Law cannot solve religious issues

Lim Sue Goan, The Malay Mail

The “Allah” issue has evolved into a thorny crisis and it is also the country’s biggest discrepancy since independence.

Even if the Federal Court makes a decision over the Church’s appeal, it is believed to be unable to satisfy all parties. In fact, there has been an impasse filled with different views in terms of the interpretation of law.

The Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) raided and seized 351 Bibles in the Malay and Iban languages from the Bible Society of Malaysia, under the Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Among Muslims) Enactment 1988. For Selangor Umno and other Malay organisations, Jais’ action is justified as it is stated in the enactment that non-Muslims are prohibited to used 35 Arabic and religious words, including “Allah”. Moreover, they have the Selangor Sultan’s decree.

For the church, however, since the raid was made without a warrant, the operation should be considered illegal and can be challenged in court. Bar Council president Christopher Leong said that Jais has overstepped its authority when it invoked Section 9(1) and (2) of the enactment to seize the Bibles. The move has also violated the Constitution, as it is not supported by Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution.

Leong said that Article 11 of the Federal Constitution provides every citizen the right to profess, practise and manage his or her own religion and it is unconstitutional for Jais to be granted jurisdiction over believers of other religions.

Obviously, there are two different interpretations of law and it is also a deadlock for the dispute over whether the Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Among Muslims) Enactment 1988 should be amended. Of course, the Federal Court is beyond a state’s laws and if the issue is brought to court, legal disputes might be solved, but stereotypes and misconceptions would not be eliminated.

It is also impossible to curb the expansion of disagreement by adopting administrative measures. After a raid was made on the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) in 2011, the Selangor state government has developed a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Jais, but Jais still made administrative oversights, including not informing the Menteri Besar and state Executive Council members before launching an operation.

Selangor state exco member for Islamic affairs Sallehen Mukhyi said that the state government is considering the development of a new SOP for Jais, which is going to include views of different religious practitioners to ensure no repetition of similar dispute.

Of course, when things are highly politicised and the SOP has not been finalised, administrative provisions will be helpless.

In fact, if they comply with the Cabinet’s 10-point solution, a similar problem could be avoided.

It was reported that all the Bibles seized have the words “Christian Publication” and the cross sign printed on the front covers, showing that the Bible Society has complied with the Cabinet’s 10-point solution. If something is wrong to the Bibles, they should be seized at the entrance points and actions should be taken by the Home Ministry, not Jais.

However, technical problems was later found in the 10-point solution, including different interpretations for the Court of Appeal’s decision in October last year. Some states in Peninsula issued a ban and thus, the government decided to allow Christians in Sabah and Sarawak to use the world “Allah” but not for Christians in Peninsula, resulting in two systems for one country. It is indeed confusing, like what should a Christian from Sabah do when he or she is in Peninsula?

Cabinet ministers also hold different stands, some support Jais while some sympathise with the Church. Even among Muslims, not all share the same stand, such as daughter of former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Marina and a group of Muslims actually turned up at a church with flowers.

Moreover, the “Allah” issue has been mixed with political factors. Would Umno right-wingers give way? Could PAS stick to its openness stand? Unfortunately, the issue has also become a tool to fight against political opponents.

In short, the “Allah” issue cannot be solved by legal and administrative means but must get back to the religious spirit of tolerance. A dialogue platform is needed, just like negotiation is stressed in the 10-point solution.

All parties must promptly return to moderation and stop the spread of emotions, or inflation and clamours will bring a double whammy to economy and worsen the situation.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.