Kit Siang has zero general knowledge, Hadi returns fire after 'terror' link

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang launched a broadside against Lim Kit Siang over the latter's remarks concerning his involvement with the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS).

The Marang MP said IUMS was a legitimate academic organisation which is not involved in armed struggles.

“He (Lim) doesn't know. He has no general knowledge.

“IUMS is a legitimate organisation with offices around the world and has representatives in all states,” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby this afternoon.

Yesterday, Lim suggested that the White Paper, which PAS requested to be tabled in Parliament on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), be expanded to all forms of terror threats, including IUMS.

“It has been reported that the four Gulf states, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, dubbed the 'anti-terror quarter', had added the IUMS on their terror lists.

“As the leader of a Malaysian opposition party is a vice-president of IUMS, this is also a matter which should be addressed by the White Paper on terrorism,” he added.

Although Lim did not mention names, his remarks were obviously targeted at Hadi.

Last November, Malaysiakini reported that Hadi did not defend his IUMS vice-president post.

Earlier, Hadi was also quizzed on the matter in the Dewan Rakyat, where he said despite IUMS being labelled as a terrorist organisation, the Saudi government did not prevent him from performing the umrah.

This is after Khoo Poay Tiong (DAP-Kota Melaka) pointed out that while the LTTE had been defunct since 2009, the four Gulf states labelled the IUMS as a terrorist organisation.

“You read the newspapers. Your feet are not on the ground.

“On the ground, we can see that IUMS has representatives from Saudi, from UAE... I myself have performed the umrah and was not stopped,” said the PAS president.

When Khoo (above) asked why was IUMS still regarded a terrorist organisation then, Hadi replied: “This is because of diplomatic relations. Times have changed. Perhaps the stand of the four (Gulf) states has also changed.”

PAS' call for a White Paper on the LTTE followed the police detaining 12 people, including two DAP assemblypersons, on the allegation of attempting to revive the movement.

According to the police, one of the suspects had planned to attack the Sri Lankan High Commission in Kuala Lumpur.

The suspects were detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), which allows for detention without trial for a period of 28 days. - Mkini