I am not a student from Convent Batu Pahat, but I guess this statue pictured here, hold fond memories for many Convent girls past and present.
You can read about what Convent girls say at: Convent BP Part I, Convent BP Part II, Convent BP Part III

The Good news. It WILL still REMAIN in the grounds of SMK Convent Batu Pahat.

CHIJ - Convent Batu Pahat

Well, some ‘try to be clever’ MPs (and of all places, MPs from nearby Parit Sulong and Sri Gading) wanted to have them removed.

But the Education Ministry saved the day with this reply. Here’s an article from The Star Online on Tuesday December 4, 2007.

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http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/12/4/parliament/19651829&sec=parliament

CROSSES in Christian missionary schools will not be removed.

Deputy Education Minister Datuk Noh Omar said it was a tradition for missionary schools to have crosses erected in school compounds and there was no reason to remove them.

“We will continue with the current practice, which is a tradition started a long time ago,” he told Lim Kit Siang (DAP – Ipoh Timur) at the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.

Lim said remarks made by Syed Hood Syed Edros (BN – Parit Sulong) and Datuk Mohamed Aziz (BN – Sri Gading) suggesting crosses in missionary schools be removed and church influence in these schools be stopped were widely circulated among bloggers and Internet surfers.

Lim said Syed Hood had claimed on Oct 29 that the Vatican controlled missionary schools in Malaysia.

In his speech to debate the Budget at policy stage on that day, Syed Hood also said that he was disappointed that the statue of the Virgin Mary was displayed in front of convent schools and questioned why the Education Ministry allowed it as Malaysia was an Islamic country.

He also said that he was made to understand that Muslim parents had complained that hymms were sung before school began.

Mohamed had interjected to support Syed Hood, saying that a Muslim father complained that when Hari Raya Aidilfitri was celebrated, these types of schools were not closed.

Both Syed Hood and Mohamed were not in the Dewan when Lim asked Noh about the issue yesterday.

Outside Parliament, Noh said he was not aware that the issue was being widely circulated on the Internet.

Lim urged the Education Ministry to correct the two MPs.

He also urged the ministry to correct the impression that missionary schools were making Muslim students murtad (apostate).

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said MPs were not above the Sedition Act and could not make seditious statements in Parliament.

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For your weekend reading pleasure, here’s two blogs that talked about this issue:
1. Lucia Lai
2. Malaysians Say The Darndest Things!

Have a good weekend!