KUALA LUMPUR: About 300 Muslim students ushered in the new year yesterday by taking it to the streets to demand for Chinese education group Dong Zong to be banned over the recent Jawi furore.
Rally organiser Gabungan Mahasiswa Islam Se-Malaysia (Gamis) said it regretted the group’s supposed attempt at causing disunity among Malaysians by consistently rejecting the teaching of Jawi in vernacular schools, accusing it of being “insolent and anti-national”.
Gamis president Saifullah Baiduri even warned that they would hold more protests nationwide and would submit a memorandum to the Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Hajah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah to seek intervention, if their call to ban Dong Zong went unheeded.
“What Dong Zong is doing is against the federal constitution, Education Act 1996 and National Language Act 1963. We urge for them to be banned for constantly disrupting national unity.
“We also call for Jawi to be taught in all vernacular schools, in line with the constitution, that the script is part of the national language,” he said in his speech in front of the Sogo shopping complex, here, today.
“We will continue to hold rallies from time to time until Dong Zong is outlawed in this country. We will gather all students nationwide, together with NGOs to protest.”
Saifullah said Gamis’ warning also extended to other groups and individuals that were against the teaching of Jawi in schools, while urging them to cease organising any forms of gathering to reject the script and to respect the constitution.
This came after Dong Zong, and fellow Chinese education group Jiao Zong, planned to hold a Chinese Organisation Congress on Saturday (Dec 28), which was later called off following a court order.
However, a separate gathering organised by Gabungan Seni Khat Action Group (Sekat), dubbed the National Jawi Congress, was held just a day later, similarly to protest the teaching of Jawi in vernacular schools.
The Education Ministry had previously announced that Jawi would be introduced in the standard four Bahasa Malaysia syllabus beginning this year, and would take up three pages in the text book for vernacular schools, subject to approval of parents and teachers.
Gerakan Pembela Ummah (Ummah) national deputy chairman Mohd Zai Mustafa, meanwhile, said claims by certain quarters that the teaching of Jawi in schools has a hidden Islamisation agenda, were ridiculous.
“Previously, many years back, the non-Malays also have to learn Jawi, and they could read and write the script, and we still lived harmoniously to this date. Did they convert to Islam? No.
“So the excuse given that the teaching of Jawi was an attempt of Islamisation is just plain stupid,” he said.
