Johor prince, Perlis mufti slam 'Muslim-only' launderette's policy

A photo of the launderette's "Muslim-only" sign went viral on social media. PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK

PETALING JAYA • Johor prince Tunku Idris Sultan Ibrahim has said he is "appalled" at the implementation of a "Muslim-only" policy at a self-service launderette in Muar, Johor.

"Is this for real? This is too extreme. I'm appalled," he said in an Instagram post yesterday, while sharing a screenshot of The Star Online's news report on the matter.

Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainal Abidin has also criticised the policy, warning that "such narrow-mindedness" would lead only to extremism and the incapability of people to live in a multiracial society.

In a separate posting, Tunku Idris shared the words: "The Quran says, 'speak good to people', it doesn't say, 'speak good only to Muslims'."

"Islam has taught me about tolerance and respecting people of other faith. Not about supremacy over others," he said in a post on the image-sharing site.

A photo of the launderette's "Muslim-only" sign went viral on social media. The sign also asked customers to remove their shoes before entering the premises.

The 40-year-old operator, who was interviewed by a Chinese daily last Saturday, said he was just carrying out his duty as a Muslim.

He, however, declined to comment on whether he had imposed the rules as he worried that there might be "unclean" elements, such as dog fur, on the clothes non-Muslims took to his launderette.

In a WhatsApp message, Datuk Dr Mohd Asri said there could also be people who would suggest that eating utensils be separated for Muslims and non-Muslims in restaurants.

"All this narrow-mindedness will take the country down the path to extremism, and we will lose the balance to live in a multi-religious and multicultural society," he said.

He added that such assumptions and thoughts were never in the teachings of Islam and Prophet Muhammad. "I would like to advise Muslims that if the origin of a thing is clean, that there is no sign of dirt (najis), be it through its colour, smell or taste, then the thing is considered clean.

"Never easily assume and make judgments (so much so) until the "dirt" (najis) is clearly seen," he said.

THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on September 26, 2017, with the headline Johor prince, Perlis mufti slam 'Muslim-only' launderette's policy. Subscribe