PAS has urged calm and an end to racial provocations following last night’s incidents in Kuala Lumpur’s Bukit Bintang district last night.
Party President Abdul Hadi Awang said peace between the races must be upheld.
"PAS begs and asks all those in the country, especially in Bukit Bintang to keep calm and avoid any new provocations.
"Don't sully the multiracial harmony in this country with incidents which can tear apart the good ties which have been built for generations," he said in a statement today.
Several people including two journalists were hurt last night after a 200-strong gathering outside Low Yat Plaza turned violent last night.
Multiple arrests were made, and police locked down the Bukit Bintang nightspot.
The violence is believed to have stemmed from an alleged theft case that had led to a brawl in the popular technology mall on Saturday.
Videos of the incident have spread like wildfire on the Internet, but the ensuing online debates have turned ugly and polarised along racial lines.
Expressing disappointment with the developments, Hadi called for all parties to tackle the issues at hand rationally.
"PAS asks for all parties to handle the issues, no matter what the reason, with an open heart and patience, especially since this is the holy month of Ramadan," he said.
'Mujahid: Don't racialise incident'
Meanwhile several other opposition leaders also called for the incident not to be racialised.
PAS’ Parit Buntar MP Mujahid Yusof Rawa warned the incident could potentially be “manipulated into a racial issue by irresponsible quarters”, when it was a purely a consumer dispute.
“I also urge those on the social media not to add salt to the incident with racial hatred.
“All those who break the law must be punished, based on the laws,” he said in a statement today.
Bukit Bintang DAP Youth chief Rui Wen also slammed attempts to turn the incident into a racial issue.
“We condemn any racial intimidation through violence and misinformation.
“We also condemn any attempts to racialise the issue and fan racial sentiments.
“Malaysians should go beyond looking at issues from a racial perspective,” he said in a statement, calling for all to remain calm.
He said the public should instead focus their attention on “daylight robbery by 1MDB and the mismanagement of the economy by BN”.
“We call all peace loving and right minded Malaysians to join us in condemning these thuggish acts together and leave the incident to the authorities to investigate,” he added.
Similarly, some netizens have jumped in to diffuse the tensions caused by the Low Yat incident.
They have called on fellow Malaysians to post multiracial photographs of themselves with their friends.
Netizens are urged to include the hashtags # WeAreFamily and # Muhibbah , and tag five other friends to spread the message of peace.
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