Kurup says ‘zero tolerance’ for bigots, but hands are tied

(MM) – Tan Sri Joseph Kurup has said there must be “zero tolerance” for racial and religious bigotry, but the minister in charge of national unity also admitted that he has no authority beyond educating wrongdoers.

Against a backdrop of rising intolerance, Kurup said his ministry’s focus was constrained to simply helping the public understand what issues may be considered as offensive to others.

“For us, we don’t have any power to take action but what we emphasise is to make them aware that certain things hurt other people and also to educate them.

“That’s all you can do,” he told The Malay Mail Online and Sin Chew Daily in a recent interview.

Insisting that “action will have to be taken” against bigots and stressing that the government must take an unforgiving approach with such individuals, Kurup pointed out that the power to punish offenders instead lies with other government bodies such as the police.

“But you must remember that taking action against them is not under my jurisdiction.

“If what they said already becomes an offence, then the appropriate authorities like the police and so on must take (action),” said Kurup, who holds the national unity and integrity portfolio as a minister in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Kurup also said the government would need co-operation from the bigots themselves.

“We need co-operation from them. As I said, the key to this is co-operation, understanding and (a) certain degree of tolerance.”

If what they said already becomes an offence, then the appropriate authorities like the police and so on must take (action). — Tan Sri Joseph Kurup

He said one of the challenges he faces was in changing mindsets and creating “mutual respect” among the different communities in the country.

The politician from Sabah cited his experience in the east Malaysian state where he said those of different races and religions mingle freely.

“That means there is a feeling of mutual respect. They know who you are but they respect you,” Kurup said, when relating how Muslims and non-Muslims there were comfortable sitting in the same Chinese coffeeshop, with both groups eating what was permitted in their respective religions.

The minister listed down a few ongoing initiatives, including Tabika Perpaduan (unity kindergartens) which number 1,781 in urban and suburban areas, as well as the revamping of neighbourhood watch group Rukun Tetangga which currently exists in 6,000 places.

“So when they interact with each other, that interaction itself will create mutual respect,” he said.

“We have to start from the school, we have to start from small, that is why we have to go back to the five principles of Rukun Negara,” said the 69-year-old president of Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) who took over the ministerial portfolio from Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon in May.

Leaders from the federal opposition Pakatan Rakyat pact previously questioned Putrajaya over what they viewed as swift action against incidents allegedly offensive to Muslims while other groups said to have stirred up religious angst escaped official sanctions.

Alvin Tan and Vivian Lee had in July posted a photo on Facebook featuring a Ramadan greeting and a pork dish, although the meat is considered haram or forbidden to Muslims. The duo have since been slapped with charges under the Sedition Act and the Penal Code over the controversial greeting.

On July 17, PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar had in an interview with The Malay Mail Online pointed out that “nothing happens to Perkasa” when saying that the government should not be selective in taking action.

PAS vice-president Datuk Mahfuz Omar had on the same day accused the authorities of practising double standards by leaving the Malay supremacist group untouched over its previous threat to burn Malay-language bibles, given the rapid response against Lee and Tan.

In January, Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali had called on Muslims to burn copies of the Bible that contained the word “Allah”.

His vice-president, Datuk Zulkifli Noordin, was also shown questioning the purity of the Ganges River in India, considered sacred by Hindus, in a video that resurfaced last March.

Today, leaders of the same controversial Malay right-wing group gathered outside the Court of Appeal in Putrajaya, protesting against the Catholic Church’s fight for its right to use the word “Allah”.

Opposition lawmakers and the church have criticised the protest, even expressing fear that it may invoke religious tension ahead of the court’s decision.