The series of letters to malaysiakini calling for the closure of Tamil schools should not be taken seriously as the writers appear to be taking the easy way out.

They have not addressed the real issue faced by these schools and the Indian Malaysian community - poverty.

That is the real issue. That and about five decades of direct discrimination of the Indian community by the government of the day. About 90 percent of the pupils who attend Tamil schools are from the lower income group. As such, it is either Tamil school for them or no school at all.

Even after 47 years of independence, a majority of these schools (376 out of 524) are yet to be fully aided . The only lame excuse is that these schools are on private land.

Malaysians know that these lands can be compulsorily acquired by the stroke of a pen and Tamil schools thereafter can be converted into fully-aided school overnight.

As show of sincerity and not to be perceived as merely armchair critics, I would like to invite these detractors to move forward, be more positive and pro-active. Towards this, they could join us in embarking on a campaign to convince the government for the following:

1.That all Tamil schools be made fully government aided with teaching staff, resources, buildings, computers, Internet access, library, sports and extra curricular facilities on par with those of national schools.

2. That top Tamil schools in the district be converted into fully residential schools.

3. That better qualified teachers and graduates be assigned to teach in these schools.

4. That the government of the day abide by the Federal Constitution, the Education Act and the United Nations Charter on Education in ensuring equal access to education for all.

5. That the government of the day stops its discriminatory education policies, in particular those against Tamil schools.

6. That Tamil school pupils are given equal opportunity to secondary education and admission into fully residential schools.

7. That libraries in all Tamil schools are fully-equipped with ample facilities and study cubicles. These libraries should have longer operating hours with teachers in attendance bearing in mind that most of their underprivileged pupils do not have a conducive studying environment at home.

8. That text books, stationery, uniforms, school bags and adequate pocket money are made available to Tamil school pupils as a bulk of them are from the lower income group.

9. That the government embarks on an affirmative action plan to make up for the years of discrimination and marginalisation of the Indian community that has led to the current pathetic state of affairs in Tamil schools.

10. That all of the above is in line with the New Economic Policy's aim of eradicating poverty irrespective of race (not selective eradication of poverty).

In my opinion, the above are fair and equitable requests when our political masters are talking about world-class educational institutions in Malaysia. Our prime minister has called on us to speak the truth. So why are we afraid to speak up and tell the truth?

There seem to be no takers for the above fair and just proposals especially by from Tamil school critics. One may assume that is so because the above aims are hard nuts to crack'or that one might have to go against the flow or that it may not be a 'popular cause' or that it may not appeal to the majority.

This does not mean that we should resort to finding an easy way out and call for the closure of all Tamil schools. Education - especially for the poor and the underprivileged - should transcend all racial and other prejudices.

The easy way out for these critics is to blame unscrupulous politicians, Tamil education proponents, Tamil school teachers/headmasters, emotions and even genes. But for obvious reasons, the same critics do not want to point a finger at the state.

Tamil school critics should not to take the easy way out but take the bull by the horns. They can take a leaf from the SRJK (C) Damansara Chinese school campaigners who took a pro-active stance to safeguard that school.

In the case of Tamil schools, it would help a great deal if the matter is brought directly to the attention of those at the highest political levels. For example, one could write directly to the prime minister, the education minister, the economic planning unit and the implementation and co-ordination unit of the Prime Minister's Department.

We could also enlighten the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Unicef and other world bodies on the inequalities and injustices involving even basic primary school education in our country.

The last thing one should do is to bring this matter to the MIC leadership as they are merely there to serve their own personal interests. Please deal directly with the real policy and decision makers.

Justice in and equal opportunity to education should rightfully be made available to all irrespective of race so that the optimum potential of the country's human resources can be realised.