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Come to think of it, John Lennon must have got some devine inspiration smoking pot and indulging in marathon sex sessions with yoko Ono to come up with songs such as "imagine".
Let us see if KJ is willing to take on the MM (no not mickey mouse, but minister mentor), thereby creating an Oxbridge debating debacle in the Far east.
And Zam is a typical asian hypocritical leader wannabe.
I cannot see how Malaysian of chinese origin came out in support of LKY when the only Malaysian to be accepted into his family committed suicide.

Hiya, just syntactical error....Use the wrong word to describe the reality on the ground also want to make so much noise. I am surprised LKY's language skills are limited. Surely teh Chinese in Malaysia are NOT marginalised. That word is more applicable to the Indians maybe, where they are ignored and stemming from that they get marginalised. It would be more correct to say that the Chinese are discriminated...and after all the policies and the execution of those policies exact just that on the chinese anyway.

As far as the Malays in Singapore go, I would have to agree that although they are not discriminated against, they are marginalised. So there. Does this satisfy our PM?

It is sad to see that it only takes very little to sway the malaysian chinese to be on singapore's side. What is more worrying is would the malaysian chinese help this nation if ever singapore were to attack and slaughter us? You live in this country you call yours, make your fortune here, bring up your children and family here, but yet when loyalty test you, you fail to stand up. You jump at the very opportunity you get to stab the people you have been living with all this while. Do you live here to just suck this country's resources dry, or will you be here through thick and thin, through happiness and sorrow? Yes we have problems here and there, we are not a perfect nation, but who is? That is only natural. We are so blessed to be born and live here, have so much that we are able to share with others. Regardless of ethnicity, religion, race and status, we manage to co-exist peacefully. Can u sincerely say that we live here peacefully because the government marginalize a certain race. We are reminded daily that other nations have so little that they can call their own, even their dignity is gone, living their life at the mercy of other nation. We need to count our blessings everyday, not just on merdeka day! This is my country. I would fight and die if and when the call comes. Could you say the same about yourself? It would have been great if we stood united with one voice as malaysians and gave LKY a piece of our mind. A famous man once said " ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country". To LKY i say, mind your own business in your own dotted little space ( the country that the obliging malays gave you in order to cast you away from creating more havoc in malaysia, u didn't earn it through your sweat, mind you) and learn to live like a good neighbour should.

Folks

Some people age with grace but there are some who's age comes with senility early.

The latter group are mostly politicians.

LKY should follow examples of Ex Presidents of USA.. along the lines of President Clinton and President Jimmy Carter. They leave politics out and spend their time on charity work.

If LKY thinks Singapore is rich enough, he can contribute his philantropic motivations ( I presume he has one) to help in other poorer countries. Not money, his ideas. Bill Gates many not have ideas but he gave his money to others like Clinton.

The rich towkays in Malaysia and Singapore can contribute money to LKY Foundation to keep LKY out of political mischief. How about that?

For Dr M.... I prefer he fix this Son in Law Problem we have in Malaysia first before he retires fully. Because nobody can take head on this VERY POWERFUL and GREEDY SON IN LAW PROBLEM. It is becoming a NATIONAL PROBLEM that need to be addressed urgently.

Dear Harin,
"It is sad to see that it only takes very little to sway the malaysian chinese to be on singapore's side".

It's people like you and KJ that should be up each other's @r$e. Your remarks have shown insensitivity to the chinese community. When facts are shown to you and mirrored in front of you, you make your own petty assumptions that all chinese are like that. The majority of Malaysians (Malay, CHinese and Indians) will aggree that there are certain elements there that are to be blamed for all their racial remarks and insensitive comments.

I hope your are not lumping all minority races into that comment of yours. The majority of right-thinking Malaysians are proud to be living in Malaysia despite all the idiocracies that we have to put up with. So please we are intelligent enough to know what is good and what is bad for us. We may grumble for being marginalised at times but as long racial sentiments are not stirred and we earn our keep by playing by the rules, we do not appreciate being labelled ungrateful by the likes of you.

