Allow me to refer to the news report in Utusan Melayu on Nov 26 entitled UKM siasat dakwaan ada pihak cuba iktiraf bekas komunis in which the university authorities said that action would be taken against teaching staff who were involved in the publication of memoirs by ex-communists.

This is like flogging a dead horse. Communism, insofar as Malaysia is concerned, is dead. The government of Malaysia and the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) signed an agreement in Thailand in 1989 putting the long-drawn guerrilla warfare to an end, paving the way for the return of the ex-communists to Malaysia.

Some chose not to, but others came back. They were given amnesty. In other words, they have been pardoned.

Raising this communist bogey, to say the least, is pathetic; typical of those bankrupt of ideas. We should remember that Malaysia and other non-communist countries in Asean are working closely with other communist countries, now making Asean 10.

We have had a very open mind with regards to these communist countries. Why can't we be as open-minded with the ex-communists as well? Since we have overcome our problems with the communists in the country, we should just let bygones be bygones.

Give these ex-communists a chance to do their bit in the service of the nation. The government has pardoned them and we should all follow the government's footsteps.

People say history is written by winners and not losers. In the struggle for Independence, Umno was the winner and CPM the loser. Whether we like it or not, there are gaps in history and these are normally filled by the losers.

Since communists and their struggle were part of our history, let the ex-communists tell their side of the story. Historians will be able to evaluate what they have written. We are not that gullible to accept whatever they have written lock, stock and barrel.

The fact that the memoirs are being published now should not be of much concern. When else could they have written or published their writings, during the emergency? Definitely not.

Their books could not possibly have been written and published if the peace agreement was not signed. Even if they were written earlier they could not have been published due to the Emergency. Let the prevailing peace situation be an opportunity for us to know our complete history.

History will not lose its grandeur just because two memoirs written by some small-time ex-communists such Shamsiah Fakeh and Ibrahim Chik are published. History, as written by the winner, will not be eclipsed by just these two memoirs.