SHAH ALAM, June 17 — The Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj will not prevent any Muslims from attending the Bon Odori Japanese cultural festival, pending further in-depth study.
Sultan Sharafuddin’s private secretary Dato’ Mohamad Munir Bani in a statement said His Royal Highness is of the view that the event that will take place in the state was purely cultural in nature.
"The Sultan has only stated His Royal Highness’ stance on not restricting the Japanese cultural festival Bon Odori that will be held in Selangor, as His Royal Highness is of the view that it is only cultural in nature.
"Also His Royal Highness will not prevent any Muslim from attending until an in-depth study is conducted on the festival to determine if it has religious or cultural elements and to avoid confusion among the people, especially the Muslim community," he said.
On June 15, an Opposition leader in the state was reportedly summoned to appear before the Sultan of Selangor at Istana Bukit Kayangan following a statement by a Federal minister that urged Muslims not to attend the event.
Also present during the session were several members of the Selangor Royal Council, including Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof, Tengku Seri Wangsa Diraja Tengku Dato’ Setia Ramli Alhaj and Dato’ Setia Salehuddin Saidin.
On June 6, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Idris Ahmad reminded Muslims to not participate in programmes that run contrary to Islamic religious beliefs, which included the Bon Odori Festival.
