Kuala Lumpur: A special officer of the Kelantan menteri besar has defended the Kota Bharu Municipal Council’s (MPKB) decision to issue a compound notice to a non-Muslim woman for wearing “indecent clothing” in public.
Lau Chin Chua claimed that the woman was wearing a different outfit when she was served the compound notice for her attire, and not the t-shirt and shorts she is depicted wearing in a post that has gone viral on social media.
“She was wearing pants so short that people thought she wasn’t wearing any, only a t-shirt. She then changed into a different pair of shorts and posted a picture of the (subsequent) outfit,” Lau told FMT.
He claimed that the woman was trying to deceive the public by changing her shorts, adding that the council officers had taken a picture of her attire before issuing the fine.
SPONSORED CONTENT Shell’s Access to Energy helps power lives of isolated communities in Sabah Kota Kinabalu: In 2017, Sabah Shell Petroleum Co Ltd (SSPC) launched Access to Energy (A2E), a Shell Social Investment programme aimed at providing affordable and continuous supply of electricity from renewable sources for communities who live without connection to the electricity grid. Read more Yesterday, it was reported that a 35-year-old business owner was issued a compound notice by MPKB officers during a spot check at her shop for wearing a t-shirt and shorts in a public place.
MPKB president Rosnazli Amin was quoted as saying that the woman had committed an offence under Section 34(2)(b) of the Business and Industrial Trade By-Laws 2019, which states that non-Muslim business owners and their non-Muslim employees must wear “decent clothes”.
Lau said the majority of the non-Muslims who worked and conducted business in Kelantan understood the by-laws set by the local councils, including the dress codes required for public spaces.
“Kota Bharu is subject to MPKB’s rules and regulations. It has been made clear that those working in business premises should be decently dressed.
“So, when one is not dressed decently, there’s nothing wrong with the local council issuing a compound notice to the person,” he said.
Lau also said the issue was blown out of proportion by certain parties to tarnish the image of the PAS-led state government for political reasons.
“Non-Muslims in Kelantan are not oppressed, contrary to the perception created by some. We are given freedom, so long as it does not breach the law,” he said.
He said if anyone wanted a true picture of the situation, they should come to Kelantan and see how harmoniously the non-Muslims live there.
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