'Tanda Putera' film about deadly 1969 riots points finger at Chinese
Movie on deadly 1969 riots portrays the Chinese mainly as shadowy figures who bring mayhem, while Malays show restraint
At a crucial point in the film Tanda Putera, ethnic Chinese youths urinate on a pole flying the flag of a Malaysian state, setting off events that push the country into a deadly race riot that still haunts the national consciousness four decades later.
The publicly funded movie, which opened recently in Malaysia after a long delay, is stirring up racial sentiment at a sensitive time over its depiction of the ethnic Chinese minority as the aggressors in the violent events of May 13, 1969.
The bumiputera system of preferential treatment for ethnic Malays, who make up two-thirds of the population, was born out of the riots and continues to be the number one complaint among the country's ethnic Chinese.
The film - released as Malaysia marked its 56th year of independence and as Prime Minister Najib Razak prepares for a possible leadership battle within his party in October - plays on deep-seated fears at a time when Chinese disloyalty has been blamed for the government's depleted majority in May's election.
The mostly ethnic Chinese state of Penang has advised cinemas not to screen Tanda Putera on the grounds that it crosses a line by using public funds to promote hate.
"Because the film is sponsored by the government, the film is effectively the official version of the riots," said Penang's ethnic Chinese chief minister, Lim Guan Eng.
Creative licence should not be used to spread lies that may cause racial disharmony, he added.