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Malaysians raise white flags as hunger spreads under lockdown
- Community organisers say response to #benderaputih campaign shows the extent of economic despair among Malaysia’s lower-income families
- It comes amid accusations PM Muhyiddin Yassin’s government is more preoccupied with retaining power than protecting people’s livelihoods
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Norman Gohin Kuala Lumpur
White flags could be seen flying outside homes and poverty relief organisations across Malaysia this past week as citizens cried out for food and other assistance amid the country’s latest Covid-19 lockdown.
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The surreal scenes, reminiscent of similar protests that swept the South American nations of Guatemala and El Salvador last year, emerged from a grass-roots social media campaign centred on the #benderaputih (white flag) hashtag that began trending on Monday.
Community organisers told This Week in Asia the campaign was the clearest sign yet of the economic despair that hundreds of thousands of Malaysia’s lower income families have experienced amid the haphazard approach of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s government to the public health crisis.
The 74-year-old leader announced a fresh set of stimulus measures earlier this week to soften the blow of a “total lockdown” first imposed on June 1 that will now stay in place until the country’s daily caseload falls below 4,000, the official Bernama news agency cited him as saying.
Included in the 150 billion ringgit (US$36 billion) package were direct cash transfers to low- and middle- income groups, with the country’s poorest households set to receive some 1,300 ringgit (US$312) each.
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