Concert organisers must be reminded to adhere to Jakim's guidelines - Jamil Khir

Authorities responsible for approving the organising of any entertainment events and concerts have been advised to remind the event organisers to adhere to entertainment guidelines issued by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim).

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom said many quarters seemed to have forgotten about the guidelines, which were formulated to prevent untoward incidents, such as when tudung-clad Malay girls were hugged and kissed by members of a Korean pop band at a concert in Kuala Lumpur last week.

"The approval for organising a concert is not under Jakim's jurisdiction, but as a proactive measure, Jakim had issued an Islamic guideline on entertainment to prevent untoward incidents.

"The guideline is for music shows, including television programme, but certain things occurred spontaneously. That is why we called on the organiser to explain the matter and to prevent recurrence."

He said this to reporters here today after receiving donation of RM107,000 from Asian Finance Bank for restoration of mosques affected by the recent floods that hit the east coast states.

When asked about public criticism directed at the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) for over-reacted to the incident, Jamil Khir said it was still being investigated and no action had been taken so far.

"Right now, Jawi is still investigating, is that over-reacting?

"We don't want certain quarters to accuse that the Islamic religious authorities are neglecting the case, he said.

Meanwhile, Communication and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said it would be better if the girls involved could be given counseling as advised by Jawi.

He said it was not necessary for all offences to be addressed with punishment when they could be settled with counseling.

Ahmad Shabery said the hugging and kissing incident was also outside the jurisdiction of the Central Agency for Application for Filming and Performance by Foreign Artistes (Puspal) as it happened so spontaneously.

He said it was also unnecessary to place a Puspal officer at each concert as it would involve high cost of operation and manpower.

Last Saturday, a three-minute video showing Muslim girls were hugged and kissed by members of a Korean pop group, B1A4, went viral on the social media, prompting criticisms from Internet users.

Yesterday, Jawi director Paimuzi Yahya was reported as saying that Jawi would apply for a court order to arrest the girls if they refuse to come forward to help in the investigation.

Prior to that, Jawi had also called the organiser.

The case is being investigated under Section 29 of the Syariah Criminal Offence (Federal Territories) 1997 (Act 559) for indecent behaviour in public places.