SEPT 3 — It’s Raya time and this year’s a wee bit more special as Aidilfitri also coincides with the 54th anniversary of our beloved country’s Independence Day. A few years back, we had Deepa Raya when Raya coincided with Deepavali and we also had Kongsi Raya when Raya coincided with the Chinese New Year. So I guess it won’t be wrong to call this year’s occasion Merdeka Raya.

Usually when it’s Raya, people will write about forgiveness and lessons learned during the holy month of Ramadan. And of course when it’s Merdeka time there’s usually no other topic of discussion other than national and racial harmony. So in the spirit of Merdeka Raya let’s see if I can write something that can combine both things.

When it comes to race relations in Malaysia we’ve all heard the stereotypes and clichés dished out to describe ourselves, so I don’t think there’s any need for me to repeat any of them here. No matter how jokingly we think of them though, stereotypes and clichés become stereotypes and clichés simply because they happen too often.

And one of the most oft-repeated clichés that I’ve heard during Ramadan is when the time for breaking fast comes and you see some non-Muslims also lining up for a table at a restaurant that’s full of Muslims trying to score a table to break their fast and you hear these whispers: “Can’t they just come a bit later or before we’re all busy trying to break fast?”

I’ve heard both friends and family utter those exact same words countless times without even batting an eyelid, and being the nice guy I am I’ve never openly voiced out my feelings about this right after the fact, just so as not to seem disrespectful to my elders (who are usually the ones who inevitably utter those lines). But since this is my column, let me just say that I really don’t see what the big fuss is all about.

Yes, we’re fasting and we’re thirsty and hungry but I fail to see how that gives us special privileges when it comes to getting a table at a restaurant. It’s not like we’re deprived of food and water when the non-Muslims also turn up at restaurants at the same time we’re trying to break fast.

At worst we’ll just have to find another restaurant (and believe you me there are never enough restaurants here in Malaysia) to break fast at, or get some of our food delivered a few minutes later. It’s just eating out, so chill lah, right?

Before I start getting accused of being pro non-Malays (or non-Muslims, they’re pretty interchangeable phrases over here in Malaysia), I also fail to see what the huge fuss was when lots of non-Muslims got worked up over that notorious TV advertisement. Yes, some of the things in it are kind of offensive (in a sort of blackly funny way), but it’ll only be truly offensive if you’re the uptight type with absolutely no sense of humour whatsoever. The first time I read about this, I practically laughed my head off at the righteous indignation that greeted the TV advertisements.

A lot of non-Muslims laugh at the righteous indignation expressed by the Malay-Muslims here over the most inane of things. Remember that Santa Raya TV ad last year? Now that’s what I call funny, as Santa Claus isn’t even a religious Christian thing and more like a capitalist and commercial icon. If we’re oh so religiously Muslim, what’s the point of “duit Raya”, right? I’d say it’s almost the same thing, which is just something to get the kids excited about the festive season.

So yes, we Malay-Muslims are quite the hilariously uptight bunch. But isn’t it ironic and funny that the non-Muslims can get similarly uptight as well, as this whole brouhaha about the Ramadan TV ad demonstrated? Again, I say, chill lah. It’s just a misguided attempt at being funny from a TV station known for its urbane, edgy, hip and cool image.

They probably thought they were being ironic when they made the TV ad. But racist or insensitive? I definitely don’t think so, as I know for a fact that there are a whole lot of non-Muslims who work in that station, holding important production positions as well.

After 54 years living together as free men, isn’t it time for us to be a little more light hearted and less suspicious of each other? People always say that we can forgive, but never forget. And with all the things that we’ve been through together, to me it is definitely important that we don’t forget, so that we won’t repeat the same mistakes again. But even if we don’t forget, we can always chill, right?

Selamat Merdeka Raya!