Media Statement (2) by Lim Kit Siang in Petaling Jaya on Thursday, 16^th April 2009: 

Barisan Nasional the biggest “ethnic prison” in the country, which is why first meeting of Najib Cabinet dared not act or even discuss Utusan Malaysia’s communal and inflammatory “Bangkitlah Melayu” headline

Nobody doubts that if the Chinese and Tamil press had yesterday published on their front page the headlines “Chinese Arise” and “Indians Arise” respectively like Utusan Malaysia’s front-page headline “Bangkitlah Melayu”, followed by a report calling for greater unity among the race to face the other races, this will be a major and instant agenda in yesterday’s first meeting of the Najib Cabinet meeting followed by dire consequences for the Chinese and Tamil newspapers concerned.

No Minister will raise any objection that stern and immediate action be taken against the Chinese and Tamil papers for publishing such inflammatory and racist material, especially as it would be making a complete mockery of the overarching philosophy of the new Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced only 12 days earlier.

Why then the double standards by the Najib Cabinet as the chauvinistic and inflammatory Utusan Malaysia front-page headline and report were not raised at all at yesterday’s meeting?

After the Cabinet meeting yesterday, Najib called on Malaysians to break away from being in an “ethnic prison” and to think as one.

Unfortunately, the biggest “ethnic prison” in the country is none other than the Barisan Nasional, and this is why the Najib Cabinet could not break out from the four walls of the “ethnic prison” yesterday to act boldly and decisively to stop Utusan Malaysia from purveying communal poison which can only destroy all public credibility for Najib’s 1Malaysia concept.

Malaysians are entitled to ask why the “Monitor Minister”, “Super-Minister” Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon had held his silence when the Najib Cabinet failed its first KPI (key performance index) test – allowing Najib’s overarching philosophy of 1Malaysia to suffer a major blow when nothing was done with regard to Utusan Malaysia’s communal and inflammatory “Bangkitlah Melayu” front-page headline and story.

Who now are being incarcerated in the “ethnic prison” of Barisan Nasional?

*Lim Kit Siang, DAP Parliamentary leader & MP for Ipoh Timor