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Thursday, June 18, 2015

Nationalist party for Johor?

As the Johor royal family drums up state nationalism amid its quarrel with Putrajaya, the state's princes can consider forming a Johor nationalist party, said a political analyst.

Penang Institute fellow Wong Chin Huat said this is if the Johor princes were sincere about Johor nationalism.

Wong, who specialises in federalism and has spoken extensively about Sabah and Sarawak nationalism, said it will not be the first time royalty joined politics like Tunku Abdul Rahman.

"If people want to get involved in politics then they should consider joining politics.
                 
"They should consider forming a Johor nationalist party like the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP)," he told Malaysiakini.

Even though the SNP advocated self-determination in Scotland, it made unprecedented gains in the national election this year, becoming the third largest party in the United Kingdom.

Wong was commenting on the overtures about Johor nationalism from the state's crown prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim and his younger brother Tunku Idris Sultan Ibrahim.

Tunku Idris had posted on Instagram the agreement of Johor joining Malaya, it which it stated that the state will exit the federation if certain terms were violated.

Tunku Ismail, who is engaged in a spat with Umno's Nazri Abdul Aziz, in his criticism of the minister had also made similar overtures about "Bangsa Johor".

"There will come a time, when the Johorean people must decide what is best for us and our future generations.

"Decide and unite we will, as Bangsa Johor, to forge our future," he had said.

This courted remarks from social media users about the status of Johor in the Federation of Malaysia.

However, Wong was skeptical that Johor could survive on its own without the Federation of Malaysia.

"I don't think anyone with a sober mind would think that Johor can survive as an independent state," he said, pointing out that it would require tremendous resources.

Nonetheless, Wong said the princes triggering a debate about the position of Johor in the Federation was a healthy development.

"Only the nine rulers get immunity where they can only be charged in a special court.

"There is nothing to stop the Tengku Mahkota Johor and Tunku Temenggong Johor from facing action under the Sedition Act.

"But I don't think the Sedition Act should be used against them," he said.

Wong said even though the issue of self-determination is a taboo topic for Putrajaya, people should be allowed to consider alternatives in order to appreciate the federation.

"The strength of a federation does not lie in a passive and unexamined acceptance of the status quo.

"People will not appreciate Malaysia unless they thought about all the alternatives and come to a conclusion that Malaysia is the best option we have," he said -  Malaysiakini

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