No doubt LKY is once again "offside" in making such statement. As a good neighbor he should't have made such statement which is bordering on instigation or interfering with other countries' internal affairs. Regardless of his intention in saying such things, i believe if the pressure continue to mount , LKY will apology just like last time when he made a statement describibg Johore Baru as a "Cowboy Town". Nothing to loose, since he has already put accross his point and in a way creating some impact!

However, what really make me worry is the irrational reaction from our countrymen on clear racial lines. From the postings that read, i gather that majority if not all chinese agree with LKY, while Malay disagree with some coming with argumnet such as "ketuanan ekonomi cina" as proof to rebut LKY's point, while Indians apparently are not amused with LKY's statemnet either as they regard themselve as the community most "marginalized" in Malaysia. So, this has brought home a very important point. Unless the policy concerned is expressly discriminated against a particular race or community, marginalization must not and should not be seen from race perspective. As such, marginalization occurs in every community irrespective of race and creed. It is about class and not race.

unless we see this issue from this perspective otherwise we all are thread on a very very distorted and dangerously path!

Dear Harin,

Are you starting with the "tak suka pergi" quote that is well famous in malaysia again?
Well i do agree at a point that LKY is wrong to mentioned only chinese in his speeches and leaving out the rural malay and indian community but still i do not think he is wrong in his speech,we have our eyes to see,are chinese and indian races are being marginalised here or being discriminate here?
oh yah,LKY does proved to Malaysia that Singapore are a way more developed country than Malaysia that even have it own resources.I wonder why ?

Pay a visit to the Singapore you will see why malaysia has so much to improve.

I agreed with LKY. Not only the chinese but indian, rural malay and the indegenious tribes like Penan, Iban, orang asli etc are being marginalised.

Looks like other then Najib that make an a$$ out of himself by claiming what LKY said was false, no one else in UMNO dare to make the same statement as him. Now they only dare accusing LKY for being insensitives, rude, etc.

So before anyone that still wants to argue that what LKY say is wrong/false. Please go ask UMNO first, ask them why no one dares to issue a counter statement, why no one proofs him wrong? Let me tell you why, "BECAUSE THEY CAN'T!!" simple as that.

Before anyone questions the loyalty of the fellow Malaysian Chinese Citizens again, let me tell you this. LOYALTY is like RESPECT, it's not something that you can demand; you have to earn it, PERIOD.

Don't anyone dare to call me "pendatang asing". I am the proud 4th generation Chinese that rooted here over 100 years ago. Long before "Melaya" & "Malaysia" even exist. My root here is much deeper then the Indon/Bangla that was given "bumi" status overnight, just because of their religion. These so called "BUMI" is the real "PENDATANG ASING". COMPRANDE?

Don't think you have multiple citizenships, you're hell of a great! The Malaysian governtment will revoke your M'sian citizenship & kick you out of the country to Fantasy Island in Timbuktoo! These Hokkien People are a bloody disgrace to the Chinese community! Even the Japanese also spit at their graves and urinate at their ancestors & shit on their tombstones! Website - http://www.voy.com/207120/2/52.html

Dear Harin,
I am a Malaysian and I am prepared to fight and die for my country for a just cause, say if S'pore attacks us.
The issue you must understand is nation building, building a united Malaysia, should be based on certain fundamentals like equal treatment and opportunities for all and equal recognition for of all fundamental rights for all citizes regardless of race and religion as in our Constitution. Don't misunderstand me, I am all for the 30% Bumiputra quota. If you ask me give them 50% and distribute the rest fairly to all others.
Is that what happened during the last 25 or so years? Ask youself and look around. What do you see? Nearly 100% civil service opportinities including Police,Army, Judiciary ete etc filled with men and women from one race.
The NEP provided and was agreed upon on eradication of poverty without regard for race and religion.What happened.It was knowingly and deliberately sabotaged to the benefit of one race.How do you think the poor and the under priveleged from other races feel?
Everywhere we go, we see open discrimination,even the talented are overlooked in favour of the mediocre.
There are poor and needing help, even among the Chinese, not all are towkays.Look at the Indian community and recall the sacrifices their forefathers made to lay the basic foundation of our economy- rubber, the roads, the railways. Same thing goes for the Chinese- tin, the two pillars which made our country prosperous.
The irony is that there was and there is no need to deny any race and individual their legitimate rights and need as our country is blessed with natural resources i.e.properly managed, no corruption, no patronage,no croniysim.
If you implying that the Chinese and other races are not as patriotic as you are, whatever race you belong to, that is an uncalled for insinuation.
Whatever we do as a country and as a government, the people at large must feel that they are treated with the same rights and privelege, notwithstanding the special help given to the poor and the needy, regardless of race.Social justice should for all should be the basis of nation building.Do you think the poor among the Malays, the Chinese, the Indians,the Ibans, the Kadazans can expect it, the way the country is being governed. Ask youself these questions and answer them yourself.I trust you are a fairminded man you will then realise how others feel.

