Non-Muslim goods boycott a ‘ticking time bomb’ in Mahathir’s Malaysia

On social media groups, Malay-Muslims have been urged to avoid buying goods, including halal products, sold by non-Muslims

PM Mahathir has advised against the boycott, while a member of a royal family has rebuked purveyors of hate speech, calling their acts a ‘ticking time bomb’

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Muslim food vendors in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: AP

Published: 12:30pm, 8 Sep 2019Updated: 10:40am, 9 Sep 2019

A movement calling for Malays to boycott non-Muslim products has emerged in Malaysia, where a campaign of fake news and political rhetoric continues to stoke racial and religious tensions, prompting a member of the Perak state’s royal family to describe the situation as a “ticking time bomb”.

Messages urging the country’s Malay-Muslim majority to boycott goods produced by non-Muslims, even those that are halal, have been actively shared on Facebook and WhatsApp chat groups. Names of mini-markets perceived to be owned by non-Muslims are also listed as places to be avoided.

The halal food and beverage industry that caters to Muslims in Malaysia is estimated to be worth 50 billion to 55 billion ringgit (US$12 billion to US$13.2 billion) for this year.

Yeah Kim Leng, an economics professor at Sunway University, pointed out that if people heeded the boycott calls, the halal sector – which covers food and beverage, cosmetics and health care products – which non-Muslim businesses also serve, could be badly hit.

The boycott is yet another instance of racial and religious tensions that have plagued the ruling Pakatan Harapan coalition since its watershed victory last May, when it unseated Barisan Nasional from its 61-year rule.

Barisan Nasional’s largest and most powerful party, the United Malays National Organisation (Umno), is now in opposition for the first time since it was formed.