In French there is no affirmative action to the minority group. The country claims that all French are French and they don't need to be separated by race or religion. It has been said that the recent riot marked that this concept is failed. The minority actually need acknowledgement.
In contrast, the Malaysian minority are asking the government to treat all Malaysian equally. They want the government to work towards policy that give the same rights to all Malaysia. They do not want the affirmative action, which is given to the majority, to continue as it is.
In Malaysia, the majority (bumiputra) have been given many priviledges. They have their own pre-universities and some universities that just opened to them. The minority have to fight their way to the university through different examination (STPM, similar to A level). It has been claimed that the exam for the majority is earlier than the STPM. So the students are competing with different system. This is just one example, they are many many policies that give advantages to the majority.
The Malaysian minority have been pleading the government to stop giving clutches to the majority to prepare the whole Malaysian for global competition
I think every country need different actions based on where they are now Just because affirmative action is not popular anymore in Malaysia doesn't mean it can't work for France and vice versa.
ReplyDeleteYou are right in pointing out what each needs - that's just because they are in a very different stage of lifecycle.
Malaysia policies need to be done away with now more than ever. First, unlike France they have huge groups of so called minorities. In fact to call them minorities is like calling Apple small company.
Yes, we accepted in the early days some groups need to be helped but as the world is growing smaller and smaller every day and huge countries like China and India getting more and more economically powerful you need to stand as one nation not many groups making one nation.
I'm not afraid to say part of the reason why I chose not to bring my husband to live in Malaysia is just that. If the government expects me to put in all my effort to help build the country, it's gotta give something back to me. Not just identity but equal rights.
Thanks for visiting. US has positive affirmative action and I think somehow it's working. It's quite common to see minority in US holding high position in a company or appear on TV. In contrast you don't see the minority much in French TV. I'm legally in France but it's difficult enough to enter the job market. I start to sympatise those who are borned in France and speak French fluently but still be considered foreigners and have no hope in the country they are living.
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