Aziz Bari says suspension lifting ‘meaningless’

By Yow Hong Chieh

October 25, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 25 — Prof Dr Abdul Aziz Bari said today the lifting of his recent suspension by his university yesterday was “meaningless” since he was still being investigated.

The International Islamic University of Malaysia (UIA) initially suspended him last week pending a probe into his remarks on the Selangor Sultan, following the demand for action by government legislators.

There was a protest against the decision at the university’s Gombak campus, which is seen to have forced the retraction of the suspension.

“The police... and UIA are still carrying out investigations and the decision has not been made known.

“That means the damage has been done and the lifting of the suspension is meaningless,” he said in a statement released via his lawyer, Dr Zulqarnain Lukman.

Aziz said the twin probes had affected his peace of mind and ability to teach, and questioned if he could return to his usual routine at UIA even with the suspension lifted.

The outspoken academic also said the rector had only ended the suspension to save herself and the prime minister who were “clearly confused and did not understand” what had happened.

The protest in UIA campus to oppose the suspension. — File pic

“The lifting of the suspension is clearly a form of damage control and may have been ordered by certain parties so that those parties can get a reprieve and so that my client’s voice is stifled,” Zulqarnain said.

Aziz added that UIA and the government should drop its “baseless” investigations if they believed in academic freedom.

UIA suspended the constitutional law expert last week after he questioned remarks made by the Selangor Sultan in connection with the raid on Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) in August.

Aziz’s statement caused a furore among Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs in Parliament, who urged that action be taken against the don.

The outspoken academic chose not to apologise for his remarks even after a police report was lodged against him, insisting he had not meant to challenge the Sultan.

Aziz said he was fulfilling his role as an academic when he said earlier this month that the Sultan had intervened in an “unusual and inconsistent” manner over the church raid.

Hundreds of UIA students gathered at the university’s Gombak campus last week to demand the lecturer’s reinstatement.

Aziz’s colleagues and lecturers from other universities have also backed the constitutional law expert.