Reject Racial Politicking Tactics in Permatang Pauh By-Elections

Will the coming Permatang Pauh by elections turn out to be the lowest point in Malaysian election history in terms of dirty electioneering, despicable campaign standards and sophisticated election rigging and vote buying?
 
We, the undersigned civil society organizations and all fair minded Malaysians hope not. However feedback from our observers as well as from many others at the ground level is indicating that there is a real possibility of this happening. Party leaders of the contesting parties may claim that they are waging a fair campaign. However the onus is on them to not only exercise full control over their respective election personnel and machineries to compete fairly but also to immediately repudiate whatever unethical behavior or unacceptable activities that are engaged in by their party supporters or proxies.

As civil society organizations that are not aligned to any political party and in our role as the watchdogs of democratic norms, we are concerned that our elections are far from free and fair and conform to international good practice. In particular, we call on - especially to the parties in the Barisan Nasional and to the candidate, Dato Ariff Shah Omar Shah, himself - to dissociate themselves from racially and religiously divisive messages that are appearing in printed form, short message service (SMS) and in private speeches aimed at voters – especially those that play up the fears of one ethnic group against another.
 
Such attempts at crude racial politicking and the use of inflammatory and racially distorted content to win votes need to be condemned by not only the contesting parties and candidates but also by other stakeholders. In this respect, the mainstream mass media has an important role to play in reporting on the election action and developments on the ground in a fair, unbiased and neutral way. Not only should equal and balanced coverage be extended to the campaigns of the two candidates but the press should also be a scrupulously accurate and honest monitor reporting any unethical or unacceptable form of electioneering and exposing the use of dirty tricks or extremist manipulation of racial and religious issues, whether this comes from the PR or BN camps.
 
It is not only the people of Permatang Pauh that are watching to see if a fair and honestly conducted elections will take place: one that focuses on real and substantive issues of local economic and social development and on
the best choice of candidate and party to address the many issues of poverty, rising cost of living and lack of opportunities for upward mobility that many voters face. All Malaysians and a large interested international community are also watching.

*Endorsed by:*

1.      All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
2.      Center for Orang Asli Concerns (COAC)
3.      Center for Policy Initiatives (CPI)
4.      Institute for Research and Social Advancement (REFSA)
5.      Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas (JERIT)
6.      Labor Resource Center (LRC)
7.      Malaysia Youth And Student democratic movement (DEMA)
8.      National Institute of Electoral Integrity (NIEI)
9.      Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (Empower)
10.    Persatuan Masyarakat Selangor & Wilayah Persekutuan (PERMAS)
11.    Pusat Khidmat Pekerja Tanjung (PKPT)
12.  Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
13.    Youth for Change (Y4C)