DIVINE WARNING! Fire breaks out at Mais building, Muslim NGOs FLEE for their lives

A small fire interrupted a press conference by representatives of some 100 Muslim NGOs who came together today to voice support for the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) and the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) over the duo’s stance in not returning seized Bibles.

The noon fire on the tenth floor Mais building in Shah Alam saw the 50 participants of the press conference leaving the building temporarily. The press conference was later cancelled.

A Selangor Fire Services and Rescue Department spokesman at the scene told reporters the fire was caused by a damaged air-conditioning transformer located on the ninth floor of the building. Firemen extinguished the fire before it could spread, he added.

Earlier, the NGO representatives urged Mais and Jais not to bow to the Selangor government demands that they return Bibles seized from the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM).

Jais had in January raided BSM premises and confiscated more than 300 copies of the Bible in the Malay and Iban languages for using the word ‘Allah’ to refer to God.

Gani in crosshairs

The representatives, among those who were from Perkasa, the Malaysian Islamic Consumers Association (PPIM) and the Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah (Yadim), also demanded that Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail vacate his post for ‘equating the Bible with the Kitab Injil’.

Gani had said last Wednesday said there was no case against the seized Bibles, stating: "Statements showed the confiscated books are a Malay language version of the Bible and the Alkitab Berita Baik is a collection of Torah, Zabur and Gospel books that form the basis for Christians."

Hafiz Nordin, a spokesman for the Muslim NGOs, said Gani’s statement was an offence by Syariah laws.

“We will make a police report for him to be investigated and if he does not want to be prosecuted he should resign from his post,” he said. -Malaysiakini