KETUANAN MELAYU DAN SEMANGAT PERKONGSIAN KUASA

Pandangan Pemimpin Kaum India
Ucapan YB Tun V.T. Sambanthan, Presiden MIC merangkap Menteri Kerja Raya, Pos dan Telekom di Dewan Rakyat pada 1 Jun 1965.
“Now, in 1955 we won the elections with a great majority. Then we obtained freedom in two years time. During this period, we had to discuss citizenship and various other things. Now, what did the Malays do – since we are speaking on racial lines – what did the Malay leadership do ? They had 88 percent of the electorate still with them. What did they do with citizenship? If we look around in Asia and East Asia, particularly, you will find that my race the Indian race, is not welcomed in Ceylon, is not welcomed in Burma. Look at my brother Chinese race, it is not welcomed in Thailand, in Vietnam, in Cambodia, in all the other areas. What help do they get for citizenship in all these territories? In Burma, as we know, Indians have been send packing, in Ceylon they refused them citizenship and in Burma it is likewise. I know it, you know it. And yet in Malaya what happened? Here, we found that the Malay leadership said, “ We shall take them unto ourselves as brothers, we shall give them full opportunity to live in this country, we shall give them every opportunity to become citizens”. And so, in 1957, for the whole year, we waived language qualifications, and tens of thousands of Indians, Chinese, Ceylonese and others became citizens... As I said, it has been my great good fortune to have been born in this country. Where else can you find a more charitable, a more polite, a more decent race than the Malay race? Where else can you get such politically decent treatment for any immigrant race? Where else in the history of the world ? I ask you. These are the facts. Who are you to safeguard us? I am 10 percent minority race here. But I am happy here.”


Pandangan Pemimpin Kaum Cina
Tun Tan Siew Sin, Presiden MCA dalam akhbar tempatan bertajuk “Tun Tan Answers Critics on Special Privileges” dalam ucapan pada 30 April 1969.
“The Malays, through UMNO, were generous enough to relax the citizenship laws of this country to such an extent that within 12 months of independence, 90 percent of the non-Malays had become citizens whereas before independence 90 percent were still non-citizens after nearly 100 years of colonial rule in the Malay States. In return for this major concession, the MCA and the MIC agreed to continue the policy of preserving the special position of the Malays while at the same time upholding the legitimate interests of other communities.’’