Dear Harin,

I'll try to remember a pantun since the current promotion. Berat mata memandang, berat lagi bahu memikul. Here's my contribution:

I've good academic performance yesteryears but need to use my FAMA scholarship to further my studies. This is sweat blood of puluhan years. I've work overseas for 4 years to re-coup and lessen my burden to my parents. Since primary till secondary till early working life, I've told my Chinese buddies that NEP is needed so that the country can go forward as one nation. I've backed this policy as far as I can as a proud Malaysian. When the crisis hit Malaysia, it was a testing time for all. When I found out more and more on the wastages, corruption and so much hope are destroyed because of the failure to properly implement the policies (including NEP), my patience had ran out. I look at my children and I guess I'm fighting on their behalf now. We struggled for the nation along with you. You can't just wipe away years of bitter experience just like that. There must be an outlet - peaceful, dialogue and bridge building among us. But at least we must be united that the policy is flawed especially in the implementation. I've given my part, have you? Have you fought the abuse of NEP? Have you fought for the under-privileged especially Orang Asli?

It's not that bad to voice out our frustrations. It's only human and agree we're not perfect.

Harin,

Couldn't agree more with what you said " ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country".

Also agree that true royalty will not sway even when tested. But why do you feel that it is not the case now?

Didn't we all scream and cry with happiness when Malaysia won the Thomas Cup back in 1994??

Why the Chinese choose to say Yes to a foreigner's (LKY) comment??

Can we blame the chinese for being unhappy whenever top chinese students being denied a palce in the university?

Does loyalty mean a blind faith to be provided unilaterally no matter what the government does to you?

Pray Kiyoshi Morita, can you please tell me what is you point really is? Who's the Hokkien that you mention? Me is pretty blur here.

As for Mr harin... I do understand what you are saying but dont coz it's not true at all. I've more than scores of chinese and indian friend that willing to stake their life for our beloved malaysia.

Harin

I would have to assume that people like you are dime a dozen who assume that only Malays are capable of undivided loyalty to the country. That is why you cannot possibly know that most of the Malay cronies and politicians of both the past and present have already parked a substantial amount of the financial assets overseas. You obviously also don't know that even your beloved Prime Minister might have a residence in Australia for instance and that your past Prime Minister has this funny relationship with Argentina. And sometimes I wonder why. Do you?

Obviously you will not believe me when we tell you that it is the Malays and the Malay leadership that has failed us in Malaysia's dealings with Singapore. It is this leadership which sends in corrupt monkeys to talk and negotiate with Singapore and end up ALWAYS letting Singapore have the last word. Then we shut up. I have often wondered how come Singapore always seems to have the last word in just about every one of our dealings with Singapore. Is it because in working out the solution Singapore is asked to factor in something on the side? I wonder!! Is it because we send out our jaguh kampongs to the negotiating table to deal with Oxford and Cambridge graduated geniuses?

Well, Harin. I now am accusing the Malay leadership which seems always to need this ego trip for having failed the country in all its talks with Singapore. So what say you about that?

this may be a little out of context, but they say seeing is believing...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttnIxVbm_4A

Hi Harin,
Below is your wake-up call.

Your article:
“It is sad to see that it only takes very little to sway the malaysian chinese to be on singapore's side. What is more worrying is would the malaysian chinese help this nation if ever singapore were to attack and slaughter us? You live in this country you call yours, make your fortune here, bring up your children and family here, but yet when loyalty test you, you fail to stand up.”

