A lesson of how human rights become tool for capitalism by IRF
I am referring to the debate on “Perjuangan Hak Asasi Manusia: Antara Agama Tanpa Kebebasan dan Kebebasan Tanpa Agama organised by the PAS’ Youth Wing of Lembah Pantai” with panellists from PAS, Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (ISMA) and the Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF).
One of the argument put forth by IRF was that the Chinese are the main taxpayers in Malaysia and so Islamic institution like JAKIM should not receive any contributions from the government taxes as these Islamic institutions are assumed to play the role of concentrating on proselytising the Chinese into Islam, with no role perhaps in addressing the spiritual needs of the majority Moslem in the country.
Mahsa Amiri (http://www.
It makes us wonder, is this how we define one nation’s building? Solely from taxes contribution?
This reminds me of those days where I used to sign documents of mielage and overtime claims by ambulance drivers in the Klinik Kesihatan where I served as a medical officer. Their salaries barely made up to more than RM 2000/month.
Even now, the bus drivers in my institution earn less than RM 2500 in basic salary.
My brother in-law serves as a police in a maritime unit in Tawau. He never has to worry about filing for income tax matters. His salary is below the RM 5K cut that subjects one to salary tax deduction.
These are only examples of Malaysians who don’t pay taxes. The majority don’t have side income. Even if they have, it’s negligible. They probably sell fish or nasi lemak on weekends.
Are they any less as the sons and daughters of Malaysia, than the Chinese who pay millions of ringgits in taxes?
We learned from IRF and Mahsa Amiri, that when it comes to dollar and cents, racial profiling suddenly becomes very important. It’s a taboo to point this in religions and rights issues.
Back to the question of ; do prosperity, development, growth and stability of a country depend only on monetary gain?
I knew that the ambulance drivers of the Klinik Kesihatan went to every corner and nook of remote villages to help transport patients in dire needs, and had helped many patients to get to hospital in time to prevent complications leading to disability, that would otherwise cripple a nation when the citizens are not in the best of health.
In big cities, they even help transport the wealthy and the big tycoons, who are the ones who pay taxes, to medical centres. With their meagre salaries, are ambulance drivers, who can’t afford to pay taxes, and are mainly Malay and Moslems, not contributing to development of our nation?
The bus drivers in my institution, and in many others, ferry students here and there for teaching activities. Are they not contributing too, by ensuring tertiary education is smooth and thus help building the youth of the nation?
We know who make up the majority of our defence and military officers. The Malay Moslems.
Statistics often make us lose the real picture so for now, I just wanted to share my brother in-law’s ‘contribution to the nation’.
At the height of the Lahad Datu standoff, he had to be stationed in those small fortresses with only small windows, for days, with minimal movement so as not to be detected by invaders. His job was to defend Tawau from being penetrated by the enemies, whom were still at large.
Was he not contributing to the nation?
According to the rule, he doesn’t. He doesn’t pay tax.
My brother in-law, the ambulance drivers, the bus drivers and so many others whose bracket incomes do not meet the income tax threshold, the majority of whom, are Moslems, shouldn’t have a say of how the nation’s wealth should be spent. Their non-monetary contributions don’t count.
This is the logic of IRF who self-admitted that they are all for a liberal, democratic secular society. That liberal and secular values are rearing their ugly heads now….breeding CAPITALISM into nation’s building and into society. In the end, money matters and money talks. Disregard the soul and the spiritual needs of the 63.1 % Malay Moslems Malaysians.
These are the kinds of Western hegemony, that ISMA wishes to relay to Moslems. The rejection of Islam as ad Deen from the sphere of our lives, including that of the governance and state matters, would only create a vaccum that would be filled instead by values of capitalism and greed.
In the United States of America, a country whose secular model is claimed to be exemplary by the proponets of liberal values amongst Moslems, there is an increase awareness that their democracy is actually dictated by capitalists. Many believe that the shareholders of the Federal Reserve Banks, who are supposed to be a public entity, are privately owned banks, who thrive on capitalism and consumerism. These people then decide who gets to be nominated as politicians.
On another note, in a country whose secular model was said to give ample rooms for religions to prosper, the evidences of a soulless society are emerging.
Just weeks ago, the popular Times magazine, commemorated the Columbine High School, USA deadly shootings that killed 12 students and a teacher in 1999 in its special edition. The perpetrators were 2 high school students who enveloped Neo-Nazism as their ideology.
In 2014 alone, The Guardian reported that 13 school shootings were recorded in USA in the first six weeks of the year alone. Except for a 5-year-old boy and a 53-year-old man, the rest of the offenders were teenagers below 18. Americans were asking, what was wrong with their culture and laws that had created such an environment amongst the youths, who should be full of lives? Why are the lives of others seemed to be so unworthy?
Some may argue that these incidents are due to the liberal law on sale of firearms in USA.
You’re right.
But who decides that firearms businesses should be protected for economy reason? Who weighs that the profit out of firearm sales is more valuable than the suffering and anguish endured by parents and families of victims of the school shootings?
Dollar and cents. Capitalists.
Are we sure we want to go that way?
All these human rights’ conventions, which have strayed from its original purpose, that was to give humanity some respects from the tragedy of world war prisoners being experimented scientifically, is now destroying humanity itself, when it disregard culture and religion values.
Human rights, are now simply a tool for liberal and capitalist ideologies. IRF has shown it very well, how they are so.
Prof Madya Dr Rafidah Hanim Mokhtar
Chief Information, Biro Wanita ISMA
