Malay vs Chinese fruit buyer

Recently I joined my sister in law for a durian trip to Johor organised by her company's recreational club. The Malaysian Chinese local guide is full of humour and entertained us with jokes and anecdotes on Malaysian life.

In one of his so called observations he said that the Malays in Johor are economically better off than before. When they go shopping they are not so concerned with the prices. He made a comparison of the consumer behaviour between a Malay and a Chinese at a fruit stall. The Malay customer will ask for a kg of this fruit and that before knowing the price. A Chinese consumer however will be poking at the fruits with her fingers or asking for free tasting. She will then criticise the fruit for lack of freshness or sweetness. Then she starts haggling for a better price quoting a lower price which another stall down the road is selling. Well it may be true to an extent and all for a good laugh,

However his observation does remind me of a natural feeling or inherent belief I have growing up in Malaysia. To be frank I feel more at ease transacting with a Malay than a Chinese. For instance I will trust that a Malay taxi driver will not purposely take a longer route to the destination just to earn a dollar more. Apparently TJ Newbold, a traveller and orientalist who worked with the East India Company in the early 20th Century remarked that the local Malays are " much more honest than the natives of China and of India" in commercial dealings, "by whom, however, he is far surpassed in industry and perseverance."

So that's a fact. Chinese are industrious and perseverant but, in my opinion, to a point of pragmatism that fringes competitiveness at all cost . I guess a lot of it has to do with the collective endurance of hardship throughout history. The Malays on the other hand are less competitive and more relaxed and gentle in manner. Ian Lloyd a National Geographic photographer who spent a long time in Malaysia said "Malaysians have an enviable sense of contentment, unusual in today's frenetically paced world....the soul of the country still resides in the kampongs, or villages, where traditional values and caring for the community are what counts.."

When I visit the Malay Pertapis Children's Home for sandplay therapy with the kids, I usually offer them sweets at the end of the session. During the fasting month of Ramadan I refrained from doing that. On one visit during Ramadan I informed the kids I was unable to visit the following week as I had to see a child at another center whom I had not met for months. One Malay kid asked me whether the child I would be seeing is Chinese or Malay to which I replied she was a Chinese girl. The Malay kid then added "then you must remember to bring sweets for her because Chinese do not fast".

I wonder whether a Chinese kid would remind me had the situation be reversed. Maybe I am biased but I really doubt so. Who knows a Chinese kid, like the Chinese fruit customer, may even ask that I accumulate her entitlement of sweets each week till Ramadan is over!