MAS Selamat Kastari has gone from dastardly to funny. He has been featured in jokes, games and gimmicks.

Pac-man-like predator? Shirtless dancer wiggling his hips? Blonde wig and pink hairband? Costume change.

Netizens, whether creative or restless, have given the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) fugitive several guises on the Internet.

He turns up in YouTube videos, e-mails, on social networking sites like Facebook and T-shirts and even in Pac-Mat, a Pac-Man like game on the TalkingCock website.

But is the Internet-savvy generation making light of a serious issue? Or is it just good fun, no offence meant?

HERO WORSHIP?

Earlier this week, a reader wrote to The Straits Times, commenting that such gimmicks and jokes could 'lead to the reverse effect of hero worship amongst some of our youth'.

At least two Singaporeans The New Paper on Sunday spoke to agreed.

Mrs A Chen, a housewife with three sons, 9, 13 and 16, felt the jokes were 'tasteless'.

She said: 'I think it's disappointing that kids nowadays don't understand how serious this is, or that they just don't care.'

But six of the eight people we spoke to felt that a joke is just that, a joke.

Dental clinic director Haslinda Putri Harun, 36, has two daughters aged 8 and 5.

She said: 'If I were to catch my kids playing the Pac-Man game, I don't think it will mean they think he's any less dangerous.

'Generally kids know that Mas Selamat is a dangerous man so I'm not too upset that others have made fun of him.'

Dr Tan Chi Chiu, a consultant gastroenterologist, also doesn't see what the fuss is about.

He pointed out that joking doesn't necessarily mean that one is making light of the situation.

People have always joked about serious matters, he said. For instance there have been jokes on the Gulf War.

'We are not laughing because we are happy that he's escaped, we are poking fun at the situation; it's humour in society,' he said.

He draws the line, however, when 'the jokes are offensive or we are saying that we shouldn't be searching for this man'.

And he added: 'But it's still one person's opinion, what's the big deal?'

Said Mr Sinapan Samydorai, president of the Think Centre, a non-governmental organisation: 'I'm sure the seriousness of the situation is there. The younger generation just has a sense of fun.'

POSTERS	GAMES	VIDEOS
This 'Toilet Break' poster is one of the fake movie posters made by netizens. It is a spoof of US TV series Prison Break, about a man who gets himself thrown into prison so that he can help his inmate brother escape.	Here's Pac-Mat, (above) a Pac-Man like game found on TalkingCock.com. There's also Where's Mas Selamat?, based on the idea behind the Where's Wally series of children's books.	A YouTube search using the name Mas Selamat will turn up mroe than 80 results, including real news footage and spoof clips like Street Dancer (above), which depicts the fugitive as a shirtless, pot bellied man dancing in the street.

A GOOD SIGN

He added that the jokes also reveal that the young are conscious and aware of what's going on.

Mr Samydorai said: 'They show that young people are questioning how he escaped and that's important.'

Jeremy Yeo, 17, a National Junior College student, also felt that online satire shouldn't be taken too seriously.

He said: 'If it's not promoting self-radicalisation, or recruiting people into JI, overall, I think it's okay.'

This article was first published in The New Paper on Mar 30, 2008.