1. New Straits Times（http://www.nst.com.my）
Najib urges world’s moderates to work together to over come extremists, 28 September 2010
From Zainul Arifin in New York
EXTREMISM in all manner and forms, which is hijacking the international agenda and threatening peace and prag matism, must be defeated by moderation before a more peaceful, secure and equitable world can be attained.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak urged nations to reclaim the centre and moral high ground from extremists who had somehow hijacked the international agenda.
This, he added, was a matter of great urgency and should be given priority, for time was not on their side.
“It is time for moderates of all countries and religions to take back the centre, to reclaim the agenda for peace and pragmatism, and to marginalise the extremists,” he said in his inaugural address at the 65th United Nations General Assembly.
Najib urged the building of a “Global Movement of the Moderates” from all faiths to work together to combat extremism that was holding the world hostage with bigotry and bias, and to save the world from sinking into the abyss of despair and depravation.
"Across all religions, we have inadvertently allowed the ugly voices of the periphery to drown out the many voices of reason and common sense.
“We must choose moderation over extremism. We must choose negotiations over confrontation. We must choose to work together and not against each other.”
The rise in Islamophobia, for instance, was affecting the efforts to promote peace and harmony in some parts of the world.
Similarly, attempts to demonise Islam offended 1.5 billion believers and intensified the divide between the Muslim world and the West.
“The real issue is not between Muslims and non-Muslims but between the moderates and extremists of all religions, be they Islam, Christianity or Judaism.”
Najib said in this regard, he was encouraged by a group of American Evangelical Christians that worked hard to prevent the burning of the Quran with the compelling argument that it was un-Christian to do so.
They were examples of moderates who stood up to the extremists who were trying to hijack the universal values of religions.
He also commended President Barack Obama and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for affirming the Cordoba House project, which will include a mosque and a multifaith community centre, to be built near Ground Zero.
The project had been politicised and opposed because of suggestions that the building would celebrate the extremists who were involved in the Sept 11, 2001 attacks in New York and would tarnish the memories of those who had lost their lives.
“All countries should encourage and support initiatives that promote mutual respect and peaceful co-existence, and reject the extremists who divide us with issues that have, in the past, brought misery and hatred.”
Najib said Malaysia, for example, with its multiracial, multireligious, multicultural and democratic society, benefited from its diversity.
Although Islam was the official religion, religious practices and houses of worship coexisted in harmony.
Malaysia, which was at the crossroads of major civilisations and religions, would be well-poised to play a part in promoting religious understanding, harmony and tolerance.
Najib said he introduced 1Malaysia as a philosophy and vision that sought to bring Malaysians together by accepting diversity as a source of greater unity.
The prime minister also reaffirmed Malaysia’s unwavering support for the United Nations and the multilateral principles, and that all nations, no matter how large or small, rich or poor, strong or weak, have a common responsibility to create a better world.
The challenge of ensuring a just, equitable and durable peace could only be met with constructive engagement and dialogue.
He said Malaysia was encouraged by the efforts of the Obama administration, among others, in seeking a comprehensive and lasting solution to the Palestinian-Israeli issue.
For a resolution however, he said, among others, Israel must stop building settlements in disputed territories, Palestinians of all factions must unite, and all parties must eschew violence and ensure the protection of civilians and respect for international humanitarian and human rights law.
On international trade, he said the World Trade Organisation remained relevant and Malaysia believed that the Doha Round of multilateral talks must return to its original objectives to ensure free, fair and equitable trade.
Read more: Najib urges world’s moderates to work together to over come extremists http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/Najiburgesworld__8217_smoderatestoworktogethertoovercomeextremists/Article/#ixzz10ncJRTir
2. 3. Malaysiakini (http://www.malaysiakini.com)
Help Najib to overcome his 'cartoon-o-phobia', 26 September 2010
‘Najib, don't forget to tell Obama that the word 'Allah' is not allowed to be used by (bumiputera) Christians for prayers in Malaysia.'
Najib offers to help Obama on Islamophobia
Fairness for all: This is the joke of the century. Malaysians themselves suffer from Islamophobia because of the stupid things the religious authorities do, such as snatching dead bodies, being racist and fanatics, etc. And you claim that Islam guarantees the rights of non-Muslims? First put things right in your own country, then talk about making others understand.
