The cost of a red T-shirt is small but the price for the nation to pay is great

Dong Ge Ning (translated name)
China Press, Sept 8, 2015

Malaysia is about to celebrate the 52nd anniversary of its formation and while people on both shores of South China Sea share the joy, they never expect the celebration also comes with a potential threat. The proposed red-shirt rally, now with posters threatening a bloodbath, has caused panic in towns and on social media.

What Gerakan President Mah Siew Keong said was only a small part of public concerns. He said tourism is the nation’s main revenue earner and any outbreak of incidents in tourist-concentrated areas would be reported by the media and would cause immense damage to our country and the tourism business and investment.

What Dato Mah said is true. There is no cover-up of any incident, no matter how minor it may be, in this internet age. An SMS or a WhatsApp message can be posted and spread throughout the world via the smartphone.

If the ugly or embarrassing images went viral, it would tarnish our national image and hurt our reputation and subsequently, who would be able to correct all the wrong perceptions of our nation? And, thus, Dato Mah is correct in his well-intended advice.

Time passes fast. Kuala Lumpur today is different from the days of Yap Ah Loy, nor from the 60’s. Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir in his speech about the changes brought about by the New Economic Policy has clearly indicated the total transformation of Malaysia’s economic make-up.

He said in Malaysia, it is accepted that those marginalized should be given special care. Not only there must be even playing field, the competitors must of equal strength. If they did not have equal strength, then handicaps must be given. He explained that because of this, the bumiputra middle-class has been expanding…and Malaysia has recorded remarkable achievements in maintaining political stability and racial harmony via policy measures combining racial equality with economic growth. This is something indisputable which surprised many observers.

In short, times have changed. In the May 13 incident in 1969, cars and buildings torched by Malay rioters certainly did not belong to the Malays. However, if they started a riot in Kuala Lumpur or other cities in Malaysia and destroyed properties, it could be said that they would also destroy properties belonging to the Malays.

It is true that the situation in 1969 and 2015 is totally different. With policy support, there have been continuous social transformations at all levels, including human resources, wealth distribution and corporate shares.

As of today, who does not know that the owners of some high rise buildings from Petaling Street to Bukit Bintang and even Plaza Low Yat where the thugs converged to create troubles are no more registered assets of non-Malay owners. On the other hands, they have changed hands many times and are now possessed by GLCs, Bumiputra enterprises and also Bumiputra families.

The Police have already disallowed the rally and why else these mysterious red-shirts want to show? If something happens which is beyond control, the forthcoming Sarawak state election would be badly affected. All the preparations would be wasted and the price to pay will be great.

The cost of a red T-shirt is low compared with the price to pay for the Sarawak state election. One could clearly see the huge cost of the rally. By giving consideration to the overall damage, the red-shirts should be clear in their heart of what to do next.

Original Source:
红衣成本小，国家代价大