Recent violence surrounding the Seafield Hindu temple in Selangor, Malaysia, near the national capital, has put race relations in the multi-ethnic nation on a new edge.
How various actors ultimately respond, including the long-ruling, now opposition race-based United Malays National Organization (UMNO), will be a closely watched measure of stability in the weeks ahead.
The Seafield incident began in the early morning of November 26, when rioters damaged or destroyed 20 vehicles and vandalized buildings belonging to a property company that has been given rights to the land where the Hindu temple sits.
In the melee, rioters beat and critically injured firefighter Muhammad Adib Mohd Kassim, 24, after they dragged him out of a nearby fire engine. Adib, an ethnic Malay Muslim, was to be married within a month of the incident, leading to sympathetic media coverage. At least a dozen were injured in the riot.
The land developer is One City Development Bhd, a firm registered in Malaysia that is ultimately owned by Ayala Corporation of the Philippines.
District police initially said the root cause of the violence was a conflict between temple factions. State police later said the “attackers” were Malay men, while 83 persons have since been detained.
Prosecutors have charged four men, aged 24 to 38 years, all ethnic Malays, in court on accusations of rioting while armed with axes and machetes.
The riot is the latest in a string of racially charged incidents involving land rights and the demolition of Hindu temples. Indeed, it was on a wave of Hindu resentment over temple demolitions in 2007 that the current Minister for National Unity, Waythamoorthy, first came into the public eye.
Waythamoorthy, also known as Waytha Moorthy Ponnusamy, is widely considered the leader of the Hindu Rights Action Force, or HINDRAF, a group of lawyers who mobilized thousands in 2007 in Kuala Lumpur to decry perceived injustices against minority Indians.
These include the assertion that Indians have been left behind economically while ethnic Malays were pulled ahead through the government’s New Economic Policy affirmative action programs.
Waythamoorthy even lodged a case in the United Kingdom, demanding compensation for British “negligence” during pre-independence negotiations with Malayan leaders which he says resulted in the present day impoverishment of Indians in Malaysia.
About two months after being appointed minister, Waythamoorthy launched the Malaysian Advancement Party, a new political party whose goal is to “protect, promote and advance the interest of the Indian community.” Indians currently account for around 7% of the country’s population; minority Chinese account for around 26%.
It is notable that days before the Seafield incident a branch of UMNO in Selangor made a police report against Waythamoorthy for a speech he made 10 years ago in which he allegedly falsely claimed that thousands of Hindu places of worship had been destroyed. UMNO claimed his speech could create race-based disharmony.
The Seafield affair has again revealed the delicate state of race relations in Malaysia, a nation in which minority ethnic groups believe their contributions to society have been and continue to be systematically overlooked in the name of preserving social harmony.
The Seafield temple is located on a site which is said to have been a place of devotion for Indian plantation workers since 1891. It is unclear how many people frequented the site, or even what was located there – it may have been no more than an idol under a tree.
An account from 1908 (link) says “Altogether there are 293,923 rubber trees and they are thriving well [in the area]. By the end of 1908 it is expected that 2,000 acres will have been planted.” The book also says the estate was comprised of 2,848 acres.
Later the estate was converted to oil palm and beginning in 1974 was developed into the now bustling urban areas known as Subang Jaya and Sunway.
In March 2014, the developer agreed with temple representatives to relocate the structure, with agreed timelines and terms of compensation. That was the outcome of a case filed in court by the developer eight years earlier.
However, those who represented the temple in the agreement could not fulfill the requirements. The lack of fulfillment is due to a “stay faction” which has insisted upon staying put. They were the ones who were attacked by interlopers in the recent melee.
The state and federal governments, led by Waythamoorthy, have assured the occupants that there will be no demotion “until a solution is reached.”
The government position, informed by police-work, is that the developer’s agents hired thugs – who happen to be ethnically Malay – to enable a more rapid handover of the site. Asia Times could not corroborate the allegation; the developer has denied any involvement.
Either to avoid or ease government intervention, four wealthy businessmen, three Chinese and one Indian, have pledged 500,000 ringgit each to a fund to “buy back the land” from the developer and “save the temple.”
To date, however, no Malay-Muslim or Christian of any ethnic group of similar stature has publicly pledged any money to the fund.
UMNO often conducts its race-baiting via “sub-contractors.” The most colorful of them is Ridhuan Tee, a columnist at the UMNO-controlled Utusan newspaper and a professor at a public university.
