After the recent earthquake in Malaysia that left 18 people dead and 10 wounded, along with destruction of homes and other buildings, controversy is spreading in the region. Two Canadian, one Dutch, and one British tourists were caught on camera stripping on top of a mountain considered holy by the locals, and many people say that the acts by the four tourists caused the earthquake.
When the British woman tried to leave the country, she was stopped by officials who told her she was possibly being charged for causing a disturbance to the mountain by making it angry, which triggered the earthquake.
Some time after her arrest, the other three tourists turned themselves in to face the penalty.
A local magistrate’s court said they would be held for four days while the “obscene act” they committed on the mountain was further investigated. They will be looking for other witnesses to the behavior, including the one who caught them on camera in the middle of the act.
“I do not believe that they should serve a sentence of any sort for this behavior. While what they did was wrong, it does not seem like it is worthy of a jail sentence of any kind. They should be fined and sent on their way back to their countries,” said junior Colin Platt.
All of the tourists have plead guilty to the charges against them and could end up with an extended stay in Malaysia. The max it is believed that they could receive is three months in jail and a fine of an undisclosed amount for the time being. Their lesser penalty would be just the fine.
The hunt is still on for remaining tourists that have not turned themselves in yet. In the picture that was taken, there are a total of eight tourists that stripped down. They are most likely still hiding in Malaysia, but if they try to leave the country, they will most likely be caught.
“If I was in the shoes of the other tourists, I would turn myself in and hope that it would carry a lesser sentence than what could be given if found by police. Turning themselves in will show their willingness to cooperate and for their sake bring a smaller sentence down with it,” said junior Jon-Paulo Seixeiro.
The people of Sabah have claimed it is disrespectful and rude that they would remove their clothing on a mountain Malaysians call sacred and holy. They would like to see a punishment handed down to all involved.
After the four day period is over, it is likely the sentence will be handed down. With the other tourists still nowhere to be found, they would likely be sentenced whenever they are caught.
What kind of sentence do you think the tourists should get?