・Malaysiakini.com (http://www.malaysiakini.com)
1. SIB church issue
(1)Sabah church lawsuit against PM postponed, 27 December 2007
by Khairil Zhafri
A Sabah church’s lawsuit against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and the government for banning the importation of Christian children books from Indonesia has been postponed to Jan 15 next year.
The suit which was filed on Dec 10 was scheduled for hearing today at the Kuala Lumpur High Court in Jalan Duta.
Sabah Sidang Injil Borneo Church’s lawyer Lim Heng Seng had submitted a certificate of urgency to the court to obtain the hearing today. However, senior federal counsel Azizah Nawawi, who is representing the government, requested for an adjournment as several relevant parties are in the midst of discussion to resolve the issue. Lim did not object to Azizah's application.
The suit, filed on behalf of the SIB Church by its president, Pastor Jerry Dusing, is against the government and the prime minister, who is also internal security minister, after six titles for their children’s Sunday school were confiscated by the authorities.
The church is seeking to nullify the ban to import four Bahasa Indonesia titles and the withholding of two other titles under the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984.
The church is also requesting the courts to compel the minister to return the consignment of materials that were ‘unlawfully detained’ by Custom officers at the Low-Cost Carrier Terminal on Aug 15. The ministry has replied in writing to the church in September explaining that the books were prohibited because the Bahasa Indonesia publications contained certain words that were exclusive to Islam. The words in contention are ‘Allah’ (God), ‘Baitullah’ (House of God), ‘Solat’ (prayer) and ‘Kaabah’ (The Sacred House).
The church had emphasised that the seized publications were for educational purposes within the church and not for sale or distribution.
The church is also seeking the court to rule on the constitutional right and legitimate expectation to the use of the term 'Allah' as a translation for God in Christian publications as well the right to import such publications. The suit came in the wake of the controversy involving the Catholic church’s weekly publication Herald after the Internal Security Ministry directed the bulletin to stop using the term “Allah” when referring to God or face a ban.
Last year, about 1,000 copies of bibles in Bahasa Indonesia were seized in Port Klang and had remained in Customs’ possession. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nazri Aziz had earlier told Parliament that the government prohibits the distribution of bibles in Bahasa Malaysia. The prime minister however stated that Bahasa Malaysia bibles are not banned but must be labelled with the words 'Not for Muslims’.
(2)Sabah church lawsuit postponed again, 16 January 2008
by Fauwaz Abdul Aziz
The Kuala Lumpur High Court today set Jan 29 to hear a leave application by the Sabah Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB) Church and its president to review the government’s seizure last August of Christian children’s books on grounds that they contained the word ‘Allah’.
In chambers this morning, Justice Wan Afrah Wan Ibrahim also set the date to hear their leave application to stay the government’s decision to bar the import and withhold delivery of the books until the case had been settled. SIB and its president Jerry WA Dusing (photo) were represented by lawyer DP Naban while the respondents to the suit- the Internal Security Minister and the government - were represented by senior federal counsel Azizah Nawawi. This morning, Wan Afrah allowed SIB and Dusing to submit their written submissions today. She gave a week for the government to hand in its submissions.
This is the second adjournment after Wan Afrah postponed an earlier hearing when the court was informed there was a possibility of an out-of-court settlement.
SIB claims to have about 100,000 members and roughly 600 churches throughout the country. About 10 of its representatives - including Dusing - had flown in from Sabah to be in court today, in addition to several others who are based in Kuala Lumpur. On Aug 15, customs officials at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport had seized the books and handed them to Internal Security Ministry officials after noticing the materials which were in Malay contained the word ‘Allah’.
Following SIB’s enquiries and requests for the return of the books, the ministry responded through letters in September and October last year that no publications other than Islamic materials can use the words ‘Allah’, ‘Kaabah’, ‘Baitullah’ and ‘Solat’. The ministry - citing a Dec 5, 1986 circular to Christian publishers - said that these words were “exclusive to the religion of Islam” and their use by non-Muslims other than to explain Islamic concepts would lead to “confusion” and “uneasiness” among the Muslim community.
