Animal lover Maznah Yusof will be taken to Segamat, Johor to have her statement taken in connection to a You Tube clip showing her walking her dogs and washing one of them in a manner that has offended Muslim zealots in the country including Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.
Her lawyers Latheefa Koya and N Surendran condemned the "runaround" the police and some government agencies were giving their client.
"This is absolute abuse of process. Chetz (Maznah's nickname) is not a Johorean, she lives in the Klang Valley and the only reason the police can give us for dragging her to Segamat is that someone lodged a report against her in Segamat," Latheefa told Malaysia Chronicle.
"It is the most nonsensical runaround and a clear breach of the Criminal Procedure Code which says a suspect should be charged in the vicinity of where he or she is alleged to have committed the wrongdoing. Look at the time, it's already past midnight. We have to frantically find a lawyer to represent her in Segamat on Thursday."
Calm and collected
According to Latheefa, Chetz was "calm and collected" on hearing that she was to be bounced down to Segamat to be grilled and have her statement taken.
The 38-year-old dog trainer will be charged at the Segamat magistrate court on Thursday morning.
As of press time, she is still at the Bukit Perdana police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, awaiting Segamat police to arrive and take her down to Johor.
She was arrested this afternoon and detained for allegedly breaching Section 298A of the Penal Code, as well as the draconian Sedition Act which carries heavy penalties.
"She looked strong but she also told us how shocked she is at the sudden turn of events. She has been posting hundreds of clips onto You Tube for years and this particular clip was made 3 years ago. Why the sudden hoo-ha," said Latheefa.
Chetz has denied she ever insulted Islam.
"I love my religion. I think these people should learn about their religion first, and not misinterpret my video," Malaysiakini reported Maznah as saying.
"As a religious leader, doesn't he know about Islamic laws? As far as I am concerned, my religion does not forbid me from keeping dogs or caring for them," she added, referring to the cleric in her neighborhood mosque who had condemned the clip.
Political victims
Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin too has rushed to denounce the clip, giving orders for action to be taken swiftly.
Chetz's arrest comes hot on the heels of bloggers Alvin Tan and Vivian Lee, who were also charged for Sedition over a Ramadan greeting the posted on Facebook that angered Muslims in the country.
Many Malaysians believe Alvivi and now Maznah are being used by unscrupulous politicians to stir up Islamic righteousness so to portray a holier-than-thou image and win political favor from their party members and supporters. Muhyiddin's Umno party is due to hold party polls on Oct 5.
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