updated version The Malaysian Chinese Organisations' Election Appeals Committee (Suqiu) has "set aside" seven of its 83-sub points considered "sensitive" following a closed door meeting with Umno Youth in a hotel in Kuala Lumpur today.

Citing "escalating ethnic tension" as the primary consideration for its decision, both Umno Youth and Suqiu announced this decision via a written statement at a joint press conference.

The seven sub-points set aside are:

- Affirmative action should be based on the protection and enhancement of the status of the weaker sectors and not on race, social background and religious belief;

- Take steps to abolish in all aspects, the "Bumiputra and non-Bumiputra" distinction;

- Distribute land fairly and justly to all farmers of all ethnic communities;

- Abolish the quota system based on "race" and replace it with a means-tested sliding scale;

- Introduce a system of student grants and loans for all, irrespective of ethnicity, based on a means-tested sliding scale;

- Relinquish the racial-based quota system for university admission; and

- All Malaysian religions should receive fair treatment in their propagation, development and official financial support as well as access to the media.

This means that the above seven points will not be discussed by Umno Youth and Suqiu. However, both parties said they will proceed to discuss the other 76 sub-points contained in the 17-point election appeals.

They include issues on human rights, corruption, press freedom, the environment, housing and rights of workers and other marginalised groups.

No comment

Umno Youth and Suqiu reiterated that those points which touched on Malay special rights and indigenous rights of any of the states of Sabah and Sarawak, as provided for in Section 153 of the Federal Constitution, should not to be questioned.

Both parties regretted the unintended reactions from the Malay and Chinese communities which had resulted from some "sensitive" sub-points.

Umno Youth and Suqiu leaders who were present at the press conference declined to entertain questions from the press and there was no one available to clarify what was meant by "setting aside" of the seven sub-points or how they were considered "sensitive".

When asked about the reaction of all 2,096 Chinese organisations who had signed the election appeal, Suqiu chairperson Quek Suan Hiang stated, "We will be waiting to see what their reaction is."

Quek refused to comment further and walked away with a flurry of reporters following him.