KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 — Suggesting selective prosecution, Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) demanded today the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and Attorney-General (AG) explain their lack of action against non-Muslims which the Muslim group claims have hurled insults against Malays and Muslims here.
The group’s president Abdullah Zaik Abdul Rahman, who has been charged with sedition, said the country’s top policeman and public prosecutor seemed to be closing an eye towards “many cases” involving non-Muslims.
“If Muslims or Malays do the same thing, very quickly there will be investigations.
“What is stopping the IGP and AG from executing this responsibility until those who are guilty are being protected?” he asked in a statement.
Singling out Lim Kit Siang, Abdullah Zaik claimed there had been no feedback on Isma’s 30 police complaints filed against the DAP parliamentary leader whom he called a “chauvinist”.
Isma had lodged police reports accusing Lim of “defaming” it during a gathering at Dataran Merdeka on May 4 to mark the first anniversary of Election 2013.
Abdullah Zaik also referred to examples of non-Muslims whom he claimed had escaped punitive action as compiled by daily Sinar Harian and The Malaysian Insider as well as blog Bangkit.info.
Among the cases he highlighted were the Facebook post by a user named “Smallfield Benjamin” who had allegedly described Malays feasting like “dogs” during Hari Raya, and former sex bloggers Alvin Tan and Vivian Lee, who published a photograph of them feasting in a pork stew with the words “Selamat Berbuka Puasa”.
Abdullah Zaik was charged with sedition in May for calling Chinese Malaysians “intruders”, labelling their arrival in pre-Independence Malaya a “mistake” that must be rectified.
Isma vice-president Muhammad Fauzi Asmuni was investigated under under sedition laws in February after he was reported calling on Muslims nationwide to be aggressive when defending Islam. No further action appears to have resulted from the investigation.
NOTE: An earlier version of this story contained errors in the infographics, which has since been corrected.
