DAP ready to work with Sabah and Sarawak leaders to fight for rights

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

DAP today said it was willing to work together and cooperate with state government leaders in Sabah and Sarawak to ensure that they retained their equal status in the Federation of Malaysia.

Pasty secretary-general Lim Guan Eng (pic) attacked Umno's arrogance in assuming that they were the masters and everyone else had to submit to them.

He slammed Umno's racist and extremist ideologies, saying it had warped and twisted the minds of the party's young leaders and left them with the wrong perception.

Lim said Umno's young leaders had been influenced by the party's policies to the extent that they assumed the party were the masters and others had to be subservient.

"This has caused friction not just between Putrajaya and Sabah and Sarawak but even among the average Malaysians, especially the non-Muslims,” Lim said in a statement today in response to the frustration expressed by Sarawak Land Development Minister Tan Sri James Masing in a report published in The Malaysian Insider today.

Masing accused young Umno leaders of causing friction between Putrajaya and the Sarawak state government as they had adopted the attitude that Umno were the masters."The attack by Masing on the Umno leaders indicates that Sabah and Sarawak have realised that they are not being respected but are instead being exploited by Putrajaya," Lim noted.

Masing said when Umno spoke with them, they make themselves feel as if they were superior and Sarawakians were their coolies.

He said he felt irritated with these leaders as they did not treat those from Sarawak as equal partners in the administration of the federation.

"Sabah and Sarawak seems to be like an appendix to West Malaysia," Masing challenged.

Lim echoed Masing's frustrations with Umno, saying issues which strained state-federal ties included the Home Ministry's decision to ban the use of the word Allah in Herald, a weekly publication under the Catholic church.

"The issue has fanned the anger of the 1.6 million Christians in East Malaysia as it was seen by the people of Sabah and Sarawak as breaching the terms drawn up when Malaysia was first formed."

"Although it has taken Masing almost 30 years of his political career to realise Umno's arrogance and the master-servant attitude adopted by the party towards Sabah, Sarawak and Malaysians, but better late than never," Lim said.

He said DAP was willing to cooperate fully with the state leaders in Sabah and Sarawak to check Umno's arrogance.

"We want to ensure that Sabah and Sarawak retain their status as equal partners in Malaysia and are not reduced to a master-servant relationship reminiscent of the old British colonial era," Lim added.

DAP is willing to support Sabah and Sarawak to demand an increase in their share of oil and gas royalties from the present 5% to 20% and to end the present cabotage policy.

"The time has come to return the natural wealth of both states back to the people and to ensure a fair implementation of the 1Malaysia, 1Price policy.

"The people of Sabah and Sarawak should no longer be discriminated against by having to pay higher prices than those in peninsular Malaysia," Lim said. - November 17, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/dap-ready-to-work-with-sabah-and-sarawak-leaders-to-fight-for-rights

What did OIC members tell Malaysia at the UNPR?

NOVEMBER 16, 2013
By Rama Ramanathan

Those who love to hate Islam won’t like the outcome of last month’s United Nations Periodic Review (UNPR) because of the concern about human rights expressed by many nations which are members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

I wrote the last sentence after studying a UN report which lists recommendations given to Malaysia by UN member nations about how we can improve our position in the global ranking of Human Rights. In case you’re unaware, we came out pretty badly.

I’ve chosen to write about recommendations from Muslim majority nations because the image of Malay-Muslims, has taken a beating in recent days due to the Malaysian Court of Appeal denying Christians (in October) the right to continue calling God Allah and also because some Malaysian groups have been misleading Malaysians about the outcome of the UNPR.

The Malaysian Government sent 36 delegates to the 2013 UNPR to represent our progress on commitments we have made over the years to the UN. The status of our conformance and the sincerity in uplifting our conformance with universal agreements on Human Rights will make a huge impact upon investment in our nation and in our global status. We cannot deny that as a nation we have, for many years, funded local and international efforts to move us closer to our goals.

The Malaysian government delegation took pains to ‘explain’ the Allah Judgment. It needed to be explained because the conclusions of the court – and Malaysia’s official Islamic authorities – were considered laughable not only by secular nations, but also by Muslim-majority nations worldwide. For Muslims around the world, Malaysia’s arguments sound as strange as the last century’s claims of racial superiority by white South Africans.

I won’t discuss the differences between the UN and the OIC. Suffice to say that in 1990, the OIC – which now has 57 members – produced the Cairo “Declaration on Human Rights in Islam” as the next level up from the UN Declaration on Human Rights. We will not be far of the mark if we think of the UNPR as a stepping stone to compliance with the Cairo declaration.

So, what did these Muslim-dominated countries have to say to Malaysia about Human Rights?

First, let’s note the names of the 35 OIC nations who gave us recommendations and the number of recommendations from each nation:

Afghanistan (2); Albania (3); Algeria (2); Azerbaijan (3); Bahrain (3); Bangladesh (2); Benin (2); Brunei Darussalam (2); Chad (1); Djibouti (2); Egypt (3); Indonesia (2); Islamic Republic of Iran (4); Kazakhstan (3); Kuwait (2); Kyrgystan (1); Lebanon (2); Maldives (3); Mauritania (2); Morocco (x1); Mozambique (2); Nigeria (1); Oman (1); Pakistan (2); Qatar (2); Saudi Arabia (2); Senegal (2); Sierra Leone (4); State of Palestine (2); Sudan (2); Tunisia (2); Turkey (4); Turkmenistan (2); Uzbekistan (3) and Yemen (1).

In summary, 35 OIC member nations provided Malaysia with 77 recommendations. This compares with an overall total of 104 UN member nations and 249 recommendations.

Therefore, in percentage terms, 34% of the nations which provided Malaysia with recommendations are members of the OIC; these nations contributed 31% of all recommendations.

