‘There was a sense of helplessness’

Sin Chew pursued an independent editorial policy with a stance of defending Chinese education, says Tay.

WHEN Sin Chew Jit Poh, along with The Star and Watan, was shut down by the Home Ministry on Oct 28, 1987, it went through the darkest and most trying moments in its history, according to the book Walking Tall – 80 Years Sin Chew Daily.

Before Operasi Lalang, the paper was struggling for survival as its Penang-based owner then, Datuk Lim Kheng Kim, was facing financial difficulties after being hit by the 1986 recession. Pay cheques were often delayed and the paper came close to foreclosure.

For five and a half months after the closure, Sin Chew’s journalists pondered their bleak future.

While many loyal staff stayed on, those who needed financial certainty left for other jobs.

“We were hoping that Mahathir would lift the ban after three months. So we went to the canteen every day to drink coffee and waited patiently.

“But this wait turned out to be more than five months,” recalls Tay Cheong Hiang, foreign editor of Sin Chew before he retired.

“Initially, we were paid full salary but after that it became partial and less ... it was scary for a lot of colleagues who had no financial (buffer).

“I did some freelance work and my wife, a teacher, had to give more tuition after class,” the 75-year-old said in an interview at his Kelana Jaya home in Petaling Jaya.

According to Tay, Sin Chew had pursued an independent editorial policy with a stance of defending Chinese education. It was the voice of the community, with its wide news coverage and bold editorials on Chinese issues.

The main news just before the closure centred on the community’s complaints against the Education Ministry, under Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, which had sent teachers who did not know Mandarin to Chinese primary schools to take up leadership positions.

Fearing this could lead to the change of character of Chinese schools, Chinese educationists, associations and the MCA – which vowed it would “sink or swim” with Chinese primary schools – staged a series of protest rallies.

When Umno politicians viewed these protests, which were over education issues, as challenging the authority of the ministry and Malays, they organised counter-rallies. Racial tension rose amid such developments.

After the shutdown, Sin Chew’s journalists did not stage any protest, and this perceived inaction was criticised by outsiders.

“The atmosphere then was tense after more than 100 people were arrested. No one organised any protest and there was a sense of helplessness among us,” Tay explained.

During that difficult period, only Buddhist associations visited Sin Chew to deliver some aid to its staff.

In the meantime, C.C. Liew – the editor-in-chief then – went round talking to business tycoons about taking over the newspaper.

On April 8, 1988, when Sin Chew Daily hit the streets again, Sarawak timber tycoon Tan Sri Tiong Hiew King – who was also a Barisan politician in Sibu – became the new owner.

And Sin Chew was given a new lease of life.