New Straits Tims (http://www.nst.com.my)
Positive start to religious dialogue , 10 August 2008
MORE dialogue is necessary to increase understanding and resolve the problems between Muslims and non-Muslims.
This is the conclusion formed by religious leaders who attended the two-day special session on religion by the Department of National Unity and Integration.
And most of them were happy with the outcome of the first dialogue session, although no firm decision was reached on any issue.
"We had a heart-to-heart talk," said Datuk A. Vaithilingam, president of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism.
"Nothing was actually decided but many points were raised that we were able to explain and clarify to each other and that was very good."
Tentative consensus was reached on some issues. For example, a person who divorces, irrespective of religion, should be obligated to look after the spouse.
"I think Muslims were able to understand that a man who converts to Islam should still be responsible to look after the wife and children he had before converting.
"This is a breakthrough for us," said Vaithilingam, who claims that the council speaks for 45 per cent of the country's population who did not profess Islam as their religion.
However, he said the Muslim group was very firm on the issue of apostasy.
"They feel that once you go into Islam, you cannot come out. We were firm that this should not be the case. So there is no agreement on this. We felt it should be further discussed."
He said many non-Muslims feel marginalised in today's Malaysia and there is growing discomfort with the rapid Islamisation of our society.
"So this (dialogue) is a very positive step and something that must continue so that we can all sit down and talk with one another to find amicable solutions to our problems."
Vaithilingam said the inter-religious dialogue that was held was akin to the Inter-Faith Commission that his group proposed a few years ago.
"There was a lot of misunderstanding and disagreement from the Muslim group then. But what is happening now is similar to what we had proposed."
Reverend Dr Hermen Shastri, general secretary of the Council of Churches of Malaysia, said: "I don't think we can rush solutions. More dialogues need to follow. We should also expand the Muslim representation to include progressive groups."
And he was not too happy that the dialogue seemed more like a question-and-answer session at times "rather than a common grappling of issues related to the legitimate rights of citizens".
Tan Hoe Chiew of the Federation of Taoist Associations of Malaysia said he was happy with the dialogue but "they made us a bit uncomfortable as they kept stressing that Islam was the religion of the land and that the sultanate and the Malays were here long before the Chinese and the Indians.
"We never disputed that. We only want our rights to profess other religions to be respected."
Sabariah Abdullah, head of the Allied Coordinating Committee of Islamic NGOs (ACCIN) said in a text message that the meeting "was a good start to express feelings, anxieties and dissatisfactions from both sides".
"Although we can't find all the solutions to the problems, it was a fruitful event."
To continue with this spirit, she said ACCIN was organising two more dialogues at the end of this month with Hindu Sanggam and a Christian group.
"Everyone engaged in inter-religious dialogues must keep an open mind. Listen to what is said, not who says it.
"We must respect others and at the end of the day, celebrate the agreements and respect the idea of 'agreeing to disagree'. We can be different and yet live in harmony; laws of the country must be respected."
Prof Dr Azizan Baharudin, director of the Cultural Dialogue Centre, who was present to ensure that the ethics of the dialogue was observed, felt "the delegates were able to be honest with each other".
"Both parties felt that they were so burdened with stereotypical images of each other.
"They proved themselves wrong and they showed that they were mature enough and strong enough to listen," she said.
Although at times some people were emotional, Azizan said that was unavoidable.
"We are only humans. Most importantly, they have the strength and skill to manage their emotions and keep the dialogue going."
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