Unacceptable for Kedah MB to cancel Thaipusam holiday and deny the minorities their rights

Earlier, Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor cited the cancellation of celebration activities to justify his decision to rescind the holiday for Thaipusam. This is illogical, unacceptable and infringes on the rights of the minorities.

If we try to follow Muhammad Sanusi’s line of reasoning: a holiday should be cancelled forthwith due to restriction of celebration activities; then should any other holidays, say, our Independence Day be cancelled as well if affected by MCO?

Both the decision and follow-up remark by the Kedah MB had not only hurt the feelings of Malaysian Indians (and especially the Hindus), but also came across as blatant disrespect for their traditions and culture.

There are many reasons the government gazetted the traditional festivals of the many ethnicities and religions in Malaysia as public holidays. From the outset, it is a sign of acknowledgement and respect for our countrymen and women of differing backgrounds —  a highlight of the esteemed Malaysian values of diversity, moderation and tolerance that we lived by for decades. The action of the Kedah MB had gone against these codes for unity.

The Kedah might have further argued that Thaipusam is a ‘cuti peristiwa’ (event holiday), not a ‘cuti umum’ (gazetted holiday), the fact remained that past Kedah state governments were all able to relate with the people and observe this holiday. Why would Muhammad Sanusi suddenly decide otherwise now? His second attempt at reasoning is as unconvincing as his first one.

Since 2014, Thaipusam has been commemorated as a special holiday by all Kedahans for six consecutive years before getting cancelled this year, tarnishing overnight Kedah’s progressive image past administrations had worked so hard to build.

Although MCA is a political party founded to represent by and large the Malaysian Chinese community, we will not stand idle in the face of repression of our Indian brothers-and-sisters in Kedah. We will not remain passive over the words and deed of the Muhammad Sanusi because this concerns the rights and status of minority groups in the country.

If Muhammad Sanusi is allowed to cancel a Hindu holiday on such untenable grounds, what is stopping him from cancelling the traditional holidays of other races and religions in the future?

Neither MCA nor MIC are looking to politicise this matter over nothing. We want to let Muhammad Sanusi know the logic here is fairly universal and straightforward; banning celebration activities and outright cancelling the holiday are simply not the same. It’s apples and oranges.

Mike Chong Yew Chuan
MCA Spokesperson

-MCA online-