A beer festival held every year in Malaysia has been scrapped following complaints by Islamist groups who called it ‘western’ and ‘un-Islamic’, it has emerged.
The event, called ‘Better Beer Festival 2017’, had been planned for the first weekend in the country’s capital Kuala Lumpur.
But an application by organisers was rejected amid warnings it would turn the city into ‘the biggest centre of vice in Asia’.
A beer festival held every year in Malaysia has been scrapped following complaints by Islamist groups who called it ‘western’ and ‘un-Islamic’, it has emerged
There are plenty of beer drinkers among the sizable Chinese and Indian minorities, but protests against events deemed to be ‘western’ and unIslamic – such as concerts and festivals involving alcohol – are common in Muslim-majority Malaysia and are usually led by the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS).
The group warned the event could lead to criminal acts, free sex and rape.
‘We can’t bear it if Kuala Lumpur is known by the world as the biggest centre of vice in Asia,’ PAS central committee member Riduan Mohd Nor was cited as saying in the Malay Mail Online.
‘It is something that is shameful for an Islamic country like Malaysia.’
Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) said in a short statement on Monday that it has rejected the application for a permit by the organisers the event, which would have entered its sixth year.
‘If the organisers continue with the event without DBKL’s approval, action will be taken in accordance to existing laws,’ city hall said.
The event, called ‘Better Beer Festival 2017’, had been planned for the first weekend in the country’s capital Kuala Lumpur
Mybeer (M) Sdn Bhd, the company organising the event, said in a separate statement that they were informed by DBKL officials that the decision was made ‘due to the political sensitivity surrounding the event’.
A member of PAS’ central committee, Riduan Mohd Nor, said in a statement on September 10 that there is no guarantee that such events would not lead to criminal acts, rape and free sex.
Opponents of the beer festival also launched a campaign on Facebook to block the event.
Around 6,000 people had been expected to attend the two-day festival, which would have featured craft beers from at least 11 countries, according to Facebook posts by the organisers and local news reports.