Abim calls for apology over theatre production allegedly mocking Rukun Negara

 The movement also urges the authorities to investigate the performance, a short video of which has gone viral on social media.

A short video of the production that went viral on social media showed several actors telling one another to ‘go back’ to China, India and Indonesia, with the punchline ‘This is Malaysia’ repeated throughout the skit.

PETALING JAYA:

The Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (Abim) has urged the organisers and individuals involved in a theatre production allegedly mocking the Rukun Negara to issue a public clarification and apology.

Abim president Ahmad Fahmi Samsudin said the performance should not be viewed as artistic boldness, but as a failure of moral judgment that risks undermining the foundations of peaceful coexistence among Malaysians.

“There is a difference between criticising our failure to embody the Rukun Negara and making the Rukun Negara itself an object of insult.

“The organisers and those involved must step forward to provide an explanation, apologise publicly, and take responsibility for the play,” Bernama reported him as saying in a statement.

Fahmi said while Abim respects artistic freedom, creative expression does not imply freedom from responsibility.

“The authorities must also investigate this firmly, fairly, and in accordance with the law,” he said.

He said the Rukun Negara is not an empty slogan, or should be used as a joke, but is a pledge of citizenship forged from the country’s “painful past experiences to preserve unity, the supremacy of the constitution, the rule of law, and courtesy in a pluralistic society”.

At a time when the nation faces polarisation and an erosion of trust among communities, he said, the arts should enlighten minds and instil human values rather than erode the foundations that unite the people.

A video of the production that went viral on social media showed several actors telling one another to “go back” to China, India and Indonesia, with the punchline “This is Malaysia” repeated throughout the skit.

The actors then recited the Rukun Negara, with different characters adding mocking responses after each line.

One of the actors was clad only in red underwear, with red and white words painted on his body. - FMT