That smell stinks to high heaven. Why not I put it rather bluntly. Just One simple example: say, We, ALL the citizen of Malaysia were given special treatment, but ONLY harin is left out. Our kids get 3 As and went to Oxford under govt. scholarship. We buy our 9th house at 10% discount. We are accorded shares, AP, tender and whatnot at the country’s expense, while harin’s kids get 6As and he has to sell his butt to afford his kids in local college, his 1st house is still under financing and he has to finance 10% discount on our 9th house. He gets only a share of blame and nothing else in the country that he and his family has contributed. MY QUESTION IS: WILL HE BE THE 1st ONE TO DEFENCE HIS STATUS OR THE COUNTRY?

Your assumption:
“You jump at the very opportunity you get to stab the people you have been living with all this while. Do you live here to just suck this country's resources dry, or will you be here through thick and thin, through happiness and sorrow? Yes we have problems here and there, we are not a perfect nation, but who is? That is only natural. We are so blessed to be born and live here, have so much that we are able to share with others. Regardless of ethnicity, religion, race and status, we manage to co-exist peacefully. “

Have anyone stab people living next to them? Where does this statement came from? Must be high on drugs. Given the 1st scenario………who is actually sucking the resources dry? Were you gonna carry through thick and thin, through happiness and sorrow of selling your butt? We are the majority, Harin you are but only one, but we manage to co-exist peacefully somehow.

Your call for defence:
“Can u sincerely say that we live here peacefully because the government marginalize a certain race. We are reminded daily that other nations have so little that they can call their own, even their dignity is gone, living their life at the mercy of other nation. We need to count our blessings everyday, not just on merdeka day! This is my country. I would fight and die if and when the call comes. Could you say the same about yourself?”

Would you die fighting given the 1st scenario, because no matter how hard you worked, defense or stand up, you and all your offspring are doomed as alien and to be taken advantage of at every opportunity. I hope you can defend this country in any case (as per 1st scenario) so that your offspring can works their heads off and contribute to the country and our wealth.

Your call for sacrifice:
“It would have been great if we stood united with one voice as malaysians and gave LKY a piece of our mind. A famous man once said " ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country".

If that is the case, why not abolish any special treatment to anyone at all? Becoz it’s what u can do for the country that’s important, not what the country can do for you? If that’s what you really mean, I totally agree with your statement! Why keep sucking the country dry in the name of NEP or any other name? DO SOMETHING FOR THE COUNTRY instead of be sorry for yourself.

Since Merdeka, Who is actually contributing to the country and who is sucking at it? (borrowed from harin’s) So how do you treat contributors or suckers?

I think the Chinese and the Indians are as patriotic when it comes to supporting the country whether it is the Thomas Cup or any significant events. Dont forget the Chineses contributed in busloads to the tsunami that hit Indonesia, eventhough there are inhumane Indonesians who killed, raped , sodomised and chopped up the defenseless Chineses there during the Indonesia crisis. The problem is that there are Malays like KJ and Hishamuddin and many others that trumped up racial issues and wild remarks and false accusations of the Chineses to drum up blind support. It is the Malays like them that caused such remarks by LKY and they should be the people HARIN should target for what is happening in this country. The Chinese did not start the racism issues.

Is it any wonder that Federation of Malaysia 1963 was formed and Martin Luther King Jr. "I have a dream" speech was made in 1963?

It's just not about the chinese...It's about every race (the indian, the "dan lain-lain" race) in Malaysia given the EQUAL chance to live as a Malaysian!

Till then, we are still living in the Malaysian dream...Good night, Malaysia!

Reflection on good governance by LKY:

"We've structured the system such that the competent group that gets in will find a machine that works ... run the system properly on the basis of merit, not nepotism, and you'll always find a way out of a problem.",

"At the end of the day, what every citizen wants is a good life, security, good health, good housing, good education and a future for their children. That's good governance,"

The languagt that used by Mr.LKY is not right,he should't used the word " Marginalised" it should be " Discrimanated". Yes Nun Bumi in Malaysia in discrimanated, the goverment is praticing double standard.every year we can see when it come to education place for university. Nun Bumi that have strait A can't get a place in U. What is this call?? n the funny thing is the other country offer this student place at thier U,Will this student come back to malaysia to work after thier Graguate?? is that that we don want the country but is the country that don want us. if this still going on malaysia wil loss all the Top student n profesional in coming year . n lot more that every one know aboutthe discrimaition.....