Cry for Malaysia: For someone to place his faith in your help, you need to have credibility. In this case, we are talking about credibility in the eyes of the entire American people, not just US President Barack Obama. Is Najib Razak's credibility able to withstand America's scrutiny?
Hamisu: Najib does not have the credibility to 'market' Islam to Obama. If he were to look in his own backyard of Malaysia, he'll know the government does not practice what it preaches about equality.
Anonymous: Islamophobia is here in Malaysia, just in case you forget, Najib. How about Zunar's Cartoon-o-phobia? Are you and Rosmah Mansor having any phobia about it? If not, why arrest Zunar?
By the way, please remember to tell Obama that the word 'Allah' is not allowed to be used by (bumiputera) Christians for prayers here in Malaysia.
DOC: Is this the same Najib who tried and is trying to ban the use of the word 'Allah' by Christians in Malaysia when leading Islamic scholars internationally have defended the Christian use of 'Allah'.Is this the same Najib that instigated Malay Muslims to protest openly against the court's decision to allow the use of 'Allah' by Christians leading to the burning of churches? Is this the same Najib, who as the leader of a party called Umno, openly practises racial and religious discrimination?
Is this the same Najib who uses Islam indiscriminately for political mileage? Seriously, is this the same Najib who wants to help Obama tackle Islamophobia in US?
Stark irony in Mahathir's diatribe
Rolls-Royce: We read condemnation of Dr Mahathir Mohamad everywhere here. But don't be too sure, my friends. Why do you think Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia has conferred him an honorary degree?
Immediately, he was given the credibility and another platform to spit his venom. Never mind most universities in Malaysia are going down the gutter, but the fact remains that there are enough people out there - people holding top positions and making key decisions - who are supportive of him.
It shows there are many in the establishment today who are the beneficiaries of racism and cronyism. He also appealed to the raw instinct of fear and insecurity of ordinary Malay-Muslims who enjoy no benefits but are mere victims of state-sponsored indoctrination.
Public universities are state-funded. Shall we then question why the university has invited a known racist to spread falsehoods among the young?
Kunta Kinte: I am a Malay and I don't mind having a non-Malay PM as long as he can get rid of all the corruption cases in Malaysia, improve our judiciary, bring better management of the police force, guarantee freedom of speech, etc.
If the new non-Malay PM does not perform and is racist against the Malays, we Malays can always get back together and make sure we only vote for only a Malay party in the following general election.
The point is, let's give it a try. Corruption is so bad in this country, what more can we lose by having a non-Malay PM?
Black Mamba: What's wrong with having a Chinese Muslim PM to steer the country through a truly vibrant 1Malaysian path to economic recovery when an Indian Muslim had run it aground economically and socially the last 22 years?
Police after Teo Nie Ching now
Inspektor Klueso: You can rape, mug, rob, murder (many times) with impunity in this country because the law enforcers are too busy arresting and interrogating cartoonists and MPs for venturing into places of worship not of their own beliefs. What have we come to?
Bertrand Russell: During the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), a non-believer urinated on the pavement of the prayer hall. His followers were very angry and went to see the Prophet to complain. After listening to their story, he told them to forgive the non-believer and told them to wash up the place.
That was how forgiving the Prophet was. Fast forward to 2010, a person is invited into the prayer hall, the Selangor Islamic Council suspends the committee and issues Teo Nie Ching a caution for addressing the gathering at the surau. Where is the love, compassion and forgiveness in today's world?
CarL: Quite simple, if you treat religion as part of politics, then don't throw stones. After all, you live in a glass house. No one said Teo did not do what she did for the sake of politics, and the Muslims have every right to ask questions.
If she entered my church and she being not a Catholic, we would nevertheless welcome her. But if she is there for political reasons, not just the Muslims, but even Catholics will be annoyed. The DAP has a very uncouth way, even warped way, of practising their politics.
Anonymous: Quite simply, what she did was not against any law or any fatwa. She was targeted because she was from DAP. Pictures of past incidences where other ruling coalition members indulging in the same has been circulating on the Internet, but the police seem to be selectively blinkered.