SIB, however, had said that the seized publications were for educational purposes within the church and not for sale or distribution. The seizure, therefore, amounted to intervening in the religious practices and violation of the constitutional rights of SIB members to the free exercise of their religion, they argued. They also cited the use of the word Allah as a practice that predates Islam as well as a term presently in use by Christian Arabs throughout the world. They also noted that Malay translations of the Bible have been in use among Malay-speaking Christians of Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak since the 1600s.
In their suit, SIB and Dusing are seeking to quash the decision to restrict the import and to withhold delivery of the publications as well as the ministry’s proscription against the use of the word Allah by non-Muslims.
They are also seeking the court’s declaration, among other reliefs, on the constitutional right and legitimate expectation to the use of the term 'Allah' as a translation for God in Christian publications as well the right to import such publications. The suit came in the wake of the controversy involving the Catholic church’s weekly publication Herald after the same ministry directed the bulletin to stop using the term “Allah” when referring to God or face a ban. Last year, about 1,000 copies of bibles in Bahasa Indonesia were seized in Port Klang and had remained in Customs’ possession. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Aziz had earlier told parliament that the government prohibits the distribution of bibles in Bahasa Malaysia. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, however, stated that Bahasa Malaysia bibles are not banned but must be labelled with the words 'Not for Muslims’.
2. Christian children books
(1)Banning of children's books unbecoming, 31 December 2007
by Amar
The move by Sabah Sidang Injil Borneo Church president Pastor Jerry Dusing to sue the government and Internal Security Minister for prohibiting the import of six titles from Indonesia on the ridiculous grounds that they use the word ‘Allah’ is excellent.
Banning the import of the Christian children's educational material is an infringement of human rights. Unsurprisingly, this country is not a signatory to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and similar international conventions.
The non-Malay and mostly Christian bumiputeras of East Malaysia have traditionally used the word ‘Allah’ in their prayers and scriptures. It is their culture to use those words. The government’s gripe with East Malaysians’ Christian literature has to do with the fact that it is written in Bahasa Malaysia or Bahasa Indonesia. This explains the recent action against Catholic publication Herald. Without going into the polemics of who is entitled to use what word in their prayers, it is downright unbecoming of the government to stifle a community from using a particular language for their prayers. What is the government afraid of given that the key requirement of publications is that its circulation should be kept within the group's membership? If you are insecure about the strength of your own faith, do not stop others from pursuing theirs.
This government obviously cannot differentiate between tradition, religion, culture and language. It has a thing or two to learn from the world’s largest Muslim population - Indonesia.
(2)Christian children books seized, 11 January 2008
by Chua Sue-Ann
The Internal Security Ministry has confiscated English language Christian children’s books said to contain offensive caricatures of prophets from several bookshops in three states.
Malaysiakini learnt that these books have been seized from three MPH bookstores in Johor Bahru, Senawang in Negeri Sembilan and Ipoh, Perak. It is unclear if other book retailers have had similar raids.
The raids were conducted by state enforcement officials of the Publications and Al-Quran Texts Control Department under the Internal Security Ministry. Negeri Sembilan and Malacca department director Faizah Nor Sidek confirmed that a total of 29 books were seized in mid-December from the Senawang MPH outlet. According to Faizah, her department acted on a complaint from Islamic authorities. “The illustrations of prophets in the Christian children’s books are said to offend the sensitivities of Muslims,” she said when contacted today.
The six titles have been sent to the department’s headquarters in Putrajaya for investigation. Faizah said that the department had issued an official notice of confiscation to the bookstore’s management and will communicate the headquarter’s final decision to them. Director of the Perak department Mohamad Zaid also confirmed that more than 10 books have been taken off the shelves in the Ipoh Kinta City branch on Jan 3.
According to Zaid, enforcement officers received information from headquarters to remove the children’s books. MPH bookstores management declined to comment, saying that they will wait for the Internal Security Ministry’s official decision. Officials from the Publications and Al-Quran Texts Control Department headquarters were unavailable for comment.
