Catholic Paper In Malaysia Wins Initial Court Victory

In Malaysia, the Catholic newspaper The Herald has won an initial victory in its challenge to a government claim that it may not use "Allah" as a synonym for God in its Malay-language reporting. Today's International Herald Tribune reports that High Court Judge Lau Bee Lan rejected the prosecutor's claim that the challenge is frivolous. The government argues that use of "Allah" by Christians might confuse Muslims. The Herald says that "Allah" is an Arabic word that has been used more generally for centuries to mean "God" in Malay. (See prior related posting.) In a separate case, the Sabah Evangelical Church of Borneo has also filed suit after officials last year banned its import of books containing the word "Allah".