IN a recent interview with Sin Chew Daily, Johor Ruler Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar was quoted as saying: "If someone asks me where I am from when I'm overseas, I'll always say, I'm Malaysian."
Although he takes pride in the Bangsa Johor concept that upholds the racial and religious diversity of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim said all races are seen as the same.
In fact, according to the article, in some official events, he would see to it that there is mixed seating to allow people of all races to mingle together rather than segregating themselves by ethnicity.
Interestingly, it was mentioned that the Sultan's great-great-grandmother was of Chinese descent.
"In my family, we have different bloodlines; we are of mixed heritage. That's why I never look down on any ethnic group. And this is why our foundation treats all ethnic groups fairly," he said.
He added: "The Chinese bloodline is part of Bangsa Johor; so are the Indian bloodline and the local Malay people."
Isn't this true for many of us in this country? How many of us can conclusively say that we come from a 100% pure racial lineage?
Moreover, with inter-marriages becoming more common, what guarantee is there that our descendants will forever remain a pure Malay, a pure Chinese, a pure Indian, a pure Melanau or a pure Kadazan?
In a multiracial society, isn't there a real chance that one day our children or grandchildren may end up falling in love and marrying someone from another ethnic group? Can we stop that?
The truth is we need to get down from our high "racial and religious" horses. We need to show more genuine humility, accept diversity and be prepared to "give and take".
In short, we need to show more empathy when dealing with our fellow Malaysians from other races, cultures and religions.
Yet, we often go to the extreme, extolling the values of our own race, religion and language, sometimes even openly running down others. There is ample evidence of all this toxicity in social media and politics.
We are in our 66th year of nationhood, but until we say, from the heart, that we are "Malaysian" first, Merdeka Day will be just another holiday!
It's never too late to change our mindset and discard our prejudices. If we succeed in doing this, our lives will be less bitter and we can be so much happier in this beautiful and unique country of ours.
JK JOSEPH
Ayer Keroh, Melaka
