Perkasa: Act first against those who insult Islam

The Malay rights NGO says it was merely upholding its mission of protecting the sanctity of Islam, which it claimed had been under attack for far too long.

PETALING JAYA: Authorities are welcome to take action against Perkasa, but they should first deal with the likes of Patrick Teoh and “Allah” Malay Bible distributors, the Malay rights NGO said today.

“Do take action on Perkasa, but first action must be taken against those who insult Islam,” Perkasa secretary-general Syed Hasan Syed Ali told FMT.

“Muslims are constantly patient and rely on the law to be carried out against those who insult Islam. But don’t put this issue on hold until the rakyat is forced to take the law into their own hands,” he warned.

He said this in the wake of the uproar sparked over Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali’s call for Muslims to burn Malay Bibles written in Jawi script which contain the word “Allah”.

Yesterday, MIC strategy director S Vell Paari had urged the government to take criminal action against Perkasa for fanning religious and communal tension.

Echoing his calls for action were the Herald editor Andrew Lawrence, who labelled Ibrahim as a “menace” to national security, and senior priest Thomas Philips, who said it was “sad and disgusting”.

But the Attorney-General’s Chambers had told FMT today that they would only act on Ibrahim if the Bibles were actually burnt.

‘Just a wake-up call’

Today, Syed Hasan stressed that Perkasa was merely upholding its mission of protecting the sanctity of Islam, which he claimed had been under attack for far too long.

“When it comes to Islam, Perkasa will not politicise the issue…when the Perkasa president [made that call], he just meant it as a wake-up call to all quarters because there have been too many statements and actions disparaging Islam for too long.”

He said that in the past, many quarters had questioned Islam’s position as the official religion as well as Islam’s privilege, “including attempts to turn Muslims into apostates in Damansara last year”.

“The latest is Patrick Teoh’s statement and the distribution of Malay Bibles written in Jawi script to Muslim school students in Penang. Perkasa wants this to stop immediately,” said Syed Hasan.

He was referring to actor and former radio deejay Teoh, who was criticised for using vulgar words against Islam and Muslims in his reaction on Facebook to the Kedah government’s announcement of dress and performance guidelines for a Chinese New Year function.

Teoh has since apologised multiple times for his post, and has been questioned by the Malaysian Multimedia and Communications Commission (MCMC) and the police over the matter.

Meanwhile, Malay daily Berita Harian reported that a police report had been lodged in Jelutong over the alleged distribution of English language Bibles containing Jawi script to Muslim schoolchildren there.

“Honestly, many Muslims who are not Perkasa members have contacted me over their fury regarding Teoh and the distribution of Malay Bibles to Muslim students,” said Syed Hasan.

“That was why Perkasa made that ‘wake-up’ call,” he stressed.

‘Once prohibited, always prohibited’

Last night, Syed Hasan had said Malay Bibles written in Jawi script that include the word “Allah” are not “real Bibles” and thus could be burned.

This was despite the fact that Bumiputera Christians from Sabah and Sarawak have been using Malay Bibles and the term “Allah” for generations.

Elaborating on this, Syed Hasan said today: “Since now it has been declared non-permissible [for non-Muslims to use Allah], then this applies to past and future usage as well.

“Islam is not a religion that rules something to be permissible in the past, but prohibited now. Or that something was prohibited in the past, but is now permissible.”

The National Ulama Council and the PAS Syura Council have both ruled that non-Muslims cannot translate the word God as “Allah” in their Bibles.

In comparing the Bible to the Quran, Syed Hasan said today that the contents of the Quran remained the same regardless where it was distributed.

“When the Quran is translated in another language, Allah remains as Allah. It cannot be changed based on the area. I did not know the Bible could change the name of its followers’ god based on the area,” he said.

“But when a book related to other religions in Malaysia uses the word Allah to refer to their god, it is something that cannot be permitted.”