PAS will continue to push for democratic changes by first repealing the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (PPPA) if the party comes into power, said acting president Abdul Hadi Awang.

Speaking to some 150 guests at a dinner talk organised by the National Press Club o­n Monday, he said the media in a democratic country should be able to report news in a free and fair manner.

Hadi claimed that PAS wants a healthy government which knows about its wrongdoings through media reports.

"The media should be allowed to do their job with no political interference. It is up to the people to decide (whether to believe the reports or not)," he said at the talk themed 'PAS' offer to Malaysians'.

Asked if PAS would repeal the PPPA, he replied "Yes".

Parliamentary democracy

Elaborating, he said many Western countries which PAS has often criticised deserve some praise in respect of media freedom at least.

"Sometimes I feel so ashamed. These are the countries we always criticise but, like it or not, they have a healthier media than what we have," he noted.

"In the United States, it was the Watergate scandal, as reported by the media, that had pressured President Richard Nixon to step down."

He said PAS was committed to parliamentary democracy and has never resorted to violence to seek power.

"We were not involved in the (1969) racial riots. We waited some 30 years before we recaptured Terengganu (in 1999), and 12 years before we recaptured Kelantan (in 1990). We have been patient and we will continue to work for results," he said.

On the New Economic Policy (NEP), which was introduced shortly after the riots, Hadi said PAS would o­nly continue with the "positive part" of the policy and do away with the "negative part".

"In Islam, poor people - regardless of race, origin and faith - must be given assistance. If a Malay is poor, then we help him. If a Chinese is poor, we help him too," Hadi said.

"The problem with NEP is that this help is given to cronies Umno-putera among the bumiputera and not really to those in need. We must correct this and make sure that the distribution of wealth is truly just and fair."

Education policy

Touching o­n a range of education issues, the PAS chief said the party subscribes to the vision of a plural system.

"Different ethnic groups should be allowed to use their mother tongue. They can even set up universities where their mother tongue is used as the medium of teaching if they wish to," he said.

However, he also said PAS encourages people to learn as many foreign languages as possible o­nce they master their mother tongue and have acquired basic knowledge.

"The attainment of higher education using foreign languages such as French, Spanish or German will help to enhance o­ne's knowledge," he said.

He explained that PAS had o­nly opposed the government's proposal to teach Science and Mathematics in English in primary schools because pupils can best acquire knowledge during their formative years in a language familiar to them.

He said his party had expressed concern about people's religious schools (SAR or sekolah agama rakyat) o­n grounds of championing plurality.

"SAR cannot be compared to national schools because they have a different emphasis. Some SAR graduates may not be as successful as their counterparts from national schools in academic performance, but they have become better people with better morals and ethics," he said.

"SAR students are also seldom involved in social problems. The schools have contributed a lot to the country. The success of education cannot be measured in just monetary terms."

He said PAS was worried that, by withdrawing the annual per capitation grant to SAR, the government had succumbed to US pressure to link Islam with militancy.

"After the Sept 11 attacks, the US had asked several Muslim countries to revamp their Islamic education system because the schools are said to have produce militants," he alleged.

"President George W Bush dislikes Islam. He thinks it is a violent religion. I hope the government does not get trapped by the US agenda."

Islamic state option

In response to a question as to whether PAS' Islamic state would marginalise non-Muslims in administration, Hadi said non-Muslims with proven ability would be allowed to hold high positions in the cabinet and other government agencies.

But, he added, the head of government must be a Muslim as the scope of work would include the supervision of matters pertaining to Islamic laws and their implementation.

"In a communist country, you can't have a capitalist leading the government, because that is (against) the ideology," he explained.

On implementation of hudud in Terengganu, Hadi, who is the Menteri Besar, said the crime rate has dropped by 50 percent since the state passed the Syariah Criminal Offences (Hudud and Qisas) enactment last July.

The law will not be enforced until several "technical problems" are sorted out. The federal government holds that the law contravenes the constitution.

"Lay people do not know much about amendments to the laws and the constitution. Although hudud is not implemented yet, they know that (under this law) if they steal, they will have their hands cut off. This deters them from committing crimes," Hadi said.

"In hearing a case, while most judges seek to convict the (accused), judges under Islamic laws seek to release them. That's why there are strict conditions to abide by, if hudud penalties are imposed."

He said people of Terengganu and Kelantan, both ruled by PAS governments, should be allowed to choose whether or not they want Islamic laws to be implemented.

"People will choose for themselves, while we will try to persuade them to accept an idea. There is no coercion. This is what is meant by democracy," he added.