The police have become a political tool and have been shamelessly so. That's where the problem lies. Now extend the same to the Selangor Islamic Affairs Council and the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department which made up the ruling that non-Muslims cannot enter the prayer hall (you see, they know it can't be a fatwa because they'd have to provide syariah reasoning for it and they can't - because it does not exist) you will see how our civil service has been politicised by Umno/BN.
Albert: On Sept 13, Ismail Omar took office as the new IGP and pledged to give his best in the service of the people.
The police started investigating the case of Serdang MP Teo Nie Ching's presence in a surau last month. However, they refused to tell her under which act she is being investigated for. They also didn't want to give her a copy of the police report lodged.
In terms of service to the people, how does the new IGP reconcile his pledge with what is actually happening?
Satinah Osman: This is surely the characteristics of BN and Umno, and Najib cannot swear that this harassment is not without his connivance. Oh, to what depths of depravity Umno and BN can go to cling on to power that seems to be slipping out of their hands. These are the sort of things that irritate the rakyat and put the BN in a bad situation.
Everyone knows that every word and every promise made by BN leaders are lies and blatant lies that will never be fulfilled till the end. All sorts of gimmicks are laid out before the public daily expecting the public to be naive fools to swallow hook, line and sinker the rubbish that is spewed out.
The Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) must be feeling that it is carrying out a great James Bond job. With 'Tilam' Musa Hassan gone, things hopefully would have changed. But what can one do? The evil is already fully entrenched in the very soul of both PDRM and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
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3. Union of Catholic Asian News (http://www.ucanews.com)
Malaysians fear Qur’an burning stunt fallout , 9 September 2010
by ucanews.com reporters, Kuala Lumpur and Penang
The US embassy’s deputy political counselor receives a memorandum from the Youth Wing of the Council of Churches of Malaysia
Malaysian Christians have condemned the planned burning of the Qur’an by a US pastor, warning it could worsen already strained Christian-Muslim relations in the predominantly Muslim country.
“We are left with a … question as to how a pastor fails to see that the burning of the Holy Book of the Muslims … goes against everything that the Holy Book of the Christians, the Bible, teaches,” remarked Catholic Church worker Martin Jalleh.
He was referring to the plan of Terry Jones, pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, to hold an International Burn a Koran Day on Sept. 11 to commemorate the 2001 attacks in the US.
If Jones “considers the Muslims his enemies, then Jesus says in the Bible: “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you,” said Jalleh.
The planned act “is morally wrong,” said Gregory Warrier, a lay leader at Penang’s cathedral. “It will definitely affect the already strained relations between Christians and Muslims” in Malaysia.
Ties between the two communities became strained after a high court in 2009 allowed the Catholic weekly, Herald, to use the word “Allah” to refer to God in its Malay-language section.
Catholic writer Anil Netto described Jones’ intended act as “abhorrent.”
“It negates the spirit of dialogue and peace that all Christians should practice and uphold,” he said.
Meanwhile on Sept. 8, members of the Youth Wing of the Council of Churches of Malaysia handed a memorandum to the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur, urging the US government to stop the planned Qur’an burning.
The memorandum urged the US government and the UN to turn Sept. 11 “into an international day of reconciliation.”
A CCM statement said the embassy’s deputy political counselor, Jeremy Nathan, assured the group that the US government is taking the matter very seriously.
4. MySinchew (http://www.mysinchew.com)
The Quran-burning fiasco, 11 September 2010
It certainly is a big relief that the insane threat by the loony American charismatic Pastor Terry Jones of the obscure Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, to burn 200 copies of the Quran on Saturday 11 September 2010 has been aborted.
The worldwide widespread consequence of such a dastardly act is certainly inconceivable if it is actually carried out by the fanatical pastor and his 50-member strong congregation.
Jones, 58, is the infamous author of the anti-Islam book Islam is of the Devil, a polemic published in 2010, denouncing Islam as a violent religion.
He and his wife Sylvia have been teaching that Islam promotes violence and that Muslims want to impose sharia laws in the United States.
