The latest attack on Sunday morning struck an outlet in Kuching, Sarawak, in Malaysian Borneo – an unusual target for religious acrimony due to the territory’s unique demographics as the only part of the country that is predominantly Christian and seen as more tolerant than other places in Muslim-majority Malaysia.
“The police are actively pursuing the suspects and the case is being investigated,” said Kuching district police chief Ahsmon Bajah.
He added a charge of arson carried up to seven years in prison and a fine under Malaysian law.
The attack came a day after Prime Minister Anwar praised the peace and stability in Sarawak, saying it should be an example to the rest of Malaysia.
“Any issues and differences need to be managed with wisdom, courtesy and love instead of fighting, anger and hatred,” Anwar said in a Facebook post.
Without mentioning the socks issue, he criticised the Malaysian public for being easily entangled in issues and prone to “magnify small matters”.
The charges under the offence of intentionally wounding the religious feelings of others carry a maximum jail term of one year and a fine.
King warns Malaysians against exploiting ‘Allah’ socks scandal after attacks
King warns Malaysians against exploiting ‘Allah’ socks scandal after attacks
The vitriol also led to Umno Youth Chief Akmal Saleh – a politician at the forefront of the push against KK Super Mart – receiving a death threat from a member of the public, who has subsequently been detained.
Despite the unprecedented string of attacks against the supermarket chain, extremism expert Munira Mustaffa from Chasseur Group, a consultancy specialising in security challenges, said that while the attacks might be networked or copycat, they were not terrorists acts as claimed by a Sabah lawmaker.
Rather, they were acts of vigilantism, Munira said. “[They are carried out by] individuals who, perceiving a failure by the state to address a social transgression, decide to take direct action themselves,” she added.
Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, the king of Malaysia, last week spoke up on the matter, calling for an end to the political point-scoring.
“Persistent anger brings no benefit. All parties, especially community leaders, must act with maturity. Let us guide the people towards unity, not division,” he said.