NST July 18: Book used to teach racial unity described as seditious
Dis-integration
Book used to teach racial unity described as seditious
18 Jul 2006V. Vasudevan, Azura Abas and Minderjeet Kaur
KUALA LUMPUR: A noble approach in tackling racial polarisation in universities has backfired. It has even prompted a harsh reaction from Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz. He described as seditious the contents of the textbook which students have to study in the newly-introduced Ethnic Relations course.
Debate on the issue was heated in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday and Nazri, the de facto Law Minister, even suggested that anyone unhappy with the contents could lodge a police report.
"The police can then investigate the contents of the book. We can take it from there," he said at the Parliament lobby.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed, who spoke in the House earlier, said the Government was prepared to make amendments if there were factual mistakes in the book.
However, he said the contents were based on facts.
The Ethnic Relations textbook has been in use by Universiti Putra Malaysia since early this year. The authors are Jayum Anak Jawan and Zaid Ahmad.
Among the contentious parts are:
• Condemning as "extremist" the 1999 Election Appeal of the Malaysian Chinese Election Appeals Committee (Suqiu), which was endorsed in principle by the Barisan Nasional parties;
• Blaming Indian youths for the 2001 Kampung Medan incident; and,
• Blaming the DAP for the May 13, 1969 riots. Both are on page 78 of the book.
Nazri felt the whole approach to fostering better ethic relations as promoted by the book was flawed.
"We should be stressing the positives of various ethnic groups. Why talk about the past? Blaming anyone for the past is not going to do any good today. Let us talk about the good."
Loh Seng Kok (BN-Kelana Jaya) said the book was a classic case of inciting hatred among the races in Malaysia.
"At first look, a reader is taken through historical events, which is supposed to educate and promote ethnic relations for the good of the country.
"But, what do we have here? Historical facts that are being distorted. One race is being made a scapegoat," he said of the contents of the book.
Datuk Dr Madius Tangau (BN-Tuaran) said emphasis should be on understanding other ethnic groups.
"For far too long we have been teaching how to be tolerant. We should understand the mindset of one another, not try to apportion blame on anyone for bad events in history."
Mustapa’s statement was in reply to Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang’s question expressing concern that the Ethnic Relations course could do more harm than good.
"Historical facts cannot be altered like the May 13 racial unrest, Kampung Medan incident and Dong Jiao Zong. All these have taken place and we cannot question them. If we look back, there are certain claims made by Suqiu which are against the provisions under the Federal Constitution."
Mustapa told the House that the Government stood by its stand that incidents listed in the textbooks were correct.
Lim said in a statement later that Mustapa had given "a most unsatisfactory answer" to his supplementary question in Parliament yesterday. He argued that the course was biased, tendentious and divisive.
Ethnic Relations is a mandatory subject for university students beginning from this year’s academic session.
