Rolling back Umno's agitprops ...

Now that the ear-squat scandal victim has been confirmed to be a Malaysian Malay, Umno's agitprops seem to have found a 'weapon' to attack DAP for many things.

It is, for example, said that by making a mistake on the identity of the victim, DAP has tarnished Malaysia's image overseas, particularly in the Sinosphere of China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. This claim presupposes that Malaysia had had very good image abroad before the scandal was exposed.

But is it a true presupposition? The answer is NO.

Malaysia's image has been tarnished long before the ear-squat scandal. The 1998 'discovery' of former DPM Anwar Ibrahim wearing a black eye has already caused the world to see Malaysia negatively. Don't forget also all the public utterances yang bukan-bukan against the Jewish, American, European and Australian peoples and the equation of Chinese education with communism (and communism with Chinese), online media as 'Western propaganda tool', the Utusan Malaysia report of a ghostly 'John Malott' appearing in a Petaling Jaya hotel room as well as an Umno MP's racial slur against the Indians in the Parliament.

As a matter of fact, the political and security authorities in Beijing in early December were not concerned with one ear-squat case alone in Malaysia, but also other cases of "Chinese citizens being successively humiliated and assaulted in Malaysia" (People's Daily Online, 2 Dec), including "the rape of a Chinese businesswomen by four men in a Malaysian hotel who were wearing military or police uniforms" (AFP, 1 Dec).

In other words, Beijing at that time was seriously concerned not with one dot but several dots which seemed to have formed a line or pattern.

This was the entry in my blog on 2 Dec commenting on the first Utusan Malaysia's report that first said that the victim of the ear-squat scandal was a local Malay girl, not a PRC citizen:

" According to a 'report' in the Utusan Malaysia yesterday, the female who was stripped naked, humiliated and video-taped was a local Malay girl, not a citizen of the People's Republic of China.

Of course, the truth must be investigated leaving no stone unturned for the purpose of criminal prosecution or disciplinary actions, and to repair damages that have been done to Malaysia-China bilateral relations.

However, does it matter politically and morally whether the female was a Chinese national or local Malay girl?

Does it mean that the police actually cannot do any nasty things to Chinese, American, British, Australian, Canadian or other foreign nationals because these countries are strong, powerful and rich, but it is fully empowered or allowed to torture and humiliate our own fellow citizens who have no power or powers (economic, financial, political and military) for protection?

Does it mean that the police could order Norazimah Mohd Nor to strip naked and do pumping in public, or to beat up former PM Anwar Ibrahim with impunity because they are not citizens of China, the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada or some other rich and powerful countries?

If that is the line of reasoning, then I am afraid I have to say that the minds of the writer and the newspaper that publishes the message are absolutely evil. Go for prayer and ask God to remove the evil thoughts in your minds, restore a sense of common humanity and forgive you."