Author: Curator

The student, student politics and politics

Speech by DAP Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Bandar Melaka, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a forum on “The student, student politics and politics” organised by the University of Malaya Law Society on Tuesday, 5th November 1973 at 8 p.m.

The student, student politics and politics

Last month, the Thai students gave the world another demonstration of the ability of student power to bring about changes in society, and in this case, it was to bring down the corrupt and inept government of Thanom Kittikachorn.

Seven years ago, the Indonesian students led by KAMI played a major role in toppling the Sukarno regime. There are many other such examples of students-induced changes in other parts of Asia and the world.

It must be this awareness and realisation of the potential power of student idealism to challenge and expose the forces of corruption, injustice and reaction which motivated our Alliance government to enact a particularly obnoxious Act in the form of Universities and Colleges Act prohibiting university students from any form of political participation.

This is all the more unacceptable when we note that the government-appointed committee into the racial polarization and campus life of the students of the University of Malaya reported in 1970 that there was no reason to deny the right of political participation to the university students. Continue reading The student, student politics and politics

Call on the people of Kajang to vote against Tun Tan Siew Sin and his policies on Nov. 3

Speech by DAP Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Bandar Melaka, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a DAP Public Rally during the Kajang by-election at Kajang town on Thursday, Nov. 1, 1973

Call on the people of Kajang to vote against Tun Tan Siew Sin and his policies on Nov. 3

The MCA President, Tun Tan Siew Sin, said in Ipoh yesterday that the Chinese themselves were to blame for their troubles because of their political indifference.

He does not blame himself or his MCA colleagues for their substantial contribution in the last 20 years for the present troubles faced by the Chinese.

After all, it is the MCA Ministers in Cabinet and MCA MPs in Parliament who supported and enacted a whole series of laws which have emasculated the political, economics, educational and cultural rights of the Malaysian Chinese and other races in the country.

Who supported the amendment to the Malaysian Constitution in February 1971 to curtail the political rights of the people?

Who supported the legislative provision in January 1972 to abolish the Boards of Managements of Chinese schools? Continue reading Call on the people of Kajang to vote against Tun Tan Siew Sin and his policies on Nov. 3

The importance of Kajang

Speech by DAP Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Bandar Melaka, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a Kajang by-election rally at Suntex Garden, on Tuesday, 30th October 1973 at 8 p.m.

Kajang voters urged to come out to the polls to vote solidly against the Alliance and for the Rocket to protest against rising food prices

Malaysians have just celebrated Deepavali and Hari Raya. Despite government talk of progress, prosperity and economic growth, the Deepavali and Hari Raya this year is the most subdued in recent years, for the simple reason that the people’s purchasing power are shrinking from day to day.

Food prices have shot up at a rate unseen in this generation, closely followed by the prices of all commodities and essential needs. Whether the products are imported from abroad or manufactured locally, they have all gone up in prices in large chunks.

Thus, while the poor become poorer, and more and more become unemployed, Alliance tycoons and compradors reap the fortune and profits of the sharp price increase for foodstuffs and commodities.

This is why the Alliance Government has allowed prices to catapult unchecked.

At this rate, the coming Christmas and Chinese New Year will be even more subdued, for by then, the people’s purchasing power would have become even less, with more price increases taking place.

The people of Kajang have an excellent opportunity this coming Saturday to register not only their protest, but the protest of the people of Malaysia, against the expensive food and high cost of living in the country, while their incomes remain static.

Let a vote in Kajang on Nov. 3, be a vote against rising prices. It is important that the people should come out to vote, for any low percentage of voting will benefit the Alliance, and give the Alliance a mandate to let prices soar up further.

However, it is essential that the voters of Kajang should not allow their votes to be split, for this again, will only benefit the Alliance

All concerned, whether it is the Alliance, or even the Pekemas President, Dr. Tan Chee Khoon, have admitted that the battle in Kajang is between the DAP and the Alliance. So let the people of Kajang cherish their vote on Nov. 3 and solidly vote for the Rocket to demonstrate the people’s protest against the Alliance policy in allowing prices of foodstuffs and all commodities to soar unchecked.

