Dr Mahathir Mohamad claims Malay people “get nothing from multiracialism” in Malaysia

Dr Mahathir Mohamad claims Malay people “get nothing from multiracialism” in Malaysia. 

In a Facebook post, the ex-PM wrote that Malays identify themselves as Malaysian, while other races identify as Malaysian Chinese or Malaysian Indians.

. “Yes, my ancestors came from India. But I don’t call myself a Malaysian Indian,” he says. 

“The constitution says a Malay is a person who habitually speaks Malay and practices the Malay adat and is a Muslim. I comply with all these qualifications.”

So do hundreds of thousands of people from the Middle East, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkiye & Afghanistan who are accepted as Malays by everyone in this country. They don’t call themselves Malaysian Arabs or Malaysian Pakistanis,” he adds.

He claims that the “cultures of the Chinese and Indians are those of China and India”. 

“We don’t insist on changing religions. But surely language and culture must be those of Malaysia i.e. Malay.” Mahathir adds that business sectors in Malaysia are also “dominated by the Chinese” and that “non-Chinese cannot find good jobs there”. 

“I am not racist. I am a national of the country called Malaysia. I have a right to a fair share of the wealth of this country.”

Mahathir said this in responding to DAP’s P. Ramasamy, who questioned Mahathir for distinguishing the descendants of migrants from China and India as “orang asing” or people of foreign origins.