JULY 22 — I don’t know. No one but the man himself knows for sure one way or another.

But the recent abduction case of Ng Mun Tatt has highlighted how emotional and reactive we can be at the slightest hint of anyone insulting Islam, no matter if unproven. It’s regrettable how paranoid we must appear to non-Muslims.

Last weekend, a coalition of Muslim NGOs hit out at PAS Youth for condemning the kidnappers for using Islam to justify their actions.

“Before PAS Youth barks senselessly to exploit the issue to gain popularity, we hope PAS first conducts proper research,” said the coalition regarding Ng’s abduction, who was subsequently found with the words “Saya hina Islam” (I insulted Islam) scrawled on his chest. “Ng had only made a denial (that he insulted Islam) but has not presented any evidence and yet PAS Youth has worshipped this Chinese youth.”

By insinuating that Ng needs to prove he did not insult Islam, the underlying implication is that Ng is deemed guilty of doing so until proven otherwise. And all we have to go by are the words scrawled on his chest, which were put there by his kidnappers. It is rather silly.

Bear in mind that these men have motivation to paint him in that light given the recent furore over the Alvivi incident.

To recap, Ng was abducted in a Proton Saga at 4.30am last Monday and then taken to an apartment. He was beaten en route and also when they reached the place. The kidnappers then contacted his family for ransom, but subsequently couldn’t retrieve the money as Ng could not recall his ATM pin number.

So they then beat him up again before trying to force him to sniff glue. Ng pretended to, then escaped when his kidnappers got themselves high on glue. After his escape, Ng went straight to the police.

And at some point the photos of Ng with those words on his chest were taken, then uploaded to the Internet. Ng has since denied insulting Islam in any way.

Unless there is further proof to the contrary, it is reasonable to conclude that the kidnappers have taken advantage of the spotlight on the Alvivi incident in an attempt to turn public opinion against Ng should he pursue police action. Another possibility is perhaps that the kidnappers accused Ng of insulting Islam as a result of his being Chinese, again in relation to the Alvivi incident.

And if the kidnappers had sought to divert attention from their crime with those words on Ng’s chest, they have certainly succeeded to a certain extent.

Just look at how some quarters have latched onto that allegation despite the bigger issue of someone being kidnapped and beaten. A quick Google search will yield numerous public comments that presumed he is guilty while ignoring that a serious crime has taken place, saying instead it was his due for “insulting” Islam.

All this hate towards Ng is despite there being no evidence supporting the notion that he did in fact insult Islam beyond words scrawled on his chest by kidnappers who enjoy sniffing glue.

It is disappointing. An accusation of insulting another religion is a very serious matter, especially in our local setting which houses many different religions. Any such claim should be investigated and verified before we condemn the accused. Otherwise, it becomes too easy to make anyone a target of hate on the basis of “insulting religion.”

Have we become so paranoid that the mere allegation of someone insulting our religion throws all sense out the window and becomes a legitimate excuse to vilify in the name of defending said religion? Surely we are better than that.

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.