A Perak Pakatan Harapan assemblyperson was heckled off stage after being dared to address a crowd at a rally against the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Icerd) yesterday.

Relating the incident to Malaysiakini, Titi Serong assemblyperson Hasnul Zulkarnain Abd Munaim said the rally took place after Friday prayers in Kuala Kangsar.

A speaker at the rally then challenged the Amanah rep to address the crowd, which Hasnul said he did so reluctantly.

"I used the platform to raise awareness that the Quran teaches how we must be good to other races, and not create tension," he said.

Hasnul said he then emphasised how the biggest issue at the moment was the 1MDB scandal.

However, two minutes into his speech, the crowd turned on him, heckling and cursing him.

Hasnul said he then ended his speech to avoid any untoward incident.

Ratifying Icerd has been a heated issue in Malaysia, since Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad told the UN general assembly in September that all remaining human rights conventions, including Icerd, would be ratified. 

This caused many quarters, especially opposition parties and Islamist groups, to protest the move, citing fears that the ratification of Icerd would jeopardise Article 153 of the Federal Constitution, despite assurances from Putrajaya that it would not.

However, the Pakatan Harapan government yesterday announced that it had decided against ratifying Icerd.

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