The Cow Head and the herd mentality.

The cow head incident.

This incident is the most talked about presently. A group of people, after performing Friday prayers, marched to the government secretariat building with a severed cow head. The object of their volatile outpouring is the relocation of a Hindu temple from section 19 to section 23. The cow head is severed. It was bloody. Protesters held it by the horns and carried the grisly object from the mosque to the secretariat building. Along the way, they shouted God is Great. Inflammatory speeches were made by the ring leaders of the cow head march. One Ibrahim Ismail gave a very incendiary speech. The sun was high. It was very hot. Some people kicked the cow head. It was shown on YouTube.

Section 23 is a part within the sprawling suburb of Shah Alam. The majority of people staying in section 23 as in Shah Alam are Malays. They are also Muslims. They are God Fearing people and good Muslims. If the protesters are residents of section 23, they have shown themselves as 'better' Muslims that their brethren in section 19. They are teaching the section 19 residents how to be good Muslims.

The temple in section 19 is very close to people's residence. You can open the doors of your house, and the Hindu temple is in front of your doorsteps. Yet the people of section 19 have shown uncharacteristic restraint and exemplary patience. Has that got anything to do with the fact, that the government in power during the time when people of sec 19 were being very patient and tolerant was the BN government? Now that the present government is no longer BN, all maters must be resolved instantly otherwise the government can be overthrown?

See the context? Section 19 temple= during BN rule. Section 23 temple= PR rule. So the cow head protest is not only aimed at creating a climate of fear for Hindu worshipers but also as reason perhaps to dispose of the PR government unconstitutionally. Indeed the ringleader of the cow head demonstrators said, the severed cow head wasn't meant to insult the Hindus religion. It was meant to show that leaders of the PR government in Selangor are stupid like cows. Ah ha- the object of his desire is to kick out the legitimately elected government! This cow head demo is therefore just cannon to the political fodder.

Ala Tuan, I think Malaysians have had enough of despatching of governments through contrived unconstitutional means. You take over and form governments through constitutional elections. As a direct threat to the sovereignty and supremacy of the law in Malaysia, this threat must be met directly in no uncertain terms. The police must enforce the law without any further delay. Arrest all those culprits and bring them to deal with the law. This action will only serve to increase the credibility deficit of the BN government especially that of UMNO's.

The severed cow head is symbolic of what? To the Hindus a cow is a sacred animal. Can we infer from the severed cow head, that this dismembered anatomy of a cow, is meant to send ominous signals to the Indian/Hindu community?

If that is so, there is only one option which the PM has. Instruct the police to arrest all those involved and placed them under ISA. All right thinking Malaysians cannot condone and tolerate such blatant racist superciliousness. I am shocked beyond disbelief that the OCPD of Shah Alam said; the situation was too volatile for them to interfere. If I am being wicked, can I take it to mean the police were scared?

Let us be clear yes- this is a relocation not building a new one. Even if it involves the building of a new one, if the request is reasonable, we can't unreasonably withhold our approval. I am sure the PR government of Selangor operates on a similar basis. Unless of course the temple at section 19 was built on illegal land or a TOL land of which permanent title has been refused. No permanent building can be built on TOL land anyway. Since the temple there which was built on titled land, is to be demolished, it is fair that a new location for building replacement be given. Hence an area in section 23. The trustees of the temple and Hindus can refuse relocation if they want and bring the matter to court. I think we must recognise and appreciate this giving spirit.

Isn't the relocation of the temple, the core request asked and hoped for by the majority of Malay Muslims there? I understand in section 19, the location of the Hindu kovil is vey near people's residences such that you can literally open your doors and you immediately face the kovil.

I urge all Muslims to examine the new location. I understand it is on industrial land quite a distance from houses. This distance should accord more comfort than if the temple is unmoved from section 19. I think this is a fair deal. Those in section 19 who don't feel comfortable about being so near a temple should find relief that now the temple will be moved to section 23 and a bit farther from houses.

Therefore if we were to approach this issue with a sense of level headedness, then the cow head incident should not have taken place at all.

That it has taken place, suggests that it is the work of saboteurs and provocateurs out to make political capital of simmering racial uneasiness and create social havoc. If PAS members were involved, the party should take action against them. If PKR members were involved, they will have to face the music too.