Malaysia Charged With Persecuting Sky Kingdom Sect

Human Rights Watch yesterday strongly criticized Malaysian authorities for their prosecution of the Sky Kingdom religious sect. Sky Kingdom was founded by Ayah Pin, who claims to be the reincarnation of the holy figures of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam. The community was one of 22 declared as “deviant sects of Islam” by the Malaysian government last month. Officials from the land office, state religious affairs department, and the police have demolished its religious structures—including a giant teapot. 58 members of the sect who have been arrested will appear today before a Shariah court on charges of practicing a “deviant religion”. They do not have legal defense counsel and have not had the opportunity to prepare a defense.