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July 23, 2006

Malaysia: Islamists Try To Disrupt Religious Freedom Conference

A group calling itself Article 11, referring to the part of Malaysia's constitution which states that citizens have the right to profess and practise any religion they choose, held a meeting yesterday in Johor Baru. This was held by the group, an alliance of 13 other organisations, to discuss constitutional issues of religious freedom in Malaysia.

A former meeting, which was held in Penang on May 14, was met with disruption from a group of about 500 Islamists. According to Compass Direct one of the banners carried by protesters read: "Allah's laws prevail over human rights."

Police had allowed 50 of the protesters to attend the forum, and they heckled speakers, causing police to close down the meeting. Following the police-sanctioned dissolution of that meeting, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a UN task force, wrote to Abdullah Badawi, the Prime Minister.

The letter stated: "The Observatory is very preoccupied by the fact that the police decided to cut short the forum, instead of guaranteeing the security of the organizers and ensuring that it would take place without being disrupted."

When the group Article 11 tried to convene another forum last month, they were faced with the obstruction of hotels across Malaysia, which refused to allow the group to assemble on their premises.

The eleven member groups of Article 11 are: All Women's Action Society (AWAM), Malaysian Bar Council, Catholic Lawyers Society, Interfaith Spiritual Fellowship, Malaysian Civil Liberties Society (MCLS), Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism (MCCBCHS), National Human Rights Society (HAKAM), Pure Life Society, Sisters in Islam (SIS), Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM), Vivekananda Youth Movement, Seremban, Women's Aid Organization (WAO), and Women's Development Collective (WDC).

Yesterday, Article 11 did manage to stage their third forum again, after it foundered on May 14. According to the Malaysia Star and the BBC yesterday, the group insisted it would hold its meeting in Johor Baru, the capital of Johor state, in the south of Malaysia, which was scheduled for Saturday.

State police chief, Deputy Commissioner Hussin Ismail said that anyone who tried to disrupt the forum would face stern action. He said that no-one would be allowed to gather outside the Hotel Selesa, where the forum was being convened.

The protestors who disrupted May's meeting were from a group calling itself the Anti-Interfaith Commission Body, which is believed to be linked to a political party. This party is almost certainly PAS or Parti Islam Se-Malaysia. PAS is an extreme Islamist party, which seeks to have Malaysia entirely ruled by Sharia, even though only 60% of the country's population is Muslim.

Hussin said that he had received a letter from PAS who objected to the meeting being held in Johor state, but countered that Article 11 had a police permit. "Article 11 has the necessary permits to hold the meeting legally," he said on Friday.

The forum did go ahead, and was held on the ninth floor of the Selesa Hotel. However, there were protests and attempts to disrupt the meeting. About 500 Islamists gathered outside the hotel from as early as 9 am, in contradiction of the order from Hussin.

The forum discussed issues pertaining to the constitution, such as "fundamental rights of Malaysians, transcending religion, race, cultural upbringing and gender."

The meeting ended at 11.15 am, two hours earlier than expected, and when the meeting was finished, delegates stayed inside the hotel on police advice.

The state of Johor's Mentri Besar (Chief minister) and leader of the Islamist UMNO party in the state, Abdul Haji Ghani Othman, said that his party was disappointed that the forum took place. He said that the constitution confirms that Islam is the country's official religion.

This may be true, but despite its Islamist credentials, UMNO would not be in a secure position of political power if it had not formed a coalition, the "Barisan Nasional" with the (mainly Hindu) MIC or Malaysia Indian Congress and the (mainly Buddhist) MAC or Malaysian Chinese Association, as we reported on July 11.

Article 3(1) of the constitution states that 'other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation', but as we reported in the cases of Muslim apostates Kamariah Ali and Lina Joy, one clause in the constitution undermines this freedom for other faiths to be "practiced in peace and harmony".

No-one can legally apostasise from Islam in Malaysia, as Article 121 (1A) of the constitution, an amendment introduced in 1988, ensures that civil courts have no jurisdiction on "any matter" which already falls within the scope of the Syariah or Islamic courts. And no sharia court has ever granted the right of apostasy to anyone deemed to be a Muslim, as identified on their "MyKad" registration cards, which are issued from the age of 12.

Members of Article 11 maintain that the constitution is secular, and they have supported the rights of Lina Joy and Kamariah Ali to apostasise from Islam. They argue for the government to honour constitutional guarantees enabling all citizens to practise their faith as defined in Articles 11 and 3 (1).

The Islamists in Malaysia feel that such moves will threaten the primacy of Islam in national affairs.

This is how Islam works. It cannot allow people to apostasise, especially in Malaysia, as then it would not be in the majority. Already, by having Islamist parties and Islamist laws, Malaysia is politically short-changing the 40% of its citizens who are not Muslim. Far from uniting the country, Malaysia's insistence on asserting its identity as a Muslim country only creates divisions and political insecurities. And faced with such insecurities, the Islamists are only becoming more extreme and intransigent.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at July 23, 2006 6:16 PM

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