The importance of Kajang

Although the Kajang by-election cannot change the Selangor State Government, a solid popular vote by the people of Kajang will go a long way to force the Alliance to re-appraise the whole spectrum of its economic, educational, political and cultural policies if they are not to lose even more popular support in future. This will benefit the people and country.

Call on the voters of Kajang to vote for the DAP Charter for New Village Revolution on 3.11.1973

Speech by DAP Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Bandar Melaka, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a Kajang by-election public rally at 11m.s. Cheras New Village on Monday, 22.10.73 at 9p.m.

Call on the voters of Kajang to vote for the DAP Charter for New Village Revolution on 3.11.1973

For over 20 years, through four Five-Year Plans of the Alliance Government – the First Malaya Plan 1956-60, the Second Malaya Plan 1961-65, the First Malaysia Plan 1966-70 and the Second Malaysia Plan 1971-75 – the 900000 new villagers in Malaysia have been ignored, neglected, starved of development funds and excluded from the mainstream of economic, social, educational and cultural development.

The 900000 new villagers suffered in silence for one full generation. What was more tragic was that not only had the government forgotten them, the people and the nation as a whole had also forgotten them and did not know or were not concerned that the 900000 new villagers were economically, socially, educationally and culturally deprived.

The DAP decided that the suffering by one full generation of new villagers was enough, and that the second generation of new villagers should not re-live the miseries and neglect of their people. Continue reading Call on the voters of Kajang to vote for the DAP Charter for New Village Revolution on 3.11.1973

Prices Inflation: COLA and Sales Tax

Speech by DAP Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Bandar Melaka, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a Kajang by-election public rally at Reko Road, Kajang Town, on Sunday, 21st Oct. 1973 at 9 p.m.

Prices Inflation: COLA and Sales Tax

Yesterday, the Prime Minister, Tun Abdul Razak, announced a special allowance for government employees drawing $500 and less ranging from $15 to $30.

The payment of $15 to$30 to public sector employees below the $500 salary point is clearly inadequate to help the low and fixed-salaried government workers to cope with rising prices, especially of foodstuffs and basic essentials. Thus, many individual food items have shot up from 50 to over 100%.

The payment of cost-of-living allowance, especially to low-paid employees, should bear more realistically to the steep rise in prices of essential commodities in the last two years, and the DAP calls on the government to double the special allowance so that the payment rises to a maximum of $69 to the lowest salaried groups in the government service. Continue reading Prices Inflation: COLA and Sales Tax

The significance and meaning of the Kajang by-election

Speech by DAP Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Bandar Melaka, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at the first DAP Kajang by-election public rally at Kajang town on Tuesday, 16th October 1973 at 9.30 p.m.

The significance and meaning of the Kajang by-election

Although the Kajang by-election concerns only a Selangor State Assembly seat, its significance ranges far beyond Kajang or the Selangor State Assembly.

What is at issue is not merely whether the son of an Alliance Assemblyman has the right to succeed to his late father’s seat, as if it is part of family property, but whether the Alliance record of the past 18 years, especially those of the last four years, should receive public endorsement.

This is because although the voters of Kajang will be voting as to who is to be their new State Assemblyman, they will in fact be asked to endorse the entire spectrum of Alliance political, economic, educational and cultural policies and record, especially those of the last four years.

It would be useful to review the Alliance record in the political, economic, educational and cultural fields before the Kajang voters go to the polls to pass judgement on them on November 3. Continue reading The significance and meaning of the Kajang by-election

Towards a National Culture

Speech by Ketua Pembangkang and DAP Secretary-General, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a forum organized by the Tamil Cultural Society of the University of Malaya held at Theatre of Faculty of Arts on Friday, 12th Oct. 1973 at 8 p.m.

Towards a National Culture

Malaysia is a multi-racial country where the world’s great cultures of China, India, the Malay-Polynesia, the Middle East and Europe meet in confluence and conflict.

