Archive for category Islam
The Jais raid
— Azrul Mohd Khalib
The Malaysian Insider
Aug 05, 2011
AUG 5 — The recent Selangor Religious Department (Jais) raid of the Harapan Komuniti event held at the Damanasara Utama Methodist Centre should be condemned by all Malaysians.
This dinner, which was organised to commemorate and honour the work of this non-profit organisation as well as its supporters and beneficiaries, is demonstrative of how we are united in a common concern and care for those living on the margins of society and who are less fortunate than us, regardless of their ethnicity and religion.
The high handed and overzealous manner in which the raid was conducted by the Jais officers over an unspecified complaint, and the disrespect shown towards the sanctity of a house of worship speaks volumes of the tendency towards the lack of respect for other religions, unaccountability and a culture of impunity.
Let us be clear: The embarrassing actions of the Jais officers appear to be the acts of a bully. It was bad enough that the so-called complaint was not substantiated, but the officers were not even able to produce a copy of the actual complaint. Read the rest of this entry »
Hassan Ali’s public defence of JAIS gatecrashing of multiracial dinner at DUMC shortly after Khalid Ibrahim’s expression of regret an act of breaking ranks
The Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) gatecrashing of a multiracial dinner at the Damansara Utara Methodist Church on Wednesday night is most deplorable as it is most detrimental to efforts to build an open, tolerant and harmonious plural Malaysian society.
The Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim’s swift response expressing regret for the raid and his assurance that the Selangor state government fully respects freedom of religion and rights of religious groups to manage their affairs and that “the state is always open to engagement and dialogue regarding the harmonious and mutually respectful coexistence of different religious communities, and appreciates the efforts of all who seek to build a more united society” is both timely and appropriate.
What is a matter of concern and must be viewed seriously is the public defence of the JAIS action by the State Executive Councillor Datuk Hassan Ali issued shortly after Khalid’s statement expressing regret for the raid and asking JAIS to submit a full report on the incident – as it is an act of breaking ranks in the Selangor state government.
Selangor regrets church raid, asks Jais for report
The Malaysian Insider
Aug 04, 2011
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 — Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim has asked the state Islamic authorities today to justify their raid on a multiracial dinner at a Petaling Jaya church last night, adding he regretted the incident that has caused a public outrage.
A group from the Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor (Jais) raided the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) building during a dinner and had questioned a few Malay guests based on an unspecified complaint.
Khalid said today he had called DUMC’s senior pastor Daniel Ho to personally express his regrets regarding the incident.
“I told him that the state has instructed JAIS to provide a full report detailing the incident, including their justifications for their actions that night. I hope to meet the pastor again once the report is completed,” said the Mentri Besar in a statement this evening.
He also assured the people of Selangor that the state government fully respects freedom of religion and the rights of religious groups to manage their affairs. Read the rest of this entry »
Jais, cops raid church over multi-racial dinner
By Boo Su-Lyn
The Malaysian Insider
Aug 04, 2011
PETALING JAYA, Aug 4 — The police and Selangor religious authorities raided a multi-racial dinner at the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) here last night over an unspecified complaint.
DUMC senior pastor Dr Daniel Ho said about 30 police officers and enforcement officers from the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) entered the church without a warrant at 10pm.
Ho explained that an NGO called Harapan Komuniti had organised an annual thanksgiving dinner at the church, which saw an attendance of between 100 and 120 guests of all races. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia in the Era of Globalization # 76
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, globalisation, Islam on Monday, 1 August 2011
by Bakri Musa
Chapter 9: Islam in Malay Life
Reform in Islam
The Quest For Answers
Present-day Muslims look askance at the sorry state in which the vast majority of our ummah live. Muslim nations, even those well endowed by Allah with abundant rich natural resources, live in abject poverty. Human rights abuses are the norm in many Islamic countries. As painfully noted by Abdullahi An-Naim, the vast majority of Muslims live at a superficial level of both Islam and modern civilization. Although we claim adherence to Islam and exhibit apparent commitment to its ritualistic formalities, we fail to appreciate and live up to its moral and spiritual essence. Likewise most Muslims benefit from modern civilization but have little appreciation of the values and ways of thinking that underlie and sustain those technologies and institutions. Further, many Muslims’ understanding of Western civilization is often reduced to the gaudy simplistic images propagated by Hollywood, and the seamier aspects highlighted by Muslim fundamentalists eager to denigrate the West. Read the rest of this entry »
Malaysia in the Era of Globalization #75
Posted by Kit in Bakri Musa, globalisation, Islam on Tuesday, 26 July 2011
Chapter 9: Islam in Malay Life
Reform in Islam
Confusing Examples For Principles
My main criticism of the traditional ulama is that in their meticulous and detailed studies of the individual verses of the Qur’an and sunnah, they completely miss out on the underlying theme – missing the proverbial forest for the tress.
