An introductory note
S. Arutchelvan
10 septembre 2007
Dear Comrades,
We reproduce below Terence Netto response and another two article which came out in Malaysiakini. There were also many other emails of support to the PSM –locally and Internationally which was posted to our email which is not produced here.
The other day when someone asked me why I have not responded, I just said that “ I hope the Home Ministry takes Terrence letter seriously and register PSM immediately. Currently the Home Ministry sees PSM as a threat to National Security.
PSM: Let’s read more cautiously
by Terence Netto
Malaysiakini, Sep 6, 07 4:45pm
I refer to the letters PSM not about leaders’ ‘charisma’, PSM dares to dream and PSM is no ‘political midget’.
I’m perplexed and bemused, to borrow the pithy phrase of a cleric when reacting to the recent suspension of a vernacular daily over a religious matter, by the ire of some supporters of Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) over an article I wrote on an alternative interpretation of the struggle for Merdeka, the subject of a PSM gathering in Kuala Lumpur on Aug 29.
I wonder if reactions would have been less adverse had the article employed the headline I had proposed, ‘A Merdeka elegy, moving and revisionist.’ In the event its headline was, ‘The left wing’s vanishing dream’, not an accurate guide to the essence of the piece: to wit, the left-wing parties were crucial protagonists in the struggle for Merdeka and the PSM are the closest legatees of the groups which united in 1947 on a non-sectarian agenda to demand independence, a signal achievement in pre-Merdeka Malaya.
Some writers are grateful when published at all, even when sub-editorial interventions are less than adroit. They persevere in the optimism their work would not suffer mis-perception by those who are not wont to nitpick and do have an ear for irony.
I don’t think I would be alone in claiming that my article on the PSM gathering that espoused a different – to the Alliance-centric – version of the struggle for Merdeka, the dominant motif in mainstream media coverage, was not complimentary to the small, hardy band of stalwarts still labouring for a socialist dispensation in Malaysia.
Its tenor was salutary to the PSM though sceptical of their chances of making headway in parliamentary representation. I say this despite my use of terms, such as ‘terminal expiry’ ‘minuscule party and ‘political midget’ that party faithful, from reading their ripostes, have rounded on to protest as derogatory.
Wrenched from context, those terms would seem so. Read in context, the sub-text of the entire article would, in my opinion, be the truth quotient in a struggle may be in inverse proportion to their exponents’ relative size.
In retrospect, I must say I felt a premonitory twinge when S Arutchelvam, the PSM secretary-general and introductory speaker at the gathering, poured scorn on the type of articles in the leading English newspaper in the 1950s, The Straits Times. Daily copies of that paper’s 1957 Merdeka week edition were distributed free by its successor, The New Straits Times, in the prelude to the 50th anniversary Merdeka commemoration.
Through a light frost of derision, Arul told the gathering that a story on the presence of an Englishwoman - who was Tunku Abdul Rahman’s Merdeka chauffeur in London during the Merdeka negotiations - and her sightseeing interests in Kuala Lumpur was emblematic of the inanity of the ST’s coverage of the first Merdeka celebrations.
In other words – you guessed it! – what did you expect from the media tool of the capitalist class? Notwithstanding that this is standard fare at PSM gatherings, Arul’s reading of the browned out editions of the ST was partial, just like the detractors of my piece.
Truth to tell, there was at least one story in the ST that quoted a socialist leader at some length on his dismay that too many people lump socialists with communists. Also, there was a prominent editorial page article by Gerald de Cruz on the fanatical dedication to their cause on the part of communists. De Cruz was no renegade from socialism. In 1947, he was secretary of an historic meeting of socialist groups in KL where the People’s Constitution was forged, the document that raised hopes that independent Malaya could be nonsectarian.
The point of all this? All of us need to read extensively and carefully too, so that we may be wise above measure and cultivate truth in charity, the better to avoid being chorus boys with knee-jerk reactions to issues of the day.
PSM well in touch with grassroots
by Charles F Moreira
Malaysiakini, Sep 6, 07 4:47pm
I refer to the malaysiakini report The left-wing’s vanishing dream.
I went up to Sungai Siput to help PSM Dr M Jeyakumar’s campaign against BN’s S Samy Vellu in 1999 and we managed to cut Samy Vellu’s majority to about 5,000 if I recall right.
One thing I have observed about Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) is that they campaign among the lower-income group and the disadvantaged all year round while most other middle-class opposition parties campaign feverishly only at election time and ease off in between. The only exception perhaps being PAS which seems to continue its work among its constituents on an ongoing basis.
PSM’s work is not based upon just winning seats in Parliament every four or five years but of building links with its supporters in the working class movement, especially the plantation workers and squatters. They also have built a base of potential leaders to carry on their work when its current leaders retire.
Also, PSM does not rely solely on ineffectual freedom on the Internet (gratis of the Barisan Nasional government) to spread its message and build its support base. Instead, it relies on personal contact, especially among those who not only don’t have computers but don’t even have the electricity to power them.
Netto had better get his head out of cyberspace and smell the roses a bit.
PSM legitimate inheritor of liberation struggle
– Baradan
Malaysiakini, Sep 6, 07 4:48pm
I refer to the malaysiakini report “The left-wing’s vanishing dream”.
Straight off, I will say that socialism is not a vanishing dream nor is the PSM, which was formed some 10 years ago and has grown into a fully-fledged party. It has been unfairly refused registration, both by the bureaucrats and unfortunately also by the judges, who should know better.
PSM should not be seen or compared in the same light with other mainstream political parties in the country, both ruling or opposition. Most of these parties exist to promote race and religion or a truncated version of democracy - not to build real and lasting social justice.
The struggles of PSM are wholly different so the criteria to measure them should also be different. PSM should be seen as a torchbearer and it should be seen in the historical context ie, the birth of socialism and the never-ending struggle for justice that is now fought on a global scale.
>From this perspective, PSM is a legitimate inheritor of a great and fabulous tradition of struggle, sacrifice and resistance. In this sense, PSM is not small or alone. It is part of a global movement for justice and is nurtured by a rich tradition of unrelenting resistance to injustice. It is connected to the past, its struggles are in the present and it is part of the future when the torch is passed on.
The torch they carry now was lit by some passionate workers 70 or 80 years ago in colonial Malaya. In this context, being small is meaningless and to describe socialism and its goals as a ‘vanishing dream’ is rather silly. Being part of a global movement and part of a historical struggle is everything.
We must appreciate the fact that PSM exists in an extremely hostile political environment. It is the only party in the country that is helping the worker to understand his society in clear and unambiguous terms ie, who owns the wealth, what is the power relationship between the classes, how he ended up where is and the oppression he suffers. Without this understanding, there is no liberation.
In contrast ‘Malaysian Malaysia’ and ‘Ketuanan Melayu’ are two sides of the same coin. There is no human advancement there, no clearing of the mist, no liberation of the shackled.
On charisma, history has shown that charisma is not necessary for socialist victory. Dr M Jeyakumar and Dr Mohd Nasir Hashim might not be ‘charismatic’ in the way others might be but they have deep understanding of the human predicament and their commitment to the cause has withstood the test of time.