PETALING JAYA: Klang MP Charles Santiago today said that Pakatan Rakyat leaders have been very vocal in their criticism of the Interlok novel.
He said that several Pakatan leaders,including himself, had come out openly to urge the government to retract the book from schools.
“In Tenang recently, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim had said that the book was not suitable for schools,” Santiago told FMT, denying reports that Pakatan leaders were keeping mum on the Interlok controversy.
The Interlok novel, penned by national laureate Abdullah Hussain, was introduced as a component for the Malay literature subject for Form Five students this year.
Earlier, Hindraf Makkal Sakthi chairman, P Waythamoorthy, criticised Pakatan leaders for keeping quiet over the controversial novel, saying that their silence would not help the Indian community.
The Hindraf supremo also expressed dissatisfaction over Anwar’s claims on Jan 11 that the novel did not contain racist elements.
Santiago said that Pakatan had pointed out to the government that the novel not only demean the Indian community, but also the Chinese.
“It is written in the book that the Chinese would sell off their baby girls. This is racial stereotyping,” he said.
With the Tenang by-election looming over the horizon, Santiago said that the Interlok issue would be hot topic in the constituency, especially with the Indian community.
“Removing the word ‘pariah’ alone will not solve the problem as the book contains other racially prejudiced content, such as insinuating that all Indian men beat their wives.
“The book must be withdrawn from schools,” he said.
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