Pastor’s abduction highlights violent nature of intolerance in Malaysia
Elements of case echo slaying of Christian politician in 2000
Leslie Lopez, The Straits Times
Early one morning in late August 2011, Mr Jonathan Koh discovered a curious package addressed to his father, Pastor Raymond Koh, in the letterbox of their home in a Kuala Lumpur suburb.
In the package were two bullets. There was also a note, written in blood-red ink in Malay, that read: “Laknat Kristian 1. Joe Fernandez. 2. Lu”. The note translated said: “Damn Christian. No. 1 Joe Fernandez. No.2 You”, the younger Mr Koh, now 33, told The Straits Times.
Dr Joe Fernandez was a Kedah state assemblyman with the ruling Barisan Nasional, who was shot dead by two assailants in 2000 in his home town of Bukit Mertajam in Kedah. Intelligence officials have long maintained that his assailants were members of the militant Kumpulan Mujahiddin Malaysia (KMM), a splinter group of the Al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah.
According to regional intelligence officials, Dr Fernandez was killed because he was allegedly trying to convert members of a Muslim family to Christianity. The death threat Mr Raymond Koh received nearly six years ago also came on the back of allegations that he was trying to convert Muslims.
