The high-handedness of the Malaysian Students Department (MSD) director in London has probably shocked a few people, but I was not in the least surprised by his over-emotional outburst (see 'Go home,' officer tells students involved in opposition politics) .

Dr Kamarudin Mohd Nor was obviously upset and angered by the activities of those he called 'opposition-inclined' students in the United Kingdom, and hence had issued a stern warning for these students to "go home" and stop 'wasting' people's resources.

In a way, his concern is understandable, more so when we take into account his position as a "loyal Umno member forever and ever and through and through". He has probably discovered that his party's influence amongst students in the UK has waned considerably in recent years.

In fact, Malaysian students in the UK and particularly in London have a reputation (whether perceived or real) of being a hotbed for opposition politics.

Several times during Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's many visits to the UK, he has had to face questions from students who are highly critical of his rule. During one such session in Malaysia Hall in 1998, one student even stood up and demanded that Mahathir step down as prime minister "for the good of the country".

Little wonder then that the MSD felt it necessary to control and curtail these 'political' students by subtly intimidating them and hence, Kamarudin's open declaration that he would "come down hard" on students who criticise the policies of the Barisan Nasional government.

Flawed logic

However, Kamarudin's logic is flawed in more ways than one. He and the MSD are obviously trapped in the simplistic mentality of automatically branding anyone who criticises the policies of the government as an opposition supporter. Indeed, it seems that, to the MSD at least, any student who takes part in what would normally be termed as an intellectual activity is invariably involved in 'opposition' politics.

Kamarudin cannot seem to accept that students are intelligent enough to dissect, study and criticise government policies without persuasion from so-called 'opposition' influences.

It is ludicrous that students who are vocal enough to debate and question government policies are branded opposition supporters, as if they have no intellectual capacity to form their own opinions on certain issues close to their hearts.

Kamarudin must not forget that students who are studying in the UK are not only exposed to the culture of open discourses in their universities, but they also enjoy a level of freedom of information which is lacking in Malaysia. As such, it is only natural that these students are more apt to discuss these issues in an open, rational and intellectual manner.

If the MSD is really concerned about getting the students to support government policies unequivocally, then their primary responsibility should be winning the hearts and minds of these students, by engaging them in discourses, encouraging their participation in political activities and providing an avenue for them to channel their queries and questions.

Yet, from my experience in the UK, I have noticed that the only approaches adopted by government leaders and MSD officers to win over students to their side, are by intimidation (threatening to revoke their scholarship) and guilt induction (forcing them to be grateful to the government for their scholarships).

They forget that they are dealing with bright young people who do not respond well to such strong-arm political tactics. By inducing a 'culture of fear' in students, government leaders and the MSD are not doing themselves any favour because it will only make students indignant.

MSD's duty

However, it needs to be stated that it is not the duty of the MSD to win the support of the students for the BN government.

Kamarudin has said the MSD has a duty to service the 10,000-odd Malaysian students in the UK and Eire, and as such they have "better things to do than intimidating students".

Yet, ask any Malaysian student in the UK and I don't think many would know the exact responsibility of the MSD towards them. I am not sure many even know that the MSD exists to 'service' their needs.

In fact, during my time as a student in London, my most enduring memory of the MSD was that the officers who were present at almost all student activities in the UK. It was very obvious that there were some who would be assigned to 'intimidate' certain students.

Such harassment is done in subtle ways, such as enquiring about their family background, their scholarship sponsors and taking down their details. Later on, they would engage these students in a conversation and that is where the whole 'you should be grateful' argument will start.

A girl who stood up to question Mahathir during the Cambridge conference had written in malaysiakini recalling how she was harassed by officials who demanded that she apologise to Mahathir for asking critical questions. No doubt, this girl would have been branded from then on 'an opposition supporter'.

However, the most important thing that the MSD has failed to note is that the majority of students in the UK, though they may be politically active, are not necessarily partisan. Most of them are purely students who have a high degree of concern about issues affecting the political scene back home, and being in the UK, are in a position to discuss openly about such issues.

These students are aware that such freedom is something they cannot enjoy back home in Malaysia. The Universities and University Colleges Act has thoroughly purged Malaysia's academic institutions of the political freedom that is so vital to a healthy democracy.

Furthermore, active students have to fear arbitrary arrests and potential torture in addition to possible expulsion and loss in future work.

Malaysian students in the UK, however, are in a better position to be politically active. They are exposed to the idea that political activism must begin in universities as evident from the various political clubs in existence in the universities there. This explains why some of the most interesting debates and discussions on Malaysian issues have probably taken place on British soil.

Political leanings

I recall a time when we had a lecture, a talk or a forum on Malaysian issues in London almost every other week, bringing together Malaysian students from all ethnic groups who openly engaged in critical and interactive debates. To me, this is a natural activity for students, and a healthy one at that.

These are activities organised by students for students as part of their intellectual pursuit. By discouraging them from going ahead with these activities, the MSD is merely being anti-intellectual and anti-student.

Kamarudin should realise that these are students who care about what is happening to this country and who are willing to do something positive about it. They should be encouraged and their interest should be nurtured, instead of being treated as if their concern is an act of treason. Just because they criticise the government does not mean that they are 'anti-government'; neither does it mean that they are opposition supporters.

Of course, some of them may indeed support the politics of the opposition. But this is neither a crime nor a misdemeanor. Kamarudin has a right to be a "loyal Umno member forever and ever", but he has no right to decide the political leanings of Malaysian students in the UK. Neither does he have the right to persecute them, or send them back home should they choose to support opposition parties.

After all, the political leaning of a student is not a measure of his or her patriotism. I do not think one's loyalty to the nation can be differentiated from whether he or she is a member of Hizbi (an Islamic student body), Kelab Umno London, or even if he or she is non-partisan.

By issuing such a hostile warning to these students, the MSD director may think he is doing a favour to his political party by curbing 'opposition' activities amongst these students, but he is actually putting a halt to all forms of healthy intellectual activities. And by doing that, he is also cementing his position as being anti-student.

The recent incident where a Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia history professor was 'advised' by the MSD not to speak at a Merdeka Dialogue organised by Hizbi, was not the first such instance. With Kamaruddin's recent warnings, we can only expect more of such warnings to be issued.

The MSD may have a responsibility to service the needs of Malaysian students in the UK, but it is becoming increasingly evident that the department's attitude towards students is intimidating and high-handed.

I do not know if an academic dialogue on Merdeka constitutes an 'opposition-inclined' activity, but such a presumption sets a dangerous precedent for the MSD.

It is fast gaining a reputation of being anti-intellectual and anti-student which, it must be said, is a pretty weird reputation to have for a Malaysian Students Department.

ARIANI RUSTAM is a graduate in government and economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where she was president of the Malaysia Club in 1998-99.