Christians want Prime Minister Najib Razak to take action against extremists views expressed by anyone including Perak chief cleric Harussani Zakaria that incited the Malays to hate Christians over an escalating Bibles row.
"Take action under the sedition laws for inflammatory remarks. The government has to come in strongly and swiftly to warn those with extremist views that action will be taken against them. This applies to anyone regardless of background," Ramon Navaratnam, past president of Transparency International, told Malaysia Chronicle.
As Christians protested the conditional release of 5,100 Malay-language Bibles, stamped with "For Christians Only" and a serial number, Umno supporters have emerged to take the heat off Najib and his cousin, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein - both of whom have been accused of stirring up the latest ruckus whether directly or indirectly.
Some like Harussani have warned 'everthing can happen'. He also slammed Christians groups for acting "as if this country is a Christian country", urging the authorities to further tighten control over the Bibles so that Christians "will not spread it to the Muslims".
Harussani and other ultra groups have also been accused of taking their cue from Hisham who at a recent press conference was unbending, saying that his ministry did nothing wrong in carrying out the stamping.
Hisham failed to see that to the Christian community, it was nothing less than desecration of their Holy book.
A test of Najib's leadership
Since Najib's department ordered the conditional release of the Bible, the PM has maintained a deafening silence. But calls are growing for him to take a stand one way or another.
"I think Najib needs to uphold the 1Malaysia concept to ensure there are no tensions between Christians and Muslims," inter-faith group MCCBCHST president Thomas Philips, told Malaysia Chronicle.
“What stops anybody from reading the English or BM Bible? If you read it, how will things suddenly change?” Philips questioned.
Meanwhile, several pastors are discussing with their lawyers ways to take the Home Ministry to court.
Christian leaders had refused to collect the 5,100 copies of the Bible or Alkitab impounded in Port Klang due to the ministry's stamping.
The Catholic Lawyers’ Society has also condemned the ministry’s actions and conditions for the release of the impounded copies as “unconstitutional”.
“The acts are nothing more than reducing the rights of each person and religious group as entrenched in the Federal Constitution,” said president Joy Appukuttan in a statement.
Ongkili's 'accept it' opinion, Hisham's condescending attitude
Within the BN coalition, views are also divided. The MCA has been the most strident, demanding the Home Ministry apologize for "defiling" the Bible.
However, Science Minister Maximus Ongkili refuted the Christian Federation of Malaysia's claim that the stamping was desecration.
“I do not want to say if it is a defacement. This is a government decision and we must accept it. The best way is to meet half way and talk to resolve the issue. Sometimes, it is a question of give and take,” Maximus, himself a Christian, told a press conference on Friday.
He also urged Christian leaders to begin talks with the Home Ministry. However, many religious elders said further discussion was not the problem, but getting past Hisham's "condescending attitude" was the main obstacle.
According to Ramon, it takes both hands to clap and the Najib administration must display leadership by firstly showing it rejected all forms of extremism.
“We must adhere to the policy of moderation. We must not tolerate extremist views,” said Ramon. - Malaysia Chronicle
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