DAP Secretary-General and Parliamentary Candidates for Kota Melaka, Lim Kit Siang, today issued the following open letter and challenge to all MCA, Gerakan, PPP and Pekemas Parliamentary Candidates:
With the approach of the August 24 Polling Day, all the MCA, PPP, Gerakan, MIC and even Pekemas Parliamentary Candidates who in past two years had shown no interest about the fate and future of Chinese education inside or outside Parliament, have suddenly declared their concern and support for the case of Chinese education.
I hereby issue an open letter and challenge to all MCA, Gerakan, MIC, PPP and Pekemas Parliamentary Candidates to declare, firmly and without any vaguely, their stand on a Ten-Point Charter on Chinese Education in Malaysia. This is my open letter and challenge to all MCA, Gerakan, PPP and Pekemas Parliamentary Candidates:
OPEN LETTER AND CHALLENGE TO ALL MCA, GERAKAN, PPP AND PEKEMAS PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATES.
In accordance with Clause 152 of the Malaysian Constitution which provides that
“(a) no person shall be prohibited or prevented from using (otherwise than for official purposes), or from teaching or learning, any other language;
“(b) nothing in this clause shall prejudice the right of the Federal Government or of any state Government to preserve and sustain the use and study of the language of any other community in the Federation”
The Democratic Action Party has decided that at the first meeting of the New Parliament which will be elected on August 24, to move motions and resolutions to secure the following objectives:
(1) To repeal the 1961 Education Act Clause 21(b) to abolish the power of the Education Minister to convert Chinese and Tamil primary schools when he deems it appropriate;
(2) Amend the Malaysian Constitution to entrench in it the constitutional right of Malaysians to send their children to the schools of their choice, whether it be national primary schools, Chinese primary schools or Tamil primary schools;
(3) Amend the Malaysian Constitution to provide that no Chinese or Tamil primary school or Chinese Independent Secondary School shall be closed down without a referendum being held first among the Malaysian Chinese or Malaysian Indians in that locality;
(4) Government grant and subsidy to Chinese Independent Secondary Schools without any strings attached or any government interference;
(5) Government approval for the establishment of private colleges of higher learning and universities like the Merdeka University;
(6) Restoration of Government Senior middle Three examination for students in Chinese Independent Secondary Schools;
(7) Making the teaching of the mother tongue to every student compulsory, including in national primary and secondary schools, unless the parents concerned have specially written to the school authorities exempting their students from learning their mother tongue;
(8) Full recognition of Nantah, Taiwan and Indian university degrees and qualifications which are of international standing.
I invite and challenge all the MCA, PPP, Gerakan and even Pekemas Parliamentary candidates to declare individually their commitment to this 8-point charter on Chinese education in Malaysia and whether, if elected, the are prepared to join and support the DAP motions and resolutions.
Furthermore, the DAP will take the initiative to form a all-party Parliamentary Committee to implement this 10-point charter on Chinese Education in Malaysia, and we ask every MCA, PPP, Gerakan, and even Pekemas Parliamentary candidates to declare whether he would join the Parliamentary Committee in seeking inside Parliament to strive for the realisation of these this 10-point charter on Chinese education.
I am behalf of the DAP, can declare here that all our 46 Parliamentary candidates would fully enclose this Ten-Point charter on Chinese Education in Malaysia.
All the MCA, Gerakan, PPP and even Pekemas Parliamentary candidates should individually declare their stand within 48 hours.