In working towards a National Culture, we are not conducting an academic exercise but dealing with a vital aspect of the uncompleted Malaysian experiment in multi-racial nationhood.

Before we discuss what National Culture we should work for, we must get the correct principle for nation-building in a multi-racial society like Malaysia.

Firstly, there must be no idea of racial hegemony by any one community, which must be doomed to failure. Racial hegemony in a multi-racial society is certainly an undesirable principle to be adopted anywhere in the world, but in Malaysia, the very composition of our population also makes it impracticable of realization, for the good reason that in this country no single racial group can claim to enjoy an overall majority. Continue reading Towards a National Culture

Lim Kit Siang warns against using of emergency powers to control rice situation

Ketua Pembangkang and DAP Secretary-General, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, today issued the following statement (9.10.1973):

Lim Kit Siang warns against using of emergency powers to control rice situation

The Deputy Prime Minister, Dato Hussein Onn, said yesterday that the government will muster all resources and, if necessary, use its emergency powers to impose heavier penalties on rice smugglers, hoarders and profiteers.

The Opposition is opposed to the use of emergency powers in normal times, for it will lead to considerable abuse of powers.

If the government feels that the penalties for rice smugglers, hoarders and profiteers are inadequate, the government should convene an emergency session of Parliament to increase these penalties.

An emergency session of Parliament can be called in a matter of three or four days, as was done when the Parliament was convened in emergency session within a matter of days in 1967 to change the constitution to topple Dato Stephen Kalong Ningkan as Chief Minister of Sarawak. Continue reading Lim Kit Siang warns against using of emergency powers to control rice situation

Ensure that the residents in Tasek industrial area enjoy the right to clean air

Press Statement by Lim Kit Siang, Ketua Pembangkang and MP for Bandar Melaka on 8 October 1973:

Call for joint action by the Minister for Environment Quality and the Ipoh Municipality to ensure that the residents in Tasek industrial area enjoy the right to clean air

I have received a petition signed by hundreds of residents adjoining the Tasek industrial area in Ipoh, including housing estates such as Star Park, Kim Mee Garden, West Pool Park, Ipoh Garden, complaining about air pollution by the Tasek Cement Factory in the neighbourhood.

The residents had complained to the Ipoh Municipality and the Ministry of Health when the Tasek Cement Factory started to pollute the air of the residential areas since 1964, but unfortunately, the authorities ignored the complaints and grievances of the residents by siding the well-financed Tasek Cement Factory.

The residents in the Tasek area, who run into several thousands, are now particularly concerned because the Tasek Cement Factory is installing another kiln which is capable of turning out cement at more than twice the pollution for the residential neighbourhood in the Tasek industrial area.

The people of Malaysia are entitled to clean, fresh air, and it is the duty and responsibility of both the Central Government and Ipoh Municipality to protect the basic right of the people to have clean, unpolluted air. Continue reading Ensure that the residents in Tasek industrial area enjoy the right to clean air

Not fair to put the blame for price increases on retailers

Speech by Ketua Pembangkang and DAP Secretary-General, Mr. Lim Kit Siang, at a Public Rally at Chemor on Sunday, 7th October 1973 at 8 p.m.

Ministry of Trade and Industry should not put the blame for price increases on retailers but should take action to stop price increases at production and importer level

With the spiraling increases in all prices, the Ministry of trade and Industry should sympathise with the difficulties of retailers and not put the blame for price increases on retailers, or encourage the people to have such an attitude.

Several months back, Alliance Ministers were suggesting that consumers boycott retailers because of price increases. Last month, when the rice crisis recurred a second time in a period of four months, the LPN at first blamed the retailers for hoarding and claimed that there was plenty of rice in the country. In actual fact, there was rice shortage and the retailers themselves were unable to get rice supplies – which was later admitted by the LPN.

Although there are some profiteers who try to make a quick profit, the retailers are not the cause of price increases. They are themselves the victim of prices inflation, which have greatly complicated their human relationship problems with their customers, especially in the remote areas. Continue reading Not fair to put the blame for price increases on retailers