'Chinese schools sow racism': Prof doubles down, says Teresa in denial

'Chinese schools sow racism': Prof doubles down, says Teresa in denial

Published: Mar 5, 2024 2:10 PM


Teo Kok Seong has defended his charge that Chinese schools propagate racism, which led to DAP lawmaker Teresa Kok calling for the police to investigate the principal fellow with the National Professors Council.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, he also said Kok was in “denial” over the realities among the Chinese Malaysian community.

“I did not say anything wrong. Everything that I had said is correct. It is the reality of conversations among the Chinese community,” he added.

Teo claimed that conversations with a negative perception of the Malay and Indian communities were a norm among generations of Chinese in Malaysia, and this has become more visible with the advent of social media.

“The comments (on social media) are largely disparaging of the Malays,” said the former principal fellow with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Institute for Ethnic Studies.

Teo had first raised the issue during an interview with The Merdeka Times.

“The reporter asked ‘Why do such (racial) problems still persist today?’, so I stated the truth.

“One of the reasons (for the situation) was that I found the Chinese have looked down on the Malays.

“They refuse to integrate. They will only learn the basic (Malay language) to pass examinations, but object when asked to do more,” he alleged.

Teo, who was involved in drafting the National Education Blueprint 2013-2025, claimed that even Malays and Indians are aware of this sentiment among the Chinese community.

In a TikTok video posted by The Merdeka Times, the professor claimed that vernacular schools can be a stumbling block to national unity as Chinese students who were less intelligent could only master the Mandarin language, preventing communication with other races.


‘Assimilation better for unity’

Teo, who was born in Kelantan, claimed that even his “peranakan” community had faced discrimination from the majority of Chinese who did not assimilate with the local culture.

At the same time, he said the “peranakan” Chinese also looked down on the local Siamese community, but he grew up to realise that the ethnic minority was better off due to their bumiputera status.

“Such views are ingrained and so, yes, she’s in a state of denial,” Teo insisted when commenting on Kok’s remarks.

Unlike neighbouring countries Indonesia and Thailand with past administrations that enforced the assimilation of ethnic Chinese with the majority, Teo said prominent Chinese leaders in Malaysia had consistently resisted such plans.

“We (Malaysia) chose integration, and the outcome of it can be seen today,” he added.

On the contrary, Teo argued that minority Chinese and Indians in Malaysia who chose to assimilate with the Malay culture and create their own sub-ethnic groups including Baba Nyonya and Chitties have been more well accepted by the majority.

“While there was a strong resistance against assimilation, it can be seen how it has been better for unity of the people,” he added.

In her debate of the royal address in Parliament yesterday, Kok condemned Teo’s “racist and twisted statements” which she claimed distorted the relationship between the Malay and Chinese communities.