KUALA LUMPUR – The high court here today ruled that Christians nationwide are allowed to use the word “Allah” and three other Arabic words in their religious publications for educational purposes, Bernama reports.
This effectively renders invalid a circular issued by the Home Ministry against the word “Allah” being used by Christian publications in the country.
The three other words that are now also allowed under the new order by the court are “Baitullah”, “Kaabah” and “solat”.
This follows Court of Appeal judge Datuk Nor Bee Ariffin, sitting as high court judge, allowing a judicial review application by a Sarawak native Christian, Jill Ireland Lawrence Bill.
In the application, Jill Ireland had sought, among others, a declaration that it is her constitutional right to have access to Christian publications in the exercise of her rights to practise her religion and right to education, as provided under Article 11 of the federal constitution.
She also wanted the court to declare the Home Ministry’s 1986 circular to ban the word “Allah” in Christian publications as unconstitutional and unlawful.
Justice Nor Bee, in her ruling, held that the directive by the Home Ministry in 1986 not to allow the use of the four words is filled with illegality and irrationality.
“The use of the words would not disrupt public order,” she said.
Justice Nor Bee added that, the words could also be used by the community for teaching purposes as they have been in use for more than 400 years.
When contacted, Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, who acted for the Home Ministry and government, confirmed that the four words can be used by Christians for their religious publications.
"However, publications that contain the four words must carry a disclaimer that it is intended for Christians only, as well as a cross symbol," he said.
The legal battle over the matter began 13 years ago after Jill Ireland commenced the judicial review application on August 20, 2008, for the return of eight CDs seized from her on May 11, 2008, upon her arrival at the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) in Sepang.
The CDs bore the titles “Cara Hidup Dalam Kerajaan Allah”, “Hidup Benar Dalam Kerajaan Allah” and “Ibadah Yang Benar Dalam Kerajaan Allah”.
She filed the judicial review application to challenge the seizure of the CDs as well as sought a declaration over her constitutional rights in relation to the use of the word “Allah” in Christian publications.
The high court had, in July 2014, held that the Home Ministry was wrong to seize the CDs and ordered it to be returned, but did not decide on the constitutional issues raised by the woman.
In June 2015, the Court of Appeal had directed the Home Ministry to return the CDs after dismissing the appeal by the Home Ministry and government.
The Court of Appeal, in the ruling, also remitted the matter back to the high court to hear the constitutional issues.
The high court was supposed to pronounce its verdict in 2018 but it was postponed several times for various reasons. – Bernama, March 10, 2021
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