KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, October 16, 2008: The Malaysian Government has banned the non-governmental Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), branding it as a threat to national security. Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar issued a statement declaring Hindraf, which has been advocating ethnic Indian rights since late last year, as an illegal organisation.
“As a result of the investigations, the Home Ministry has declared Hindraf unlawful and detrimental to peace, public order, security and the moral values of Malaysia,” he said in the statement. Hindraf came into international focus after it organised a massive rally on November 25 last year to protest marginalization of the ethnic Indian minority in this country. More than 20,000 people attended the rally, branded as illegal by the government. The large participation took the Abdullah Badawi government by shock.
A large section of the ethnic Indians supported the Hindraf as they felt that the Malaysian Indian Congress had done little to uplift the community over the past several decades.
An opposition MP has called the government’s decision to ban Hindraf as ridiculous and uncalled for, adding that he would move an emergency motion asking for an open debate in Parliament today. “This is against the interest and aspirations of the Indian community that is seeking a more tolerant and fair government,” M Kulasegaran said, adding that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had agreed to hold a dialogue with Hindraf leaders but “nothing was done.”