PUTRAJAYA: Malays have been advised not to get emotional over the accusations made by the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf). 

Umno Youth chief Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said although the contents of Hindraf's letter to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown incited racial and religious sentiments, they were also "illogical". "It did not represent the views of all Indians in Malaysia. In this matter, our enemy is not the Indian community. Hindraf doesn't represent all Indians, so be rational. "Don't get emotional. Don't get trapped in Hindraf's political strategy. There are masterminds behind them who are just out to create a confrontation," he said yesterday.

Reading from a copy of the letter purportedly signed by Hindraf's legal adviser P. Uthayakumar, Hishammuddin said the group had accused the Malaysian government of being backed by Islamic terrorists, and of carrying out ethnic-cleansing and a mini-genocide of the Indian population.
 

"Who in their right mind will say that we have a shoot-to-kill policy against Indians, that one person is killed every two weeks while in police custody, or that every three weeks one Hindu temple is demolished? "They have a clear objective which is to cause trouble. Unlike other protests, this clearly touches on race and religion." He said Umno Youth would not be cowed by or taken in by Hindraf's claims which were aimed at sowing dissent.

He added that whatever grievances the Indian community had, they were not the only ones sounding out a "cry of desperation".  "We hear this cry from all races too. Our policies address all races and such issues have been and will continue to be addressed. But we can't satisfy everyone overnight."

Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin said the party should take legal action against members of Hindraf for alleging that Umno was responsible for the killing of Malaysian citizens during the Kampung Medan incident. He said this allegation was not true. "We have to set the record straight, otherwise many people will have negative perceptions of Umno," he said. Khairy hoped Umno members — particularly Youth members would react in a mature way to the provocation.

He acknowledged the possibility of foreign influence being behind the group. "I deny the allegation that Indians are treated like slaves in Malaysia. The Barisan Nasional government is for everyone," he said. Khairy added that certain quarters wanted to show that the people are upset with the government since elections would be held soon.

He also reiterated that Hindraf members did not represent the majority of Indians in Malaysia as those who participated in the illegal rally numbered a few thousand compared with the millions in the country," he said. "I am sure that the majority of Indians support the government and Umno."

In Sungai Petani, Deputy Internal Security Minister Datuk Mohd Johari Baharum said the police would file a suit against Hindraf for the damage it suffered while handling the illegal assembly. Besides damage to properties owned by the police, many policemen were also injured in the illegal gathering on Sunday, he said, adding that the police were assessing the damage.