KOTA KINABALU: The Education Ministry (MoE) should refrain from involving school students in the highly politicised event dubbed the Palestine Solidarity Week.
Labuan PIBG member Spencer Panjangou said this was because most students lack a clear understanding of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
He was responding on the MoE circular calling for the implementation of the Palestine Solidarity Week in schools and education institutions from Oct 29 to Nov 3, 2023.
"In my personal opinion, instead of solidarity, such initiative could lead to repercussion among the parents due to differing opinions," said Spencer.
He urged the ministry to conduct a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis before implementing such a programme to prevent negative consequences.
He also expressed support if the programme was titled as "solidarity for world peace."
Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) Api-Api information chief Yee Tsai Yiew echoed the need for schools to remain neutral ground.
She cautioned that activities such as Palestine Solidarity Week should be approached with care.
Yee pointed out that while expressing solidarity with oppressed peoples is noble, introducing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into schools without a comprehensive and balanced approach could lead to division, misinformation, encourage extremism or radicalisation among students, and potentially cause diplomatic issues.
She said the Malaysian government should carefully consider the potential consequences before proceeding with such an initiative in the education system.
Yee suggested that if the MoE aims to raise awareness among students, more age-appropriate themes like "Stop Bully," "No More Hunger," or "Go Green" should be considered.
