Don't allow Chin Peng's body to return as the former Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) secretary-general had chalked up too many sins against Malaysia, said an ex-army general, recalling how he battled the guerilla leader in the early 1980s.

Chin Peng's return would be an insult to all war veterans, General Mohd Ghazali Mohd Seth was quoted as saying by Utusan Malaysia .

"I personally carried the injured and dead warriors' bodies back from the battlefield," Mohd Ghazali, who is also the Retired Armed Forces Officers’ Club (Rafoc) chairperson, said.

He recalled a bloody battle in Sungai Siput, where many of his subordinate soldiers fell casualty to the communists' cruelty.

"They had fought to the death to ensure that Chin Peng's doctrine is wiped out," Mohd Ghazali said.

He claimed that the communists had killed 2,083 members of the Malaysian security forces and added that he fully backed the government's resolve not to let Chin Peng, described as "the traitor" to the nation, have even an inch of sympathy.

In a separate article, Utusan also reported that Department of Veterans Affairs (JHEV) director Maj-Gen Mohd Noor Daud had warned against making Chin Peng a hero or a freedom fighter as he refused to lay down arms even after Malaysia achieved independence from the British.

He, too, opposed the return of Chin Peng’s body.

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