KOTA KINABALU: Malaysia believes Saudi Arabia will not impose any restriction on the Haj quota for the country following the Bersih 3.0 demonstrations in Mecca and Medina, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman said here.
He said he understood this after having explained to his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, that demonstrations were not a cultural phenomenon indulged in by Malaysians.
“I believe the Haj quota for Malaysia will not be affected owing to the good relations between our prime minister (Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak) and the ruler of Saudi Arabia (King Abdullah) and my close relationship with the Saudi Arabian foreign minister.”
“They had wanted an assurance that such an incident will not recur,” he told reporters after attending a dinner with government retirees in the Kimanis parliamentary constituency, here, Saturday night.
Following the rally in the two holy cities on April 26, the Saudi Arabian government was reported to be considering restricting or suspending Malaysians from performing the umrah and Haj.
Earlier, in his speech, Anifah said the people should give their full support to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for the positive transformation he has brought to the country.
He also announced a personal allocation of RM100,000 as an education fund to help students in Membakut and Bongawan and another RM100,000 for the setting up of a youth cooperative. – Bernama