- The Malaysian owners of major convenience store chain KK Mart have been charged with hurting the religious sentiments of Muslims over socks sold in the store.
- Socks with the word “Allah” printed on them have been found on sale in stores.
- “Allah” means God in Arabic, and some Malaysian Muslims were uncomfortable with the word being associated with feet.
The owner of a Malaysian convenience store chain and one of its suppliers were charged on Tuesday with hurting the religious sentiments of Muslims after socks with the word “Allah” printed on them were sold in their stores. It was done.
Chai Kee Kang, founder and chairman of KK Mart Group, the country’s second-largest convenience store chain, and his wife, Lo Hsu Mui, a director at the company, have expressed concern for the religious sentiments of Muslims. He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of intentionally causing bodily harm. The company accuses its suppliers of sending products it didn’t agree to stock.
Religion is a sensitive issue in Malaysia, where Muslims make up two-thirds of the country’s 34 million people, and ethnic minorities include large numbers of Chinese and Indian ancestry. “Allah” means God in Arabic, and many Malaysian Muslims felt uncomfortable associating this word with feet.
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“The word ‘Allah’ is highly valued in the eyes of Muslims,” Religious Affairs Minister Mohammad Naim Mokhtar said earlier this month, state news agency Bernama reported. “Allah is our Creator and putting Him at our feet is an insult.”
Managers of Malaysia’s popular convenience store chain KK Mart Group on Tuesday accused the store of hurting the religious sentiments of Muslims after socks with the word “Allah” printed on them were found on sale. He was indicted. (AP Photo/Vincent Tian)
Alwani Ghazali, a senior lecturer in Islam at the University of Malaya, told radio station BFM that this was humiliating because the feet were associated with “low status”.
“Socks stink. Do you agree? Do you like the smell of your socks after wearing them all day?” she said. “As a Muslim, I think this is inappropriate and (the issue) is a big problem.”
The founder of the supplier that supplied the socks, Xin Jiang Zhang, and his wife and daughter, who are directors, were also charged with abetting the violation. Xin Jian Chang said the socks were imported from China as part of a mass shipment and apologized for the negligent inspection.
If convicted, all five defendants face up to one year in prison, a fine, or both.
KK Mart is a major 24-hour chain with 810 stores in Japan and approximately 5,000 employees. It also has stores in Nepal and India. Mr Chai said the socks were placed in the store by Xin Jiang Chan, who rented shelf space at the outlet. He added that only 14 pairs of ‘Allah’ socks were found on the shelves of three KK Mart stores.
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KK Mart has reportedly sued Xin Jiang Chan for “obstruction” over losses and damage to the chain’s reputation for not agreeing to buy socks from a supplier.
However, Malay parties in Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition government have repeatedly called for a boycott of KKmart, and Malaysia’s new king, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, has warned that the move could disrupt racial harmony. We are calling for strict action on the issue. Two people who were deemed to have made insensitive comments online about the issue were also charged with insulting Islam and sentenced to prison terms and fines.
While calling for decisive action, Mr. Anwar urged people not to take this issue too seriously and to move forward.
KK Mart has also reportedly announced that it has been forced to cancel its plans to list on Bursa Malaysia due to the crisis.
