No one should be allowed to threaten violence just because they feel "victimised" said a group NGOs today, demanding action be taken against Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein for justifying the grisly 'cow-head' protest last week.

hishammuddin hussein home ministry 140409 talking Hishammuddin (left) had come to the defence of the residents of Section 23 Shah Alam, who had paraded a cow's head at the Selangor state secretariat building on Aug 28, as a sign of protest against the relocation of Sri Maha Mariamman Hindu temple from Section 19 to their neighbourhood.

He should now resign or be sacked as home minister as he cannot commit to law and order," said Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (Empower) representative S Priya reading from the joint statement.

Hishammuddin, who is also a lawyer by training has brought unprecedented shame with his disregard for the law, she said.

She added that the Hishammuddin's justification by painting the demonstrators as "victims... and encouraging communal hatred" is alarming as it could result in retaliation of other communities.

ngos want hishamuddin resign as home minister 040909 01 "He (Hishammuddin) is also further tarnishing Malaysia's image that ministers legitimise hatred by sympathising with the perpetrators," said Priya (2nd from right) .

"The most important issue in the cow-head incident is the threat of violence against the Shah Alam Hindu community and the Selangor state government.

"The police must investigate not based on the vaguely defined Sedition Act, but on whether the protesters had threatened bloodshed if the temple relocation was carried out," she said.

They also called upon Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak "to act boldly" and take action against the perpetrators.

The joint statement is currently endorsed by 21 non-governmental organisations including the People's Parliament, Centre for Policy Initiatives, Centre for independent Journalism (CIJ) and Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) among others.

The statement has also been posted on the Internet as a form of a petition and seeking endorsement from more parties to coerce Hishammuddin to resign or be sacked.

'It was orchestrated incitement'

Centre for Policy Initiatives associate editor Helen Ang said that it is regrettable that such an incident had occurred just days before the 52nd Merdeka celebrations.

azlan "In my view it was orchestrated incitement - it did not come out of the blue and it didn't accidentally happen.

"The reason of this petition is so that people can think about the government that is leading us... we have to re-evaluate the direction of this cabinet which is led by Najib," she said adding that Hishammuddin had downplayed the gravity of the incident.

The police were rounding up people for nothing more than wearing black T-shirts on May 7 when the Perak state assembly convened, but stood aside and watched people carrying a severed cow's head and threatening bloodshed, she said.

"Was it intended to cause offence? Did it insult the people it was targeted at? Yes, it did because the Hindus are very, very gravely insulted.

"This happened right before their very eyes and the police allowed it... as the incident unfolded the police should have acted, not wait for direction from the home minister," she said.