Chin Peng’s kin rubbish claim date of death was doctored
Boo Su-Lyn, MM
Chin Peng’s family has denied that the former communist leader’s date of death was manipulated to coincide with Malaysia Day.
English daily The Star reported Chin Peng’s nephew, Lee Suvit, today as saying that Chin Peng was certified dead at 6.20am on September 16 at a hospital in Bangkok, Thailand.
“We don’t wish to respond to such lies, but I can tell you for certain that my uncle died on the morning of September 16,” Lee was quoted as saying on the third day of the wake yesterday.
Mingguan Malaysia, the weekend edition of Utusan Malaysia, quoted an anonymous source yesterday as saying that Chin Peng had breathed his last on September 15 in Bangkok, Thailand, and not September 16 as reported.
The Umno-aligned Malay broadsheet further alleged that Chin Peng’s date of death on the 50th anniversary of Malaysia Day had been faked to make his passing a memorable event.
In response, the MCA yesterday told Utusan to respect the dead instead of making baseless allegations that could hurt the feelings of Chin Peng’s family.
News of Chin Peng’s death first broke on Bangkok Post on September 16, with the Thai news portal reporting that he was pronounced dead at 6.20 am and that he had died of old age in a Bangkok hospital.
Chin Peng, whose real name was Ong Boon Hua, was 88 years old when he died reportedly of old age, after spending his final years in exile in Bangkok.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi reportedly insisted yesterday on prohibiting the former Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) secretary-general’s ashes from being interred in his hometown in Sitiawan, Perak.
Zahid was reported by Utusan as insisting that Chin Peng was not a Malaysian citizen, and that allowing his remains into the country would hurt the feelings of war veterans and families who had suffered in the violence perpetrated by the communists.
The MCA, Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and even former Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Mohd Noor have told the federal government to respect the 1989 Hat Yai Peace Accord signed between Malaysia, Thailand and the CPM that allowed CPM members, who laid down their arms, to return to their homeland.
Lawyers have also said that there is no specific law that Putrajaya can use to prohibit Chin Peng’s ashes from being brought into Malaysia.
Lee said that Chin Peng’s family would not smuggle the ashes into Malaysia, pointing out that his uncle was a leader of dignity and that his remains would be treated accordingly with respect.
“We will not use the back door to send him back to his homeland,” he was quoted as saying by The Star.
Chin Peng’s nephew added that the family did not place any personal belongings in Chin Peng’s casket, saying: “He was a simple man and nothing material was precious to him.
“What he cared about was the future, so what he wants to leave behind, he has left behind.”
Chin Peng will be cremated in Bangkok today.
