Syed Azmi Alhabshi (in yellow t-shirt), seen here with one of the participants at the 'I Want to Touch a Dog' event last Sunday. – The Malaysian Insider pic, October 24, 2014.
After almost a week of staying silent amid an uproar, Syed Azmi Alhabshi, who organised the "I want to touch a dog" event in Bandar Utama has resurfaced and will address the media tomorrow in a special press conference.
According to a statement, Syed Azmi will explain the issues revolving last Sunday’s event, which drew heavy flak from many Malay Muslims who felt it was an insult to Islam.
Yesterday, the social activist finally broke his silence online, and commented on a post on the "I Want to Touch a Dog" Facebook page, which was recently closed to the public.
In a post written by organisers requesting that participants remove their photos at the event, Syed Azmi expressed sympathy to those who had faced any difficulty.
“I am so sorry to those who (are) having a hard time. Really. Thank you for understanding the request,” he wrote in the comments section yesterday.
When asked how he was doing, Syed Azmi replied: “Hello. I am doing ok. Sorry busy planning few impromptu projects which I plan to execute tomorrow".
For the past week, he has remained virtually uncontactable as detractors circulated his mobile phone number on the Internet, urging the public to harass him.
He has also been the subject of death threats online, and has been accused of apostasy, of being a Christian in disguise, and of attempting to spread a new religion among Muslims in Malaysia.
But many have flooded his Facebook page with words of support and encouragement, and recalled his charity works such as organising a mass prayer with the homeless, visits to old folks homes, and food drives for the homeless and flood victims.
In an interview with The Malaysian Insider last Saturday, Syed Azmi said the purpose of the event was to help people overcome their fear of dogs and learn compassion for all animals, which Islam teaches.
He had already obtained approval from the state religious authority, and invited an ustaz to the event to give a talk on Islam’s views on dogs.
The event attracted about 1,000 Malaysians, and many took the opportunity to touch and pet dogs of various breeds, while volunteers demonstrated how the cleansing ritual was done according to Islam.
- TMI
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