PARLIAMENT, 9 Oct: Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim expressed great regret with Putrajaya which defended the President of Perkasa, Datuk Ibrahim Ali, on his threat to burn Malay language Bibles to defend the sanctity of Islam.
Instead, the Opposition Leader stressed that it is not Islamic tradition to threaten and burn the holy book of any religion.
“I am disappointed by the response given by the Minister (Nancy Syukri) because she must be more responsible.
“Where is there in Islamic tradition to threaten to burn any religious book?
“The picture given that this government chooses to prosecute and provide free room for people to make the more irresponsible statement,” he said at the Parliament lobby today.
Anwar said that the minister should also respect the law and maintain public order and cooperation between diverse communities.
Yesterday, Putrajaya defended Ibrahim’s move for allegedly making threats to burn Malay language Bibles. The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Nancy Syukri, said that the Perkasa President did not intent to cause a religious stir, but only to defend the sanctity of Islam.
Nancy Syukri, when answering an oral question by the Member of Parliament for Bagan, Lim Guan Eng, said that Ibrahim’s statement was aimed at specific individuals who spread the Jawi Malay version Bibles.
According to Nancy, therefore, no prosecution can be taken against Ibrahim.
In the question at the House of Representatives yesterday, Lim asked the Prime Minister to explain why the Perkasa President was not charged under the Sedition Act following his threat to burn the Bible.
A police report was made against Ibrahim and he was called for a statement, but no action was taken.
NS
