Malaysia book causes rift over Indian caste system
Associated Press
Posted on Jan 03, 2011 at 03:13pm IST
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: A high school text book that highlights
multiethnic Malaysia's racial harmony has riled the main ethnic Indian
party, which wants it banned because it refers to the Hindu caste
system, an official said Monday.
The Malaysian Indian Congress, which is part of the ruling coalition,
has asked the Education Ministry to withdraw the book "Interlock," or
at least revoke portions referring to the caste system, because it is
seen as hurtful to minority Indians, said party deputy president S.
Subramaniam.
The spat emphasizes the difficulty of running a multiethnic country
such as Malaysia where minorities are hypersensitive to suggestions
their culture is not being respected, or they are being ridiculed by
others.
Malaysia book causes rift over Indian caste system
The caste system is an outdated concept that Malaysian Indians want to
forget, and it was "unnecessary" to include the reference in the book,
Subramaniam said.
"It's irrelevant to modern day life here," he told The Associated
Press. "With this kind of image, (some Indian Malaysians) feel hurt
... It's not touched upon or talked about by anybody."
Deputy Education Deputy Wee Ka Siong told the AP the ministry is
waiting to hear the party's arguments before making a decision.
The book, required reading for literature classes starting this year,
tells the stories of three families — Malay, Chinese and Indian — in
British colonial times. Malays, who are Muslims, make up 60 percent of
Malaysia's 28 million people. Chinese are 25 percent and Indians, who
are mostly Hindus, make up 8 percent.
The book, written by a Malay author, shows the "integration of the
various majority races" and how they contributed toward the
independence of Malaysia from Britain in 1957. Most of the Indians in
Malaysia were brought from India by the British colonialists as
labourers in rubber plantations or for construction.
The portion that angered the party is from a chapter that tells the
story of a poor man from India's "Pariah caste." He travels to Malaya,
as it was known then, to find work and is surprised at the absence of
a caste system.
Under the Indian caste system, Hindus are divided into four main
castes according to their line of work. In addition, there are people
outside the system called "untouchables" who are supposed to do
unclean jobs dealing with excrement and the dead.
Although the caste system is banned in India, it is still practiced in
villages. Malaysian Indians continue with most traditions of their
ancestors, but the caste system is largely obsolete here.
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