Faizal, who was among those who gave speeches outside the embassy, said that the protesters wanted to express their regret about the incident at a demonstration in Stockholm last Saturday, which he described as having “hurt the hearts of Muslims” across the world.
“We have no quarrel with the Swedish (people). We have a problem with an act that has hurt Muslims all over the world,” he said at the PAS-led rally.
“We are here to state to the whole world, and the Swedish government, that the actions of their politician who burned the Quran has hurt our feelings and is totally unacceptable.”
Meanwhile, PAS Youth chief and Pasir Mas MP Ahmad Fadhli Shaari told the crowd that the burning of the Quran is equivalent to “burning Muslims”, warning the Swedish government to prevent a repeat of the incident.
PAS Youth information chief Khairul Nazir Helmi and Bersatu Youth information chief Ashraf Mustaqim Badrul Munir were among those who presented a memo to a representative from the Swedish embassy.
The group marched to the Swedish embassy to protest Swedish-Danish extremist politician Rasmus Paludan’s burning of a copy of the Quran in Stockholm last Saturday, a move which caused global outrage among Muslims.
Meanwhile, a copy of the Quran with an English translation was presented as a gift for the Swedish ambassador to Malaysia, Joachim Bergstrom, by several NGOs.
Malaysiakini reported that the copy of the holy book and a memorandum objecting to the burning were handed over to an embassy official by the Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organisations (Mapim), Alliance of Global Mosques Defending Al-Aqsa and PKR international bureau secretary Fakhrulrazi Mokhtar.
Speaking to reporters outside the embassy where some 100 supporters had gathered, Mapim president Azmi Abdul Hamid said their message for the ambassador included a request for him to read the translated text in order to have a better understanding of Islam.
Separately, the foreign ministry today condemned far-right Dutch politician Edwin Wagensveld for desecrating the Quran at The Hague, Netherlands, last Sunday.
Stating that the country is “saddened” by Islamophobic acts which have been repeatedly carried out despite global condemnation, Wisma Putra urged the United Nations and other international agencies to work towards promoting respect for all religious scriptures.
“These hateful and criminal acts against Islam must end immediately,” said the ministry.
“Malaysia vehemently believes that the right to free speech must come with responsibilities and cannot be misused.”
Another group from Hizbut Tahrir Malaysia (HTM) also held demonstrations outside the Dutch and Swedish embassies today.