The Malaysian Insight

THE Registrar of Societies (RoS) met with organisers of the controversial Jawi congress to get more details on the event, said Chinese education group Dong Jiao Zong president Tan Tai Kim.

Tan said the RoS wants details about the gathering and who will be attending it.

“They did not ask us to cancel the congress. They were friendly,” he told reporters today after the meeting.

Tan said Dong Jiao Zong has stressed the meeting is only opened to representatives of Chinese civil society groups registered with the RoS.

“It is not open to public. Only for representatives of Chinese groups.”

He said the organisers also met with the police today to give them details of the event.

“We are going to ensure the meeting runs smoothly without any problems. We want to stress the congress is not a protest.

“It is an indoor event to discuss the implementation of the teaching of the Jawi script in vernacular schools.”

The meeting has stirred controversy with Malay right-wing groups, several of which have made police reports demanding the congress be stopped.

Some have even called for Dong Jiao Zong to be declared illegal.

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had warned Dong Jiao Zong that its insistence on holding the gathering could lead to other repercussions, such as Malay pressure groups reasserting their calls for vernacular schools to be shut down.

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim also called on Dong Jiao Zong and other factions, including Malay organisations, not to hold any event on the issue.

Despite that, Dong Jiao Zong is going ahead with its congress at the New Era College in Kajang this Saturday.

Tan today said the congress will collect views of participants and pass them on to the Education Ministry.

Currently, about 50 people will be participating, he said.

“It is not anti-Jawi or against any religion. It is not racist.” – December 26, 2019.