Religious sock issue: MY King calls for stern action, vendor mulls legal action

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His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, has called for stern action to be taken by the authorities against those responsible for the sale of socks with the word "Allah" printed on them.

"The word of Allah is highly regarded by all Muslims, and we are in the month of Ramadan," said His Majesty in a statement on Facebook.

"Whether it is intentional or not, whether it is imported or exported in a local factory, I want the authorities to investigate and take strict actions in accordance with the law so that such matters are not repeated."

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In Johor Bahru, the Regent of Johor Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim also called for firm action regarding the issue.

"The name of Allah is an important holy word for Muslims. I urge the authorities to take firm action and ensure than an issue like this does not happen again. This issue cannot be taken lightly," said Ismail in a Facebook post yesterday.

"I consider this issue to be serious and hope this matter does not jeopardise national harmony."

Images of the socks with "Allah" printed on it went viral online on 13 March. The store that sold them, KK Mart, issued an apology on Facebook for the offensive socks. Founder KK Chai reportedly said that product management of the socks were done by a vendor.

Following an online apology, an apology note has also been put up at KK Mart outlets nationwide. The note added that the chain will seek legal action against the vendor, Xin Jian Chang.

Written in the national language, the note reads: “KK Super Mart would like to apologise to the Muslim community for the Miranosock brand’s socks bearing the word ‘Allah’. The company has taken immediate and decisive action by terminating the supplier, Xin Jian Chang, and is taking legal action against them."

“All products from this company are no longer available at the KK Super Mart stores throughout Malaysia. Harmony in a multi-religious and multi-ethnic community is our objective. We regret the issue that occurred and sincerely apologise," added the note.

In tandem, Xin Jian Chang is reportedly seeking advice on whether it can take legal action against their China-based supplier Mu Mian Qing Hosiery.

Xin Jian Chang reportedly apologised for the mistake and offense, or distress caused by the incident. It highlighted that it did not order such socks and will be implementing stricter quality control measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future.

The company also reportedly urged Malaysians to remain calm and refrain from engaging in any form of vigilantism or violence. This comes after the company received threats that include burning down the factory and endangering lives, and personal data of its officers being disseminated on social media.

Various political leaders have stepped forward to address the controversial issue.

Malaysia's deputy prime minister also reportedly reminded Malaysians to preserve national harmony and not to play up sensitive issues involving religion, race and royalty while tourism, arts and culture minister Tiong King Sing called upon political leaders to focus on nation-building rather than sowing seeds of racial discord according to media reports.

Prior to that, Parti Islam Se-Malaysia Pusat (PAS) reportedly wants the government to take stern action against those who insult Islam, while Religious Affairs minister Mohd Na'im Mokhtar said that KK Mart and its vendors must learn from this.

Na'im Mokhtar reportedly added that this is a very sensitive issue particularly because it happened in the month of Ramadan, according to The Star.

He added that he was "saddened and disappointed" by what happened and that it was a matter that couldn't be ignored.

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