KUALA LUMPUR — The alleged slapping of a non-Muslim by a Muslim for eating in public during Ramadan has drawn the attention of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who reminded Muslims today that such actions rendered talk of Islam’s beauty pointless.
The Prime Minister’s senior press secretary Tunku Nashrul Abaidah conveyed Anwar’s unhappiness over the incident during the Prime Minister’s Office’s (PMO) daily briefing today.
“I begin today’s briefing with a reprimand from the Prime Minister regarding the recent incident of a non-Muslim youth being slapped for eating in public.
“What is the point of us talking about Islam and its beauty, especially in the month of Ramadan, if it does not build internal strength and stops us from behaving violently and threatening peace and harmony,” Nashrul said.
Anwar also called for such actions to “simply stop” as they went against the spirit of national unity and harmony.
“The Prime Minister believes that issues which touch on religious, racial and national sensitivities can be avoided if all parties comply and are committed to the principle of respecting each other to build a civilised country,” Nashrul added.
Anwar’s comments were on a March 17 incident in which a 65-year-old man confronted a 21-year-old non-Muslim youth for eating in a convenience store.
The youth, who lodged a police report over the incident, claimed he had explained to the man that he was not a Muslim, but the man demanded he show his identity card to prove it. When the youth refused to do so, he claimed the man slapped him.
The senior citizen was charged in the Johor Bahru magistrate’s court this morning under the Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt.
However, he was given a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA). He initially pleaded guilty but disputed the facts of the charge. The magistrate rejected his guilty plea, asking him to enter his defence, but the prosecution then asked for a DNAA so as to refer the case back to the Attorney-General’s Chambers. – March 19, 2025