Hindu Dharma Blog

About 100 members of the MIC Youth wing protested the demolition of a Hindu temple by the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council without following proper procedures. The demonstration was held in front of the Selangor state secretariat.

from The Star
MIC protests against demolition

SHAH ALAM: About 100 MIC members demonstrated here to protest the demolition of a Hindu temple by the Ampang Jaya Municipal council recently.

The crowd, which included Indian NGOs, protested at the main gate of the Selangor secretariat building yesterday morning.

Organiser T. Mohan, who is MIC Youth chief, said the PKR government had lied to the people that they would not tear down any places of worship.

“They said no temples would be destroyed, what happened now?” Mohan told reporters the MIC was unhappy with the state government’s action to demolish the Sri Mahakaliaman temple after he presented a memorandum to Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim’s political secretary, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.

The 19-year-old temple was built on forest reserve. It was destroyed and rebuilt several times between 2002 and 2007.

Asked why the MIC did not solve the issue then, Mohan said the party had taken action and that was why the temple was rebuilt.

Kapar MP S. Manicka­vasagam has threatened to quit his post in the Selangor state government if no action is taken against council officers who demolished a Hindu temple without proper authorization.

from The Star
Kapar MP to quit PKR if no action is taken

KLANG: Kapar MP S. Manicka­vasagam has threatened to quit as the Selangor Parti Keadilan Rakyat liaison committee deputy chairman if no action is taken against council officers involved in a Hindu temple demolition exercise in Ampang re­­cently.

Manickavasagam, who is also a PKR supreme council member, said he might even quit the party if he was not satisfied with action taken by the state government.

He said action should be taken against the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) president, its en-forcement chief and other officers involved as the matter was not referred to the state govern-

ment before the temple was demolished.

“The council president also did not inform the two Indian representatives in the council’s board of the action. I have recently learnt that MPAJ sent notices of demolition to 10 other temples in the municipality.

“I feel action must be taken especially against those directly involved as this is serious,” he said. Selangor Health, Estate Workers and Caring Government Committee chairman Dr A. Xavier Jayakumar said he was not satisfied with the council’s interim report.

“MPAJ is conducting an internal probe as the demolition took place without the knowledge of the state exco or MPAJ president, who was in Mecca when it happened,” he told reporters when he visited the temple on Sunday.

Dr Xavier said the temple committee should also take responsibility as they did not apply for permission from the state government to build the temple.

“The mistake is on both sides. The demolition without prior notice from the state government and the building of temple without the state’s approval,” he said.

Temple committee chairman S. Murugiah said they did not receive any notice for the demolition.

by Baradan Kuppusamy

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 29 — The Indian community is rife with talk that Kapar MP S. Manikavasagam, a vocal defender of Indian rights, has resigned as Deputy Liaison Chairman of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Selangor with immediate effect.

All three Tamil dailies headlined stories today reporting his resignation in protest over the demolition of the Sri Maha Kaliamman temple in Ampang Jaya last week.

His aides said he handed the resignation letter to the PKR Selangor chairman this morning. However, Mike, as he is popularly known, later issued a statement saying his resignation will take effect unless action is taken against the errant municipal officials that demolished the temple.

“I will quit as deputy chairman of the PKR Selangor liaison committee if there is no strict against taken against the Majlis Perbandaraan Ampang Jaya officials who were trained by the Barisan Nasional government and who are not professional in carrying out their duties,” he said in the statement, adding he has met the mentri besar’s officials on the matter.

Manikavasagam called for an inquiry committee to investigate the incident and take action against the officials involved, adding he also understood that the municipal council has issued notices to demolish other temples despite the orders being cancelled.

But his website had an unattributed breaking news item confirming he has resigned in protest and wants an apology from the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council for demolishing the temple, a small structure that was about 30 years old and sitting on land classified as agricultural.

Manikavasagam’s aides said he is demanding an apology from the council for breaking a promise that no temples would be demolished in Selangor without the approval of the PR-ruled state government.
In addition, his relationship with Selangor exco member Dr Xavier Jeyakumar has been heading south over this and other issues. Manikavasagam has previously claimed that Dr Xavier has failed to “defend the temples.”

Dr Xavier said last week the Ampang temple was unregistered, but did not say that was the reason it was demolished. However, Indians were infuriated by the “unregistered” remark and that is said to be one of the reasons why Manikavasagam quit today.

Dr Xavier also urged Indians to look at the bigger picture of how PKR was helping Indians and not just attack the party for “failing to defend” temples.

Manikavasagam disagrees, saying “not registered” is unacceptable as that was the excuse given by the BN government to demolish scores of temples in the state and across the country.
“The majority of Indians voted PKR to save their temples and Tamil schools. If the temples are not registered, use your power as the new government and give the necessary registration,” an aide told the Malaysian Insider.

“We voted opposition to protect our heritage, not for the new government to give us excuses,” he said.
There are over 7,000 “temples” in Selangor - from roadside shrines to the Batu Caves temple complex - and many are deemed “illegal” because they are sitting on public land, road reserves or land classified as agricultural or commercial.

Dr A. Xavier Jayakumarare, member of the Selangor state executive council, has said that the Sri Maha Kaliamman temple that was demolished last week was built on forest reserve land and that the temple committee was partly to blame for the demolition. He also said that the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council had not informed the state government before the temple was demolished.

from New Straits Times
Xavier: Temple was built on forest reserve

KUALA LUMPUR: The Sri Maha Kaliamman temple committee must share equal responsibility for the demolition of the temple, Selangor state executive councilor Dr A. Xavier Jayakumarare said.
Xavier said the temple was built on forest reserve land and the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council was right to take action.

