Jais right to raid Bible Society of Malaysia, says Utusan

(Yahoo News) – Utusan Malaysia today sprang to the defence of the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department, claiming they were defending the purity of Islam.

Columnist Awang Selamat, the pseudonym for the newspaper’s collective editorial team, said Jais was correct to have raided the offices of the Bible Society of Malaysia yesterday.

“It is clear that the BSM violated the edict issued by the Sultan of Selangor and breached the decision of the appellate court by publishing the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia,” Awang said.

Awang claimed that some of the Christian leaders were stubborn and intent on spreading their teachings to Islamic followers.

“Look at how the editor of the Catholic weekly boasted that he was insistent on using the word ‘Allah’ in his publication,” Awang said.

“The raid on the BSM offices in Damansara Kim by Jais is not a question of violating constitutional rights or disrespecting the feelings of other religious communities.

“This incident would not have happened if BSM had obeyed the edict issued by the Sultan of Selangor forbidding non-Muslims from using the word ‘Allah’ in Bahasa Malaysia Bibles.”

Awang contended that the raid by Jais would have mollified any aggrieved party from taking action into their own hands as there were many who were angry that the Islamic faith was being challenged.

“There are certain quarters who are furious at the acts of other parties who are seen as challenging the patience of Muslim followers,” Awang claimed.

This is a sensitive issue and should not be further inflamed, Awang said, calling on Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim to stand up and be counted.

“Defend the purity of the Islamic religion. Act before everything goes up in flames,” Awang said.