In 2009, Jones posted a signboard outside his church, stating that "Islam is of the Devil". His church members have also sent their children to the school started by the church wearing T-shirts with words stating "Jesus answered: I am the way and the truth and the life; no one goes to the Father except through me. I stand in trust with Dove Outreach Center" on the front of the T-shirt, and "Islam is of the Devil" on the back.
In 2002, Jones was fined US$3,800 by a Cologne court for using a fake doctorate title, one of the very common practices even among some Malaysian pastors, especially those with no tertiary qualifications.
The “International Burn Quran Day” promoted by Jones has received widespread condemnations, from US President Barack Obama to our own Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak. The leading world Christian organizations, such as the Vatican and the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), and prominent Christian leaders have also denounced the lunatic action of Jones and his church.
In Malaysia, among the first to voice its reproof and condemnation of the matter is the Council of Churches Malaysia (CCM), the coordinating umbrella body of the major denominations such as the Methodist, Anglican, Presbyetrian, Luthuran, etc.
The Rev Dr Thomas Philips, president of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST), has also expressed reprehension with the Jones fiasco, saying that “this kind of action is not in the teachings of any religion.”
National Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF) of Malaysia chairman Pastor Eu Hong Seng has also condemned the action as insensitive and immature. The NECF is the umbrella body of almost all the conservative and evangelical churches in the country.
The church Jones pastors is known for its support of the Israeli cause, and is said to be associated with the Christian Zionist movement which wants to rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem on the Temple Mount site where the sacred Muslim Dome of the Rock and the El-Aksa Mosque are located.
Any attempt to reclaim the land and rebuild the temple will definitely cause a worldwide uprising of the Muslims, as to the Muslims, the Dome of the Rock is sacred as it the venue where the Prophet Mohammad is said to have ascended to heaven.
The Christian Zionist movement, basically a fundamentalist anti-Islam movement, is gaining support from many conservative Christians, especially those biblically illiterate who do not know and understand what the Bible actually teaches. And we have many such pastors and church leaders in Malaysia who literally venerate anything Israel or American. Some are even adopting worship styles ala the Jewish temple ceremonies.
The misguided theological stance of such conservative churches, led especially by those with no or little solid biblical and theological education, and influenced by the deceptive American missionaries and teachers, is the basic cause of such gullibility and naïf among many simple guileless Christians.
Such blatantly obstreperous unbiblical and unchristian action by the belligerent Terry Jones and his small congregation has brought about shame, dishonour and ignominy to the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It surely is the height of folly in using the name of God in contempt.
The God of the Christians is the God of love, and it was the Lord Jesus who taught his followers to love their enemies, to turn the other cheek, and not to retaliate with force when assaulted or attacked by force.
Sure, we must stand up for our God-given rights, and to protect our human and civil rights to freedom of worship, expression and speech, assembly, etc. But we need to also recognize and accept the rights of the people of other faiths, too.
The tragic terrorist attack on the USA on 9 September 2001 is not the sanctioned work of the world Muslim community, but the unilateral unauthorized action of a small group of fanatical religious terrorists, and we should not blame all Muslims for it, and seek to hurt and harm them.
Similarly, what the lunatic Jones is doing is not consistent with Christian beliefs and ethics; it is simply his own misguided and mistaken interpretation of biblical teachings, not a representative action on behalf of the world Christian community.
We are living in a very fragile and sensitive society nowadays, and there is no place for religious bigotry, zealotry and fanaticism ala Terry Jones. We cannot have bigoted attitudes, and practise intolerance towards those who hold differing views and beliefs from us.
The Quran-burning event may have been cancelled, but the damage to inter-faith relationship, peace, and harmony has already caused a deep wound which will take a long time to heal. And with so many mad Terry Joneses trying to evangelize people of other faiths by unethical methods and questionable means, and provoking followers of other religions, especially islam, by their crazy schemes, the world is surely becoming a very unhappy place to live in.
The only way to win adherents to one’s faith is not to run down other faiths, or by compulsion, but to show by our life and lifestyle the authenticity, genuineness, and credibility of our own faith.
Christians in Malaysia must take a united vocal and visible public stand to condemn the Jones fiasco. Surely, we need to speak the truth in love, and to stand up and be counted for God in this critical time like ours.
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