PAS information chief and Temerloh MP Nasrudin Hassan Tantawi claimed that music concerts where male and female patrons mingle freely, as well as provocative music and dancing, are the causes of “immortal behaviour” in the country.
He added that music concerts promoted “loose behaviour” which contributed to the high number of out-of-wedlock pregnancies and babies being abandoned by young girls. “Based on the National Registration Department’s data, there were 159,725 babies born out of wedlock,” he said.
This is not the first time that Nasrudin’s controversial views have drawn the ire of netizens.
For the unaware, in February 2011, Nasrudin campaigned against the Valentine’s Day celebration by carrying out “immorality checks” to “stop such sinful acts like casual sex which violates Islam”. At that time, Nasrudin was the head of PAS Youth. The Valentine’s Day “crackdown” made international news headlines including The Telegraph and Wall Street Journal.
And that’s not all. Nasrudin also campaigned against several international artistes’ concerts such as Beyoncé, which ultimately forced her to cancel her show. The scheduled concert was part of the R&B star’s “I am …” world tour, which has seen her perform in North America and Europe. It would’ve been Beyoncé’s Malaysian debut.
Other artistes that PAS has protested against include:
- Michael Learns to Rock: Because performing during the fasting month of Ramadan is an insult to Muslims.
- Avril Lavigne: Because her performance would “weaken the younger generation morally and mentally”.
- Adam Lambert: Because it is promoting “gay culture”.
- Gwen Stefani: Because she wears skimpy outfits.
- Selena Gomez: Because her concert will “tarnish the nobleness of the month of Syawal”.
The concerts went on without a hitch but PAS staged protests and handed out flyers to attendees outside some of the concert venues.
On top of that, Nasrudin also blamed the lack of religious studies in Malaysia’s education curriculum for “immoral behaviour like adultery and pre-marital sex”. He said introducing sex education in school and promoting the use of condoms to prevent unwanted pregnancies would not resolve the problem.
He went on to add that if adultery and illicit sex continues, the country will have to face the wrath of Allah SWT.
Sources: The Star Online, MMO, WSJ, Telegraph, The Sydney Morning Herald / Featured image: MMO.