Note: Although there are 232 paragraphs in the section of the report which is titled Recommendations/Conclusions, there are actually 249 recommendations. This is because some of the paragraphs contain multiple recommendations.

What did the member countries of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation tell Malaysia? In my analysis I created categories for the subjects they spoke about. Here’s the breakdown:

Children’s rights (3); education (4); education (4); treatment of foreigners (5); freedom of expression (1); gender discrimination (7); general (6); healthcare (10); income inequality and poverty (4); international agreements (20); persons with disabilities (1); police, courts and punishment (2); respect and tolerance (3); trafficking in persons (9).

I have presented the breakdown in alphabetical order to stress that everything in the list is important and interconnected, i.e. the fact that freedom of expression occurs once while international agreements occurs twenty times does not entitle us to conclude that the second is twenty times more important than the first.

Due to space constraints, I will restrict my discussion to 6 categories. I have selected them because of the clear way in which they reveal the human rights aspirations of Muslim-majority nations:

1. Gender discrimination (7). This category is mainly about women’s rights. The recommendations include assuring equal opportunities for men and women, safeguarding women’s rights and enforcing laws on violence against women. The OIC nations said nothing about Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transexuals and Gays (LGBT).

2. Treatment of foreigners (5). Not surprisingly the recommendations came from Bangladesh and Indonesia, 2 countries which supply Malaysia with the vast majority of our guest workers. (We are the Asian nation with the largest number of guest workers). Bangladesh urges us to monitor our recruitment agencies and urges us to give guest workers the protection of the law. Indonesia asks us to treat our guest workers more humanely.

3. Freedom of expression (x1). Indonesia – a region in which some islands are predominantly non-Muslim, e.g. Bali and Timor – tells us we need to be more tolerant of freedom of expression, including the right to peaceful assembly. Indonesia, like other nations, must have noticed how the Malaysian government responds to protesters (e.g. Bersih), dissenters (e.g. Namewee) and pranksters (e.g. Alvivi).

4. Trafficking in persons (9). The recommendations in this category were submitted Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Kazakhstan, Mozambique, Senegal and the UAE. The world recognizes Malaysia as a major hub in the trafficking of persons.  Perhaps the OIC nations are diplomatically telling Malaysian NGO’s to get off their efforts to imprison words and instead work to liberate exploited and needy women and children.

5. International agreements (20). The operative words in this category of recommendations are “sign, ratify, accede, join, implement, and legislate.” There are essentially two sub-topics:

a. Suhakam

6 recommendations I put in this category can be sub-titled “implement Suhakam’s proposals.” Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, S. Arabia, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Yemen speak for all nations who see through the mere lip-service given to Suhakam whose annual reports aren’t even debated in Parliament. These nations are pleading for once moderate Malaysia to show how to move from rhetoric to compliance, first to the UN level, then to the Cairo level.

b. UN Conventions

Many OIC member nations know we will ask for their support for us to gain a seat on the UN Security Council in 2015. They are telling us now that they will find it hard to support us if we don’t at least develop, implement and monitor a plan with dates for signing and implementing 6 of the 9 core UN conventions which concern race, torture, refugees, foreign workers, Orang Asli, etc. They are also telling us we can’t expect to indefinitely defer visits of UN rapporteurs.

6. Healthcare (10). Healthcare is mentioned in 10 recommendations. This probably shows the effectiveness of the UN in raising awareness of healthcare opportunities worldwide as much as it shows Muslim concerns about uniform access to healthcare.  It’s worth noting that only of the 10 recommendations mentions HIV/AIDS and that one recommendation (by Sierra Leone) warns that acceding to the TPPA may make medicines more expensive.

Overall, the OIC nations have demonstrated they took the UNPR process seriously and have shown deep concern about human rights. They recognize that we must have established covenants to appeal to when we protest injustice, whether in Gaza, Abu Ghraib or Afghanistan. They are rightly and especially embarrassed that Malaysia has set no date to sign the UN Convention on Torture.

More importantly for Malaysia, the recommendations offered by OIC member nations indicate (1) Malaysia’s reputation as a model for other Muslim-majority nations is in tatters; (2) Muslims worldwide have nowhere else to look for ‘tolerant Islam;’ (3) our reputation and leadership can be restored if we move from rhetoric to action, from delegations that talk to institutions that change. – write2rest.blogspot.com, November 16, 2013.

* The writer reads The Malaysian Insider.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/what-did-oic-members-tell-malaysia-at-the-unpr-rama-ramanathan

World Christian leaders voice concern over Allah ruling

BY JENNIFER GOMEZ
NOVEMBER 16, 2013

Council of Churches Malaysia (CCM) general secretary Reverend Dr Herman Shastri said Christian leaders at a world assemby in South Korea were concerned the Allah ruling and the inteference by the state in the decision-making process of religious groups. - The Malaysian Insider pic, November 16, 2013.Christian leaders from around the world, who congregated in South Korea last week, expressed concern over the controversial Allah ruling, saying the decision had increased religious tension in Malaysia.

The church leaders, who were attending a world assembly, voiced their concern and discontent over the situation in Malaysia where Christians were being denied their right to use the word Allah, said Council of Churches Malaysia (CCM) general secretary Reverend Dr Herman Shastri.

Herman, who attended the 10th General Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Busan, said that a public statement issued by WCC following the assembly had noted that church leaders found that restrictions on the use of the word had worsened religious hatred and tension.

"Pro-government political parties have been responsible for intensifying the controversy,” said Herman, quoting the statement which called for the rights of religious minorities around the world to be respected and protected.

He added that church leaders from the Middle East and many other countries in the world had voiced their discontent over the situation in Malaysia at the assembly.

The church leaders also expressed deep concern on inteference by the state in the decision-making process of religious groups and the imposition of religious laws through state sanctions.

Herman said the statement also noted that "the rights of minority religious communities to live in peace and harmony with their neighbours who belong to majority religious communities is vital not only to the minority faith groups, but also for overall stability and democratic governance.

