THE ISLAMIC AND
MALAY-CENTRIC
NATURE OF
OUR
HISTORY
TEXTBOOKS
Ranjit Singh Malhi
PRESENTATION OUTLINE
1. Objectives of History Teaching.
2. Biased History Textbooks.
3. Half-Truths and Factual Errors in Our
History Textbooks.
4. “Historical Death” of Yap Ah Loy and
Malaysian Freedom Fighters.
5. Ketuanan Melayu and Special Position
of Malays.
6. Recommendations.
“We lie to our students. We lie
to them by omitting parts of our
history; by reinventing other parts;
by glamourising aspects of it at the
expense of other aspects. Our youth
are not given the whole picture;
not told the true story.”
 Ms. Johnson Nga (ex-principal
of Methodist Girls Secondary
School, Malacca)
OBJECTIVES OF HISTORY TEACHING
● Provide an objective, truthful and
balanced account of Malaysian and
World History
● Promote inter-ethnic relations and
forge greater national unity
● Develop a sense of national identity
and instil patriotism
● Promote critical thinking among students
GOOD HISTORY TEXTBOOKS
● Factually accurate
● Generally objective
● Well-balanced
● Devoid of value judgements
“All serious historical writing must
respect all nations, ethnic groups,
religions and cultures. ... The
historian’s role is not to make
value judgements about historical
facts but to try to establish them
more accurately ...”
Muhammad Adnan Bakhit
History of Humanity, Vol.4, UNESCO,2000
OUR HISTORY TEXTBOOKS
● Islamic and Malay-centric biased
● Some half-truths
● Numerous factual errors and
contradictions
● Politically motivated
BIASED HISTORY TEXTBOOKS
1. Downplay the roles of the
non-Malays in the development of
our nation and its independence.
2. Scant attention given to the
contribution of the Chinese and
Indians in the development of the
tin mining and rubber industries.
3. Lopsided emphasis on Islamic
Civilization.
• Five out of ten chapters (116 out of
284 pages or 41%) of the current
Form Four history textbook deal with
Islamic history
• Earlier Form 4 history textbook had
only one chapter (39 out of 231 pages
or 17%) on Islamic history
• Quotation from the Quran (page
101) besides Islamic teachings and
religious terms
• Undue emphasis given to trivial
matters and unimportant
personalities which are of no
historical significance (e.g. Hanif
religion, al-Basus War, Abu Lahab
and Bilal bin Rafah)
4. Do not tell the whole truth.
• Omits the fact that the founder of
Malacca (Parameswara) was a Hindu
prince from Palembang who died a
Hindu
• Gives wrong impression that
Indian-Gurkha, Australian and
British soldiers did not fight
courageously in defending Malaya
during the Japanese onslaught,
unlike the Malay Regiment
HALF-TRUTH
“Tentera British di Tanah Melayu yang terdiri daripada
askar-askar India-Gurkha, Australia dan British tidak
mampu menyekat kemaraan tentera Jepun. Mereka
terpaksa berundur ke selatan. Bandar-bandar utama
dari utara ke selatan jatuh satu per satu ke tangan
tentera Jepun. Di samping itu, tentera British
sememangnya tidak berhasrat mempertahankan
Tanah Melayu dengan bersungguh-sungguh kecuali
Singapura. Tumpuan mereka ialah mempertahankan
negara Britain daripada serangan tentera Paksi di
Eropah. Sebaliknya, Rejimen Askar Melayu
pimpinan Leftenan Adnan telah berjuang
bermati-matian mempertahankan Tanah Melayu.”
Form 3 History Textbook, page 11
HISTORICAL TRUTH
● Thousands of Punjabi (mainly Sikhs), Gurkha,
British and Australian soldiers died defending
Malaya during the Japanese onslaught
● In the Battle of Kampar,
Indian-Gurkha and British soldiers
fought courageously and
temporarily halted the advance
of Japanese
● 33 out of 232 names on Tugu Negara are Sikhs
5. Current Form Four textbook has
reduced more than 25% the
amount of text related to
Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism,
Confucianism and Taoism as
compared to the earlier textbook
(from about 1115 words to about
832 words).
Topic
1991 Edition
2002 Edition
Hinduism
c. 275 words
c. 202 words
Buddhism
c. 283 words
c. 165 words
Confucianism
c. 337 words
c. 100 words
Taoism
c. 220 words
c. 151 words
Christianity
c. 237 words
c. 214 words
6. No coverage of some famous
Malaysian freedom fighters such
as Gurchan Singh (“Lion of
Malaya”) and Sybil Karthigesu
who resisted the Japanese
Occupation of Malaya.