To Taha, Muslims’ preoccupation between secular and Islamic state is arbitrary and useless. The values of supposedly secular Western societies like gender equality, commitment to basic human rights, abhorrence of cruel and inhumane punishment, the brotherhood of mankind, and participatory democracy are also Islamic values and ideals. That the West has absorbed and claimed these virtues to be its core is no reason why Muslims should not also subscribe to them. If we follow Taha’s message and make the Shari’a compatible with modern values and aspirations, which as we have seen are also Islamic, then the question of secular versus Islamic would not arise.
Read the rest of this entry »
Christian plot: What have police uncovered?
Posted by Kit in DAP, Islam, Media, nation building on Monday, 25 July 2011
By Hawkeye
July 25, 2011 | Free Malaysia Today
BUTTERWORTH: DAP has demanded that police reveal the outcome of their investigation into an alleged conspiracy to make Christianity the official religion of Malaysia.
Penang DAP chairman Chow Kon Yeow said police wrapped up the investigation some time ago and should have informed the public what they had found out.
The seriousness of the allegation and the uproar it caused warranted the public disclosure, he added. Read the rest of this entry »
Some Saudi women challenge drive ban
By Asma Alsharif
Reuters
Fri, Jun 17 2011
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) – Some Saudi women appeared to have answered a call over social media to challenge a ban on driving, posting accounts and pictures of themselves behind the wheel in the conservative Arab kingdom.
Groups such as “Women2Drive” and “Women’s Right to Drive in KSA” had called for a day of defiance, drawing more than 15,000 supporters on various Facebook groups.
“I drove with my husband, and a policeman stopped me and gave me a ticket, which stated that I was driving without a license,” Maha al-Gahtani, a resident of Riyadh, posted on Twitter along with a picture of a traffic ticket with her name.
“I was disappointed that I didn’t see any other women drivers,” she said. “I did it to get my rights.” Read the rest of this entry »
Mosque polls: King’s name being used, says don
Posted by Kit in Islam, Penang Government on Saturday, 18 June 2011
By Hazlan Zakaria
Jun 18, 11 | MalaysiaKini
While the Agong has purview over Islamic matters in ruler-less states like Penang, renowned constitutional law expert Abdul Aziz Bari fears that the Agong’s name is being used to criticise the Penang government’s policies.
“Only after Pakatan Rakyat took over Penang that suddenly the Agong became a significant figure. Read the rest of this entry »
Kartunis Utusan, rogol dan zina
By Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin
June 16, 2011 | THe Malaysian Insider
16 JUN — Saya tidak pasti, apakah kartunis Utusan itu hendak menghina Islam atau hendak menghina pihak tertentu. Jika dia bertujuan menghina Islam, dilakukan pula dalam keadaan yang sedar akal fikirannya, maka dia terkeluar daripada Islam. Namun, jika dia bertujuan mengkritik salah faham sesetengah pihak mengenai perbezaan hukum zina dan rogol, maka itu tidak merosakkan imannya, bahkan satu sumbangan membetulkan fahaman yang salah. Adapun jika dia bertujuan membohongi fakta yang dimaksudkan oleh seseorang, sehingga menimbulkan salah sangka, maka dia berdosa besar.
