I’m not racist, says man who berated beer promoter
KUALA LUMPUR: The man who berated a beer promoter in a hypermarket said that he is not a racist.
“I am not racist because my child studies in a Chinese school. I also have friends who are Chinese,” said Mohamad Edi Bin Mohamad Riyars, who is known as Edi Rejang.
“At that time I was too tired from work and was angry, and I became too emotional since it had to do with alcohol. I sincerely apologise to the woman,” he said in a video posted on Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng’s Facebook page.
Mohamad Edi said he initially wanted to buy groceries at that hypermarket, adding that he noticed a woman who was offering beer samples to shoppers as he was walking by a crowd of people.
“As it was a narrow section, I saw many people congregating there but that place was a non-halal section and I did not check first. As I was very angry at that time, I took out my phone and decided to take a video of that woman, to question her, show that obscene gesture and walk away,” he said.
He added that he did not know why he decided to act in that manner, clarifying that it happened spontaneously.
“I did not have any intention to be racist. We are 1Malaysia; the Chinese, Indians and the Malays all have their rights. It was my fault as I had walked through that area which was nonhalal but I went in and hurled abusive words in that place,” he said.
Mohamad Edi also said that he hoped he would be able to meet the woman in person to apologise.
Lim had said in the video that he was not sure if the woman accepted his apology, but added that he would contact the woman to get her views on this issue.
Mohamad Edi had earlier also apologised to the woman and to all Malaysians in a video that was uploaded on Twitter.
On Monday, a video clip of a shopper berating the beer promoter for giving out beer samples in the alcohol section of a hypermarket went viral on social media.
In the video, the girl had remained calm even though the shopper scolded her and demanded to know if she was promoting the beer to “anyone”, including Muslims.
As the promoter was about to defend herself in English, he criticised her and insisted that she speak in Bahasa Melayu because this is “Bumi Melayu”.
The man then made an obscene hand gesture and spewed vulgarities at her before walking away.
The promoter could be heard in the video saying, “You are hilarious.”
Meanwhile, Carlsberg Malaysia has expressed their full support for the promoter. The company also urged all parties to respect her privacy by not revealing and circulating personal information, images, and videos of her.
“The harassment she experienced is unacceptable. We are very proud of how she handled the difficult situation and immediately offered support to her, when she reported the incident,” Carlsberg Malaysia Managing Director Lars Lehmann said in a statement yesterday.
“We would like to stress that our sampling activities are strictly for non-Muslim of legal purchasing age only. While we reserve our rights on this matter, our priority lies with the safety and security of our promoter.
We respect the promoter’s decision not to further pursue the matter. She appreciates the encouraging words and support received from all parties,” he added.