Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman has penned a letter to the German ambassador to Malaysia Nikolaus Graf Lambsdorff with regard to a Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) graduate showing the Nazi salute during a convocation ceremony.

Expressing regret over the incident, the youth and sports minister said while he is an ardent supporter of freedom of speech, such actions reflected poorly on Malaysian society.

Syed Saddiq said Malaysians are aware of the atrocities perpetrated by the Third Reich.

“The ideology that the Aryan race was the purest and considered the 'master race' which resulted in the persecution of innocent Jews is antithetical to Malaysia's DNA.

“We are a melting pot of cultures, ethnicities, religions and traditions. To coexist with each other is a necessity and a matter of survival for Malaysia to grow in a globalised world,” he added.

Last week, the German embassy in Kuala Lumpur condemned the graduate's action and expected the Malaysian government to do the same.

“Considering the terrible suffering that was brought upon the world during World War II by the Nazi regime of Germany, the German embassy unequivocally condemns any show of support for a regime responsible for genocide and would expect the Malaysian government and university authorities to do the same,” it said in a statement.

After the salute went viral on social media, the graduate explained that he was protesting what he believed was Jewish dominance over the world.

He also expressed support for the Palestinians in Gaza as well as his resentment of Jews.

The graduate also supported the actions of the Nazi regime and the Holocaust, which claimed the lives of six million Jews.

Commenting on this, Syed Saddiq said: “The comparison made by the student that in order to fight for the rights of one group by way of defending the injustice of another is a false dichotomy.”

“About six million Jews were killed during the holocaust but let us not forget the lives of non-Jews that were sacrificed as well. Among them were Romanis, Christians and even Muslims with early records showing that Muslims also helped Jews flee from persecution in countries like Tunisia and Algeria,” he added.

The minister said glorifying a leader who committed war crimes, genocide and ethnic cleansing is no laughing matter.

“Islam prohibits violence not only against mankind but against every living creature and is only recognised during times of self-defence.

“By supporting the holocaust, this contradicts other causes which also affect the Muslim community. Today, we are challenged by the growing number of targeted attacks against Muslims which we have witnessed in Sri Lanka and in Christchurch. The Rohingyas in Myanmar continue to face persecution for their ethnicity and religion.

“The famous saying 'injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere' comes to mind. Justice against oppression is not a zero-sum game as peace is not finite and can be shared by many.

“Though political differences will exist but how we exercise them requires a balance. As brothers and sisters of the human race, let us be guided by compassion, empathy and unity in all our actions,” he added.