GEORGE TOWN – The recent alleged conversion of three children to Islam should not be seen in the context of religion but instead as an issue of legality, said Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P. Ramasamy.
He said that the three – a pair of twin girls aged 14 and their brother aged 10 – are minors, and that subsequently, there is a need to obtain parental consent from both their father and mother.
“It cannot be a unilateral conversion. It is not about religion. If someone converts minors to Christianity or Hinduism, I will be the first to object if parental consent was unavailable,” he said.
Ramasamy said the law is clear about this matter and all parties should respect it.
Otherwise, the sensitive nature of religious conversion will continue to unsettle society, he warned.
“It is just a family matter. Both spouses are at loggerheads with each other. But the entire country has been dragged into it, simply because the rule of law was overlooked,” he said.
“Usually, it is the mothers who will be accorded custody. It is natural justice,” Ramasamy added.
The children’s mother, Loh Siew Hong, has lodged a police report, alleging that they were placed illegally under the care of a woman who manages an Islamic non-governmental organisation.
She claimed yesterday that personnel from the Social Welfare Department were preventing her from visiting the trio at the Rumah Sinar Harapan children’s home in Jitra, Kedah.
Twins wanted to convert to Islam, Perlis mufti claims
In a talk broadcast on his YouTube channel last night, Perlis mufti Datuk Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, popularly known as Dr Maza, claimed that the twins said they wanted to convert to Islam before they were taken by their father to the religious office.
His meeting with them was held before the Perlis Islamic religious department received a court order letter which did not allow anyone to meet the children except their mother, he said.
“These children came with their father to Perlis in July 2020 to convert to Islam.
“When asked where their mother was, their father said he did not know, and we continued to register them as Muslims at the religious office, not at the National Registration Department.
“After converting to Islam, their father handed over to an Islamic study centre and his father went to prison for drug offences. So, we take good care of them.”
He has appeared on a video clip with the twin daughters, who were clad in attire associated with Muslim women and girls, indicating that the conversion did occur.
The youngest child was not featured in the video released by Asri.
Loh said she has not met her children for the past three years, as she was recovering at a domestic abuse centre after her husband, who is serving time at a prison in Kelantan for a drug offence, had reportedly assaulted her.
She later divorced her husband and was granted custody of their children last year, with the Kuala Lumpur High Court ordering police to ensure the children are returned to her.
She is waiting for the high court to hear her habeas corpus application on Monday to decide on the custody of the children.
Meanwhile, Asri has yet to comment on the matter and remains unreachable at press time. – The Vibes, February 16, 2022
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