Malaysian State accused of fanning racial tensions

April 10, 2013: In the lead-up to elections expected later this month, the Malaysian government is fanning the sort of racial tensions that led to deadly riots in 1969, activists say.
Opposition party meetings have been disrupted by motorcycle gangs unrestricted by police, while rural Malays are being shown a film that blames the 1969 riots on minority groups, activists said in statement released on Tuesday.
The violence erupted after a poor performance by the ruling party in a general election, and thousands were reportedly killed. The riots were reportedly sparked by a victory march by members of the largely Chinese-ethnic Democratic Action Party in Kuala Lumpur. Suaram UK, an NGO in Britain associated with the Malaysian human rights watchdog Suaram, and Global Bersih, the international arm of a Malaysian electoral reform group, called on the British and Australian governments to “publicly help Malaysians who are struggling to achieve free and fair elections.”
Similar pleas were sent to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon, the UN Security Council and the UN Human Rights Council. The statement claims that when the Malaysian parliament was dissolved on April 3, defense minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi urged on Twitter: “Kill all adverse political intruders.”
Ucan .