Flip-flop nation

The Government is weak and indecisive.

It has shown its incapability to commit to numerous promises that it has made before or after the ruling coalition's victory in GE14 last year. Its decision to withdraw its initial plans to ratify the Rome Statute is a clear sign of such weakness.

Their decision to backtrack on certain changes they were only so proud to announce a few months ago, only awards political victory to the views of a group of people they do not even agree with. Our own silence at the thought of conflict affirms this further.

Their wish to placate both sides of the political spectrum in hopes of ensuring future political success has created a situation where promises are made to keep one side happy but its implementation is halted for the joy of the other.

The result is a disappointing zero-sum game.

No change can be amounted without opposition and in a democracy, such opposition shall always exist. The Government has failed to realise this truth and has turned a blind eye to the fact that their promises and principles were the basis upon which they were voted in.

It is truly a disappointment when the few that are born into power have more say than those who willingly give them that power.

The ruling coalition's pursuit of power has ended up entangled in an ironic chase. With power comes the opportunity for change, but change is set aside to ensure that power remains. The Government may have unfortunately turned a blind eye to the flaw within that logic and to the reality of the situation. Their choice to sideline change may in fact contribute to their loss.

To blame the Government is easy, but to blame ourselves is even harder. I suggest that we must also look inward.

We, the youth, have become complacent, desensitized and sedated. The long hours we work has led us to hide in our houses or behind the camera lens of our phone aimed at the latest food we are consuming while our eyes and ears are focused on the latest pop culture hit that can distract us from the reality of our situation. We party away the night to make up for all the enjoyment we feel we were entitled to throughout the week.

We acknowledge our disagreement with the political decisions of those that rule us with angry reactions and then move on to the next news.

We have forgotten how to fight for the change we seek. Our emotions left to boil on its own as we look around for solutions that never present itself. We lack leadership in advocating our views and we lack the will or fortitude to present those views.

While we remain clueless and more apathetic, those who seek to oppress and segregate us further, grow more and more passionate. They become willing to mobilise, to voice their disagreement, to protest, to put forward their views to the Government while we avoid the inevitable confrontation with them.

Perhaps just like Lady Justice, the Government is blind and I shall not fault them, as only one voice seems to be speaking. The rest of us have chosen to remain mute. As long as we choose to do so, misinformation will continue to thrive while those that seek to divide and segregate us further reap its benefits.

A storm is brewing and as a minority in this country, I can feel the drizzle. As the population of the minority continue to shrink, the political power we hold begins to fade. A splinter in the political views of the minority should suffice in putting an end to any significance that we have in terms of voting power. A clear demarcation of ethnicity and race will be our undoing as there will no longer be any incentive for politicians to cater to the minority in light of their weakened political power. The time to set things right and protect our interests is slowly ticking away.

If we can't even take a definite stand to say that we are against genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in light of surprising opposition from certain quarters that do not bother to understand the Rome Statute, then things do not look too bright for us. A question that we must ask if this opposition to the Rome Statute is one that is truly rooted in rationality or if it is secretly fuelled by vested or bigoted interests.

Understand that the mechanisms of the ICC is not meant to be preventive, it is a reactionary one. What that means is that it comes into consideration once a serious crime has taken place. If a genocide were to occur in Malaysia, what do you think would be of a major concern? The immunity of the head of state?

Having taken a course on International Criminal Law, the misunderstanding certain quarters have of the ICC and the Rome Statute is extremely disappointing to me. Even if Malaysia weren't a party to the Rome Statute, our country can still be referred to the ICC for investigation. The ratification of the Rome Statute allows for self-referral but that is highly unlikely for a State to do in any event except in cases such as Uganda. As such, the ratification of the Rome Statute has more importance in its symbolism.

The refusal to ratify it also provides an equal amount of importance symbolically. It signifies once again the political victory of a group of individuals in Malaysia whose intent remains dubious and frightening.

-First published on Facebook