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21 January 2002 1514 hrs (GMT)
2314 hrs (SST)
by Julia Ng
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| Zulfikar
Mohamad Shariff |
Malay cultural organisation
Majlis Pusat and opposition party Singapore National Front
(SNF) have spoken out against local website Fateha.com.
Both took issue with comments made by the website's
founder, Zulfikar Mohamad Shariff, about the recent arrests
by the Internal Security Department (ISD).
Meanwhile, other Singaporeans have also been
heading to the cyberspace to have their say.
Fateha.com shot to the limelight over the weekend,
after its chief executive Zulfikar Mohamad Shariff blamed
the Singapore Government and its ties to the US and Israel,
for the terrorist activities of the Jemaah Islamiyah group.
Zulfikar also criticised Muslim leaders in Singapore
for backing the Government's negative views about Muslims.
His comments attracted a robust rebuttal from
several ministers, MPs and community leaders.
On Monday, opposition party SNF joined the fray,
saying in a statement that Zulfikar was "pouring oil
on a fire".
It urged the Fateha leader to be more sensitive
to Singapore's multi-racial make-up, and not try to split
the Malays.
Meanwhile, Majlis Pusat said that Zulfikar's
views were incorrect, misleading and reflected his immaturity.
They also did not represent the view held by
the majority of Malays in Singapore.
This was a recurrent theme in cyberspace - especially
at the Ridzwan.com
website.
Created by 22-year-old Muhammad Ridzwan Rahmat,
it boasts an online forum and poll.
Stunned by news that some Singaporeans had been
planning terrorist attacks here, the full-time NSmen launched
a forum on his website for the Malay community to denounce
terrorism.
A poll also says more than 70 percent of those
who visited the site do not regard Fateha as the voice of
the Muslim community in Singapore.
Mr Muhammad Ridzwan said: "My whole goal
with this poll is that I want it to be an online barometer
of the Singapore Muslims' support or whether they are against
this entire issue. I do not want to censor the polls in this
forum because I want people to come forward without fear or
censorship.
"I guess the online Muslim community has
matured to a point where if someone were to come up with a
radical idea that's on these Muslim fringe groups, they will
face the wrath of the masses."
In just a week, the forum has attracted over
100 pledges - and not just from the Malay community in Singapore.
Non-Malays, some from as far as the United States
and France, have also come out to condemn terrorism.
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