There appears to be no end to the spate of vandalism and arson attempts of places of worships of late, with the latest victims in form of two mosques in southern Petaling Jaya.

NONEIn the wee hours of the morning today, the worshippers at the two mosques stumbled upon several wild-boar heads - obviously placed near the mosque as an insult since swine is considered offensive by Muslims.

This incident has received overwhelming condemnation from leaders from across religious and political divide. Below are excerpts:

Khairy Jamaluddin, Barisan Nasional and Umno Youth chief

I will urge all my counterparts in PAS, PKR and DAP to issue a joint statement together to condemn any attacks and vandalism against (any) house of worship. This is the time we unite to oppose extremist elements who make up the minority, (yet) want to split the public and destroy the Malaysian dream. Stop the politics and show leadership!

Khalid Ibrahim, Selangor Chief Minister

We urge the people who are living near the mosque, and all citizens of Selangor in general, to remain calm in view of this situation because any extremist statements or actions will only worsen the situation.

If this happens, we will be caught in the trap of those who want to cause confusion and (incite) hate among us.

Nurul Izzah Anwar, Lembah Pantai MP

My visit coincided with that of the Inspector-General of Police and officers. I urge them to investigate this matter thoroughly and focus all their attention on combating such occurrences rather than dissidents of the Barisan Nasional led government.

Members of the public who have information on these incidents have a moral responsibility to come forward. Our focus is to ensure peace and calm at all time. We remain undaunted in the face of such provocations.

Let us prove that the Malaysian spirit will triumph in the face of such tribulations. Our country is going through a difficult time, and this is all the more reason for us to draw closer together, rather than stand apart.

Ong Tee Keat, Transport Minister and MCA President

The actions by irresponsible individuals are aimed at creating trouble and are inconsistent with the spirit of harmony and civility of peace-loving Malaysians. I hope that the police and relevant authorities will continue to carry out their duties in a professional and swift manner to bring those responsible to book, and to maintain law and order in the country.

I urge all Malaysians to continue to be calm. We should keep up with our efforts to create understanding and respect among different faiths, and not allow the actions of a few to create dissatisfaction and spark enmity among ourselves.

Lim Guan Eng, Penang Chief Minister and DAP secretary-general

It saddens me that less than one week after the arson attempts on two suraus in Muar, more despicable incidents took place in the Klang Valley today. Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak had downplayed the various attacks on places of worship in the country since early this month as "minor aberrations".

It is not impossible that such a not-too-serious attitude had encouraged more negative elements to launch more senseless initiatives to erode Malaysians' harmonious way of life.

The DAP wishes to reiterate our call that an inter-religious council should be established to provide a consultative and advisory platform for all religious bodies in the country so that through dialogue and discussion, religious harmony and understanding among the citizens can be further strengthened.

Idris Ahmad, PAS information chief

PAS hopes the police will beef up security and carry out the investigations immediately. We also urge the people and NGOs to cooperate with the authorities in order to resolve the problem.

Chang Ko Youn, Gerakan deputy president

We are saddened and disappointed that such an incident took place. We are confident the authorities will act fast to nab the culprits responsible for it.

Rev Thomas Philips, Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism  President

The latest incidents today at the two mosques demonstrate how sick perpetrators of such acts can be and to what extent they are willing to go to cause hurt and harm to religious communities. Their end is to drive a wedge between religious communities in the country.

Tony Pua, Petaling Jaya Utara MP and DAP secretary

We condemn in the strongest possible terms such despicable acts which are not only insensitive to our Muslim brothers, but is clearly an act to incite racial hatred and sentiments in our multiracial and multireligious society.

We will like to repeat our call upon the government to convene a meeting, which includes all political parties, religious bodies and civil society organisations, to unite as one in condemning such attempts to sabotage the future and unity of Malaysians.

We call upon the Prime Minister to call an emergency Parliamentary meeting for all Parliamentarians from across the divide to condemn without reservation the increasing incidence of arson, vandalism and desecration at all places of religious worship including mosques, suraus, churches and temples.

Hsu Dar Ren, Gerakan central committee member

This is a senseless act to provoke and fan emotions. The people doing this are treading on a very dangerous ground and playing with fire. All right minded Malaysians must unite and condemn this act of cowardice, similar to earlier acts of trying to burn churches and suraus.

Teresa Kok, Selangor senior executive council member and Seputeh MP

I urge all Malaysians to stay calm and not react violently to this cowardly act. Neither should we retreat into our respective ethnic or religious groups for perceived safety and protection from any perceived "external threat".

Instead, this is an opportunity for us to rise up in unity to strongly condemn this shameful act and send a strong message that such acts have no place in the Malaysia that we call our home.

P Ramakrishnan, Aliran president

Whether it is politically motivated or otherwise, the repercussions of these criminal acts can be very dangerous and damaging to our fragile ethnic relations which has come under extreme test following the ‘Allah’ issue.

It is worrying that there are opportunists and extreme elements at large who are intent in exploiting this emotive issue to stir up trouble and cause disunity. It is very apparent that certain quarters will stoop very low not bothering about the consequences of racial strife.

Aliran would like to appeal to the vast majority of Malaysians who are rational, peace-loving and accommodating not to subscribe to the the intolerance propagated by unruly elements in our midst bent on wrecking our unity. We should reject these unscrupulous and misguided elements and stand solidly together to preserve and protect our peace and harmony.

We call on the police to be relentless in bringing these dangerous people to book. Their priority should be in tracking down these scoundrels so that the weight of the law would land on them heavily before they attempt to do more damage.

VIDEOS

Wild boar heads in mosques l 1 min

Nurul outraged l 3 mins