How the moral police work

By MT Webmaster Last updated Jul 14, 2014

And before serving food and drinks the passengers would first have to make a declaration that he or she is not a Muslim. I do not think we need to go so far as to ask them to drop their pants so that the stewardesses can check whether they still possess foreskin (even though I would not refuse to do so) because even non-Muslims sometimes are circumcised as well (and the Jews as well).

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

I really do not know why Muslims love attracting unnecessary controversy, which in the end would allow ‘others’ to whack the Malays, Muslims and Islam. I mean it is like wearing a sign on your back that says ‘kick me’.

When I first saw the news report below I mulled over whether to just ignore it or to write about it. If I ignored it then the non-Malays or non-Muslims would whack me and accuse ‘we liberals’ or ‘silent majority’ of tacit approval. I mean, silence means consent, right? So if you remain silent that means you support what is being said and done.

But then if I do write about it and I whack the Minister in question, the other Malays-Muslims would accuse me of being a traitor, of being anti-Islam, and of giving ‘ammunition’ to the non-Malays and non-Muslims to use against the Malays-Muslims.

Either way one side or the other is going to whack me. I talk I get whacked, I remain silent I get whacked — damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

Anyway, I have decided to address this, which may make quite a number of Malays-Muslims unhappy because when I do address such issues I am never kind and I never mince my words or use four-letter words sparingly.

The issues here are (1) whether Muslim-owned establishments should open for business before 3.00pm (meaning for breakfast and lunch) during the fasting month and (2) whether Muslims should be allowed to buy food before 3.00pm (since they are supposed to be fasting).

There is a third issue as well. The Perak Mufti said it is haram for Muslims to break their fast in establishments that sell liquor but we shall talk about that later.

If we enforce this 3.00pm ruling then MAS is going to face a problem if they lock up all the food and drinks and refuse to serve the passengers any food or drink until after 3.00pm. MAS will lose a lot of business — not that it is doing great as it is already.

What about government-owned hotels (and there are many)? Do they also close down the kitchen, restaurant and coffee house and not open for business until after 3.00pm? If they do that then is it not better that they just close down the entire hotel for a month during the month of Ramadhan?

So Muslim-owned establishments must not sell food and drinks to Muslims until after 3.00pm. But how do we know who is fasting and who is not? What if that particular customer suffers from some illness that does not allow him or her to fast? Are we going to demand to see a letter from a doctor (and it has to be a Muslim doctor) that says the bearer of this letter must eat every two hours and for health reasons cannot fast?

Maybe we can solve the problem regarding MAS by employing just non-Muslim flight staff. Then there will not be a single Muslim staff amongst the crew (not even in the cockpit). So MAS can then continue serving food and drinks on its flights 24-7 and not just after 3.00pm.

Now, MAS serves liquor. So, since it is haram for Muslims to break fast in establishments that sell or serve liquor, all the Muslim passengers must not break their fast on the flight. They need to hold back (even if it is 10 hours) until they touch down and then break their fast.

But the airport (even in Muslim countries) also sells liquor so they cannot also break fast in the airport. They need to wait until they leave the airport. And if they happen to be on a 12-hour transit while waiting for the next flight then they will need to abstain another 12 hours, get on the next flight, touch down at the next destination, and then leave the airport to break fast.

This may mean they need to fast for 24 hours but if this will ensure you do not break your fast in a haram way I am sure God will multiply your credits by leaps and bounds.

Aiyah! I don’t want to write any more today. Fed up already. I think I will just go and play my drums. Sigh…..Bye….

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Muslim eateries cannot sell food to Muslims before 3pm, minister explains

(Malay Mail Online) – Muslim restaurants are barred from selling food before 3pm to Muslims who are fasting, Islamic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom explained, amid public outcry over the government’s latest restriction for Ramadan.

Jamil Khir pointed out that it was “not reasonable” for fasting Muslims to purchase food before 3pm.

“It is not reasonable for Muslims to buy meals before 3pm unless they are not fasting,” he was quoted saying yesterday by The Star today.

He admitted that it would be too rigid for the government to dictate a restaurant’s opening hours but said the 3pm rule on Muslim patrons was necessary to ensure they do not skip their fast during Ramadan.

“We have to enforce this rule (of no sales before 3pm) so as not to encourage people to skip their fast,” he said.

Last Saturday, Jamil Khir similarly said that Muslim eateries who defied the 3pm rule during the fasting month risk punishment, with the New Straits Times local daily reporting that they would face a RM300 compound and seizure of their equipment.

Yesterday, The Malay Mail Online reported the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) president Noorul Hassan Saul Hameed as saying that some of his 3000-odd members are “still confused” as the government had not provided them with the “proper guidelines” on the 3pm rule.

Pointing to fast-food restaurants which Kedah said would be exempted from the 3pm rule, Noorul questioned the enforcement that he said smacked of “double standard”, pointing out that Muslims could still go to such outlets to eat during fasting hours.

It was “unfair” not to enforce the same ruling on fast-food outlets that carried the halal certification like all other Muslim-operated eateries, he said.

During the whole fasting month which started on June 29, Muslim restaurants would stand to lose out if they were barred from selling food to non-Muslims before 3pm while also incurring high rental and overhead costs, he said.

One factor that should also be weighed is that certain Muslims exempted from fasting such as young children and women who are menstruating would still need to eat and buy halal food during fasting hours, he had told The Malay Mail Online.

In another report by local daily The Star today, Noorul also said that Islam does not prohibit Muslims from operating food outlets during the fasting month.

He also said the 3pm rule was a “short-sighted solution” as Muslims could still buy food from food courts in supermarkets and from convenience stores.

Raja Petra Kamarudin RPK