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Malaysian Embassy Differs on the State of Caning and FDI

The recent commentary on Malaysia by John Berthelsen (“Spare the Rod, Spoil the Nation: Malaysia Gets It Wrong Again,” Feb. 27) contains inaccuracies and demonstrates a lack of understanding regarding the state of our nation.

As a burgeoning democracy with a multiethnic population and encompassing many diverse views and beliefs, Malaysia naturally faces many challenges. It is irresponsible to exaggerate these challenges.

Caning in Malaysia is a case in point. Contrary to Berthelsen’s depiction, the practice is used sparingly and is used as a symbolic act meant to instill a spirit of repentance rather than physical injury. It is therefore carried out under the strictest conditions that ensure the safety and well-being of the individual. The offender must be dressed, according to Shariah law, and health checks prior to and after the sentence are conducted by medical officers.

Further, Malaysia’s steep downturn in foreign direct investment last year was the result of a battered global economy, not capital flight in response to political circumstances. Indeed, the government recently released very positive figures for the fourth quarter of 2009 and sizeable foreign direct investment is returning, evidenced by the recent $11 billion investment agreement signed with China.

Both our government and our society are undergoing significant transformation and there is much to celebrate in our accomplishments.

Raja Reza
Head of Chancery
Malaysian Embassy, Jakarta

A Lopsided View Of India Today

Regarding the commentary, “With Lunatic Fringe Leading the Way in India, Secularism Remains a Dream” (March 6), by Zafar H. Anjum, I was pained to see such a biased article published by the Jakarta Globe without due recognition of the content and the writer’s intent.

I agree only with the last sentence of the article: “There are collective implications of individual liberty.” In the developed world, if one happens to be disturbing one’s neighbors by, say, making a lot of noise late at night, a single call is enough to bring in the law-enforcement agencies. In Singapore, smoking in public can guarantee an encounter with the law. In these countries, the definition of individual liberty is well-understood. Not so in India where people are accustomed to whipping the country in the garb of liberty.

Let us take MF Husain’s case. He found a very convenient way of expressing himself, painting Hindu deities in the nude. Had he done the same thing against famous characters in his own religion, there would have been a fatwa against him. What kind of a liberty is this? Let us understand that a liberty is a liberty as long as it is not intentionally directed toward another human being or community. Why is a murderer punished by the law? Because we as citizens of the civilized world are not permitted to take the life of another human being.

Similar is the case where the author has cited the example of the Ahmedabad tragedy while conveniently forgetting and avoiding the train tragedy that led to it. One cannot justify violence in any form. But why be selective in presenting cases? The author has not talked about the plight of the whole population of Kashmiri Hindus who have become refugees in their own country because of the proxy war being carried out by India’s neighbor.

Regarding the comment that children are taught in school that Islam was spread in India by shedding rivers of blood, frankly, I have never come across this kind of literature. The statement may be partly true considering the history of the region. The circumstances leading to the division and independence of the subcontinent and are universally known.

Regarding the position of Muslims in India, the author has conveniently forgotten our past president, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, and the present vice president, Ansari. The position of minorities in India in comparison to the other countries of the subcontinent is universally known. Many so-called advanced countries in Asia have a much more dismal record.

Regarding the statement that “India is a failed state,” only people who do not know India can harbor such a feeling. The advances made by India when compared to its neighbors are clearly evident and recognized worldwide.

True, we in India have our own set of problems to be solved and issues to be sorted out. We are not perfect but let us accept that nobody is.

Anon

I’ve yet to read such a lopsided and subjective view of Hindus in India, and take serious objection to careless and unqualified statements made by the author, including that “Generations of Indian children have been raised with biased views against minorities.”

I’d like to ask where the writer’s affiliations lie regarding the cartoons in Danish newspapers, or the fatwa on Salman Rushdie. Articles by Muslims condoning the former, or condemning the latter, are nonexistent.

In short, people living in glass houses shouldn’t cast stones!

Anon