Forget colours, let’s unite for Al-Aqsa Mosque, says NGO

Mapim hopes 10,000 Malaysians of all races and religions will gather at the US Embassy to protest the violence at Al-Aqsa Mosque by the Israeli army.

KUALA LUMPUR: Instead for furthering the causes of those in red or yellow shirts, the Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organisations (Mapim) has called on all Malaysians to gather in protest of the violence perpetrated by the Israeli army on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

Its president, Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid said the protest will take place in front of the US Embassy on October 2 after Friday prayers to show Malaysia’s support for the Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds protest.

In expressing his hope that Malaysians would focus more on helping those who were truly suppressed instead of “thinking about colours”, he said, “We are hoping that those who join this gathering come from different races and religions because this would show the uniqueness of Malaysia.”

Relating how Malaysians were known to stand united for humanitarian issues and for justice, he added, “We hope that this upcoming gathering will be one such unique gathering.”

He said this during a media conference after the Save Al-Quds coalition meeting held at De Palma Hotel, Ampang, here today.

Although Mohd Azmi did not make any reference to specific events, the Bersih 4 rally in August adopted yellow as its colour theme while the Malay Dignity rally on September 16 adopted red as theirs.

The Save Al-Quds global campaign is aimed at freeing the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem from continued assaults and violence perpetrated on it by the Israeli army for over six decades.

The peaceful gathering called “A Day of Anger” will be held by 30 non-governmental organisations (NGO) including Aqsa Syarif, Mapim as well as Perdana Global Peace Foundation among others, to put pressure on the Zionist Regime to stop all forms of assault including the continued raids conducted on the mosque.

He said he was expecting at least 10,000 participants.

“We will be introducing a slogan, which is ‘Al Aqsa cannot be divided’. Currently we are conducting a hashtag campaign, and hope at least 10 million people will use it.

“We will also be bringing banners to show that Malaysia is committed to fighting for peace and upholding justice for those being suppressed.”

Meanwhile, when asked about the current Syrian refugee crisis which has left thousands stranded at sea and many dead, Mohd Azmi said that the weak leadership of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) was to blame for the tragedy.

According to him, the OIC could have done more for the Syrian refugees if they had learned their lesson from the previous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“They (OIC) are weak and not proactive. They knew what would happen after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan but they let it happen anyway and refused to take action without the approval from the West.

“OIC knows that the United Nations (UN) Security Council has the mandate to impose sanctions and send peacekeepers. They (OIC) should have urged the UN to do so immediately, but sadly they did not,” he added.