KOTA KINABALU, March 25 — The education system in the country needs to address the current racial polemic that is becoming more divisive, an academic said. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Strategic Studies and International Relations Department senior lecturer Sharifah Munirah Alatas said it was worrying that there was no redress being taken through the education system as racial tensions in the country continue to flare. “All the rhetoric and narrative that keeps appearing in newspapers and social media is politicised and given tinge of race and religion. It’s dividing us. This problem is pervasive in society but we are not addressing it in universities or schools. “Teachers should go into

We the members of G25 join all Malaysians and the world in expressing our shock and sorrow at the hate killing in Christchurch mosques in New Zealand on Friday last week, a day when Muslims gather for prayers. The killer targeted the Friday congregation and recorded his attack on live stream as he wanted the whole world to witness his hatred for the Muslim community. His cold-blooded murder and the large number of lives lost and injured, including Malaysians, make it the darkest hour in the history of New Zealand. For the Muslims who died on the holy day of the week, we offer them our prayers with the recital of Al Fatihah. For those who are being treated in Christchurch hospitals,

KOTA KINABALU: G25 Malaysia, which is a group of influential and moderate Malays, will be looking at whether race-based politics which has been plaguing the Peninsula has found a home in Sabah and Sarawak. The civil society organisation, that plays a constructive role as the voice of moderation on religion, will also want to learn about Sabah’s unique relationship with the Federal Government and understand the harmonious co-existence of different races and religions in the State. The group will be here next Monday for a forum which it is jointly organising with the Institute for Development Studies (Sabah) and the Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4). The forum will be on Instituti

MALAYSIANS have been stirred up about some aspects of the law of late. Are laws stringent and unfair to one party when the other is said to “win” a case? Do all courts and judges protect themselves by holding persons in contempt? A sitting judge of the Court of Appeals recently filed an affidavit in a suit making allegations of misconduct against the judiciary. Certain groups picked up on those allegations and took them to the media. They wrote articles and gave television interviews, and made scathing remarks about the judiciary. While the freedom of speech and expression are indeed Constitu­tionally guaranteed fundamental liberties, they must nonetheless be exercised responsibly and lawful

The group of influential Malays (G25) is shocked that Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mujahid Yusof Rawa met with controversial Indian-born Muslim preacher Zakir Naik. “For someone who is promoting moderate Islam, Mujahid should not have anything to do with extremist Muslims like Zakir,” said its spokesperson Noor Farida Ariffin. “It was shocking to see Mujahid with Zakir. We should send him packing back to India,” she added. India has requested the extradition of the preacher, whom it has accused of being involved in hate speech and money-laundering activities. However, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Putrajaya would not bow to pressure whereas Zakir, who is now a Malays

G25 observes the recent political developments with growing concern that the country is sliding towards the polarisation of its politics based on race and religion. Although religion is a major social and politically sensitive issue in several Muslim majority countries, the May 2018 political change, along with the emergence of the middle and moderate society, have sparked hopes that Malaysia would be able to move past extreme identity-based politics. The events in the past few months, however, appear to indicate that politics will remain the same in Malaysia, with the “Ketuanan” syndrome dominating all policy discussions. Ethno-centric discourses also point to the scourge of nepotism, as wa

SUBANG JAYA, March 12 — Former Khazanah Nasional Bhd managing director Tan Sri Mohd Sheriff Mohd Kassim said today he was surprised when the prime minister claimed the state investment firm was set up to help the Bumiputera. Speaking at the ‘Malaysian Strategic Financial Outlook Forum’ earlier today, the member of pro-moderation group G25 said he had deliberated as to whether Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was given different information on Khazanah’s role. “When Tun Mahathir came up with the statement, we were all surprised and wondered [about] his intention or whether somebody has been feeding him some new ideas. “But I am happy to say there was a meeting between the MD at the time and Tun was gi

It is not just the economy alone that needs fixing; the entire socio-economic and political system and the institutions also need to be reformed, writes Ramon Navaratnam. Most fair-minded and thinking Malaysians, especially non-Malay Malaysians, will enthusiastically support the Group of 25 for their bold agenda for action to be taken by the Economic Action Council (EAC). We would also want the EAC to act fast on its substantive and comprehensive agenda for action that has been provided by this group of Malay intellectuals and proven professionals who have contributed immensely to the development of Malaysia since Merdeka. Like many thousands of non-Malays who also served our country faithfu