Quran burning: Almost 1,000 participants join Pas Youth’s rally

KUALA LUMPUR - Almost 1,000 individuals gathered in front of the Swedish embassy as a sign of protest over Danish far-right leader Rasmus Paludan’s action of burning a Quran.

Pas Youth Information chief Nazir Helmi said the rally was conducted to submit a memorandum to the embassy.

“Today, we have submitted a memorandum to the Swedish Embassy’s representative to express our stance towards such acts.

“It is a responsibility for us to hold the protest, this is not the end and we will continue to monitor it,” he told reporters here on Friday.

On Saturday, Paludan joined a protest in front of the Turkiye Embassy in Stockholm and burned a Quran with a lighter.

Paludan, along with 100 others gathered to perform the act after Turkiye was reported to object to Sweden’s participation in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato).

The memorandum was submitted by four representatives which were Nazir, Armada Nasional Bersatu Information chief Mohd Ashraf Mustaqim Badrul Munir, rapper Ariz Ramli or well known as Caprice, and a Malaysian Islamic Student Association (Gamis) representative.

Nazir said if the demonstration was not done, the Quran would no longer be respected by people of other races.

“If no such demonstrations were done, people would look at the Quran as a normal book.

“If there are individuals burning another group’s holy scriptures will theya be okay with it?

“Why do they resort to such cheap provocations? This is not the first but the third time he has done so. Such acts threaten world peace,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ashraf said the rally conducted was not political in nature but rather it represented the voice of the majority religion in Malaysia which is Islam.

“Those who are here should not only be the leaders from Perikatan Nasional (PN), but should be from all official political parties.

“Let us band together as this is a matter of Islam,” he said.