Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal, when you interfere in the affairs of Non Muslims, you cause Islamophobia, you are not allowed to think, only submit, they are allowed to think. So fcuk off!!!

Ignoramus

 Malaysiakini : Deputy unity minister defends Idris' Oktoberfest, Bon Odori remarks​.  

Proarte : Not wrong to express opinions?

Well, let me express my opinion then and say Minister Idris' opinions were totally idiotic. Of course the cultural festival of another race and religion like the Japanese Bon Odori festival maybe have Shinto elements in it or serve non-Halal foods but that is what a cultural festival is about. It is about celebrating diversity! Does Idris want the Bon Odori Festival to have Kompang, Joget, Dikir Barat, Wayang Kulit, Nasi Lemak, Teh Tarik and Japanese participants singing Rasa Sayang?

Why do we travel the world, taste different cuisines, experience different climates? It is to broaden our horizons which is a reflection of our natural human curiosity. If we find our culture, cuisine or even religion wanting, we change and adapt - that has been happening since time immemorial.

Our Malaysian cuisine is unique because of the confluence of 3 major civilisations cross fertilising and spawning a rich and diverse range of foods where the influence of each culture can be observed. The same applies to our language and religion. Islam evolved over a period of 3 hundred years having its roots in Judaism and Christianity starting from the latter half of the 7th century, during the reign of the Ummayad ruler Al-Maliki. He conquered Jerusalem and built the Dome of the Rock on the Holiest Jewish Temple site. His religion was evolving but had strong Christian Unitarian origins.

Some Conquerors throughout history have routinely borrowed from other cultures and religions and at the same time suppressing them as they wanted to have their own individual stamp for selfish and vainglorious reasons. Al-Maliki was one such person; he wanted to create and Arab identity with its own religion and language. Clearly this did not appear suddenly out of nowhere but evolved over hundreds of years with the Jewish, Christian and Aramaic origins being obvious.

On the other hand, there have been Rulers who celebrated diversity because they were confident of their own culture and identity. This occurred in Europe during the Renaissance and Enlightenment epochs traversing the 16th to the 19th century, which saw the shackles of State religion (Catholicism ) loosening as well as the restrictions imposed on European Jewry. This saw a flourishing of the Visual Arts, Science, Philosophy, Music and Literature. Not surprisingly the Jews became increasingly assimilated and adopted the dominant culture and even religion in many cases. Tyrants like Hitler and Stalin who came to power, unfortunately did much to irrevocably destroy the legacy of European cultural integration and diversity and the unsurpassed levels of Human achievement in every field seen.

If Minister Idris wants to be the proverbial 'katak di bawah tempurung' let him be, but he should not try to suppress other Malaysians and bring them down to his level of intolerance and ignorance.

Proof of pudding always in the eating : What is 'original culture'? Why is Arab culture, which has been in Malaysia less than 500 years, part of your 'original culture'?

Anon25 : Wan Fayhsal this is my opinion. You should not wear a coat and tie. That is a Western Christian symbol. Instead you should wear a jubah and copiah, sport a beard and speak in Arabic, the language that is spoken in heaven.