A PAS leader has defended his controversial remarks related to a woman who was barred from entering a police station to lodge a report due to her attire.
Jabi assemblyperson Azman Ibrahim said his comparison of the situation to "expensive goods" (barang mahal) being packaged nicely was just a figure of speech.
Responding to a Malaysiakini article on his remarks, Azman (above) tweeted that his critics did not understand proverbs, parables and analogies.
He also gave a list of Malay proverbs as an example.
"Bagai anjing dengan bayang-bayang (like a dog and his shadow) means someone is greedy. It's not calling you a dog.
"Bagai anjing menyalak bukit (like a dog barking at a hill) means a futile effort. It's not calling you a dog," Azman said.
He also cited proverbs that used deer, chickens and cats.
The original issue was a recent case where a woman was barred from entering the Kajang district police headquarters to lodge a report on a traffic accident because she was wearing shorts.
Bentong MP Young Syefura Othman had, in response, urged the police to not be sexist towards women and to carry out their duties without prejudice and without judging a person by their clothing.
Earlier, Azman courted flak for his speech likening women to items.
"Expensive items that are high in value will be packaged nicely. Packaging plays an important part in marketing. If an item is sold uncovered by the roadside, it is likely a cheap imitation item," he tweeted.
Later, in a separate thread of tweets, Azman further justified fashion policing.
He said if wearing revealing clothes were a sign of development and modernity, then other creatures of God would have become more developed and modern.
The tweet was accompanied by a picture of Azman holding the rump of a cow.
He stressed that issues such as this must be sternly voiced out.
"A dented car can't be fixed with a tissue.
"This does not impinge on individual rights. When you are at home, that is your individual right.
"When you are out in public, there is the right of others that must be respected," Azman said, adding that this is why a country needs laws and ethics.
Responding to Azman, DAP chairperson Lim Guan Eng said the PAS leader's earlier remarks on "expensive goods" showed a lack of gender sensitivity and that he was irresponsible.
Lim went on to ask if PAS would next follow the example of the Afghanistan government by banning women from going to university, given that PAS publicly deemed women as "items".
“The fact that they do not treat women as individuals, but as items, proves the extreme level of this party.
"Is the next step for them to ban women from going to university, as the Afghanistan government did? It is very irresponsible,” Lim told Malaysiakini today.
PAS Youth had previously spoken out against the decision of the Taliban government in Afghanistan to ban women students from attending university over issues of their clothing.
Lim also endorsed Young Syefura’s statement that the police should not deny the public's right to report due to attire issues.
“The police should focus on combating crime, but not becoming the moral police.
“Lodging a police report is a fundamental basic right for all and it should not be denied by dress code or moral policing,” he added. - Mkini
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