THE apology was accepted the old-fashioned way - in person, over a pot of hot tea, and with a firm handshake.

After nearly a week of being watched on YouTube and other online forums, Pastor Rony Tan yesterday met the leaders of two religions he had disparaged in online video clips, that got him into trouble with the Internal Security Department (ISD) this week.

He apologised to the leaders of the Singapore Buddhist Federation and Taoist Federation and promised to work on improving the relationship between his religion and theirs.

'A wake-up call' on religious sensitivity
Religious leaders must be mindful of what they say in public setting
By Melissa Kok

RELIGIOUS groups, MPs and academics here say the incident regarding Pastor Rony Tan is a wake-up call for those who spread messages of ignorance and intolerance in the name of religion.

Acknowledging that such insensitive comments are a grave concern and may carry serious repercussions, many told The Straits Times yesterday that the case was a stark reminder to religious organisations and individuals to be mindful of what they say in a public setting.

Mr S. Rajendran, chairman of the Hindu Endowments Board, said: 'The message is loud and clear that insensitive behaviour cannot be tolerated. This is a lesson to Pastor Tan and to all other religious leaders that insensitive comments are not appropriate in our social context.'

ISD investigation not less serious than being arrested: DPM
By Rachel Chang

NEWS of Pastor Rony Tan's day at the Internal Security Department (ISD) left many comparing his treatment with that of three teenagers accused of making racist remarks over the social networking site Facebook.

Online and offline, people asked why the teenagers ended up arrested by the police, whereas the pastor was not.

Posed this question yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng said: 'It is a very serious matter if anyone were to be hauled up and investigated by ISD.

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