KUCHING: Datuk Sebastian Ting Chiew Yew has stressed the importance of protecting the constitutional rights of minorities and ensuring justice when those rights are threatened, particularly by extremist forces seeking political gain.
The Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) secretary-general asserted that the rights of minorities to learn their mother tongues, such as Tamil and Mandarin, should be encouraged in the multi-racial society.
“We wish to ask, why must anyone with some sense resist the desire of others to learn their mother tongue? In fact, we are happy to note that many Malay and Indian parents are sending their children to Chinese vernacular schools to learn Mandarin,” he said in a recent statement.
He pointed out that Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg has openly encouraged Bumiputera parents on multiple occasions to send their children to learn the Chinese language.
“Today, we are living in a borderless world, and learning an additional language or two will put one in good stead in their career, either locally or abroad. Learning and maintaining your mother tongue are essential for personal, cultural, and cognitive reasons.
“It contributes to a sense of identity, strengthens family and community ties, and provides a foundation for academic and professional success.”
Ting added that maintaining one’s mother tongue plays a crucial role in preserving cultural traditions and passing them on to future generations.
“SUPP welcomes the Court of Appeal’s ruling today that vernacular schools are constitutional. The dismissal of the appeal by four non-governmental organisations seeking to declare the use of Chinese and Tamil languages as the medium of instruction in vernacular schools against the Federal Constitution is commendable.
“We applaud the wisdom and knowledge of the three-member panel, namely Judge Supang Lian, M Gunalan, and Azizul Azmi Adnan, who stated that vernacular schools were not a public authority, and as such, the use of Tamil and Mandarin languages as the medium of instruction for teaching in those schools was constitutional.”
