YOURSAY 'All religions teach their believers to forgive and not seek retribution. Let's move on. Let's learn from this and be better human beings.'

Top Buddhist priest says sorry over Johor surau row

PS I: A group of foreigners check into a resort seeking a retreat of sorts. They ask the resort manager if a room for ‘x' number of people is available to perform their prayers. In the course of business as usual, the manager says there is no suitable room available but offers the surau as an alternative.

The group considers and decides to accept the offer as a gesture of goodwill in multi-religious Malaysia. Everyone is happy, the group observes its religious duties and the manager goes about his daily routine.

He gives himself a pat on the back that he has applied his public relations skills to promote not only tourism but also Islam as a religion of tolerance.

But boom! His action has hit a sensitive nerve and the religionists ride the waves and go on a rampage. Dear prime minister, we are done.

Anonymous_3f6d: The chief priest has taken the correct action in apologising immediately and not prolonging the issue by giving excuses and defending the action.

All religions teach their believers to forgive and not seek retribution. Let's move on. Let's learn from this mistake and be better human beings.

Multi Racial: If one has made a mistake and if done unintentionally and without malicious intent, then a simple apology will do. There is no need for the authorities to be involved.

If the authorities want to be involved, then they have to be consistent and fair. They cannot act on one case but do nothing on the other.

Every Malaysian should be sensitive to one another, not just on religion but in other areas as well. If anyone does otherwise, please look at the case in isolation and do not generalise it as if one race was attempting to belittle the other.

Wg321: The Singaporean Buddhists did not purposely go the surau to have their meditation sessions without permission. They asked the resort manager for a place to have their meditation.

Due to space constraints, permission was granted to them by the resort manager to use the surau. So it is not fair to attack them.

Anonymous_3e86: This whole issue, like the dog-trainer case , has been blown out of proportion. The intent of both the dog trainer and the Singaporean resort manager were not malicious in any way nor was it meant to hurt any race or religion.

Those who are tolerant enough will understand that. I do agree that the Alvivi video was in bad taste and they were wrong to have put up the video on the Internet.

So too were the racist remarks by Perkasa leaders Ibrahim Ali and Zulkifli Noordin, for which Ibrahim has not apologised. But sadly the BN government and the authorities practise double standards.

As long as the authorities do not take action against people like Ibrahim and Zulkifli, others will take the opportunity to continue spewing racist remarks.

Fantastic4: Shouldn't they arrest the guy who uploaded the video using the Sedition Act? A blatant double standard is being practiced here.

More so, this is a waste of resources as the gangsters in uniform would be deployed to investigate and guard the premise. No wonder the criminals are having a field day.

Lover Boy: Can the Vajrayana Buddhist Council of Malaysia come out and identify this group and get to the bottom of this issue?

I am not sure why the chief priest of a Sri Lankan temple is making this apology when we do not even know if an apology is in order.

Here is a group of Buddhists who wanted to do meditation, went to a resort, and the resort manager offered this place, that we now being told is not a proper surau because it is not facing Mecca.

They, as Buddhists, have no hangups and did their meditation. The person who uploaded the video on YouTube did it with bad intentions and has to be charged first for sedition. So who offended who?

The chief priest took it on himself to apologise. But apologise over what?

Yap CS The owner apparently is a Singaporean and the group are made up of Singaporeans. They are definitely ignorant of the hypersensitivities of the locals concerning the use of surau.

So what are we going to do? Shall we ban all Singaporeans from crossing the Causeway henceforth?

Haveagreatday: No disrespect meant but this is a political statement, no less from Maha Vihara temple chief high priest K Sri Dhammaratana Nayake Maha Thera and Young Buddhist Association of Malaysia president Goh Qing Song.

Is it not about time that one speaks the truth quietly but clearly?

Yes, if it be the rules of the Islamic religious authorities in the country that religious activities of other denominations cannot be held in mosques and surau, so be it.

We must accept such rules but don't say that the group of people were being insensitive and disrespectful to Muslims.

Yes, in this instance, a mistake was made, and in part because a well-intentioned resort manager seeking to assist the group in carrying out their meditation session.

Please have some self-dignity and don't go grovelling for praise by stating what is not fact.

Don't expect Buddhist priest's apology be good enough

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