Persoalan yang timbul; apakah jika seseorang wanita membuat aduan kepada mahkamah syariah bahawa dia dirogol maka mahkamah syariat akan menyatakan: awak mesti mendatangkan empat orang saksi, jika tidak awak disebat 80 rotan? Adakah di dunia ini empat orang saksi yang soleh sanggup membiarkan seorang wanita dirogol di hadapan mereka? Read the rest of this entry »
Umno ‘welcomed’ to sue Penang on mosque polls
Posted by Kit in Islam, Penang Government on Friday, 17 June 2011
By Susan Loone
Jun 17, 11 | MalaysiaKini
Penang state executive councillor for religious affairs Abdul Malik Abul Kassim has challenged groups protesting the elections to mosque committees in the state to sue the government.
Abdul Malik said the election would go on despite the fierce protests from Umno as the procedure was in compliance with Section 22(4) of the Penang Islamic Religious Council (MAIPP) enactment.
“So if anybody wants to challenge this, you are welcome,” said Abdul Malik, the assemblyperson for Batu Maung.
“Those who cannot accept improvements that benefit the people and the Muslim community surely cannot accept this change,” he added. Read the rest of this entry »
Utusan comic strip insulted Islam, say Muslim scholars
By Syed Mu’az Syed Putra and Debra Chong
June 15, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 — Persatuan Ulama Malaysia (PUM) has accused Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia of insulting Islam with a comic strip published today, which the society said was based on an incorrect reading of the religion’s laws.
The 4,000-strong Muslim scholars’ society demanded the authorities charge the cartoonist and the publisher for insulting Islam, saying the publication of the misleading cartoon had portrayed in a negative light the religion of the majority in multicultural Malaysia at a time when Muslims were seen to lack religious knowledge.
PUM was referring to a two-panel comic strip on page 15 of the Malay daily today titled “Kekeliruan kes rogol” [“Confusion in rape cases”] depicting a tudung-clad woman seeking advice after being raped. Read the rest of this entry »
Facts about PAS and the Islamic state issue
By Pak Sako
June 13, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 13 — The “professionals” have been elected to PAS’s central working committee. PAS has trotted out a “welfare state” slogan. The party’s deputy president-elect, Mohamad Sabu, has been hailed in Malaysiakini as a “cosmopolitan democrat”. A moderate image of PAS is being actively advertised.
Yet the question that worries many non-Muslims and moderate Muslims remains: Has PAS abandoned its Islamic state ambition or hasn’t it?
For the answer, we need to go beyond slogans, media spin and the opinions of the politicians and examine the bare facts.
The bare facts are found in Clauses 3 to 8 of PAS’s constitution. They outline matters pertaining to party goals, laws and authority. Their key points, translated, are as follows: Read the rest of this entry »
Anwar stresses ‘twin pillars’ of religious concordat
Posted by Kit in Islam, nation building, Pakatan Rakyat, Religion on Tuesday, 7 June 2011
By Terence Netto
Jun 7, 11 | MalaysiaKini
COMMENT Cynics may scoff but Anwar Ibrahim’s tack with regard to the rights of non-Muslims in Malaysia remains consistent, as the latest meeting between the PKR leadership and representatives of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST) indicated.
Some attendees at last night’s meeting in Kuala Lumpur could not help but recall a similar encounter between PKR and MCCBCHST in Petaling Jaya in December 2007 that dealt with the same issues but was held in a less fraught atmosphere than presently prevailing.
Then, matters to do with forced conversions, temple demolitions and the incipient rise of the ‘Allah’ issue brought furrows to non-Muslim brows. Read the rest of this entry »
Utusan bohong lagi, DAP tak campur tangan masjid
In Roketkini
6 June 2011
GEORGETOWN, 6 JUN – Pembohongan terbaru Utusan Malaysia cuba mengaitkan DAP dengan cadangan mengadakan pemilihan bagi jawatankuasa masjid di Pulau Pinang.
Laporan berita Utusan mendakwa kononnya pemilihan itu “dilihat bakal menjerumuskan institusi masjid ke kancah politik kepartian”.
Berita Utusan itu menambah, “jika dilaksanakan sepenuhnya, ‘pilihan raya masjid’ itu yang dijangka bermula pertengahan bulan ini akan menjadikan Pulau Pinang sebagai satu-satunya negeri yang pernah melaksanakan kaedah pemilihan seumpama itu”.
