Mahathir's Letter To Ehud Barak To Be Made Public, Says Malaysian PM Najib

SEKINCHAN (Selangor, Malaysia), Feb 27 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian government will make public a letter from former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to Ehud Barak, who was Israeli prime minister then, early next week. Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said Wisma Putra (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) had scrutinised the letter and found that it could be made public. "Wisma Putra has commented on the letter and I have also examined it. We have decided to allow the letter to be published either Monday or the day after. "This will enable the people to understand the reason why Dr Mahathir wrote the letter was to champion the Palestinian struggle to establish a sovereign nation," he told reporters at SJKC Yoke Kuan here Sunday. Najib said the letter showed Dr Mahathir's concern in the West Asia peace process and its content was in line with the government's policy then and now. He said the issue had been manipulated by the opposition to raise suspicion on the government's stand to divert the people's attention from the opposition leader's assertion of his support for Israel. Opposition Leader and People's Justice Party advisor Anwar Ibrahim had, in a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, expressed support for "all efforts to protect the security of the state of Israel." Dr Mahathir reportedly acknowledged having written to two Israeli prime ministers during the time he was prime minister to emphasise that Malaysians do not recognise the Zionist regime which oppresses the Palestinian people. Commenting on a move by the police to propose to the Attorney-General's Chambers to press charges against National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp) directors for alleged breach of trust, Najib said the decision was entirely up to the Attorney-General. "We cannot assume that all investigations will end with prosecution for it must take into account specific provisions in the Constitution. "I cannot assume what will happen in this case because it is at the discretion of the Attorney-General in accordance with the Constitution. Only he (A-G) is entitled to make the decision," he said. On Saturday, Bukit Aman Commercial CID director Syed Ismail Syed Azizan said the proposal was made in the investigation papers being prepared by the police after they were returned by the A-G's Chambers on Tuesday for certain matters to be followed-up. Earlier, in his speech at a luncheon with the Sekinchan community, Najib said the future of Chinese and Tamil schools was rest assured and cannot be questioned for it was stipulated in the national education system. Najib said their position was secured through an amendment to Section 21 (2) of the Education Act initiated by him when he was the education minister in 1996. The government will continue to assist their development besides enhancing the quality of national primary schools, he said, adding that the 2012 Budget provided an additional allocation of RM100 million (US$1=RM3.01) to Chinese and Tamil schools besides religious schools. He also announced an additional allocation of RM1 million for the construction of a new block for SJKC Yoke Kuan consisting of 18 classrooms before officiating its groundbreaking ceremony. The prime minister also presented house keys to a special aid recipient, Chia Hau Lan during the visit. Sekinchan is a small town located in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. Selangor is located in the mid-way on the western flank and central region of Peninsular Malaysia. -- BERNAMA