Islamic rules at Mara schools worry Dayak parents
Joseph TawiePublished: Feb 6, 2015 7:00 AM | Updated: Feb 6, 2015 10:18 AM
Dayak parents are worried about sending their children to Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) schools in Sarawak for fear of them being influenced by Islamic rules and guidelines that non-Muslim children must also obey and observe, the DAP Serian branch said today.
At a press conerence in Kuching today, chairperson Edward Andrew Luwak said the restrictions included not bringing religious items to the colleges like crosses and Bibles, the banning of home-prepared food and disallowing the students from using the college’s transport to go to churches and back.
Andrew said the guidelines also extended to former technical secondary schools which have now been converted to technical colleges.
Dayak parents are worried about sending their children to Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) schools in Sarawak for fear of them being influenced by Islamic rules and guidelines that non-Muslim children must also obey and observe, the DAP Serian branch said today.
At a press conerence in Kuching today, chairperson Edward Andrew Luwak said the restrictions included not bringing religious items to the colleges like crosses and Bibles, the banning of home-prepared food and disallowing the students from using the college’s transport to go to churches and back.
Andrew said the guidelines also extended to former technical secondary schools which have now been converted to technical colleges.
“These restrictions and guidelines are preventing the Dayak parents from sending their children to such colleges as they fear their children may be influenced by Islamic teachings,” he said, pointing out this shouldn't be the case as the colleges were funded by taxpayers’ money.
The Dayaks were therefore deprived of opportunities to obtain a good education at the colleges, he said.
At the same press conference, Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen said MRSM students’ guidelines were ‘trampling’ on the constitutional rights of the Dayaks and other non-Muslim Bumiputera.
“The government should take immediate steps to abolish such discriminatory students’ guidelines,” said Chong, who is MP for Bandar Kuching and state assemblyperson for Kota Sentosa.
Students brainwashed
He agreed that under the rules, MRSM Dayak students could not hold any private prayer groups, could not wear a cross, and could not bring their own home-cooked food into the colleges.
“Such rules are a suppression of the rights of the Dayaks to practise Christianity. The extension of such rules in MRSM colleges will only promote the feeling of oppression amongst the Christian students in these colleges,” he said.
“These rules will give the perception that Muslims cannot tolerate the existence and practices of other religions. This may be the case in West Malaysia, but surely is not the case in Sarawak,” he added.
Chong (right) warned that in the long run, the existence of such rules in MSRM would brainwash Muslim students resulting them in being non-tolerant of other religions and this would eventually divide the country.
Chong called on the Sarawak government to intervene and to do away with such rules in the MRSM colleges in Sarawak which he alleged were the product of Umno’s 'racist and extremist' policies.
At a press conerence in Kuching today, chairperson Edward Andrew Luwak said the restrictions included not bringing religious items to the colleges like crosses and Bibles, the banning of home-prepared food and disallowing the students from using the college’s transport to go to churches and back.
Andrew said the guidelines also extended to former technical secondary schools which have now been converted to technical colleges.
“These restrictions and guidelines are preventing the Dayak parents from sending their children to such colleges as they fear their children may be influenced by Islamic teachings,” he said, pointing out this shouldn't be the case as the colleges were funded by taxpayers’ money.The Dayaks were therefore deprived of opportunities to obtain a good education at the colleges, he said.
At the same press conference, Sarawak DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen said MRSM students’ guidelines were ‘trampling’ on the constitutional rights of the Dayaks and other non-Muslim Bumiputera.
“The government should take immediate steps to abolish such discriminatory students’ guidelines,” said Chong, who is MP for Bandar Kuching and state assemblyperson for Kota Sentosa.
Students brainwashed
He agreed that under the rules, MRSM Dayak students could not hold any private prayer groups, could not wear a cross, and could not bring their own home-cooked food into the colleges.
“Such rules are a suppression of the rights of the Dayaks to practise Christianity. The extension of such rules in MRSM colleges will only promote the feeling of oppression amongst the Christian students in these colleges,” he said.“These rules will give the perception that Muslims cannot tolerate the existence and practices of other religions. This may be the case in West Malaysia, but surely is not the case in Sarawak,” he added.
Chong (right) warned that in the long run, the existence of such rules in MSRM would brainwash Muslim students resulting them in being non-tolerant of other religions and this would eventually divide the country.
Chong called on the Sarawak government to intervene and to do away with such rules in the MRSM colleges in Sarawak which he alleged were the product of Umno’s 'racist and extremist' policies.
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