Zaid hits out at ministry's Muslim-friendly tourism idea for Langkawi

 

The Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry’s idea to make Langkawi a niche attraction for Muslim tourists has drawn brickbats from a former minister.

Zaid Ibrahim said as it is, the tax-free island is already facing competition from other global tourism destinations like Riyadh, Dubai, Istanbul, Medan, Surabaya, Jakarta, and Hatyai, as well as local spots like Terengganu and Kota Bharu.

To make Langkawi more attractive to Muslims, the former law minister said, it would have to cater to what the community actually prefers - shopping.

He claimed that Muslims do not like the sea unless there are separate beaches for men and women.

“Then they don’t like music and entertainment as it would make them ‘khayal’ (forget themselves). They don’t want to mingle with scantily clad women, so we must not allow too many foreigners.

“What do they like? They like shopping,” he said in a post on X.

‘Madani govt won’t allow shopping haven’

According to Zaid, the idea might work if the government is ready to turn Langkawi into a shopping haven “unlike any other place”.

To do this, he said the government needs to remove all taxes on halal cosmetics, clothes, cars, textiles, sports goods, cigarettes, and all kinds of foodstuff.

Tourists should also be allowed to bring home the products, the politician added.

However, Zaid claimed that Putrajaya would not like the idea as it requires removing taxes and building large shopping malls.

“Building large shopping malls would cost money, so this government would not like the idea. Madani wants to collect more taxes, so no taxes are a terrible idea.

“In that case, I suggest the deputy (tourism) minister think of something else. The only other option is replicating Langkawi to be like Bali and Phuket. But Madani will not accept this idea too.

“It looks like Langkawi will deteriorate slowly but surely, as the curse of Mahsuri still holds strong,” he said.

Earlier today, Deputy Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan said some states that impose conservative rules on tourists could be positioned as a destination for Muslim tourists.

Firdaus said this in the Dewan Rakyat after he was asked to comment on states that restricted tourists from drinking alcohol or wearing revealing clothes.

Defending the states’ right to make their own rules on tourists, the deputy minister cited Langkawi as an example.

“We know that for Langkawi, there is stiff competition with the islands of neighbouring countries, so it might be quite difficult.

“For that reason, we might position Langkawi as a preferred Muslim destination so that it heads towards the direction of (tourism for) families, more towards spirituality,” he said. - Mkini