Malaysia is still a safe country and people's life remains normal despite the recent arson attacks on several churches, a Malaysian official said on Monday.
Mahmood Adam, Secretary-General of the Malaysian Home Affairs Ministry, made this remark after meeting more than 60 foreign diplomats at Putrajaya, the administration center of the country's federal government.
Mahmood said that his ministry has invited 96 foreign diplomats to attend a special briefing to let them understand the current situation in
Malaysia better following the attacks on churches.
So far, more than eight arson attacks on churches have been reported in several states in Malaysia, including Selangor, Sarawak, Perak, Malacca and Sembilan as the first three occurred last Friday.
To prevent rumors from spreading and the social stability from being threatened, Mahmood said the ministry would issue statements twice a day to inform members of the public of the latest development regarding such incidents.
When asked about the questions the foreign diplomats raised, Mahmood said security had been of their major concern, adding that some of them did not understand the real situation in the country.
Mahmood stressed that the actual landscape in Malaysia might be different from other countries.
Meanwhile, Malaysian deputy police chief Ismail Omar said that the police were watching the situation in the country closely while taking
necessary steps to protect places for worship.
The measures included increasing police force on patrol around church and mosque areas in the country, said Ismail, adding that sermons and
prayers carried out last Sunday went on as usual.
Ismail reminded the public not to listen to rumors, especially those sent via mobile phones, and to seek verification from the Malaysian police.
While there were no one arrested after the attacks took place, Ismail said that investigations were underway and the police wanted to ensure that they arrest the right persons.
Ismail said he was aware that the names of certain people alleged to be responsible for the attacks were put on the blogs but further investigations were needed before the police took any actions.
On the other hand, the ministry issued a press statement on Monday to strongly condemn such attacks.
The statement said that the outrageous incidents were acts of extremism, attacking not only the houses of worship, but also the values and freedoms all Malaysians shared.
It also said that the ministry was meeting with the leaders of the diverse religious communities in the country to discuss ways to avoid further attacks.
The ministry was committed to using any legal and necessary measures to maintain the peace while protecting the rights of Malaysians, according to its statement.