"This is so especially in countries that are liberated from past elements of authoritarianism.”

The statement, Herman said,  also noted that while there were global efforts for Jews, Christians and Muslims to work together for peace based on their Abrahamic roots, the development in Malaysia was viewed as a direct assault on such efforts.

It was also noted by the WCC that the politicisation of religion and the regionalisation of politics were the reasons for the denial of rights of minority religious groups in various countries.

"The politicisation of religion and the rise of religious extremism in many societies mutually reinforce each other," the statement noted.

As such, Herman said, the WCC called on church leaders to engage actively in defending the rights of all religious minorities and their rights to freedom of religion, especially in opposing legislation or regulations that would limit religious freedom that go against international human rights standards.

Herman said that in line with the call, CCM will continue to create awareness in Malaysia that the word Allah was acceptable in many other context in other parts of the world.

"We will also keep telling the people that the Constitution guarantees each religious community the freedom to profess their faith without state intervention.

"We will continue to speak up, especially when statements are made in contrary to this," he added.

The WCC is the largest global church body that incorporates 349 member churches from around the world and its general assembly is held once every seven years.

Headquartered in Geneva, it works with the United Nations on many issues affecting the contemporary world and churches in the world.

In 2004, CCM hosted a WCC conference in Kuala Lumpur, where the then prime minister, Tun Abdullah Badawi, addressed the conference. - November 16, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/world-christian-leaders-voice-concern-over-allah-ruling

Don’t be silent, Archbishop tells Christians

Winston Way

 | November 14, 2013

Southeast Asia’s Anglican Archbishop Bolly Lapok said non-Muslims need to 'hear and see more than just a display of ad hoc benevolence by the Malaysian government'.

KUCHING: A high-ranking church leader has urged non-Muslims and Christians in particular “not to be silent” and reminded the government that these communities want ‘a tangible commitment’ on the assurance of freedom of religion.

Archbishop of Southeast Asia’s Anglican Church, Bolly Lapok, said the ‘Allah’ controversy was about unfair government laws and policies that contravened the right of non-Muslim Malaysians to observe their respective religion.

“We need hear and see more than just a display of ad hoc benevolence by the Malaysian government.

“We need a tangible commitment from the authorities to respect and uphold the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Federal Constitution which is the supreme law of the nation,” he said in a statement released here after a public forum involving theology, history of churches and the Malaysian constitution.

Lapok said the churches in Sarawak, under the Association of Churches of Sarawak (ACS), had made a three-point request for the government. Lapok is ACS chairman.

He said to prove their stronger commitment to religious freedom in Sabah and Sarawak, the Malaysian government must recognize and confirm that the word ‘Allah’ is an integral part of the Christian prayer in the Malay language and used by native speaking churches in Sarawak and Sabah.

The churches, he said, also expected the federal government to respect, honour and abide by the guarantee of religious freedom as enshrined in the Federal Constitution and which was agreed to when Sarawak and Sabah joined Malaya in 1963 to form the Malaysia.

He also requested  the federal government to honour the 10-point Agreement by the federal Cabinet in April 2011 on the printing, importation and distribution of the Al-Kitab in which the word ‘Allah’ appears.

He said 1.6 million Bumiputera Christians in Sabah and Sarawak worshiped in Bahasa Malaysia and in their own native tongues and the rights of these communities must be respected.

Christians in Sabah and Sarawak make-up two-thirds of the faith’s followers in Malaysia.

“Any attempt to forbid the use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims would be most regrettable and wholly unacceptable as it is a flagrant disregard and betrayal of the Malaysia Agreements which guarantees the inalienable rights of non-Muslims in Sarawak and Sabah to complete religious freedom,” Lapok said.

Court ruling ‘makes no sense’

He also reiterated that the Bumiputera churches would carry on using the word ‘Allah’ as it was ‘fundamental to all aspects of their profession and practice of their Christian faith’.

“It is used in all aspects of Christian faith and practice by Bahasa Malaysia-speaking Christians and other natives  including in services, prayers praise, liturgy, worship and religious education.

“As such, it is reasonable to expect that the word also be used in our Christian publications and multi-media resources,” he said.

Lapok, also noted it did not make any sense that only Christians in Sarawak and Sabah were being allowed to use the term Allah.

“Christians from Sarawak and Sabah move across the country from East to West to live and work and carry with them their Alkitab and other Christian materials in the Bahasa Malaysia language.

“Even non-natives from West Malaysia own and read the Alkitab as Bahasa Malaysia is our national language.

“It also makes no sense for the Court of Appeal’s recent judgment to be interpreted as being applicable only to The Herald.

“While The Herald may have been the case brought before the court, it is our view that the judges have overstepped their boundaries in determining that using the word ‘Allah’ was not “integral to the Christian” faith,” he added.

In deciding thus, he said, the judges have ‘arrogated to themselves a right that did not belong to any human court of law-the (which is) the right to determine religion.

“It is the fundamental right of every religion to determine its expression and practice of its own faith.

“The right of native Bumiputeras to profess and practice their faith in their own language is safeguarded by the Federal Constitution.

“When Sarawak and Sabah agreed to join in the formation of Malaysia in 1963, they did so as sovereign states and with conditions attached; these being known as the Sarawak 18-point and Sabah-20-point Agreements a kind of covenant to which Malaya was a party,” said Lapok.

Don’t allow bigotry

He said it was not a coincidence that freedom of religion was the first point in both these agreements.

“Sarawak and Sabah consented to form Malaysia with Islam as the Federation religion, on the express condition that there would be absolute freedom of religion without obstacle placed on other religions.

“According to these agreements, Sarawak and Sabah were not to have any official religion.