Well, stop blaming Harin. He was brought up in this manner, the non-bumis owe a lot to this country, the non-bumis have not done enough, the non-bumis don't love Malaysia, the non-bumis are not patriotic, the non-bumis always wanting more, etc. etc.

The non-bumis are 'pendatang asing', the non-bumis are blessed as THEY allow us to ' live here to just suck this country's resources dry'

Very, very typical

Harin, I agree with you about the unity part, so here's my piece of mind for singaporean Lee.

[ DELETED ] OFF you dirty Harry! Go mind your own business!

You also said,

"Can u sincerely say that we live here peacefully because the government marginalize a certain race"

All I can say is, this cannot go on forever, because we are tolerating and giving ways for the malays to catch up. They have to stand up on their feet to earn respect instead of depending the government's protection forever.

it hurts as much for me to agree with what Harry had said, even more so he's a foreigner. Sometimes i wonder whether only foreigners can bring up issues like this. Remember what happened to the Chinese BN not so long ago for raising racial issue in the parliament? Yeah, a 50-strong group from a the UMNO party stormed his office like a bunch of mafias with viking anger.

But Harry nailed the point and you and I know it.

Of course we are going to demand apology from him and keep pretending we all live in a united, happy and racial-equated society.

TRAITOR!

This was what I shouted to a Chinese friend of mine. For bad mouthing Malaysia and getting PR in Australia. I defend Malaysia and previous govt way of doing things was for the good.

The real scum was George Soros.

Now, I finally awakened to the fact, we have been duped for 50 years!

I'm just concerned over few things - what is the future like for my children? In the next 5-10 years?

I found this article from wikipedia rather interesting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prehistoric_Malaysia.

Extract of the article as follows:

40,000-35,000 years ago- Paleolithic (Early Stone Age)
Early peoples lived a simple lifestyle of hunting-gathering. Paleolithic Malaysia had no defined border or countries, no known government, religion, money, etc. These early inhabitants still live in the hills of Malaysia, some of their villages are accessible, they are known as Orang Asli, meaning 'natural people' or aborigines. Today the Orang Asli together with the Malays and indigenous peoples of Sabah and Sarawak are known as bumiputra ('the sons of the soil') and they make up 65% of the population.

35,000-10,000 years ago - Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age)
Anthropologists traced a group of newcomers Proto Malay seafarers who migrated from Yunnan to Malaysia. Negrito and other Aborigines were forced by late comers into the hills. In this period, people learnt to dress, to cook, to hunt with advance stone weapons. Communication techniques also improved.

Yunnan migration theory
The theory of Proto Malay originated from Yunnan is supported by R.H Geldern, J.H.C Kern, J.R Foster, J.R Logen, Slametmuljana and Asmah Haji Omar. The Proto Malay (Melayu asli) who first arrived possessed agricultural skills while the second wave Deutero Malay (mixed blood) who joined in around 1500 BC and dwelled along the coastlines have advanced fishery skills. During the migration, both groups intermarried with peoples of southern islands such as those from Java (Indonesian), and also with aboriginal peoples of Australoid, Negrito and Melanesoid origin.

Other evidences that support this theory include:

Stone tools found at Malay archipelago analogy to Central Asian tools.
Similarity of Malay customs and Assam customs.
Malay language & Cambodian language are kindred languages because the ancestral home of Cambodians originated from the source of Mekong River.

So the moral of the story is we i.e.Malays and Chinese originate from China and we are actually one people until politics and religions divide us.

harin, please take your political rhetoric bollocks somewhere else. the chinese and indians and even other bumis have indeed been marginalized and no matter what cock politicians and smart arses spit out, we can't be fooled. our country obviously doesn't give a damn about us, so please don't play the politically correct and pose your questions to us. malaysia will reap what it sows.

Lee Kuan Yew
Why did he say it?

