Month: March 1969

The fate of 25,329 teachers

The DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, today issued the following statement (29.3.1969):

The Aziz Commission Report has brought fear, uncertainty and insecurity to 25,329 teachers who have been described as unqualified and underqualified teachers and who are recommended to pass the S.C. or M.C.E. examination within three years or face dismissal.

This recommendation, if adopted and implemented, will be a great and cruel blow on Chinese school teachers.

Their ability of Chinese – school teachers to teach has nothing to do with their passing S.C. or M.C.E. examination before they could continue teaching, as it is to demand that English school teachers must pass the Chinese Senior Middle Three examination before they could be confirmed in their teaching posts.

It is an unreasonable to expect Chinese school teachers to pass the S.C or M.C.E. examination before they could continue teaching, as it is to demand that English school teachers must pass the Chinese Middle Three examination before they could be confirmed in their teaching posts. Continue reading The fate of 25,329 teachers

Call for an inquiry into police misrepresentation and distortion

The DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, today issued the following statement (28.3.1969):

The DAP welcomes police assurance that there will be no restriction on the number of speakers at election rallies.
But the Federal Police statement today (Malay Mail, 28.3) cannot go unchallenged.

The statement said DAP allegations that the police had placed restriction on the number of speakers for DAP rallies was ‘unfounded’ and suggested that it was the DAP which misunderstood the police requirements.

The statement added that although the permit had space for only five names, political parties could list the extra names on a separate or continuation shoot as an annex to the permit.

But this was what the DAP had been doing all along, right from 1966, through the Serdang by-election campaign, until March 14- when we were told that we could only have five speakers for every rally. Continue reading Call for an inquiry into police misrepresentation and distortion

Conversion of English-medium schools

Letter to the Editor by DAP Organising Secretary, Lim Kit Siang, on28 March 2969:

The Editor,
Straits Times,
Balai Berita,
31 Jalan Riong,
Kuala Lumpur.

Dear Sir,

I refer to your report today on my speech at a Penang DAP public rally deploring the Alliance government’s move to convert the present English-medium schools into Malay-medium schools.

I shall be grateful if you could publish the following facts and arguments I presented at the rally on this subject, so that my speech will not be misrepresented and misunderstood.

Beginning this year, Standard Three children in English-media primary schools are taught four subject in the National Language – art and craft, physical education, local studies and singing.

Next year, Standard Four students will be taught history and geography in the National Language, and in 1971, Standard Five students will learn the science an mathematics subjects in the National Language. Continue reading Conversion of English-medium schools

Lim Kit Siang to Alliance Ministers: Stop competing among yourselves as to who go overseas more often!

Speech by DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a DAP Public Rally at Pulau tikus Market, Penang on Thursday, 27th March 1969 at 9 p.m.

There is a competition among Alliance Ministers as to who travel abroad most often and stay overseas longest – at the taxpayers’ expenses!

The three Ministers who are way ahead of others in this Cabinet contest are Inche Khir Johari. Education Minister. Mr. Khaw Kai Boh, Housing Minister, and Inche Sardon bin Jubir, Transport Minister. It is no wonder that these three Ministries are in such terrible mess.

Inche Khir Johari is producing school children who, after sixe years of schooling, are hardly literate. Mr. Khaw Kai Boh build so few houses in the last five years that he had to put up huge advertisement boards throughout the country to boast about his so-called housing achievements. In the first four years of his office, Inche Khaw built 1,500 units per year –when in Singapore, the same numbers of houses are being built every month! As for Inche Sardon, his Malaysian railways is always in the red and the trains always late, while his ports are the terror and agony of all traders, because of their indescribable inefficiency, incompetence and corruption. Continue reading Lim Kit Siang to Alliance Ministers: Stop competing among yourselves as to who go overseas more often!

The ‘new champion’ of Malaysian workers – Tan Sri T.H.Tan

Speech by DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at the inaugural meeting of the protem committee of the Kuchai DAP Branch on 25th March 1969 at 9 p.m.

In a statement on Monday, the Secretary-General of the Alliance, Tan Sri T.H.Tan, said no party could match the record of the Alliance in service to the workers.

It must come as a shock to the workers of Malaysia to find in Tan Sri T.H.Tan the self-styled now champion of Malaysian workers.

But it is so easy to expose the Alliance for its empty profession of concern for workers’ welfare.

A recent example is the lock-out of 70-odd workers by the management of Central Printing Co. at Petaling Jaya. The management locked –out the workers because the workers united to form a union, and submitted claims for revised salaries and improved working conditions. Continue reading The ‘new champion’ of Malaysian workers – Tan Sri T.H.Tan

The left hand does not know what the right hand is doing in the Police Department

Press statement by DAP Organsing Secretary, Lim Kit Siang, on 25 March 1969:

The denial by the Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Sheikh Abdullah bin Sheikh Abu Bakar, that the police had not imposed any restriction on the number of speakers who could address a rally is a good case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing in the police department.

We could furnish Sheik Ahmad seven police permits for DAP rallies which restricted to approve more than five speakers and one announcer for one rally.

