To Tackle Anti-DEI, First Our University Leaders Must Comprehend The Challenge

Emeritus Professor Tan Sri Dato' Dzulkifli Abdul Razak 
Opinion - Bacalah Malaysia 
April 9, 2024 

Last month, an academic discussion about the state of collaboration between the universities in the United Kingdom (UK) and the Malaysian counterpart was held. 

The two countries have had a long relationship way before Malaysia became independent from the British colonial powers. The master-slaves type of relationships evolved somewhat, but not significantly enough. 

"It is still less equitable, more to the advantage of the British Empire as it was once known. Nevertheless, most Malaysians were and still are proud of the long-standing relation  namely as part of the supposed British Commonwealth.

It comprises the UK and several of its former colonies as independent nations accounting  for about a quarter of the world’s population, some 2.5 billion people of very diverse groups.

Spanning every geo-political region, developed and developing, as well as in terms of ethnicity, culture and religion.

In a way, it is ahead of its time in terms of diversity.

However, not necessarily equity and inclusiveness, as part of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusiveness (DEI) framework that this column has highlighted previously. 

Equity and inclusiveness are still prevalent in the former British Borneo even today. 

"For example, in the state of Sabah, the current argument is about the failure of “not putting proper infrastructure in place for adequate water and electricity supply, as well as roads,” recently contested by a senior politician, formerly the deputy chief minister and minister    of works in the state then. 

Allegedly, there is an “increasing poverty in the state,” despite “Sabah Maju Jaya billboards all over the state.” Various projects like Tanjung Eco Development Project, Papar Dam, Lokawi (sic) Resort City and KK Resort City have been named as evidence.  

Even more recently, the Dewan Rakyat reportedly was informed that “1.2 per cent of the population of Sabah experience hardcore poverty compared to the national rate of 0.2 per cent.” 

"Amazingly, there was also claim that the capital city Kuala Lumpur has “zero” hardcore poor! Sabah has been part of the Federation of Malaysia, a British brainchild, since 1963. 

In other words, equity and inclusiveness, remain ugly mirror images of the larger picture as reflected on the UK-Malaysia collaborative canvas, that must be urgently solved.

Instead, they become more intense as illustrated by the many episodes of the recent pandemic threatening the survival of the planet and humanity concurrently.

Despite the availability of the Covid-19 vaccines, globally, the issues of equity and inclusiveness turned into a divisive international controversy. 

"Terms like vaccine apartheid, vaccine imperialism, vaccine greed as well as “crime against humanity” levelled at the developed world by a prestigious medical journal during the chaos nailed the issue at hand: gross failure in addressing equity and inclusiveness in the diverse population of a more than seven billion worldwide. At once exposing the hypocritical relationship it was based on. 

Similarly across the Atlantic, only worse off. Namely, DEI as an organisational framework which promotes fair treatment and full participation of diverse people, especially those   that historically underrepresented has fallen far short.  

The three values strive to embody to meet the needs of people from all walks of life by helping to create a fairer, more accessible workplace and learning environments.

"It is aimed “to correct inequities within an organisation” by implementing accessibility measures for people with disabilities, addressing gender and racial pay inequities, anti-bias and anti-discrimination hiring-practices.

Unfortunately, when put to test recently coinciding with the Israel-Gaza genocidal massacre, now coming into its sixth month with countless lives lost – especially among the civilian population of women and children, the prospects are bleak indeed. 

"Reportedly, across the US, legislators have begun to target DEI programmes in state agencies, schools and private companies. “At least 10 states have implemented restrictions on DEI,” and at least 19 others “have proposed similar restrictions.” Only five claims to defeat the anti-DEI policy moves. 

Against this background, statement by Council on Academic Freedom at Harvard (April 2) reiterates: “It is important to remember that the DEI ethos did not emerge from nowhere — it emerged from a laudable determination to free academia of attitudes and practices that impeded potential contributors for prejudicial reasons, thereby depriving institutions of higher learning of useful talents. 

Universities are under a legal, moral, and pedagogical duty to take action against wrongful discriminatory conduct.

But demands for mandatory DEI statements venture far beyond that obligation into territory that is full of booby-traps inimical to an intellectually healthy university environment.

Malaysian university leaders who are not unfamiliar with such controversies need to listen well and urgently act on them. – BACALAHMALAYSIA.MY

• The writer is Rector of the International Islamic Universiti Malaysia (IIUM)