April 03, 2012
KUALA LUMPUR, April 3 — A Christian minister has said he will seek an explanation in the Cabinet on why teachers in Johor were required to attend the state government’s seminar on the “threat of Christianisation.”
Datuk Seri Maximus Ongkili told The Malaysian Insider he will ask Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who holds the education portfolio and hails from the southern state, to explain why the seminar, organised by the state’s education and mufti departments, was allowed.
“I will raise it in Cabinet with Tan Sri education minister and ask why they organised this when this ‘threat’ is only an allegation,” the science, technology and innovation minister said.
Malaysia’s top church council had on Sunday urged Christian ministers to bring up the issue in Cabinet so the issue can be put to rest in a manner that would show Putrajaya’s commitment to inter-religious harmony.
The Council of Churches Malaysia (CCM) said Christian ministers should use their office to ensure the Cabinet takes a stand on last Saturday’s seminar after Datuk Seri Najib Razak called for all religions to respect other faiths but did not censure the seminar despite calls from non-Muslim groups for him to “walk your talk” of unity and moderation.
CCM president Rev Thomas Philips also urged the prime minister to commit to his 1 Malaysia concept, which promotes unity, and “censure” the Johor Education Department for organising the seminar.
Christian members of Cabinet include Ongkili (picture), Datuk Seri Idris Jala, Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas, Datuk Seri Peter Chin and Tan Sri Bernard Dompok.
Some 300 religious teachers from Johor national schools attended the seminar entitled “Strengthening the Faith: What is the Role of Teachers?”, which was held in the state capital Johor Baru yesterday.
The seminar had attracted controversy among non-Muslims earlier for focusing on the alleged threat of Christianisation to Islam.
But Muslim NGOs insisted that the government was duty-bound to address the “threat of Christianisation,” which they repeatedly profess to be real despite the absence of firm evidence.
In response, Johor dropped specific mention of the “Christian threat” from the seminar originally themed “Pemantapan Aqidah, Bahaya Liberalisme dan Pluralism Serta Ancaman Kristianisasi Terhadap Umat Islam. Apa Peranan Guru?” (Strengthening the Faith, the Dangers of Liberalism and Pluralism and the Threat of Christianity towards Muslims. What is the Role of Teachers?).
But Johor Mufti Department officials said that while the title of the seminar will be changed, the contents and structure will remain unaltered.
The Mufti Datuk M. Tahrir Kiai Samsudin also insisted the seminar was for the good of teaching Islam.
Christians form 9.2 per cent of Malaysia’s 28.3 million-strong population.
In recent years, the Christian and Muslim religious communities have been engaged in a tug-of-war over the word “Allah”, with the latter group arguing that its use should be exclusive to them on the grounds that Islam is monotheistic and the word “Allah” denotes the Muslim god.
Christians, however, have argued that “Allah” is an Arabic word that has been used by those of other religious beliefs, including the Jews, in reference to God in many other parts of the world, notably in Arab nations and Indonesia.
Conservative Muslim groups have also accused Christians of attempting to convert Malays, resulting in heightened tension between followers of the two religions.
Freedom of religion is enshrined in the Malaysian Constitution. First, Article 11 provides that every person has the right to profess and to practice his or her religion and (subject to applicable laws restricting the propagation of other religions to Muslims) to propagate it. Second, the Constitution also provides that Islam is the religion of the country but other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony (Article 3).
ReplyDeleteThe status of freedom of religion in Malaysia is a controversial issue. Questions including whether Malaysia is an Islamic state or secular state remains unresolved. In recent times, there have been a number of contentious issues and incidents which has tested the relationship between the different races in Malaysia.
DeleteGovernment in general supports Islamic religious establishment and it is the official policy to "infuse Islamic values" into the administration of the country.
DeleteHowever, Sunday which is the Christian traditional holiday is the official weekend holiday in the Federal Territories and ten out of thirteen states, unlike practices in Middle Eastern Muslim countries. The exception are the states of Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, where the weekend falls on Friday and Saturday. Most Muslims in Malaysia accept this, although some have expressed disquiet since the most holy period in a Muslim's week is between Thursday evening and Friday afternoon, when the congregational Jumaat prayer is held. The practice of having Sunday as the weekend holiday is a departure from traditional Islamic practices, dating to British colonial days when the British started bringing in non-Muslim immigrants into the country.
