Buddhist leader apologises to Muslims over Kota Tinggi surau incident PETALING JAYA: The Chief High Priest of Malaysia, Datuk K. Sri Dhammaratana, has apologised on behalf of a group of Buddhist congregators for using a surau in Johor for a worship session. In a brief statement issued Tuesday, Sri Dhammaratana expressed regret over the incident and called on followers of the faith to be more mindful of the religious sensitivities in their worship. “We would like to apologise to our Muslim brothers and sisters for the actions of a certain Buddhist group from Singapore in having their meditation session at the surau of a resort in Kota Tinggi. “I advise Buddhists in Malaysia and Singapore to respect the religious sensitivities of other religions while carrying out our own religious obligations and responsibilities,” he said. The statement was issued following a video that showed a group of Buddhists, who were led by a monk, chanting inside the surau. The video, titled “Surau dijadikan tokong Buddha di Johor (Surau converted to Buddhist temple in Johor)”, went viral on the social networks. Police have detained the operator of the resort in Tanjung Sedili Besar to assist in the investigations. The 45-year-old Singaporean with Malaysian PR status, known as Ahmad, was picked up by police at the resort on Monday. The incident is being investigated under Section 295 of the Penal Code for injuring or defiling a place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class.
Posted on: Tue, 13 Aug 2013 16:52:17 +0000
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