Yesterday I received the three pieces of document below (No.1-3) from the Malaysian Christian office in Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan. They hope that these information will be widely circulated among those who may concerned so that this particular issue will attract more attention worldwide. (Lily)
1. CHRISTIAN FEDERATION OF MALAYSIA (PERSEKUTUAN KRISTIAN MALAYSIA)
CFM media statement on 15,000 Bahasa Malaysia Bibles held by authorities
CFM CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF 15,000 BIBLES
The Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) calls for the immediate release of the 15,000 Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia currently being withheld by the authorities.To withhold the use of the Bahasa Malaysia Bibles is an infringement of Article 11 of the Federal Constitution which gives every Malaysian the right to profess his/ her faith as well as to practice it.
This constitutional right is rendered illusory if Christians in Malaysia are denied access to Bibles in a language with which they are familiar.
This action of withholding the Bahasa Malaysia Bibles deprives Christians in Sabah, Sarawak , and in Semenanjung, a large majority of whom use Bahasa Malaysia, the right to use the Holy Scriptures in Bahasa Malaysia, to practice and profess their faith and, to nourish themselves spiritually.
It is baseless to withhold the Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia on the ground that they are “prejudicial to public order”. Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia have been used since before the independence of our country and has never been the cause of any public disorder.
Since the 1970s and in consonance with the government’s policies in education and the national language, Christians in Malaysia have received their education in Bahasa Malaysia. To deny the same Christians in Malaysia the right to read and study the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia is thus ridiculous and offensive. In fact, it is this action by the authorities themselves which is an affront to good public order.
We call on the relevant government officials who have neither the authority nor the right to act in this unconscionable manner to explain their action to the church leaders and to the public.
Church leaders and the Executive Committee of the CFM in “An Affirmation to the Churches in Malaysia” (6-8 Sept 1989, the Kuching consultation) and then later in “A Declaration to Churches in Malaysia” (30 January 2008) have stood on their commitment to Bahasa Malaysia as our national language and have used and continue to use Bahasa Malaysia in the life and witness of our Churches and Christian organizations.
The government and CFM have exchanged letters on this matter previously and we have a written agreement in December 2005 that Bahasa Malaysia Bibles can be distributed so long as the symbol of the cross and the words “A Christian publication” are printed on the front page.
We call on the government to walk the talk of its 1Malaysia policy and vision and not to curtail or impose conditions on the freedom of citizens to worship, pray and read the Holy Scriptures in Bahasa Malaysia. How can the first pillar of the Rukunegara i.e. Belief In God, be made a living reality in the lives of Malaysians if the government imposes restrictions and conditions on the constitutional and fundamental right of citizens to freedom of religion?
We ask that the relevant authorities resolve this matter promptly and release these Bibles for the use of Christians without any further delay or excuse.
Bishop Ng Moon Hing,
Chairman and the Executive Committee,
The Christian Federation of MalaysiaDated : 4 Nov 2009
2. PERISYTIHARAN UNTUK GEREJA GEREJA DI MALAYSIA
ORANG ORANG KRISTIAN DI MALAYSIA, bersama dengan masyarakat lainnya, menyatakan KOMITED kami terhadap penggunaan Bahasa Malaysia sebagai Bahasa Kebangsaan dan telah menggunakan dan akan terus menggunakan Bahasa Malaysia di dalam hidup dan kesaksian Gereja dan organisiasi Kristian.
PEMIMPIN PEMIMPIN GEREJA yang diwakili oleh PERSEKUTUAN GEREJA MALAYSIA (CFM) telah berkonsultasi di Kuching, Sarawak pada 6 – 8 September 1989, untuk membincangkan tentang larangan yang dikuatkuasakan secara undang undang di beberapa negeri tentang penggunaan kata kata dan ungkapan dalam Bahasa Malaysia oleh orang orang bukan Islam, dan kerumitan yang semakin bertambah ketika berhadapan dengan pihak berkuasa dalam hal penerbitan, pengedaran dan pengimportan Alkitab dan bahan penulisan Kristian lain dalam Bahasa Malaysia dan Bahasa Indonesia.
PEMIMPIN PEMIMPIN GEREJA yang hadir pada KONSULTASI DI KUCHING, setelah membincangkan perkara ini dengan panjang lebar dan mendalam serta melihat kesannya terhadap orang Kristian di Malaysia, dengan ini mengisytiharkan dan meyakinkan semua bahawa:
1. larangan yang cuba dilaksanakan adalah bertentangan dengan Perlembagaan Persekutuan dan menghina undang undang yang mana tindakan dan penilaian berbagai pentadbiran ini adalah menghalang kemasukan bahan penulisan Kristian dalam Bahasa Malaysia dan Bahasa Indonesia.
