Billboards in Kedah - 'This is Tanah Melayu, not negeri orang putih'
Mansor Zakaria, the Kedah local government and health exco, is confident that making the usage of Jawi mandatory as the second script, after the Roman alphabet, on all billboards and signboards in the PAS-led state would not disrupt racial harmony.
“We want people to recognise that when they come to Kedah, they are in Tanah Melayu, Malaysia. We are not a ‘negeri orang putih’ (Western nation) or anything like that. We want people to understand and be able to read.
Summary
Kedah exco Mansor Zakaria says mandating the use of Jawi as the second script on signboards in the state will show visitors that they are in “Tanah Melayu, Malaysia”, not “negeri orang putih” (Western country).
Mansor says the measure will also encourage the use of Jawi, adding that many existing signboards are already using it without issues.
Provocative images of women and racial messages are prohibited, he adds.
Mansor Zakaria, the Kedah local government and health exco, is confident that making Jawi mandatory as the second script, after the Roman alphabet, on all billboards and signboards in the PAS-led state would not disrupt racial harmony.
“We want people to recognise that when they come to Kedah, they are in Tanah Melayu, Malaysia. We are not a ‘negeri orang putih’ (Western nation) or anything like that. We want people to understand and be able to read.
“That is why we want the Roman alphabet to be a mandatory script on billboards,” he said, explaining that the Jawi script would serve as a secondary script to encourage its use.
According to Harakah Daily, Mansor said many signs or billboards already used Jawi as a secondary script, and there have been no issues.
Therefore, he added that non-Muslim communities should not feel afraid or worried about the proposal and suggestion.
No provocative images of women, racial messages
On the prohibition of displaying provocative images of women, he described it as a good approach to prevent the exploitation or objectification of women.
He stressed that women must be respected and protected from being treated in such a way that solely aims to boost product sales or other purposes.
As for barring writings with racial overtones, he said these have the potential to disrupt racial harmony and could threaten stability and unity among the diverse communities in the state.
“This means the enforcement we will implement will protect women’s rights and maintain harmony among us. Here in Kedah, we want the people to live peacefully, united, and tolerant.
“We do not want displays or writings intended to undermine racial harmony and divide the community,” Mansor added.
These matters, he explained, form the foundation of a state, and everything displayed should benefit the public.
‘Non-Malays shouldn’t be concerned’
Mansor advised all communities, especially non-Malays, not to be concerned or perceive the proposal negatively.
“We are proposing something good because, as a government, we want positive initiatives to set an example for the community.
“The script we are mandating, which is the Roman alphabet, can be read by all segments of society and the majority of the state’s population,” he added.
Previously, Mansor said there were criticisms, especially from Chinese-language newspapers, following his statement on the usage of the Jawi script.
“Although there are many comments in Chinese-language newspapers and others, we hope the people of this country and state will not view the matter negatively but instead see it from a positive perspective,” he added.
On Jan 14, Mansor said other languages could also be used as a third script on billboards.
