Dr M: Some people are making an issue of everything, including chopsticks

PETALING JAYA: Some people are making an issue of everything including the chopsticks comment, says Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

In an interview with local Chinese radio station City Plus FM on Wednesday (Jan 5), Dr Mahathir said that his comment about chopsticks was an analogy to show the differences of cultures in Malaysia.

“It (chopsticks) was the first thing that came to my mind. I could have used the lion dance or many other things. It is only to show the cultural difference between the Malay and Chinese, with ways of eating as an example,” he said.

In the interview, he added that he did not intend to play the race card, saying that he wanted to describe how the Chinese community did not assimilate in Malaysia.

“In Malaysia, the Indians and the Chinese insist upon reminding each other that ‘we are from there’ (country of origin),” said Dr Mahathir.

He added that Chinese communities in countries such as Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines can assimilate to the local culture including language.

“I can imagine the first migrant coming here and it must have been difficult for them to adopt. But those who were born and brought up here, they (should) know the culture of the local people and they can become very much identified with the locals,” he said.

Dr Mahathir also said that all Malaysians must be able to speak the national language fluently.

“We need to have at least a common language, (this is) very important. We need to have our very own Malaysian identity,” he said.

During the launch of his book Capturing Hope: The Struggle Continues For A New Malaysia on Dec 12, Dr Mahathir said that “the Chinese eat with chopsticks, they don’t eat with their hands.

“They have not adopted the Malaysian way of eating food. They retained the chopstick, which is an identity from China, not Malaysia, and many other things,” he said, adding that some Malaysians clinging to their ancestral roots only divides rather than unifies the people.