Zunar removes cartoon, but slams ‘unthinking’ Kelantan PAS Youth

Political cartoonist Zunar (Zulkiflee Anwar Alhaque) said Kelantan PAS Youth could not think intellectually and thus do not understand satire.

PETALING JAYA: Political cartoonist Zunar, who has withdrawn a cartoon on the “Allah” script controversy, said today he did so out of respect for the wishes of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

He said his decision was not done in fear of a police report lodged against him by Kelantan PAS Youth.

Zunar, whose real name is Zulkiflee Anwar Alhaque, said he would not entertain the youth wing. He said they lacked the ability to think intellectually, “and that’s why they don’t understand satire.”

He questioned which part of the cartoon had insulted Allah or Islam. “The cartoon was only highlighting the phobia some have of logos, to the point they go overboard with interpreting it,” he said in a statement.

He said he knew what he was drawing, but felt it was “time to stop my cartoons on the issue”, following the king’s statement to cool political temperatures following a controversy about socks found with the word “Allah” on them.

Kelantan PAS Youth was reported to have lodged a police report two days ago about Zunar’s cartoon, alleging that it poked fun at the Arabic script for “Allah” and insulted the sensitivity of Muslims.

The logo controversy is about the design of a logo imprinted on a line of shoes by shoemaker Vern’s Holding Sdn Bhd which has been viewed as resembling the Arabic script of the word “Allah”.

An earlier controversy, over socks found with the word “Allah” imprinted on them, had led to calls for a boycott of the KK Mart chain, and petrol bomb attacks on three of its shops.

On Tuesday, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Ibrahim, said he hoped that political leaders would not take extreme positions in airing their views on religious and racial issues, following the furore over the socks.

The management of KK Mart and Vern’s have both apologised, while the KK Mart founder and a company director have been charged.