2. kami mempunyai hak dan boleh menggunakan Bahasa Kebangsaan, Bahasa Malaysia, dalam penggunaan menyeluruh bersama dengan bahasa lain tanpa menghiraukan perbezaan kepercayaan; dan
3. segala usaha akan dilakukan untuk memaklumkan kepada pihak berkuasa dan mereka yang berpengaruh dalam polisi awam mengenai pendirian kami dan mencari cara supaya larangan tersebut dimansuhkan dan mendapatkan penilaian yang tidak berat sebelah dan adil dalam kes kes keagaamaan.
Kami MENGUKUHKAN pendirian kami untuk terus menggunakan Bahasa Malaysia keseluruhannya;
MENGUNGKAPKAN perpaduan kami sebagai orang Kristian dalam menghadapi bersama segala yang muncul akibat dari pendirian dan keyakinan kami.
DAN MENDORONG semua gereja berwaspada dan terus menerus mendoakan agar kebijaksanaan diambil oleh yang berkenaan untuk menyelesaikan dengan aman isu yang serius ini dan untuk kelangsungan kesatuan, keharmonian dan kedamaian bangsa dimana keadilan, hak asasi manusia dan maruah bangsa ditingkatkan pada sepanjang masa.
Dikeluarkan oleh Pemimpin Pemimpin Gereja dan Komiti Eksekutif Persekutuan Gereja Gereja SeMalaysia (CFM)
Pada Konsultasi di Kuching, September 1989
Disemak dan dikeluarkan menurut keputusan Komiti Eksekutif Persekutuan Gereja Gereja SeMalaysia pada 30th January 2008.
3. A DECLARATION TO THE CHURCHES IN MALAYSIA
CHRISTIANS IN MALAYSIA, together with the rest of the nation, are COMMITTED to Bahasa Malaysia as our national language and have used and continue to use Bahasa Malaysia in the life and witness of our Churches and Christian organizations.
LEADERS OF CHURCHES represented in the CHRISTIAN FEDERATION OF MALAYSIA (CFM) met in consultation at Kuching, Sarawak from the 6th to the 8th of September, 1989 to consider the restriction sought to be imposed by law in various States on the use by non-Muslims of certain words and expressions in Bahasa Malaysia and the increasing difficulties encountered with the relevant authorities in the publication, distribution and importation of the Alkitab and other Christian literature particularly in Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia.
Having deliberated at length and depth on these matters and their effect on Christians in Malaysia, THE LEADERS OF CHURCHES present at THE KUCHING CONSULTATION wish to declare and assure all Christians that :
1. the restriction sought to be imposed are contrary to the Federal Constitution and objectionable in law as are the various administrative actions and measures taken to deny access to Christian literature in Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia;
2. we have a right and are entitled to use the national language, Bahasa Malaysia, in its entirety as with any other language without any distinction on the grounds of differing faith;
3. all efforts will be taken to inform the relevant authorities and the people who have influence on public policy of our stand and to seek ways to have the restrictions revoked and to pursue a fairer and just implementation of administrative measures in the case of religious material.
WE AFFIRM our stand to continue our use of Bahasa Malaysia in its entirety;
RESTATE our solidarity as Christians in facing together whatever may arise on account of our stand and conviction;
AND URGE all Churches to be vigilant and unceasing in prayers for wisdom on the part of all concerned to amicably resolve this issue and for the maintenance of a united, harmonious and peaceful nation where justice, human rights and human dignity are upheld at all times.Issued by Leaders of Churches and the Executive Committee of CFM
At The Kuching Consultation, Sept 1989
Revised and released by the decision of the Executive Committee of the Christian Federation of Malaysia on 30th January 2008.
4. The Straits Times (http://www.straitstimes.com)
M'sia refuses to release Bibles, 4 November 2009
KUALA LUMPUR - THE Malaysian government has refused to release 10,000 Bibles confiscated for using the word 'Allah' to refer to God, a banned translation in Christian texts in this Muslim-majority country, an official said on Wednesday.
An official from the Home Ministry's publications unit said the government rejected pleas by church officials to allow the Bibles, imported from Indonesia, into the country. Christians say the Muslim Malay-dominated government is violating their right to practice their religion freely.
Such religious disputes are undermining Malaysia's reputation as a harmonious multiethnic, moderate Muslim nation. About 30 percent of the country's 28 million people practice Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism or other faiths.
A Home Ministry official said the government told the importer last month to return the Indonesian-language Bibles, which are still with customs.
'Actually the publications, the Bibles are already banned,' said the official, refusing to elaborate. He declined to be named because he is not authorised to make public statements.
