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NO.6, Jalan Abdullah, Off Jalan Bangsar,59000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tel: 03-2282 5241 Fax: 03-2282 5245
Website: www.humanrightspartymalaysia.com
Email:info@humanrightspartymalaysia.com
Mr.Hans Olsen United Nations, Children’s Fund, (Unicef) UNICEF House, 3 United Nations, 18/6/2010
New York, NY 10017, By Fax No (212) 326-7037 USA. Email: landmines@unicef.org
Dear Sirs,
Re: 1) Cow shed like ethnic minority Tamil schools under high tension electric cables, children studying in basement and inside cabins in prosperous Malay-sia. 2) USD 2.00 allocation per Tamil school pupil per month. 3) state designed poverty leads to 65% UPSR failure rate in Tamil schools. 4) Urgent UN appointment in New York.
We refer to the above matter.
As your goodselves may be aware, Section 28 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child provides for compulsory and free education for all children. This was adopted by the U.N General Assembly in November 1989. Malaysia ratified the Convention in 1995. Article 2 of the same provides for the child’s right to non discrimination.
Article 8 of the Malaysian Federal Constitution provides for equality before the law and Article 12 of the Federal Constitution provides for no discrimination in public educational institutions.
But it’s implementation vis a vis the ethnic minority Indian children in Malaysia are to the contrary and are being subject to direct discrimination with impunity as follows:-
1) 71% or higher of the 523 Tamil schools in Malaysia are in not fully financially aided and most are in colonial era structures and now looking like cow shed buildings.
2) For the 2010 National Budget RM 30 Billion was allocated for 80 new schools, 1, 100 additional blocks and 347 school replacement projects; to refurbish, upgrade schools, preschool education and high performance schools. But there is zero allocation or any policy announcement on making all 523 Tamil schools fully aided Tamil schools to be on par with any Malay or Chinese schools and most of which are still to this day not fully aided. This is a classical example and the tip of the iceberg of how exactly UMNO Prime Minister Najib Razak’s One Malaysia has repeatedly cheated the Indians over the last 52 years. UMNO Prime Minister Najib intends these Tamil schools to remain like cow sheds but could build KLCC, the world’s tallest twin towers.
3) In 2009, 600 untrained Tamil school teachers were trained in special courses during school holidays. (NST 21/2/2010 at page 24). But for even the Malay muslim Kemas kindergartens graduate teachers are being trained at the Sultan Idris Teachers University. All Primary schools in the National School system have pre-school facilities. But many of the Tamil schools do not have these pre-school facilities. So Indian children in many cases just start without any pre-school education.
RM100 Million has been allocated for the Budget year 2010 for Pre-school program of Early Permata childcare and education in 457 childcare centers nationwide nurturing 17,565 children. But none of these children are likely going to be Indian children except for a few namesake Indian children who have been “advertised” and made show pieces in the government’s mainstream media. Malaysian Indian Minority & Human Rights Violations Annual Report 2009 Pravasi Bharathiya Divas International Conference Vigyan Bhawan Delhi 7th-9th 2010.
4) 50% of the 200,000 Indian students attend the National Primary School system and the other 50% or about 100,000 students attend the Tamil Primary schools in an event split.
These 100,000 Indian students attend 523 Tamil schools. 371 or 71% of these primary schools are denied full government financial assistance even after 53 years of independence. 289 of these are located in the plantations.
5) We have reported cases of Tamil schools under high tension electric cables, pupils having to study in the Public Utility Department (JKR) stores, students being forced to study under trees.
6) Only in Malaysia we have the world’s only primary school in a basement ie the Assad Tamil school in Penang, the world’s only primary school upstairs a shophouse, the Lukut Tamil School in Port Dickson and the world’s only primary school fully operating in shipping cabins ie the Ladang Jeram Tamil School in Kuantan, Pahang.
7) 55% UPSR in Tamil schools failure rate quoting Malay-sia’s most prosperous state Selangor Chief Minister Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim (TN 6/11/10 at page 4). There is a 77.4% students failure rate at the Sg.Besi Tamil school UPSR. Based on this estimated average is 65% of Tamil school pupils fail the UPSR because of poverty and are poverty related problems. (Source P.Uthayakumar’s Conversation with Dr.Muthu (not his real name) on 25/2/10 at 10.00am. Most of these pupils study in unconducive one bedroom homes.
8) 42% of standard one pupils in Tamil schools cannot read and write at all because they did not attend kindergarten because of poverty. (MO 10/3/2010 pg 3).
9) Because of state designed poverty most of these students live in unconducive for studies one bedroom houses. Most of them cannot afford private kindergarten.
10) Less than 10% of students from these Tamil schools attended pre school now because of poverty. This is about 75% below the targeted 87% national level pre schools students by 2012 under the government policy National Key Result Area (NKRA) (The Star 15/3/10 at page N46).
11) 523 is the total no of Tamil schools in Malaysia. 373 (71%) are partially aided. 150 are fully aided (MN 31/3/2010 at page 4).
A huge RM4.8 Billion was allocated under the 9 MP for all schools. Out of this only RM64.8 Million was for Tamil schools ie 1.3% of the total allocation for all schools nationwide. (The Sun 2/4/2010 page 8). Even then whether this RM64.8 for five years @ a mere RM12,960,000.00 for 523 Tamil schools per year or a mere RM24,780.00 per Tamil school per year a
pittance of or RM2,065.00 (USD 543.42) per month per Tamil school with an enrolment of about 270 pupils per school is a mere RM7.64 (USD 2.00) per Tamil school pupil (per head) per month. And for additional expenses donations are solicited from the pre existing poor Indian community. It is doubtful whether even this USD2.00 per Tamil school pupil would ever go down to these 523 schools. Remember even the UMNO Prime Minister lied when all 523 Tamil schools in Malaysia had been promised RM100 Million allocation under the 2009 first and second economic stimulus packages.
12) But, zero of these funds from this RM100 Million has flowed down to any of the said 523 Tamil schools (Refer to The Star 30/09/2009).
13) No Serendah Tamil school despite 5,000 Indians living in the local area (at 2 students per family) from 12 housing estates. Parents have to spend about RM700.00 per month per family sending them to nearby Sg Chor. Children have to leave the house at 5.00a.m and their safety is compromised.
In the circumstances these ethnic minority children are far far away from what Unicef says children can help ‘save the world’ statement (The Sun 4/6/2010 at page 2). We would like an urgent appointment between our United States co-ordinator Mr.R.Shan with your goodselves in New York to discuss the above with the view to the United Nations further action.
Kindly revert to us accordingly.
Thank You.
Yours Faithfully,
P.Uthayakumar
Secretary General (pro tem)
cc:
Secretary General of U.N
Ban Ki-moon,
United Nations Secretariat,
First Avenue and East 42nd street,
United Nations,
New York,
USA. By Fax No:1-212-963-2155
Mr. Githu MUIGAI
U.N Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism,
racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance
OHCHR-Palais Wilson
United Nations Office at Geneva
CH-1211 Geneva10
Switzerland By Fax No: +442085759898
UNESCO
7, place de Fontenoy,
75352 Paris 07 SP,
France By Fax No: +33(0)145671690
P.Waytha Moorthy
Chairman
Hindraf Email: waytha@hotmail.com
Mr.R.Shan Email: hindraf.thinktank@gmail.com
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