PETALING JAYA: The protest in Taman Medan over the cross sign on a church building was politically motivated, said its PKR assemblyman Haniza Mohamed Talha (pic).

She claimed the 50 residents who protested against the cross, saying it challenged the faith of the people in the Muslim majority area, were Umno branch and division members.

“One of the demonstrators was an Umno candidate who contested against me for the state seat in 2008 and lost.

“Another one of them calls himself the village head. There are no villages in Taman Medan. It is an urban area,” she told The Star Online when contacted Monday.

She said there were other churches that also rented shop lots such as this one, but the rest of the Muslim community did not throw up a fuss over its existence.

“The actions of these protesters have tarnished the image of Islam in the eyes of non-Muslims.

“Comments from Muslims which I read on social media also expressed anger at this group for giving our religion a bad name,” she said.

The PKR assemblyman said she planned to meet the pastor and representatives of the church in question later Monday to clear up the issue.

“I can understand the concerns of non-Muslims, but I’d like to assure them this is not what Islam teaches its followers.

“I urge this group of protesters to return to the right teachings of Islam, as preached by the Prophet Muhammad,” she added.

The church in Taman Medan was conducting its weekly mass on Sunday when the group showed up with placards, calling for the removal of the cross affixed to the exterior of the building.

The cross was voluntarily removed by the church’s management later.