DR ZAKIR NAIK’S SPEECHES CONSTITUTIONAL, AG APANDI SAYS

(MMO) – Attorney-General Tan Sri Apandi Ali today defended televangelist Dr Zakir Naik’s talks in Malaysia, saying that the freedom of religion is guaranteed in the Federal Constitution.

He added that the question of allowing the propagation of other religions is also a non-issue as the protection of Islam as the official religion in Malaysia is also enshrined in the constitution.

“Regarding the public’s recent furore over the presence of Muslim speaker from India named Dr Zakir Naik to the point of former law minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim asking the government if it will give the same freedom to Christian and Hindu ‘evangelists’ from India or other countries.

“This question should not even be raised by anyone with a legal background because the freedom of religion is clearly enshrined in the constitution,” he said in a recent interview with local daily Berita Harian.

Apandi explained that Article 3 of the Federal Constitution states that Islam is the “religion of the Federation” but also guarantees that other religions may be practised “in peace and harmony”.

However he noted that including the phrase “in peace and harmony” was intended “to protect the sanctity of Islam as the religion of the federation and to protect Islam from any threat.”

Apandi also pointed to Article 11 (4) of the constitution which further protects the exclusivity of Islam in Malaysia by preventing the propagation of other religions.

“It also states that any major threats to Islam in the context of this country is the spreading of other religions to Muslims, and this is why Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution was created,” he said.

Article 11 (4) states that “state law and in respect of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, federal law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing the religion of Islam.”

He added that the most important aspect of discourses like these was the public’s understanding of the Federal Constitution, which first starts with the correct interpretation by legal professionals.

“The most important thing in all of this is that those with a legal background must properly study, understand and respect the basic provisions in the Federal Constitution.

“If they themselves fail to understand and respect it then the public will be worse at understanding and respecting it which then creates many unnecessary problems,” he said.

Dr Zakir’s one-week tour in Malaysia organised by the Terengganu state government earlier this month has received opposition from several Hindu and Indian groups, who claimed that the preacher regularly insults Hinduism in his lectures.

MIC Youth and Malaysian Indian Progressive Association have both lodged police reports against the Mumbai-based preacher, while Malaysian Hindu Sangam has urged authorities to deport the Muslim evangelist.