State governments controlled by Barisan Nasional should emulate the example
of Terengganu PAS State government to allocate funds for Chinese primary
schools in their state
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Last night, the PAS Terengganu Mentri Besar, Haji Hadi Ahmad Awang announced
that the PAS Terengganu State government would allocate RM100,000 each for
the three bigger Chinese primary schools in Kuala Terengganu, Kemaman and
Wakaf Tapai while the state government would also allocate funds for the
other smaller seven Chinese primary schools in the state according to their
needs.

DAP welcomes the decision of the Terengganu PAS State Government to allocate
funds to assist Chinese primary schools in the State and we call on other
state governments controlled by the Barisan Nasional to emulate the example
of the Terengganu PAS State Government and also to allocate funds for
Chinese primary schools in their state.

DAP first discussed the possibility of the Terengganu PAS State Government
setting an example for other State Governments by providing financial
allocations for Chinese primary schools when a DAP delegation first visited
Terengganu and had a dialogue with Hadi and senior State Executive
Councillors on December 15, 1999.

At the first DAP-PAS inter-party, inter-political, inter-religious and
inter-civilisational dialogue on "PAS Terengganu Government - Towards A Just
Malaysia" at the Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall on 22nd January 2000, Hadi
first announced that the Terengganu PAS State Government was prepared to
allocate funds for the development of Chinese primary schools in the state.

Last night, Hadi announced in Mentakab that the Terengganu PAS State
government would make an initial allocation of RM100,000 each for the three
bigger Chinese primary schools in the state while allocation to the other
seven smaller Chinese primary schools would be according to their  needs -
and that the State Government would consider making this an annual allocation.

Details on  how the Terengganu PAS  State Government would allocate funds to
the Chinese primary schools in the state would now have to be worked out.

The decision of the Terengganu PAS State Government to allocate funds for
the Chinese primary schools in the state is important and in keeping with
the Barisan Alternative common manifesto "Towards A Just Malaysia" as all
these decades, Chinese primary schools had not received fair and equal
treatment by the Education Ministry  in the mainstream of the national
education policy, suffering discrimination in many administrative and
educational aspects.

So long as the Chinese primary schools are not given fair and equal
treatment by the Federal Government, it should be the duty of all State
Governments to assist the development of Chinese primary schools.

Hadi's announcement on the Terengganu PAS State Government decision to give
financial allocation to the Chinese primary schools in the state should also
help to debunk the lies and falsehoods that the Chinese are  an "oppressed
race" in PAS-ruled Terengganu, alleging that there  are not only no Chinese
schools, but the Chinese would have no pork, no alcohol, no temples, no
cultural freedom, etc.

The question now is whether MCA and Gerakan could convince UMNO to get all
the Barisan Nasional-controlled state governments to follow suit and make
regular financial allocations to the Chinese primary schools in the state.
Such assistance should similarly be extended to  all Tamil primary schools.

-  Lim Kit Siang  -