Zaid tells Asri, Waytha to meet, not quarrel

Both men should stop their public condemnation of each other for the sake of Hindu-Muslim harmony in Malaysia.

PETALING JAYA: Former minister Zaid Ibrahim has called for a ceasefire between Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin and Hindraf leader P. Waythamoorthy, urging them to meet and resolve their differences.

“I urge both of them to immediately cease making further comment, and instead have a face-to-face meeting to resolve the matter amicably.

“Nothing that men of goodwill cannot resolve amicably, no matter how grave the mistakes they have done,” said Zaid, adding that both men, whom he knew personally, were “decent individuals with deep intellect”.

Zaid was commenting on the tit-for-tat statements by Asri and Waytha, following their differences over the presence of Indian preacher Dr Zakir Naik in the country.

Hindraf has strongly objected to Naik’s presence in the country, and demanded his deportation.

Indian authorities are seeking to question Naik over allegations of money laundering and of promoting terrorism, charges strongly denied by Naik and his supporters.

Asri has several times come to Naik’s defence, and challenged Hindraf to prove allegations that Naik promoted hatred and terrorism.

The outspoken mufti has also accused Hindraf of echoing Hindu extremists in India, and highlighted the plight of Muslims in the subcontinent under the administration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Supporters on both sides have also uploaded old video clips, one showing a man deriding Malays during the Hindraf rally a decade back, while other clips showed Asri touching on Hindu gods during a religious discourse, as well as addressing Indian migrants to Malaysia using the derogatory term “pariah”.

Zaid said the public quarrel between Asri and Waytha threatened to harm the peace between Muslims and Hindus in Malaysia.

“It will be harmful and even pose a danger to peace and stability for our country if their religious dispute and misunderstanding get out of control.

“I hope both Muslims and Hindus learn something positive from this experience and forgive and forget what has happened.

“We live in difficult times and we need goodwill more than ever.” -FMT