#UninstallGrab, As Wife Of Grab Founder And CEO Allegedly Support Israel

This time, all eyes are on the tension between Israel and Palestinian's Hamas, which got worse after Hamas' surprise attack on Israel that angered Israeli's Prime Minister so much, that he refuses to cease fire.

Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel would continue attacking Gaza, even when civilians and children are dead from the attacks.

At least, until all hostages taken by Hamas are released, Netanyahu is determined.

While wars may benefit certain people or parties, wars only mean pain to the majority of people.

And that pain can also be inflicted to companies, even when they're far, far away, if they're found to side with the side the people don't want them to side.

This was learned the hard way by Grab.

Founded by Anthony Tan in 2012, Grab is one of the largest multinational technology company that serves as a super-app for ride-hailing, food delivery and digital payments services on mobile devices that operates in Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

Formerly known as "MyTeksi,", it was rebranded to "Grab" in order to expand to beyond its original founding place, Malaysia, to also encompass Southeast Asia.

Grab, considered Southeast Asia's first decacorn, is also considered one of the biggest technology startup in the region.

And this time, Tan's wife, Chloe Tong was found to allegedly show her support for Israel.

It all happened when Tong shared moments from her family vacation in Israel, uploading a photo of her son, Emmanuel, flying high above HaMoshava HaGermanit in Jerusalem in a helicopter, and a photo of him and Tan wearing yarmulkes, a brimless cap traditionally worn by Jewish males.

Through the caption one of her Instagram Stories, she said that she asked her son about his favorite vacation destination. At first, she silently thought that that he would answer Europe or Maldives, both of which she considered "isn't that interesting." But instead, he answered Israel, which delighted her.

"It was the best trip of my life," she said, quoting her son.

Netizens interpreted this as support for Israel.

As a result of this, the online transportation service faces protests, where netizens flocked to social media to call for a boycott of this service.

In the campaign, #UninstallGrab hashtag became a trending on the internet, particular on X.

As one of the most powerful tech companies in Southeast Asia, Grab has so much influence that something like this can significantly ruin its business in Southeast Asia.

This happened the worst in Indonesia and Malaysia, two countries that have no diplomatic ties with Israel whatsoever, where all of its citizens support Palestine.

Because of this, the company quickly addresses this public relation nightmare, issuing a statement to clarify the incident.

In an official statement, the company said that it has never supported any actions that disregard humanity and justice.

The company also quoted Tong's statement, which said that the Instagram posts were made before the war, which was back in July. She also said that the posts were taken "out of context."

"Like the rest of humanity, I hope for ceasefire and peace," she was quoted saying.

Tong, who is the daughter of Tong Kooi Ong, the founder of Phileo Allied Bank and owner of Edge Media Group, is active on Instagram. But following her alleged support of Israel, the fitness junkie puts her account on private.

And in Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population, the company also proceeded by donating Rp3.5 billion (around $223,000) to assist victims in Gaza.

"We do not take a neutral stance on the protection of human rights, and we support efforts to create real and just peace," said Country Managing Director Grab Indonesia, Neneng Goenadi.

"We hope this aid can help alleviate the suffering of conflict victims in Gaza," she said.

She made a move to address the issue, but many people still, and continue their boycott. Also, more people from the two countries are uninstalling Grab's app from their devices.

"There is no place for supporters of colonizers," said a user.

"Boycotting may not end the war. However, their alignment with Zionist colonizers, land grabbers, and child killers allows us to respond by not using their products! Those who agree, #UninstallGrabNow," said another user.

"For those standing with Zionist child killers in Gaza with bombs, please check your conscience, it's guaranteed to be damaged #UninstallGrabNow," wrote another.

Many people also said that Tong's statement that said the posts were made before she knew the actual situation in Gaza is baseless.

Many people considered this a folly, because the conflict between Israel and Palestine has been ongoing for decades.