He wants to remind new generation that being small doesn't mean Singapore must be compliant to bigger neighbours.

By Seah Chiang Nee.

Sep 26, 2006

Not all Singaporeans regard everything Mr. Lee Kuan Yew says or does these days as superior logic - and the furore he has raised in Malaysia is one of these split issues.

Some people feel his reference to marginalised ethnic Chinese in Malaysia was unnecessarily provocative.

I am one of those who believe that some of Mr. Lee's ideas have become outdated for today's Singapore, but on the current controversy, I am fully behind him.

I am sure his message was not aimed at a Malaysian audience. It was targeted at the new generation of Singaporeans, a reminder that being citizens of a small country would sometimes mean being subjected to irrational demands.

It was a message about good governance. To potential leaders his message was "learn to say no" to unreasonable demands.

He said this on the eve of his 83rd birthday and this sort of reminders can only serve the country well.

In fact, the reaction of Dr. Mahathir Mohamad explains the validity of Mr. Lee's concern about the vulnerability of Singapore's small size.

The querulous Mahathir said, "Singapore is a tiny country. Don't talk big."

He wasn't the only one. Former Indonesian president B.J. Habibie at a peeved moment called Singapore "just a little red dot."

In the 70s when Singapore and Indonesia disagreed over some Asean investment issue, (the then) Indonesian foreign minister Adam Malik told his journalists: "The priority of 140m people takes precedence over a population of 2.5m".

What sparked off the controversy this time was Mr. Lee's comment that the attitude of Malaysia and Indonesia towards the Republic was shaped by the way they treated their own ethnic Chinese minorities

He added: "My neighbours both have problems with their Chinese. They are successful, they're hardworking and therefore they are systematically marginalised, even in education"

"And they want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese, compliant"

Mr Lee said Singapore must have a government which must be "firm but polite", able to deal with difficult neighbours "who want to pressure us to build pretty bridges without giving us commensurate benefits".

"You need a government that will be able to not only have the gumption but the skill to say no in a very quiet, polite way that doesn't provoke them into doing something silly," he said.

Mr Lee was being interviewed by former US Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers, who asked him what he hoped for Singapore, 40 years from now.

Mr. Lee replied: "My hope is that there will be a government that is equal to the job, as the PAP (the ruling People's Action Party) was."

Reminding Singaporeans to stand up to Malaysia's unreasonable demands was, of course, more relevant during the Mahathir era than the Badawi government.

I remember Dr. Mahathir once telling his ministers there were "many ways to skin a cat (meaning Singapore). He rarely passed up an opportunity to insult the republic.

Imagine what would happen if Singapore had done this.

Once when Kuala Lumpur was mad at Singapore's three-quarter tank rule for cars entering Johor, one of his ministers announced that he would order his staff to go through all Singapore's regulations to find out which one were affecting Malaysians negatively.

Did he not know international law? Of course, he did - at least enough to recognise an act that intrudes into another country's sovereignty.

But because Dr. M, the boss, was anti-Singapore, some of his underlings probably thought they could show him their loyalty.

As a journalist reporting on Malaysia for many years, I feel Mr. Lee's reminder about the realities of regional politics crucially important - especially for young Singaporeans who believe if you are a nice guy, others will always treat you nicely.

Littlespeck.com

How will LKY respond this time?

Flash back 1997:-

The sting this time came from Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew. He described the Malaysian state of Johor, linked to Singapore by a causeway, as “notorious for shootings, muggings and carjackings.”

Said Malaysia’s inspector-general of police, Rahim Nor: “He is a serious man and when he makes a statement we must take it seriously.”

The anger of Malaysians was swift and unrelenting. Lee’s apology was prompt and, he said, “unreserved.” The irritation, though, may well linger.

LKY made the famous Johor remarks in a Jan. 27 affidavit submitted as part of proceedings against opposition politician Tang Liang Hong for a “Mareva” injunction to freeze his assets. Tang was defeated in the January general election, and sued by Lee (and later by others in the ruling People’s Action Party) for defamation after he called their charges that he was a “Chinese chauvinist” lies. Tang eventually wound up in Johor Baru, saying he had received death threats. That’s what Lee was referring to when he said what he said, adding “it does not make sense for a person who claims to be fearful for his life to go to a place like Johor.”

