Media statement by Lim Guan Eng in Kuala Lumpur on Monday, 11^th July 2011: 

Ordinary peace-loving Malaysians are fed up by the demands for the revocation of Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan's citizenship 

Ordinary peace-loving Malaysians are fed up and repulsed by the uncivilized demands of Datuk Ibrahim Ali and Malacca Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ali Rustam for the revocation of Bersih Chairperson Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan's citizenship.

Ali Rustam's statement, saying that it was "better to just lose one person than to lose a lot of lives" is a thinly veiled threat and utterly irresponsible as an elected Chief Minister.

Such uncouth remarks are uncalled for and not only unjustifiable but also unconstitutional with racist and seditious intent.

Article 9 of the Federal Constitution states that: "No citizen shall be banished or excluded from the Federation", whereas Article 25 provides for the revocation of citizenship only for naturalised citizens, i.e. "(1) The Federal Government may by order deprive of his citizenship any person who is a citizen by registration under Article 16A or 17 or a citizen by naturalisation if satisfied - (a) that he has shown himself by act or speech to be disloyal or disaffected towards the Federation".

In other words, no Malaysian whose parents are also Malaysians can have their citizenship revoked unless they themselves renounce it. This shows that there is no basis for such a demand by both Ibrahim Ali and Ali Rustam.

The DAP therefore condemns such insidious rhetoric, which is both seditious and racist. Why is it that such demands are only made against non-Malays and never upon Malays?

Just like those before them who have vilified other non-Malays as pendatang, likening Indians to beggars and Chinese women to prostitutes, these venomous remarks appear to be directed to Datuk Ambiga because she is of Indian ethnicity.

We call upon the Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishamuddin Tun Hussein to initiate firm action upon Ibrahim Ali and Ali Rustam for their seditious and racially inflammatory remarks.

Furthermore, we also call upon Prime Minster Dato' Sri Najib Tun Razak to display commitment to his 1Malaysia slogan by demanding the resignation of Ali Rustam as the Chief Minister of Malacca. Such remarks made by Ali Rustam are irresponsible and unbecoming of his stature.

If Hishamuddin and Najib fail to take action, it will mean that they and the rest of UMNO are in acquiescence. After all, silence implies approval.

In this case, it is not just UMNO who are responsible but also all the other BN component parties who have stood by without saying a word. If they cannot even utter a word of protest and demand action to be taken against such hateful remarks against their fellow Malaysians, then they are irrelevant and ineffective.

All peace-loving and true Malaysians are fed-up with unending racial shenanigans of UMNO and its mouthpieces. We demand that action be taken in these most vicious remarks, which are not only a personal insult to Datuk Ambiga, but also an insult against all Malaysians in general and the Indian community in particular.

*Lim Guan Eng, DAP Secretary General & MP for Bagan