KUALA LUMPUR: Winepak Corporation Sdn Bhd has agreed to deliberate with their board of directors and stakeholders to rename their 'Timah' whisky and change the image displayed on the product label.
Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi, in a statement today, said the company has requested for one week to come up with a decision on the matter.
"This was the outcome achieved in a meeting between the government and the company representatives yesterday.
"The meeting, held online, was conducted in a harmonious way in line with the "Keluarga Malaysia" concept to reach an amicable solution for the good of the country.
"The meeting yesterday was a follow-up to the first meeting that was held between Winepak Corporation and the Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO) on Oct 25," he said.
Communications and Multimedia Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) Idris Ahmad, and National Unity Minister Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique also joined Nanta in the meeting.
The meeting was also attended by Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry's secretary-general Datuk Seri Hasnol Zam Zam Ahmad, Energy and Natural Resources Ministry deputy secretary-general Abdul Wahid Abu Salim, MyIPO director-general Abdul Haris Lakar as well as representatives from the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim), Home Ministry and the International Trade and Industry Ministry.
The Malaysian-made whisky Timah invited brickbats from a number of Malay Muslim netizens who believed the moniker "Timah" is a shortened version of the Arabic name Fatimah.
Some also argued that the image of a bearded man wearing headgear on the label of the bottle was that of a Muslim man.
The company, however, was quick to defend its decision.
In a statement uploaded to Facebook on Oct 15, the company said the product was named "Timah" (which means "tin" in Malay) due to the historical origins of whisky liquor that were brought in by the British colonial to Malaya during the tin-mining era.
The bearded man displayed on the liquor bottle, it said, was a depiction of Captain Speedy – a former Assistant British Resident in Larut, Perak, who was a key figure in introducing whisky during the colonial period.
The company denied any other interpretation of the product's name and stressed that Timah is meant to be enjoyed by non-Muslims above the legal purchasing age.