McDonald's Malaysia Lodges Police Report Over Accusations Of Having Israel Ties
The police report was lodged against more than 20 individuals and NGOs.
By Sadho Ram — 14 Dec 2017, 03:55 PM
McDonald's Malaysia has lodged police reports against more than 20 individuals and NGOs who, the fast-food chain says, have been spreading lies and slander against it and calling for a boycott
According to a report in NST Online, 14 December, McDonald's Malaysia decided to lodge the police report after claims that the fast-food chain harbours Israeli links were circulated online alleging that it was a direct contributor to the political conflict.
Following the recognition by the US President Donald Trump that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, people in Malaysia had called for a nationwide boycott of McDonald's.
Azmir Jaafar, who is the MD and Operating Partner of the chain's owner Gerbang Alaf Restaurants Sdn Bhd, was quoted by NST Online, saying that McDonald's Malaysia has also filed a report with the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) as the claims and slander were circulated online.
According to Reuters, one Twitter user, TheUsopIbrahim, had tweeted that the US-based McDonald's "channelled funds to Israel".
While the fast-food chain had denied the accusations levelled against itself, calling them untrue and slanderous, some individuals were still bent on calling for a nationwide boycott of the restaurant
In its statement that was released on 8 December, McDonald's Malaysia had warned that they will not hesitate to take action against any irresponsible person who continues to spread lies through social media and other channels.
Azmir said that as a company, McDonald's Malaysia, which is a locally-owned company run by a Muslim individual as its biggest shareholder, does not contribute, support or is involved in any political or religious conflicts anywhere in the world.
"The claims coming from these parties that say McDonald's Malaysia contributes a fund to Israel is a false and slanderous accusation," he was quoted as saying.
According to Azmir, there have been reports of harassment from McDonald's Malaysia employees after Trump's Jerusalem move
He said that they had no choice but to lodge the police report.
"We are doing this as a preventive measure before anything bad happens. We are preserving the safety and livelihood of our 12,000 employees and 4,000 more indirect employees associated with us," NST Online reported him as saying.