Setiausaha Politik kepada Setiausaha Agung DAP Zairil Khir Johari berkata DAP tidak terlibat sama sekali dengan soal pengurusan masjid di Pulau Pinang yang berada di bawah pentadbiran Majlis Agama Islam Pulau Pinang. Read the rest of this entry »
Mengalu-alukan kenyataan Presiden PAS tentang Negara Islam
Posted by Kit in Islam, Islamic state, PAS on Saturday, 4 June 2011
By Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin
June 04, 2011
4 JUN — Selamat bermuktamar kepada PAS dan tahniah kepada yang diberikan amanah. PAS adalah tonggak politik negara. PAS adalah nafas umat Islam dalam berpolitik di negara ini.
Saya mengalu-alukan kenyataan YB Presiden PAS DS Abdul Hadi Awang semalam yang menyebut: “Apa yang penting adalah pelaksanaan. Kalau letak jenama saja tak laksana tak ada faedah. Kita mulakan dengan pelaksanaan negara berkebajikan, itu ada dalam Al-Quran, Dia tak sebut negara Islam, Dia sebut negara berkebajikan”. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m no expert in Islam but…
By Zan Azlee
June 03, 2011 | The Malaysian Insider
JUNE 3 — Religion seems to be quite a hot topic whenever it is discussed. This is especially so when it comes to Islam. And even more so when it challenges conventional thought.
I’ve learnt this over the course of writing my thoughts and opinions openly and frankly all this while and receiving the opinions and thoughts of the readers as well.
Sometimes the comments that I get are just okay and sometimes, they can be quite passionate. The latter is when I feel obligated to respond.
My column last week received quite a range of comments that I felt warranted a proper response from me this week.
There were many that concurred with my thoughts, but no point responding to them. That would just be preaching to the converted.
What I really want to do is to respond to those who disagreed with me. Everyone is definitely entitled to his or her opinion, but right now I have the pen in hand! Read the rest of this entry »
An insult to Islam?
Hafidz Baharom
The Malaysian Insider
Jun 01, 2011
JUNE 1 — First and foremost, having a Christian prime minister is not an insult to Islam, nor is allowing a nation to become secular or even Christian.
Take a look at Germany. Their president and chancellor belong to the Christian Democratic Union Party. Yet, Islam is still alive and well in their nation.
If that’s too much for you to imagine, take a look at Netherlands then. Ruled by a monarch and extremely secular, their prime minister is from the VVD and his deputy is from the Christian Democratic Appeal party. Yet still, Islam is there, alive and well enough to be the cause of Theo Van Gogh’s death.
Should Malaysia become a secular or Christian nation, it will not be Islam that is offended. It’s just people who obviously were not granted the brains, patience or even sensitivity to understand that the first basis of the religion itself is to find moderation.
If a Muslim does wrong, he or she is told to repent. If a non-Muslim says something wrong, we are told, through Islamic teaching, to educate them and find a peaceful solution. Read the rest of this entry »
Let us be blasphemous!
By Zan Azlee | May 27, 2011
The Malaysian Insider
MAY 27 — I am no longer a believer and will burn in hell for questioning Islam. And, by raising and seeking answers to issues that I am in doubt of, my children will even grow up to have sex with animals.
These are some of the things I have been called and accused of by certain people in reaction to the documentary films and articles I’ve written that deal with my religion.
Read the rest of this entry »
10 Days in May (27)
Posted by Kit in 1Malaysia, Hishammuddin, Islam, Media, Najib Razak, Religion on Monday, 23 May 2011
Tweets @limkitsiang:-
Don’t agree w NUJ chief Hata 2shut down UtusanMsia but action must be taken agnst it 4rabid extremism/sedition eg “Christian Msia” bogey
If no action agnst Utusan “ChristianMsia” bogey (ref SinChew ChinaPress MakkalOsai SwakTribune) its double stds HusseinOnn wld not approve
If Utusan enjoys immunity 4Christian Msia bogey Najib’s GMoM call utter mockery. Also means Utusan extremists running UMNO n BN Cabinet/govt
Has Najib political will 2salvage 1Msia GMoM? Or allow 1Msia become 1Melayu, NEM in2 “new economic muddle”, Talent Corp in2 Talent Corpse? Read the rest of this entry »
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