KUALA LUMPUR, April 25 — For the protesters who forced a church in Taman Medan to remove its cross, the religious symbol was purportedly a step too far, but some youths in the community said the Christian icon was neither provocative nor novel.

While the older residents who spoke previously to Malay Mail Online cited lingering fears over the 2001 race riots in the neighbouring Kampung Medan as reason not to display the cross, the younger generation who also experienced the clash said such concerns were unfounded.

“I never once felt threatened. There are temples here and, yes, we have had a bitter incident here before, but you cannot simply dwell in such fear,” 31-year-old Hisham Hashim told Malay Mail Online, in reference to the 2001 incident.

“There’s a La Salle school just a stone’s throw away from here with a big cross on its building. Is anyone’s religion challenged?” the despatch rider said, referring to the missionary school.

Hisham said while he also lived through the race riots that left six people dead, he did not see how allowing a church to operate in the primarily Malay neighbourhood would lead to repeat of the incident.

“In Islam, the strength of one’s faith is upon one’s self... not based on a cross,” he said.

The 2001 Kampung Medan riots that unfolded a short distance from Taman Medan was believed to have started when an Indian security guard, upon finding a tent erected for a Malay wedding in the middle of a narrow road, began destroying the tables and chairs set out beneath it.

The incident triggered a flurry of violent racially-charged attacks and resulted in six deaths and at least 40 hospitalised. One man had both his arms hacked off.

As with Hisham, laundry shop owner Suriana Abdul Rahman, 31, also saw no threat or provocation in the church’s display of the cross.

“It’s alright if they want to place a cross on their building, as long as they do not disturb the Muslims here,” she told Malay Mail Online when met.

“Even for Muslims, we were never told to look or stare at crosses and make a scene... if you don’t want to look at it, just don’t,” she added.

Suriana said that religious tolerance in the area was acceptable, as adherents of different faiths took care not to inconvenience one another with their worship and celebrations.

Not all felt the cross outside the church’s building was tolerable, however. A self-employed father of two who only identified himself as Din said although the church should not be singled out for attention, it had invited this by openly displaying the Christian symbol.

“I don’t think having a church here is a problem, it’s just that they shouldn’t make it so obvious. This is a hot area.

‘If they keep whatever display (of the cross) indoors, I don’t think it is a problem, even if there are only a few people who want to set up the church,” he added.

Last Sunday, about 50 Taman Medan Muslim residents staged a protest against the Community of Praise Petaling Jaya Church for putting up a cross on its façade, claiming the act was a challenge to Islam and could influence young Muslims.

The church removed the cross several hours later and has refused to reinstall the item without express written instructions from the Selangor government despite assurances that it may do so.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak this week said the police are investigating the incident and will take action under the Sedition Act and other laws if the protesters are found to have acted unlawfully.

The incident was the latest flashpoint in Muslim-Christian ties that are still strained from the tussle over “Allah”, the Arabic word for God, which went in favour of the former as well as other clashes involving the two faiths.

It also comes at a time Malaysia is struggling with growing religious fundamentalism as evidenced by the push for hudud, the Islamic penal code, in the east coast state of Kelantan and religious authorities’ move to introduce spiritual guidelines for concerts that include gender segregation and discouraging “excessive laughter”.