1. The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my)
Khairy slams magazine over unethical journalism, 17 July 2009
PETALING JAYA: Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has condemned the actions of journalists from Al-Islam magazine for going undercover to churches which supposedly converted Muslims.
“The actions of journalists from the magazine can only be described as appalling and offensive,” he said in his blog yesterday.
Khairy said as a Barisan Nasional and Umno Youth leader as well as a Muslim, he had no reservations condemning such unethical journalism which were grounded in both disrespect and ignorance.
“Needless to say, these actions are contrary to the goal of an empathetic society that I have been promoting,” he said.
He said empathy required the appreciation of one another’s unique cultures and sensitivities and called for everyone to consider the perspectives of others before acting in ways that might have affected them.
“It also violates the Islamic injunction for empathy, plurality and respect, something made clear in the Holy Quran,” Khairy added.
He said everyone involved in the researching, writing and publishing of this article should have considered the fact that Muslims already find it offensive when non-Muslims do not observe basic courtesies expected when in a mosque.
“I am hopeful that this issue will not be hijacked or spiral into one that pits Islam and Muslims against Christianity and Christians.
“It was never about that.
“Instead, it is a case of unethical, and dare I say, un-Islamic journalism that has inadvertently underscored some of the reasons why genuine harmony is still elusive,” he said.
2. MySinChew.com (http://www.mysinchew.com)
CFM accuses Al Islam magazine of desecration, 17 July 2009
LETTER
The Christian Federation of Malaysia deeply regrets the surreptitious manner in which information was gathered for, and the publication by the magazine Al Islam of, the article entitled “Tinjauan Al Islam Dalam Gereja: Mencari Kesahihan Remaja Murtad” in its May 2009 edition where the “investigators” took it upon themselves to be “undercover spies and policemen”.
Firstly it is not proper or acceptable for adherents of one religion to spy on worshippers of another. Matters of faith and belief are personal, and it should not be the case that citizens of Malaysia should be made to live in fear of professing and practising the religion of their own free choice in public.
Regrettably the interpretation/existence of certain laws, customs, practices and teachings in Malaysia has bred a type of religious imperialism, intolerance, intemperance and illegality which is unhealthy and unhelpful in the development of a truly multi-racial, multi-cultural and multi-religious society where everyone is able to profess and practice their own faith free from the interference of the authorities, whether civil or religious.
Secondly, no right-thinking publication and editor should have stooped so low so as to condone, let alone permit, this so-called investigative piece of journalism (if the article can even be called that) to be published. The authors of this article clearly failed in their stated aim as described in their chosen title – to seek the truth about Muslim youths who had converted to Christianity. It should have ended there.
That it went further, and led to the actual publication of the article and the proud disclosure of acts which can only be described as religious desecration (by the illicit and wrongful participation in the rite of Holy Communion of Christians without understanding its meaning and consequences), only goes to reveal the moral, ethical and journalistic bankruptcy of the editors of this publication. The sacrilegious behaviour of the authors simply breached all standards of common decency. All God-fearing and peace-loving Malaysians, regardless of their faith traditions, should rightly distance themselves from such conduct.
Thirdly, Christianity has nothing to hide. If people indeed seek the truth, if they are curious about what Christianity is all about, what Christians do, what Christians believe, they need only ask. If they sincerely wish to learn, we welcome them with open and loving arms, as we do people of all faiths, or of none, into our churches and seminaries to learn more about Christianity. There is no need to snoop or to spy. Doing so is merely going about things the wrong way.
Finally, we trust that the authorities will do the right thing and take the necessary action to correct the wrong that has been done.
The Rt. Revd. Ng Moon Hing
Chairman, Executive Committee
Christian Federation of Malaysia
Petaling Jaya
17 July 2009
(End)
