I am a Malaysian Christian cum Minister. I am saving up so as to visit Israel one day. But I was disappointed as a new ruling was imposed lately that we are not allowed to visit Israel anymore. Can Christians both at home and abroad help pray and fight for our rights to do so? And I urge boards from CFM, NECF and Denomination Councils could write in or meet up with the PM for petition. I still hold hope there is a u-turn in situation. ------------------------------
Allow us our pilgrimages to Israel
Malaysian Aug 25, 10 12:44pm
The joint call by DAP and MCA to rescind the 'Allah ban' to Home Ministry is definitely welcomed by not only all Christians but all Malaysians who value unity and harmony in our society.
Freedom of religion is enshrined in our constitution, and the government of the day must allow all religions to practise their faith. Religion must not be politicized ,or used as a tool to gain political mileage.
It is usually fear and ignorance that leads to misunderstanding among religious groups. Many who supported the Allah ban do not fully understand the issue. Just as many do not bother that there are significant differences between Christianity and Judaism, though both groups consider Israel as their holy land.
It was indeed a sad day for Christians in Malaysia when our government decided to impose a ban on travel to Israel. Before the ban, limited travel was allowed for religious purposes and pilgrimages.
When Malaysia did not recognize China, it still allowed travel to China for medical reasons. By the same token , it is the cry of Malaysian Christians to allow visits to Israel for religious purposes. A pilgrim to the holy land of Israel is as important to Christians as the Haj is important to our Muslim brothers.
Christians, when they are in Israel, strictly observe their pilgrimage and religious observances. Normally visits to places of importance in Jesus Christ's life and in the Bible are visited.
Many people, for lack of knowledge, do not know that Jesus Christ is not recognized in Judaism at all. At least in Islam, Christ is recognized as a prophet. Christian pilgrimages and tours of Israel do not have an iota of political element.
From the bottom of all Christian hearts, this appeal is made to our government, especially to our prime minister, to reconsider relaxing its rule on visits to Israel. Please consider visits for religious pilgrimages and visits. Do not politicize religion, Be a prime minister for all people and all religions in Malaysia.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been gaining international recognition for Malaysia in the Human Rights arena by speaking out against human rights violations of other nations – albeit selectively – it is a stark contrast to what is practised back home by the Home Ministry. A LoyarBurokker in London reports from the anti-ISA protest there.
50 years of the ISA and police brutality were not compelling enough reasons for Malaysians to signal their dismay outside the Malaysian High Commission in London. Some questioned if it was appropriate and chose instead to attend the talk by the Foreign Minister inside the Embassy, throw tough questions at him and have something to eat afterwards. A few offered to come out and intervene if the situation got heated. Others didn’t think it would come to that. Peaceful demonstration is sometimes a duty and those who thought so were not surprised when Anifah Aman approached them for a civilised dialogue. He was, after all, in charge of Foreign Affairs and diplomacy is his ministry’s expedient course of action.
While Home Affairs and the Royal Malaysian Police deal in domestic violence, Anifah’s ministry speaks out against human rights abuses perpetrated by other governments. Israel was promptly urged not to take drastic and violent action on the unarmed passengers of the Rachel Corrie. Just two weeks ago, Singapore received a plea for clemency for Yong Vui Kong, a Malaysian sentenced to death for drug smuggling. It would seem that member states of the United Nations see the Malaysia Foreign Office as an devoted defender of human rights and so, duly got us elected to the UN Human Rights Council again this year.
Disproportianate use of force at peaceful candlelight vigil in Petaling Jaya
As soon as Anifah Aman arrived at the Malaysian High Commission, he walked across the road to an assembly of concerned Malaysian citizens protesting against the police violence and arrests that marred peaceful candlelight vigils in Malaysia to observe the 50th year of the ISA.
Accompanied by aides and reporters from the NST and Malay Mail, the Foreign Minister broke the ice by saying “Hi” to the organiser. He explained the delays behind the parliamentary debates on the amendments to the ISA and iterated that the law would not be repealed. In the dialogue with the concerned citizens, only Anifah Aman spoke without any interjections from the Malaysian Ambassador or anyone from his delegation who crossed the threshold behind their leader. The opening gambit is commendable, the same format should be approved by Hishamuddin Hussein for home use.
