KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 31 — The Dewan Rakyat Speaker and its secretary have asked the courts to strike out a lawsuit by the son of a former deputy prime minister over proposed amendments for heftier Shariah penalties, a lawyer confirmed today. Mansoor Saat, the lawyer for Mohamed Tawfik Ismail who filed the lawsuit, said Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Datuk Kamaludin Md Said will hear on January 11 the application for dismissal by the sole two respondents, Dewan Rakyat’s Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia and secretary Datuk Roosme Hamzah. Mansoor told Malay Mail Online that the duo cited the Federal Constitution’s Articles 62(1) and 63(1) provisions on the supremacy of Parliament for their appli

KUALA LUMPUR: The religious authorities’ aversion to the use of reason in understanding Islamic texts is against the spirit of challenging prevailing views on the religion as practised by Muslim scholars during the early stage of the development of the Islamic jurisprudence, a theologian told a forum today. Speaking at a forum convened by Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) on the question, “Is reason a threat to faith and society?”, Isham Pawan Ahmad said it was this that allowed a Muslim scholar like Imam Shafie to challenge the prevailing religious ideas of his time including those of Imam Malik and Imam Abu Hanifah, whose teachings led to the development of the Maliki and Hanafi schools in S

THE declaration of Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki that the Barisan Nasional (BN) government is not shirking its responsibility to make Malaysia an Islamic state has spooked BN component parties, especially MCA. Asyraf added that the government was providing the financial resources to empower Islam, and that this year alone, RM987 million was provided to the Education Ministry for Islamic education, and RM559 million to the Islamic Development Department (Jakim). An Islamic state is a type of government primarily based on the application of sharia law for the dispensation of justice and the maintenance of law and order. Jakim is a department under the P

KUALA LUMPUR: First there was the United States; then came China. Now, Saudi Arabia is trying to peddle its influence in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. The entry of Saudi Arabia, especially the pushing of its Islamic agenda, is likely to affect Asean and the relationships within the grouping, according to an analysis in The Diplomat. Written by Naishad Kai-ren, the article says Saudi Arabia’s influence peddling will deepen the cultural divide and raise difficult questions about Asean unity and security. It says while Saudi funds will be good for the economies of Malaysia and Indonesia, it will also provide the energy for the growing Islamic conservatism in the region to continue. When King Sal

Morocco’s forward-thinking King has reformed its religious affairs structure and is promoting a tolerant brand of Islam in his country and the region. VERY few places on earth offer you the chance to ski (on the slopes of the Atlas Mountains) and then trek through desert (the Western Sahara desert) in the same country on the same day! Morocco, spanning the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, is just such a place. The kingdom has spectacular scenery, amazing food, and most importantly, welcoming locals. Tourism, currently the second-largest foreign exchange earner after the phosphate industry, is fast becoming the No. 1 revenue earner. My visit to this North African country was an eye-opene

A brave new book describes how Pakistan unraveled — and provides a blueprint for understanding declining pluralism across the Middle East. When national security advisor H.R. McMaster wanted to convince U.S. President Donald Trump that Afghanistan was not hopeless, he whipped out a 1972 black-and-white picture of women in miniskirts on the streets of Kabul.The point of this exercise was presumably to show that the country once embraced Western ideals and could do so again with America’s assistance. McMaster’s trick worked: Trump ultimately reversed his earlier skepticism about the war effort and decided to raise troop levels. But it also showed the continued limits of America’s understanding

It's a lesson for Taliban wannabes, says Noor Farida Ariffin. PETALING JAYA: The G25 group of prominent Malays has lauded the Sultan of Selangor’s move to revoke the religious teaching credentials of controversial preacher Zamihan Mat Zin, saying it sends an important message for “Taliban wannabes” in the country. Its spokesperson Noor Farida Ariffin said she saluted Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah for the “apt decision” to protect the image of Islam. “Let this be a lesson to all the Taliban wannabes and religious racists,” she told FMT. “We do not need this kind of people in Malaysia as they do not fit in a multi-racial and multi-religious society.” In a statement yesterday, the Selangor pala

The Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia (PAGE) recently convened its seventh annual general meeting. As the chairman, I commend the council, steering committee and members, as well as supporters, for sticking it out this long. While it began merely as a casual group for those with schoolgoing children advocating a single cause, we have since become a national society and, if I may add, a responsible and respected voice for parents on educational matters at every level. While being recognised by the Ministry of Education was a given, we continue to be consulted on science education by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti). More recently, to be invited to participat

On Friday, 13 October 2017, G25 through our lawyers filed an application for leave to apply for judicial review at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur to quash the ban of our book, “Breaking the Silence: Voices of Moderation – Islam in a Constitutional Democracy”. The ban, signed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs Dato’ Seri Dr. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on 14 June 2017 and gazetted on 27 July 2017, came 19 months after the book’s launch on 5 December 2015 which was officiated by YBM Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. Since its ban, G25 has tried to get the ban removed without resorting to judicial review. We have sent a request to remove the ban in a letter to the Minister of Home Affa

The danger in Jakim preacher Zamihan’s video is not just the inflammatory racial slurs on the non-Muslims, specifically non-Malay non-Muslims, but the dare he threw to the Constitutional Monarchs and the elected Government of the day to make him a Martyr for the Islamo-Fascist agenda. This agenda, from his own mouth and as a Jakim officer, is to replace the monarchical system with a theocracy when he dismissed and belittled the Sultan of Johore’s decree on the Muar laundrette. It was reinforced a few days later when the Deputy Minister in charge of Jakim publicly declared it was Barisan Nasional’s goal to create an Islamic State in Malaysia, ignoring the Constitution as well as ignoring what

Peace be with you. Liberalism is a ten-letter word but to many Muslim leaders and Ulama, it’s a five lettered one – HARAM. As such, they see this word as a bad word and not in line with Islam, which is rather unfortunate. Let me explain. While the west and the world generally see John Locke the 17th century English philosopher and physician as the Father of Liberalism, I found my liberal role model in my Prophet, Prophet Muhammad. With all due respect to John Locke, to me, none in history can beat my Prophet in liberating humanity. Let me give you 10 examples. 1. The Prophet liberated women (eg. Quran 2:228, 33:35, 16:97), 2. Gave rights to everyone to do business and be successful (eg. 2:18

WHEN Ustaz Zamihan Mat Zin, an officer at Jakim spewed his racial filth on Malaysians of Chinese origin and criticizes the Sultans as seen on YouTube, people were shocked by his crudeness and the absurdity of his speech. What is more disturbing he is under the employment of Jakim, the controversial department under the PM’s office with a yearly RM1 billion budget. There is not much details on how this RM1 Billion is spent annually. According to one Syazwani Suhani presentation chart, Jakim was established by the government in 1997 to take over Islamic affairs. It seems there are three areas Jakim is focused on; Policy sector, Human Resources sector and Management sector. It’s core business i

INTERNATIONALLY acclaimed Tur­kish Islamic intellectual Mustafa Akyol was detained by the Federal Territories Islamic Affairs Depart­ment (Jawi) on Sept 24 for giving a talk on Islam without prior accreditation from the relevant Religious Teaching Supervisory Committee. His host, Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa of the Islamic Renaissance Front, is being investigated for abetting him. This embarrassing episode throws up significant issues of constitutional law. Let us note that in a country with a supreme Consti­tution, any civil or criminal, federal or state, secular or religious law cannot be enacted to confer absolute powers on any one. Violation of Article 11(4): In the matter of freedom of religion

