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Uthayasoorian Kalimathu is the President of Tamil Foundation, an organization that has made deep inroads into the Tamil community. The efforts of the Foundation are to keep the Tamil school system alive, and with it the Tamil culture and its language. Uthayasoorian shared his views with INDIA EMPIRE at his office
We have 524 Tamil schools in Malaysia with an attendance of about 1,20,000. Enrollment is going up. It is a good trend. As a community we comprise 87 per cent of the total Malaysian Indian population of about 2 million. The Tamil School System is rather critical for identifying who we are.
But it is a tough task. Our concern is with the quality of the schools. The Malaysian Government is deliberately choking funds. There is a shortage of buildings, teachers. We are interested in getting our teachers trained in ICT, and in subject matters that can enhance their skills. We are in the process of recognizing those teachers that can train in India.
We play the role of an NGO. While any political struggle goes on with the help of the Malaysian Indian Congress, we pitch in as an NGO. Whenever the Government fails to address Tamil rights, we move in. History tells us that India ruled Malay for over 1,000 years. There was a period when Indians controlled the education system, judiciary, police and crucial Government departments. But now, there is great marginalization and discrimination. The Indian Malaysians do not own any banks. The wealth of the Indians is not proportionate to its numbers. We are concerned with the situation, and, therefore, are looking to strengthening the community through our efforts.
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Jegathesan Gopalan: Networking Indian Malaysians through Yahoo
When Jegathesan Gopalan was first introduced to the computer and internet, he was fascinated by its potential and capabilities of information transfer and the endless knowledge bank it provides.
Gopalan soon realised the huge influence and impact it has as a communication tool. As he surfed the internet, he discovered that there are ways to create a community that could network independently for mutual help.
Since the Indian community is disadvantaged lot in terms social and economic progress in Malaysia, he took advantage of the free-to-use Yahoo groups to create a virtual community.
With a catchy phrase of “A network of Indians in Malaysia helping other Indians to help themselves”, Gopalan felt that the creation of this group was apt towards this objective.
Hence, they strive to promote a common platform for the Indian-based organisations, NGOs, societies, corporate figures, business community, politicians and the general public to network among themselves via the internet for mutual benefit & common needs.
Currently having over 7,000 members, this internet based e-community (of which membership is totally free) is specifically for opportunity starved Indian Malaysians seeking to improve their socio-economic status with effective community development activities through the sharing of vital and real time information. Their focus is to stimulate positive interaction among the Indian-Malaysia community through the sharing of experiences, expertise, valuable information, news and views.
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August 2007
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