Kedah MCA Youth gives 'pro-Japanese' memorial a makeover

Kedah MCA Youth has reworded a memorial for Japanese soldiers in Alor Setar, Kedah, to instead dedicate it to all those who fought the Japanese invaders during World War 2.

The 1.8m stone memorial now has the Chinese words "Memorial for heroes who fought the Japanese" attached to it, covering the original wording.

The fence surrounding the monument has also been covered in banners which, among others, read: "Japanese soldiers not heroes", "Killing, raping and beheading locals" and "Japanese soldiers are cruel".

The memorial, which has long been in existence, was recently restored by the Consulate-General of Japan in Penang and re-dedicated during a ceremony attended by Kedah government officials on Sunday.

This memorial was dedicated to three Japanese soldiers who died while trying to secure a bridge during the early stages of the Japanese invasion of the Malay peninsula.

The point of contention was the signboard explaining the significance of the memorial and which described the trio as "heroes".

When contacted, MCA Youth deputy chief Tan Chee Hiong said although the state government has removed the signboard, it should also remove the memorial completely.

"We reworded the memorial because we believe that those we should hold in memory are the innocent people and the local anti-Japanese soldiers who were killed, not Japanese soldiers," he said.

Earlier, Tan posted on Facebook that "war criminals" should not have a memorial when there were none for those who fought against the Japanese invaders.

"Do we need 'another attraction in Kedah' even if it commemorates those who victimised us?

"Why not set up a memorial for those who fought against the Japanese?" he asked.

According to Chinese vernacular Kwang Wah Yit Poh, the banners attached to the fences were removed this morning but the stickers which replaced the original characters on the memorial remain.

In a related development, former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak has applauded Kedah MCA's efforts to refashion the memorial.

"They want to send a clear message to the Pakatan Harapan government that this memorial is an insult to all Malaysians," wrote Najib on his Facebook page.

However, other netizens pointed out that the memorial has been in existence even when he was prime minister.