A report by FMT’s Pradeep Nambiar quoted army veteran Mohamed Arshad Raji as saying that the refusal of a Sarawakian group to stand for the Negaraku amounted to an insult.
Arshad, who is president of the National Patriots Association, called for members of the group to be punished severely as their action was despicable.
Meanwhile, Bukit Aman CID D5 prosecution and legal division principal assistant director Senior Asst Comm Mior Faridalathrash Wahid said those who were found not standing while the Negaraku was played could be detained under the National Anthem Act 1968.
GBN condemns the lack of respect displayed by the group and urges Bukit Aman to act fast as the group posed a direct challenge to Article 8(1) of the National Anthem Act 1968.
To disrespect the Negaraku just because one isn’t happy with the Federal Government is akin to a churchgoer disrespecting a sermon just because he (or she) isn’t happy with the Pastor or a Muslim disrespecting the Friday prayer just because he isn’t happy with the Mosque committee.
SUBANG JAYA: A report by FMT’s Pradeep Nambiar quoted army veteran Mohamed Arshad Raji as saying that the refusal of a Sarawakian group to stand for the Negaraku amounted to an insult
Arshad, who is president of the National Patriots Association, called for members of the group to be punished severely as their action was despicable.
The report read:
Another military veteran, Oliver Cuthbert Samuel, said: “I say, throw the book at them. Lock them up, that will teach them a lesson.”
Samuel, the man who hoisted the Federation of Malaya flag at Merdeka Stadium on Aug 31, 1957, said that “for the civilians to show disrespect to our anthem and flag is very hurtful”.
Arshad said the Sarawakian group might have issues with the federal government, “but Sabah and Sarawak are still part of Malaysia, please respect it,” he said.
He described the group’s action as being “very, very rude” and added: “If I was around there, I’d tampar (slap) you for not standing up.”
Members of the rights group Sarawak for Sarawakians had refused to stand for the national anthem at an event in Kuching recently, in what they described as a “silent protest” against a “very unfair Malaya”, the term some continue to use for Peninsular Malaysia.
Meanwhile, Bukit Aman CID D5 prosecution and legal division principal assistant director Senior Asst Comm Mior Faridalathrash Wahid said those who were found not standing while the Negaraku was played could be detained under the National Anthem Act 1968.
“Based on the act, the individual could be arrested if the act (of not standing) was committed in front of a police officer.
“However until now, police have yet to receive a report on the incident believed to have taken place at an event in Sarawak,” he said at a press conference in Bukit Aman, here, today.
According to the NST Online, the video was initially uploaded on Facebook by Shaow Tung Leong on the 28thof Sept with a caption that read, “I will not stand and sing Malaya national anthem, coz non of my business (sic).”
The post was shared over 4,000 times and garnered various reactions from Netizens, mostly expressing anger at the disrespect shown by the group.
In the video (below), Negaraku was played at a fundraising event and a group of individuals did not stand up while many others stood in respect of the national anthem.
Article continues after video
It is learned that Shaow is a member of the group Sarawak for Sarawakians (S4S).
GBN condemns the lack of respect displayed by the group and urges Bukit Aman to act fast as the group posed a direct challenge to the legitimacy and sanctity of Article 8(1) of the National Anthem Act 1968, which dictates:
“Whenever the National Anthem is played or sung or whenever the abridged or short version is played all persons present shall stand to attention as a mark of respect except where the National Anthem is played or sung in the course of a broadcast or news- reels as part of such broadcast or news-reels.”
Article 8(2) of the same Act reads:
“Any person who knowingly shows disrespect towards the National Anthem in any public place shall be liable to a fine not exceeding one hundred ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month.”
To disrespect the Negaraku just because one isn’t happy with the Federal Government is akin to a churchgoer disrespecting a Church sermon just because he (or she) isn’t happy with the Pastor or a Muslim disrespecting the Friday prayer just because he isn’t happy with the Mosque committee.
The group has clearly demonstrated that when things go wrong, it prefers to hurt and insult the patriotic Malaysian by behaving as if it is ashamed to be in the country.
GERAKAN BANGSA NASIONAL
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