Anifah Aman's team return to the Embassy after the dialogue
The Minister turns back to say 'Write to me, OK?'
In an article posted on Aliran, an observer noted :
Following a twenty minute discussion, the demonstrators closed by thanking Anifah for his efforts at open engagement but asked that a clear message be taken back to the Prime Minister and his government; that as Malaysia gains international recognition and prominence on the world stage – this recognition must be for the right reasons.
The Messenger would turn Advocate when he later surprised those waiting inside the Embassy that he would quit if his government were to silence public dissent. Before an audience of 100 people, the Foreign Minister repeated he would guarantee that Malaysians protesting outside would not be arrested, detained or questioned when they return to Malaysia.
Meanwhile, a virtual Abdul Razak Baginda (’serious academic’, UK-resident, you-know-who) announced on Twitter that he advised the Minister to “make empty promises. mana tau, he actually promised he would quit if BN abused law to stop protests”.
Zaid Ibrahim
Due credit may be given to the Foreign Minister who would follow in the footsteps of Zaid Ibrahim who resigned from his post as Law Minister when the ISA was abused under his watch. It remains to be seen if accountability will be a hard act to follow.
As it was a night where free speech was allowed a wide berth, the dismayed and un-verified Abdul Razak Baginda, can only be cajoled into treating Malaysian policy matters with the same standard of ethics as he employs in his work as a “serious academic .”
The responsibility now lies with the NST and Malay Mail reporters who followed Anifah Aman back into the Embassy. Their dispatches are eagerly-awaited as their objective reporting would be a fitting albeit small tribute to human rights advocates in and out of Malaysia as well as those who are part-of and not-of the establishment. Departure from the expected editorial standard would only serve as a sobering reminder of censorship and Sourcethe subscription basis of universal human rights.
About the Author: See-See is a Malaysian currently living in London. Once a year, she and fellow organisers screen documentaries about Malaysian human rights and political issues under the banner of the Freedom Film Fest of Malaysia. She works as a software architect.
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 13 — Churches today demanded that the government resolve the Allah issue and charge the rest of the culprits responsible for attacking other churches, following the conviction of two siblings for torching the Metro Tabernacle church.
Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST) president Rev Dr Thomas Philips said the convictions alone did not resolve the root cause of the church arson attacks as the Allah case was still pending in court.
“The root cause is still not resolved as the Allah issue is still in the courts,” Philips told The Malaysian Insider today.
Although the Catholic Church won a landmark ruling last New Year’s Eve which allowed Catholic weekly The Herald to use the word “Allah” in its publications, the government won a stay of execution, preventing the Church from using the word until the case is dealt with in the Court of Appeal.
The Sessions Court here today sentenced siblings Raja Muhammad Faizal Raja Ibrahim and Raja Muhammad Idzham Raja Ibrahim each to five years in prison for torching the Metro Tabernacle church earlier this year.
A journalist takes a picture of the torched Metro Tabernacle church in this January 8, 2010 file photo. — Reuters pic
Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM) general secretary Rev Dr Hermen Shastri called on the government to charge those responsible in a string of attacks against nine other churches following the Metro Tabernacle church torching.
“The government must be seen to be serious in this matter,” said Shastri.
“Not all have been brought to book. The police should step up their investigations and bring others to book,” added Shastri.
Nine churches throughout the country were attacked in one week since the torching of the Metro Tabernacle church on January 7 this year.
The attacks against the churches drew international coverage and sparked outrage among leaders on both sides of the political divide, with the Najib administration promising to take stern action against the perpetrators.
Besides the Metro Tabernacle church in Desa Melawati here, the Assumption Church and Life Chapel Church in Petaling Jaya also fell victim to arson attacks.
The attacks against them, however, were not as serious as the torching of the Metro Tabernacle church that gutted the church’s administrative office.
Although National Evangelical Christian Fellowship Malaysia (NECF) chairman Rev Dr Eu Hong Seng welcomed the sentence against the church arsonists, he criticised the government’s move of banning Christians from using the word “Allah” as “ludicrous”.
“No government should take it upon themselves to dictate what is written in the scriptures of other faiths,” said Eu, adding that the government should allow Christians to use the word “Allah”.
Philips pointed out that the sentence against the church arsonists would not deter religious extremists from violence as long as the Allah case remained stuck in the courts.