“We thus view with grave concern the Court of Appeal judgment on The Herald which has re-interpreted Article 3 of the Federal Constitution to mean that non-Muslim religions may only be practiced in peace and harmony subject to Islam.

“We do not believe this was ever the original meaning of Article 3, which simply states that other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation,” Lapok said.

He also advocated that the “‘religious bigotry, racism and extremism should not be allowed to show its ugly head.”

“Non-Muslims, Christians especially, cannot and should not remain silent,” he said.

The Malaysian Catholic weekly publication, The Herald, was prohibited from using the word ‘Allah’, following a unanimous decision of the Court of Appeal in Putrajaya on Oct 14.

Source: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/11/14/don%E2%80%99t-be-silent-archbishop-tells-christians/

‘Global settlement’ settles nothing, say Bersih co-chief, MPs

BY BOO SU-LYN, IDA LIM and JOSEPH SIPALAN
November 14, 2013

Ambiga countered that the law expressly allows for election petitions to challenge polls result that were in dispute. — AFP pic
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 — Barisan Nasional’s (BN) proposed blanket settlement for outstanding election petitions will not resolve the underlying issues behind the disputes even if it ends the legal wrangling, opposition lawmakers and polls reformists said yesterday. They argued that such a settlement would simply prevent scrutiny over the alleged problems, instead of allowing the Federal Court to determine once and for all if aggrieved parties can seek justice when faced with instances of alleged electoral misconduct. 
“A settlement will effectively sweep everything under the carpet, everything that is wrong with the system, as opposed to being addressed by the highest court,” Bersih co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan told The Malay Mail Online when met at the court complex here.
“It may sweep serious issues under the carpet as opposed to allowing the Federal Court to adjudicate on it but ultimately it depends on the terms of the settlement,” she added. Yesterday, BN lawyers proposed the settlement deal, which calls for both BN and Pakatan Rakyat (PR) to withdraw all election petitions against results of the 13th General Election still pending appeal at the Federal Court. The counsel for the ruling coalition said the offer was put on the table as they believed that the courts should not be used “as a means to change the government”, while at the same time seek an amicable solution to the current standoff. 
Ambiga countered that the law expressly allows for election petitions to challenge polls result that were in dispute. “Bringing an election petition is a right of the party, and given some of the serious allegations that have been brought forward, we hope that the court will have a chance to decide on these issues,” she said. 
DAP’s Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo noted that far from deciding a new government through the courts, a victorious petition will merely send the contest back to the ballot box. “If we’re successful, there’ll be a re-election. It’s up to the people to decide. We’re seeking fresh elections on grounds that elections earlier were tainted with irregularities,” he said. Gobind added that the petitioners need to stay the course as they have all suffered summary disposal of their applications by the Election Court on purely technical grounds, without even being heard. “The Federal Court must make a ruling on that, to determine what has happened at the High Court, whether the approach taken is correct. This is important for future litigation,” he said. 
PAS secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali agreed that the issue went beyond seeking an amicable solution, and spoke of a serious need to address the allegations of polls irregularities raised by the opposition. “The issue is far greater than that. It’s not just a matter of settlement. There are other issues pertaining to this, regarding the SPR and all,” he said, referring the Malay acronym for the Election Commission. But some are at least entertaining the proposal, wary of the extreme financial costs associated with seeing the petitions through to the end. 
PKR vice-president and Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar said that PR petitioners need to be practical when considering their options, especially since this is the last chance that they can legally challenge the outcome of the May national polls. “We’re still mediating. We must be mindful of the exorbitant costs, we must be mindful of the limitations under the current law whereby election petitions can be struck out based on mere technicalities,” she said. 
Gelang Patah MP and senior DAP leader Lim Kit Siang echoed the sentiment on the heavy costs imposed by the Election Court on failed petitions, which he described as “excessive” and “indefensible”. “That should be one of the issues to be dealt with, but even if that is taken into account, what should be the attitude (in negotiating a settlement)? We need the full details before we can say more,” he said. 
PAS’s Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad, meanwhile, said that BN must provide some consideration beyond extending the olive branch. “There must be something on top of that. Some form of reform, so that in future, the hands of the court are not tied. Make sure that things like these do not happen again. They have to ensure that there are fairer elections,” he said. 
PR and BN filed at least 56 election petitions across the country, 35 of which were by the opposition while the ruling coalition put in 21 submissions. None of the petitions was successful, leaving political parties to pay the costs running into millions of ringgit after the Election Court imposed some of the highest costs on petitioners in the history of the country’s elections. Currently, holding the record for the most expensive failure in the Kuala Berang petition, which saw the Election Court in Kuala Terengganu order PAS to pay RM150,000 in costs.
Source: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/global-settlement-settles-nothing-say-bersih-co-chief-mps

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Right to use “Allah” among Sarawak churches’ three requests to Putrajaya

BY DESMOND DAVIDSON
NOVEMBER 13, 2013

Members of a church congregation. Lawyers have warned that the October 14 ruling by the Court of Appeal applies to Christians nationwide. - The Malaysian Insider file pic, November 13, 2013.Sarawak churches have urged Putrajaya to show more commitment to religious freedom in Sabah and Sarawak in a three-point request unveiled at a forum in Kuching today.

According to the three-point request, read by Association of Churches Sarawak chairman Archbishop Datuk Bolly Lapok to more than 1,000 people at the forum, Putrajaya should:

• recognise that the word "Allah" is inherent to the practice of the Christian faith by Bahasa Malaysia-speaking and other native language speaking churches in Sarawak and Sabah;
• honour the guarantee of religious freedom in the federal constitution; and
• reaffirm and recognise the 10-point agreement by Putrajaya in April 2011.

The 10-point solution among others allowed the printing, import and distribution of the Bahasa Malaysia bible, Al-Kitab, which uses the word Allah, as well as allowing the word to be used in churches using Malay as their medium. The agreement contrasts with an October 14 Court of Appeal decision upholding the Home Ministry's ban on the use of the word Allah in Catholic weekly, Herald.

