A violent dispute over a temple in Malaysia boiled over this week, causing religious and racial tensions to spike around the country and setting the scene for new rules concerning the construction of places of worship.Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Nov. 28 that the government needs to regulate the building and location of all new religious structures to prevent civil disorder, after a melee broke out in Kuala Lumpur from Nov. 26-27.Mahathir was speaking after hundreds of Hindus gathered to try and save the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Subang Jaya, on the edge of the capital, which has been scheduled for demolition by the company that owns the land it sits on.He said it appeared that some of those who had taken part in the rally were not ordinary protesters but were literally out for blood.”We cannot allow this. Although we want to be liberal and allow demonstrations, trying to kill someone is not a demonstration, it is attempted murder,” he warned.
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