The police authorities concerned with the granting of public rally permits refused to approve more than five speakers and one announcer for one rally.

In fact, on 17th March, at a DAP public rally at Suleiman Court, off Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Kuala Lumpur, the DAP had only three speakers and one announcer, although the rally went on for three and half hours from 7.30p.m. to 11p.m. this was because two speakers approved for the rally, namely Goh Hock Guan, Party Secretary- General, and myself, could not make it for the rally as we went up to Ipoh for Mr. D. R. Seenivasagam’s funeral. Other DAP leaders present at the rally were not allowed to address the rally. Continue reading The left hand does not know what the right hand is doing in the Police Department

Reservation of hawker’s sites at Jalan Petaling

The DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, today issued the following statement (23.3.1969):

The Directors of Anti-Corruption Agency, Inche Harun bin Hashim, has announced the result of this investigations into the matter of the reservation of 15 best hawker’s sites at Jalan Petaling, Kuala Lumpur, during the last Chinese New Year.

Firstly, there are various inaccuracies in Inche Harun’s statement. I received a letter from Inche Nik Yusof, Selangor Chief of Anti-Corruption Agency, on Feb. 24 proposing a meeting. I telephoned Inche Nik Yusof immediately on receipt of the letter, the very same day. I was then leaving for outstation, and I said I would get in touch with him when I got back to Kuala Lumpur. I am sure Inche Nik Yusof could confirm this.

Four days later, I phoned Inche Nik Yusof proposing a meeting that very day, but Inche Nik Yusof was busy. We subsequently met on March 12.

But in his statement yesterday, Inche Harun said I got in touch with the Agency only four days after receipt of its letter, and suggested that I was trying to avoid the Agency. Why did Inche Harun resort to such misrepresentations? Has to got something to cover up? Continue reading Reservation of hawker’s sites at Jalan Petaling

The lock-out of Central Printing Co. At Petaling Jaya

The DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, today issued the following statement (23.3.1969):

The seven-week lock-out of the Central Printing Co. in Petaling Jaya is a good example of the utter helplessness of workers in the face of the unholy alliance between rapacious capital and anti-labour government against the working class.

When management and the government team up to deny the workers their fundamental rights to unionise, and to a more decent standard of living, the workers are crushed and left to their misery and suffering.

70-odd The Central Printing Co.’s Lock-out was a mass punishment of the workers of the printing firm for unionization last October and for asking for improved wages and working conditions.

The Industrial Relations Act was supposed to contain safeguards against victimization, intimidation and dismissal of workers by employers for active union work. But here is a case of victimization not of one worker, but of all workers – because they decided to form a union. Continue reading The lock-out of Central Printing Co. At Petaling Jaya

Mr. Khaw Kai Boh asked to explain why he opposes Merdeka University and yet supports National University

Speech by DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a DAP Public Rally at Kampar, Perak, On Saturday, 22nd March 1969 at 8p.m.

At the opening of a MCA branch at University Gardens in Petaling Jaya last Saturday, the Minister for Local Government and Housing, Mr. Khaw Kai Boh, said he would be the first to support the Merdeka University if the government would recognize the degrees and qualifications of the University.

Instead of making such dishonest statements, Mr. Khaw should be truthful and say openly he is opposed to the Merdeka University.

We all know whether the Alliance government recognize the degrees of the Merdeka University or not depends on the Alliance Cabinet, of which Mr. Khaw Kai Boh is a full member.

If Mr. Khaw and his MCA Ministerial colleagues support the Merdeka University as a worthwhile educational project, then the chances of government recognition of its degrees are bright. But if the MCA leaders are the foremost opponents of the Merdeka University, as many of them, including Tun Tan Siew Sin, Mr. Khaw Kai Boh, Mr. Lee San Choon, Mr. Quek Kai Dong, Mr. Siow Loong Hin, etc., have gone on public record on this, then the present Alliance cabinet will not support the Merdeka University project. Continue reading Mr. Khaw Kai Boh asked to explain why he opposes Merdeka University and yet supports National University

A Challenge to Mr. Khaw Khai Boh

Speech by DAP Organising Secretary, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a DAP Public Rally at Ipoh Road, 4 ½ m.s., Kuala Lumpur on Friday, 21st March 1969 at 9 p.m.

In his speech at Kampong Lompang two days ago, the Minister for Local Government and Housing, Mr. Khaw Kai Boh, asked the DAP to explain its language stand.

Mr. Khaw wanted to know why the DAP was opposed to the Alliance Putting up multi-lingual propaganda on top of the multi-storey Circular Road housing flats, when the DAP claimed that it was fighting for equal use and status of the four languages.

I had not expected Mr. Khaw Kai Boh to be so naïve. What the DAP objected to was not the four languages bring used on the Circular Road housing blocks, but to the blatant Alliance propaganda on public housing flats, as the words were: “Another Alliance low-cost housing achievement.”

In the first place, the Circular Road housing flats are not ‘low-costs’ ones. They are high-cost flats. Continue reading A Challenge to Mr. Khaw Khai Boh