Malaysia fears a spate of fatal shootings across the country, the latest on the holiday island of Borneo, will scare away tourists.
Tourism and culture minister Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, quoted by the Borneo Post, said media reports on the shootings had the potential to harm the tourism sector.
"I am concerned that if this situation is prolonged it may have a negative impact on our tourism industry," he said.
In the latest gun attack, a 44-year-old resort owner from Kuching was shot from close range outside a coffee shop in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
A recent headline in Singapore’s The New Paper read: "Welcome to Malaysia where…Death is Cheap and Staying Alive Costly", but tourism minister Mohamed Nazri said the newspaper could not be blamed for its opinion.
"If we ourselves are fearful, you cannot blame them. I feel it’s a fair report," he said.
The killing in Sabah was the eighth shooting in the country in a week.
