Uphold the Spirit of Reconciliation in the Haadyai Peace Accords
Written by Lee Ban Chen, CPI
Twenty years ago, the Haadyai Peace Accords were signed between our government and the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), which ended the protracted anti-British-turned-civil war, and marked the beginning of national reconciliation process beneficial to national unity and nation building as a whole.
Among other things, CPM’s contributions to the independence process was finally recognized by our government when Datuk Rahim Noor, the then IGP and head of government negotiating team, made an announcement that “Malaysia did not deny or dispute the CPM’s contribution to the struggle for independence.”
Besides, according to Chin Peng’s lawyer Darshan Singh Khaira, Clause 3.1 of the Peace Accords also stipulates that the former CPM members who have laid down their arms and desire to return home to Malaysia should be allowed to do so freely. In other words, if our government had abided by the Peace Accords, Chin Peng should have been allowed to return home together with his comrades 20 years ago.
Since the government had turned down Chin Peng’s application to return home to Malaysia, he had no choice but to take legal action through the High Court, Appeal Court and Federal Court. These courts of justice were equally adamant that he should produce documents such as birth and citizenship certificates to prove his origins in Malaysia.
This is an impossible demand for Chin Peng who possesses no such documents due to the years of war turmoil. The fact that Chin Peng was born in Setiawan, Perak is well known inside and outside the country and any sibling or close relative of his can easily testify for him on this matter. Demanding that he produces documents of birth and citizenship is merely a pretext to deprive him of his right of residence based on the principle of Jus Soli.
