How we have forgotten our Rukun Negara
Instead of ignoring it, our leaders must return to the ideals and principles of our national ideology.
LAST week, a significant law came into effect in Indonesia. It authorises the Government to disband any organisation that challenges Pancasila – the five principles of the country’s state ideology originally proposed by founding president Sukarno on June 1, 1945.
Under the legislation, originally issued as a decree by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on July 10, anyone who embraces, creates or spreads ideologies that conflict with these five principles can be jailed for six months.
Although Muslim nationalists insisted on an Islamic identity for the new state, the framers of the Pancasila insisted on a culturally neutral identity, compatible with democratic ideologies, embracing the cultural differences of the diverse population.
The Pancasila’s prongs are: Belief in one God, Just and civilised humanity, Indonesian unity, Democracy under the wise guidance of representative consultations, and Social Justice for all the people.
Although Pancasila has been the unifying factor in the world’s largest Muslimmajority nation, hardline groups have become increasingly influential over the past decade.
President Jokowi initiated the law amid concerns over the impact of such groups.
A week later, the government banned the Hizb UtTahrir Indonesia (HTI) movement which had been campaigning for the country to be governed by syariah law.
HTI is the Indonesian branch of the global Hizb UtTahrir (Party of Liberation) which seeks to unite Muslims under one Islamic caliphate.
The organisation is banned in many Muslimmajority countries.
The ban followed months of sectarian tensions and protests organised by HTI and the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI). The target of the protests was Jakarta’s former governor, Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama. Ahok, a Christian, was later sentenced to two years in prison for blasphemy against Islam.
Not everyone is cheering the law, though. Human rights groups say that it undermines Indonesian democracy, as the ban can be imposed without any trial.
President Jokowi has been resolute in defending it to maintain the country’s unity, diversity, and ideology.
Under the preamble to Indonesia’s 1945 Constitution, the Pancasila was set forth as the embodiment of its basic principles as an independent state.
Over the past 72 years, the country underwent enormous political changes, but the Pancasila has remained the basis of Indonesia’s national psyche, along with the country’s motto, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).
The dictum is taken from a 14thcentury poem which teaches religious tolerance between the Hindus and Buddhists, the dominant faiths in Java then. In Malaysia, our national ideology of Rukun Negara was introduced in 1970, in the aftermath of the May 13, 1969 tragedy.
It was aimed at forging unity and racial harmony, the key ingredients for the stability and progress of the nation, and as a guide towards the formation of a national identity.
As a schoolboy in the 70s, I remember we were made to memorise it and frequently told about its importance.
Rukun Negara consists of two parts, the first in the form of a pledge that reads:
“Our Nation, Malaysia, being dedicated – to achieving a greater unity of all her peoples; to maintaining a dem ocratic way of life; to creating a just society in which the wealth of the nation shall be equitably shared; to ensuring a liberal approach to her rich and diverse cultural traditions; to building a progressive society which shall be oriented to modern science and technology.”
The second outlines the five principles – Belief in God; Loyalty to King and Country; Upholding the Constitution; Rule of Law; and Good Behaviour and Morality – embodying all the high values to mould a Malaysian society that is free from vengeance, envy and prejudice.
Where is the Rukun Negara today? Sadly, it has been largely ignored and even forgotten by our leaders over the past three decades.
Why? Yayasan 1Malaysia chairman Dr Chandra Muzaffar explained it succinctly: the Rukun Negara does not win votes.
It does not have race or religionbased voter appeal, which is what the average politician is interested in. Even politicians in the Oppo sition do not seem to be interested.
Dr Chandra is leading the Rukun Negara Sebagai Mukadimah Perlembagaan initiative, comprising activists, academics and lawyers campaigning to make the Rukun Negara the preamble to the Federal Constitution.
As Dr Chandra puts it, making the Rukun Negara the preamble to the Constitution has become more urgent than ever because there are forces in our society pushing us in a direction that may subvert the very essence of the Malaysian nation.
There is no doubt about the growing intolerance for our differences, and the lack of respect for our diversity in languages, religions and cultures, a clear contravention of one of the principles highlighted in the Rukun Negara. In comparison to Indonesia’s Bhinneka Ika Tunggal, our diversity seems to be only put on display during major sporting events and on tourism promotion posters and advertisements.
After the May 13 racial riots, the nation’s leaders recognised the need for a national ideology to unite the people.
The Rukun Negara upholds the Constitution and rule of law, protects the multicultural character of the country, and serves as a guide for the progressive growth of the nation.
Let’s bring it back to the fore to set the country on the right track again.