PUNE: The Harmony Foundation has slammed Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for travelling to Kerala to meet the controversial Islamic cleric Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliyar in Kozhikode, who recently remarked that women’s public appearances will cause “great destruction” and that they should remain confined to their homes and not work, citing traditional interpretations.
“The fact that the Prime Minister of Malaysia on Sept.13 met the All India Sunni Jamiyyathul Ulama general secretary and Indian Grand Mufti Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musliyar at the Markaz Central Campus in Kozhikode during his five-day visit to India is not a diplomatic courtesy but a deliberate endorsement of his regressive, misogynistic views, which are incompatible with the values of a modern, progressive society,” Dr Abraham Mathai, founder chairman of Harmony Foundation, said in a statement.
This was not a meeting on the sidelines of a summit or an accidental encounter, it said, adding that Ibrahim made the journey specifically to endorse his unacceptable views.
The meeting came a day after Ibrahim said he did not agree with all of Kanthapuram’s views, particularly the Sunni scholar’s recent remarks that women should remain confined to their homes.
Kanthapuram presented the Malaysian PM with the first Excellence Award instituted by the Sheikh Abubacker Foundation at the Markaz Central Campus in Kozhikode.
“It is deeply shameful that a Prime Minister Ibrahim, who claims to champion moderation and reform would travel to meet a man, who advocates for the exclusion of women from public life,” said Mathai, also former vice chairman of Maharashtra State Minorities Commission.
This meeting is a legitimization of extremism and a betrayal of the women of Malaysia and the world, he noted.
“This is especially troubling given that Malaysia continues to harbour Zakir Naik, a fugitive preacher of hate, who has been banned in several countries and is wanted in India for spreading enmity and hatred between religious communities.”
That Ibrahim’s government has failed to act on India’s extradition request for Zakir Naik, while simultaneously travelling to Kerala to meet a scholar who echoes similarly regressive views, reveals a pattern of appeasement towards extremist elements.
“It is a shame that PM Ibrahim meets Kanthapuram, who says women should not work, that their public presence will cause destruction. What kind of leadership is this? What kind of signal does this send to the women of Malaysia, to the youth, to the world? This is not moderation. This is not reform. This is a betrayal of the very values that Malaysia claims to uphold.”
“PM Ibrahim has been portrayed as a liberal reformer. But actions speak louder than words. When you travel across the world to sit with those who would silence women, you become complicit in their agenda. When you continue to shelter Zakir Naik, a man whose poison has led to bloodshed, you cannot claim to have zero tolerance for terrorism,” Mathai pointed out.
The Harmony Foundation has urged the international community to take note of this disturbing development.
“We urge the Malaysian government to stop paying lip service to moderation and to take concrete action against those who spread hatred and division,” Mathai said, adding that when the world is seeking peace and harmony, such actions only deepen divisions.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
