Malaysia’s government yesterday ordered an investigation into complaints that a school principal told students from the ethnic Chinese minority to leave the country and labeled prayer beads used by ethnic Indian Hindus as dog leashes.
Allegations that the ethnic Malay Muslim headmistress of a high school in southern Malaysia made the racial slurs at a school assembly earlier this week have sparked an uproar in this Malay-majority country, which has struggled in recent years to resolve concerns among minorities about discrimination.
Malaysian Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said a special panel would investigate the case after outraged parents filed police complaints against the principal, Siti Inshah Mansor. He said the headmistress has apologized, but was ordered to go on leave.
Police have said the principal could be charged for “provocation,” a crime punishable by to up to two years in jail.
School officials declined to comment, and Siti Inshah could not be contacted and has not spoken to the media.
Malaysian media have reported that the complaints against Siti Inshah claimed she said: “Chinese students are not needed here and can return to China.”
She was also accused of saying that: “For the Indian students, the prayer string tied around their neck and wrist makes them look like dogs because only dogs are tied like that.”
Lim Kit Siang, a lawmaker from the opposition Democratic Action Party, said Siti Inshah’s alleged comments have undermined Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s campaign to promote multiracial harmony.
Meanwhile, a Malaysian radio station has removed the host of a talk show that apparently angered the government by discussing racial discrimination, officials and a news report said yesterday.
Jamaluddin Ibrahim, host of Chinese-language channel 988’s morning show, was “taken off the air” on Thursday, Linda Ngiam said, head of commercial radio broadcaster Star RFM, which operates the channel.
The company received a letter from the government’s telecommunications watchdog “regarding certain contents aired over the radio station that it deemed to be offensive,” Ngiam said in a statement.
Independent news portal Malaysiakini said Jamaluddin’s show invited a commentator on Friday last week to talk about racial discrimination. The commentator reportedly claimed government authorities had manipulated racial issues and undermined multi-ethnic harmony.
Malaysiakini reported that at least two other personnel from the channel have also been suspended amid a company investigation, but that could not be immediately confirmed.
Jamaluddin’s two-hour morning show is aired on weekdays and encourages listeners to call in and comment on issues facing ethnic Chinese Malaysians, who comprise about a quarter of the country’s 28 million people and are its second-largest ethnic group after the Malay Muslim majority.
Ethnic Chinese support for the government has plunged in recent years amid complaints that the Malay-dominated government uses affirmative action programs to unfairly benefit Malays in the economy. Minorities also say their religious rights are not respected, but the government denies any discrimination.
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