MCA has urged its partner Umno to not “add fuel to fire” by supporting the coalition of Muslim NGOs who will protest in front of a church this Sunday against the use of the word 'Allah' by Christians.
MCA’s religious bureau chairperson Ti Lian Ker (left) said that while Umno has the right to uphold its religious rights, the party should not jeopardies racial harmony.
“Resorting to protests in front of churches will only create more tension, and this must be avoided at all cost to prevent extremists from exploiting the issue to cause any untoward incidents,” he said.
Echoing Selangor police, he urged all not to participate in the protest, scheduled at the Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Klang by the coalition Muslims Solidarity Secretariat, which include Umno divisions.
“We urge the Muslim NGOs, as well as Umno, to call off the protest and allow the law to take its course,” he said.
He also sought a probe to see if the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) had abused its power by raiding the Bible Society of Malaysia's (BSM) premises and seizing more than 300 copies of the Bible.
Ti stressed that the 10-point solution agreed upon by the Cabinet in 2011 allowed for the printing and importation of the Bible in any language and the seizure contravened this.
He called on the Selangor government to explain why Jais had acted in such a way, and how the government can claim to be unaware of the agency's doings.
“The actions of JAIS which trespassed the BSM premises without any search or seizure warrant demands the harshest condemnation.
“Such a high-handed raid is totally unacceptable and deplorable. The power of religious enforcement authorities to confiscate religious scripture of non-Muslims and the detention of non-Muslim staff is highly, if not, totally questionable,” he said.
Jais yesterday raided BSM's premises in Damansara, seized copies of the Malay and Iban-language Bible and arrested two BSM officers. They were later released on bail.
The duo are being investigated under Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Among Muslims) Enactment 1988, which bars the use of several words and terms by non-Muslims including 'Allah'.
Bi-partisan national reconciliation plans
Meanwhile, DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang (left) has proposed that Pakatan Rakyat and the BN work out national reconciliation plan together within the next fortnight.
He said this is crucial in the wake of silence from the prime minister and his cabinet.
“This is not the way to run the country...As the government seems to be clueless how to rebuild our national unity, let me propose a meeting of BN and Pakatan top leaders on an agenda and blueprint for national reconciliation to rebuild national unity...
“The ball is in the court of the PM and the BN Cabinet,” he said in a statement.
So far no member of the cabinet has commented on the raid and planned protest besides Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin who said Selangor Umno's involvement in the protest is the divisions' own decision.
MCA’s religious bureau chairperson Ti Lian Ker (left) said that while Umno has the right to uphold its religious rights, the party should not jeopardies racial harmony.“Resorting to protests in front of churches will only create more tension, and this must be avoided at all cost to prevent extremists from exploiting the issue to cause any untoward incidents,” he said.
Echoing Selangor police, he urged all not to participate in the protest, scheduled at the Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Klang by the coalition Muslims Solidarity Secretariat, which include Umno divisions.
“We urge the Muslim NGOs, as well as Umno, to call off the protest and allow the law to take its course,” he said.
He also sought a probe to see if the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) had abused its power by raiding the Bible Society of Malaysia's (BSM) premises and seizing more than 300 copies of the Bible.
Ti stressed that the 10-point solution agreed upon by the Cabinet in 2011 allowed for the printing and importation of the Bible in any language and the seizure contravened this.
He called on the Selangor government to explain why Jais had acted in such a way, and how the government can claim to be unaware of the agency's doings.
“The actions of JAIS which trespassed the BSM premises without any search or seizure warrant demands the harshest condemnation.
“Such a high-handed raid is totally unacceptable and deplorable. The power of religious enforcement authorities to confiscate religious scripture of non-Muslims and the detention of non-Muslim staff is highly, if not, totally questionable,” he said.
Jais yesterday raided BSM's premises in Damansara, seized copies of the Malay and Iban-language Bible and arrested two BSM officers. They were later released on bail.
The duo are being investigated under Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Among Muslims) Enactment 1988, which bars the use of several words and terms by non-Muslims including 'Allah'.
Bi-partisan national reconciliation plans
Meanwhile, DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang (left) has proposed that Pakatan Rakyat and the BN work out national reconciliation plan together within the next fortnight.He said this is crucial in the wake of silence from the prime minister and his cabinet.
“This is not the way to run the country...As the government seems to be clueless how to rebuild our national unity, let me propose a meeting of BN and Pakatan top leaders on an agenda and blueprint for national reconciliation to rebuild national unity...
“The ball is in the court of the PM and the BN Cabinet,” he said in a statement.
So far no member of the cabinet has commented on the raid and planned protest besides Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin who said Selangor Umno's involvement in the protest is the divisions' own decision.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.