The Bibles contain the word 'Allah,' which is banned by the government for use by non-Muslims in an apparent bid to appease Muslims. Church officials say the word 'Allah' has been used for centuries to refer generally to God in both Indonesian and Malaysian languages, which are similar. The Roman Catholic Church is challenging the ban in court. -- AP
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
5. The Star Online （http://thestar.com.my）
Authorities asked to release 15,000 seized Bibles, 4 November 2009
by SHAILA KOSHY (koshy@thestar.com.my)
KUALA LUMPUR: The Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) has called for the immediate release of the 15,000 Bahasa Malaysia Bibles being withheld by the authorities.
It said the seizure contravened Article 11 of the Federal Constitution which gives all Malaysians the right to profess and practise his faith.
“This constitutional right is rendered illusory if Christians in Malaysia are denied access to Bibles in a language with which they are familiar,” said its chairman Bishop Ng Moon Hing and executive committee in a statement Wednesday.
They said withholding the Bibles deprived Christians in Sabah, Sarawak and in the peninsula, a large majority of whom use Bahasa Malaysia, “the right to use the Holy Scriptures in Bahasa Malaysia, to practise and profess their faith and to nourish themselves spiritually.”
They said it was baseless to withhold the Bibles on the ground that they were prejudicial to public order since they had been in existence before independence and had never caused public disorder.
“Since the 1970s and in consonance with the Government’s policies in education and the national language, Christians in Malaysia have received their education in Bahasa Malaysia.
“To deny the same Christians the right to read and study the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia is thus ridiculous and offensive. In fact, it is this action by the authorities themselves which is an affront to good public order.
“We call on the relevant government officials who have neither the authority nor the right to act in this unconscionable manner to explain their action to the church leaders and to the public,” they said, adding that churches stood to their commitment to Bahasa Malaysia as the national language.
They said the Government had in an agreement in 2005 stated Bahasa Malaysia Bibles could be distributed so long as the symbol of the cross and the words “A Christian publication” were printed on the front page.
They called on the Government to walk the talk of its 1Malaysia policy and not impose conditions on the freedom of citizens to worship, pray and read the Holy Scriptures in Bahasa Malaysia.
“How can the first pillar of the Rukunegara, that is, ‘Belief In God,’ be made a living reality if the Government imposes restrictions and conditions on the constitutional and fundamental right of citizens to freedom of religion?” they said.
© 1995-2009 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd (Co No 10894-D)
6. BBC News(http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/8343626.stm)
Malaysia withholds 'Allah Bibles' , 4 November 2009
by Robert Pigott, Religious affairs correspondent
The Malaysian government has refused to release 10,000 Bibles which it seized because they contained the word Allah to refer to God.
The government, which is dominated by Muslim Malays, claims that the word Allah is Islamic and that its use in Bibles could upset Muslims.
The Roman Catholic Church is challenging the ban in court.
Religion has become highly sensitive in Malaysia, where about two-thirds of the population is Muslim.
Religious minorities have accused the government of undermining their rights.
The government has impounded Bibles before, intercepting 5,000 in March as they were imported from Indonesia.
Church officials say that although the word Allah originated in Arabic, Malays have used it for centuries to refer generally to God, and Arabic-speaking Christians used it before Islam was founded.
The Christian Federation of Malaysia said the religious freedom guaranteed by the Malaysian constitution was meaningless if people were denied Bibles which used their own language.
© BBC MMIX
7. “Charles Hector” (http://charleshector.blogpost.com.my)
DAP has made clear its position on the 'Allah' issue...what about PKR, PAS and Pakatan Rakyat? , 3 November 2009
With reference to my earlier posting, Pakatan should take a clear stand on the 'Allah' issue..., or is it the same as the BN position?,, I am pleased to state that the DAP has come out clearly as to their position.
Now we wait for Anwar Ibrahim and/or PKR, and for PAS's position. What is the Pakatan position is still not declared.
Test for 1Malaysia – Najib should ask Cabinet on Wednesday to revoke earlier decision to ban the use of word “Allah” for religions other than Islam
Malaysia is again at the centre of adverse international publicity despite our tourist promotion of Malaysia as a harmonious and model multi-religious nation and the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s new slogan of 1Malaysia.
In the past few days, the world media like CNN and international press have been giving extensive coverage to the government seizure of 15,000 Bibles in recent months because they refer to God as “Allah” raising concerns and fears of religious intolerance in the country.
A consignment of 10,000 copies of the Indonesian-language Bibles which feature the disputed word “Allah” was confiscated in Kuching, Sarawak in September while another consignment of 5,100 Bibles was seized in March.
The root problem of the seizure of these Bibles is the earlier decision taken by the Cabinet to ban the use of the word “Allah” for religions other than Islam, although this is a most unreasonable, divisive and even unconstitutional decision as:
1. The term “Allah” was in use long before there was the religion of Islam in the world;
2. The term Allah was used to refer to God by Arabic-speaking Christians before Arabic-speaking Muslims existed; and
3. Malaysia is probably the only nation where the use of the term “Allah” by Christians to refer to their God is prohibited, whereas its use to refer to Christian God has never been prohibited in many countries in the Middle-East and the Americas.
