MIC president Senator Datuk G Palanivel has urged Putrajaya to drop the “Interlok” novel from the upper secondary syllabus, even as the controversial book became campaign fodder in Tenang.Palanivel said his party stood by the decision of its representatives who had called for the withdrawal of “Interlok” during a meeting with Education Ministry officials last Tuesday, as it contained a pejorative demeaning to Indians.
“We hope that the Ministry of Education understands and appreciates the wishes and feelings of our community and comes up with a quick and firm decision on this matter,” the newly-minted MIC president said in a statement today.“Putting additional footnotes, glossaries and guidelines is not going to help resolve the matter,” he added.Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin suggested on Friday several possible solutions to the “Interlok” controversy, such as creating additional footnotes, glossaries and teaching guidelines.
He also claimed that the Tuesday discussion had reached a consensus that the controversial novel did not intend to disparage the Indian community.Muhyiddin had said more discussions with MIC leaders would be held before deciding if the Form Five Bahasa Malaysia literature text would be removed from the school syllabus.
Today, Palanivel told the Education Ministry not to “take the views of the panellists for granted.”“The panellists have expressed their views that they will not meet the Ministry of Education officials again if what they have expressed is being belittled,” he said.One MIC representative, Dr A. Nagappan, told The Malaysian Insider yesterday that Muhyiddin’s remarks on the alleged consensus were inaccurate.“We had agreed that this novel should be withdrawn. There was no other suggestion other than to ask that it not be used in school,” the former Hindu Sangam Malaysia president had said.
“Interlok” has come under fire from the MIC and several Indian groups who claim that its contents on the Indian caste system and the use of the word “pariah” are offensive.The book, which was written by national laureate Datuk Abdullah Hussain in 1971, chronicles the daily struggles of the Malays, Chinese and Indians in pre-independence Malaya.Muhyiddin had also claimed that “Interlok” encouraged racial unity and was in line with the 1 Malaysia concept.But Palanivel refuted Muhyiddin’s claims and said, “People should not be made to believe that this is in line with the spirit of 1 Malaysia. If so, we are in for a big setback.”
The MIC chief also said writings that offend the sensitivities of any group in Malaysia should not be part of the school syllabus.“It is too sensitive and risky to expose such writings to our school going children,” said Palanivel.The discussion this week was chaired by Deputy Education Minister Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi and attended by 22 representatives, including NGOs and academicians.The meeting lasted four hours and Education Ministry officials had explained the rationale in choosing “Interlok” as the Form Five Bahasa Malaysia literature text.
Source : http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=6703:mic-we-want-interlok-dropped-not-amended&Itemid=2
“We hope that the Ministry of Education understands and appreciates the wishes and feelings of our community and comes up with a quick and firm decision on this matter,” the newly-minted MIC president said in a statement today.“Putting additional footnotes, glossaries and guidelines is not going to help resolve the matter,” he added.Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin suggested on Friday several possible solutions to the “Interlok” controversy, such as creating additional footnotes, glossaries and teaching guidelines.
He also claimed that the Tuesday discussion had reached a consensus that the controversial novel did not intend to disparage the Indian community.Muhyiddin had said more discussions with MIC leaders would be held before deciding if the Form Five Bahasa Malaysia literature text would be removed from the school syllabus.
Today, Palanivel told the Education Ministry not to “take the views of the panellists for granted.”“The panellists have expressed their views that they will not meet the Ministry of Education officials again if what they have expressed is being belittled,” he said.One MIC representative, Dr A. Nagappan, told The Malaysian Insider yesterday that Muhyiddin’s remarks on the alleged consensus were inaccurate.“We had agreed that this novel should be withdrawn. There was no other suggestion other than to ask that it not be used in school,” the former Hindu Sangam Malaysia president had said.
“Interlok” has come under fire from the MIC and several Indian groups who claim that its contents on the Indian caste system and the use of the word “pariah” are offensive.The book, which was written by national laureate Datuk Abdullah Hussain in 1971, chronicles the daily struggles of the Malays, Chinese and Indians in pre-independence Malaya.Muhyiddin had also claimed that “Interlok” encouraged racial unity and was in line with the 1 Malaysia concept.But Palanivel refuted Muhyiddin’s claims and said, “People should not be made to believe that this is in line with the spirit of 1 Malaysia. If so, we are in for a big setback.”
The MIC chief also said writings that offend the sensitivities of any group in Malaysia should not be part of the school syllabus.“It is too sensitive and risky to expose such writings to our school going children,” said Palanivel.The discussion this week was chaired by Deputy Education Minister Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi and attended by 22 representatives, including NGOs and academicians.The meeting lasted four hours and Education Ministry officials had explained the rationale in choosing “Interlok” as the Form Five Bahasa Malaysia literature text.
Source : http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=6703:mic-we-want-interlok-dropped-not-amended&Itemid=2
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