Are they happy with what they have done?Cow head protestors charged with sedition, illegal assembly (Update 2)
By YENG AI CHUN
aichun@thestar.com.my
SHAH ALAM: Six men were charged with sedition at the Sessions Court on Wednesday for their involvement in a protest in which they dragged a cow’s head to the front of the state secretariat building last month, then proceeded to stamp and spit on it.
The six were also charged with taking part in an illegal assembly, along with six other men, at the Magistrates Court.
The 12 men were among some 50 people, led by residents of Section 23 here, who on Aug 28 marched about 300m from the state mosque to the gates of the state secretariat building to protest against the relocation of the Sri Mahamariamman temple from Section 19 to their neighbourhood.
The six charged with sedition under Section 4 (1) of the Sedition Act 1948, alternatively under Section 298 of the Penal Code, pleaded not guilty and bail was set at RM4,000 each with one surety.
By YENG AI CHUN
aichun@thestar.com.my
SHAH ALAM: Six men were charged with sedition at the Sessions Court on Wednesday for their involvement in a protest in which they dragged a cow’s head to the front of the state secretariat building last month, then proceeded to stamp and spit on it.
The six were also charged with taking part in an illegal assembly, along with six other men, at the Magistrates Court.
The 12 men were among some 50 people, led by residents of Section 23 here, who on Aug 28 marched about 300m from the state mosque to the gates of the state secretariat building to protest against the relocation of the Sri Mahamariamman temple from Section 19 to their neighbourhood.
The six charged with sedition under Section 4 (1) of the Sedition Act 1948, alternatively under Section 298 of the Penal Code, pleaded not guilty and bail was set at RM4,000 each with one surety.
Source:
Thursday September 10, 2009
Inculcate tolerance
MY FAMILY and I are deeply saddened by the cow head incident in Shah Alam recently. The first question that came to my mind was what made these irresponsible people resort to such insensitive action.
I agree with “Cow head incident must not go unpunished” (The Star, Sept 4), that while the residents have a right to hold a protest, parading a cow’s head in front of the Selangor Secretariat was totally unacceptable. Incidents like this can definitely create disharmony in the country.
Schools must teach students to respect one another’s religion and places of worship as all religions advocate acceptance, tolerance and living in peace and harmony.
More importantly, parents, too, must educate their children on the people in this country who are of different races, religions and cultural backgrounds. The fact that we all live in such diversity is a plus point. It enriches our lives and that of our childrens’ too.
My siblings and I were brought up in a home where my parents welcomed all our friends. We lived in a multiracial neighbourhood. This was a choice my late father consciously made so that his children were exposed to people of different races.
We had Malay, Chinese, Indian and Eurasian friends, and during the school holidays they would spend the nights in our home. Sometimes they even went with us to visit our grandparents in Teluk Intan and stayed over.
We played indoor and outdoor games, watched movies and had meals together. Our parents would also participate in these activities.
We never really thought of each other as Malay, Chinese, Eurasian or Indian as we regarded one another as good friends.
Sometimes we even reminded each other of our prayer times. For example, on Sundays we would tell our Christian friends not to forget to go to church, and on Fridays they would remind my brothers of the Friday prayers.
We would also go and watch Thaipusam celebrations and cheer the kavadi carriers. We did this with our cousins and aunts when we returned to our hometown.
My parents had always reminded us that we are all God’s creation even though we have different beliefs, and we must respect one another and this included the different places of worship found in our neighbourhood.
My siblings and I are very grateful to our parents for instilling such values in us and we in turn are doing the same with our children.
The cow head incident in Shah Alam recently is a wake-up call for all Malaysians. Despite the development we experience in many aspects of our lives and the fact that our country has achieved 52 years of independence, still, for some people, living in a multi-racial community is unacceptable.
We must accept one another for who we are so that we are able to live in peace and harmony. FAUZIAH KAMARUDDIN,
Petaling Jaya.
Inculcate tolerance
MY FAMILY and I are deeply saddened by the cow head incident in Shah Alam recently. The first question that came to my mind was what made these irresponsible people resort to such insensitive action.
I agree with “Cow head incident must not go unpunished” (The Star, Sept 4), that while the residents have a right to hold a protest, parading a cow’s head in front of the Selangor Secretariat was totally unacceptable. Incidents like this can definitely create disharmony in the country.
Schools must teach students to respect one another’s religion and places of worship as all religions advocate acceptance, tolerance and living in peace and harmony.
More importantly, parents, too, must educate their children on the people in this country who are of different races, religions and cultural backgrounds. The fact that we all live in such diversity is a plus point. It enriches our lives and that of our childrens’ too.
My siblings and I were brought up in a home where my parents welcomed all our friends. We lived in a multiracial neighbourhood. This was a choice my late father consciously made so that his children were exposed to people of different races.
We had Malay, Chinese, Indian and Eurasian friends, and during the school holidays they would spend the nights in our home. Sometimes they even went with us to visit our grandparents in Teluk Intan and stayed over.
We played indoor and outdoor games, watched movies and had meals together. Our parents would also participate in these activities.
We never really thought of each other as Malay, Chinese, Eurasian or Indian as we regarded one another as good friends.
Sometimes we even reminded each other of our prayer times. For example, on Sundays we would tell our Christian friends not to forget to go to church, and on Fridays they would remind my brothers of the Friday prayers.
We would also go and watch Thaipusam celebrations and cheer the kavadi carriers. We did this with our cousins and aunts when we returned to our hometown.
My parents had always reminded us that we are all God’s creation even though we have different beliefs, and we must respect one another and this included the different places of worship found in our neighbourhood.
My siblings and I are very grateful to our parents for instilling such values in us and we in turn are doing the same with our children.
The cow head incident in Shah Alam recently is a wake-up call for all Malaysians. Despite the development we experience in many aspects of our lives and the fact that our country has achieved 52 years of independence, still, for some people, living in a multi-racial community is unacceptable.
We must accept one another for who we are so that we are able to live in peace and harmony. FAUZIAH KAMARUDDIN,
Petaling Jaya.
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