The greatest single influence of the coming as well as subsequent years will be the traumatic September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, where three Malaysians together with over 3,000 innocents were killed, which has changed the global political landscape as well as those in the country.
Malaysians must make clear their opposition to terrorism of any form and give unstinting support for the war against terrorism, yet must be discerning and vigilant enough against any attempt by any quarter to camouflage an assault on democracy and human rights under the guise of an “anti-terror” campaign.
This is the only recipe to ensure that the great concerns of Malaysians for justice, freedom, democracy and good governance to position Malaysia as a competitive nation in the international marketplace and at the very forefront of the cutting edge of information technology are not lost or drowned by any self-serving campaign on terrorism, whether Kumpulan Militant Malaysia (KMM), Jemaah Islamiah or al Qaeda.
The Year of the Horse will be the most critical year for Malaysian nation-building for this is the year when the battle for the hearts and minds of Malaysians must be fought and won as to whether Malaysia embark on a tectonic shift to jettison the 45-year fundamental constitutional principle and nation-building cornerstone of Malaysia as a democratic, secular, multi-religious, tolerant and progressive Malaysia or preserve and reaffirm the Social Contract agreed by our forefathers in the three communities on the attainment of Merdeka in 1957.
(9/2/2002)