Pak Lah draws line under row with Lee
Malaysiakini
Oct  5, 2006

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today drew a line under a row with Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew over race relations, saying he would have nothing more to say on the subject.

Abdullah has made clear he was unimpressed with Lee's qualified apology after he caused a storm with comments that ethnic Chinese communities in Indonesia and Malaysia were being "systematically marginalised".

"I am not making any more statements ... as far as I'm concerned, I've already said what I want to say," he told reporters when asked if Malaysia now considered the issue closed.

Lee said last week in a letter to Abdullah that he was sorry for the "discomfort" caused by his comments, but argued he was only repeating comments he had made many times before.

Relations unaffected

Abdullah said that relations with Singapore, which have been rocky ever since the city-state was ejected from the new Malaysian federation in 1965, had not been affected by the furore.

"Besides the recent problem, it's still the same. There haven't been any other repercussions or any other problems," he said.

Lee also told a forum in the city-state that it was vital that Singapore, which is predominantly ethnic Chinese, stand up to its majority Muslim neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia.

Abdullah has repeatedly said that the remarks by Singapore's founding father were "uncalled for and not appreciated" and risked inflaming racial tensions in the multicultural country.

Issues related to race, religion and education are extremely sensitive in Malaysia, where the population is dominated by Muslim Malaysia living alongside large ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.