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Tiantian Liu,

Correspondent (Asia: Far East)

 

KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian Appeals court have overturned the decision of a lower court in 2009 and banned the word “Allah” for the use of non-Muslim citizens to describe God in the country.

It was a local Catholic newspaper that triggered the ruling. The Herald, had been printing the word “Allah” to describe the Christian God in Malay languages, until the government deemed it was illegal and might cause religious confusion in 2008.

The Herald sued the government on the grounds of limiting the free speech, and the lower court had allowed them to continue using the word. However, the lower court’s decision had caused a number of inter-faith clashes in the country including arson attacks against churches and mosques. The government, thus, appealed the case to the Appeals Court. Announcing the change, the judge said: “It is my judgment that the possible and most probable threat to Islam, in the context of this country, is the propagation of other religions to the followers of Islam.”

After losing the case, the editor of The Herald, Father Lawrence Andrew, said: “It is a retrograde step in the development of law in relation to the fundamental liberty of religious minorities”, and confirmed that he will appeal the case to Malaysia’s highest court.

In fact, as the lower court rule overturned, it is not only the word “Allah”, but also 25 additional Islamic religious vocabulary were barred from the using either orally or in writing by the non-Muslim citizen. The implantation of this new regulation would have a significant impact on the daily lives of many in Malaysia. The Christian Bible in Malay language would have to be re-translated thoroughly. School pupils going to the state institutions would have to avoid most of the Islamic religious vocabulary when they talk to their Muslim friends. Even the national anthem of Malaysia has the word “Allah” in its lyrics. This means it is almost impossible and even ridiculous to enforce the appeals court’s decision.

This growing Islam fundamentalism in Malaysia is alarming as it’s backed by the current government. Instead of promoting a racial, inter-faith harmony in the country, the politicians encourage an “us-versus-them” mentality among the public as well as making populist policies to garner votes from the Muslim voters as they constitute 60% of the country’s population. In Middle East and many other Muslim countries, people of other faiths are able to use the word “Allah”.

Image Courtesy: Vin Crosbie (http://www.flickr.com/photos/vincrosbie/368364600/)