The affidavit was first heard only in chambers, but when the judge ordered open court hearings, it became public. Malaysian Foreign Minister Abdullah Badawi called the Johor remarks “callous.” Later, he said his government accepted Lee’s apology but added, “This episode has deeply hurt Malaysians, and the restoration of the old level of relationship will take time.” The youth wing of dominant party UMNO staged a peaceful protest in Johor Baru. Newspapers received stacks of letters from outraged readers. Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohamad said: “To have friendly relations with Singapore requires considerable effort as sometimes things are said and done which make it difficult to be friendly.”

What They Said

Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew:
"I have already apologized unreservedly and repeat my unreserved apology. I have asked my counsel to have the offending words removed from the record."

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad:
"To have friendly relations with Singapore requires considerable effort as sometimes things are said and done which make it difficult to be friendly."

The question is : “ Is there any truth in what LKY had said?”.

After so many years, “notorious for shootings, muggings and carjackings.” In JB is getting from bad to worse, plus the infamous snatch theft and killings nowadays.

From the one hundred over replies on LKY’s remarks of racial marginalization in this thread ( including the previous one ), one can see that the majority believed what LKY said was true.

There is only one reality; the denial syndrome has already become a culture deep rooted in the minds of our leaders and people.

This cancerous culture is an obstacle to the progress of the country and so the people.

Remember:

"At the end of the day, what every citizen wants is a good life, security, good health, good housing, good education and a future for their children. That's good governance,"

This day will never come if we do not discard that cancerous culture.

Hello,

The topic is getting very intense.

I dont think we should quarrel over this because Sinapore is laughing at us.

Why not try to fix it? Why not we raise concern to the government , maybe they would listen and review , to make this a better country for all of us...

Sincere
Life is short. Live it to the max.

malaysiandiary.com

Raise the concern to the government? Are they listening? Don't you aware they are denying about it? Opposition MP Lim Kit Siang and educationmalaysia.blogspot.com have raised the imbalances not one time, but many many times! Still, 90% in the cabinet prefer status quo. However, I agree we should not quarrel over this issue, just put the cross in the correct box in the next election.

.... no use whine a million times as the policies were agreed upon.

So harry said we are marginalised, so what? We are the one who chose to be marginalised! We actually had asked the gov to marginalise us! Didn't you guys aware of that?

DJ UPDATE: Malaysia Summons Singapore Envoy On Race Remarks
28/09/2006 16:26

KUALA LUMPUR (AP)--Malaysia summoned Singapore's ambassador Thursday to explain elder statesman Lee Kuan Yew's claim that ethnic Chinese minority citizens in Malaysia and Indonesia were being marginalized, an official said.

Malaysian Foreign Ministry Secretary-General Rastam Isa met with Singapore's High Commissioner T. Jasudasen after Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi earlier this week sent a letter to Singapore's government, apparently to seek an apology for Lee's comments.

Ministry officials wanted to "seek clarification" over Lee's remarks, a Singapore High Commission official said on condition of anonymity. Singapore "will respond through appropriate channels in due course," the official added.

Foreign ministry officials declined to comment.

Lee, Singapore's founding father who holds the Cabinet post of minister mentor, told a forum in Singapore on Sept. 15 that Malaysia and Indonesia "have problems with the Chinese. They are successful, they are hardworking, and therefore, they are systematically marginalized."

Indonesia also summoned Singapore's envoy earlier this week to explain Lee's remarks at the forum that Malaysia and Indonesia "want Singapore, to put it simply, to be like their Chinese - compliant."

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said his country expects Singapore "to say sorry for Lee's remarks," the New Straits Times newspaper reported Thursday.

"I believe Singapore's motive is to make Malaysia look bad to foreign investors but they won't succeed because the world can see we Malaysians always stand together as one nation," Syed Hamid was quoted as saying.

Prime Minister Abdullah has expressed displeasure at Lee's remark, suggesting it could stir up Malaysia's Chinese, who make up about a quarter of the country's 26 million population and are its second-largest ethnic group. He has also noted race relations in ethnic Chinese-majority Singapore are also not perfect.

