The Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) has drawn up an 18-point resolution on the rights of Indian Malaysians, which will be submitted to the prime minister next month.

The document demands that the government declassifies all suggestions and recommendations made by Reid Commission, which drafted the Federal Constitution prior to independence.

It also wants the government to translate and reproduce copies of the Federal Constitution in languages preferred by locals, as it is only available in English and Bahasa Malaysia currently.

Other than that, the resolution calls on the government to maintain Malaysia's status as a secular state as provided for by the Reid Commission and to end Islamic fundamentalism and extremism.

Another item insists on the repeal of legal provisions guaranteeing the special privileges of the Malays and for equal treatment to be extended to all citizens.

Other points listed in the resolution relate to:
Full revamp of National Integration Policy
Reinstatement of Pupil's Own Language classes in national schools.
Preserving places of worship
Affirmative-action plans for the Indian community

The resolution was unveiled at a public forum themed '50 years of Violations of the Federal Constitution by the Malaysian Government', organised by Hindraf on Saturday.

Some 1,000 participants unanimously supported the move to submit the resolution to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Aug 12.

'Where's the review?'

Lawyers P Uthayakumar, R Gangatharan, K Arumugam and P Waytha Moorthy - who were the panelists - highlighted the government's violations of the constitution.

The forum was conducted based on declassified documents involving the work of the Reid Commission which Uthayakumar had recently obtained from England.

A 41-page booklet, based on information obtained from the documents, was distributed to participants. It gives a detailed account of issues discussed by Reid Commission at every meeting and memoranda submitted by various organisations at the time.

"We called Universiti Malaya to get hold of this (material) when we initiated the research, but were told that these are classified documents. However, in England these documents have long been declassified," said Uthayakumar.

"We're celebrating our 50th year of independence, but these important documents are still classified. The information reveals that the government has violated the constitution in many ways."

Gangatharan, commenting on Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's recent declaration that Malaysia is an Islamic state, said: "It's clearly stated by the commission that Malaysia is a secular state. Our government has violated this by (calling it) an Islamic state."

He also said the special privileges of the Malays should have been reviewed 15 years after independence, as stated in the documents, but that this has not been done.

"We understand that the Malays needed (assistance at the time) but Parliament should have reviewed the matter after 15 years. It has not happened, after 50 years. Why hasn't the Parliament done this?"

Hindraf chairperson Waytha Moorthy, who concluded the forum, urged Indians not to be afraid in demanding their rights.

"Certain parties will always try to threaten us by saying that we should not question the 'social contract' made in 1957, and some will even wield the keris to scare us," he said.

"We are not immigrants and we have been always loyal to the country, so why are we being marginalised?"