What lessons are there for Myanmar to learn?
As far as her possible contribution towards resolving the crisis is concerned, she, in her ceremonial capacity as the president of Singapore, is believed to remain as outspoken against religious extremism as during her years as speaker of parliament
Why are our leaders important to us? Why is electing the right one such a big deal? These questions are, indeed, too simple and basic to be asked without earning taunts of being naïve, but within these questions lie the solutions of the political unrest the world is facing today in the form of choosing the right leader. Because with leadership comes representation and one surely does not want a respectable and dignified man to be represented by a goon or criminal, yet we end up making mistakes and envying others for being more rational than us. However, it could be safely said that the entire world, at this point in time, is undergoing collective political turmoil, the repercussions of which have already started becoming evident.
From the unexpected election of Donald J. Trump as the president of the United States, to the ouster of Pakistan’s premier on the charges of moral and fiscal corruption, the plight of people to find a suitable and reliable ruler is not to end soon. Mentioning the current status of these two countries is particularly important given their significance in dealing with different matters globally and regionally, respectively. However, the latest crisis of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar has spotlit another dimension of world politics and brought under scrutiny the role of the ASEAN.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has long been criticised for its inefficiency to intervene and resolve several issues that have emerged among the member countries since the inception of this inter-governmental organisation owing to its policy of non-interference in other member countries’ internal affairs. Though the voice raised by Malaysian Premier Najib Razak, describing violence against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar as “ethnic cleansing”, is being lauded by many quarters, the silence of other eight members is a clear-cut vindication of ASEAN’s effeteness. With international observers viewing this organisation as a “talk shop” which is “big on words, but small on action”, election of Halimah Yacob as the president of the Republic of Singapore is being eyed as a ray of hope.
A woman whose election as a country’s first female president is being publicly questioned and declared as a “walkover” instead of being venerated as a milestone is in a better position to understand what defying challenges actually means, especially if she herself belongs to an ethnic minority. Being Singapore’s first ethnic Malay president in almost five decades, one of the many obstacles that Yacob has to cross is proving her legitimacy owing to her unopposed, controversial, yet popular election. Being certified by the Presidential Elections Commission of Singapore as the only eligible candidate, with the criteria being: a) a Malay is to serve as the next president on the ground that no Malay has held the post in the five preceding terms; b) all candidates from the private sector should have been a senior executive of a company with shareholder equity of at least 500 million Singapore dollars, Yacob’s election is being tainted with an ugly stain of being “undemocratic”.
But the resolve with which she has accepted the challenge of winning appreciation from national and international circuits is not only highly commendable but has also given hope to the misers of the Muslim World.
“I know some have some doubts about the reserved election and I want to tell you as your president-elect, I promise to work with everyone. I am a president for everyone and I intend to serve all without any hesitation or doubt,” Yacob said on Monday. “Although there is no election, my commitment to serve you remains the same; there is no diminution in my desire, passion, and commitment to serve you.”
Now, what lessons are there for Myanmar, a member of the ASEAN, to learn from Yacob’s election and what can Yacob do for the ethnic Rohingya Muslim minority of Myanmar in her capacity are the two most pertinent questions in the given scenario.
The precedent set by a fellow member of the ASEAN to have reserved the seat of the president for one belonging to an ethnic minority, with Malay community constituting approximately 13 percent of the 5.5 million population of Singapore, is laudable. The paramount importance of this gesture can be gauged by Yacob’s choice of words to thank her supporters following the announcement, whereby she called it “a proud moment for Singapore, for multiculturalism and multi-racism”. Thus the biggest lesson for Myanmar to learn from the whole process is how to embrace, accept and respect minorities.
As far as her possible contribution towards resolving the crisis is concerned, she, in her ceremonial capacity as the president of Singapore, is believed to remain as outspoken against religious extremism as during her years as speaker of parliament. The reason why Singapore’s constitution was amended in 1991 to provide for the popular election of the president was to ensure unambiguous and absolute reflection of popular opinion at all levels and this is exactly what is being expected of her at the moment.
Given that Singapore’s premier Lee Hsien Loong has lately been dragged into a property dispute with his siblings, it is now being expected from the new head of the state to put forth a strong stance regarding the military crackdown being conducted by Myanmar on Rohingyas. However, if this leadership, too, fails to do so, the persecuted minority might be pushed towards the last resort of falling into the hands of Islamic militants in the region, eventually giving rise to another global challenge in the name of terrorism.
