FORMER senior research fellow in the Department of Sociocultural at University Malaya Shaharuddin Maaruf opined that socialism could be an option for Malaysia.
I believe that that his views deserve contemplation given the inequalities that prevail in the capitalistic system of governance.
During pre-independence it was the imperialists who imposed their unfettered will in furthering their economic objectives.
Being colonists whose only consideration was to reap profits from the rubber and tin mining sectors, they had caused a migration of foreign workers to work on the tin mines and in transforming virgin jungles into rubber plantations.
Though that was the case a century or more ago, the said scenario appears to be repeating itself even now as our homegrown business elites seem to have taken over the role of the colonists!
The plantation sector is reminiscent of a colonial-era economic venture.
In the colonial era the British sought to secure a constant supply of labour at the cheapest possible pay to toil in developing the rubber plantation sector.
Today the Malaysian plantation owners are duplicating the colonial-era scheme of securing a constant supply of labour by sourcing for migrant workers at exploitative wage levels.
During the British occupation, migrant workers were treated as a means of production deprived of social standing. They were but victims of a slavery system that was perpetuated by the British.
Between the colonists and the prevailing modus operandi of the many GLCs that function in the plantation sector, the only distinction is that they are functioning in a different epoch.
While the colonists were outright in their immoral pursuit to repatriate revenue, our homegrown plantation owners have embraced the same mind-set.
When marginalised segments of society from host nations toiled under an indentured system, the situation is no better in this era and even today we are privy to claims of bonded labour.
The US Custom And Border Protection Agency has banned imports, not only from the manufacturing sector, but also plantations on allegations of abuse of forced labour indicators.
And these are homegrown enterprises who, by right, ought to subscribe to accepted labour standards regardless of whether their workers are Malaysians or migrants.
Being government-owned companies I would argue that the Government has a vicarious responsibility to ensure that all labour legislations are re-aligned to confirm with fair labour standards.
Sadly, that does not seem to be the case for the simple reason that our country is still ruled by the capitalist elites.
Under such circumstances can socialism find a footing with the people?
Historically, the Malayan People’s Socialist Front (the Socialist Front), had a sizeable support of the people.
It is reported that, in the 1959 general elections, the Socialist Front garnered about 35% of the people’s vote.
But in spite of such popular acceptance, the Socialist Front was decimated through a systematic devilisation propaganda post-Indonesian-Malaysian confrontation.
Obviously, the tenet of socialism, historically, had found traction with the people.
Thus, I believe socialism can still find acceptance especially so with the young voters who are, I believe, receptive to the ideas of social justice.
With youth unemployment at 13.9%, there is a real possibility that they can be swayed to the concepts of social-economic equality.
Therefore, the question is whether our Opposition has, sans the Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), the political courage to reach out to the voters on a platform of socialism. – Jan 7, 2022
K Veeriah is a veteran unionist and a long-time contributor to FocusM.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