“Without solving all this, we are just prolonging the consequences... it will still be able to rouse the emotions and passions of extremist groups,” said Philips.
Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has stressed recently that the “Allah” controversy should not be brought up by either BN component parties or Pakatan Rakyat (PR) as the matter was still being tried in court.
The apparent gag order came after the MCA called on Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein to use his authority to rescind the ban on non-Muslims’ use of the word “Allah”, which earned a stern warning from Muhyiddin who questioned the BN component party for sharing the same stand as the DAP on the issue.
Hishammuddin also said recently that the government has no reason to retract its appeal, apparently backtracking on his earlier remarks expressing regret over the decision by his predecessor in the Home Ministry to ban the Catholic Church from using the word “Allah”.
Shastri nonetheless said that the act of sentencing the Metro Tabernacle church arsonists was a good first move.
“For now, we are pleased that action has been taken,” he said.
“This signals to all Malaysians that such acts are not tolerated, (which is) violence against places of worship,” he added.
Sessions Court judge S.M. Komathy Suppiah said in her judgment today that the court needed to send a strong message that such a “dastardly” act of desecrating a place of worship could not be tolerated.
“Individuals who commit arson attacks on places of worship deserve little or no mercy from the courts. The message from this court must be loud and clear. Don’t play with fire,” she said.
Despite sentencing siblings Raja Muhammad Faizal and Raja Muhammad Idzham to five years in prison, Komathy granted a stay of execution pending an appeal by the defence to the High Court.
The siblings were charged under section 436 of the Penal Code for committing mischief with fire, with the intention of destroying the Metro Tabernacle church earlier this year.
The punishment for the offence is a maximum imprisonment of 20 years, while a fine is at the discretion of the court.
Christians make up around 9.1 per cent of the country’s mostly Muslim population, including a Catholic population of nearly 800,000.
The arrogance of Deputy Prime Minister and Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in giving a stern warning on Monday 3 August 2010 to the MCA over the "Allah" issue simply cannot be stomached and tolerated.
If the MCA has any dignity and integrity, it should not allow itself to be so severely rebuked and dictated to publicly by an "equal" partner in the Barisan Nasional coalition.
The MCA is right in standing up for the right of the non-Muslim community to be allowed to freely practise and express their religious faiths using any word they deem fit in Bahasa Malaysia, which is their national language.
The MCA is absoultely right to ask the federal government, of which it is purportedly an essential component, to rescind the ban on non-Muslims using of the word “Allah”, after Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein expressed regrets over the decision to ban its use by his predecessor.
The deputy prime minister had insisted that the MCA must accept the decision of the federal government without questioning, saying that the party should not trigger another debate on the word “Allah.”
The MCA should not allow such haughtiness to go unchallenged, and should ensure its fundamental right is recognised, accepted, and respected as an equal component of the ruling coalition to any assent and/or acquiescence of any decision affecting the nation.
If the MCA is not allowed to voice its views and have a say on such fundamental matters as the right of the non-Muslims to freely use any word in the national language for the purpose of expressing, worshipping, teaching and publishing of their religious faith, then the party should dissolve itself as it is obviously politically impotent, and has no essential practical use to the Chinese community it claims to represent.
Muhyiddin has also questioned the MCA intention in sharing the same platform with the DAP.
“I am not sure why the DAP and the MCA have the same stand in this matter," he said.
In condemning the MCA stand on the "Allah" issue, which happens to align with that of the DAP, Muhyiddin is showing himself to be superficial and perhaps even shallow in understanding the universal fundamental human, civil and constitutional rights of the people.
The MCA may not be idealogically and politically compatible with the DAP, but the universal principles and values of the fundamental human rights are applicable to political parties of all tints and shades, including even Umno.
So, for the MCA to make a stand on the "Allah" issue, which is basically a human right issue, is both legitimate and justified, even if it is similar to the stand of the DAP.
Take the case of Umno having a similar stand as PAS on the issue of the need for Malay unity.
If Muhyiddin's argument on the MCA having the same political agenda on the "Allah" issue as the DAP is seen as a perfidy against the Barisan Nasional, then Umno's willingness to hold unity talk with PAS is likewise a betrayal of trust against the other component parties of the Barisan Nasional.