These confiscations come amidst other controversial restrictions towards Christian publications.
Customs authorities seized six titles of Christian children’s books last August on the grounds that the Bahasa Indonesia publications contained certain words that were exclusive to Islam.
The words in contention are ‘Allah’ (God), ‘Baitullah’ (House of God), ‘Solat’ (prayer) and ‘Kaabah’ (The Sacred House). Sabah Sidang Injil Borneo Church - who sought to import these books for their Sunday school classes - have a lawsuit pending against the government and the prime minister, who is also the internal security minister. The hearing has been postponed to Jan 15 to allow relevant parties to seek a resolution to the issue.
The suit, filed by church president Pastor Jerry Dusing, is seeking the return of the consignment of materials that were confiscated by Custom officers at the Low-cost Carrier Terminal on Aug 15. The church also want the court to rule on the constitutional right and legitimate expectation to the use of the term 'Allah' as a translation for God in Christian publications as well the right to import such publications. Last month, controversy erupted over the Internal Security Ministry’s directive to the Catholic church’s weekly publication Herald to stop using the term ‘Allah’ when referring to God or risk having its printing license unrenewed.
The ministry has since renewed the weekly paper’s printing license after public outcry over the issue. However, the paper will persist with its lawsuit against the government to challenge the prohibition from using the word ‘Allah’.
(3) Christian children's books seizure a violation, 15 January 2008
by Gayathry Venkiteswaran
We refer to the Malaysiakini report Christian children books seized.
The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) is concerned with the recent seizure of Christian-themed books by the Internal Security Ministry, fuelling concerns that religious texts are under strict scrutiny in the country. While we realise that publications - both local and imported - are subject to the ministry's guidelines, CIJ feels that there is a continuous effort to target religious texts, in particular on Christianity and Islam, for control. The seizure also suggests that the ministry is willing to act on limited prompting, in this case complaints from the Islamic authorities, without applying broad-based discussions on the impact of such content. The ‘Islamic authorities’ claim that the books contained illustrations of the Prophet deemed offensive. Calls made by CIJ to the Internal Security Ministry for verification and comments went unanswered.
The seizure violates the people's right to freedom of information and expression. Seizing more than the needed copies for investigation, while the titles are not banned, denies the right of the people to access the book and is clearly highhanded.
Such highhandedness has caused alarm and discontent among the people - the public outcry over the Catholic Herald permit issue and the suit by the Sidang Injil against the government for confiscating the Malay version of Christian books are indicative of people feeling it increasingly difficult to accept the government's measure.
We also find objectionable the lack of transparency in the decision-making of both the Islamic authorities and the Internal Security Ministry reflected by the absence of identifiable complainants and the lack of clear explanation by the ministry.
We recommend that the ministry set up a committee to review its guidelines and policies on published content available in Malaysia. It is high time that the guidelines are open for public discussion. We also urge the Internal Security Ministry to return the books seized to the bookstores and retain only a minimum for investigation.
CIJ aspires for a society that is democratic, just and free, where all people will enjoy a free media and the freedom to express, seek, and impart information.
The writer is executive director, CIJ.
・The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my)
Church’s court case on book ban set for Jan 29, 17 January 2008
KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court has set Jan 29 to hear an application for leave by Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB) and its president for a judicial review against the Internal Security Minister’s decision to stop them from importing Christian educational books which contain the word “Allah”. The court fixed the same date to hear an application for stay of the minister’s decision pending the disposal of the judicial review. High Court (Appellate and Special Powers Division) Judge Justice Wan Afrah Wan Ibrahim set the date and ordered both parties to file their written submissions for the hearing. Lawyer Bobby Chew said he had filed the written submission for SIB and its president Pastor Jerry W.A. Dusing @ Jerry W. Patel yesterday.
SIB, also known as “Evangelical Church of Borneo”, is seeking a court order to quash the minister’s order to refuse the importation of four titles and withhold delivery of two titles of the publications from Indonesia. Among others, they are also asking for a declaration that it is their constitutional right to use “Allah” in the Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia translations of the Bible and in all religious publications and materials.
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