GURCHAN SINGH
● Gurchan wrote and secretly
distributed a newspaper during
the Japanese Occupation of Malaya
● His wartime exploits were contained
in a textbook, Heroes of Malaya,
widely used in Malayan schools
(1950s)
SYBIL KARTHIGESU
● Sybil Karthigesu and her
husband treated wounded
guerrillas of the Malayan
People’s Anti-Japanese Army
● Although tortured by the Japanese,
she did not give up
● A woman of principle with
tremendous courage
YAP AH LOY
1. Current Form 2 history textbook
(page 153) has downplayed the
role of Yap Ah Loy in developing
Kuala Lumpur. It has just one
sentence (not even in the main
text) on Yap Ah Loy:
“Yap Ah Loy antara orang yang
bertanggungjawab membangunkan
Kuala Lumpur.”
HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE OF
YAP AH LOY
“ ... his [Yap Ah Loy] perseverance
alone, I believe, has kept the Chinese
in the country [Malaya].”
 Frank Swettenham
“Down to 1879, Yap Ah Loy was
Mr. Kuala Lumpur.”
 J. M. Gullick
“Yap Ah Loy did more than anyone to
establish the little township destined
to become Malaya’s capital.”
 J. Kennedy
“Kuala Lumpur was another town
created by the enterprise of the
Chinese.”
 Margaret Shennan
FACTUAL ERRORS IN HISTORY TEXTBOOKS
Event
Textbook
Outbreak of
1776
American War of (Form 5, p. 67)
Independence
Date of
formation of
Sabah Alliance
Party
Authoritative Sources
1775 (Encyclopaedia
Britannica, Daniel
Roselle)
1961
1962 (Cecilia Leong,
(Form 5, p. 143) A.J. Stockwell)
Age at which
39 years
Siddharta
(Form 4, p. 65)
Gautama started
searching for the
truth about life
29 years
(Encyclopaedia
Britannica, Daniel
Roselle, T. Walter.
Wallbank, et al.)
VALUE JUDGEMENTS IN OUR
FORM FOUR HISTORY TEXTBOOK
● Baginda merupakan ketua keluarga yang
patut dicontohi kerana kepimpinannya
serta sifat pengasihnya dan timbang
rasanya.
● Kemunculan tamadun Islam memberi
rahmat kepada seluruh manusia ….
● … unsur-unsur Islam boleh dipraktikkan
dalam sesebuah negara yang terdiri
daripada berbilang bangsa dan agama.
CHRISTIANITY IN HISTORY TEXTBOOK
● Bagi penganut Kristian, agama ini
dikatakan telah diasaskan oleh Jesus
Christ yang berasal dari Jerusalem
● No main teachings of Christianity, unlike
earlier textbook
● Coverage reduced by about 10%
Form 4 History Textbook, page 66
KETUANAN MELAYU
● Concept introduced in current Form 3
textbook (page 45)
● Ketuanan Melayu ditakrifkan sebagai
semangat cinta akan apa saja yang
berkaitan dengan bangsa Melayu
seperti hak politik, bahasa, kebudayaan,
warisan, adat istiadat dan tanah air
IMPLICATIONS OF KETUANAN MELAYU
● Malay dominance
● Malays are the “masters”
● Non-Malays are “pendatang”
Ringkasnya, kemajuan dan kemakmuran Tanah
Melayu telah berjaya menarik minat imigran untuk
datang ke sini dan keadaan ini berterusan hingga kini.
Kita seharusnya berbangga dengan negara kita yang
menjadi tumpuan pendatang asing kerana kekayaan
dan kemakmurannya. Di satu sudut yang lain pula,
masyarakat tempatan seharusnya lebih giat,
berinisiatif dan bersedia mengusahakan sendiri
kekayaan negara, terutamanya bagi mereka yang
tidak bermodal besar. Jika tidak, orang asing yang
sentiasa mengintai peluang untuk mengambil ruang
tersebut, akan mengambil alih peranan kita, seperti
yang berlaku pada hari ini.
Form Five History Textbook, page 255
SPECIAL POSITION OF MALAYS
● A temporary measure to ensure
their [Malay] survival in the modern
competitive world
● A temporary “handicap” as in golf
● Should not apply in perpetuity
Tun Dr. Ismail bin Abdul Rahman
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. The Form 1-5 History textbooks
should be reviewed to ensure
factual accuracy and consistency,
objectivity and a balanced account
of our nation's history.
2. The advisory panel and writers should
be drawn from various ethnic groups.
3. History textbooks should be devoid of
value judgements.
4. Writers chosen should be those who
have content mastery, are meticulous
(pay attention to details) and with a
proven track record.
5. The teaching and learning of History
should be geared towards enhancing
deep learning, critical thinking,
information literacy and presentation
skills of our students and not merely
for memorization and to pass exams.
6. History should be taught in a lively
and interesting manner using various
instructional strategies (e.g. debates,
discussions, group presentations,
document studies, video clips) and
not limited to the traditional lecture
method. Students should not be mere
spectators in the teaching and
learning process. Active learning
should be promoted.
Thank
You!