DeleteIn May 2001, the government decided not to approve the Falun Gong Preparatory Committee’s application to register as a legal organization. This action is believed to be more related to the government's wish to improve relations with China rather than an attempt to undermine the Falun Gong in favour of Islam. The government has not prevented Falun Gong members from carrying out their activities in public.
DeleteFor Muslim children, religious education according to a government-approved curriculum is compulsory in public schools. There are no restrictions on homeschooling, although primary school is compulsory. However, private schools and colleges do have some legal requirements.
DeleteSeveral religious holidays are recognized as official holidays, including Hari Raya Puasa (Muslim), Hari Raya Haji (Muslim), the Prophet's birthday (Muslim), Wesak Day (Buddhist), Deepavali (Hindu), Thaipusam (Hindu), Christmas (Christian), and, in Sabah and Sarawak, Good Friday (Christian).
DeleteIn April 2002, the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) initiated an interfaith dialog aimed at promoting better understanding and respect among the country's different religious groups. Participants included representatives from the Malaysian Islamic Development Department, the Malaysian Ulama Association, and the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism (MCCBCHS).
DeleteIn early 2005, much debate was stirred up by a proposed Inter-Faith Commission put forward by various individuals, some of which included academics and lawyers from the Bar Council.
DeleteThe steering committee behind the proposal for a draft bill for the commission organised a national conference that saw about 200+ people from all religious backgrounds attending it. There they hashed out the framework for a commission that could advise the relevant parties on the many interfaith issues that arise in pluralistic Malaysia such as conversion from Islam to another faith, which is deemed as apostasy in Malaysia.
DeletePAS, member of parliament Dzulkefly Ahmad, stated that he is against religious pluralism saying that it has,"relativised" truth claims,and says that Islam is the same has other religions. Dr.Ahmad went on to make a distinction between promoting relativism of religions and cooperation with people in a "multi-racial,multi-religious,multi-cultural, and multi-lingual" society, and that the latter was necessary to build a strong country.
DeleteAfter much coverage in the local newspapers, the draft bill was put on hold by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, due to the controversy surrounding it.
DeleteProselytizing of Muslims by members of other religions is not technically prohibited by federal law, even though Muslims may proselytize. It is however prohibited in 10 of the 13 states (i.e. excepting Penang, Sabah, Sarawak and the Federal Territories) and can lead to lengthy jail sentences and many strokes of the rotan (whipping). Most Christian and a few other religious groups in Malaysia put a standard disclaimer on literature and advertisements stating "For non-Muslims only"
DeleteI just don't understand why this kind of threat is happening. So ashamed.
DeleteHopefully religious issue will not be mixed together with politics. We should keep the peace between all citizens regardless of their race and religion.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the tactics.
DeleteHopefully these sort of issues will not cause any more controversies, the people must learn to judge themselves.
ReplyDeleteisu2 agama seperti ini tak perlu dibangkitkan, cuba contohi penduduk Sabah dan Sarawak dimana isu ini tidak timbul walaupun masyaraktnya hidup berbilang kaum agama dan budaya. ada kala dalam satu keluarga ada berbagai Agama. hal ini tak jadi masalah.
ReplyDeleteStop using religion as a weapon to take us down.
ReplyDeletefreedom of religion is enshrined in the Malaysian Constitution. first, Article 11 provides that every person has the right to profess and to practice his or her religion and (subject to applicable laws restricting the propagation of other religions to Muslims) to propagate it. second, the Constitution also provides that Islam is the religion of the country but other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony (Article 3).. all Malaysian should look and try to understand this Malaysian Constitution contents..
ReplyDeletethe status of freedom of religion in Malaysia is a controversial issue. questions including whether Malaysia is an Islamic state or secular state remains unresolved. In recent times, there have been a number of contentious issues and incidents which has tested the relationship between the different races in Malaysia.
ReplyDelete