Few, if any, will recall a Malay slapping a non-Malay, or non-Muslim, for eating in public during Ramadan, but that is precisely what happened last month.

A man called Elijah, was minding his own business, eating at a convenience store in a Johor Bahru mall, when an elderly Malay man approached him.

The old Malay man wanted to know if Elijah was Chinese, to which he answered ‘Yes’.

If the intrusion into Elijah’s meal time was not enough, the man then demanded Elijah show his identity card.

Elijah was right to refuse his request. Why should he share his personal details with a stranger?

The old man then scolded Elijah, who is not a Muslim, for eating in public, during Ramadan.

After unleashing his tirade of abuse, he then slapped Elijah several times.

These are not the actions of a good pious Muslim. Fasting is supposed to teach the Muslim about sacrifice, tolerance, patience, self-discipline, acceptance and compassion. What this old man did was disgraceful.

So why did the old man slap Elijah?

In a nation which has in recent years become more conservative and intolerant, the old man probably felt emboldened and all-powerful.

He is Muslim, and a Malay. It is highly probable, that to him, all Malays and Muslims have more rights than non-Malays/Muslims.

The old man also knows that from previous incidents like this, the Muslim has got away scot-free or had his knuckles lightly rapped, instead of facing the full force of the law.

We should pin the blame on the authorities/government for inadvertently implementing a two-tier system of justice.

The old man slapped the non-Muslim, because he is ignorant about his own religion, Islam. He shows little understanding about why Muslims fast. He placed more importance on ritual than on the tenets of the religion.

If the elderly man wants others to refrain from eating in public simply because he is fasting and others should not eat in his presence, then he is defeating the purpose and religious significance of why people fast.

Unity Minister Aaron Ago Dagang said the incident is a provocation which has “failed to reflect the spirit of unity and harmony in multiracial Malaysia”. He wanted these actions to stop immediately. He urged Malaysians to uphold the Rukun Negara.

Does Aaron think that people like the old Malay man really care about the Rukun Negara? Look at the politicians like one Youth leader of a political party, who spews racial and religious hatred because he knows he will not be challenged and censured.

Many Malaysians of a certain generation will wonder what has happened to the tolerant, law-abiding, easy-going Malay. Why have many Malays turned ultra conservative and wear their religion on their sleeve?

In a nation increasingly more conservative and intolerant in recent years, the old man probably felt emboldened and all-powerful… The government should be blamed for inadvertently implementing a two-tier system of justice.

Malaysia is experiencing a major cultural shift and the Malays seem to be worse affected.

A number of non-Malay friends told me that many of their Malay friends had changed.

When they were children, they lived as neighbours, grew up together in the same village, or small town, went to the same school, and shared many teenage secrets, like trying to get 4D numbers at the Chinese graveyard.

During school, the non-Malay friends would wait for their Malay friends outside the surau whilst they performed their Friday prayers, then afterwards all would descend on the hawker stalls for makan.

The Malays had no objections with their non-Malay friends eating pork, just like their Indian friends would not create issues about others eating beef.

All this has changed in 21st century Malaysia.

Today, the friendships still exist, but the closeness and camaraderie have gone.

One non-Malay friend said that his Malay friend would bring his children to visit at Christmas, but the teenagers would refuse to shake his hand or consume anything that was offered, even if the drink was from a can.

His Malay friend claimed that his children’s school had fuelled the intolerance, with teachers’ attitudes and personal bias encouraging divisions.

Another non-Malay friend said she had to relocate from where she lived because she feared for her pet dogs. Stones were aimed at the dogs, and poisoned meat thrown into her compound to kill her pets.

In the past, transgender people did not have to worry about their safety. Today, they live in fear.

What progress can our leaders claim to have made, when 68 years after Merdeka, many Malays have developed a fear of dogs, pigs, Chinese, the DAP, communists, the crucifix, speaking English, lanterns, books, liberals and rational thinking?

How can some Malays believe an ulama who says that drinking or eating from a vessel which was used by a non-Malay is going to make his body “impure”?

Why do some Malays believe an ulama who says that a Muslim cannot extend good wishes for Christmas or Ponggal?

Why believe the word of a non-Malaysian radical Muslim preacher who cares nothing about multicultural Malaysia?

Some Malays condone corruption because “finally a Malay gets to ‘enjoy’ what it is like to be rich”?

Their priorities are warped especially when they are livid with how some non-Malays dress or that they dare eat in public.

It is wrong that Malays are rarely censured when they insult non-Malays and non-Muslims, but action is swift against non-Malays and non-Muslims who do the same?

So, how and when did we become such an intolerant nation?

Source: 

1. Malaysiakini: Non-Muslim slapped for eating during Ramadan, unity minister sees red

(Mariam Mokhtar is a Freelance Writer.)