Right wingers harming Malaysia and Islam

Najib must mobilise a coalition of moderates in Umno and BN, says Kit Siang.

GELANG PATAH: Right wing forces are doing a great disservice to Malaysia and Islam in their opposition to Prime Minister Najib Razak’s moderation agenda, DAP leader Lim Kit Siang said today.

In a speech delivered at his parliamentary constituency here today, Lim lamented Najib’s inaction against the increasingly shrill voices against his initiative.

He urged the Prime Minister to “mobilise a coalition of moderates in Umno and Barisan Nasional to reclaim their religion and pursue the path to peace and moderation”.

Lim referred to Zainudin Maidin’s blog entry last Friday, in which the former information minister suggested that moderation was averse to Malay and Muslim interests.

Zainudin claimed that Christian fanatics had seized on Najib’s concept of moderation and exploited it for their own interests.

The former minister, voicing his agreement with a call by Johor Umno youth vice-chief Khairul Anwar Rahmat, called for a fight to the bitter end, saying an infatuation with moderation would result in average, instead of devout, Muslims.

“I do not want to get involved in a religious polemic,” Lim said. “But the thesis of the former Umno minister, which he claims represents the thoughts and opinions of the Umno grassroots, is most disturbing as he seems to suggest that Islam is not a religion of moderation.

“Let there be no mistake. Malays and Islam are not under attack in Malaysia. It is multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural Malaysia which is under siege by intolerant and extremist forces which are trying to turn moderation into a dirty word in Malaysia.

“If we can see the nature of religion through the prism of moderation, we will be able to identify common values shared by all religions. The values are peace, harmony and true happiness, which will materialize when the followers of every religion avoid excessiveness in religious practices and in the conduct of worldly life.”

Lim gave a list of other recent examples of extremist actions and rhetoric, including a demonstration against the building of a church in Petaling Jaya, demands for the closure of Chinese schools, the seizure of Christian books and CDs and the furore over the marketing of mineral water in bottles that bore a picture of a Hindu statue.

He also mentioned Wanita Umno chief Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s statement yesterday expressing opposition to the repeal of the Sedition Act.

“Malays and Islam are not under siege in Malaysia,” Lim declared. “But Umno is under siege and there is a desperate attempt to equate Umno under siege as equal to Malays and Islam under siege, which is a great fallacy.”