2001 Kampung Medan riots

Photographs in Malaysiakini's possession are gruesome evidence of the extensive hurt, both physical and emotional, inflicted by the clashes.

[3] Police have admitted they neglected the areas, which had achieved notoriety for gangster activity, drug addiction, juvenile delinquency, fights and even incest.

[4] On 8 March 2001, an Indian security guard on the way home from work found a tent erected in the middle of the narrow road in Kampung Medan for a wedding.

He ran towards an Indian house, a few hundred metres away, presumably for refuge where a wake was being held, contrary to earlier reports that the fight started because the funeral procession was blocked by the tent.

[5] A six-member team representing a network of NGOs for a Violence Free Community took upon themselves to record the names and injuries of the victims.

Below are some of the details: On 8 March 2001, a 26-year-old Indian construction worker and his friend were returning to their homes in Kampung Semarak off Jalan Klang Lama on a motorcycle at 10.30pm.

Annadurai was carrying goods in his van when Malay youths attacked him near the Shell petrol station in Sri Manja, located near Taman Medan.

On 10 March 2001, a Form 5 student from Kampung Gandhi who was in Taman Medan with his brother at 3 p.m. were chased by about 100 Malay men on motorcycles, armed with samurai swords, wooden sticks and iron rods.

Muthukumar, from Bidor, Perak, was delivering fruits when he and his co-worker were attacked by Malay youths in Kampung Datuk Harun.

On 12 March 2001, Subramaniam was travelling from Brickfields in Kuala Lumpur to his home in Sri Sentosa when he was assaulted by Malay men.

Bakhshish Elahi, a Pakistani, and his partner were assaulted in a lorry by about 100 youths armed with pipes, swords and parangs.

[1][6] [7] The Menteri Besar of Selangor, Datuk Seri Dr Mohamed Khir Toyo, acted by securing the Hindu temple in Kampung Medan to prevent any further violence from the Malay community.

Security forces also seized almost 100 weapons including home-made bombs, machetes, knives, samurai swords, catapults, chains, steel pipes, batons and axes from Malay youths.

Kampung Medan is a classic case of the urban poor working for crumbs," the Star newspaper said in an analysis.

Mohammad Agus Yusoff, political science lecturer at the National University, told AFP that poor infrastructure and a host of socio-economic ills bred frustration.

The then-president of Malaysian Indian Congress, Samy Vellu visited the corpse of K. Muneiretham in University Hospital.

The main cause of the racial conflict that occurred in Kampung Medan on March 13, 2001 is poverty due to the government's negligence, as stated by Associate Professor Dr Mansor Mohd Noor.

[9] It is stated by Dr Mansor Mohd Noor that the poverty and marginalisation has broken down the community and is unrelated to the government.

MPs saw red during the debate on the Ethnic Relations guidebook at the Dewan Rakyat, with parliamentarians from both sides of the House questioning the merit of the controversial teaching guide.

The reply by Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed, especially on the Kampung Medan riots, irked not only Opposition MPs but also several from the Barisan Nasional.

This riot is said to be the linked with several other cases of racial and religious protests and conflicts such as the 2007 HINDRAF rally, 2009 Cow's Head Protests,[12] and the demolition of Hindu places of worship in Selangor such as the Malaimel Sri Selva Kaliamman Temple in Kuala Lumpur and the Sri Maha Mariamman temple in Batu Tiga.