Police Report against the Minister of Education of Malaysia Tan Sri Muhyiddin Bin Yassin for including the book ‘Interlok’ into the SPM curriculum

Police Report against the Minister of Education of Malaysia Tan Sri Muhyiddin Bin Yassin for including the book ‘Interlok’ into the SPM curriculum 30th Jan 2011

I N.Ganesan i/c # 510725715223 would like to make this Police Report against the Minister of Education of Malaysia Tan Sri Muhyiddin Bin Yassin for including the book ‘Interlok’ written by Abdullah Hussain into the SPM curriculum for the Malay Literature subject. This book contains demeaning and degrading statements about the Indian community. This whole book has a very subtle sense of disrespect and disregard for the feelings of the Indian community and is in my opinion intended to remind us Indians in Malaysia that we are still “pendatangs” and we should be grateful to the UMNO Government for allowing us citizenship in Malaysia. This is in gross violation of the Federal Constitution of Malaysia.

Let me quote some of the offensive and demeaning statements in the book:

In page 211

Mereka yang dari arah ke utara sedikit bercakap bahasa Malayalam atau Telugu, tetapi hampir semuanya tahu bahasa Tamil. Malayalam dan Telugu pun berasal dari satu rumpun bahasa Dravidia. Satu perkara besar yang membuatkan mereka senang berkaul adalah kerana mereka tergolong dalam satu kasta Paria.

Also in page 211

Mereka tidak perlu takut akan mengotori sesiapa kalau bersentuhan.

In page 218

Maniam seperti orang India yang lain, tidak pernah khuatir tentang keselamatan isterinya.

Also in page 218

Dia gembira hidup di negeri ini kerana untuk pertama kali dalam hidupnya dia berasa dirinya sebagai manusia seperti orang lain.

In pages 218 and 219

Disini dia tidak sahaja bebas bercampur gaul dengan orang lain sama sebangsanya, malah dia tidak takut dengan pantang larang yang terdapat di negaranya apabila seorang India daripada kasta rendah menyentuh orang India daripada kasta tinggi.

In page 219

Di negeri ini, orang daripada keturunan kasta tinggi, kasta Brahma memakai punul yang

melintang di tubuh, tetapi dia tidak takut menyentuh orang itu

Dia boleh membeli barang daripada penjaja dengan memberikan wang dari tangan ke

tangan; tidak seperti seperti di negaranya, dia mesti meletakkan wang itu di suatu tempat dan penjaja itu akan menyiram wang itu dengan air sebelum diambil dan dimasukkan ke dalam petinya.

In page 220

Apatah pula lembu ialah binatang suci bagi orang Hindu; dan kalau binatang itu mati, seperti ibunya sendiri yang mati.

In page 224

Tidak makan tengah hari tidak mendatangkan masalah, asalkan dia dapat mengunyah

sirihnya seperti lembu atau kambing memamah biak

In page 229

Setelah menjalani beberapa upacara yang meletihkan, maka pesta perkhawinan Maniam dan Malini pun berakhir.

In page 253

Dia gertak sahaja, orang kulit hitam ini tentu takut kecut

In page 256

Suppiah menerpa ke hadapan dan sujud di kaki orang putih…… Lantas, dia menendang

Suppiah. Suppiah terjungkir.

It is not just these statements but also the overall sense that this book projects that I find totally objectionable. Making it a compulsory text for the SPM Malay Literature language inspite of clear disapproval from the Indian community tantamounts to sedition on the part of the Minister of Education according to the Seditions Act

1) Section 3.1.e which states that seditious tendency is “A “seditious tendency” is a tendency to promote feelings of ill will and hostility between different races or classes of the population of Malaysia and

2) 4. (1) Any person who— (a) does or attempts to do, or makes any preparation to do, or conspires with any person to do, any act which has

or which would, if done, have a seditious tendency; and shall be guilty of an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable fora first offence to a fine not exceeding five thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both, and, for a subsequent offence, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years; and any seditious publication found in the possession of the person or used in evidence at his trial shall be forfeited and may be destroyed or otherwise disposed of as the court directs.

I would like you to prosecute the Minister of Education Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for violating the above sections of the law in particular by authorizing the said book to be continuously used in schools pending the amendments if any and which is undefined. We also want criminal prosecution for sedition against the author, the syllabus panel of which approved the book for use in school and the relevant Education Ministry officials inspite of hundreds of Police Reports lodged nationwide against the said book.