Malaysia can handle its ethnic issue, says PM
By Minu Jain, IANSTuesday, October 26, 2010
KUALA LUMPUR - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Wednesday he was confident that Malaysia had the ability to handle its ethnic issue.
“Like India, Malaysia is multi-cultural and multi-ethnic. I am confident that the Malaysian system has the built-in flexibility” to tackle the issue, Manmohan Singh said.
The prime minister’s observation came in response to a question on Malaysia’s handling of its largely Tamil Indian minority.
Before Manmohan Singh could answer, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak intervened to say: “This is purely a matter for Malaysia.”
People of Indian origin account for 2.1 million or eight percent of Malaysia’s population. Most of them are Tamils and Hindus.
(Minu Jain can be contacted at minu.jain@ians.in)
