Rare honour for Sikh community

ON Monday (Nov 27), Deputy Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat Datuk Ramli Mohd Nor (pic) wished all Sikhs in Malaysia and worldwide “Selamat menyambut perayaan ulangtahun kelahiran Guru Nanak yang ke 554”, in conjunction with the birth anniversary of the founder of the Sikh religion, Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.

This thoughtful gesture, made for the first time in the august House, has received accolades from all sections of the Sikh community in Malaysia.

The message spread like bushfire on social media, receiving scores of shares, thumbs-ups and likes.

For a minority community in Malaysia, it was an indicator of inclusiveness and acknowledgement of our contribution towards nation-building and collective role in promoting and developing a harmonious society.

Such gestures, no matter how small, go a long way towards integration and acceptance.

In 2013, the government agreed to grant unrecorded leave on April 14 every year to all Sikh civil servants to celebrate Vaisakhi, a significant religious and cultural event for Sikhs. In 2015, the then Tourism and Culture Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz, said the Vaisakhi festival would be listed in Malaysia’s tourism calendar to promote the rich culture and heritage of the nation.

The greeting and gestures are a powerful tool to connect us. It creates awareness in us about others, their beliefs, values and needs. This is what makes Malaysia unique.

Extending greetings during festivals is a norm in our society, and more so for minority communities that are struggling to remain relevant in this fast-growing nation.

Despite their small number, the Sikhs in Malaysia have done remarkably well in the business and corporate world as well as the civil service, notably in medical and legal fields.

However, like other minorities, we are not short of problems. Our biggest challenge is to safeguard our Punjabi language, which is not listed as one of the vernacular languages by the Education Ministry nor taught formally in any government schools.

There are no trained teachers nor textbooks.

Khalsa Diwan Malaysia was entrusted by the Sikh Community of Malaysia to revitalise and develop the Punjabi language, a role it has played since the year 2000.

Today, Punjabi is taught weekly to almost 2,000 students in 40 centres nationwide.

We train our own teachers and write our own textbooks. We have centralised exams, and we have a board of inspectorates too.

However, funding for this programme is a major issue. We have received funds for it in the past – on an on-and-off basis – from the Federal Government and, later, Sedic (Socio-Economic Development of the Indian Community Unit), which was rebranded as Mitra (Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit) in 2018.

Sadly, we have not received funding from the Federal Government or any government agency for the past four years. Most of the centres are facing severe financial difficulties but are managing somehow with support from gurdwara management committees and donations from well-wishers.

Federal aid for this programme will not only be a “big gift” to the Sikh community of Malaysia but also a huge boost towards acceptance and the integration of various communities living in this country.

It is hoped that more can be done to reach out to the minority communities in Malaysia and help, especially in the allocation of funds, is extended to them to preserve their identities, cultures and languages.

To our respected Deputy Speaker, a big thank you to you for the wonderful greetings and thoughtful gesture from the Sikh community of Malaysia.

JAGINDER SINGH RAIPATTI

President

Khalsa Diwan Malaysia