Asri urges Muslims to "gather for survival"

PETALING JAYA: After openly calling for the repression of illegal places of worship following violent protests against plans to transfer a Hindu temple to Selangor, Perlis Mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin urged today the Muslims to unite.

In declaring that the temple protests of the last two days were proof that "good deeds are not always appreciated", Asri called the Malaysian groups who are planning to hold a rally next month to hold a meeting. oppose the accession of Malaysia to a global treaty against discrimination. for "Muslim survival".

"In today's climate, the Ummah (Muslim community) needs a meeting and a leadership to discuss next steps. Forget the differences between us.

"Let's unite for the future of the community," he writes on Facebook.

The rally referred to is called by Umno, the SAP and several Malaysian groups who opposed the government's plan to ratify the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, or ICERD. The organizers have since announced that the rally will be held on December 8, to thank the government for not ratifying ICERD.

Asri's remarks today come as government and opposition leaders call for calm after the violent protests that followed the planned move of Sri Maha Mariamman Temple.

The temple was to be relocated on November 22 as part of an agreement between One City, the Selangor State Government and two claimants to the temple leadership, K Chellapa and M Nagaraju.

However, a rival faction of the Nagaraju-led temple insisted that the temple remain at its current location instead of being moved about 3 km away.

Yesterday, Asri urged the authorities to brutally visit illegal places of worship, claiming that they were a nuisance to the public.

He added that the previous government had authorized illegal religious structures for fear of losing votes in elections.

"The previous government of its vote bank was so protective that it allowed too many places of worship to flout the rules and be built illegally," said Asri, who was publicly opposed the Hindu group Hindraf for religious rights issues.