KUCHING: A social media apology should not be treated as an automatic end to controversy after sensitive remarks have offended a religious community and spread nationwide.
Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Henry Harry Jinep said this in response to remarks allegedly made by Datuk Noorazli Said during the recent UMNO General Assembly involving Catholic priests, nuns and a passage from the Bible.
He stressed the use of religion, sacred texts or religious figures as material for sexually suggestive jokes or analogies had no place on a national political stage.
“I acknowledge that an apology has been made, but we must honestly ask whether everything can be settled simply by uploading an apology after the remarks have been heard by the public and circulated nationwide,” he said in a statement.
Henry, who is also Tasik Biru assemblyman, commented that he could not remain silent as a Sarawak elected representative and a Catholic serving a predominantly Christian constituency.
He concurred that every religion in Malaysia possessed a dignity that must be respected, particularly in a country comprising people of various faiths and beliefs.
Henry said Sarawak had long demonstrated that religious diversity was not a barrier to unity, with mosques, churches and temples existing alongside one another and communities celebrating festivities together.
“This is the Sarawak we want, and this is the Malaysia we want.
“We do not need to share the same beliefs to respect what others consider sacred because that is the true foundation of living in a diverse society,” he said.
