Muslims in Japan don’t celebrate Bon Odori, claims Firdaus Wong

KUALA LUMPUR – Controversial Islamic preacher Firdaus Wong Wai Hung has joined the group of religious clerics defying the Selangor Sultan, claiming the Muslim community in Japan has never celebrated the Bon Odori festival.

On Facebook, Firdaus shared a conversation he had with a Japanese Muslim friend, Salman Kyoichiro Sugimoto, who said his fellow Muslims in the country did not take part in the traditional celebration.

Firdaus Wong said the two met during an international Dakwah (propagation) training programme in Mumbai, India, in 2016, which was hosted by another controversial speaker, Dr. Zakir Naik.

“As a mualaf (Muslim revert) and preachers, he (Kyoichiro) is firm as a Muslim in saying that he never celebrated Bon Odori,” Firdaus said in the posting which included a screenshot of his text conversation with the Japanese counterpart.

In January, a group of 62 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) singled out Firdaus as among numerous Islamic preachers who allegedly made seditious remarks to the king and the Malay rulers, apart from insulting other faiths.

At the time of this writing, Firdaus Wong’s Facebook post – which was made late yesterday evening – had gained more than 10,000 likes and nearly 1,000 shares.

This comes after a statement by the defacto Religious Affairs Minister Datuk Idris Ahmad for Muslims to avoid the Japanese festival, arguing that the festival has other religious elements.

Penang Mufti Wan Salim Wan Mohd Noor also shares the same sentiments as Idris while Perlis Mufti Datuk Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin had even suggested for the organisers to rebrand the festival to avoid further confusion.

In a sharp retort, Selangor ruler Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah had warned that he does not want certain parties, especially politicians, to use issues linked to religious sensitivities for personal gain and popularity.

The royal had even called upon Idris to visit the festival and to “understand the difference between religion and culture”.

Despite this, the PAS Ulama Council and its women’s wing had since come out in support of Idris, alleging that attending the event could damage the akidah (creed) of Muslims.

Yesterday, the non-governmental organisation Sisters in Islam lambasted PAS and other related parties for overextending their moral policing of Muslims attending cultural events. – The Vibes, June 12, 2022