Soup kitchen used to proselytise, insiders tell daily

Three individuals involved with organisations said to be using soup kitchens as a front for proselytising have come forward to expose the move, which they claim targets Muslims in Kuala Lumpur.

In an interview with Malay-language daily Sinar Hariantoday, the individuals,, who have not been named to protect their safety, said this method allows the Christian groups to stay under the authorities' radar.

Interestingly, they also claim that the groups make recipients of assistance, mostly the urban poor, sign an indemnity letter, saying that the recipients were voluntarily taking part in the programme.

The interview comes days before an anti-apostasy rally by Muslim NGOs in response to claims of proselytising at a church hall in Damansara on Aug 3, resulting in a Selangor Islamic Affairs Department search of the premises.

"They use methods such as 'Urban Food Sharing' in Pudu, so it is well-accepted.

"But what causes worry is when they use phrases like 'Jesus help me' or 'Lord help me' on those who accept their help," Sinar Harianquoted the individuals as saying.

The individuals also claimed that the groups used Quranic verses to prove that Jesus is a messenger of God and to attract those they help - 90 percent of them estimated to be Malay - to convert to Christianity.

"It is as if they are using Islam through phrases such as 'Allah will help us' in their talks. (Muslims) who have a weak understanding of their faith will be easily influenced, which I believe is used to attract people.

Those who want help must first join in prayer

"I could not feed myself, so I joined them, but this opened my heart to expose what is happening," said one of the three, made up of two men and a woman wearing a headscarf, who were photographed from the back by the daily.

While the individuals said they had not seen the use of holy water in the preparation of the food, they claimed that those wanted assistance must first join the group in prayer and the singing of hymns.

The trio added that the programmes, held at Petaling Street, Pudu and Chow Kit, attracted between 50 and 200 people, with the group also offering assistance in lodging and clothing.

"If more assistance is required, then the recipient will be first asked to say 'Jesus help me', but this is not by force," they claimed, citing personal experiences.

One of them said that he/she responded by stressing his/her faith in Islam, and "the (person who asked him/her to convert) accepted this".

'Subtle messages in their kindness'

"The truth is, there are subtle messages in their kindness and I think many don't realise this and are inadvertently swayed," of the three said.

"They will invest a lot of time to help a few of their 'members' to get the members to convert to their religion."

A second part of the interview is to be published tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Utusan Malaysia published a photograph it said was an "oath-taking" ceremony held in Penang by several Christian leaders allegedly involved in a plot to turn Malaysia into a Christian nation.

The photograph depicts a group of people, whose faces are blurred, with their hands raised, in the manner of Christians in prayer.

Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, in a written answer in Parliament, said that there was no evidence of such a conspiracy and that the Attorney-General's Chambers had classified the so-called plot as 'No further action'.

Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi of the DAP, who was also implicated in the 'conspiracy', has demanded that the Home Ministry revokesUtusan's publishing permit, for having front-paged the report which has now been disproved.

However, Hishammuddin's response is that Ooi should himself take legal action against the daily.