Lapok claimed that Putrajaya has only displayed "ad hoc benevolence" whenever the issue of religious freedom came up.

“We need tangible commitment from the authorities to respect and uphold the freedom of religion guaranteed," said Lapok at the public forum titled, "Standing together for religious freedom".

The audience comprised of Sarawak grassroots leaders, housewives, pensioners and representatives from the Sikh, Hindu and Buddhist temples. Also among them was the Sarawak state assembly's sole Independent assemblyman, George Lagong.

Lapok, who is also the Archbishop of the Anglican Church in South East Asia, said Christians in East Malaysia would not remain silent on unreasonable government policies and laws infringing on their rights to practise their religion.

“The Allah controversy is about unreasonable government policies and laws that infringe on the rights of non-Muslim Malaysians to practice their religion of choice.

“In the face of such unreasonable action, we cannot and should not remain silent,” Lapok added.

Lapok referred to clauses on religious freedom in Sarawak's 18-point and Sabah's 20-point agreements with Malaya on the formation of Malaysia.

"It was not a coincidence. It was intentional that the first point in both these agreements concerned the freedom of religion," he said.

Besides Lapok, other speakers at the forum were lawyer Lim Heng Seng from Kuala Lumpur, University Putra Malaysia's Professor Dr Jayum Jawan and theologian Dr Ng Kam Weng.

Jayum said if Putrajaya does not show greater commitment towards recognising religious freedom in Sabah and Sarawak, the people should decide if they should continue supporting the Barisan Nasional government.

Lim meanwhile pointed out that although the Federal Constitution guarantees the civil rights and liberties of non-Muslims and their religious freedom, “creeping Islamic values” introduced by the government are violating the rights of non-Muslims.

He also noted that “extremists" in the government are “pushing Putrajaya along Islamic lines”. - November 13, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/right-to-use-allah-among-sarawak-churches-three-requests-to-putrajaya

Christian leaders harden stand on Allah, say Putrajaya misleading East Malaysians on court ruling

BY JENNIFER GOMEZ
NOVEMBER 13, 2013

Christian leaders in Sabah and Sarawak have vowed to carry on using the word Allah even if it meant being prosecuted under a Home Ministry directive allowed by a court ruling.

They also accused Putrajaya of trying to mislead Christians from East Malaysia into believing that the Court of Appeal ruling was only applicable to the Catholic weekly, Herald.

They said they will speak up on this issue as this is what their respective congregations expected them to do.

In Sarawak today, the Association of Churches in Sarawak (ACS) will hold a public forum to address the use of the word Allah as it "relates to religious freedom". The forum will address the legal implications of the Court of Appeal ruling, on whether the decision only affects the use of the word in the Herald in Peninsular Malaysia.

Catholic Bishop for the Keningau diocese in Sabah Datuk Cornelius Piong said Sabahans, especially the Kadazan, Dusun and Murut natives, have been using the word for generations and will continue doing so.

"Who is going to stop us? Even God allows us to use the word," he said, calling the move to restrict the use of the word illogical.

His conviction was supported by the Bishop for the Sandakan diocese, Datuk Julius Dusin Gitom, who said that whatever views the church leaders expressed reflected the congregation's feelings.

"We will continue to use the word until they prosecute us," he said.

Gitom also took to task government leaders for "hiding" the real extent of the ruling by saying that the Court of Appeal ruling was limited to the Herald.

"It is not the case and the people know that. It is a blanket ban which affects everyone."

He also accused political parties Umno and PAS of trying to outdo each other in being more Islamic, which he added was a contributor to the Allah problem.

Gitom said some Catholics in rural areas who had no access to information were being told by certain political leaders that there was nothing to worry about, and that it was only a problem for the Herald.

"These politicians are giving Catholics the wrong facts of what is really happening. That is when we step in to explain to them our rights as Christians," Gitom added.

Piong also lashed out at ministers from Sabah who were not speaking up on the issue.

"We are not too happy about it, they are supposed to represent us, they should speak out but they are too quiet."

Piong said that the congregation would continue to use the word, and added: "What can they do, they will have to sew our mouths to stop us."

Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB) Sabah president Reverend Datuk Jerry Dusing said its members felt cheated over the way in which the government was handling religious issues.

He said that although most of SIB's 300,000 members throughout the country were made up of natives of Sabah and Sarawak living in the interiors, they understood what was happening, even though they did not say much about it in public.

"They may not be able to articulate exactly how they feel, mostly due to lack of confidence, but I visit them in the interiors, and they know what is happening.

"They know the problems they face, in relation to their children being 'converted' to Islam in their identity cards and also losing their native lands. This, they said, is all linked to the government's handling of religious issues," said Dusing.

He claimed there were so many cases where Christian parents were surprised that their children were listed as Muslim in their identity cards.

Dusing also took to task politicians who were trying to play down the issue by saying the ruling was limited to the Herald and would not affect Sabah and Sarawak, pointing out instead that the Court of Appeal judgement had defined that the word Allah was not integral to the Christian faith.

"So let us not be fooled that this is only about Herald and Allah. The judgment is far reaching. How can it then not apply to Sabah and Sarawak? And that is why we are throwing our support behind the Catholic Church in its appeal,” Dusing added.

The Christian community in Sarawak said the forum today is being held to inform and educate Bumiputera Christians who are affected by the court ruling.

ACS secretary-general Ambrose Linang said the forum will discuss the historical context behind the formation of Malaysia and the promises leading to the Malaysia Agreement.

"We will also go into the history of the Malay bible translation, that Allah is an integral part of the Christian faith among the native Christians of Sarawak," said Linang.

"The forum will also discuss the use of Allah in the Malay language bible and Christian publications, and that the use of the word must extend to Christians in the peninsula, based on freedom of religion for all Malaysians.