The confiscation of the Bibles and the ban on the use of the word “Allah” for religions other than Islam is incongruous with and even inimical to Najib’s 1Malaysia objective to give top priority to foster better inter-racial, inter-religious and inter-civilisational relations among Malaysians.
This is a test whether Najib’s 1Malaysia is to be taken seriously and I call on him to ask the Cabinet to revoke its earlier decision taken under previous administrations to ban the use of the word “Allah” for religions other than Islam.
I hope all Cabinet Ministers, particularly from MCA, Gerakan, MIC and the Sabah and Sarawak component parties of Barisan Nasional can take a bold and united stand on this issue to convince UMNO Ministers to support the revocation of the previous Cabinet ban on the use of the word “Allah” for religions other than Islam, as at issue is the very credibility and legitimacy of Najib’s 1Malaysia slogan and policy.
(Speech at Taiping DAP “Road to Putrajaya” thousand-people dinner at Hua Lian Chinese Independent Secondary Hall, Taiping on Sunday, 1st November 2009) - Lim Kit Siang's Blog
8. “Centre for Policy Intitiatives” (http://www.cpiasia.net)
Malaysia now known to world as Bible grabbers , 1 November 2009
by Editor, CPI
Introduction by Editor, CPI
1Malaysia, 1copyright made the world news this week with wire agencies picking up the story that our authorities have seized Bibles by the truckloads. The word ‘Allah’ (contained in Bibles printed in the Malay language) is the sole proprietary right of Islam, according to the Malaysian government.
The Najib administration’s Top 5 PR firm Apco (rumoured to have been paid RM20 million) might just come in handy to rehabilitate the dented image of Malaysia, especially when a broadcaster with the global reach of CNN tagged this development ‘Bibles seized as Malaysia minorities fear fundamentalism’ – a sobering headline indeed.
Some international reports mentioned 15,000 copies in all were confiscated, others said 20,000 copies. As taxpayers indirectly funding Apco, we’d expect this renowned image shaping company to staunch the bad publicity, just in case further sensational coverage has journalists expanding the numbers to an even more damaging 25,000 or 50,000 copies.
But we can be somewhat reassured given that Apco is a ‘no play-play’ proposition, having represented global cigarette producers Philip Morris no less. Now the ‘damage control’ expertise of an outfit that strategises to make cancerous cigarette smoke smell good is surely not something to be scoffed at.
Known as heavyweight lifters, Apco not only marketed the message to negate the valid health concern which the tobacco industry poses, they are also influential Washington lobbyists. So let’s see how Najib’s expensive PR consultants, with their offices in the USA, deal with this one.
Sole ownership of God
On another note, there was a comment by Malaysiakini reader Md Imraz Muhammed Ikhbal Friday on this seizure of Bibles which was illuminating. He posted: “I really wonder in which other Holy Book did God stipulate that Allah is owned by the Muslims? Of certainty, such provision is nowhere traceable in the Holy Quran.”
Md Imraz’s line of considerate reasoning provides a refreshing departure from the confrontational and sanctimonious stance of people who are bestowed the monikers televengalist/motivational ‘ustaz’ although their PhDs are not in theology, such as Dr Hasan Ali, and Dr Mohd Ridhuan Tee Abdullah whose academic qualification is in political science-Umno thesis.
Showing how inter-faith dialogue can be conducted with civility and in the spirit of accommodation, Md Imraz comments that since Muslims assert that Allah is the sole creator of all things living, then logically all Christians are living creations of Allah too. Thus, he wonders why Muslims are annoyed by others using the same word in their worship.
Md Imraz adds: “Muslims also expect others to acknowledge and respect their religious followings. The chauvinistic ones even impose their religious standards down the throats others. But yet, when people of different religious faith acknowledge their one true God and seek to worship Him by His name, Muslims immediately claim exclusivity over the word.”
CNN: ‘Minorities fear fundamentalism’
Two salient points which can be gleaned, and in fact, ought to be highlighted from CNN reporter Saeed Ahmed’s take on issue are:
• Rulings by the Islamic, or sharia, courts are directed toward the country’s Muslim, who make up 60 percent of the population. But they worry non-Muslims who see them as Islamism seeping into the moderate nation’s fabric.
• The country has been mired in inter-faith disputes as well in recent months. In those cases, many non-Muslims complain that the civil courts generally cede control to Islamic courts.
Excerpt: “The seizures have fed fears among minority groups, which see signs of encroaching Islamic fundamentalism in the predominantly Muslim but multi-racial country.”
Saeed then quoted Rev. Hermen Shastri, general-secretary of the Council of Churches of Malaysia on Thursday saying that “There is a growing sense of Islamic assertion, yes”.
(End)
