PUTRAJAYA – After long periods of inaction against alleged defamatory comments by “rogue” Islamic preachers, the Global Human Rights Federation (GHRF) congregated at the Prime Minister’s Office today to peacefully protest and hand in three memoranda.
The protest had an attendance of just shy of 100 people who travelled nationwide, most of whom were representing their own non-governmental organisations in the coalition.
Alongside four other representatives, GHRF president S. Shashi Kumar handed in memoranda urging Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to implement the Religious and Racial Hatred Act, reinvestigate police reports made by the organisation classified as “No Further Action” (NFA), and create a special agency to manage the affairs of non-Muslims who decide to embrace Islam.
“Malaysia has been under the United Nations Human Rights Council since 2021, and its treaty is about equal rights regardless of race or skin colour,” Shashi said.
“Now, we are disappointed that no action is being taken. We have lost faith in the current legal system.
“We do not want to make a fuss, but we want the law to be implemented properly,” he added.
One of the memoranda followed the Shah Alam High Court’s rejection of GHRF’s private prosecution proceedings against preachers Zamri Vinoth and Firdaus Wong, on the grounds that the thousands of police reports against them were classified as NFA.
In response to this, Shashi said that all the cases will be brought to the Court of Appeal.
Shashi also brought up an email by Bukit Aman’s Classified Crimes Investigation Unit stating that a minute-long video of preacher Syakir Nasoha’s sermon did not touch on racial issues in Malaysia, despite having extensive proof of the incident.
He questioned the double standards of the circumstance, as Malaysia had condemned the Quran-burning act by Swedish-Danish politician Rasmus Paludan, but remained passive on the racial and religious issues occurring under its nose.
“The law must act accordingly without any favour,” he said.
“We came from all across Malaysia for a basic right. We are not asking for money or honour, we just want to preserve the federal constitution,” he added.
Following numerous cases of non-Muslim individuals secretly converting to Islam, Shashi said the memorandum on forming an agency to supervise conversion is to maintain transparency.
“This is so that families (of secret converts) do not need to enter courts and have their stories publicly shared,” he said.
“When you convert, you should be proud. But, why don’t you tell anyone or practise the customs of your new religion? Is this not an insult to Islam too?” he questioned.
Shashi informed those present that the memoranda were received by one of Anwar’s officers.
With the new government, Shashi said he hoped change for the better will happen quickly.
He added that Malay rulers have also voiced out against racial sentiments, adding that they should be given the power to handle the problem, as they are “learned, good people”.
Meanwhile, Terabai Menua Selangor spokesman Kindy Anak Nyadang, one of the individuals who handed over the memoranda, said that Malaysians in the peninsula should take East Malaysia as an example of interracial harmony.
“I have family members who converted to Islam, and also who have married out of our own race, but I have no problem with this,” he said.
“I am not implying that we have exceptional harmony, but Sarawak has a variety of races and religions. How is it that we can stay united?”
Kindy added that racial issues affect Malaysia as a whole despite it often occurring in the peninsula, and that he hoped Anwar could provide justice for everyone. – The Vibes, March 10, 2023
