Except for a couple of years, it is the same mantra from the same people at this time of the year in Malaysia. As organisations and hotel managements make preparations for Oktoberfest, some righteous people make their ignorance public with daft statements.
So as to solicit support, religion is thrown in and all and sundry join the chorus – the blind leading the blind.
In 2014, PAS Dewan Ulama voiced its strong objection to the Oktoberfest “beer-drinking” festival and urged the local authorities in Selangor to take action against the organiser for openly promoting the event.
PAS central committee member Nasrudin Hassan said the organiser was openly “challenging” the sensitivities of Muslims who are observing Hari Raya Aidiladha.
According to Nasrudin, a cleric, Oktoberfest has “offended the sensitivities” of Muslims by its brazen promotion, which he said is akin to the promotion of prostitution to the public. It was twisted logic but he got his two minutes of fame.
In 2018, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang criticised the government for not prohibiting Oktoberfest celebrations, saying the Bavarian festival was against Muslim culture.
While claiming non-Muslims are free to celebrate any events that are not against their religious principles, he said such events must be reconciled with Muslim sensitivities and respect for Islam.
Last week, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Idris Ahmad told Parliament: “Although non-Muslims are not prohibited from drinking alcohol, the government is of the opinion that allowing this festival to happen and making it open to the public should not happen as it will cause social problems, as alcohol is seen to affect the harmony, order and safety of the community.”
Aside from compromising the community’s safety, Idris said that the effects of alcohol may lead to situations like domestic violence, road accidents, poverty, fighting, health problems, and even affect work performance.
‘Sensitivity’ and ‘respect’
The keywords that these men use are “sensitive” and “respect” for Muslims. Now, does it mean that having a pint at my favourite watering hole is disrespectful to Muslims? How?
What is so sensitive about private citizens indulging in something that the government deems legal and continues to collect billions in revenue from?
What “harmony, order and safety of the community” is Idris talking about? Idris may feign ignorance but Oktoberfest has never been held in a place owned by the government. Usually, it is held in clubs, bars and commercial buildings.
Having already put his foot in the mouth on the Bon Odori festival last month and admonished by the sultan of Selangor, Idris seems to be at it again.
Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah suggested that Idris attend the festival for the latter to know the difference between religion and culture. His Highness also urged people to not simply label something negatively without in-depth research.
“They have to also be fair when making public statements that involve communal harmony,” he said.
Daily, thousands of Malaysians throng restaurants, bars and hotels for their tipple without issues and then go home to their families without bothering anyone. How does Idris come to such conclusions? Twisted logic again.
It may of interest to PAS and their clerics that the Taybeh Brewery, in the West Bank village of the same name holds an annual Oktoberfest.
The only time it was not held was in 2014 just after so many lives were lost in clashes with the Israelis.
“The blood in Gaza still did not dry, so we felt we needed better times to celebrate,” USA Today newspaper quoted master brewer Nadim Khoury, who runs the family-owned business, as saying.
Like the Bon Odori, everyone knows that Oktoberfest is not an orgy of beer drinking but an occasion related to agriculture. It started in 1811 when the Bavarian Agricultural Association decided to hold the festival as an opportunity to showcase farming achievements.
Having made four trips to Munich for Oktoberfest and numerous others locally, hundreds (thousands in the case of Munich) of people – from grandfathers and aunties to college students and corporate figures – attend to have some clean fun and be merry without being a hindrance to anyone.
Previously, I had written: “They came dressed in all kinds of apparel – T-shirts and shorts to shirts and tailored suits – but the heat forced many to abandon smart dressing to being comfortable
“Yes, the beer flowed – easily a few thousand litres judging by the enthusiastic crowd who danced and cheered to music with beer steins in their hands.
“There was hardly anyone with an empty glass. There was nothing unruly – no pushing and shoving; no drunken behaviour and no maksiat activities which would have corrupted the morals of Malaysians as one tiny fraction of the community had falsely claimed.”
Besides, there have been no women taking off their clothes and attempting to make people laugh with some utterances that were supposedly jokes.
The question is: How long is this annual drum-beating going to take place in the name of religion? How long more can “sensitive” and “respect” be used by PAS and their supporters to impose their set of religious values on others?
Don’t citizens of this country have a right to gather in a place, enjoy their snifters without someone making an issue out of it?
His Highness suggested Idris visit the Bon Odori festival to see for himself and in the same breath, why don’t he pop in at the Oktoberfest celebrations? Or for that matter, a pub or a hotel?
Of course, he will get his air bandung or limau ais to suit his sense of taste and his religious beliefs and diktats. Or will calling it “Pesta Bulan Sepuluh” (10th-month festival) cool the heads of those twisted minds? - Mkini
R NADESWARAN is a veteran journalist who writes on bread-and-butter issues. Comments: citizen.nades22@gmail.com.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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