Malaysia Hindu festival low key this year

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Malaysia's Hindus, who say they are marginalized in the largely Muslim country, reportedly kept their Thaipusam festival low key this year as a protest.

The festival, when many of the participants pierce their faces and bodies with hooks and spears as a mark of devotion to the the deity Murugan, is the biggest and most sacred of the religious rites for the nearly 2 million Hindus in the country.

But this year's event Wednesday was marked by boycotts and hunger strikes to protest the imprisonment of their leaders, The Daily Telegraph (Britain) reported.

The ethnic discontent in the multiracial country could pose problems for Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi's party in coming elections as ethnic Indians, who make up 7 percent of the population, have thus far largely supported the ruling party.

The Indians, brought to Malaysia by the British as indentured laborers two centuries ago, say they are victims of discrimination by majority Muslims in securing jobs, housing and loans. Some Hindu temples have been demolished in recent years, the report said.

Hindu leaders were arrested last November during a peaceful rally of Indians, the report said. The government said the measures were taken to prevent an ethnic conflict.

Tempers have not cooled although Thaipusam was declared a national holiday this week.