Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has marked the country's independence day by calling for unity amid simmering racial and religious tensions.

In a message celebrating 49 years since the country gained independence from Britain, Abdullah called for Malaysia's ethnic groups to respect and cooperate with each other.

"The solidarity of Malaysians is our strength, we need to ensure that we maintain that strength," Abdullah was quoted as saying late Wednesday by the state Bernama news agency.

His message follows a controversial statement by his son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin, who earlier this month said the Chinese community could seize the opportunity to make demands if the dominant Umno was weak.

His statement prompted an outcry from MCA, a partner in the ruling coalition, which has demanded that Khairy apologise.

Malaysia saw deadly race riots between Malays and Chinese in 1969 which were sparked by political rivalries and anger over the economic disparities among the races.

In his speech Abdullah warned Malaysians against fomenting tensions.

"What causes hardship to us, we must avoid, that's the meaning of learning from history," he said.

'Irresponsible race politicking'

Parliamentary opposition leader Lim Kit Siang said in a statement late yesterday the independence celebrations had been "marred by irresponsible race politicking".

Lim said Abdullah had pledged "to be prime minister for all Malaysians and not just for one community, asking Malaysians to work with him and not for him."

The government promotes its record of maintaining harmony but has acknowledged concerns over the increasing polarisation of the races and a lack of social unity.

The country's ethnic and religious minorities also complain their rights are trampled on by the majority Muslim Malays, further straining ties.

Abdullah has said all political parties should stop raising sensitive issues related to religion and race.

He has also put a halt to the discussion of religious issues that might cause ethnic strain.