Former Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin described the acts of "certain parties" fanning racial sentiments as un-Islamic.

"The act of certain parties fanning racial issues recently is an act of ignorance that is against Islamic principles.

NONE "It could lead to the destruction of the society and nation, especially in a multi-racial country like Malaysia," he said in a press statement today.

He warned that such action could lead to tension and conflict due to racial prejudice.

"It is haram for Muslims to fan racism or victimise innocent parties simply because of their skin colour or descent.

"It is our obligation to show the beauty of the universality of Islam to all so that it can be accepted by all mankind," he said.

He added that all individuals should be judged by their character and not skin colour.

'Race-baiting in Umno's daily'

NONE The comments come days after Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia's headline screamed "What more do the Chinese want" after BN suffered its worst performance in history at the polls.

The headline came after Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak attributed BN's losses to a "Chinese tsunami" and the Malay-language daily had since intensified its attacks against the Chinese community and DAP.

Najib had since defended Utusan's race-baiting, accusing Chinese dailies of doing the same.

Call to end Chinese schools

Meanwhile, Gabungan NGO Islam (GNI) called for an end to Chinese vernacular schools as "language and culture has been a barrier to unity" in Malaysia.

"We propose that the government absorb these schools to become national schools using a single language, with other languages such as Chinese, Tamil and Arabic also being thought and made compulsory," said its representative Mohd Farid Hassan.

Mohd Farid said 44 years after the 1969 race riots, Malaysians still failed to "understand the sensitivity and respect among races and has caused dissatisfaction among one another...".

He added that this was brought to fore in the recently concluded general election and the provocations made by all groups.

Mohd Farid, who claims GNI to be made up of 100 Malay and Muslim NGOs, said sacrifices were necessary to achieve the national aspirations and hoped that come May 13 this year, it will be remembered as a day of unity.