"The premise is that Article 11 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of religion for everyone and that it does not say one set of freedom for Sabah and Sarawak and another set of freedom for West Malaysia," he said in a statement.

Speakers at the forum will include lawyer Lim Heng Seng, who will speak on the constitution and religious freedom, Dr Ng Kam Weng, who will address the theological and historical perspective of the use of the word Allah, and Professor Dr Jayum Jawan, on the role of churches in nation building.

On October 14, the Court of Appeal ruled that the word Allah was not an integral part of the Christian faith and practice, where the three-man bench saw no reason for the church to remain adamant in wanting to use the name Allah.

They also said that allowing Christians to use Allah would lead to confusion within the Muslim community.

The ruling drew the attention of Muslim scholars from the international arena who warned that the prohibition of the word could push a progressive country like Malaysia backward. – November 13, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/in-east-malaysia-christians-stand-with-catholic-church-in-appeal-against-al

Pakatan Rakyat to win GE-14 with 135 Seats

Based on present redelineation, Pakatan Rakyat should aim to win 135 parliamentary seats in 14GE to capture Putrajaya with PKR, PAS and DAP each winning 45 seats , with a parliamentary majority of 48

Based on present redelineation, the Battle for Putrajaya in the 14GE will depend on the outcome in 80 marginal seats – 51 presently held by Barisan Nasional and 29 from Pakatan Rakyat.

Taking more than 55 per cent vote secured in the 13GE as a “safe” seat, BN has 82 safe seats while Pakatan Rakyat has 60 safe seats.

In the 13GE, Pakatan Rakyat won the popular vote but robbed of Putrajaya as Barisan Nasional is the federal government with the majority of seats – 89 for Pakatan Rakyat as against BN’s 133 seats.

If Pakatan Rakyat had won another 23 seats in the 13GE, PR would have the simple majority of 112 out of 222 seats.

In the 14GE, apart from retaining all our 89 parliamentary seats, Pakatan Rakyat should not just aim at winning 23 of the 51 BN marginal seats, but should aim to double this target to win over 46 out of the 51 BN marginal seats so that the Pakatan Rakyat can win a total of 135 out of 222 parliamentary seats with a parliamentary majority of 48 – with the seats evenly distributed among the three Pakatan Rakyat parties, i.e. PKR, PAS and DAP each having 45 parliamentary seats.

At present, DAP has 38, PKR 30 and PAS 21 MPs. This means DAP has to win another seven parliamentary seats, PKR another 15 and PAS another 24.

I do not think this is too tall an order, considering that PAS had won 27 parliamentary seats in 1999 general elections – when the Barisan Alternative was first formed – and PAS almost quadrupled its previous parliamentary score of seven MPs in the 1995 general elections.

PAS would not need to quadruple or increase four-fold its parliamentary numbers in the 14GE to increase from 21 parliamentary seats in the 13GE to 45 parliamentary seats in the 14GE.

The performance of the Pakatan Rakyat parties in the 2008 and 2013 GEs have shown that the three component parties have their basic strengths and if we are prepared to persevere in a common patriotic cause to save the country from corruption, cronyism, abuses of power and exploitation of the poor and the downtrodden regardless of race, religion or region, extremism and intolerance and put in place good governance, public integrity, accountability, respect for democracy and human rights, moderation and tolerance, we have no reason to be pessimistic about the future of the country or the outcome of the 14GE.

Last Thursday, the country’s former top diplomat Tan Sri Razali Ismail warned that Malaysia will lose its competitive economic edge if its politics continue to cater to racial and racial extremes, as his international friends have of late started to question the divisive goings-on in the country.

He cannot be more right and the rhetoric and politics of extremism and intolerance have never been so rancorous and polarising in the nation’s history than in the past six months after the 13GE despite the Prime Minister’s talk of national reconciliation and his promotion of the Global Movement of Moderates.

The battle for the 14GE has started and concerns have rightly been expressed that taxpayers money will be raided for the Umno/BN war chests to fund a cyberwar via the social media against the Pakatan Rakyat.

Even after the 13GE on May 5, the cyberwar against the Pakatan Rakyat parties have not abated. I was recently accused of being part of the “Illuminati”, the so-called secret global organisation of the most powerful and influential elite to exercise political and economic control of the world. After the allegation in the Umno cyberblogs, I have to search the Internet to learn about the so-called Illuminati conspiracy.

Recently, a Malay woman came up to me at a local airport when I waiting for my luggage, extending her apologies to me. I was taken by surprise and I asked her what it was all about. She said that for the first 18 years of her life, she hated me as a racist and an evil person as all that she had learnt about me was that I was anti-Malay and anti-Islam, but when she entered society and have access to information on the Internet, she found that what she had learnt about me were completely untrue.

This episode should be a source of inspiration for all of us, whether in DAP, PKR or PAS, who are targets of vicious lies and falsehoods seeking to divide and split the PR parties and leaders.

The information revolution will help Pakatan Rakyat to liberate minds which Umno/BN propagandists and cybertroopers are seeking to poison and imprison.

What is important is that Pakatan Rakyat parties must stay the political and electoral course until we succeed in bringing about political change for Malaysians, regardless of race, religion, region or class to achieve the common Malaysian Dream – a Malaysia for all Malaysians where there is democracy, good governance and socio-economic justice and where every Malaysian can achieve his or her fullest potential for the collective good and greatness of the nation.

(Speech at the Pakatan Rakyat fund-raising dinner at Empire Hotel Ballroom, Subang Jaya at 9.30 pm)

Source: https://blog.limkitsiang.com/2013/11/13/based-on-present-redelineation-pakatan-rakyat-should-aim-to-win-135-parliamentary-seats-in-14ge-to-capture-putrajaya-with-pkr-pas-and-dap-each-winning-45-seats-with-a-parliamentary-majority-of-48/

Maria Chin is Bersih 2.0’s new head

BY JENNIFER GOMEZ
NOVEMBER 12, 2013

Activist Maria Chin Abdullah (pic, left) is the new chair of Bersih 2.0,  after she was the only person nominated for the top position in the electoral watchdog's elections.

