Malaysian rapper booked for 'insulting Islam' in video

Malaysian-Chinese rapper Namewee was on Monday sent to four days' police custody for allegedly insulting Islam in his music video, a media report said.

Namewee, whose real name is Wee Meng Che, has been booked under section 295 of the Penal Code for "injuring or defiling a place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class".

His video "Oh My God!", which he posted on his YouTube channel on Saturday, shows him rapping inside a church, a Buddhist temple and a mosque, and shows the floating mosque in Tanjung Bungah of Penang, Efe news reported.

Several NGOs have filed police reports against the rapper over his video.

Namewee, 33, reportedly claimed in a separate video that "Oh My God!" was aimed at advocating religious harmony.

He was arrested at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Sunday mid-afternoon and was then brought to a magistrate's court in Penang on Monday morning.

The controversy over his new video follows other incidents, including a music video with alleged sexual audio content, and a 2007 rap song which was accused of disrespecting Malaysians and Islam.

--IANS

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