The MCA must not compromise on this "Allah" issue, which involves the fundamemtal human, civil, and constitutional rights of the people. If it now shrinks from its responsibility to help preserve, protect, and promote the God-given rights of the people, then it can be sure that its days are numbered and the next general election will be its funeral ceremony.
NOTE: As I had expected, MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek said in a statement soon after the above Comment was published that the MCA "does not share the same stand with the DAP on the call to lift the ban on the use of ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims.” In view of the party backing out on its stand on the issue, I think it should start making arrangement to hold nationwide funeral ceremonies after the next general election.
SINGAPORE, July 30: Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's assumption that Malays in Singapore had failed and their neighbouring Malays should take lesson from their plight has not impressed a Singaporean daily.
Right: An Islamic school cum mosque in the Aljunied district in Singapore
The republic's Malay daily Berita Harian in an editorial said Malay-Muslims in the state were successful and it was a result of their hard work in line with the values of meritocracy, not a result of being spoon-fed.
“We do not believe in being spoon-fed or being too dependent on the government - in other words, we do not have a crutch mentality,' wrote editor Guntor Sadali.
Guntor said Singapore Malays believed that a community with such a mentality would soon become a “two M” community, which stands for ‘manja’ (spoilt), and ‘malas’ (lazy).
“We definitely do not want to be labelled as a pampered and lazy community,” he said, adding that the Malay community in the island raised their own funds to build Islamic schools, mosques and other community properties.
“Now, what could have happened to the Malays here in the last four decades? What could have driven Dr Mahathir to voice his concern and to caution the Malaysian Malays? I wonder,” he added.
'Knowledge is power'
The paper however noted that Mahathir could be referring to the political power of Singapore Malays.
For the Malay minority there, power is not about wielding the keris, but is about being equipped with knowledge, the paper adds.
“Malay children here attend the same schools as other Singaporeans with a shared aim - to obtain a holistic education and, of course, achieve good examination results,” the editorial went on, adding that while it was tough for the community yet like all others, it left them with no choice but to work hard.
“There is certainly no short cut to success,” Guntor said.
He said the island state's meritocracy system pushed Malays to work harder, and cited the increasing number of professionals and corporate leaders among the community as proof of their success.
He said the Malays would not want to achieve success any other way, and said Singapore Malays were proud of their self-reliance, unlike their northern brethren.
“We may wear the same clothes, eat the same food, speak the same language and practise the same culture. However, the similarities end there.
“Shouldn't our friends and relatives across the Causeway be like us – Malays in Singapore?” asked Guntar.
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections 2.0 (Bersih 2.0) calls for the abolition of the Internal Security Act (ISA) together with other anti-human rights legislation.
Their continued presence make free and fair elections impossible, curb multiparty democracy and breed corruption and political instability.
To date, 10,662 people have been arrested under the ISA in the past 44 years, 4,139 were issued with formal detention orders and 2,066 were served with restriction orders governing their activities and where they live. They should be released or charged in open court.
Unfortunately, ISA is disguised as a weapon against terrorist threats but is more often used to politically oppress non-violent dissidents, from opposition leaders, religious leaders, women and human rights activists, academics, students, education activists, trade unionists, journalists to environmentalists.
Bersih 2.0, therefore, stresses that ISA is not only cruel and unjust, the 50- year-old draconian act has terrorised the psyche of Malaysians, making them shy away from public affairs and rightful citizens? participation.
By curbing multiparty democracy and the possibility of party alternation, the ISA helps sustain the electoral one-party state we live in and further hurts economic stability. In turn, maintaining the ISA will further perpetuate unfettered corruption and abuse of powers.
Bersih 2.0 warns that if the ISA stays, opposition and civil society leaders may be arrested anytime the BN federal government feels threatened, especially in the coming elections.
Malaysians are reminded that even the political tsunami of March 8 was not enough to halt this abuse of power. We witnessed three civilians - parliamentarian Teresa Kok, blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin and journalist Tan Hoon Cheng - being detained under ISA in September 2008, without any legitimate reasons.
Bersih demands that the ISA must be completely abolished and not merely amended, so as to avoid abuses. Bersih 2.0 also calls for the repeal of all preventive detention laws.
The writer is chairperson, The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections 2.0 (Bersih 2.0).
SINGAPORE, July 30: Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's assumption that Malays in Singapore had failed and their neighbouring Malays should take lesson from their plight has not impressed a Singaporean daily.
