Malaysian PM greets Tamils, Sikhs on New Year

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak Wednesday greeted Tamils and Sikhs on their New Year.

Najib, now in Washington to attend the Nuclear Security Summit, took time off to write in his blog www.1Malaysia.com.my to extend his good wishes, Bernama news agency reported.

He said that over the next two days beginning Wednesday, Hindus would be celebrating their New Year.

“This special day is known in many names; to the Tamils it is Puthandu, and this day marks the year known as Vikruthi while to the Malayalees, it is known as Vishu.

“Furthermore, Malaysia’s Sikh community will be celebrating Vesakhi on Apri1 14 which commemorates the birth of the Khalsa, the most important event for Sikhs the world over,” he said.

The prime minister hoped that Hindus and Sikhs would be able to share these auspicious days with family and friends.

“As has been our practice as Malaysians, these festivals are a time for all of us to know and understand each other better. The more we know about each other, the more we will come to admire the very rich and strong cultures that we all have.

“Despite the diversity in form and shape, the common values underpinning our different cultures means that we also have much in common with each other.

While Sikhs number about 100,000 in Malaysia, Tamils form the bulk of the ethnic Indian community that accounts for seven percent of the 28 million population.

Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) president S. Samy Vellu and his deputy S. Subramaniam urged the Indian community “to be resilient and to make use of available opportunities”.

Vellu said the Indian community must remain united and also give priority to their children’s education, The Star reported.