On Ismaweb, an “Islamic” website which is widely believed to be publicly funded, he published on November 26 (the date of the 2 a.m. Seafield incident), a long and trenchant article in Malay mocking the idea of equality enshrined in the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, or ICERD.
In the race-baiting article, he touched provocatively on Malaysia’s Hindu temples, Waythamoorthy and Hindu majority India:
“Every illegal, polluting (‘haram’) temple which has been demolished has been replaced with a larger temple and the number of Hindu temples now way exceeds the number of Muslim places of worship.”
“[Waythamoorthy] who is a renowned Islamophobe, consorts with the Prime Minister of India [Modi] who discriminates against Muslims by obstructing them from eating beef and by destroying their mosques and replacing them with Hindu temples.”
Ridhuan’s fusillade may represent the seeds of incendiary rhetoric to come at a December 8 rally organized by Malay-Muslim NGOs and supported by UMNO and PAS, Malaysia’s oldest “Islamic” political party which governs the East Coast states of Kelantan and Terengganu.
Those still ensconced in the Seafield temple will be watching and listening especially closely.
I believe what Waythamoorthy said was true. Malaysia needs a revolution sooner or later.
I believe what Waythamoorthy said was true. Malaysia needs a revolution sooner or later.
MALAYSIA is not good to invest. Very chaotic and even cannot protect foreign investment.
I see very poor Malaysia in the near future.
MALAYSIA is not good to invest. Very chaotic and even cannot protect foreign investment.
I see very poor Malaysia in the near future.
The temple is not century old and not built in 1891. According to some reliable source it was built in 1974 by a Malaysian contractor named Perumal. Former MP of Puchong Yap Pian Hon was said to have donated RM15K from his constituentcy funds in 1974 for the construction of temple.. The numbers 1891 was painted by the temple management committee in front of the temple building just to make it look like a heritage building to the devotees, public and the authorities. The temple was left abonded by the estate workers when they left the estate after taking their compensation under an agreement signed between Consolidated Plantations and NUPW. OM SAKTHI.
The temple is not century old and not built in 1891. According to some reliable source it was built in 1974 by a Malaysian contractor named Perumal. Former MP of Puchong Yap Pian Hon was said to have donated RM15K from his constituentcy funds in 1974 for the construction of temple.. The numbers 1891 was painted by the temple management committee in front of the temple building just to make it look like a heritage building to the devotees, public and the authorities. The temple was left abonded by the estate workers when they left the estate after taking their compensation under an agreement signed between Consolidated Plantations and NUPW. OM SAKTHI.
This not true , you Re from developer ,yours is fack account, the temple was really first build in british colonial time 1891 and it was renovated 1974.
This not true , you Re from developer ,yours is fack account, the temple was really first build in british colonial time 1891 and it was renovated 1974.
Article is full of rubbish claiming this and that but failed to provide any proof of alleged century old temple. Hindu Indians are indeed a minority since the britishbrimes but religious wise had been allowed to practice their faith without discrimination. Go to Batu Caves and you will see the largest idol standing in Asia. No one find that as unacceptable and no one demands it to be taken down. Thaipusam is celebrated there every year and the government has never objected. Temples are everywhere as mosque are. This incident is between the developer and temple management. Temple management had agreed to relocation of temple (not mere demolition) and had even accepted the payment but then refused to budge. Not a racial or religious dispute and nothing to do with discrimination of a minority race. Get your facts right before you instigate something irreversible.
Article is full of rubbish claiming this and that but failed to provide any proof of alleged century old temple. Hindu Indians are indeed a minority since the britishbrimes but religious wise had been allowed to practice their faith without discrimination. Go to Batu Caves and you will see the largest idol standing in Asia. No one find that as unacceptable and no one demands it to be taken down. Thaipusam is celebrated there every year and the government has never objected. Temples are everywhere as mosque are. This incident is between the developer and temple management. Temple management had agreed to relocation of temple (not mere demolition) and had even accepted the payment but then refused to budge. Not a racial or religious dispute and nothing to do with discrimination of a minority race. Get your facts right before you instigate something irreversible.
Foreign agents are trying to destabilise Malaysia using hate mongering propaganda! Do not fall into their trap.
Foreign agents are trying to destabilise Malaysia using hate mongering propaganda! Do not fall into their trap.
Yue Fei
Sadly there’re local agents as well in pursuit of their personal agenda. Taking advantage of some of the government’s hesitant decisions.
Yue Fei
Sadly there’re local agents as well in pursuit of their personal agenda. Taking advantage of some of the government’s hesitant decisions.