Kuala Lampur, January 03: A court ruling allowing Christians to use the word “Allah” to refer to God is sparking furor in Malaysia, amid warnings that the move would harm religious harmony in the multi-ethnic country.
“The court decision is not right,” Syed Hassan Syed Ali, secretary general of Malay rights group Pribumi Perkasa, told.
“We are planning to hold a major demonstration to protest this.”
The High Court on Thursday, December 31, overturned a government ban on the use of the word “Allah” by Christians in publications to refer to God.
It is “an insult to Muslims in this country,” said Northern Perak state mufti Harussani Zakaria.
Scores of Malaysians gathered after the weekly Friday prayers to protest the court verdict.
The use of the word “Allah” in Christian publications in the local Malay language has triggered a controversy in the Muslim-majority southeast Asian country.
God… or Allah?
The crisis began after a local Catholic weekly, The Herald, used the word is its Malay-language edition.
The government threatened to revoke the weekly’s license if it continued printing the word.
Touchy
Malaysian Muslims warned that the ruling would harm religious harmony in the multi-ethnic country.
“We fear that the court victory will mean that Christian missionaries will now use the word, confusing Muslims and undermining religious harmony,” said Syed, of the Pribumi Perkasa.
Race, language and religion are touchy issues in multiethnic Malaysia, where Muslim Malays form about 60 percent of the 26-million population.
Christians, including a Catholic population of nearly 800,000, make up around 9.1 percent of the population.
“Actually, non-Muslims in the country accept the fact that the word ‘Allah’ belongs to Muslims,” Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, Minister of Family, Women and Community Development, said.
“I am concerned that the issue can ‘explode’ if not handled wisely and with utmost care.
“In a country like Malaysia, culture, tradition, convention and ethics, apart from the law, play a critical role in ensuring harmony among the races.”
Federation of Malay Students’ Association called on the government to appeal the ruling.
“We want to live in peace with all religions here,” said adviser Reezal Merican.
“But the word Allah has traditionally in Malaysia been used to represent the Muslim God, which is different from Christianity, and this must be addressed.”
-Agencies