Malaysian Malaysia

This news item appeared in the Sun 29th August 2007. I am just speechless.

"Zam accuses theSun of promoting 'Malaysian Malaysia' KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 28, 2007): Information Minister Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin said today Gerakan adviser Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik's assumption that the Malay and Chinese newspapers favour certain parties and are not fair to all the races was inaccurate.

On the contrary, in many issues, "the Chinese and Malay newspapers are fairer to Malaysia than certain English newspapers.

"To say that theSun newspaper is a champion of Bangsa Malaysia shows that Dr Lim Keng Yaik sympathises with the newspaper which has all this while fought more for (the DAP's) 'Malaysian Malaysia'. "In many issues, theSun newspaper has touched on matters that offend the Malays, including the special rights of the Malays, the New Economic Policy (NEP), the social contract among the races that was agreed upon before Merdeka and also the question of unity in the society," he told a news conference after attending an "Anak-anak Merdeka and Malaysia" gathering in Angkasapuri here today.

(Anak-anak Merdeka are those born on Aug 31, 1957, when the country achieved independence and the Anak Malaysia are those born when Malaysia was formed on Sept 16, 1963.)

Lim, who is Energy, Water and Telecommunications Minister, was quoted as saying in Penang on Sunday (Aug 26) that theSun had used the Malaysian approach compared with the other newspapers, which according to him, were biased towards certain parties.

Zainuddin said the newspaper often blew up issues that contradict the federal constitution besides "publishing statements that oppose and question the government's action to suspend the Makal Osai newspaper recently".

He said the government acted to ensure that every religion was respected and it showed that the government cared about religious sensitivities.

"The Chinese newspapers, which are written and read by the Chinese, do not involve the feelings of the other races but the English language newspapers must be more careful because they are read by all the people," he said.

Zainuddin said theSun had also blown up the issue of the Merdeka Statement, the so-called wish list of the majority of the society which, among others, claimed that racial unity had been fraying at the edges.

"theSun has also published articles which leaked government secrets.They have also blown up the issue of the proposal to repeal the Common Law and published articles rejecting the proposal when it had not been decided whether to implement it," he said.

"I've kept the article. What we considered as discussed in the Cabinet was published by theSun.

"What is theSun up to? Are they fighting for a Malaysian Malaysia? Is this what (Datuk Seri Dr) Lim Keng Yaik says is a newspaper that fights for Bangsa Malaysia?" he asked.

"Bangsa Malaysia must be founded on the social contract, the country's principles of law, not outside this (aspect)," he said, reports Malaysia's national news agency Bernama.

Zainuddin said theSun should be viewed as a newspaper that supports the DAP because it fought for a "Malaysian Malaysia", which is the DAP's objective."