(Petaling Jaya, Wednesday): It is most unfortunate that more and more Barisan Nasional leaders are trying to raise the spectre of violence and May 13, with the purpose of creating fear among the voters in the next general election.
This is doubly unfortunate when the Indonesians had just held their first democratic general election in more than 40 years, and with the exception of a few minor cases, reports coming in from the various regions of the country have dispelled earlier fears that such a democratic and free vote could only result in widespread violence.
It can be said that the Indonesians have taken their first step toward democracy safely considering that trouble and violence had been all too common phenomena in Indonesia over the past year.
Malaysians have always prided themselves as being more democratic than Indonesia and we are heading for our tenth general elections.
Why should Barisan Nasional leaders keep raising the spectre of violence and May 13 in the run-up to the next election when every Opposition party in the country had denounced violence and had in every election demonstrated their full and peaceful acceptance of the voters’ verdict?
Must Barisan Nasional leaders resurrect the politics of fear and raise the spectre of violence and May 13 to assure Barisan Nasional of victory - which will make Malaysia even more undemocratic than Indonesia!
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad should set a good example and send out a directive to all Barisan Nasional Ministers and leaders barring them from raising the spectre of violence and May 13 so as to create the conditions for free, fair and clean election - especially as he had warned that the next election could be the dirtiest in history.
The Election Commission should convene an all-party meeting to secure agreement that the next general election will not be the dirtiest in history by working out the ground rules for all political parties to avoid all politics of fear, blackmail, money and falsehoods.
(9/6/99)