YAN, 15 June 2009: A Malaysian Information Department study reveals that the people do not want the government to allow former Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) leader Chin Peng to return to the country.
Chin Peng (Pic extracted from the
cover of My Side of History, published
by Media Masters Singapore, 2003) Information Department director-general Datuk Abdullah Morad said the result of a survey carried out on 10,000 respondents of various ethnic groups showed that 80% did not want Chin Peng to be allowed to return or to be granted citizenship.
He said the survey was carried out nationwide following a suggestion from certain quarters that Chin Peng should be allowed to return on humanitarian grounds.
“The survey revealed that the people of all ethnic groups could not accept Chin Peng because of the atrocities committed by him during the emergency period and after the country attained independence,” he told reporters after attending a function at Kampung Singkir Laut today.
He said the statement by Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) adviser Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that Chin Peng should be allowed to return, because of the government’s permission previously granted to several other CPM members to return home, only created confusion.
“There can be chaos in the country and the people can become confused if the issue on Chin Peng continues to be played up by opposition leaders to gain sympathy although the people have rejected Chin Peng’s intention to return,” Abdullah said.
He said people of all races who loved the country should respect the Rukun Negara and the government’s decision not to allow Chin Peng to return. — Bernama
kahseng says
“Information Department?”
Sounds more like a communist propaganda department.
Worse, this one has the potential to grow into the Nazi “Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda” which never failed to propagate racist fear.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_propaganda
The director-general should reveal what efforts were made to arrive at an unbiased survey, and to avoid emotionally-loaded, and biased, questions.
Further, the department can conduct a survey on the people’s view on the NEP, and let people judge the fairness of the survey.
Even further, check why this department failed to gauge the sentiment before GE12 for the BN. Did the heads not roll after that monumental failure to inform the government about people’s discontent?
Right2Choose says
I don’t think the real issue is about allowing Chin Peng to return, but it is about why others (of a different race) were allowed to return. You should be consistent in what you do. Anwar did explain that he does not support communism but only on humanitarian grounds.
Hong says
I would like to see this survey for myself, if only to allay doubts about the methodology employed by the Information Department. It sounds like the question was double-barrelled, in that it combines both the question of return with that of granting citizenship to Chin Peng. They are two separate issues, and the latter question with its higher threshold could have potentially shifted respondents from the “Yes” to the “No” camp.
Furthermore, how was the survey conducted – via the phone or internet or in person – and what was the selection criteria for the sample? Somehow I gather all this information is covered by the Official Secrets Act and not readily available to the public. (And yes, I checked the Information Department’s website for anything related to Chin Peng and found nothing related to this alleged survey.)
lucia says
Let Merdeka Centre take the survey and let’s see the response. I’m sure more than 50% would want Chin Peng to return!
A response from 10,000 doesn’t speak for ALL rakyat lah.
soulsberry says
Is this another survey of “bloggers are liars and 80% are unemployed women”?
Hafidz Baharom says
Honestly, I’d like to see that study myself. Since this is supposed to be transparent governance, it should not be a problem, right?
I think I’ll go dig around for a while….
Eric says
Nice this thing. Never heard of it before. How about they use it for Perak now. Here are the questions (I do not even charge consultancy fees for this):
“Would you like the ongoing unresolved crisis happening to your state to be solved by:
– the courts?
– the voters through a dissolution of the DUN?”
1BlackMalaysia. Democracy First. Elections Now.
Countryman says
He said people of all races who loved the country should respect the Rukun Negara and the government’s decision not to allow Chin Peng to return.
DG of Info Dept, since when does allowing Chin Peng to return equate not respecting the Rukun Negara, spelt out below:
BELIEF IN GOD
LOYALTY TO KING AND COUNTRY
THE SUPREMACY OF THE CONSTITUTION
THE RULE OF LAW
COURTESY AND MORALITY
Which part of the Rukun Negara did we violate?
siew eng says
Honour the 1989 Haadyai Peace Accords.
Twenty years on belum habis cerita?
Jason Sim says
Maybe the respondents that they got were the same people who told them that the Perak power grab was ok. Must be people from Umno lah…