news feature

Despite its modest facade, the Kedah town of Baling has been the stage for many significant events, political and historical.

It was here that the historic Baling truce talks took place in 1955 between the late Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj and Chin Peng, leader of the now defunct Malayan Communist Party, though in the end they could not come to an agreement.

Baling was also the site for a mass demonstration in 1974 by the Action Front of the National Union of Malaysian Islamic Students for farmers rights, which etched the political beginnings of Anwar Ibrahim, who was then the leader of the Malaysian Muslim Youth Association.

On Nov 19, 1985, Baling once again made headlines but this time blood was spilled on its soil.

The polices attempt to arrest a local Islamic teacher and ex-PAS electoral candidate led to a bloody clash which left 14 people dead and scores others injured in the village of Memali.

The imam , Ibrahim Mahmood or better known as Ibrahim Libya, was accused of fanning anti-government sentiments and spreading deviant teachings among the villagers and encouraging them to clash with security forces.

Ibrahim himself was killed in the incident which also saw the deaths of four police personnel and 13 other civilians. He was later hailed as a martyr by PAS.

Blood thicker than water

Today, villagers in Memali and its surrounding areas have more or less forgotten about the tragedy. As the adage goes, Blood is thicker than water. Despite their political differences  some PAS, others Umno  most of the villagers here are related.

"They went on with their daily lives and tried to forget the tragedy," Mohd Yusof Hussein, 48, who was the right-hand man of Ibrahim Libya, told malaysiakini when met in Baling.

What outsiders are unaware of, is that local Umno and PAS supporters have refrained from discussing the tragedy and thus the recent airing of the Memali clip on the state-owned RTM rekindled unpleasant memories.

"It dragged the people back into the dark memories of the past. It could move the political focus back to the 1985 sentiment," said Yusof, who is now Kedah PAS information officer.

Following the clashes, Yusof was detained for almost a year under the Internal Security Act.

He was detained under the security law again during the infamous 1987 Operasi Lalang for raising issues related to the Memali incident during a PAS ceramah (public talk).

Sensitive subject

Requesting anonymity, several local leaders told malaysiakini that the Memali tragedy has once again become a sensitive subject ever since the government began airing the clip.

This writer himself felt it when he informed them of his intention to snap a photograph of the late Ibrahim Libyas house. A PAS leader promptly said he would accompany the writer in case people there mistook him for being a journalist from a government-controlled press, which are not looked upon benignly right now.

The PAS leader said the airing of the Memali programme has re-awakened dormant emotions.

Although the government on March 12 said it will stop airing the controversial clip, a majority of local Umno and PAS supporters say the clip should not have been aired at all.

They said national level leaders have overlooked the sensitivity of the Baling, especially Memali, residents.

They also criticised PAS leaders for continuing to highlight the issue despite the governments order for the clip to be taken off air.

Local leaders hold the view that PAS top brass, including its president Fadzil Noor, should welcome the governments decision and stop harping on the issue.

"That is what PAS wanted in the first place. But we were surprised when Fadzil said the party would continue to raise the Memali issue at its ceramah to refute the governments allegations," one of leaders said.

PAS claims the Memali clip and other government propaganda are being aired on RTM to demonise the Muslim party as fundamentalist and extremist.

Though the governments decision to stop airing the clip may have reduced political tension, several analysts, however, expressed concern over the lack of clarity in both Umno and PAS stand on the issue  both parties are still trading accusations over who was responsible for the tragedy.

As far as the locals are concerned, said a leader, there will be no problems if PAS and Umno do not raise the issue.

But one unvoiced fear is that Memali and its haunted past  a political flashpoint for PAS and Umno  will still be capilitalised on by both parties come the next general elections.