PETALING JAYA: The authorities must act swiftly to bring those behind the car bomb incident involving lawyer Siti Kasim to justice, says MCA's Chan Quin Er (pic).
She said that the incident poses a threat to the fundamental constitutional right to freedom of speech.
Chan said as a democratic nation, it is the duty of every Malaysian to defend Siti Kasim's right to express her views without fear of unlawful reprisal.
"Disagreement with her opinions does not justify resorting to violence and intimidation.
"The attempted car bomb attack serves as an alarming reminder of the importance of fostering open dialogue and constructive discourse in our society," she added in a press statement on Sunday (July 23).
Chan said that resorting to violence to silence dissenting voices reflects an inability to produce concrete counter arguments as well as a complete lack of willingness to engage in peaceful, rational, and respectful debate.
This comes after an incident on Friday (July 21) where two bottles filled with wires were discovered behind a rear tyre of Siti's car.
It is believed that what was discovered is an improvised explosive device (IED).
Brickfields OCPD Asst Comm Amihizam Abdul Shukor said police received the distress call at 12.58pm.
"We immediately dispatched the Bomb Squad while the Fire and Rescue Department was also on hand to assist. The Bomb Squad managed to dispose of both bottles believed to be an IED," he said.
Siti Kasim said that she will continue speaking up against the use of religion in politics a day after discovering a bomb was planted on her car.