Bersih 2.0 or the Coalition of Free and Fair Elections will hold its first ever elections at the end of this month. Current co-chair Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, who will officially step down on November 30, was one of those who nominated Maria for the post.

The position of Bersih 2.0 vice-chair will see a contest between Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa and Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh while Masjaliza Hamzah and Nahar Md Nor will contest the treasurer’s post.

Five nominees are vying for the two committee member seats – K. Arumugan, Ng Chak Ngoon, Farhana Halim, Hishamuddin Rais and New Sin Yew.

The elections will be held at the PJ Library on November 30 and campaigning will come to a close on November 29.

The five-member steering committee team elected at the national level will serve a two-year term.

Bersih 2.0 Election Committee member Stanley Yong said at a press conference today that even though the new chair is already known the new steering committee will only be officially announced on November 30.

Another six committee members will be elected later on from the regional level to add to the five-member national level committee.

A total of 90 endorsing organisations of Bersih 2.0 will have one vote each at the November 30 polls. – November 12, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/maria-chin-is-bersih-2.0s-new-head

Activist on a mission, Haris Ibrahim says bent on serving truth to bottom 40%

BY RITA JONG

OCTOBER 25, 2013

Activist Haris Ibrahim (pic) has made it a personal mission to take the "40%" truth to the masses in the heartlands in the next general election.

“I serve the 40% (of people) who are marginalised and if they are prepared to wait it out, then I will serve them to wait it out. If they cannot sustain their daily lives having to wait out four years, I’ll (also) serve them,” he said in an interview with Australian Broadcasting Network’s Radio Australia in Sydney yesterday.

Haris is a member of the ABU – Anything But Umno – movement. He has been fighting to change the government and one of the reasons he gives is that 40% of Malaysians live below the poverty line.

In the interview with presenter Sen Lam, he explained the scenarios faced by Malaysians recently, including the Allah issue and the religious tension as well as the negative outlook and the deteriorating fiscal position of the country’s economy.

“We need to very closely monitor the economy, to see whether we can in fact survive the huge foreign debt that this regime and its predecessor have built up. We are expecting price hikes over the next year,” he said.

“We’ve seen international reports that suggest the economy of Malaysia is on the verge of a disaster. Now the questions are being asked. A lot of the Malaysian diaspora would like to know where the nation is going to and what can they do to take it back in the direction that our forefathers had intended, 'one people, one nation', all equal.

“History has taught us, the history of revolutions will teach us, that when the numbers who are marginalised are large enough, they will come around and change the way of life of the middle class. Now they (the middle class) don’t want that to happen, so I stand with the marginalised now.”

Haris told the radio show that over the years, as he worked on the ground, he has seen the injustice, the inequality that has been perpetrated.

"This has been served to the 40%, and I think reached the point where I say this cannot go on.

"It begins to make the comfortable life that I have seemingly meaningless when, around the corner, I have to pass abject poverty to get to my comfortable home."

He said a day after the May 5 polls, he did not recognise Datuk Seri Najib Razak as Prime Minister.

"Nor do I recognise his regime as the legitimate government of Malaysia, because there was wholesale fraud on the 5th.

"We've seen the Umno election just conclude and Zahid Hamidi (Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi) is the Home Minister of a government I don't recognise and, therefore, I do not recognise his position.

"He was heard to say that a known notorious bunch of gangsters should carry on with what they're doing, that there may a policy on the part of the Malaysian police to shoot first when there is evidence, rather than to allow for due process.

"Now, should I to be encouraged then, by his recent huge victory at the Umno election? Is that a message of the kind of leadership that Najib is going to bring, to take this country forward, One Malaysia? Sorry sir, I beg to differ."

Haris made news recently when his visa application to Australia was rejected.

The Australian High Commission had described him as "high risk" as he might not want to return to Malaysia because he was facing a sedition charge. Furthermore, he was unemployed.

He obtained his visa after making a second application.

Haris was previously a lawyer by profession but gave that up to help the marginalised.

“You reach a point where it becomes meaningless if so many of your fellow Malaysians are deprived of the basic opportunities that you have been given simply because of ethnic considerations.

“I guess I find the comfort in seeing little incremental improvements. Undoubtedly, the young Malaysians give me hope that even as we appear to be in a state of seeming hopelessness, we will see the light at the end of the tunnel,” added Haris. – October 25, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/activist-on-a-mission-haris-ibrahim-bent-on-serving-marginalised-40

Status quo in Umno is good for Pakatan Rakyat

Anisah Shukry

 | October 22, 2013

Umno’s disconnect with the general public, as evident in the party elections last weekend, will be its downfall, says PKR’s Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.

VIDEO INSIDE

PETALING JAYA: The recent Umno elections which saw the likes of Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Shahrizat Abdul Jalil retain their power shows the disconnect between the Malay ruling party and the Malaysian public, said PKR’s Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.

That Umno members and the general public do not see eye to eye is one of the many problems that Umno is facing, paving way for it to be eventually replaced by the opposition coalition, the optimistic Seri Setia assemblyman told FMT in an exclusive interview.

“There were no major changes, it was the same lineup of leaders… people like (Home Minister) Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who takes such a hardline stand, ended up getting the highest votes (in the race for vice-presidency),” said Nik Nazmi, who is also Selangor state assembly deputy speaker.

“And then there’s Shahrizat, who was embroiled in the [National Feedlot Corporation]. Not only did she win in the Wanita elections, but before her win she was basically given an endorsement by the prime minister as his advisor on women’s affairs.”

