KUALA LUMPUR – A coalition of Malay-Muslim civil society groups have urged the Home Ministry to immediately appeal the high court’s recent ruling to allow the use of the word “Allah” in Christian publications.
This is among a list of six demands the group called Pertubuhan-Pertubuhan Pembela Islam (Pembela) made today.
Pembela chairman Aminuddin Yahaya said the Home Ministry must bring the matter to a higher court and issue a new circular preventing the use of the word if the appeal is granted.
“We want to express our shock and disappointment with the high court that has found the prevention of use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims is wrong and unconstitutional,” he told a press conference today.
“This decision goes against the Federal Court’s precedent and will give space to its misuse.”
Aminuddin said this after attending a meeting with some 250 representatives from 50 Malay groups supporting Pembela’s resolutions.
“We condemn any party that is seen to be steadfast in using the holy word, who are clearly not sensitive and purposely want to raise conflict among religious followers.
“There were also DAP leaders who expressed their gratefulness on the decision.”
He said that allowing those from other religions to use the word “Allah” will raise confusion among Muslims and non-Muslims while opening doors to apostasy and pluralist thinking.
Pembela also called the government and the task force selecting court judges to pick those who understood the history of the country’s laws and who appreciated Islam as the religion of the Federation.
The group urged other Muslim organisations and associations to view the matter seriously as it “bring large implications to Muslims”, adding a memorandum should be sent to all state religious authorities soon.
Aminuddin said the government should add a preamble to the federal constitution by inserting elements important to protecting the sanctity of Islam.
The group also urged Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka to recognise the English term “God” to refer to “Tuhan” in Malay to avoid further disputes.
Finally, the group is asking the rulers, as the leaders of Islam in their states, to “immediately correct the situation so Islam will not continue to be insulted and trivialised.” – The Vibes, March 14, 2021
