Washington, D.C. (August 28, 2009) - The Hindu American Foundation sent the following letter to the Malaysian Ambassador Ilango Karuppannan in response to a Muslim mob's vulgar protest demanding the Malaysian government rescind its orders for relocating a Hindu temple to Section 23 of Shah Alam. A pdf version of the letter can be downloaded by clicking here.
Dear Ambassador Ilango Karuppannan,
We write to protest the vulgar, religiously provocative, and racially incendiary act by a Muslim mob demanding that the government rescind the orders for relocating the Sri Mariamman temple in Section 23 of Shah Alam. According to media reports, this mob, which gathered on August 28, 2009 after Friday prayers, threatened violence and bloodshed, and as if to prove their intent, left the severed head of a cow at the gates of the State Secretariat. As you know, the cow is revered by Hindus as a symbol of purity, motherhood and ahimsa (non-violence). We regret that the police allowed this provocative act to be carried out, and we seek a quick and robust inquiry to identify both the leaders of the Muslim mob and the inaction of the police.
Malaysia has already been a country of particular concern for us in light of the numerous Hindu temple destructions, custodial battles in Shariah courts involving at least one Hindu parent, the arrest and persecution of Hindu-Malaysian leaders, and Bumiputra laws that discriminate against the minority communities. Thus, the countenance by local police of Muslim provocative acts is added cause for alarm in a country that is already facing volatile racial and religious issues. We are gravely concerned about the law and order situation in the country, and the state's unwillingness to firmly clamp down on the religious bigotry of the Muslim majority. Such tensions only bring about a greater sense of insecurity amongst the Hindu residents.
We hope that the Malaysian government will take steps to ensure that Hindus residents will be protected, that the Sri Mariamman temple is relocated in Section 23 of Shah Alam, and the leaders of the mob that carried out this heinous act are brought to justice.
Sincerely,
Ishani Chowdhury
Director of Public Policy
Dear Ambassador Ilango Karuppannan,
We write to protest the vulgar, religiously provocative, and racially incendiary act by a Muslim mob demanding that the government rescind the orders for relocating the Sri Mariamman temple in Section 23 of Shah Alam. According to media reports, this mob, which gathered on August 28, 2009 after Friday prayers, threatened violence and bloodshed, and as if to prove their intent, left the severed head of a cow at the gates of the State Secretariat. As you know, the cow is revered by Hindus as a symbol of purity, motherhood and ahimsa (non-violence). We regret that the police allowed this provocative act to be carried out, and we seek a quick and robust inquiry to identify both the leaders of the Muslim mob and the inaction of the police.
Malaysia has already been a country of particular concern for us in light of the numerous Hindu temple destructions, custodial battles in Shariah courts involving at least one Hindu parent, the arrest and persecution of Hindu-Malaysian leaders, and Bumiputra laws that discriminate against the minority communities. Thus, the countenance by local police of Muslim provocative acts is added cause for alarm in a country that is already facing volatile racial and religious issues. We are gravely concerned about the law and order situation in the country, and the state's unwillingness to firmly clamp down on the religious bigotry of the Muslim majority. Such tensions only bring about a greater sense of insecurity amongst the Hindu residents.
We hope that the Malaysian government will take steps to ensure that Hindus residents will be protected, that the Sri Mariamman temple is relocated in Section 23 of Shah Alam, and the leaders of the mob that carried out this heinous act are brought to justice.
Sincerely,
Ishani Chowdhury
Director of Public Policy
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