The ruling United Malays National Organization, which is led by Abdullah, planned to discuss action that could be taken against Singapore over Lee's remarks at a Supreme Council meeting scheduled later Thursday, the New Straits Times added.

Malaysia and Singapore have close cultural and economic ties, but also a history of quarrels, bad blood and rivalry. In recent years the neighbors have sparred over the price of water, and took a territorial spat over a tiny islet to the World Court.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 28, 2006 04:26 ET (08:26 GMT)

This story was printed from TODAYonline

Lee's comments upset Indonesian MPs

Wednesday • September 27, 2006

— AFP

JAKARTA — Indonesian legislators yesterday expressed their anger over Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's reported remarks claiming Jakarta discriminated against its ethnic Chinese minority.

According to reports, Mr Lee told a forum in Singapore earlier this month that the attitude of Malaysia and Indonesia towards Singapore had been shaped by the way the countries treated their own ethnic Chinese minorities.

Mr Joko Susilo, a member of the parliamentary commission overseeing international affairs, called on the Indonesian government to seek a clarification about the statement and if reports were accurate, seek an explanation.

"That is a statement that is very much regrettable, not at all a friendly statement, and even an insult to us," he told AFP.

"Such a statement coming from a friendly neighbour can be dangerous to our ties with that country."

Mr Happy Bone Zulkarnaen, another MP from the ruling Golkar Party, also criticised the statement.

"It might have been true in the past but not in recent years, when we have actively battled discrimination," he said.

"Just look at the Parliament, the Cabinet and the government: We have representatives of the ethnic Chinese community there, something that would never happen in a society where discrimination against them exists.

"A statesman should carefully weigh his words when speaking," he added.

Indonesia's ethnic Chinese comprise about 3 per cent of the country's 220 million people.

The richest five Indonesians, according to Forbes Asia magazine, are ethnic Chinese, who also account for a majority of the country's top 40 richest people.

This story was printed from channelnewsasia.com

MM Lee says sorry that recent comments caused discomfort to PM Abdullah

By Farah Abdul Rahim, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 02 October 2006 2204 hrs

Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew says he is sorry that his recent comments about Chinese Malaysians had caused Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi a great deal of discomfort.

Mr Lee had said during an international forum in Singapore more than two weeks ago that ethnic Chinese minorities in Malaysia and Indonesia are being marginalised.

In his letter to Mr Abdullah, Mr Lee said he had no intention to meddle in Malaysian politics.

Nor does he have the power to influence Malaysia's politics or to incite the feelings of Chinese in the country.

The remarks about Malaysia's ethnic Chinese minority were made at what Mr Lee called a 'free flowing dialogue session' with former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.

Setting the context, Mr Lee explained he was speaking to a liberal audience of Westerners who wanted to see a stronger opposition in Singapore.

He reiterated that Singapore needs a strong government to maintain good relations with neighbours Indonesia and Malaysia and to interact with their politicians who consider Singapore to be 'Chinese'.

Mr Lee said he did not say anything more than what he had said many times before, and added he said less than what he had written in his 1998 memoirs.

Mr Lee said UMNO leaders, including former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamed and others, had on numerous occasions, publicly warned Malaysian Malays that if they ever lose power, they risk the same fate as Malays in Singapore, whom they allege are marginalised and discriminated against.

Mr Lee cited examples of such comments in the letter's annex, quoting Dr Mahathir and other leaders in media reports over the years about the "marginalisation" of Singapore Malays.

The Minister Mentor reiterated that Singapore understands the reality of Malaysian politics.

Singapore has never protested at such attacks on Singapore's multi-racial system or policies but merely clarified Singapore's position and explained to Singaporeans the root cause of such difficulties in bilateral relations.

Also in his letter, the Minister Mentor said relations between the 2 countries have improved since Mr Abdullah took the helm in November 2003 and that both Singaporeans and Malaysians appreciate this.

Mr Lee concluded that the last thing he wanted to do, after a decade of troubled relations with the former Prime Minister, was to cause Mr Abdullah a great deal of discomfort. -

CNA/ch