Britain blamed for Indian Malaysians' 'plight' in ex-colony
London, June 30, 2012: An exiled Indian Malaysian human rights lawyer plans to file a lawsuit against the British government for failing to provide adequate safety to the community under the rule of Malay-Muslim majority when independence was granted to the former colony.
London-based Waytha Moorthy claims that the then British Harold MacMillian's government failed to provide protection to Indian Malaysians when independence was granted to the former colony in 1957.
The 46-year-old lawyer was expected to re-issue a class action lawsuit at the High Court Monday. He is claiming a sum of $1 million in compensation for each one of Malaysia's 1.8 million Indians.
Originally launched in 2007, but never heard and now out of time, Moorthy's claim is on behalf of Indian Malaysians who he said face human rights abuses and live unprotected and in "continuous colonisation".
The then British government gave the Muslim population special rights and privileges, effectively establishing a system of apartheid ever since, he said in a statement.
"In India, at the time of partition, the British government gave rights to minorities.
"In Malaysia, minority racial and religious groups were hung out to dry. The result is that 45 percent of the population is still being marginalised, humiliated and discriminated against when it comes to jobs, education and finance," said Moorthy, chair of HINDRAF, an NGO advocating equal rights for Indian Malaysians.
The organisation is banned in Malaysia and Moorthy has been jailed on numerous occasions in that country.
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Malaysian lawyer to sue Britain for independence wrongs
London, June 29, 2012 An exiled human rights lawyer from Malaysia has decided to re-file a billion dollar suit against the British governnment, blaming it for having failed to protect the Indian Malaysians when independence was granted to the former colony in 1957.
Waytha Moorthy, the London-based lawyer, wants a million-dollar compensation for each of Malaysia's 1.8 million Indians on the grounds that the then Harold MacMillian government failed to protect them in 1957.
Moorthy, 46, will attend the high court Monday to re-issue his class action lawsuit against the British government, a press release stated.
Originally launched in 2007, but never heard and now out of time, Waytha Moorthy's claim is on behalf of Indian Malaysians. He says these people face appalling human rights abuses and live unprotected and in "continuous colonisation" under the rule of the Malay-Muslim majority.
Moorthy argues this situation is the direct legacy of the then British government who gave the Muslim population special rights and privileges in perpetuity in Article 153 of the Constitution of Malaysia, effectively establishing a system of apartheid which has marginalised Malaysian Indians ever since.
"The British government needs to take responsibility, apologise, make reparation, and send out a strong message that the way the Malay government is acting is morally wrong."
Moorthy is also the chair of HINDRAF, a non-governmental NGO advocating equal rights for Malaysians of Indian origin.
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China mourns death of Indian doctor's wife
Beijing, June 29, 2012: China Friday expressed condolences over the death of Indian doctor Dwarkanath Kotnis's Chinese wife Guo Qinglan.
Guo, a Chinese woman who married Kotnis in November 1941, died Thursday at the age of 96 in Dalian, a coastal city in northeast China's Liaoning province, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said Guo spent her whole life promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and India.
Kotnis joined an Indian medical team and came to China in 1938 to help China fight against Japanese invasion. He joined the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 1942 and died the same year.
Kotnis sacrificed his youth and life for China's national salvation, Hong said, adding "we will always remember their (Guo and Kotnis's) important contributions"
.....IANS//NRIpress.com
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