Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Tuesday warned Malaysians to be on their guard against religious extremists tearing apart the multiracial nation which suffered deadly race riots in 1969. "I am concerned about issues related to religion. We need to develop a spirit of tolerance.
"If we allow extremists to pull us apart, we will face problems," Abdullah told a gathering at a Christmas party organised by the Christian Federation of Malaysia. About 60 percent of the nation's 27 million people are ethnic Malay Muslims. The rest are mostly Buddhist, Hindu or Christian Chinese and Indians. Abdullah's remarks come after rights group Hindraf led at least 8,000 ethnic Indians onto the streets of the capital in protest against the alleged marginalisation of their community and the destruction of temples.
Police put down the protests using tear gas and water cannon and arrested dozens of demonstrators. Five Hindraf leaders were later arrested under the tough Internal Security Act, which allows indefinite detention without trial.
Abdullah urged the majority moderate Malaysians to hang on to the "middle position" and not to allow extremists to dominate. "If we are pushed out and led by extremists, it will create problems," he said. Malaysia, Southeast Asia's third largest economy, experienced race riots in 1969. There were clashes between majority Malays and the minority Chinese community, in which hundreds were killed. Since then the country has been largely peaceful.
Outspoken opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who also attended the gathering, immediately faulted Abdullah's poor leadership for the rise in religious extremism. "It is due to the fault of the government and the incompetence of the leadership," he said.