An attempt by malaysiakini to obtain clarification from a primary school in Kedah as to why it had screened a Tamil movie for its pupils, was met with a rude response.

When contacted, a school official who refused to identify himself asked the reporter if she had watched the movie.

When she replied no, he said: "You should watch it so that you can write a review about it."

The annoyed official then added: "It was an Indian teacher who screened the movie and she had no problems (with it)."

In Parliament on Monday, Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang read a letter of complaint from a parent regarding the screening of the movie and urged the Education Ministry to investigate the matter.

In the letter, G Vimaleson, whose daughter is a standard one pupil in SK High-Tech in Kulim, expressed anger with the school authorities for screening the movie.

He said the movie, called Pokiri (thug), contained much violence and the songs had lewd meanings.

According to him, some 60 non-Malay pupils in standard one to six were shown the movie on April 18 and 19.

"The Malays students had a special activity on those days and non-Malay students were gathered in a classroom to watch the movie.

"I don't watch this type of movies at home and I don't allow my children to watch them as well," he said, asking if the school was trying to instill violent and immoral traits in its pupils.

Written explanation

Vimaleson said he was told about the movie screening by his daughter and then verified it with other parents.

Following this, he said he wrote a letter of complaint to the headmaster as well as the Parent-Teacher Association chairperson but had yet to receive a response.

He also claimed that the school had a history of remaining tightlipped.

"In January, the school collected money from parents of standard one pupils for name tags. Until now, the tags have not been given. I did not receive any response from the school to my e-mail on this matter," he said.

As for the latest controversy, Vimaleson demanded a written explanation from the school.

"I want to know why there were no lessons for non-Malays students on April 18 and 19, and why the school chose to show a Tamil movie," he said.

"They could have shown documentaries instead of a Tamil movie. But then, not having classes for three or four hours on two consecutive days is not acceptable," he added.