefore, we can share on what we have in common and learn from any cultural differences that we may have rather than to fight over them.

Our diversity has been made a weakness by those selfish, greedy, malicious and power+hungry forces in order to “divide and rule” the people and to distract the rakyat from the real issues and real causes which very often transcend racial divide but are made to look racial in nature.

Moving forward, we should know how to use the Malaysia Madani concept to harness the strengths based on our diversity and to minimize any potential weaknesses that the enemies of our country may wish to exploit.

To be more effective in promoting national unity, we should focus on places and events where the rakyat tend to interact or gather so far:

Open houses should be encouraged for all festivities using our multicultural Asian food as a platform to bring people together.

Shopping malls should organize more multicultural performances to bring the various races together.

More effort should be made to promote courtesy to other races, for example, by giving way or holding the door when using elevators and escalators.

Sports: An excellent platform that we should explore a lot more to promote national unity.

On an international level, even FIFA has come up with new policies using football to promote cultural harmony, peace and sustainability.

On the road: More effort should be made to promote courtesy and “to give chance and give way” to all races in order to prevent road rage based on ethnicity.

Offices/workplaces: Employers should hire staff of various ethnicities as far as possible without compromising on merit.

Employers should also make more conscious efforts to organize more healthy events that will cater to all races, such as food gatherings, sports, treasure hunts and board games.

Public transport (MRT, LRT, buses, etc.): There should be more effort to promote courtesy and greater respect for elderly and women (which is a common trait for all cultures) and the culture of “giving chance and giving way” to others, especially people of other races, elderly and women.

Promoting sincere courtesy and mutual respect, rather tolerance (which may suggest putting up with unpleasantness) can go a long way in achieving national unity.

The role of print and online media, including social media, in promoting national unity cannot be overstated.

They all have a social responsibility to proactively promote goodwill among all races and not to fall into the traps of racial or religious bigots by turning a small incident into a major divisive issue based solely on emotions and half-truths.

Read also:

1. Why national unity is so crucial for our survival and progress
2. National unity in Malaysia: the way forward

(Heidi Young and Vanessa Wong are Officers of Jukenworld Think Tank Unit, Kuala Lumpur.)