Press Statement
by DAP Secretary General and MP for Kota Melaka, Kerk Kim Hock
in Petaling Jaya
on Sunday, October 20, 2002


Seditious article on UMNO online: DAP to raise issue with the Prime Minister at the coming Patriotism Congress if the article is not removed from the UMNO official website


In an article titled " Cina DAP Hasut Cina MCA Jangan Setuju Guna Bahasa Inggeris " that has appeared in the UMNO on line -official website of UMNO-UMNO Pasir Mas Division chief, Ibrahim Ali has not only made baseless allegations against the DAP, he has also made statements which are calculated to promote ill feelings or hostility among the different races.

After lodging a police report on 10.10.2002, I have on the next day urged the Prime Minister who is also the UMNO President Dr Mahathir Mohamad to direct the immediate removal of this article from the UMNO website based on the following three reasons:

  1. the article contains baseless allegations which have gravely hurt the feelings of the Chinese Community and it also contains statements which are clearly seditious

  2. the statements are clear attempts to politicise and racialise the issue of teaching Mathematics and Science in English, in violation of the advice by the Prime Minister that the issue should not be politicized

  3. as the UMNO online is the official website of UMNO, the publishing of an article that breaches the 1948 Sedition Act will mean that UMNO can be accused of infringing the Act
     

I have, last week, conveyed my request to the UMNO Headquarters and I have been given the assurance that the article will be taken down from the website. However, till today, the highly offensive, seditious and unacceptable article is still on the website.

Malaysians and both the government and opposition parties have reacted angrily against the unfair linking of the Barisan Nasional with the international terrorist movement by he United Nations Security Council.

Barisan Nasional leaders have reacted strongly and have rightly called for the baseless and unthinkable allegation to be expunged from the UN report.

I can understand the BN leaders' sense of anger and their justified protest as the UN 's allegation is simply unacceptable. However, are not the baseless allegations made by Datuk Ibrahim Ali on the UMNO website against the Chinese community equally unacceptable?

While commenting on the government's proposal of teaching Mathematics and Science subjects in English, Ibrahim Ali has made baseless and malicious allegations against the Chinese community, which include,

  1. that the Chinese community worry about the proposal because they are afraid that the examination papers of the Chinese students will be marked by Malay teachers

  2. that the Chinese community have objected to the proposal because they are worried that the truth about the declining academic standard of the Chinese students will be exposed

  3. that the Chinese teachers have allowed their students who have actually failed their examinations to pass with excellent results

Unless UMNO agrees with the contents of the article, it must be prepared to accede to demand to remove the article, just as the UN must be prepared to expunge the baseless allegation against the Barisan Nasional

DAP MPs will be attending the coming Patriotism Congress and if the offensive article is not removed by then, we will bring this matter up directly with the Prime Minister at the Congress on 26.10.2002.