Bible imbroglio: Don't blame the media

'Serve them right for using religion to advance their political hegemony. They opened a can of worms that are now crawling all over them.'

Bible issue a 'minefield' for mainstream dailies

Sabah My Home: The bully boy in the Home Ministry has his cudgels out. Our newspapers have to apologise to his ministry for reporting the truth. The news is bad, he now threatens the messenger.

So much about PM Najib Razak's so-called transformational plan. Umno is still behaving like Umno and the BN coalition partners can do nothing to check its crass behaviour. The upside is, the BN-Umno's 1Malaysia concept is exposed for what it is - a charade.

Satinah Osman: News commentators and feature writers write only what they are told to write. One cannot compare them to independent journalists. In the event that the writer writes something that the BN or Umno may not like, there are editors who cut the article down or throw it away.

The same goes for TV. That is the reason most of us do not read the dailies or watch TV. The TV will show you repeatedly PM Najib in various poses, dressing and functions followed by DPM Muhyiddin Yassin and 'First Lady' Rosmah Mansor, and that all sorts of amazing things are about to happen in Malaysia.

It is best that the rakyat support the politicians for only two terms - one term in office, one term in prison.

Sarawakian_3ff9: Serve them right for using religion to advance their political hegemony and for being bigots. They opened a can of worms that are now crawling all over them.

Christian Sarawakians are all up in arms over the issue and it's going to explode in Najib's and his sidekick cousin's face. The news is currently sweeping over the interiors of Sarawak. This is God-sent to the opposition who are going to make hay while the sun shines.

Maybe it's divine intervention, some might say. Whatever it is, it's going to hurt them more than it hurt the Christians.

Lim Chong Leong: First, they said the Bibles will be released. Then they got a problem with that, and said they will be released with conditions. Then they realised that this also cannot do, so they said the press reported the issue wrongly. And the government-controlled papers actually apologised for their reports.

If the Bibles were not to be released, how come the papers all reported the release? Then how come conditions were imposed for their release? And if the Bibles were not confiscated but only refused entry, who is holding them? The Customs, right? Is that not the same as confiscated?

The fact is the Bibles are being held and they have not been released. What is that if they were not confiscated?

SusahKes: I sure hope Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is reading this. After all, she did state that Malaysia is a "moderate Muslim" nation.

Christians mull court action against Bible stamping

Singa Pura Pura: Apart from being ultra vires articles 3(1), 8(2), 11(1) and (3) of the federal constitution, I had recently suggested that the 'perintah' or order of the home minister - as manifested by way of a stamped 'peringatan' or reminder on the Bibles - is illegal (as an exercise of administrative power) as the said order was not founded upon any federal law or subsidiary legislation that is capable of conferring it with any legal basis.

The minister had no jurisdiction and, therefore, no power to issue the said order. This is because - although there is no law that prohibits any subject who is not a Muslim from using, reading or otherwise possessing a Malay Bible - yet the order purports to also proscribe a non-Christians such as a Buddhists, Taoists, Hindus or Sikhs from using the said Bible.

In issuing the said order, the minister has certainly acted in excess of his jurisdiction.

Akucina: The Church should not be cowed. Your rights to preach is enshrined in the federal constitution. Defacing the holy book is an act of provocation by the government. Remember Bob Marley's song 'Stand up, stand up, stand up for your rights'

Keturunan Malaysia: That's the way forward. All good Malaysians irrespective of their religious beliefs must stand firmly against this blatant evil injustice.

We must never back down even if we have to lose the court case eventually, because losing - if ever it comes to that - is nothing when we all know there is nothing to lose in the first place. It is the right of our Christian brothers and sisters who are being robbed in broad daylight by none other than the very people who are entrusted to guard them.

Kerenga: I was flipping through an English translated version of the Quran which I bought from a stall selling Islamic books at a departmental store in Petaling Jaya. I was amazed that it was punctuated with references to the Injil (Gospel) and the Taurat(Torah). I would also like to note Surah 10 Yunus verse 94.

Will reading and learning more about other religions make a person convert?

Petestop: That Muslims need a law to prevent them from knowing other religions says a lot.

JusticeNow: It is sheer arrogance and abuse of power for the home minister to issue such an unlawful order. If this is allowed and unchallenged, the powers-that-be will think that they can act with impunity. Malaysians must wake up to the sheer evil of the present rulers and be united to put them out of business or our beloved Malaysia will go to the dogs.

Burning_platform: Pray tell which religion has the authority to tell others not to promote their religion. This is the height of arrogance. - Malaysiakini

Malay : Now PUBLIC MONEY is going to be spent to reimburse for the endorsement made in the Malay Bible without prior approval. BN keeps wasting our MONEY. Its time to replace Barisan Nasional once and for all.

Even statements made by relevant parties contradict so often. Now we find the Sarawak shipment had also been endorsed when it was disclosed that only Klang consigment would be affected.

Time for the Home Minister to take responsibility?