Anwar Ibrahim, then an Umno vice-president and education minister, said Prime Minister Najib Razak was then Umno Youth chief.
He said MCA Youth was helmed by Lee Kim Sai, then also the labour minister.
“The tensions caused by MCA and Umno Youth then resulted in Operasi Lalang (ISA arrests),” he said, stating that was the real reason for the swoop on Oct 27, 1987.
He said this when cross-examined by lawyer Mohammed Nasser Yusof, who is appearing for Red Shirts leader Jamal Yunos, who is being sued by Bersih 2.0 chairman Maria Chin for defamation.
Nasser had asked Anwar why Maria’s late husband, Yunus Lebai Ali, was picked up by police under the preventive detention law.
Anwar, who was sacked from Umno and government in 1988 for alleged sexual misconduct and abuse of power, said he met then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to free all those not involved in building up the tension.
“However, Mahathir said this involved national security and it was best to leave it to the police Special Branch,” he said.
Mahathir was then the home minister.
“Former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin is my witness when I met the prime minister at Seri Perdana ( the PM’s official residence) to urge him to only hold the perpetrators of the racial tension for investigations.”
Anwar said several people like former Berita Harian group editor Ahmad Sebi and the then Aliran president Chandra Muzaffar were released after the maximum 60-day detention for investigations.
Others detained and sent to the Kamunting detention camp for a two-year period included DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang, party secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, current Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and Suaram adviser Kua Kia Soong.
According to press reports, MCA Youth had raised a number of sensitive issues, such as questioning the New Economic Policy and the political dominance of the Malays.
In particular, in early November 1986, Selangor MCA, which was led by Lee, passed a resolution at its annual convention calling on the government to review the Sedition Act and make it an offence to call any of the three major races immigrants or “pendatang”.
MCA and Lee also joined a protest rally with DAP objecting to the appointments of senior assistants and supervisors without qualifications in Mandarin in Chinese primary schools.
The press reports said Umno Youth interpreted this as challenging the Bumiputera status of Malays, which led to calls for Lee’s sacking by members and the withdrawal of his datukship by the Sultan of Selangor.
Anwar said he had been a student activist in the 1970s and was involved in several demonstrations, among them to protest over the fall in rubber prices that affected the rural poor.
He said he was also picked up by police in December 1974 under the ISA and sent to Kamunting for two years.
Anwar said he knew Yunus as an activist before 1974 but later learnt that he was actively involved in the Palestine Liberation Organisation, led by Yasser Arafat.
Maria is suing Jamal for allegedly slandering her and Bersih during a press conference outside the Putra World Trade Centre on Sept 28, 2016.
She also claimed that on Oct 4 that year, Jamal had uttered similar slanderous words against Bersih during a media conference at the Bukit Aman police headquarters compound.
In her statement of claim filed on Oct 7, Maria said she had been brought into public scandal and had her reputation and good name tarnished.
She is seeking general and aggravated damages, as well as an injunction to stop Jamal from uttering or publishing similar words, either verbally, in print, or online.
Jamal is relying on justification and fair comment as defence to the lawsuit.
Hearing before Zaki Abdul Wahab resumes on Feb 5.
Activist: Maria’s husband a member of PLO but didn’t use arms