More than 28,000 youths from different ethnic groups reported Monday in Malaysia's first national service call-up aimed at boosting patriotism and racial integration.
They are from among some 85,000 teenagers who have been chosen at random from Malaysia's more than 480,000 girls and boys born in 1986 for three-month stints in 41 camps around the country.
Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is also defence minister, said there was no political agenda behind the program, but the main opposition Islamic Party has charged that it is aimed at indoctrinating Muslim youths to support the ruling coalition.
The government says the objective of the 500-million-ringgit (132 million US dollar) pilot program is to build a generation of self-confident, patriotic youths with noble values and develop multiracial harmony and unity.
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