KUALA LUMPUR, July 28 — Minister M. Kulasegaran rejected allegations that he called the ethnic Malay community “pendatang (immigrants)” here and said such claims by local daily Utusan Malaysia and on social media were defamatory.
Kulasegaran said his views on Malaysian history were allegedly twisted by those aiming to cause racial tension, and accused Utusan Malaysia on intentionally fanning the issue.
“Utusan Malaysia’s report on July 27, 2018 and allegations on social media have accused me of making a statement purportedly that Malays are pendatang in Malaysia, while Indians are the original residents of this country.
“This is libel and untrue. I have never said that. It was twisted without the actual background or context,” the Ipoh Barat MP said in a statement today.
Kulasegaran explained he could not have made the offending remarks attributed to him as he did not even mention the Malays at the Hindu religious event in Nilai, Negri Sembilan last week where he is alleged to have made the statement.
“In that event in Tamil, I did not mention Malays at all. Certainly, the accusation that I purportedly said the Malays are pendatang is purely defamatory and a lie,” he said.
Kulasegaran explained he instead presented his view that Malaysians should not accuse each other of being immigrants, noting that citizens live together in this country.
He said he had, in the event last week, explained that Indians arrive in Malay Archipelago 2,500 years ago and brought Hinduism with them, citing as proof the archaeological discoveries in Kedah’s Lembah Bujang area including the discovery of Sungai Batu.
“In relation with that, I am of the opinion that it is unfair if Indians are described as pendatang, based on those historical facts,” the DAP vice-president said.
He said history showed HInduism to be the earliest religion embraced by locals in the Malay Peninsula and Archipelago, and that this was later expanded to Buddhism before Islam was brought to the region and popularised in the 15th century.
He said transmigration is a natural process globally in which different ethnic groups migrate according to needs and current situation, adding that it was a historical fact that Malaya, Malaysia, India, China and other countries experience the same phenomenon.
“All this is historical fact. So, what I want to stress is that history should be taught with the correct, accurate and complete facts.
“That is important for each Malaysians to know our own history,” he said.
