Ibrahim Ali disappointed by Himpun turnout

By Yow Hong Chieh

October 26, 2011

Datuk Ibrahim Ali giving his winding-up speech during Perkasa’s second general assembly, in Kuala Lumpur. – Picture by Jack Ooi

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 26 – Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali has expressed embarrassment over the poor turnout at the Himpunan Sejuta Umat rally, despite the Malay rights movement earlier shrugging off the low attendance.

Only 5,000 people filled the 100,000-seat Shah Alam Stadium where the rally against the alleged Christianisation of Malaysia took place last weekend.

“Even as late at 4pm, there were fewer than 10,000 people... I was embarrassed as a Malay and a Muslim. Where are our Malays?

“But when there’s a conference or an assembly, why this, why that?” Ibrahim said in his winding-up speech at the 2nd Perkasa general assembly here.

The Malay rights leader lamented that Malays were very good at asking for things but were reluctant to put their money where their mouth was when time came for action.

“What is our sacrifice? How far are we willing to go?” he said.

Ibrahim added that if Malays remained too passive in voicing their objections despite being “under attack from within and without”, they would suffer the same fate as Singaporean Malays and Malays in Penang, whom he said were marginalised.

Himpun was organised by various right-wing religious groups calling for Muslims to rise up and fight the “challenge of Christianisation” to Muslims in Malaysia.

The mass rally was mooted following the controversial August 3 raid by Selangor Islamic authorities on Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC), where it was alleged that Christians were converting Muslims.

Christian leaders have denied claims that Christians were attempting to convert Muslims and have called Himpun’s fight “irrelevant”.