In contrast, he pointed out that Saifuddin Abdullah, who is popular among the public for being Umno’s “voice of reason”, had failed to garner enough votes to enter the Supreme Council.

“So I think this shows that Umno’s rank and file is not interested in anything beyond following what the president wants and preserving the status quo,” he said.

The former PKR communications director also rubbished claims that Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin’s victory in retaining the Umno Youth chief post signalled a new, “progressive” era of Umno and the end of Mahathirism.

“Khairy did not win because of his supposed liberal or progressive views. He won because he had the endorsement of the leadership and because he’s an incumbent, and now he also has the benefit of being a minister.

“That’s why to say that the liberals have won in Umno is truly a mistaken view.”

Taking the middle ground

Nik Nazmi stressed that at this rate, Umno was going downhill, especially as it had succeeded in the past because of its “moderate” image – an image Malaysians would unlikely be able to reconcile with the party now, given the faces leading the charge.

“Umno was able, through BN and the Alliance, to galvanise support from all sections of society. But today, with what we have, Umno is increasingly becoming the sole dominant party within BN.

“The Umno model of power sharing, of galvanizing support from all races is deteriorating and is slowly being overtaken by Pakatan.”

Pointing to the recently concluded general election, Nik Nazmi said that there was no opposition coalition in the world that could win 51% of the votes in the face of restricted access to the media, a “weak” Election Commission and irregularities in the electoral process.

“Having said that, I accept that we must not be carried away, that we must be introspective. We need to deal on getting more Malay support, on Bumiputera support in Sabah and Sarawak.

“So that’s a big issue to address for us to win the next election. I think we must not get carried away in moving away from the centre.

“Why did we succeed in Election 2008 and 2013? Because we were very firm in staying in the centre. Why did Umno suffer? Because they veered away from the middle-ground,” he said.

Source: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2013/10/22/status-quo-in-umno-is-good-for-pakatan/

Award-winning American Muslim scholar on Allah ruling: “We are laughing at you”

BY ELIZABETH ZACHARIAH
OCTOBER 22, 2013

Reza Aslan says Christians using the word Allah do not pose a threat to Islam. - Pic courtesy Wikimedia Commons / Roanoke College, October 22, 2013.A well-known American Muslim theologian has joined a long list of critics over the recent Court of Appeal ruling on the use of the word Allah, saying it was a "political decision more than anything else".

"This notion that Malaysian Muslims need to be protected by the court because you can't think for yourself, you can't make decisions on your own. We are laughing at you," said Reza Aslan, speaking on BFM Radio's Evening Edition programme yesterday.

"That you can control people's ideas, their behaviour, their faith and their minds simply by trying to control the words that they use, is absurd. It is an embarassment to a modern, constitutional, democratic and deeply Muslim state like Malaysia," he added.

Aslan insisted that Christians using the word Allah - which means God in Arabic - were not a threat to Islam.

"A Taliban put a bomb in the Quran and took it to a mosque in Pakistan, where Muslims were slaughtered on one of the holiest days in the Muslim calendar. You want to talk about threats to Islam? That's a threat to Islam," he said, in dismissing the argument that allowing Christians to use the word in their worship was a threat to Malaysian Muslims.

He was referring to an incident during the Aidiladha holidays, in which Afghan governor Arsala Jamal was killed while scores were injured after a bomb placed in a copy of the Quran went off in a mosque during the Eid sermon.

Aslan, who wrote the international bestseller No God But God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, said he was mystified by the court ruling on October 14, stressing that the word Allah was merely an Arabic term for God, "any God".

"Allah is constuction of the the word al-Ilah. That's what the word is," he explained.

"Al-Ilah means 'The God'. Allah is not the name of God. Frankly, anyone who thinks that Allah is the name of God, is not just incorrect, but is going against the Quran itself. It is almost a blasphemous thought to think that Allah has a name.

"And this is not an interpretation. It is a historical fact," Reza added.

In its judgment, the Court of Appeal's three-man panel ruled that the word Allah "was not an integral part of the Christian faith and practice and that such usage if allowed, will inevitably cause confusion within the community".

The decision sparked a debate among local clerics and scholars, while several editorials in Muslim countries expressed their surprise over the issue.

Pakistan's Daily Times questioned the ruling, asking why Malaysia would deny people of other faiths to "own God in all His attributes". The United Arab Emirates's The National called the court ruling "wrong", and said the word Allah was never exclusive to Islam but used by both Christians and Jews to refer to God even before the advent of Islam.

Aslan poured scorn on the court verdict, asking, "How can you read that and not laugh?"

Soon after the court ruling last week, he had taken to Twitter and remarked, "How stupid has Malaysia just become? In honor of Malaysia banning the word Allah by non-Muslims I suggest US ban the word 'twerking' by anyone over age of 17," he said, referring to a type of sexually provocative dance.

Much of Aslan's interview yesterday was made available on Podcast.

In it, he slammed those who argue that the faith of Malaysian Muslims can be undermined if Christians use the word Allah.

"This idea that not only should Christians not be able to use this word, but that using the word is somehow a threat to Islam... that Malaysian (Muslims) are so stupid if they hear a Christian use the word Allah, they will accidentally become Christians. I mean, the idiocy of that statement speaks for itself," he said.

Echoing many other Muslim scholars and writers, Aslan said Christians and Jews in the Arabian peninsula since before the time of the Prophet Muhammad had been referring to God as Allah.

"Why? Because they spoke Arabic... that's why. Not because Allah meant a specific God but because that it is nothing more than the Arabic word for God. It is not an opinion. It is a fact," he pointed out.

"Any Imam that tells you God has a name, is blasphemous. It is as simple as that. Allah is not God's name. Muslims do not own the word itself," said the 41-year-old Iranian-American, who is Visiting Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Iowa. - October 22, 2013.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/award-winning-american-muslim-scholar-on-the-allah-decision-we-are-laughing