Kumpulan itu berbangga raja-raja Melayu membuat pendirian terhadap ekstremisme yang tersebar, susulan kontroversi dasar perniagaan untuk "orang Islam sahaja". PETALING JAYA: Kumpulan G25 menyokong Majlis Raja-raja Melayu mengecam tindakan individu dan kumpulan yang merisikokan keharmonian masyarakat berbilang kaum dan agama atas nama Islam, dan menyeru kerajaan dan rakyat menyokong raja-raja Melayu melalui tindakan dan kata-kata. Kumpulan itu dalam kenyataan hari ini berkata mereka berbangga raja-raja Melayu membuat pendirian terhadap “ekstremisme yang tersebar”, susulan kontroversi dasar perniagaan untuk “orang Islam sahaja”. “Kami amat berterima kasih raja-raja kita tidak berdiam diri, ket

The Full Original Media Statement in BM & English PETALING JAYA: The Malay Rulers are concerned that the unity and harmony in Malaysia are eroding as the nation faces an onslaught of racially controversial issues. "In recent weeks, the actions of certain individuals have gone beyond all acceptable standards of decency, putting at risk the harmony that currently exists within our multi-religious and multi-ethnic society," said Keeper of the Ruler's Seal Tan Sri Datuk Seri Syed Danial Syed Ahmad in a statement on Tuesday. "The Rulers are of the opinion that the damaging implications of such actions are more severe when they are erroneously associated with or committed in the name of Islam. "As

We, the members of G25, wholeheartedly support the stance taken by the Majlis Raja Raja Melayu in condemning the actions of individuals and groups who, in the name of Islam, put the harmony that exists among Malaysia’s multi-ethnic and multi-racial society at risk. The actions by these individuals and groups reflect an ever-increasing move away from a moderate Islam and a moderate Malaysia, contradicting the Government’s international stance. Indeed, these actions by the extremist few pose a very serious threat to peace, harmony and stability to our beloved nation and must be nipped in the bud right now. The members of G25 are proud to have the Majlis Raja Raja Melayu who stand united as lea

I REFER to the letter from Dr Ranjit Singh, “Adopt inclusive approach in history” (The Star, Oct 2), commenting on the secondary school history textbooks in Malaysia and the heavy Malay-Islamic bias that he saw in these books. His opinion is not far-fetched because I too have seen a Form Four textbook on world history. Looking at the contents page, I saw so many chapters on the Islamic past that I became curious about what was inside. It did not look like world history to me. It looked more like a history book written for the purpose of satisfying the racial and religious politics in the country. Just a few days ago, I heard over the radio a discussion about Malaysian history. The topic was

Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) director and chairperson Farouk Musa has accused the authorities of attempting to curtail the way Malays think. He said this in response to the ban on three IRF books, including the Malay-language translation of Turkish journalist Mustafa Akyol’s book, under the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984. “They (the authorities) are basically trying to curtail the way Malays should think. We feel that...if we did not translate the book to Malay (from English) then the book might (still be available). “The book is banned because it has been translated into Malay, they want to control the minds of the Malays in this country,” he told Malaysiakini at the IRF secr

My colleagues at G25 and I are deeply saddened by the recent action taken by JAWI against Dr. Mustafa Akyol (a well-respected and prominent Turkish Islamic scholar, who was on a lecture tour in Malaysia) and Dr. Farouk Musa (head of the Islamic Renaissance Front) in regard to the talk that Dr. Mustafa gave at a forum organized by Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF). The action by JAWI was under section 11 (with respect to Dr. Mustafa) and section 43 (with respect to Dr. Farouk) of the Syariah Criminal Offences (Federal Territories) Act 1997. With the greatest respect to JAWI, I am at a loss to understand as to how a public discourse on Islam could be taken to be ‘teaching’ within section 11 of

G25 joins IRF and other civil society organisations to call on the Federal Government and State Governments to review all Syariah Acts and Enactments that are being used by the religious authorities to control public discussion on Islam and its application in the life of Muslims. The restrictions on intellectual dialogues, public forums and banning of books are making Malaysians of all races concerned that Islam is being used in ways that are detrimental to the fundamental liberties guaranteed under the Constitution and the Rule of Law. This will damage the country’s reputation for tolerance and moderation on matters of race and religion. It will also adversely affect public and investor con