Penang Mufti Wan Salim Wan Mohd Noor has called on parties involved in an alleged attempt to convert non-Muslim school students to Islam to consult legal experts.
Speaking to Malaysiakini, Wan Salim pointed out that every state in the country has their own legal advisers and experts.
“I am not a legal expert but what is certain is that we need to consult legal experts in this matter, especially when in each state we have our own legal advisers, so it would be good if we consult and ask for their opinion,” he said when contacted today.
Wan Salim said this when asked to comment on recent concerns raised on alleged attempts to convert non-Muslim school students to Islam without the family’s permission.
Malaysiakini previously reported that an NGO has urged religious authorities and the Education Ministry to investigate alleged attempts to convert non-Muslim school students to Islam.
This follows a TikTok video shared by controversial preacher Firdaus Wong, which showed him advising a man on how to deal with requests to convert to Islam from several teenagers.
In a statement, Global Human Rights Federation (GHRF) president S Shashi Kumar raised concerns about such activities, which he said ignored the right of parents to determine the religion of their children who are under the age of 18.
Shashi stressed that the religious conversion of minors without parental consent is a serious issue that needs to be addressed to protect the rights of minors and uphold ethical standards in religious conversion.
No hindering those who want to convert
Commenting further, Wan Salim said that from the point of view of religious scholars, efforts to convert those who want to embrace Islam should not be hindered.
In fact, he said, any party that prevents and the individual who wants to embrace Islam dies will be held accountable in this matter.
“We cannot stop non-Muslims from converting to Islam, and if they die while they want to convert to Islam but we stopped them, we will be held accountable,” he stressed.
Wan Salim said he believes there should be two stages in the procedure to convert a non-Muslim to Islam without their family’s permission - an informal and formal stage.
“My suggestion is that the conversion to Islam is done in two stages.
“The first is done informally with all the required witnesses, so that if there is a death (of the person) it means we have proof of him (converting) and his remains can be managed according to Islamic ways,” he said.
Wan Salim said the second stage which involves a formal registration of the person’s conversion could be postponed until they can convince their family members.
“Because we want to maintain harmony between children and parents,” he added.
‘What of other religions?’
Meanwhile, Wong in response to Shashi said it is hypocritical to politicise the conversion of minors to Islam as the same questions are not posed about conversion to other religions.
According to online portal Scoop, Wong said some non-Muslim children have a curiosity towards Islam given that the religion is “attacked on the news”.
“They (children) did their own research and found that the religion is good and there’s truth to it, unlike how it’s portrayed by the media.
“Besides that, another factor is they socialise (with other Muslims) and notice the logic of having faith without an object to worship, as well as how devoted Muslims are,” he was quoted as saying.
He also suggested that backlash over his comments in the TikTok video shows a double standard towards Islam.
“Many teenagers were converted to other religions but we rarely hear complaints from parents.
“Why is it politicised when it involves Islam?” he claimed.
Earlier this week, Firdaus uploaded a video on TikTok that showed him engaging in a question-and-answer session at an event.
In the video, a man also believed to be a religious preacher asked Firdaus about what to do when a non-Muslim teenager underage wants to convert to Islam.
In that regard, Firdaus said the teenager should be welcomed to embrace Islam but their conversion to Islam should not be registered or announced.
He also shared advice on how the youth can practice Islam prudently so that they can keep it a secret from others. - Mkini
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