Nurul Izzah backs religious freedom for all

ARCHIVES 2012

By admin-s On Nov 4, 2012

(Free Malaysia Today) – PKR’s rising star Nurul Izzah Anwar offered her conditional support of the LGBT and is for a non-compulsory religious practice.

Freedom of religion should be applied equally to everyone in the country including the Malays, said PKR vice president Nurul Izzah Anwar.

Pressing home the message of religious freedom at a forum titled “Islamic state? Which vision? Whose responsibility” today, she said there should be no compulsion in any religion including Islam.

“How can anyone say (freedom of religion) only apply to the non-Muslim, it has to be applied equally.

“In Quran, there is no specific term to the Malay as how it should be done,” she said when replying to an audience’s question on whether Malays should be entitled to freedom of religion.

Nurul Izzah’s remark is expected to stir controversy as Malay Muslims in Malaysia are banned from converting out from Islam except under unique circumstances and discussion of the subject is seen as taboo.

However, the PKR rising star said it is fine for Malays to be granted such freedom as the ties between a believer and certain religion was based on personal faith.

“If you believe so strongly in your faith, then being schooled in (SK) Assunta with a big cross in the hall and singing Catholic songs all the time would not deter you,” she said.