If officials think national service can instil patriotism and unity, they could be in for a surprise

by Mustafa K Anuar

Reformasi led to cracks in UMNO's political hegemony

The thrust of the government’s national service proposal is that Malaysia is under an ‘external threat’ and therefore, there is a need to mobilise the nation’s youth to undergo a six-month patriotism-boosting and military training stint.

The stint’s added values are discipline, civic consciousness, team spirit and national integration among the youth of various ethnic backgrounds.

This national service poser came in the wake of the September 11 attacks when many countries had taken numerous so-called security measures, many of which violate human rights and principles of justice.

In the first place, the military bludgeoning of Afghanistan (after the gruesome Sept. 11 tragedy) by the US would have convinced many people that the world’s only superpower is indeed a cause for global concern. Further, the US’ stand on the Palestine-Israel issue leaves much to be desired. And its bellicose attitude towards Saddam’s Iraq raises fears amongst many about the superpower’s dangerously unilateralist tendencies and about their collective political and economic safety.

This is of course in addition to the list of ‘external threats’ Malaysians are often reminded of by the government, which includes international ‘rogue traders’, the ‘WTO warriors’, and ‘IMF proponents’ especially in the aftermath of the Asian financial meltdown.

And nationally, not too long ago we were informed by the government via the mainstream media of the emergence of a group of individuals, variously called at different times Kumpulan Mujahideen Malaysia, Kumpulan Militan Melayu, or Kumpulan Militan Malaysia, whose primary objective was allegedly to create trouble in the country. There were also insinuations that this group might have links with the infamous Al-Qaeda movement. These ‘extremists’ or ‘militants’, a number of whom were associated with the opposition Islamic party, PAS, were swiftly caught and detained under the Internal Security Act (and therefore we won’t be able to know if they are innocent or not, will we?).

The above ‘external threats’, the government asserts, have serious implications for ‘national security’ and ‘political stability’. Sometimes the Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir, makes explicit who these ‘threats’ are - such as ‘neo-colonialists’ of certain western powers and international capital, but at other times these ‘external threats’ are simply lumped together under one broad category or remain unidentified .

The Sept. 11 episode provided the Malaysian government ammunition, if you will, to bolster its ‘national security’ argument. The draconian ISA, for instance, has been given new vigour by the government in its own war against ‘terrorism’ and ‘extremism’, especially when there are countries said (by the Malaysian government) to have copied ‘the Malaysian template’.

To reiterate, this is where the national service issue is placed by the authorities for it suggests in part why the government puts heavy emphasis on patriotism and nationalism especially among the youth.

Reformasi And “Malay Disunity”

But there may be another dimension to this national service proposition if events prior to the Sept. 11 episode are any guide. The unceremonious dismissal of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim in 1998 sparked a public outcry especially from the Malay community. This episode unleashed the Reformasi movement that calls for justice, transparency, and accountability as well as an end to cronyism, nepotism and corruption.

The ruling coalition, especially UMNO, subsequently experienced cracks in its political hegemony. Many Malays, including the young, rallied behind opposition parties such as PAS and keADILan, alarming the ruling politicians to such an extent that they have painted this crisis as one that ‘disunited the Malay community’ and could destabilise the nation.

This explains in part the hurried birth of Puteri UMNO in a bid to woo young Malay women particularly those in the professions and those living in urban areas.

The national service proposal constitutes part and parcel of the ruling party’s attempt to attract the young into its fold given that these young adults are at an age when they are about to exercise their voting rights. This would mean that national service may serve as a convenient platform for the political indoctrination of young minds pertaining to the Barisan Nasional politics.

Such indoctrination could be executed via the rubric of instilling patriotism and nationalism during the course of the six-month stint. The ruling party has in the past seemed unable or unwilling to differentiate between love for country and love for government. This blurring of a crucial distinction may be the guiding principle of national service.

If this is really the hidden agenda behind the proposal, then the government would be wasting an immense amount of taxpayers’ money in terms of buying uniforms, boots, other related paraphernalia, and food provisions among others. (By the way, who’ll be awarded the tender to provide all these?)

Apart from that, precious time and talent would be wasted if the nation’s young are put under strict regimentation in an attempt to straight-jacket their thinking.

Is Criticism Unpatriotic?

But even if the government is sincere in promoting the spirit of patriotism and nationalism among the young, one can only do so much. There are other social factors that could effectively weaken this sentiment. For one, institutional racism and other forms of discriminatory practices in both the public and private sectors could make a person feel less welcome, unappreciated and not duly rewarded. Such practices, if not checked, are also a recipe for national disunity.

Patriotism tends to grow quite naturally on a person when she has a sense of belonging to the country, that is, if and when she is made to feel that she has a stake in the development and the future of the country.

To be sure, a patriotic act may also involve being critical of the government of the day in the interest of the larger community. For this, the citizens’ right to freedom of expression must be upheld. Citizens could feel marginalised – and of course, penalised — if being critical is labelled as an act of sedition.

Civic consciousness, which is one of the values that is built into this national service proposal, is certainly crucial to nation-building. But if this element is felt lacking in present day Malaysian society, then certain factors will have to be addressed.

One of these relates to the kind of economic development that seems to have promoted selfishness, callousness, and material greed. For example, we have seen over the years that certain government policies have encouraged private gains over public good, whether in health, in education or in other areas.

In other words, national service may not serve as a useful ‘quick fix’ to a set of problems that actually deserves mid- and long-term planning and implementation if they are to be solved. It requires a reconsideration of factors in the larger society - for instance, certain policies that disunite people and rob them of their patriotic sentiment.

Post-Sept. 11 has alerted citizens of the world that national security and sovereignty is something that should not be taken for granted. At the same time, we should be wary of certain actions of our respective governments that are taken in the name of ‘national security’. For these actions can ironically ‘terrorise’ the citizens’ civil liberties and human rights.

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