Kuala Lumpur: Former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has raised concerns about the extensive use of Chinese script at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur, questioning Malaysia’s national identity.
In a statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), Dr. Mahathir shared his observations after visiting one of the city’s newest shopping malls over the weekend. While he praised the mall as “fantastic” and “better than those in London or Tokyo,” he expressed discomfort with the dominance of Chinese script on signage, which seemed to overshadow the National Language, Bahasa Melayu.
“I suddenly felt like I was in China,” he remarked in his post on Monday. “All the signboards are in Chinese with English translations. Nothing in Malay. Not at all. So, is this Malaysia? Or have we become part of China?”
Dr. Mahathir acknowledged that providing English translations is a common global practice to accommodate international tourists. However, he criticised what he described as an excessive focus on Chinese script. He also referred to reports suggesting that some Chinese media outlets have labeled Malaysia as ‘Little China,’ citing the widespread use of Chinese script in public spaces as a possible reason.
“Perhaps this is because we receive many visitors from China,” he noted.
Despite this, Dr. Mahathir emphasised the importance of maintaining Bahasa Melayu as the National Language and argued that its prominence should not be diminished, even with translations.
“Our national language is Malay,” he stressed, calling for better balance in the representation of languages in public spaces.
