A Home Ministry enforcement team has confiscated eight locally published Chinese-language books that contained "communist elements", sold by independent bookstore Gerakbudaya.
None of the books were on the Home Ministry's list of publications banned under the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (PPPA), according to a Gerakbudaya staff member who requested anonymity.
The staff member said three Home Ministry officers visited the bookstore in Petaling Jaya earlier today for what was initially believed to be a routine inspection.
“At first, we thought they were just checking around as they usually do from time to time.
“But after that, they showed us a book list and demanded we gave them one copy for each title," the staff member told Malaysiakini.
“The books they requested are all in Chinese, and from one specific publisher.
“All the books taken have communist elements,” he said, adding the titles were all non-fiction with a focus on the Malayan Communist Party (CPM) led by Chin Peng.
At least five of the books appear to be a series about the history of the CPM, while another two are memoirs written by CPM members. The nature of one book is unclear.
‘Officers were polite’
The staff member said they cooperated with the Home Ministry's requests and were told the books would be taken “for investigation”.
He added that the ministry officers were “polite”, and the bookstore's staff had also responded in kind.
In August, the ministry conducted a similar seizure at another independent bookstore owned by the author Benz Ali. Two books were seized from the shop in Kuala Lumpur: One about Karl Marx, another a collection of poems “intellectual discourse that does not result in any change”.
Amid complaints by Benz and other activists, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said his ministry was acting in response to public complaints about the book and it is empowered under the PPPA to do so.
The books would be returned if found to not contain any elements that could trigger public unrest, he said. - Mkini
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