YOURSAY 'By denying Chin Peng his last wish, the government had inadvertently erected a monument for Chin Peng in the heart of the people.'

Zahid fears Chin Peng's ashes would lead to memorial

Tholu: Home Minister Zahid Hamidi, so what if a memorial is built in honour of Chin Peng? Is that going to threaten the security of the nation?

And how is bringing back his ashes going to evoke anger and sorrow of the family members of people who had been slain by the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) a long time ago, be they the British, Japanese or the locals themselves?

Going by your logic, no British or Japanese should be allowed to lay foot on our soil as their ancestors had been responsible for the killing of thousands of Malaysians.

What if Chin Peng had been killed by our security forces on our land during his heyday of communist activity? Would you have surrendered his remains to his next of kin and ordered him/her to conduct his funeral and bury his remains elsewhere and not in this country?

There is no need to build a monument to commemorate a dead man's past. The whole of Malaysia is already immortalising him now, courtesy of the racist government politicians.

Bash: Why as a minister you are so naive? If someone wishes to erect a memorial on a private land, can you stop it? It need not have remains of the deceased too. Zahid, it seems the more you talk, the more you have verbal diarrhoea.

Hornbill Will Soar: That's right, it's not about the ashes. Ashes is not a prerequisite to build a memorial.

Ashes or no ashes, a memorial can still be established. So what you going to do now? Get that brain-dead lapdog IGP (inspector-general of police) to set up a memorial squad?

Anak Perak: After reading all sorts of comments in Malaysiakini for a week, from those who are knowledgeable as well as those who are not, all I can say is Chin Peng had made a very big mistake in his life!

The mistake was joining the CPM and going into the jungle because had he not done so, probably today he would be a big-time tycoon and probably, Zahid would still be on one of the streets in Jakarta playing his ukelele or directing traffic to earn his keep, and many of those Umno ministers would still be some small-time government officers or even drivers, etc. So many possibilities.

Iiiizzzziiii: History will judge what kind of a leader you are by your deeds. It reminds of a hero called Hang Tuah.

Forty years ago, a whole chapter in our obsolete history book was devoted to his exploits, expounding his courage, honesty and loyalty. He was known as "wira Melayu" then. Today, our history book only makes a mere passing statement about this historical figure. So, what happened here?

Changing or distorting history is a sign of those with an inferiority complex. What do they hope to achieve?

If someone wanted to create something to honour Chin Peng, doesn't this come under 'creative licence'? If this cannot be done, then what kind of warped freedom are we talking about here?

Intheair: I know very little about our Malayan history during the Japanese occupation. Indeed, very little has been written on this period of history.

Apart from CPM, who else were fighting the Japanese invaders after the British withdrew to defend their motherland in Europe. During the occupation, what were the roles of those who formed Umno in 1946 - just a few years later?

Asitis: By denying Chin Peng his last wish and thus hyping up the issue in eyes of the Malaysian public, the government had inadvertently erected a monument for Chin Peng in the heart of the people.

Because of the attention created by this issue, many young Malaysians, who prior to this knew little of Chin Peng and his contribution to the nation, had taken the trouble to find out more about him.

And the information they discovered about him had endeared them to Chin Peng. They may not agree with his ideology nor his methodology. But they cannot deny his contribution to the nation and the fact that this was a man who live and die for his principles.

At this juncture in the history of our nation, when racist and religious bigotry are running rampant and condoned by those who hold the reins of power, what this nation needs is a hero figure.

The government may have unwittingly turn Chin Peng into exactly that with their refusal of a dead man's last wish.

Adsertor: You do not need ashes to set up a memorial. Chin Peng was a freedom fighter but he was also fighting for an ideology that was not acceptable to Malaysians.

So will there be popular support for a memorial? I doubt so. It is Umno that is making him into a giant when he was merely another of the numerous freedom fighters who we are grateful to for their contribution towards gaining us independence.

Anonymous #40538199: In today's context, corruption is a greater threat than communism in Malaysia.

Cantabrigian: Most Malaysians don't care whether Chin Peng's ashes would be brought back to Malaysia or not; it's only Umno making a story out of nothing just to spice up the Umno election.

Fair Play: You can prevent the ashes from returning to Malaysia in order to satisfy your fear of a memorial being built. But the biggest fear that you fear is that you really have no control.

From henceforth, Chin Peng's death would be remembered when the rakyat celebrate Malaysia Day each year, shrine or no shrine.

James1067: Memorial or not, Chin Peng played a part in the formation of this nation. Whether what he did was right or wrong will be decided by the people who want to know the real history and not the distorted one.

The memory of Chin Peng will live in our history as a villian or hero and nobody can take that right from him whatever we may do.

Onyourtoes: Hey nincompoop, can you make up your mind? What exactly is the reason now - Chinese, communist, non-citizen, terrorist, atrocity and cruelty inflicted, hurting the feelings of veterans (as if only they have feelings), communist worshiping and now a memorial?

I tell you what; you should have listed out all these from day one. It is easier for you and for us.

Coming soon, 'Tanda Chin Peng'

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.