Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Hasan Malek has denied that a raid conducted in Uptown Shah Alam, Selangor was racist in nature.

Hasan was responding to netizens' claims on blogs that the raid on imitation goods and GST infringements conducted by the ministry at the Malay-dominated area was selective.

"I've been given the responsibility by the government to conduct such operations regardless of race.

"We have conducted raids at Petaling Street (a predominantly Chinese area) at least four times. It's just that the media did not report this," he said at a press conference at Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) today.

Hasan said the ministry had also conducted raids in the predominantly Indian area Brickfields, before conducting the raid at Shah Alam.

Hasan said such perceptions (that raids were conducted based on race) must be rectified, and insisted the ministry would act against traders who go against trade laws regardless of race.

"Those who have been charged include the Indians, Chinese and the Malays," he pointed out.

'Ministry acts on all'

He also pointed out the removal of Malaysia from the United States Trade Representative's (USTR) watch list since 2012 was proof that the ministry's efforts in the fight against imitation goods had been fruitful.

"This would attract foreign direct investment to our country," he said.

The USTR watch list is a review of the United States' various trading partners, which are examined for intellectual protection rights and enforcement.

Meanwhile, Hasan also denied the ministry only targeted certain kinds of markets or shops in its raids.

"They accuse us of only raiding supermarkets, but figures show that we raid all kinds of markets, from wet markets to hypermarkets," he said.

According to various blogs which quoted the complaints of a certain Facebook user, the raid was allegedly conducted on June 8.

The complainant had questioned why such raids were not conducted at Petaling Street in Kuala Lumpur, a place she claimed was full of "sharks", and as such, officers from the ministry had probably been bribed not to conduct raids there.

"Then you want to say that the Malays are not developed. Now who is preventing the Malays from being developed?

"If you block ways for the Malays to survive, how else can the Malays survive?" asked the irate Facebook user.