He said, however, the council should have sought permission from the state government before demolishing the temple.

“The state government was not informed of this matter.

“According to our guidelines, local authorities must seek permission from the state executive council before demolishing any place of worship,” Xavier said after visiting the temple site at Kampung Tasik, Ampang yesterday.
He said the council had been directed to submit a report on the demolition but declined to say if disciplinary action would be taken against anyone.

Xavier said the temple committee chairman, S. Murugiah, had also been advised to write to the state government for approval before rebuilding the structure.

He also described the demolition as a small issue.

“This is a small issue compared with other more serious problems affecting the Indian community. Why don’t we look at the bigger picture?”

Ampang member of parliament Zuraida Kamaruddin has denied that she had said “temple committee workers had demolished the temple to carry out renovation works“.

Her political secretary, who was at the site yesterday, said Zuraida was “misquoted” by several newspapers on Saturday.

The Hindu temple at the heart of a new controversy in Ampang was in fact demolished by its own committee for renovations. The Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) had been accused by various parties for illegally destroying the temple, but it has emerged that this was not the case. Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin from PKR has confirmed that the temple committee itself tore down the shrine.

from The Star
Temple demolished for renovation

KUALA LUMPUR: The Hindu temple in Ampang had been demolished by its own committee to make way for renovation and a face lift.

Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin said the public condemnation of the demolition and accusation lashed at the local council and state government was unfounded.

The PKR MP said MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy’s allegations were completely unfounded and untrue.

“The truth is the temple was demolished by its own committee to make way for renovation and a face lift. They did this of their own accord and did not consult nor seek approval from the state government beforehand.

“We did not even know about the demolition until it happened,” she said.

According to her, the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) was currently investigating the issue and was still waiting for the local council’s report.

Representatives from Malaysia Hindu Dharma Mamandram attended a meeting with the Malaysian Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr. S.Subramaniam on July 31, 2008 in Putrajaya. As the sole Indian minister in the Malaysian cabinet, Datuk Subramaniam, who is also MIC secretary-general, wanted to discuss the issues facing Malaysian Hindus as well as the input of national NGO’s including Malaysia Hindu Dharma Mamandram. MHDM presented a report on certain issues facing the Hindu community in Malaysia to the Minister titled the Malaysian Hindus: Issues and Recommendations.

The paper discusses serious issues facing the Hindus in the country, as well as MHDM’s efforts and recommendations to help overcome problems the community may face. Four issues addressed in the paper presented to the Minister are religious education, Hindu temples in Malaysia, economic and social issues facing Hindus, and opportunities for Malaysian Hindus.

The MALAYSIA NANBAN newspaper reported that the state authorities had revoked land allocated to the Azad Tamil School in Bagan Jermal, Penang.

The school, which began operating in 1946, is presently “squatting” at the Penang Indian Association building and had submitted numerous applications to the state government for allocation of land so that new premises with proper facilities could be built.

The school does not have enough classrooms. There is also no computer laboratory, science laboratory and library.

The paper also reported that the previous government under chief minister Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon and former state executive councilor P.K. Subbaiyah had approved the land near a Hindu temple in the Waterfall area that was identified by the school parent-teacher association in 2005.

The Penang Municipal Council, which owns the land, had also approved the allocation for the school.

MIC president and former works minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu had also obtained the necessary funds amounting to RM750,000 from the Federal Government to build the new school.

The Penang Municipal Council canceled the land allocated to the school after the recent general election.

Religious tolerance has been a critical facet of all the countries in southeast Asia, one that has allowed relative prosperity and happiness for the region. Relations between peoples of different religion, race and ethnic origin have been rather amicable. Countries such as Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand and Malaysia have been directly influenced by by Hindu and Buddhist cultures. The influence of China and India on the region is unmistakable, and goes back to ancient trading routes.

While Cambodia and Thailand have remained largely Buddhist with religious elements incorporated into governance as well as daily life, other countries like Indonesia and Malaysia are today majority Muslim nations. In fact, Indonesia is the biggest Muslim country in the world. But Hindu and Buddhist elements remain, in the form of culture, language and values.

The form of Islam practiced in the Muslim countries of southeast Asia is a moderate form of the religion, preaching tolerance to other religions and understanding between different peoples. This formula of peaceful coexistence has served the region well. While ethnic clashes have occurred in small scale  on occasion, such as in Malaysia in 1969 and in Indonesia as recently as 1999, large scale clashes like Rwanda or Yugoslavia have been successfully prevented in southeast Asia.

But this history of tolerance is at risk from extremist elements within the region. Radicals in the Muslim faith have taken root and are gaining strength. Taking cue from the ideology of terrorists in the Middle East, Afghanistan and elsewhere, religious fundamentalists have attempted to create new social orders in the region.

Largely rejected by the modern, mainstream Muslims, radicals nevertheless pose a great threat to the stability of the region and security of Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and other indigenous peoples. Groups like Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf have brought the problem to the fore. And while their targets so far has been largely western interests in the region, their growth will be a risk for nation building and religious tolerance within the region.

The continued prosperity and coexistence within southeast Asia depends on moderates rejecting extremism.